Author: info@thewitness.com.au

When Okan the bear sat down to a meal of seasonal fruits at a wildlife centre in Turkey last week, he forgot to check that his portion size was “just right”.The 90-kilogram bear overindulged, according to CNN affiliate CNN Turk, and was taken to Istanbul University’s Cerrahpasa Faculty of Veterinary Medicine with stomach pains.Three-year-old Okan the bear having an MRI.Credit: ScreenshotFootage of Okan tethered to a stretcher and undergoing an MRI went viral last week.“Our veterinarian at Cekmekoy Rehabilitation Centre immediately noticed tenderness in Okan’s stomach area,” CNN Turk quoted Park of Istanbul Nature and Life Complex board chairman Burak…

“He even pressed my staff that if I did not comply with his requests, I may end up like another female member of the Coalition – who I won’t name,” she wrote.Sources familiar with the conversation, but not authorised to speak publicly, said it referred to former opposition frontbencher Jane Hume’s “Chinese spy” comments spreading quickly on social media during the election campaign.Price says she sent Hawke a WhatsApp message “to call out his cowardly and inappropriate conduct”.“Only after that message did Alex Hawke and I speak on Thursday evening,” she wrote. “If people want to talk about a so-called…

Banks are already complaining – hardly surprising given they stand to lose an estimated $900 million in revenue as a result of the plan. Banks warn that the Reserve Bank is moving more aggressively than other countries in cutting interchange fees, while claiming it is underestimating the cost of providing a reliable payment network. If they are to lose $900 million in revenue, banks say they may need to respond by raising credit interest rates and fees, or devaluing reward points.There is a precedent for this: banks hacked back the value of credit card loyalty schemes last decade as card…

Dua Lipa kicks off U.S. tour with a surprise guestDua Lipa made fans go wild after a legendary singer-songwriter joined her at the opening U.S. concert of her Radical Optimism World Tour.On Friday, September 5, the Levitating hitmaker treated the concert goers with a 22-song setlist and a special guest named Chaka Khan, whose real name is Yvette Marie Stevens. Halfway through her performance, the Grammy winner invited the lead vocalist of the funk band Rufus with fans welcoming her with loud cheers. Known as the Queen of Funk, Khan and Lipa, dressed in a sparkly black coat with feathered…

Despite the legal battle, the $45,000-a-year school is confident the appeal will be thrown out and is forging ahead with enrolling girls in kindergarten and year 5 from next year. It will admit girls into years 7 and 11 in 2028, and become fully co-ed by 2033.Last month, the school unveiled its new prep school girls’ uniform, which includes a grey pinafore, striped shirt, shorts and skort. The full senior school uniform – including pants, skirt and summer dress – is set to be launched in mid-October.Parents Suzanne and Matt Gruber have enrolled their daughter, Autumn, who will start kindergarten…

Fresh from one of his best starts to a new season, “Rocket” Rod Northam is eyeing off a four-pronged assault at Monday’s Tamworth meeting.The likeable Scone trainer has brought home 11 individual winners from his last 34 runners, an impressive near 33 per cent strike rate across 26 days to kick-start 2025-26.Scone trainer Rod Northam.Credit: BradleysIt could have been even bigger, with the yard running three close second-placings at Dubbo early last month before back-to-back placings on Cup day at Narromine.His latest successes came at Scone last Tuesday, when promising mare Smart Buy swept home to win a Class 1…

As evidenced by the Coalition’s colossal loss, it didn’t work for him, but Labor was sure to match the promise, if not in numbers, then in intention – Anthony Albanese also pledged to cut migration levels.It is rare that you will find a politician stating the obvious – that population growth in Australia is propped up by immigration (as it is in most OECD countries), and that successive Australian governments of both stripes have relied on immigration to power economic growth, while neglecting Australia’s profound productivity slump.It is unheard of that a politician will say out loud what demographers and…

French Customs officers control postal parcels in the Customs area of the postal customs clearance office located in the sorting centre of La Poste, near Orly airport, South of Paris on March 20, 2025. — AFPPostal traffic to the United States plunged more than 80% following Washington’s imposition of new tariffs, with 88 operators worldwide fully or partially suspending services, the Universal Postal Union said on Saturday. The UPU, the United Nations’ postal cooperation agency, is working on “the rapid development of a new technical solution that will help get mail moving to the United States again”, its director general…

Travis Kelce earns major support from enraged Taylor Swift fans after incidentTravis Kelce might not have Taylor Swift in the stadium but her fans are watching over him and supporting from afar.The 35-year-old Kansas City Chiefs tight end was slapped by a Los Angeles Chargers player Teair Tart during their game in Brazil, which went viral in a video on social media. Following the shocking moment, Swifties took to social media and blasted Tart for his out of conduct act as they extended support for the “national hero.” Expressing their well wishes for Kelce, one fan wrote, “The guy than…

“Propaganda,” Hitler’s chief propagandist declared, “works best when those who are being manipulated are confident they are acting on their own free will”. This, together with the insight that many people will simply go along with and not challenge a movement that seems socially dominant – the Mitläufer phenomenon, translating literally as one who walks with – explains a great deal about why extremists and autocrats are so keen to use people of good faith to amplify their evil ideas.March for Australia protesters in Sydney.Credit: Max Mason-HubersThe Chinese Communist Party celebrated its military might and propaganda nous this week, with…