SOUTH AFRICA: A dismissed army major was identified by South African police yesterday as the man killed in a shoot-out with guards outside Nelson Mandela's Cape Town home.
Officials said Tuesday's shoot-out, which triggered a national security scare in the run-up to a general election on April 14th, did not appear to involve any political motive.
A police spokesman named the dead man as George Makume, sacked recently from the South African National Defence Force (SANDF). "The guy was expelled from the SANDF and he allegedly committed some crimes, theft of some weapons."
Police were questioning two men who accompanied Makume to Mr Mandela's home demanding to speak to the former president or Archbishop Desmond Tutu. A third man linked to Makume was detained in the Western Cape region.
Police said Makume pulled out an assault rifle and fired at the guards, who in turn shot him dead.
Mr Mandela, who was in Johannesburg at the time of the shooting, expressed shock over the incident.
The Safety and Security Minister, Mr Charles Nqakula, said: "It does not appear to us like (Makume) was involved with any unit which would want to harm our democracy and which would have wanted to harm our leaders. "It appears like it was just this one disgruntled person."
The cabinet's security group said Makume was being sought in connection with the theft of military firearms, one of which was found at the scene of Tuesday's shooting. "This is an isolated case and of a personal nature," the group said.
Mr Mandela has stepped up his profile in the election campaign with fund-raising appearances on behalf of the ruling African National Congress (ANC).
The ANC and other political parties unanimously condemned the shooting and expressed concern about security provisions for the 85-year-old Nobel Peace Prize laureate, who in 1994 became South Africa's first black president. - (Reuters)