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SBV Security Services is offering a R100 000 reward for any information on a cash-in-transit heist gang.

One security guard was shot dead while loading an Absa ATM in Three Rivers in Vereeniging on Monday morning.

The eight men escaped in two cars with an undisclosed amount of cash.

SBV’s Kobus Swart said it was desperately trying to track down these men.

Iran outlined to the U.N. nuclear watchdog on Monday a deal to give up some of its enriched uranium but diplomats said the gesture would have no effect on a push to widen sanctions against Tehran over its atomic activity.

Western powers see the pact, reflecting one Iran backed out of six months ago, as overtaken by events including escalating enrichment by Tehran. Along with Russia and China, they have drafted a fourth U.N. sanctions resolution against Iran.

Iran has threatened to ditch the plan if it is hit with another resolution, envisaged for adoption next month.

The proposal to swap low-enriched uranium (LEU) for fuel to run an Iranian medical research reactor, aimed at allaying fears Iran is trying to amass fissile material for nuclear weapons, was agreed last week by Tehran with Turkey and Brazil.

Some diplomats say prospects for the deal look bleak unless Iran stops enriching uranium to higher levels, a process it started in February stoking Western fears it ultimately aims to produce bomb-grade material. Iran says its higher enrichment is to produce fuel for the reactor at the centre of the swap deal.

In a letter handed to the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Monday, Iranian nuclear programme chief Ali Akbar Salehi said he expected a "positive response" and that negotiations could lead the way to a written agreement.

But a senior big power diplomat said Iran’s letter would have no impact on the sanctions deliberations and added that Brazil and Turkey were not actively participating in discussions on the draft resolution.

As in October, Iran has agreed to transfer 1,200 kg (2,646 lb) of LEU -- enough for an atom bomb if enriched to high purity -- abroad in return for special fuel rods to replenish the stocks of its medical isotope reactor.

The IAEA said agency chief Yukiya Amano had passed on the letter to the United States, France and Russia to consider.

The three countries are parties to the original fuel swap pact brokered by Amano’s predecessor, Mohamed ElBaradei, last October but which stumbled on subsequent Iranian demands for wholesale amendments.

Salehi accused the other parties to the deal of imposing "unjustified conditions" which held up progress, according to a copy of the letter obtained by Reuters.

TURKEY AS MIDDLEMAN IN FUEL SWAP

Under the deal Iran’s LEU would be kept in a third country -- Turkey -- under IAEA supervision, still officially Iranian property, until Tehran received the fuel rods. Previously the LEU was to be sent to Russia and France for processing, with the fuel rods provided to Iran around a year later.

World powers have voiced doubt about the value of the new offer since 1,200 kg no longer represents the bulk of a stockpile that has grown significantly since then. That means Iran could still be left with enough for a nuclear warhead.

Iran has also started refining uranium to a higher level.

"They say the higher enrichment is to make fuel for the reactor. Why would they continue to do this if they get the fuel?" a Western diplomat said. "If they carry on like this then I would be very surprised if this fuel deal goes anywhere."

Turkey and Brazil -- both currently non-permanent members of the Security Council -- have urged a halt to talk of further sanctions because of the deal. But Western powers see it as an Iranian stalling tactic to derail more biting sanctions.

Iran’s envoy to the IAEA, in remarks unlikely to defuse Western suspicions, made clear the fuel swap would not restrict escalating uranium enrichment in Iran in any way. "This is not the issue," Ali Asghar Soltanieh told Reuters by telephone.

"We expect (this offer) to be realized as soon as possible," he said in a message to France, Russia and the United States.

Turkey said the letter was "positive and constructive." "We expect the recipients of the letter to show a similar attitude," a foreign ministry spokesman told the Anatolian news agency.

Israel’s deputy prime minister Dan Meridor said the deal could be a sign Tehran is feeling pressure but added that it may also be a trick.

The new, extended sanctions would target Iranian banks and call for inspection of vessels suspected of carrying cargo related to Iran’s nuclear or missile programmes.

Iran has been under sanctions since 2006 over its refusal to suspend enrichment -- technology that can produce fuel for electricity or for atomic bombs -- and open up entirely to IAEA inspections and investigations.

