Two mass shootings in South Africa leave 28 dead, according to BBC News

The attacks come as South Africa grapples with persistent gun violence often linked to gang rivalries, according to CBS News.

Developing. Details may change. Anything not yet confirmed is attributed to the source that reported it.

Produced by Histor World · 1 min readPublished September 27, 2026 at 7:53 PM · Updated at 05:33 AM

Key figures

Histor will keep updating this story.

See how we verified it and its 2 sources

Gunmen torched vehicles as they fled the scene of a mass shooting at bar near Johannesburg Twenty-eight people have been killed in two mass shootings hours apart in South Africa, the latest gun… — confirmed by: BBC News, CBS News

The attacks come as South Africa grapples with persistent gun violence often linked to gang rivalries — CBS News
Gauteng Police Commissioner Lt Gen Tommy Mthombeni said people from Ethiopia and Lesotho were among those caught up in the shooting, but that the vast majority were South African — BBC News
Eighteen people were killed when eight gunmen stormed a bar close to Johannesburg on Saturday evening, with 14 more injured — BBC News
South Africa has one of the highest murder rates in the world and has struggled to contain gang-related gun violence in recent years — BBC News
Police have not given a definitive motive for either of the latest attacks — BBC News
Police said only four of those killed have been identified so far — BBC News

~~At least 27 killed in 2 mass shootings in South Africa~~ — CBS News
~~In a separate shooting in the early hours of Sunday morning, 10 people were killed outside an entertainment venue in a township near Cape Town and a further 11 were injured.~~ — BBC News

This story was checked against 2 independent sources. We only present as fact what reliable sources confirm; everything else is attributed.

This story is based on the following sources. We always link to the original.

Update (September 30, 2026 at 5:34 AM): New confirmed details added.
Update (September 29, 2026 at 12:59 PM): New confirmed details added.
Update (September 28, 2026 at 3:27 AM): Updated “Deaths”: from 27 to 28. Updated “Injured”: from 15 to 14.
Update (September 27, 2026 at 9:22 PM): New confirmed details added.

Change history

Version 5 · September 30, 2026 at 5:34 AM
New confirmed details added.
Version 4 · September 29, 2026 at 12:59 PM
New confirmed details added.
Version 3 · September 28, 2026 at 3:27 AM
Updated “Deaths”: from 27 to 28. Updated “Injured”: from 15 to 14.
Version 2 · September 27, 2026 at 9:22 PM
New confirmed details added.
Version 1 · September 27, 2026 at 7:54 PM
Publicación inicial

Written by an automated system from cross-checked sources and passed through editorial controls. How it works → · Timeline · Report an error