Three shot dead in Australia, town in lockdownListen to this articleA general view of New South Wales, Australia. Police said an operation was underway in the ‌town of Lake Cargelligo, about 611 kilometres (379 miles) west of Sydney, and urged residents to stay indoors. Lake Cargelligo is located in New South Wales' Central West region, and ‌has ​a population of about 1,100, according to the 2021 census. Australia on Tuesday passed new ⁠laws to enable a national gun buyback and tighten background ​checks for firearm licences in response to the shooting. New South Wales, which has the most guns of any state in the country, has also passed laws to ​limit individuals to possession of four guns and mandate ‍gun club membership for licence holders.

As tensions between enemies reach a breaking point, they are forced to confront a terrifying, ancient monster lurking in the shadows. Omukade is a haunting prequel to the internationally celebrated Thai horror film The One Hundred, set during World War II when Japan occupied Thailand. With the movie winning the Palme d'Or at the 78th Cannes Film Festival, Panahi became the only filmmaker in history to win the highest honours at all four of the world's major international film festivals. He previously won the Caméra d'Or at Cannes for his debut film “The White Balloon” (1995), the Golden Leopard at the Locarno Film Festival for “The Mirror” (1997), the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival for “The Circle” (2000) and the Golden Bear at the Berlin International Film Festival for “Taxi” (2015). Sunil Shetty played one of the lead in prequel "Border" (1997).His son Ahan will be seen in an important role in this sequel.

German tourist arrested for stealing cash at Phuket spaListen to this articleA visitor was caught on CCTV stealing cash from the cashier’s drawer at a spa in Phuket on Tuesday. (Photo supplied by police)PHUKET - Police arrested a German man for stealing cash from a spa on this tourist island after he revisited the business to return the money. Spa staff rejected the return of the stolen cash and slippers and called police instead. The 25-year-old German man cried and told police that he and his friends had committed the crime out of boldness. Police at the Muang Phuket station said that on Tuesday spa staff complained that a foreign client had stolen the cash from a drawer when the cashier was away.

(Photo supplied)SA KAEO - A wild elephant known as Si Daw Kaew has been captured and relocated from Wang Nam Yen district in this northeastern province to an elephant behaviour modification facility, in a move aimed at reducing human-elephant conflict and improving community safety. Si Daw Kaew, a male elephant aged 30-35, was located at 4.50pm. The convoy stopped at a weighing point at 1.10am on Thursday, where Si Daw Kaew was found to weigh 5,630 kilogrammes. “Si Daw Kaew had entered residential areas, damaged property and raided plantations and barns,” Mr Arun said. Mr Arun thanked residents for their cooperation, and said people wishing to visit wild elephants can contact the Chong Klam Bon Wildlife Breeding Station directly.

The 63-year-old faces a slew of charges, including suspected abuse of office, corruption and espionage to the detriment of Austria. Through his actions, Ott risked inflicting “serious damage” on Austria’s reputation among friendly intelligence services, according to the indictment seen by AFP. Fugitive Marsalek is wanted on fraud charges and is suspected of working for Russia’s intelligence services (FSB). ‘Assassination manual’To gather information, Ott allegedly made use of “European databases” and sent “requests for assistance” to Italy and Britain, which resulted in those countries “unknowingly acting in the interest” of Moscow, prosecutors say. Ott was suspended from his post at Austria’s intelligence services in 2017 amid allegations of spying and briefly arrested in 2021 on these accusations.

The nominations will be announced on Thursday at 5:30am in Los Angeles (8.30pm in Thailand), with the 98th Oscars ceremony to be held on March 15. It is expected to land a best actor nomination for Michael B Jordan, who plays two twins battling vampires and racists in 1930s Mississippi, plus everything from screenplay to score. For Variety awards expert Clayton Davis, the nominations record is within reach for Sinners. Former best actor Oscar winner Leonardo DiCaprio is all but certain to secure his seventh acting nomination from the Academy. The Secret Agent star Wagner Moura, playing a scientist on the run from Brazil’s 1970s dictatorship, is expected to vie with DiCaprio and Jordan for best actor.

On his second day at the Swiss ski resort, Trump will seek to promote the “Board of Peace”, his controversial body for resolving international conflicts, with a signing ceremony for the organisation’s charter. The fledgling board boasts a $1-billion price tag for permanent membership and Trump has invited leaders including Russia’s Vladimir Putin, Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu and Hungary’s Viktor Orban to join. “I think it’s the greatest board ever formed,” Trump said Wednesday as he met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, another of the leaders who have agreed to join. Trump said he was due to hold talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky after the “Board of Peace” meeting as difficult negotiations for a ceasefire in the Ukraine war continue. Trump insists the mineral-rich Arctic island is vital for US and NATO security against Russia and China.

Listen to this articleThree of the world’s largest dairy companies are recalling and blocking batches of infant milk formula after a contamination scare that began with Nestle widened on Wednesday to the French groups Danone and Lactalis. Nestle recalled batches of infant nutrition products in dozens of countries earlier this month, due to possible contamination with cereulide, a toxin that can cause nausea and vomiting. A judicial inquiry in ‌France is under way into whether there is a link between the death of a baby and the Nestle milk. Danone shares sinkDanone shares were down around 8.3% on Wednesday, touching their lowest level since February 2025. dsm-firmenich has said none of its products was affected by the Nestle recall.

