A Japanese whaling expedition has caught 60 minke whales in the Pacific Ocean, the government said, the maximum number allowed under a research programme that critics say is disguised commercial whaling. The 43-day expedition off the coast of Sanriku, about 500km north-east of Tokyo, also found that the minkes feed on sand eels and sardines.
Michael Schumacher denied cheating deliberately to gain pole position as the Monaco Grand Prix plunged into controversy during qualifying on Saturday. The seven-times champion dominated the session to grab his 67th pole position but was afterwards accused of cheating by rival drivers and his former boss, Renault chief Flavio Briatore.
Zimbabwe’s government has published a Bill that, if passed by Parliament, would enable state agents to eavesdrop on private conversations and monitor faxes and e-mails, a state daily reported on Saturday. Rights groups have slammed the proposed law as further tightening President Robert Mugabe’s iron grip on the media and communications.
If Ghanaians could turn back time, they would have Abedi Pele, Anthony Yeboah, Anthony Baffoe, Razak Ibrahim, Mohammed Polo and CK Akonnor, Nii Odartey Lamaptey in the line-up for the World Cup. These players never got the opportunity to play on the biggest football stage, although they were great.
Daniel Carter kicked 14 points, including the conversion of Casey Laulala’s solitary try, to give the Canterbury Crusaders a 19-12 win on Saturday over the Wellington Hurricanes in a Super 14 rugby final marred by dense fog. Fog settled so thickly on Jade Stadium for the inaugural final of the expanded Super 14 competition that most of the 35 000 spectators caught only fleeting glimpses of the match.
Not far from the site of the attacks on the World Trade Centre, Mark Bingham will be remembered for his grit and his heart, and the game he loved. The Bingham Cup, a rugby tournament open to gay teams, will be held this weekend. It pays tribute to Bingham, who was gay and believed to be one of the passengers who fought hijackers on the United flight.
Fresh fighting erupted in Mogadishu on Saturday after a brief lull, killing at least five people and injuring 11 others in intermittent battles that have blighted the lawless capital since February, witnesses said. Residents reported heavy gunfire in the southern Daynile district, where at least three people were killed and six others injured in the morning violence.
The relatives of those who died in the September 2004 Beslan school siege vowed to continue their campaign for justice on Friday night after the sole surviving hostage-taker was convicted on murder and terrorism charges and sentenced to life in prison.
The advocate for Pakistani national Khalid Mahmood Rashid said this week he plans to subpoena all those involved in Rashid’s alleged deportation after a court-imposed deadline for providing information on his whereabouts expires on Monday.
Splits in the African National Congress during local elections continue to plague the Durban township of Umlazi, with violent infighting resulting in at least three deaths. At the centre of the conflict is Bhekisasa Xulu, whose election as ANC ward councillor a group of residents unsuccessfully tried to stop.