Here’s your daily news update: An easy-to-read selection of our top stories for 21 April 2025.
News today includes the Vatican announcing that Pope Francis died on Monday at the age of 88.
Meanwhile, Transport Minister Barbara Creecy says road deaths and accidents are declining as South Africans return home after the Easter weekend.
Then, a second suspect has been arrested in connection with a murder inside the Wynberg Magistrate’s Court.
Weather tomorrow: 22 April 2025
Heavy rain and thunderstorms are forecast for many parts of South Africa on Tuesday. Get the full weather forecast here.
Top 10 stories
Pope Francis dies after Easter Sunday appearance
Pope Francis died on Monday aged 88, a day after making a much hoped-for appearance at Saint Peter’s Square on Easter Sunday, the Vatican said in a statement.
“Dearest brothers and sisters, it is with deep sorrow that I must announce the death of our Holy Father Francis,” said Cardinal Kevin Farrell in the statement published by the Vatican on its Telegram channel.
Francis’s death came just a day after he delighted the crowds of worshippers at the Vatican on Easter Sunday with an appearance on the balcony at Saint Peter’s Basilica despite still convalescing after a severe illness.
CONTINUE READING: Pope Francis dies after Easter Sunday appearance
Easter road fatalities and accidents on the decline, says Creecy
Transport Minister Barbara Creecy says road deaths and accidents are on the decline as motorists return home after the Easter long weekend.
Creecy, accompanied by her deputy Mkhuleko Hlengwa, held a media briefing along the N1 in Limpopo on Monday to provide an update on road safety operations conducted during the Easter period.
The minister said that although traffic volumes peaked at 2 047 vehicles per hour on Thursday afternoon and Friday morning, the N1 has not recorded a single fatal crash despite being one of the busiest routes in the country.
CONTINUE READING: Easter road fatalities and accidents on the decline, says Creecy
Police confirm second suspect arrested for hit inside Wynberg court
A second suspect is expected to appear in the Wynberg Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday, 22 April 2025, in connection with a murder that took place in the same court building.
The suspect, who is a 24-year-old woman, was arrested over the weekend by detectives from the Western Cape serious and violent crimes unit. She is facing charges of murder.
It comes after Dingalomoya Chintso, a 50-year-old taxi operator from Vrygrond, was shot inside the court building on Tuesday, 8 April.
CONTINUE READING: Second suspect arrested for hit inside Wynberg court
EFF slams Presidency’s silence around Mashatile shooting incident
The EFF said it is concerned that the Presidency did not announce the assassination attempt on Deputy President Paul Mashatile.
According to reports, one of Mashatile’s official vehicles was hit by three bullets while he was travelling on the N12 highway from an ANC national executive committee (NEC) meeting in Boksburg, Gauteng.
The red berets suggested the apparent concealment of the attack on Mashatile could be due to factionalism within the ANC.
CONTINUE READING: EFF slams Presidency’s silence around Mashatile shooting incident
Police can’t say why they let an alleged rapist off the hook
The South African Police Service (Saps) says it is investigating why a person suspected of rape was taken to the Khayelitsha Day Hospital without being questioned.
A young woman says that on 30 March, in Khayelitsha, Cape Town, she was abducted by a stranger and raped several times throughout the night.
The alleged perpetrator was apprehended by residents and taken to a neighbour’s courtyard, where the person was questioned and assaulted by residents. Police, however, seemingly made no attempt to question him, or to collect other evidence such as fingerprints, photographs or DNA samples.
CONTINUE READING: Police can’t say why they let an alleged rapist off the hook
Here are five more stories of the day:
Yesterday’s news recap:
READ HERE: Mashatile shooting incident | Treasury, Sars seek ways to reverse VAT hike | Update on Tembisa Hospital fire
