INTERNACIONAL
Dozens of survivors and dead pulled from abandoned South African mine as hundreds remain underground
Months after South African authorities initially cut off supplies to miners working illegally in an abandoned gold mine, rescuers brought dozens of bodies and emaciated survivors to the surface Tuesday with hundreds more still believed to be underground, many of them dead and others too weak to come out on their own.
At least 60 bodies and 92 survivors had been pulled from one of South Africa’s deepest mines since Monday in a red cagelike device lowered thousands of feet underground, police said. Police are uncertain how many miners remain inside but said it is likely in the hundreds. Another nine bodies were brought out Friday in a community-led rescue effort, according to a group representing the miners.
DEATH TOLL CLIMBS TO 13 IN SOUTH AFRICA MINING DISASTER
The mine has been the scene of a tense standoff between police, miners and members of the local community since authorities launched an operation in November to force the miners out by cutting off food and water from the surface for a period of time. At the time, a Cabinet minister said the aim was to «smoke them out» and the government would not send help because they were «criminals.»
But that tactic has been fiercely criticized by civic groups and the community, and the South African government is under scrutiny for the way it has dealt with the issue at the Buffelsfontein Gold Mine, where more than 100 miners are believed to have died underground of starvation or dehydration, according to the group representing them.
Rescue workers assist an illegal miner who has been trapped deep in an abandoned gold mine for months, in Stilfontein, South Africa, Tuesday, Jan. 14, 2025. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe)
Authorities, who removed the ropes and pulley system miners used to enter and to lower supplies, say the survivors are able to come out but refuse to because of fear of arrest. That has been disputed by the civic groups, which won a court case to force authorities to allow food, water and medicine to be sent down to the miners. But they say the supplies aren’t enough and many of the miners are dying of starvation and unable to climb out because the shaft is too steep.
Residents desperately waiting for news of family members gathered at the mine Tuesday near the town of Stilfontein, southwest of Johannesburg, some holding placards criticizing authorities for their response. One sign said there had been a «Sacrifice at Stilfontein» while some handcuffed survivors were led away in a line by police.
The community organized its own rescue operation on Friday before the official effort by authorities began Monday. They say a proper rescue operation should have been launched months ago.
«We are happy that this operation is happening, even though we believe that if it was done earlier, we wouldn’t even have one dead person,» said Mzukisi Jam, the regional chairperson of the South African National Civics Organization, an umbrella for civic and rights groups.
Authorities have grappled with informal mining for years
Illegal mining is common in parts of gold-rich South Africa where companies close down mines that are no longer profitable, leaving groups of informal miners to enter them illegally in a search for leftover deposits.
Large groups of miners often go underground for months to maximize their profits, taking food, water, generators and other equipment with them, but also relying on others in their group on the surface to send down more supplies.
Mineral Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe visited the site Tuesday and said that more than 1,500 miners who resurfaced from the Buffelsfontein mine have been arrested since authorities began a larger crackdown on illegal mining in late 2023. He said the vast majority were foreign nationals from neighboring countries.
Police have also doubled down on their assertion that the miners who are still underground aren’t coming out because they are afraid of being arrested.
Activists said the only way out is for miners to make a dangerous trek to another shaft, which can take days, and crawl out there, but many are too weak or ill to climb out. The mine is 2.5 kilometers (1.5 miles) deep with multiple shafts, many levels and a maze of tunnels. The group representing the miners said there are numerous groups in various parts of the mine.
«The last time I spoke to my brother was in July, when he told us that he is going underground,» said Zinzi Tom, a sister of one of the miners who remained underground. «We had not heard anything from him, but yesterday one of the miners who surfaced said he saw him about two weeks ago. Apparently he is very sick and he is struggling to survive.»
Cellphone videos emerge from underground
The Mining Affected Communities United in Action group, which took authorities to court in December to force them to allow supplies to be sent down to the miners, released two cellphone videos that they said were from underground and showed dozens of dead bodies of miners wrapped in plastic. A spokesman for the group said «a minimum» of 100 miners had died.
