When state wildlife agents recently found a black bear passed out on the lawn of Baker Lake Resort, there were some clues scattered nearby — dozens of empty cans of beer. The bear apparently got into campers’ coolers and used his claws and teeth to puncture the cans. And he appeared to favour one brand over another.
A German superhighway was closed down to one lane for hours on Thursday after a truck hauling 15 tons of eggs crashed, scattering its load and creating a slimy mess across the autobahn near Hanover. The truck swerved to avoid a metal object in the road and hit a barrier at about 1am local time.
Police say crime at Johannesburg International airport is low and ”there is nothing out of control”, but it appears theft victims are discouraged from reporting their cases. Two passengers recently fell victim to what seems to be a trend that is swept under the carpet: theft by officials and porters from travellers.
Malawi and Zambia have concluded an agreement for the creation of a new 33 000 square kilometre cross border conservation area, according to an announcement in South Africa on Thursday. The new park will consolidate the the Nyika National Park, the Vwaza Marsh Wildlife Reserve and the Kasungu National Park in Malawi and the Nyika National Park, the Lunazi Forest Reserve and the Lukusuzi National Park in Zambia.
Two South Africans held in Pakistan on suspicion of terror-related activities will get a fair trial, a Pakistani diplomat said on Thursday. ”[There are] clear-cut law processes that will take their course,” said Javed Jalil Khattak, first secretary of the Pakistan high commission in Pretoria. He said the legal procedure to be followed was a ”very fair process”.
A deadly strain of bird flu that has killed 27 people across Asia this year has hit Malaysia, the government announced on Thursday. Tests have proved that an outbreak of avian flu among chickens in a village in the north-eastern state of Kelantan, first revealed on Wednesday, was caused by the H5N1 virus.
South African steel producer Iscor on Thursday once again touched a fresh all-time high, this time R47,80 a share, due to the group’s strong results released on Wednesday and the prospect of a possible special dividend of as much as R13 a share, as well as strong prospects.
South African media and entertainment group Johnnic Communications (Johncom) on Thursday announced details of restructuring at the Sowetan and Sunday World. A new editor-in-chief of both publications has been appointed and some retrenchment of staff at the two newspapers will occur.
Two weeks after a police squad raided a group of fetish shrines in the dense jungle of southern Nigeria, dozens of partially decomposed bodies still littered the groves of Okija’s ”evil forest”. Open wooden coffins lay abandoned in the dense undergrowth as spooked cops continued an investigation which has scandalised Nigeria.
Microsoft’s XBox video game system will team up with software maker Electronic Arts to stage an online interactive world cup tournament later this year, the companies announced on Thursday. The project is part of XBox’s sponsorship for soccer’s 2006 World Cup in Germany.