WA news LIVE: Man arrested for pushing Perth flight attendant
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9.33am
Man arrested for pushing Perth flight attendant
The 59-year-old man will front court today, accused of assaulting an airline crew member at Perth Airport two weeks ago.
The Australian Federal Police alleged the Queensland man refused a crew member's instruction to take his seat as a flight to Brisbane was preparing for departure because he wanted to use the bathroom.
The man then allegedly pushed the crew member, and the incident was reported to the flight captain, who requested the AFP attend the gate and remove the man from the plane.
AFP officers removed the man – who was allegedly uncooperative with police – from the plane and he was charged with one count of assaulting a crew member.
9.33am
Across the nation and around the world
Here's what's making news across the country and around the world:
Opposition Leader Sussan Ley is under threat from an emerging populist bloc on her party's right flank, threatening splinters on its contentious net zero emissions pledge, woke culture and immigration as MPs fear a further slump in the polls.
The incoming chief of US Navy operations has warned the US will not be able to fulfil its AUKUS obligations without doubling its submarine-building capacity, in a fresh sign of the doubts over whether the agreement can be honoured.
The US president has called on Israel to speed up the flow of food to Gaza and set a new timeframe for Russia to end the war in Ukraine, intensifying his demands on both global flashpoints.
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Today's weather
9.32am
Welcome to our live news blog
Good morning readers, and welcome to our live news blog for Tuesday, July 29.
Making headlines today, a community group lobbying for an end to plans for a $217 million racetrack and amphitheatre on the Burswood peninsula has hit back at claims the development would be a boon to the local economy, pointing to similar developments in other states they say proved the opposite.
'As the Cook government moves to invest hundreds of millions of dollars to host a V8 Supercars event in Burswood Park, we must learn from the hard lessons of other cities,' Save Burswood Park Alliance co-chair Robin Harvey said.
Meanwhile, the trial of accused fraudster Chris Marco
He is accused of creating an 'entire make-believe' suite of invite-only investment opportunities to defraud his clients of $36.5 million.
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The Australian
2 hours ago
- The Australian
Terrified by Trump raids, LA's undocument migrants hide at home
For over a month, Alberto has hardly dared to leave the small room he rents in someone's backyard for fear of encountering the masked police who have been rounding up immigrants in Los Angeles. "It's terrible," sighed the 60-year-old Salvadoran, who does not have a US visa. "It's a confinement I wouldn't wish upon anyone." To survive, Alberto -- AFP agreed to use a pseudonym -- relies on an organization that delivers food to him twice a week. "It helps me a lot, because if I don't have this... how will I eat?" said Alberto, who has not been to his job at a car wash for weeks. The sudden intensification of immigration enforcement activity in Los Angeles in early June saw scores of people -- mostly Latinos -- arrested at car washes, hardware stores, on farms and even in the street. Videos circulating on social media showed masked and heavily armed men pouncing on people who they claimed were hardened criminals. However, critics of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) sweeps say those snatched were only trying to earn a meagre wage in jobs that many Americans don't want to do. The raids -- slammed as brutal and seemingly arbitrary -- sparked a wave of demonstrations that gripped the city for weeks, including some that spiraled into violence and vandalism. Alberto decided to hole up in his room after one such raid on a car wash in which some of his friends were arrested, and subsequently deported. Despite being pre-diabetic, he is hesitant to attend an upcoming medical appointment. His only breath of fresh air is pacing the private alley in front of his home. "I'm very stressed. I have headaches and body pain because I was used to working," he said. In 15 years in the United States, Trump's second term has turned out to be "worse than anything" for him. - 'Ghost town' - Trump's immigration offensive was a major feature of his re-election campaign, even winning the favor of some voters in liberal Los Angeles. But its ferocity, in a place that is home to hundreds of thousands of undocumented workers, has taken the city by surprise. Faced with mounting raids, migrants are limiting their movement as much as possible. In June, the use of the public transportation system -- a key network for the city's poorer residents -- dropped by 13.5 percent compared to the previous month. "As you're driving through certain neighborhoods, it looks like a ghost town sometimes," said Norma Fajardo, from the CLEAN Carwash Worker Center, a non-profit organization that supports these workers. It has joined forces with other groups to deliver hundreds of bags of food every week to those afraid to step outside. "There is a huge need for this," said the 37-year-old American. "It's very saddening and infuriating. Workers should be able to go to work and not fear getting kidnapped." In June, ICE agents arrested over 2,200 people in the Los Angeles area, according to internal documents analyzed by AFP. About 60 percent of them had no criminal record. Given the colossal resources recently allocated to ICE by Congress -- nearly $30 billion to bolster immigration enforcement, including funding to recruit 10,000 additional agents -- Fajardo says she is not expecting any let up. - 'New normal' - "It seems like this is the new normal," she sighed. "When we first heard of an ICE raid at a car wash, we were in emergency crisis mode. Now we are just really accepting that we