The cellphone videos purportedly from the depths of the mine are filmed by a man who can be heard saying, «This is hunger. People are dying because of hunger,» as he records emaciated-looking men sitting on the damp floor of the mine. He adds: «Please help us. Bring us food or take us out.»
The rescue operation will go on for 10 days and authorities would then reassess, Police Minister Senzo Mchunu said. Police also said that the survivors who had been brought to the surface will be arrested and charged with illegal mining and trespassing after receiving medical attention.
Authorities made clear their approach when South African Cabinet Minister Khumbudzo Ntshavheni told reporters in November that the government would not help the miners, who they consider criminals.
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«We are not sending help to criminals,» she said. «We are going to smoke them out. They will come out.»
She added: «Criminals are not to be helped. Criminals are to be persecuted.»
INTERNACIONAL
Guerra en Ucrania: Trump «clama encarecidamente» a Putin que salve la vida de miles de tropas ucranianas «rodeadas»
El posteo de Trump comienza diciendo que su equipo tuvo «conversaciones muy buenas y productivas con el presidente ruso, Vladimir Putin», el jueves, en alusión al encuentro con el enviado de Trump Steve Witkoff en Moscú.
En ese encuentro a puertas cerradas, Putin habría comunicado a Witkoff lo que ya había advertido en una rueda de prensa más temprano: que aceptaba la tregua de 30 días acordada entre Ucrania y Estados Unidos, días atrás, pero «que había mucho trabajo por hacer».
A esa aclaración, Putin habría agregado una serie de imposibles condiciones para Kiev, como quedarse con parte del territorio ucraniano ocupado.
En su posteo, Trump luego se refiere a las tropas ucranianas «rodeadas», probablemente en la región rusa de Kursk, donde las fuerzas del Kremlin han estado avanzando contra las fuerzas ucranianas.
A pesar de que el presidente estadounidense se refiere a «miles» de tropas aisladas, es poco probable que este sea el caso, aunque es cierto que los ucranianos están perdiendo su posición en Kursk, una porción de suelo ruso que Kiev logró controlar meses atrás.
El jueves, la localidad de Sudzha fue recuperada por las fuerzas rusas. A principios de semana se vieron imágenes de las tropas ucranianas huyendo de esa ciudad clave.
En su mensaje Trump escribió: «EN ESTE MISMO MOMENTO, MILES DE TROPAS UCRANIANAS ESTÁN COMPLETAMENTE RODEADAS POR EL EJÉRCITO RUSO, EN UNA SITUACIÓN MUY MALÍSIMA Y VULNERABLE.
He solicitado encarecidamente al presidente Putin que se les perdone la vida.
Esta sería una masacre horrible, no vista desde la Segunda Guerra Mundial.
¡Que Dios los bendiga a todos!».
Donald Trump ha presentado su postura sobre la guerra como la de una figura humanitaria que quiere detener las matanzas, opinó Clarke.
Hamas agreed Friday to release Edan Alexander, the last living American hostage in captivity in the Gaza Strip.
Alexander, a 21-year-old Israeli-American, will be released along with the bodies of four other hostages, according to a deal offered by mediators. As of Friday, Alexander has been held captive for 525 days, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said.
The bodies that will be released are of dual-national hostages, the Associated Press reported. It’s unclear when the transfer will happen, but it comes as talks are ongoing in Qatar to establish the next phase of the Israel-Hamas ceasefire, the first phase of which ended on March 1.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said Friday that he will convene his ministerial team on Saturday to receive a detailed report from negotiators and decide on the next steps for the release of the hostages.
MEET EDAN ALEXANDER, THE LAST LIVING AMERICAN HOSTAGE IN HAMAS CAPTIVITY
Edan Alexander, born in Tel Aviv and raised in New Jersey, is currently being held hostage by Hamas in Gaza. (Hostage Family Forum)
Steve Witkoff, special envoy to the Middle East, presented to Israel and Hamas a U.S. proposal for extending the ceasefire by several weeks in exchange for more hostage releases from Hamas and the resumption of humanitarian aid into the war-torn Gaza Strip, Axios reported Thursday, citing sources with direct knowledge of the plan.
