Thursday, March 19

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French rugby player swept out to sea off South Africa coast
World News

French rugby player swept out to sea off South Africa coast

Photo: timhester/123RF The search for a French rugby player missing after being swept away by a wave while swimming in the sea off Cape Town has continued on Friday. Medhi Narjissi, part of the France under-18 team due to participate in a four-nation tournament in South Africa, was "swept away by a wave" on Thursday while swimming with other players in a recovery session after training, the French Rugby Federation said in a statement. Two sea rescue boats and a helicopter were involved in an immediate rescue operation but did not find him and on Thursday police divers continued the search. National Sea Rescue Institute spokesman Craig Lambinon said they suspected strong rip currents swept the 17-year-old into the surf zone and out to sea. He said that despite an extensive sea, air and sh...
How the Kamala Harris surge scrambled Donald Trump’s battle plan
World News

How the Kamala Harris surge scrambled Donald Trump’s battle plan

US Vice President Kamala Harris and former US President and 2024 Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. Photo: Brendan SMIALOWSKI and Patrick T. Fallon / AFP By Gram Slattery, Alexandra Ulmer, Nathan Layne, Reuters Analysis - A little over two weeks ago, Donald Trump's presidential campaign had visions of an expansive national strategy that would result in a landslide victory in November. Now, as they struggle to blunt a surging Kamala Harris, who swiftly replaced President Joe Biden as the Democratic Party's presidential candidate last month, campaign advisers say they are recalibrating to protect states once thought of as safe and narrowing ambitions for the electoral map. While top Trump advisers once saw a chance for an electoral blowout - with Democratic-leaning states lik...
Little public trust left for Foodstuffs North Island after fine, grocery advocate says
Business

Little public trust left for Foodstuffs North Island after fine, grocery advocate says

Photo: Supplied There is very little public trust left in Foodstuffs North Island after being fined for using land covenants to block its rivals, a grocery advocacy chair says. The company was fined $3.25 million in the Wellington High Court for deliberately using covenants on land to hinder rivals after the practice came to light in a Commerce Commission market study in 2022. Grocery Action Group chair Suzanne Chetwin told Morning Report t the practice effectively prevented competitors from being able to set up in small towns and cities around the North Island. "This is where Foodstuffs would buy up land that could potentially be used by a competitor and they would put covenants on this land that would prevent them being able to be used as supermarkets. "Some of those covenants were o...
British crocodile expert jailed for sexual abuse of dogs
World News

British crocodile expert jailed for sexual abuse of dogs

Adam Britton pictured in Bunawan town in the Philippines southern island of Mindanao in 2011. Photo: RICHARD GRANDE/AFP By Tiffanie Turnbull, BBC News, Sydney Warning: This story contains details readers might find distressing A renowned British crocodile expert has been jailed for 10 years and five months in Australia, after admitting to sexually abusing dozens of dogs, in a case which horrified the nation. Adam Britton, a leading zoologist who has worked on BBC and National Geographic productions and had been interviewed on Radio New Zealand, pleaded guilty to 56 charges relating to bestiality and animal cruelty. He also admitted to four counts of accessing child abuse material. The Northern Territory (NT) Supreme Court heard the 53-year-old filmed himself torturing the animals until ...
Business to offer AI cameras for front of buses
Business

Business to offer AI cameras for front of buses

A US company is aiming to bring new camera technology to New Zealand buses, to help keep other vehicles out of bus lanes and bus stops. (File photo) Photo: Stuff / Ricky Wilson A US company that puts AI-enabled cameras on the front of buses to try to stop cars from blocking bus stops has entered the New Zealand market. Hayden AI has teamed up with Japanese owned NEC New Zealand. Their aim extends to policing bus and cycle lanes, and double-parking, "to improve road safety in New Zealand and Australia", a company statement said. NEC already has public transport contracts providing passenger information for buses in Canterbury, and signed a similar one worth up to $16.5m for Wellington last year Hayden AI claimed its system had sped up buses on monitored routes in New York, where it was i...
Ranvir Shorey, Kay Kay Menon discuss their roles in `Shekhar Home`
Entertainment, Movies

