Police are following a “promising” lead after gunmen killed 11 people, including a pregnant woman, in the KwaMakhutha township south of Durban on Tuesday night.

The victims were gathered at a house shortly before 23:00 when armed assailants entered the premises and opened fire, Thamsanqa Ntuli, the premier of KwaZulu-Natal province, told AFP.

Three people survived the attack, police said. The motive was not immediately clear.

eNCA reported that the attackers forced everyone into a room before shooting them and set fire to a car belonging to one of the victims.

Acting police chief Puleng Dimpane said she had activated a 72-hour tracking operation to pursue and apprehend those responsible.

“There is no place in our communities for the senseless taking of human lives. Police must act decisively, mobilise all available resources and pursue those responsible until they are brought before the courts,” she said in a statement.

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