Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za

3-minute read
23 August 2024 | 13:15 CAT

Police have launched a manhunt after six men were killed in Umlazi. (Ziyaad Douglas/Gallo Images)

Six men killed in a mass shooting in Umlazi township on Saturday night were described as peaceful individuals with no involvement in criminal activities.

On Saturday night, it is alleged three men were seated outside their rented accommodation drinking alcohol when unknown suspects arrived and opened fire on them.

The suspects then went to the landlord’s house, where they shot him and another man who was also inside the home.

The suspects also shot another man on a pathway.

All six victims, aged between 20 and 40, were declared dead at the scene.

Police Minister Senzo Mchunu visited the crime scene on Monday morning.

Meanwhile, the KwaZulu-Natal police top brass identified alcohol and the availability of firearms as some of the main contributors to the rapid increase of criminal activities in the province.

The province continues to experience gun violence, including mass murders and incidents where the police are caught in crossfire with suspects.

Provincial police commissioner Lieutenant-General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi told the media these two aspects contributed the most to the crimes.

Gun Free South Africa’s Claire Taylor told Radio Islam International that for the past two to three years, Gun Free South Africa has been noting a change in gun violence patterns in two major ways.

“Firstly, there is a rise in mass shootings where four or more people are shot in a single incident and the other change is that when people are being shot, they are shot many times and not just one gunshot leaving many cartridges behind at the scene,” explains Taylor.

The four provinces with the most such incidents are the Western Cape, Eastern Cape, KZN, and Gauteng.

According to Taylor, gun violence is often centralised around urban centres, although that is changing and could potentially also be related to organised crime.

Taylor pointed out that gun-related violence and crime in South Africa are committed with illegal guns. She highlighted that most illicit firearms if not all, were once legal before they leaked into criminal hands.

“It is really important that the pool of guns in communities is recovered and destroyed.” she says.

Listen to the full interview on Your World Today with Mufti Yusuf Moosagie and Gun Free South Africa’s Claire Taylor here.