Sydney Morning Herald World News
Sat, 05 Jun 2021 17:56:39 +1000Cambodia’s land-mine sniffing hero rat retires after five years
African pouched rat Magawa is the most successful rodent trained to detect land mines in Cambodia’s fields, sniffing out 141,000 square metres.
Sat, 05 Jun 2021 17:04:41 +1000Trapped at sea for 113 days, Rohingya boat survivors finally ran aground
Refused entry at every port, 90 refugees languished at sea for three months. Indonesian villagers discovered the survivors on a deserted island.
Sat, 05 Jun 2021 15:53:25 +1000‘Next time I’m in the White House’: Trump vows to shun Zuckerberg after Facebook ban
The former president hinted he would run again despite the two-year Facebook ban introduced after the social media giant ruled he was a risk to public safety.
Sat, 05 Jun 2021 15:02:30 +1000Judge overturns California’s 30-year assault rifle ban as ‘failed experiment’
US District Judge Roger Benitez compared the AR-15 rifle to a Swiss army knife, “a perfect combination of home defence weapon and homeland defence equipment”.
Sat, 05 Jun 2021 14:15:20 +1000COVID wave sweeps across south-east Asia with jabs in short supply
The nations to Australia’s north are enduring their worst outbreaks of the pandemic, but experts say that will continue until they get enough vaccines.
Sat, 05 Jun 2021 11:49:41 +1000‘Catastrophe’: German cardinal offers to resign over culture of sex abuse
A church report estimated at least 3,677 people were abused by clergy in Germany between 1946 and 2014. More than half of the victims were 13 or under.
Sat, 05 Jun 2021 11:12:44 +1000A million years of data confirms that monsoons are getting worse
Scientists drilled into the mudbanks on the Bay of Bengal to measure the impact of millenia of rainy seasons.
Sat, 05 Jun 2021 09:23:30 +1000Putin defends US Capitol rioters: ‘they came with political requests’
At a rare public appearance, the Russian leader said US rioters “were not looters or thieves” and refused to say if he would down a plane to arrest a dissident.
Sat, 05 Jun 2021 02:54:35 +1000Hong Kong locks down Tiananmen vigil park, police arrest organiser
Police blocked off a Hong Kong park to prevent people gathering to commemorate the anniversary of China’s 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown and arrested the planned vigil’s organiser.
Sat, 05 Jun 2021 02:25:46 +1000Fauci calls on China to release medical records of Wuhan lab workers
The top US infectious disease expert said the medical records of nine people might provide vital clues into whether COVID-19 first emerged as the result of a lab leak.
Fri, 04 Jun 2021 22:16:00 +1000UK approves Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine for 12- to 15-year-olds
Britain’s medicines regulator said on Friday it had approved the COVID-19 vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech for use on 12- to 15-year-olds.
Fri, 04 Jun 2021 21:01:58 +1000Detained Australian, deposed Myanmar leader Suu Kyi, to face court ‘unrepresented’
Australian Sean Turnell, deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi, and others will face court on June 23, with lawyers concerned no legal representation will mean no transparency with the hearing.
Fri, 04 Jun 2021 15:26:39 +1000Indonesian manhunt for 170 ‘terrorists’ slammed as licence to ‘shoot anyone’
Papuans fear crackdown on independence will get much worse as autonomy deadline looms.
Fri, 04 Jun 2021 14:26:12 +1000Sinopharm’s vaccine reputation darkened by COVID spikes in Bahrain, UAE
Bahraini officials said this week that it would be offering Pfizer-BioNTech doses to certain high-risk individuals who have already received two Sinopharm jabs.
Fri, 04 Jun 2021 13:52:00 +1000Leap of faith required to cook cicadas
Some gourmands have taken to calling cicadas “the other white meat” – or “tree shrimp” because of their genetic closeness to crustaceans.
Fri, 04 Jun 2021 13:00:33 +1000US says mysterious UFOs not a sign of alien life
But with 120 incidents over the past decades, it’s still far from clear what the flying objects are.
