Pretoria [South Africa], December 7 (ANI): At least 12 people, including a three-year-old boy, were killed in a shooting at a bar near Pretoria, South Africa, early Saturday morning, Al Jazeera reported. A total of 25 people were shot during the attack in Saulsville township, about 18 km west of the capital, according to the South African Police Service (SAPS).
Police spokesperson Athlenda Mathe confirmed that 14 wounded victims were rushed to the hospital. Among the dead were three minors: a three-year-old child, a 12-year-old boy, and a 16-year-old girl. The shooting occurred around 4:30 am (02:30 GMT) inside an “illegal shebeen,” or bar, operating within a hostel. Three gunmen stormed the premises, firing indiscriminately at a group of men present at the time. Authorities were notified only after 6 am (04:00 GMT), delaying the initial response. A large-scale manhunt is underway, but the motive remains unclear.
South Africa, the continent’s most industrialised nation, continues to struggle with entrenched crime and corruption, often linked to organised networks. The country records one of the world’s highest murder rates, averaging 63 killings a day between April and September, according to police data.
“We are having a serious challenge with these illegal and unlicensed liquor premises,” Mathe said, noting that such locations are frequent sites of mass shootings. “Innocent people also get caught up in the crossfire,” she added.
The incident follows similar attacks in the country, including a gang-related shooting in Johannesburg in October that killed two teenagers and wounded five, a May tavern attack in Durban that left eight dead, and last year’s killing of 18 relatives at a rural homestead in the Eastern Cape. While many South Africans legally own firearms for protection, illegal guns remain widespread. (ANI)
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