News 16:00

BULLETIN 21 August 4 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# AfriForum slams government’s denial over racially motivated farm attacks
# Russia launches the biggest wave of strikes on Ukraine for weeks
# And rugby: McReight captains the Wallabies with three changes due to injuries

# AfriForum has criticised the government for denying the racial and political motivations behind farm attacks, following a report by the US Department of State. The organisation says the Department of International Relations and Cooperation’s claims that these attacks are part of general crime ignore decades of evidence. AfriForum’s Jacques Broodryk warns that until farm attacks are treated as priority crimes, rural communities will remain under threat:

# President Cyril Ramaphosa has called for more investment in sexual and reproductive health rights, warning against setbacks that threaten women, children and youth. Speaking at the ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development in Japan, Ramaphosa emphasised that strong health systems are crucial for saving lives and supporting long-term development. He urged governments, donors and the private sector to protect health funding, expand access to services and use innovation to reach vulnerable communities:

# Russia has launched 574 drones and 40 missiles on Ukraine in one of the heaviest bombardments in weeks. Ukrainian officials say one person was killed in a strike on the western city of Lviv, and 15 people were wounded in the south-western Transcarpathia region. The attacks came as US president Donald Trump spearheads diplomatic moves to halt the war. President Volodymyr Zelensky has said Ukraine is ready to meet his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in a neutral country such as Switzerland, Austria or even Turkey.

# Rugby: Flank Fraser McReight will captain Australia against South Africa in Saturday’s Rugby Championship match in Cape Town. He takes over the leadership from regular captain Harry Wilson, who was injured after scoring two tries during his team’s upset 38-22 victory over the Springboks in Johannesburg last Saturday. Rob Valetini will replace Wilson at eighthman in one of three injury-enforced changes. Uncapped Corey Toole will start on the left wing in place of Dylan Pietsch, while Tom Robertson will scrum down at loosehead prop.

# The financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-69-cents and the euro at 20-rand-59-cents. One British pound costs 23-rand-80-cents and Bitcoin trades at 113-thousand-270-dollars. Gold sells at three-thousand-338-dollars-82-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 66-dollars-81-cents a barrel. 

# And finally: US celebrity judge and social media star Frank Caprio has died at 88 after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. Over a 40-year career in Rhode Island, he famously used compassion and humour to make judgements that took into consideration the personal circumstances of the people in the dock. Videos of Caprio presiding over cases on his hit TV show Caught in Providence have had billions of views on social media, earning him the title of “nicest judge in the world”.

Stay tuned for more news………….