Petrol queues stretched more than two miles through Harare on Friday as President Robert Mugabe’s government effectively admitted that Zimbabwe faced shortages of vital supplies including its staple food, maize. Mugabe has now acknowledged that the chaos stemming from his seizures of white-owned farms has left less than half the country’s farmland under cultivation.
Sudan’s Islamist regime, once shunned by Washington for providing a haven for Osama bin Laden as well as for human rights abuses during decades of civil war, has become an ally in Bush’s ”war on terror”. Only months after the US accused Khartoum of genocide, Sudan has become a crucial intelligence asset to the CIA.
Land claimants who missed the deadline are paying self-professed ”land lobbyists” fees to persuade the government to reopen the process and facilitate late claims. Victor Mahlangu, spokesperson for the Gauteng Land Claims Commission, said individuals are giving late claimants false hope and making money out of them.
North West Premier Edna Molewa is likely to consolidate her position in the province when branches finally elect her as the African National Congress chairperson at the provincial congress on Sunday. Molewa is almost certain to succeed former premier Popo Molefe as chairperson, as she is the only nominee for the position.
South Africa got off to a flying start and reached 114 without loss at lunch on the opening day of the fourth and final Test against the West Indies in St John’s on Friday. When light drizzle prompted lunch 15 minutes early, skipper Graeme Smith was not out on 47 and AB de Villiers was unbeaten on 63.
More than 100 people have died from measles in the Chadian capital, Ndjamena, and the surrounding southern provinces, and up to 24 000 people could be infected with the virus, Médécins sans Frontières (MSF) said on Friday. Officially, 115 have died from the disease.
Up to 150 000 self-styled witches and warlocks, New Age practioners and the simply curious are converging for May Eve revelries on the summit of the highest peak in the Harz Mountains, Germany, on Saturday night. April 30, or May Day Eve, is called Walpurgis Night, formerly the date of the pagan festival marking the start of summer.
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Businessman Schabir Shaik’s defence counsel discussed in his closing argument on Friday the deep-rooted friendship between the fraud and corruption accused and Deputy President Jacob Zuma. The defence began it final argument on Friday.
Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) President Joseph Kabila on Friday suggested the creation of permanent structures to ensure agreements signed between his country and South Africa are put into practice. He was speaking at the start of a Binational Commission meeting he is to co-chair with President Thabo Mbeki in Pretoria.
A name change from Pretoria to Tshwane will increase alienation among Afrikaners, the Freedom Front Plus said on Friday. ”We have determined through research that a name change of the capital will continue to increase alienation among the Afrikaner minority,” FF+ MP Willie Spies said in a statement.