News 18:00

BULLETIN 5 August 6 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The UN calls for urgent de-escalation in the Middle East
# AfriForum urges a collaborative approach to prevent water crises
# And, Olympic Games: South Africa hopes for a medal from Sekgodiso tonight

# The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, has called for an urgent de-escalation of hostilities in the Middle East over fears that the Gaza war could spread. He is deeply worried about the rising risk of a wider conflict and pleads with all parties, along with those states with influence, to act urgently to de-escalate what has become a very precarious situation. Meanwhile, Iran said it had the legal right to punish Israel over last week’s killing of Hamas’s political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, in the capital of Tehran.

# Bangladesh prime minister Sheikh Hasina has resigned and fled the country following deadly protests. Student activists defied a curfew to demand her resignation, resulting in clashes that killed nearly 100 people. Hasina reportedly left for India with her sister, while her US-based son, Sajeeb Wazed Joy, urged security forces to prevent an unelected government takeover. Armoured vehicles and troops are patrolling Dhaka, while further clashes resulted in more deaths and injuries.

# AfriForum calls for an integrated, community-focused approach to prevent water crises. The organisation’s head of environmental affairs Lambert de Klerk has acknowledged Water and Sanitation minister Pemmy Majodina’s stance on municipal responsibilities, but emphasises the department’s crucial role. He advocates for stronger coordination between national, provincial, and local authorities to ensure effective water service delivery across South Africa:

# Olympic Games: South Africa hopes for its fifth medal in Paris tonight when Prudence Sekgodiso starts in the final of the 800-metre for women. The 22-year-old from Limpopo won the item at the Diamond League meeting in Marrakech, Morocco, in May in a time of one-minute-57.26-seconds. Her time in yesterday’s semifinal was third-fastest of the eight qualifiers, with Britain’s Keely Hodgkinson posting the fastest time, followed by Tsige Duguma of Ethiopia. Tonight’s final starts at 9.47.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-51-cents and the euro at 20-rand-31-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-65-cents and Bitcoin trades at 53-thousand-223-dollars-5-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-389-dollars-17-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 75-dollars-99-cents a barrel.

# And finally, Chief Justice Raymond Zondo has launched the 2024 Brigitte Mabandla Aspirant Women Judges’ Programme in Rosebank, Johannesburg. The 2023 cohort saw 75-percent of participants intermittently acting as High Court Judges. The 2024 candidates will undergo hybrid training over nine months. Zondo says the programme aims to enhance the suitability of aspiring female judicial officers for appointment to judicial office:

Stay tuned for more news………….