Claims that a man was killed during service delivery protests in Rus-Ter-Vaal outside Vereeniging appeared to be false, police said on Friday morning. 

Officers on the scene said they received reports that residents of the area had shot dead a man during the protests over housing and alleged land invasions. A search was done in a bush near the R82 where the body had allegedly been, but police found nothing.

Meanwhile, clashes between police and the angry residents of Rus-Ter-Vaal, who were pelting passers-by with stones, continued for the third day in a row.

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A number of protesters were throwing what appeared to be petrol bombs at passing vehicles and law enforcement officers. At the time no one was injured and no vehicle was hit. 

Police, firing rubber bullets, had no success trying to force protesters off the main road. Instead they kept charging at passing motorists and police.

The demonstrators, who insist their protests are conducted peacefully, demand the removal of a new informal settlement in the area. They claim that people from outside Rus-Ter-Vaal erected informal housing structures, and crime has ever since escalated.

No arrests have been made and police on the scene vowed to continue ensuring the situation remains calm and traffic flows freely.