HECS debt bill passes through parliament
Israel under increasing pressure over Gaza, ahead of US talks in coming hours...
Harrison Turner claims Australia's first-ever world championship medal for 200 metre butterfly
Three million Australian students will have their education debts reduced, after Labor's highly-anticipated student debt bill passed through Parliament today. The Albanese government introduced the HECS debt bill to cut 20 per cent from existing university and TAFE debts as its first order of business last week. The laws aim to reduce student debt as well as reform the repayment system. The cut will apply to debt levels retrospectively, before the 1 June indexation, but will take a few months for the Australian Tax Office to implement. Balances are expected to be revised by the end of the year, saving students and graduates roughly $16 billion. Israel is under increasing pressure to ease the deepening humanitarian crisis in Gaza, with Canada the latest country to move to recognise Palestinian statehood and a U-S envoy en route to the Middle East. The Trump Administration's representative, Steve Witkoff, is due to arrive in Israel later today for talks on the situation in Gaza. The Israeli military has reported that 220 aid trucks have entered Gaza on Tuesday. UN agencies are calling for 500 to 600 a day, to meet the needs of a population aid agencies say is starving. Canada's intention to recognise Palestinian statehood was announced in recent hours and Prime Minister Mark Carney says it is subject to conditions. "This intention is predicated on the Palestinian Authority's commitment to much-needed reforms, including commitments by its president, Mahmoud Abbas, to reform its governance and to hold general elections in 2026 in which Hamas can take no part and to demilitarize the Palestinian state. Canada will increase its efforts to support strong democratic governance in Palestine and contributions of its people to a more peaceful and hopeful future." The World Health Organisation says it has helped evacuate 47 critically ill patients and 129 of their companions from Gaza this week. United Nations spokesperson Farhan Haq says the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs is alarmed by an increase in hunger, disease and displacement in famine-stricken regions of Sudan. The Sudan Doctors Network says thirteen children died of malnutrition-related causes last month in a camp for displaced people in the western Darfur region of Sudan, where civil war has created the world's worst humanitarian crisis. UNICEF reports a 46 per cent increase in the most deadly form of malnutrition among children in Darfur, compared with the same period last year. Aid groups have pleaded for the warring sides to allow in more humanitarian assistance. Mr Haq says the besieged city of Al-Fashir in Darfur is one of the worst-affected sites. "In the besieged city of Al-Fashir, the state capital of North Darfur, local sources report that people are dying from hunger and malnutrition. Community-run kitchens have shut down due to lack of food stocks, and some residents have reportedly resorted to consuming animal feed. These cascading crises demand increased international support. The 2025 response plan seeking $4.2 billion to assist 21 million of the most vulnerable people across Sudan is currently 23 per cent funded.' Millions of people on coastlines across 12 countries, have returned home after being evacuated overnight. A tsunami warning has been downgraded in Japan and Hawaiian authorities are reporting minimal damage, after one of the strongest ever earthquakes was recorded off Russia. Parts of Japan, including Hokkaido Prefecture and the Tohoku region, recorded a 60 centimetre swell. There had been fears of a life-threatening tsunami for a number of countries after the 8.8 magnitude quake, but so far there have been only few minor injuries reported. What could be Australia's heaviest insect has been identified in northern Australia's high altitude rainforests. The supersized stick insect, which is about 40cm long, was discovered in high altitude trees in Millaa Millaa in Queensland's Atherton Tablelands. Identified by James Cook University researchers, the female specimen weighed 44g, significantly heftier than Australia's heaviest insect, the up-to 30g giant wood moth. The next step in identifying and eventually naming the species is finding a male, which is proving difficult, due to the male's significantly smaller size. To sport now and in swimming, 21 year-old Harrison Turner has made history, securing Australia's first world championship medal in the mens' 200-metre butterfly. Taking the bronze medal, Turner toppled a 16-year national record, despite only just scraping into the finals of the event. "If you told me I was gonna win a, sorry a bronze medal at the start of the year with a pb (personal best) of 1.57 (minutes) I would have said nah you're dreaming. So, I am lost for words."
