WELLINGTON

New Zealand police have arrested a man and charged him with two counts of arson in connection with the fire at a Wellington hostel that killed at least six people.

Months before an election, New Zealand’s government is offering some modest financial relief to many people by making most prescription medicines free and increasing subsidies for childcare and public transportation.

New Zealand police say they believe a fire that killed at least six people in a Wellington hostel was arson and launched a homicide investigation.

New Zealand's prime minister says an overnight fire at a four-story hostel in New Zealand’s capital has killed at least six people.

New Zealand’s central bank has raised its benchmark interest rate by a half-point to 4.75% as it continues trying to wrestle down inflation.

New Zealand’s new Prime Minister Chris Hipkins says he is axing or delaying many of his government’s more contentious policy plans as he looks to refocus on priorities like the rising cost of living.

The United States has opened an embassy in the Solomon Islands in its latest move to counter China’s push into the Pacific.

New Zealand’s Northland region has lifted a state of emergency declaration after an overnight storm didn’t turn out as bad as feared.

Chris Hipkins has been sworn in as New Zealand’s prime minister, following the unexpected resignation last week of Jacinda Ardern.

New Zealand had its hottest year on record in 2022, beating a mark set just a year earlier thanks to a combination of natural weather cycles and manmade global warming, according to the agency that monitors temperatures.

Finland’s leader says it must give more weapons and support to Ukraine to ensure it wins its war against Russia.

A lobby group seeking to lower New Zealand’s voting age from 18 to 16 has won its appeal to the Supreme Court, which says the current law amounts to age discrimination.

For the first time in New Zealand’s history, a majority of lawmakers are women.

The Solomon Islands foreign minister says his nation agreed to sign an accord between the United States and more than a dozen Pacific nations only after indirect references to China were removed.

New Zealand has commemorated Queen Elizabeth II with a public holiday, a moment of silence and an official memorial service.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said her government will not be pursuing any moves toward changing New Zealand to a republic following the death of Queen Elizabeth II.

Australia says its navy ships have been given clearance to resume visits to the Solomon Islands, which had last week announced a temporary block on all military vessels during a review of its approval processes.

About 2,000 protesters upset with the government’s pandemic response converged on New Zealand’s Parliament — but it appeared there would be no repeat of the action six months ago in which protesters camped out on Parliament grounds for more than three weeks.

New Zealand has welcomed the first cruise ship to return since the coronavirus pandemic began, signaling a long-sought return to normalcy for the nation’s tourism industry.

New Zealand’s government has released its first-ever climate adaptation plan, which includes the possibility of moving some communities to higher ground.

New Zealand’s government has declared American far-right groups the Proud Boys and The Base are terrorist organizations, making it illegal in New Zealand to fund, recruit or participate in them.

Australia and China are continuing their tit-for-tat diplomatic rivalry in the Pacific as the foreign ministers from each country pay separate visits to island nations.

Seven people on two small boats that drifted for days in the Pacific have been rescued after a New Zealand plane spotted them near the remote island nation of Kiribati.

New Zealand will help pay for lower-income families to scrap their old gas guzzlers and replace them with cleaner hybrid or electric cars as part of a sweeping plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Using a helicopter to catch a falling rocket is such a complex task that Peter Beck likens it to a “supersonic ballet.”.

New Zealand has begun welcoming back tourists from the U.S., Canada, Britain, Japan and more than 50 other countries for the first time in more than two years after dropping most of its remaining pandemic border restrictions.

Seeking to counter fears over its new security alliance with China, the Solomon Islands says it won’t allow China to build a military base there.

New Zealand will remove many of its COVID-19 pandemic mandates over the next two weeks as an omicron outbreak begins to wane.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis approved $800 million in the state’s budget to increase teacher pay.

Samoa has reported scores of new COVID-19 cases daily since detecting its first case of community transmission last week.

New Zealand police say they will review hours of cellphone footage taken by themselves, the media and the public to identify lawbreakers.

The number of cars and trucks blocking the streets outside New Zealand’s Parliament was thinning Friday, but more protesters were expected to arrive for the weekend, including some by boat.

Police in New Zealand's capital say a protester drove a car toward a police line, narrowly avoiding officers, and other protesters sprayed officers with a stinging substance.

New Zealand’s prime minister says protesters who oppose coronavirus mandates are using “intimidation and harassment,” as the convoy of demonstrators continues to disrupt the capital of Wellington.

Police arrested dozens of protesters camping on the grounds of New Zealand's Parliament on the third day of a protest against coronavirus mandates.

