Table of contents for 2021-09-23 in Cape Times

Siphelele Dludla siphelele.dludla@inl.co.za SEVERAL South African banks have come forward to indicate that their customers’ data may have been exposed in the latest massive cyberattack in the South African financial services industry. This comes after debt collector, Debt-IN Consultants, yesterday announced that a ransomware attack by cybercriminals had resulted in a significant data breach of consumer and employee personal information. Debt-IN said data of more than 1.4 million South Africans was illegally accessed from its servers in April this year but the data breach only came to light last week. Confidential consumer data and voice recordings of calls between Debt-IN debt recovery agents and financial services customers have been posted on the dark web. Debt-IN chief executive Mark Essey said they deeply regretted this cyberattack, and “we apologise unreservedly for…

Chevon Booysen chevon.booysen@inl.co.za UNMARRIED fathers will now be able to register their children under their surname, in the absence of, or without, the mother’s consent. In a landmark judgment yesterday, the Constitutional Court ruled that Section 10 of the Births and Deaths Registration Act was unconstitutional, in that it does not allow an unmarried father to register his child’s birth under his surname, unless the mother is present or gives consent. The apex court found that the section differentiates between children born in and out of wedlock, and unfairly limits the right of an unmarried father to register his child’s birth under his surname. The judgment read: “There are instances where a mother may be available but, for whatever reason, consent may not have been obtained. There are also instances…

Lisa Isaacs lisa.isaacs@inl.co.za THE trauma of escaping from Kabul in one of the largest airlifts in history, and jarring scenes of desperate people attempting to escape the city, will live with Somerset West resident Allen Ferguson, 53, and his family for some time to come. Ferguson, a general manager at an international multi-service company working in support of US and NATO forces and international embassies, had been in Kabul for six months before the large-scale evacuations of foreign citizens and some vulnerable Afghan citizens took place amid the withdrawal of US and NATO forces from Afghanistan and the takeoever of the country by the Taliban. After the fall of Kabul on August 15, and the sooner than expected collapse of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Hamid Karzai International Airport remained…

Nicola Daniels nicola.daniels@inl.co.za “CHEAP politicking” is what Public Works Minister Patricia de Lille has labelled DA MP and mayoral candidate Geordin Hill-Lewis’s calls for the release of the Parliamentary housing village, in Acacia Park. She has instead called on him to focus on developing well-located hectares of land, owned by the local and provincial government. De Lille said Acacia Park was used to accommodate members of Parliament, who live and serve their constituencies, in towns and cities outside of Cape Town, which included 60 DA members of Parliament. “The fact that no inner City affordable housing has been built while the DA has been in government in Cape Town and the Western Cape, is because the DA prevented this from happening. “The proposal to release public land in the Cape…

Siphokazi Vuso siphokazi.vuso@inl.co.za WOMEN farm workers and dwellers marched through Stellenbosch yesterday to hand over a memorandum of demands to chairperson of Remgro Limited, Johan Rupert, calling on him to endorse an introduction of a wealth tax on the richest 1% population of South Africa. In commemorating Heritage Day, the women from the Western Cape and Northern Cape Women on Farms Project (WFP) marched outside Remgro Limited with placards. WFP project director, Colette Solomon said: “Johann Rupert, the chairperson of Remgro Limited, is the second richest South African with a net worth of billions. He and his family own multiple farms and have shares or investments in various companies, including FNB, Discovery, Mediclinic, Rainbow Chicken, Nola Mayonnaise, 5 Star Special Maize Meal and Klipdrift. The memorandum calls on Johann…

| The Washington Post Apples Never Fall Liane Moriarty Loot.co.za (R487) Henry Holt & Company, Inc. WHO knew there were so many tennis metaphors for life? Novelist Liane Moriarty shares them all and probably creates a few of her own in Apples Never Fall. The novel opens with a sibling quartet in a cafe, trying to find out where their mother could be. She sent a cryptic text to them all and hasn’t been seen for days. She isn’t replying to messages or answering her phone. The narrative then jumps back and forth from the present to “September”, the month of Joy’s disappearance. We’re quickly introduced to a mystery character, Savannah, who shows up at the Delaneys’ door one night with a “fresh, deep cut just beneath her right…

