South African police arrested more than 900 ​people during nationwide anti-migrant protests on Tuesday that were ‌mostly peaceful but at times turned violent, with shops looted, police said on Wednesday.

Of 120 marches, 108 were peaceful while 12 required ​police intervention, deputy national police commissioner Tebello Mosikili ​told a press conference, adding that reasons for the ⁠arrests ranged from immigration violations to public violence, harbouring ​undocumented migrants and robbery.

Police said in a separate statement that ​one person was shot dead late on Tuesday in Johannesburg's Alexandra township, where residents were looting informal corner shops known as spaza shops ​owned by foreign nationals.

Police reinforcements were deployed across five ​of the country's nine provinces overnight, while soldiers were sent to Johannesburg's ‌inner-city ⁠Hillbrow neighbourhood, where two people were injured in a shooting.

In the port city of Durban, police opened an inquest over the death of a foreign national who allegedly ​jumped from the ​eighth floor ⁠of a building on the eve of the protests, believing he was being targeted.

Tuesday's ​marches were organised to mark a "deadline" an anti-immigrant ​movement ⁠had set for undocumented migrants to leave South Africa.

The protests followed months of unrest that have drawn international criticism as ⁠foreigners ​have been driven from their homes ​and seen their businesses and property vandalised.