Police are probing links between a homicide investigation at a Coromandel home and a nearby car crash, the Herald understands.Police yesterday launched a homicide investigation into the death of a man at a rural property on Manaia…

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The UN migration agency said nearly 6.5 million people have been displaced inside Ukraine, on top of the 3.2 million who have already fled the country.

That means that around a quarter of Ukraine’s 44 million people have been forced from their homes.

The estimates from the International Organisation for Migration suggests Ukraine is fast on course in just three weeks toward the levels of displacement from Syria’s devastating war, which has driven about 13 million people from their homes both in the country and abroad.

READ MORE: Vladimir Putin appears at big rally as troops press attack in Ukraine

The findings come in a paper issued Friday by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

The projections also found that “over 12 million people are estimated to be stranded in affected areas or unable to leave due to heightened security risks, destruction of bridges and roads, as well as lack of resources or information on where to find safety and accommodation.”

The paper cited the IOM figures as “a good representation of the scale of internal displacement in Ukraine — calculated to stand at 6.48 million internally displaced persons in Ukraine as of March 16.”

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UNHCR, the UN refugee agency, has said fighting that has followed Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24 has sparked Europe’s gravest refugee crisis since World War II.

“By these estimates, roughly half the country is either internally displaced, stranded in affected areas or unable to leave, or has already fled to neighboring countries,” he said, alluding to Ukraine’s population of about 44 million before the war began.

The paper said that 9.56 million people have been displaced by the war so far, as of Wednesday, and another 2.2 million people were considering leaving.

READ MORE: China decries 'conflict' during video call between Joe Biden and Xi Jinping

IOM estimates that more than 3 million people had fled abroad as of Wednesday.

UNHCR, in its latest figures released Friday, said more than 3.2 million people have fled Ukraine.

President Joe Biden sought to use a 110-minute video call on Friday to dissuade his Chinese counterpart from assisting Russia in its grinding war with Ukraine, a pivotal moment that could determine the trajectory of the bloody conflict.

Biden "described the implications and consequences if China provides material support to Russia" in his call with Chinese President Xi Jinping, the White House said.

"The President underscored his support for a diplomatic resolution to the crisis," the White House said.

READ MORE: Putin appears at big rally as troops press attack in Ukraine

Biden was "direct," "substantive" and "detailed," a senior administration official said in a call with reporters Friday afternoon.

The bulk of their discussion centred on the war in Ukraine, and the implications the crisis would have both on US-China relations and the "international order," the official said.

Biden provided an assessment of Putin's actions in his conflict with Ukraine and "made clear" the implications and consequences of China potentially assisting Russia in its war.

The administration did not immediately publicly detail what those consequences would be, either in the written readout from the meeting or in the call with reporters.

Biden's goal in speaking with Xi directly was partly to ascertain where exactly he stood. China's statements about the war in Ukraine have stopped short of denouncing the invasion but also not offered explicit support.

Xi has offered nominal backing for mediation efforts between Russia and Ukraine, but China has also fanned Russian disinformation about the conflict.

That all left Xi in a murky position, which the United States hoped to clarify through Biden's call.

READ MORE: China decries 'conflict' during video call between Joe Biden and Xi Jinping

Already, the US had warned European and Asian allies that China had expressed openness to providing Russia with military and financial assistance, which Moscow had requested as its halting invasion stretched into a third week.

But officials said Beijing was still formulating how to respond, upping the stakes for Biden's intervention.

China began offering its own account of the video call moments after it began, describing Xi's message to Biden on state television.

"We must not only lead the development of China-US relations down the correct path, but also shoulder our international responsibilities and make efforts for world peace and tranquility," Xi said on the video call, according to CCTV.

"The world is neither peaceful nor tranquil," Xi acknowledged.

"The Ukraine crisis is something we don't want to see."

At the same time, the Chinese readout did not explicitly blame Russia for the conflict nor denounce Russian President Vladimir Putin's actions on the ground.

The United States has watched warily as Xi cultivates a close partnership with Putin, believing the alliance of authoritarian leaders is positioning itself to oppose the United States militarily and economically.

During high-profile talks in Beijing last month, Xi and Putin sealed their affiliation, declaring in a lengthy statement the relationship was limitless.

