South African rescuers have pulled out 36 dead bodies and 82 survivors from a gold mine deep underground in two days of operations, police said on Tuesday, adding that the survivors would all face illegal mining and immigration charges.

Johannesburg: A total of 118 illegal miners were brought to the surface during rescue operations at an abandoned gold mine in Stilfontein in South Africa's North West Province, with 36 confirmed dead,

The South African government has launched a rescue operation at an abandoned gold mine in the country’s North West province, where at least 109 men have died, a group representing the miners said, after local authorities cut off vital supplies in a dramatic bid to crack down on the country’s illegal mining trade.

Rescuers have sent a cagelike device into one of South Africa’s deepest gold mines to bring out survivors among hundreds of miners working illegally in an abandoned shaft who have been trapped for months.

The authorities had at one point limited the miners’ access to food, water and other supplies in a blockade that drew criticism from human rights groups.

Rescuers have sent a cagelike structure into one of South Africa’s deepest gold mines to bring out survivors among hundreds of miners working illegally in an abandoned shaft who have

South African authorities lifted the bodies of 36 people from an abandoned gold mine, police have said. Hundreds more people could be underground following a monthslong effort to force them out of the mine.