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WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AFP) — Hundreds of families on New Zealand’s South Island were forced to leave their homes on Thursday after dramatic flooding prompted a state of emergency in three regions. A tropically fuelled storm has dumped more than 30 centimetres (11 inches) of rain on parts of the South Island, causing rivers to burst their banks. The extreme weather has also felled trees, blocking major roads. A state of emergency was declared Wednesday […]
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AFP) — Inflation in New Zealand rose to a 32-year high of 7.3 percent on-year in the second quarter, according to official figures released Monday. The main drivers were rising fuel, food and housing costs, said Stats NZ, putting inflation at a level last seen in 1990. “Supply chain issues, labor costs, and higher demand have continued to push up the cost of building a new house,” said Jason Attewell of Stats […]
SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) — The UN Security Council has failed in its response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said Thursday, describing Moscow’s role as “morally bankrupt.” Ardern, who has long argued against the Security Council veto powers held by the five permanent members Britain, China, France, Russia and the United States, reiterated her call for reform of the body. The UN’s “failure” over Ukraine was caused by Russia’s position […]
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AFP) — New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who has overseen her country’s world-leading response to the coronavirus pandemic, has tested positive for Covid-19, her office announced Saturday. Ardern’s symptoms are moderate and she will isolate at home for seven days, the government said in a statement. She has already been in isolation since last Sunday, when her partner Clarke Gayford tested positive, and was due to resume her parliamentary duties […]
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AFP) — The sea level is rising twice as fast as previously forecast around parts of New Zealand, according to research published Monday, putting the country’s two largest cities at risk decades earlier than expected. Government-backed data amassed from around the country’s coastline found some areas are already sinking three to four millimetres per year, speeding up a long-expected threat. The projections, labelled “a bit terrifying” by one expert, are the […]
SYDNEY, Australia (AFP) – Australia accepted on Thursday a long-standing New Zealand offer to take hundreds of refugees detained for years in remote camps under Canberra’s “Pacific solution” immigration policy. The deal, which was originally tabled in 2013, will involve New Zealand welcoming 150 refugees annually for three years after they have been screened by the UN refugee agency (UNHCR). “We are pleased to be able to provide resettlement outcomes for refugees who would otherwise […]
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AFP) — Wild storms lashed New Zealand’s North Island Monday, claiming at least four lives when a fishing vessel sank and causing chaos in the country’s biggest city Auckland, officials said. Four bodies were recovered and another person was missing after a chartered fishing boat went down off the remote Northland coast late Sunday, police said, with five survivors stable after being plucked from the raging seas. The military sent two air […]
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AFP) – New Zealand anti-vaccine protesters pelted police with a “stinging substance” sending three to hospital with injuries Tuesday, as tensions spilled over in an angry weeks-long protest. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern decried “absolutely disgraceful” scenes after the suspected acid attack, and a startling incident that saw one protester speed a car toward police lines before coming to a quick halt just centimetres away. The brief but intense confrontations erupted near New […]
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AFP) – New Zealand police ruled out forcibly clearing anti-vaccination protesters camped around parliament in Wellington on Friday, saying they did not want to provoke violence on the streets of the capital. Police have taken a hands-off approach after an attempt to take control of the lawns late last week resulted in violent clashes and 120 arrests. Commissioner Andrew Coster acknowledged growing frustration among Wellington residents and business owners as protest vehicles […]
WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AFP) – New Zealand Covid-19 infections reached a record high Wednesday as anti-vaccine protesters claimed victory after police failed to clear vehicles blocking the streets around parliament. Health authorities reported 1,160 new coronavirus cases, the most since the pandemic began, as the Omicron variant continues to spread in a country that was largely virus-free until August. While there have only been 53 virus deaths in the nation of five million, some protesters […]
WELLINGTON, United States (AFP) — Protester numbers outside New Zealand’s parliament swelled Friday as police scaled back efforts to clear anti-vaccine demonstrators involved in violent clashes a day earlier. A festive mood prevailed at a makeshift tent settlement inhabitants have dubbed “Camp Freedom”, with music and dancing as police looked on from behind barricades. It was a stark contrast to the fiery scenes Thursday, when a phalanx of officers attempted to evict the protesters, arresting […]
by Neil SANDS Agence France-Presse WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AFP) – A two-tonne rubber whale can take on a life of its own in the frigid shallows of a windswept New Zealand beach, particularly when a bedraggled group of would-be rescuers is trying to wrestle it into a harness. “Keep the blowhole clear… you’re too close to the tail, one swipe can do a serious injury to yourself and the whale,” an instructor yells as the […]
