News 13:00

BULLETIN 14 October 1 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The death toll in the Katlehong shooting in Gauteng rises to four
# Iran steps up the attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz
# And rugby: Evan Roos plays his first match for the Stormers this season on Saturday

# Two more victims have died following last night’s shootings in Katlehong North in Gauteng. The victims were reportedly returning from a memorial service when a gunman opened fire. Police say the last two victims succumbed to gunshot injuries in hospital. Police spokesperson Brenda Muridil says this brings the total number of fatalities to four while three other people were wounded. She says the suspect remains in police custody.

# Parliament’s portfolio committee on Tourism is concern over 201-million-rand underspend in the Department of Tourism’s 2025/26 budget. The department spent 91.7-percent of its 2.43-billion-rand allocation. Delayed procurement for skills and Expanded Public Works Programme projects, slow infrastructure delivery, scope disputes, due diligence delays, and vacant funded posts contributed to the underspending. Chairperson Ronalda Nalumango says budget performance must be measured not only by expenditure levels but also by tangible benefits delivered:

# The Gauteng Department of Roads and Transport has started the rehabilitation of seven bridges along provincial routes in the City of Tshwane. This is part of the department’s ongoing efforts to preserve critical road infrastructure, improve road safety, and support local economic development. MEC Kedibone Diale-Tlabela says the rehabilitation work is aimed at restoring the structural integrity of the bridges, bringing them up to an acceptable standard:

Moving abroad:

# Iran is changing its tactics and stepping up attacks on ships in the Strait of Hormuz. Officials told Reuters Tehran wants to keep oil prices high and put pressure on the United States ahead of next month’s midterm elections. A US military official says Iran is using the crews of small, unarmed boats to help identify targets after American strikes damaged its radar systems. Attacks have also spread to waters near Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, threatening vital oil and gas supplies.

# Rugby: Springbok loose forward Evan Roos plays his first match of the season for the Stormers in Saturday’s Champions Cup match against England’s Bristol Bears in Cape Town. He returns from a hamstring injury in place of injured Hacjivah Dayimani in the number eight jersey. The hosts feature an all-new front row in the starting-15, consisting of Vernon Matongo, JJ Kotzé and Sazi Sandi. Springboks Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu and Cobus Reinach start as the halfback-pairing.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-49-cents and the euro at 18-rand-45-cents. One British pound costs 21-rand-87-cents and Bitcoin trades at 83-thousand-222-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-142-dollars-56-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 108-dollars-10-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….