World News

By Annabelle Liang, BBC News Part of the MT Terra Nova oil tanker is seen after sinking off Manila Bay. Photo: Supplied/Philippine Coast Guard A tanker carrying close to 1.5 million litres of industrial fuel has capsized and sank off the Philippine capital on Thursday, causing an oil spill, officials say. Sixteen crew members of the Philippine-flagged MT Terra Nova have been rescued while one remains missing, Transportation Secretary Jaime Bautista said. Bautista said an oil spill has been detected but strong winds and high waves were hampering the authorities' response. The incident comes a day after Typhoon Gaemi intensified seasonal monsoon rains, submerging large swathes of Metro Manila and its suburbs in deep floods. Gaemi has made landfall in Taiwan, leaving three people killed...

By James Pearson, Reuters The outage happened because CrowdStrike's Falcon contained a fault that forced computers running Microsoft's Windows operating system to crash and show the "Blue Screen of Death". Photo: SEM VAN DER WAL / AFP A software bug in CrowdStrike's quality-control system caused the software update that crashed computers globally last week, the US firm said on Wednesday (local time), as losses mount following the outage which disrupted services from aviation to banking. The extent of the damage from the botched update is still being assessed. On Saturday, Microsoft said about 8.5 million Windows devices had been affected, and the US House of Representatives Homeland Security Committee has sent a letter to CrowdStrike CEO George Kurtz asking him to testify. The financ...

Photo: 123RF China is considering a request to fund an extension of the Honiara International airport runway, Solomon Islands Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele says. Manele, who has just returned from China, revealed this on Thursday, saying the project was requested by the Solomon Islands government and Beijing is considering it. Manele said it would enable larger long-haul aircrafts to land at the Honiara International Airport and enhance Solomon Islands' trade with China. In-Depth Solomons reported that the airport's upgrade and modern terminal buildings have been largely funded by the Japanese government over the last 20 years. Manele said they had secured a number of trade deals with China during their state visit, the outlet reported. He said China was Solomon Islands largest trading ...

By Anthony Zurcher, BBC News US President Joe Biden concludes his address to the nation from the Oval Office of the White House on July 24, 2024 in Washington, DC. Photo: POOL / Getty Images via AFP Analysis - This was Joe Biden's first chance to define how he will be judged by history. In a rare televised address from the Oval Office on Wednesday night (local time), he spoke of his accomplishments. He spoke of his humble roots. He sang the praises of the American people. He said the future of American democracy lies in their hands. What he didn't do, despite saying he would always level with Americans, was provide a direct explanation for the biggest question of the day. He didn't say why he has become the first incumbent president to abandon a re-election bid, just a few months bef...

A number of young athletes have taken to TikTok to share their experiences behind the scenes at the Paris 2024 Olympics Photo: RNZ / Quin Tauetau A baguette making workshop, free arcade games and and reviews of the infamous cardboard beds - young athletes are letting us into life at the Olympic Village. The infamous cardboard beds Canoeist Sofia Reinoso showed what the twin size, 'anti-intimacy' beds are made of, lifting up her mattress to reveal a thin structure of cardboard blocks, before jumping on the bed repeatedly to zero bounce-back. The beds are said to support the body for a restful sleep and act as a deterrent for anything other than sleeping. The official Olympics TikTok boasted their comfort, saying the beds are made with adjustable firmness and size - but not everyone's fou...

US President Joe Biden has told Americans it is time to pass the torch to a new generation - but he has also pledged to push for reform of the Supreme Court. Speaking from the Oval Office in his first speech since announcing he would not stand for re-eelection, he said the time is now for fresh voices. He warned there is no place in America for political violence after the shooting of former president Donald Trump. And he pledged to keep working in the few months left of his presidency to advocate for changes to the Supreme Court, one of the key arms of American government. Biden gave no details but sources in Washington have said he is keen to set term limits for justices and set up ethics rules. The Court is currently conservative leaning with six of the nine Justices appointed by Republ...

By Bernd Debusmann Jr, BBC News, White House US President Joe Biden will tell Americans it's time to "pass the torch to a new generation" in a televised address from the White House explaining his historic decision to step aside as the Democratic candidate in this November's election. The Oval Office address marks his first public remarks since the 21 July announcement, which paved the way for Vice-President Kamala Harris to become the presumptive nominee. Biden will also say his decision to withdraw "is the best way to unite our nation" ahead of November's election. Biden is also expected to lay out his plans to "finish the job for the American people" before the end of his term in January next year. Harris, who earlier this week secured the support of a majority of Democratic delegates...

The fall-out has been swift as the Olympics spy-gate" controversy deepened. Photo: AFP It is the drone heard around the world. New Zealand has found itself at the centre of one of the major international storylines of the Paris Olympic Games days out from the opening, as the "spy-gate" controversy deepened. The scandal kicked off when it was revealed that a rogue support staffer with Canada's women's football team had flown a drone over the Football Ferns training as part of a scouting mission. Following internal investigations, the Canadian Olympic Committee confirmed the staffer had also filmed a second, earlier Ferns training session. The fall-out has been swift. Canada head coach Bev Priestman has stood herself down from overseeing Friday's opening match against New Zealand, while J...

Canada's head coach, and the former head of Football New Zealand, Bev Priestman. Photo: AFP The Canadian women's football team head coach - and former head of NZ Football - will stand down for the match against the Football Ferns. It came as a second drone incident was revealed by the New Zealand Olympic Committee (NZOC). NZOC said Team Canada confirmed a second incident took place on 19 July, three days before the latest drone was caught by the Football Ferns. Both incidents occurred in St Etienne where the two teams were due to play. Canada's assistant coach and an analyst have been kicked out of the Olympic squad after New Zealand said its team had their training session disrupted by a drone flown by a staff member of their Group A opponents. Head coach Bev Priestman also removed her...

Kai McKenzie, 23, was surfing near Port Macquarie in New South Wales when a 3m great white shark bit him. Photo: GoFundMe/supplied By Hannah Ritchie, BBC News, Sydney The severed leg of a surfer who was attacked by a shark has washed up on an Australian beach, with doctors now racing to see if it can be reattached. Kai McKenzie, 23, was surfing near Port Macquarie in New South Wales on Tuesday, when a 3m great white shark bit him. He managed to catch a wave into shore, where an off-duty police officer used a makeshift tourniquet to stem his bleeding, according to authorities. His leg washed up a short time later and was put on ice by locals before being taken to hospital, where a medical team is now assessing surgery options. McKenzie - who is a sponsored surfer - remains in a serious b...