Eyewitness News

Interest in next week's South African Short Course Championships has grown after the news that four-time Olympic medallist Tatjana Smith (formerly Schoenmaker) will return to competition. The event takes place in Pietermaritzburg from 24 to 27 September.

Firefighters are battling a wind-driven blaze on the mountain slopes above Simondium in the Cape Winelands. The fire is burning above La Plaisir Wine Estate, where strong winds and high fuel loads are making firefighting efforts difficult.

The City of Ekurhuleni said that Julius Mkhwanazi’s dismissal from the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Police Department (EMPD) was necessary to protect the image of the institution. Mkhwanazi was fired on Friday following an internal disciplinary hearing into a series of criminal allegations against him.

Higher Education Minister Buti Manamela said that the National Student Financial Aid Scheme (NSFAS) cap on accommodation for students was to limit escalating costs. Manamela said that before it was introduced, prices were escalating without any proper checks.

Public service commission chairperson, Somadoda Fikeni, has highlighted what he's described as political decisions that have prevented the implementation of policy across governance. Fikeni was on the stand at the Madlanga Commission today as it considers recommendations for its final report.

New proposed legislation to regulate the employment of foreign nationals has been opened for the public to make input and comments. The Employment Services Amendment Bill, among other provisions, will require employers to double-check whether specific skills are available in South Africa before appointing foreign nationals.

A number of political parties are keeping their supporters guessing as to who will take up the proportional seats that they could win in the upcoming municipal councils, opting only to submit the name of a single candidate to the Electoral Commission. Among parties who have gone this route are the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party, ActionSA, Good and Cope.

Religious leaders in Ekurhuleni are calling on the public to vote for leaders who will take the plight of women seriously. The call was made during a prayer march in Kempton Park on Friday, an area where the bodies of some of the nine women murdered have been found since July.

For Bryce Carter, life has always been measured on two wheels. From the moment he first learned to balance as a toddler, riding was never just a pastime- it was a way to experience pure speed and the outdoors. "I've been cycling my whole life since I was two years old," Carter shared with Eyewitness News.

The self-confessed child killer Amber Lee Hughes’ defence is expected to apply to reopen the case following the conclusion of cross-examination to introduce additional evidence from a psychologist or psychiatrist. On Friday, the defence completed its three-day cross-examination of the father of slain four-year-old Nada Jane Challita, who was killed in 2023 by Hughes, her father’s former partner and her preschool teacher.