The National Prosecuting Authority on Monday urged members of the community to blow the whistle on human trafficking during the 2010 FIFA World Cup and beyond.

It launched the Red Card to Human Trafficking campaign with the Justice Department, the World Cup Organising Committee and the Commission on Gender Equality.

A similar campaign was launched in Germany four years ago where 40 000 people were reportedly trafficked during the 2006 World Cup.

Public Prosecutions Director Advocate Thoko Majokweni said prevention awareness in communities will begin this week.

“We are going to go to members of the community and advise them on human trafficking. We have people who are trained that will be doing that,” said Majokweni.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi’s ruling party is set for a landslide victory in a national election fought amid opposition accusations the government had stifled dissent.

Provisional results released by Ethiopia’s electoral board showed on Monday that the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF) and allies won an overwhelming number of votes in nine out of 11 regions and cities to declare so far.

"Definitely, at this point the EPRDF has won, definitely," Merga Bekana, chairman of the Ethiopian National Electoral Board (NEBE), told reporters.

Some analysts said a convincing win would give the former rebel leader the chance to accelerate development in Washington’s main regional ally and improve its democratic record before Meles quits as planned in 2015.

"It is essential that both supporters and opponents of the EPRDF take advantage of this situation in a constructive way to ensure that democracy makes serious progress in Ethiopia," said David Shinn, a former U.S. ambassador to Ethiopia.

"If that happens, it could be the EPRDF’s most important legacy. If it fails, it may relegate the EPRDF to the dustbin of history," he told Reuters.

But the extent of the provisional victory left some Ethiopians worried about how the opposition might react.

Some opposition leaders began complaining the election was flawed before polling booths closed, saying the EPRDF had routinely intimated and harassed critics in the days and months ahead of the election.

A 2005 poll descended into riots that killed 193 protesters and seven policemen when a different opposition coalition said it was cheated of victory after a campaign which captured the imagination of many Ethiopians.

Analysts said if the poll were given a clean bill of health by European Union observers on Tuesday morning there would be little momentum for critics to mount a convincing challenge.

OPPOSITION CRUSHED

If the EU said the poll was flawed, however, it might embolden the opposition to challenge the result and take to the streets in protest as they did in 2005.

The government has warned that any politicians who attempt to spark post-election violence will be held responsible. Top opposition leaders were jailed en masse after the 2005 chaos.

The EPRDF crushed an eight-party opposition coalition known as Medrek in Oromia, the country’s most populous region and traditionally a stronghold for opponents. The electoral board said the EPRDF had 3,927,673 votes and Medrek just 117,790.

Medrek did better in the capital Addis Ababa in terms of votes, but the electoral board said it was likely to win only one seat out of 21, with two more left to declare. In 2005, the opposition swept the board in Addis and other cities.

The board said the results were from about 75 percent of the country’s 43,500 polling stations, although the number of votes declared appeared somewhat low given 32 million people had registered to vote and the turnout was said to be high.

Meles told Reuters in an interview on Sunday his party would win as it had presided over seven years of double-digit growth and had begun to reform the political and judicial landscape.

While nearly 10 percent of the population relied on emergency food aid last year, the government has invested heavily in infrastructure and Meles now wants to step up power production, improve telecommunications and develop industry.

European Union election observers said on Sunday the poll was peaceful and calm, albeit with some claims of irregularities that needed to be checked.

New York-based Human Rights Watch said on Monday that international observers should condemn voter intimidation, drawing a sharp response from the government.

"Human Rights Watch and other so-called human rights organisations are instruments by which powerful ideologies are imposed on independent states who resist them," government spokesman Shimeles Kemal told Reuters.

The judge hearing the Mail & Guardian’s application to see a report on Zimbabwe’s 2002 elections on Monday asked the Presidency why no documents were offered as proof of its version of events.

Judges Dikgang Moseneke and Sisi Khampepe drew up the report after observing the elections. But the case appears to hinge on whether judges can operate as envoys without breaching the separation of powers.

Acting Judge Stanly Sapire said the Presidency could not just say these two judges were asked by then President Thabo Mbeki to visit Zimbabwe, it actually needed some proof of how they were asked, what their response was and in what capacity they went.

