Families desperate as 17 SA men remain stuck in Russian conflict

Loading player...
A resignation from Parliament. Charges and counter charges filed. Denials and disappointment. And still, nothing right now can return 17 men to South Africa who were unknowingly deployed to the frontlines of the Russia/Ukraine war. We get the latest from the man who broke the MK Party and Russian military saga, Iavan Pijoos, in our latest edition of The Lead. Later, in our trending topic, the Boks have been thrown in a fairly easy pool for the 2027 Rugby World Cup. Finally, Dr Christiaan Barnard made human heart transplant history on this day in 1967 at the end of the show. You can send our host, broadcast journalist Graeme Raubenheimer, a voice note with your questions or thoughts on the show: 072 562 3179. To advertise in the show: thelead@24.com. Full editions drop Monday through Thursday at 19:00 on Spotify, Apple and YouTube. The Lead is currently sponsored by 10X Investments.
Chapters
  • 00:01 Graeme's intro
  • 01:23 Crossing to Iavan Pijoos on MKP Russia saga
  • 16:33 AD: 10X Investments
  • 17:25 Crossing to Khanyiso Tshwaku on RWC 2027 pools
  • 23:58 AD: N24's The Weekender
  • 24:26 On This Day in SA History: Dr Christiaan Barnard
3 Dec 2025 English South Africa News · Society & Culture

Other recent episodes

Herman Mashaba on refusing to work with Zille, declining a Cabinet post

He led Mzansi's newest green party to fifth place in the 2021 municipal polls, so the question is: what will it take for Herman Mashaba's ActionSA to do it again in 2026? The founder of Black Like Me is our guest this Newsmaker Thursday on News24's The Lead. Mashaba insists…
16 Apr 50 min

What will it take for Roelf Meyer to bend Donald Trump’s ear?

They met behind closed doors on the sidelines of the News24 On the Record Summit in Cape Town in March, and now we finally know the outcome. President Cyril Ramaphosa is deploying former constitutional affairs minister Roelf Meyer to Washington, D.C., to try and salvage what's left of US/SA ties. We've…
15 Apr 26 min

Bribes for debt wipes? Slain Emfuleni whistleblower tipped officials

Fraudulent payments? Missing municipal funds? Bribes to wipe service providers' debt? Forty-year-old mother of one, Martha Mani Rantsofu, was no ordinary junior finance clerk in Gauteng's Emfuleni Local Municipality, because by our accounts, she was a whistleblower knocking on some dangerous doors. While the Gauteng Political Killings Task Team takes a closer look…
14 Apr 29 min

The DA is maturing and getting younger, with Carol Paton

The DA led a landmark elective congress this past weekend, leaving it with an introspective question. In this new Geordin Hill-Lewis era, can the party shed its perceived stigma of being a 20% party, mostly for whites? We'll take stock with our acting political editor, Carol Paton, who's been following…
13 Apr 27 min

Let's show SA who we really are, says DA leader hopeful Dyonase

He thought: What have I got to lose? Let me take on the man widely tipped to lead the DA next. In this edition, The Lead host Graeme Raubenheimer picks Sibusiso Dyonase's brain on his 15-year journey in the DA, who he looks up to, and why challenging Cape Town…
9 Apr 37 min