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eNCA
4 hours ago
- eNCA
Russian strikes kill six across Ukraine
Russian strikes across eastern Ukraine killed six people, including a mechanic at a railway station, and wounded at least a dozen people, authorities said Tuesday. "Russian terrorists inflicted a massive strike on the railway infrastructure of Lozova," the Ukrainian Railways company said in a Telegram post. Ukraine's railways have been heavily targeted by Russia's army throughout its invasion, launched in February 2022. Moscow has escalated aerial attacks ahead of a Friday deadline by US President Donald Trump to make progress towards peace or face massive sanctions. The nighttime strikes Lozova in the eastern Kharkiv region left a passenger train mangled and charred, and damaged the station building with a pile of rubble on the platform. Two people were killed in Lozova, Kharkiv Governor Oleg Synegubov said on Telegram. Among them was "a duty mechanic of one of the units," Ukrainian Railways said, adding that several trains have been rerouted. President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia had launched more than 25 Iranian-designed Shahed drones at the city, striking civilian infrastructure. "The railway was damaged, including a depot and a station," he said on social media, adding that 10 people were wounded in the attack. Ukraine's air force said Russia fired 46 attack drones and one ballistic missile in the barrage -- down from the several hundred that Moscow has the capacity to launch. Lozova Mayor Sergiy Zelensky called the strike "the most massive attack" on the city since the beginning of the war. A separate Russian strike on Ukraine's northeast Sumy region killed two more people at an "agricultural enterprise", wounding three employees, authorities said. In the southeastern Zaporizhzhia region, another two people died after "the Russian army hit a house with an FPV drone," governor Ivan Fedorov said. Trumps deadline looms after three rounds of peace talks in Istanbul failed to make headway on a possible ceasefire, with the two sides remaining far apart. Russia's army has escalated attacks and accelerated its advance on the ground to capture more Ukrainian territory.
The South African
5 hours ago
- The South African
Mamelodi Sundowns star at centre of multi-million bidding war
Mamelodi Sundowns striker Peter Shalulile has found himself at the heart of a transfer tug-of-war, with lucrative interest pouring in from North Africa, the Persian Gulf, and Sudan. The only hurdle remains the hefty price tag the Tshwane club has placed on the Namibian star. The 30-year-old, who no longer features in head coach Miguel Cardoso's plans, has attracted concrete interest from Esperance de Tunis, an unnamed Qatari side, and Al Hilal of Sudan, who have entered the race late but with serious intent. Shalulile, who joined Sundowns from Highlands Park in 2020, wasted no time in becoming the club's top marksman, consistently delivering goals across all competitions. However, his form and influence appear to have meant little to Cardoso, who has sidelined the forward during pre-season and excluded him from Sunday's MTN8 quarterfinal against Richards Bay. The writing appeared on the wall when Shalulile, along with Lucas Ribeiro and Khuliso Mudau, failed to make the squad. A club insider confirmed. 'It became crystal clear that he would not be part of the way forward.' Cardoso, when quizzed about Shalulile's absence, dodged the question and pointed to the club's hierarchy for clarity, further fuelling speculation over the striker's future. While Shalulile has reportedly received verbal offers from all three interested clubs, the stumbling block remains Sundowns' valuation. According to a source close to the negotiations, personal terms will not pose a challenge, but the club must agree to the right transfer fee. Despite his recent exclusion, Sundowns activated Shalulile's one-year option after his participation in the FIFA Club World Cup, signalling their intent to either cash in or retain control over the situation. With just one year left on his contract, Sundowns are under pressure to offload the player or risk losing him for free. The coming days will be crucial, as Esperance, the unnamed Qatari outfit, and Al Hilal continue to jostle for his signature. Unless Sundowns reduce their asking price, Shalulile's potential exit could remain in limbo. However, all signs point towards an imminent move. And possibly one of the biggest headlines of the South African transfer window. Let us know by leaving a comment below or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X, and Bluesky for the latest news.
Mail & Guardian
5 hours ago
- Mail & Guardian
How Trump's tariffs exposed South Africa's strategic trade failures
The Trump' administration's trade tariffs have shaken the rand. Photo: File The United States' 30% tariff on South Africa — set to take effect on 1 August 2025 but pushed back seven days — is a grave blow for those diligently modelling costs, yet a distant abstraction for many South Africans who are yet to grasp its economic gravity. Regrettably, in South Africa global economic shocks typically register as background noise, their causes unexamined, their consequences only recognised when unavoidable. Before dissecting our strategic missteps, let's make these abstract forces tangible. Consider first how US President Donald Trump's threats of tariffs shook the rand's foundations in July alone. The currency exhibited heightened volatility, opening at R17.59 before plunging 2.6% to R18.04 by month-end, as markets priced in the impending tariffs. Three distinct phases can be identified: the initial 7 July drop to R17.74 (-1%) on Trump's Brics surcharge threat, a mid-month slump to R17.89 as exemption hopes faded and the final 1.5% 24 to 31 July drop when tariff implementation became certain. Let's also appreciate trade and industry in this context. The South African Revenue Service's Cumulative Trade Report for January to June 2025 revealed that SA exported R68.8 billion worth of goods to the US. Trump's tariffs will probably disproportionately target critical sectors like vehicles and transport equipment (R11.4 billion); machinery (R3.8 billion); iron and steel products (R10.9 billion); chemicals (R4.8 billion) and plastics (R644 million). Despite exempt categories, such as precious metals and iron ores, several mineral categories will suffer, including processed steel, machinery components and industrial chemicals, risking R31.5 billion in vulnerable exports. If these impacts remain abstract, consider the tangible consequences — currency depreciation and trade disruptions will send prices of basic goods soaring, devastate jobs in the auto and mining industries, deepen inequality, shutter factories at an alarming rate, fuel inflationary fires and ignite political instability as economic hardship erodes public trust. Clearly, these repercussions span economic, political and social spheres, raising pressing questions about whether the state could have taken stronger measures to mitigate the coming storm. The evidence suggests decisive action was both possible and necessary. While competent trade negotiation reflects able governance, truly strategic trade diplomacy remains an elusive art — one whose absence we feel acutely in these turbulent economic waters. A few months back, while Washington's theatrics over South Africa's land reform policies dominated headlines, the real tragedy unfolded quietly – that is, the country's mineral baiting approach to trade talks which ultimately ought to have been seen by our government as doomed from inception. Why so? Because Trump's global trade warfare primarily stems from geopolitical anxiety over dwindling US hegemony, not sound economic logic. In such a context, no mineral concessions could sway Washington. Rather than this futile approach, we should have been aggressively pursuing market diversification, accelerating regional industrial partnerships and building shock-absorbent trade architectures. Far from wishful thinking, this has been a deliberate strategic pivot by pragmatic emerging economies. For example, shortly after Trump announced reciprocal tariffs, Southeast Asian states like Cambodia aggressively diversified trade partners through South-South cooperation and the 'China+1' strategy, transforming tariff threats into opportunities. These nations retain their edge as export manufacturing hubs, where labour cost advantages outweigh protectionist headwinds. Regrettably, this was a storm we might have weathered — had we possessed the strategic foresight to act early. Instead, we'll spend the coming quarters, perhaps years, paying for missed opportunities, while our trade and diplomatic machinery scrambles merely to recover lost ground. Siseko Maposa is the director of Surgetower Associates Management Consultancy. The views expressed are his own.
