News 16:00

BULLETIN 30 April 4 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The Police minister calls for a swift probe into the death of three officers
# The Defence says the State has no case against Steveno van Rhyn in the Joslin Smith trial
# And in rugby, the Junior Springboks are looking forward to a physical challenge against Argentina

# Police minister Senzo Mchunu has urged swift investigations into the deaths of three officers from Bloemfontein, whose bodies were found in the Hennops River in Centurion. The officers were en route to Limpopo for Operation Vala Umgodi. Speaking in Bela-Bela in Limpopo, Mchunu says they await autopsy results. He also cautioned the public against speculation, urging patience as authorities work to determine the cause of the tragedy:

# The minister of Finance, Enoch Godongwana, will re-table the 2025 budget on 21 May. This follows a decision to reverse the proposed 0.5-percentage point VAT hike. Godongwana told the media the revised budget will include updated fiscal projections, borrowing plans, and revenue estimates, and will undergo full consultation with the cabinet and political parties in the government of national unity:

# The High Court in the Western Cape sitting in Saldanha Bay has heard that the state has no case against Steveno van Rhyn in the Joslin Smith trial. Kelly Smith, Van Rhyn and Jacquen Appollis face kidnapping and trafficking charges. Van Rhyn’s lawyer, Nobahle Mkabayi, argued that the state has failed dismally to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt. Judgment is expected on Friday:

# Pakistan says it had “credible intelligence” that India was planning an imminent military strike and vowed to retaliate, as worries of spiralling conflict grew over a deadly attack in Kashmir. Relations between the nuclear-armed neighbours have plummeted since New Delhi blamed its arch-rival Pakistan for last week’s assault on tourists in Pahalgam in Indian-administered Kashmir, the deadliest attack on civilians there in a quarter of a century. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave the military “complete operational freedom” to respond to the attack during a closed-door meeting yesterday.

# Rugby: Junior Springbok captain Riley Norton says his team is looking forward to meeting the physical challenge of Argentina when the two teams clash in the opening round of the U20 Rugby Championship at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium tomorrow. The 2025 Under-20 Rugby Championship is the second edition of the tournament, which was staged for the first time last year in Australia. New Zealand and Australia open the tournament in the first match of tomorrow’s double-header. Kick-off is at 2pm.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 18-rand-62-cents and the euro at 21-rand-18-cents. One British pound costs 24-rand-86-cents and Bitcoin trades at 94-thousand-442-dollars. Gold sells at three-thousand-295-dollars-77-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 62-dollars-33-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….