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At least 11 people have been killed in a mass shooting at a hostel in South Africa.<\/p>\n
Fourteen others were wounded when gunmen stormed the venue in Saulsville township, west of the capital Pretoria, early on Saturday. A three-year-old is among the dead.<\/p>\n
“At least three unknown gunmen entered this hostel where a group of people were drinking and they started randomly shooting,” police spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe said.<\/p>\n
The motive of the shooting is unknown and no arrests have been made. It is the latest in a string of mass shootings that have rocked the crime-ridden country in recent years.<\/p>\n
The gunmen reportedly entered the premise at 04:30 local time (02:30 GMT) and opened fire on a group of men who were drinking. A 12-year-old boy and a 16-year-old girl were among those killed in the attack.<\/p>\n
“I can confirm that a total of 25 people were shot,” Mathe said.<\/p>\n
Describing the hostel as an “illegal shebeen”, she added: “We are having a serious challenge when it comes to these illegal and unlicensed liquor premises,” where she said the majority of mass shootings occur.<\/p>\n
“Innocent people also get caught up in the crossfire,” she told public broadcaster SABC.<\/p>\n
South Africa has one of the highest murder rates in the world, at 45 people per 100,000 according to 2023-24 figures from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.<\/p>\n
Some 63 people were killed every day between April and September, according to police data.<\/p>\n