«While Israel has accepted the Witkoff proposal, Hamas remains firm in its refusal and has not moved an inch,» Netanayhu said Friday. «At the same time, it continues to employ manipulations and psychological warfare.»
Last week, Witkoff told reporters outside the White House that «Edan Alexander is very important to us as all the hostages are.»
Senior Hamas official Basem Naim told Fox News on Friday that «a delegation from the Hamas movement’s leadership received a proposal from mediators yesterday to resume negotiations, and responded responsibly and positively.
«The movement submitted its response early this morning, agreeing to release… Edan Alexander, who holds U.S. citizenship, along with the remains of four others with dual citizenship,» Naim added. «We reaffirm our full readiness to engage in negotiations and reach a comprehensive agreement on the issues of the second phase, and call for obligating the occupation to fully implement its commitments.»
Though he spent most of his life in New Jersey, Alexander was born in Israel a few months before his parents moved to the U.S., according to the American Jewish Committee (AJC).
After graduating from high school, Alexander decided he would enlist in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) rather than enroll in college.
Yael Alexander, the mother of hostage Edan Alexander, speaks during The ‘Run for Their Lives’ rally and run in Central Park on the 100th day since the October 7 attack by Hamas, on Jan. 14, 2024 in New York City. (Alexi Rosenfeld/Getty Images)
On Oct. 7, Alexander, who was serving in the IDF’s Golani Brigade, an infantry unit, was patrolling near Gaza when Hamas’ attacks on Israel began. The attacks ended with 1,200 Israelis dead and 251 hostages taken, including Alexander.
Yael Alexander, Edan’s mother, recounted the day he was taken hostage in a recent interview with AJC’s «People of the Pod.» Yael was in Israel in early October 2023, visiting her family and hoping to see Edan. On the morning of Oct. 7, she spoke with Edan, who said that he was seeing «terrible stuff,» but he assured her that he was safe. Then he was taken hostage.
On Nov. 30, 2024, more than a year after Alexander was captured, Hamas released a video of Alexander speaking in Hebrew and Arabic. Alexander, like other hostages forced to make propaganda videos, delivered messages about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and then-President-elect Donald Trump.
AFTER TRUMP THREAT, HAMAS REFUSES TO RELEASE MORE HOSTAGES WITHOUT PHASE 2 CEASEFIRE DEAL
Donald Trump, is shown photos of Edan Alexander by his mother Yael Alexander at Ohel Chabad Lubavitch on Oct. 7, 2024 in New York City. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
A few days after the video’s release, Adi Alexander, Edan’s father, spoke with «Fox & Friends First,» calling the film «very emotional» and «disturbing.» He said it was the first time they had seen a sign of life from their son since he was taken hostage.
Trump warned Hamas earlier this month to «Release all of the Hostages now, not later, and immediately return all of the dead bodies of the people you murdered, or it is OVER for you.»
«A beautiful Future awaits, but not if you hold Hostages. If you do, you are DEAD! Make a SMART decision. RELEASE THE HOSTAGES NOW, OR THERE WILL BE HELL TO PAY LATER!» Trump said.
Donald Trump is seen posing with a photo of Edan Alexander on Oct. 7, 2024 in New York City. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum said Friday that it «wholeheartedly welcomes the return of every hostage — whether they come home for rehabilitation or burial.»
«The return of any number of hostages must only be the beginning of an immediate and comprehensive deal to secure the release of ‘all hostages,’» it added. «As President Trump has assured our families and the world, and as he has stated time and again, the return of all hostages is a top priority for his adminsitration. His commitment to bringing our loved ones home has given us hope during this darkest of times.
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«As of today, 59 hostages remain,» the group also said. «We pray every single day for a deal that brings every one of them home, immediately.»
Fox News’ Yael Rotem-Kuriel, Trey Yingst, Rachel Wolf and Stephen Sorace contributed to this report.
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