South Africa has received 2.8 million Pfizer vaccine doses from the United States as part of a donation that is set to boost the country’s vaccination rollout campaign. “The next batch will arrive on Tuesday to conclude the 5.6 million doses. The donation will contribute to the country’s expanded vaccination programme, which is fast gaining […]

Ten suspects were on Monday remanded in custody for their alleged role in the recent unrest in greater Durban. The suspects, who appeared before the Verulam Magistrate’s Court, face charges ranging from murder, attempted murder, malicious damage to property, possession of stolen goods, as well as unlawful possession of firearms and ammunition. Spokesperson for the […]

Tonight, President Ramaphosa should have reassured the nation by announcing a cabinet clean up. Nothing else is going to cut it… writes DA Leader John Steenhuisen. Fire Health Minister Mkhize, Still on Fully-Paid Leave Amidst Scandal For starters, South Africa needs a full-time health minister to manage a full-time pandemic response. He should have announced […]

South Africans are hoping for the relaxation of lockdown regulations when President Cyril Ramaphosa addresses the nation – in one of his now famous ‘family meetings’ tonight, Sunday 25 July, at 20h30. Watch the address live below. The alcohol industry in SA has called on the President to allow retailers to resume full operations during […]

CAPE TOWN (Reuters) – South African authorities said on Friday around 1,600 chemicals were stored at a warehouse of India’s UPL Ltd when it was razed during violent looting in KwaZulu-Natal last week, causing potentially harmful air emissions and a greenish-tinged effluent to seep into Umhlanga’s protected lagoon. The warehouse was one of hundreds of […]

This follows an announcement by Acting Minister in the Presidency, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, that the death toll related to the unrest has risen to 337 in the two provinces. Briefing media in Pretoria on Thursday, Ntshavheni said the revision of the death toll, which stood at 276 on Wednesday, comes after people who were injured subsequently […]

Negotiations between rival taxi bodies in Western Cape have reached a deadlock yet again this week. Western Cape Transport MEC Daylin Mitchell and national transport minister Fikile Mbalula have been mediating peace talks between rival taxi bosses. Both CATA and CODETA claim ownership of the route between Paarl and Bellville. Since the start of this […]

Eskom says it strongly condemns the continuous vandalism and theft of their equipment that is taking place across Gauteng, with no less than three incidents just this week. “There has been an increase in incidents of vandalism and theft of our equipment resulting in the loss of revenue and increased replacement costs for Eskom,” the […]

The Western Cape Minister of Finance and Economic Opportunities, David Maynier, has announced that the provincial government has signed Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) with six candidate municipalities participating in the Municipal Energy Resilience (MER) Initiative in the Western Cape. The six municipalities include: Stellenbosch Municipality; Drakenstein Municipality; Mossel Bay Municipality; Overstrand Municipality; Saldanha Bay Municipality; […]

Reports submitted by Ndobela Lamola Inc are full of forged documents… By Raymond Joseph and Anton van Zyl Three forensic reports into National Lotteries Commission funding have found no evidence of corruption. The seven-month probe cleared Phillemon Letwaba, who was accused of nepotism in connection with dodgy Lotteries grants, of any wrongdoing. But the reports, […]

South Africa’s state-backed vaccine manufacturer Biovac is to start making the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine in the second half of next year. This will be a first for Africa. The company plans to be producing at least 100 million doses annually from 2023. Pfizer made the announcement on their website today (Wed 21 July). The collaboration between […]

SAA, you’ve finally done it… writes (former) South African Airways pilot Phil Parsons. Sixteen months after last paying us and 26 years since hiring me, you’ve pulled the plug and retrenched us all. A sad day indeed. My sadness transcends the beautiful machines I’ve had the privilege of flying or the wide world SAA allowed […]

