South African President Ramaphosa announces trimmed-down Cabinet that is 50% women
Johannesburg: South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced his new Cabinet, slashing from 36 to 28 the number of ministers, including two Indian-origins, days after he was sworn in at a stadium in the capital Pretoria.
In the new Cabinet announced late Wednesday, half the new ministers are women, making South Africa one of the world's few gender-balanced governments.
Ramaphosa, 66, led the ruling African National Congress (ANC) party to victory in elections earlier this month with a majority of 57.5 per cent, the smallest since the party came to power 25 years ago.
"In the election of the 8th of May, South Africans provided this administration with a clear mandate to accelerate inclusive economic growth, act with greater urgency to tackle poverty, improve government services, fight corruption and end state capture," Ramaphosa said in a nationally-televised broadcast to announce the appointments.
"If we are to give effect to this mandate, we need a capable, efficient and ethical government," he said on Wednesday.
Two Indian-origin ministers have been retained from the previous administration.
Pravin Gordhan, who received the Padma Bhushan for distinguished service in January this year, was reappointed as Minister of Public Enterprises to continue the challenge of rescuing embattled state-owned enterprises such as national electricity supplier Eskom.
Ebrahim Patel, who has achieved success as Minster of Economic Affairs, has been retained in that portfolio, with the former Ministry of Trade and Industries now combined into his Department.
More than 30,000 people gathered to witness the swearing in ceremony of Ramaphosa at a stadium in the capital Pretoria. Ramaphosa has vowed to tackle corruption and rejuvenate the country's struggling economy.
"In undertaking this review, we have been guided by the need to build a modern developmental state that has the means to drive economic and social transformation, to embrace innovation and to direct effort and resources towards where they will have the greatest impact," Ramaphosa said.
Keeping his promise of reducing the number of ministries from 36 in the administration of former President Jacob Zuma, Ramaphosa appointed only 28 ministers, combining the rest into other portfolios.
Amid widespread concern over a number of ministers from the previous administration who have been accused of involvement in state capture or corruption, Ramaphosa reaffirmed his position by not appointing those who appeared the most tainted, but retained a few.
"If we are to make effective progress in building the South Africa that we all want, it is important that we deploy into positions of responsibility people who are committed, capable and hard-working, and who have integrity," the President said.
"The people who I am appointing today must realise that the expectations of the South African people have never been greater and that they will shoulder a great responsibility," he said.
"Their performance individually and collectively will be closely monitored against specific outcomes. Where implementation is unsatisfactory, action will be taken," he said.
The business leaders welcomed the president's announcement.
"I like the idea that there will be deliverables and people will be held accountable," said Lloyd Theunissen of the Congress of Business and Economics, a subsidiary of the erstwhile Transvaal Indian Congress.
"Let's hope and trust that the new cabinet will do just that and make a difference in our lives," Theunissen added.
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Israel launches first airstrike on Lebanon since ceasefire, accusing Hezbollah of breaching truce
Beirut, Nov 28: The Israeli military on Thursday said its warplanes fired on southern Lebanon after detecting Hezbollah activity at a rocket storage facility, the first Israeli airstrike a day after a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah took hold.
There was no immediate word on casualties from Israel's aerial attack, which came hours after the Israeli military said it fired on people trying to return to certain areas in southern Lebanon. Israel said they were violating the ceasefire agreement, without providing details. Lebanon's state-run National News Agency said two people were wounded.
The back-to-back incidents stirred unease about the agreement, brokered by the United States and France, which includes an initial two-month ceasefire in which Hezbollah members are to withdraw north of the Litani River and Israeli forces are to return to their side of the border. The buffer zone would be patrolled by Lebanese troops and UN peacekeepers.
On Thursday, the second day of a ceasefire after more than a year of bloody conflict between Israel and Hezbollah, Lebanon's state news agency reported that Israeli fire targeted civilians in Markaba, close to the border, without providing further details. Israel said it fired artillery in three other locations near the border. There were no immediate reports of casualties.
An Associated Press reporter in northern Israel near the border heard Israeli drones buzzing overhead and the sound of artillery strikes from the Lebanese side.
The Israeli military said in a statement that “several suspects were identified arriving with vehicles to a number of areas in southern Lebanon, breaching the conditions of the ceasefire.” It said troops “opened fire toward them” and would “actively enforce violations of the ceasefire agreement.”
Israeli officials have said forces will be withdrawn gradually as it ensures that the agreement is being enforced. Israel has warned people not to return to areas where troops are deployed, and says it reserves the right to strike Hezbollah if it violates the terms of the truce.
A Lebanese military official said Lebanese troops would gradually deploy in the south as Israeli troops withdraw. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to brief media.
The ceasefire agreement announced late Tuesday ended 14 months of conflict between Israel and Hezbollah that began a day after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023 attack out of Gaza, when the Lebanese Hezbollah group began firing rockets, drones and missiles in solidarity.
Israel retaliated with airstrikes, and the conflict steadily intensified for nearly a year before boiling over into all-out war in mid-September. The war in Gaza is still raging with no end in sight.
More than 3,760 people were killed by Israeli fire in Lebanon during the conflict, many of them civilians, according to Lebanese health officials. The fighting killed more than 70 people in Israel — over half of them civilians — as well as dozens of Israeli soldiers fighting in southern Lebanon.
Some 1.2 million people were displaced in Lebanon, and thousands began streaming back to their homes on Wednesday despite warnings from the Lebanese military and the Israeli army to stay out of certain areas. Some 50,000 people were displaced on the Israeli side, but few have returned and the communities near the northern border are still largely deserted.
In Menara, an Israeli community on the border with views into Lebanon, around three quarters of homes are damaged, some with collapsed roofs and burnt-out interiors. A few residents could be seen gathering their belongings on Thursday before leaving again.
