The case, part of the "Farmgate" scandal, has left President Cyril Ramaphosa mired in an impeachment saga.

A rights group will argue the world-leading policy robs under-16s of their right to free communication.

Local officials say 27 people had been missing after at least nine 3,000kg aerial bombs hit a village in southern Ukraine.

Many Ukrainians, who have faced years of Russian attacks, did not take the messages seriously and doubted their veracity.