AUSTRALIA
Kiwi citizenship path eased
The government yesterday announced that it would make it easier for hundreds of thousands of New Zealanders to become citizens, removing a long-festering thorn in ties between the traditionally friendly rivals. Under the new rules starting on July 1, New Zealanders can apply directly for citizenship if they arrived after 2001 and have lived there for at least four years — affecting about 380,000 people, local media said. “We know many New Zealanders are here on a special category visa while raising families, working and building their lives in Australia. So I am proud to offer the benefits that citizenship provides,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in a statement.
THAILAND
Extreme heat notices issued
Authorities yesterday warned residents across large swathes of the country, including the capital, Bangkok, to avoid going outdoors due to extreme heat. In Bangkok, temperatures reached a record high of 54°C in Bang Na District yesterday, the Meteorological Department said. “Sometimes, I take refuge in the 7-Eleven convenience store ... to escape the heat,” said Amporn Supasert, 67, a grilled chicken vendor in Bangkok. Temperatures yesterday were to exceed 40°C in at least 28 provinces, the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation said.
SPAIN
Flambe fire kills two
Two people died and 10 were injured in a fire sparked when a waiter at a Madrid restaurant on Friday flambeed a dish, accidentally setting decorations ablaze, authorities and local media reported yesterday. Madrid’s SAMUR emergency services “treated 12 people in this disaster,” two of whom died, Montse Marcos, a manager at the organization, told journalists. Witnesses told El Pais daily that the waiter at the Italian restaurant poured alcohol over the dish and set it alight. The waiter “had the plate in flames in one hand, and the blowtorch in the other. He passed by a column of plants and in a matter of seconds it burned everything,” said a diner, who gave her name only as Ruth.
COLOMBIA
Mine blast death toll rises
The death toll from an explosion in a coal mine rose to seven Friday with the discovery of four more bodies, Cundinamarca Fire Department head Alvaro Farfan said. The blast ripped through the mine overnight on Wednesday into Thursday in Cucunuba, about 90km north of the capital, Bogota. Authorities said they suspect pockets of gas trapped in the mine detonated. Rescue teams initially found three bodies and four workers were missing. These bodies were finally spotted on Friday.
SWITZERLAND
Prisoners rapidly aging: ICRC
Inmates who have been held for years in the US’ Guantanamo Bay detention facility in Cuba are showing signs of “accelerated aging,” a senior official of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said on Friday. “We’re calling on the US administration and Congress to work together to find adequate and sustainable solutions to address these issues,” said Patrick Hamilton, the ICRC’s head of delegation for the US and Canada. “Action should be taken as a matter of priority.” His comments follow a visit to the facility last month, after a 20-year hiatus. He said he was “struck by how those who are still detained today are experiencing the symptoms of accelerated aging, worsened by the cumulative effects of their experiences and years spent in detention.”
DIALOGUE: US president-elect Donald Trump on his Truth Social platform confirmed that he had spoken with Xi, saying ‘the call was a very good one’ for the US and China US president-elect Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) discussed Taiwan, trade, fentanyl and TikTok in a phone call on Friday, just days before Trump heads back to the White House with vows to impose tariffs and other measures on the US’ biggest rival. Despite that, Xi congratulated Trump on his second term and pushed for improved ties, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. The call came the same day that the US Supreme Court backed a law banning TikTok unless it is sold by its China-based parent company. “We both attach great importance to interaction, hope for
RISING TENSIONS: The nations’ three leaders discussed China’s ‘dangerous and unlawful behavior in the South China Sea,’ and agreed on the importance of continued coordination Japan, the Philippines and the US vowed to further deepen cooperation under a trilateral arrangement in the face of rising tensions in Asia’s waters, the three nations said following a call among their leaders. Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr and outgoing US President Joe Biden met via videoconference on Monday morning. Marcos’ communications office said the leaders “agreed to enhance and deepen economic, maritime and technology cooperation.” The call followed a first-of-its-kind summit meeting of Marcos, Biden and then-Japanese prime minister Fumio Kishida in Washington in April last year that led to a vow to uphold international
US president-elect Donald Trump is not typically known for his calm or reserve, but in a craftsman’s workshop in rural China he sits in divine contemplation. Cross-legged with his eyes half-closed in a pose evoking the Buddha, this porcelain version of the divisive US leader-in-waiting is the work of designer and sculptor Hong Jinshi (洪金世). The Zen-like figures — which Hong sells for between 999 and 20,000 yuan (US$136 to US$2,728) depending on their size — first went viral in 2021 on the e-commerce platform Taobao, attracting national headlines. Ahead of the real-estate magnate’s inauguration for a second term on Monday next week,
CYBERSCAM: Anne, an interior decorator with mental health problems, spent a year and a half believing she was communicating with Brad Pitt and lost US$855,259 A French woman who revealed on TV how she had lost her life savings to scammers posing as Brad Pitt has faced a wave of online harassment and mockery, leading the interview to be withdrawn on Tuesday. The woman, named as Anne, told the Seven to Eight program on the TF1 channel how she had believed she was in a romantic relationship with the Hollywood star, leading her to divorce her husband and transfer 830,000 euros (US$855,259). The scammers used fake social media and WhatsApp accounts, as well as artificial intelligence image-creating technology to send Anne selfies and other messages
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