President Edgar Lungu has condemned the conduct of University of Zambia (UNZA) students during their “peaceful protest” against xenophobic attacks in South Africa, describing their actions as criminal.

And President Lungu has expressed concern over the escalating violent attacks in South Africa which are targeted at foreign nationals, warning South Africans that xenophobia will isolate them from the world.

In a statement issued by Special Assistant to the President for Press and Public Relations Isaac Chipampe, Wednesday, President Lungu asked law enforcement agencies to move in and control the students’ behaviour.

“I have been informed that they presented their petition to the South African Embassy. How then can they engage in the same acts they are condemning?” asked President Lungu.

He reminded criminal gangs who were brutalizing people in South Africa that their actions might cause isolation of that country from the rest of the world.

President Lungu has also prodded the South African Government to arrest the xenophobic attacks and to further bring the culprits to book before the situation degenerates into full scale genocide.

Meanwhile, President Lungu asked SADC and the African Union to intervene in the worsening situation in South Africa before it destabilizes peace in the region.

And President Lungu advised Africans in other states to exercise restraint by not indulging in any acts of violence in the wake of the xenophobic attacks in South Africa.