Southern Africa

Gunmen opened fire on a group of people celebrating a birthday in a township in South Africa on Sunday, killing eight and injuring three, police said Monday. “The owner of the house was celebrating his birthday when two unknown persons, armed, entered the property on Sunday evening in the port …

A Catholic bishop in northern Zambia has urged his congregants to avoid “gyrating” too much during mass because such dancing may encourage other people to sin. Ndola Bishop Benjamin Phiri says he is concerned about the manner in which some worshippers dance during Mass. He has called for regulation and …

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is expected in South Africa for the first time since the invasion of Ukraine 11 months ago, for talks, local media reported. While Russia is being shunned by the West, it has historic ties with Pretoria as well as close business links through the Brics …

A tiger that escaped from a private farm in South Africa over the weekend has been killed, local media reported. The tiger was the subject of a massive search after it escaped from a farm in Walkerville, south of Johannesburg. It attacked a person, two dogs and a pig while …

A Zimbabwean Form 6 school girl, aged 17, has died within 30 minutes after she was bitten by the highly venomous snake a black mamba while in class. The deceased returned to the classroom after sports and was struck on the thigh by the black mamba, which had somehow slithered …

South African opposition groups, a trade union and business owners have threatened to sue the government over the crippling blackouts in the country, local media reported. They have given the government up to Friday to stabilise electricity supply or face legal action for contravening its duty to provide electricity. They …

Authorities in South Africa are on the hunt for a privately owned tiger which escaped from a property in Walkerville south of Johannesburg, local media reported. The female tiger escaped after the fence was cut on Saturday night, local media reported. According to police, the tiger attacked a 39-year-old man …

Zimbabwe on Tuesday signed a bill into law that outlawed organized protests by healthcare workers who could now face a fine or an imprisonment of up to six months, Reuters agency reported. The signing by President Emmerson Mnangagwa comes after health workers were locked in a protracted fight with the …

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to hold a meeting with the National Coronavirus Command Council on Tuesday to discuss the new variant detected in the country this week, local media reported. The new Covid subvariant, known as XBB.1.5, is an offshoot of the globally dominant Omicron Covid variant …

South African parliament on Tuesday voted against starting an impeachment process against President Cyril Ramaphosa, the parliament’s speaker said. Lawmakers voted to reject a report by a panel of experts that found preliminary evidence Ramaphosa may have committed misconduct over a stash of foreign currency hidden at his private game …