Category Archives: New South Wales

Albanese heckled at Canberra rally to end violence against women – as it happened

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Dai Le says funding for domestic violence prevention more important than a royal commission

Asked about social media platform Twitter and Elon Musk’s claims that efforts to ensure a video of a stabbing of an Assyrian priest be taken down globally would constitute a threat to “free speech”, Dai Le says supports the government’s effort but has concerns about potential overreach:

Honestly, how can we not stop images of violence?

What I think government needs to do is to get the funding and target that to communities. Communities are experiencing high domestic violence. Getting it implemented … ,making sure that we don’t alienate one group from another [is important].

It’s just not something people can take. It is very emotional for people and me as a person who escaped Vietnam and being a child who ran from the war, it’s very traumatic for me and very traumatic for people in my community.

I think that everybody, from my understanding, would like a two-state solution.

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Terrorism label puts multicultural communities ‘on edge’, independent MP Dai Le warns

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Police and intelligence agencies should consult with multicultural communities before designating an incident an act of terror, Fowler MP says

Authorities need to consult multicultural communities to ensure labelling violent crimes a terror act does not alienate people, an independent MP says.

Dai Le, who represents the western Sydney electorate of Fowler where a bishop was stabbed during a sermon, called for police to be culturally aware of what declaring a terrorism incident could do to a community.

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Two dead in separate stabbings in NSW

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Police are investigating after the deaths of a 16-year-old boy in Dubbo and a 28-year-old man in Sydney’s Quakers Hill

Two people have died after separate stabbings in New South Wales overnight.

Police are investigating the death of a man found with stab wounds in Sydney’s north-west, and the stabbing death of a teenager in the state’s west.

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Taylor Swift makes Arias history; Tucker Carlson and Clive Palmer to headline ‘Australian freedom conferences’ – as it happened

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As we reported, X has provided an update on its legal challenge against Australia’s eSafety commissioner, stating it had complied with a direction to remove content from the Wakeley church stabbing.

However, underneath the post from the platform’s global government affairs team (which we quoted in our previous post), the video is available to watch in a reply to the post, as of 7.45am AEST.

The eSafety Commissioner required X to remove posts containing a video of the attack on Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel, filmed by an innocent bystander. [The bishop] has expressed his desire for the video to remain online.

X believes it has complied with the notice issued by eSafety, and with Australian law, by restricting all the posts at issue in Australia.

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Sussan Ley ‘really disappointed’ with Elon Musk – as it happened

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Hundreds gather in Sydney for Anzac Day dawn service

AAP has the details on Sydney’s dawn service where hundreds of people – including veterans – gathered under a full moon and clear skies for a solemn service in the CBD.

You who have loved will remember the glow of their glad young years, as you stand today to salute them in silence, with pride and with tears.

The best thing about the ceremony this morning is to see the number of people that come early in the morning.

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Synthetic opioids: warning issued in NSW after nitazenes cause cluster of overdoses

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NSW Health investigating after powerful drugs detected in samples related to overdoses in Nepean Blue Mountains local health district

A cluster of 20 drug overdoses in New South Wales has prompted the state’s health department to issue a public warning about the danger of synthetic opioids, which are often substantially more powerful than heroin.

Called nitazenes, the drugs are often mixed into other substances such as MDMA and heroin without the user’s knowledge.

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Seven juveniles with alleged ‘violent extremist ideology’ arrested in Sydney counter-terror raids

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NSW police deputy commissioner says more than 400 police were involved in the raids

Seven juveniles have been arrested as part of extensive counter-terrorism raids across south-western Sydney, with police alleging they adhere to a “religiously motivated violent extremist ideology”.

New South Wales police said 13 search warrants were executed on Wednesday, leading to the arrest of seven “juveniles” including 15, 16 and 17-year-olds. Five others are assisting police with their inquiries.

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Sydney counter-terror raids – as it happened

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Inspired by similar protests in the United States, students from Sydney University established a protest on the quad in support of Palestine last night, stating they will remain until the uni cuts ties “with Israeli universities and weapons manufacturers”.

In the US, dozens of students have been arrested at pro-Palestine demonstrations at Yale University and New York University amid similar protests:

For six months now, we have watched bombs rain down on Gaza. These bombs hit their civilian targets because of the research carried out by universities like Sydney University... Students have a responsibility to stand up and refuse to be complicit in genocide.

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Molly Ticehurst: review ordered into court decisions made before Forbes woman’s alleged murder

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Chris Minns to announce details of review after court hears the man charged with her murder was on bail for other offences

The New South Wales government has ordered a review of the decisions a court made to bail a man facing charges of raping and stalking Molly Ticehurst, and who has subsequently been charged with her murder.

The premier, Chris Minns, said he would announce the details of the review on Wednesday after Daniel Billings was charged with the domestic violence murder of his 28-year-old ex-girlfriend.

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Beau Lamarre’s lawyer flags mental health defence to murder charges

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Outside court in Sydney, John Walford says he is ‘not sure’ how his client will plead to alleged murders of Jesse Baird and Luke Davies

The lawyer for former police officer and accused double murderer Beau Lamarre has suggested the charges could be defended on mental health grounds.

John Walford said on Tuesday the charges against his client – who is accused of murdering Jesse Baird, 26, and Luke Davies, 29 – could be defendable on mental health grounds.

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Man charged with domestic murder of Forbes woman Molly Ticehurst was on bail for other offences

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Queenslander Daniel Billings was on bail for earlier charges including stalking and cruelty before arrest for alleged murder, NSW court hears

A man accused of murdering his ex-girlfriend in regional New South Wales while on bail for rape and stalking charges against her will remain behind bars.

