Durban

Former deputy president Jacob Zuma made a surprise appearance as the battle over the release of documents from Mauritius got under way in the Pietermaritzburg High Court on Thursday. A small group of Zuma supporters was outside the court and a media scramble ensued as Zuma entered the court room.

Durban’s beachfront areas were pounded by massive surf in the early hours of Monday morning, leaving the city’s famed Golden Mile littered with debris and emergency services scrambling to rescue numerous people. The South African Weather Service in Durban said winds in excess of 40 knots (80km/h) were reported on Sunday night.

South Africa’s Sharks made it six wins out of six and top the table after a 27-14 victory over New Zealand’s Wellington Hurricanes in Durban on Saturday. It wasn’t pretty, but Dick Muir’s charges did the business to remain the only unbeaten side in this year’s Super 14 southern-hemisphere interprovincial competition.

Mamelodi Sundowns went through to the quarterfinals of the Absa Cup when they beat Maritzburg United 1-0 at the Harry Gwala Stadium in Pietermaritzburg on Wednesday. The half-time score was 0-0. The only goal of the match came from substitute Patrick Apataki. The striker came on for Lerato Chabangu in the 88th minute and scored almost immediately.

Kaizer Chiefs went on the rampage and blasted Bloemfontein Celtic 4-0 in a Premier soccer League game played at Absa Stadium in Durban on Saturday night. Chiefs led 2-0 at the interval. Chiefs, under the guidance of Kostadin Papic and Johannes Mofokeng for the first time, started attacking from the first whistle.

The family of convicted Durban businessman Schabir Shaik has been ”lobbying” Correctional Services Minister Ngconde Balfour in an attempt to ”negotiate a deal” reducing his imprisonment term, the Daily News reported on Monday. The newspaper reported that the family had made repeated requests to meet with the minister.

The state filed papers in the in the Durban High Court on Monday morning in its attempt to obtain documents from Mauritius relating to accusations of corruption against Jacob Zuma. The papers had already been served on Zuma and French arms manufacturer Thint on Friday.

The Sharks left four probable tries on the park at the Absa Stadium on Saturday and as a consequence nearly paid the penalty by becoming the only South African side to lose their Super 14 rugby match this weekend.

The state is expected to file papers in the Durban High Court on Friday in its attempt to obtain documents from Mauritius relating to accusations of corruption against Jacob Zuma. The documents include the 2000 diary of former French arms manufacturer Thint chief executive Alain Thetard.

Germany (Nico Hulkenberg) scored their sixth consecutive win and their eighth of the season in round eight of the A1 Grand Prix World Cup of Motorsport with back-to-back wins in the sprint and feature races at Durban’s street circuit on Sunday. The 19-year-old German dominated the race weekend.

Team France’s Loic Duval set the fastest times in the first two practice sessions at the A1 Grand Prix in Durban as Team South Africa did battle with a drive shaft that broke on Friday. In scorching temperatures, Duval set a lap time of 1:19,36 at the morning practice session, and bettered that with a time of 1:18,62 in the afternoon session.

In a somewhat disappointing opening affair, the Wildebeest claimed the points in their first outing in the Vodacom Cup rugby series with a 24-16 victory over the Boland Cavaliers at the Absa Stadium in Durban on Friday night. The home side led 10-6 after the first 40 minutes.

One of the men who allegedly killed historian David Rattray is also under investigation for raping two young teenagers at gunpoint and armed robbery, the media reported on Wednesday. This emerged on Tuesday in the Dundee Magistrate’s Court during the bail application of Simphiwe Ndlovu (25).

A twin boy and girl burnt to death in a blaze that gutted their home in Sea View, Durban, on Monday afternoon, emergency services said. Netcare 911 spokesperson Chris Botha said the seven-year-old siblings had tried to escape, but could not because of burglar bars. Paramedics declared them dead on scene.

AmaZulu put together their best performance to beat Silver Stars 1-0 at the Princess Magogo Stadium on Sunday afternoon. Last Wednesday AmaZulu fired a number of experienced players including international goalkeeper Komoka Camara (from Guinea) and captain Siphiwe Sgwili because of ill discipline.

A Durban ward councillor was gunned down on Friday afternoon as he arrived at a house he was apparently selling in the Merebank suburb, paramedics said. Rajah Naidoo, the councillor for ward 68 in the eThekwini municipality, died after sustaining multiple gunshot wounds.

Minister of Correctional Services Ngconde Balfour on Thursday ordered that convicted Durban businessman and fraud convict Schabir Shaik be immediately removed from St Augustine’s Hospital in Durban and sent to Westville Prison. Balfour made the decision after viewing medical reports on Shaik’s condition. Shaik has been in Durban’s St Augustine’s Hospital for the past 83 days.

African National Congress deputy president Jacob Zuma on Monday filed papers in the Durban High Court opposing the National Prosecuting Authority’s request to have documents released from Mauritius for use as evidence in his trial. The documents pertain to an alleged meeting between Zuma, businessman Schabir Shaik and Alain Thetard of French arms company Thint.

The ongoing dispute over which consortium should build Durban’s 2010 Soccer World Cup stadium was adjourned until April 2 by the Durban High Court on Monday. A consortium led by Group 5 has been named as the preferred bidder, but has yet to sign a contract with the eThekwini municipality.

At least 22 Durban factory workers had to be taken to hospital with respiratory problems on Monday morning, paramedics said. Netcare 911 spokesperson Chris Botha said 18 of them were from the Beacon Sweets factory in the Jacobs industrial area, while the other four were from a nearby shoe factory.

Durban’s mayor, Obed Mlaba, on Monday rejected weekend media reports that a National Intelligence Agency (NIA) security check of his office was linked to succession battles within the African National Congress. ”These people [the media] must come up with something to sell newspapers,” he said.

The Sharks register a second successive home victory in the Super 14 rugby championship at the Absa Stadium in Durban on Friday night as they beat the Waratahs 22-9. They landed four penalty goals and a drop goal to three penalty goals before scoring a try three minutes from the end.