Two Ghanaians have filed a petition before the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands, demanding a probe into xenophobic attacks against African immigrants in South Africa.

A former Ghanaian government spokesperson on governance and security, Palgrave Boakye-Danquah, and Emmanuel Kotin, a counter-terrorism and security analyst, filed the petition, Reuters reported on Thursday, citing part of the petition.

The petition, which was submitted to the court on July 15, alleges a “pattern of widespread and systematic attacks” against migrants in South Africa and accuses President Cyril Ramaphosa’s government of failing to prevent or punish those crimes, including murder, the report reads.

In a follow-up statement, the petitioners accused the South African government of not curtailing xenophobic attacks in which some African immigrants were killed and forced to flee South Africa.

“For years, African brothers and sisters have been killed, beaten, and driven from their homes in South Africa,” the statement read.

It added, “While we commend individuals in South Africa who have condemned these acts, the pattern, scale, and recurrence of the violence raise serious questions about the failure of state authorities to prevent, investigate, and punish these crimes.”

South African authorities are yet to publicly respond to the petition before the ICC. Similarly, the ICC is yet to make comments on the petition.

However, Mr Ramaphosa has repeatedly warned citizens hiding under the guise of enforcing immigration laws against attacking other African immigrants.

Xenophobic attacks in recent months have seen thousands of Nigerians, Ghanaians, Malawians, Kenyans, and other African immigrants in South Africa return to their home countries.