Pierre de Vos

Initiative may be slipping away from US and Israel as Middle East crisis deepens There is little sign of imminent regime change in Iran as its blockade of strait of Hormuz shocks global economy

Initiative may be slipping away from US and Israel as Middle East crisis deepens. www.theguardian.com/world/2026/m...

Pierre de Vos | The many reasons why Bozell can’t preach to SA | News24 Newly arrived US Ambassador Brent Bozell – who once called the ANC “terrorists” – recently sparked outrage by dismissing South African court independence while hypocritically demanding the country ban...

🔒Pierre de Vos | The many reasons why Bozell can’t preach to SA www.news24.com/opinions/ana... via @news24

South African photographer Zanele Muholi: ‘My mother worked for a white family. I remember the pools I wasn’t allowed to swim in’ The artist has spent three decades changing the face of African art, and has just won the prestigious Hasselblad award. But they say the win isn’t about them – it’s for under-represented people still ...

South African photographer Zanele Muholi: ‘My mother worked for a white family. I remember the pools I wasn’t allowed to swim in’. www.theguardian.com/artanddesign...

Trump calls Iran leaders ‘deranged scumbags’ as Middle East violence spirals Tehran residents report relentless bombing with US and Israeli planes launching wave of attacks

Every accusation is a confession: Trump calls Iran leaders ‘deranged scumbags’ as Middle East violence spirals. www.theguardian.com/world/2026/m...

Tehran diary: dark and bitter, the terror of life under US-Israeli bombardment Elahi, a former political prisoner writing under a pseudonym, details a sleepless night in the Iranian capital

Tehran diary: dark and bitter, the terror of life under US-Israeli bombardment. A former political prisoner details a sleepless night in the Iranian capital. www.theguardian.com/world/2026/m...

Ilan Pappé, On the Warpath — Sidecar Israel’s regional stategy.

Illan Pappé: "Those determining the present Israeli strategy are explicit about its roots in the teaching of messianic Zionism and their vision of the present war as divine fulfilment." newleftreview.org/sidecar/post...

Four-day work weeks and school closures across Asia whilst some Europeans back Trump's energy-disrupting war on Iran. The strategic incoherence is staggering.

Art meets activism: Zanele Muholi wins Hasselblad Award, the ‘Nobel Prize of photography’ | News24 Renowned South African photographer and visual activist Zanele Muholi has won the 2026 Hasselblad Award, the prestigious international photography prize presented annually in Gothenburg, Sweden.

👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽Art meets activism: Zanele Muholi wins Hasselblad Award, the ‘Nobel Prize of photography’. www.news24.com/southafrica/...

Johann Rupert leads donors’ charge against Stellenbosch University chair Donors wield influence in Stellenbosch leadership dispute

Johann Rupert has teamed up with former Con Court justice, Edwin Cameron (defender of abusive practices at Wilgenhof residence), in a bid to oust council chair Nicky Newton-King in a move underscoring the power university donors have on institutions. www.timeslive.co.za/news/south-a...

How the US far right bought into the myth of white South Africa’s persecution The long read: When Trump granted white South Africans refugee status, he was echoing a falsehood about Black people taking revenge for years of brutality. But no one flourishes in a repressive police...

How the US far right bought into the myth of white South Africa’s persecution. www.theguardian.com/news/2026/ma...

Andrew O’Hagan · Stay Classy: Mummy’s Favourite The late queen can be held responsible for much, but nobody could accuse her of seeming to enjoy her role. For the...

"In the days​ of disco and Aramis 900, when the relationship between entitlement and sleaze could still seem novel, Prince Andrew came across like the more relatable sort of wanker, high on royal privilege but in touch with the inner life of the standard British male." www.lrb.co.uk/the-paper/v4...

So Badenoch, Farage and Blair think the Iran war is a great idea? Hmm … | John Crace Kemi may be all in favour, but at least economic realpolitik is forcing her to take a slightly different tack

"Without hesitation they promised their undying support for the orange man child, who is one half extreme emotional damage and the other half rambling idiot with no idea of what he is saying from one sentence to the next." www.theguardian.com/world/2026/m...

‘Charismatic and extremely confident’: how to recognise – and handle – a psychopath Psychologist Leanne ten Brinke has spent decades studying toxic personality traits. What are the red flags to look out for among workmates, politicians and potential partners?

‘Charismatic and extremely confident’: how to recognise – and handle – a psychopath. www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...

Jonny Steinberg | The tragedy of Ramaphosa: Success without succession spells disaster | News24 Cyril Ramaphosa’s presidency may go down as one of the great political tragedies of our time – but not for the reasons most people think, writes Jonny Steinberg.

🔒Jonny Steinberg | Motsepe is also "a man with a very large ego who overestimates his intelligence, his capabilities and his worth". www.news24.com/opinions/col...

DUMA GQUBULE | Voters must punish insulting and self-absorbed leaders Reality undercuts Ramaphosa's attempt to inspire impoverished household

🔒”Treasury cares only about pleasing financial markets. These are the top 1% who think the Treasury is doing a good job — those who have never been to a squatter camp or seen the pain in the eyes of unemployed people in their families.” www.businessday.co.za/opinion/2026...

