SANDF joins police in year-long fight against gangs and illegal mining

A year-long military deployment just kicked off to rip apart organized-crime networks strangling South Africa's most violent communities.

Operation Prosper's latest extension

• SANDF troops deployed on 1 March 2026 for twelve months.
• Gauteng's illegal-mining syndicates are a primary target.
• Western Cape gang violence is the other major focus.
• Pre-deployment training is currently underway for soldiers.

What the operation targets specifically

• Zama-zama networks smuggling gold get top priority.
• Gang turf wars terrorizing Cape Town neighborhoods are next.
• Firearms, explosives, and narcotics recovery drives the mission.
• Key offenders in designated hotspots face arrest sweeps.

Broader strategy beyond boots on the ground

• Intelligence consolidation at a national level anchors the plan.
• Multidisciplinary teams will hunt syndicate leaders and financiers.
• Proactive disruption replaces the old reactive-policing approach.

Lessons from previous military deployments

• Operation Fiela in 2015 produced mixed long-term results.
• Experts say soldiers stabilize but cannot replace sustained policing.
• Human-rights concerns got flagged by parliamentary committees.
• Violent crime dipped 3.1% to 6.7% since April 2024.

Economic toll and enforcement progress

• Illegal mining drains billions in lost national revenue.
• The Hawks logged over 800 arrests last quarter alone.
• Organized crime charges made up more than half of those busts.
• Cape Town businesses still pay protection money to survive.