Update@Noon

The eThekwini Municipality says its pursuing criminal charges against an official over allegedly selling posts in the Durban Metro Police Service for tens of thousands of Rands. City Manager Musa Mbhele and Durban Metro Police Commissioner Sibonelo Mchunu addressed the media on allegations of jobs-selling and irregularities in the recruitment process.  The officials admitted that a yet-to-be-released forensic report found that an official received close to half a million in payments from Metro Police applicants to secure jobs. They denied reports that the amount allegedly extorted from applicants was up to twenty million rand.  Zanele Buthelezi reports.....

Mamelodi Sundowns coach Miguel Cardoso has thrown his weight behind installing VAR in local football. There has been ongoing issues, for years, on how the system should be implemented. SAfm sports anchor Jon Gericke has more 

The long-running battle over the Balobedu throne is back in court today. The Pretoria High Court is hearing Prince Lekukela Modjadji's application to set aside President Cyril Ramaphosa's recognition of his sister, Queen Masalanabo Modjadji VII. Lekukela is seeking to interdict that recognition. President Ramaphosa officially issued a certificate of recognition for the Queen in December 2024, despite objections from some royal family members who maintain that Prince Modjadji is the true heir. Sakina Kamwendo spoke to  SABC news reporter Puseletso Mokoena 

Former Hawks boss Godfrey Lebeya says Hawks members should have left the scene after establishing that a police operation at Katiso Molefe's home was legitimate. Testifying at the Madlanga Commission, Lebeya said remaining at the scene and demanding to see warrants could amount to interference. He also acknowledged that it was a serious organisational failure that senior Hawks officials had information about individuals allegedly linked to organised crime, but failed to act on it.

A group of South Africans who narrowly escaped the devastating floods in Nepal have arrived back in Durban today. The group was on a pilgrimage with the Mohanji Foundation South Africa. The disaster, triggered by a glacier collapse, has killed more than 1,000 people, with thousands still missing. Rescue teams are using helicopters and heavy machinery to reach survivors. We spoke to Dr Sulosh Pillay a South Africans citizen who was in Nepal 

Thirty years after Tupac Shakur was gunned down on a Las Vegas street, the only man ever brought to trial for his killing has been found guilty of first-degree murder. This is a remarkably swift end to one of the most enduring mysteries in music history. A Nevada jury deliberated for less than three hours before convicting 63-year-old Duane "Keffe D" Davis of orchestrating the 1996 drive-by shooting. 
Davis was not accused of firing the fatal shots, but prosecutors convinced jurors that he organised the murder, provided the gun and was criminally responsible for Shakur's murder. Sherwin Bryce-Pease reports.

The Southern Africa Funerals and Tombstones Industry Institute has called on government to allow tombstone manufacturing companies to patrol cemeteries. This comes amid a surge in incidents of tombstone vandalism at several cemeteries including Avalon, Slovoville and Doornkop in Gauteng. This has caused distress among the affected families and the community at large, who are now forced to deal with the emotional and financial consequences of having to re-install the tombstones. The institute has launched the Gravesite Watch campaign to address this crisis. Puseletso Mokoena filed this report....

The United Nations Secretary-General has used a gathering of some of the world's most powerful non-Western leaders to argue that the international system must be reshaped to reflect a new multipolar world. Addressing the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan — attended by the leaders of China, Russia, India, Iran and others — António Guterres said institutions still largely reflected the balance of power of 1945, calling for developing countries to be given greater representation and influence. But with wars dominating the agenda, he also issued direct appeals for restraint in the Middle East, protection of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz and Bab al-Mandab, and an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine. Sherwin Bryce-Pease reports.

The death toll from the flash floods in Nepal has now crossed 1000, even as more than 3000 people remain missing or unaccounted for including six South African nationals. A week since the disaster hit, Nepal's Prime Minister Balendra Shah says the floods were driven by climate change and has urged the international community to take action. Our South Asia correspondent Neha Poonia has more.

The Road Freight Association says rising fuel prices will put further pressure on South Africa’s logistics industry. It says diesel costs are a major expense for transport operators, with fuel accounting for up to 55 percent of operating costs. The association warns that higher transport costs could eventually affect businesses, supply chains and consumers through increased prices for goods. Gavin Kelly is the CEO of the Road Freight Association