AUSTRALIA
Authorities shut Bondi Beach
Authorities yesterday closed Sydney’s Bondi Beach after huge crowds flocked to the popular sunbathing spot, despite a government ban on large gatherings due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The temporary measure came after photographs of mostly young beachgoers packed on the famous sands were widely shared online, drawing howls of protest in the media and from officials. “What we saw this morning here on Bondi Beach was the most irresponsible behavior of individuals that we’ve seen so far,” New South Wales Minister for Police and Emergency Services David Elliott said. “This is not something we are doing because we are the ‘fun police,’” he told a beachside news conference. The ban could be extended to other beaches if social distancing rules are not followed, he added.
BONAIRE
RdK seizes PDVSA facility
State-owned oil refiner Refineria di Korsou (RdK) on Friday seized an oil storage terminal on the Dutch Caribbean island of Bonaire over a payment dispute with Venezuela’s state-run Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA), an RdK official said. The government would seek Dutch court approvals to sell Bonaire Petroleum Corp (BOPEC), which is owned by PDVSA, and its 10-million barrel storage terminal if no payments are received, RdK managing director Marcelino de Lannoy said. In the video statement addressed to BOPEC workers, De Lannoy said that RdK would take their interests into account “as long as this is possible.” “RdK hopes that with this PDVSA will comply with its duties,” De Lannoy said. “If this is not the case, there is no alternative left for RdK to use its right to sell the installations in a public auction.” Last year, RdK ended PDVSA’s contract to operate its 335,000 barrel per day Isla refinery on Curacao.
GREECE
Police seize weapons cache
Police on Friday said that they have seized grenade launchers and other weapons in raids against suspected members of a far-left Turkish armed group. The raids were carried out at two properties in Athens on Thursday against alleged members of the Revolutionary People’s Liberation Party-Front, a group that is considered a terrorist organization by Turkey, the US and the EU. Eleven people were arrested in the operation that involved the counterterrorism division of the police and the National Intelligence Service, authorities said. They were on Friday charged with terrorism-linked offenses. Their lawyers said that the suspects denied the charges. The weapons seized include two anti-tank missile launchers, two grenade launchers, four handguns and an automatic rifle.
UNITED STATES
Kenny Rogers dies aged 81
Country music legend Kenny Rogers, whose career spanned six decades, has died at the age of 81, his family said late on Friday. “Rogers passed away peacefully at home from natural causes under the care of hospice and surrounded by his family,” his family said in a statement, adding that they were planning a small private service “out of concern for the national COVID-19 emergency.” A three-time Grammy winner, Rogers was known for a string of hits including The Gambler, Lucille and Islands in the Stream. He had 24 No. 1 hits, was a six-time Country Music Awards winner and a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame. Rogers also came to prominence through his collaboration with Dolly Parton and appearances on films and TV programs, including The Muppet Show.
An American scientist convicted of lying to US authorities about payments from China while he was at Harvard University has rebuilt his research lab in Shenzhen, China, to pursue technology the Chinese government has identified as a national priority: embedding electronics into the human brain. Charles Lieber, 67, is among the world’s leading researchers in brain-computer interfaces. The technology has shown promise in treating conditions such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and restoring movement in paralyzed people. It also has potential military applications: Scientists at the Chinese People’s Liberation Army have investigated brain interfaces as a way to engineer super soldiers by boosting
Jailed media entrepreneur Jimmy Lai (黎智英) has been awarded Deutsche Welle’s (DW) freedom of speech award for his contribution to Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement. The German public broadcaster on Thursday said Lai would be presented in absentia with the 12th iteration of the award on June 23 at the DW Global Media Forum in Bonn. Deutsche Welle director-general Barbara Massing praised the 78-year-old founder of the now-shuttered news outlet Apple Daily for standing “unwaveringly for press freedom in Hong Kong at great personal risk.” “With Apple Daily, he gave journalists a platform for free reporting and a voice to the democracy movement in
PHILIPPINE COMMITTEE: The head of the committee that made the decision said: ‘If there is nothing to hide, there is no reason to hide, there is no reason to obstruct’ A Philippine congressional committee on Wednesday ruled that there was “probable cause” to impeach Philippine Vice President Sara Duterte after hearing allegations of unexplained wealth, misuse of state funds and threats to have the president assassinated. The unanimous decision of the 53-member committee in the Philippine House of Representatives sends the two impeachment complaints to deliberations and voting by the entire lower chamber, which has more than 300 lawmakers. The complaints centered on Duterte’s alleged illegal use and mishandling of intelligence funds from the vice president’s office, and from her time as education secretary under Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. Duterte and the
As evening falls in Fiji’s capital, a steady stream of people approaches a makeshift clinic that is a first line of defense against one of the world’s fastest-growing HIV epidemics. In the South Pacific nation — a popular tourist destination of just under a million people — more than 2,000 new HIV cases were recorded last year, a 26 percent increase from 2024. The government has declared an HIV outbreak and described it as a national crisis. “It’s spreading like wildfire,” said Siteri Dinawai, 46, who came to be tested. The Moonlight Clinic, a converted minibus parked in a suburban cul-de-sac in Suva, is
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