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/ 1 December 2005

England face series defeat

England cricket coach Duncan Fletcher conceded on Thursday his Ashes-winning team was in danger of losing the Test series on ”a mentally tough tour of Pakistan”. ”It’s mentally a tough tour as most of the time we are stuck in our hotels and it has got to the players a little bit,” Fletcher said after England conceded a big lead on the third day of the third and final Test in Lahore.

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/ 1 December 2005

Life imprisonment for Cape dominee’s killer

One of three men convicted of murdering retired Durbanville NGK dominee Pietie Victor was sentenced to life imprisonment by the Cape High Court on Thursday. Rashied Naidoo, who moved to Cape Town from Durban a few years ago, received an additional 16 years — including one year for the illegal possession of a firearm and ammunition.

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/ 1 December 2005

Govt to respect gay marriage ruling

The government has noted a ruling by the Constitutional Court on Thursday that same-sex marriages be allowed and will respect the judgement, spokesperson Joel Netshitenze said. ”The Department of Home Affairs will assess what practical steps will be needed to give effect to the change in the law and make appropriate recommendations to the minister,” he said.

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/ 1 December 2005

SA into quarterfinals of Dubai Sevens

South Africa powered their way into the quarterfinals of the Emirates Airline Dubai Sevens with an inspiring 19-7 win over Argentina in their final pool game. After negotiating the early pool matches against tricky opponents Portugal and Scotland, the Boks shifted up a gear as the desert evening set in.

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/ 1 December 2005

UN agency to feed three million in Zim

The United Nations World Food Programme on Thursday said it had signed an agreement with President Robert Mugabe’s government to deliver food to three million Zimbabweans. This comes after Mugabe last year rejected the possibility of food aid, saying in an interview with Britain’s Sky News: ”We are not hungry. Why foist this food upon us? Do you want us to choke?”

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/ 1 December 2005

Logs show 80 CIA planes visited UK

The transatlantic row over the secret transfer of terror suspects by the Bush administration took a new twist on Wednesday when it emerged that more than 300 flights operated by the CIA had landed at European airports. Britain was second only to Germany as a transit hub for the CIA, which stands accused of operating a covert network of interrogation centres in eastern Europe.

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/ 1 December 2005

Skype 2.0

Ever since eBay announced in September it would splash out -billion on Skype, things have been surprisingly quiet for internet telephony’s most visible pioneer. However, today Skype launches a new version of its software. Though there have been changes, the program — which uses your computer to reroute telephone calls across the net — remains fundamentally the same.

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/ 1 December 2005

UAE to hold first elections

United Arab Emirates (UAE) President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahayan announced on Thursday that the oil-rich Gulf state is to hold its first elections, in a move toward reforms. ”We have decided to boost the role of the consultative council by electing half of its members through councils in each emirate,” said Sheikh Khalifa.