Discovery launches unique service for South Africans wanting to travel to the UK
Discovery has launched South Africa’s first dedicated UK visa application centre at its Sandton head office for clients of its bank.
Top Stories
The angels among us: Tristan Smit’s story of hope and survival
Fifteen years ago, a little boy was given six weeks. Today, Tristan Smit has a story, a future, and a 17th birthday behind him.
News24 | Roedean board chair resigns after controversy over cancelled tennis match with King David
Roedean School board chairperson Dale Quaker has resigned with immediate effect.
South African tech giant coming after Eskom
Blu Label’s energy subsidiary has obtained a licence that will allow it to buy and sell electricity in South Africa.
Donald Trump’s man on the ground is here
US President Donald Trump’s pick for ambassador to South Africa, conservative activist and writer Leo Brent Bozell III, has arrived in the country where he will seek to improve fraught ties between the two states.
Donald Trump’s ambassador arrives in South Africa
US President Donald Trump’s pick for ambassador to South Africa, conservative activist and writer Leo Brent Bozell III, has arrived in the country where he will seek to improve fraught ties between the two states.
South Africa’s army is at breaking point, and water-shedding quietly begins in Gauteng
These are the key developments happening in South Africa today, 17 February 2026.
Cyril Ramaphosa celebrates matric pass rate while 80% of grade 4 learners can’t read for meaning
President Cyril Ramaphosa hailed South Africa’s record 88% matric pass rate in 2025. While this is impressive, it masks declining education quality and a workforce ill-equipped for a modern economy.
Leo Brent Bozell III lands in South Africa: Will US ambassador receive a warm welcome?
Bozell, US President Donald Trump’s pick for ambassador to SA, still has to present to his credentials to President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Top private schools in South Africa officially shut down for good
Two of South Africa’s top private schools, King David Victory Park and Mayfair Convent School, have officially shut down, with both campuses expected to be sold.
News24 | School tragedies: Boy killed by falling goalpost, 15 pupils injured in transport crash
A 10-year-old boy died when a soccer goalpost fell on him at Reagile Primary School in Winnie Mandela, Tembisa, and 15 pupils were injured in a scholar transport accident between Pretoria West and Hartbeespoort.
VAT warning for South Africa
The South African Revenue Service is set to intensify VAT compliance monitoring, refund scrutiny, audits, and data-driven enforcement to boost revenue without raising rates.
THE INTERVIEW: Diplomatic Ties delivers survival, power and page-turning prose
In conversation with Daily Maverick’s Book Editor at Large, Joy Watson, author Mpho Boshego reflects on her journey from diplomat to author.
News24 | From beat patrol to boot camp: How this Mitchells Plain cop keeps kids off the streets
Instead of switching off after work, Mitchells Plain police officer Constable Sinovuyo Seti changes into training gear, grabs his cones and hula hoops, and steps onto the open pitch in front of his house to prepare for a different kind of duty – one aimed at keeping children off the streets and out of gangs.
Robert Duvall, ‘Tender Mercies’ Oscar winner, dies at 95
Feb 16 (Reuters) – Oscar winner Robert Duvall, a versatile actor who made lasting impressions in a range of parts from starring to supporting roles like the napalm-loving colonel of Apocalypse Now, or the spectral Boo Radley in To Kill a Mockingbird, has died at age 95, his wife said in a Facebook post.
Zelensky warns of new Russian strikes ahead of Geneva peace talks
Feb 16 (Reuters) – President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Monday that Ukrainian intelligence showed more Russian attacks on energy targets lay ahead and that such strikes made it more difficult to reach an agreement on ending the nearly four-year war.
India seizes three Iran-linked US-sanctioned tankers, source says
NEW DELHI, Feb 16 (Reuters) – India has seized three U.S.-sanctioned oil tankers linked to Iran this month and stepped up surveillance in its maritime zone to curb illicit trade, a source said on Monday, confirming a post on X by Indian authorities earlier in February that had been deleted.
Nigeria says 100 more U.S. military personnel arrive to tackle Islamists
DAKAR, Feb 16 (Reuters) – About 100 U.S. military personnel have arrived in Nigeria as Washington scales up an operation to target Islamist insurgents, a Nigerian defence spokesperson said.
Your gut to government policies: sorghum, small-scale farmers and soil studies
Challenges for farmers and the food industry’s stability include inconsistent sorghum supply, high production costs and how our food systems are organised. The impact of these and other issues were outlined at the Food Imbizo.
CAUGHT IN THE CROSSFIRE: Bay gang violence: ‘Our parents are burying us’ say residents, as police downplay crisis
While Nelson Mandela Bay’s police chief says gang-related violence in the city’s northern areas is ‘nowhere close’ to the Western Cape, residents paint a bleak picture of persistent violent crime. ‘I know the pain of losing family members to gang violence,’ said one resident.