Zimbabwe Offers Transportation to Its South Africa Violence Victims

Zimbabwe has dispatched a fleet of vehicles to South Africa to bring home Zimbabweans displaced by a recent wave of attacks on foreigners.

Zimbabwean officials said Friday they have sent two trucks and 10 buses to pick up any Zimbabweans who want to be repatriated.

Two weeks of violence in South Africa, beginning May 11, left 56 people dead and forced tens of thousands from their homes. The displaced people have been living in police stations, town halls and churches.

The attackers accused immigrants of taking jobs and increasing crime rates.

About three million of South Africa's estimated five million immigrants are from Zimbabwe. Most of them came to South Africa to escape their country's economic collapse.

At least two other countries - Ethiopia and Malawi - have offered to evacuate nationals wanting to escape the anti-foreigner attacks.

South African President Thabo Mbeki says the attacks, led by angry mobs, disgraced the country.

Critics accuse the government of responding slowly to the crisis and not addressing the issue of poverty, widely considered the cause of the tension.