...
By Ellie Cook
Senior Defense Reporter
0
Share
Newsweek is a Trust Project member
See more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.
At least nine people have been killed and another 10 injured after a shooting took place at a tavern west of the South African city of Johannesburg on Sunday.
The South African Police Service said early on Sunday its officers were searching for suspects in a "multiple shooting incident" at the KwaNoxolo tavern shortly before 1 a.m. local time in Bekkersdal.
Police said roughly 12 unknown suspects had arrived at the scene in two vehicles and "opened fire at tavern patrons." The suspects "continued to shoot randomly as they fled the scene," officials said.
Read More on World
The Context
This is the second mass shooting in South Africa this month, after gunmen opened fire in a hostel in the country's capital, Pretoria, on December 6. At least 12 people were killed, including children, in what police described as a random attack.
South Africa has one of the world's highest murder rates. Police statistics from earlier this year, reported in national media, indicate 63 people are murdered in the country each day.
...
What To Know
Major General Fred Kekana, an official in the Gauteng province covering Pretoria and Johannesburg, told The Associated Press some of the gunmen wore balaclavas and carried an AK-47 rifle, as well as multiple pistols.
A driver who had just dropped off a client was shot and killed at the scene, police spokesperson Brigadier Brenda Muridili told the AP.
Kekana told South Africa's SABC broadcaster that five people had been killed at the tavern and three people had been shot and killed after running from the site. Another person died on the road, Kekana said.
Women were among those killed and injured, Kekana said, but did not specify how many.
The motive behind the shooting is not clear. Officials said those injured were receiving medical treatment and the tavern was a licensed premises.
Authorities said police were using "all the necessary resources," including intelligence information and forensics, to investigate the shooting.
Three children were among those killed in Pretoria earlier this month, including a 3-year-old. A total of 17 people were killed in two locations in quick succession in a rural village in South Africa's Eastern Cape province in September 2024.
A 2022 shooting in Soweto, just east of Bekkersdal, killed 16 people.
What People Are Saying
“We are still busy obtaining statements," Major General Fred Kekana, the acting provincial commissioner of the Gauteng province, told South African media.
What Happens Next
Police had not announced the arrest of any suspects at the time of writing and have appealed to the public for information.
View 0 Comments
Submit Correction
View Editorial & AI Guidelines