But the Presidency’s advocate Marumo Moreane said a signed document from former Presidency director-general Frank Chikane should be enough because of his standing.

Sapire also said he may not be able to make a decision without reading the report himself and seemed to suggest he may ask to look at it on Tuesday.

At least four Metrorail coaches were on fire in the Johannesburg city centre on Tuesday after arsonists allegedly set fire to the train.

Authorities on the scene said a petrol bomb may be to blame for the fire.

“We have not heard any reports of anyone who was hurt in the incident,” said the city’s Emergency Services spokesperson Synock Matobako.

“At this stage we are investigating the incident. We are sure what could be the cause although we cannot rule out sabotage at this stage,” said Metrorail’s Nana Zenani.

It is not clear if the fire is linked to the ongoing Transnet and Metrorail strike.

The owner of the Voodoo Lounge has gone to ground following a shooting at the upmarket venue at the weekend.

A man understood to be the owner’s ex-husband went on the rampage on Sunday morning sending patrons fleeing for safety.

He was arrested at the scene and later granted bail of R3000.

Eyewitness News contacted the owner of the up-market venue but was told there would be no comment.

Witnesses said the gunman began by beating several people and pistol-whipping a woman. He then allegedly unloaded a full revolver.

Luckily the bullets did not hit anyone but patrons fear returning to the bar and said the man should be banned.

“We don’t want him near that club ever again," said one person.

The man will return to court in late June and has been ordered to report to a police station weekly and to surrender his passport.

Amid concerns that there might be rolling blackouts during the 2010 FIFA World Cup, Eskom on Monday assured South Africans that it has plans in place to ensure the lights stay burning during the tournament.

The utility unveiled its preparedness and operational plans for the soccer tournament on Monday.

Eskom said for the past three years officials had been working on a plan to ensure if there is an emergency the utility will have the flexibility to respond.

Officials have been testing their systems through simulations.

Eskom’s Erica Johnson said there is enough capacity to deal with increased demand during the event.

Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi on Tuesday said he hoped an office for standards compliance will deal with the number of problems at government hospitals across the country.

Motsoaledi visited Charlotte Maxeke and Natalspruit hospitals on Monday after several babies died at the facilities in the last two weeks.

It comes as Eastern Cape health authorities are on Tuesday expected to reveal that more than 180 babies from six hospitals in the former Transkei died in the first four months of this year.

Motsoaledi said all government hospitals would soon have to pass six vital categories that have been identified as problematic.

Six babies died in a ward in Charlotte Maxeke.

Motsoaledi said they could have done better if infection control measures were properly adhered to, adding that the staff-patient ratio was another problem.

Meanwhile, in an unrelated incident, Motsoaledi confirmed the deaths of ten babies in one day earlier this month at the Natalspruit Hospital. Most of the babies there were still-born and underweight.

The City of Cape Town says the contracted demolition company will make a final decision on when the Athlone cooling towers will come down.

Reinforced concrete rings on one of the towers collapsed three months ago, raising concerns about the stability of the ailing structures.

Jet Demolition has since been chosen as the preferred company to demolish the towers at a cost of R6.5 million.

The city’s Clive Justus says the contract does however state the towers must come down within 60 days.

“The dates for the demolition will be dependant on the preparatory work, but in the tender documentation it is said that it has to happen within 60 days.”

Gunmen shot dead on Monday an Iraqi politician elected to parliament in March for the cross-sectarian Iraqiya coalition of former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, police said.

The killing of Bashar Mohammed Hamid al-Aqidi in the northern city of Mosul will further fuel tensions running high since an inconclusive March 7 election that Iraqis hoped would bring stable government after years of sectarian warfare.

Iraqiya, led by secular Shi’ite Allawi and heavily backed by Sunni voters, won two more seats than a mainly Shi’ite bloc headed by Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, forcing fraught negotiations on either side to find a majority in parliament.

Aqidi was shot in the chest in front of his home in western Mosul and died a short time later, police said. His driver was also wounded and police said one suspect was arrested after Iraqi and U.S. forces cordoned off the area.

Prominent Sunni politician Osama al-Nujaifi, influential in the violent northern Nineveh province, appealed for protection for Iraqiya.

