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On 1 June, Somaliland’s President Muse Bihi Abdi officially inaugurated the first 12 km of Berbera Corridor, a trade and transport route that connects...

Governance

Burundi court affirms ruling party candidate’s presidential victory

Justin Cronje - 5th Jun 2020

Middle East

Russia sends second batch of fighter jets to Syria: embassy

Justin Cronje - 5th Jun 2020

International News

New Zealand says to buy five new Super Hercules aircraft

Justin Cronje - 5th Jun 2020

International News

‘Violence provokes violence’, Mandela Foundation says in support of US protests

Justin Cronje - 5th Jun 2020

DEFENCEWEB TV

Videos

defenceWeb Podcast #8 (16 May – 22 May)

Justin Cronje - 28th May 2020

Videos

defenceWeb Podcast #7 (8 May – 15 May)

Justin Cronje - 24th May 2020

DEFENCEWEB PODCASTS

Podcasts

defenceWeb podcast #8 (16 May – 22 May)

Justin Cronje - 28th May 2020

Podcasts

defenceWeb Podcast #7 (9 May – 15 May)

Justin Cronje - 21st May 2020

INDUSTRY

Industry

Milkor launches medical ventilator

defenceWeb - 2nd Jun 2020

South African defence company Milkor, in response to the local and international need to assist in the efforts to combat the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic,...

Hamilton departs as AMD executive director

Industry Guy Martin - 2nd Jun 2020

Denel to pay May salaries – Numsa

Industry Guy Martin - 31st May 2020

Union prepares to take Denel to court over unpaid salaries

Industry Guy Martin - 29th May 2020

AEROSPACE

Aerospace

Salvage work underway on Hercules C-130BZ 403

defenceWeb - 3rd Jun 2020

SA Air Force (SAAF) technical personnel are stripping usable components from C-130BZ (tail number 403) next to the runway at Goma Airport in Democratic...

SpaceX Crew Dragon delivers two NASA astronauts to International Space Station

Aerospace Justin Cronje - 1st Jun 2020

French Air Force engages Islamists in the Sahel

Aerospace Guy Martin - 31st May 2020

To the moon, mars and beyond

Aerospace Justin Cronje - 29th May 2020

SA DEFENCE

SA Defence

Shotgun training for crowd control

defenceWeb - 5th Jun 2020

Further commitment to crowd control comes from Youngsfield military base where soldiers from 10 SA Infantry Battalion underwent a four-day shotgun training refresher course. Infantry...

Defence Force Service Commission largely powerless – Parliamentary report

SA Defence Reuters - 5th Jun 2020

Should armed soldiers enforce a national state of disaster?

SA Defence Reuters - 4th Jun 2020

Contraband cigarette arrest points to smuggling in the military – Marais

SA Defence Reuters - 4th Jun 2020

GOVERNANCE

Governance

ISS: Abiy helps Somaliland put more facts on the ground

ISSAfrica - 5th Jun 2020

On 1 June, Somaliland’s President Muse Bihi Abdi officially inaugurated the first 12 km of Berbera Corridor, a trade and transport route that connects...

Mali’s armed forces receiving 53 vehicles from Algeria

defenceWeb - 4th Jun 2020

Mali’s armed forces (FAMA) have received the first batch of 53 vehicles donated by Algeria to bolster Mali’s efforts in fighting Islamists in the...

US donates trucks to Niger’s military

Land Guy Martin - 2nd Jun 2020

The United States has donated ten trucks to the Nigerien Armed Forces (FAN) in support of the G5 Sahel Joint Force combatting terrorism in...

Defence committee deeply concerned by Hoefyster problems

Land Guy Martin - 31st May 2020

Parliament’s Joint Standing Committee on Defence (JSCD) is so concerned by the inability of Denel to deliver Badger infantry fighting vehicles to the South...

Morocco acquiring new air defence systems

Land Guy Martin - 25th May 2020

Morocco’s government has approved a 192 million euro purchase of weapons from France’s MBDA, which are believed to be VL MICA air defence systems. Saad...

SEA

Sea

Coronavirus puts paid to Ex Ibsamar

defenceWeb - 28th May 2020

There will be no Exercise Ibsamar this year. The tri-nation naval exercise is cancelled, not postponed, according to the Joint Operations Division of the...

Sandock Austral Shipyards making progress with Project Hotel

Sea Guy Martin - 27th May 2020

Sandock Austral Shipyards, previously known as Southern African Shipyards, is moving swiftly ahead with the construction of the South African Navy’s new hydrographic survey...