Tony Park is undoubtedly one of the masters of crime stories set in southern African with more than 18 thrillers behind him. He’s on top of his game again in his latest book, set (where else?!) but a game park in South Africa. Here things are not looking good when a wily poacher disappears. | Orielle Berry BLOOD TRAIL Tony Park Loot.co.za (R229) MACMILLAN The scene is set when viewers the world over are shocked at a live webcast of a safari game drive, exposing them to the brutal reality of rhino poaching. With the poacher vanishing into thin air, ace trackers Mia Greenaway and Bongani Ngobeni are confounded. Enter Detective Colonel Sannie van Rensburg, who is still recovering not only from a personal tragedy, but also after having to…

TIGHT security measures, including the use of technology, should be put in place to prevent the killing of teachers in our country, the latest being a maths teacher at a Cape Town primary school on Tuesday. The attack on Thulani Manqoyi while sitting in his parked vehicle at Heinz Park Primary school demonstrates that teachers have become soft targets for criminals, even at their places of work. The two suspects behind the brutal murder allegedly held security guards at gunpoint before approaching the father of three and shooting him in the head and shoulder, which has led his family to believe the attack may have been planned. The incident happened three months after Buyani Primary School principal Lazarous Baloyi in Finetown, Gauteng, was shot dead, also on school premises, becoming…

NEW YORK: China will stop funding coal projects overseas, President Xi Jinping announced this week, all but ending the flow of public aid for the dirty energy contributing to the climate crisis. Xi made his announcement at the UN General Assembly where US President Joe Biden, seeking to show leadership in a growing competition with China, promised to double Washington’s contribution to countries hardest hit by climate change. China is still investing in coal, reducing the impact of Xi’s commitment, but it is by far the largest funder of coal projects in developing countries such as Indonesia, Vietnam and Bangladesh as it goes on a global infrastructure-building blitz with its Belt and Road Initiative. Xi vowed to accelerate efforts for China, the world’s largest emitter, to go carbon neutral by…

LOS ANGELES: Gabrielle Union thinks movie studios “screw” black actresses out of big pay days. The 48-year-old actress says black actresses are underpaid compared to their white counterparts, and Gabrielle is determined to fight back. She shared: “As black actresses, there’s almost shame involved, because we get paid so much less. “When those Forbes lists come out about highest paid actors, you’re like, ‘Oh, I’m a failure ... That’s what they’re making? And I’m nowhere close’. “Studios just hope you don’t know your worth.”…

The nine members of an all-girl Afghan robotics team evacuated from Kabul to Qatar have built on their star status and captured hearts since fleeing their homeland. Now back in education and working on their entries for a global robotics competition, the girls worry about their immediate future but hope they can one day return to Afghanistan. Team member Ayda Haydarpour, 17, who switched onto digital engineering playing Super Mario as a child, said it was “too hard” to follow events in Afghanistan but hopes to return to open the first STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) school. “My grandfather used to ask me lots of questions about his tablet and phone,” she said with a smile. “In Afghanistan, robotics is new, especially for women,” said Haydarpour, who has three…

THE HAGUE: Lawyers for Colombia yesterday dismissed Nicaragua’s claims before the International Court of Justice (ICJ), insisting that Bogota did respect a 2012 ruling on their maritime boundaries in the western Caribbean by the same court. “All of Nicaragua’s claims are unsubstantiated and artificial. They are founded on words, not actions,” lawyer Manuel Jose Cepeda said. On Monday, lawyers for Nicaragua said Colombia had violated a 2012 ruling by the ICJ, also known as the World Court, which drew a demarcation line in favour of Nicaragua in Caribbean waters, reducing the expanse of sea belonging to Colombia.…

