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Hundreds – possibly thousands – of miners remain trapped in an abandoned gold mine in South Africa’s northwestern Stilfontein town, fearful to come out of hiding and face arrest by security officials in a tense standoff that has continued for weeks.
South African police have guarded the site’s entrance since early November. Officials cut off food and water supplies earlier to force the miners out and vowed they would not assist with rescue operations. Police also say some of the miners could be armed, and that would pose a risk to officials rescuing them.
Illegal mining is a…
