July unrest: 21 alleged instigators granted R3 000 bail

Twenty-one people accused of being the instigators of the July unrest last year, were granted bail of R3 000 each at the Durban Central Magistrates’ Court on Friday.

The trial was adjourned to 26 August.

The suspects were told they can’t leave KwaZulu-Natal (KZN) without permission from the case’s investigating officer. They were also warned not to incite any violence related to the case.

The Directorate for Priority Crime Investigation (Hawks) on Thursday announced it had arrested 20 suspects for allegedly instigating the violence and looting that swept across KZN and Gauteng in July 2021.

The 20 people were arrested simultaneously in KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng, North West, Free State, Western Cape and Northern Cape.

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They face charges ranging from conspiracy to commit public violence, incitement to commit public violence and incitement to commit arson.

All of these suspects, except one, were granted bail. Two more suspects appeared shortly after the initial group of 20. They were also granted R3 000 bail.

The Hawks also said that more arrests are imminent as investigations continue.

July unrest

More than 350 people were killed during the July unrest.

The anarchy was triggered by the arrest of former president Jacob Zuma, who was in contempt of a court order.

The 20 suspects join the 19 who were previously arrested in connection with instigating the violence and looting.

ALSO READ: July unrest in numbers: Arrests, court cases and investigations

While many have welcomed the arrest of the additional suspects who caused anarchy in the country, questions have been raised about why Zuma’s son, Duduzane, and his sister have not been arrested for inciting violence.

Following the events in the aftermath of Zuma’s arrest, Duduzane appeared in a video in which he encouraged looters to steal responsibly.

“The people that are protesting and looting, please do so carefully and please do so responsibly,” he said at the time.

In the video that was shared on the Instagram page of his close associate Winston Innes, Duduzane said death, destruction, vandalism and threats were not the solution, adding that ways had to be found to deal with the situation, which was spiralling out of control.

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