subsided
. Instead, a council of village elders ordered that they be killed along with the boy's cousin who'd helped them. All three had their
genitals
set alight before being hanged. But the parents of the two boys then lodged a case against the village council for ordering such a brutal killing. Convictions were largely based on the parents' testimony.
The embattled leader of the youth wing of South Africa's governing ANC, Julius Malema, has spoken out in defiance against the party's decision to suspend him. Last week, Mr Malema was suspended from the ANC for bringing the party into
disrepute
. Milton Nkosi reports from Johannesburg.
Reading from a statement, Julius Malema said there were always signs that the decision was to suspend the ANC Youth League leadership. He said the Youth League totally disagreed with the outcome of the
disciplinary
committee. He said he rejects the five-year suspension verdict, which was handed down last week. He confirmed that he would appeal the convictions. The embattled youth leader, who wants President Jacob Zuma to be removed as leader of the party, said the disciplinary hearings had been used to settle political scores.
Police in the United States have arrested a man in connection with a shooting incident close to the White House last Friday. The man, Oscar Ortega-Hernandez, was detained at a hotel in Pennsylvania. The American Secret Service said earlier that two bullets found outside the White House may be connected with the incident. One hit a bullet-proof window; the other one was found nearby. President Obama was away from the White House at the time of the shooting.