More than 1,000 undocumented migrants arrested at Beitbridge border over Easter
Orrin Singh 22 April 2025 | 9:25 Border Management Authority (BMA)
Beitbridge border
Some of the undocumented migrants intercepted at the Beitbridge border on 21 April 2025. Picture: @TheBMA_SA/X
JOHANNESBURG - More than 1,000 undocumented migrants have been arrested at the Beitbridge border between South Africa and Zimbabwe over the Easter weekend.
The Border Management Authority (BMA) attributed these arrests to their operations using drones.
Earlier in April, the BMA and the Department of Home Affairs announced they'd procured four high-tech drones to combat illegal crossings at the country's borders.
BMA head, Michael Masiapato, said that policing borders without drones was a costly task.
"A 1,000-plus people have been intercepted just in the past four days because of those drones. The most important thing that we are looking at implementing, we need to actually have a targeted approach where we identify the facilitators for this illegal migration issue and get them arrested."
Masiapato detailed how drones were assisting in targeting illegal crossings at Beitbridge.
"In terms of here in Beitbridge, with the issue of the river here, we are able to see people being put into the boat and they are basically crossing the river with those individuals. So, what basically we do is we allow them to come through and as they come through we are able to send the coordinates to our border guards on the ground. And on that basis, they are able to go specifically to where those people are and we are able to get those people intercepted."
The BMA, in collaboration with SAPS and SANDF, successfully intercepted individuals attempting to enter South Africa unlawfully through the detection of drones. This coordinated effort also led to the apprehension of facilitators and the confiscation of illicit goods in the… pic.twitter.com/FFK2lwjbrk — The Border Management Authority SA (@TheBMA_SA) April 21, 2025
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