News 11:00

BULLETIN 28 September 11 am

Good morning. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The death toll from the Wedela tavern mass shooting in Gauteng has risen to 18
# Ramaphosa says Fannie Masemola’s reinstatement as police commissioner is being considered
# And tennis: Zverev leads Team Europe to a sixth Laver Cup title

# The death toll from the Wedela tavern mass shooting on the Gauteng West Rand has risen to 18 following the death of a victim in hospital. Eight men armed with AK-47 rifles and pistols opened fire on patrons on Saturday night, killing 13 men and four women. The suspects also searched some of the patrons and stole their cellphones before fleeing in two unidentified vehicles. Police spokesperson Brenda Muridili says the motive remains unknown:

# President Cyril Ramaphosa is considering the possible reinstatement of suspended national police commissioner Fannie Masemola. The National Prosecuting Authority formally withdrew charges against him last week. Masemola was initially charged and arrested by the Independent Directorate against Corruption for alleged violations of the Public Finance Management Act, relating to concerns over compliance with public finance regulations. Ramaphosa has called on the public to have patience and wait for an outcome on this matter.

# Forum for South Africa has welcomed International Relations and Cooperation Minister Ronald Lamola’s call for urgent reform of the United Nations Security Council and the broader global governance system. Leader Tebogo Mashilompane says Africa carries a disproportionate burden of conflicts considered by the Security Council while lacking permanent representation. He supports the African Union Consensus call for permanent representation on the council:

# British Defence Secretary Wes Streeting says counter terrorism police are leading the investigation into a major incident near RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire. Five men were arrested on suspicion of preparing a terrorist act and explosive offences while travelling towards the military base. The site has recently been used by the US military as a staging post for defensive strikes on Iran. Streeting has been in contact with his US counterpart, Pete Hegseth, about the incident:

# Tennis: Team Europe clinched their sixth Laver Cup when beating Team World 13-5 at London’s O2 Arena. Flavio Cobolli and Jakub Mensik put Europe within touching distance of the trophy yesterday with victory over Alex de Minaur and Taylor Fritz. Two-time Grand Slam champion Alexander Zverev then beat Learner Tien to lead Team Europe to victory. The triumph marks Yannick Noah’s first Laver Cup title as Team Europe’s captain, having fallen short against Andre Agassi’s Team World in San Francisco last year.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 16-rand-40 and the euro at 18-rand-65. One British pound costs 21-rand-44-cents and Bitcoin trades at 82-thousand-970-dollars. Gold sells at four-thousand-152-dollars-50-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 103-dollars-37-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….