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On the first day of the resumption of the operation in the Strait of Hormuz, the United States called on the ship to change its route to the south and sail closer to Oman | International | Central News Agency CNA
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Please agree to our privacy policy to enable news listening. (Central News Agency, Dubai, April 4, Comprehensive Foreign News Report) Amid global economic turmoil caused by Iran’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, the United States today launched Operation Freedom, calling on stranded ships to reroute and sail southward through the strait, closer to Oman. However, as of morning, it was unclear whether any ships had received U.S. assistance. The Associated Press reported that after U.S. President Donald Trump announced his so-called “Project Freedom,” the Joint Maritime Information Center said today that the United States has established an “enhanced security zone” south of regular shipping routes and called on maritime personnel to coordinate closely with the Omani authorities citing “extremely high traffic expected.” The Strait of Hormuz is located between Iran and Oman. The Joint Maritime Information Center warned that “since mines have not yet been fully detected and eliminated,” approaching the strait through which the existing shipping lanes pass “should be considered extremely dangerous.” The statement issued by the Joint Maritime Information Center marks the official launch of operations to restore traffic in the Strait of Hormuz and restore confidence in merchant shipping, but it may also undermine the fragile ceasefire between the United States and Iran. As of this morning, it was unclear whether any ships had received U.S. assistance. The Iranian military pointed out to the state-run Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) on the same day that ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz need to be coordinated with it. The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) stated that this operation will use missile destroyers, more than 100 aircraft, and 15,000 troops; the Pentagon did not specify the specific deployment method. Neither Trump nor U.S. officials have said whether the “Freedom Plan” includes military escorts for ships through the Iranian-controlled strait, so ships intending to venture out still face high risks. Despite the U.S. push to restart shipping, this uncertainty still deters many shipping and insurance companies. Since the outbreak of the US-Iraq war, many oil tanker and cargo ship crews have been stranded in the Persian Gulf. They have witnessed interceptor drones and missiles exploding over the sea, and their ships have also faced shortages of drinking water, food and other supplies. (Compiled by: Hong Peiying) 1150504 Support the Central News Agency’s choice to stand with the facts. Every donation you make is a small amount of support to protect press freedom. Download the Central News Agency’s “First-hand News” APP to get the latest news in real time. The text, pictures and audio and video of this website may not be reproduced, publicly broadcast or publicly transmitted and used without authorization.



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Prime Minister Ardern honours bravehearts on the occasion of the Queen’s birthday
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Summary

  • Queen Elizabeth’s birthday marked the occasion of Honours List announcement.
  • Prime Minister Ardern spoke about the outstanding contribution of people.
  • Several contributors through different fields of work were conferred upon awards.

To mark the birthday of Queen Elizabeth, the New Zealand government announced several awards for outstanding performances in various fields. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern made these announcements and thanked people for their outstanding contributions.

Image Source: © Anizza | Megapixl.com

Ms. Ardern said that the increasing number of the people the honour was bestowed upon simply shows how many of them in the country were ready to serve at their level best without thinking twice, doing the country proud. Referring to the invaluable contribution by Hinewehi Mohi, who besides being an advocate, has had tremendous contribution towards helping people with disabilities by providing them music therapy, she said he had helped change the lives of thousands of people.

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In another example, she spoke about Professor Carolyn Burns, who is responsible for extensive research on lakes, their health and ecology, and is something that has helped advancement and growth in the understanding of this subject in the country.

Recognising the work of Mike Daniell or Fisher and Paykell, Ms. Ardern indicated how he had found solutions to various problems and contributed immensely to the field of healthcare across the country.

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Professor William Denny has been awarded for his extraordinary work in the field of drug research for cancer. Ruia Morisson has been awarded this honour for her extraordinary work in the field of tennis, being the first Kiwi woman and the first Maori to participate in the Wimbledon tournament. Buck Shelford, an extraordinary Rugby player, has been conferred with the award for his contribution to the sport.

Judy Kilpatrik, who has spent 50 years in the field of nursing education, was also honoured on this day.

Late Mayor Dave Cull was remembered and honoured for his local government services work while Sarah Stuart Black received this honour for her contribution to the field of emergency management.

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These people were a few of the ones honoured on the occasion of the Queen’s birthday. Prime Minister said there were many others who had displayed extraordinary courage and hard work in their respective fields, and had been awarded for the same.

Each year, the list grows with additions of people who have achieved extraordinarily in their respective fields.



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Victorian man slugged $2640 for water bill in direct debit bungle
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A state-owned water company has apologised over an IT issue which resulted in some customers being hit with unexpected bills totalling thousands of dollars.
The Victorian government’s Greater Western Water (GWW) admitted that a direct debit failure from an IT upgrade bungle meant many residential water bills were left unpaid for months.

Sunshine resident Matthew Schulz was slugged with a delayed bill notice of $2641.20 for around 18 months of water use.

Sunshine resident Matthew Schulz was hit with a $2641 bill from GWW. (9News)

Schulz told 9News he was “confused” when he saw the huge charge after he tried to remedy the direct debit issue in late 2024.

“I can’t afford that, that’s not something that I budgeted for,” Schulz said.

“I am happy to pay what I owe, but it’s just diabolical, it’s just a big mess.”

At first, Schulz was told he needed to pay the full amount.

But GWW has since worked out a payment plan.

“I have direct debits for all my other bills and they just get paid on time,” Schulz added.

An ill-fated $100 million IT upgrade is understood to be the cause of the billing bungle.

GWW acknowledged the billing issue and said it is passing on $130 million in bill relief to customers, along with the facilitation of payment plans.

Water bill bungle
The bill covered around 18 months of unpaid water usage. (9News)

GWW Managing Director Cameron Fitzgerald said the company had “missed the mark” and encouraged impacted customers to contact the company over any back-dated bills.

“We know that we’ve let the community down and we’re working really hard with our regulator, the ombudsman, to improve our systems,” Fitzgerald told 9News.

“We’re about halfway through our catch-up billing approach, which is about bringing people back to their regular billing cycles so they can be confident about their water bill, what they get, and how we move forward.

“We want people to call us, because we know we got this wrong, we know that we need to make this right.”

General Manager Customer Experience Terence Alvares told Nine.com.au that most customers are now back on the regular billing cycle.

”We know the billing issues have caused significant frustration for our customers, and we’re genuinely sorry for the impact this has had,” Alvares said.

“No one is expected to pay a large amount all at once.”

The Energy and Water Ombudsman Victoria (EWOV) said it has fielded nearly 4000 complaints about GWW between October 2024 and March 2026.

There were 120 complaints regarding back-dated bills for the month of March.

A tap with water coming out of it.
The Energy and Water Ombudsman Victoria (EWOV) said it has fielded nearly 4000 complaints about GWW between October 2024 and March 2026. (Brook Mitchell)

“Greater Western Water customers have reported a range of billing, customer service and payment difficulty issues to EWOV, including bill shock from retrospective bills,” EWOV ombudsman and chief executive Catherine Wolthuizen said.

“In some cases, customers have received bills for significant amounts, and faced difficulty paying these large bills.

“Some customers have come to us disputing the accuracy of backbills and other customers report having never received bills.”

According to the Essential Services Commission, water businesses in Victoria have a four-month backbilling limit where a customer has been undercharged for a water bill.

However, the regulator gave GWW the green light to pursue customers over the unpaid bills in 2025.

EWOV said it is continuing to investigate ongoing complaints.

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