As of 14 July 2021, security personnel remain under orders to enforce a nightly nationwide 2100-0400 local time (1900-0200 UTC) curfew. Authorities also ordered the country’s prosecutors to oppose bail for individuals detained for looting and rioting in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng provinces. At least 1,234 people have been arrested in connection with the ongoing unrest and at least 72 people have been killed in the riots. More than 200 malls have been targeted in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng provinces since the unrest began and, in some areas, homes were looted.
An explosion occurred on 14 July near Queen Nandi Drive in the industrial district of Durban. Reports indicate the explosion came from a warehouse, but specifics regarding the warehouse are unknown and any injury or casualty information remains unavailable. The previous day in the northern industrial district along Queen Nandi Drive, large-scale looting and arson incidents were reported and fires burned throughout the night. Elsewhere in Durban, several hundred individuals looted a large shopping center and set fire to shops nearby on 13 July. Many of the looters carried firearms and Molotov cocktails. Reports from 13 July indicated residents were guarding entry and exit points in northern Durban — including the M4 Ruth First Highway, Rinaldo Road and Blackburn Road — in an attempt to prevent looting. These roadblocks have resulted in violence when vehicles passing through have refused to stop. Amid the unrest, long lines formed around gas stations in the greater Durban area and many stations were running out of fuel. Residents also rushed to stores that remained open to purchase essential items, including milk and bread.
In Johannesburg, rioters looted stores and warehouses throughout the day and into the evening, even as authorities deployed 2,500 soldiers in an attempt to quell the violence. Looting continued in the Soweto and Alexandra townships of the Johannesburg metropolitan area. Police officers responded with rubber bullets, but soldiers did not arrive in time to help quell the unrest or apprehend looters. Amid the ongoing unrest in the country, the Gauteng Metrorail will resume service on 14 July after suspending operations the previous day, and many gas stations are reported closed until at least 16 July.
Reports indicate looting has spread to other provinces, including the town of Hammersdale in Mpumalanga province, which is located east of Gauteng, and Northern Cape province, located in the southwest of the country — but not including Cape Town.
