JOHANNESBURG: Hundreds of mourners have gathered in South Africa for the funeral of a 17-year-old girl whose brutal rape has sparked national outrage.

The funeral took place yesterday in Bredasdorp, a Western Cape town. It is there where the girl was raped. She lived long enough to identify one of her killers.

Mourners carried her white coffin, adorned with flowers, to be buried. Family members openly wept during the funeral service, attended by government leaders and activists.

Three men, including her former ex-boyfriend, have been arrested over her death and are scheduled to appear in court tomorrow.

The attack has sparked calls from South Africa’s president to stop the high incidence of rapes in the nation.

Around 65,000 sexual offenses were committed in South Africa last year alone, according to official figures.

Police said a Johannesburg pastor had been arrested yesterday for raping a woman inside his church.