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Montreal, Canada | AFP | The Rideau Canal Skateway, the world’s largest open-air ice rink and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, will not open this year for the first time in its history because of a mild winter, managers confirmed Friday. “Despite our best efforts, the weather got the best of us for the first time in our history,” the Ottawa facility said on its Twitter account. “We share everyone’s disappointment,” it added in a […]
by Lisa MARTIN Australia’s defence minister aimed to reassure Thailand on Friday that plans to acquire a new fleet of nuclear submarines would enhance “collective security” in the region after neighbouring countries voiced concerns. The submarine issue came up during a visit to Manila earlier this week, Defence Minister Richard Marles told AFP in an interview, and was also on the agenda for Friday’s talks with Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-O-Cha, who is responsible […]
Indonesia has deployed security forces to a town in the breakaway eastern region of Papua after 10 people were killed during a riot sparked by rumours of a child abduction, officials said Friday. Angry locals in Wamena town attacked police with stones and arrows Thursday, believing them to be holding a young girl’s abductors, Papua province police spokesman Ignatius Benny Ady Prabowo told AFP. Police responded with lethal fire, killing eight people, the official said, […]
Moscow, Russia | AFP | An uncrewed Russian Soyuz capsule took off early Friday from Kazakhstan for the International Space Station to eventually bring home three astronauts whose return vehicle was damaged by a tiny meteoroid. The Soyuz MS-23 vessel lifted off successfully from the Russian-operated Baikonur Cosmodrome, live video broadcast by ISS-partner NASA showed. Though the capsule is scheduled to dock with the ISS early Sunday Moscow time, it is not expected to […]
Hollywood star Alec Baldwin pleaded not guilty Thursday to manslaughter over the death of a cinematographer who was shot on the set of low-budget Western “Rust.” The actor also agreed terms with the court that will allow him to complete filming of the movie, including a ban on using guns and on drinking alcohol. Baldwin was holding a Colt .45 during rehearsals for the film in New Mexico when it discharged, killing Halyna Hutchins […]
Heavy snow fell in southern California on Friday, as the first blizzard in a generation pounded the Los Angeles area, with heavy rains threatening flooding in other places. Breathless television weather presenters more used to delivering a same-every-day forecast of warm sunshine found themselves knee-deep in the white stuff as the region grappled with its worst winter storm for decades. Major roads were closed as ice and snow made them impassable, including sections of Interstate […]
Facebook and Instagram began a week-long rollout of their first paid verification service on Friday, testing users’ willingness to pay for social media features that until now have been free. Facing a drop in advertising revenues, parent company Meta is piloting a subscription in Australia and New Zealand before it appears in larger markets. The service will cost US$11.99 on the web and US$14.99 on the iOS and Android mobile platforms. From Friday, subscribers […]
Facebook-owner Meta on Friday unveiled its own version of the artificial intelligence behind apps such as ChatGPT, saying it would give access to researchers to find fixes to the technology’s potential dangers. Meta described its own AI, called LLaMA, as a “smaller, more performant” model designed to “help researchers advance their work,” in what could be seen as veiled criticism of Microsoft’s decision to release the technology widely, while keeping the programming code secret. Microsoft-backed […]
Toronto, Canada | AFP | Canada is sending four additional battle tanks to Ukraine — doubling its commitment — and sanctioning an additional 192 Russian individuals and entities, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced Friday. “Canada has stood in solidarity with Ukraine since the beginning of the conflict,” Trudeau said in a news conference on the anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. “We will continue to do so,” Trudeau told journalists, speaking in Toronto where he […]
OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso (AFP) — Burkina Faso announced Thursday a recruitment drive for 5,000 soldiers to serve in the army for at least five years to aid the country in its fight against jihadists. The country, one of the world’s poorest, has been battling a deadly insurgency since 2015. “An exceptional recruitment of 5,000 non-commissioned soldiers for the national armed forces, to serve for at least five years, in their military region of recruitment, will […]
TOKYO, Japan (AFP) — The Bank of Japan’s long-standing monetary easing policies are “appropriate”, its next governor Kazuo Ueda told parliament on Friday, suggesting no sudden changes to the bank’s stance when he takes the helm in April. Under current boss Karuhiko Kuroda, the bank has unleashed a raft of extraordinary ultra-loose policies — from a negative interest rate to spending vast sums on government bonds — in a bid to boost the sluggish economy. […]
by Nicolas REVISE / Amélie BOTTOLLIER-DEPOIS Agence France-Presse UNITED NATIONS, United States (AFP) — The United Nations voted overwhelmingly Thursday to demand Russia immediately and unconditionally withdraw its troops from Ukraine, marking the one-year anniversary of the war with a call for a “just and lasting” peace. Ukraine earned strong backing in a nonbinding vote that saw 141 of the 193 UN members in support, seven opposed and 32, including China and India abstaining. Coming […]
