Sri Lanka’s cricket tour of New Zealand will proceed with a revised itinerary following devastating tidal waves which killed more than 12 000 people in the island nation. The second of five limited-overs internationals has been rescheduled and the start dates of the team’s two test matches in January may be
pushed back by several days.

Sublime batting from Marcus Trescothick and former South African Andrew Strauss put England into a commanding position at the end of the third day of the second Test against South Africa at Kingsmead on Tuesday. But South African coach Ray Jennings was confident that South Africa could still win the Test.

Hundreds of people died and entire villages and towns disappeared when tidal waves hit Somalia’s coastline along its central and northeastern regions, a Somali presidential spokesperson said on Monday. In the Indian Ocean Island of Seychelles two fishermen went missing and four Seychellois were hospitalised.

Two South Africans have been confirmed killed in Phuket island off Thailand, following an earthquake and subsequent tsunamis that hit Southeast Asia on Sunday, the department of foreign affairs said on Monday. At least 300 South Africans are believed to be stranded in Thailand.
<li><a class=’standardtextsmall’ href="http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?cg=BreakingNews-National&ao=177177">Narrow escape for SA coach</a>
<li><a class=’standardtextsmall’ href="http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?cg=BreakingNews-Africa&ao=177178">Africa counts cost of tidal waves</a>
<li><a class=’standardtextsmall’ href="http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?cg=BreakingNews-National&ao=177176">SA warned about waves on E Coast </a>
<li><a class=’standardtextsmall’ href="http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?cg=BreakingNews-InternationalNews&ao=177168&t=1">Thousands swept to their death</a>
<li><a class=’standardtextsmall’ href="http://www.mg.co.za/Content/pd.asp?cg=BreakingNews-InternationalNews&ao=177167">Thousands killed in Asian tsunami</a>

Argentina lies rusting and vandalised inside a disused locomotive depot in a poor suburb of San Miguel de Tucumán in north-west Argentina. No one, it seems, has cried for it for many years. Until now. A group of visiting British engineers has tracked down this legendary, if mournful, locomotive which railway enthusiasts worldwide assumed had been scrapped long ago.

The next time the Pope addresses crowds in St Peter’s Square, he may see tourists with paperbacks by the blockbuster conspiracy novelist Dan Brown, rather than Catholic pilgrims with Bibles or guidebooks. The first ”official Angels and Demons tour”, organised by a group of 30-something Romans specialising in the ”darker side of Rome”, will on Tuesday show visitors the Roman sites used by the author of The Da Vinci Code.

Ukraine’s opposition leader, Viktor Yushchenko, was poised for a commanding victory last night in a re-run of disputed presidential elections that have riven the country and revived old cold war rivalry between Moscow and the West. Three exit polls gave Yushchenko and his orange-clad supporters a lead of at least 15% points over the government candidate, Viktor Yanukovich. With more than half of the ballots counted, he had 56,5% to 40% for his rival.

For three young boys in Texas, this Christmas Day was a little less exuberant than usual. When they failed to meet their irate father’s injunction to improve their behaviour, he logged on to eBay and put their presents up for auction. ”No. Kidding,” read the post of the Pasadena father. ”Three undeserving boys have crossed the line. Tonight we sat down and showed them what they WILL NOT get for Christmas this year.