South Africa is investigating two separate mass shootings that occurred within hours of each other and left 27 people dead and 26 others injured.
The first attack took place on Saturday evening at a bar near Johannesburg, where eight gunmen reportedly opened fire on customers before continuing the assault inside the premises.
Seventeen people, comprising 13 men and four women, were killed, while 15 others were injured.
Police said the attackers set two vehicles on fire before fleeing the area.
Deputy provincial police commissioner Maj Gen Fred Kekana said investigators were examining a possible connection between the attack and a shooting last month that left one person dead and another injured.
He added that police had secured photographs of the suspects and, in some cases, identified their names.
Hours later, another shooting occurred outside an entertainment venue in a township near Cape Town, resulting in 10 deaths and 11 injuries.
Five victims died at the scene, while the remaining five died after being taken to hospital.
Police had not confirmed any arrests in connection with either attack by Sunday morning, while the motive for the shootings remained unknown.
The incidents followed another deadly attack in Durban, where 11 people were killed days earlier after gunmen reportedly invaded a house in KwaMakhutha township.
Gun-related violence remains a major security concern in South Africa, with illegal firearms and gang activity contributing to the country’s high murder rate.
Some recent mass shootings have been linked to conflicts between gangs involved in drug trafficking and illegal mining.
In February, President Cyril Ramaphosa called organised crime “the most immediate threat to our democracy, our society and our economic development”.
The government has also deployed soldiers alongside police in areas with high murder rates in an effort to tackle armed violence.
Separately, police in Ekurhuleni, east of Johannesburg, were investigating the discovery of a tenth woman’s body. Authorities said they had not ruled out a possible connection between the deaths, including the possibility of a serial killer.