Egypt launches another locally built corvette

Sea Guy Martin - 15th May 2020

The Egyptian Navy has launched its third locally built Gowind class corvette, which was constructed at the Alexandria Shipyard. The ENS Luxor (986), built by...

Operation Irini up and running in the Mediterranean

Sea Reuters - 13th May 2020

The EU naval operation in the Mediterranean, previously concentrating on migrants is up and running with a new mandate and name since the beginning...

MARITIME SECURITY

Maritime Security

Kidnapped captain of Portugal-flagged ship freed-Bulgaria

Reuters - 26th May 2020

The Bulgarian captain of a Portuguese-flagged cargo ship who was kidnapped along with seven other sailors by pirates off the coast of Benin last...

Pirates strike off Nigeria

Maritime Security Reuters - 22nd May 2020

Pirates this week attacked a tanker carrying automotive gas oil (AGO) close to shore off Port Harcourt, Nigeria, in what has been a busy...

After US warning, Iran says its navy will still operate in Gulf

Maritime Security Justin Cronje - 20th May 2020

The Iranian navy will maintain regular missions in the Gulf, the ISNA news agency reported on Wednesday, a day after the United States warned...

Nigerian Navy action nets 10 pirates

Maritime Security Reuters - 18th May 2020

Quick reaction by the Nigerian Navy saw a hijacked fishing vessel recovered within hours of being hijacked at the weekend. Praesidium International reports the Chinese...

CIVIL SECURITY

Civil Security

Coronavirus protests spread to Senegal’s capital

Reuters - 4th Jun 2020

Protestors in Dakar set tyres on fire and threw stones at security forces on Wednesday night during protests over a nationwide dusk-to-dawn curfew imposed...

Militia kills 16 villagers in Democratic Republic of Congo raid

Civil Security Justin Cronje - 4th Jun 2020

Militia fighters killed 16 people in a raid on a village in northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo on Wednesday, the latest in a spate...

Armed bandits kill at least 18 in Nigeria’s Katsina state

Civil Security Justin Cronje - 1st Jun 2020

Armed bandits in Nigeria’s northwestern state of Katsina killed at least 18 people, including a local official, and stole thousands of livestock on Sunday,...

Militants in Burkina Faso kill 35 in separate attacks, government says

Civil Security Justin Cronje - 1st Jun 2020

Militants in Burkina Faso attacked a cattle market and a humanitarian convoy, killing at least 35 people, the government said on Sunday. Saturday’s violence underscores...

BORDER SECURITY

Border Security

South Africa dehorns dozens of rhinos to prevent lockdown poaching surge

Reuters - 5th Jun 2020

South Africa has dehorned dozens of rhinos in three popular game parks, aiming to prevent armed poachers taking advantage of the post-COVID-19 crash in...

SCOPA wants further answers on Beit Bridge fence upgrade

Border Security Reuters - 5th Jun 2020

Parliament’s Standing Committee on Public Accounts (SCOPA) is not satisfied with information provided by Patricia de Lille’s Department of Public Works and Infrastructure (DPWI)...

Tunisia to open sea, air and land borders on 27 June

Border Security Justin Cronje - 3rd Jun 2020

Tunisia will open its sea, land and air borders on 27 June, authorities said on Monday, in hopes of rescuing its tourism industry as...

International naval operation nets 50 tonnes of cocaine in 45 days

Border Security Justin Cronje - 1st Jun 2020

A multilateral naval anti-drug operation confiscated 50 tonnes of cocaine in 45 days, Colombia President Ivan Duque said on Friday. The Orion V operation -...

HUMAN SECURITY

Human Security

Sudan’s PM promises justice on anniversary of sit-in killings

Reuters - 4th Jun 2020

Sudan’s Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok pledged justice on Wednesday for scores of pro-democracy protesters killed a year ago when security forces broke up a...

Rwandan genocide suspect must face UN tribunal, rules French court

Human Security Justin Cronje - 4th Jun 2020

A French court ordered Rwandan genocide suspect Felicien Kabuga on Wednesday to be handed over to a United Nations tribunal for trial, rejecting arguments...

SANDF soldiers rescues family from a burning vehicle

Human Security Guy Martin - 3rd Jun 2020

Soldiers from Alpha Company, 21 Infantry, Battalion, helped pull a family from a burning car in Boipatong whilst on a patrol assisting the South...

Paramount provides food relief to Ghana, Zambia And Mozambique

Human Security Guy Martin - 2nd Jun 2020

Paramount Group has provided food relief to the Embassies of Ghana, Mozambique and Zambia as part of its efforts to support South Africa and...

