Gunmen kill at least 12 people including three-year-old in hostel in South Africa

Gunmen stormed a hostel in South Africa’s capital, killing at least 12 people, including a three-year-old child, and wounding more than a dozen others.

Police said they had launched a “manhunt” for the three men and were investigating whether the murders were linked to a bar at the hostel that sold illegal alcohol.

The attack is the latest in a series of mass shootings in the country of 63 million people, which has one of the highest murder rates in the world.

“I can confirm that a total of 25 people were shot,” police spokeswoman Athlenda Mathe said of the early morning attack in the town of Saulsville, 11 miles (18 km) west of Pretoria. He said the gunmen were shooting indiscriminately.

He said ten people died at the scene and two died in hospital. The twelfth victim died from his injuries Saturday afternoon.

The victims included a 12-year-old boy and a 16-year-old girl.

South African police are tackling violence linked to illegal bars known as shebeens, which often sell homemade drinks. Shootings linked to organized crime are becoming more common in the country, where gun ownership is high, and police say they are often fueled by alcohol.

“These illegal women are really causing us problems as police,” Mathe told 24-hour news broadcaster eNCA. “Because a lot of murders are committed in these illegal establishments.”

Forensic medicine and ballistics experts and investigators were at the scene. “So we are on a manhunt. We are looking for three suspects for now,” Mathe said.

Between April and September, More than 60 people are killed every day In South Africa, according to police data.

Agence France-Presse contributed to this report