With the recent chaos specifically in the KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng provinces, and the media focus on these areas pertaining to the violent riots and looting, it is easy to get wrapped up in some tunnel vision, focusing exclusively on these events… writes Free State University’s Prof Petrus. The danger of this, of course, is that […]

Groups of residents in some parts of Brakpan have vowed to protect immigrant-owned shops. At a spaza shop in Langaville extension 4 belonging to Sharif Ahmed, originally from Bangladesh, there were long queues throughout the day on Wednesday. It is the only shop in the area left unstripped, thanks to a brave widow and a […]

Civil unrest in KwaZulu-Natal and parts of Gauteng has resulted in some people calling for a state of emergency to be declared under the State of Emergency Act. Here we explain what it is and how it is declared. Under the State of Emergency Act the government invokes temporary emergency powers meant to restore peace and public […]

The Durban warehouse belonging to FoodForward SA was ransacked on Tuesday, prompting the organisation to close all its branches in five cities, leaving some 675,000 people without the food it supplies. More than 125,000 vulnerable people depend on the food sourced from the Durban warehouse, according to FoodForward SA’s fund development manager, Deidre Adams. She said looters […]

A volunteer group that started on Tuesday has already attracted nearly 27,000 members willing to clean up looted shopping malls, donate money, and transport food. “I didn’t expect this small act of kindness to reach so many people. I am proud and overwhelmed,” says RebuildSA Facebook group founder Emelda Masango. Masango, from Soweto, Johannesburg, started […]

SAAI has called for farmers to be ready and “extra vigilant” in the midst of the extensive looting in KwaZulu-Natal, Gauteng and elsewhere in South Africa. “They must remain in constant contact with each other and their organised agricultural structures, report incidents and keep their farms, families and workers safe,” SAAI said in a statement. […]

The Durban Chamber of Commerce and Industry says as organised businesses they “urgently call upon President Cyril Ramaphosa to declare a State of Emergency in the province of KwaZulu Natal, as this disorderly behaviour continues to spiral out of control”. Violent protests have rocked the province since the imprisonment of former President Jacob Zuma late […]

Chadian abortion drama, Lingui – The Sacred Bonds, directed by Mahamat-Saleh Haroun, has reportedly been acquired by Mubi for distribution in North America, Latin America, the UK and Ireland. Writer-director Mahamat-Saleh Haroun previously won the Cannes’ Jury Prize with A Screaming Man in 2011, and also had Grigris selected for competition in 2013. His most recent […]

Following President Ramaphosa’s announcement that South Africa will remain on an adjusted LEVEL 4 lockdown for at least the next two weeks, Comair has announced it will extend the suspension of scheduled kulula.com and British Airways (operated by Comair) flights until 31 August 2021. Comair initially temporarily suspended its flights from 5 July 2021 due to […]

Looting and protests from the weekend continued in Alexandra, Johannesburg, on Monday. Reports initially linked the protests to calls for the release from prison of former President Jacob Zuma. Spaza shop owner Sayabo Wodimu lost all his stock and some of his equipment. “I don’t know what I did to deserve this. My shop is the […]

A rare blue diamond from South Africa, which was recovered at the Cullinan diamond mine in April, has been sold for a whopping $40,180,180 (over R580-million). At just under 40 carats, this equates to over $1-million per carat. Petra Diamonds said in a statement that it was “pleased” to announce that the 39.34 carat exceptional […]

President Cyril Ramaphosa tonight – Sunday 11 July 2021 – announced that Adjusted Level 4 will be extended for two weeks. Here is the South African President’s full statement: Two weeks ago I announced a set of additional measures to contain the spread of the coronavirus. In deciding to introduce these additional measures, Cabinet followed […]

At least 62 people have been arrested as protests, to demand the release of former President Jacob Zuma from prison, have spread from his home province of KwaZulu-Natal to South Africa’s economic centre, Gauteng. The Johannesburg Metro Police Department has today issued alerts about violent protests in and around the Joburg CBD, as hundreds of […]