"Iraqiya now is the target for the terrorist powers and unfortunately for the government also," he said on Al Arabiya television. "There must be a way to protect Iraqiya."

The March election results have yet to be certified.

POSITIONING FOR POWER

The major Shi’ite groups, Maliki’s State of Law and the Iraqi National Alliance, which has close ties to Shi’ite neighbour Iran, have announced plans to unite to form the largest bloc in parliament.

But Allawi has warned that any attempt to marginalise his bloc could trigger renewed sectarian violence.

Aqidi, 33, was a businessman and held a university degree in computer science.

"We heard the sound of shooting then we came out immediately," said Ali Hassan, a neighbour of Aqidi’s. "We found them lying on the ground and chaos surrounded the area. The relatives who were with Hamid said that the gunmen were on foot."

Iraqiya media adviser Hani Ashour said Monday’s killing was part of a "campaign against Iraqiya to diminish its role."

"It is not the first such event and we believe it will not be the last," he said.

Aqidi’s was the first killing of a winning candidate since the election, although numerous government workers and police officials have been targeted in attacks before and after the vote.

In February, a female candidate running for Iraqiya in the election was shot dead in western Mosul

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il has reportedly ordered his military to be on combat alert as tensions rise sharply on the peninsula after the South accused its neighbour of sinking a warship.

The report by the South’s Yonhap news agency immediately hit already nervous Seoul financial markets, with the main share index dropping more than three percent.

Yonhap quoted a local group of North Korea watchers as saying their sources there had told them Kim’s command had been broadcast by a top military official.

There was no reference to the order on North Korean media seen outside the reclusive state nor any immediate comment from South Korean officials.

Seoul on Monday announced it would ban all trade with the North and stop its commercial ships using South Korean waters, moves likely to further squeeze the already ruined North Korean economy. Both sides have stepped up their angry rhetoric after international investigators late last week blamed the North for torpedoing the Cheonan corvette in March, killing 46 sailors in one of the deadliest clashes between the two since the 1950-53 Korean War.

The United States, which has 28,000 troops on the peninsula, threw its full support behind South Korea and said it was working hard to stop the escalation fury getting out of hand.

On the other side of the Cold War border, the North keeps about one million soldiers, one of the world’s largest standing armies,.

But they are poorly equipped and analysts say the North is unlikely to risk full scale combat against much better armed U.S. and South Korean troops.

South Korea is just as reluctant to go to war, aware it would send investors fleeing from Asia’s fourth largest economy.

Analysts say the main risk is that small skirmishes along the heavily armed border could turn into broader conflict.

The South’s financial markets are already jittery over the increasing angry war of words between the two Koreas, which still have not signed a peace treaty to formally end the Korean War.

"The Yonhap report, while still to be officially confirmed, chilled investor sentiment as it highlighted South Korea’s geopolitical risks. And timing for such news could not be worse, as market sentiment was already shaky with renewed euro zone financial fears," said Hwang Keum-dan, a market analyst at Samsung Securities.

"The stock market will have a hard time recovering until these two big uncertainties are somewhat resolved," she said.

South Korea’s won also extended losses, falling 4.5 percent to a 10-month low against the dollar, driven down by the combined euro zone and North Korea concerns.

The authorities were seen intervening to prevent too fast a drop.

U.N. SECURITY COUNCIL

South Korean President Lee Myung-bak said on Monday he would take the issue to the U.N. Security Council, whose past sanctions are already sapping what little energy North Korea’s communist economy has left.

In what several diplomats in New York said was an unusual intervention in Security Council matters, U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon expressed confidence the Council would take "appropriate" measures.

The United States, which backs Seoul, said the situation was "highly precarious" and it would take part in a joint naval exercise with the South.

China, the North’s only major ally, urged calm.

The Pentagon announced plans for a joint U.S.-South Korean anti-submarine drill "in the near future" and said talks were underway on joint maritime interdiction exercises.

Seoul believes a North Korean submarine infiltrated its waters and fired on the Cheonan.

Western Cape health officials on Monday said plans to revamp Tygerberg Hospital have not been forgotten.

Provincial Health MEC Theuns Botha recently inspected the facility’s Trauma Unit following an Eyewitness News request.

