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French President Emmanuel Macron delivers a speech in Nouméa on 26 July 2023 Photo: Supplied France has approved a high-level Pacific "fact-finding mission" to New Caledonia to gather information from all sides involved in the ongoing crisis. "We are welcoming a mission of the troika for a fact-finding mission in New Caledonia before the [Pacific Islands Forum Leaders Meeting]," the French Ambassador to the Pacific, Véronique Roger-Lacan, told RNZ Pacific in an exclusive interview on Friday evening. "I gave a letter to the [PIF] secretary general Baron Waqa and Prime Minister Mark Brown, the chair. "It's a good idea. It's important that everyone can assess the situation together with [France]." She said it was important that dialogue continued. "We repeat the fact that these riots were ...

By Friederike Heine, Reuters Taylor Swift's three Eras Tour concerts in Vienna have been cancelled. Photo: AFP / David Gray Authorities in Austria have detained a third suspect in Vienna connected to an alleged plot to strike a Taylor Swift concert in the Austrian capital, the interior ministry said on Friday. The 18-year-old Iraqi national is said to have come from the same circle as the main suspect, a 19-year-old Austrian with North Macedonian roots, according to the ministry. More suspects would be questioned and properties searched as investigators continued to look into the plot, the ministry added. The main suspect, who had vowed loyalty to Islamic State (IS), was planning a lethal assault among the estimated 20,000 "Swiftie" fans set to gather outside Vienna's Ernst Happel St...

The backs of the hands of a patient with mpox, showing a characteristic rash during his recovery phase, pictured in Democratic Republic of Congo. Photo: CDC / IMAGE POINT FR / IMAGE POINT FR / BSIP via AFP Africa's public health agency is set to declare an mpox emergency as early as next week, saying the viral infection's rate of spread is alarming, as a new variant moves across Democratic Republic of Congo's borders. Mpox is transmitted through close contact and causes flu-like symptoms and pus-filled lesions. Most cases are mild but it can kill. The new variant, known as Clade Ib and circulating mostly in Congo, appears to spread more easily through routine close contact, as seems to be the case among children. The Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) Directo...

Canada's coach Beverly Priestman. Photo: AFP A Canadian MP has begun the process to bring the leaders of the Canadian women's soccer team and Canada Soccer before its Parliament over the drone spying scandal, according to media reports. Manitoba MP Niki Ashton has put forward a motion to call them before the House of Commons' heritage committee to testify. "This isn't just about what happened at the Olympics," she said in a statement reported by CBC. "It's about Canada's reputation in soccer and in sports. "Canadians need to know the full picture of what happened and how to make sure this never happens again. We are seeking accountability from Team Canada officials and [Canada Soccer]." Canada was at the centre of one of the first scandals of the Paris Olympics when it was revealed a Ca...

Fans of US mega-star Taylor Swift gather in the centre in Vienna, Austria, after her three scheduled concerts were cancelled following the arrest of an Islamic State sympathiser in connection with an attack plot. Photo: ROLAND SCHLAGER/AFP By Ian Youngs, BBC culture reporter and Bethany Bell, BBC News in Vienna Taylor Swift fans came out in force on Vienna's streets to sing her songs and show their defiance, a day after her concerts there were cancelled because of a plot to attack them. Hundreds of Swifties staged an impromptu open-air gathering to overcome the disappointment of not seeing the US superstar on her record-breaking Eras tour. They also said they understood the decision to cancel the stadium shows on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, and were grateful to the police. Austrian a...