HIV-infected babies have a greater chance of survival if they receive treatment before they show signs of illness or a weakened immune system, the International Aids Society was told on Tuesday. A study in Cape Town and Soweto found that 96% of infants given immediate drug treatment were still alive two years later.
Australian captain Stirling Mortlock said Tuesday that the Wallabies would use their opening Rugby World Cup pool match against Japan as preparation for a key clash with Wales. Mortlock said Australia’s 2-0 Test series win over the Welsh last month would mean nothing when the two sides face off in Cardiff.
The United States on Monday signed an aid pact with Lesotho in which the impoverished African country would receive -million to stem poverty. United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Lesotho’s Prime Minister Pakalitha Mosisili witnessed the signing of the agreement.
Six foreign medics convicted of infecting hundreds of Libyan children with HIV have left Libya for Bulgaria aboard a French presidential jet, France said on Tuesday. Libya lifted death sentences against the medics last week and commuted them to terms of life imprisonment.
Egyptian police opened fire on two Sudanese migrants trying to sneak across the border into Israel, injuring one, security sources said on Tuesday. A security source told Reuters the men, accompanied by traffickers smuggling them across the border, were trying to cross the border south of the Rafah crossing on Monday when they were spotted by border guards.
The Johannesburg High Court has granted the African National Congress (ANC) leave to defend itself against efforts to force the party to return Brett Kebble’s donations. Trustees of the slain mining magnate’s estate have been trying to force the party to return R3,5-million as well as R875 000 given to the party’s Youth League.
A decision to appoint a mediator to facilitate a resolution to the impasse between Vodacom and the Communication Workers Union (CWU) has been agreed to by both parties. The South African Transport and Allied Workers’ Union has threatened to call for a boycott of Vodacom unless it extended organisational rights to the CWU.
Wage negotiations in the gold sector of the Chamber of Mines resumed at a slow pace on Monday, trade union Solidarity said. Solidarity mining spokesperson Reint Dykema said the Chamber of Mines had increased its salary offer from 7% to a ”disappointing” 7,25%.
Hundreds of sections of embankments along China’s third-longest river have become loose, threatening the homes of millions of people after three weeks of floods across the country. Rain has wrought havoc across large parts of China this summer, killing more than 500 people and causing billions of dollars in damage.
South African companies have been accessing markets throughout the African continent since the country regained admission into the world trading community. While there have been some less than stellar ventures into Africa, most companies have developed successful African business models that allow them to expand into these new markets and deliver profits to their shareholders.