Organized crime and competition between criminal networks are driving a wave of mass shootings in South Africa, according to the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime (GI-TOC). GI-TOC data cited in the report shows that South Africa recorded 41 mass shootings since the start of 2026, with nearly 200 people killed. The organisation classifies a mass shooting as an incident in which at least three people are killed. The latest violence included two separate attacks over one weekend that left 27 people dead and several others injured.
In Wedela, near Johannesburg, 17 people were killed at a tavern, while another 10 died in a shooting in Lwandle near Cape Town. Authorities have been investigating possible links to criminal networks and business or territorial disputes. The attacks followed another mass shooting near Durban in which 11 people were killed, according to police reports. The incidents have renewed concerns about the role of organized crime, illegal markets and access to firearms in South Africa’s violent-crime problem. GI-TOC says rival groups and individuals are increasingly competing for control of illicit markets, creating conflicts that can spill into communities.
The trend comes despite a broader decline in some categories of reported violent crime. South African police said violent crime fell by 6.7% year-on-year in the latest quarter covered by their national statistics. Police have continued targeted operations against organized crime and illegal activities, with recent operations resulting in arrests and the seizure of illegal firearms and other illicit goods. The contrasting figures underline the complexity of South Africa’s security challenge: some national crime indicators are improving, while highly concentrated violence linked to organized criminal networks continues to cause major loss of life.
