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/ 11 January 2007

Farm murder to be questioned in Parliament

The murder of a farm manager by a mob of illegal squatters near Melmoth in KwaZulu-Natal and the role of the provincial department of land affairs in the dispute are to be raised in Parliament when it reconvenes next month. The manager was clubbed to death following a meeting with squatters on the farm he managed.

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/ 11 January 2007

Kenya detains wives of Somalia al-Qaeda suspects

Kenyan police on Thursday interrogated two al-Qaeda suspects’ wives caught fleeing Somalia, as mystery remained over whether their husbands survived a United States air strike. The US on Monday hit a village in southern Somalia in an attempt to take out an al-Qaeda cell accused of bombing two US embassies and an Israeli-owned hotel.

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/ 11 January 2007

Trollip formally enters race for DA leadership

Eastern Cape Democratic Alliance (DA) leader Athol Trollip formally announced at a press conference his intention to run for the leadership of the official opposition. He was introduced to the media on Thursday in glowing terms by his Eastern Cape legislature colleague, Veliswa Mvenya: ”His skin is white but he is black.”

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/ 11 January 2007

US forces raid Iranian consulate in Iraq

United States forces stormed an Iranian consular office in the northern Iraqi Kurdish city of Arbil early on Thursday and arrested five people, including diplomats and staff. The US military made no direct mention of Iranians but in answer to a query issued a statement saying six ”individuals” were arrested during ”routine” operations in the area.

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/ 11 January 2007

Rights groups urge US to shut Guantánamo prison

Detainees at a United States military prison camp in Guantánamo Bay need to be charged or released and the jail shut down, human rights groups said on Wednesday ahead of the fifth anniversary of the camp’s opening in Cuba. Global vigils have been planned by Amnesty International to mark the anniversary on Thursday and urge closure of prison.

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/ 11 January 2007

Street vendors on charm offensive

”Madam of nations! Miss South Africa! How are you doing today, Miss South Africa?” Balancing boxes of fruit, a tarmac charmer aims his compliments in a steady stream through an open car window. With little success, he shifts the boxes and ambles on to deliver his next salutation. Plastic coat hangers, mangoes, cheap cellphone chargers … the range is eclectic and so is the sales talk.