Global Pulse

博客

  • Africa wants more homegrown solar to boost self-reliance, but China’s shadow remains

    Africa wants more homegrown solar to boost self-reliance, but China’s shadow remains

    Across the African continent, the largest national economies are moving faster than ever to expand domestic solar manufacturing capacity, a strategic shift industry analysts tie to both broader industrial development ambitions and rising concerns over heavy reliance on Chinese imports that currently control the vast majority of the global solar supply chain.

    Industry experts confirm Ethiopia, South Africa, Morocco and Nigeria are prioritizing localization of solar equipment production, scaling up operations from basic module assembly to more complex, high-value manufacturing processes. Even so, analysts broadly agree China will almost certainly retain its dominant global position in producing solar cells and other core supply chain components, a status reinforced by a persistent domestic supply glut that has pushed its export volumes to record heights.

    Data from London-based think tank ODI Global shows cumulative Chinese investment in African renewable energy and associated construction projects hit $66 billion between 2010 and 2024. For the continent, the combination of fast-growing gross domestic product, crippling recent energy shortages in nations such as Zambia, and the ongoing need to expand electricity access to unserved communities makes Africa an ideal outlet for China’s excess solar production capacity, explained Olena Borodyna, senior geopolitical risk advisor at ODI Global.

    South Africa, already the continent’s biggest importer of solar equipment, bringing in more than 3 gigawatts of product annually (almost all from China), has positioned itself as the continent’s most viable candidate for large-scale localized production. State-owned utility Eskom is moving forward with plans for a 1-gigawatt domestic solar manufacturing facility, designed to capture more economic value from the country’s rapidly expanding solar market while adapting to shifting national electricity demand patterns. Rising adoption of rooftop and decentralized solar systems has cut demand for power from the national grid, squeezing utility revenues and creating new incentives for business diversification.

    In Nigeria, domestic solar panel assembly capacity has jumped from roughly 120 megawatts to 300 megawatts over the past two years, and the country’s annual solar imports, the vast majority sourced from China, are now nearly on par with South Africa’s. Morocco has already doubled its annual solar production capacity to around 1 gigawatt, while Egypt has multiple gigawatt-scale manufacturing projects poised to come online. According to Benjamin Clarke, policy director at the Africa Solar Industry Association, this growing focus on domestic solar manufacturing marks a profound shift for the continent’s energy sector. “A few years ago, local solar manufacturing was barely on the agenda anywhere in Africa,” Clarke noted. “It is now becoming a recognized pillar of industrial policy and green economic development.”

    Demand for solar and other renewable energy sources across Africa has surged in recent years. Global off-grid solar industry group GOGLA projects that more than 10 million standalone solar kits will be sold across the continent in 2025, serving approximately 148 million people. That marks a 10% increase from 2024, with most growth concentrated in East and West Africa.

    Despite this momentum, the global solar supply chain remains extremely concentrated, with China holding an unrivaled position. Currently, Africa has no commercial-scale solar cell manufacturing, meaning even new local assembly operations depend entirely on imported Chinese core components. “Most new factories assemble imported Chinese components rather than produce the high-value solar cells and other upstream materials, leaving Africa dependent on foreign technology for the most sophisticated parts of the supply chain,” Clarke explained.

    Chinese investment has brought clear benefits, supporting the expansion of African manufacturing capacity and building local technical skills that create new employment opportunities. Borodyna noted that China’s longstanding expertise in scaling renewable energy technology manufacturing makes it a critical partner for African nations looking to expand their domestic sectors. “China will play a huge role in the build-out of manufacturing capacity across the continent, as well as continue solar exports to the continent,” she said. Still, experts agree the deeper knowledge sharing required to build fully integrated, independent domestic solar industries across Africa has yet to materialize, leaving meaningful technology transfer limited.

