Top World News
Australia eyes security pact with Fiji as pushback from Beijing undermines agreement with Vanuatu
May 5, 2026 - World 
Foreign minister Penny Wong visits Fiji this week to progress the security and economic agreementFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAustralia looks close to signing a landmark security and economic agreement with Fiji as part of the Albanese government’s efforts to contain China’s growing influence across the Pacific.But pushback from Beijing has undermined a separate pact with Vanuatu’s government, resulting in a scaling back of a deal aimed at locking in Australia as the country’s primary security partner. Continue reading...
Taiwan's pres. says state visits are 'basic right' after claims of blocked trip
May 5, 2026 - World 
Taiwan President Lai Ching-te said state visits are a basic right of governments after returning from a three-day trip to Eswatini that Taiwan's government says China tried to block
Canadian fiddler sues Google after AI Overview wrongly claimed he was a sex offender
May 5, 2026 - World 
Ashley MacIsaac, who is seeking $1.5m in civil lawsuit, says inaccurate information led to concert cancellationAn acclaimed Canadian fiddle player has launched a $1.5m civil lawsuit against Google, alleging that the online giant defamed him by falsely identifying him as a sex offender in an AI-generated summary of his life and career.Ashley MacIsaac, a three-time Juno award-winning musician, filed the claim in the Ontario superior court of justice, asserting that Google was liable for the “foreseeable republication” of its AI-generated Overview feature, which previously published defamatory claims that he had been convicted of multiple criminal offences, including the sexual assault of a woman, internet luring involving a child with the intention of sexual assaulting the child, and assault causing bodily harm. Continue reading...
British crew member in need of urgent medical care amid suspected hantavirus outbreak on cruise ship
May 5, 2026 - World 
WHO says seven confirmed or suspected cases of hantavirus on MV Hondius, including three passengers who diedWhat is hantavirus, the infection thought to have killed three on cruise ship?A British crew member was in need of urgent medical care and a passenger from the UK remained in a critical but stable condition following a suspected outbreak of hantavirus on a luxury cruise ship in the Atlantic Ocean.Three people have died and medics on Monday were scrambling to evacuate two others from the MV Hondius, which set off in March from southern Argentina carrying 149 people from 23 countries. The crisis emerged late on Sunday after the World Health Organization (WHO) said it was investigating a suspected outbreak. Continue reading...
Alberta separatist group says it has enough signatures to trigger referendum on leaving Canada
May 5, 2026 - World 
Alberta separatists have submitted nearly 302,000 signatures to trigger a referendum on leaving Canada
