South African military deployed as ex-leader Zuma jailed and looting spreads

[Calista241]

Source: CNN

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has deployed the country's military to restore calm after days of violent protests and looting sparked by the imprisonment of former leader Jacob Zuma.

Ramaphosa addressed the nation Monday evening, calling for calm after at least six people died in the violence and hundreds were arrested. As Zuma's lawyers argued for a sentence reduction Monday, protests and looting centered in two provinces escalated.

"We will not hesitate to arrest and prosecute those who perpetrate these actions and ensure they face the full might of the law," Ramaphosa said in a national address, as local media played live pictures of malls being looted in Durban.

"It is this rule of law that enables our society to function and our economy to develop in the interests of the people of South Africa." Ramaphosa acknowledged the protests and looting may have begun with political grievances, but that criminal elements had taken over.

Read more: https://www.cnn.com/2021/07/12/africa/zuma-looting-south-africa-intl/index.html

[muriel_volestrangler]

1. At least 30 dead

At least 30 people have died in the violence which has been engulfing parts of South Africa since the country's former President Jacob Zuma handed himself into police last week.

Almost 800 people have been arrested in the unrest which began as protests following Zuma's jailing on Thursday.
...
Police Minister Bheki Cele told journalists on Tuesday that if the looting continued, there was a risk areas could run out of basic goods.
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KwaZulu-Natal Premier Sihle Zikalala said some 26 people had been killed in the province so far, including a 15-year-old boy, EWN reports. Six deaths have been confirmed in Gauteng, news agency AFP says.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-57818215

[Sugarcoated]

2. Kick

[muriel_volestrangler]

3. South Africa: more than 70 dead as unrest linked to Zuma jailing intensifies

President Cyril Ramaphosa has described the deadly violence and protests as unprecedented in the 27 years since the end of the apartheid regime. The death toll from nearly a week of unrest has risen to 72, some from gunshot wounds, while 1,300 people have been arrested.

Ten people were killed during a crowd crush on Monday night at a mall, officials said. Others were reported to have died when a stack of goods in a warehouse collapsed. Four police officers have been injured.
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The wave of violence has hit South Africa’s faltering vaccination rollout and also disrupted access to essential healthcare services including the collection of medication by patients suffering tuberculosis and HIV, the health ministry said.
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There were also reports of clinics being looted and problems with the delivery of oxygen to hospitals treating victims of a brutal third wave of Covid infections gripping the country.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/13/troops-deployed-in-south-africa-amid-violence-rarely-seen-in-the-history-of-our-democracy

A mother in Durban is forced to throw her baby from a building after it was set on fire (both OK):
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-57822460