Gunmen kill 11 in Durban township, officials say

Gunmen killed 11 people at a homestead in a township in Durban, South African officials said Wednesday.

KwaZulu-Natal premier Thamsanqa Ntuli said the victims, including a pregnant woman, were gathered at a house in KwaMakhutha shortly before 11:00 pm Tuesday when armed assailants entered and opened fire.

Police said three other people survived the attack. They said the motive was not immediately clear and investigators were following a “promising” lead.

Acting police chief Puleng Dimpane said she had activated a 72-hour tracking operation to pursue and arrest those responsible.

Local television station eNCA reported that the attackers forced everyone into a room before shooting them and also set fire to a car belonging to one of the victims.

South Africa has one of the world's highest murder rates, with about 60 people killed each day in a country of around 62 million. In March, soldiers were deployed to violence hotspots to support police efforts against crime, which President Cyril Ramaphosa has described as one of the biggest threats facing the country.