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President Cyril Ramaphosa has urged dialogue to end the ongoing Israel-Iran conflict, with the hope that US President Donald Trump will use his government's "influence" to urge parties to pursue a dialogue path in resolving the dispute.

The US military joined Israel's onslaught on Iran over the weekend, attacking Iran's nuclear facilities, when at least three strategic Iranian nuclear sites; Natanz, Isfahan, and Fordow, were struck.

South Africa urged the US, Israel, and Iran to give the United Nations the "opportunity and space" to lead a peaceful resolution through inspection and verification of Iran's status of uranium enrichment, as well as its broader nuclear capacity.

The GOOD Party called out the US bombing of Iranian nuclear sites as a breach of international law that had "dangerously escalated tensions".

GOOD secretary-general Brett Herron said as a global superpower, the US should be working to prevent conflict, not inflame it, echoing Ramaphosa's call for an immediate ceasefire and a peaceful resolution to the growing conflict in the Middle East.

"We support [Ramaphosa's] call for the United Nations to lead a process of dialogue and de-escalation, particularly in the Israel-Iran conflict, which now risks triggering a broader regional war with catastrophic consequences.

"The international community must end the selective application of international law. Global leaders must act with urgency, consistency, and integrity to stop these wars. The pursuit of peace must be principled and grounded in human rights for all," Herron said.

He noted Israel's so-called pre-emptive strike on Iran, coupled with the ongoing genocidal assault on Gaza, which he said had been met largely with silence or implicit approval by world leaders.

He said this crisis was as a result of decades of impunity, double standards, and what he called the international community's repeated failure to confront Israel's system of apartheid and its violations of international law.

"The blockade of Gaza, the mass displacement of Palestinians, and the deliberate targeting of civilians are part of a long-standing pattern of occupation and oppression," he stated.

ACCOUNTABILITY

The uMkhonto WeSizwe Party (MKP) called on the international community, especially the African Union, BRICS nations and the Non-Aligned Movement, to reject the "new cycle of militarism" and unilateral attacks on sovereign nations.

As Iran defends itself, there must be a reopening of diplomatic channels and full accountability for the lives lost and infrastructure destroyed, the party said.

The MKP unequivocally condemned the "reckless and unlawful" US military attack on Iran's nuclear facilities, saying this was not defence but a declaration of war against the Iranian people.

"American officials, without shame or restraint, confirmed these strikes as deliberate and coordinated. President Donald Trump described the attacks as 'successful', a chilling reminder of how easily Western leaders disguise destruction as diplomacy. The USA feigned diplomacy and struck in the dark," said MKP national spokesperson Nhlamulo Ndhlela.

The party recalled the 2003 US invasion of Iraq over "so-called" weapons of mass destruction that cost millions of lives.

"Today, as then, Western intelligence agencies and media outlets manufacture narratives designed to justify these attacks and this unprovoked war that is rather an imperial intervention. Then it was Baghdad. Now it is Tehran," stated Ndhlela.

The MKP expressed concerns that this act of war may plunge the region and the world into deeper chaos by closing the strategic trade shipping routes and risk of unclear escalation.

"…it risks mass civilian causalities and irreversible damage to global peace efforts," it warned.

President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Monday that while South Africa faces numerous challenges, its democratic order is in good health, anchored in a progressive Constitution.

Last week marked 30 years since the Constitutional Court convened for the first time, with Ramaphosa writing in his weekly letter to the nation that this showed a "new, bold chapter" of the country's democratic journey.

The establishment of a specialised Constitutional Court was a key facet of the multiparty negotiations that preceded the democratic transition from Apartheid, Ramaphosa said.

"Whilst some believed that existing structures such as the Supreme Court could perform this task, the African National Congress advocated for a new court that was untainted by the past.

"Just as drafters of the Constitution itself drew heavily on the experiences of other countries - when considering the model of the Court we looked to other jurisdictions for inspiration," he explained.

