News in a nutshell

Public servant strike countdown | E-hailing permit mess | Defeated Odinga challenges Kenyan poll | Israel snubs hunger striker | Scotland ends period poverty | Bok women milestones | Do spiders sleep?

Countdown begins: union to ballot public servants on strike

Public Servants Association will conduct a strike ballot after unproductive talks. The industrial action could disrupt schooling and other institutions such as hospitals and government departments.

BusinessLIVE

Disorganised SASSA leaves disabled grant recipients standing in the rain

Khayelitsha chaos continues, but there is hope: from 1 September SASSA services will also be offered at the City of Cape Town’s Kuyasa office.

2022-08-16  |  GroundUp News

A broken permit system, broke drivers, but big bucks for Uber, City of Cape Town

The operating licences system is broken, and drivers are going broke, but raking in big bucks in profit is US ride hailing giant Uber, while the world-class City of Cape Town scores millions in fines.

2022-08-16  |  News24

News From Our Continent

Defeated Odinga says Kenyan election result ‘null and void’

Veteran opposition leader Raila Odinga says he will pursue legal and constitutional options to contest results. William Ruto was officially declared the winner on Monday by a slender margin.

2022-08-16  |  Al Jazeera

Rwanda asylum scheme: Warning over political killings before UK flight

UK ministers who backed sending asylum seekers to Rwanda were warned by their own adviser that its government tortures and kills political opponents.

2022-08-16  |  BBC News

World News

Israel rejects Palestinian hunger striker’s appeal for release

An Israeli military court rejects an appeal for release of hunger striker Khalil Awawdeh, whose health is deteriorating.

2022-08-15  |  Al Jazeera

Ukraine aiming to create chaos within Russian forces, Zelenskiy adviser says

Mykhailo Podolyak says Russian supply lines will be targeted and predicts similar attacks to last week’s explosion at Crimean airbase.

2022-08-16  |  The Guardian

Scotland just showed how easy it is to end ‘period poverty’

Scotland becomes the first country to guarantee the right to free period products. The Period Products Act compels local governments and schools to provide products to anyone who needs them.

2022-08-15  |  Time

The poisoning of the Oder river: what we know so far

Over 80 tonnes of dead fish have so far been found in the Oder river, which runs through Poland and along the border with Germany.

2022-08-15  |  Notes From Poland

Health News

COVID-19: Benefits of vaccines still far outweigh risks, experts say

The one death in more than 9-million doses of J+J vaccine delivered in SA has to be seen in context, says professor after the recent reported death linked to Johnson & Johnson's COVID-19 vaccine

2022-08-16  |  Spotlight

Sport

Springbok women upbeat after a week of milestones, with eyes on the biggest prize

Though their first international rugby match only became a reality 18 years ago, the Springbok women have continually progressed as they displayed in the past week by beating Spain for the first time.

2022-08-16  |  Daily Maverick

And Then There's This ....

Do spiders sleep? Study suggests they may snooze like humans

It's a question that keeps some scientists awake at night so they filmed baby jumping spiders at night to find out. Footage showed spiders’ legs twitched and parts of their eyes flickered.

2022-08-08  |  AP NEWS

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