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Early voting begins in New Zealand’s general election and in Australia for Indigenous ‘Voice’

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:08:24 GMT

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Early voting began on Monday in New Zealand for the nation’s Oct. 14 general election, with conservative contender Christopher Luxon casting his ballot. Early voting also began in some parts of Australia in a referendum that would enshrine in Australia’s constitution a mechanism for Indigenous people to advise Parliament on policies that affect their lives. In New Zealand, the campaign of Prime Minister Chris Hipkins faced a setback on Sunday when he tested positive for COVID-19. He said he would isolate for five days or until he returned a negative test, but planned to continue with some engagements over Zoom.Hipkins and his liberal Labour Party have been lagging behind the opposition National Party, led by Christopher Luxon, in opinion polls.. “After a rough night I woke up this morning feeling pretty unwell and just got this test result,” Hipkins wrote on Instagram, and said he’d work twice as hard when he got back out on the campaign tr...

Indonesian president launches Southeast Asia’s first high-speed railway, funded by China

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:08:24 GMT

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — Indonesian President Joko Widodo inaugurated Southeast Asia’s first high-speed railway on Monday as it was set to begin commercial operations, a key project under China’s Belt and Road infrastructure initiative that will drastically reduce the travel time between two key cities.The project has been beset with delays and increasing costs, and some observers doubt its commercial benefits. But Widodo has championed the 142-kilometer (88-mile) railway, which was issued its official operating license from the Transportation Ministry on Sunday. The $7.3 billion project, largely funded by China, was constructed by PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia-China, known as PT KCIC, a joint venture between an Indonesian consortium of four state-owned companies and China Railway International Co. Ltd. The railway connects Jakarta with Bandung, the heavily populated capital of West Java province, and will cut travel time between the cities from the current three hours to about 40 minu...

Fire erupts in a police headquarters in Egypt, injuring at least 38 people

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:08:24 GMT

CAIRO (AP) — A huge fire broke out early Monday in a police headquarters in northeastern Egypt, injuring at least 38 people, the health ministry said.The blaze ripped through the multistory police headquarters in the Suez Canal province of Ismailia, according to Hossam Abdel-Ghaffar, a spokesperson for the Health Ministry.He said 12 of the injured were treated at the site, while 26 others were taken to hospitals, all but two suffering from breathing difficulties. Seven of the injured were treated and discharged, he said.It was not immediately clear how many police were in the building at the time of the blaze, which severely damaged the building according to local media.Videos circulated on social media showed flames and black smoke pouring from the building.The cause of the blaze was not immediately known. The state-run MENA news agency said firefighters managed to put out the fire.Safety standards and fire regulations are poorly enforced in Egypt and have been linked to many death...

Late-night shows return after writers strike as actors resume talks that could end their standoff

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:08:24 GMT

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Late-night talk shows are returning after a five-month absence brought on by the Hollywood writers strike, while actors will begin talks that could end their own long work walk-off. CBS’s “ The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” ABC’s “ Jimmy Kimmel Live! ” and NBC’s “ The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon ” were the first shows to leave the air when the writers strike began on May 2, and now will be among the first to return on Monday night.Comedian John Oliver got his first take on the strike out, exuberantly returning Sunday night to his “Last Week Tonight” show on HBO and delivering full-throated support for the strike.Oliver cheerily delivered a recap of stories from the last five months before turnings serious, calling the strike “an immensely difficult time” for all those in the industry.“To be clear, this strike happened for good reasons. Our industry has seen its workers severely squeezed in recent years,” Oliver said. “So, the writers gu...

Adaptable and resilient leadership means an adaptable and resilient business

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:08:24 GMT

Today, projects move on, and technologies evolve, faster than ever before. Set this against a backdrop of inflation, the climate crisis, and the growing complexity of technical infrastructures, and it’s no wonder that understanding how to adapt to change, and how to manage effectively in today’s ever-evolving working environment, tops leaders’ lists of priorities, writes Petra Jenner, SVP and GM, EMEA, Splunk.To stay competitive, organizations need to make decisions that not only lay the foundations for success, but ensure their workforces are empowered to embrace change alongside them.Evolving leadership stylesWhile leaders may have undertaken management training in years past, today’s workplace is vastly different from that of even a year or two ago. I believe leadership today must be three things above all: situational, transformational and inspirational.Situational means adapting your leadership style to each unique situation or task to meet the needs of the team. No one person ...

