[NEWARAB] South African authorities rounded up 95 Libyans on Friday in a raid at a farm that appeared to have been converted into an illegal military training base, police said.
The morning raid was in a remote area outside the town of White River in the northeastern province of Mpumalanga, about 360 kilometres (220 miles) east of Johannesburg.
"The 95 individuals taken into custody are all Libyan nationals and are currently being questioned by the relevant authorities," police said in a statement.
The Libyans had entered South Africa in April and claimed to be training to be security guards, officials said.
"They allegedly misrepresented themselves on (their) visa application to SA claiming they were coming to train as security guards," police spokeswoman Athlenda Mathe said in a statement on X.
But police in Mpumalanga "suspect they are receiving military training", she said, and they were arrested for contravening the immigration act.
Newzroom Afrika television footage from the scene showed a heavy police presence outside the suspected camp, which included green military-style tents.
It showed the detained men standing in groups and wearing civilian clothing.
A sign leading to the facility described it as an academy offering "specialised security training", an AFP reporter said.
"The place, which was initially designated as a training site, appears to have been converted into an illegal military training base," the police statement said.
No weapons or illegal substances were found on the site immediately but a search was ongoing, a police official told AFP.
The raid was launched after authorities received intelligence about the site in the province, which adjoins Mozambique and Eswatini.
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