Israeli forces seized a Palestinian Cabinet minister and 32 other officials in the occupied West Bank and launched air strikes in the Gaza Strip on Thursday, stepping up a campaign against Hamas Islamists. The overnight arrests came after Hamas and other groups rebuffed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’s call for a halt to rocket attacks by Gaza militants.
The increase in electricity demand must be reduced, Eskom said on Thursday. "We have only so much generating capacity; therefore the only solution is to reduce the demand," it said in a statement. Rolling power failures affected parts of Gauteng and Mpumalanga on Wednesday evening.
A homeless pensioner who has slept rough in one of London’s plushest beauty spots since 1986 was celebrating on Thursday after winning ownership of his plot of land, turning him into an instant millionaire. Harry Hallowes (71) secured ownership to an 800 square-metre plot in Hampstead Heath after a two-year legal battle with developers.
Scientists have identified a type of bacteria that could be used to attack the parasite that causes malaria, according to the Science and Development Network. The research was published in the <i>Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</i> online.
A new blog that purports to be written by a former male prostitute in South Africa has become the focus of a criminal investigation into claims of defamation. The blog, hosted on an international blogging platform and active since April this year, contains descriptions of the alleged sexual behaviour of prominent South Africans.
Justine Henin could have been forgiven for giving this year’s French Open a miss following the dramas that shattered her private life. Instead, the world number one says she is more determined than ever to succeed at her favourite tournament and become the first woman since Monica Seles to win the title three times in a row.
A suicide car bomb targeting mourners at a funeral killed at least 27 people and wounded more than 30 others in Fallujah, west of the Iraqi capital, on Thursday, hospital and police officials said. The bomber was targeting a large crowd in a funeral procession for a man who was killed earlier on Thursday.
Roger Federer next week launches his ninth attempt to crack the French Open riddle, which has continued to confound his dream of being crowned the greatest player of all time. The 26-year-old Swiss has made a habit of monopolising the other three Grand Slam tournaments on the calendar.
England’s pace bowlers will be given another chance to prove they can function without Freddie after all-rounder Andrew Flintoff was ruled out of the second Test against the West Indies starting at Headingley on Friday. Officials decided against bringing paceman Flintoff back for the second match of a four-Test series after he missed the drawn series opener at Lord’s.
With three World Cups behind him and 36 international goals to his name, Michael Owen may have felt that his days of proving himself in an England shirt were nothing but a distant memory. Yet when England’s B team lines up against Albania at Burnley’s Turf Moor on Friday, the Newcastle United forward will be aiming to show once and for all that he is fit.