MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Two monuments symbolizing Australia’s colonial past were damaged by protesters on Thursday ahead of an increasingly polarizing national holiday that marks the anniversary of British settlement. A statue in Melbourne of British naval officer James Cook, who in 1770 charted Sydney’s coast, was sawn off at the ankles, while a Queen … Read more
BANGKOK (AP) — China has rolled out new rules meant to expand access to commercial bank loans for property developers as Beijing doubles down on its effort to end a prolonged crisis in the real estate industry. The policies will allow real estate companies to use bank loans pledged against commercial properties such as offices … Read more
BEIJING (AP) — A fire broke out in a commercial building in China’s southeastern Jiangxi province on Wednesday, killing at least 39 people and injuring nine others, state media said. Officials for the Yushui district of Jiangxi province said that the fire broke out in the basement of a shopping area in the afternoon. In … Read more
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea said Thursday it conducted its first flight test of a new cruise missile, as it expands its military capabilities in the face of deepening tensions with the United States and neighbors. The report in state media came a day after South Korea’s military said it detected the North … Read more
DENVER (AP) — A motorcyclist who authorities say posted a video of himself on YouTube speeding from Colorado Springs to the Denver metro area on Interstate 25 in 20 minutes — a trip that typically takes about an hour — is wanted on multiple charges. Rendon Dietzmann, a 32-year-old from Texas, recorded himself Sept. 28 … Read more
SEATTLE (AP) — Seattle has agreed to pay $10 million to 50 demonstrators who sued over the police department’s heavy-handed response to racial justice protests in 2020, in a settlement announced by attorneys from both sides Wednesday. The protesters were among tens of thousands who rallied downtown and in the Capitol Hill neighborhood for weeks … Read more
SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (AP) — Costa Rica’s Supreme Court of Justice reported Wednesday that it was no longer obligatory to place the paternal surname before the maternal surname on a person’s identification. In Spanish-speaking nations, people often go by two first and last names given by their parents. The court’s decision would effectively allow … Read more
In this satellite image provided by the Japan Meteorological Agency/Australian Bureau of Meteorology, the potential cyclone Kirrily is shown off Australia’s east coast Wednesday, Jan 24, 2024. A tropical low strengthening over the Coral Sea is finally expected to become a tropical cyclone later on Wednesday, days after it was first expected to appear off … Read more
Chemical composition of Sunday’s gas plume unknown at this point A large plume of smoke was released from the Parkland refinery in Burnaby on Jan. 21 after an industrial accident.Photo by John Preissl /for PNG A University of B.C. project that gathers air quality information from Metro Vancouver residents had its busiest day on record … Read more
FILE – The wreckage of the Sari night club and surrounding buildings are seen in this aerial view Oct. 15, 2002 in Kuta, Bali. Relatives of some of the more than 200 people killed in 2002 bombings on the resort island of Bali are testifying at a sentencing hearing at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba. Two … Read more