Water shortages facing Australia’s drought-hit prime agricultural area might be worse than expected, the government was told on Wednesday, as river towns braced for unprecedented restrictions on water use. Prime Minister John Howard in April urged Australians to pray for rain.
The Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) has backed Australia’s decision to call off its tour of Zimbabwe and said the struggling African nation should be ”permanently suspended” from international cricket because of its poor playing standards. The Australia government has banned the country’s cricket team from travelling to Zimbabwe.
Manchester United captain Gary Neville was on Tuesday ruled out of the FA Cup final against Chelsea due to a right ankle injury. The England right back hurt his ankle against Bolton on March 17. Although Neville was expected to return to training Monday, he continued to feel pain and will now have exploratory surgery.
Flyhalf Jonny Wilkinson admitted that he was braced for a punishing tour to South Africa as he joined a severely depleted England squad that flew out to Johannesburg on Tuesday. The squad, which includes five World Cup winners, also contains seven uncapped players, including six forwards.
There was a welcome air of confidence at the Bulls camp on Tuesday when scrumhalf Fourie du Preez showed marked signs of recovery from his shoulder injuries and his name was thrown into the selection hat ahead of the Bulls’ Super 14 final clash against the Sharks.
A survey of 45 of the world’s top cricketers say most players were not impressed by this year’s World Cup and have little faith in the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) ability to govern the game. The survey found 56% of players were both not satisfied by the ICC’s ability to deliver World Cup events and lacked confidence in the ICC governing cricket.
Hamas gunmen raided the home of a top Fatah security official on Wednesday, killing five of his bodyguards, a spokesperson said, as violence spiralled in Gaza despite a new Palestinian truce deal. The attack on the house of Rashid Abu Shbak in Gaza City came hours after the rival factions announced they had agreed another truce.
Ghana Foreign Minister Nana Akufo-Addo, whose country heads the African Union, insisted on Tuesday that Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe should be invited to a European Union-Africa summit in December. ”We can’t have a situation where people pick and choose which Africans they deal with when they deal with Africa on a continental basis,” he said.
Jacques Chirac bade goodbye to the office of the French president but not the international spotlight on Tuesday night as he prepared to launch a private foundation to promote world peace. After urging the country to unite and "respect diversity" in the last of his TV presidential addresses, he on Wednesday hands power to his successor, Nicolas Sarkozy.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao on Wednesday called on the world community to do more to help Africa as he opened the annual meeting of the African Development Bank in Shanghai. Debt relief and technology transfers were among the tools the wealthier nations could use to help boost growth in Africa, Wen said.