MICHELLE GUMEDE

A US pastor abducted in South Africa has been rescued after a police shootout
South African law enforcement officials have rescued an American missionary who was abducted by armed and masked men as he was preaching in the Eastern Cape province last week.
 
An American pastor was abducted at gunpoint in South Africa while preaching a sermon
South African police say a missionary was abducted by armed and masked men as he was preaching a sermon before a congregation in Eastern Cape province.
 
FILE- A Lesotho election official makes a phone call as he waits for last minute voters near the eastern Lesotho town of Mokhotlong Saturday May 26, 2012. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay, file)
How tiny Lesotho ended up with the highest US tariffs in the world
U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs have struck among others the small southern African kingdom of Lesotho, one of the world’s poorest nations. Trump announced a 50% tariff on Lesotho, the highest among all countries.
 
In this photo provided by the South African Government Communications and Information Services (GCIS), the Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana speaks before the vote for national budget for 2025 in the National Assembly, in Cape Town, South Africa, Wednesday, April 2, 2025. (Jairus Mmutle/GCIS via AP)
South Africa’s unity government risks collapse as parties clash over national budget
South Africa’s fragile unity government has been shaken again. The country’s second-largest political party broke with partners Wednesday and voted against a national budget.
 
Deputy Minister of Water and Sanitation Isaac Sello Seitlholo tosses out samples of Salvinia minima ferns infected with black weevils onto a carpet of the ferns growing at the Hartbeespoort Dam in South Africa, on March 17, 2025. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)
Scientists hope hungry weevils from Louisiana can tackle South Africa’s invasive water plants
South Africa is unleashing weevils imported from the United States in a bid to fight off the sprouting growth of Salvinia minima, an alien species of aquatic plant native to South America that is choking up dams and rivers.
 
Minister of Finance of South Africa Enoch Godongwana arrives ahead of the state of the nation address by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa at the City Hall in Cape Town, Feb. 8, 2024. (Rodger Bosch/pool photo via AP, file)
South Africa plans to spend more on health and defense after the US cuts aid
Lawmakers in South Africa have laid out plans to shore up the budgets for health and defense but also put up value added tax by 0.5%, a move that will raise the cost of living.
 
Emergency officials walk next to a bus that overturned on a highway in Johannesburg, South Africa, Tuesday, March 11, 2025, killing multiple people and injuring some. (AP Photo/Alfonso Nqunjana)
16 are dead and dozens are hurt after a bus flips on a highway in South Africa
A bus lost control and flipped on a highway early Tuesday near Johannesburg’s international airport, killing 16 as some were thrown from the vehicle.
 
South African sculptor and painter James Delaney speaks to the residents during his official opening his public art installation, at the Killarney Park in Johannesburg, South Africa, Tuesday Feb. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Alfonso Nqunjana)
A South African artist hopes vibrant sculptures make parks more welcoming in a city known for danger
South African sculptor and painter James Delaney wants to encourage people in Johannesburg to engage with parks through public art. It’s a way to counter the city’s reputation for dangerous crime and bring more people into public spaces.
 
A coal-fired power station in Witbank, South Africa, Monday, Oct. 11, 2021. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe, File)
The US has withdrawn from a climate agreement that helps developing nations, South Africa says
The United States has withdrawn from a climate agreement where rich nations have pledged billions of dollars to help a small group of developing countries switch from coal to green energy sources.
 
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa addresses the opening session of the G20 foreign ministers meeting in Johannesburg, South Africa, Feb. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay, File)
South African president slams Afrikaner lobby group’s White House visit
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has slammed a visit by a lobby group for the country’s white minority Afrikaner community to the White House this week. The visit comes as tensions with the Trump administration escalate.
 
Placeholders prepare for the family photo of the G20 foreign ministers meeting that was later cancelled in Johannesburg, South Africa, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)
Foreign ministers talk war in Ukraine and other conflicts on last day of G20 meeting in South Africa
Foreign ministers and senior diplomats from leading rich and developing countries focused on global conflicts, including the Russia-Ukraine war, on the last day of their meeting in South Africa.
 
British Foreign Secretary David Lammy arrives for the opening session of the G20 foreign ministers meeting in Johannesburg, South Africa, Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Jerome Delay)
UK foreign secretary questions Russia’s ‘appetite’ for peace and challenges Lavrov at tense G20 meet
U.K. Foreign Secretary David Lammy says he saw no appetite for peace from Russia in Ukraine after listening to a speech by Russia’s top diplomat at a tense Group of 20 meeting in South Africa.
 
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio disembarks from an aircraft, in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Wednesday, Feb. 19, 2025. (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool Photo via AP)
Rubio will skip a G20 meeting after calling host South Africa’s policies anti-American
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will skip a meeting of foreign ministers from the leading rich and developing nations, known as the Group of 20, that starts on Thursday.