JOHANNESBURG -- The death toll from rioting in South Africa climbed Tuesday to 72, with many people trampled to death during looting at stores, as police and the military fired stun grenades and rubber bullets to try to halt the unrest set off by the imprisonment of former President Jacob Zuma.
More than 1,200 people have been arrested in poor areas of two provinces, where a community radio station was ransacked and forced off the air Tuesday and some vaccination centers were closed.
Many of the deaths in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces occurred as thousands of people stole food, appliances, liquor and clothing from stores, police Maj. Gen. Mathapelo Peters said Tuesday night.
He said 27 deaths were being investigated in KwaZulu-Natal province and 45 in Gauteng province. He said police were investigating deaths caused by explosions when people tried to break into ATMs, as well as other fatalities caused by shootings.
Violence broke out after Zuma on Thursday began serving a 15-month sentence for contempt of court. He didn't comply with a court order to testify at a state-backed inquiry into allegations of corruption while he was president.
The unrest spiraled into a spree of looting in two provinces.
The deployment of 2,500 soldiers to support the South African police has so far failed to stop the looting, although arrests were made in Johannesburg, including Vosloorus.
At least 1,234 people were arrested in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal, authorities said, but the situation was not controlled.
Looting continued Tuesday in Jabulani Mall and Dobsonville Mall in Soweto. There also were reports of looting in KwaZulu-Natal.
Walmart Inc., the majority stakeholder in the African retailer Massmart, said through a spokeswoman Tuesday that 18 Massmart-owned stores were forced to close temporarily.
Fifteen stores were in the city of KwaZulu-Natal and three were in Gauteng, she said.
The company has teams in South Africa to assess the situation as it unfolds, she said. "There were many instances where we were able to close stores in advance," she said.
"In some instances, we did have some stores that obviously were looted," the spokeswoman said. There were only a few reported incidents of minor injuries, she said.
The company is working with law enforcement authorities, the spokeswoman said, and the country's president has mobilized the South African National Defense Force to help restore order.
Authorities warned people, including Zuma supporters and relatives, against using social media to encourage the riots. Police minister Bheki Cele said Tuesday that about a dozen people have been identified as having instigated the riots.
The Constitutional Court, the country's highest, heard Zuma's application to have his sentence rescinded Monday. Zuma's lawyer argued that the top court made errors when sentencing Zuma to prison. After 10 hours of testimony, the judges said they would announce their decision at a later date.
Information for this article was contributed by Mogomotsi Magome and Andrew Meldrum of The Associated Press and by Serenah McKay of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
![Metro police take aim on people who took part in a protest, at a shopping centre in Soweto, near Johannesburg Tuesday July 13, 2021. South Africa's rioting continued Tuesday with the death toll rising to 32 as police and the military struggle to quell the violence in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. The violence started in various parts of KwaZulu-Natal last week when Zuma began serving a 15-month sentence for contempt of court. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)]()
Metro police take aim on people who took part in a protest, at a shopping centre in Soweto, near Johannesburg Tuesday July 13, 2021. South Africa's rioting continued Tuesday with the death toll rising to 32 as police and the military struggle to quell the violence in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. The violence started in various parts of KwaZulu-Natal last week when Zuma began serving a 15-month sentence for contempt of court. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)
![A soldiers patrol at a shopping centre in Soweto, Johannesburg Tuesday July 13, 2021. South Africa's rioting continued Tuesday with the death toll rising to 32 as police and the military struggle to quell the violence in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. The violence started in various parts of KwaZulu-Natal last week when Zuma began serving a 15-month sentence for contempt of court. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)]()
A soldiers patrol at a shopping centre in Soweto, Johannesburg Tuesday July 13, 2021. South Africa's rioting continued Tuesday with the death toll rising to 32 as police and the military struggle to quell the violence in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. The violence started in various parts of KwaZulu-Natal last week when Zuma began serving a 15-month sentence for contempt of court. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)
![A patrolling soldier looks on at damaged stores at a shopping centre in Soweto near Johannesburg, Tuesday July 13, 2021 as ongoing looting and violence continues. South Africa's rioting continued Tuesday with the death toll rising to 32 as police and the military struggle to quell the violence in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. The violence started in various parts of KwaZulu-Natal last week when Zuma began serving a 15-month sentence for contempt of court. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)]()
