The same image circulated in July 2024, with similar claims of a “Somalian investor walking the streets of South Africa with a machine gun”.
Somalia, not South Africa
A reverse image search showed that the photo was originally posted in January 2023 on the Facebook account of Somali-based television outlet M24 Somali (archived here).
The account shared it as part of a report that there had been tensions in Las Anod (also known as Laascaanood), a city in a contested region in semi-independent Somaliland.
An AFP journalist in Somalia confirmed it was Las Anod because he recognised the tall building in the background.
The reporter said the photo was likely taken during the initial days of the fighting between the Somaliland administration forces and the local clan militias.
He added that the man in the picture appeared to be a local militia member.
As reported by AFP, Somaliland – which has claimed independence from Somalia since 1991 but has never been recognised internationally – was seen as a beacon of stability in a chaotic region until recently (archived here).
However, political tensions surged, leading to deadly and ongoing violence between Somaliland’s forces and militias loyal to Somalia.
Las Anod straddles a key trade route and is claimed by both Somaliland and neighbouring Puntland, a semi-autonomous state of northeastern Somalia.
A Puntland resident, who asked to remain anonymous for safety reasons, sent AFP a video and pictures of the same street as proof in July 2024.
The tall yellow building seen in both the gun-wielding photo and the July pictures is the Waafi Hotel in Las Anod.
Other matching clues confirming the location include the distinct holey wall pattern of Hotel Dhif — a nearby structure on the left, the large tree, and a tall pole in front of Waafi Hotel.
South African authorities called on social media users to “refrain from spreading such false information as that could instill panic in the community and cause unnecessary tensions”(archived here).
[FAKE NEWS] The @SAPoliceService Management in Gauteng has noted with great concern the picture of a man armed with a rifle and ammunition making the rounds on social media allerging that he is a foreign national walking the streets of Naledi in Soweto.
Soweto, specifically… pic.twitter.com/7VwCU46jHx
— Justice, Crime Prevention and Security (@RSA_JCPS) October 11, 2024
“Soweto, specifically Naledi policing precinct, has had high police visibility since the beginning of the week. Patrols have been intensified in the area and it is unlikely that a person carrying such a weapon could walk the streets without being noticed by the police as well as the community,” the country’s Justice, Crime Prevention and Security unit said in a statement posted on X post on October 11, 2024.
Anti-immigrant sentiment
Despite having one of the world’s highest unemployment rates, South Africa attracts many economic migrants from elsewhere on the continent (archived here).
The influx, coupled with a dim economic outlook, has led to sporadic bursts of anti-immigrant violence in recent years (archived here).