Fri, 04 Jun 2021 12:49:10 +1000Belarusian blogger’s supporters decry ‘hostage’ video confession
“I criticised Alexander Grigoryevich [Lukashenko] a lot, but...I began to understand that he was doing the right thing,” said Raman Pratasevich.
Fri, 04 Jun 2021 12:43:33 +1000Gallery: The best photos from around the world
The best photos from around the world
Fri, 04 Jun 2021 10:09:24 +1000‘So embarrassed’: British tanks cannot be driven safely over 32 km/h, leaked report reveals
Trials of the vehicle had to be suspended from November 2020 to March of this year, after troops suffered swollen joints and tinnitus.
Fri, 04 Jun 2021 07:16:38 +1000After writing ‘coup is a classical system of installing a government’ uni student almost blocked from graduation
A Stanford University student mocked a right-wing club with a satirical flier. In response, he was nearly denied graduation.
Fri, 04 Jun 2021 06:38:41 +1000Burned out hulk of Iran’s biggest warship seen from space
The fire aboard the Kharg warship follows a series of mysterious explosions that began in 2019, targeting commercial ships in the Gulf of Oman.
Fri, 04 Jun 2021 05:43:29 +1000Ransomware to be treated more like terrorism, US official says
Investigators in US attorney’s offices handling ransomware attacks will be expected to share both updated case details and active technical information with leaders in Washington.
Fri, 04 Jun 2021 03:34:53 +1000Biden administration unveils plan to vaccinate world against COVID-19
Australia is not among the more than 40 countries that will receive allocations in the first phase of the US vaccine-sharing program.
Fri, 04 Jun 2021 02:55:23 +1000In just five days, China administered 100 million COVID-19 vaccine shots
After a slow start, China is now doing what virtually no other country in the world can: administering COVID-19 shots at a staggering pace.
Fri, 04 Jun 2021 02:23:10 +1000United Airlines aims to bring back supersonic flying with Boom deal
The ultra-fast jets would cut flying time between London and the New York area by 50 per cent to about 3½ hours, while Tokyo would be only six hours from San Francisco.
Thu, 03 Jun 2021 18:48:19 +1000Sunken cargo ship off Sri Lanka risks oil spill on top of plastic pellets
The Singapore-registered MV X-Press Pearl, carrying 1486 containers, including 25 tonnes of nitric acid, was anchored off Sri Lanka when a fire erupted.
Thu, 03 Jun 2021 17:12:38 +1000Australia must not abandon its Afghan allies
We must not sully our reputation in Afghanistan by leaving our allies in the lurch.
Thu, 03 Jun 2021 17:08:10 +1000Tilda Swinton, Mick Jagger want Venice protected from cruises, Airbnb renters
Keep Venice afloat but don’t turn it into Disneyland, say a group of celebrities putting forward a 10-point plan to save the city.
Thu, 03 Jun 2021 17:01:22 +1000Buckingham Palace announces plans for Queen’s Platinum Jubilee
A four-day holiday, a year of celebrations, star-studded concerts and beacons lit up across the Commonwealth are planned to mark Her Majesty’s 70th year on the throne.
Thu, 03 Jun 2021 16:10:13 +1000Who is Naftali Bennett, the man poised to topple Netanyahu?
Shifting between seemingly contradictory alliances, he has been called a right-wing extremist, a pragmatist and an opportunist.
Thu, 03 Jun 2021 15:07:14 +1000‘Uneven playing field’: Defendants in White Island volcano tragedy want more time
The surprise eruption on White Island, or Whakaari, in 2019 killed 22 people from several countries including Australia.
Thu, 03 Jun 2021 14:23:14 +1000Trump’s blog page shut down a month after launch
The former US president’s blog page, launched last month after major social media platforms banned him, has been removed from his website.
Thu, 03 Jun 2021 13:47:27 +1000Gallery: The best photos from around the world
The best photos from around the world
Thu, 03 Jun 2021 13:09:27 +1000‘You can’t cuddle’: Why Princess Diana shunned hats on hospital visits
She even had a “caring dress” which she wore often because children were attracted to its floral pattern.
