China sanctions former Filipino lawmaker who defended Philippines’ South China Sea claims – AP News

  1. China sanctions former Filipino lawmaker who defended Philippines' South China Sea claims  AP News
  2. China sanctions former Philippine senator on maritime claims  Reuters
  3. Beijing sanctions South China Sea legal claim architect Francis Tolentino  South China Morning Post
  4. China Philippines Sanction  New Castle News
  5. China Sanctions Former Philippine Senator as Tensions Swell  Yahoo Finance
Posted in Uncategorized

74 killed in Gaza as Israeli forces strike a cafe and fire on people seeking food – NPR

  1. 74 killed in Gaza as Israeli forces strike a cafe and fire on people seeking food  NPR
  2. LIVE: Over 600 starving Palestinians killed in 5 weeks at GHF sites in Gaza  Al Jazeera
  3. 24 said killed in strike on Gaza City cafe; troops dismantle 3-km tunnel network  The Times of Israel
  4. Israel accused of killing dozens in stepped-up Gaza operations as Trump hopes for a ceasefire in days  CBS News
  5. Israel strikes pound Gaza, killing 60, ahead of US talks on ceasefire  Reuters
Posted in Uncategorized

Australia news live: some Central Coast residents told ‘evacuate now’ amid coastal erosion threat; children’s commissioner says child safety ‘not a priority in this country’

NSW braces for damaging winds and heavy rain from coastal low. Follow the latest updates live

Gas market review will ‘drive efficiencies in the system’, King says

The resources minister, Madeleine King, says a review into gas market regulations will drive efficiencies into the system.

Our existing policy has made sure that that gas is available. So that’s that combination of existing policies brings in that extra 600 petajoules. So indeed, that work is already happening.

What we’re trying to do and will endeavour to do, and the industry is very supportive of, is to make that more coherent, and how we can make sure we learn from the whole system, reduce duplication in some of the regulation, some of the reporting factors, simply how we can make it work better for consumers, for industrial users, and for the Gas industry itself. And that drives efficiencies in the system, which we expect will help with pricing.

We were honest with the public from day one: the toll situation would get worse before it got better. That’s the reality of the infrastructure pipeline locked in by our predecessors.

And now, the most recent NSW Budget reflects that – with toll revenue projected to rise from $180m to $283m in the 2028–29 financial year.

Continue reading...

Death toll rises to 36 after explosion at a pharmaceutical factory in southern India – AP News

  1. Death toll rises to 36 after explosion at a pharmaceutical factory in southern India  AP News
  2. Explosion at Indian Pharmaceutical Factory Kills 36  The New York Times
  3. At least 39 killed in fire at Indian pharmaceutical factory  CNN
  4. India: Death toll in Sigachi Industries fire rises to 34  BBC
  5. At Least 36 Dead and Dozens More Injured Following Pharmaceutical Factory Explosion: ‘Bodies Were Badly Burnt’  Yahoo
Posted in Uncategorized

Women and babies could die due to midwife cuts at Sydney’s RPA hospital, staff warn

Midwives’ union president warns women giving birth at one of the city’s largest hospitals will not receive a level of care considered safe

Midwives at one of Sydney’s largest hospitals have warned women and babies could die in light of cuts to the number of midwives staff deployed across the birth and delivery unit.

Hospital staff say 20 full-time equivalent roles have been removed from across the women and babies service at Royal Prince Alfred (RPA) hospital in Camperdown, including five from the midwifery group practice (MGP), effective from Tuesday.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

India: Death toll in Sigachi Industries fire rises to 34 – BBC

  1. India: Death toll in Sigachi Industries fire rises to 34  BBC
  2. Explosion at Indian Pharmaceutical Factory Kills 36  The New York Times
  3. At least 39 killed in fire at Indian pharmaceutical factory  CNN
  4. At Least 36 Dead and Dozens More Injured Following Pharmaceutical Factory Explosion: ‘Bodies Were Badly Burnt’  People.com
  5. Telangana Pharma Blast: Death Toll in Sigachi Plant Explosion Rises to 35; CM visits spot  Deccan Herald
Posted in Uncategorized

Fewer pupils in less affluent English schools taking languages, survey finds

Less than half taking foreign languages GCSEs compared with 69% in most prosperous state schools

Ministers must make access to language learning a national priority, experts have said, after research showed that children from more deprived areas of England are disproportionately denied the chance to learn a foreign tongue.

This year’s Language Trends report by the British Council surveyed 1,000 primary, secondary and independent schools and found that the proportion of pupils studying a modern language GCSE in less affluent English state schools was 38% lower than in the most affluent and 12% lower than the average.

Continue reading...

Tuesday briefing: How weakened is Iran after Operation Midnight Hammer – and where might it go from here?

In today’s newsletter: With its nuclear capabilities down but not out and domestic support strong, the question is where Iran goes next

Good morning. The term “cakeism” – the false belief that one can simultaneously enjoy the benefits of two mutually exclusive choices – may forever be associated with the Brexit negotiations, when keeping the advantages of EU membership while also shedding its costs became the UK’s official bargaining position.

