Death toll in South Africa’s bar shooting rises to 18

The death toll in a mass shooting at a South African bar has risen to 18, according to police. One person died in a hospital, bringing the total number of deceased to 18, with at least two victims being of Lesotho nationality. The shooting occurred late Saturday in the semi-rural township of Wedela, located around 80 kilometers west of Johannesburg.

Eight gunmen, armed with assault rifles, entered the bar and killed 13 men and four women. Only four of the deceased have been identified, two of whom are South Africans and two from Lesotho. The motive for the attack remains unclear, but it may have been retaliation for an incident in the same tavern in August where one person was killed and another wounded.

The area is plagued by rivalry between gangs involved in illicit mining for gold, as stated by the tavern owner to local journalists. The incident adds to a bloody weekend in South Africa, with another mass shooting in Cape Town on Sunday that left 10 people dead and 11 wounded. Police have not made any arrests in either of the mass killings, highlighting the prevalence of legal and illegal firearms in the country.

South Africa, with a population of approximately 62 million, has one of the world's highest murder rates, with about 60 people killed daily. The country experienced 41 mass killings this year, resulting in 196 lives lost, as reported by Julian Rademeyer, an adviser for the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime.

President Cyril Ramaphosa recently deployed the army to violence hotspots around Johannesburg and Cape Town, describing organized crime as the most immediate threat to South Africa's democracy and economic development. The weekend's violence has further alarmed South Africans, who are already unsettled by the discovery of 11 women's bodies, some showing signs of sexual assault, in Johannesburg's Ekurhuleni area over the past 10 weeks.

Another 23-year-old woman was also shot and killed early Monday during an alleged robbery while on her way to work. Preliminary investigations have not established any connection between this incident and the recent mass killings.