BANYANA Banyana’s stroll in the Aisha Buhari Cup has painted an image of their readiness ahead of the 2022 Africa Women’s Cup of Nations and 2023 Fifa Women’s World Cup qualifiers. Even though they rank among the heavyweights on the continent, Banyana are yet to be crowned the African Queens. Late in 2018, they reached the final of the continental showpiece and qualified for their first ever World Cup. In France, though, their novice status was exposed. They crashed out in the group stage, following losses to Spain, China and Germany. But their coach Desiree Ellis believed that that was a learning curve and they’d bounce back stronger. Fast track to 2021. Banyana appear to have grown in leaps and bounds. Following their failure to qualify for the 2022…

ESHLIN VEDAN eshlin.vedan@inl.co.za AMAZULU’S winless run in the Premiership continued as they played out to a 2-2 draw with city rivals Golden Arrows in a thrilling Durban derby at Sugar Ray Xulu Stadium yesterday. While Benni McCarthy will be frustrated by his team’s winless run, he can at least take some heart from the fact that his side did score their first goals of the league season in a game which was even in terms of the flow of play. Xola Mlambo gave AmaZulu the lead in the 24th minute. Siphesihle Maduna floated in a corner before Mlambo made no mistake in finding the back of the net from close range. Abafana Bes’thende were handed a penalty by referee Victor Gomes just six minutes later after Usuthu veteran Tsepo Masilela…

Banele Ginindza banele.ginindza@inl.co.za THE GREEN light by the National Energy Regulator of South Africa (Nersa) to controversial Turkish floating power generator Karpowership for licences in Coega, Richards Bay and Saldanha Bay faces hurdles including environmental approval, power producer agreements with Eskom, fuel agreements and legal challenges, energy experts said yesterday. This comes as Nersa has this far reserved its reasons for granting the long overdue licences, which at some point were rejected by South Africa’s environmental authorities who needed to clear the impact of the project on South Africa’s marine life. Karpowership has faced numerous challenges since the South African government in March granted it the biggest share of a 2 000 megawatt em- ergency power tender to provide the cheapest and quickest option for electricity. Its plan to…

From page 1 The ruling was hailed by Afriforum who said it was a victory for Afrikaans-speaking students and language rights. “This marks the beginning of a new chapter in the empowerment of all who are not first language speakers of English in tertiary education. It is fair to say that private educational institutions have freedom to offer education in any language of their choice, but to be used as the language of instruction at a tertiary institution is of great importance for the survival and continuous development of a language. Therefore, when any language is phased out at an institution, the decision has huge ramifications and the decision cannot be readily accepted. The court today confirmed this point with the ruling and confirmed the right to access Afrikaans mother-language…

Staff writer A HOST of activities are scheduled to honour Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu and his wife Leah Tutu for their two decades’ of philanthropic work in support of Tygerberg Hospital’s paediatric patients. The Tygerberg Hospital Children’s Trust’s (THCT) Tutu Tygers has partnered with the Dean of the St George’s Cathedral, Father Michael Weeder – as well as Patta, a global streetwear and sneaker boutique based in Amsterdam – ahead of Trust patron Tutu’s 90th birthday on October 7. Patta will reveal a commemorative T-shirt celebrating Archbishop Tutu’s 90th birthday, with 100% proceeds of sales going to the THCT. The Tutus in 2001 supported the creation of the Trust and continue to back its mission. Trust chief executive Jason Falken said: “More than 25 years after he was awarded the…

Nicola Daniels nicola.daniels@inl.co.za FALSE myths about Afrikaans had to be dismissed and its black history remembered, the Constitutional Court has found. The apex court yesterday dismissed an appeal by the University of South Africa (Unisa) with costs, which sought to exclude Afrikaans as a language of instruction in its new language policy. It found in favour of lobby group Afriforum, which argued that it violated the right to section 29(2) of the Constitution (which confers the right to choose the language of instruction in a public educational institution) as there was no justification for the adoption of an English-only Language of Learning and Tuition (LOLT) policy when no feasibility study showed it was not practicable to use the old dual language policy. The new language policy aimed to “enhance the…