Yet Russia's invasion of Ukraine has unsettled Chinese leaders, in part because the Russian military has suffered surprising losses and advanced more slowly than many expected.

US officials have also said Xi was surprised by unity among Western and Asian nations in imposing punishing sanctions on Russia.

READ MORE: China weighs exit from 'zero COVID' and the risks involved

That combination of factors could lead China to reevaluate its potential involvement in the Ukraine war, US officials have said.

That made the timing of Biden's call with Xi critical as the US works to contain the bloodshed in Ukraine.

Ahead of time, American officials declined to say what specific threats Biden might make to convince Xi to withhold support for Russia.

There have been ongoing discussions within the administration about potential steps, including sanctions.

It is widely assumed Xi will secure a historic third term in power during the Communist Party's 20th National Congress in Beijing this fall.

During such an important year, western experts believe Xi will be particularly mindful of the economic risks posed by secondary sanctions.

Trade between the European Union and China topped $1079 billion last year, and US-China trade was over $1012 billion, according to China's official data, while its trade with Russia was just under $2024 billion.

At the same time, China's economy is growing more slowly than it has in decades.

Ahead of their conversation, American officials made clear the stakes of the conversation.

"The ask is that China needs to stand on the right side of history," deputy secretary of state Wendy Sherman said.

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Peter Paul Rubens' 17th century masterpiece Portrait of a Lady has sold for the equivalent of $4.5 million at a Warsaw auction, becoming the most expensive artwork ever bought on the Polish art market, the auction house said.

The painting sold for 14.4 million zlotys, auction fee included, at an Old Masters auction Thursday night at the Desa Unicum.

It was the first painting by Rubens ever to appear on the Polish market. It was put on sale by a British citizen.

READ MORE: China weighs exit from 'zero COVID' and the risks involved

Prior to the auction, the value of the Flemish master's oil-on-canvas portrait of a dark-haired woman in a rich black velvet dress had been estimated at between 18 million and 24 million zlotys ($5.7 million-$ 7.6 million).

Experts say the work, painted by Rubens around 1620-25, with involvement from his Antwerp workshop, could be a likeness of the painter's first wife, Isabella Brant, or of a member of the Duarte family of jewellers, who were Rubens' neighbours.

The model could also possibly have come from the Spanish royal court.

In the past the painting has belonged, among others, to 17th-century British painter Sir Peter Lely. It was last shown in public in 1965.

Samoa will go into lockdown from Saturday as it faces its first outbreak of COVID-19 after a woman who was about to leave the country tested positive.

Although health authorities have so far found just a single case, it is the first time Samoa has found any unexplained cases in the community and likely points to an undetected outbreak that has been going on for days or even weeks.

A government report leaked online indicates the woman had visited church services, a hospital, stores, a library and a travel agency since first feeling ill last Saturday.

READ MORE: 'Door-knock' COVID-19 testing to roll out across Perth

Samoa and several neighbouring Pacific island nations were among the last places on earth to avoid virus outbreaks.

But the more transmissible Omicron variant has changed the equation, and one by one the island nations have been succumbing to COVID-19.

Since the start of the year, Kiribati, Tonga, the Solomon Islands, the Cook Islands and American Samoa have all experienced their first big outbreaks.

John Fala, who runs a logistics company in Samoa, said it was inevitable that Samoa would eventually get the virus, a reality brought home for many when COVID-19 began spreading in nearby American Samoa.

"We've had two years to prepare," Fala said. "Now it's finally here. Of course, there is going to be a bit of scrambling."

From midnight Saturday, all schools will be closed, public gatherings will be banned, and all stores and other services will be shut down, except those considered essential. From midnight Friday, people were required to wear masks and use vaccination cards.

There were reports Friday of panic-buying ahead of the lockdown.

Fala, who is vaccinated, said his company is considered an essential service and he's frantically trying to navigate the new rules to keep it operating.

The lockdown is initially scheduled to last through midnight Tuesday although Fala expects it will be extended.

The father of three young children, Fala said his biggest concern is that unvaccinated children will catch the virus. He said the nation of 200,000 had good rates of inoculation among adults but had only just begun vaccinating children aged 5 to 11 in the past week or so.

About 65 per cent of all Samoans have had at least two doses of a coronavirus vaccine, according to Our World in Data.

