At least 14 people were killed during a shootout at a bar in South Africa's Soweto township near Johannesburg, local police said on Sunday.

"We were called in the early hours of the morning, around 12:30 a.m. (2230 GMT) [on Sunday]," police commissioner Elias Mawela said after the shooting.

Police initially confirmed 12 people had died after arriving at the scene, but two later died of their injuries, Mawela added.