While the Constitutional Court draws on the wisdom and support of international partners, it is uniquely South African in its outlook, its orientation and values, he added.

South Africans should honour the proud history of the court, Ramaphosa said as he noted that over the past 30 years the Constitutional Court advanced an aspirational egalitarian ethos in far-reaching ways.

He cited the Court's first case in 1995, on the constitutionality of the death penalty, which he said set the tone for a "humanistic jurisprudence" grounded in human dignity.

"Its landmark judgments are well-known on issues such as the death penalty, access to HIV/Aids treatment, prisoners' right to vote, and others. Yet its less well-known judgments that have had equally dramatic impact on matters such as upholding the rights of pensioners to not having their old age grants disrupted, the rights of smallholder farmers to not have their livestock impounded under colonial-era ordinances, the rights of women in customary marriages, and upholding the rights of rail commuters to safety," Ramaphosa explained.

He said the composition of the Constitutional Court bench, which held judges of various backgrounds and views on the law, had played an important role in shaping the Court's jurisprudence.

"In 2007 former Chief Justice Pius Langa highlighted the centrality of judicial diversity, saying this was not confined solely to an appropriate racial or gender mix, but that a wide range of views and life experiences are represented," Ramaphosa pointed out.

Langa has since highlighted that judicial diversity is likely to increase judicial dissent and improve the quality of decisions.

Ramaphosa noted an Ipsos poll released earlier this year, which found that most South Africans view democracy, human rights and the rule of law as universal values that all nations deserved and must aspire towards.

Most respondents also believed that South Africa was a good example of a democracy and had a responsibility to be a moral leader in the world, he said, noting that this confidence was a result of the abiding trust the public had in the country's Constitutional Court.

Support for South Africa's biggest political party rebounded after it was forced to scrap plans to raise value-added tax and now stands at 40%, the same as it garnered in last year's elections, while the nation's coalition government enjoys widespread popularity, an opinion poll found.

A previous survey showed backing for the African National Congress (ANC) "to be trending down from its 2024 election results, especially during the debate around the VAT increase," but appears to have since recovered, the Social Research Foundation said in its analyst of responses from 1 004 registered voters who were canvassed earlier this month.

The ANC governed South Africa outright for the first three decades after apartheid ended before losing its parliamentary majority in May last year, a backlash against slipshod government services, rampant corruption and high levels of poverty and unemployment. It then entered into a so-called "government of national unity" (GNU) with the business-friendly Democratic Alliance (DA) and eight smaller rivals to retain power.

Members of the alliance have clashed over a series of laws and the National Treasury's proposal to raise VAT - a dispute that twice delayed the passage of the national budget.

Support for the DA stood at about 26%, or 4 percentage points more than it secured in the last election. Backing for parties that make up the GNU, which has agreed to prioritise growing the economy, create jobs and safeguard the constitution, cumulatively exceeded 75%, the SRF said - a finding that's likely to cheer investors.

About 18% of survey respondents said they backed former President Jacob Zuma's Mkhonto weSizwe Party, which secured 15% of the vote in 2024 and isn't part of the ruling alliance.

The party's gains were largely at the expense of Julius Malema's leftist Economic Freedom Fighters, the Johannesburg-based SRF said.

The survey had a margin of error of 4%.

The World Bank Group is considering financing $500-million of South Africa's participation in a new credit guarantee facility meant to unlock private financing for a massive transmission grid expansion plan, a senior bank official told Reuters.

South Africa is courting private investment for an ambitious plan to add 14 500 km of new lines and enhanced transformer capacity over the next decade, at an estimated total cost of $25-billion, as it looks to emerge from a decade of crippling power cuts that have battered the economy.

The proposed credit guarantee vehicle aims to help overcome transmission infrastructure bottlenecks that have held back some 20 gigawatts of renewable energy from connecting to the national electricity network, according to Standard Bank.

Many of the renewable projects are situated in the sun-baked Northern Cape or windswept Western and Eastern Cape regions, far from existing transmission corridors linking most of South Africa to the coal-powered generation plants in the north.

