A team of doctors in rural Mankweng, Limpopo, has successfully separated conjoined twin boys in a groundbreaking procedure.
The delicate seven-hour operation, led by Professor Nyaweleni Tshifularo, was conducted on 17 March.
The identical twins, now two months old, were born on 28 January, joined at the abdomen, sharing a liver and other vital organs.
Limpopo Premier Phophi Ramathuba described the operation as a rare, life-changing achievement for a rural public health facility.
READ: Hope as Limpopo plans historic separation of conjoined twins
She said the case required close collaboration between surgeons, paediatric specialists, anaesthetists, and nurses.
She confirmed that the twins are in a stable condition and that doctors continue to monitor their recovery.
Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, Tshifularo said the team had conducted a thorough study to understand the twins’ connection before surgery.
He noted the procedure was highly complex because the babies were joined at the trunk and shared certain organs.
READ: Conjoined twins successfully separated in Limpopo
“This is a great day for the province, the country and my team," he said.
"The twins were delivered here, and with a team of specialists, we knew we had what it takes to have the surgery done here.”
He added that the team began preparations early in the morning, including a session of pastoral care to support everyone involved before the procedure.
President Cyril Ramaphosa also congratulated the team.
Parliament's SAPS Ad Hoc Committee finished it's work on Tuesday.
KwaZulu-Natal Police Commissioner Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi appeared on the last day.
President Cyril Ramaphosa sent a written response to the Committee, saying he did not approve the disbanding of the Political Killings Task Team (PKTT).
Ramaphosa revealed that around 1 February 2025, he was informed by Police Commissioner Fannie Masemola that Police Minister Senzo Mchunu had instructed the team’s disbandment.
Ramaphosa stated that he was dissatisfied with not being consulted and emphasized that the decision to disband PKTT was not solely the minister’s to make.
Mkhwanazi has also told Committee members that shouting and screaming are not solutions to oversight.
READ: Shouting in Parliament won’t fix oversight, says KZN top cop Mkhwanazi
He criticised parliamentary committees for being ineffective in carrying out their oversight duties.
He said weak oversight has allowed corruption and inefficiencies to persist across many government departments.
Committee Chair Soviet Lekganyane said they will now be moving to the next phase of its work. They will now begin drafting their final report.
They are now working towards their end-of-March deadline to submit their findings and recommendations to the Speaker of Parliament.
Senegal's football authorities said they will appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport after the country was stripped of the Africa Cup of Nations title on Tuesday.
Several Senegalese players controversially walked off the pitch in Rabat during the final on January 18 in protest when the hosts were awarded a penalty late in second-half stoppage time.
READ: Senegal stripped of AFCON title, Morocco declared champions
After Senegal's players eventually returned having been coaxed back onto the pitch by captain Sadio Mane, Morocco missed the penalty and Pape Gueye went on to score the goal in extra time that gave his team a 1-0 victory.
CAF said that having studied Morocco's appeal, "the Senegal national team is declared to have forfeited the match" and the result was "officially recorded as 3-0" in favour of Morocco.
READ: Stripping Senegal of AFCON title a 'disgrace for Africa' say fans
The CAF Appeals Committee justified its decision by applying Articles 82 and 84 of the AFCON Regulations, which state that if a team "refuses to play or leaves the ground before the regular end of the match without the authorisation of the referee, it shall be considered (loser) and shall be eliminated for good from the current competition".
uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP) has reinstated John Hlophe as the party's first Deputy President and Parliamentary leader.
He will now resume responsibilities both in party structures, and in Parliament with immediate effect.
READ: John Hlophe reinstated as first Deputy President of MK Party
The party announced this on Wednesday. The move comes after internal deliberations following Hlophe's suspension last year.
He was accused of crossing the line by axing the party's Chief Whip, Colleen Makhubela, without informing the leadership.
Following internal deliberations, the party said Jacob Zuma held a bilateral meeting with Hlophe, during which the allegations were thoroughly discussed leading to his reinstation.