But the appeal of cakeism endures, and over the last week the US president’s approach to the conflict with Iran has started to look distinctly gateau-shaped. Donald Trump wants the glory of a decisive victory on the battlefield but is not so keen on the long-term repercussions that come with it: tit-for-tat retaliations, unforeseeable conflict spillage, focused diplomacy, or even regime change – the kind of talk the Maga movement associates with Trump’s predecessors.

Welfare | Downing Street’s plans to see off a major Labour welfare rebellion were in chaos on Monday night, amid continued brinkmanship between MPs and the government over the scale of the concessions. There was significant division between government departments over how to respond to rebels’ demands ahead of the knife-edge vote on Tuesday.

UK news | Police have formally opened a criminal investigation into comments made by Bob Vylan and Kneecap at Glastonbury after reviewing video and audio footage of the performances. Meanwhile on Monday, the BBC said that it should not have allowed chants of “Death to the IDF” at Bob Vylan’s performance to be broadcast.

Crown Estate | King Charles is set to receive official annual income of £132m next year, after his portfolio of land and property made more than £1bn in profits thanks to a boom in the offshore wind sector.

Arms trade | Britain’s decision to allow the export of F-35 fighter jet components to Israel, despite accepting they could be used in breach of international humanitarian law in Gaza, was lawful, London’s high court has ruled. The judges ruled that the “acutely sensitive and political issue” was “a matter for the executive … not for the courts”.

Crime | A 92-year-old man who evaded justice for almost 60 years has been convicted of raping and murdering a woman in Bristol, after a review by a cold case police team and scientists. Officers believe the 58-year gap between the crime and the conviction may be the biggest in modern English policing history.

Continue reading...

‘Shock to creative ecology’: NSW regional art galleries face funding crisis after state pulls financial support

Peak arts bodies urge review of decision that jeopardises institutions which are the ‘lifeblood’ of regional Australian cultural life

Three out of four regional public art galleries in New South Wales are facing a funding crisis after the state government pulled its financial support as a result of a massive restructure of its cultural funding arm, Create NSW.

Wagga Wagga, Orange, Armidale, Broken Hill and Tamworth are among 18 regional centres in NSW with major public art galleries that will no longer receive four-year funding from the state government, worth between about $70,000 and $200,000 a year.

Sign up for the fun stuff with our rundown of must-reads, pop culture and tips for the weekend, every Saturday morning

Continue reading...

Federal court orders Sydney Muslim cleric to remove ‘racist and antisemitic’ lectures from social media

Wissam Haddad was sued by two members of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry over lectures in 2023 recorded in Bankstown

A Sydney Muslim cleric has been ordered by the federal court to take down a series of fundamentally racist and antisemitic speeches posted online, and instructed by a judge not to make similar addresses again.

But Justice Angus Stewart ruled other criticisms of the state of Israel and its military did not breach the Racial Discrimination Act, finding it is not inherently antisemitic to criticise Israel.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

Nato forces showcase naval support for Ukraine off Dorset coast – BBC

  1. Nato forces showcase naval support for Ukraine off Dorset coast  BBC
  2. Multi-National Mine Countermeasure Exercise Sea Breeze Begins In England  USNI News
  3. Mariupol and Melitopol Minesweepers Make Their Debut at Sea Breeze Exercises  Мілітарний
  4. Ukrainian Navy’s Newest Minehunters Join Sea Breeze 2025 NATO Drills in the UK  UNITED24 Media
  5. Why huge Ukrainian warship is at Portand Port  Dorset Echo
Posted in Uncategorized

Israeli, US-backed Gaza aid group must end, say 130 charities – BBC

  1. Israeli, US-backed Gaza aid group must end, say 130 charities  BBC
  2. Charities and humanitarian groups press for end to Israeli-backed aid group in Gaza  AP News
  3. Israel acknowledges Palestinian civilians harmed at Gaza aid sites, says 'lessons learned'  Reuters
  4. Israeli military investigates 'reports of harm to civilians' after hundreds killed near Gaza aid sites  BBC
  5. “Trying to Find Food Is a Death Sentence”: Palestinian Writer Muhammad Shehada on Gaza Aid Massacres  Democracy Now!
Posted in Uncategorized

‘Smoke and confusion’: exhibition points out Jane Austen’s true thoughts on Bath

Georgian city is not shy of milking its links with the author, but actually she was not happy during her time there

The city of Bath does not fight shy of promoting its Jane Austen connections, tempting in visitors from around the world by organising tours, balls, afternoon teas and writing and embroidery workshops inspired by the author. If you have the inclination, you can buy souvenirs ranging from Jane Austen Top Trumps to a Mr Darcy rubber duck.

But in this, the 250th anniversary year of her birth, an exhibition is being launched daring to point out that in truth Austen wasn’t terribly happy during the five years she lived in the city.

Continue reading...

NSW weather: Sydney and south coast residents warned to ‘stay indoors’ as vigorous coastal low batters state

Emergency services minister says ‘it may seem pretty bad [now] but the situation is going to worsen’ overnight with damaging rain and winds

Destructive winds and heavy rain are hitting large swathes of the New South Wales coast with authorities warning the situation will deteriorate over the next 24 hours.

Some areas received a month’s worth of rain in one day while others recorded winds above 100km/h as a vigorous coastal low continued to intensify on Tuesday afternoon.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...