need to plan for the long term." Food assistance has also become essential for Marisol, a Honduran woman who has been confined to her building for weeks with 12 family members. "We constantly thank God (for the food deliveries) because this has been a huge relief," says the 62-year-old Catholic, who has not attended Mass in weeks. Marisol -- not her real name -- has hung up curtains on the windows at her home entrance to block any view from outside. She forbids her grandchildren from opening the door and worries enormously when her daughters venture out to work a few hours to provide for the family's needs. "Every time they go out, I pray to God that they come back, because you never know what might happen," she said. Marisol and her family fled a Honduran crime gang 15 years ago because they wanted to forcibly recruit her children. Now, some of them wonder if it's worth continuing to live in the United States. "My sons have already said to me: 'Mom, sometimes I would prefer to go to Europe.'" rfo/hg/aks


The Advertiser
6 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Lax Aussies making themselves easy spy targets: ASIO
Australia's intelligence boss has warned that people who boast about their access to sensitive information are openly painting themselves as targets for foreign spying operations. ASIO director-general Mike Burgess revealed details of multiple espionage operations as he used a keynote speech to warn officials, businesses and the general public about interference threats and the impact of lax security. Russian spies were deported in 2022 after an ASIO investigation found they were "recruiting proxies and agents to obtain sensitive information, and employing sophisticated tradecraft to disguise their activities", he said on Thursday. Russia, China and Iran were singled out as adversaries but "you would be genuinely shocked by the number and names of countries trying to steal our secrets", he said at the annual Hawke lecture at the University of South Australia. ASIO, the nation's domestic intelligence agency, disrupted 24 major espionage and foreign interference operations in the last three years, more than the previous eight years combined. Mr Burgess said spies used a security clearance-holder to obtain information about trade negotiations and convinced one state bureaucrat to log into a database to obtain details of people a foreign regime considered dissidents. The director-general also detailed how a foreign intelligence service ordered spies to apply for Australian government jobs, including at national security institutions, to access classified information. Another example included a visiting academic linked to a foreign government breaking into a restricted lab with sensitive technology and filming inside, he said. "They are just the tip of an espionage iceberg," Mr Burgess said. Foreign companies tied to intelligence services had also tried to access private data, buy land near military sites and collaborate with researchers developing sensitive technology. "In recent years, for example, defence employees travelling overseas have been subjected to covert room searches, been approached at conferences by spies in disguise and given gifts containing surveillance devices," Mr Burgess added. Hackers had also broken into the network of a peak industry body to steal sensitive information about exports and foreign investment, as well as into a law firm to take information about government-related cases, he said. The director-general chided people who held security clearances or who had access to classified information openly promoting themselves on social media, making it easier for them to be targeted by foreign agents. More than 35,000 Australians indicated they had access to classified or private information on a single professional networking site, he said, adding 7000 referred to working in the defence sector and critical technologies. Nearly 2500 boasted about having a security clearance, he said. "All too often we make it all too easy," he said. Almost 400 people explicitly said they worked on the AUKUS project, under which Australia will acquire nuclear-powered submarines as the keystone of its military power. Mr Burgess put the cost of espionage - including the theft of intellectual property resulting in lost revenue and responding to incidents - at $12.5 billion in 2023/24. This included cyber spies stealing nearly $2 billion of trade secrets and intellectual property from Australian companies. The number came from a conservative Australian Institute of Criminology analysis that took into account details for ASIO investigations, he said. Hackers stealing commercially sensitive information from one Australian exporter gave a foreign country a leg up in a subsequent contract negotiation, "costing Australia hundreds of millions of dollars", Mr Burgess said. Australia's intelligence boss has warned that people who boast about their access to sensitive information are openly painting themselves as targets for foreign spying operations. ASIO director-general Mike Burgess revealed details of multiple espionage operations as he used a keynote speech to warn officials, businesses and the general public about interference threats and the impact of lax security. Russian spies were deported in 2022 after an ASIO investigation found they were "recruiting proxies and agents to obtain sensitive information, and employing sophisticated tradecraft to disguise their activities", he said on Thursday. Russia, China and Iran were singled out as adversaries but "you would be genuinely shocked by the number and names of countries trying to steal our secrets", he said at the annual Hawke lecture at the University of South Australia. ASIO, the nation's domestic intelligence agency, disrupted 24 major espionage and foreign interference operations in the last three years, more than the previous eight years combined. Mr Burgess said spies used a security clearance-holder to obtain information about trade negotiations and convinced one state bureaucrat