A person was arrested inside parliament, Public Works and Infrastructure Minister Patricia De Lille told reporters, adding that the case had been handed over to an elite police unit called the Hawks. The fire initially was concentrated at the old Parliament building, which is located behind the National Assembly, De Lille told reporters. She had initially said firefighters had the situation under control, but the flames later spread to the current Parliament building. Firemen spray water on flames erupting from the South Africa’s Parliament building [Jerome Delay/AP Photo]Several hours after the blaze started, thick smoke was still pouring from one of the several buildings that make up the parliament complex. Member of parliament Steve Swart called the fire “tragic” and told reporters at the scene that MPs will continue their work remotely.

Source: The North Africa Journal January 02, 2022 15:16 UTC