At least 27 people were killed overnight in separate mass shootings in South Africa’s Gauteng and Western Cape provinces.
In the first incident, men armed with assault rifles killed 17 people and injured 15 others in a bar in the township of Wedela, west of Johannesburg, police said on Sunday.
Manhunt underway for 8 suspects
Gauteng police said they had launched a manhunt for eight unidentified armed men following the fatal shooting.
“They allegedly searched some customers and took their mobile phones before fleeing the scene in two unidentified motor vehicles,” the South African Police Service (SAPS) said.
Emergency services pronounced all 17 victims, 13 men and four women, dead at the scene. Authorities said the shooting happened around 9:30 p.m. local time (7:30 p.m. UTC) on Saturday.
The motive for the shooting was not known, the SAPS said, adding that “the suspects were believed to be armed with AK-47 rifles and pistols.”
10 dead in tavern shooting in Lwandle, Cape Town
In another shooting in the Western Cape, police said gunmen killed 10 people and injured 11 others. entertainment venue in the town of Lwandle at 1:46 a.m. (11:46 p.m. Saturday GMT).
Authorities said five of the victims died instantly while five others succumbed to their injuries after being taken to hospital.
Police said no arrests had been made and a “multi-disciplinary team” led by serious and violent crime detectives had been set up to track down those responsible.
Additional police resources have been sent to the area as the search for the perpetrators continues.
The latest incidents came just days after at least 11 people were shot dead at a house in KwaZulu-Natal province.
The shooting occurred in KwaMakhutha, a township about 30 kilometers south of Durban, the largest city in the Eastern Province.
The high rate of violent crime in South Africa
South Africa struggles with violent crime and has one of the highest murder rates in the world, with around 60 people dying violently every day in the country.
In one of the stories that has made international headlines in recent days, Johannesburg police are still trying to track down those responsible for a series of murders in which the bodies of 10 women were found close to each other.
Police identified similarities in some of the killings but said they found no concrete evidence to suggest the same person or people were responsible.
In March, South African leaders deployed troops to hotspots to support police amid rampant crime that President Cyril Ramaphosa described as one of the biggest challenges currently facing the country.
Edited by: Sean Sinico
If you rely on our team for reliable reporting, please take a moment to select us as your preferred source on Google by by clicking here
Gn world
