Share of wealth held by Australia’s poorest falls by almost 30% since 2004 – report

Study by Monash University recommends spending increase to fix inequalities in housing, health and education

The wealth held by Australia’s bottom 40% has declined by almost a third in two decades while 3.3m live below the poverty line, a damning report into Australia’s track record on quality of life shows.

Monash University’s third Transforming Australia report, released Thursday, shows progress on more than half of the 80 indicators has stalled or is in freefall, painting a deteriorating picture of the country’s social, economic and environmental wellbeing.

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Russian defense spending overtakes Europe, study finds – POLITICO Europe

  1. Russian defense spending overtakes Europe, study finds  POLITICO Europe
  2. Russian defence spending exceeds all of Europe combined, study finds  Financial Times
  3. Russia overtakes all of Europe on defense spending in key metric: IISS military balance  Breaking Defense
  4. Trump announces first meeting with Putin to take place in Saudi Arabia.  Kyiv Independent
  5. The Military Balance 2025  International Institute for Strategic Studies
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South Sudan’s deputy president threatens to leave fragile peace agreement over fired officials – ABC News

  1. South Sudan's deputy president threatens to leave fragile peace agreement over fired officials  ABC News
  2. South Sudan president sacks top leaders and spy chief  BBC.com
  3. Opinion | Kiir’s decrees: A soft coup with major implications  Radio Tamazuj
  4. South Sudan's Kiir replaces two vice-presidents, spy chief  Reuters
  5. Daybreak Africa: South Sudan’s President Kiir sacks spy chief, promotes ally  VOA Africa
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Israel and Hamas Are Teetering Toward War – The Wall Street Journal

  1. Israel and Hamas Are Teetering Toward War  The Wall Street Journal
  2. Israeli Hostages’ Accounts of Abuse Raise Alarms for Remaining Captives  The New York Times
  3. Hamas to resume hostage release deal as previously agreed - report  The Jerusalem Post
  4. Relatives of Israeli hostages are terrified as the Gaza ceasefire teeters  The Associated Press
  5. Rubio: Israel can’t allow Hamas to use the ceasefire to rebuild itself  The Times of Israel
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Russia will not exchange Ukrainian land to reclaim parts of Kursk, Kremlin says

Putin’s spokesperson rejects Zelenskyy’s plan for transfer of Kyiv-held pockets of Kursk to help end war

The Kremlin has said that Russia will never consider exchanging occupied Ukrainian land for parts of its Kursk region, dismissing a proposal outlined by Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Guardian.

Zelenskyy revealed in an hour-long interview earlier this week that he intended to propose a straightforward territorial exchange with Russia to facilitate an end to the war, including the transfer of Ukrainian-held pockets of Kursk.

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Flight costs from France to rise as government more than doubles air tax

‘Solidarity tax’ to go up in move criticised as ‘irresponsible’ by Air France, as Ryanair threatens to cut flights in country

The cost of flights from France will rise next month when the government more than doubles its “solidarity tax” on tickets.

The French government has said the increases are fair on ecological and fiscal grounds but critics say it will hit France’s ability to compete globally.

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Only One Big Economy Is Aiming for Paris Agreement’s 1.5C Goal – Slashdot

  1. Only One Big Economy Is Aiming for Paris Agreement's 1.5C Goal  Slashdot
  2. Most of the world’s big polluters just blew off a major climate deadline  The Washington Post
  3. ‘Backsliding’: most countries to miss vital climate deadline as Cop30 nears  The Guardian
  4. Most countries miss UN deadline for new climate targets  Reuters
  5. Only One Big Economy Is Aiming for Paris Agreement’s 1.5C Goal  Bloomberg
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Philippines storm survivors join climate protest outside Shell HQ in London

Greenpeace protest draws attention to worsening typhoons and demands accountability from major polluters

For two days and two nights, Ronalyn Carbonel and her four children clung to the roof of their home as a huge storm raged around them. With the wind battering her village of Rizal, about 10 miles east of Manila in the Philippines, and water swirling through the rooms below them, they had no choice but to wait, hoping that someone would come to rescue them and hundreds of their neighbours.

“We did not have shelter, we did not have food … we just had to wait for the government for two days,” Carbonel said. “It is not easy, no electricity, no light, we just wait for the sun to rise. The children were scared, we had never experienced anything like this.”

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Gang violence sparked by ‘love triangle’ led to Cassius Turvey killing, court told

Four adults accused of murdering the 15-year-old in Perth after becoming involved in a dispute between two teenage boys over a girl

The girl at the centre of the “love triangle” that allegedly led to the death of Cassius Turvey in a Perth suburb has taken the stand at his murder trial.

The 15-year-old Noongar Yamatji boy died in hospital 10 days after he was “caught, knocked to the ground and deliberately struck to the head with a metal pole” in Perth’s eastern suburbs on October 13, 2022.

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Canada and Mexico tariffs risk inflating US housing crisis, Trump is warned

Exclusive: Dozens of congressional Democrats urge president to reconsider threatened import duties on US’s two largest trading partners

Pressing ahead with steep tariffs on Canada and Mexico risks exacerbating the US housing crisis and threatening the broader economy, dozens of congressional Democrats have warned Donald Trump.

The US president, after threatening to hit imports from the US’s two biggest trading partners with a 25% tax, is weighing how to proceed after approving a one-month delay.

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US sanctions strand Iran, Russia oil on tankers, driving up crude costs – Reuters

  1. US sanctions strand Iran, Russia oil on tankers, driving up crude costs  Reuters
  2. China Offered Cheaper Russian Oil as Sanctions Fallout Persists  Bloomberg
  3. Chinese refiners offered discounted Russian oil as US sanctions deter buyers, Bloomberg reports  Kyiv Independent
  4. Russia's Sakhalin has nowhere to store unsold Russian oil  Ukrainska Pravda
  5. What is Russia’s ‘shadow fleet,’ and why does it worry Europe?  The Christian Science Monitor
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One killed in ballistic missile attack on Kyiv, Ukraine says – BBC.com

  1. One killed in ballistic missile attack on Kyiv, Ukraine says  BBC.com
  2. Russia-Ukraine war: List of key events – day 1,085  Al Jazeera English
  3. Ukraine Says Russian Missiles Hit Kyiv Before Bessent Visit  Bloomberg
  4. Ukraine latest: Trump invites Putin to US after 90-minute call about 'ending war'  Sky News
  5. Russia launches deadly attack on Ukraine's capital Kyiv, rules out swapping occupied territory  CBS News
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