A drug addict who had overdosed, a man with multiple dog bites on his legs and several accident victims were all lined up waiting for attention when we visited the unit.

Botha admitted the facility was in desperate need of new equipment and beds.

“We need an upgrade on equipment here and we need an upgrade on this facility," said Botha.

However, the R4billion upgrade was only likely to be completed by 2020.

Soldiers and police stormed a Kingston slum on Monday and traded gunfire with supporters of an alleged Jamaican drug lord who faces extradition to the United States.

At least four people have been killed, including two policemen, one soldier and a civilian, and several others were wounded in two days of violence.

The government declared a state of emergency on Sunday in volatile sections of the capital as Prime Minister Bruce Golding vowed "strong and decisive action" to restore order.

The limited emergency in Jamaica, a popular Caribbean tourism destination, covered districts where gunmen shot up or set fire to five police stations and carried out carjackings and looting on Sunday.

There were unconfirmed reports of additional civilian deaths and reports that military helicopters dropped explosives on the Tivoli Gardens neighbourhood of West Kingston where alleged drug lord Christopher "Dudus" Coke is believed to be hiding out.

The government has called on Coke to surrender to face a U.S. judicial request seeking his extradition on cocaine trafficking and gun-running charges.

U.S. prosecutors have described Coke as the leader of the "Shower Posse," which murdered hundreds of people by showering them with bullets during the cocaine wars of the 1980s.

Helmeted police in flak jackets and brandishing automatic assault rifles fought their way into Tivoli Gardens on Monday and were engaged in a gunfight with suspected allies of Coke.

Residents had temporarily held them off with makeshift barricades while masked gunmen opened fire on them from high-rise buildings overlooking the barricades, which closed off main streets leading into the area.

Officials said the violence has had no impact so far on the island’s bauxite, sugar and banana producing sectors.

"MURDER CAPITAL"

The normally bustling streets were mostly deserted, as the country marked its Labour Day national holiday and motorists and passersby steered clear of the trouble spot.

The U.S. State Department issued a travel alert warning of violence in Kingston before the weekend, as tensions rose after Golding said he was starting proceedings to extradite Coke.

Golding said on Sunday the state of emergency would remain in effect for a month and would demonstrate that Jamaica is "a land of peace, order and security" where gang-related violence will not be tolerated.

"This will be a turning point for us as a nation to confront the powers of evil that has penalized the society and earned us the unenviable label as one of the murder capitals of the world," he said.

The United States requested Coke’s extradition in August last year but Jamaica initially refused, alleging that evidence against Coke had been gathered through illegal wiretaps.

In its annual narcotics control strategy report in March, the State Department said Coke’s well-known ties to Jamaica’s ruling party highlighted "the potential depth of corruption in the government."

Ramaphosa Park residents on Monday said they fear the threat of xenophobic attacks could once again become a reality.

The informal settlement was rocked by violent attacks against foreigners living in the area two years ago.

On Monday, residents took to the streets over poor service delivery saying nothing has changed.

Scores of residents demonstrated in the streets saying government had completely ignored their demands for basic needs and foreigners continue to steal their jobs and RDP homes.

A man was attacked and set alight there two years ago during the xenophobic attacks.

Residents have warned of similar attacks if government does not do something to improve their living conditions.

Agriculture Minister Tina Joemat-Petersen on Monday said government was considering releasing disaster funds to farmers affected by the Transnet strike. But Joemat-Petersen did not make any commitments insisting only natural disasters such as floods and droughts were covered at the moment.

She said early calculations show losses for fruit farmers affected by the industrial action were running into more than a R1billion.

The Transnet strike has taken on food farmers threatening their overseas contracts and profitability.

The Agriculture minister said some struggling European countries like Greece and Spain were looking to shed contracts and the late arrival of tons of fruit might just give them a reason to break ties.

The minister said it is too early to pledge assistance to the fruit farming industry.

She said they are waiting for a report from scientists and technical experts probing the impact of the strike.

Meanwhile, the South African Transport and Allied Workers’ Union (Satawu) is turning up the heat on Transnet issuing a secondary strike notice to a host of port related companies.

