Mon séjour en Afrique du Sud (Cape Town)

Two robbers were shot and killed in an attempted housebreaking in Krugersdorp on the West Rand yesterday morning, Netcare 911 said. The emergency service said the two men gained entry to a home in Rangeview around 4.30am. The house owner’s mother-in-law heard a noise in her room, saw the intruders and started screaming, before running out of the room. Her husband, who was still in his room, sustained injuries to his right leg and suspected rib fractures after he was kicked and beaten by the men. The owner of the house went to the aid of his in-laws, and in the ensuing gunfight, both attackers were killed. The father-in-law was taken to hospital and is in a stable condition. – Sapa

A former homeland defence chief will head the SA National Defence Force (SANDF) Joint Operations, it was announced yesterday. Defence Minister Mosiuoa Lekota said Lieutenant-General Themba Templeton Matanzima, who once headed the former homeland Transkei’s Defence Force, would assume his new position on September 1. The position has been vacant since November last year, when Lieutenant-General Sipho Binda died after minor surgery. Major-General Derrick Mbuyiselo Mgwebi would take over as lieutenant-general from Matanzima. – Sapa

President Thabo Mbeki visited the University of Limpopo in Polokwane yesterday for a briefing on preparations for the ANC’s national conference in December. The visit by Mbeki and other senior party members followed media reports casting doubt on the university’s readiness to host the event. A subsequent ANC national executive statement confirmed its decision to hold the conference in Limpopo. ANC spokesperson Steyn Speed said Mbeki, national chairperson Mosiuoa Lekota, the treasurer, the deputy secretary-general and five other NEC members attended the meeting. “The general message is that all the requirements are in hand. Obviously there are logistical challenges, given the infrastructure at the university, but these shouldn’t derail the conference,” Speed said. – Sapa

Task teams have been established to investigate bomb attacks on automated teller machines in every province where they had taken place, police said yesterday. National police spokesperson Superintendent Ronnie Naidoo said each province had its own task team to investigate the ATM bombings. He said the task teams were co-ordinated at national level. Already some suspects had been arrested after being linked to ATM blasts. Naidoo added that investigations in these cases could lead to more arrests. – Sapa

Two South African Defence Force soldiers were killed and three injured in an accident on the N1 highway near Bloemfontein yesterday. Police spokesperson Superintendent Annelie Wrensch said the accident happened around 10am about 25km south of Bloemfontein. “Five SANDF members stationed at 44 Parachute Regiment at Tempe were travelling to Tierpoort in a Land Rover to attend a course.” Wrensch said the driver apparently lost control of the vehicle and it collided with a tree. All the injured are being treated at 3 Military Hospital.