The Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) on Migration says over 40 000 illegal foreign nationals have been arrested since the beginning of 2026, with over 7 400 arrests made in the past month alone.

The IMC, led by the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development, Mmamoloko Kubayi, held a media briefing on Sunday, 14 June, to give an update on government’s efforts to tackle illegal immigration and strengthen border security.

The IMC was constituted by President Cyril Ramaphosa, following his address to the nation last Sunday, 7 June.

Various departments, including Home Affairs, Small Business Development, Defence, International Relations and Cooperation, Employment and Labour, Basic Education, Higher Education and Training, Transport, Trade, Industry and Competition, Social Development, as well as the South African Police Service (SAPS), form part of the IMC.

Addressing the media, Kubayi said a lot of work has been done to implement the various interventions that the President announced in his address, which include strengthening border security and stamping out corruption in the immigration system.

Highlighting some of the interventions, Kubayi said the Border Management Authority (BMA) has deployed advanced technologies, including drones and body-worn cameras, and established additional checkpoints along key transport routes leading to major border crossings.

Through intelligence-led operations, roadblocks, compliance inspections, and multidisciplinary actions involving various government departments, Kubayi said the government continues to identify, arrest and process those who are in the country unlawfully.

Business premises and communities in Western Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng are also being visited to respond to community concerns regarding the alleged transgression of immigration and labour laws by employers.

Kubayi also reiterated that violence directed towards foreign nationals would not be tolerated. A total of 143 people have been arrested for inciting violence since anti-illegal immigration protests erupted.

Also speaking at the briefing, Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber said that they are moving to cancel thousands of visas in the country, including just over 2,000 study visas.

WATCH | Minister of Home Affairs Dr Leon Schreiber says that they are moving to cancel thousands of visas in the country, including just over 2,000 study visas. pic.twitter.com/x6IrLtLPDA

— SABC News (@SABCNews) June 14, 2026

Kubayi has also urged all undocumented foreign nationals to comply with South Africa’s laws and request to be repatriated.

City law enforcement officers have been praised for their speedy response that saw a five-year-old girl saved from hijackers.

The incident unfolded in Blue Downs on 21 May, when suspects held the father of little Fatiya at gunpoint, as they hijacked his vehicle with Fatiya still inside. According to reports, the father and daughter had just returned home from the shops.

“The hijackers forcibly removed her father from the vehicle and fled the scene with the scared little girl still inside the vehicle,” said Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security, JP Smith.

Her father managed to flag law enforcement officers who were working nearby, alerting them to the incident. They went after the vehicle. Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security, JP Smith, named Officer Chimoney Abrahams as one of the officers who acted immediately.

“The officers immediately fled in the direction that the hijacked vehicle was last seen driving and contacted their colleagues for assistance.”

It’s believed a suspect left Fatiya on the side of the road, abandoned the vehicle, and hid in a nearby bush in an attempt to escape. That suspect was caught and arrested.

“Officer Abrahams spotted the suspect trying to remove his clothes and apprehended the 32-year-old male. He was subsequently handed over to SAPS.”

Fatiya was later found and safely returned to her family.

This past weekend, Smith, alongside Fatiya and her family handed certificates of appreciation to the officers involved in the operation.

“It was heartwarming to witness Fatiya’s family expressing their gratitude to the officers. Their swift action in apprehending the suspect and safeguarding this little girl is commendable and testament to the ethos we try to promote in the Safety and Security Directorate,” said Smith.

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Three Mozambican nationals are now in the dock following the brutal murder of a retired Mossel Bay couple in the Kruger National Park, with South Africa set to apply for their extradition so they can face the charges in a local court.

The police and South African government officials have praised the arrests, saying it highlights the importance of cross-border cooperation to fight crime.

Following the murder of Ernst and Dina Marais in the northern Pafuri section of the Park on 22 May, a large-scale manhunt was launched for the suspects.

The first two suspects were arrested in Mozambique on 1 and 2 June, and the couplés vehicle was also recovered.

The third suspect managed to evade arrest and fled into Zimbabwe.

But on Friday, 12 June, his luck ran out, and he was caught through a collaboration between SAPS, SANPARKS, the Criminal Investigation Directorate of the Republic of Mozambique (SERNIC) and the Zimbabwe Republic Police.

The 26-year-old Mozambican national, Macandze Lionel da Marta, will now be deported to Mozambique to face murder charges with the two other suspects.

The Acting National Police Commissioner, Puleng Dimpane, says these arrests are a clear demonstration that criminals cannot evade justice by crossing borders.

“This successful arrest underscores the strength of regional policing cooperation. Through SARPCCO, SADC member countries continue to share intelligence, coordinate operations and support one another in ensuring that criminals have no safe haven within our region. Our partnership with SERNIC and the Zimbabwean Police Service, once again demonstrates that united law enforcement efforts are more effective in combating transnational crime.”

SARPCCO stands for the Southern African Regional Police Chiefs Co-operation Organisation. It is the primary regional mechanism for police forces across the Southern African Development Community (SADC) to collaborate on preventing, tracking, and fighting transnational and cross-border crimes.

The Minister of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment, Willie Aucamp, has also applauded the swift arrest of the third suspect.

“I really want to commend the effective and efficient collaborative efforts of the South African Police Service (SAPS), SANParks Rangers, Mozambique’s Criminal Investigation Directorate, and the Gonarezhou National Parks Rangers who effected the arrest of the third suspect and later handed him to the Zimbabwe Police.”

The Minister says the importance of cross-border collaboration in combating crime cannot be understated.

“I’ve said it before: we can achieve so much more if we pool our resources, collaborate and cooperate in fighting cross-border crime.”

