Seventy suspected mercenaries arrested in Zimbabwe three months ago on charges of plotting a coup in Equatorial Guinea briefly appeared before a magistrate court on Thursday but were not given a trial date. A defence lawyer said the failure to set a trial date showed that the state had no case against the men.
‘Mercenaries’ to stand trial in Zim
Group of Eight (G8) leaders on Thursday issued a day pass for their rich nations club to counterparts from Africa, on the last day of an annual summit clouded by new transatlantic squabbles. G8 giants were to lunch with leaders of Algeria, Ghana, Senegal, Nigeria, South Africa and Uganda.
Shi’ite gunmen seized an Iraq police station in the Shi’ite holy city of Najaf and held it for two hours on Thursday in the first outbreak of fighting since an agreement to end weeks of bloody clashes between United States troops and militia forces. Four Iraqis were killed and 13 were injured, hospital and militia officials said.
United Kingdom- and South Africa-listed Old Mutual plc is looking to improve the performance of its South African operations through a combination of strategies, including cost cutting in its back office and implementing more efficient systems, as well as boosting the numbers of its sales force, according to CEO Jim Sutcliffe.
The Department of Public Works did not get enough money in this year’s Budget to carry out all its appointed tasks, including tackling a maintenance backlog at government buildings, says Minister of Public Works Stella Sigcau. In February this year, her department was allocated more than R4,8-billion.
A boat carrying American, British and Canadian tourists on a sightseeing trip down the Danube River in Vienna rammed a landmark bridge on Thursday, smashing windows on the vessel and leaving 19 with minor injuries. The collision damaged the restaurant deck of the boat, which was packed with tourists enjoying the scenery.
Marc Dutroux launched a final tirade on Thursday at his trial in Belgium for the rape, abduction and murder of several girls, denouncing ”liars and manipulators” and insisting he did not act alone. He was giving his closing address before the jury retires to consider its verdict next week.
A tropical-island volcano in northeastern Indonesia exploded in a major eruption on Thursday, hurling stones and spewing smoke, and warnings of further blasts kept thousands of villagers away from their homes on the mountain’s slopes. Nearly 12 000 people have been evacuated to a nearby town.
The man named earlier this week by the executive council of the rebel Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy to replace Sekou damate Conneh as chairperson is dead. Charyee Doe died in a United States hospital on Wednesday following an operation to remove a tumour from his brain.
The South African Reserve Bank’s (SARB) monetary policy committee (MPC) on Thursday decided to keep the repo rate unchanged at 8%. The prime interest rate is therefore to remain steady at 11,5%. This was the third consecutive MPC meeting that no change was expected.