News 09:00

BULLETIN 15 January 9 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The DA urges minister Lamola to take Iran to the UN Human Rights Council
# ActionSA says the government has failed to deal with the foot-and-mouth disease outbreak
# And soccer: Senegal will face the hosts, Morocco, in the AFCON final

# The DA has called International Relations and Cooperation minister Ronald Lamola to report Iran to the United Nations Human Rights Council over the violent crackdown on civilian protests, which has reportedly killed nearly three-thousand people. The party states the government faces a moral test and must speak out against these abuses. The DA’s Ryan Smith says South Africa has a duty to defend freedom and human rights and must speak out against autocratic regimes:

# ActionSA says government has failed to contain the foot-and-mouth disease outbreak, and bureaucratic gatekeeping and rigid adherence to outdated legislation will only worsen the crisis. The current outbreak began in 2021, after animals were moved from Phalaborwa to KwaZulu-Natal, now regarded as the epicentre of the disease. ActionSA’s Athol Trollip says the Agriculture Department’s heavy reliance on livestock movement controls, in the absence of compensation for production losses, livestock deaths and the loss of irreplaceable genetic material, is fundamentally flawed:

# The GOOD Party says the recurring devastation caused by wildfires in the Western Cape and Eastern Cape is clear evidence of a failure by both provincial governments to plan, prevent, and protect. No fatalities have been reported in either province; however, the wildfires have caused major damage to properties and land. GOOD’s secretary general, Brett Herron, says overcrowding, the absence of firebreaks, inadequate access roads, and poor basic services turn predictable seasonal fires into large-scale crises:

# US special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, has announced the launch of the second phase of the 20-point US-brokered plan to end Israel’s war in Gaza. Phase two includes disarming Hamas, rebuilding the war-ravaged territory, and establishing a group of Palestinian experts to govern Gaza. The National Committee for the Administration of Gaza, which is described as a transitional technocratic body, will be responsible for administering daily affairs in Gaza. Almost 450 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli strikes since the ceasefire came into force in October last year.

# Soccer: 2021 champions Senegal will face hosts Morocco in the Africa Cup of Nations final in Rabat on Sunday. Sadio Mane’s second-half goal was enough to seal a 1-0 victory for Senegal against record seven-time champions Egypt, and reach their third final of the last four AFCONs. Meanwhile, Morocco saw off Nigeria 4-2 on penalties to reach their first final since 2004, as they bid to lift the trophy for the first time since 1976. Egypt and Nigeria will contest the third-place play-off on Saturday in Casablanca.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-41-cents and the euro at 19-rand-10-cents. One British pound costs 22-rand-4-cents, and Bitcoin trades at 96-thousand-252-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-593-dollars-52-cents a fine ounce, and Brent crude oil is quoted at 63-dollars-91-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….