Even though a wage agreement was signed by another union last week, Satawu is still holding out for a better offer from the parastatal’s management.

The union is warning if a resolution is not reached, employees at several companies will stage sympathy strikes at the end of this month.

Metrorail on Monday said its service should be 100 percent up and running by Wednesday.

Trains started running again on Monday, after a week-long strike that left hundreds of thousands of people scrambling for alternative transport in the greater Cape Town area.

Metrorail’s Cape Town spokesperson Riana Scott told Eyewitness News about 90% of their trains operated on Monday and they were expecting the same kind of service on Tuesday.

“There were a few delays as a result of absenteeism due to the strike but by Wednesday we should run a 100 percent service," said Scott.

Bafana Bafana’s fans have had a confidence boost in the national squad following Monday night’s one all draw against Bulgaria.

With just 16 days to the 2010 FIFA World Cup, fans said they were confident the national squad will do well in the tournament.

It was not a full house but the atmosphere was electric and the vuvuzelas were loud, as supporters watched Bafana outplay Bulgaria for most of the match.

Organisers also avoided another own goal with regard to traffic management as things ran much smoother than they did on Saturday, when two major sports events were hosted in Soweto.

Bafana Bafana play their next warm-up match against Colombia at Soccer City on Thursday.

Fifty six special courts, set up to deal with World Cup-related offences, are operational.

The courts were established to avoid burdening already bulging court rolls.

Any offence involving either tourists or South Africans will be dealt with at these centres.

The Justice Ministry’s Tlali Tlali said, “Under the budget of R45 million that has been set aside for operations of the court for the duration of the tournament, the court will be operational two weeks prior to the tournament starting and will wrap up two weeks after its finish.”

British Airways Plc cabin crew began a five-day strike on Monday after talks broke down in a dispute over wages, jobs and working conditions and BA said no further negotiations were imminent.

The airline said it planned to operate more than 60 percent of long-haul flights and more than 50 percent of short-haul from London’s main Heathrow Airport, allowing 70 percent of passengers to reach their destinations.

Flights from London’s Gatwick and City airports were not affected by the strike. Two more five-day strikes are planned if the dispute cannot be resolved following stoppages in March.

"There are no more talks on the horizon," a BA spokesman said. "Our operations are going very well so far today."

BA said it would lease up to eight aircraft with pilots and cabin crews from other airlines to keep passengers on the move.

BA Chief Executive Willie Walsh and leaders of the labor union Unite, which represents the cabin crew, blame each other for a breakdown in communication.

"I made an offer to Willie Walsh yesterday to put back our people’s travel concessions that he’s vindictively and foolishly taken away from them and I would personally call this strike off," Unite co-leader Tony Woodley told BBC Radio.

The issue of travel allowances for cabin crew has become a major sticking point in the conflict, which comes at a difficult time for BA. The airline last week announced a record full-year loss of 531 million pounds ($763.9 million).

UNDERLYING BUSINESS

BA shares had risen a quarter in the last year as an industry-wide recession eased, but some 10 percent of those gains disappeared last week after a court said staff could press ahead with further strike action.

The stock was 0.4 percent down at 187.5 pence by 12.40 GMT, valuing the business at around 2.2 billion pounds.

Analyst Stephen Furlong at Davy Stockbrokers believes the market is more interested in the state of BA’s underlying business than the strikes and said trading conditions were improving.

BA on Friday predicted a return to breakeven next year and said its yield -- the revenue it makes on each passenger for every mile traveled -- rose 3.2 percent between January and April and would likely keep growing in 2010.

Some analysts, however, believe the strikes could put off previously loyal BA customers from flying with it in future.

"Strike action at BA will not in my view succeed except that it risks alienating BA from more of its customers long term, meaning it could seriously weaken the airline," BGC Partners senior strategist Howard Wheeldon said.

Cabin crew strikes in March cost the airline 43 million pounds, a figure included in the loss posted last week. BA has suffered an additional 100 million pound hit due to disruption to flights caused by ash from an Icelandic volcano.

The government urged the two parties to resume talks to settle the dispute.

The latest round of face-to-face talks between managers and union leaders on Saturday came to an ill-tempered halt after protesters from a tiny left-wing group invaded the venue.