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02 April 2026
The Mail & Guardian Digital Edition – 02 April 2026
WEDNESDAY, 01 APRIL 2026, 23:30

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The Mail & Guardian Digital Edition – 02 April 2026
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Moving, tragic, surprising, inspiring, terrifying, shocking… This is a selection of images from our planet, over the past seven days.
Top Stories
South Africa Water Polo has rejected accusations by Swimming South Africa (SSA) that it is directing athletes to boycott SSA structures.
Top Stories
A police captain has been suspended on suspicion of pocketing millions from the service by pretending the cash was needed for transport linked to protecting President Cyril Ramaphosa. This comes barely a week after Daily Maverick first reported on the allegedly fraudulent transactions.

South Africa
Residents in Johannesburg have been living with persistent water cuts for years.

South Africa
The shootout follows intelligence driven information about a business robbery in Soweto

South Africa
SAPS says case of fraud has been registered at the Sunnyside Police Station in Pretoria.

South Africa
Authorities have issued a stern warning to road users that lawlessness will not be tolerated.

World
On April 1, 2001, a midair collision between an American aircraft and a Chinese plane sparked an 11-day diplomatic crisis — and the two countries still tell very different stories.

World
NPR’s Scott Detrow speaks with international law expert Gabor Rona about attacks on civilian infrastructure in the Iran conflict and how they may constitute war crimes.

World
Despite the danger of sea mines, experts say that mine clearing has received minimal attention and funding from the U.S. Navy and is often overshadowed by more high-profile weapons systems.

World
Despite the danger of sea mines, experts say that mine clearing has received minimal attention and funding from the U.S. Navy — and it’s often overshadowed by more high-profile weapons systems.

Africa
The army has been deployed to five of South Africa’s nine provinces for a year-long operation.

Africa
This is just the second time that DR Congo have reached the World Cup finals, sparking celebrations in Kinshasa.

Africa
The new law imposes a maximum penalty of 10 years in jail and criminalises the “promotion” of same-sex relations.

Africa
DR Congo qualify for their first World Cup since 1974 as Axel Tuanzebe’s strike gives the Leopards a 1-0 win over Jamaica in their play-off.

Business
One live music bar firm in Glasgow says it is facing a near six-fold increase and may have to lay off staff.

Business
Cape Town homeowners are being warned that they have until the end of April to check the valuation of their properties.

Business
Chery will start building cars in South Africa next year after it completes the recommissioning of its new Rosslyn plan.

Business
A restaurant in Leamington say rising costs and falling footfall are behind their decision to close.

Politics
Dunga replaces the African National Congress’s (ANC) Lebogang Maile who is now MMC for Education

Politics
She explains, that concern led to calls for reports and intervention in stalled matters

Politics
The Electoral Commission says candidate nominations for the elections is end of July.

Politics
The committee has concluded its investigation into allegations of maladministration at the fund.

Sport
Everton are monitoring John Stones’ contract situation at Manchester City, Sandro Tonali’s representatives contact Real Madrid, Barcelona lead the race to sign Bernardo Silva, plus more.

Sport
Manchester United go out of the Women’s Champions League as Bayern Munich score two late goals in the second leg of their quarter-final to win 2-1 on the night and 5-3 on aggregate.

Sport
England white-ball captain Harry Brook and all-rounder Jacob Bethell are given a caution notice over their conduct on the tour of New Zealand last year.

Sport
Multiple billion-dollar bids have been made for teams in the NBA’s proposed Euros league, BBC Sport understands.
Education
In all, 93 of the 460 academic programs at the university will be closed or paused. No students were majoring in 55 of the programs that are ending.
Education
[Shabait] Secondary school students in Adi-Quala sub-zone have voluntarily contributed 543 units of blood with a view to saving lives through their donated blood. The donation was made during a program conducted from 23 to 26 March.
Education
[Daily Maverick] Basic Education Minister Siviwe Gwarube’s attempts at reform appear to be meeting with serious pushback from within her department – with her own officials allegedly attempting to smear her to ANC MPs.
Education
[SNA] Khartoum, March 30, 2026 (SUNA) – Prime Minister Dr. Kamil Idris reaffirmed the government’s commitment to improving conditions for university faculty, support staff, and research center personnel during a meeting with Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Dr. Ahmed Modawi Musa.

Lifestyle
Springboks coach Rassie Erasmus enjoyed quality time with his family at his daughter Nikki’s university graduation celebration.

Lifestyle
Former Miss South Africa Natasha Joubert has shared her postpartum mental health challenges after giving birth to a baby girl last month.

Lifestyle
Chicken Licken have backtracked on their announcement of discontinuing their infamous rubber band packaging…

Lifestyle
Singer Naledi Aphiwe celebrates a new chapter after announcing she will study for a Bachelor of Business Administration.

Entertainment
A total of R89.5 million in jackpots is up for grabs tonight. Here are your Lotto and Lotto Plus results for 1 April 2026.

Entertainment
Catch up on the biggest stories this Wednesday, 1 April 2026, in our simple daily news update.

Entertainment
A total of R600 000 in jackpots is up for grabs tonight! Here are your winning Daily Lotto and Daily Lotto Plus results for 1 April 2026.

Entertainment
The EFF becomes the fifth party in the GPU.
Science/Tech
ZipNada writes: Two software researchers recently demonstrated how modern AI tools can reproduce entire open-source projects, creating proprietary versions that appear both functional and legally distinct. The partly-satirical demonstration shows how quickly artificial intelligence can blur long-standing boundaries between coding innovation, copyright law, and the open-source principles that...
Science/Tech
In classic Cloudflare fashion, the CDN provider used April Fool’s Day to unveil an actual, “not a joke” product. Today, the company announced EmDash — an open-source “spiritual successor” to WordPress that aims to solve plugin security. Phoronix reports: With the help of AI coding agents, Cloudflare engineers have been rebuilding the WordPress open-source project “from the ground up.” EmDash is...

Science/Tech
The gorgeous Samsung S95F QD-OLED is on super sale ahead of the newest models hitting stores.
Science/Tech
An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: In 2023, the Swedish government announced that the country’s schools would be going back to basics, emphasizing skills such as reading and writing, particularly in early grades. After mostly being sidelined, physical books are now being reintroduced into classrooms, and students are learning to write the old-fashioned way: by hand, with a...

Motoring
The South African car industry achieved incredible sales figures this March, though this momentum is unlikely to continue in April.

Motoring
Prasa is under the microscope following corruption allegations.
Motoring

Motoring
South Africa was hit with substantial petrol and diesel price hikes this week, and the outlook for next month is even worse.
Health
The diseases were removed from a list of tests the agency conducts for state and local health departments. Experts worry that with drastic staff reductions, the testing may not resume.

Health
Social club the Secret Life of Dads aims to provide a safe space for dads to bond with each other, and to learn skills to help them at home.

Health
The Welsh Ambulance Service said newly qualified paramedics would not be offered roles this year due to “financial and operational issues”.

Health
Marie McGrath was diagnosed with bowel cancer at the start of 2026