CAPE TOWN, April 12– South Africa intercepted nearly 5,000 illegal travelers during the 2026 Easter period, the Border Management Authority (BMA) said on Sunday.
Briefing the media on its 10-day Easter period operation at the country’s borders from March 31 to April 9, BMA Commissioner Michael Masiapato said 4,763 travelers were intercepted for attempting to enter or exit the country illegally.
Of them, 3170 people were without proper documentation.
“About 3,170 were undocumented persons, 998 were undesirables, and 595 were found inadmissible into the country for various reasons,” Masiapato said.
He said the majority of those intercepted were Basotho nationals, followed by Mozambicans, Zimbabweans, Swazis, Malawians, and Ethiopians.
He added that 138 facilitators were arrested and handed over to the South African Police Service, where they were charged with aiding and abetting illegal entry into the country, in violation of the Immigration Act.
The BMA commissioner also noted that the total illegal crossings dropped by 24 percent, compared to 6,253 recorded during the 2025 Easter period.
“The BMA attributes this reduction to enhanced enforcement measures, including the deployment of drones, the ongoing arrest of facilitators, the destruction of makeshift boats, and the removal of anchors and ropes used for illegal crossings along the Limpopo and Caledon rivers,” Masiapato said. (Namibia Daily News/Xinhua)
