Protesting University of Fort Hare students were caught on camera chasing down a cow, moments before butchering it.

The university reported that two cows were killed after students hacked off chunks of meat while the animals were still alive. The incident took place on Wednesday during the ongoing violent protests at the university's Alice campus.

A 20-second cellphone video clip, which has been circulating on social media platforms, shows a crowd of students chasing the animal.

The video is followed by an image of a dead cow covered in stab wounds. When DispatchLIVE arrived at the campus on Wednesday, students boasted that they had slaughtered the cattle while carrying away meat hacked from the carcass.

The students are protesting over National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) funding.