Global Pulse

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大洋洲

  • Anthony Albanese waters down criticism of CGT as Australia signs new trade agreement with New Zealand

    Anthony Albanese waters down criticism of CGT as Australia signs new trade agreement with New Zealand

    In a high-stakes bilateral meeting held in Noosa on Saturday, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon moved to defuse fleeting speculation of cross-border tension, putting playful budget-related rivalry aside to sign a landmark new cooperation agreement set to deepen economic, security and strategic ties between the two nations.

    The minor diplomatic stir emerged earlier this year after Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers handed down the federal budget in May, which included a policy change to cut the 50% discount on the capital gains tax (CGT) concession for Australian businesses. New Zealand Finance Minister Nicola Willis quickly seized on the reform to pitch New Zealand as a more attractive destination for Australian entrepreneurs, saying in a public statement: “Australians looking to start or grow a business have an epic opportunity, and that opportunity is to do it in New Zealand.”

    Willis highlighted New Zealand’s existing no CGT policy, simple low-rate broad-base tax system, accelerated depreciation rules and pro-growth, deregulatory government agenda as key draws for cross-border investment. But both prime ministers moved quickly last weekend to frame the comment as nothing more than lighthearted banter, not a serious attack on Australian domestic policy.

    When asked about the exchange, Albanese laughed off any suggestion of lasting hostility, emphasizing the inherently playful nature of the decades-long trans-Tasman relationship. “We have a relationship which is often a bit tongue in cheek,” Albanese joked. “The Wahs (New Zealand Warriors), sign our players, but we have a few Kiwis in Australia too – 638,000 of them – or one in eight New Zealanders live here. It is a good relationship, occasionally there is a bit of cheekiness to the relationship and long may that continue.”

    Luxon echoed that sentiment, noting Willis’ comments were made in the context of New Zealand’s domestic political debate and had been taken out of context. “Her comments were really in the context of that debate domestically rather than commenting on the CGT here in Australia,” Luxon explained. “The Prime Minister covered it, it was done in good humour and yes it was cheeky, but what is important is we don’t comment on each other’s domestic economic policies because there are different contexts and history and she didn’t do that.”

    Beyond clearing up the minor rivalry, the core outcome of the meeting was the signing of a new bilateral agreement that lays out eight concrete policy actions designed to boost economic productivity for both nations. Luxon outlined that the deal will not only keep the two countries’ longstanding defence partnership adaptive to modern geopolitical challenges, but also deepen joint cooperation with Pacific island neighbors, strengthen technology-driven security and economic resilience, and expand trans-Tasman scientific research collaboration.

    A key highlight of the new agreement is the opening of new opportunities for New Zealand businesses to bid on major infrastructure projects tied to the 2032 Brisbane Olympic Games, a development expected to lift tourism and infrastructure profiles across both countries. Luxon had already held separate talks with Brisbane 2032 Olympic Committee leaders earlier to advance New Zealand industry participation in the massive infrastructure overhaul underway for the Games. That overhaul includes a new $3.8 billion, 63,000-seat stadium in Victoria Park, major upgrades to existing sporting venues including The Gabba, the Queensland Tennis Centre and Netball Centre, and the National Aquatic Centre, alongside public transit upgrades to the Brisbane Metro and new green river crossing projects.

    Albanese emphasized that the deepened partnership comes at a critical moment, amid widespread global political and economic volatility that makes close regional cooperation more important than ever. He called the meeting one of the most productive bilateral engagements of his prime ministership, noting that extensive pre-meeting preparation ensured the talks delivered tangible outcomes. “We’re very sharp, and a lot of work went into the preparation, clearly, to make sure it was a very effective use of our time,” he said.

    The meeting underscores the enduring closeness of the trans-Tasman economic relationship: Australia is New Zealand’s third-largest trading partner, while New Zealand ranks as Australia’s seventh-largest. As of 2025, two-way investment between the two countries totals $308 billion, while annual two-way trade in goods and services surpassed $38 billion, making the partnership one of the most economically significant for both nations.

