The Pentagon has notified the United States Congress of possible military sales to Saudi Arabia valued at more than -billion, if all options are exercised. The proposed sales include a laundry list of armored personnel carriers, command vehicles, water cannons, a variety of trucks, ambulances, ammunition and assault rifles for the Saudi Arabian National Guard.
The European commission president, José Manuel Barroso, on Tuesday warned that Turkey’s European Union membership was ”neither guaranteed nor automatic”. As formal accession talks — which could last for up to 15 years — finally got under way in Brussels, Barroso said Turkey, which has a mainly Muslim population of more than 70-million, had to win over sceptical Europeans before its entry into the union could be agreed.
DaimlerChrysler, Hyundai and Mitsubishi have begun production at a new plant that will supply more fuel efficient engines for nearly two dozen models worldwide. The plant is part of the Global Engine Manufacturing Alliance, a joint venture between the three companies.
Water restrictions have been imposed on the south coast of KwaZulu-Natal, where there has been little rain and river water levels are low. The north coast — particularly the Tongaat area — was being closely monitored, eThekwini municipality water and sanitation head Neil Macleod said on Tuesday, appealing to residents to use water sparingly.
Some of the media were ignoring Brett Kebble’s fundamental right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty, said Essop Pahad, Minister in the Presidency, at the mining magnate’s funeral in Cape Town on Tuesday. Pahad said Kebble’s murder has thrown into sharp relief the relationship between rights and responsibilities under the South African Constitution.
Missing police constable Frances Rasuge laid and withdrew rape charges against murder accused William Nkuna three months before she disappeared, the Mmbatho Circuit Court heard on Tuesday. She subsequently filed a withdrawal statement on May 24 and the charges were withdrawn three days later.
Former West Ham, Manchester City and Everton midfielder Mark Ward was jailed for eight years for drug trafficking on Tuesday. Ward, who retired from the game nine years ago, pleaded guilty to possessing four kilograms of cocaine with intent to supply at his rented home near Liverpool.
Efforts to help people with HIV/Aids in Côte d’Ivoire have been hampered by three years of conflict and lack of funds, making it the hardest hit nation in West Africa, health officials have warned. Health Minister Albert Mabri Toikeusse said most foreign donors have suspended or halted funding.
A former veteran of Zimbabwe’s independence war has come under fierce criticism for setting up a fund to help the victims of Hurricane Katrina. The Zimbabwe National Liberation War Veterans Association said it had taken over the fund set up by controversial former guerrilla Joseph Chinotimba who wanted to raise Z-billion (,1-million).
Americans Roy J Glauber and John L Hall as well as German Theodor W Haensch won the 2005 Nobel Physics Prize for groundbreaking work on understanding light, a quest as old as humanity itself, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said on Tuesday. The laureates will receive a gold medal and share a cheque for ,3-million.