News 18:00

BULLETIN 29 January 6 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Western Cape High Court rejects Dipuo Peters’ plea to overturn her suspension
# Johannesburg’s chief whip is wounded in a shooting incident 
# And soccer: Bafana is looking to cause an Afcon upset against top-ranked Morocco

# ANC member of Parliament, Dipuo Peters, faces suspension from parliamentary activities from tomorrow to 28 March, after her bid to halt the sanction was dismissed by the High Court in the Western Cape. The court upheld Parliament’s decision to suspend Peters, citing state capture breaches during her tenure as minister of Transport. The allegations include neglecting to appoint a Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa group CEO and authorising the use of PRASA buses for ANC events. Peters’s application was rejected with costs.

# The City of Johannesburg’s chief whip, Sithembiso Zungu, was wounded in a shooting incident in the south of the city earlier today. Spokesperson Vusi Gumbi says Zungu was on official council business at the time. Gumbi confirms Zungu received medical attention after the incident: 

# The High Court in North West has set the trial date of ANC member of Parliament Sibusiso Kula, charged with the murder of his wife, Jennifer Mohlomi, from 13 May. Mohlomi’s body was discovered with a stab wound in November 2022. The state and defence have expressed readiness. Kula, who is currently out on 50-thousand-rand bail, faces strict conditions. National Prosecuting Authority spokesperson Henry Mamothame says despite attempts to have the case struck off the roll, the court rejected Kula’s bid:

# Iran today executed four men convicted of spying for Israel. Mohammad Faramarzi, Mohsen Mazloum, Wafa Azarbar and Pejman Fatehi, were found guilty of being involved in a plan to sabotage an Iranian defence site in Isfahan. They were also accused of collaborating with Israel’s intelligence service, Mossad, were arrested in July 2022, and sentenced to death in September last year. Iran alleges the men underwent training in African countries where Mossad officers were present. Tensions between Iran and Israel have been escalating, with accusations of espionage and shadow wars continuing.

# Soccer: Bafana Bafana will take on Morocco tomorrow night in the last match of the Africa Cup of Nations round of 16. The two nations have both won the tournament just once – Morocco’s triumph coming in 1976, while South Africa were African champions in 1996. Morocco are the top ranked team in Africa, so it will be a tough task for Bafana. But coach Hugo Broos believes his team can cause an upset:

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-75-cents and the euro at 20-rand-28-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-80-cents and Bitcoin trades at 42-thousand-72-dollars-6-cents. Gold sells at two-thousand-and-34-dollars-13-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 82-dollars-25-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….