SOUTH AFRICA

Striking workers in South Africa's petroleum sector are discussing a revised wage offer to end a three-week-old walkout as stoppages spread to the vital mining sector, threatening supplies of coal and gold.

Higher input costs and a strong rand led to a 63 percent drop in ArcelorMittal South Africa's first-half profit and the steelmaker forecast a difficult third quarter on Wednesday, sending its shares to a 28-month low.

A ship broke free from a tow line and is stranded near the shore at Sheffield Beach, north of Durban, South Africa.

Drastic changes in global climate patterns will pose a dire threat to peace and security around the world, warns the head of the United Nations.

Uruguay beat Paraguay 3-0 to take the trophy.

Gold held steady on Tuesday after the last session's record high, as investors stayed on the sidelines, watching the stalemate in Washington's budget talks to avert a ratings downgrade or default.

South African gold miners will this week join thousands of workers seeking pay rises in widening nationwide strikes, threatening to hurt exports from Africa's largest economy at a time when bullion is at record highs.

Gold held steady below its record high on Tuesday as investors waited to see if President Barack Obama's appeal for lawmakers to break a deadlock in U.S. debt talks would succeed, while the euro zone debt crisis lent support.

Health officials and researchers from the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say the decline shows that the benefits of the vaccine program - established in the 1990s - were larger than expected prior to its start. Chickenpox led to about 105 deaths a year during the pre-vaccine years of 1990 to 1994, researchers say.

A 50-year-old man woke up in a mortuary, in South Africa screaming to be rescued after he was presumed to be dead by his family.

A mystifying unidentified flying object (UFO) has been captured in a photo in Cape Town, South Africa. Amid multiple claims of UFO sightings from around the world, what makes it unique is the fact that you can also find it using Google Earth.

On the list of unpleasant places to wake up unexpectedly, a morgue has to top the list -- but that's what happened to a South African man who terrified morgue workers when he jolted back to consciousness on Sunday.

According to a recent study, between 2002 and 2007, the annual average number of chickenpox deaths was the lowest ever reported, with 14 deaths recorded in 2007 and just 13 the year prior, due to a particular vaccine. Chickenpox led to about 105 deaths a year during the pre-vaccine years of 1990 to 1994, researchers say.

The killing of rhinoceroses has reached epidemic levels in South Africa, which is home to about 90 percent of the global rhino population.

The countdown for Copa America 2011 final has begun. The two sides led by Diego Lugano and Justo Villar will be bringing out all their arsenals to prove themselves best in the war of South American soccer.

The hackers have expletives and hate messages with Lil B's picture splashed across.

Paraguay and Venezuela meet in the semifinals.

A field specialist and her crew in South Africa got a closer look at their subject on Monday when a three-meter great white shark leaped from the sea and into the boat they were traveling in. No one was injured.

The Rugby World Cup is expected to be an intense tournament.

All Non-African carry Neanderthal genetics.

Larissa, for the second time has promised to bare it all for the team if it lifts the Copa America trophy. Larissa had promised to run naked on the streets of Paraguay if her team won the Fifa World Cup in South Africa.