MIDDLE EAST

Middle East

Russia sends second batch of fighter jets to Syria: embassy

Reuters - 5th Jun 2020

Russia flew a batch of advanced MiG-29 fighter jets to Syria, Moscow’s embassy in Damascus said, with Syrian pilots already using the planes to...

Taliban, al Qaeda retain ties despite US-Taliban deal, UN monitors say

Middle East Justin Cronje - 2nd Jun 2020

Ties between the Taliban, especially its Haqqani Network branch, and al Qaeda remain close, independent UN sanctions monitors said in a report made public...

Iraqi militiamen drop guns to dig graves for coronavirus victims

Middle East Justin Cronje - 2nd Jun 2020

Iraqi paramedic Sarmad Ibrahim cut his teeth treating fellow Shi’ite Muslim militiamen in the war against Islamic State. Now, he buries COVID-19 victims -...

Missile attack on Yemen army base in Marib kills seven – sources

Middle East Justin Cronje - 28th May 2020

Houthi fighters in Yemen fired missiles at a military base of the Saudi-backed government in Marib province, northeast of the capital Sanaa, on Tuesday,...

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

International News

New Zealand says to buy five new Super Hercules aircraft

Reuters - 5th Jun 2020

New Zealand said on Friday that it will purchase five C-130J-30 Super Hercules transport aircraft from Lockheed Martin to replace its existing fleet. “Along with...

‘Violence provokes violence’, Mandela Foundation says in support of US protests

International News Justin Cronje - 5th Jun 2020

South Africa’s Nelson Mandela Foundation said on Thursday violence can be a rational response to racism and for some communities is the only way...

Protests over George Floyd’s death expose raw race relations worldwide

International News Justin Cronje - 3rd Jun 2020

Images of a white police officer kneeling on the neck of African-American George Floyd, who then died, have sparked protests from Amsterdam to Nairobi,...

Four police shot in violent protests after Trump vows to bring in US military

International News Justin Cronje - 2nd Jun 2020

Four St Louis police officers were hit by gunfire late on Monday during violent protests over the death of a black man in police...

SCIENCE & DEFENCE TECHNOLOGY

Science & Defence Technology

Future military vehicles could see an improvement in structural materials

US Army - 16th Apr 2020

Materials used for a soldier's personal protection gear may be tough enough for vehicles too, according to a new US Army study. Findings, released April...

CSIR data contributing to SA’s COVID-19 fight

Science & Defence Technology Reuters - 14th Apr 2020

President Cyril Ramaphosa is confident Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) technology and data will enable South Africa to fight the Coronavirus (COVID-19). “As...

UCT develops app to track coronavirus patients

Science & Defence Technology Guy Martin - 30th Mar 2020

After South Africans commenced a 21-day lockdown on 26 March, a group of researchers from the University of Cape Town (UCT) continued working on...

CSIR’s Cmore tapped for COVID-19 situational awareness

Science & Defence Technology Guy Martin - 26th Mar 2020

The Council for Scientific and Industrial Research’s (CSIR’s) Cmore situational awareness system is being customised to service the COVID-19 coronavirus response in South Africa. This...

MILITARY HELICOPTERS

Military Helicopters

Nigerian Navy receives AW139 helicopter

defenceWeb - 26th May 2020

The Nigerian Navy has taken delivery of a new AW139 from Italy’s Leonardo Helicopters, after the aircraft was ordered in 2016. The arrival of the...

Egypt orders AW149 and AW189 helicopters

Military Helicopters Guy Martin - 21st May 2020

Egypt has ordered 24 AW149 combat helicopters and eight AW189 civil models from Italy’s Leonardo Helicopters under an 871 million euro contract signed last...

Royal Air Force Chinooks exceed 2 000 flight hours in Mali

Military Helicopters Guy Martin - 8th May 2020

The Royal Air Force (RAF) Chinook detachment supporting French troops in Mali has so far logged over 2 000 flight hours, including nearly 340...

Egypt seeking to upgrade Apache helicopters in $2.3 billion deal

Military Helicopters Guy Martin - 8th May 2020

Egypt is looking to upgrade and refurbish 43 of its AH-64D Apache attack helicopters to AH-64E standard under a deal that could be worth...

CIVIL AVIATION

Civil Aviation

South African airlines look to restart operations, see slow recovery

Reuters - 4th Jun 2020

Two of South Africa’s biggest private airlines will start flying between local airports this month after the government eased lockdown restrictions aimed at containing...

