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Republican vice presidential candidate, US Senator JD Vance speaks during a fundraising event at Discovery World on 17 July, 2024 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Photo: AFP Donald Trump's vice-presidential candidate JD Vance has defended resurfaced comments in which he called Democratic politicians a "bunch of childless cat ladies with miserable lives". His remarks, made in 2021, have been roundly criticised this week, with Jennifer Aniston among those to have hit out at the 39-year-old Republican. "Obviously it was a sarcastic comment. People are focusing so much on the sarcasm and not on the substance of what I actually said," Mr Vance told the conservative media personality Megyn Kelly on Friday. "The substance of what I said, Megyn - I'm sorry, it's true," he added. Vance, who has three ch...

The 2024 Olympic Games in Paris is officially underway after singer Celine Dion capped off an extravaganza of an opening ceremony on Saturday morning. Moulin Rouge can-can dancers, heavy metal, opera singers, heavy metal, acrobats, Lady Gaga, Serena Williams, Rafael Nadal, Zinedine Zidane, a light show and a hot air balloon, there wasn't a lot the ceremony didn't have. Despite the rain and hours-long event along the River Seine, Paris got its Games underway in full showy fashion. It had been expected to be a unique ceremony and it didn't disappoint. Follow RNZ's live blog with all the action here: Source link

East Sepik Province, Sepik River Region, Papua New Guinea. Photo: Dozier Marc / Hemis via AFP Hundreds of people are displaced after a massacre in remote Papua New Guinea and the province's governor says political problems are getting in the way of help. East Sepik governor Allan Bird said the deployment of police into the area the attacks took place was delayed by a lack of fuel. The attacks in three villages near the town of Angoram were reported to have left 26 dead, including women and children, though other sources have said the death toll could be double that. The incident occurred on 16 July, and left almost 400 people displaced. Bird told RNZ Pacific the PNG police are supposed to be funded by the national government; but there the East Sepik provincial government has had to hel...

Celine Dion, Lady Gaga, Moulin Rouge can-can dancers, an aircraft flyover, a heavy metal band, and athletes on boats parading up the river have delighted crowds. You can also read our full coverage of the extravaganza as it happened here. Overview of the Trocadero venue, with the Eiffel Tower looming in the background and lasers lighting up the sky, during the opening ceremony. Photo: FRANCOIS-XAVIER MARIT/AFP Singer Celine Dion performs at the opening ceremony for the Paris Olympics. Photo: X / The Olympic Games Lights illuminate the Eiffel Tower during the opening ceremony. Photo: LOIC VENANCE/AFP A balloon holding the Olympic cauldron after it was lit during the opening ceremony. Photo: PETER CZIBORRA/AFP Torchbearer French former basketball player Tony Parker...

Photo: New Zealand Olympic Team/X The 2024 Olympic Games in Paris officially get under way on Saturday with the opening ceremony along the River Seine. It's expected to be a unique ceremony. Some have called it risky for not being held in a stadium. Despite Saturday being the official start of the Games, some sports have already started. Friday was a rough day for the All Blacks Sevens who were kicked out of medal contention in the quarterfinals and the Football Ferns who lost their opening game to Canada after the spying scandal that rocked the team. Follow RNZ's live blog with all the action here: Source link

The Paris 2024 Olympics Games officially opened Saturday with an opening ceremony along the River Seine. Lady Gaga sang, there were acrobats, Moulin Rouge can-can dancers, aircraft flyover, French Revolution references, a heavy metal band, and of course the athletes on boats parading up the river. Jo Aleh and Aaron Murray Gate, Flagbearers of Team New Zealand. Photo: HANNAH PETERS A heart made with red smoke by 4 planes floats in the air near Notre-Dame Cathedral. Photo: JULIEN DE ROSA/AFP Athletes of Team New Zealand pose for a photo as they cruise along the River Seine. Photo: HANNAH PETERS Smoke clouds in the tricolours of the France flag are seen at Pont d'Austerlitz. Photo: ANN WANG / AFP Tightrope walker Nathan Paulin performs on a high rope during the at...

The Cambridge Dictionary defines "boop" as "a gentle hit or touch" on the nose or head as a joke or to indicate affection. Photo: 123rf By Lucy Clarke-Billings, BBC News "The ick" and "boop" are among more than 3200 new words and phrases added to the Cambridge Dictionary this year. The latest additions - which have gained prominence in online and youth culture in recent years - are expected to be more than a fleeting part of the English language. Wendalyn Nichols, Cambridge Dictionary's publishing manager, said that while language is constantly evolving, these new additions have "staying power". The dictionary defines "the ick", popularised by the reality show Love Island, as "a sudden feeling that you dislike someone or something or are no longer attracted to someone because of somethi...

By Ana Faguy and Bernd Debusmann Jr at the White House, BBC News, Washington Barack Obama and Kamala Harris have known each other for decades. Photo: Getty Images/Chip Somodevilla Barack Obama has endorsed Vice-President Kamala Harris to be the Democratic presidential nominee, ending days of speculation over whether he would support her. Former President Obama and ex-First Lady Michelle Obama said in a joint statement that they believe Harris has the "vision, the character, and the strength that this critical moment demands". Mr Obama was reportedly among more than 100 prominent Democrats Harris spoke to after President Joe Biden announced last Sunday he was dropping out of the race. In a statement at the time, Obama praised Biden's exit, but stopped short of endorsing Harris. The US...

Photo: AFP There is one country that constantly produces the tallest people in the world - so what is their secret? Like in the rest of Europe and Western nations, heights in the Netherlands have increased dramatically over the past 200 years - but for some reason, the Dutch grow higher. The Dutch started shooting up in the late 19th century, Kristina Thompson, an associate professor of health and society at Wageningen University, told RNZ's Nights. "At the beginning of the 19th century, the Dutch were relatively short - they were around 163-165 centimetres for men. And we really start to see a massive shift towards the middle of the 19th century when the Dutch start growing at this tremendous rate. "And it was only really in the 20th century that the Dutch outstripped other nations and ...

Passengers gather around the departure and arrival boards at the Gare Montparnasse train station in Paris on July 26, 2024 as France's high-speed rail network was hit by malicious acts disrupting the transport system hours before the opening ceremony of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games. Photo: THIBAUD MORITZ / AFP Vandals targeted France's high-speed train network with a series of coordinated actions that brought major disruption to some of the country's busiest rail lines ahead of the Paris Olympics opening ceremony. The state-owned railway operator said arsonists had targeted installations along the lines connecting Paris with cities such as Lille in the north, Bordeaux in west and Strasbourg in the east. It urged all travellers to postpone their journeys. Repairs were underway but traffi...