ZELDA.VENTER zelda.venter@inl.co.za IN A major first-step victory for visually impaired people, the Gauteng High Court, Pretoria, has declared that the Copyright Act of 1978 is invalid as it violates their rights. BlindSA and Section27 had called for copyright reform so that people who were blind could access all published works in accessible formats. The outdated Copyright Act made it near-impossible for blind or visually impaired people to access books and reading material. The act stipulated that in order to convert a book or any published work into Braille, or an accessible format, permission must be secured from the copyright holder. It is said that these holders often simply ignore or reject these requests. The court, meanwhile, declared that the current Copyright Act was invalid and unconstitutional because it limited or…

Chevon Booysen chevon.booysen@inl.co.za THE SEA Point, Fresnaye and Bantry Bay (SFB) Ratepayers and Residents Association has called on residents to oppose a liquor licence application at a petrol station, currently open for public comment. The SFB said they were alerted to the liquor licence application for the BP garage located on Regent Road at the Pick n Pay Express convenience store, which operates 24 hours a day. The closing date for comments on the application is September 27, and residents have been called on to oppose the application. A poster by the SFB reads: “Do we need any more evidence against mixing alcohol with driving? “The close proximity to a school, old-age care and religious facilities, tourist and transport hub makes your objection even more important.” The call to action…

Lehlohonolo Mashigo lehlohonolo.mashigo@inl.co.za AFTER three days of engagements at Africa’s Travel and Tourism Summit, the Department of Tourism is confident that ideas from discussions will re-awaken the sector in the country. A strong focus was placed on the revival of small and medium enterprises (SMMEs) in townships and rural areas. Department of Tourism Deputy Minister Fish Mahlalela said SMMEs can assist in the sector’s return to pre-Covid performance levels. “The Tourism Sector Recovery Plan also makes provision for the establishment of a support hub to provide non-financial support to tourism businesses so as to increase the resilience of SMMEs during the pandemic and beyond,” he said. Head of global policy and communications at Airbnb, Chris Lehane, said there had been an uptick in domestic tourism since the outbreak of the…

| Julian Richfield BAIT – TO CATCH A KILLER Janine Lazarus Loot.co.za (R215) MELINDA FERGUSON When you read an interesting newspaper article, do you give a thought to who wrote it, or what it took to gather the information? If your penchant is to follow crime stories, the name Janine Lazarus may be familiar to you. Janine made her name as one of this country’s finest true-crime investigative journalists back in the early 1990s, working for The Star, Saturday Star and Sunday Star. In her book, Bait – To catch a killer, she takes the reader on the reporting beat with her and in one particular case, that of the Norwood Serial Killer in Johannesburg, and shows the extraordinary and brave lengths she went to to get the story.…

Biénne Huisman AT A missionary boarding school near rural Bulawayo, Zimbabwe, 13-year-old Otrude Moyo was punished for speaking her mother tongue of Ndebele. An example of such shaming was having to remove ubhima (a creeping thorn) from grounds on which missionary horses grazed – with her bare hands in the heat of the day, without water. “I was programmed to be ashamed of my language,” Moyo writes in her book, Africanity and Ubuntu as Decolonising Discourse, published in February. She recalls how, at the same boarding school, only one out of 15 teachers had the courage to defy the English-only rule. A male science teacher allowed pupils to explain Newton’s law of gravity in their home languages. “The word Bantu, referring to Africans, was a puzzle to me. I…

Margaret Chitiga-Mabugu, Helene Maisonnave, Martin Henseler and Ramos Emmanuel Mabugu State-owned enterprises are companies in which government owns, directly or indirectly, more than 50% of the shares. Worldwide, states own 10% of the largest companies. In South Africa, state-owned enterprises play a significant role in the important sectors of mining, energy, communications, air and rail transport. Some state-owned entities loom large over the economy. Global experience shows that when state-owned enterprises are well managed and good governance is in place, they can provide essential commodities and services to the population at affordable cost. The reverse is also true. When they are poorly managed, state-owned enterprises directly affect the poor the most. The poor are the most vulnerable to failure by the state and its entities. The poor performance can…

