Anti-immigration protesters clashed with police and broke through barricades in Durban, South Africa, on Friday, as tensions flared over court restrictions on demonstrations organised by the March and March movement.

The protesters, some with their faces covered, broke through police lines and ran through the city centre carrying sticks, while officers struggled to hold back crowds outside shops.

Movement leader Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma rejected allegations that the group was encouraging violence.

"And of course, nobody promotes violence. We consistently say that. I don't know what the idea behind blaming us for violence is, but apparently it's based on some intelligence reports that say something about a bomb scare." 

Protester Bheki Buthelezi criticised the court ruling and insisted the movement would continue demonstrating.

"I think the court ruling is wrong. We are all Jacinta. If they arrest Jacinta, they will have to arrest all of us. What the government is doing is wrong, and people must know that. We must carry on." 

The clashes followed a Durban High Court ruling allowing the March and March movement to protest under strict conditions, after police sought restrictions over fears of further violence.

The court ordered protesters to follow designated routes and banned sticks and face coverings, following police warnings of an alleged plot to set fire to a refugee reception centre.

The ruling followed weeks of anti-immigration unrest in Durban, including the killing of a foreign national, attacks on businesses and vehicles being set alight.

The movement campaigns against undocumented migrants, while authorities have deployed more than 500 soldiers to KwaZulu-Natal to help contain the unrest.