A Ghanaian tailor has been shot dead in his shop in Cape Town, South Africa, during violent protests targeting foreign nationals, the Ghana High Commission in South Africa has confirmed.

The victim, who is said to have lived and worked in South Africa for about 20 years, was reportedly inside his shop when he was shot on Tuesday, June 30, 2026, as demonstrations linked to a nationwide anti-immigration campaign turned violent in parts of the country.

He is survived by three children, with the eldest reportedly 10 years old.

The Ghana High Commission says arrangements are currently underway to repatriate the body to Ghana to enable burial and other necessary family rites.

The incident forms part of a wider wave of unrest tied to growing anti-immigration sentiments and protests in South Africa, which have in some instances escalated into violence against foreign nationals and their businesses.

Tuesday's demonstrations were organised around a self-declared "30 June deadline" set by the civic group March and March, led by Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma, first announced in December 2025 as notice for undocumented foreigners to leave South Africa.

The group's demonstrations spread nationwide through 2026 and have been linked to xenophobic and violent actions against foreigners. More than 20 civic groups took part in protests across all nine provinces on the day, with marches through Johannesburg's CBD in which several people suspected by protesters of being foreign nationals were confronted by crowds, though a small group was shielded from assault and escorted to safety by bystanders.

South African authorities had braced for the deadline with a large security deployment. The government committed R600 million (about $36.4 million) to a security operation, with police leave cancelled and the South African National Defence Force placed on standby.

President Cyril Ramaphosa had earlier welcomed assurances that the marches would remain peaceful while warning that violence "would not be justified under any circumstances."

The unrest has not been limited to Tuesday's protests.

Rights groups have tracked weeks of xenophobic attacks blamed on vigilante activity linked to the anti-immigrant movement, including the deaths of Mozambican nationals in Mossel Bay and a Malawian man beaten to death in Pietermaritzburg following public incitement.

At least two people had already died from the xenophobic attacks in the weeks leading up to the deadline, prompting several African governments to send aircraft to repatriate their nationals fleeing the violence.

Authorities in South Africa have not yet released full details on the circumstances surrounding the shooting or confirmed any arrests in connection with the incident.

The Ghanaian mission has assured that it is engaging relevant authorities to ensure full investigations into the killing and to support the bereaved family during the repatriation process.