Police Minister Fikile Mbalula had previously requested that the army be rolled out to assist police with crime fighting.

CAPE TOWN - Police Minister Fikile Mbalula says that the army will be deployed to crime-riddled areas in various provinces, including Gauteng and the Western Cape, before Christmas.

Mbalula had previously requested that the army be rolled out to assist police with crime fighting.

President Jacob Zuma has the final say on the deployment.

Mbalula insists that the deployment of the South African National Defence Force in crime-riddled communities will happen soon.

“We are processing it and thereafter the president will give us a green light. It will happen before Christmas.”

Mbalula says the army will be linked to specific police-driven operations during this period.

“The defence force does not do policing, so when we deploy them, we must link them to an operation and for a specific period because we do not want society to feel under siege. We want the police and the police generals to map out a plan and they are now cooking that plan as we speak.”

He says that the deployments will be made in specific hotspots in the Western Cape, in Port Elizabeth's northern areas, and in parts of Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal.