Mercury的2023-11-30目录

JADA Pinkett Smith and Will Smith are “staying together forever”. The 52-year-old actress has suggested that she will remain married to Will, 55, even though she previously revealed that they’ve been separated for years. During an appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show, the host told Jada: “I feel like maybe your and his shadow separated in a way in [Jada’s memoir, Worthy], whether they stay together forever or not. “It sounds like you’re staying together forever.” Jada – who has been married to Will since 1997 – responded with: “We’re staying together forever”. Jada seemed to suggest that their attempts to live separately have been unsuccessful. The Hollywood star said: “I tried. We tried.” In October, Jada revealed that she and her actor, rapper and film producer husband had been…

While KwaZulu-Natal has the highest number of people living with HIV in South Africa, the province also has the highest percentage of viral load suppression due to antiretroviral (ARV) therapy, which means that the possibility of transmitting the virus is low. This is according to members of the Human Sciences Research Council who met in Durban yesterday to unpack the results of the sixth South Africa HIV Prevalence, Incidence, Behaviour and Communication Survey. It found that KZN still has the highest HIV prevalence in the country among adults aged 15 and older. The panel included the overall principal investigator, Professor Khangelani Zuma, project director Dr Musa Mabaso, and US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention South Africa country director, Dr John Blandford. The survey found that KZN has the highest…

ABOUT 86 712 students relying on the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) could be left unfunded in the 2024 academic year, increasing to 120 976 students in 2025. This emerged yesterday when the entity and other stakeholders including Universities South Africa (USAf) briefed the National Assembly’s committee on higher education on the readiness of the higher education sector for the 2024 academic year on the back of the National Treasury’s budget cuts. Acting NSFAS CEO Masile Ramorwesi presented a preliminary report stating everything was functional and progressing well in relation to the 2024 applications. About 81 069 university students were still awaiting onboarding for 2023. “With regards to the 2024 disbursement, upfront payment to cover tuition and accommodation allowances for January 31, we will make provision from our reserves…

The IFP in KwaZulu-Natal has expressed its deep disappointment following President Cyril Ramaphosa’s recent visit to the Richards Bay Transnet Port. The IFP views the visit as nothing more than a fruitless exercise, devoid of any concrete solutions to the truck congestion crisis plaguing the Richards Bay Port. Last week, Public Enterprises Minister Pravin Gordhan, in a private meeting with City of uMhlathuze leadership, led by mayor Xolani Ngwezi, made promises to urgently address the mismanagement and inefficiencies causing the truck congestion. However, the president’s subsequent visit appears to have exacerbated the situation rather than alleviating it, with the N2 and John Ross Highway continuing to witness hazardous queues of trucks, posing a severe threat to the safety of road users and residents. It is abundantly clear that President Cyril…

THERE’S a bit of a flap in Old Blighty over a fellow who went down with swine flu. He wasn’t very ill and he’s recovered but the big puzzle for the health authorities is how he contracted it. He doeesn’t work with pigs and has nothing whatever to do with them. Yet, somehow, he contracted swine flu. Did he pick it up from another human who’d contracted swine flu yet showed no symptoms? My advice to the British health authorities: Look for an Irish connection. Years ago in my carefree youth, I worked for a time for an agency in Old Blighty that supplied labour to farms. I was at a large pig farm where an old Irishman was one of the workforce. Every evening after work he’d go to…

Cabinet has not yet taken a decision on the closure of the Israeli embassy two weeks after Parliament passed a resolution on it. President Cyril Ramaphosa’s spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said there was no decision to cut all ties with Tel Aviv. He said there was a separation of powers between Parliament and the Executive. Magwenya said Ramaphosa, Minister of International Relations Naledi Pandor and Cabinet have been handling the issue of the conflict in the Middle East. The ANC, EFF, NFP and African Transformation Movement voted for the closure of the Israeli embassy following the killing of thousands of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip in the last seven weeks. However, the temporary ceasefire between Israel and Hamas has led to the release of some of the hostages and Palestinian prisoners.…

THE DA yesterday formally submitted a motion for the dissolution of the eThekwini council to speaker Thabani Nyawose, with the opposition party saying this was the only way to deal with the city’s infrastructure crisis. The motion is under Section 34 of the Municipal Structures Act, which is a “caretaker provision” that allows the MEC for Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) in the province to appoint one or more administrators to ensure the continued functioning of the municipality until a new municipal council is elected. If the motion is to succeed it must be debated in council and passed by a two thirds majority. Only then can new by-elections be held in eThekwini. The provincial Cogta has unsuccessfully tried to implement a Section 154 intervention in the municipality after…

A Durban tour operator who was last seen on Friday has been found dead, KwaZulu-Natal police said. The body of 59-year-old Sagren Kaniappen was found down an embankment in Tea Estate, Verulam, on the KZN north coast. Kaniappen’s body was wrapped in a white sack and decomposition had started. He had left his home on Friday morning to collect a client at King Shaka International Airport and was meant to drop the client off at Hillcrest. Family spokesperson Dawn Gounden from Renegades Search and Rescue said at the weekend that the family had reported him missing after he had failed to return home. “The daughter had received five missed calls from her dad's number and upon returning the call there was no answer. At approximately 7pm, a family member called…

Pressure continues to mount on the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) and national Treasury to communicate a clear message on the damage caused and repercussions for banks that were involved in the dollar-rand exchange manipulation scandal. This comes as politicians, including former president Thabo Mbeki, have called for banks complicit in the scheme to be brought to book. Treasury argued that the alleged actions of the banks were not the main cause of the local currency substantially losing its value over the past decade, or the weak economy, instead it was due to the energy and logistics crisis. SARB Governor Lesego Kganyago said the question should not be directed to them but to the Competition Commission. Almost 30 commercial banks are under fire for alleged price-fixing involving the South African…

The seminar is a flagship initiative of the Department of Planning, Monitoring, and Evaluation (DPME) that started in 2014. Over the past nine years, we have worked to strengthen the country’s evaluation machinery through ongoing engagement with national and international stakeholders from diverse sectors. It is for this reason that we are pleased with the partnership between DPME and Twende Mbele in co-hosting this year’s seminar. Twende Mbele is a peer learning partnership of African governments to promote monitoring and evaluation as a tool to strengthen government performance and accountability in partner countries. This year we especially welcome the participation of all six Twende Mbele member countries, namely Benin, Ghana, Kenya, Niger, Uganda and South Africa in this year’s National Evaluation Seminar. We believe your participation will bring great insights…

Israel and Hamas were negotiating through mediators yesterday over another potential extension of the Gaza truce, with hours left to reach a deal before fighting was due to restart after a six-day pause. Families of Israeli hostages were informed yesterday of the names of those due to be released later in the day, Israel’s public broadcaster Kan reported – the final group to be freed under the truce unless negotiators succeed in extending it. Gaza’s Hamas rulers published a list of 15 women and 15 teenagers to be released from Israeli jails in return. For the first time since the truce began it included Palestinian citizens of Israel, as well as residents of occupied territory. A Palestinian official said that despite a willingness on both sides to prolong the truce,…

Could Donald Trump make a comeback? Will anyone in Russia challenge another six years for Vladimir Putin? With half the world heading to the polls in 2024, and some 30 countries electing a president, here are five key elections to watch: On November 5, tens of millions of Americans will choose the 60th president of the US in a contest which could keep incumbent Joe Biden in power until the age of 86. Polls show that a majority of voters think the gaffe-prone Democrat is too old to be commander-in-chief, despite his likely rival, ex-president Donald Trump making similar slip-ups at 77. Disinformation looks set to be a feature of the campaign, a hangover from the last foul-tempered contest which ended with Trump supporters storming the US Capitol to try…

Brasília: Seven people were killed and two arrested yesterday in a large police operation in north-eastern Brazil aimed at dismantling a criminal gang, authorities said. Police said around 100 officers were involved in the operation in the town of Cristinapolis, in the state of Sergipe. The seven killed were “suspects with links to a criminal faction” involved in drug trafficking, robberies and homicides, police said. Officers also carried out 23 search and seizure warrants, including in a prison. Police said the operation was launched after an anonymous tip that a prison inmate was the leader of the criminal gang, which has been fighting a bloody turf war with a rival drug gang. | AFP…

Bangkok: Myanmar’s military is carrying out a sustained offensive involving fighter jets to regain control of a key town from an armed ethnic minority group, its fighters and residents said yesterday. The Arakan Army moved into Pauktaw, a town of 20 000 people close to a crucial deepwater port in the capital of western Rakhine state, on November 15. It opened a new front in an offensive by an alliance of ethnic minority groups across northern Myanmar that has cut trade routes to China and led to more than 330 000 people being displaced since last month. Pauktaw residents yesterday reported heavy battles in the town. | AFP…

The November 2023 Household Affordability Index, which tracks food price data from 47 supermarkets and 32 butcheries, showed that this month, November, the average cost of the Household Food Basket is R5 314.63. Month-on-month, the average cost of the Household Food Basket increased by R17.05 (0.3%), from R5 297.58 in October to R5 314.63 in November. Year-on-year, the average cost of the Household Food Basket increased by R478.67 (9.9%), from R4 835.96 in November last year. Mervyn Abrahams, the Programme Co-ordinator at the Pietermaritzburg Economic Justice & Dignity Group (PMBEJD), which compiles the index, said the food items which increased in price in November by 5% or more, included eggs (18% – 60 eggs [2 x 30 egg tray] increased on average by R29.73 to R191.83); chicken livers (5%); tomatoes…

The recent comments by none other than our el Presidente Ramaphoria, indicating that being a South African patriot is synonymous with being an ANC supporter and voter, refer. The gall of the man. The ANC, under the tutelage of JG Zuma and now, el Presidente Squirrel Ramaphoria, have virtually destroyed our country and brought us to the brink of failed state status. Professor MW Makgoba indicated on JJ Tabane’s programme on Monday that South Africa had, in fact, fallen over the cliff and was a failed state. The coup de grâce in becoming a failed state has been courtesy of Ramaphoria and his Cabinet of miscreants. The list of things the ANC has broken is a list of every state-owned entity city and municipality in the country, at least the…

In what can only be seen as one of the most uncaring moves by KwaZulu-Natal’s (KZN) ANC government – the province’s Department of Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs (EDTEA) has spent more than R30 million on Eat, Meet, and Greet functions since May this year. Clearly aimed at building a profile for MEC Siboniso Duma and the ANC ahead of the 2024 elections, parliamentary questions by the DA have revealed a department more concerned with big money-catered events rather than core service delivery that leads to jobs and opportunities. Ironically, one of these lavish functions took place on the same day that the Division of Revenue Amendment (DORA) Bill was presented before the legislature, with massive budget cuts for critical services including health and education on the cards. In…

People are often stronger than they realise or know. Put to the test, people can accomplish amazing things and overcome huge hurdles. You can read such stories in the press most days where “ordinary” people accomplish amazing things. Your inner-resources are probably largely untapped in the rhythms of daily living. They will rush to the fore when you are under inordinate pressure. The inner-person within each of us has a vested interest in being well and thriving. A lot depends on it. Do the right thing as you know it to be, and your inner-person will feel better, become an ally and will assist you in your search for greater emotional health. The smallest steps routinely employed toward greater emotional health will immediately begin to pay off and make a…

A KwaZulu-Natal man who killed two people who had been transporting him following a dispute over fuel, has been sentenced to an effective 30 years behind bars. Mluleki Mngadi, 26, pleaded guilty in the Pietermaritzburg High Court on Tuesday to the murder and robbery of Nkululeko Nduli and Xolani Nduli. In his plea handed to the court by advocate TJ Nene, Mngadi detailed the events leading up to the murder on March 5, 2022. He said he decided to go on a drinking spree at Dladla’s tavern in Camperdown with his friends. Mngadi said he was joined by two friends and they continued drinking; when they ran out of cash they decided to go to another tavern to withdraw cash. They hired Nkululeko Nduli, 49, to transport them and agreed…

Eight men have been arrested on charges of rape and robbery after they allegedly accosted security guards at Department of Transport offices in Merebank. KwaZulu-Natal Premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube, who condemned the attack, said the incident took place at about 2.30am on Tuesday. Police said the robbers made off with equipment valued at R280 000. Dube-Ncube said the men gained entry by scaling a wall. “They took all security guards on duty hostage, bound them with their own shoelaces and subjected them to assault at gunpoint. In another room three female officers were raped at gunpoint.” Dube-Ncube added that support would be offered to the victims. “The latest incident is an embarrassment and an indication that some men do not belong in our society. The provincial government has already assigned psycho-social…

The South African Music Industry Council (SAMIC) has welcomed the appointment of Nomsa Chabeli as the new SABC CEO. Chabeli was general manager of brand and marketing at telecoms giant MTN for four years and marketing director of Massmart-controlled Masscash for a year. President of SAMIC, Vusi Leeuw, said they were excited to welcome Chabeli, who will be bringing some of her corporate expertise to the embattled state broadcaster, which has not had a CEO for more than four months. “Ms Chabeli’s extensive experience in corporate leadership as a visionary, coupled with her strong sense of patriotism and exceptional leadership qualities, will play a crucial role in stabilising the SABC and turning it around to be a leading broadcaster, once more, with the full support of the government, SABC Board…

Narendra Modi Today marks 365 days since India assumed the G20 Presidency. It is a moment to reflect, recommit, and rejuvenate the spirit of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, “One Earth, One Family, One Future”. As we undertook this responsibility last year, the global landscape grappled with multifaceted challenges: recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, looming climate threats, financial instability, and debt distress in developing nations, all amid declining multilateralism. In the midst of conflicts and competition, development co-operation suffered, impeding progress. Assuming the G20 Chair, India sought to offer the world an alternative to the status quo, a shift from a GDP- centric to human-centric progress. India aimed to remind the world of what unites us, rather than what divides us. Finally, the global conversation had to evolve – the interests of the…

Hope that they would be rescued soon kept workers trapped in a collapsed tunnel in India strong through their 17-day ordeal, some of the men said yesterday after their rescue. All 41 men, low-wage workers from some of India’s poorest states, were rescued. They were taken to a specialist hospital in Rishikesh city after spending the night at a makeshift medical facility in the small Himalayan town. Doctors said they were all doing well but would need long-term support, including monitoring for post-traumatic stress. “They are quite normal, I won’t even call them patients,” said Meenu Singh, head of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in Rishikesh. Doctors had done some basic medical tests and today would decide if they can be sent home. The men had lights in…

VALVERDE: Amid cheers from the crowd, 13-year-old Senegalese migrant Cheik Ndaa tricks his opponent into falling over and wins his first tournament in Lucha Canaria, a traditional form of wrestling in Spain’s Canary Islands. Ndaa, who arrived on a wooden fishing boat in July, has picked up the sport quickly thanks to its similarity with a form of wrestling he practised in his birth place, Dakar. “Wrestling has been my passion since I lived in Senegal,” Ndaa said. He attends a local school and trains twice a week with 11 other migrants at a club on El Hierro, the archipelago’s smallest island. His talent for fighting could help him to a better life in Spain, said his coach, Beneino Machin. Ndaa was one of 5 000 unaccompanied minors among 34…

High in remote mountains in the oil-rich United Arab Emirates, a new plant will soon take atmospheric CO2 and pump it into rock – part of controversial attempts to target planet-heating emissions without abandoning fossil fuels. Using novel technology developed by Omani start-up 44.01, the solar-powered plant will suck carbon dioxide from the air, dissolve it in seawater and inject it deep underground, where it will mineralise over a period of months. The new site on the Gulf of Oman is funded by state oil giant ADNOC, whose CEO Sultan Al Jaber is president of the UN’s COP28 climate talks and chairman of Masdar, a renewable energies company. The first CO2 injection is expected during COP28 which starts today in nearby Dubai, and where the debate over hydrocarbons will be…

Hong Kong: Hong Kong’s largest national security trial began final arguments yesterday, more than 1 000 days after authorities filed charges against 47 democracy activists under a law imposed by China to quell dissent. The defendants represent a cross-section of Hong Kong’s opposition, which has been effectively squashed after China imposed a sweeping national security law on the city in 2020. Critics say the law undermined civil liberties that were meant to be enshrined under a 1997 agreement to hand the former British colony back to China. The 47 defendants were charged with “conspiracy to subvert state power” and face up to life in prison. The verdict is set to be delivered in three months. | AFP…

AmaZulu FC have been hit with two major injury blows in midfield just days before their Carling Knockout Cup clash with TS Galaxy over the weekend. Usuthu will welcome The Rockets to the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on Sunday at 3pm, with the aim of sealing a second major cup final in two seasons. However, the AmaZulu camp has been disrupted by recent injury setbacks to experienced midfielder George Maluleka and Ben Motshwari. The duo sat out of training yesterday morning as Pablo Franco Martin sharpened his boys for a tough encounter against The Rockets, and are believed to be set to miss the big match with serious injuries. Motshwari has emerged as the long-awaited replacement for ex-captain Makhehleni Makhaula, and has been a mainstay in the heart of…

Maintaining a lawn bowling green is an art requiring precision, dedication and a deep understanding of the game. Unlike golf greens, a bowling green must be fast, consistent and perfectly smooth to ensure bowlers can play with self-confidence and accuracy. The surface must be firm and level, with an ideal deviation of no more than 3mm across the entire area. The speed, or pace of a bowling green is measured in seconds, representing the time it takes for a bowl to roll from delivery until it comes to rest 27m up the green. The optimum measurement falls between 13sec and 13.5sec, a critical factor in the game. Having green staff members who are avid bowlers is a significant advantage for a club because, as they go about their daily tasks…

In a short space of time, Proteas Test coach Shukri Conrad has demonstrated his vast knowledge of South African cricket and its players. He started by appointing Temba Bavuma captain of the Test team, a decision that Bavuma followed up with a career-best 172 in his first series as captain. This time around, Conrad pulled the most audacious move in response to the situation he found himself in after the confirmation of the clash between next year’s Test tour to New Zealand and the SA20 play-offs. With the batting and replacement fast-bowling options clearer, Conrad needed a spinner in the squad that he will take to New Zealand, and with the Black Caps’ top order filled with a number of left-handed batters – including Devon Conway, Tom Latham and…

“AS PEOPLE prioritise health and wellness – be it physical or mental – we are seeing a need for spaces that tick these boxes. “Ultimately they are becoming a home of sorts, and a meeting place for like-minded people who are on a journey seeking betterment,” said Robyn Schaffner from the Light House, a new holistic haven in Cape Town. Schaffner shares her thoughts on what the wellness trends will be for 2024. Biophilia exercises: communing with nature There’s a growing inclination for outdoor exercise. With this in mind, studios globally will feature a biophilic design that seamlessly integrates the indoors with the outdoors, allowing fresh air to permeate during temperate weather, Schaffner said. Pools – previously only a space to swim laps – are now becoming a hub…

A SENIOR prosecutor with the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) in Durban has spoken out about the difficulty facing the authority to prosecute crimes committed by the “construction mafia” groups which are notorious for invading construction sites to demand work. Speaking at the Fraud Awareness Seminar at the Durban ICC yesterday, advocate Roshiela Benimadho revealed that only one case was being dealt with in Durban despite several incidents. The seminar was organised by business and the eThekwini Municipality to interrogate the impact of crime and fraud on business, government and the community. Benimadho said despite the devastating impact of the criminal syndicates on construction businesses, the NPA was unable to bring cases of those involved to court because witnesses were reluctant to testify. She said generally the NPA was doing well…

VW HAS clearly had enough … a notice of warning was given to this government to get their electricity act together, failing which they will leave the country. It’s a salvo across the bows, preparing our hapless and helpless politicians that a mass exodus of top brands is imminent. The minister of electricity is hamstrung, as he continues to have to answer to Minister (of Public Enterprises) Gordhan, who now qualifies as the least-liked Cabinet minister in the 30-year history of the ANC and whose track record qualifies as being perfectly disastrous. This has become a call to all clear-thinking South Africans and opposition parties that another day of ANC rule is tanking the once-great ship South Africa. Gordhan must immediately resign his Eskom portfolio and allow Ramokgopa to get…

I am notoriously tech-unfriendly and although I possess a “smart” phone (the word “own” strikes me as altogether too personal for such a sterile device), I am baffled and bewildered on the rare occasions that it rings. Indeed, things that a five-year-old takes in its stride leave me flummoxed. It thus comes as no surprise that, at every turn, I am confronted with demands for seemingly vital information without which commerce will grind to a halt, with passwords being in particular demand. I recently purchased a new electric blanket to replace the old one which had gone to that great appliance graveyard in the sky, leaving me shivering during a particularly cold snap. My supplier then asked me to submit a product review, which I tried unsuccessfully to do, since…

The man convicted of inciting violence during the July 2021 unrest in Pietermaritzburg has been sentenced to 12 years’ imprisonment. The convictions relate to the incidents of looting and public violence which occurred in July 2021 in parts of the country, especially KwaZulu-Natal. Mdumiseni Khetha Zuma, 36, appeared in the Pietermaritzburg Regional Court yesterday. He was charged with contravening sections 17 and 18 of the Riotous Assemblies Act, where he incited people to gather and commit public violence. According to the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA), this was done by making an inciteful video pertaining to the Brookside Mall and distributing it on WhatsApp. During this time, the Brookside Mall in Pietermaritzburg was looted and burnt to the ground. Regional NPA spokesperson Natasha Ramkisson-Kara said Zuma was sentenced to 10 years’…

President Cyril Ramaphosa has urged the nation not to panic over the National Health Insurance (NHI) Bill, saying he will apply his mind properly before he signs it into law to ensure it passes Constitutional muster. The National Council of Provinces (NCOP) was expected to vote on the bill yesterday, but the voting was postponed until Wednesday. NCOP chairperson Amos Masondo said they have postponed the debate on the bill for a week. Ramaphosa’s spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said there was no need to panic over the bill once it was passed by the NCOP. Magwenya said Ramaphosa will have to satisfy himself that all processes were followed before the Houses of Parliament adopted the NHI Bill. This would include the constitutionally required consultation process. Magwenya, who was briefing the media…

A policeman was gunned down in his home in Inanda on Tuesday afternoon, KwaZulu-Natal police said. The 48-year-old Warrant Officer was at his Mzomusha home in Inanda with his family when a man entered the yard and asked for water, police said. Provincial police spokesperson, Colonel Robert Netshiunda said that after drinking the water, the suspect suddenly produced a firearm and fired several shots at the officer. “The victim was taken to hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.” He said a case of murder has been opened at Inanda SA Police Service and that the matter will be investigated by the Directorate for Priority Crimes Investigations (known as the Hawks). Last week, policeman Sergeant Riaad Adams was gunned down while responding to a robbery at the Pavilion Shopping Centre…

THE voter registration weekend and the subsequent political party campaigns, in particular by the ANC, have given South Africans a glimpse of the cheap politicking they will be subjected to in the run-up to next year’s crucial election. Using the face of Deputy Chief Justice Mandisa Maya in its campaign to claim credit for empowering women in the judiciary, the ANC demonstrated its long-lost morals and credibility, the core foundations upon which its founding fathers and mothers built the organisation. No apology can justify why it opted for this embarrassing route, which not only undermines Justice Maya’s name but brings un- necessary attention to the judiciary, which has to be and – be seen to be – impartial at all times. Thankfully this new low did little to damage…

Uber will open up its platform to London’s black cabs next year, the ride-hailing firm said yesterday, trying to win over the British capital’s taxis after a decade of tensions. London’s black cab drivers, who have to pass a test called “The Knowledge” requiring them to memorise thousands of routes within the city, have long been at loggerheads with Uber, arguing it threatens their livelihoods. The new service will be rolled out in early 2024, it will enable black cab drivers to sign up to the app to take booked journeys. The US-based giant is offering them a no commission deal for the first six months. But a group representing the majority of black cab drivers dismissed the offer, saying there was no demand for it from members. In London,…

AMSTERDAM: Dutch politician Geert Wilders yesterday said that forming a minority government with himself as prime minister is one possibility, following last week’s election in which his Freedom Party won the most seats. Wilders said he would be “strong but reasonable” in discussions with potential partners. The conservative VVD Party said it would not join a Wilders-led cabinet. Wilders, whose party took about 24% of the vote, will need to work with two more moderate parties to form a coalition. | Reuters…

MOSCOW: The Kremlin, commenting on reports that Poland plans to send troops to Finland’s border with Russia, said yesterday that such a move could stoke tensions and that Russia would see it as a threat. The head of Poland’s National Security Bureau was reported to have said this week that Warsaw planned to approve a Finnish request for troops to be deployed close to its border with Russia. This was after a sudden wave of refugee arrivals that Helsinki said was orchestrated by Moscow, something Russia denied. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the planned deployment was unprovoked and unjustified. | Reuters…

CANBERRA: Australia issued a national apology yesterday to survivors of the thalidomide drug scandal, which Prime Minister Anthony Albanese called one of the “darkest chapters” in the country’s medical history. Thalidomide was a “wonder drug” prescribed in the 1950s and early 1960s to help pregnant women cope with morning sickness, but it was later discovered the chemical also caused severe birth defects in children. The Thalidomide Trust estimates more than 10 000 babies worldwide were impacted by thalidomide. The government has said that 150 thalidomide survivors are registered with a national support program. | AFP…

Richards Bay defender Austin Dube has revealed he and his teammates’ motivation to create history for the club ahead of their Carling Knockout Cup semi-final on Saturday. Kick-off is at 3pm. The Natal Rich Boyz, who are in their first top-flight cup semi-final, will welcome Stellenbosch FC to the King Zwelithini Stadium looking to further their title ambitions. The KwaZulu-Natal-based outfit is one of two clubs in the province in the final four of the inaugural season of the competition, alongside AmaZulu. However, standing in the way of Richards Bay are an in-form Stellies side, who just seem unbeatable at the moment. Coach Steve Barker’s boys recently beat Usuthu in Durban before going on to dismantle Cape Town Spurs 3-0 in league competition on Tuesday, extending their seven-game unbeaten…