Operating as a stand-alone entity, the credit guarantee vehicle would issue guarantees instead of South Africa's treasury and would cover payment defaults, for instance, should something go awry during the roll-out.

"We could cover or be committed to finance half a billion US dollars of the government of South Africa's first loss or junior capital participation," Yadviga Semikolenova, a senior World Bank manager, said late on Thursday.

South Africa has sought not to put further pressure on its strained finances by offering additional sovereign guarantees, as it faces lacklustre growth, high debt-servicing costs and the failure to agree a VAT hike within the government coalition this year.

The treasury has committed to providing junior or first loss capital of 20%, which will be an initial $100-million before moving up to $500-million. The credit guarantee vehicle aims to eventually grow to $2.5-billion, an April 4 treasury document shows.

The document, seen by Reuters, details a package under discussion with the World Bank Group that includes a loan from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development to finance the treasury's junior capital and a potential $100-million direct injection from the International Finance Corporation.

The bank's Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency is also considering reinsurance and political risk cover.

Approval from the World Bank Group board was expected later this year, treasury officials said.

The treasury said in April it had sought backing for the facility from several development financiers, including the Development Bank of Southern Africa, African Development Bank, Germany's KfW and British International Investment.

The DBSA said it was considering participating while BII said it could not comment on any transaction that it has not made a commitment to or announced.

The Democratic Alliance (DA) said on Friday that the lawsuit brought by Toyota Motors against Transnet, the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Transport (DoT) and eThekwini municipality could potentially be precedent-setting.

Media reports state that Toyota South Africa Motors' insurer, Tokio Marine & Nichido Fire Insurance brought the R6.5-billion lawsuit in the Durban High Court for 2022 flood damages that shuttered its plant near Durban.

The report alleged that the floods, which closed the Prospecton plant for four months, cost the company about R4.5-billion in repairs and rehabilitation and more than R2-billion in business interruption.

The lawsuit, which also claims interest, alleges that Transnet, the KwaZulu-Natal DoT and eThekwini municipality shared responsibility for failing to maintain waterways and drainage systems.

The DA, which said it would hold a watching brief in the Durban High Court during the case, argued that failing African National Congress-led governments neglected infrastructure that put financial responsibility for the cost to residents and businesses.

DA Federal Council chairperson Helen Zille accused ANC-led local and provincial governments of being governed to the point of "failure, through corruption, personal enrichment, maladministration and financial misconduct, enabled by bloated cadre-filled administrations, leaving residents with crumbling infrastructure".

She said accountability only occurred during inter-governmental interventions, or during elections.

"But the opportunity for a legal precedent that could hold wrongdoers legal and financially accountable for their misgovernance, or malfeasance, when failures result in financial losses to residents or businesses, may open a new chapter of accountability," she explained.

Thirty years after the establishment of the Constitutional Court in South Africa, President Cyril Ramaphosa is promising citizens a range of institutional, infrastructure, financial, administrative, and legal support to allow the judiciary to execute its duties independently, effectively and with dignity.

Delivering the keynote address on the Constitutional Court's thirtieth anniversary, at Constitution Hill on Friday, Ramaphosa said government support was crucial to maintaining judicial independence.

He acknowledged significant challenges with constitutionalism in South Africa today, noting a disconnect between the promise of the country's Constitution and the lived realities of South Africans.

"The promise of the Constitution is far from fully realised. Persistent inequality, threats to judicial independence, lack of implementation of court orders, and erosion of trust in institutions remain pressing challenges," he said.

The advancement of socioeconomic rights had not come as far as government wished, he admitted, particularly rights relating to housing and basic services.

Ramaphosa said it would forever remain a blight on the country's democracy that the applicant in the ground-breaking Grootboom judgment, Irene Grootboom, died in 2008 without her dream of a decent house being fulfilled.

Ramaphosa said deepening respect for constitutionalism across all sectors must start with the State, noting the irony of lauding the Constitutional Court's progressive judgments while the State, in many of the cases, had had to be compelled by the Court to fulfil its obligations.