The Madlanga Commission is hearing evidence that presents police sergeant Fannie Nkosi as a crooked cop who was a link between corrupt SAPS generals and a crime cartel.
Chief Evidence leader Matthew Chaskalson has presented evidence revealing that Nkosi called Vusimusi "Cat" Matlala several times.
These calls were made before Matlala was raided by a Gauteng counter-intelligence operation.
The SAPS were searching for the kidnapped Jerry Boshoga, who is still missing and presumed dead.
Witness C, a counter-intelligence officer at SAPS, told the Commission last year he believed the reason they didn’t find Boshoga at Matlala's home was that he had been moved.
The commission further questioned Nkosi on why he leaked sensitive information to businessman Steve Motsumi, who has close links to Matlala.
Nkosi has been linked to a variety of people who call him 007. Of these people, as highlighted by the Commission, is businessman Zenzile 'Ze' Nxumalo.
He denied that his moniker does not mean he has a license to kill for these people.
READ: Sibiya fond of Mkhwanazi, Witness F tells Madlanga Commission
Testifying at the Madlanga Commission on Monday, Nkosi said that he goes by a variety of names, including the police hotline number, 10111, Knight Rider, and 007. All of these monikers are merely terms of endearment from people who know him.
Through Nxumalo, Nkosi was was influenced to have blogger Musa Khawula arrested. it is alleged that Khawula was trying to extort controversial businessman Vusimusi 'Cat' Matlala.
READ: LIVE | Sergeant Fannie Nkosi returns to Madlanga Commission
On Thursday allegations of tender manipulation dominated Nkosi's testimony. He dropped the names of Tshwane MMC Kholofelo Morodi and EFF leader Julius Malema.
Morodi is accused of sharing confidential tender documents and Malema allegedly tried to influence tender processes.
Morodi, Tshwane's Corporate and Shared Services MMC has been suspended after being implicated at the Commission for sharing internal tender documents with Nkosi.
Matipandile Sotheni, a former member of the SAPS’ highly trained Special Task Force, was arrested for the murder of Marius van der Marwe, also known as Witness D.
Sotheni made a brief appearance in the Brakpan Magistrate's Court on Monday. The case was postponed to 25 March for a bail application.
Sotheni faces several charges including murder, conspiracy to commit murder, attempted murder and being in possession of an unlicensed firearm.
READ: From SAPS Task Force to murder accused: Ex-cop named in killing of Witness D
The 41-year-old was arrested in Johannesburg at the weekend by a specialised task team probing information from the Madlanga Commission.
Van der Merwe was killed in a hail of bullets in a drive-by shooting on 5 December outside his Brakpan home. Police are still searching for the AK47 used in the murder.
Police believe Sotheni and Wiandre Pretorius, who killed himself in February, were the two occupants of the Suzuki Swift used in Van der Merwe's drive-by shooting.
READ: Van der Merwe's alleged murderer a highly trained former police officer
Pretorius was allegedly the driver, while Sotheni pulled the trigger. The vehicle is said to belong to Sotheni’s girlfriend.
The former cop, who cut a lonely figure as he appeared in court, joined the SAPS in 2005. He trained to become part of the elite Special Task Force in 2010.
Nine years later, in 2019, he resigned and went into the private sector. At the time of his arrest, Sotheni was employed as a bodyguard for a Houghton businessman, police said.
READ: Family of slain Witness D demands all killers be brought to justice
“It is so unfortunate that a highly trained, specialised former member can appear in court on such a serious charge,” said Brigadier Athlenda Mathe, SAPS spokesperson, detailing Sotheni’s alleged involvement in the murder.
While police investigations are ongoing, Mathe said it is believed Van der Merwe was killed after linking certain individuals to the brutal 2022 murder of Emmanuel Mbense during his testimony before the Madlanga Commission in November.
Mbense was killed in 2022 in Brakpan, and his body was later dumped in a dam.
Mathe said police were hot on the heels of more suspects in the case.