[1][2] The attack consisted of a car bomb set off outside the Nedbank Square Building, which was rented by the South African Air Force, on Church Street West, Pretoria, at 4:30 pm on 20 May 1983.
[3][4] The target was supposedly South African Air Force (SAAF) headquarters, but as the bomb was set to go off at the height of rush hour, those killed and wounded included civilians.
The bomb exploded ten minutes earlier than planned, killing two of the perpetrators, Freddie Shangwe and Ezekial Maseko, along with 17 other people.
The legal representative of some of the victims argued that as administrative staff including telephonists and typists they could not accept that they were a legitimate military target.
The applications were opposed on various grounds, including that it was a terrorist attack disproportionate to the political motive.