  • ‘We simply do not know’: Storm provide sobering update on Eli Katoa as superstar forward faces uncertain future

    ‘We simply do not know’: Storm provide sobering update on Eli Katoa as superstar forward faces uncertain future

    The Melbourne Storm have delivered a critical update on the recovery journeys of two key first-team players, forward Eli Katoa and veteran Tui Kamikamica, both sidelined by serious, career-threatening health incidents in recent months. For 26-year-old Katoa, a two-time Dally M Second-Rower of the Year, the club has confirmed he will not take the field at all during the 2026 NRL season, as he continues to work with a team of specialists and neurosurgeons to map out a potential long-term return to contact rugby league.

    Katoa’s health crisis dates back to a November 2025 Test match for Tonga against New Zealand, where he sustained multiple traumatic head impacts. A heavy collision before the match already should have ruled him out of action, but the star forward was permitted to play, and suffered two additional blows to the head that left him with life-threatening brain bleeding requiring emergency surgery. He has not played a professional match since that day.

    In the months following his emergency surgery, Katoa has progressed to taking part in low-intensity, non-contact training drills, and remains a constant presence around the club daily. Still, club leadership confirmed that his recovery is moving slower than hoped, and any return to contact training — the first required step to a full playing comeback — remains uncertain. The earliest possible return fans could see Katoa back on the field would be the 2027 NRL season, and that outcome is still far from guaranteed.

    “Eli won’t play this year,” Melbourne Storm chief executive Justin Rodski confirmed to NewsWire. “He’s still going through his recovery process and continuing to try to build up through a training point of view, but it’s all non-contact. He’ll continue to work with his specialists and neurosurgeons around a plan for phasing him back into more and more training. In terms of when that is and whether or not that includes contact training in the near future, we simply do not know so we just have to be patient and continue to listen to the medical experts.”

    Rodski emphasized that the club is prioritizing Katoa’s long-term health over a rushed return to the field, noting the star’s unwavering drive to get back to playing. “Eli is so keen to get back out there and play. He’s at training and the club every day, but we can’t rush his return and we need to ensure that we’ve done everything right and followed the medical process,” Rodski said. “I think over the coming months we’ll start to get a clearer picture on what that could look like, and hopefully there is a path to return to some contact training at some point down the track. But at this stage we’re still waiting to get that confirmation.”

    The club has rallied around Katoa as he navigates an uncertain recovery, Rodski added. “We’ve been getting around him and giving him all the support he needs because it’s hard for any player being on the sidelines. For Eli, having the uncertainty on what that actually looks like makes it even more difficult. We couldn’t have more respect for a person because he’s such a wonderful leader in the organisation. We’ve missed him on the field, but it’s been great to have him around off the field. We’re all hopeful that we get some positive news over the coming months that there’s a plan for his return.”

    The Katoa announcement comes just after the Storm confirmed another devastating season-ending injury: representative winger Xavier Coates suffered a full Achilles rupture during a training session that will rule him out of all 2026 matches.

    For Kamikamica, the club’s other sidelined forward, there is more cautious optimism for a 2026 return. The veteran forward suffered a stroke after the Storm’s round four loss to the North Queensland Cowboys earlier this season, and has since resumed full training as he works toward clearance from medical experts.

    “Tui is so keen to get back out there, but we’re waiting on further medical advice to give him the all clear,” Rodski said. “He’s back into training, he’s around the club, he’s energetic and passionate as ever to return, but he’s gone through a serious ordeal so we need to make sure that we’ve done everything right to tick every box from a medical point of view to clear him to be able to play again this season. Unfortunately, we don’t know when that might be, and he’s still going through some testing. Until we’ve got that medical approval and clearance, he’s just going to continue to train and be around the club.”

  • Why are devastating mice plagues happening in Australia?

    Why are devastating mice plagues happening in Australia?

    Across vast swathes of Australian agricultural land, a rapidly escalating mice plague is unleashing unprecedented chaos, leaving growers and local communities scrambling to contain the damage. The prolific rodents have overrun farmlands, consuming and destroying standing crops ready for harvest, and have pushed past the boundaries of rural properties to invade residential homes, nesting in walls, contaminating food supplies and damaging infrastructure. For small and medium-scale farmers already grappling with volatile weather patterns and fluctuating market prices, the financial impact of this outbreak has been catastrophic. Early estimates indicate individual operations are facing losses that climb into hundreds of thousands of dollars, covering destroyed crops, pest control measures and property repairs. Agricultural experts point to a combination of ideal breeding conditions – including a wet growing season that provided abundant food sources and mild winter temperatures that boosted rodent survival rates – as the core trigger for the current exponential population growth. As state agricultural departments roll out emergency control measures, many rural communities remain on high alert, with the full extent of the damage still being assessed.

