Trouble in Paradise

[Kingdom of Ireland]

It had been a normal day in Durban, the port city in the province of Natal. A bustling center, men and women of all sorts can be seen crossing its busy streets and going about their day. Cars flowing through the busy streets as the lifeblood of Durban, keeping the businesses and economy of the city alive. It is no wonder, then, how one van goes unnoticed among all the vehicles of the city. This unimposing, unmarked van would drive through the streets. Even more unnoticed is a simple Mazda, one of the most popular sedans in the nation. The two cars would come to be on either side of Church St which runs in front of City Hall. Not much of a street, it largely exists for walking or travel of government officials for the city. While the Mazda parks on one end of Church St, the van suddenly careens off the main street and to the front of City Hall. Coming to a sharp stop, two black men sprint out of the van and get into the Mazda as fast as they can, which itself takes off at breakneck pace into the streets of Durban. As it is City Hall, with many important government buildings around, there is a large number of police stationed in the area who all see the two men. Some officers sprint after them, demanding they halt and drawing their service weapons. Others radio in the incident and call for patrol cars to chase the men down. One officer by chance has his hand pressed down on his walkie in the middle of reporting the vehicle took a right down Rhodes St, when the bomb in the back of the van detonates.

Either by luck, chance, or nerves of the men responsible, the van was not parked as close to the entrance to city hall as it should have been to cause damage. Some Police Officers were blown to the ground by the blast, others hurt by shrapnel and struggle to get back on their feet. Sirens can immediately be heard as patrol cars are scrambled to the street while two Casspirs with militarized police leave the station, following directions over the radio to continue in the same direction as the criminals in their getaway. The Mazda weaves through traffic, nearly crashing into cars or posts multiple times and causing one accident in its wake. Still, patrol cars follow with Casspirs a ways behind. The criminals make it out to Pinetown when they believe they have lost the Durban police. They make it to a safehouse outside of town, a somewhat run-down suburban home surrounded by forest. As the men almost pull their car into the garage, three police cars form up on the road. A spray of bullets fly out of the first floor window, missing the police officers but shattering windows and making the terrifying but relieving sound of a bullet contacting asphalt, a sign the men are both still alive but are in imminent danger. The officers take cover behind their cars and wait, occasionally firing back blindly at the house. Once the two Casspirs arrive though, the story changes. Each Casspir has twelve firing ports, six on each side. Two Casspirs pulled up on the street results in twelve R4 barrels poking out of an armored vehicle, aimed directly at the home.

It is worth noting that in instances like this, other police departments might break into the home so as to ensure there are no bystanders inside the building. The South African Police however are not a normal police department. The deafening cry of twelve rifles fills the air as in bursts, all twelve empty their magazines. As the officers inside the Casspirs reload, the now peppered building falls silent. The militarized police come out of the Casspirs and subsequently barge into the safe house and methodically clear the building. The report afterward would find that weapons, paraphernalia of illegal organizations, and large amounts of cash would be found on the premises. One man would be found alive in the back room, on the ground bleeding heavily. He would die before being moved, but before he died he would be able to barely say Thina........ Singumkhonto. The officer standing over him would feel genuine disgust at such a backward language being spoken. That officer speaks Afrikaans well and can understand English, but those are the only languages he knows. Still, he can tell the man is speaking Zulu. In response he slams the terrorist's forehead with the butt of his rifle and leaves him to bleed out.

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This is far from the first terrorist attack by uMkhonto we Sizwe, or "Spear of the Nation". The militant arm of the banned African National Congress, it is one of the two main terrorist organizations in South Africa. However in recent years uMkhonto we Sizwe has been conducting fewer operations, since the arrest of its leader Nelson Mandela and subsequent life sentence the organization has been struggling to formulate large scale plans. While all news is controlled directly or otherwise by the state, they still operate independent to a degree, and discussion is rife with concerns that this may not be a one-off but instead the beginning of a ramping up of attacks. Some still speculate that the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging will increase their attacks to in retaliation, but only time will tell.