When his name was circulating last summer as a candidate for the position of United Nations envoy to Libya, Abdoulaye Bathily was almost unknown except within the halls of the UN itself. A former history professor and former Senegalese minster Bathily served in a number of roles for the UN in Mali, Gabon and Madagascar. In 2019 he was asked by the UN boss to carry out a "strategic review" of the […]
Two Palestinians were killed on Wednesday by Israeli fire in separate incidents in the occupied West Bank. Ahmad Abu Junaid, 21, was shot in the head and critically wounded during a morning raid by the army on Nablus’s Balata refugee camp, according to the Palestinian health ministry. He was taken to Rafidia Hospital for treatment but was pronounced dead in the afternoon. Palestinian media said an undercover Israeli army force raided the Balata camp early […]
Austria has dropped "terrorism" charges against Austrian academic Farid Hafez this week, more than two years after his home was raided by authorities and his assets were frozen. A 10-page decision released on Tuesday by the Higher Regional Court of Graz, Austria's second-largest city, stated that "there is no further legal action against this decision", as reported by Die Presse, a German-language newspaper in Austria. It added that there was no […]
Postbank is ready to take up the role of a state bank, with plans to roll out 100 new branches across the country. This is according to communications minister Khumbudzo Ntshavheni. Speaking to media this week, Ntshavheni said the bank is assessing which post office branches will be brought on board and upgrading will begin soon to develop a proper banking infrastructure. She said the bank will operate within the same […]
Long-distance people carrier Intercape secured a victory in the Makhanda High Court this week – in its battle to force authorities to address what it terms a campaign of terror acts directed at the company and its operations. Intercape says it opened 137 cases over bus attacks in the Eastern Cape and that the SAPS has made no arrests in any of them. The company is putting pressure on Police […]
Many companies will be forced to cut more jobs as the country’s energy situation continues to deteriorate and with the fluctuating rolling blackout stages, the Energy Council of South Africa (ECSA) says. President Cyril Ramaphosa said that the Energy Department will take over the responsibility of overseeing Eskom which has been failing to meet the nation’s power demand since 2008. Eskom is currently implementing Stage 4 rolling blackouts during the day […]
The US Navy says it seized more than 2,000 assault rifles from a ship in the Gulf of Oman it believes came from Iran and were bound for Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi rebels. The cargo was discovered on Friday off the coast of Oman, the Bahrain-based US Fifth Fleet said in a statement on Tuesday, noting the vessel “was crewed by six Yemeni nationals”. The US Navy says it seized more […]
As international outrage grows over the Taliban’s recent decrees banning Afghan women from universities and employment at NGOs, the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) is set to meet on Wednesday to discuss the issue. The meeting of the 57-country bloc is the third time it has come together to discuss the situation in Afghanistan since the Taliban returned to power in August 2021. 'The largest organisation of Muslim states potentially condemning the […]
South Africa has entered a critical phase of revamping its sole nuclear plant and needs it to run according to plan to avoid deepening power cuts that are already at a record and wreaking havoc on the economy. The first of two units at the 1,940MW Koeberg plant was shut down last month for refuelling and the replacement of its steam generators, work that is expected to be completed in […]
VOC became the first Muslim radio station in South Africa when a special events license was granted to the station in Ramadan/January 1995. Subsequent temporary broadcast licenses were granted, permitting the station to broadcast for 24 hours.
