The ANC has appointed Nobuhle Nkabane as its deputy chief whip in Parliament. She replaces party veteran Doris Mpapane after the latter was elected as chairperson of the newly-constituted portfolio committee on the Presidency.

Parliament approved legislation doubling prison sentences and increasing fines for same-sex relations. Activists say the move reflects a broader push for stricter anti-LGBT laws in the region.

The Six Nations reaches a thrilling climax this Saturday, with France, Scotland and Ireland in the running for the title. Meanwhile, England will have something to prove in Paris, and before a monumental clash against the Springboks in July.

Reigning South African champions Mamelodi Sundowns will host Germany club RB Leipzig in a friendly on 29 May 2026. The Leipzig hierarchy says the idea was born after Sundowns’ appearance at the 2025 Club World Cup.

Senegal’s National Assembly late on Wednesday overwhelmingly passed a bill doubling the maximum prison term for same-sex sexual acts to 10 years and criminalising any efforts to promote homosexuality.

The first passenger train service between the Chinese and North Korean capitals left Beijing Railway Station on Thursday, ending a six-year gap, as China moves to shore up cross-border infrastructure and rebuild ties with its neighbour.

Iran will allow Indian-flagged tankers to transit the Strait of Hormuz, a conduit for 40% of the South Asian nation’s crude imports, an Indian government source said on Thursday, but an Iranian source outside the country denied any such deal was reached.

Two tankers were ablaze in Iraqi waters on Thursday, an apparent escalation in Iranian attacks that have cut off Middle East energy supplies, defying President Donald Trump’s claim to have already won the war he launched two weeks ago.

SA National Defence Force soldiers were in Randfontein, Gauteng on Thursday, attempting to dismantle illegal mining activities.