Daniel Billings has been charged with the domestic violence murder of Molly Ticehurst, 28, whose body was found in a Forbes homes in the early hours of Monday.

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Senator’s X account removed – as it happened

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Anglicare says government spending eight times more on private investors than building housing itself

The Anglicare Australia executive director, Kasy Chambers, says the government must step up and intervene, instead of leaving housing to the private sector:

We found that the government spends eight times as much propping up private investors as it does on building housing itself. This approach is wrong, and it’s supercharging rents and house prices.

Housing cannot be left to hobby landlords and private developers. Only our government can ensure that rentals are affordable by building homes itself, and by fixing Australia’s unfair tax system.

289 rentals (0.6%) were affordable for a person earning a full-time minimum wage.

89 rentals (0.2%) were affordable for a person on the age pension.

31 rentals (0.1%) were affordable for a person on the disability support pension.

3 rentals (0%) were affordable for a person on jobseeker.

0 rentals (0%) were affordable for a person on youth allowance.

This is not hyperbole. It is Australia’s new normal.

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Sydney church riot: images of 12 men released as police look for up to 50 people

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Four men have been charged and police are searching for more after violence outside the Assyrian Christ the Good Shepherd church in Wakeley following the stabbing of Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel

Multiple men allegedly captured on video outside a western Sydney church are among 50 people police are seeking after a riot which injured dozens of officers.

Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel and Father Isaac Royel were stabbed during a livestreamed sermon at the Assyrian Christ the Good Shepherd church in Wakeley last week.

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Driver in ‘highly disordered mental state’ slammed into Sydney home and killed sleeping occupant, court told

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Batoul Sleibi El Dirani sped into home of Robyn Oxley, throwing her out of bed and through her back window, court hears

A woman was in a “highly disordered mental state” when fleeing the scene of an accident after her speeding SUV slammed into a western Sydney home, killing the occupant, a court has heard.

Robyn Oxley was asleep in her St Marys residence when a Jeep Grand Cherokee driven by Batoul Sleibi El Dirani barrelled through the front of the home on 8 October 2022.

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Man dead and several injured after car crashes into bus following police pursuit near Dubbo

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Police attempted to stop the vehicle but a short time later it hit the bus on the Mitchell Highway

A man has died and multiple people have been injured in a crash between a car and bus near Dubbo in the central west of New South Wales.

Police said they had launched a critical incident investigation into the crash, which occurred on the Mitchell Highway on Saturday morning.

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Second person charged with rioting outside Sydney church after bishop stabbing

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Man charged over alleged involvement in incidents outside Assyrian Christ the Good Shepherd church in Wakeley

A second person has been charged with rioting outside a Sydney church after the stabbing of bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel on Monday.

A man from Fairfield Heights in western Sydney was charged on Friday with riot and “threaten violence, cause fear” after he was allegedly involved in wild scenes outside the Assyrian Christ the Good Shepherd church on Monday night.

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NSW Liberal party expels state MP Taylor Martin over ‘undignified’ breakup texts

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Upper house member had been suspended from the party room after allegedly sending messages with ‘heated words’ to former girlfriend

The New South Wales Liberal party has expelled state MP Taylor Martin as a result of an investigation into text messages he sent to a woman with whom he was in a relationship.

Martin, who has been a member of the NSW upper house since 2017, has sat outside the Liberal party room since July last year after the party launched the investigation.

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‘A lot of stories that will now go untold’: outback NSW newspaper closes after almost 130 years

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Broken Hill’s only newspaper, The Barrier Truth, closes due to cashflow problems, with staffer saying loss is ‘really sad for the community’

Broken Hill’s only newspaper has closed after almost 130 years of operation in a major blow to the outback NSW community.

The Barrier Truth’s board told staff the union-run bi-weekly paper would shut down as its final edition went to press.

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Australia news live: Dfat issues Middle East travel advice; Nationals concerned after fire ants spotted near Murray Darling Basin

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Reports of explosions in Iranian city of Isfahan prompt sell-off of stocks in Australia – and in other markets such as Japan. Follow the day’s news live

The NSW police commissioner, Karen Webb, is speaking to the media after a 16-year-old was charged with a “terrorist act” for allegedly stabbing a bishop on Monday and is expected to appear at a bedside hearing today.

She said members of the joint counter-terrorism team interviewed the alleged offender at a medical facility last night, and he was subsequently charged with a commonwealth offence for terrorism and refused bail.

We expect he will be attending a bedside court hearing today to determine bail. This relates to the stabbing of the Bishop [Mar Mari Emmanuel, who] we allege on Monday night [was] stabbed up to six times.

We also allege that the boy had travelled for 90 minutes to attend that location from his home address.

We’ve got a crisis of male violence in Australia. We know that it’s a scourge in our society, we know it must end and I think it’s really clear women can’t be expected to solve violence against women although it is time for men to step up.

I don’t think debating definitions is the way to go … We need to act, we need to educate ourselves, men need to step up, we need to talk to our sons, to our colleagues, to our friends. We need to work together to a solution. And I think going down some kind of almost a wrong path to say let’s redefine – it’s not about definitions. This is about action. We need to shift the way in which we think about this …

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Teenager accused of Sydney church stabbing has history of behaviour consistent with mental illness, court hears

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Police have charged 16-year-old boy with terrorism offence over stabbing of bishop at church in Sydney suburb of Wakeley

A teenage boy facing a possible life term in prison for terrorism over the stabbing of a bishop has shown behaviour consistent with mental illness or intellectual disability, his lawyer has said.

The 16-year-old is accused of travelling 90 minutes from his home to attack Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel during a livestreamed sermon at Christ the Good Shepherd Church in Wakeley, Sydney, on Monday night.

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