South Africa's government says it won't help a group of illegal miners inside a closed mine

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa -

South Africa's government says it won't help a group of illegal miners inside a closed mine in the country's North West province who have been denied access to basic supplies as part of an official strategy against illegal mining.

The miners in the mineshaft in Stilfontein are believed to be suffering from a lack of food, water and other basic necessities after police closed off the entrances used to transport their supplies underground.

It is part of the police’s Vala Umgodi, or Close the Hole, operation, which includes cutting off miners’ supplies to force them to return to the surface and be arrested.

Police had earlier indicated that information received from those who recently helped bring three miners to the surface indicated that up to 4,000 miners may be underground.

However, on Thursday afternoon police spokesperson Athlenda Mathe said that they believed the number was exaggerated and maybe be far less than that, estimating a figure of between 350 and 400 miners.

"We feel that the numbers are being exaggerated. We have deployed maximum resources to this case including our intelligence operative who are on the ground who have engaged with all stakeholders.

“We have managed to estimate the numbers to be between 350 and 400,” Mathe said.

South African ministers of police and defence are on Thursday expected to visit the mine to engage with officials and community members on the ground, Mathe said.

Stilfontein is one of the mines that were targeted by police as they intensified their operation in the North West province from Oct. 18.

It's unclear how long the current group of miners have been underground as the groups are reported to often stay underground for months, depending on supplies of basic necessities like food and water from the outside.

“We have taken a decision that no police officer, no soldier or government official will go down to an abandoned mine. There is a high risk of loss of life,” she said.

Mathe said they had information that the miners may be heavily armed, adding that since embarking on operations against illegal miners since last December, police had seized more than 369 high caliber firearms, 10,000 rounds of ammunition, five million rand (US$275,000) in cash and 32 million rand (US$1.75 million) worth of uncut diamonds.

In the past few weeks, more than 1,000 miners have surfaced at various mines in North West province, with many reported to be weak, hungry and sickly after going for weeks without basic supplies.

Police continue on Thursday to guard areas around the mine to catch all those appearing from underground.

Cabinet Minister Khumbudzo Ntshavheni told reporters on Wednesday that the government wouldn't send any help to the illegal miners, because they are involved in a criminal act.

“We are not sending help to criminals. We are going to smoke them out. They will come out. Criminals are not to be helped. We didn’t send them there," Ntshavheni said.

Illegal mining remains common in South Africa's old gold-mining areas, with miners going into closed shafts to dig for any possible remaining deposits.

The illegal miners are often from neighboring countries, and police say the illegal operations involve larger syndicates that employ the miners.

Their presence in closed mines have also created problems with nearby communities, which complain that the illegal miners commit crimes ranging from robberies to rape.

Illegal mining groups are known to be heavily armed, and disputes between rival groups sometimes result in fatal confrontations.