A well-known Australian climber given up for dead near the summit of Mount Everest may still be alive and rescuers are trying to reach him, a colleague said on Friday. Lincoln Hall (50) and one of Australia’s leading climbers, was reported by his Russian expedition leader earlier on Friday to have died on Thursday while descending from the summit of the world’s highest mountain.
Scientists searching for the origin of HIV, the global pandemic infecting more than 40-million people, believe they have finally tracked its original source to two colonies of chimpanzees in a corner of Cameroon. The finding represents the culmination of a 10-year hunt for the source of the pandemic.
Israel has authorised the transfer of weapons to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Israel Army Radio reported on Friday. Defence Minister Amir Peretz made the decision after a ”rise” in intelligence alerts that radical or rival Palestinians could assassinate the moderate president, the radio said.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair will on Friday in a foreign-policy address at Georgetown University call for a return to a multilateral approach to global affairs built around a radically reformed United Nations led by a powerful secretary general, in a bid to salvage his legacy as a progressive leader on the world stage.
The Cape High Court ruled on Thursday that a man who raped his niece about 50 years ago should pay R450 000 for damages caused, the Women’s Legal Centre (WLC) said. Acting director Mary Caesar said the WLC is ”very pleased” that Esme van Zijl’s claim against her uncle, Imker Marais Hoogenhout, was successful.
National Police Commissioner Jackie Selebi is not being investigated by the Scorpions, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) reacted on Friday to a claim in the Mail & Guardian. The M&G reported on Friday that Selebi was linked to a ”shadowy” network of figures associated with slain businessman Brett Kebble.
The eldest of the 15 South Africans who are being held in the Democratic Republic of Congo was barely in the country for 24 hours before being arrested, News24 reported on Friday. It said the project manager of the group, Eric Rademeyer, dodged arrest by being on a few days leave in Malawi.
The Competition Commission on Thursday referred a complaint of anti-competitive behaviour against Sasol to the Competition Tribunal. Profert Limited’s complaint against Sasol Chemical Industries was referred on the grounds that the latter was found to have contravened the Competition Act, commission spokesperson Liziwe Konyana said.
A sex theme park designed to enhance its visitors’ lovemaking skills will open in the heart of London within months, the academy’s director announced on Wednesday. "Amora: The Academy of Sex and Relationships" is hoping to seduce up to 600 000 visitors through the doors in its first year.
Which came first, the chicken or the egg? According to a scientist, a philosopher and a chicken farmer, it was the egg, British newspapers reported on Friday. he key to the age-old question apparently lies in the fact that genetic material does not change throughout an animal’s life.