More than 13,000 illegal miners have emerged from various shafts across the country since the police operation began in December last year.

When zama zamas go hungry deep underground in the abandoned mines where they illegally mine for gold, they sometimes resort to eating a mixture of toothpaste and toilet paper. “You mix a soft porridge with water,

Legal proceedings for the detained Mozambican miners have been postponed as the government intensifies its crackdown on illegal mining in North West.

Surviving on a diet of toothpaste and toilet paper, South Africa's notorious "zama-zama" illegal miners continue a weeks-long standoff with police in the darkness of a disused gold mine.

A group of teenagers have climbed out of an illegal gold mine in South Africa where a weeks-long standoff with police continues.

JOHANNESBURG - Police continue to monitor shafts in Stilfontein in the North West. This as scores of illegal miners remain underground, with some of them alleging that they were forced underground and held against their will.