Durban Shooting

Gunmen killed at least 11 people and wounded three others in a mass shooting at a house party in South Africa. Police confirmed the toll Wednesday.

The attack happened late Tuesday in the Ziko area of KwaMakhutha township, about 19 miles south of Durban. Three men stormed a house where 14 people had gathered and opened fire, CNN and NBC News reported. Ten people died at the scene. A fourth victim died later at a hospital, according to BBC News. One of the dead was a woman believed to be pregnant, CNN and BBC News reported.

The group had been at a party inside the house when the men arrived and started shooting, according to a police statement cited by BBC News. Some of the victims had previously come to the attention of Crime Intelligence over alleged illegal activity, CNN reported. Police declined to give further details, saying they needed to protect ongoing investigations.

No confirmed motive yet. "Although the motive of the shooting cannot be confirmed yet, feud between rival groupings cannot be ruled out," police said, according to NBC News.

The three gunmen fled. Investigators launched a manhunt, BBC News reported. Acting National Police Commissioner Puleng Dimpane told CNN the case had a "promising lead." No arrests had been made as of Wednesday, according to NBC News.

South Africa has seen several mass shootings in recent years. Gunmen killed 12 people in an informal settlement in a Johannesburg suburb in June. Nine died at a tavern shooting outside Johannesburg six months before that, CNN reported. In 2023, 10 members of one family, including a 13-year-old boy, were shot dead at their home in KwaZulu-Natal, per CNN.

Police recorded an average of 58 murders a day between January and March, according to figures cited by CNN. The country is also grappling with the discovery of 10 murdered women near Johannesburg since July, a series of killings that has caused widespread concern, BBC News and CNN reported.

In February, President Cyril Ramaphosa said organized crime posed "the most immediate threat to our democracy, our society and our economic development," according to CNN and BBC News. He announced that soldiers would be deployed alongside police to fight gang violence.

Police said they could not yet say what set off Tuesday's shooting. "Although the motive of the shooting cannot be confirmed yet, feud between rival groupings cannot be ruled out," police said, according to NBC News.