South Africa’s Comair unlikely to restart operations before November

Civil Aviation Justin Cronje - 4th Jun 2020

South Africa’s Comair said on Tuesday it was unlikely to restart operations before November, even after the easing of restrictions on air travel, as...

Commercial aircraft market could shrink by $150 billion this year

Civil Aviation Guy Martin - 3rd Jun 2020

The global commercial aircraft market is estimated to see a $149.24 billion drop in revenue in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, according to...

Namibia shuts harbour town airport after two coronavirus infections

Civil Aviation Justin Cronje - 2nd Jun 2020

The airport in the Namibian harbour town of Walvis Bay has closed after two residents tested positive for the coronavirus and the economic hub...

UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLES

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles

SAPS and JMPD see drones in their future

Justin Cronjé - 5th Jun 2020

In a webinar under the theme, “Use of drones in public order policing”, representatives from the South African Police Service (SAPS) and Johannesburg Metro...

SpiceJet to run drone trials for cargo deliveries

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Justin Cronje - 2nd Jun 2020

Budget airline SpiceJet said on Friday it received permission to conduct drone trials that will allow it to deliver medical supplies and e-commerce products...

Can the commercial UAV industry thrive amid coronavirus?

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Justin Cronje - 21st May 2020

On the eve of South Africa moving from a level five national lockdown to level four, Drone Con held its first webinar under the...

Drones deliver meds to Isle of Wight

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles Reuters - 13th May 2020

A new drone service will reduce delivery times for urgent medical supplies to a hospital on the Isle of Wight off the south coast...

NATIONAL SECURITY

National Security

Eastern forces quit Libyan capital after year-long assault

Reuters - 5th Jun 2020

Libya’s internationally recognised government regained control of Tripoli on Thursday, driving eastern forces out of the capital after a year-long battle in which foreign...

ISS: Can SADC come to Mozambique’s rescue?

National Security Justin Cronje - 2nd Jun 2020

Mozambique is under attack from violent extremists, and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) doesn’t seem to have a clear plan on how to...

Mozambique forces in major fighting with insurgents, says president

National Security Justin Cronje - 1st Jun 2020

Mozambique President Filipe Nyusi said government forces had engaged in extensive fighting against insurgents after they attacked the town of Macomia in the gas-rich...

Foreign powers in Libya risk ever bloodier stalemate

National Security Justin Cronje - 1st Jun 2020

As Turkish drones helped drive eastern Libyan forces back from Tripoli this month, Russia was said to be reinforcing them with warplanes, raising the...

CYBER DEFENCE

Cyber Defence

Germany calls in Russian envoy over hack attack

Reuters - 2nd Jun 2020

Germany’s foreign ministry called in the Russian ambassador in Berlin on Thursday to complain “in the strongest possible terms” about a hack attack on...

Google sees resurgence in state-backed hacking, phishing related to COVID-19

Cyber Defence Justin Cronje - 2nd Jun 2020

Security experts at Alphabet Inc’s Google sent 1 755 warnings in April to users whose accounts were targets of government-backed attackers, following a resurgence...

Japan defence ministry investigating potential hack of next-gen missile details: Asahi

Cyber Defence Justin Cronje - 20th May 2020

Japan’s defence ministry is investigating a possible leak of details of a new state-of-the-art missile in a large-scale cyber attack on Mitsubishi Electric Corp,...

Facebook reports spike in takedowns of hate speech, terrorism

Cyber Defence Justin Cronje - 15th May 2020

Facebook on Tuesday reported a sharp increase in the number of posts it removed for promoting violence and hate speech across its apps, which...

GOVERNMENT AFFAIRS

Government Affairs

Speech: Ramaphosa at Armed Forces Day 2020

defenceWeb - 21st Feb 2020

Address by Commander-In-Chief, President Cyril Ramaphosa, on the occasion of Armed Forces Day 2020, Polokwane, Limpopo, 21 February 2020. Minister of Defence and Military Veterans,...

Speech: Msimang at SAAF Prestige Day

Government Affairs Guy Martin - 4th Feb 2020

Air Force Prestige Day Parade Address by the Chief of the SA Air Force, Lieutenant General Fabian Z Msimang at Air Force Base Swartkop...

Speech by SAAF Chief at Unisa graduation ceremony

Government Affairs Guy Martin - 11th Dec 2019

Message by Lt. General Fabian Zakes Msimang, Chief of the South African Air Force, at the University of South Africa graduation ceremony, Tshwane, on...