JOHANNESBURG  – Holiday and business commuters in Gauteng have been affected Monday as workers at South Africa’s high-speed Gautrain went on strike over pay. Services to capital city Pretoria, commercial hug Johannesburg, and to the country’s main airport – OR Tambo International – have all been impacted, with major delays expected. The Bombela Operating Company, […]

The voting polls in Zimbabwe are now officially opened for voters. This is a historic moment for the Zimbabwean people, who will cast their vote without former President, Robert Mugabe’s name on the ballot paper for the first time in decades. The people have been queuing since early morning in the hope of casting their […]

Zimbabwe’s former president, Robert Mugabe, has broken his silence on Sunday afternoon ahead of the country’s elections on Monday. Mugabe was addressing the media in an off the cuff speech which lasted over an hour, outside his mansion in the capital city, Harare. The former president, who was removed from his position, says he will […]

Economic Freedom Fighter (EFF) Leader Julius Malema has lashed out at South African business mogul, Patrice Motsepe. Malema warned that Motsepe is leading another form of state capture. The EFF chief commander was addressing a crowd in Mdantsane in the Eastern Cape, during the party’s fifth anniversary celebration. Malema said that South Africa is not […]

President Cyril Ramaphosa has extended his “heartfelt condolences” on the tragic passing of acclaimed South African cardiologist Professor Bongani Mawethu Mayosi, who was Dean of Health Sciences at the University of Cape Town (UCT). Professor Mayosi died from suicide on Friday, 27 July 2018. He was renowned for heading the research group that discovered the […]

The body of a missing six year-old girl who was abducted last weekend has sadly been found, Mpumalanga police have confirmed. Noluthando Masango was last seen last week on Saturday when the family held a traditional ceremony. Her grandmother Leah Masango told local media the young girl had mysteriously disappeared after all the children had […]

The photos that are pouring in from South Africa and abroad of the historical worldwide event last night – the longest lunar eclipse this century – are heart-stopping! Here are just a few more to enjoy: Lunar eclipse photos from South Africa Johannesburg Durban: From Peter de Groot in Durban: “Composite sequence – Longest total […]

Lions have attacked the sole survivor of the disastrous relocation of 11 black rhino to Tsavo East National Park in Kenya. The relocation was intended to save and protect the rhino, a species whose future is in jeopardy… as poaching syndicates wipe them out to feed an Asian market that mistakenly believes the rhino horn […]

If you missed the lunar eclipse on Friday night – 27 July 2018 – here’s a video, taken by Richard Van Schalkwyk from Wilgeheuwel on the West Rang, Gauteng, South Africa… Richard says: “Colour added. The moon was white. Shot with a Canon T2i (550D) and a 50mm lens. Speed increased by 4000%.” WATCH Lunar […]

The much anticipated blood-red moon dazzled star gazers across much of South Africa and the world on Friday evening, when the earth’s natural satellite moved into the shadow of our planet for the longest lunar eclipse of the 21st Century. From Cape Town, KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng to the Middle East, and from the Kremlin to […]

Millions of people will have the opportunity to see a lunar eclipse – an event popularly known in the media as a “blood moon” – on Friday July 27. Visible for most of the world including South Africa – only North America and Greenland are expected to miss out – it’s set to be the […]

This week Carte Blanche investigates what’s really behind the mystery facing officials in Durban with regard to the spate of bomb scares. (This episode is available for South Africans abroad to watch from Tuesday 31 July 2018 if you subscribe to Showmax.) Durban Bombs It’s the biggest mystery currently facing officials in Durban – ten explosive […]

A blood moon will appear in the night sky in South Africa, and around much of the world, on Friday night as the moon moves into the shadow of the earth for the longest lunar eclipse of the 21st Century. The total eclipse will last 1 hour, 42 minutes and 57 seconds, though a partial […]

JOHANNESBURG – Russian President Vladimir Putin raised the issue of a nuclear power deal at a private meeting with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in Johannesburg on Thursday, but his host said Pretoria could not sign such a deal for now, Ramaphosa’s spokeswoman said. “Our economy is stagnant, it is not growing at the rate […]

JOHANNESBURG – South Africa cannot afford large-scale expansion of its nuclear power fleet but would still be open to future nuclear deals with Russia, the ruling party’s Treasurer General said on Thursday shortly before President Vladimir Putin arrived for the BRICS summit. The nuclear project was prioritised by former President Jacob Zuma but new President […]

A video showing a blatant robbery in action in Gauteng, South Africa, is gaining a lot of traction and raising the conversation on how witnesses to a crime should behave. The video was posted by Intelligence Bureau SA on Thursday morning, and shows two men approaching a vehicle on the Grayston Drive Off-Ramp. While the […]

The emergency medical service, ER24 said no injuries have been reported following a massive building fire at a retail park on North Rand Road in Boksburg, South Africa. Footage of a flaming fire at the Retail Park, east of Johannesburg, could be seen in a stream of videos on Twitter. Ekurhuleni metro’s disaster and emergency […]

The motion of no confidence in Cape Town mayor, Patricia De Lille, has been withdrawn. The scheduled motion was due to be brought by the Democratic Alliance (DA) Caucus during today’s council meeting. The Caucus is set to meet on Thursday to discuss the request from the Federal Executive to retract the motion to allow […]

Finance Minister Nhlanhla Nene has ordered an independent enquiry into South Africa’s state pension manager – the Public Investment Corporation (PIC) – following allegations of corruption amongst top PIC executives. The National Treasury said Nene met with PIC’s Board of Directors on Wednesday to discuss the allegations and how to deal with governance issues at […]

CAPE TOWN – There’s an ultra-modern new building in Cape Town… which appears to be for Amazon.com. Inc, as the company ups the ante in its regional cloud battle with rival, Microsoft Corp. Amazon will be the sole tenant in the new, eight-story office building that’s nearing completion in South Africa’s Mother City, multiple sources […]

The South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) has officially announced that radio personality, Robert Marawa will be re-joining the public broadcaster from August 1, 2018. Speculation had been rife over whether Marawa would present the sports show on both Radio 200 and Metro FM. Today, the SABC clarified the matter, saying: “Mr Marawa, who is a […]

MATI, Greece – Greece’s prime minister told of the “unspeakable tragedy” the country faced after at least 74 people were killed by wildfires that swept through a resort, trapping people in cars and on the edge of cliffs as others were forced to jump off to survive. The scale of Monday night’s devastation in Mati […]

The name of the Field Ranger who was killed by poachers in the Kruger National Park last week has been released. South African National Parks (SANParks) said yesterday that it was with “deep sadness” that it learned of the passing of Field Ranger Respect Mathebula on Thursday, 19 July 2018. SANParks Chief Executive Officer Fundisile […]

President Cyril Ramaphosa’s mission to attract $100-billion in investment got a further boost on Tuesday when Chinese President Xi Jinping (who is visiting SA) promised $14.7 billion of investment! This comes hot on the heels of Saudi Arabia’s $10-billion pledge earlier this month, as well as the UAE’s $10-billion pledge – both made during the South African President’s […]

AMSTERDAM – South African Oscar-winning actress Charlize Theron joined Britain’s Prince Harry and singer Elton John in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, for the 22nd International AIDS Conference. Theron spoke about the need to identify what’s driving HIV infections, while Elton and Harry launched a billion dollar project targeting men in sub-Saharan Africa. The 42-year-old SA expat […]