PRETORIA — At least 11 people were killed and 14 others wounded early Saturday when gunmen opened fire inside a hostel in the Saulsville township west of the capital, police said. A three-year-old child was among the dead.

Police spokesperson Brig. Athlenda Mathe said at least three unidentified gunmen stormed the venue, where a group of people had been drinking, and “started randomly shooting.”

The gunmen reportedly entered the premises at about 4:30 a.m. local time and opened fire on a group of men.

A 12-year-old boy and a 16-year-old girl were also among those killed.

“I can confirm that a total of 25 people were shot,” Mathe said.

She described the hostel as an “illegal shebeen” and noted that unlicensed liquor venues are a recurring location for mass shootings in South Africa. “Innocent people also get caught up in the crossfire,” she told public broadcaster SABC.

South Africa has one of the world’s highest murder rates — 45 per 100,000 people, according to 2023–24 figures from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.

Police data shows an average of 63 people were killed every day between April and September. — Agencies