    Hannah Pitt, an expert in energy and climate policy at the Rhodium Group, noted that heavy reliance on Chinese solar supplies will likely remain the norm across Africa for the foreseeable future. Trade restrictions implemented in the U.S. and Europe have encouraged Chinese solar firms to redirect new investment toward emerging regions including Africa and Southeast Asia. Ethiopia has emerged as a top destination for this investment, with more than half of all announced solar manufacturing investments since 2018 coming from Chinese sources, alongside additional investment from Japan. By contrast, major projects in South Africa, Nigeria and Morocco are mostly led by domestic companies or joint ventures with majority local participation.

    Lauri Myllyvirta, an analyst at the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, explained that years of extensive state support and steady investment in green technology manufacturing have left China with a large oversupply of solar equipment and falling domestic prices, a core driver of its massive global market share. Persistent oversupply pushed several major Chinese solar manufacturers, including industry leaders Longi and Jinko, into financial losses in the first quarter of 2026. For these struggling firms, expanding operations into overseas markets is widely seen as the only path to remaining viable.

    An analysis from the Net Zero Industrial Policy Lab’s “China’s Green Leap Outward” report estimates Chinese firms have committed up to $250 billion to overseas green manufacturing projects between 2011 and the first half of 2025. Data from climate think tank Ember shows Chinese solar exports doubled in March 2026 to hit a new all-time monthly record, with 50 countries around the world setting single-month import records for Chinese solar equipment that same period.

    “In terms of producing and manufacturing things — like solar panels, batteries, electric vehicles — really China is by far the lead in this race,” said Li Shuo, director of the Asia Society Policy Institute’s China Climate Hub. “I personally expect the dominance of China to be further cemented and not weakened over the coming years.”

  • Major H5 bird flu blow as NSW confirms first native case

    Major H5 bird flu blow as NSW confirms first native case

    Australia’s ongoing outbreak of highly pathogenic H5 avian influenza has crossed a worrying new threshold, with state authorities confirming the first documented cases of the deadly virus in a native Australian wild bird species within New South Wales (NSW).

    Two greater crested terns, found hundreds of kilometers apart in geographically distinct regions of the state, have tested positive for the virus. One carcass was recovered near the coastal town of Narooma on NSW’s far south coast, while the second was discovered close to Wentworth, a remote community in the state’s far west. Both samples were processed and confirmed positive at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO)’s Australian Centre for Disease Preparedness, the nation’s leading high-containment infectious disease research facility.

    While native bird species have already fallen victim to H5 across other Australian jurisdictions, this marks the first detection of the strain in native wildlife within NSW. As of the latest update, the national total of confirmed H5 detections across the country has climbed to 215, with the outbreak continuing to expand its geographic reach.

    South Australia remains the epicenter of the national outbreak, accounting for roughly two-thirds of all confirmed cases nationwide. The state has recorded 80 new detections in recent days alone, prompting major event organizers to take drastic preventive action. The Royal Adelaide Show, one of the most iconic and long-running annual agricultural events on Australia’s national calendar, has canceled all scheduled poultry exhibits for next month’s gathering.

    Will Rayner, chief executive of the Royal Adelaide Show, told reporters Friday the call to scrap poultry displays was made “out of an abundance of caution.” After reviewing detailed risk-mitigation guidance from state and federal health authorities, event organizers concluded they could not fully implement all required safety protocols to eliminate transmission risk. “We made the decision now to give stakeholders and exhibitors ample time to adjust, rather than forcing a last-minute cancellation when the show is already underway and crowds are arriving,” Rayner explained.

    Back in NSW, state officials have moved to reassure the public that authorities are well prepared to manage the expanding outbreak. “These positive cases are not unexpected,” said Penny Sharpe, NSW’s Minister for the Environment. “We remain well equipped to respond to and manage further impacts. We are using the best available data and tools to target protective actions for our most at-risk wildlife species and important natural ecosystems.”

    NSW Agriculture Minister Tara Moriarty added that the state government is collaborating closely with the commercial poultry industry to ramp up biosecurity protocols across all production facilities. To date, no cases of H5 have been detected in commercial or backyard poultry flocks within NSW. “The industry has been preparing for this scenario for some time, and all stakeholders are fully aware of current risks and required preventive actions,” Moriarty noted.

