NEW ZEALAND
Population jumps 2.8%
The nation posted its biggest calendar-year jump in population since the end of World War II due to record immigration. The estimated population increased 2.8 percent last year to 5,305,600 people, Statistics New Zealand said yesterday. That is the fastest pace in modern records dating back to 1992, and the most since 1946 according to the previous, discontinued data series. Foreign workers flooded into the country to fill labor shortages after it reopened its border in 2022 in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The 145,100 gain last year reflected net immigration of 126,000 and occurred despite a natural increase of just 19,200 — the lowest for a calendar year since the modern data series began.
VENEZUELA
Maduro furious at Milei
President Nicolas Maduro on Thursday lashed out at Argentine President Javier Milei three days after the US completed the seizure of a Venezuelan plane held in Buenos Aires since June 2022. “They stole our plane... Milei the bandit stole the plane from Venezuela,” Maduro said in a televised statement. “He acts crazy or he is crazy or both at the same time.” The Boeing 747 cargo plane owned by Venezuelan company Emtrasur has been held in Argentina since landing there in 2022 from Mexico with a shipment of auto parts. The 19-member crew was composed of Venezuelans and Iranians — one of whom the US suspected had links to the Al Quds Force, a group of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards that it classifies as a terrorist organization. All the crew were initially detained, but later freed. Caracas and Tehran protested US attempts to seize the plane, but an Argentine judge last month ordered it surrendered to the US.
HONG KONG
Seven arrested over fraud
Seven people suspected of being involved in a US$1.8 billion money-laundering case have been arrested, customs authorities said yesterday. The seven, all Hong Kong residents, comprised five men and two women aged 23-74, one of who is believed to be the mastermind of the scheme, they said. Authorities seized HK$165 million (US$21.1 million) in assets, including five properties and three commercial units, as part of the operation. Yeung Yuk-man from the customs department said the agency contacted a number of law enforcement authorities in the region to share its intelligence, including India. The scheme allegedly involved online scams in India and the sale of electronics, rare gems including diamonds, among other goods, authorities said. It allegedly used shell companies and multiple bank accounts to launder money, with one account receiving more than 50 deposits in one day. The seven have been released on bail.
UNITED STATES
Teen arrested in shooting
A 16-year-old boy was arrested on Thursday in connection with a deadly shooting at a New York City subway station during rush hour on Tuesday, the US Marshals Service said. He was being held while awaiting charges. The teen is one of three suspected shooters wanted for the shooting which authorities said stemmed from a dispute between two rival gangs who boarded the same train at different stations. The first shots were fired as the train pulled into an elevated Bronx station shortly before 5pm and continued on the crowded platform as passengers fled. A 35-year-old man identified as Obed Beltran-Sanchez died after being shot in the chest. Five other people were wounded, aged 14 to 71.
OPTIMISTIC: A Philippine Air Force spokeswoman said the military believed the crew were safe and were hopeful that they and the jet would be recovered A Philippine Air Force FA-50 jet and its two-person crew are missing after flying in support of ground forces fighting communist rebels in the southern Mindanao region, a military official said yesterday. Philippine Air Force spokeswoman Colonel Consuelo Castillo said the jet was flying “over land” on the way to its target area when it went missing during a “tactical night operation in support of our ground troops.” While she declined to provide mission specifics, Philippine Army spokesman Colonel Louie Dema-ala confirmed that the missing FA-50 was part of a squadron sent “to provide air support” to troops fighting communist rebels in
PROBE: Last week, Romanian prosecutors launched a criminal investigation against presidential candidate Calin Georgescu accusing him of supporting fascist groups Tens of thousands of protesters gathered in Romania’s capital on Saturday in the latest anti-government demonstration by far-right groups after a top court canceled a presidential election in the EU country last year. Protesters converged in front of the government building in Bucharest, waving Romania’s tricolor flags and chanting slogans such as “down with the government” and “thieves.” Many expressed support for Calin Georgescu, who emerged as the frontrunner in December’s canceled election, and demanded they be resumed from the second round. George Simion, the leader of the far-right Alliance for the Unity of Romanians (AUR), which organized the protest,
ECONOMIC DISTORTION? The US commerce secretary’s remarks echoed Elon Musk’s arguments that spending by the government does not create value for the economy US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick on Sunday said that government spending could be separated from GDP reports, in response to questions about whether the spending cuts pushed by Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency could possibly cause an economic downturn. “You know that governments historically have messed with GDP,” Lutnick said on Fox News Channel’s Sunday Morning Futures. “They count government spending as part of GDP. So I’m going to separate those two and make it transparent.” Doing so could potentially complicate or distort a fundamental measure of the US economy’s health. Government spending is traditionally included in the GDP because
Hundreds of people in rainbow colors gathered on Saturday in South Africa’s tourist magnet Cape Town to honor the world’s first openly gay imam, who was killed last month. Muhsin Hendricks, who ran a mosque for marginalized Muslims, was shot dead last month near the southern city of Gqeberha. “I was heartbroken. I think it’s sad especially how far we’ve come, considering how progressive South Africa has been,” attendee Keisha Jensen said. Led by motorcycle riders, the mostly young crowd walked through the streets of the coastal city, some waving placards emblazoned with Hendricks’s image and reading: “#JUSTICEFORMUHSIN.” No arrest
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