The number of South African nurses registered with the Nursing and Midwifery Council in the United Kingdom dropped by 55% between 2002 and 2005, Minister of Health Manto Tshabalala-Msimang said on Tuesday. The number shrank from 2Â 114 to 933 over this period as a result of an agreement with the UK.
Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas was headed for a showdown with the Hamas government after winning the green light on Tuesday to hold a referendum on implicitly recognising Israel. The decision by the executive committee of the Palestine Liberation Organisation to endorse his referendum plan came despite opposition from Hamas.
Medicines to treat common diseases in poorer countries tend to be old and are often ineffective. But the pharmaceutical industry has little incentive to research new drugs: patients in developing countries can’t afford them. All that may change, as ”needs-driven” research on diseases that afflict developing countries gathers momentum.
Denying reports of a change in its position on the Gautrain, the Congress of South African Trade Unions’ (Cosatu) provincial branch on Tuesday maintained its opposition to the high-speed rail link. The Gauteng branch of the tripartite alliance had urged the provincial government to talk to Cosatu about the federation’s concerns, said Cosatu Gauteng chairperson Phutas Tseki.
Heavily armed Islamic gunmen and fighters loyal to a United States-backed warlord alliance faced each other in a tense stand-off in Somalia on Tuesday after Muslim militia claimed control of the lawless capital, Mogadishu. A day after the Islamists declared victory, the city was fractured along clan lines, with remaining warlords vowing not to surrender.
Former world number one Kim Clijsters produced a masterful display to reach the semifinals of the French Open at the expense of Martina Hingis on Tuesday. Clijsters, who won 7-6 (7/5), 6-1, will face either fellow Belgian and defending champion Justine Henin-Hardenne or Germany’s Anna-Lena Groenefeld in the last four.
Iran on Tuesday gave a cautious reception to an international proposal aimed at resolving the crisis over its disputed nuclear drive, saying the offer contains "positive steps" but also "ambiguities". The package, presented by European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana, offers a variety of incentives and fresh multilateral talks if Tehran agrees to suspend uranium-enrichment work.
Forest managers were assessing the damage on Tuesday caused by a gale that flattened at least 7 000 trees in Slovakia’s High Tatras National Park. Park spokesperson Marian Sturcel said the toll from wind gusts was the highest since a freak windstorm in November 2004 toppled 120km² of conifer trees in the region.
Former US Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova admitted she was surprised to be in the semifinals of the French Open after she ousted compatriot Dinara Safina 7-6 (7/5), 6-0 on Tuesday. The eighth-seeded Russian will face Czech teenager Nicole Vaidisova in the last four after the 16th seed beat Wimbledon champion Venus Williams 6-7 (5/7), 6-1, 6-3.
Eighteen people died and 43 were injured early on Tuesday when a truck carrying mourners crashed into a tree in western Zimbabwe, a police spokesperson told Agence France-Presse. ”Eighteen people were killed on the spot after the truck they were travelling in veered off the road and hit a tree,” police inspector Andrew Phiri said.