19 being tried for involvement in 2021 S.Africa unrest

Pretoria, July 9 South African Minister of Police Bheki Cele said that 19 people are being tried and prosecuted for their roles in the July 2021 unrest, which left more than 350 dead.

They are regarded as "instigators" and the police are investigating another 86 people, Cele told a media briefing in Pretoria, providing update on the unrest with other ministers in the cluster of security, reports Xinhua news agency.

Minister of Defence and Military Veterans Thandi Modise said the country is doing everything to prevent the recurrence of the unrest.

"We are keeping our ears and eyes on the ground, we are monitoring what's happening in the country," she said.

The civil unrest, which occurred mainly in South Africa's KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng provinces from July 8 to 17, 2021, was sparked by the imprisonment of former President Jacob Zuma for contempt of court.

Protests against the incarceration then turned into wider rioting and looting, which have caused an economic loss of over $3 billion nationwide.