Botswana has announced the discovery of a diamond which they say is the third largest in the world. The whopping 1,098.3 carat diamond, was found on 1 June 2021. Holding the precious stone, President Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi commended Debswana Diamond Company’s discovery, their largest to date. The largest diamond ever was discovered in South Africa […]

My Octopus Teacher, the Oscar-winning South African documentary about a Western Cape man’s special friendship with a female octopus, has spawned numerous videos and spoofs. Here’s the latest video that’s been going viral on social media – showing viewers on the UK’s Gogglebox watching the Netflix show. Their comments are classic. When well-known SA writer Max […]

Novak Djokovic made history on Sunday evening in a thrilling men’s finals match at the Roland Garros 2021 French Open. The Serb – who is the world’s number one tennis player – fought from two sets down to became the first man in Open Era to win each major at least twice! He is just […]

Tributes are being paid today at the special provincial funeral of one of South Africa’s icons – Shaleen Surtie-Richards who sadly died at the age of 66 on 7 June 2021. You can watch the service, being held at Durbanville in Cape Town, below. Flags across the Western Cape province have been lowered to half-mast […]

South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa has called on the leaders, gathered at the G7 Summit in the UK, to provide substantial support to the Access to COVID-19 Tools Accelerator, and to support a temporary TRIPS (Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights) Waiver of Covid-19 vaccines. Ramaphosa said: “If the world is to emerge from this grave […]

South Africa’s Proteas cricket team has won the first Test match against the West Indies, with fast-bowler Kagiso Rabada “on the rampage”… helping his team to victory by taking five wickets. The Proteas won – before lunch – by one innings and 63 runs. Cricket South Africa said: “A clinical performance by the #Proteas sees […]

President Cyril Ramaphosa has posted what look like fabulous holiday snaps from a faraway island location… but which are actually photos from British seaside county, Cornwall, where he is bumping shoulders – and elbows – with leaders from some of the wealthier nations in the world, who are gathered this weekend to get down to […]

Ingonyama land leases stripped people living on ancestral land of their customary rights… By Tania Broughton In a ruling that affects five million people in KwaZulu-Natal, the Pietermaritzburg High Court has ruled the Ingonyama Trust’s land leases unlawful. The Zulu King’s trust has been ordered to refund millions it collected on the leases. The court […]

The KwaZulu-Natal Department of Health has welcomed input from top global health experts, who have dismissed purported links between the COVID-19 vaccine and magnetic fields. This follows a series of viral video footage on social media, shared wildly in South Africa and around the world, where some individuals are seen placing metal coins on the […]

President Cyril Ramaphosa has arrived in Cornwall in the United Kingdom (UK) for the G7 Leaders’ Summit. Although South Africa is not part of the G7, he is attending the Summit at the invitation of the British Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Which countries are in the G7? The G7 (Group of Seven) comprises the following […]

Gauteng Social Development Department has confirmed that the mother of the alleged decuplets is NOT missing, contrary to local reports in South Africa. UPDATE 18 June 2021: It appears this story – which gripped the nation, and made worldwide news – was a hoax, and the Tembisa 10 mom was not even pregnant. She is […]

Environment Minister Barbara Creecy’s report on the use and protection of SA’s iconic wildlife was groundbreaking… writes DON PINNOCK from Daily Maverick. But is there the political will to turn its recommendations into policy? At the launch of the far-reaching report on the management of lions, elephants, rhinos and leopards by Environment Minister Barbara Creecy’s […]

The ANC Parliamentary Caucus says it welcomes some of the major reforms for South Africa announced by President Cyril Ramaphosa and Ministers in the last few days. Yesterday, Thursday 10 June 2021, President Ramaphosa announced strategic steps to reform South Africa’s electricity sector towards the achievement of a stable and secure supply of energy. “We […]

The PRO14 Rainbow Cup SA match between the Lions and Stormers, scheduled for Cape Town Stadium on Saturday, has been cancelled in line with COVID-19 protocols to limit the risk of further infection in the rugby community. The decision was taken as part of prescribed precautions advised by the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) […]

South African Airways will continue to fly thanks to a consortium which will purchase a 51% stake in the airline, which suffered great losses during the Jacob Zuma presidency years when his close ally Dudu Myeni was chairperson. The consortium – named as Takatso Consortium – will pay R3-billion, Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan announced […]

US President Joe Biden, who is currently in the UK attending the G7 Summit, has made a historic Covid-19 Vaccine announcement: the US will donate half a billion new vaccine doses to 92 countries in dire need in the fight against the pandemic, including South Africa. “It’s the right thing to do — and the […]

South African athlete Akani Simbine has won the 100 metre event at the Diamond League meeting in Florence, Italy. The smile on his face says it all! SA’s 100 metre men’s champion (and reigning Commonwealth Games gold medallist) had a slow start but sprinted to victory – in 10.08sec – at the 2021 Pietro Mennea […]

The Kiffness continues to conquer the world. The South African musician who has teamed up with everyone from his dad to a hadeda… and whose recent Alugalug Cat video spawned several international covers (and was shared by Hollywood celeb Ryan Reynolds), has now teamed up with London East End’s famous ‘One Pound Fish Man’ (£1 […]

South African born and raised chef and businesswoman, Prue Leith (81) is set to be made a dame in the Queen’s Birthday Honours. The ‘Great British Bake Off’ star was made an OBE in 1989 and a CBE in 2010, and will now receive a damehood ahead of Queen Elizabeth II’s birthday this month, according […]

JOHANNESBURG (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – Armed groups in Mozambique are increasingly kidnapping children as a warfare tactic, putting victims at risk of sexual violence, early marriage and being used as fighters in the country’s worsening conflict, aid groups said on Wednesday… writes Kim Harrisberg. At least 51 children have been abducted over the last year in […]

DUBAI (Reuters) – The United Arab Emirates has ratified a 2018 extradition treaty with South Africa, its embassy in Pretoria said on Wednesday, a move that President Cyril Ramaphosa’s government hopes will lead to the return of the Gupta brothers to face corruption charges. South Africa signed the treaty with the UAE in late 2018, […]

The dam levels within the Integrated Vaal River System (IVRS), with the exception of four dams, have fallen this week while one remains unchanged for the second consecutive week. The system consists of 14 dams, which overlap Gauteng, Mpumalanga, Free State and the Northern Cape provinces. “Continuing to drop weekly, the IVRS has decreased further […]

Eskom has apologised to South Africans yet again as it plunged the country into Stage 4 blackouts this afternoon, expected to last until 22h00 tonight… after which it will revert to Stage 2 as had been previously communicated earlier in the day. The power utility blamed the increased loadshedding on high winter demand, together with […]

After casting doubt on Pretoria News’ exclusive story yesterday that a mother from Tembisa township had allegedly given birth to a world-breaking 10 babies, Ekurhuleni’s mayor confirmed they have now located the family. (Update Wednesday 14h30: Gauteng Social Dept have confirmed the Tembisa mom has given birth to babies, and they will visit her tomorrow […]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has eased travel recommendations for more than 110 countries and territories, including South Africa. The CDC’s new ratings include 61 nations that were lowered from its highest “Level 4” rating that discouraged all travel to recommending travel for fully vaccinated individuals, the agency […]