New Zealand Covid response among world’s best but ‘scars’ remain, inquiry finds 10. March 2026 (03:43) Royal commission says response led by Jacinda Ardern was broadly ‘appropriate’, in a wide-ranging report featuring recommendations for future pandemicsA royal commission into New Zealand’s Covid response has found it was one of the best in the world but acknowledged the period had left “scars”.The second of two inquiry reports on the pandemic was released on Tuesday and focused on the period between February 2021 to October 2022, when the government changed from an elimination strategy to one of suppression and minimisation of the virus. It also examined vaccine safety and the government’s immunisation programme, lockdowns and tracing and testing technology. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Vague and contradictory Trump says Iran war ‘won’, but not ‘won enough’ 10. March 2026 (03:14) After oil prices surged on Monday the US president sought – and failed – to offer a clear vision for when the largest US intervention in the Middle East in years will endMiddle East crisis – live updatesAt one of the most consequential moments of his two terms in office, wartime president Donald Trump on Monday delivered a vague and contradictory forecast for how long the United States will continue to fight in Iran and what the ultimate goal of the US military campaign there will be.With oil hovering above $100 a barrel for much of Monday and Middle Eastern allies fearing a further tumble into regional conflict, Trump appeared in Doral, Florida with the mission of calming global markets and reassuring skittish allies that he has a clear vision for how to end the largest US intervention in the Middle East since the Iraq war. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Trump’s Iran war will reinforce North Korea’s view that nuclear weapons are the only path to security 10. March 2026 (03:09) As speculation mounts that Kim Jong-un and Trump could meet this month, analysts say Pyongyang will continue to see nuclear weapons as a matter of survivalMiddle East crisis – live updates North Korea’s launch last week of a missile from a naval destroyer elicited an uncharacteristically prosaic analysis from the country’s leader, Kim Jong-un. The launch was proof, he said, that arming ships with nuclear weapons was “making satisfactory progress”.But the test, and Kim’s mildly upbeat appraisal, were designed to reverberate well beyond the deck of the 5,000-tonne destroyer-class vessel the Choe Hyon – the biggest warship in the North Korean fleet. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Kia Carnival escape one of 12 since US firm took control of Australian immigration detention, damning report finds 10. March 2026 (03:08) Staffing levels at centres ‘critical’ under Management and Training Corporation, prisons watchdog says Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAt least 12 escapes have occurred since a US private prison operator began running Australia’s immigration detention network, including by a high-risk detainee who was mistakenly placed in an unsecured Kia Carnival with a makeshift weapon, a scathing report has found.The prisons watchdog, the National Preventive Mechanism (NPM), on Tuesday released a damning report about the running of the onshore immigration detention centres during their transition to Management and Training Corporation (MTC). Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Labor moves to block some temporary visa holders travelling to Australia amid Middle East war 10. March 2026 (02:58) Proposed legislation would allow home affairs minister to prevent people from certain places – such as Iran – entering the country Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastLabor is toughening immigration laws to stop people from some countries travelling to Australia on some temporary visas and seeking to stay permanently because of the Middle East war.The assistant citizenship minister, Julian Hill, introduced urgent amendments on Tuesday, hours after home affairs minister, Tony Burke, facilitated asylum applications from members of the Iranian women’s football team. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Trump claims Iran or ‘somebody else’ could have carried out deadly school strike 10. March 2026 (02:48) President makes evidence-free claim despite video showing US Tomahawk missile hit naval base next to schoolAs oil prices surged amid the widening war with Iran, Donald Trump suggested, without evidence, on Monday that the strike on an Iranian elementary school could have been carried out by Iran or “somebody else”.During back-to-back appearances in Florida, Trump was asked whether the US would accept responsibility for a strike that hit the school and killed scores of people, many of them children, after video evidence showed a US Tomahawk struck the naval base next to it. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Teens in Texas mariachi band released from ICE detention after bipartisan backlash 10. March 2026 (02:10) Brothers who visited White House reunited with family after outcry from Texas lawmakers, including Republican congresswomanTwo teenage mariachi musicians were released from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody after their detention sparked widespread backlash, including from a Republican congresswoman.The Democratic representative Joaquin Castro of Texas announced the release of the brothers, Antonio Yesayahu Gámez-Cuéllar, 18, and Caleb Gámez-Cuéllar, 14, on Monday afternoon, sharing photos on social media of the family reuniting. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Three Australians jailed for more than a decade over Melbourne man’s shooting death in Bali 10. March 2026 (01:43) Sentences of 16 and 12 years handed down over 2025 death of 32-year-old Zivan RadmanovicFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA court on Indonesia’s resort island of Bali has sentenced three Australian citizens over the fatal shooting of a fellow Australian national, after they claimed to have been paid by a man they will not identify.Mevlut Coskun, Paea I Middlemore Tupou and Darcy Jenson were convicted of the shooting death of Zivan Radmanovic, a 32-year-old from Melbourne. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Black people up to 48 times more likely to be stopped and searched in richest areas of London 10. March 2026 (01:01) Research found extreme disproportion in use of police power in districts such as Richmond-upon-Thames Black people are up to 48 times more likely than white people to be stopped and searched by police in some of London’s best-off areas, a new report has found.The study found that the reasons given by officers for subjecting black people to the controversial power were more likely to be vague, with examples including that a black person gave a “furtive glance”. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Ig Nobels to move awards to Europe due to concern over US travel visas 10. March 2026 (00:59) Scientific awards – which honor research that makes people laugh and then think – to move away from ‘unsafe’ USThe annual Ig Nobels, a satirical award for scientific achievement, are shifting for the first time from the US to Europe due to concerns about attendees getting visas, organizers announced on Monday.Organized by the Annals of Improbable Research, a digital magazine that highlights research that makes people laugh and then think, the 36th annual ceremony will be held in Zurich. It’s usually held in the US in September, a few weeks before the actual Nobel prizes are announced. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
