A brutal mass shooting in a remote South African town has left 17 people dead and several injured.

On Friday night, two homesteads in Lusikisiki, Eastern Cape, were targeted. Twelve women and one man were killed at one location, while three women and one man were murdered at the other. An 18th victim remains in critical condition in a hospital.

The victims, who were relatives and neighbors, had gathered to prepare for a traditional mourning ceremony. Gunmen opened fire as the group was packing goods and presents. Local officials and authorities are investigating the incident. The motive remains unclear, and no arrest have been made. South Africa has one of the highest murder rates in theworld.

The victims were gathered at the houses to prepare to attend a traditional mourning ceremony for a mother and daughter who were murdered a year ago. The attack occurred on Friday night, according to the media reports. News outlet Dispatch Live quoted local Ingquza Hil mayor Nonkosi Pepping saying: “The gunmen came and shot randomly… This has left the community terrified.”

South Africa Police Service spokesperson Brigadier Athlenda Mathe told Newzroom Afrika that there had been a total of 19 people sleeping in two homes at one of the shooting locations. She said there had been six survivors at one homestead – four women, a man, and a two-month-old child who was uninjured but taken to hospital as a precaution. There were no survivors at the other homestead.

Cabinet member for community safety, Xolile Nqatha, told state broadcaster SABC that he hoped the critically injured man would make a “speedy” recovery, as “his recovery can help us shed more light” on the shooting. He also suggested that the assailants may have been known to the victims. South Africa has one of the highest murder rates in the world, according to the latest figures from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime.