'I was in tears': South Africans take stand against looting

South African police and the army are struggling to bring order to impoverished areas of South Africa rocked by weeklong unrest and days of looting sparked by the imprisonment last week of ex-President Jacob Zuma

JOHANNESBURG -- Surveying the uneasy standoff between South African soldiers and huddles of young men faced off Wednesday across the rubble-strewn street in front of Soweto’s Maponya mall, Katlego Motati shook her head sadly. “I’m standing here against vandals and hooligans,” the 32-year-old said of the weeklong unrest and looting sparked by the imprisonment of ex-President Jacob Zuma, which has left at least 72 people dead. She was one of scores of residents who came out to stand against the rioting that has rocked poor areas of South Africa for the past week. “When I saw the destruction on the news, I was in tears, seeing how all this has panned out," Motati said. “At the end of the day, we will be struggling because of this. Our economy is going to be really damaged.”