3 COPS SHOT BY UNKNOWN GUNMEN

MANZINI - Three police officers are reportedly in a critical condition in hospital after they were shot by unknown gunmen last night.

The trio was shot at Kwaluseni, just after they had assisted employees of OK Foods Kwaluseni to close their supermarket for the day. It is worth noting that law enforcers assist large shops to close due to the high number of armed robberies that have been reported recently. The three officers were reportedly shot at by unknown gunmen who were travelling in a black VW sedan, which had been driving up and down the road for a lengthy period. A source close to the matter said they spotted the black VW sedan making rounds along the Ndlunganye/University of Eswatini Public Road, but no one suspected anything.

Parked

He said just after 7:30pm, the police arrived in a white Toyota Hilux GD6 4x4 and parked in front of the supermarket. The source said at this point, the black VW sedan was still driving up and down the road. It was gathered that after the police had completed assisting employees of OK Foods with closing the shop, the three officers drove off. However, at about 150 metres from the shop, the source said the unknown gunmen in the black sedan fired gunshots at the police vehicle. Another source said it was suspected that the gunmen travelling in the black sedan were targeting the business establishment in an effort to stage a robbery. He said it was suspected the police officers were shot using a pistol. As the suspects aimed and fired shots at the police vehicle, the source said the police retaliated with firing at the sedan with an R4 assault rifle. During the shootout, the three officers were reportedly shot in various parts of their upper bodies.

It was gathered that one of the police officers, who were two males and one female, was shot in the forehead and neck, while another was shot in the chest. The third officer was reportedly shot in the shoulder. They were said to have been rushed to the Raleigh Fitkin Memorial (RFM) Hospital in a vehicle belonging to one of the security firms in Matsapha. The incident was said to have happened just after 8pm. Meanwhile, when this publication’s reporters arrived at the health facility, some police officers in their casual wear were gathered at the hospitals benches. They were heard bemoaning the violent attack on their colleagues as they narrated that the suspects had seemingly aimed at killing them as they shot them in their upper bodies.

On the other hand, a contingent of police officers clad in bulletproof vests and armed with R4 assault rifles and pistols closed the stretch between the supermarket and where the police bakkie was shot at. The bakkie was parked in the middle of the road with its windscreen and windows shattered due to the shooting. The police, who included the specialised crimes units, were seen combing the area with officers from the Scenes of Crime Department. During this period, motorists were ordered to use an alternative route, which is the freeway. This exercise lasted until about 11pm whereupon the police left the scene, with some travelling in the vehicle which had been shot by the gunmen. Chief Police Information and Communications Officer Phindile Vilakati could not confirm the shooting at the time this article was compiled. She said no officers were available to respond to her enquiry. The last effort to get her comment was made at 10:08pm while the first was at 8pm.

Meanwhile, comes after 10 other security personnel having been shot  and killed by unknown gunmen since May 2022. The killing of the security personnel is subsequent to the political unrest experienced in the country last year. The Institute for Peace and Security Studies (IPSS) report titled Kingdom of Eswatini Conflict Insights claimed that by the end of June 28, 2021, about 28 protesters had been shot and by July 6, 2021, it was supposed 45 people had been killed. These figures are low compared to the over 100 people, which political parties, purported have been killed by security personnel at the height of the political unrest. Despite these varying figures, Eswatini is still not viewed as a major threat to regional peace and security by IPSS. 

The report authored by African Women’s Peace and Development Foundation (AWPDF) Nothando Maphalala (author, editor in chief) Tigist Kebede Feyissa (associate editor) Selby Gama (associate editor),  in its strategic options for the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC), alleges that while the kingdom is surrounded and outnumbered by its larger and more influential neighbours, Eswatini has skirted below the radar in the region but was renowned to be a ‘peaceful nation’.

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