Hundreds of people protesting vaccine and mask mandates drove in convoy to New Zealand’s capital and converged outside Parliament as lawmakers reconvened after a summer break.

New Zealand’s government will end its quarantine requirements for incoming travelers and reopen its borders.

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern says she is self-isolating after coming into close contact with a person infected with the coronavirus.

Kiribati and several other small Pacific nations were among the last on the planet to have avoided any virus outbreaks, thanks to their remote locations and strict border controls.

Dozens of former guests from New Zealand, Australia, the U.S. and elsewhere are raising money to help the owners of the Ha’atafu Beach Resort in Tonga after it was destroyed by a tsunami.

Amazon’s “The Lord of the Rings” series has forged a name for itself.

The eruption of the undersea volcano near Tonga over the weekend was incredibly explosive but also relatively brief.

Keri Hulme, the New Zealander whose 1984 debut novel The Bone People won the Man Booker Prize, has died.

New Zealand will reopen its borders to the world over the coming months, allowing for the return of displaced residents from January and tourists from April.

Bars, restaurants and gyms can reopen in Auckland from early December but customers will be required to show proof they’ve been fully vaccinated.

Young people living in Pacific Rim countries want to see more ambition from their leaders when it comes to tackling climate change and to see money devoted to a shared fund to prepare for future pandemics.

The lockdown of New Zealand’s largest city is likely to end later this month, with some coronavirus restrictions being eased Tuesday.

Authorities say at least 98 people are dead and 30 others critically wounded after an oil tanker truck exploded near Sierra Leone's capital.

A New Zealand couple have unearthed a huge potato that is quite possibly the largest on record.

The first person to fly across New Zealand’s Cook Strait in an electric plane says he did so with plenty of battery power to spare.

New Zealand’s government has set an ambitious target of fully vaccinating 90% of all eligible people to end coronavirus lockdowns.

New Zealand counted its most new coronavirus cases of the pandemic as an outbreak in its largest city grew and officials urged vaccinations as a way out of Auckland’s two-month lockdown.

New Zealand’s government has acknowledged what most other countries did long ago: It can no longer completely get rid of the coronavirus.

The southern winter that just ended in New Zealand was the warmest ever recorded, and scientists say climate change is driving temperatures ever higher.

The Islamic State-inspired extremist who attacked shoppers in a New Zealand supermarket had been fighting deportation for immigration fraud, leaving the nation’s leader expressing frustration at the process.

New Zealand’s government says it's extending a strict nationwide lockdown until at least Friday as it tries to extinguish a growing coronavirus outbreak.

New Zealand has detected its first community transmission of the coronavirus in months, triggering urgent meetings among top lawmakers.

New Zealand has long been associated with “The Lord of the Rings” but with the filming of a major new television series suddenly snatched away, the nation has become more like Mordor than the Shire for hundreds of workers.

New Zealand plans to begin a cautious reopening of its borders to international travelers early next year.

Only 26 people in New Zealand have died from the coronavirus since the pandemic began, after the nation of 5 million managed to completely stamp out its spread.

A lockdown of Australia’s third-largest city Brisbane was extended until Sunday because of a growing COVID-19 outbreak.

New Zealand has suspended its quarantine-free travel bubble with Australia for at least eight weeks due to a growing COVID-19 cluster in Sydney.

A New Zealand academic says Twitter temporarily restricted her account after she mocked Chinese President Xi Jinping.

New Zealand has recorded its warmest June since recordkeeping began, as ski fields struggle to open and experts predict shorter southern winters in the future.

New Zealand’s government is formally apologizing for an immigration crackdown nearly 50 years ago in which Pacific people were targeted for deportation, often after early-morning home raids.

Tentative plans for a movie recounting the response of Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern to a gunman’s slaughter of Muslim worshippers drew criticism in New Zealand for not focusing on the victims of the attacks.

New Zealand has become the latest country to sign a space agreement with U.S. space agency NASA, just as New Zealand’s nascent space industry begins to take off.

Cindy Kiro says she hopes to inspire Maori girls after becoming the first Indigenous woman appointed as New Zealand's governor-general.

New Zealand plans to rebuild its Antarctic base and spend billions more on welfare payments and infrastructure to lift its economy out of a coronavirus slump.

Samoa appears set to get its first woman leader after the nation’s top court on Monday reinstated the results of a knife-edge election last month.

An Indigenous New Zealand lawmaker was thrown out of Parliament’s debating chamber for performing a Maori haka in protest at what he said were racist arguments.

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern took a tougher stance on China’s human rights record by saying it was getting harder to reconcile differences as China’s role in the world grows.