He noted that this pointed to widespread and systematic shortcomings in service delivery that must be addressed.

"…our people should not have to resort to litigation to have their rights realised, and this is the paramount consideration. At the same time, the potential for reducing litigation against the State must be addressed and this requires structural change," he said.

Ramaphosa noted the 2022/2023 Judiciary Annual Report, which pointed to challenges being experienced by the Constitutional Court with respect to finalising matters against targets.

He said this was "no doubt" owing to the significant volume of cases the Court was dealing with, highlighting that the 2013 changes to the Court's jurisdiction, which was extended to deal with matters of general public importance, had further contributed to this workload.

He said enhancing access to justice and improving Court services had been allocated for in this year's Budget, and he said there had been increases to improve superior court services, for judicial education and support, for the filling of vacant posts and to address other funding shortfalls.

Meanwhile, Ramaphosa noted the Constitutional Court's contribution to educating South Africans about their constitutional rights.

"Through principled constitutional interpretation, it has contributed greatly towards advancing national cohesion and reconciliation. This objective of national cohesion and reconciliation has been executed by the court. Through its decisions, it has ensured that all people are treated fairly and equally under the law - thus affirming the legitimacy of the legal order and promoting a sense of belonging among all citizens," he stated.

He cited some of the progressive, far-reaching judgments handed down by the Constitutional Court. These include S v Makwanyane that abolished the death penalty; the Grootboom case that centred on the right to housing; and Minister of Health v Treatment Action Campaign that dealt with the right to healthcare and access to HIV/Aids treatment.

He said the Constitutional Court had developed a "rich and transformative jurisprudence".

"The Court's judgments have advanced the rights of same-sex couples, of women in traditional marriages, of the sick and infirm, of children, of voters, and of the most marginalised members of society. They have affirmed that dignity, equality and freedom are not reserved for th...

In this opinion article, Bishop Thulani Mbuyisa, the chairperson of the Justice and Peace Commission of the Southern African Catholic Bishops' Conference, argues that South Africa's G20 presidency should not be remembered for polite communiqués and photo opportunities, but as the moment when Africa took the lead in shaping the global response to debt, hunger, poverty and the climate crisis.

This year, as South Africa assumes the presidency of the G20 for the first time, the nation carries not only a geopolitical responsibility - but a profound moral opportunity. The G20, a grouping that represents 85% of the global GDP, must not remain a platform for the wealthy and powerful to reinforce the status quo. It must become a vehicle for transformation, for solidarity, and for hope. For Africa, this is not merely a policy agenda - it is a call to conscience.

Our continent stands at a crossroads. On one hand, Africa is home to the youngest population on Earth, to vibrant movements of renewal, and to communities rich in resilience and faith. On the other hand, we remain burdened by unjust financial systems, debilitating debt, ecological degradation, and global neglect. This tension defines the African condition in our time: abundance in potential, yet constricted by external rules and internal inequities.

This is why we are gathering in Cape Town this month, together with fellow faith leaders, civil society actors, academic institutions, and policy-makers, under the banner of the G20 Symposium on Global Justice and Solidarity. Our shared goal is to bring Africa's voice - and Africa's soul - into the heart of the G20 agenda. This effort is coordinated under the umbrella of the Solidarity for One Humanity, One Future network.

As Pope Francis consistently reminded us, true global leadership begins not with dominance, but with dialogue. In Fratelli Tutti, he urged us to build "a better kind of politics," one rooted in "social love" and "a sense of belonging to one another." This is not naïve idealism. It is the only path to a sustainable, peaceful, and humane future.

The Moral Cost of Debt

Africa's sovereign debt crisis is not just an economic problem - it is a moral scandal. Today, many African governments spend more servicing debt than on health or education. This is not because African nations are reckless, but because the global financial system is rigged against them. Private creditors charge African nations exorbitant interest rates. Multilateral institutions impose rigid conditions. Meanwhile, the climate crisis - caused largely by the emissions of the Global North - forces African countries to borrow even more just to recover from floods, droughts, and cyclones.

