Feeling heat from Trump to ‘solve’ Gaza, Arab states losing patience with PA’s Abbas – The Times of Israel

Posted on by
  1. Feeling heat from Trump to ‘solve’ Gaza, Arab states losing patience with PA’s Abbas  The Times of Israel
  2. Real problem with the Palestinians: Nobody wants them  Washington Times
  3. Trump's "Favorite Dictator" Sends Warning over his Gaza Plan  Newsweek
  4. Egypt rejects proposals to displace Palestinians  Reuters
  5. Arab countries will give Trump a plan for Gaza ‘within weeks,’ Jordanian official sources say  CNN
Posted in Uncategorized

Creative Australia boss forced to refute rumour he had resigned as fallout over Khaled Sabsabi dumping continues

Posted on by

Adrian Collette sends all-staff email denying that he and the chair of Creative Australia’s board had quit amid calls for resignations

The beleaguered CEO of Creative Australia, Adrian Collette, has quashed rumours that emerged overnight that he and the chair of the body’s board, Robert Morgan, had resigned.

“There is a rumour circulating on social media that Robert Morgan and I have resigned,” said his email to all staff of the government arts funding organisation, sent just after 8.30am on Friday.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

Cyclone Alfred threat eases as BoM says it is now less likely to cross Queensland coast

Posted on by

Alfred is creating hazardous weather conditions from Townsville south to K’Gari, with gale force winds forecast on the Great Barrier Reef and dangerous surf between Yeppoon and Hervey Bay

Tropical Cyclone Alfred is becoming less likely to make landfall on the Queensland coast after it briefly intensified to a category four.

Alfred briefly strengthened to a category four overnight but has since been downgraded back to a category three.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

Australian politicians unworried by Trump’s ‘what does that mean?’ response to Aukus question

Posted on by

US president was questioned about defence deal during meeting with UK prime minister Keir Starmer

Australian politicians have played down a slip from Donald Trump, who initially failed to understand a question about Aukus posed by a British reporter.

The US president was questioned about the Australia-UK-US defence deal during a meeting with the British prime minister, Keir Starmer, in the Oval Office.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

No reason for China to apologise to Australia for live-fire drills, ambassador says

Posted on by

Xiao Qian says exercises in Tasman Sea posed ‘no threat’ to Australia as previously unreported communications between pilots and air traffic controllers show confusion over drills

China doesn’t even need to “think” about apologising over the way it notified Australia about live-fire naval drills off the Australian coast, the country’s ambassador says.

Xiao Qian told the ABC the drills last Friday and Saturday posed “no threat” to Australia and were “a normal kind of practice for many navies in the world”.

He said the notification of the drills had followed normal international practice, despite Australian authorities first becoming aware of them after they began, from a passing Virgin pilot.

Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email

Continue reading...

Jeffrey Epstein: more files released related to late sex offender and financier

Posted on by

Attorney general had indicated justice department would release files related to Epstein, who died by suicide in 2019

The US justice department has released additional files related to the late disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The justice department gave a statement on Thursday evening, saying the release largely contained documents that had been “previously leaked but never released in a formal capacity by the US government”.

Continue reading...

HS2 ‘a casebook example of how not to run a major project’, MPs say

Posted on by

Scathing committee report lambasts DfT and HS2 for failing to work together effectively

HS2 has become “a casebook example of how not to run a major project”, according to the latest scathing report on the high-speed rail line from MPs on the public accounts committee (PAC).

The PAC lambasted the Department for Transport (DfT) and HS2 Ltd for failing to work together effectively, and told them not to waste the opportunity to get a grip on costs during the project’s latest “reset”.

Continue reading...

Global democracy score hits historic low: report – Axios

Posted on by
  1. Global democracy score hits historic low: report  Axios
  2. The global democracy index: how did countries perform in 2024?  The Economist
  3. Column | In the age of Trump, global authoritarianism continues its advance  The Washington Post
  4. Pakistan slides six spots in 2024 democracy ranking: report  DAWN.com
  5. Just 6% of the world’s population live in a full democracy, new report claims  The Independent
Posted in Uncategorized

Morocco urges people to not buy sheep for Eid al-Adha celebrations – The Associated Press

Posted on by
  1. Morocco urges people to not buy sheep for Eid al-Adha celebrations  The Associated Press
  2. Drought-hit Morocco asks citizens not to slaughter sheep on Eid al-Adha  CNN
  3. Moroccan king urges citizens to refrain from sacrificing animals during Eid  FRANCE 24 English
  4. King asks Moroccans not to kill sheep for Eid al-Adha as drought reduces herds  The Guardian
  5. Morocco Cancels Eid Al Adha Due to Drought  Morocco World News
Posted in Uncategorized

Trump Aide Reportedly Threatens to Redraw U.S.-Canada Border – The Daily Beast

Posted on by
  1. Trump Aide Reportedly Threatens to Redraw U.S.-Canada Border  The Daily Beast
  2. White House official threatens to redraw Canadian border  Yahoo
  3. FIRST READING: What Canada actually contributes to the 'Five Eyes' intelligence alliance  National Post
  4. Plot to kick Canada out of Five Eyes is false, says Trump aide  The Telegraph
  5. Trump's Spat With Canada Escalates  Newsweek
Posted in Uncategorized

Mexico releases 29 high-level organized crime operatives into US custody

Posted on by

Prisoners, including Rafael Caro Quintero, extradited as Mexico faces pressure to show it’s tackling fentanyl trafficking

Mexico has extradited 29 high-level organised crime operatives to the US, as it faces intense pressure from the Trump administration to show that it is tackling fentanyl trafficking.

Among the prisoners sent to the US was Rafael Caro Quintero, the drug lord who was convicted of the murder of an undercover US Drug Enforcement Administration agent in 1985.

Continue reading...