Two mass shootings in South Africa leave 27 dead
The two attacks hours apart come as the country struggles to stop high levels of gang-related armed violence.
In South Africa, two separate mass shootings left 27 people dead and 11 more injured in the span of two days. On Saturday evening, eight gunmen stormed a bar near Johannesburg, killing 17 people and injuring 15 before torching two vehicles and fleeing. The next morning, in a separate incident, gunmen attacked an entertainment venue in a township outside Cape Town, killing 10 and injuring 11 more.
Police have not yet determined a motive for either attack. South Africa, plagued by high murder rates, has struggled to curb gang violence in recent years. Illegal weapons are prevalent, and recent mass shootings have raised concerns that the problem may be worsening. President Cyril Ramaphosa recently labeled organized crime as the most immediate threat to democracy, society, and economic development in the nation of 62 million people.
In an effort to reduce violence, the military has been deployed alongside police in areas with the highest murder rates.
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- Two mass shootings in South Africa leave 27 dead bbc.co.uk
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