Mandela Released After a Scare

About a week ago, Nelson Mandela went to the hospital for abdominal issues. He reported was in a lot of pain and really did not know why. It was not as serious as people thought it was however, it was still very alarming. Yesterday Mandela was released from a South African hospital where it was reported that he underwent treatment for an abdominal ailment. "The doctors have assured us that there is nothing to worry about and that Madiba is in good health," President Jacob Zuma said in a statement earlier, referring to the 93-year-old Mandela by his affectionate clan name. The defense minister Lindiwe Sisulu stated that Mandela had underwent a diagnostic laparoscpoy, and did not go into much more detail. However, he also stated that that the procedure involves sticking a camera into the body which allows doctors to see in the abdomen and pelvis areas.  Mandela is considered the biggest influence and the father of South Africa when he happened to be jailed for 27 years for speaking up and fighting against racial problems.  This is not the first time he happened to be checked into a hospital publicly. Last year he was checked into a hospital to get treatment for an acute respiratory infection, and he continued to receive the treatment even outside the hospital from home.  

Sources: http://www.cnn.com/2012/02/26/world/africa/south-africa-mandela-hospital/index.html

Lioness kills South African zoo Keeper

In the Johannesburg zoo, a lioness kills 65 year old Joe Ramanata, who has been working at the zoo for 40 + years."He was either feeding or cleaning an enclosure when he was attacked by a lioness," zoo spokeswoman, Letta Madlala, told the AFP news agency. After the incident, the 11 year old lioness was tranquilized.
A Spokeswoman of the zoo said that it may have been due to human error, an the police had opened an investigation on the death.

~Paul Ford, African news.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-17027051

Toxic Waters In Johannesburg

When gold was discovered in Johannesburg it was the birth of the city and also the rise. The nickname for the city is "City Of Gold." But now the mines where they would mine for that gold is full of contaminated water that threaten to leak into South Africa's water supply. A very popular lake for locals to have fun and enjoy themselves at is now declared radioactive. When measured for uranium in 2002 everything was a ok. But now when it was tested for uranium it was 40,000 times over the natural uranium levels found in fresh water. Randfontien is located 45 kilometers from Johannesburg. In Randfontien toxic water started to leach into the ground a decade ago. The water there is now orange, the water is plagued with radioactive minerals and it reeks of acidic odor. The reason for all this toxic water is from Johannesburg's extensive excavating for gold up until the 1970's. When the mines were left with no care in the 70's so were the pumps that kept the mines dry. Because of this water massed inside the mines the water then became toxic. The only way the water was drained was from rain water, but then the toxic water that was located in the mines now drained into the soil outside, and underwater lakes. Nico Jacobs a local resident owns a farm in the middle of the a huge agricultural area, located around his house crops cultivated fields and cattle. His family is aware that the water they use is toxic, but they continue to use the water. His daughter took a bath in the toxic water, he showed a reporter the water after he drained it out of the tub. The tub was left with blue marks because of the toxic water. The water is having a negative affect on his business as well. Nico used to own 200 cows, he is now left with only 46. Experts say that resolving this epidemic could cost them a enormous amount of money. This could also quicken up the decline of a key mining industry in South Africa. The industry in South Africa is 1 of the top 5 gold producing countries in the world. A group of experts proposed an idea to purify the contaminated water but the estimated cost for the project was four times over the budget. The government and several mining companies are working on creating a project that would solve this problem, and also keep the project in their budget

Moammar Gadhafi's Son is Stupid.

Ex Liberyian President Moammar Gadhafi is in the news again with his connection with one of his surviving and inaqueate sons. Saadi Gadhafi has now had his phone cut off and on house arrest after warning a revolt against Liberia's new government says the Tripoli government. Recently, Saadi has been in Niger since September the month of his father's Moammar Gadhafi, 42-year rule come to a collapse. He kept with the exploiting of Liberia where he went on a news show and stated, "a new popular uprising" is going to occur in his home country. This errked officials and authorities and they renewed there wishes for his arrest after granting him asylum. Officials decided to stay quiet on the situation however, The National Transitional Counsil of Libya spoke about his actions. Stating that Saadi's statements "were considered a violation of the terms of his residency granted by Niger." This move by is coming as Libya begins to prepare for the February 17th anniversary of the revolt of leader Moammar Gadhafi. Better news Tripoli has been improving their security with new checkpoints going up around the city in recent days. Youssef Mangoush, the new chief of staff of the Libyan armed forces, has given some insight saying that although there have been no treats for the anniversary they are taking as many precautions as possible.

Source:http://www.cnn.com/2012/02/12/world/africa/libya-gadhafi-son/index.html