At least 11 people, including three children, lost their lives and nine others were injured in a mass shooting in South Africa's Johannesburg, said officials on Sunday. This is the second mass shooting incident that has been reported in South Africa this month.
According to the South African Police, the mass shooting was reported in the Bekkersdal township, which is around 40 kms from Johannesburg. The police have launched a probe, saying the attackers fled the spot after the incident and there is no clear reason why the mass shooting happened.
"We are still busy obtaining statements. Our national crime and management team has arrived," Gauteng Acting Police Commissioner Fred Kekana said. "The provincial crime scene management team has arrived and a team from the local criminal record centre is here, so is our serious crime investigating team, crime intelligence and the provincial crime detective team is on scene."
12 killed in mass shooting earlier this month
Earlier this month, a mass shooting was reported in Pretoria in which 12 people - including three children aged 3, 12 and 16 - were killed. Additionally, 13 people were also injured. According to the police, the shooting was reported at a bar inside a hostel in the Saulsville township in Pretoria, which is the administrative capital of South Africa.
"We are told that at least three unknown gunmen entered this hostel where a group of people were drinking and they started randomly shooting," police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe had said earlier.
According to the Associated Press (AP), South Africa has one of the highest homicide rates in the world. The country had recorded over 26,000 homicides in 2024, averaging of around 70 each day day. South Africa has a population of around 62 million and it has relatively strict gun ownership laws, but authorities have pointed out that the killings are being committed with illegal guns.