  • ‘Long road’: Daughters of elderly couple speak out after alleged NSW home invasion

    ‘Long road’: Daughters of elderly couple speak out after alleged NSW home invasion

    A quiet rural community in northern New South Wales is reeling from a shocking early-morning violent incident that left a well-known retired couple critically injured, in what police have described as an unprovoked alleged home invasion. The attack unfolded just after 12:15 a.m. on Thursday at the Torrington property of 75-year-old Keith Blessing and his wife Dianne, who was stabbed in the chest during the assault. Keith suffered a deep slash wound across his stomach, but managed to place an emergency call to triple-zero after the initial attack before the alleged suspect attempted to re-enter the property.

    Keith, a licensed firearms holder, made the decision to use his weapon to stop the alleged attacker, 34-year-old Joshua Dylan Trethewey, who was subsequently taken into custody at Armidale Hospital while receiving treatment for a non-fatal gunshot wound, with police stationed around the clock at his bedside.

    Following the attack, the injured couple were airlifted to Gold Coast University Hospital, where they remain in a critical but stable condition as they begin what their family describes as a long and arduous recovery journey. On Friday, the couple’s daughter Kathy Blessing spoke publicly on behalf of her family, thanking community members and local responders for the outpouring of support that has helped the family cope with the trauma.

    “It has been comforting to know we have the support of the wider community. We’re very proud of our parents and their bravery. They’re recovering in the hospital here, getting excellent care. We have a long road ahead,” Kathy Blessing said in a prepared statement. She added that the entire family has been deeply traumatized by the incident, noting “no family should ever have to go through this,” and requested privacy moving forward after this, their only public comment.

    Law enforcement has echoed the family’s praise for Keith Blessing’s quick action under extreme duress. Detective Superintendent Chris McKinnon told reporters Thursday that the 75-year-old’s self-defense response was “quite impressive” given the severity of his injuries. “He certainly did his best obviously under very difficult circumstances to defend himself and his partner,” McKinnon said.

    Trethewey has been hit with two felony charges of causing grievous bodily harm with intent to murder. He appeared via video link before the Bail Division court on Thursday, where bail was refused, and he remains in police custody at Armidale Hospital while receiving ongoing medical care. Early investigative work has confirmed that Trethewey had no prior connection to the Blessing family, a detail that has amplified the shock of the attack for the tiny, close-knit Torrington community where the retired couple are widely known.

  • US VP Vance blames British student’s murder on migrant ‘invasion’

    US VP Vance blames British student’s murder on migrant ‘invasion’

    A tragic murder case in southern Britain has erupted into a cross-Atlantic political firestorm after United States Vice President JD Vance tied the 18-year-old victim’s death to what he falsely frames as a mass ‘migrant invasion’ driving Western civilizational collapse. The killing of Henry Nowak, stabbed last December in Southampton by 23-year-old Vickrum Digwa, has already become a polarizing flashpoint for right-wing groups globally, triggering unrest across British communities. Digwa, a Sikh man born and raised in the UK, lied to responding officers claiming Nowak had subjected him to racial abuse. Disturbingly, police left Nowak handcuffed at the scene as he lay bleeding out, a misstep that has drawn widespread criticism from across the political spectrum.

    Vance, a leading hardliner within the Trump administration and a longstanding harsh critic of liberal European migration policies, took to social platform X Friday to lay the blame for Nowak’s death directly at the feet of European leadership and open migration. ‘Henry Nowak died the same way a civilization dies: abandoned, handcuffed by authorities who neither trusted nor cared for him, and accused of hate crimes he did not commit,’ Vance wrote. ‘His murder is as tragic as it is enraging.’ He went further, arguing that Nowak would still be alive if previous generations of European elites had pushed back against ‘the politics of self-hatred and the mass invasion of migrants, many of whom despise the West and the people who love it.’ Vance called for ‘righteous anger’ over the case, warning that Nowak’s death would not be the last such preventable tragedy if current policies remain unchanged.

