JOHANNESBURG – Terror struck township near South Africa’s largest city when heavily armed attackers stormed a tavern and opened fire, killing at least nine people and injuring 10 others, police said.
The deadly shooting unfolded in Bekkersdal township just before 1am local time, when around 12 unidentified gunmen arrived in a white minibus and a silver sedan. According to police, the assailants fired at tavern patrons before spraying bullets indiscriminately as they fled, leaving bodies inside the bar and on nearby streets.
Authorities confirmed tavern was legally licensed, dismissing any immediate link to illegal operations. South Africa’s public broadcaster SABC reported that several victims were also shot outside the establishment, including passersby caught in the gunfire.
A nationwide manhunt has been launched, with elite units deployed to track down the suspects. Gauteng Acting Police Commissioner Fred Kekana said multiple teams, including crime scene investigators, forensic experts, serious crime detectives, crime intelligence officers, and national crime management units, were dispatched to the scene as police worked to gather witness statements.
Among victims was ride-hailing service driver who was waiting outside the tavern at the time of the attack. Police said the motive remains unknown, intensifying fear and uncertainty in community.
Initial reports suggested 10 fatalities, but authorities later confirmed the death toll stands at nine, with the injured rushed to hospitals for emergency treatment.
The massacre comes just weeks after another blood-soaked tavern shooting in Saulsville township near Pretoria, where 12 people, including a three-year-old child, were killed at an unlicensed venue.
South Africa remained battle rampant gun violence, often driven by criminal networks and fierce competition among informal businesses, as communities reel from yet another devastating attack.
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