Theme: New Zealand

Nearly 1 million ballots have been cast in the first week of early voting for New Zealand’s general election, the country’s electoral commission said. The commission recorded 913,762 votes between October 26 and November 1, a 28% jump compared with the same period in the 2023 election, and the busiest day was Saturday, with more than 190,000 votes cast. Six days of voting remain before the November 7 election.

Co-pilot Hamam al-Hammami, 29, an Omani citizen, was restrained in an alleged attempt to take control of a flydubai flight to Tel Aviv with 182 people on board on 30 September and spent 175 days in New Zealand on a student visa, from 30 November 2018 to 23 May 2019, for part of flight training, according to The Guardian, citing New Zealand police confirmation of the stay. flydubai’s fast growth raises questions about recruitment and vetting after the attempted hijacking, according to the Wall Street Journal (WSJ), in a text republished by the Hindustan Times.