    Vance’s intervention marked the highest-profile American comment on the case to date, coming days after the U.S. State Department released a statement condemning what it called ‘ideological conditioning and two-tiered policing’ in the UK. Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of X and a close ally of both Vance and Trump, has already amplified multiple posts about the police handling of the stabbing, drawing sharp pushback from Downing Street earlier this week.

    British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s office issued a swift and forceful rejection of Vance’s remarks, condemning what it framed as improper foreign interference in UK domestic affairs and deliberate attempts to stoke societal division. A Downing Street spokesperson noted that Nowak’s own family has explicitly asked that his death not be exploited to further deepen divides, spread hatred, or fuel tension across the country. Starmer himself had already accused Musk of ‘trying to whip up division’ in Britain just one day before Vance’s comments went public, underscoring the British government’s anger at external actors leveraging the tragedy for political gain.

    The row highlights growing tensions between the Trump administration and European governments over migration policy, as top U.S. officials increasingly frame mass migration as an existential threat to Western cultural and political cohesion. Critics warn that politicizing a local criminal case to advance a broader anti-migration agenda distorts the facts of the tragedy and risks amplifying far-right extremism on both sides of the Atlantic.

  • Trump urges new spy chief to fire employees

    Trump urges new spy chief to fire employees

    A new political firestorm has erupted in Washington after former President and current U.S. President Donald Trump publicly confirmed Friday that he is pushing his newly tapped acting Director of National Intelligence, Bill Pulte, to dismiss large numbers of employees across the U.S. intelligence community, amplifying already fierce criticism over the appointment of a Trump loyalist with zero prior professional intelligence experience to the top national security role.

    Pulte, who currently leads the U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency, was tapped by Trump this Tuesday to fill the acting national intelligence director post, following the departure of Tulsi Gabbard, who stepped down citing the need to care for her ailing husband. The 45th president has made no secret of his plans for the role, telling reporters traveling with him aboard Air Force One that he would not object to widespread staff cuts under Pulte’s leadership, claiming the Office of the Director of National Intelligence has been overstaffed for decades.

    Trump first outlined his downsizing agenda in an interview with *The Wall Street Journal*, repeating his long-held belief that the 18-agency U.S. intelligence community is bloated with political holdovers from the Barack Obama and Joe Biden administrations who do not align with his policy and political priorities. “I’d like to see it smaller. I think there are a lot of people in there that shouldn’t be there,” Trump told the outlet. Speaking to reporters Friday, he doubled down on that framing: “If he cut, I wouldn’t mind that… the number of employees in Pulte’s office had been ‘way too high for way too long.’”

    Critics warn that Trump’s push for cuts creates a dangerous opening for him to reshape the nonpartisan intelligence community along political lines, particularly given Pulte’s well-documented history of leveraging his government position to target Trump’s political rivals. As head of the FHFA, Pulte has used access to confidential mortgage records to assist investigations into high-profile Trump adversaries, including Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, New York Democratic Attorney General Letitia James, and Senate Democratic Intelligence Committee Chair Adam Schiff.

    Democrats have been unified in their condemnation of Pulte’s appointment, pointing both to his lack of relevant intelligence experience and his track record of politicizing federal agencies to target political opponents. Even within his own party, the appointment has widened growing rifts between Trump and congressional Republicans, many of whom are already anxious about poll numbers ahead of November’s midterm elections.

    The fallout spilled into legislative action Friday, when Senate lawmakers blocked a bipartisan bill to renew a key foreign surveillance authority in direct protest of Pulte’s appointment. Democrats argued that given Pulte’s history of politicization, they could not support expanding U.S. surveillance powers without ironclad guarantees that intelligence gathering would not be weaponized for political purposes. The legislative collapse upended months of bipartisan negotiations on the top national security priority.

    Trump has sought to de-escalate the backlash by framing Pulte’s appointment as a temporary stopgap, noting Friday that he has already interviewed five candidates for the permanent national intelligence director role. But even that framing raised new alarms: Trump told *The Wall Street Journal* that Pulte’s temporary status actually gives him more latitude to overhaul the intelligence community. “You’re less shackled… It sort of gives you more power, you know, for a somewhat limited period of time,” Trump said.

    Beyond staff cuts, Trump has also made clear he expects Pulte to continue a political project that falls entirely outside the official mandate of the Director of National Intelligence: investigating baseless claims that the 2020 presidential election was rigged against him, a falsehood he has repeated since his election loss in 2021. Gabbard, Pulte’s predecessor, was also tapped by Trump to lead this inquiry despite the intelligence community having no official role in overseeing domestic U.S. elections.

