Cracks emerged in a crippling public-sector strike on Monday after two unions representing about 160 000 members withdrew from one of the largest mass actions in post-apartheid South Africa. The Health and Other Services Personnel Union accused the Congress of South African Trade Unions of pursuing a political agenda in the strike over pay.
Rebels in Ethiopia’s remote eastern Somali region accused the government on Monday of using war planes to bomb three villages, killing about 40 people, in an escalating offensive against the insurgents. The government said it had the Ogaden National Liberation Front ”on the run”, but denied using planes during fighting in the poor and arid region.
Cuba’s communist leader Fidel Castro accused United States President George Bush of ordering him killed in an article published in the Granma newspaper on Monday. ”The issue of the accusation related to his plan to kill me comes from before he used fraud to steal the victory from another candidate,” the convalescing Castro (80) said of Bush.
Racist anarchists in Potchefstroom are removing new street-name signs to dump them in the Vaal River, the city council said on Monday. Spokesperson Kaizer Mohau said a street sign for Nelson Mandela Rylaan (Avenue) had also been defaced to read ”Dela Rylaan” — an apparent reference to Boer War General Koos de la Rey.
India have been struck down by illness on the eve of their opening one-day international against South Africa at Stormont on Tuesday and have had to call up reinforcements for their tour of the United Kingdom. India opened their tour with a nine-wicket win in a one-day international against Ireland on Saturday.
The Springbok rugby team to tour Australasia for the away leg in this year’s Tri-Nations series suffered a blow on Monday when utility forward AJ Venter announced his retirement from international rugby. His retirement also means he will also miss out on a possible World Cup place with the Springboks.
Mozambique hopes to recruit 8Â 000 doctors from other African nations to improve a healthcare system battered by one of the continent’s worst Aids pandemics, the country’s health minister said on Monday.
Two apartheid-era police bosses will know on Tuesday when they will stand trial for the alleged poisoning of Reverend Frank Chikane. The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said it was ready to prosecute former minister of police Adriaan Vlok and ex-police chief Johann van der Merwe.
A charter plane carrying 22 people between two popular Cambodian tourist destinations crashed on Monday in a mountainous region in the south of the country, aviation officials said. The Russian-made AN-24 left the Angkor temple town of Siem Reap at about 10am local time and vanished off radar screens 37 minutes later.
The African National Congress Youth League (ANCYL) and the Young Communist League (YCL) have expressed their support for the television-rights deal between the Premier Soccer League (PSL) and SuperSport. ”It is a reasonable deal that will benefit soccer, the players and clubs for the improvement of the game,” ANCYL president Fikile Mbalula said on Monday.