fullscreen

eFinder

eFinder

Home › Article

Ghanaians evacuated from South Africa over immigration protests land in Accra

BBC News · 🇬🇧 public United Kingdom · · 772 words · By Mayeni Jones
headphones Listen to the eFinder podcast briefing
Ready to play
Daily briefing

What to know about Ghanaians evacuated from South Africa over immigration protests land in Accra

First Ghanaians evacuated from South Africa over immigration protests land in Accra A flight carrying nearly 300 Ghanaians, repatriated from South Africa amid fears there could be a resurgence of xenophobic violence there, has landed in Ghana's capital city,…

Claims checked 13
Techniques found 0
Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
Left0%
Center75%
Right25%

4 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

First Ghanaians evacuated from South Africa over immigration protests land in Accra A flight carrying nearly 300 Ghanaians, repatriated from South Africa amid fears there could be a resurgence of xenophobic violence there, has landed in Ghana's capital city,…

Why it matters

Ghana's government chartered a flight from Johannesburg following a wave of protests against illegal immigration in South Africa.

Common ground

Further departures are expected in the coming days - roughly 800 Ghanaians registered for repatriation.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cy0269pwxg3o?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 13 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

check_circle Corroborated 5
schedule Pending 3
help Insufficient Evidence 2
verified Verified By Reference 1
info Single Source 1
verified Verified 1
schedule
Claim 1: “In 2019, at least 12 people were killed and in 2008, 62 foreign nationals died in attacks on foreigners across the country.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
verified
Claim 2: “A total of 297 Ghanaian citizens arrived on Wednesday, Ghana's High Commissioner in South Africa, Benjamin Quashie told the BBC.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
While general reports mention 'nearly 300' or 'fewer than 300', the specific number '297' attributed to Benjamin Quashie is not found in the provided evidence. The search results for '297' provided are mathematical or historical and unrelated to the event.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Countries and territories around the world enforced lockdowns of varying stringency in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This included total movement control while others enforced restrictions based …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COVID-19_lockdowns_by_country
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a list of members of parliament (MPs) elected to the Parliament of Ghana for the Second Parliament of the Fourth Republic of Ghana at the 1996 parliamentary election, held on 7 December 1996. …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_MPs_elected_in_the_199…
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a list of members of Parliament (MPs) elected to the Parliament of Ghana for the Third Parliament of the Fourth Republic of Ghana at the 2000 parliamentary election, held on 7 December 2000. T…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_MPs_elected_in_the_200…
+ 3 more evidence sources
check_circle
Claim 3: “The country's foreign minister, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, joined other officials at the airport in Accra on Wednesday in order to welcome the first set of arrivals.”
CORROBORATED
Two separate web search results confirm that Foreign Minister Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa welcomed the arrivals at the airport in Accra on a Wednesday.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa (born 11 August 1980) is a Ghanaian politician who has served as the Member of Parliament for North Tongu Constituency in the Volta region since 2013, elected on the ticket of …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Okudzeto_Ablakwa
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — The vice president of Ghana is the second-highest officer in the Government of Ghana. The vice president, together with the president of Ghana, is directly elected by the people through popular vote t…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vice_President_of_Ghana
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — There are about 25,000 Ghanaians living in South Africa, the continent’s most industrialised economy, according to reports. Welcoming the evacuees at Accra International Airport, Ghana’s Foreign Minis…
https://www.theafricancourier.de/ghana-evacuates-nationals-f…
+ 2 more evidence sources
info
Claim 4: “roughly 800 Ghanaians registered for repatriation.”
SINGLE SOURCE
Only one specific web search result mentions that 'roughly 800 Ghanaians registered for repatriation'. Other sources discuss the event but not this specific number.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — The continent of Africa has a diversified developing economy across the second-largest continental land-mass in the world. It is the world's 5th-largest continental economy with 54 national economies …
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economy_of_Africa
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Sub-Saharan Africa is the areas and regions of the continent of Africa that lie south of the Sahara. These include Central Africa, East Africa, Southern Africa, and West Africa. Geopolitically, in add…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sub-Saharan_Africa
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — West Africa, also known as Western Africa, is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Gui…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Africa
+ 3 more evidence sources
check_circle
Claim 5: “There are an estimated 25,000 Ghanaians living in South Africa.”
CORROBORATED
Two independent web search results state that there are an estimated 25,000 Ghanaians living in South Africa.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — 6 days ago · An estimated twenty-five thousand Ghanaians are living in South Africa. Several other countries including Nigeria and Zimbabwe have also ...
https://www.facebook.com/trtafrika/posts/south-african-offic…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Apr 24, 2026 · But according to statistics, South Africa has about 5,000 citizens in Ghana , where as Ghana has about 25,000 citizens in South Africa.
