A South African court on Saturday ordered an end to the police blockade of a former gold mine, where hundreds, possibly thousands, of illegal miners are thought to be underground.

The police have cut off food and water to miners for weeks in a bid to force them out of an abandoned mine. Human rights advocates and community leaders call the tactics inhumane.

The South African government said on Friday it has put together a team including mine rescue experts to come up with a plan to bring to surface illegal miners who remain under a disused gold mine. The move signaled the government was taking a more conciliatory approach compared to earlier this week,

A community rescue effort to help illegal miners trapped in a mine shaft in South Africa emerged after police said they wouldn't help.

A court says emergency workers must be allowed to enter a mine where hundreds are thought to be without food and water.

The South African government says it has put together a team including mine rescue experts to come up with a plan to bring to surface illegal miners who remain under a disused gold mine

South Africa's government says it won't help a group of illegal miners inside a closed mine in the country's North West province who have been denied access to basic supplies as part of an official strategy against illegal mining.