Two Nigerian nationals have been killed in South Africa within a two day span, Nigeria’s Foreign Ministry said, as tensions between the two countries escalate over anti-immigrant protests and violence targeting foreigners.
The ministry said James Uchechukwu Nwankwo died September 5 following what it described as gruesome interrogation techniques used by South African police officers. Accounts differed on where Nwankwo was killed, with the Foreign Ministry saying the incident occurred in Cape Town, while former Nigerian aviation minister and ambassador designate to South Africa Femi Fani-Kayode stated in a social media post that the killing took place in Johannesburg. That discrepancy in location had not been resolved as of the latest reporting.
Separately, Bishop Taiwo Michael Fakunle was killed at his residence in the Kensington neighborhood of Johannesburg on September 4. The Foreign Ministry’s statement did not identify any suspects or provide a possible motive in his death. South African police did not immediately respond to requests for comment on either killing.
What We Know So Far
The Nigerian Citizens Association South Africa said two suspects gained access to Fakunle’s residence and opened fire on him, shooting him more than seven times, according to the association’s national president, the Rev. Frank Onyekwelu. Onyekwelu said the organization reported the killing to the Nigerian Consulate General in Johannesburg and that a murder case had been opened at Jeppe Police Station. The Consulate General separately confirmed Fakunle was killed by unidentified assailants at his home and called the killing a gruesome murder, urging South African authorities to conduct a comprehensive investigation and prosecute anyone found responsible.
Fani-Kayode said in his statement that Fakunle had received a series of threats before his killers arrived at his home and shot him. He described Fakunle and Nwankwo as the seventh and eighth Nigerians killed in South Africa in 2026 alone, claiming that four of those eight deaths were carried out by South African police officers. He further alleged that more than 100 Nigerians had been killed in South Africa between 2022 and early September, with more than 30 of those deaths attributed to officers of the South African Police Service and the South African National Defence Force. Those figures differ somewhat from an earlier statement by Nigeria’s minister of state for foreign affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye, who said in July that at least 98 Nigerians had been killed since 2022 through mob attacks, hate related violence and extrajudicial killings. The varying totals, cited by different officials at different points in time, had not been reconciled into a single confirmed figure.
Fani-Kayode also raised concern over what he described as a new deadline, set for September 30, by which African nationals including Nigerians have reportedly been told to leave South Africa. He attributed the deadline to South African nongovernmental organizations he described as openly xenophobic and accused those groups of threatening to target nationals who fail to comply. He called on the South African government to protect Nigerians from what he characterized as the excesses of those organizations and to prosecute anyone responsible for threats or violence against Nigerian nationals.
What Authorities Are Saying
Nigerian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Oluwafemi Adeniyi said the killings raise questions about the safety of foreigners in South Africa and about the South African government’s commitment to curbing targeted attacks against them. He accused South African police of exacerbating an already fragile situation.
Fani-Kayode said Nigeria’s patience with the pattern of killings was wearing thin, warning of unspecified consequences if the violence continued, while noting that South Africans living in Nigeria are not targeted or killed by Nigerian citizens or security forces. He called on South Africa to reciprocate that treatment and address Nigeria’s concerns. He also expressed condolences over both deaths.
As of the most recent reporting, there had been no official response from the South African government or the South African Police Service regarding either killing.
Why This Matters
South Africa has long attracted foreign nationals from across the continent, including many Nigerians, drawn by the country’s relative wealth and economic opportunity. At the same time, the country has experienced sporadic outbursts of xenophobic violence, with protesters often blaming foreigners for high unemployment, crime and strain on public services. These latest killings follow a similar pattern from June, when two Nigerians were killed during anti-migrant violence just two days before an unofficial deadline set by protesters for foreigners to leave, one allegedly killed by police officers and the other by unidentified attackers.
The recurring nature of these incidents, now compounded by a new alleged September 30 deadline, suggests a persistent and unresolved pattern of anti-foreigner violence that Nigerian officials say has not been meaningfully addressed through arrests or prosecutions. Fani-Kayode’s pointed observation that no one has been arrested, detained or prosecuted for any of the killings he cited underscores a central grievance driving diplomatic tension between the two countries.
The dispute has already produced concrete diplomatic consequences. Nigeria’s parliament indefinitely suspended official visits and engagements with South Africa on Friday, signaling that the killings have moved beyond individual tragedies into a broader strain on bilateral relations between two of Africa’s most significant economies.
What Happens Next
South African authorities have not publicly responded to either killing, and it remains unclear whether investigations will result in arrests given Nigerian officials’ characterization of a long pattern of unresolved cases. The Nigerian Consulate General has called for a full investigation into Fakunle’s death specifically, though no timeline has been given for that process.
Nigeria’s suspension of official engagements with South Africa is likely to remain in place absent a clear response from Pretoria, and further diplomatic friction appears likely if the alleged September 30 deadline for foreign nationals to leave South Africa proceeds without government intervention. Continued monitoring of violence against Nigerian nationals is expected from both the Nigerian government and Nigerian community organizations operating in South Africa.
Reporting drawn from the Associated Press and Punch Nigeria
