NGOBOZANA, SOUTH AFRICA – A manhunt is in progress following the horrific mass shooting that claimed the lives of 17 individuals on the same street in a South African village, authorities announced Saturday.
The deadly attack occurred early Saturday in Ngobozana village, located in Lusikisiki, within South Africa’s Eastern Cape province. According to a police statement, the assailants targeted two separate homes- leaving a trail of devastation. Remarkably, six individuals, including a two-month-old baby, survived the onslaught.
The police statement detailed the grim scenes: “In the first homestead, four people were shot and killed, with no survivors. In the second homestead, there were 19 people in two different houses in the same yard. Thirteen people were shot and killed.” Among the victims, 15 of them were women and two were men.
Law enforcement has dispatched a team of detectives and forensic experts to collect evidence and expedite the capture of those responsible for this brutal attack. The community is reeling as the police intensify efforts to bring the perpetrators to justice.
Mass shootings are tragically frequent in South Africa, a nation plagued by a soaring murder rate that has reached a 20-year peak.
Recent national police data revealed over 6,000 homicides occurred country-wide between April and June this year alone. Despite ongoing efforts to crack down on crime, including the recent arrest of more than 53,000 suspects involved in violent offenses and the seizure of over 400 illegal firearms, the battle against such rampant violence continues.