Chaos precinct: How traders from Ethiopia have remade downtown Jozi A meticulously researched book reveals Jeppe as a dense and vibrant Ethiopian-led trading ecosystem – a migrant-built port city hidden inside the Johannesburg CBD’s supposed decline.…

Chaos precinct: How traders from Ethiopia have remade downtown Jozi. The book challenges dominant narratives of inner-city decay, revealing instead how this informal entrepôt functions as a dense ecosystem. www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026...

Chaos precinct: How traders from Ethiopia have remade downtown Jozi A meticulously researched book reveals Jeppe as a dense and vibrant Ethiopian-led trading ecosystem – a migrant-built port city hidden inside the Johannesburg CBD’s supposed decline.…

Chaos precinct: How traders from Ethiopia have remade downtown Jozi. The book challenges dominant narratives of inner-city decay, revealing instead how this informal entrepôt functions as a dense ecosystem. www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026...

Tenders, tycoons, and threats — Suleiman Carrim describes deals with ‘Cat’ Matlala, Morgan Maumela ANC-linked businessman Suleiman Carrim not only had links with alleged organised crime figure Vusimuzi ‘Cat’ Matlala and ANC fixer Brown Mogotsi, but was also connected to tender tycoon Hangwani Maume...

Tenders, tycoons, and threats — Suleiman Carrim describes deals with ‘Cat’ Matlala, Morgan Maumela www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026...

‘Project Gnome’: How security police forged memorandum that tricked ANC and changed history A forged memorandum that misled the ANC and that forms part of evidence to the Khampepe inquiry into delayed Truth and Reconciliation Commission prosecutions, reveals a dark chapter in South Africa’s ...

‘Project Gnome’: How security police forged a memorandum that tricked ANC and changed history www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026...

Trump’s Fantasy Is Crashing Down www.nytimes.com/2026/03/06/o...

Happening on 18 March at UCT. If you would like to attend, please RSVP to mark.gaffley@gmail.com.

More than a month since the minister of defence announced a board of inquiry into the failure of SANDF generals to implement instruction to exclude Iran from naval exercises. Not a word since. Has the whole unlawful scheme been dropped?

ANC demands that DA removes Lesufi shower billboard After Gauteng’s premier admitted using hotels during water cuts, the DA turned the moment into a billboard — and the ANC now wants it removed, warning of court action over the AI-generated image.…

Ntanga said the court action would be brought in terms of the Electoral Act’s Electoral Code of Conduct. However, the code is only applicable once an election has been called — the local government election date has not been set. www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026...

Kristi Noem confronts grim truth that everyone is expendable in Trump world Many will regard the ex-secretary of homeland security, Trump’s first fired cabinet member, as the worst yet seen

Kristi Noem once led a dog to a gravel pit and ended its life with the cold precision of a mafia hit. On Thursday, she confronted the grim truth that she, too, was expendable when she became the first cabinet member fired in Donald Trump’s second term. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026...

South African President Talks Trump, Racism and That Oval Office ‘Ambush’

South African President Talks Trump, Racism and That Oval Office ‘Ambush’ www.nytimes.com/2026/03/05/w...

MMC and journalists held hostage in Alexandra ‘brothel’ during cleanup operation A cleanup operation in Alexandra escalates into a hostage situation as Johannesburg officials and journalists are trapped in a suspected brothel amid rising public outcry over lawlessness.…

MMC and journalists held hostage in Alexandra ‘brothel’ during cleanup operation www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026...

Ex-ANC MP Vincent Smith jailed for 7 years over Bosasa kickbacks and tax fraud | News24 Former ANC MP Vincent Smith has been sentenced to seven years’ imprisonment for corruption charges, including kickbacks he received from Bosasa.

🔒Zuma-era ANC MP, Vincent Smith, jailed for 7 years over Bosasa kickbacks and tax fraud www.news24.com/southafrica/...

The Machiavellian shadow: Former top prosecutor testifies how Thabo Mbeki thwarted post-TRC justice In a searing indictment of South Africa’s post-apartheid leadership, top prosecutor Anton Ackermann detailed a systematic, state-sanctioned campaign to bury Truth and Reconciliation Commission cases, ...

The Machiavellian shadow: Former top prosecutor testifies how Thabo Mbeki thwarted post-TRC justice www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026...

Beneath SA’s cop scandal — intensifying distrust and multiple investigations into law enforcers Several investigations into police officers are under way alongside two parallel hearings into whether a cartel has infiltrated South Africa’s law enforcement, adding to the already deep distrust amon...

Beneath SA’s cop scandal — intensifying distrust and multiple investigations into law enforcers www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026...

Al Jazeera investigation: Iran girls’ school targeting likely ‘deliberate’ Al Jazeera investigation raises questions over deadliest single attack of war that killed 165 schoolgirls and staff.

Al Jazeera investigation: Iran girls’ school targeting likely ‘deliberate’. Al Jazeera investigation raises questions over deadliest single attack of war on Iran that killed 165 schoolgirls and staff. www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/3/...