Law enforcement officers patrol the Marikana informal settlement, in what the Cape Town mayor's office describes as the "biggest anti-crime operation" in the city's history, in which more than 750 law enforcement officers from various units have been deployed, in the Marikana informal settlement and surroundings, in Cape Town, South Africa, October 12, 2022. REUTERS/Esa Alexander
Rifles in hand and dogs in tow, hundreds of uniformed police descended on townships and settlements in Cape Town for a two-day raid on one of South Africa's most violent areas.
High rates of unemployment and drug abuse in the crime-ridden Cape Flats area have fuelled activity by gangs who City of Cape Town said extort protection money from residents.
More than 750 officers, canine units and helicopters were deployed in the raid on Wednesday and Thursday. Several people were arrested, authorities said.
An informal settlement is pictured during a crime operation which Cape Town mayor's office describes as the "biggest anti-crime operation" in the city's history, in which more than 750 law enforcement officers from various units have been deployed in the Marikana informal settlement and surroundings, in Cape Town, South Africa, October 12, 2022. REUTERS/Esa Alexander
(Reporting by Esa Alexander; Writing by Sofia Christensen; editing by John Stonestreet)
A law enforcement official interacts with a motorist after her car was impounded during a roadblock, in what the Cape Town mayor's office describes as the "biggest anti-crime operation" in the city's history, in which more than 750 law enforcement officers from various units have been deployed, in the Marikana informal settlement and surroundings, in Cape Town, South Africa, October 13, 2022. REUTERS/Esa AlexanderA law enforcement official interacts with taxi bosses, in what the Cape Town mayor's office describes as the "biggest anti-crime operation" in the city’s history, in which more than 750 law enforcement officers from various units have been deployed, in the Marikana informal settlement and surroundings, in Cape Town, South Africa, October 13, 2022. REUTERS/Esa AlexanderA traffic official arrests a taxi driver, in what the Cape Town mayor's office describes as the "biggest anti-crime operation" in the city's history, in which more than 750 law enforcement officers from various units have been deployed in the Marikana informal settlement and surroundings, in Cape Town, South Africa, October 13, 2022. REUTERS/Esa AlexanderLaw enforcement officials search residents in the Marikana informal settlement, in what the Cape Town mayor's office describes as the "biggest anti-crime operation" in the city's history, in which more than 750 law enforcement officers from various units have been deployed, in the Marikana informal settlement and surroundings, in Cape Town, South Africa, October 12, 2022. REUTERS/Esa AlexanderA law enforcement sniffer dog reacts after a vehicle search in what the Cape Town mayor's office describes as the "biggest anti-crime operation" in the city’s history, in which more than 750 law enforcement officers from various units have deployed in the Marikana informal settlement and surroundings, in Cape Town, South Africa, October 12, 2022. REUTERS/Esa Alexander
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