A five-year-old boy was killed by two pit bulls while he walked home to his mum in South Africa.

Zibele Liyakhanya Mthi had stayed the night with his grandmother then set off the following day to return to his home. Sadly, he was attacked by the dogs as he walked down the street.

The attack was so savage that a tooth from one of the dogs punctured the boy’s right kidney.

Zibele Liyakhanya Mthi was still alive when he was found by horrified neighbours in the village of Dyamala, near the town of Alice in South Africa’s Eastern Cape.

He was rushed to hospital but died later from his severe injuries.

Zibele had been walking home to his mum at 8am on 7th April so the family could go to a Good Friday Easter church service together, according to local media.

Boy, 5, torn apart by two pit bulls while he was walking back home

South Africa’s SPCA animal charity has reportedly taken the dogs into care pending when a decision is made on what to do with them.

The dogs are understood to have escaped from a home near Zibele ‘s grandmother’s house.

The tragedy has increased calls for pit bulls to be banned in domestic homes in South Africa, with a petition launched to urge the government to act before there are more child deaths.