Update@Noon

The Westbury community in Johannesburg is continuing its engagement with residents today following the recent escalation of gang-related violence and shootings in the area. The focus will be on the ongoing violence, safety concerns and the impact of shootings on innocent residents, including children and teenagers. We spoke to Westbury Community Activist, Bishop Dalton Adam....

The Home Affairs Portfolio Committee in Parliament says it will seek legal advice on a potential conflict of interest involving a member of the Immigration Advisory Board. The committee says even the perception of a conflict must be addressed, given the sensitivity around immigration. The committee is interrogating a potential conflict of interest involving a member of the Immigration Advisory Board, after the member allegedly represented former beauty queen Chidimma Adetshina in her ongoing immigration battle.

City Power is urging Johannesburg residents to cut electricity use as cold and wet weather places added pressure on the network. The utility says 2,450 outage calls remain open across its eight service centres, despite teams working to restore power. It says high demand, rain, infrastructure faults and difficult working conditions are contributing to prolonged outages across several areas. Jon Gericke spoke to Joburg's City power spokesperson Isaac Mangena 

State Advocate with IDAC, Drushantha Ramsamy, testifying before the Madlanga Commission, says an Inspector-General of Intelligence report on Crime Intelligence investigations was not supposed to reach prosecutors through then-Police Minister Senzo Mchunu. She says investigators were still working on the probe in January 2025 and could not share findings. Ramsamy says Mchunu later arranged for a hard copy to reach prosecutors. Ramsamy testifying before the Commission had this to say

South Africa's official unemployment rate has increased by 0,9 of a percentage point to 33,6 percent in the second quarter of 2026, from 32,7 percent in the first quarter, that's according to Statistics South Africa's latest Quarterly Labour Force Survey released today. Jon Gericke spoke to Efficient Group chief economist Dawie Roodt

Gauteng Education MEC Lebogang Maile says school safety remains a major concern, with the department reviewing its seven-pillar safety strategy. Maile says Search-and-seizure operations will continue at schools, both announced and unannounced. Maile says the department is spending R165 million on school patrollers, while working with SAPS and Community Safety to strengthen security and combat crime. Maile was briefing the media outlining plans to curb issues affecting Gauteng schools. Maile is facing a mammoth task to stabilize compromised safety measures in a number of schools that have been identified high-risk. Briefing the media  had this to say 

Orlando Pirates will have to get past Sekhukhune United in their bid to win a fifth successive MTN8 title.Pirates were pushed into extra time to beat MTN8 debutants Durban City in Soweto.
Sekhukhune United got the better of  AmaZulu in a thrilling 4-3 win, which also needed extra time to separate the teams. The second semi-final will see Mamelodi Sundowns face Golden Arrows, who sent Kaizer Chiefs packing. SAfm sports anchor Jon Gericke has more   

The Department of Forestry, Fisheries and the Environment has distanced itself from Morita Forestry, following allegations that the company operated an investment scam that cost South Africans hundreds of millions of rand. The department says it had no formal relationship with Morita Forestry, but participated in a tree-planting event where the company donated about 300 trees. The department says Morita Forestry may have used its participation in the One Million Trees Programme to create an impression of legitimacy. Sakina Kamwendo spoke to the department's Chief Director for Forestry Development, Tebogo Mathiane  

The South African Weather Service has issued a severe warning for disruptive snowfall over the Drakensberg and northern parts of Eastern Cape. Snow is also a possibility in Johannesburg and other parts of Gauteng as the cold front intensifies. We spoke to Senior Forecaster at the South African Weather Service, Tokelo Chiloane.....

Iran and Oman are reportedly close to reaching a deal over control of the Strait of Hormuz, a key global energy route. However, Tehran says an agreement alone will not be enough to reopen the strategic waterway. The agreement is considered crucial to broader efforts to end the war, which began after simultaneous American and Israeli attacks on Iran in late February. We spoke to Senior Researcher and Director at Africa Asia Dialogues Thembisa Fakude