More than 178,000 immigrants have suddenly fled or been deported from South Africa. Here's why

The briefing

More than 178,000 African immigrants have left South Africa in recent months amid a government crackdown and sometimes violent anti-immigration protests. More than 115,000 returned to Zimbabwe and over 56,000 to Malawi, with South Africa saying about 19,000 were officially deported since April. Advocacy groups warn about thousands of children pulled from schools and HIV patients cut off from treatment, and the returns have created diplomatic tensions across the continent.