Before his death, Pope Francis also spoke forcefully about this injustice. "The debt should not be paid at the price of unbearable sacrifices," he said in a message to heavily indebted nations. "There is a need for mechanisms to reduce the debt, which do not compromise the development of the poorest." In 2025, as the Church prepares to celebrate the Jubilee Year - a biblical tradition rooted in the forgiveness of debts - we must push the G20 to commit to real debt relief and to the creation of a fair international insolvency framework.

Nourishing Bodies, Empowering Futures

But our message must also be hopeful and constructive. One of the most powerful ideas emerging from our continent is the push for universal school meals. Every child who eats a nutritious meal at school is healthier, learns better, and has a chance to escape poverty. Every local farmer who supplies that food strengthens the local economy. Every woman employed in food preparation or delivery gains dignity and income. School meals are not charity. They are a strategic investment in a more just society.

This is why we support the call, led by Congressman Jim McGovern and former UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown, to make universal school meals a G20 priority. Africa, with its moral authority and its demograp...

ActionSA has given Minister of Justice and Constitutional Development Mmamoloko Kubayi seven days to respond to its demand for the removal of National Director of Public Prosecutions (NDPP) Advocate Shamila Batohi, vowing to use pressure to challenge what it describes as the decline of the country's criminal justice system.

The party marched to Kubayi's office in Pretoria on Thursday to submit its memorandum, demanding that Kubayi, as the Cabinet member responsible for Justice and Constitutional Development, engage President Cyril Ramaphosa to exercise powers under the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) Act and initiate the formal process for Batohi's removal.

ActionSA wants the process to begin with Batohi's immediate suspension pending an investigation into what it alleges is systemic dysfunction in the NPA.

"… whether through incompetence or wilful neglect, that reflects not isolated blunders, but a disturbing and entrenched pattern," the party said.

It also expressed concerns that the NPA had become a "refuge for the politically connected", stating that accountability was avoided, justice was delayed, and prosecutions regularly collapse.

"Supported by victims of the NPA's failure to ensure that our criminal justice system protects the public and tackles rampant lawlessness, ActionSA's demand for the removal of Advocate Batohi rests on the lived experiences of those who have been failed by a prosecuting body clearly incapable of fulfilling its mandate," ActionSA said.

The party said Batohi's appointment in 2018 was intended to mark a break from the State Capture era, and met with "rare national consensus and a genuine sense of hope".

"Yet, nearly six years later, that hope has curdled into deep public disillusionment. The institution remains directionless, riven by internal factionalism, and wholly unable, or unwilling, to act decisively against either high-level corruption or pervasive violent crime.

"From troubling vacancy rates across provinces and key units within the NPA, to the failure to prosecute any high-profile cases arising from the Zondo Commission, to botched cases involving Timothy Omotoso, Ace Magashule, Moroadi Cholota and Zizi Kodwa, and the apparent laissez-faire approach to consequence management within the institution, the case for the removal of the NDPP is made by her own widely evident failures as the head of the institution," the party said.

ActionSA said it believed that the litany of issues affecting the NPA showed that these challenges had festered to a point of crisis, pointing out that many South Africans had lost confidence in Bathoi's leadership.

"While acknowledging that overhauling and correcting the NPA does not begin and end with the removal of Adv. Batohi, it remains an important first step in demonstrating that continued poor performance will be met with decisive action. South Africans are clear in their demand for us to fight to end the culture of impunity and to put the institution on notice that it must either deliver or face the consequences," ActionSA highlighted.

South Africa declared a national disaster after floods and snow killed more than 90 people and destroyed roads and bridges in four of the country's nine provinces.

Adverse weather since June 9 caused damage to property and disrupted basic services in the Eastern Cape, Western Cape, Free State and KwaZulu-Natal provinces, Elias Sithole, the head of the National Disaster Management Centre, said in an official notice.

