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/ 23 November 2007

Soccer was more than just a game on Robben Island

While sporting attention is turned to the draw for the preliminary round of the 2010 Soccer World Cup this weekend, a different view of soccer in South Africa is being premiered in front of a celebrity audience on Friday. Director Junaid Ahmed’s film More Than Just a Game tells the story of how political prisoners on Robben Island used soccer as one of the means of survival.

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/ 23 November 2007

Locusts infest north-east Kenyan district

Swarms of locusts have infested parts of north-eastern Kenya’s district of Mandera, ravaging pasture and crops in the arid area frequently hit by drought, officials said. Mandera district commissioner Naftali Mung’athia said the pests had destroyed crops on smallholder farms along the River Dauwa.

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/ 23 November 2007

Implats shuts Clapham shaft at Marula after death

Impala Platinum (Implats), the world’s second-biggest producer of platinum, shut one of two shafts at its Marula mine after a worker was killed in an incident, an official at Implats said on Friday. Clapham is one of two shafts at Marula and produces half of the Marula mine’s total output of 6 000 ounces of platinum per month.

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/ 23 November 2007

Harmony says miner missing at Elandsrand mine

Harmony Gold said on Friday one worker was injured and another was missing after a rockfall at its Elandsrand mine, which re-opened on Monday after it was shut down in early October following an accident. An official at Harmony said the mine had not been shut again after Friday’s accident, which took place about 3km underground at about 10.30am.

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/ 23 November 2007

Record TV audience expected for World Cup draw

A record television audience is expected to watch the 2010 Soccer World Cup preliminary draw when it takes place in Durban on Sunday afternoon. World Soccer governing body Fifa spokesperson Nicolas Maingot said on Friday that while television viewer figures would be hard to estimate, there would be 34 television channels broadcasting the draw live.

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/ 23 November 2007

Pessimism high ahead of Middle East peace meeting

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert warned on Friday that the failure of new peace efforts would be ”deadly” as new polls showed Israelis and Palestinians equally pessimistic about its chances of success. Most Israelis and Palestinians do not think the meeting, opening on Tuesday in the United States, will succeed, according to separate opinion polls.

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/ 23 November 2007

Laxman and Dhoni bat India out of trouble

Venkatsai Laxman and Mahendra Singh Dhoni cracked responsible half-centuries to pull India out of trouble in the opening Test against Pakistan on Friday. The hosts had slipped from 71-1 to 93-5 in the space of seven overs before Dhoni (57) counter-attacked to put on 115 for the sixth wicket with Laxman on a day of fluctuating fortunes.

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/ 23 November 2007

US retain lead as rivals falter at World Cup

Americans Boo Weekley and Heath Slocum hit a solid three-under-par 69 to retain a one-shot lead over their more fancied rivals after the second-round foursomes at the Golf World Cup on Friday. England topped the leaderboard by two shots midway through the round, but they found the alternate-ball format more taxing and a late bogey dragged them down.