  • Men aged 50-69 to test every two years for prostate cancer in massive reform

    Men aged 50-69 to test every two years for prostate cancer in massive reform

    Australia has introduced landmark, world-first updates to its national clinical guidelines for prostate cancer early detection, marking the first major overhaul of the framework in 10 years. Unveiled by the Albanese government this Thursday, the revised 2026 Clinical Guidelines for the Early Detection of Prostate Cancer expand access to routine Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) testing, with the dual goal of catching aggressive cases earlier and cutting harm from unnecessary overdiagnosis and overtreatment.

    Developed in partnership between the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia and Cancer Council Australia, the new testing framework expands eligibility to multiple at-risk groups. Under the reforms, all Australian men between 50 and 69 years old will now qualify for biennial PSA screening. Men aged 45 to 49 will be able to complete an initial baseline test, while high-risk groups — including those with a first-degree family history of prostate cancer, carriers of a BRCA2 gene mutation, and men of sub-Saharan African ancestry — can access biennial testing starting as early as age 45.

    Jeff Dunn AO, head of research at the Prostate Cancer Foundation Australia, described the updated guidelines as a watershed moment for Australia’s approach to managing the disease, noting the country is among the first in the world to adopt this modern, evidence-based structure. “These guidelines represent the culmination of years of scientific work, national collaboration, and rigorous evaluation of the evidence,” Dunn explained. “Much has changed over the past decade. The evidence has matured, diagnostic technologies have advanced, and clinical practice has evolved substantially. For the first time, Australia now has a contemporary national framework that better balances the benefits of detecting aggressive prostate cancer early with the need to minimise unnecessary harms.”

    Australian Health Minister Mark Butler emphasized that the policy reform is designed to ensure that at-risk men and their families can access targeted support at the earliest possible stage. Dan Repacholi, Labor Member of Parliament and the federal government’s special envoy for men’s health, who has long been a leading advocate for improved prostate cancer care, reaffirmed the government’s commitment to advancing detection and treatment outcomes.

    “As the most commonly diagnosed cancer in Australia, prostate cancer has significant impacts on men, their families and the wider community,” Repacholi said, urging men aged 45 and over to consult their general practitioner about their individual risk and whether screening is appropriate for them.

    Prostate cancer currently holds the title of Australia’s most frequently diagnosed cancer, with roughly 28,000 new cases recorded each year and approximately 4,000 annual deaths from the disease. To support rollout of the new guidelines, the federal government has allocated $320,000 in funding to the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, which will develop and deliver targeted education and awareness training for frontline primary care providers. Since GPs serve as the first point of contact for most men seeking cancer screening, the training program is expected to smooth implementation and improve guideline adherence across the country.

  • Child among three killed in Russian missile attacks near Kyiv

    Child among three killed in Russian missile attacks near Kyiv

    A new wave of overnight Russian ballistic missile strikes targeting areas near Kyiv has left at least three people dead — one of them a child — and three more wounded, marking a sharp escalation of hostilities just days after a broader series of attacks across Ukraine claimed 21 lives.

    The attacks, which unfolded in the early hours of Saturday, targeted locations east of Ukraine’s capital, with residents reporting deafening, powerful explosions across the region. Falling missile debris damaged multiple residential apartment blocks and parked civilian vehicles, and ignited a separate blaze at a commercial structure, according to Timur Tkachenko, head of Kyiv’s regional military administration.

    Kyiv Mayor Vitaly Klitschko confirmed via Telegram that emergency response teams were working to contain two large fires: one at a multi-story building and another at a fuel storage facility within the city limits. Ukraine’s State Emergency Service (DSNS) published on-the-ground images showing raging fires at garages, a local business, and a residential outbuilding in Kyiv’s Holosiivskyi district, noting that the full count of casualties is still undergoing verification.

