A knock at the door, then gunshots: Mass shooting at a house party in South Africa kills 11

CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP) — Three gunmen barged into a small house in an impoverished neighborhood in South Africa and opened fire on a group enjoying a party inside, killing at least 11 people including a pregnant woman, police and local authorities said Wednesday.

Three others were wounded in the late-night mass shooting Tuesday in KwaMakhutha township, which is located about 30 kilometers (19 miles) south of the city of Durban on the east coast.

The motive for the shooting wasn't known, but some of the shooting victims were known to authorities as part of investigations into criminal activity, police said.

Police didn’t give out any more information on those investigations, saying it could compromise them.

“Although the motive of the shooting cannot be confirmed yet, (a) feud between rival groupings cannot be ruled out,” the South African Police Service said in a statement.

Ten people, including the pregnant woman, died at the scene and an 11th was declared dead at a hospital. Authorities didn't immediately give out details on the condition of the three people who were wounded.

Nomusa Zulu, a community member, said two men killed in the shooting were her sons. She said witnesses told her that the victims had first gathered in the yard of the house, then went inside to continue the party as night fell and it became cold.

“They heard a knock at the door,” Zulu said. “When they opened the door, gunshots went off.”

Police said they were searching for three men and no arrests had been made, but the acting national police commissioner ordered local police to deploy officers in a special 72-hour operation to track down the suspects.

Thami Ntuli, the premier of KwaZulu-Natal province, told reporters at the scene that the killings were “really disturbing” and called on community members to provide any information they might have that would help find the gunmen. He said that there were known problems with drug dealing and illegal firearms in the largely poor community, where some of the houses are just a few meters apart with no fences or walls in between.

Ntuli confirmed in a statement that the woman who was killed was pregnant.

It's the latest in a series of mass shootings in South Africa recently, including one in June when multiple shooters killed 12 people in a poor neighborhood in Johannesburg that police linked to criminal gangs. Two mass shootings two weeks apart in December killed 21 people. They were also carried out by multiple gunmen.

South Africa has extremely high rates of violent crime, with official police statistics recording 5,427 homicides in the latest three-month period between April and June at an average of nearly 60 homicides a day.

Shootings are the most common form of homicide in South Africa, and police and crime experts have long said that one of the biggest problems is that there is a high number of illegal firearms in circulation.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa authorized the deployment of soldiers on the streets in some areas earlier this year to combat violent crime in what critics said was an admission that police were failing.

Soldiers were deployed to areas around Johannesburg, the city of Cape Town and in Eastern Cape province on the south coast in the ongoing operation, but not to KwaZulu-Natal province where the latest shooting happened.

The bodies of some of the victims of Tuesday night's shooting were laid out on the ground and covered with white sheets outside the house where the shooting took place. They were later carried away on stretchers to pathology vans.

Police cordoned off the neighborhood with yellow tape while forensic investigators worked through the scene.

Police were also investigating if the torching of a car near the house was connected to the shooting.

AP Africa news: https://apnews.com/hub/africa

Police officers load a body into a forensic pathology vehicle at the scene of a mass shooting in KwaMakhutha township south of the city of Durban, South Africa, Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2026. (AP Photo)

A police officer is seen at a scene of a mass shooting at a house party in KwaMakhutha township south of the city Durban, South Africa, Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2026. (AP Photo)

A police officer stands at the scene of a mass shooting at a house party in KwaMakhutha township south of the city of Durban, South Africa, Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2026. (AP Photo)

LUBBOCK, Texas (AP) — Thomas Castellanos threw for a career-high five touchdowns, including the go-ahead score to Kenny Johnson with 2:44 remaining, and No. 13 Texas Tech held on for a 53-48 victory over West Virginia in an old-school Big 12 offensive slugfest that ended early Sunday morning.

The Red Raiders (8-1, 5-1 Big 12) stayed on track for a shot at a second consecutive conference title, and the College Football Playoff spot that would come with it, by rallying from seven points down in the fourth quarter after leading by 14 at halftime.

The teams combined for 1,220 yards of offense — 894 of those before halftime — but a few defensive plays in the fourth quarter were as big as any of the game's 13 plays of at least 30 yards.

The biggest was Texas Tech (No. 15 in CFP rankings) stuffing Cam Cook on third-and-1 with seven minutes remaining. West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez opted to punt, and the Red Raiders went 69 yards in nine plays.

Castellanos kept the drive alive by floating a pass over the middle on fourth-and-3, and Micah Hudson grabbed it as he came across the field for a 26-yard gain. Johnson's scoring catch was a 5-yarder.

“A good old-fashioned throwback Big 12 game broke out,” said fifth-year Texas Tech coach Joey McGuire, who was a Baylor assistant before going to West Texas. “I haven't been a part of that in a long time. I probably haven't seen anything like that, definitely since I've been here.”

Quarterback Michael Hawkins Jr. had three rushing touchdowns to extend his FBS-leading total to 19, tying a West Virginia record set by Ira Errett Rodgers in 1919.

The Mountaineers (5-4, 2-4) erased a two-touchdown deficit by forcing Texas Tech to punt on its first four drives in the second half after the Red Raiders had 494 yards total offense before the break.

With the Red Raiders faltering on offense, West Virginia scored three touchdowns to take a 48-41 lead, but didn't have an answer after Texas Texas went back in front.

The last chance for the Mountaineers ended when Hawkins stumbled and fell in the end zone for a safety in the final two minutes.

“We expect this kind of game or this kind of game and then all of a sudden you get in the game and it's nothing like you thought it would be,” McGuire said. “So it's our job as coaches to find a way to win that game, to find a way to adjust. We didn't play great on defense tonight until the last couple of plays.”

J'Koby Williams had a 75-yard touchdown run for the Red Raiders and finished with 160 yards along with a 43-yard catch to set up a score.

Castellanos, in his second start since replacing Will Hammond, was 18 of 27 for 362 yards without an interception while rushing for 102 yards. Johnson and Terrance Carter Jr. had two scoring catches apiece.

Hawkins had 303 yards passing on just 11 completions, with redshirt freshman Taron Francis catching his first three passes of the season for 169 yards, including a 73-yard TD. Francis had a 75-yarder that set up a score.

West Virginia: The second-worst defense in FBS statistically gave its offense a chance to get back in the game with the sudden change of fortunes in the second half. The turnaround started with K.J. Henson's 15-yard sack of Castellanos on Texas Tech's first play after the break.

Texas Tech: The Red Raiders have the best run defense in the Big 12, a strength they rode to the league title and CFP last season. Now, they've given up at least 255 yards rushing in two of the past three games after the Mountaineers piled up 279 on the ground.

West Virginia: Hosts Kansas on Saturday.

Texas Tech: At Oklahoma State on Saturday.

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Texas Tech linebacker Trey White (2) gestures after a safety during the second half of an NCAA college football game against West Virginia, Saturday, Nov. 7, 2026, in Lubbock, Texas. (AP Photo/Annie Rice)