Gunmen kill 9, wound 10 in bar

BEKKERSDAL, South Africa (AFP) — Nine people were killed when gunmen opened fire at a bar outside Johannesburg early Sunday, police said, in the second such shooting in South Africa this month.

Ten more were wounded in the early morning attack at the tavern in the impoverished Bekkersdal township in a gold mining area around 40 kilometers southwest of the city.

It follows a shooting at a tavern near Pretoria on 6 December when gunmen killed a dozen people, including a three year old child.

Police initially said 10 people were killed when the Bekkersdal bar was attacked just before 1 a.m., but later revised the toll downwards.

Most of the attackers were armed with pistols and one had an AK-47 rifle, deputy provincial police commissioner Major General Fred Kekana told SABC television from the scene.

“They entered the tavern and randomly shot at the patrons, unprovoked,” he said.

Three people were killed inside the bar and others as they fled the scene, with the attackers continuing to shoot as they left, he said.

“It’s also reported that after they shot the people, they searched them. They took their valuables, including cell phones,” Kekana said.

The dead included a driver from an online car-hailing service who was driving past.

“It’s pure criminality,” Kekana said. Police launched a manhunt for the attackers and appealed for public assistance.