THE battle between South Africa President Cyril Ramaphosa and Defence minister Nosiviwe MapisaNqakula is heating up. Mapisa-Nqakula is said to be “extremely angered” by the disciplinary action taken against her by Ramaphosa after the ANC’s infamous trip to Zimbabwe on a military jet. The Star has reliably learnt that Ramaphosa was involved in the preliminary…
India and South Africa want the World Trade Organization (WTO) to waive intellectual property rules to make it easier for developing countries to produce or import COVID-19 drugs, a letter to the WTO shows. In their letter dated Oct. 2 the two countries called on the global trade body to waive parts of the Agreement…
Food firms in the UK including McDonald’s are urging the government to toughen up rules designed to protect rainforests. Ministers are planning a new law forbidding big firms to use produce from illegally deforested land. But the firms say the law should apply to all deforestation, whether it’s legal or illegal. That’s because the effect…
Paris will shut all bars completely from Tuesday as the French government raises the city’s coronavirus alert to maximum following a sustained period of high infection rates. The restrictions will last two weeks, with full details to be announced on Monday, Prime Minister Jean Castex’s office announced. On Sunday France reported 12,565 cases of Covid-19….
Medical experts are questioning Donald Trump’s decision to greet supporters in a drive-past outside the hospital where he is being treated for Covid-19. There are concerns the US president, who wore a mask, may have endangered Secret Service staff inside the car. White House spokesperson Judd Deere said the trip on Sunday had been “cleared…
President Donald Trump and his challenger Joe Biden have fiercely clashed in one of the most chaotic and bitter White House debates in years. Mr Trump frequently interrupted, prompting Mr Biden to tell him to “shut up” as the two fought over the pandemic, healthcare and the economy. The US president was challenged over white…
Oil giant Royal Dutch Shell has announced plans to cut up to 9,000 jobs as part of a cost-cutting shake-up. The restructuring is part of the company’s efforts to adapt to a low-carbon future and becoming more “streamlined” with the severe impact of COVID-19 – which caused a slump in demand for oil and a…
Leisure travellers from countries with coronavirus infection rates higher than South Africa, including Britain, the United States and France, will not be permitted to enter when South Africa’s borders open up on Oct. 1, ministers said on Wednesday. But business travellers from countries considered “high-risk,” which also include the Netherlands, Russia and India, with scarce…
Half a million sharks could be killed for their natural oil to produce coronavirus vaccines, according to conservationists. One ingredient used in some COVID-19 vaccine candidates is squalene, a natural oil made in the liver of sharks. Squalene is currently used as an adjuvant in medicine – an ingredient that increases the effectiveness of a vaccine by creating…
US President Donald Trump says his tax returns are currently being audited, and that he won’t release them while an inspection is continuing. But there is no legal reason why the president can’t release his returns while an audit is taking place, and he would be the first in almost 50 years not to make…
