Ramaphosa: Mass shootings, 38 killed in tavern, Western Cape, KZN attacks

President Cyril Ramaphosa has expressed his deep concern following a spate of mass shootings that have left 38 people dead across South Africa in a single week. The incidents, which occurred in the Western Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, and Gauteng, have sparked national outrage and renewed calls for urgent government intervention.

In the most recent tragedy, 17 people were killed when a group of armed men burst into a township tavern near Carletonville, Johannesburg, on Saturday night. Witnesses reported that the suspects, armed with AK-47s and handguns, opened fire on patrons both inside and outside the establishment.

The perpetrators allegedly searched some patrons and took their cellphones before fleeing the scene in two unidentified motor vehicles. Two vehicles were also set alight during the incident.

Simultaneously, in Lwandle, Cape Town, another mass shooting at a shisanyama resulted in the deaths of 10 people, with 11 others sustaining injuries. These attacks follow earlier violent incidents in Durban, KwaZulu-Natal, contributing to a grim total of 38 fatalities within the week.

President Ramaphosa has condemned the violence, labeling organized crime as the most immediate threat to the nation’s democracy and economic development. In response to the escalating crisis, the government has deployed the army to assist in the worst-affected areas, while police have launched extensive manhunts for the suspects involved in the tavern attacks.