Government made a commitment to close abandoned mine shafts and access points but budget limitations have slowed progress. The North West has at least 1 000 derelict or ownerless mines dotting the province’s landscape. Illegal miners in Stillfontein are still trickling out of their site near Klerksdorp, but every small town has an old mine within earshot. South Africa’s rich mining history has left many such holes in the ground that present outlets of opportunity for disenfranchised men. One for every 100 square kilometres The density of the North West’s abandoned mines was revealed by the Ministry of Mineral and Petroleum Resources in a written response to a parliamentary question answered on 28 November. The ministry stated that their database shows 1 041 abandoned mines in the province. ALSO READ: Six
Category Archives: SECURITY
The opposition Coalition for Change party says its leader Nika Gvaramia is detained by police. Police in Georgia have raided the offices of several opposition parties in what appears to be an attempt to halt a wave of protests against the governing Georgia Dream party’s decision to suspend talks on joining the European Union. Thousands of people have rallied in the capital, Tbilisi, for six consecutive nights with police firing tear gas and water cannon to disperse the crowds. Some protesters have thrown fireworks at police and constructed barricades in the city centre. On Wednesday, the opposition Coalition for Change party said its leader Nika Gvaramia had been detained by police. The party published a video on X showing Gvaramia being carried by the arms and legs by several men
Brian Thompson, the CEO of major insurance group UnitedHealthcare, was shot to death at point blank range in Midtown Manhattan on Wednesday morning before he was set to attend an investor conference, according to police sources. The masked gunman, who remains on the loose, appeared to be lying in wait and shot Thompson several times, sources said. The shooting, which was reported around 6:40 a.m., appears to be targeted but police do not know why, sources said. Police investigators at the scene where UnitedHealthcare’s CEO Brian Thompson was shot and killed in an apparent targeted attack as he was en-route to to attend UnitedHealthcare’s annual investor conference in New York, Dec. 4, 2024. Justin Lane/EPA via Shutterstock “This was not a random act of violence,” New York City Mayor Eric
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol’s decision to declare martial law has triggered the biggest political crisis in decades in the East Asian nation and sent shock waves across the world. Yoon imposed the emergency law after accusing the main opposition Democratic Party of sympathising with North Korea and of antistate activities. Hours later, Yoon was forced to back down after opposition lawmakers forced their way past security forces to enter parliament. All 190 lawmakers present in the 300-member assembly voted unanimously to lift the martial law order. Calls to impeach Yoon, the leader of the conservative People Power Party, have grown as the country reels from the political turbulence. Yet few countries with advanced economies have as much history with martial law and scandal-riddled governments as South Korea does. What
Dec
The unit assembles mobile structures that are transported to either an outpost near the border or into Gaza. The factories on Unit 563’s base produce all the necessary parts for these structures. By RAQUEL GUERTZENSTEIN FROHLICH , JERUSALEM POST STAFF DECEMBER 4, 2024 10:54 Updated: DECEMBER 4, 2024 11:07 IDF’s Construction Unit 563 placing temporary IDF structures. (photo credit: IDF) On an almost daily basis, convoys of the IDF’s Construction Unit 563 in southern Israel bring both equipment and structures to soldiers in the Gaza Strip, the military revealed on Tuesday. The unit, which operates under the Southern Command, is divided into three sections. “The first section evaluates the terrain and designs structures tailored to the conditions, whether deep in the combat zone or on the rear line,” Unit Commander
Dec
“Hamas is required to release the hostages. President Trump put the emphasis in the right place, on Hamas, and not on the Israeli government, as is customary (elsewhere),” Netanyahu said. By REUTERS DECEMBER 3, 2024 16:57 Updated: DECEMBER 3, 2024 17:40 US PRESIDENT Donald Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu signed the Abraham Accords in 2020. US policies will paralyze the regime in Iran, the writer says. (photo credit: TOM BRENNER/REUTERS) Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu thanked US President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday for issuing a toughly worded statement demanding that hostages held in the Gaza Strip be released ahead of his January 20 inauguration. “Hamas is required to release the hostages. President Trump put the emphasis in the right place, on Hamas, and not on the Israeli government, as is
Dec
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol declared an “emergency martial law,” on Tuesday, accusing the country’s opposition of controlling the parliament amid wrangling over a budget bill, sympathising with North Korea and paralysing the government with anti-state activities. “I declare martial law to protect the free Republic of Korea from the threat of North Korean communist forces, to eradicate the despicable pro-North Korean anti-state forces that are plundering the freedom and happiness of our people, and to protect the free constitutional order,” Yoon said. “With no regard for the livelihoods of the people, the opposition party has paralysed governance solely for the sake of impeachments, special investigations, and shielding their leader from justice,” he added. It is the first time since 1980 that martial law was declared in South Korea. Yonhap
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Dec
EPA Rebel fighters were reportedly seen outside the citadel in Aleppo on Saturday Syrian government forces have withdrawn from the city of Aleppo following an offensive by rebels opposed to the rule of President Bashar al-Assad. The army acknowledged that rebels had entered “large parts” of the city, the country’s second largest, but vowed to stage a counterattack. The offensive marks the most significant fighting in Syria’s civil war in recent years. More than 300 people, including at least 20 civilians, have been killed since it began on Wednesday, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR). Speaking on Saturday, President Assad vowed to “defend [Syria’s] stability and territorial integrity in the face of all terrorists and their backers”. “[The country] is capable, with the help of its
Dec
Bhutan ’s ambitious plan to transform its southern farmlands into a futuristic “mindfulness city” has sparked outrage among displaced ethnic Nepalis, who accuse the government of building the megaproject on stolen land. Envisioned by King Jigme Khesar Namgyal Wangchuck, the 2,500 sq km (965 square mile) Gelephu Mindfulness City is meant to serve as an economic corridor, promote sustainable living and become home to some 150,000 people in the next decade. However, ethnic Nepalis like 54-year-old Krishna Bir Tamang – who was forcibly evicted from southern Bhutan 32 years ago and has been living as a refugee in Nepal ever since – are unlikely to be part of the kingdom’s multimillion-dollar vision. “We still have our land there and possess legal documents,” said Tamang, who is among the 6,300 or
Nov
The Israelis reportedly left the shop quickly but the shopkeeper was said to have followed them outside with her shovel raised. The backpackers recorded the incident. By JERUSALEM POST STAFF NOVEMBER 24, 2024 09:36 A shopkeeper at Flinders Tobacco, Queensland, Australia, calls a customer a ‘dirty f***ing Jew’ outside the shop. November 23, 2024. (Credit: Anti-Defamation Commission) Two Israeli backpackers visiting Townsville, in Queensland, Australia, were subjected to an antisemitic verbal attack on Saturday by a local tobacco shop worker, the Anti-Defemation Commission (ADC) reported on Sunday. The ADC is an Australian civil rights organization that combats antisemitism and other forms of hate. It was established in 1979 and now works to bridge communities, collect data on antisemitism and other biases, and respond to incidents of discrimination. As the two
The NGOs want the Netherlands to ban the export and transit of weapons, weapon parts, and dual-use items to Israel. Pro-Palestinian organisations have taken the Dutch state to court, urging a halt to arms exports to Israel and accusing the government of failing to prevent what they termed a “genocide” in Gaza. They argue that the Netherlands, a staunch ally of Israel, has a legal obligation to do everything in its power to stop violations of international law and the 1948 United Nations Genocide Convention, in the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank. “Today, the plaintiffs are here to hold the Dutch state accountable for failing to comply with international law by failing to intervene against violations of the rights of the Palestinian people committed by the state of
Nov
Washington’s provision of advanced boat drones to Manila will act as “a force multiplier” for the Philippine Navy, analysts say, allowing the US to enhance its ally’s surveillance and operational capabilities in the South China Sea while avoiding direct provocations that could escalate Beijing’s territorial challenges. US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin announced that the US government has given the Philippine Navy an undisclosed number of unmanned surface vessels (USVs) for its operations in the West Philippine Sea – Manila’s term for the parts of the South China Sea that lie within its exclusive economic zone and the Kalayaan Island Group in the Spratlys – on Tuesday during a two-day visit to the Philippines . He promised that “many more” would be delivered before the end of the Biden administration. “We
Nov
LONDON — A suspicious package was discovered outside the United States embassy in London on Friday morning, police said. The London Metropolitan Police immediately closed Ponton Road outside of the embassy in “an abundance of caution,” according to their statement, before they destroyed it in a controlled explosion. “We’re aware of speculation online about an incident in the vicinity of the US Embassy in Nine Elms,” the Met Police said. “Cordons are in place in the area as a precaution while officers investigate a suspect package.” Authorities updated the situation approximately an hour later after reports of a “loud bang” began circulating online. Firefighters stand near the U.S. Embassy, amid ongoing investigation following an incident in London, Britain, November 22, 2024. REUTERS/Mina Kim Mina Kim/Reuters “We can confirm that the
Nov
Parliament was briefly suspended as people in the gallery joined in, and shouting drowned out others in the chamber. By REUTERS NOVEMBER 21, 2024 05:07 People march to the parliament in protest of the Treaty Principles Bill, in Wellington, New Zealand, November 19, 2024. (photo credit: REUTERS/Lucy Craymer) New Zealand’s parliament was briefly suspended on Thursday after Maori members staged a haka to disrupt the vote on a contentious bill that would reinterpret a 184-year-old treaty between the British and Indigenous Maori. First signed in 1840 between the British Crown and more than 500 Maori chiefs, the Treaty of Waitangi lays down how the two parties agreed to govern. The interpretation of clauses in the document still guides legislation and policy today. Rulings by the courts and a separate Maori