KwaZulu-Natal provincial police Commissioner has expressed relief after police officers escaped unscathed following another deadly shootout with criminals in the Inanda area in the North of Durban in KwaZulu Natal (KZN) on Friday morning.

 Police officers from the Stabilisation Task Team were involved in a shoot-out with criminals after acting on information with regard to thugs involved in multiple murders committed in Inanda and surrounding areas. KZN SAPS spokesperson Brigadier Jay Naicker said the team proceeded to an identified house at Ezimangweni where shots were fired at officers by the suspect who was inside the house. Following a gun battle, Naicker said a 30-year-old suspect was fatally wounded. A pistol with 12 rounds of ammunition as well as two cellphones were found in the suspect's possession. "A preliminary investigation conducted at the scene revealed that the same suspect was also wanted for the attempted murder of a former ward councillor at Nhlungwane area on Thursday morning. Fortunately, the victim was not injured during Thursday's attack," he said.

Thursday's incident took the tally of the people who have been gunned down in Inanda to 20. Recently, nineteen men who were suspected of being criminals were shot and killed in three separate incidents in Durban. The men, including a feared criminal called Poison, were killed almost two weeks ago. KZN police commissioner Lieutenant General Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi reminded criminals that their days were numbered. "Operations in the province to root out all causes of crime are being amplified as we approach the festive season. Police officers will always defend themselves when they come under attack as we do not expect them to die at the hands of criminals. We are appealing to criminals to surrender themselves when approached by police so that they can be subjected to processes within the criminal justice system," he said.