World News

14 people killed after lightning strikes church in Uganda (File photo). Photo: RAMI ALSAYED/AFP A lightning strike on a church on Uganda killed at least 14 people and injured 34 as they gathered for prayers over the weekend, police said. The incident occurred in the Palabek refugee camp in Lamwo district in northern Ugandan, police said in a post on the X platform. "The victims... had gathered for prayers when the rain started around 5pm (3am Sunday NZT), and the lightning thunder struck at 5.30pm," police said. Police did not identify the nationalities of the victims but the camp and others in the region mostly hosts refugees from South Sudan. Most of those refugees had fled during a bloody civil war that gripped the country shortly after its independence in 2011. The victims were most...

By Tom Balmforth and Felix Hoske, Reuters Current Moldova's President and candidate Maia Sandu casts her vote. Photo: DANIEL MIHAILESCU/AFP A Moldovan security official accused Russia of "massive interference" as Moldovans voted in a tightly contested presidential election that could see Moscow claw back influence in a country drawing closer to the European Union. Pro-Western incumbent Maia Sandu, who has accelerated the nation's push to leave Moscow's orbit and join the EU, faces Alexandr Stoianoglo, an ex-prosecutor general backed by the traditionally pro-Russian Socialist Party. The fortunes of Sandu, who set Moldova on the long path of EU accession talks in June, is being closely watched in Brussels a week after Georgia, another ex-Soviet state seeking membership, re-elected a ru...

Donald Trump is escorted off stage following an assassination attempt at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania. Photo: AFP/ Xin Hua The United States presidential election campaign has been full of jaw-dropping moments. From President Joe Biden dropping out of the race, to former President Donald Trump being shot, the twists have come thick and fast. Who could forget Trump taking to a rubbish truck, or his supporters rocking ear bandages in solidarity after his assassination attempt? Here is a look back at the election campaign in photos. Donald Trump reacts as he is found guilty of 34 felony counts in his hush money trial in May. Photo: POOL / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP Trump raises his fist after being shot at during a campaign rally in Butler, Penns...

Donald Trump rally Lititz, Pennsylvania. Photo: Nick Monro/RNZ There are just two days of campaigning left before polls close in a historically close United States presidential election. Democrat Kamala Harris campaigns in Michigan on Monday (NZ time) while her Republican rival Donald Trump will hit three eastern battleground states: Pennsylvania, North Carolina and Georgia. A poll has shown Harris leading in Iowa, a state that Trump won easily in both 2016 and 2020, raising the possibility of an upset there. Trump campaign senior adviser Jason Miller has referred to the poll as an "idiotic survey", CNN reported. Another poll has Trump ahead in the state, according to Reuters. Follow all the election action with RNZ's live blog: Source link

The US election between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump is only days away. Photo: AFP The US election is just days away, with most polling suggesting Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are neck-and-neck in the race for the Oval Office. But according to political analyst, economist and Republican John Jordan, the polls are not a true reflection of where the votes are headed. He told Sunday Morning that he believed the story this week would be 'why were the polls so off?', and he thought that was for several reasons. "A lot of the pollsters are clustered right now, none of them want to go out on a limb and say anything more than it's tied, and that's what they're all saying," Jordan said. "But when you look at these surveys, 400 to 800 people, and you do the math on it, it's not possible ever...

By Villen Anganan, Reuters Prime Minister of Mauritius Pravind Jugnauth surrounded by supporters during a campaign rally in Mahebourg. Photo: LAURA MOROSOLI Mauritius' communications regulator ordered all internet service providers to suspend access to social media platforms on Friday until 11 November, a day after the upcoming general election, in a move the opposition said was a ruse to avoid defeat at the polls. The island nation has been hit by a wiretapping scandal in which some 20 conversations involving politicians, police, lawyers, journalists and members of civil society have been leaked on social media since mid-October, according to media watchdog Reporters Without Borders. The Information and Communication Technologies Authority said it was imposing a temporary ban on soc...

Kamala Harris and Maya Rudolph on 'Saturday Night Live'. Photo: Screenshot Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris appeared on the Saturday Night Live TV comedy show on Saturday, adding a surprise jolt to the US presidential election just three days before her with showdown with Republican Donald Trump. Harris portrayed herself, appearing in a mirror opposite the actor who plays her on the show, Maya Rudolph, who was nervously prepared for a campaign speech. Dressed identically in a black suit and pearls, the two traded variations on Harris' first name, saying Americans want to "end the drama-la" in politics "with a cool new stepmom-ala." Kamala Harris talks to Kamala Harris pic.twitter.com/AJuW7aO7VM— Saturday Night Live - SNL (@nbcsnl) November 3, 2024 "Keep Calm-ala and c...

Photo: AFP With just days to go until voters in the United States elect either Vice President Kamala Harris or former President Donald Trump as their next president, we looked back at some of the key moments in this year's election campaign, and what we can expect next. After assassination attempts, name calling, and accusations aplenty, one could be forgiven for forgetting that just a few months ago president Joe Biden was actually the Democratic candidate. Here's a look back at a whirlwind last few months (all dates are in NZT): 13 March - Biden clinches nomination for re-election With no real competition, the current president officially got enough delegates to clinch his party's nomination in March. 13 March - Trump also secures delegates for nomination Former President Trump beat ba...

Donald Trump is "largely about ... being a showman", an international relations expert says. Photo: ALON SKUY / AFP An international relations expert is warning of a "stark difference" in climate issues, and "possibly" security issues if Donald Trump wins the US presidency next week. Auckland University senior lecturer in politics and international relations Dr Maria Armoudian said it was possible that either election outcome would not make a huge difference to New Zealand trade and tourism. Armoudian said a win by the Democratic candidate, vice-president Kamala Harris, would likely be a continuation of the status quo in terms of international relations, human rights and environmental protections, but a victory for the Republican candidate, former president Donald Trump, would mean ever...

Bolivian Armed Forces commander-in-chief General Gerardo Zabala, speaking in La Paz on 1 November, about earlier instances where soldiers were taken hostages after a barracks was stormed in central Chapare province. Photo: AFP/ Aizar Raldes An armed group has taken control of a military post in central Bolivia and is holding more than 200 personnel hostage. The Bolivian military said that an "irregular armed group" had kidnapped military personnel and seized weapons and ammunition from the base situated near the central Bolivian city of Cochabamba. The Bolivian Foreign Ministry said more than 200 military personnel had been taken hostage during the incident. Bolivian president Luis Arce said the armed group was "affiliated" with former president Evo Morales, but did not offer evidence f...