to log into a database to obtain details of people a foreign regime considered dissidents. The director-general also detailed how a foreign intelligence service ordered spies to apply for Australian government jobs, including at national security institutions, to access classified information. Another example included a visiting academic linked to a foreign government breaking into a restricted lab with sensitive technology and filming inside, he said. "They are just the tip of an espionage iceberg," Mr Burgess said. Foreign companies tied to intelligence services had also tried to access private data, buy land near military sites and collaborate with researchers developing sensitive technology. "In recent years, for example, defence employees travelling overseas have been subjected to covert room searches, been approached at conferences by spies in disguise and given gifts containing surveillance devices," Mr Burgess added. Hackers had also broken into the network of a peak industry body to steal sensitive information about exports and foreign investment, as well as into a law firm to take information about government-related cases, he said. The director-general chided people who held security clearances or who had access to classified information openly promoting themselves on social media, making it easier for them to be targeted by foreign agents. More than 35,000 Australians indicated they had access to classified or private information on a single professional networking site, he said, adding 7000 referred to working in the defence sector and critical technologies. Nearly 2500 boasted about having a security clearance, he said. "All too often we make it all too easy," he said. Almost 400 people explicitly said they worked on the AUKUS project, under which Australia will acquire nuclear-powered submarines as the keystone of its military power. Mr Burgess put the cost of espionage - including the theft of intellectual property resulting in lost revenue and responding to incidents - at $12.5 billion in 2023/24. This included cyber spies stealing nearly $2 billion of trade secrets and intellectual property from Australian companies. The number came from a conservative Australian Institute of Criminology analysis that took into account details for ASIO investigations, he said. Hackers stealing commercially sensitive information from one Australian exporter gave a foreign country a leg up in a subsequent contract negotiation, "costing Australia hundreds of millions of dollars", Mr Burgess said. Australia's intelligence boss has warned that people who boast about their access to sensitive information are openly painting themselves as targets for foreign spying operations. ASIO director-general Mike Burgess revealed details of multiple espionage operations as he used a keynote speech to warn officials, businesses and the general public about interference threats and the impact of lax security. Russian spies were deported in 2022 after an ASIO investigation found they were "recruiting proxies and agents to obtain sensitive information, and employing sophisticated tradecraft to disguise their activities", he said on Thursday. Russia, China and Iran were singled out as adversaries but "you would be genuinely shocked by the number and names of countries trying to steal our secrets", he said at the annual Hawke lecture at the University of South Australia. ASIO, the nation's domestic intelligence agency, disrupted 24 major espionage and foreign interference operations in the last three years, more than the previous eight years combined. Mr Burgess said spies used a security clearance-holder to obtain information about trade negotiations and convinced one state bureaucrat to log into a database to obtain details of people a foreign regime considered dissidents. The director-general also detailed how a foreign intelligence service ordered spies to apply for Australian government jobs, including at national security institutions, to access classified information. Another example included a visiting academic linked to a foreign government breaking into a restricted lab with sensitive technology and filming inside, he said. "They are just the tip of an espionage iceberg," Mr Burgess said. Foreign companies tied to intelligence services had also tried to access private data, buy land near military sites and collaborate with researchers developing sensitive technology. "In recent years, for example, defence employees travelling overseas have been subjected to covert room searches, been approached at conferences by spies in disguise and given gifts containing surveillance devices," Mr Burgess added. Hackers had also broken into the network of a peak industry body to steal sensitive information about exports and foreign investment, as well as into a law firm to take information about government-related cases, he said. The director-general chided people who held security clearances or who had access to classified information openly promoting themselves on social media, making it easier for them to be targeted by foreign agents. More than 35,000 Australians indicated they had access to classified or private information on a single professional networking site, he said, adding 7000 referred to working in the defence sector and critical technologies. Nearly 2500 boasted about having a security clearance, he said. "All too often we make it all too easy," he said. Almost 400 people explicitly said they worked on the AUKUS project, under which Australia will acquire nuclear-powered submarines as the keystone of its military power. Mr Burgess put the cost of espionage - including the theft of intellectual property resulting in lost revenue and responding to incidents - at $12.5 billion in 2023/24. This included cyber spies stealing nearly $2 billion of trade secrets and intellectual property from Australian companies. The number came from a conservative Australian Institute of Criminology analysis that took into account details for ASIO investigations, he said. Hackers stealing