    The attack comes as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky touched down in Belgrade for his first official visit to Serbia, a trip scheduled amid growing Ukrainian warnings that dwindling stocks of anti-missile interceptors have severely weakened the country’s ability to fend off Russian air assaults. Zelensky has made it a priority to build broader international support for Ukraine’s defensive efforts, but the trip faces inherent diplomatic friction: Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić has repeatedly refused to join international sanctions against Russia, despite Serbia’s ongoing bid to earn membership in the European Union. The Balkan country has provided humanitarian aid to Ukraine and pledged to support post-war reconstruction efforts, and Friday’s scheduled talks between the two leaders were expected to cover bilateral economic ties, Serbia’s EU accession process, and regional and global security issues.

    In comments earlier this week, Zelensky highlighted the human cost of delayed arms supplies from Western and international partners. He stated that holdups in deliveries of anti-ballistic defense systems have directly led to “horrific casualties and widespread destruction,” emphasizing that expanded interceptor capabilities “could have saved countless lives” during recent deadly Russian strikes. He added that the volume of interceptor supplies from allied nations has dropped “significantly” throughout 2024, leaving critical gaps in Ukraine’s air defense network.

    The latest exchange of hostilities follows a series of targeted Ukrainian strikes deep inside Russian territory earlier this month, which hit two major Russian oil refineries and destroyed several Moscow-linked commercial vessels operating in the Black Sea. Zelensky confirmed the strikes were a deliberate strategy to reduce the oil revenues that Russia relies on to fund its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

    Recent diplomatic mediation efforts aimed at de-escalating the 2.5-year conflict have stalled, creating a vacuum that has paved the way for a sharp uptick in offensive attacks from both Russian and Ukrainian forces in recent weeks.

  • Queensland farmstay which hosted fatal rave announces closure

    Queensland farmstay which hosted fatal rave announces closure

    Two weeks after a 40-year-old New Zealand father of two died following a fall at an unlicensed rave held on its grounds, Hidden Camp – an off-grid farmstay and camping venue nestled in bushland between Queensland’s Maryborough and Gympie – has announced an immediate temporary shutdown that will last at least several months. The venue’s owners confirmed the decision in a public statement posted to Facebook on Friday, noting that the closure is tied to ongoing planning and development approval processes that have come to the forefront following the fatal incident. All existing and future bookings will be fully canceled and refunded to guests via the camping booking platform HipCamp, per the announcement. For the family that runs Hidden Camp, the shutdown is far more than a business interruption: the property is not only their commercial operation but their family home and primary livelihood, the statement explained. “It is our home, our livelihood, and something we’ve poured our hearts, savings and countless hours into,” the statement read. “Unfortunately, this means Hidden Camp could remain closed for several months while this process runs its course. We know this is incredibly disappointing for everyone who had plans to visit, and it is devastating for our family.” The sudden closure comes in the wake of a tragic accident that shocked the local Glenwood community two weeks prior. During the unauthorised “Rhythm of the Wild” secret rave held on the property, Trenton Ehrhorn, a 40-year-old New Zealand national and father of two, fell from the event stage and suffered fatal injuries. Immediately after the incident, the venue’s owners released an initial statement expressing profound sorrow over the loss of life, extending condolences to Ehrhorn’s family and friends, and acknowledging the negative impact of the tragedy on nearby residents and the wider Glenwood community. Following the accident, Queensland Police took a 33-year-old man from Burpengary into custody for questioning. As of earlier this week, however, law enforcement officials confirmed no charges have been filed against any person connected to the incident, and the official investigation remains active and ongoing. The venue owners said they look forward to reopening Hidden Camp once all required planning and development processes are finalized, though no specific timeline for a potential reopening has been set.

  • 70 years after South Africa’s women challenged apartheid, some say their freedom isn’t complete

    70 years after South Africa’s women challenged apartheid, some say their freedom isn’t complete

    On Sunday, South Africa marked a landmark moment in its anti-apartheid struggle: the 70th anniversary of the 1956 Women’s March, a watershed act of collective resistance that brought nearly 20,000 women of all racial backgrounds together to challenge unjust segregation laws. Seventy decades on, however, contemporary South African women say the freedom their predecessors risked everything to win remains incomplete, as the nation grapples with persistent crises of gender-based violence, systemic poverty, and deep-rooted structural inequality.

