South African police are searching for suspects after two shootings left 17 people dead

A search for the suspects is underway, said state police spokeswoman Athlenda Mathe.

The victims were 15 women and two men. Another person is in critical condition in hospital.

The shootings occurred on Friday evening in the town of Lusikisiki in the Eastern Cape province of southeastern South Africa.

Videos released by police showed the shootings occurred in two homes in the same neighborhood.

According to police, 12 women and a man were killed in one house and three women and a man were killed in the other house.

“A manhunt has been launched to catch those responsible for these heinous murders,” Ms Mathe said.

South Africa has one of the highest murder rates in the world, and mass shootings have become increasingly common in recent years, sometimes targeting people in their homes.

Ten members of the same family – seven women and a 13-year-old boy – were killed in a mass shooting at their home in neighboring KwaZulu-Natal province last April.

The murder rate in South Africa is about 45 per 100,000 people, compared to about 6.3 per 100,000 in the United States.

In most European countries, the murder rate is around 1 per 100,000 inhabitants.

South Africa recorded more than 27,000 homicides in the 12 months from March 1, 2023 to February 28, 2024, or more than 70 per day in the country of 62 million people.

Firearms laws in South Africa are relatively strict, but authorities have often pointed out that the large number of illegal, unregistered weapons in circulation is a major problem.