News 18:00

BULLETIN 13 March 6 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# Richard Shibiri denies knowledge of Katiso “TK” Molefe’s arrest or of Group of Five associates
# The DA welcomes South Africa’s interception of Chinese fishing vessels for unauthorised entry
# And, the Blitzboks are up against New Zealand in their first match of the world series tournament in New York tomorrow

# The suspended head of Organised Crime Richard Shibiri told the Madlanga Commission he became aware of Katiso “TK” Molefe after his arrest on TV. Shibiri denied knowing Molefe’s associates, including the Group of Five. Witness A’s testimony contradicted him, suggesting Molefe was connected to associates of EFF leader Julius Malema and suspended deputy national police commissioner Shadrack Sibiya. He acknowledged a follow-up call regarding Molefe’s detention but refuted claims of influence:

# The DA has welcomed the interception of four Chinese-flagged fishing vessels for unauthorised entry into South Africa’s territorial waters. The vessels were detected within 12 nautical miles of the KwaZulu-Natal coast and later tracked along the Eastern Cape coastline. Following the interception, the masters of the vessels received an administrative penalty of 400-thousand-rand. The DA’s Andrew de Blocq says the vessels entered the country’s waters before the necessary authorisations had been granted:

# The Container User Forum has been launched to strengthen collaboration among major container sector stakeholders in South Africa. The new industry body will be chaired by Juanita Maree, who is also the CEO of the South African Association of Freight Forwarders, with Brenda Magqwaka leading the executive team. The forum aims to provide a unified voice for shipping lines, cargo owners and operators while addressing logistics challenges. It will also support reforms aimed at improving rail freight volumes and efficiency across South Africa’s transport network.

# Four American crew members have been confirmed dead after their military refueling plane crashed in Iraq on Thursday while taking part in Iran war operations. The KC-135 plane went down in western Iraq, with six crew members on board. The US military didn’t note the status of the other two crew members but said that “rescue efforts continue.” The crash means that a total of ten active service personnel have been killed since the conflict began on 28 February, when US forces joined with Israel to target senior leaders and military sites in Iran.

# Rugby: The Sevens Springboks are up against New Zealand in their first match of the world series tournament in New York tomorrow. The Blitzboks also face France and Australia in Pool A, while Spain, Fiji, Argentina and Great Britain will do battle in Pool B in the American city. South Africa is currently second in the standings behind Fiji after winning three tournaments, with the same log points, but a smaller points difference. New Zealand is third, followed by Australia, France, Argentina, Spain and Great Britain.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-74-cents against the rand and the euro at 19-rand-22-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-24-cents and Bitcoin trades at 73-thousand-572-dollars. Gold sells at five-thousand-104-dollars-55-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 97-dollars-42-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….