  • Zverev to face Cobolli in French Open final after beating Mensik

    Zverev to face Cobolli in French Open final after beating Mensik

    The 2025 French Open men’s singles final is set, after two dramatic days of semi-final action that saw a veteran chasing a long-awaited milestone and an Italian rising star advance under unexpected circumstances. Germany’s Alexander Zverev, the tournament’s second seed and world number three, fought past 20-year-old Czech rookie Jakub Mensik in a four-set thriller on Friday to book his spot in Sunday’s championship match, where he will face Italy’s Flavio Cobolli. For Zverev, the match marks his fourth appearance in a Grand Slam final, and a chance to claim the first major title of his decorated career.

    Zverev’s path to the final required every bit of his 11 years of Grand Slam experience against Mensik, who was competing in his first ever major semi-final. The young Czech had already fought through two draining five-set matches to reach the last four, and fatigue gradually took its toll over the course of the two-and-a-half-hour contest. Zverev struck first, breaking Mensik’s serve in the 11th game of a tight opening set after saving three break points that would have put the 26th seed up 5-3. The German dominated the second set, dropping only four points on his own serve and breaking Mensik twice to take a two-set lead.

    Mensik briefly turned the tide after calling a medical time-out early in the third set for a nagging neck injury. His improved use of drop shots caught Zverev off guard, and he broke to take a 4-2 lead before closing out the set 6-3 — the only second set Zverev has dropped through the entire tournament. But the young Czech could not maintain his momentum. Unforced backhand errors gifted Zverev an early break in the fourth set, putting him up 2-0, and the veteran never looked back. Zverev closed out the 7-5, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 win on his first match point when Mensik sent a backhand into the net. Along the way, Zverev drew some criticism from spectators for disputing two line calls and received a time violation warning, but his ability to navigate through physical and mental pressure has kept his title dream alive.

    In the other semi-final, 10th seed Cobolli did not even take the court, after his compatriot and childhood friend Matteo Arnaldi withdrew just one hour before the match due to a sudden viral illness. Arnaldi, ranked 104th in the world, had pulled off a Cinderella run to the semi-finals, winning two back-to-back marathon matches in the third and fourth rounds before his quarter-final opponent Matteo Berrettini retired due to injury. Arnaldi said that despite feeling good through most of the tournament, he woke up suffering from dizziness and decided a withdrawal was the only responsible decision.

    “It’s tough — for how the tournament was, for how many hours I spent on court, I felt pretty good,” Arnaldi told reporters. “Every time I get up I feel dizzy and not the best… so that was the right decision for me.”

    Cobolli, who advanced to his first ever Grand Slam final via walkover, shared his disappointment for his friend and compatriot. “It’s tough for me to speak also. When he came to me an hour ago I almost cried,” he said. “At the same time I’m happy with the result this week.” Cobolli has been one of the tournament’s most impressive performers, dropping just two sets through five matches, including a standout quarter-final win over fourth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada.

    For Zverev, Sunday’s final will be the culmination of years of near-misses at the sport’s biggest events. He has fallen short in three previous Grand Slam finals, most recently losing to Carlos Alcaraz at the 2023 French Open, and held a two-set lead over Dominic Thiem in the 2020 US Open final before collapsing in five sets. He also entered the French Open in the middle of a 14-month title drought, dating back to his win at a small clay-court event in Munich in April 2024. With tournament favorites Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner exiting early in the second and third rounds respectively, Zverev has handled the pressure of being the top remaining seed well, losing only two sets across six matches to reach the final. He also holds a 3-1 career winning record against Cobolli, making him the clear favorite to lift the trophy on Philippe Chatrier Court.

    After reaching the final, the 29-year-old reflected on his journey to the championship match, leaning into his lighthearted approach to pressure. “This is a Grand Slam, it’s best of five, things are going to happen, opponents are going to play better. I managed it,” Zverev said. “Pure emptiness, there’s absolutely nothing in my head. We’re athletes, very few of us have anything in our heads. Sometimes it’s easier to be stupid and not to think too much. I hope to play another great match on Sunday.”

