Multi-disciplinary teams, including the police and South African National Defence Force (SANDF), are investigating separate mass shootings in Gauteng and the Western Cape that left at least 27 people dead over the weekend.
Eighteen people were killed when eight armed men opened fire on patrons inside and outside a tavern in Extension 3, Wedela, on Gauteng’s West Rand, on Saturday night.
Police said the suspects were armed with rifles and pistols. A manhunt has been launched.
In a separate incident on Sunday, 10 people were killed and 11 injured in a mass shooting at an entertainment venue in Lwandle, Cape Town.
Earlier KwaMakhutha shooting
The shootings followed the killing of 11 people in KwaMakhutha, KwaZulu-Natal, on Tuesday, 22 September. According to police, the victims were attending a gathering at a house when three suspects arrived and opened fire. Three people were also injured.
KwaZulu-Natal police said some of the victims were being investigated by Crime Intelligence for alleged illegal activities. This claim has not been independently verified.
Government response
Speaking during Tuesday’s post-Cabinet media briefing, Minister in The Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni said the shootings were a matter of national concern.
She said only four of those killed in Wedela had been identified and appealed to people whose relatives were missing in the area to come forward.
Asked about the availability of firearms, Ntshavheni said President Cyril Ramaphosa had raised the need to amend gun laws and introduce tighter regulations on firearm ownership during his State of the Nation Address.
“We have a high prevalence of firearms, in particular illegal ones, which we need to get a handle on. We are working hard to get rid of illegal guns in our system,” she said.
Ntshavheni said the government was committed to finding those responsible for the shootings.
It has been reported that police are investigating a possible link to illegal mining activities in connection with the Gauteng shooting, while business rivalry could have been a possible motive for the attack. These possible motives have not been independently verified.
Meanwhile, Ramaphosa is expected to address the nation on Tuesday night on the steps being taken by government to confront gender-based violence and femicide (GBVF), and provide an update on investigations into the murders of women in and around the City of Ekurhuleni.
Speaking on GBVF, Ntshavheni said that while the country’s laws had been amended to ensure gender-based violence and femicide crimes were dealt with more harshly, women were often under attack from their own partners in their homes.
She said femicide could not be tolerated and it required a collective response.