Two South Africans have been confirmed killed in Phuket island off Thailand, following an earthquake and subsequent tsunamis that hit Southeast Asia on Sunday, the department of foreign affairs said on Monday. At least 300 South Africans are believed to be stranded in Thailand.
<li><a class=’standardtextsmall’ href="http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?cg=BreakingNews-National&ao=177177">Narrow escape for SA coach</a>
<li><a class=’standardtextsmall’ href="http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?cg=BreakingNews-Africa&ao=177178">Africa counts cost of tidal waves</a>
<li><a class=’standardtextsmall’ href="http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?cg=BreakingNews-National&ao=177176">SA warned about waves on E Coast </a>
<li><a class=’standardtextsmall’ href="http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?cg=BreakingNews-InternationalNews&ao=177168&t=1">Thousands swept to their death</a>
<li><a class=’standardtextsmall’ href="http://www.mg.co.za/Content/pd.asp?cg=BreakingNews-InternationalNews&ao=177167">Thousands killed in Asian tsunami</a>

Argentina lies rusting and vandalised inside a disused locomotive depot in a poor suburb of San Miguel de Tucumán in north-west Argentina. No one, it seems, has cried for it for many years. Until now. A group of visiting British engineers has tracked down this legendary, if mournful, locomotive which railway enthusiasts worldwide assumed had been scrapped long ago.

The next time the Pope addresses crowds in St Peter’s Square, he may see tourists with paperbacks by the blockbuster conspiracy novelist Dan Brown, rather than Catholic pilgrims with Bibles or guidebooks. The first ”official Angels and Demons tour”, organised by a group of 30-something Romans specialising in the ”darker side of Rome”, will on Tuesday show visitors the Roman sites used by the author of The Da Vinci Code.

Ukraine’s opposition leader, Viktor Yushchenko, was poised for a commanding victory last night in a re-run of disputed presidential elections that have riven the country and revived old cold war rivalry between Moscow and the West. Three exit polls gave Yushchenko and his orange-clad supporters a lead of at least 15% points over the government candidate, Viktor Yanukovich. With more than half of the ballots counted, he had 56,5% to 40% for his rival.

For three young boys in Texas, this Christmas Day was a little less exuberant than usual. When they failed to meet their irate father’s injunction to improve their behaviour, he logged on to eBay and put their presents up for auction. ”No. Kidding,” read the post of the Pasadena father. ”Three undeserving boys have crossed the line. Tonight we sat down and showed them what they WILL NOT get for Christmas this year.

An early warning system that could have saved thousands of lives lost in the devastating tsunamis that swept around the rim of the Indian Ocean on Sunday was talked about but not acted on by governments in the region, it was revealed on Sunday night. More than 12 600 people were killed and millions more displaced in eight countries by a wall of water unleashed by the biggest earthquake for 40 years.

When labourers started clearing jungle foliage from the disused rail track, the people of Samba laughed. A train? In this isolated, war-torn bit of Congo? It seemed absurd. ”They said it was a joke,” said Louis Ngongo Bila, one of the labourers. ”I have to admit I didn’t have faith either, it seemed a folly.”

More than 11 000 people in six countries were killed on Sunday when the most powerful earthquake in 40 years triggered huge tidal waves that hit coastlines across Asia. The death toll is almost certain to rise further as the full extent of the devastation emerges. Tourists, fishermen, hotels, homes and cars were swept away by walls of water unleashed by the 8,9-magnitude earthquake, centred off the west coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra.