News 08:00

BULLETIN 9th October 8 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# President Trump says Israel and Hamas have signed the first phase of the peace plan
# The government says it did not pay for the return of the Global Sumud Flotilla activists
# And SANEF condemns Mkhwanazi’s call for journalists to be investigated

# US president Donald Trump says Israel and Hamas have agreed on the first phase of the Gaza 20-point peace plan that will allow for the swift release of all hostages. This announcement follows days of negotiations between Israel and Hamas in Egypt. Trump says Israel will withdraw their military from the Gaza Strip to an agreed-upon area. Hamas says hostages and Palestinian prisoners are to be exchanged within 72 hours of the peace deal’s implementation. There are still 48 hostages in Gaza, with only 20 believed to be alive.

# The Department of International Relations and Cooperation has denied claims that the government funded the repatriation of South African Global Sumud Flotilla activists who were detained in Israel. Six South Africans, together with over 500 other activists from 45 countries, were abducted last week by Israeli forces in international waters from 41 vessels sailing towards Gaza. The department’s spokesperson, Chrispin Phiri, says the local activists’ return was made possible through financial support from their families and solidarity groups:

# The South African National Editors’ Forum has condemned the request by KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi for an investigation into news media in the country. Testifying before Parliament’s ad-hoc committee, Mkhwanazi called for journalists to be investigated by the State Security Agency, lose their jobs, and face imprisonment for alleged misinformation. Sanef says this would represent a significant setback for media freedom in South Africa, reminiscent of the oppressive tactics employed by the Apartheid state to suppress truthful journalism.

# The City of Cape Town’s Urban Waste Management Directorate has strongly condemned the ongoing hijackings and violent attacks targeting its staff and vehicles across the metro. A total of 57 cases were reported between the July 2024 and June 2025 financial year, with a significant concentration in the Cape Flats areas and certain parts of the Overberg subregion. Mayoral committee member for Urban Waste Management, Grant Twigg, says only 21 of the hijacked vehicles have been recovered:

# Soccer: South Africa has been eliminated from the Under-20 World Cup in Chile, following a 3-1 defeat to Colombia in the round of 16. Joel Canchimbo opened the scoring for the South Americans in the seventh minute, but Amajita managed to equalise through Mfundo Vilakazi’s penalty kick. Two goals late in the second half from Neiser Villareal sealed the victory for Colombia to set up a quarterfinal clash against Spain. Meanwhile, Nigeria were also knocked out after a 4-0 defeat to Argentina.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-15-cents and the euro at 19-rand-97-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand and Bitcoin trades at 121-thousand-891-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-22-dollars-3-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 65-dollars-57-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….