South African police arrested 95 Libyans on Friday in a raid on a farm that appeared to have been converted into a military training base.
The raid took place in the morning near White River in Mpumalanga province, about 360 kilometres east of Johannesburg, AFP reported.
“The site, which was originally supposed to be a training camp for a security company, was apparently converted into a military training base,” a police statement said.
The statement explained that “the 95 individuals who were arrested are all Libyans and are currently being interrogated by the relevant authorities.”
Scenes broadcast by Newsroom Africa TV showed a heavy security presence around the site, which includes military tents and sandbags.
The scenes showed the detainees in civilian clothes and they were distributed into groups.
The men entered the country in April and said they were training to become security guards, Mpumalanga provincial security minister Jackie Maisi told local media.
He pointed out that they “violated their visas.”
The authorities are working to deport them to their country.
“You can see it’s a military base,” the minister said, adding that police were checking information about other similar camps in the area.
Residents’ complaints
“The site was said to be a training camp for a security company but it appears to be a military base,” police spokesman Donald Mdluli told AFP.
“The owner of the security company is a South African citizen,” Mdluli said. Police are investigating whether he has the license to turn the site into a military base.
He pointed out that the South African authorities will communicate with the Libyan authorities regarding the group, most of whom were said to be student visa holders.
“We suspect they have committed serious criminal acts because we have received several complaints from residents of the area about several cases including rape,” Mdluli added.
He added, “We are not currently in the process of arresting them, but rather interrogating them and they will be investigated regarding any criminal activities.”
The Libyan Government of National Unity denied, on Friday, “categorically and clearly” that this group is affiliated with it.
The internationally recognized government said in a statement that it “has tasked the military prosecutor and the Libyan embassy accredited to South Africa to communicate with the relevant authorities to follow up on the circumstances of this case.”
She expressed her readiness to “participate in the investigations to uncover the circumstances (of what happened) and the parties behind it.”
The raid was carried out two days after authorities received intelligence about the site in the province bordering Mozambique and Eswatini.
Most of the men did not speak English, and it was not immediately clear whether they belonged to any group, Mdluli said. No weapons or banned materials were immediately found at the site, but the search was still underway, he told AFP.
“We take any threat to the security and stability of our province and country very seriously,” said Mpumalanga Police Commissioner Major General Zeph Mkwanazi in a statement.
But he pointed out that there is no imminent danger threatening the safety of the area’s residents.
South Africa’s borders are porous and experts say rampant corruption and crime have made it a breeding ground for criminal organizations.
Security problems have led to a huge rise in the security companies sector.
The country has more than 15,000 security companies employing about 2.8 million guards and providing armed response and training services, according to the private security sector regulator.
There are also fears that the country could become a base for extremist financing in Africa.
On Tuesday, the US Treasury Department announced sanctions on two members of the Islamic State group based in South Africa.
The ministry said that the two elements practice theft and kidnapping for ransom to collect money, and it is suspected that one of them is a trainer in the organization.
Since the fall of Muammar Gaddafi’s regime in 2011, Libya has been witnessing conflicts and divisions, and its affairs are run by two competing governments: the first in Tripoli (west), headed by Abdul Hamid Dabaiba and recognized by the United Nations, and the second in the east, supported by Parliament and Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar.
Although the past four years have witnessed relative calm in oil-rich Libya, there are periodic clashes between countless armed groups.
Most of these groups are allied either with the UN-recognised Tripoli government or with parallel authorities based in the east.