Zimbabwe opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai called on the United Nations on Friday to intervene in his homeland’s political and economic crises. The Zimbabwean government has rejected UN involvement, saying Secretary General Kofi Annan need not make a long-planned visit.
East Timor’s capital was returning to normal on Friday after Australian troops took to the streets to restore order and stop bloody clashes between the Timorese military and rebel soldiers. One day after some of the worst violence since independence in 2002 left at least 15 people dead, residents of Dili began leaving their houses.
A Greek inquiry into a mid-air collision between Greek and Turkish fighter planes this week blamed Turkish pilot error, a Greek official said on Friday, as the country confirmed the death of its pilot. The Turkish plane ”rammed into the Greek aircraft overhead following a wrong manoeuvre by the Turkish pilot”, a top defence ministry official said.
Killing British Prime Minister Tony Blair in a suicide bombing would be morally justified as revenge for the war in Iraq, firebrand lawmaker George Galloway has said. In a magazine interview that was widely reported on Friday, the MP for the anti-war party, Respect, was asked if it would be justifiable for a suicide bomber to blow up Blair, provided there were no other casualties.
A cat stowed away in a crate of crockery on a container ship and travelled 9 600km from China to Britain, living on cardboard and condensation, a newspaper said on Friday. Nicknamed Chairman Miaow, the white tabby cat crawled into the crate before it was loaded onto the container ship bound for Britain, the Daily Telegraph said.
A parliamentary committee has approved draft legislative changes that boost the legislature’s role, and lessens that of the executive, in the appointment of the Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (Icasa) council. The amendments will now be tabled in Parliament for consideration.
The Springboks have enlisted the services of a host of doctors and specialists in the build-up to their international season and as they prepare in Bloemfontein, medical reports have been flowing furiously. But perhaps the most important advice will come from another sort of professor in the form of scrum doctor Balie Swart.
The Palestinian Islamic Jihad leader in southern Lebanon died on Friday of wounds from a car bombing that also killed his brother, security officials said. Mahmoud Majzoub was walking with his brother Nidal near the central square of Sidon, when a parked car was detonated by remote control.
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Wayne Rooney will travel with England to the World Cup despite being told that he will be unable to resume full training before June 14 at the earliest, four days after his country’s opening match. A scan on the Manchester United forward’s broken foot confirmed the initial prognosis that he would need about six weeks to recover.
South African Airways (SAA) has been voted the best airline based in Africa at the Official Airline of the Year Awards held in the United Kingdom. This is the sixth consecutive time that SAA has taken this award. Other awards presented to SAA this year include Best African Airline and Best International Airline for 2005.