Harare/Johannesburg - A group of senior United Nations officials has arrived in Zimbabwe to lead efforts to combat a devastating cholera epidemic, answering an appeal by President Robert Mugabe's government last week for help.

At least 575 people have died and over 12,000 people been infected in a cholera outbreak that began in sewage-drenched poor urban townships in August.

Because those figures do not include people who died at home, the real toll is thought to be much higher.

The state-controlled daily Herald newspaper said Tuesday that five World Health Organization (WHO) experts arrived from Geneva on Monday.

Johannesburg  - South African Home Affairs Minister Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula said Tuesday that the country is not going to tighten border controls despite many illegal immigrants entering the country.

"Economic migrants will always find a way of moving into areas where they shouldn't be," she told reporters in Johannesburg, according to the South African press agency Sapa.

"You are not going to be able to prevent that," she said, adding that the worst thing South Africa could do was "to go back to the past where we had electric fences meant to restrict people."

Tighter border controls would "actually encourage illegal migration."

Cape Town (South Africa), Dec. 9 : The ICC Chief Executives’ Committee met here on December 7 and 8 and discussed a range of issues relating to the playing and the business of cricket, some of which will be considered by the ICC Board when it next meets, in Perth at the end of January.

The results of the meeting were as follows:

Windhoek  - Jacob Zuma, the leader of South Africa's ruling African National Congress party, on Monday reiterated his calls for a speedy solution to the political crisis in Zimbabwe as he started a two-day visit to Namibia.

Zuma is in Namibia to boost relations between the ANC and its Namibian counterpart, the former liberation-movement-turned-ruling party, SWAPO.

"We need some swift action to deal with the situation in Zimbabwe," Zuma told Namibian President Hifikepunye Pohamba during official talks between the ANC and SWAPO at State House in the capital Windhoek.

Cape Town (South Africa), Dec. 6: South African all rounder Jacques Kallis has revealed that coach Duncan Fletcher has a new plan to beat Australia.

Speaking from Cape Town, Kallis warned Australia to expect the unexpected in the three-Test series starting in Perth on December 17.

"We have worked well with Duncan and he has got some new ideas to beat Australia. He got some thoughts from the 2005 Ashes ... but he has quite a few fresh plans for Australia this time around," The Sun quoted Kallis, as saying.