Gov. Ron DeSantis is making a ‘major’ environmental announcement Thursday morning, according to the governor’s office.

New Zealand will consolidate its fragmented health care system into a national service similar to the one revered by many in Britain.

Australian authorities have identified a second case of a rare blot clot likely linked to the AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine.

New Zealand will open a long-anticipated travel bubble with Australia on April 19.

New Zealand will open a long-anticipated travel bubble with Australia on April 19.

Temel Atacocugu, right, who survived being shot nine times during the attack on the Al Noor mosque, cries as he speaks at a National Remembrance Service, Saturday, March 13, 2021, in Christchurch, New Zealand. The service marks the second anniversary of a shooting massacre in which 51 worshippers were killed at two Christchurch mosques by a white supremacist. (Kai Schwoerer/Pool via AP)WELLINGTON – New Zealand on Saturday marked the second anniversary of one of its most traumatic days, when 51 worshippers were killed at two Christchurch mosques by a white supremacist gunman. Several hundred people gathered at the Christchurch Arena for the remembrance service, which was also livestreamed. After the attacks, New Zealand quickly passed new laws banning the deadliest types of semiautomatic weapons.

New Zealand is pushing for nations around the world to end tariffs on face masks, syringes and other supplies needed to battle the coronavirus pandemic. (AP Photo/Nick Perry)WELLINGTON – New Zealand is pushing for nations around the world to end tariffs on face masks, syringes and other supplies needed to battle the coronavirus pandemic. “It is a depressing, objective fact that across our region, many economies impose tariffs, even on vaccines,” said Vangelis Vitalis, the chairperson of APEC’s senior officials’ meeting. New Zealand last year removed tariffs from such virus supplies. Similar to Malaysia, New Zealand is hosting APEC meetings online rather than in person due to the pandemic.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention COVID-19 Vaccine Tracker shows Alaska leading states in the percentage of its population to have received two doses of a COVID-19 vaccine. Larry Hogan said Tuesday, citing improving COVID-19 health metrics and increasing vaccinations. It was unclear what authority state officials might be able to exert on federal facilities. — County health officials in Wyoming have detected the coronavirus variant that originated in South Africa. Another 16 million doses are expected to be shipped by the end of the month.

New Zealand has opened its first large vaccination clinic as it scales up efforts to protect people from the coronavirus. (New Zealand Ministry of Health via AP)WELLINGTON, New Zealand — New Zealand has opened its first large vaccination clinic as it scales up efforts to protect people from the coronavirus. Gordon cites Wyoming’s declining number of COVID-19 cases and its success in distributing vaccines as reasons to lift the restrictions. AdThe nation of 1.3 million has seen a rapidly increasing number of COVID-19 cases n the past few weeks. Italy’s total virus cases surpassed 3 million last week, with a new surge powered by the highly contagious variant that was first identified in Britain.

People gather on high ground in Whangarei, New Zealand, as a tsunami warning is issued Friday, March 5, 2021. Small tsunami waves were seen, but little damage was apparent hours later. The tsunami threat caused traffic jams and some chaos in New Zealand as people scrambled to get to higher ground. Smaller waves were measured elsewhere in the South Pacific. In 2011, a magnitude 6.3 quake hit the city of Christchurch, killing 185 people and destroying much of its downtown.

Monday marked a decade since the quake struck, killing 185 people. Hundreds of people attended an outdoor service in Christchurch, which continues to rebuild from the magnitude 6.3 quake that destroyed much of its downtown. A separate service was also held in the northern Japanese city of Toyama, home to 12 students who died in the quake. Christchurch Mayor Lianne Dalziel talked about the 28 Japanese citizens who died, the largest number of victims from any country outside of New Zealand. The 12 Japanese students were having lunch at King’s Education, an English language school for international students, when the quake struck, destroying the building.

New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern talks to media in Wellington, New Zealand Monday, Feb. 15, 2021. As people in Auckland adjusted to a new lockdown on Monday, health officials said they'd found no evidence the coronavirus had spread further in the community, raising hopes the restrictions might be short-lived. (AP Photo/Nick Perry)WELLINGTON – As people in Auckland adjusted to a new lockdown on Monday, health officials said they'd found no evidence the coronavirus had spread further in the community, raising hopes the restrictions might be short-lived. New Zealand's largest city was hurriedly placed into a three-day lockdown Sunday after three unexplained virus cases were found. AdPrime Minister Jacinda Ardern said the three community cases were of the more contagious variant first found in Britain and that genome testing hadn’t linked them to any previous known cases.