Thu, 03 Jun 2021 11:47:06 +1000Singapore ready for Australia bubble despite uptick in cases, health expert says
With Scott Morrison visiting the south-east Asian city-state next week, Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has flagged a desire to “stay connected to the world”.
Thu, 03 Jun 2021 07:39:33 +1000Biden launches vaccine blitz in bid to ‘declare independence’ from COVID-19
US President Joe Biden has announced an all-out push to vaccinate more Americans against COVID-19, including offering free child care for those getting the jab.
Thu, 03 Jun 2021 06:56:04 +1000Last-minute deal reached to oust Netanyahu as Israel’s PM
Under the agreement, Yair Lapid and Naftali Bennett will split the job of prime minister in a rotation. Bennett will serve the first two years, while Lapid is to serve the final two years.
Thu, 03 Jun 2021 06:39:54 +1000NASA announces two new missions to Venus, its first in decades
The mission, the first in decades, will study the atmosphere and geologic history of Earth’s closest planetary neighbour.
Thu, 03 Jun 2021 06:24:54 +1000‘This is enough’: Wave of ransomware attacks to force Biden into more aggressive stance on Russia
The US intelligence and military community has long had the capability to damage computer servers used by private hackers in other countries, but largely refrained.
Thu, 03 Jun 2021 05:49:53 +1000Latest ransomware target: ferries to Martha’s Vineyard
Separately, hackers believed to be backed by the Chinese government broke into New York City’s subway system’s networks in April, a report revealed.
Thu, 03 Jun 2021 04:43:06 +1000China tries to keep herd of wild elephants out of city of 7 million
An elephant expert said the incident was the longest-distance migration of wild elephants recorded in China and it was possible their leader “lacks experience and led the whole group astray”.
Thu, 03 Jun 2021 03:37:18 +1000Britain in negotiations to buy first vaccine adapted for Beta COVID-19 variant
It came as authorities revealed three-quarters of adults in Britain had received their first COVID-19 vaccine dose, and nearly half the population was fully vaccinated.
Thu, 03 Jun 2021 01:48:43 +1000Iran’s largest warship catches fire, sinks in Gulf of Oman
The largest warship in the Iranian navy caught fire and later sank in the Gulf of Oman under unclear circumstances.
Wed, 02 Jun 2021 18:18:46 +1000From ‘crazy people’ to Chinese co-operation: what Dr Fauci’s emails reveal about his handling of the pandemic
The correspondence from March and April 2020 opens a window to the world of the American health official during some of the most frantic days of the crisis.
Wed, 02 Jun 2021 15:11:03 +1000‘Push an apex predator, man’: Teen trends after shoving a bear to save her dog
California teen Hailey Morinico said she didn’t push that bear “that hard” off her garden wall, but the TikTok footage has made her an overnight sensation.
Wed, 02 Jun 2021 14:40:59 +1000Scientists discover a new rock-hard mineral in a mollusc’s tiny teeth
The rare, iron-based mineral previously had been found only in actual rocks.
Wed, 02 Jun 2021 13:45:17 +1000Backlash over parole for mafia killer nicknamed the ‘people-slayer’
Giovanni Brusca once dissolved a teenage boy in acid because his father turned informer. But Brusca didn’t get a life sentence - because he too cooperated.
Wed, 02 Jun 2021 13:26:20 +1000Heathrow Airport opens terminal for high-risk travellers
So called “red list” arrivals will pass through the airport’s Terminal 3, which was closed in April 2020 as international air travel plummeted, leaving Heathrow — previously Europe’s busiest airport — largely empty.
Wed, 02 Jun 2021 13:19:41 +1000Gallery: The best photos from around the world
he best photos from the international wire agencies as chosen by our picture editors
Wed, 02 Jun 2021 12:43:08 +1000In strategy shift, Xi tells cadres to project ‘loveable’ image of China
The Chinese President called for officials of all levels to improve their international communication.