  • Celtic fans oppose potential Keane move over Israel stay

    Celtic fans oppose potential Keane move over Israel stay

    A proposed move to bring former Irish football star Robbie Keane in as the next manager of Scottish Premiership champions Celtic has triggered widespread vocal and public pushback from the club’s pro-Palestine supporter base, over Keane’s decision to remain in his role at Israeli top-flight side Maccabi Tel Aviv after the outbreak of the latest Gaza conflict. Keane, who remains the Republic of Ireland’s all-time leading goalscorer and previously enjoyed a successful loan spell at Parkhead back in 2010, has emerged as the top candidate for the vacant managerial post, with reports confirming he has already entered direct talks with Celtic’s majority principal shareholder Dermot Desmond. What was shaping up as a potential popular homecoming for the fan-favorite former player has quickly turned into a major controversy, however, rooted in Keane’s 2023-2024 tenure at Maccabi Tel Aviv. Keane was first appointed to lead the Israeli side in June 2023, months before the October 7 Hamas attacks that prompted Israel’s large-scale military campaign in Gaza. Rather than stepping down from his role immediately after the conflict began, Keane chose to see out the full domestic season, guiding Maccabi Tel Aviv to a domestic league and cup double before resigning in 2024 and taking the top job at Hungarian side Ferencvaros in 2025. He has previously defended his decision to stay, noting he felt a professional responsibility to the coaching and backroom staff he had brought with him to the club. For a large and vocal segment of Celtic’s supporter base, that choice is unacceptable. Celtic fans have longstanding and well-documented commitments to Palestinian solidarity, regularly displaying large Palestine flags at club matches throughout the ongoing conflict. In recent weeks, as rumors of Keane’s impending appointment have spread, opponents have taken visible action to make their anger known: anti-Keane graffiti and protest banners have already appeared around the perimeter of Celtic’s Glasgow stadium, Parkhead. A formal statement coordinated by the group Celtic Fans for the Liberation of Palestine argues that hiring Keane would create deep, lasting division among the club’s global support base. As of press time, 67 separate Celtic supporter groups have publicly endorsed the anti-Keane statement, via the popular North Curve Celtic account on the social platform X. The statement emphasizes that Celtic’s own founding identity is rooted in solidarity with oppressed and displaced communities: the club was established in 1887 by Irish immigrant communities in Glasgow, who carried direct intergenerational memories of the Great Famine and colonial displacement. “Celtic supporters have a long and proud history of solidarity with the Palestinian people,” the statement reads. “For us, Robbie Keane’s decision to manage Maccabi Tel Aviv during the genocide in Gaza is impossible to ignore. To choose to manage a club in Israel while, less than 40 miles away, the same country was using indiscriminate weapons of mass murder against defenceless people is unconscionable. Celtic was founded by a community shaped by the legacy of genocide, displacement and famine. Our club’s roots lie in solidarity with those who suffered injustice and oppression. We urge the Celtic board to listen to supporters’ concerns and reconsider this appointment.” The vacancy for the managerial role opened up at the end of the 2024-2025 season, with interim manager Martin O’Neill, 74, stepping in to guide the club to a Scottish Premiership title and Scottish Cup victory on a temporary basis after the departure of the previous permanent manager.

  • Feared global hunger crisis ‘coming to pass’ as Mideast war lingers: UN

    Feared global hunger crisis ‘coming to pass’ as Mideast war lingers: UN

    Three months into the ongoing Middle East conflict sparked by cross-border strikes in late February, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) confirmed Friday that dire earlier predictions of a soaring global hunger crisis are no longer a hypothetical threat — they are becoming reality.

    When the conflict first erupted and roiled global energy markets, WFP analysts issued a stark warning in March: if oil prices held steady near $100 per barrel through the end of June, an additional 45 million people across the world would fall into acute food insecurity. That would add to the nearly 320 million people already facing urgent hunger at the start of 2026.

    Weeks of fraught negotiations, marked by hostile rhetoric and repeated outbreaks of violence, have failed to secure a ceasefire deal that would reopen the Strait of Hormuz, the world’s most critical chokepoint for global oil supplies. Jean-Martin Bauer, director of WFP’s food and nutrition analysis service, told reporters that the worst-case scenario the agency warned of is now materializing. “The closure of Hormuz is translating into increased hunger,” he explained, noting that prices for staple foods including wheat and rice have skyrocketed as costs are passed down global supply chains. “Unfortunately, the pessimistic projections that were made earlier this year are coming to pass, and we need to act.”

