Donald Trump has announced that General James ‘Mad Dog’ Mattis will be his defence secretary. A seasoned combat commander who is a well respected individual across party lines, Mattis has a reputation for blunt talking, but also for possessing a shrewd intelligence. Mattis may also be the first entirely lucid, non-right wing cabinet choice made by the Orange Menace so far.

Bolivia has shut down the LAMIA air charter service in the wake of this week’s devastating crash. Authorities are now investigating LAMIA’s operations, and have revoked its permit entirely. Air crash investigators are examining pilot records and air traffic control logs, which they suspect all may have contributed to the disaster.

French President François Hollande will not run for a second term. Hollande made the announcement late yesterday, his action throwing open the doors for the socialists to field a new candidate in April. It is expected that Hollande’s deputy, Manuel Valls, will attempt to run instead. With the lowest approval ratings since WWII for a French president, Hollande’s departure is probably for the best.

Australian officials have insisted that the Great Barrier Reef is not dying. The country is now required to submit its ‘Reef 2050’ rescue plan to UNESCO in order to avoid having the site listed as endangered. With widespread bleaching affecting two-thirds of its inshore northern section, “not dying” seems to be a Zuma-esque stretch of the imagination.

Weather
BFN: min: 16° max: 31°, sunny
CPT: min: 14° max: 27°, cloudy
DBN: min: 20° max: 24°, cloudy
EL: min: 17° max: 24°, cloudy
JHB: min: 15° max: 31°, cloudy
KIM: min: 19° max: 31°, sunny
NLP: min: 18° max: 26°, cloudy
PMB: min: 15° max: 21°, cloudy
PKN: min: 18° max: 28°, cloudy
PE: min: 16° max: 24°, cloudy
PTA: min: 16° max: 32°, cloudy

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