    The 1956 march saw demonstrators converge on Pretoria, South Africa’s administrative capital, to protest apartheid pass laws that forced Black women to carry restrictive identity documents to control their movement across the country. The action has long been recognized as one of the most powerful displays of mass resistance against white minority rule in the nation’s history.

    For Ramnie Dinat, an 84-year-old who was a teenager when the march took place on August 9, the day remains a vivid memory. Dinat assisted her mother, Ama Naidoo, a prominent anti-apartheid activist of Indian heritage, with last-minute organizing ahead of the rally. The multiracial coalition that turned out included Black women, women of Indian descent like Naidoo, and a small group of white women, all united in their opposition to racist legislation.

    “Black women were organizing, and Indian women couldn’t be silent,” Dinat told the Associated Press, adding that none of the ordinary women who took part could have predicted their action would be etched into national history. “We were ordinary women who believed we could make a difference. We simply believed it was the right thing to do.”

    Today, the legacy of the 1956 march is preserved at the former Women’s Jail on Constitution Hill in Johannesburg, a facility once used as a key part of the apartheid prison system that has since been converted into a public museum. Many leaders and participants of the 1956 march were later imprisoned at the facility, where inmates were segregated by race in line with apartheid policy, just as segregation was enforced across every sphere of South African public life.

    Nolubabalo Memese, visitor services manager at Constitution Hill, explains that the jail was intentionally designed to dehumanize and break anti-apartheid activists. Black women held at the facility were denied even basic human dignity, including access to proper underwear and sanitary products. Now, the museum honors both the iconic leaders of the anti-apartheid movement, including Winnie Madikizela-Mandela and Albertina Sisulu, and the thousands of ordinary women whose contributions to the struggle have often been left out of mainstream history books.

    “Our freedom is built on the shoulders of those kinds of women who were at this prison,” Memese said.

    That sentiment is echoed by Kgothatso Montjane, a 40-year-old Paralympic wheelchair tennis champion and the first Black South African woman to compete in all four of tennis’ Grand Slam tournaments, who took home the 2024 Wimbledon wheelchair doubles title. Montjane says the courage of the 1956 marchers cleared a path for her and other women to pursue opportunities their predecessors could not access.

    “The fight the women took on 70 years ago has paved the way for us,” she said.

    Yet even with the end of apartheid in 1994 and the formal elimination of racial restrictions on movement, work, and political participation, many women argue that new, persistent barriers continue to block full gender freedom in modern South Africa. A 2024 study supported by UN Women found that more than one in three South African women will experience physical or sexual violence over their lifetime, a crisis the United Nations has labeled a “national wound” for the country.

    For Memese, gender-based violence acts as a modern restriction on women’s freedom, just as pass laws constrained the movement of Black women 70 years ago. “There’s a different monster which precludes us from enjoying freedom of movement and economic participation. And that’s gender-based violence. That’s a crime,” she said. “If you want to go jog at six o’clock and it’s a bit dark, you’d rather not.”

    Systemic economic inequality further exacerbates these challenges. Official government data shows women in South Africa face higher unemployment rates than men, carry a disproportionate share of unpaid care work, and remain drastically underrepresented in senior leadership roles across public and private sectors. Even in sports, Montjane says, structural barriers persist: financial gaps limit access to elite training and competition, leaving women of color underrepresented at the highest levels of the sport.

    “The barriers I had to overcome … in a sport like tennis, it’s just a financial issue,” Montjane said. “They don’t lie when they say tennis is a white sport, and you don’t really find people of color dominating in this sport.”

    Even amid these ongoing struggles, Montjane emphasized that the 1956 marchers transformed the trajectory of South Africa for her and future generations of women. “The platform has been set,” she said.

    The symbolic reuse of materials from the apartheid-era jail to build the current museum holds deep meaning for Memese, who frames the work toward gender equity as a process of building a better future from the lessons of the past. “We are using the bricks of the past to build our future,” she said. “Once we forget the past, it’s very easy for us to make the same mistakes.”

    For Dinat, one of the last living participants of the 1956 march, the core lesson of that historic day remains unchanged after seven decades. “Every generation has its own struggles, and every generation has to decide whether it will stand up for what is right,” she said.