    The crisis has sent shockwaves far beyond the Middle East, generating cascading cross-border spillovers that hit vulnerable nations the hardest through fuel price hikes, food inflation, lost income, and disrupted trade routes. When these new pressures combine with pre-existing structural vulnerabilities in low-income nations, they rapidly erode food security and livelihoods, WFP’s analysis found.

    Take Somalia as a pressing example: the East African nation already has 6 million people facing acute hunger. By the end of 2026, WFP projects an additional 2.5 million Somalis will be unable to cover their basic food needs, pushing the share of households unable to afford essential goods to nearly 60%, up from 47% in 2025.

    Bauer warned the world is now facing a return to the crippling global cost-of-living crisis that followed Russia’s 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine. But unlike 2022, when the global humanitarian community was able to mobilize rapid, well-funded support, the system is now stretched thin by deep cuts to international aid funding, particularly following U.S. policy shifts after Donald Trump’s return to the White House. “In 2022, humanitarian programmes were better funded. Humanitarians were in places where they are no longer,” Bauer said.

    Compounding this strain, logistical disruptions and broad inflation tied to the Middle East conflict have pushed up the cost of delivering aid worldwide. WFP’s analysis warns the humanitarian system is facing an unprecedented double squeeze: rapidly growing demand for assistance paired with soaring delivery costs, which has created major gaps in coverage. The agency now expects to serve 1.5 million fewer people in 2026 than its original planning target. If the conflict drags on for six months, more than 9 million vulnerable people could lose critical food assistance entirely.

    In Somalia alone, the WFP risks completely running out of food to distribute within months, Bauer revealed. The agency is bracing for a “pipeline break” as soon as next month, when no food will be available to distribute to vulnerable communities. The hardest hit will be young children under five, a group already at extreme risk of malnutrition, and one Somali district already faces an active threat of famine. “This is a very serious situation that requires immediate attention,” Bauer said.

    With no clear path to a ceasefire in the Middle East, the global food security outlook is likely to worsen further before it improves. The conflict is far from the only threat facing global food systems, Bauer added: a high-likelihood strong El Niño event is on track to supercharge climate instability in the coming months, which could further disrupt crop production and food markets, adding more pressure on vulnerable populations through 2027.

  • Serena Williams’ comeback to continue in Berlin

    Serena Williams’ comeback to continue in Berlin

    Tennis icon Serena Williams is continuing her highly anticipated return to professional tennis, with organizers of the Berlin WTA Open confirming Friday that the 44-year-old American will compete in the tournament’s women’s doubles draw this June. This marks the next stop on Williams’ comeback trail, nearly four years after she stepped away from full-time competitive play.

    In an official statement released alongside the announcement, Williams emphasized the significance of adding each new stop to her comeback schedule. “Every tournament I add to my schedule right now is special, and Berlin is no exception,” she said. “I look forward to playing in front of the German crowd and continuing to build momentum for the grass-court season.” Organizers noted that Williams’ doubles partner will be revealed at a later date, as preparations for the event continue to take shape.

    The confirmation comes just days after Williams announced her return to the tour earlier this week, confirming she will kick off her comeback at London’s Queen’s Club tournament, which gets underway on June 8. The Berlin Open, hosted in Germany’s capital, is scheduled to open its doors on June 15, serving as a key traditional warm-up event for the 2025 Wimbledon Championships that kick off on June 29. This year’s edition of the Berlin tournament already boasts an incredibly competitive field, with nine of the top 10 players on the WTA tour set to compete at the west Berlin venue.

    Williams’ most recent full-time tour appearance came more than two years ago, when she bowed out in the third round of the 2022 US Open, in what was widely expected to be her final professional tournament. After stepping away to focus on other pursuits and family, her surprise comeback has sent shockwaves of excitement through the global tennis community.

    Following the Berlin event, Williams will have two additional pre-Wimbledon tune-up tournaments to refine her form: one in Bad Homburg, Germany, and another in Eastbourne, England, before she competes at the All England Club. For Williams, Wimbledon has long been one of the most successful stops of her legendary career: she has claimed seven singles titles and six doubles titles at the grass-court Grand Slam over the course of decades on the tour.