Demonstrators call for justice after deadly police shooting in South L.A.

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:08:24 GMT

On Sunday, family, friends and community organizers gathered at the home of Ivan Solis Mora, who was shot and killed by Inglewood police last month, to call for justice as they marched to the steps of the police department.  Mora’s family told KTLA that the 34-year-old suffered from schizophrenia and that police were aware of his history with mental illness. Now they are calling on the department to better train officers for these kinds of situations.  Witnesses of the fatal Sept. 21 police shooting said officers were called to the home to handle a family dispute. Original reports of the encounter allege that Mora was armed with a knife and that after attempting to use non-lethal force on the 34-year-old, police were forced to shoot him when he charged toward them.  Ivan Solis Mora's photo is shown at a memorial near where he was fatally shot by police in Inglewood. (KTLA) Relatives of Mora, though, insist he never had a weapon on him and that officials with the Inglewood ...

Debate presidencial en Argentina: ¿quién ganó? ¿quién perdió?

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:08:24 GMT

(CNN Español) — Javier Milei, de La Libertad Avanza; Patricia Bullrich, de Juntos por el Cambio; Sergio Massa, de Unión por la Patria; Juan Schiaretti, de Hacemos por Nuestro País; y Myriam Bregman, del Frente de Izquierda Unidad, estuvieron cara a cara en el primer debate presidencial de Argentina.El evento se dividió en cuatro bloques: Economía, Educación, Derechos Humanos y Convivencia Democrática y preguntas entre los cinco candidatos.Así fue el primer debate presidencial en Argentina desde Santiago del Estero¿Quién ganó? ¿Quién perdió? CNN consultó a cuatro analistas políticos para intentar responder esas preguntas.Carlos Fara“Creo que no hubo ganadores”, opinó.Sobre la performance de Milei, dijo que “era el que menos tenía que arriesgar y conservó su lugar”.En relación con Bullrich, consideró que “le faltó creatividad”. Ella, junto a Massa, eran los que, según la visión de Fara, “debían arriesgar más”. A propósito del ministro de Economía, dijo que “se defendió como pudo...

Suspect barricaded in home in South Bay

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:08:24 GMT

NATIONAL CITY, Calif. -- Authorities on Sunday are involved in a standoff situation with a barricaded suspect at a home in National City.Around 8:51 p.m., law enforcement received a call about the incident at 1100 East 2nd Street, the San Diego County Sheriff's Department said. Woman killed by vehicle in Sorrento Valley identified No other information has been made available at this time.Check back for updates on this developing story.

The UAE holds an annual oil and gas conference just ahead of hosting UN COP28 climate talks in Dubai

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:08:24 GMT

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The Emirati president-designate of the upcoming United Nations COP28 climate talks called on oil and gas companies on Monday to be “central to the solution” to fighting climate change, even as the industry boosts its production to enjoy rising global energy prices.The call by Sultan al-Jaber highlights the gap between climate activists suspicious of his industry ties and his calls to drastically slash the world’s emissions by nearly half in seven years to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) compared with pre-industrial times. “That is our North Star. It is in fact our only destination,” al-Jaber said. “It is simply acknowledging and respecting the science.”However, he added: “We must do this while also ensuring human prosperity by meeting the energy needs of the planet’s growing population.”Al-Jaber serves as the CEO of the state-run Abu Dhabi Oil Co., which has the capacity to pump 4 million barrels...

Tropical Storm Philippe threatens flash floods Monday in Leeward Islands, forecasters say

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:08:24 GMT

MIAMI (AP) — Tropical Storm Philippe is threatening to unleash heavy rains and flash flooding in the Leeward Islands on Monday before eventually recurving out into the central Atlantic where it could gain hurricane status around midweek, forecasters say.The U.S. National Hurricane Center in Miami said at 2 a.m. Monday that Philippe was about 130 miles (215 kilometers) east-northeast of Guadeloupe or about 160 miles (255 kilometers) east-southeast of Barbuda. Top sustained winds were at 50 mph (85 kph) and Philippe was crawling to the northwest at 6 mph (9 kph). A tropical storm watch was in effect for Antigua and Barbuda. The hurricane center said interests in the northern Leeward Islands should monitor the storm’s progress as the center of Philippe is forecast to pass near or just northeast of the northern Leeward Islands on Monday and Monday night.Heavy rainfall from Philippe could also produce isolated to scattered flash flooding across Barbuda and Antigua through Tuesday, ...