President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that the South African Government is considering deploying the Army to gang violence hotspots as part of efforts to curb persistent gang-related crime.
Speaking outside the African National Congress National Executive Committee Lekgotla meeting over the week-end, Ramaphosa noted that while soldiers are trained to neutralise threats, they are not investigators, making any deployment decision a matter requiring careful consideration. He emphasised the need for a balanced approach to tackle the crisis.
The announcement comes amid a surge in gang-related fatalities, including 26 deaths in the Cape Flats region of Cape Town over the past weekend, which featured a mass shooting in Marikana, Philippi East Township that claimed eight lives.
Cape Flats has long been afflicted by gang violence, with 2,104 murders reported in the first nine months of 2025. Between 29 December 2025 and 11 January 2026, authorities recorded 58 gang-related murders and 60 attempted murders.