No image available
/ 6 September 2004
In a harrowing feat high over the Utah desert on Wednesday, two helicopter stunt pilots will try to snatch a floating space capsule that holds ”a piece of the sun” and bring it safely down. Their biggest fear: what if they flub it on live television? And that’s entirely possible. The pilots rate it eight or nine on a difficulty scale of 10.
No image available
/ 6 September 2004
Loyal fans of British author JK Rowling who managed to crack a code on Rowling’s official website have been rewarded with a sneak preview of the eagerly awaited sixth book in the Harry Potter series, according to reports on Monday. The book is entitled Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince.
No image available
/ 6 September 2004
A statement posted on an Islamist website, purportedly from the captors of two French journalists in Iraq, gave France 48 hours on Monday to accept three new conditions — agreeing to a recent truce offer by Osama bin Laden, payment of -million ransom and a pledge not to get involved in Iraq.
No image available
/ 6 September 2004
An Israeli military satellite fell into the Mediterranean Sea on Monday after a botched launched from southern Israel, military officials said. Analysts said the satellite was designed to help expand Israel’s coverage of its more distant enemies, particularly Iran. The failure of the launch is seen as a major setback for the military.
No image available
/ 6 September 2004
The trial of four high-ranking officers in Rwanda’s army during the 1994 genocide resumed on Monday before the United Nations tribunal trying the suspected main perpetrators of the slaughter. Dubbed ”the military trial”, it is seen as one of the most important before the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.
No image available
/ 6 September 2004
Employers can no longer retrench workers to make way for better-skilled employees without making adequate training opportunities available, the Food and Allied Workers Union (Fawu) said on Monday. On Friday, a judge found that South African Breweries (SAB) had wrongly dismissed 115 Fawu members in 2001.
No image available
/ 6 September 2004
Eastern Cape finance minister Enoch Godongwana was fired on Monday, Premier Nosimo Balindlela’s office said. ”Both the suspension of the finance superintendent general, Monde Tom, and Godongwana’s dismissal come after a probe into financial irregularities in that department,” a spokesperson said.
No image available
/ 6 September 2004
A massive car bomb exploded on the outskirts of Fallujah on Monday, killing seven United States marines and wounding several others, a US military official said. The strength of the blast sent the engine from the vehicle used in the bombing flying ”a good distance” from the site, said the official.
No image available
/ 6 September 2004
Former Gauteng finance minister Jabu Moleketi was not involved in finalising the details of a contract that allegedly contravenes the Public Finance Management Act, the province’s current finance minister said on Monday. ”The former MEC was briefed, but not involved in the final shareholders’ agreement that established the company [Capstone 518],” he said.
No image available
/ 6 September 2004
The government has no intention of building low-cost homes in upmarket suburbs, as claimed in a <i>Sunday Times</i> report at the weekend, Minister of Housing Lindiwe Sisulu said on Monday. She described the newspaper’s front-page headline — "Low-cost houses for elite suburbs" — as "unfortunate" and "regrettable".
<li><a class=’standardtextsmall’ href="http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?cg=BreakingNews-National&ao=121703">DA frets about property values</a>