He says these arrests should serve as a clear warning to anyone contemplating criminal activity within the Kruger National Park that such actions will be met with the full force of the law.

Aucamp again extended his condolences to the Marais family and vowed that such a tragedy would never happen again in the Kruger National Park.

Calls for the expansion of municipal policing powers have gained renewed momentum in the Western Cape after outgoing provincial police commissioner Thembisile Patekile publicly endorsed giving capable municipal law enforcement agencies greater responsibility in crime-fighting efforts.

Western Cape Premier Alan Winde welcomed the remarks, saying the province has long argued that municipal law enforcement agencies should be granted additional investigative and intelligence-related powers to support the South African Police Service (SAPS).

The call has now also been reinforced by Western Cape MEC for Police Oversight and Community Safety, Anroux Marais, who says the success of the Law Enforcement Advancement Plan (LEAP) demonstrates that local government law enforcement can play a larger role in tackling crime.

According to Marais, murder rates in LEAP deployment areas consistently outperformed the rest of the province during all four reporting quarters of the 2025/26 financial year, recording larger reductions in murders and maintaining downward trends even when provincial figures moved in the opposite direction.

She said recent LEAP operational results further support the case for expanded powers.

Between 27 April and 31 May this year, LEAP officers searched more than 24,800 people and 1,180 houses, conducted 225 roadblocks, searched over 2,500 vehicles, carried out more than 2,500 hotspot patrols, participated in 601 joint operations with SAPS and made 1,046 arrests. Officers also confiscated 15 firearms, 99 rounds of ammunition, significant quantities of drugs, illicit liquor and stolen property.

Marais argued that allowing municipal law enforcement agencies to investigate certain categories of offences arising from these arrests would reduce the burden on SAPS detectives, many of whom are carrying excessive caseloads.

She said offences such as drunken driving, common assault, petty drug crimes and minor property-related offences could be handled at the municipal level, allowing SAPS detectives to focus on gang violence, murders, organised crime syndicates and extortion networks.

Cape Town Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security, JP Smith, echoed those sentiments, describing Patekile’s comments as validation of years of advocacy by the City and the Western Cape Government.

In a social media post, Smith said the City had intentionally built its own investigative capacity by recruiting experienced professionals and developing specialised training programmes through its Public Safety Training College.

He said the City’s more than 6,000 law enforcement personnel are increasingly equipped not only to make arrests but also to assist with investigations, compile quality case dockets and support successful prosecutions.

Smith, however, rejected suggestions that municipal agencies had weakened SAPS by recruiting experienced investigators, arguing that the City had simply filled advertised positions with qualified candidates who wanted to contribute to its public safety mission.

Both Marais and Smith said greater collaboration between national, provincial and local law enforcement agencies would strengthen the criminal justice system and improve public confidence by ensuring that arrests are followed by effective investigations and successful prosecutions.

Marais has now urged Acting Police Minister Firoz Cachalia to fast-track discussions and legislative reforms needed to expand policing powers to municipalities that have demonstrated the necessary capacity, professionalism and accountability.

She said communities cannot afford further delays as the government seeks new ways to address persistent violent crime in the province.

Western Cape police, together with members of the SANDF and other law enforcement partners, say they are maintaining their focus on crime hotspots across the province, with the deployment under Operation Prosper gaining some momentum after 28 arrests in just a week.

The office of the outgoing provincial police commissioner, Thembisile Patekile, says members are piling the pressure on criminals, as evidenced by the integrated operations conducted between 8 and 14 June.

Operations were conducted in Delft, Elsies River, Gugulethu, Harare, Khayelitsha, Kraaifontein, Manenberg, Mfuleni, Mitchells Plain, Muizenberg, Nyanga, Philippi, Philippi East, Samora Machel and Steenberg over the period in question.

The operations included foot and vehicle patrols, vehicle checkpoints, stop-and-search actions, compliance inspections and intelligence-led interventions aimed at preventing crime, disrupting criminal activity and enhancing the visibility of law enforcement in communities affected by serious and violent crime.

More than 500 members, drawn from SAPS, the SANDF, and municipal law enforcement agencies, participated in the operations.

“Their combined efforts resulted in the arrest of 28 suspects on charges including murder, attempted murder, drug-related offences, the illegal possession of a firearm, possession of dangerous weapons, illegal liquor trading and other crimes.”

An assortment of drugs, as well as dangerous weapons, alcohol and cash, suspected to be linked to criminal activity, was also confiscated.

“While arrests and confiscations remain important outcomes, Operation Prosper is equally focused on maintaining a visible law enforcement presence, gathering intelligence, disrupting criminal networks and creating safer environments for residents living in crime-affected communities.”

Patekile says that since the beginning of Operation Prosper in April 2026, some identified hotspots are showing signs of stabilisation, while others continue to require focused intervention.

He says SAPS, together with the SANDF and other law enforcement partners, will continue to conduct intelligence-led operations every week.

“While meaningful progress has been made in certain precincts, sustained operational pressure remains essential to turning the corner in communities still affected by violent crime.”

On 19 and 20 May, Operation Prosper members arrested nine suspects in Rosendal and Delft, uncovering cocaine, tik and mandrax amongst other drugs.

On 30 May, the anti-gang unit, supported by the SANDF, arrested two men in possession of unlicensed firearms and ammunition in two separate incidents in Tafelsig and Mitchells Plain.

One of the men was wanted on two counts of murder and two counts of attempted murder on a case reported earlier in May.

Operation Prosper members have also conducted raids on illegal liquor outlets in Gugulethu.