Passenger numbers for Hong Kong's Cathay go sky high with 27% increaseListen to this articleA Cathay Pacific aircraft takes off at Hong Kong International Airport. The company said the growth in passenger numbers was related to a "significant expansion in passenger capacity", with the group seeing a more than 25% increase in terms of available seat kilometres from 2024. In December alone, passenger numbers for Cathay Pacific and HK Express increased by 21.8% and 24.1% year on year, respectively. "The Chinese mainland also emerged as a key destination, with travellers from Hong Kong exploring a wide variety of cities across our network." "Tonnage remained strong in December, despite a 3% decrease from the previous month as the festive season approached," Lau said.

Thailand seize early initiativeListen to this articleThailand's Saysunee Jana smiles after her victory. By press time, Thailand's gold medal tally had already climbed impressively to 18. Nithikorn Jeampiriyakul set the tone, storming to victory in the men's 100m breaststroke SB14 with a new Games record of 1:08.09min. Further victories came courtesy of Monrudee Kangpila (women's 100m breaststroke SB9); Prakaithip Chaiwong (women's 100m breaststroke SB7-SB8); Eakapan Songwichean (men's 50m backstroke SB5); Natirat Meeprom (men's 200m breaststroke SB14); Sampachan Samathi (men's 100m freestyle SB10); and Wilasini Wongnonthapoom (women's 50m backstroke S4-S5), each adding to the Kingdom's burgeoning haul. For the men, it marked a sixth consecutive Games victory, cementing their status as regional powerhouses.

Real Madrid top football rich list as Liverpool surgeListen to this articleReal Madrid generated nearly 1.2 billion euros in 2024-25. (Photo: AFP)LONDON - Real Madrid stayed top of football’s rich list as Liverpool outstripped their English rivals for the first time, according to Deloitte’s Money League study on Thursday. Spanish giants Madrid generated nearly 1.2 billion euros ($1.4 billion) in revenue in the 2024-25 season despite failing to win a major trophy. The rest of the top 10 is dominated by Premier League clubs, with Liverpool leading the English contingent for the first time. United dropped behind Arsenal to eighth after missing out on the Champions League and finishing 15th in the Premier League.

(Photo: AFP)GENEVA - Nuclear weapons testing has affected every single human on the planet, causing at least four million premature deaths from cancer and other diseases over time, according to a new report delving into the deadly legacy. Of the nine countries known to possess nuclear weapons — Russia, the United States, China, France, the United Kingdom, Pakistan, India, Israel and North Korea — only Pyongyang has conducted nuclear tests since the 1990s. “Past nuclear testing continues to kill today,” said NPA chief Raymond Johansen, voicing hope the report would “strengthen the resolve to prevent nuclear weapons from ever being tested or used again”. ‘Very dangerous’The issue has gained fresh relevance after US President Donald Trump’s suggestion last November that Washington could resume nuclear testing, accusing Russia and China of already doing so — charges they rejected. “The nuclear testing period shows us that the consequences are extremely long-lasting and very serious,” she told AFP.

Listen to this articleJade Donavanik, the prime ministerial candidate of the Rak Chart Party, is a former constitution drafter. (Photo courtesy of Rak Chart Party)The Rak Chart Party has issued a firm warning ahead of Thailand's Feb 8 general election: it will not join any government tainted by corruption, grey-zone dealings or improper political bargaining. The party’s name, Rak Chart, which translates as “Love the Nation”, is often misunderstood, Mr Jade said. Asked how Rak Chart differs from traditionally conservative parties, Mr Jade pointed first to its demographics. If a prospective coalition partner is found to engage in corruption, grey-zone business dealings, or improper exchange of personal benefits, Rak Chart will not join.

Unsafe sites, soft probesListen to this articleBack-to-back fatal accidents in the past week have turned public construction sites -- especially along Rama II Road -- into danger zones. The repeated tragedies on Rama II and other public construction sites have reminded us that public safety standards, and the law enforcement meant to uphold them, are failing. So-called "fact-finding missions" have become performative and ceremonial exercises meant to cool public anger rather than uncover the truth. Most fact-finding missions are led and conducted by the same ministries and state agencies that awarded the contracts in the first place. This neutral body, chaired by independent experts appointed by lawmakers, should have the authority to conduct fact-finding missions into public accidents.

How to feed the world's ten billion peopleListen to this articleWith the world struggling to feed eight billion people today, how will we feed ten billion by 2050? At the same time, 1.66 billion hectares -- 60% of which is agricultural land -- have been degraded by the very practices we rely on to feed the world. Fortunately, research shows that optimising nitrogen use can boost yields by up to 19% and slash fertiliser use by 15-19%. That requires replacing one-size-fits-all industrial packages with resilient, context-specific systems finely tuned to local soils, water regimes, crops, and climates. Future generations will not ask whether the solutions existed; they will ask what took us so long to implement them.