  • ‘Unfair’ court system lets wealthy offenders hide behind secrecy orders

    ‘Unfair’ court system lets wealthy offenders hide behind secrecy orders

    Two high-profile convicted rapists in Australia have drawn renewed scrutiny of a controversial legal loophole that allowed their identities to remain hidden from the public for years, leading legal experts to warn that the current system undermines open justice, erodes public trust, and perpetuates harmful stereotypes about sexual assault survivors.

    Tom Silvagni, son of Australian Football League legend Stephen Silvagni, and Ralph Carr, a prominent sports and entertainment manager, both secured court-issued suppression orders during their separate rape trials, preventing public disclosure of their names until guilty verdicts were returned. Carr’s identity remained sealed for three years, with the order only lifted after his conviction this week. For Silvagni, who was found guilty of raping a friend’s girlfriend on two occasions, the defendant went to extraordinary lengths to maintain his anonymity: he hired a full additional legal team exclusively to argue for continued secrecy, successfully keeping his name out of public view for 18 months throughout his trial.

    Legal analysts say the cases highlight deep structural flaws in Australia’s suppression regime, particularly in the state of Victoria, which has gained a reputation as the nation’s “suppression order capital.” Associate Professor Jason Bosland, a legal scholar at Melbourne Law School, argues that prolonged secrecy around high-profile sexual assault cases does profound damage to survivors and the integrity of the justice system. These extended orders, he explains, reinforce harmful cultural narratives that question the credibility of female complainants, while also creating the public perception that wealthy, connected offenders receive preferential treatment in the courts. This uneven application of justice, Bosland says, severely undermines public confidence in how justice is administered. He warns that open justice in Australia, and particularly in Victoria, is at a crisis point, with orders frequently remaining in force for months or even years after they are first granted – one case he reviewed only had its suppression order revoked after six years.

    Current laws around the public disclosure of criminal defendants in sexual assault cases vary widely across Australian jurisdictions. In Queensland, new legislation only passed in 2023 to allow public identification of adult defendants charged with rape and other severe sexual offenses before they go to trial. In the Northern Territory, media outlets are still barred from naming defendants in sexual assault cases until they are formally committed for trial or sentencing.

    Justin Quill, a partner at law firm Thomsons who represented media organizations in both the Silvagni and Carr trials, says the current system is fundamentally unfair. He notes that most ordinary Australians cannot afford to hire even one King’s Counsel, let alone two separate legal teams focused entirely on keeping a defendant’s name out of the press. Quill says the outcome of these two cases has justifiably left the Australian public angry and disappointed.

    Under Australian law, judges grant suppression orders on a limited set of grounds: to protect the fairness of an upcoming trial, to prevent distress to victims, children or witnesses, to protect the personal safety of any individual, or for national security purposes. In both the Silvagni and Carr cases, defense teams centered their arguments for secrecy on mental health grounds, framing public identification as a threat to the defendants’ mental safety. Silvagni’s legal team secured an order citing risks of psychiatric harm and suicide, while Carr’s team argued his history of prior suicide attempts put him at risk of self-harm if his name was made public.

    Quill argues that this interpretation of the “safety” provision of the 2013 Open Courts Act directly misrepresents the legislation’s original intent. When the law was drafted, he explains, the safety exception was intended to protect informers who faced deadly violence after providing evidence during the aftermath of Melbourne’s gangland wars – legislative drafters never contemplated that it would be used to shield criminal defendants from public scrutiny by claiming mental harm. Critics add that the process itself is stacked against transparency: defendants submit untested psychiatric evidence to support their claims, and neither media outlets nor prosecution teams are given the opportunity to cross-examine or challenge that evidence before the order is granted. To Quill, this amounts to defendants gaming the system, stretching the law far beyond its intended purpose.

    To address these flaws, legal experts are calling for urgent reform. First, Quill says, legislators must close the loophole that allows the safety ground to be used for claims of mental health risk from public identification. Beyond legislative change, he argues, there must be a broad cultural shift among barristers and judges. While many legal professionals pay lip service to the principle of open courts, few are willing to uphold that principle consistently in high-profile, politically charged cases. Bosland is currently set to host a roundtable to discuss targeted reforms to the Open Courts Act that would limit the misuse of suppression orders in sexual assault cases, as the legal community pushes for change to restore public faith in open justice.

  • Eastern China braces for Typhoon Dolphin, shutting schools and tourist activities

    Eastern China braces for Typhoon Dolphin, shutting schools and tourist activities

    BEIJING – As powerful Typhoon Dolphin barrels toward the eastern coastline of China, local government agencies have enacted sweeping precautionary measures, closing educational institutions and popular tourist attractions ahead of the storm’s expected landfall this weekend. The tropical cyclone, which is packing maximum sustained winds of 162 kilometers per hour (101 miles per hour), is forecast to make landfall late Sunday along the coasts of Zhejiang Province and the northern section of neighboring Fujian Province. Major Chinese metropolis Shanghai also lies directly in the storm’s projected path. Meteorological and disaster management officials warn that the system will dump extremely heavy rainfall across the region, elevating the risk of catastrophic flash flooding and dangerous landslides that threaten both life and infrastructure. In response to the approaching threat, China’s central emergency management authorities activated a Level III emergency response, the second-lowest tier of the country’s four-tier national emergency classification system. Preparations to mitigate risk have been carried out across multiple regions: all coastal and inland tourist destinations across Zhejiang will remain closed through Saturday and Sunday, with all water-based recreational and commercial activities — including inter-island ferries and passenger cruise operations — suspended for the duration of the storm. In Ningbo, one of Zhejiang’s largest and most economically important port cities, municipal education officials have ordered all public and private schools and other educational facilities to close for the entire weekend to keep students and staff out of harm’s way. Local disaster response teams have been deployed to conduct pre-storm inspections of flood control infrastructure, evacuate at-risk communities in low-lying and mountainous zones, and stockpile emergency supplies including food, water, and temporary shelter materials ahead of the storm’s arrival.

  • 13yo charged with NT vehicle theft, police search for others involved

    13yo charged with NT vehicle theft, police search for others involved

    A chaotic, high-risk incident involving a stolen car driven by a group of teenagers has left the remote Northern Territory town of Katherine on high alert, with two minors already in police custody and a manhunt underway for five remaining suspects.

    The incident unfolded on Thursday afternoon, when a black Volkswagen was reported stolen from outside a commercial property located on Katherine Terrace, the town’s main commercial strip. For more than eight hours after the theft, the stolen vehicle terrorized local roads: witnesses described the car speeding recklessly along both the Victoria Highway and residential streets of Katherine, with multiple young people seen hanging out of the vehicle’s open windows during the rampage. Eyewitness accounts confirmed up to seven teenagers were involved in the dangerous stunt.

    Facing a difficult choice between immediate apprehension and public safety, local police made the deliberate decision not to initiate a high-speed chase. Acting Assistant Commissioner James Gray-Spence explained that standard police policy requires officers to weigh law enforcement goals against the potential harm a high-speed pursuit could cause to innocent bystanders, road users and the broader community. In this case, commanders opted to de-escalate the situation by prioritizing evidence collection and suspect identification over an immediate, risky pursuit.

    “The behaviour displayed was extremely concerning and created an unacceptable risk to members of the Katherine community,” Gray-Spence said in a statement released to media.

    The rampage came to an abrupt end at approximately 8:50 pm, when the stolen vehicle crashed into a residential fence on Stutterd Street in Katherine South. All seven teenagers fled the scene on foot before officers arrived.

    By Friday evening, police had taken the first two suspects into custody. A 13-year-old boy was arrested just before 11 pm, facing charges including motor vehicle theft, additional theft offenses and dangerous driving. A 15-year-old male suspect was taken into custody around 12:30 am Saturday, charged with being a passenger in a stolen motor vehicle and breaching existing bail conditions. Both teens remain in police custody and are scheduled to appear in court at a later date. As of Friday, investigators had identified a third suspect, and are continuing work to track down the remaining five people involved in the incident.

