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.

Officials are blocking access to basic supplies for hundreds of people underground in a northwest mine shaft as part of a crackdown on miners.

An estimated 4,000 illegal gold miners are hiding underground in South Africa after the government cut off food and water in an effort to "smoke them out" and arrest them. The miners have been in a mineshaft in Stilfontein, in the North West province, for about a month.