The Italian Mafia groups have the levers to tap into the funding that the country receives from the EU’s Covid-19 recovery fund, Italy’s Anti-Mafia Investigation Directorate (DIA) said in a report. “Possessing an entrepreneurial ability, the Mafia can turn their attention toward public funds soon, thanks to government initiatives to provide timely economic support to the categories most affected by restrictions,” the report read. In the second half of 2020, organised crime continued to target the country’s social and economic structures, which, according to the report, is a strategy that allows the Mafia to get a hold of companies in dire state and “seize public resources dedicated to the health care.” “Such a situation requires a continuation in the fight against organised crime with aggressive behaviour,” the investigators said. On…

Manchester: Cristiano Ronaldo’s big-money move to Manchester United saw him replacing Lionel Messi as the highest-paid footballer in the world, according to the latest rankings released by Forbes. Ronaldo is set to earn $125 million (R1.8 billion) before taxes in the 2021-22 season, with $70m coming from salary and bonus for his return to United. The 36-year-old is set to earn $55m from commercial deals. Only three active athletes make more commercially: Roger Federer ($90m), LeBron James ($65m) and Tiger Woods ($60m). His arch-rival, Lionel Messi, will earn $110m this season, with $75m of that coming from his salary and bonuses at the Parc des Princes. The former Barcelona star will pad his PSG paycheck with an estimated $35m in endorsements. PSG now claims three of the world’s…

RABAT: Morocco’s designated prime minister, Aziz Akhannouch, said yesterday that the three biggest winners of this month’s parliamentary election, the liberal RNI and PAM parties and the conservative Istiqlal, had agreed to form a new cabinet. King Mohammed on September 10 designated Akhannouch, the leader of RNI, to form a new government after his party came first in the election, taking 102 of the 395 seats in parliament. The three parties would together command 270 seats compared to the 198 needed to pass legislation. But before he can announce the cabinet line-up, Akhannouch must clear it with the king.…

Islamabad: : Pakistan is among the top 10 countries in the world where internet freedom has been on the decline, an international freedom advocacy group has said. A report by the Washington-based Freedom House titled “Freedom on the Net 2021: The Global Drive to Control Big Tech”, raised concerns over the rules proposed by the country that could further damage cyber liberty, Dawn newspaper reported. “Pakistan’s proposed rules have raised alarms about their impact on end-to-end encryption. “The draft requires social media companies with more than 500 000 users to hand over data, the report said.…

Morgan Bolton morgan.bolton@inl.co.za RUGBY’S greatest failing at the moment is the infuriating, multitudinous interpretation of laws, rules and regulations that are supposed to be uniform with a set end result. It is madness out there, one where every week, every match, the decision can change. The United Rugby Championship (URC) will, therefore, have a massive task to ensure that the laws of the game don’t distract from the actual playing of the game. Not only is there a North v South divide to now overcome, but match officials from South Africa, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales will all need to be thumbing their way through the same rulebook to avoid any controversies and inconsistencies in the coming weeks and months. It is a concern that the organisers and shareholders of…

Dineo Faku dineo.faku@inl.co.za THE GAUTENG High Court, Pretoria, has ruled that certain aspects of the Mining Charter 2018 are not enforceable and once a mining company is empowered, it is always empowered. The court said the continuing consequences of previous black economic empowerment deals should be recognised and that the specific challenged provisions in the document should be removed. In response to the ruling, Minerals Council South Africa said yesterday it and its members remained fully committed to the transformational objectives of the Mineral and Petroleum Resources Development Act (MPRDA). It added that the objectives must create policy and regulatory certainty for long term investment and inclusive growth in the sector. “The judgment removes the clauses dealing with the renewals of existing mining rights and the transfers of mining…

From page 1 Kouwenhoven had challenged his arrest on four grounds, which include that his attorney had concluded an agreement from a police officer stationed at the Interpol desk, in Pretoria, that he would not be arrested pursuant to an application by the Netherlands for his provisional arrest, under the extradition treaty between that country and South Africa. He further submitted that a similar agreement had been concluded by a senior legal adviser in the Department of Justice and Constitutional Development. But the SCA rejected each of these arguments. In his judgment yesterday, Justice Malcolm Wallis said: “None of the arguments advanced in support of the contention that the arrest of Kouwenhoven was invalid had any merit. It is, accordingly, unnecessary to address the contention. “It is also unnecessary…

Mayibongwe Maqhina mayibongwe.maqhina@inl.co.za WESTERN Cape Judge President John Hlophe’s bid to have his colleagues in the Gauteng division not hear the review application for the Judicial Service Commission (JSC) decision was dismissed yesterday. The first part of his application sought to stop President Cyril Ramaphosa from suspending him, and prevent Parliament from instituting the impeachment process. Judge Hlophe also wants, in his second application, to review and set aside the decision of the JSC on the grounds that the judicial body was not properly constituted when it took the decision. Judge Hlophe earlier abandoned his application to interdict both his suspension from office and the institution of the impeachment process against him. Judge Roland Sutherland noted that Judge Hlophe abandoned the relief in Part A of his application. Judge…

Chevon Booysen chevon.booysen@inl.co.za DUTCH citizen and convicted war criminal, currently living in Cape Town, Augustinus Kouwenhoven could be extradited to the Netherlands, to serve a 19-year prison sentence for his complicity in war crimes in Liberia. Kouwenhoven, who had instituted court action against the Minister of Police and the Director of Public Prosecutions, was unsuccessful in his endeavours to resist the attempts of the Dutch government to secure his extradition from this country, to serve his sentence in the Netherlands. The Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) yesterday dismissed his appeals, after it was also turned down in the Western Cape High Court. A businessman, Kouwenhoven, who formerly had significant business interests in Liberia, was convicted in 2017, by the Court of Appeal of Hertogenbosch, of repeatedly committing the offence of…

Nicola Daniels nicola.daniels@inl.co.za DOMESTIC workers should earn at least R5 000 or R6 000 a month, unions have said in response to the government’s call for representations for possible adjustments to the current National Minimum Wage (NMW). It was announced in February that the NMW for each ordinary hour worked would be increased from R20. 76 to R21.69 for this year with effect from March. For domestic workers the increase went from R15. 57 to R19. 09, which was rejected by unions, who said this was “slave wages”. “We want the same NMW of the country, no difference. Domestic workers cannot survive on the wages that they earn,” South African Domestic Service and Allied Workers Union (Sadsawu) general secretary, Myrtle Witbooi, said. “Take into account that many lost their jobs…

Reviewer: Jennifer Crocker The Echo Chamber John Boyne Loot.co.za (R235) Doubleday JOHN Boyne is known as a brilliant writer, and one whose novels usually treat their subject matter with compassion. So, it is an absolute delight that in The Echo Chamber he has created a satirical take-down of social media-fuelled outrage gone mad. Some critics have said that this book is a response to the flak he took after the publication of the novel My Brother’s Name Is Jessica, which caused something of a social media uproar when he was accused of a number of “unwoke” sins. Whether it is a reaction to that or not really doesn’t matter. The Echo Chamber is a hugely entertaining and brutal exposition of lives lived by social media likes, Twitter follower numbers,…

Armand’s Nude Food – 50 Banting & Keto Recipes Armand Aucamp Loot.co.za (R249) ARMAND is back, stripped all the way, as usual. His first cookbook, Nude, was a runaway success and his accessible approach to food has won over many to a new way of eating and living – fresh, unadorned, with affordable ingredients prepared in the keto and Banting style. In his latest book, Armand’s Nude Food, he strips down his favourite dishes (and himself) even further. His self-imposed challenge was to use ingredients that were already in his pantry. These creative explorations lead to a “farm-to-table” approach which proves simple food is usually the tastiest and healthiest. Armand’s Nude Food consists of 50 banting- and keto-friendly dishes. Step by step, and illustrated with beautiful photographs, Armand shows…

