World News

Chris White of Dire Straits Experience, left. Photo: Supplied When Chris White was part of Dire Straits in the mid-1980s they were the biggest band on the planet. Things took off during the Brothers in Arms tour in 1985, the Dire Straits' sax player and percussionist told RNZ's Music 101. "It started out like other tours, really. We were playing venues of a certain size they were good size. "And what happened was, as we as we got going, the album [Brothers in Arms] really took off. Suddenly we were playing much bigger venues. And instead of sitting in economy on the plane, we started sitting in business." This audio is not downloadable due to copyright restrictions. The tour was aptly named, White said. "It was a really happy band, which is not that usual. Often, there are some di...

Laura Loomer shows her support for former President Donald Trump outside a campaign event for Republican presidential candidate Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis at The Vault on 5 October 2023 in Tampa, Florida. Photo: JOE RAEDLE / AFP By Alexandra Ulmer for Reuters Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump today sought to distance himself from far-right conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer, whose presence on the campaign trail drew rebukes from both Trump's allies and the White House, but he did not disavow her. In a statement released on Friday, Trump said he did not agree with Loomer's past statements, but he still welcomed her support. Trump made clear that she does not work for his campaign, even though Loomer traveled on his plane for much of the week. Loomer, who commands a following on...

By Joshua McElwee for Reuters The pontiff has expressed doubt that either Israel or Hamas are seeking to end the conflict. Photo: AFP/Tiziana Fabi Pope Francis has decried the deaths of Palestinian children in Israeli military strikes in Gaza, calling bombings of schools, on the "presumption" of striking Hamas militants, "ugly". On the flight back to Rome from Singapore on Friday, the pontiff expressed doubt that either Israel or Hamas, now at war for 11 months, were seeking to end the conflict. "I am sorry to have to say this," the pope said. "But I do not think that they are taking steps to make peace." Francis was speaking in a press conference with journalists after a demanding 12-day tour across South-east Asia and Oceania. He said he speaks on the phone with members of a Cathol...

Justin Timberlake was arrested in June when police spotted him failing to obey a stop sign and veering off lane. Photo: Sag Harbor Police Department Pop star Justin Timberlake has pleaded guilty in a New York State court to a lesser traffic charge than drunk driving after he was arrested over the summer when police spotted him failing to obey a stop sign and veering off lane. Timberlake, 43, agreed to plead guilty to driving while ability impaired, a lesser traffic violation than driving while impaired, multiple media reports say. He was fined $500 and ordered to perform community service, Variety reported. Timberlake's attorney Edward Burke said he was pleased with the reduced charge, and disputed any reports that Timberlake was drunk when he was arrested, CBS News reported. Timberlake...

Pope Francis wears a flower garland as he arrives for an interreligious meeting with young people at the Catholic Junior College in Singapore on 13 September 2024. Singapore is the last stop on the pope's 12-day, four-nation Asia-Pacific trip. Photo: TIZIANA FABI / AFP By Joshua McElwee, Reuters Pope Francis left Singapore for Rome on Friday, after a demanding trip across Southeast Asia and Oceania in which he urged action on climate change, pressed for interfaith dialogue, and reinforced the Catholic Church's presence in a region where it is a small minority. The Singapore Airlines flight carrying the Catholic pontiff and his entourage took off around 12.25pm local time in Singapore and is due to arrive in Rome on Friday evening, after a 12-hour flight through six time zones. Francis v...

By Kanishka Singh and Gabriella Borter, Reuters Far-right activist Laura Loomer speaks to the media prior to the beginning of former President Donald Trump's Trial at Manhattan Criminal Court on 15 April 2024 in New York City. Photo: DAVID DEE DELGADO / AFP The White House rebuked former President Donald Trump for his association with far-right conspiracy theorist Laura Loomer, who has been travelling this week with the Republican presidential candidate. Loomer says she does not work for Trump. However, she has mentioned speaking to him about political matters and frequents his Mar-a-Lago home in Florida. Her incendiary posts on X, where she has 1.2 million followers, at times seem to provide grist for Trump's next lines of attack. Ahead of Trump's debate with Democratic Vice Preside...

By Renju Jose, Reuters Elon Musk. Photo: Frederic J. Brown/ AFP Elon Musk, owner of social media platform X, on Friday called Australia's centre-left government "fascists" over proposed legislation to slap fines on social media firms for failing to prevent the spread of misinformation online. Australia's Labor government on Thursday unveiled legislation which could fine internet platforms up to 5 percent of their global revenue for enabling misinformation, joining a worldwide push to rein in borderless tech giants. The proposed law would require tech platforms to set codes of conduct to stop dangerous falsehoods spreading and be approved by a regulator. The regulator would set its own standard if a platform failed to do so and fine firms for non-compliance. Musk, who views himself as...

Most polls seem to agree Kamala Harris won the debate earlier this week. Photo: AFP / SAUL LOEB Republican nominee Donald Trump said he would not participate in another presidential debate against Kamala Harris ahead of the 5 November election, after several polls showed his Democratic rival won their debate earlier this week. "THERE WILL BE NO THIRD DEBATE!" the former president wrote on social media site Truth Social. Trump had participated in a debate against President Joe Biden in June before his debate against Harris on Wednesday NZT. Although Trump touted his performance on Wednesday against Harris, six Republican donors and three Trump advisers who spoke to Reuters earlier this week said they thought Harris had won the debate largely because Trump was unable to stay on message. T...

By Michael Holden, Reuters Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, and his wife Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, attend a meeting with NATO representatives on the sidelines of the 6th Invictus Games at Merkur Spiel Arena on 14 September, 2023. Photo: Rolf Vennenbernd / DPA / dpa Picture-Alliance via AFP Prince Harry will turn 40 in California on Sunday, thousands of miles away from his royal roots, with no sign that distance is dimming interest in King Charles' younger son. With his Netflix documentaries, his charity work, his legal battles with the British tabloid press and his rift with the rest of the royals, Harry is rarely out of the spotlight. The prince will mark his 40th birthday with a private celebration at his Montecito home in southern California, where he lives with his American wife Me...

Manshika Prasad (right) was declared Miss Universe Fiji, but two days later Nadine Roberts was declared the "real" winner. Photo: Miss Universe Fiji By Fiji reporter Lice Movono and the Pacific Local Journalism Network's Nick Sas for ABC It has all the hallmarks of a bad reality TV script. A Miss Universe beauty pageant contestant is crowned the winner, then days later in a press release, the runner-up is declared "the real winner". But in this case, it actually happened. The drama over the winner of the Miss Universe Fiji contest has played out with multiple twists and turns over the past two weeks. There has been accusations of racism, vote-rigging, conflicts of interest and "conspiracy theories" - and that's just from the "official" Miss Universe Fiji organisation. The Miss Unive...