A patrolling soldier looks on at damaged stores at a shopping centre in Soweto near Johannesburg, Tuesday July 13, 2021 as ongoing looting and violence continues. South Africa's rioting continued Tuesday with the death toll rising to 32 as police and the military struggle to quell the violence in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. The violence started in various parts of KwaZulu-Natal last week when Zuma began serving a 15-month sentence for contempt of court. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)
![Soldiers guard an autobahn at the Bara taxi rank shops in Soweto, Johannesburg, Monday, July 12, 2021. Police say six people are dead and more than 200 have been arrested amid escalating violence during rioting that broke out following the imprisonment of South Africa's former President Jacob Zuma. (AP Photo/Ali Greeff)]()
Soldiers guard an autobahn at the Bara taxi rank shops in Soweto, Johannesburg, Monday, July 12, 2021. Police say six people are dead and more than 200 have been arrested amid escalating violence during rioting that broke out following the imprisonment of South Africa's former President Jacob Zuma. (AP Photo/Ali Greeff)
![A security man takes aim at looters at a shopping centre in Soweto, Johannesburg, Tuesday July 13, 2021. South Africa's rioting continued Tuesday with the death toll rising to 32 as police and the military struggle to quell the violence in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. The violence started in various parts of KwaZulu-Natal last week when Zuma began serving a 15-month sentence for contempt of court. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)]()
A security man takes aim at looters at a shopping centre in Soweto, Johannesburg, Tuesday July 13, 2021. South Africa's rioting continued Tuesday with the death toll rising to 32 as police and the military struggle to quell the violence in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. The violence started in various parts of KwaZulu-Natal last week when Zuma began serving a 15-month sentence for contempt of court. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)
![A soldier apprehends a looters at a shopping centre in Soweto near Johannesburg, Tuesday July 13, 2021 as ongoing looting and violence continues. South Africa's rioting continued Tuesday with the death toll rising to 32 as police and the military struggle to quell the violence in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. The violence started in various parts of KwaZulu-Natal last week when Zuma began serving a 15-month sentence for contempt of court. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)]()
A soldier apprehends a looters at a shopping centre in Soweto near Johannesburg, Tuesday July 13, 2021 as ongoing looting and violence continues. South Africa's rioting continued Tuesday with the death toll rising to 32 as police and the military struggle to quell the violence in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. The violence started in various parts of KwaZulu-Natal last week when Zuma began serving a 15-month sentence for contempt of court. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)
![Soldiers patrol at a shopping centre in Soweto, Johannesburg Tuesday July 13, 2021. South Africa's rioting continued Tuesday with the death toll rising to 32 as police and the military struggle to quell the violence in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. The violence started in various parts of KwaZulu-Natal last week when Zuma began serving a 15-month sentence for contempt of court. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)]()
Soldiers patrol at a shopping centre in Soweto, Johannesburg Tuesday July 13, 2021. South Africa's rioting continued Tuesday with the death toll rising to 32 as police and the military struggle to quell the violence in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. The violence started in various parts of KwaZulu-Natal last week when Zuma began serving a 15-month sentence for contempt of court. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)
![A policeman watches over arrested looting suspects at a shopping centre, in Soweto near Johannesburg, Tuesday July 13, 2021 as ongoing looting and violence continues. South Africa's rioting continued Tuesday with the death toll rising to 32 as police and the military struggle to quell the violence in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. The violence started in various parts of KwaZulu-Natal last week when Zuma began serving a 15-month sentence for contempt of court. (AP Photo/Ali Greeff)]()
A policeman watches over arrested looting suspects at a shopping centre, in Soweto near Johannesburg, Tuesday July 13, 2021 as ongoing looting and violence continues. South Africa's rioting continued Tuesday with the death toll rising to 32 as police and the military struggle to quell the violence in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. The violence started in various parts of KwaZulu-Natal last week when Zuma began serving a 15-month sentence for contempt of court. (AP Photo/Ali Greeff)
![A security person aprehends looters inside a store in Vosloorus near Johannesburg, Tuesday July 13, 2021. South Africa's rioting continued Tuesday with the death toll rising to 32 as police and the military struggle to quell the violence in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. The violence started in various parts of KwaZulu-Natal last week when Zuma began serving a 15-month sentence for contempt of court. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)]()
A security person aprehends looters inside a store in Vosloorus near Johannesburg, Tuesday July 13, 2021. South Africa's rioting continued Tuesday with the death toll rising to 32 as police and the military struggle to quell the violence in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal provinces. The violence started in various parts of KwaZulu-Natal last week when Zuma began serving a 15-month sentence for contempt of court. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)
