12 people, including 3 children, killed in South Africa hostel shooting
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Police forensics personnel working at the scene where several people, including three minors, were shot dead in Pretoria, South Africa, on Dec 6.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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- Gunmen attacked an illegal shebeen in Pretoria, South Africa, killing 12, including a three-year-old child and two teenagers.
- Police spokeswoman Athlenda Mathe confirmed 25 people were shot, 10 at the scene, and stated the motive is unknown as a manhunt continues.
- South Africa faces a crime crisis with frequent shootings linked to gangs, alcohol, and illegal firearms, with around 63 people killed each day.
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JOHANNESBURG – Gunmen stormed a hostel in South Africa’s capital, Pretoria, on Dec 6, killing a dozen people, including a three‑year‑old child, at a site police said was illegally selling alcohol.
The attack is the latest in a string of mass shootings that have shocked the crime‑weary country of 63 million people, which suffers one of the highest murder rates in the world.
“I can confirm that a total of 25 people were shot,” police spokeswoman Athlenda Mathe said.
Ten had died at the scene in Saulsville township, 18km west of Pretoria, while two died in hospital, she said. The 12th victim succumbed to injuries on Dec 6 afternoon.
Three gunmen entered what Ms Mathe described as an “illegal shebeen” inside the hostel at around 4.30am (10.30am Singapore time) and indiscriminately fired at a group of men who were drinking. “Shebeen” is a word used to describe an informal bar or tavern.
One 12-year-old boy and a 16-year-old girl were also killed in the attack.
“Quite an unfortunate incident. Police were only alerted to this incident at around 6 o’clock,” said Ms Mathe.
Police said the motive was unknown and no arrests had been made, with a manhunt under way for the unidentified suspects.
“We are having a serious challenge when it comes to these illegal and unlicensed liquor premises,” Ms Mathe said, adding that they are where most mass shootings occur.
“Innocent people also get caught up in the crossfire,” she told public broadcaster SABC.
Entrenched crime
South Africa, the continent’s most industrialised nation, is grappling with entrenched crime and corruption driven by organised networks.
Shootings are common and are often fuelled by gang violence and alcohol.
Many people own licensed firearms for personal protection but there are many more illegal guns in circulation despite relatively strict gun ownership laws.
Some 63 people were killed each day between April and September, according to police data, one of the world’s highest murder rates.
Most deaths stemmed from arguments, with robberies and gang violence also driving the toll, police said in November.
In October, two teenagers were killed and five others wounded in a gang‑related shooting in Johannesburg, the country’s financial capital.
In another incident in May, gunmen killed eight customers at a tavern in the south-eastern city of Durban.
In 2024, 18 relatives were shot dead at a rural homestead in the country’s Eastern Cape Province. AFP
