Australia & Pacifics

WELLINGTON, July 14 (Xinhua) -- New Zealand's opposition party leader Todd Muller resigned on Tuesday after less than two months in the role.

"It has become clear to me that I am not the best person to be leader of the Opposition and leader of the New Zealand National Party at this critical time for New Zealand," he said in a statement.

He said the decision is "effective immediately."

"The role has taken a heavy toll on me personally, and on my family, and this has become untenable from a health perspective."

CANBERRA, July 13 (Xinhua) -- Almost one in 10 Australian women in a relationship have experienced domestic violence during the COVID-19 lockdown.

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — The Australian white supremacist who admitting killing 51 worshippers in a mass shooting at two New Zealand mosques has dismissed his lawyers and will represent himself when he is sentenced next month.

Brenton Harrison Tarrant had pleaded guilty in March to 51 charges of murder, 40 of attempted murder and one charge of engaging in a terrorist act for the shootings targeting people praying at the two mosques in the city of Christchurch in 2019.

MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Australia’s Victoria state marked a week of triple-digit increases in new coronavirus infections on Sunday, while a community outbreak in neighbouring New South Wales (NSW) has put the state on high alert.

Victoria reported 273 new cases of the coronavirus and another COVID-19 death on Sunday, while NSW had nine cases linked to an outbreak at Sydney pub. Both states account for more than half of Australia’s population of 25 million.

Sydney, Jul 12 (AP/PTI) The Australian government says it will offer around 10,000 Hong Kong passport holders currently living in Australia a chance to apply for permanent residence once their current visas expire.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison's government believes China's imposition of a new tough national security law on the semi-autonomous territory means pro-democracy supporters may face political persecution.

SYDNEY (Reuters) - The U.S. Department of Transportation said it has revoked permission for Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) to conduct charter flights to the United States, citing Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) concerns over Pakistani pilot certifications.

The information is contained in a revocation of special authorisation dated July 1 provided by the department to Reuters on Friday.

Pakistan last month grounded almost a third of its pilots after discovering they may have falsified their qualifications.

Canberra, Jul 9 (AP/PTI) An Australian state has closed its doors to people fleeing a second lockdown in Australia's second-largest city.

Queensland Health Minister Steven Miles said on Thursday that a number of people were willing to pay for their own 14-day hotel quarantine to be allowed to escape Melbourne and other parts of Victoria state that began a six-week shutdown Wednesday because of an expanding coronavirus outbreak.

CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australia suspended its extradition treaty with Hong Kong and extended visas for Hong Kong residents in response to China’s imposition of a tough national security law on the semi-autonomous territory, the prime minister said Thursday.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced a range of visas that will be extended from two to five years and offers of pathways to permanent residency visas. It is not clear how many Hong Kongers are expected to get the extensions.

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Australia has been among the world’s most successful countries in containing its coronavirus outbreak — with one exception.

The southeastern state of Victoria had some of the nation’s toughest pandemic measures and was among the most reluctant to lift its restrictions when the worst of its outbreak seemed to have passed.

SYDNEY (Reuters) - The border between Australia’s two most populous states will close from Tuesday for an indefinite period as authorities scramble to contain an outbreak of the coronavirus in the city of Melbourne.

The decision announced on Monday marks the first time the border between Victoria and New South Wales has been shut in 100 years. Officials last blocked movement between the two states in 1919 during the Spanish flu pandemic.