Australia will take an all-pace attack into the fourth Ashes Test, skipper Steve Smith said Thursday.

West China Cement is seeking to acquire South Africa’s AfriSam, marking the latest push by cement companies from the Asian nation to expand on the continent.

Copper reached an all-time high on Wednesday, alongside precious metals like gold, silver and platinum.

Algeria’s parliament unanimously approved on Wednesday a law declaring France’s colonisation of the country a crime, and demanding an apology and reparations.

Deputy President Paul Mashatile and other leaders in the government of national unity have extended heartfelt wishes for a joyous and blessed festive season to all South Africans.

Seasoned broadcast journalist Graeme Raubenheimer brings you The Lead, News24’s definitive podcast for in-depth reporting. This is The Lead, and this is the South African story.

The South African Weather Service has warned of severe thunderstorms and heavy downpours expected across parts of the country, with scattered showers and warm temperatures in many provinces.

The Libyan army’s chief of staff, Lieutenant General Mohammed Ali Ahmed al-Haddad, has been killed in a plane crash.

Thailand and Cambodia have reported new fighting in their ongoing border conflict, as the first talks between the sides since the latest outbreak of violence get under way.

Limpopo police are searching for a 40-year-old tractor driver who is believed to have been swept away while attempting to cross a flooded river at Rankin’s Pass in the Waterberg District on Monday.

Two police officers were killed in an overnight explosion in Moscow when they tried to stop a suspicious person, Russia’s Investigative Committee said in a statement.

At the time of his death, Hlongwa was facing corruption charges linked to a Special Investigating Unit report that implicated him in alleged fraudulent and corrupt transactions worth R1.2-billion in the provincial health department during his tenure as MEC.

The minister has earned this award by fusing poor timing, questionable priorities and international embarrassment into a single administrative act.

Alicia Koekemoer and her family from Algoa Park have endured a harrowing struggle with her municipality over a malfunctioning sewerage system that has exposed them to health risks, particularly after her husband’s cancer diagnosis. After more than a year of pleas, repairs have finally begun, but the emotional toll of living with raw sewage outside their home has been immense.

The attempt to flee the law by a third suspect in the murder of prosecutor Tracy Brown has been thwarted thanks to a special operation and collaboration between the Eastern Cape and Free State Hawks.