New Zealands largest city of Auckland is being placed into a three-day lockdown Sunday following the discovery of three unexplained virus cases. (AP Photo/Nick Perry)WELLINGTON – New Zealand's largest city of Auckland has begun a three-day lockdown following the discovery of three unexplained coronavirus cases in the community. It has also forced a delay in the America's Cup sailing regatta. AdThe country has been hosting the America's Cup sailing regatta. The winner will then take on Emirates Team New Zealand for the America's Cup.

(AP Photo/Nick Perry)LONDON – The long forgotten sea shanty has been enjoying a renaissance on social media and is now moving into popular music with two U.K. artists landing record deals, following their online performances. For some artists, the sea shanty has long been part of their repertoire. Whether or not “Wellerman” counts as a shanty, there is no denying it has caused a stir online. Claire Maddocks, a neurologic music therapist, said she thinks sea shanties appeal to people because of the “simplicity of a human voice,” and the repetitive, predictable nature of the song. AdAnd Professor Smyth says he's fine with people calling “Wellerman” a shanty if they want to.

The district has been at the center of a worsening coronavirus outbreak, with over 160 cases reported over the first three weeks in January. As of Sunday, Hong Kong has reported 10,086 cases of the coronavirus, with 169 deaths recorded. The nation of 26 million people has reported fewer than 30,000 virus cases and a little over 900 deaths. There have been 373,090 total virus cases and a death toll of 3,279 since the pandemic began, according to the health department. The U.S. accounts for roughly one of every four cases reported worldwide and one of every five deaths.

(AP Photo/Vincent Yu)WELLINGTON – New Zealand has reported its first coronavirus case outside of a quarantine facility in more than two months, although there was no immediate evidence the virus was spreading in the community. Director-General of Health Ashley Bloomfield said Sunday the case was a 56-year-old woman who recently returned from Europe. Like other returning travelers, she spent 14 days in quarantine and twice tested negative before being returning home on Jan. 13. The far northeastern province of Heilongjiang reported another 29 cases, linked partly to an outbreak at a meat processing plant. Beijing, where around 2 million residents have been ordered to undergo new testing, reported two new confirmed cases.

Crews at New Zealand's Parliament inspect the smashed front doors on Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2021, in Wellington, New Zealand. Police said a man armed with an axe smashed the glass doors but did not attempt to enter the building. (AP Photo/Nick Perry)WELLINGTON – Officials plan to review security at New Zealand's Parliament after a man armed with an axe smashed the main glass entrance doors early Wednesday. “I am proud that the New Zealand Parliament is one of the most open, accessible parliaments in the world and I very much hope that this continues,” he said in a statement. He said officials are undertaking a full review of the incident and will assess whether changes to security measures are necessary.

Brad Little says people 65 and over will be able to get the coronavirus vaccine starting Feb. 1. Overall, Illinois has reported more than 1 million cases and 17,743 deaths. Ontario reported 2,903 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday, including eight new cases of a variant from the United Kingdom. ___MADRID — Spain is reporting 25,438 coronavirus cases and more than 400 deaths for the second day in a row. Italy added 14,242 coronavirus infections on Tuesday, increasing the tally to 2.3 million cases.

Health workers shift a box containing COVID-19 vaccine from a vehicle to a cold storage at Commissionerate of Health and Family Welfare in Hyderabad, India, Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2021. WELLINGTON – India has started shipping COVID-19 vaccines to multiple cities, four days ahead of a nationwide inoculation drive. The first vaccine shipments contain the COVISHIELD vaccine made by the Serum Institute and developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca. — Indonesia has received the raw materials to begin making 15 million doses of Sinovac's COVID-19 vaccine. Another Indian, HS Prannoy, an unidentified German and an Egyptian also tested positive on Monday, but their retests were found to be negative.

FILE - In this May 8, 2019, file photo, New Zealand's Reserve Bank Governor Adrian Orr speaks to the media in Wellington, New Zealand. New Zealand's central bank said, Sunday Jan. 10, 2021, that one of its data systems has been breached by an unidentified hacker who has potentially accessed commercially and personally sensitive information. (AP Photo/Nick Perry, File)WELLINGTON – New Zealand’s central bank said Sunday that one of its data systems has been breached by an unidentified hacker who potentially accessed commercially and personally sensitive information. A third party file sharing service used by the Reserve Bank of New Zealand to share and store sensitive information had been illegally accessed, the Wellington-based bank said in a statement. Dave Parry, professor of computer science at Auckland University, told Radio New Zealand that another government was likely behind the bank data breach.