Ranvir Shorey, Kay Kay Menon discuss their roles in `Shekhar Home`

Actors Ranvir Shorey and Kay Kay Menon, who will be seen in the upcoming detective series `Shekhar Home,` spoke about their roles and experiences working together. Speaking to ANI, the duo, who are busy promoting their upcoming series shared their enthusiasm for the project. Reflecting on his decision to take on the role, Menon said, "When an actor gets something with substantial and exciting content, it`s natural for them to be drawn to it. That`s exactly what happened with me; I said yes right away." Reflecting on their previous collaboration, Ranvir, who was recently seen in `Bigg Boss OTT 3` shared, "We have done some films together, but we weren`t as involved with each other as we are in this series. For example, in `Honeymoon Travels,` our tracks were separate...So, we might have sh...
The best celebrity beauty brands and the forgotten ones: from KKW to JLo Beauty
Life Style

The best celebrity beauty brands and the forgotten ones: from KKW to JLo Beauty

In the 1400s, God sent clouds of locusts, swarms of frogs and a litany of lice to punish humans in what are now known at The Plagues of Egypt. In the 21st century, we’ve had had some plagues of our own. First was the celebrity fragrance. You may recall Beyoncé’s Heat, Sarah Jessica Parker’s Lovely, Britney Spears’ Fantasy — or one of their twenty individual variants, forming an inescapable fume of sweetness that clouded each and every Boots and Superdrug. Then came the apps. “The Jeremy Renner app is a must have”, said Jeremy Renner, probably. Then the subscription services — mini Goop imitations that allowed you to sign up for updates on Khloe Kardashian’s inner life and burgeoning hatred of gluten. Now, it’s the celebrity beauty brands. They’re everywhere. They’re almighty. It feels as t...
Noah Lyles denied double gold after Covid diagnosis
World News

Noah Lyles denied double gold after Covid diagnosis

US' Noah Lyles receives medical attention after competing in the men's 200m final. Photo: KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP By Harry Poole, BBC sport journalist at Stade de France Botswana's Letsile Tebogo claimed a surprise Olympic 200m gold medal as Noah Lyles was denied a sprint double at Paris 2024. Tebogo, 21, stormed clear of his rivals to clock an African record of 19.46 seconds and finish ahead of American Kenneth Bednarek, who crossed the line in 19.62. Lyles, crowned the world's fastest man by five-thousandths of a second in a historically quick 100m final on Sunday night, was unable to compete at the head of the race and matched his Tokyo bronze in 19.70. It emerged after the race that Lyles had tested positive for Covid and the 27-year-old had to be helped off the track in a wheelchair...
Heat goes on power regulator as prices spike
Business

Heat goes on power regulator as prices spike

Prices have spiked this winter. Photo: 123rf The Electricity Authority (EA), under severe criticism over soaring wholesale power prices, says it is not "not comfortable" with power companies' explanations. Associate Energy Minister Shane Jones slammed the authority on Thursday as being useless in regulating the generator-retailers (gentailers), which are accused of profiteering. "Under the EA, sadly, that organisation has proven to be a chocolate teapot in regulating the excessive behaviour of the gentailers, who I feel are probably the most powerful economic institutions in New Zealand beyond the supermarkets and the Aussie banks." Energy Minister Simeon Brown also called for the Electricity Authority to publicly report power data to ensure there was no price-gouging in the sector. Who...
Teen planned ‘explosives and knives’ attack at Taylor Swift concert
World News

Teen planned ‘explosives and knives’ attack at Taylor Swift concert

Swift's three sold-out shows at the Ernst Happel Stadium have been cancelled. Photo: JULIEN DE ROSA/AFP By Vicky Wong, BBC News Austrian security officials say a 19-year-old arrested on Wednesday was planning to kill "a large crowd of people" in a suicide attack at a Taylor Swift concert in Vienna. Officials say the teen - who had previously pledged allegiance to the Islamic State group (IS) - confessed that he "intended to carry out an attack using explosives and knives". Swift's three sold-out shows at the Ernst Happel Stadium have been cancelled. More than 195,000 people had been expected to attend. Local media have also reported that the 19-year-old, the main suspect out of three, had stolen chemicals from his former workplace. The Kurier newspaper, citing sources, reported that he ...