The death toll from Saturday’s mass shooting at an unlicensed bar near South Africa’s capital Pretoria has risen to 12 after one victim died in hospital, authorities said.
Three minors aged 3, 12 and 16 are among the dead, while 13 others were wounded in the early morning attack at a bar inside a hostel in the Saulville township.
The incident has renewed focus on South Africa’s unlicensed bars, known locally as Shebeens, which police say are frequently linked to deadly violence.
“These illegal Shebeens are really giving us a problem as the police, because a lot of murders are being reported at these illegal establishments,” police spokesperson Athlenda Mathe told reporters. “And between April and and September of this year, we actually shut down throughout the whole country 11,975 of these illegal Shebeens. So that ‘s quite problematic because also in these mass shootings, it’s either they happen at licensed premises or illegal Shebeens. So we are intensifying our operations in terms of our inspections.”
South Africa has witnessed several mass shootings at Shebeens in recent years. In 2022, a bar shooting in Johannesburg killed 16 people, while four others were killed in a separate bar attack the same day.
Deadly attacks have also taken place outside drinking establishments. Last September, 18 people, including 15 women, were shot dead at two houses on the same road in Eastern Cape province. Police arrested seven suspects and recovered three AK-style assault rifles believed to have been used.
South Africa has one of the highest murder rates globally, averaging more than 70 killings a day. Firearms, often illegal, remain the leading weapon in homicides, despite strict gun ownership laws.
Faridah Abdulkadiri
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