New Zealand Maori group Te kura o te paroa kapa haka sing during a service in Whakatane, Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2020, to mark the first anniversary of a deadly volcanic eruption. An eruption killed 22 people on White Island, a popular tourist destination, when superheated steam spewed out from the crater floor. Woods' 40-year-old son Hayden Marshall-Inman was a tour guide and among 22 people killed in the Dec. 9, 2019, eruption on White Island. New Zealand authorities last month filed safety violation charges against 10 organizations and three individuals in relation to the eruption. Many of those killed and injured were tourists who had been traveling from Australia aboard the Royal Caribbean cruise ship Ovation of the Seas.

WELLINGTON – A diplomatic war of words between Australia and China over a graphic tweet seemed to finally cool on Thursday as Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison struck a much more conciliatory tone. China has angrily rejected Morrison's complaints, but its foreign ministry on Thursday declined to comment further on the controversy. The post took aim at alleged unlawful killings and abuses by Australian soldiers during the conflict in Afghanistan. WeChat is ubiquitous in China and is used for everything from getting news to making electronic payments. China has since imposed tariffs and other restrictions on a number of Australian exports.

WELLINGTON – Australia's economy grew by 3.3% in the third quarter, rebounding from its first recession in nearly three decades as it recovered from pandemic-related shocks, according to figures released Wednesday. “Australia’s recession may be over, but Australia’s economic recovery is not,” he said. “But the Australian economy has demonstrated its remarkable resilience and Australia is as well positioned as any other nation on Earth," Frydenberg said. “Today’s national accounts represent a major step forward in Australia’s economic recovery.”Before this year, Australia had managed to avoid a recession for 28 years. Now on top of the pandemic, Australia is enduring a spate of rocky relations with China, its biggest trading partner.

New Zealand's Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern moves a motion in the Parliament House in Wellington, New Zealand, to declare a climate emergency, Wednesday, Dec. 2, 2020. Joining more than 30 other countries around the world, New Zealand took the symbolic step of declaring a climate emergency. (Mark Mitchell/New Zealand Herald via AP)WELLINGTON – Joining more than 30 countries, New Zealand on Wednesday took the symbolic step of declaring a climate emergency. The declaration states that climate change is one of the greatest challenges facing humanity and promises a commitment to minimize global warming. It says climate change will have a devastating impact on New Zealand through flooding, wildfires, sea-level rise and water availability.

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern speaks during a media stand-up on her way to Question Time at Parliament, in Wellington, New Zealand Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2020. New Zealand has joined Australia in denouncing a graphic tweet posted by a Chinese official that shows a fake image of a grinning Australian soldier holding a bloodied knife to a childs throat. The post took aim at alleged abuses by Australian soldiers during the conflict in Afghanistan. He wrote a caption with his tweet: “Shocked by murder of Afghan civilians & prisoners by Australian soldiers. It is deeply offensive to every Australian, every Australian who has served in that uniform,” he told reporters in Canberra.

WELLINGTON – International air travel could come booming back next year but with a new rule: Travelers to certain countries must be vaccinated against the coronavirus before they can fly. Encouraging news about vaccine development has given airlines and nations hope they may soon be able to revive suspended flight routes and dust off lucrative tourism plans. In Australia, the boss of Qantas, the country's largest airline, said that once a virus vaccine becomes widely available, his carrier will likely require passengers use it before they can travel abroad or land in Australia. He said they were looking at ways to electronically verify that people have the necessary vaccine for their intended destination, a difficult task. Many people are hoping that vaccinations will become widely available next year, paving the way for a broader reopening of international air travel.

FILE - In this Sept. 20, 2010, file photo, Samoa Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi addresses a summit at the United Nations headquarters. Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi addressed the nation live on television and radio, urging people to remain vigilant with their virus precautions. Samoa was among a dwindling handful of nations to have not reported a single case of the virus. He said the sailor returned a positive test four days after arriving, but then a second test on Thursday returned a negative result. — India has recorded 45,576 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours as authorities battle to slow a surge of infections in its capital by increasing testing.

ThomasBach, International Olympic Committee (IOC) President,puts on his mask before speaking during the joint press conference between IOC and Tokyo Organizing Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (Tokyo 2020) in Tokyo, Japan, Nov. 16, 2020. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Virus Response Minister Chris Hipkins announced the new rules on Monday after meeting with senior lawmakers. — South Korea’s daily coronavirus tally has stayed above 200 for a third consecutive day, as authorities consider raising the country’s social distancing rules. The 223 additional cases recorded Monday by the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency raised the country’s total to 28,769, including 494 deaths. The agency says 193 of them are locally transmitted cases while the rest was associated with international arrivals.