JOHANNESBURG, May 12: A mob attacked a group of immigrants with stones, whips and guns in a South African township, killing two people and injuring about 40, police said on Monday.

Twelve people were arrested in connection with the violence in Alexandra township outside Johannesburg late on Sunday, which police said was motivated by a belief that illegal immigrants were responsible for a series of robberies.

“From what we were told it is because of the criminal activity that has been taking place,” said Constable Neria Malefetse, a spokeswoman for the Johannesburg police.

The rampage rekindled fears that xenophobia was rising in a country known as one of the most welcoming to immigrants and asylum seekers, especially from Africa. Some of those who were attacked were Zimbabweans, the largest immigrant group in South Africa who are often accused by residents of contributing to the country’s high crime rate.

Last month, shacks belonging to Zimbabwean families in another township were looted and set on fire and there have been other attacks on foreigners throughout the country.

For decades Africans have flocked to South Africa, the continent’s economic powerhouse, lured by abundant work in its mines, farms and homes and by one of the world’s most liberal immigration and refugee policies.—Reuters