Declaring a national disaster allows the government to free up funds for relief and reconstruction. It's the second time the administration has implemented the measure in about seven months - when floods and storms in October affected seven provinces.

The government of the Eastern Cape will hold a day of mourning on Thursday after at least 92 people died in the flooding caused by record rainfall in the impoverished area.

Authorities and reliefs groups are providing assistance to 4 308 individuals who were left homeless across the province and processes are under way to provide temporary housing, the region's government said in a statement on Wednesday.

This month's floods are the latest in a series of adverse weather events to hit South Africa. Last year, Cape Town had record rainfall in July and tens of thousands of homes were damaged. In 2022, at least 459 people died when torrential rains hit two coastal provinces.

The Labour Party of South Africa has launched an urgent High Court application to interdict President Cyril Ramaphosa's National Dialogue process, arguing that it is "unconstitutional, irrational, fiscally irresponsible", and excludes the working class.

Earlier this month, Ramaphosa announced that in the wake of government's engagements with various entities, there was broad agreement to convene a National Dialogue, given the challenges facing the country.

He revealed that a National Convention, which will set the agenda for the National Dialogue, will be held on August 15.

The party seeks to halt all further implementation and expenditure, citing the duplication of existing democratic structures and the estimated R700-million to R800-million cost as unjustifiable in the current economic climate.

The party further pointed out that the national dialogue lacked the executive powers of existing institutions such as Parliament and the legislatures.

"South Africa doesn't need another elite summit behind closed doors. We already have Parliament, we already have Nedlac, and we already have civil society platforms. What we don't have is political will from the ruling elite to act on the people's demands," said Labour Party acting secretary-general Lindi Mkhumbane.

The party said the notice of its motion was filed electronically on Wednesday, under case number 2025-092790 and will be supported by a full founding affidavit and annexures filed and served on Thursday.

The Labour Party wants the interdict to prevent the use of public funds for any phase of the dialogue, including payments to the Eminent Persons Group, until Parliament has authorised such expenditure.

Ramaphosa has appointed an Eminent Persons Group, comprising leading figures in society, who he says reflect the great diversity of the nation, with a proven commitment to the advancement of social cohesion and nation-building.

Amongst the members are former Independent Electoral Commission chairperson Dr Brigalia Bam; former Constitutional Court judge Edwin Cameron; Banyana Banyana coach and football legend Dr Desiree Ellis; researcher and rural activist Professor Nomboniso Gasa; Springbok captain and world champion Siya Kolisi; leader of the Zion Christian Church His Grace Bishop Barnabas Lekganyane; Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town the Most Reverend Thabo Makgoba; chairperson of the National Planning Commission Professor Tinyiko Maluleke; student activist and former Member of Parliament Nompendulo Mkhatshwa and business leader Dr Gloria Serobe.

The Labour Party also wants a review and setting aside of all executive decisions taken to initiate the dialogue process, including the appointment of the Inter-Ministerial Committee and the Steering Committee.

Mkhumbane claimed that this was not a true dialogue, but what she termed a PR stunt.

"We are dealing with a regime that stages participation while silencing real voices. The people weren't consulted about this process, and now their money is being spent on it," she said.

The Labour Party argued that no legal basis existed for this process to be convened in the absence of enabling legislation or parliamentary scrutiny, citing sections 213 and 215 of the Constitution, as well as the Public Finance Management Act, to show that executive discretion "is not a blank cheque".

The party has indicated its intention to seek a preferential court date for the hearing of the application before any further phases of the National Dialogue are implemented or public funds are disbursed.

"This government has perfected the art of wasting public money on parallel processes like summits, commissions and talk shops that produce no results. We are saying enough is enough. Rather focus your energy - and our money - on rescuing Eskom, fixing our roads and infrastructure, as well as mending our broken institutions and schools. We have gender-based violence, rape, high murder rates and other imminent problems facing our country," stated Mkhumbane.

La...