    “In this instance, officers made a deliberate decision to prioritise public safety. Rather than escalating the situation through a pursuit, they focused on gathering evidence, identifying those involved and progressing the investigation,” Gray-Spence added. “Police have already identified three suspects, and we are actively working to identify and locate all remaining offenders. We will continue to pursue every available investigative avenue to ensure those responsible are held accountable.”

    Local law enforcement has issued a public call for information, urging any Katherine resident or visitor who witnessed the incident or has additional details about the involvement of the remaining suspects to contact Northern Territory Crime Stoppers anonymously with tips.

  • Former Geelong Cats president Craig Drummond outlines ‘lengthy discussions’ were had over concussion contract

    Former Geelong Cats president Craig Drummond outlines ‘lengthy discussions’ were had over concussion contract

    The fallout from Australian Football League’s (AFL) most high-profile off-field controversy of the year continues, as newly installed AFL Commission Chair Craig Drummond has publicly addressed the controversial concussion waiver scandal that has put his former club, the Geelong Cats, under intense public and regulatory scrutiny.

    Drummond, who led the Geelong Cats as club president through 2024 before stepping into the league’s top governance role in March 2026, released an official statement Saturday morning amid growing pressure to comment on the 2024 incident. In the statement, he described the ordeal as an “extremely complex and sensitive matter”, and formally announced he would recuse himself from any internal AFL disciplinary processes related to the case.

    “I was President of the Geelong Football Club in 2024,” Drummond wrote. “This was an extremely complex and sensitive matter, and obligations to both the player and the Club were very carefully considered by the Geelong board.”

    Drummond emphasized that the welfare of the player at the center of the scandal, Cats defender Jake Kolodjashnij, was the top priority for the club’s board throughout all internal discussions. Kolodjashnij, who has a history of concussions, was medically cleared to return to play before the agreement was drafted, and the club held extensive consultations with the player, his family, treating physicians and insurance providers to weigh the potential risks of continued play.

    Still, Drummond acknowledged that the club overstepped in adding a legal liability waiver to the player’s informed consent documentation. “Regardless of the player’s agreement, the Club went too far in adding a waiver into an informed consent document and it will be removed,” he said, adding that the waiver did not override the player’s existing legal protections under Australian statutory health and safety regulations. He also confirmed a separate procedural failure, noting the club failed to properly lodge the completed agreement with the AFL and the AFL Players Association (AFLPA).

    “As the Club has also acknowledged, there was also a process failure in relation to lodgement of the agreement with the AFL and the AFLPA. I have not and will not be involved in any deliberation in relation to this matter and its assessment under the AFL rules and regulations. I apologise for the mistakes made in this very complex situation,” Drummond added.

    Earlier this week, Kolodjashnij came forward publicly to identify himself as the player involved, putting an end to days of widespread media speculation. “While I appreciate the efforts made not to identify me, the speculation has left me feeling I needed to address this personally,” the veteran defender said. He confirmed he completed the AFL’s independent concussion assessment process, accepted its outcome that cleared him to play, and has continued competing in the AFL since the agreement was signed.

    The story first broke in the Herald Sun last Thursday, which revealed the 2024 contract clause required Kolodjashnij to accept full legal responsibility for any future head injuries sustained while playing. Geelong chief executive Steve Hocking has pushed back against claims the player was coerced into signing the agreement, noting the negotiations stretched over two months, and Kolodjashnij had full representation from his legal team and family throughout the process.

    “It was an extensive process, it was conducted over a roughly two-month period. The player’s representatives were involved, including family, legal representation as well, and that letter spelt out all of that entire process. It took time, it wasn’t rushed, as much as some people believe he may have been coerced into it. That is not the case,” Hocking told reporters.

    Hocking also confirmed the AFL had requested a formal explanation from the club following the story’s publication, though the league indicated Thursday evening that it was satisfied no disciplinary action would be taken against Geelong at this stage. Drummond, who spent 13 years at Geelong’s Kardinia Park as club president, was confirmed as the new AFL chair in late October 2025 before officially taking office earlier this year.