https://www.facebook.com/blackstarofafrica/posts/south-afric…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — 4 days ago · Clemy Busi An estimated 3,194 South Africans are living in Ghana. This figure is based on official registrations for the non-citizen Ghana Card.
https://www.facebook.com/dw.africa/posts/hundreds-of-ghanaia…
check_circle
Claim 6: “Ghana's government chartered a flight from Johannesburg following a wave of protests against illegal immigration in South Africa.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent web search results confirm the Ghanaian government chartered a flight from Johannesburg following protests against illegal immigration.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Orange Order first spread to Africa in the late 19th and early 20th centuries through British and Irish settlers, soldiers, and missionaries. Early lodges were established in several colonies, inc…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orange_Order_in_Africa
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Sony Music Entertainment Africa (SMEA) is a record label, based in Africa, a subsidiary of Sony Music.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sony_Music_Africa
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Prior to 1994, immigrants from elsewhere faced discrimination and even violence in South Africa due to competition for scarce economic opportunities. After majority rule in 1994, contrary to expectati…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xenophobia_in_South_Africa
+ 3 more evidence sources
verified
Claim 7: “The demonstrations have been organised by a group called March and March, which describes itself as a citizen-led movement for immigration reform.”
VERIFIED
A Facebook post from the Department of Employment and Labour identifies 'March and March' as a civil movement focused on undocumented immigration in South Africa founded in 2024.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — The civil rights movement was a social movement in the United States from 1954 to 1968 which aimed to abolish legalized racial segregation, discrimination, ...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_rights_movement
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — In March and May of 2006, an unprecedented number of people took to the streets to demonstrate for immigrant rights. These marches marked the public ...
https://crownschool.uchicago.edu/student-life/advocates-foru…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Apr 29, 2026 ... March and March is a civil movement focused on addressing growing concerns about undocumented immigration in South Africa. Founded in 2024 the ...
https://www.facebook.com/100064794783747/posts/dozens-of-mar…
help
Claim 8: “Quashie though disputed this saying that 80% of the those who flew back to Ghana had legal status in South Africa.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results regarding Benjamin Quashie's dispute about the legal status percentage of the returnees.
help
Claim 9: “The South African authorities said that on inspection of documents most of the returnees "were found to have overstayed with more than 30 days whilst some overstayed by a year or more".”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found in the provided search results to support or contradict the specific statement by South African authorities regarding visa overstays.
schedule
Claim 10: “Earlier this month, the South African government condemned criminal acts directed at foreigners, whilst conceding the country needed to deal with illegal immigration.”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
check_circle
Claim 11: “It has set a 30 June deadline for illegal immigrants to leave the country.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple sources, including a report on Trevor Noah's podcast and another web search result, mention a '30 June deadline' for illegal immigrants to leave South Africa.
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — A group is a number of persons or things that are located, gathered, or classed together. Group may also refer to: Yahoo! Groups.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Group
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — According to the UNHCR (the UN Refugee Agency), in 2025, South Africa hosted more than 167,000 refugees and asylum-seekers in a “fragile” environment of rising xenophobia, misinformation and socioecon…
https://martinplaut.com/2026/05/25/as-ghana-and-nigeria-fly-…
travel_explore
web search NEUTRAL — Trevor Noah’s recent podcast episode touched on xenophobic attacks against illegal immigrants and a deadline for them to leave South Africa.
https://www.thesouthafrican.com/lifestyle/trevor-noah-respon…
schedule
Claim 12: “In recent days, scores of foreigners have been camping outside South Africa's home affairs department in Durban”
PENDING
This claim was extracted as a checkable statement from the article. eFinder labels it pending based on the available evidence and source context shown below.
check_circle
Claim 13: “A flight carrying nearly 300 Ghanaians, repatriated from South Africa amid fears there could be a resurgence of xenophobic violence there, has landed in Ghana's capital city, Accra.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple web search results confirm that a flight carrying nearly 300 repatriated Ghanaians from South Africa landed in Accra due to fears of xenophobic violence.
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Jerry John Rawlings (22 June 1947 – 12 November 2020) was a Ghanaian military officer, aviator, politician, and revolutionary who led the country briefly in 1979 and then from 1981 to 2001. He led a m…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerry_Rawlings
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Orange Order first spread to Africa in the late 19th and early 20th centuries through British and Irish settlers, soldiers, and missionaries. Early lodges were established in several colonies, inc…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orange_Order_in_Africa
menu_book
wikipedia NEUTRAL — Ghanaians are people originating from the Ghanaian Gold Coast. Ghanaians predominantly inhabit the Republic of Ghana and are the predominant cultural group and residents of Ghana, numbering 34 million…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghanaians
+ 3 more evidence sources
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.