News 17:00

BULLETIN 17 June 5 pm

Good afternoon. I am……..

In this bulletin:

# The first South African soldiers from the DRC complete the demobilisation
# A foot-and-mouth disease outbreak is confirmed in North West
# And tennis: Aryna Sabalenka apologises for her statements after her French Open loss to Coco Gauff

# The South African National Defence Force says the first group of soldiers back from the Democratic Republic of Congo has completed demobilisation. Their return followed a ceasefire between M23 rebels and DRC forces. A third group of 248 landed at Bram Fischer Airport in Bloemfontein yesterday and will demobilise at the Tempe Military Base in the Free State capital, with the fourth group expected today. Defence Force spokesperson Godfrey Thulare says the process includes a short intelligence programme:

# KwaZulu-Natal Transport MEC Sipho Duma has revised the death toll in this morning’s crash between a bus and a truck at Vryheid from 12 to ten following a detailed inspection of the scene, hospitals, and mortuaries. Three women and seven men died, and over 30 other people sustained injuries. The two drivers survived. Duma says reduced visibility led to initial miscounts. He raised concerns over trucks using the route instead of the N2, straining infrastructure:

# The North West Agriculture Department has confirmed a foot-and-mouth disease outbreak in the JB Marks and the Madibeng Municipality in the Dr Kenneth Kaunda District. Infected animals were traced to farms now under quarantine, with tests confirming serotype 2 and serotype 3 strains. Linked farms, including those connected to Gauteng, are also under precautionary lockdown. Over 900-thousand vaccine doses have been ordered nationally. The government says a biosecurity council is being formed to strengthen outbreak response efforts and protect South Africa’s livestock industry.

# The City of Tshwane has written off over 4.3-billion-rand in debt through its incentive and debt-relief programme. City spokesperson Lindela Mashigo says more than 2.4-billion-rand was cancelled for over 85-thousand indigent and child-headed households. Another 1.8-billion-rand was scrapped from dormant accounts. Mashigo says the city collected 81-million-rand from residential and business customers during the process. He also confirmed that over 20-thousand meter tampering amnesty applications were received:

# Tennis: World number one Aryna Sabalenka of Belarus has apologised for statements she made after losing the French Open final to American Coco Gauff. Speaking with reporters, the 27-year-old said the match was the worst final she’s ever played. She also said she didn’t think Gauff won because she played incredibly well, but because Sabalenka made so many mistakes. In an interview with Eurosport, Sabalenka said the comments were completely unprofessional. She says she let her emotions guide her and absolutely regrets her statements.

# And the financial indicators: The dollar trades at 17-rand-84-cents and the euro at 20-rand-64-cents. One British pound costs 24-rand-20-cents and Bitcoin trades at 105-thousand-577-dollars. Gold sells at three-thousand-395-dollars-26-cents a fine ounce and Brent crude oil is quoted at 73-dollars-62-cents a barrel.

Stay tuned for more news………….