Ukraine brings back 31 children from Russia amid war

When it came to his favourite location in New Zealand, Shainblum said it was tough to pick one but Milford Sound – a fiord in the southwest of the South Island – made a big impression with its ‘striking cliffs’ and ‘pouring’ 1,000ft waterfalls

ICRC spokesman Jason Straziuso said the organization was in contact with Lvova-Belova “in line with its mandate to restore contact between separated families and facilitate reunification where feasible.”

The International Committee of the Red Cross said this week it had been in contact with Lvova-Belova, the first confirmation of high-level international intervention to reunite families with children who were forcibly deported.

The visuals are the work of San Francisco-based photographer , 31, who was inspired to visit the remote country after watching Lord of the Rings as a child, with the trilogy filmed on both the North and South islands. 

San Francisco-based photographer Michael Shainblum, 31 was inspired to visit New Zealand after watching Lord of the Rings as a child, with the trilogy filmed on both the North and South islands. Pictured, Milford Sound

Mykola Kuleba said at a news conference in Kyiv that the children were expected to arrive in the capital later in the day.
Kuleba is the executive director of the Save Ukraine organization and is the presidential commissioner for children’s rights.

The other semifinal match was suspended due to rain one hour and 56 minutes in, with No.
4 seed Belinda Bencic of Switzerland leading No. 1 seed Jessica Pegula of the U.S. 7-5, 6-6. Pegula was leading the tiebreaker 4-2. That match will resume Sunday before the final.

Vladimir Putin gave a a tub-thumping address yesterday to tens of thousands of Russians gathered at Moscow’s world cup stadium, celebrating his invasion of Ukraine in 2014 and drumming up support for his new war

The video, which has been viewed more than 80,000 times, captures some of the country’s most jaw-dropping sites including the snowy crest of Mount Cook, the majesty of Milford Sound, the dinosaur egg-like Moeraki Boulders on the Otago coast and the famed willow tree leaning over Lake Wanaka.  

The premier also made clear that the UK intends to push ahead with North Sea oil and gas development – and potentially fracking – saying the country will ‘make better use of our own naturally occurring hydrocarbons’.  

‘There was a lot of just sitting out in the rain, but then there would be little parts in the cloud and then a rainbow would form out of nowhere. And it would sit there for maybe 10 minutes. The light would cascade across the landscape. And then the storm would come back 10 minutes later and we would be in a torrential downpour again.’ 

‘The range of things you can see in a day in New Zealand is pretty interesting, from the lush rainforest to the high ridge peaks to the lone oak trees just kind of sitting out on the fields, and to the seascapes. Just beautiful, dramatic, striking seascapes.’ 

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He mused: ‘The people are so friendly. I don’t think I met a single rude person in my entire time being in New Zealand. Everyone was so nice, so friendly, just wanted to see what I was doing and even just if I was going to order some coffee I’d end up in some conversation.

Tourists can visit New Zealand from April 12 and this timelapse video and accompanying stunning images are jaw-dropping reminders of the eye-popping sights awaiting them when they venture out and explore the country’s landscapes. 

Did he have a favourite location? Shainblum said it was tough to pick one, but that Milford Sound – a fiord in the southwest of the South Island – made a big impression with its ‘striking cliffs’ and phonics instruction programs ‘pouring’ 1,000ft waterfalls. 

He recalls: ‘It was bittersweet in a sense because the weather was so tough to deal with that the wind, I mean, there were 60mph winds at times where you could barely stand up… you could barely set up a camera. And it rained, I think, every single day that I was there, for about two weeks. 

‘It kind of warms your heart when you go to a place where people genuinely want to have a conversation with you and want to know who you are. It’s very different from what I’m used to, living in a place like San Francisco, where people just kind of do their own thing and you go about your business.