At least 27 people were killed in two separate mass shootings in South African townships. The shootings occurred near Johannesburg and Cape Town, with no arrests made in connection to the incidents.
What happened
The first shooting took place late Saturday night near Johannesburg, where eight gunmen with AK-47 rifles and pistols opened fire at patrons at a bar in Wedela township. The attack resulted in the deaths of 17 people, including 13 men and four women. At least 15 others sustained gunshot injuries. The suspects also took mobile phones from some of the patrons before escaping in two vehicles.
Around four hours later, a second mass shooting occurred in Lwandle township near Cape Town, where 10 people were killed and 11 were wounded at a store after 1 a.m. Police are searching for multiple suspects in connection to the shooting.
These incidents come just five days after another mass shooting in a township near Durban killed at least 11 people. South Africa has struggled with high rates of violent crime, and the series of mass shootings this week has been particularly shocking.
The country's violent crime problem has prompted President Cyril Ramaphosa to deploy soldiers on the streets in a yearlong operation to combat crime in some of the country's worst-affected areas. According to official police statistics, there were 5,427 homicides in South Africa in the latest three-month period, with an average of nearly 60 homicides a day.
