A tentative truce appeared to take hold in Gaza on Thursday after days of fierce fighting between rival factions that has killed dozens and sent the Palestinian unity Cabinet to the brink of collapse. Israel vowed it would hit militants firing rockets from Gaza, after becoming drawn into the fray by launching air strikes that left four gunmen dead on Wednesday.
A Sudanese central bank official told China on Thursday its oil investments could exacerbate conflicts in Sudan unless it pressed the government to engage local populations and share revenues. China, which buys much of Sudan’s oil, has been under fire internationally for doing business with a regime condemned in the West for its actions in Darfur.
Zimbabwe’s cost of living doubled in a single month in April as annual inflation surged to 3Â 713,9%, a further sign of economic turmoil in a country where four in five people are jobless. The Central Statistical Office said on Thursday prices jumped by 100,7% last month after a 50,5% rise in March.
Thirteen people were arrested overnight in the troubled Khutsong township and more police are being deployed in the area, North West police said on Thursday morning. Superintendent Louis Jacobs said the arrests came after a supermarket was broken into and looted at about 10pm and a spaza shop was burnt down.
South African investment banking and asset management group Investec increased full-year operating profit by 20%, driven by private client activities and a solid performance from its capital markets unit, the company said on Thursday. Operating profit before goodwill, non-operating items and taxation for the year to end-March was £466,6-million.
An interim Labour Court order forced a halt to a security guard strike at Magnum Shield Security late on Wednesday, the South African Transport and Allied Workers Union said. The strike was over the selling of work contracts, which would require some Magnum Shield guards to work for Springbok Fidelity.
A row over selection for the national training squad has overshadowed what should be South Africa’s biggest week of celebration since the Springboks won the World Cup on home soil in 1995. Durban’s Sharks and the Bulls from Pretoria contest the first all-South African Super 14 final on Saturday before a 54Â 000-strong sell-out crowd in Durban.
Jomo Cosmos held Mamelodi Sundowns to a 0-0 draw at a vibrant match at Loftus in a Castle Premiership clash on Wednesday evening. The 2006/07 league champions rested Calvin Marlin, Godfrey Sapula and Josta Dladla for a game which was meaningless to the Tshwane team.
Goalkeeper Andres Palop played down his match-winning penalty shoot-out saves which sealed a second successive UEFA Cup crown for Sevilla on Wednesday. Palop kept out three Espanyol spot-kicks as the holders won 3-1 in the shoot-out after a thrilling all-Spanish final had ended 2-2 after 120 minutes at Hampden Park.
DaimlerChrysler’s sale of its Chrysler division to Cerberus Capital Management will not adversely affect customers of the brand in South Africa, says Jeff Osborne, CEO of the Retail Motor Industry Organisation of South Africa (RMI). He says the acquisition is regarded by the RMI as a positive move.