Staff writer THE SOUTH African short film Two Hues has claimed its fifth international award at the Wallachia International Film Festival in Romania. Produced by Tribal Alchemy Productions, Two Hues was one of 24 films which made it to the finals in the featurette category at this festival, being a film between 15 and 60 minutes long. The festival is held annually in Wallachia and comprises about 400 films. “I was surprised as there were many finalists,” said award-winning film-maker and performance artist Weaam Williams. Set in rural Romania, marketed as the land of Vlad Dracula, the festival showcases horror and fantasy films. Two Hues, written by Williams, is a short, psychological drama about a bipolar woman with post-traumatic stress disorder, and her life navigating the patriarchy in her…

BLSA’s decision to endorse Bain comes as a shock and must be reversed There is growing distrust of business globally and here in South Africa, particularly of large corporations, who by their economic power also wield political power. This distrust is exacerbated when business acts as though divorced from society, seemingly in ways that go counter to the good of broader society. While South Africa is reeling from the effects of corruption and state capture, we would expect that the business sector would boost its efforts to resist these evils and unite with the rest of society to hold perpetrators accountable. This is why the decision by the board of Business Leadership SA (BLSA) to endorse one of the primary actors of state capture, Bain & Company, is such a…

A Kenyan aircraft engineer for the country’s police airwing followed her intuition that resulted in the rescue of two girls who were abducted, authorities said. Aircraft engineer for the National Police Service Airwing, chief inspector (CI) Justine Ouya, stopped and interrogated 31-year-old Jackson Mutinda while he was walking with a 3-year-old and 4-year-old girl along Langata road, according to Kenya’s Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI). It has not been determined where Mutinda was taking the two girls. Langata road in Kenya’s capital Nairobi, runs past Wilson Airport and The Nairobi West Hospital. “After observing him and the little girls briefly, her intuition as a police officer coupled by her motherly instincts made her suspicious. She immediately stopped the man and interrogated him,” DCI Kenya writes. CI Ouya restrained Mutinda after…

The pristine turquoise waters of Lake Geneva may appear serene, but lurking below are piles of bombs, cartridges and possibly even chemical weapons discarded decades ago. Long believed to be safely slumbering beneath thick layers of protective sediment, the munitions at the bottom of the biggest lake in the Alps have raised fresh safety and environmental concerns. “We believe there are bombs and shells, and probably rifle ammunition,” Jacques Martelain, the Geneva canton’s head geologist, told AFP. Some also fear there might also be phosgene bombs – deadly chemical weapons – sitting on the bottom of the lake, he said. For the first time, Swiss authorities will start mapping the piles of munitions in the lake to determine what kind of explosive debris is there, how much, and whether it…

KIEV: Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said yesterday he did not know who was behind the assassination attempt on his first assistant, Serhiy Shefir, and warned of a tough response. “Shots were fired at the car of my first assistant, more importantly, my close friend, Serhiy Shefir. Serhiy is alive. His driver was wounded, unfortunately. “Immediately after my address at the UN General Assembly, I will travel to the (Ukraine) capital. To be honest, I do not know who is behind this. What kind of forces are these?” Zelenskyy said. “The response will be strong,” he said in a video message, which he posted on Telegram.…

Melbourne: A rare quake rattled south-eastern Australia yesterday, shaking buildings, knocking down walls and sending panicked Melbourne residents running into the streets. The 5.9 magnitude tremor hit east of the country’s second-largest city and was one of the largest to hit the country in decades. Geoscience Australia reported the initial quake was followed by a series of six smaller ones. Emergency services said they had received calls for help as far away as Dubbo, about 700km from the quake epicentre. Prime Minister Scott Morrison said there were no initial reports of injuries.…

The Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) yesterday announced an amendment to the laws of the game meaning the gender-neutral term “batter” will be used from now on instead of “batsman”. The club, the sole authority on the laws of the game, said the use of the terminology would “help reinforce cricket’s status as an inclusive game for all”. The profile of women’s cricket has rocketed in recent years, with England’s victory over India in the 2017 World Cup final taking place in front of a capacity crowd at Lord’s, which is owned by the MCC. A crowd of 86 174 saw Australia defeat India in the T20 World Cup final in Melbourne in 2020 and in August Lord’s broke the record for a domestic women’s match as more than 17 000…