Six killed, one injured in mass shooting by four gunmen in South Africa over 'missing ID'

In the latest mass-shooting incident to rock South Africa, on Friday, at least four gunmen forcefully entered a house in a township situated near the eastern city of Durban and claimed the lives of four people. Two were killed inside the main building, one in a backroom and another near an outside toilet, said the police.

Two more people were shot dead inside a shack a few metres away and a third was wounded.

On Saturday, the police released a statement saying that they have launched a "massive manhunt" for the assailants who shot six people dead over a missing identity card.

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According to police spokesman Robert Netshiunda, preliminary investigations showed the suspected ringleader demanded his identity document from the victims before shooting them.

"It is believed that he was implicated and is wanted by police for another murder in which he allegedly dropped his identity document accidentally," Netshiunda said.

As per the reports, the attacker thought one of the victims killed by him was in possession of the document, he added.

South Africa's leading opposition party, the Democratic Alliance (DA) said the latest incident was a clear indication of the "total disregard" criminals have for law enforcement in the country.

Five killed in Cape Town amid taxi strike

Last week, five people were killed in the South African city of Cape Town after a strike by mini-bus taxi drivers turned violent.

A British doctor was also shot dead after taking a wrong turn during the demonstrations.

The South African National Taxi Council (SANTACO) had announced a one-week provincial shutdown after failing to resolve various issues with the local government in Cape Town.

The strike ended on Saturday, after the taxi association came to an agreement with city officials.

The protests by the drivers began on Aug 3 in response to what they described as "heavy-handed tactics" against them by police and city authorities.

"Taxi operators were caught by law agencies where there were exchanges of gunfire, so it really was unpleasant. There have been losses of life, losses of income and families' livelihoods for a week of the month when people are already living as it is on the breadline in many of those communities. Then the larger geopolitical and international costs to Cape Town and South Africa is that we've seen as a result of the taxi-related violence travel advisories from various countries," said Rob Quintas, mayoral committee member for the Urban Mobility City of Cape Town.

(With inputs from agencies)

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