Samoa's Prime Minister Fiame Naomi Mata'afa told people about the positive case in a special announcement to the nation late Thursday. She said the infected woman was in isolation and that her movements and contacts with people were being traced.

Mata'afa said officials wanted to do all they could to contain it from spreading rapidly.

"Although our country continues to traverse through these difficult times, let us continue to trust in the Lord," Mata'afa said in her announcement.

Samoa has had previous virus scares and lockdowns after returning plane passengers tested positive while isolating, but had managed to avoid any community outbreaks until now.

Micronesia, the Marshall Islands and Nauru are among the few remaining Pacific island nations to have avoided Omicron outbreaks.

Australians' chances of winning big in the Oz Lotto could become even slimmer as Tabcorp looks to restructure the weekly draw.

The company is proposing to add two additional numbers to the draw, changing the matrix for Oz Lotto from seven winning numbers drawn from 45 numbers to seven winning numbers drawn from 47 numbers.

An additional supplementary number is also planned to be introduced, which would increase the total supplementary numbers drawn to three.

READ MORE: 'You just have to sit and watch the horror unfold': Australian-based Ukrainians 'absolutely helpless'

The change will mean entrants' chance of winning division one would drop from 1 in 45,379,620 to 1 in 62,891,499.

The price of an Oz Lotto entry would also rise by 10 cents per game, on top of the commission set by the retailer.

However, the chance of winning any prize in the draw would increase – from 1 in 55 to 1 in 51.

The base offer for Oz Lotto would also increase from $2 million to $3 million.

The changes are subject to regulatory approval from all Australian states and territories, and have already been signed off in Victoria on March 16.

Australia's consumer watchdog will take Facebook owner Meta to court over the publishing of scam cryptocurrency investment ads that feature celebrity faces.

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) today instituted Federal Court proceedings against Meta, alleging they engaged in false, misleading or deceptive conduct by having the scams published on their Facebook platform.

The scam ads typically featured a high-profile Australian figure such as mining magnate Andrew "Twiggy" Forrest or TV personality David Koch.

READ MORE: Chilling word from Putin suggests war 'not going to plan'

When clicked, the ads would lead the user to a fake media article in which the public figure endorsed a money-making scheme, typically in cryptocurrency.

ACCC chair Rod Sims said the watchdog will allege in court that Meta was aware of the scam ads being placed on its platform and did not take sufficient steps to have them removed or stopped.

In some instances, the ads remained online even after the specific celebrity falsely named in them complained directly to Facebook.

"The essence of our case is that Meta is responsible for these ads that it publishes on its platform," Mr Sims said.

"It is a key part of Meta's business to enable advertisers to target users who are most likely to click on the link in an ad to visit the ad's landing page, using Facebook algorithms.

"Those visits to landing pages from ads generate substantial revenue for Facebook."

READ MORE: Why Russia is struggling against Ukraine

Mr Sims said the victims of the scams were twofold – both the people who lost money as a result of believing the ads and the public figures whose reputation was tarred having been associated with the ads.

"Apart from resulting in untold losses to consumers, these ads also damage the reputation of the public figures falsely associated with the ads. Meta failed to take sufficient steps to stop fake ads featuring public figures, even after those public figures reported to Meta that their name and image were being featured in celebrity endorsement cryptocurrency scam ads," Mr Sims said.

"In one shocking instance, we are aware of a consumer who lost more than $650,000 due to one of these scams being falsely advertised as an investment opportunity on Facebook. This is disgraceful."

The ACCC's proceedings come just weeks after Andrew "Twiggy" Forrest commenced his own criminal proceedings against Meta after having been implicated in one of the ads.

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The ACCC said while their case is similar to Mr Forrest's, and in some instances refers to similar advertisements, the case is "separate and concerns different questions of law".

In a statement provided to 9News.com.au, a spokesperson for Meta said Facebook intends to defend the proceedings and shares the view that scam ads should not be present.

"We don't want ads seeking to scam people out of money or mislead people on Facebook — they violate our policies and are not good for our community," the spokesperson said.

"We use technology to detect and block scam ads and work to get ahead of scammers' attempts to evade our detection systems. We've cooperated with the ACCC's investigation into this matter to date.

"We will review the recent filing by the ACCC and intend to defend the proceedings. We are unable to further comment on the detail of the case as it is before the Federal Court."