Women with babies , personal belongings, police and security filled parts of commercial street as Officials from Home Affairs and Police officers evicted hundreds of residents of privately owned property in the Cape Town Central Business District.

The residents have been involved in an ongoing legal battle with the landlord but the court ruled in favour of the landlord.

Just after sunrise the Sherif of the Court and a large police and home affairs contingent entered the building announcing that resident should vacate.

Whilst goods were carried out, Home Affairs officials checked the documentation of the residents. Those without documentation were arrested and loaded into vehicles to be processed further.

One Resident Benjamin Bemba claims that this action by the authorities constitute a genocide and female resident fears as they will now be forced to sleep on the street as they have nowhere to go.

According to James Chapman from the Scalabrini Centre in Cape Town the process of arresting refugees is an illegal one and refugees should be given the opportunity to apply for the necessary permits and documentation.

At the end of 2021, South Africa was home to more than two hundred and forty thousand refugees from mainly African countries.