HONOLULU – Hurricane Lane weakened to a Category 3 storm on Thursday but was already lashing Hawaii with high winds and torrential rains, touching off flash floods, landslides and raging surf as residents hunkered down to ride out the storm. With the storm still spinning in the Pacific Ocean about 180 miles (290 km) southeast […]

The Queen of Pop celebrated her 60th birthday on Thursday 16 August by proving she’s no longer a ‘Material Girl’. Instead of asking for gifts, Madonna asked friends and fans to rather donate to her Facebook fundraiser which is benefiting her Raising Malawi foundation. The non-profit Foundation aims to benefit vulnerable children in the southern African […]

Aretha Franklin, the preacher’s daughter whose powerful voice made her the long-reigning “Queen of Soul” with such hit songs as “Respect” and “Chain of Fools,” died on Thursday at the age of 76, officials said. Franklin, who won 18 Grammys and had some 25 gold records, died at her home in Detroit surrounded by family […]

The African National Congress (ANC) says it has learned with “shock” of the alleged, attempted assassination of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela’s President, Nicolas Maduro. “The abhorrent attack reportedly happened as President Madura was delivering a keynote address on the 81st anniversary of the National Bolivarian Guard. “At least two explosions in aerial devices (drones) reportedly […]

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 […]

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 […]

JAKARTA (Reuters) – Indonesian villagers armed with knives, hammers and clubs slaughtered 292 crocodiles in revenge for the death of a man killed by a crocodile at a breeding farm, an official said. Photographs released by Antara news agency showed bloodied carcasses of the crocodiles in a large pile in the Sorong district of the […]

The 13 Thai boys and their coach, whose plight gripped the world when they were trapped in the Tham Luang cave complex in Thailand for 17 days, have expressed their gratitude for those who helped and supported them. In a video compilation, the boys’ main message was: “You don’t have to worry now. We’re safe.” […]

Nancy Sinatra, the first wife of the late, legendary singer and actor Frank Sinatra, died Friday at the age of 101, her daughter, also named Nancy Sinatra, said in an internet tweet. “My mother passed away peacefully tonight at the age of 101,” the younger Nancy Sinatra, 78, wrote on her official Twitter page. “She […]

It’s not often you see international TV mogul Simon Cowell clapping along to the acts he judges, but this Los Angeles choir’s mesmerising rendition of Toto’s ‘Africa’ has even Cowell joining in… and giving it a standing ovation! SAPeople followers will remember Angel City Chorale’s original video of ‘Africa’ in 2013 – in which they […]

CHIANG RAI, Thailand (Reuters) – All 12 boys and their soccer coach have been successfully rescued from the flooded Thai cave where they had been trapped deep inside for over a fortnight. A Thai navy SEAL unit confirmed the fantastic news on their Facebook page on Tuesday 10 July. The announcement means a successful end […]

BANGKOK (Reuters) – At least four boys have exited a flooded cave in northern Thailand where they have been trapped for more than two weeks, a senior member of rescue operation’s medical team said on Sunday. According to Reuters the senior member said six of the boys had exited (and local reports mention four being […]

TOKYO (Reuters) – At least 50 people were missing and four in critical condition as torrential rain that has killed 38 people pounds western and central Japan, public broadcaster NHK said on Saturday, with more than 1.6 million evacuated from their homes. Japan’s Meteorological Agency retained special weather warnings for three prefectures in the main […]

(Reuters) – Images of an American hunter from Kentucky posing with the body of a black giraffe she killed in South Africa have triggered an online backlash after going viral on social media. Thousands of Twitter users expressed outrage at Tess Thompson Talley, 37, for killing the giraffe on a hunting trip last summer. “Prayers […]

LONDON (Reuters) – Just call Roland Garros the warm-up. Four weeks on from her run to the last 16 at the French Open, Serena Williams is back at Wimbledon, having missed last year’s event as she prepared for the birth of her daughter. Ranked 183 after just three tournaments back, the seven-time champion will go […]

LONDON (Reuters) – A shortage of carbon dioxide has hit Britain’s biggest brewers and soft drink makers, disrupting production just as drinkers’ thirst peaks due to a heatwave and a World Cup soccer tournament in which England is doing unusually well. Hot weather and a build-up of beer stocks ahead of the World Cup lifted […]

JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Prince William began the first official visit by a British royal to Israel and the Palestinian Territories on Monday, facing the challenge of navigating deep political and religious divides in a Holy Land once ruled by Britain. William, a 36-year-old grandson of Queen Elizabeth and second in line to the throne, will […]

ATHENS (Reuters) – A 5.5 magnitude earthquake shook the southwestern area of the Peloponnese in Greece in the early hours of Monday. Its epicenter was offshore, 26 km (16 miles) west of the town of Methoni at a depth of 30.4 km, the U.S. Geological Survey said. There were no early reports of serious damage or injuries, […]

James Corden’s latest Carpool Karaoke – featuring Paul McCartney – has gone totally viral, clocking up 2.7 million views on YouTube in 24 hours, and over 18 million on Facebook in 12 hours! Watch below as McCartney takes a trip down memory lane – and Penny Lane – revealing the moving story of how he […]

YULIN, China (Reuters) – Residents of China’s southern city of Yulin defended eating dog meat to celebrate the summer solstice on Thursday, as animal rights activists seek new ways to pressure organizers to cancel the annual festival. (Please note: the photos are distressing, so we have not included them in the article, however there are […]

A strong earthquake hit Osaka, on the western side of Japan, on Monday morning leaving three people dead and 150 injuried. The fatalities included two men in their 80s (of whom one was killed by a falling bookcase) and a nine-year-old girl who was knocked down by a brick wall at her primary school. The […]

The United States president, Donald Trump has arrived in Singapore on Sunday Morning prior to the summit with North Korean leader  Kim Jong Un. Kim landed a few hours before Trump made his arrival in the city. The aim of the summit is to discuss the nuclear deal with North Korea. The two leaders are […]

(Reuters) – U.S. celebrity chef Anthony Bourdain, host of CNN’s food-and-travel-focused “Parts Unknown” television series, killed himself in a French hotel room, CNN said on Friday, in the second high-profile suicide of a U.S. celebrity this week. He was 61. Bourdain, whose career catapulted him from cooking at New York’s top restaurants to dining in […]

French President Emmanuel Macron has announced that the ‘Spiderman hero’ from Africa, Mamoudou Gassama – who scaled a building in Paris to save a young boy, hanging precariously from a fourth-floor balcony – will be given residence papers for his selfless, heroic deed. Gassama, an illegal immigrant from West African country Mali, climbed the facade […]

LONDON (Reuters) – Soccer’s World Cup organizers divided fans by releasing the tournament’s official song on Friday – a fast-paced dance tune titled “Live It Up” featuring American actor and rapper Will Smith. Some on social media asked how the tune’s Latin American feel fitted in with the tournament’s host country Russia – and compared […]