commercially sensitive information from one Australian exporter gave a foreign country a leg up in a subsequent contract negotiation, "costing Australia hundreds of millions of dollars", Mr Burgess said. Australia's intelligence boss has warned that people who boast about their access to sensitive information are openly painting themselves as targets for foreign spying operations. ASIO director-general Mike Burgess revealed details of multiple espionage operations as he used a keynote speech to warn officials, businesses and the general public about interference threats and the impact of lax security. Russian spies were deported in 2022 after an ASIO investigation found they were "recruiting proxies and agents to obtain sensitive information, and employing sophisticated tradecraft to disguise their activities", he said on Thursday. Russia, China and Iran were singled out as adversaries but "you would be genuinely shocked by the number and names of countries trying to steal our secrets", he said at the annual Hawke lecture at the University of South Australia. ASIO, the nation's domestic intelligence agency, disrupted 24 major espionage and foreign interference operations in the last three years, more than the previous eight years combined. Mr Burgess said spies used a security clearance-holder to obtain information about trade negotiations and convinced one state bureaucrat to log into a database to obtain details of people a foreign regime considered dissidents. The director-general also detailed how a foreign intelligence service ordered spies to apply for Australian government jobs, including at national security institutions, to access classified information. Another example included a visiting academic linked to a foreign government breaking into a restricted lab with sensitive technology and filming inside, he said. "They are just the tip of an espionage iceberg," Mr Burgess said. Foreign companies tied to intelligence services had also tried to access private data, buy land near military sites and collaborate with researchers developing sensitive technology. "In recent years, for example, defence employees travelling overseas have been subjected to covert room searches, been approached at conferences by spies in disguise and given gifts containing surveillance devices," Mr Burgess added. Hackers had also broken into the network of a peak industry body to steal sensitive information about exports and foreign investment, as well as into a law firm to take information about government-related cases, he said. The director-general chided people who held security clearances or who had access to classified information openly promoting themselves on social media, making it easier for them to be targeted by foreign agents. More than 35,000 Australians indicated they had access to classified or private information on a single professional networking site, he said, adding 7000 referred to working in the defence sector and critical technologies. Nearly 2500 boasted about having a security clearance, he said. "All too often we make it all too easy," he said. Almost 400 people explicitly said they worked on the AUKUS project, under which Australia will acquire nuclear-powered submarines as the keystone of its military power. Mr Burgess put the cost of espionage - including the theft of intellectual property resulting in lost revenue and responding to incidents - at $12.5 billion in 2023/24. This included cyber spies stealing nearly $2 billion of trade secrets and intellectual property from Australian companies. The number came from a conservative Australian Institute of Criminology analysis that took into account details for ASIO investigations, he said. Hackers stealing commercially sensitive information from one Australian exporter gave a foreign country a leg up in a subsequent contract negotiation, "costing Australia hundreds of millions of dollars", Mr Burgess said.

Sydney Morning Herald
8 hours ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
‘Spying at unprecedented levels': ASIO boss sounds alarm on espionage threat
The nation's top spy boss has revealed espionage is costing Australia an estimated $12.5 billion a year as foreign operatives mount increasingly audacious attempts to pilfer highly sensitive defence and business secrets. ASIO director-general Mike Burgess said the organisation had disrupted 24 major espionage and foreign interference operations in the past three years – more than the previous eight years combined. Yet more than 35,000 Australians have exposed themselves to danger by 'recklessly' boasting on professional networking sites that they have access to sensitive information. Burgess revealed that spies recently gained access to official Australian documents on free trade negotiations by recruiting someone with a security clearance, while others convinced a state bureaucrat to obtain the names and addresses of dissidents being targeted by a foreign regime. Spies have also hacked into the computer network of a major Australian exporter to gain an advantage in negotiations, tried to place an agent in a media organisation by masquerading as a researcher and stolen tree branches from a horticultural facility to reverse-engineer Australian research. 'Nation states are spying at unprecedented levels, with unprecedented sophistication,' Burgess said while delivering the Hawke Oration in Adelaide on Thursday, a speech named in honour of the late Labor prime minister. Loading 'ASIO is seeing more Australians targeted – more aggressively – than ever before.' Burgess said that foreign spies were taking a 'very unhealthy' interest in the AUKUS defence pact, describing Australia's defence sector as 'a top intelligence collection priority for foreign governments seeking to blunt our operational edge, gain insights into our operational readiness and tactics, and better understand our allies' capabilities'. 'Targets include maritime and aviation-related military capabilities, but also innovations with both commercial and military applications,' he said.