Sunday, March 8

Blog

PM shares rugby banter with Australia, Pacific leaders at CHOGM police event
World News

PM shares rugby banter with Australia, Pacific leaders at CHOGM police event

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon has shared some friendly rugby banter with Australian and Pacific colleagues at an event highlighting the Pacific Policing Initiative. New Zealand sent the largest police contingent in support of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Samoa, with Luxon saying nearly 120 officers - mostly of Samoan heritage - have been providing security and safety. Other Pacific countries also provided police in support of CHOGM, including Australia, Tonga, Solomon Islands, and Fiji. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, left, next to Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Samoan Prime Minister Fiamē Naomi Mataʻafa, right. Photo: RNZ / Russel Palmer Reverend Siaosi Salesulu opened the event with a prayer - noting his nephew Patrick Tuipulotu is set to lea...
Georgia heads into parliamentary election – but the winner is still totally up in the air | World News
Business

Georgia heads into parliamentary election – but the winner is still totally up in the air | World News

Ask people to predict the result in this weekend's parliamentary election in Georgia, and you will get an "absolutely no idea" or a "totally up in the air" coming straight back at you.Which is strange when you consider the fact that the matter before the voters in this small but strategically vital nation goes to the very root of what it means to be a Georgian. Here is the question - are we talking about a Georgia as a European-style democracy-to-be, on the pathway to membership in the European Union and NATO?Alternatively, are we preparing for a Russian-style autocracy that will operate as a satellite of its over-sized northerly neighbour? Image: Founder of the Georgian Dream party Bidzina Ivanishvili casts his vote. Pic: Reuters ...
US election pollsters draw criticism after recent misses
World News

US election pollsters draw criticism after recent misses

By Ulysse Bellier, AFP Photo: RNZ The US political world was stunned in 2016 when Donald Trump won despite pre-election polls showing him behind, and in 2020 Joe Biden's winning margin wound up slimmer than polling suggested. Have pollsters learned enough from their mistakes to be more accurate this year? With just days to go, Democrat Kamala Harris and Trump seem locked neck-and-neck. But if polls are once again underestimating the Republican vote, the ex-president could well be ahead. The heart of the problem hasn't changed since Trump's dramatic 2016 upset, experts said, with a chunk of his electorate refusing to respond to polls. "We haven't found a silver bullet," Courtney Kennedy, vice president of methods and innovation at the Pew Research Center, told AFP. In the meantime, e...
Scale of any retaliation will dictate whether Iran and Israel are on a path to all-out war | World News
Business

Scale of any retaliation will dictate whether Iran and Israel are on a path to all-out war | World News

Israel has launched what looks to be its biggest-ever direct attack against Iran, but an announcement that its forces are only striking military targets is key.The world has been bracing for an Israeli retaliation against the Iranian regime ever since Iran's military launched a barrage of more than 180 ballistic missiles at Israel more than three weeks ago in response to Israeli attacks against its proxy forces in the region. The Israeli government had vowed a "hard" response. There had been speculation that this could include the targeting of Iranian nuclear sites, energy infrastructure or even the country's leadership.Middle East latest: IDF confirms airstrikes on TehranHowever, if the attack is restricted to purely military targets, then - depending on the scale of the damage - it could...
Washington Post won’t endorse candidate in 2024 presidential election after Bezos decision
World News

Washington Post won’t endorse candidate in 2024 presidential election after Bezos decision

By Hadas Gold and Brian Stelter, CNN Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos. Photo: AFP For the first time in decades, the Washington Post will not endorse a candidate in this year's presidential election, the newspaper's publisher announced Friday, a decision that sparked widespread outrage among the paper's staffers. "The Washington Post will not be making an endorsement of a presidential candidate in this election. Nor in any future presidential election," Post publisher Will Lewis said in a statement. "We are returning to our roots of not endorsing presidential candidates." The Post reported the decision not to endorse was made by the newspaper's billionaire owner, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, citing two sources briefed on the matter. The Post's editorial page staffers had drafted an end...
Polio Day: Must identify areas with low polio vaccination coverage, say experts
Health

Polio Day: Must identify areas with low polio vaccination coverage, say experts

Even as India celebrates a decade of being polio-free, it is important to identify areas with low polio vaccination coverage to protect children from the devastating disease, and pave the way for a healthy future, said experts on World Polio Day on October 24.  World Polio Day is celebrated on October 24 every year to raise awareness about polio -- a viral disease that mainly affects children below the age of five. India has achieved a significant milestone in eradicating polio with the country declared free of polio by the World Health Organization in 2014. However, polio remains a threat, and the pace of the polio vaccine has also slowed down in India, with the coverage levels being poorest in the north-east, as seen in recent data from the National Family Health Survey. This is also...
King’s first trip after cancer diagnosis a success despite anti-colonial protests in Australia and Samoa | World News
Business

King’s first trip after cancer diagnosis a success despite anti-colonial protests in Australia and Samoa | World News

This was a royal tour that marked a number of firsts.It was the first real test of the monarchy in an overseas realm, the King's first time at a Commonwealth leaders' meeting as head of the Commonwealth. And for the King personally, this was his first big trip since his cancer diagnosis.It was also a trip notably shorter than previous tours.With no early starts and only one late night, the King and Queen had a lighter schedule and fewer days away. They had a lot to get through in those days, and with so few days Down Under, they wanted everything to run smoothly.Palace aides had planned for protests but probably hadn't imagined it would happen at the heart of Australia's parliament. Image: King Charles and Queen Camilla with members of a ...
Three dead after two light planes collide in Sydney
World News

Three dead after two light planes collide in Sydney

(File photo) Photo: 123rf/ Andrey Moisseyev Three men are dead after two light planes collided midair before crashing into bushland in Sydney's south-west. Emergency crews rushed to the scene at Belimbla Park, near Oakdale, at about midday after residents witnessed the crash. At least five ambulance crews along with police and fire crews are parked nearby, with first responders making their way to the two wreckage sites on foot. The two crash sites are in close proximity and one plane burst into flames on impact. Police said three men had been found dead at the scene. - ABC Source link
What’s glycation? The secret to ageing gracefully and living longer
Life Style

What’s glycation? The secret to ageing gracefully and living longer

We often think of ageing in terms of what we can do aesthetically — we might do the odd bit of needlework, pop on an LED mask before bed, or slather skin with the latest retinol-infused moisturiser. These topical techniques might help to perk up self-confidence, and provide short-term effects, but diving deep to find out what’s going on inside your body is a better indication of whether or not you’ll look good as you age, and if you’ll live long enough to see out your 90th birthday.When you feel good on the inside, it naturally shows on the outside and a process called glycation is intrinsically linked to ageing - it’s a buzzword that scientists are constantly researching. Glycation is actually a natural biological process that takes place within the body from the moment you are born and c...
US pressure over Israel’s retaliation against Iran appears to have paid off – for now | World News
Business

US pressure over Israel’s retaliation against Iran appears to have paid off – for now | World News

Publicly and privately, the United States has been pressuring Israel to formulate its retaliatory attack against Iran very carefully.The 1 October Iranian ballistic missile attack on Israel (itself a retaliation in a series of escalatory actions by both sides) warranted a significant Israeli response - of that Joe Biden's administration was in no doubt. But President Biden's diplomatic challenge was to persuade Israel to be smart with its response, knowing that anything too large could instigate a rapid spiral into all-out regional war which would draw America in.The problem for Biden has been that he's seen his ability to influence the Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu over the past year - in Gaza and then Lebanon - has been limited.Middle East latest: IDF confirms airstrikes on Tehran An...