Fellow Australian Mollie O'Callahan has also claimed her 10th world title in the 200 metres freestyle.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Advertiser
2 hours ago
- The Advertiser
'Perilous': largest-ever Gaza protest packs bridge
An unprecedented throng of protesters turned the Sydney Harbour Bridge into a sea of Palestinian flags and the centrepoint of public resistance to Israel's military action in Gaza. About 90,000 turned out on a wet and windy Sunday to spotlight suffering in Gaza after a police order to prohibit the protest was rejected by a court. Organiser Palestine Action Group said it aimed to draw attention to what the United Nations has described as worsening famine conditions in Gaza. Several Labor MPs including former NSW Labor premier and former federal foreign minister Bob Carr joined the march in defiance of Premier Chris Minns alongside multiple Greens and independent colleagues. The premier previously warned the city would "descend into chaos" if the protest went ahead. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange joined Mr Carr at the rally with the pair seen leading the crowd and clutching a giant "Save Gaza" placard. Former Socceroos captain Craig Foster and former boxer and rugby league star Anthony Mundine added to the list of prominent attendees. Australians have been watching "an avalanche of atrocities that cannot be denied or erased", Foster told the crowd. "As a country we've said much but not acted as we must," he said. About an hour into the march and with increasing concerns for public safety, police urged protesters on the bridge to turn around "to avoid a crowd crush" and "risk of injury due to the huge number of people taking part". The force permitted protesters to return southbound across the bridge to the Sydney CBD after the march was initially proposed to end in North Sydney. By 5pm, bridge lanes had reopened in both directions. NSW Police Acting Commissioner Peter McKenna estimated attendance at about 90,000 people and described the crowd as the largest he had seen in Sydney. "We were really overwhelmed with numbers," he told reporters on Sunday evening, noting attendees were well behaved and thanking them for complying with police orders. Acting Assistant Commissioner Adam Johnson described the situation as "perilous" and worried police were going to have a "major incident with potential loss of life". "I can honestly say in my 35 years of policing, that was a perilous situation ... I've never seen a more perilous situation," he said. Rally speaker and independent Jewish journalist and author Antony Loewenstein said he saw "no evidence" the huge number of people who attended were in any physical danger due to the crowd's size. "Police are trying to create a fiction around an event they maybe weren't prepared for," he said. Federal Opposition Leader Sussan Ley questioned the shutting down of a "critical piece of infrastructure" in Sydney. "I respect the right of free speech and protest, but this is taking it to another level ... the protest could happen elsewhere," Ms Ley told Sky News. Labor backbencher Ed Husic, who has been more outspoken on ending the war in Gaza, emphasised unity. First time protesters and friends Ian Robertson, 74, and Greg Mullins, 66, said they hoped their attendance could make a difference. "The world's gone mad," Mr Mullins told AAP. "I came today because I don't want my kids telling me what were you doing when this mass murder and genocide was going on," Mr Robertson said. About 25,000 protesters also marched through Melbourne to block a major CBD thoroughfare but were stopped by a wall of riot police at the entrance to the King Street Bridge. Many in the crowd banged pots and pans in a nod to mounting concerns about mass starvation in Gaza. More than 60,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war in Gaza, according to local health authorities, while the United Nations says dozens of people have died in recent weeks due to starvation. Israel's military campaign began after militant group Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1200 people and taking more than 251 hostages. An unprecedented throng of protesters turned the Sydney Harbour Bridge into a sea of Palestinian flags and the centrepoint of public resistance to Israel's military action in Gaza. About 90,000 turned out on a wet and windy Sunday to spotlight suffering in Gaza after a police order to prohibit the protest was rejected by a court. Organiser Palestine Action Group said it aimed to draw attention to what the United Nations has described as worsening famine conditions in Gaza. Several Labor MPs including former NSW Labor premier and former federal foreign minister Bob Carr joined the march in defiance of Premier Chris Minns alongside multiple Greens and independent colleagues. The premier previously warned the city would "descend into chaos" if the protest went ahead. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange joined Mr Carr at the rally with the pair seen leading the crowd and clutching a giant "Save Gaza" placard. Former Socceroos captain Craig Foster and former boxer and rugby league star Anthony Mundine added to the list of prominent attendees. Australians have been watching "an avalanche of atrocities that cannot be denied or erased", Foster told the crowd. "As a country we've said much but not acted as we must," he said. About an hour into the march and with increasing concerns for public safety, police urged protesters on the bridge to turn around "to avoid a crowd crush" and "risk of injury due to the huge number of people taking part". The force permitted protesters to return southbound across the bridge to the Sydney CBD after the march was initially proposed to end in North Sydney. By 5pm, bridge lanes had reopened in both directions. NSW Police Acting Commissioner Peter McKenna estimated attendance at about 90,000 people and described the crowd as the largest he had seen in Sydney. "We were really overwhelmed with numbers," he told reporters on Sunday evening, noting attendees were well behaved and thanking them for complying with police orders. Acting Assistant Commissioner Adam Johnson described the situation as "perilous" and worried police were going to have a "major incident with potential loss of life". "I can honestly say in my 35 years of policing, that was a perilous situation ... I've never seen a more perilous situation," he said. Rally speaker and independent Jewish journalist and author Antony Loewenstein said he saw "no evidence" the huge number of people who attended were in any physical danger due to the crowd's size. "Police are trying to create a fiction around an event they maybe weren't prepared for," he said. Federal Opposition Leader Sussan Ley questioned the shutting down of a "critical piece of infrastructure" in Sydney. "I respect the right of free speech and protest, but this is taking it to another level ... the protest could happen elsewhere," Ms Ley told Sky News. Labor backbencher Ed Husic, who has been more outspoken on ending the war in Gaza, emphasised unity. First time protesters and friends Ian Robertson, 74, and Greg Mullins, 66, said they hoped their attendance could make a difference. "The world's gone mad," Mr Mullins told AAP. "I came today because I don't want my kids telling me what were you doing when this mass murder and genocide was going on," Mr Robertson said. About 25,000 protesters also marched through Melbourne to block a major CBD thoroughfare but were stopped by a wall of riot police at the entrance to the King Street Bridge. Many in the crowd banged pots and pans in a nod to mounting concerns about mass starvation in Gaza. More than 60,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war in Gaza, according to local health authorities, while the United Nations says dozens of people have died in recent weeks due to starvation. Israel's military campaign began after militant group Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1200 people and taking more than 251 hostages. An unprecedented throng of protesters turned the Sydney Harbour Bridge into a sea of Palestinian flags and the centrepoint of public resistance to Israel's military action in Gaza. About 90,000 turned out on a wet and windy Sunday to spotlight suffering in Gaza after a police order to prohibit the protest was rejected by a court. Organiser Palestine Action Group said it aimed to draw attention to what the United Nations has described as worsening famine conditions in Gaza. Several Labor MPs including former NSW Labor premier and former federal foreign minister Bob Carr joined the march in defiance of Premier Chris Minns alongside multiple Greens and independent colleagues. The premier previously warned the city would "descend into chaos" if the protest went ahead. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange joined Mr Carr at the rally with the pair seen leading the crowd and clutching a giant "Save Gaza" placard. Former Socceroos captain Craig Foster and former boxer and rugby league star Anthony Mundine added to the list of prominent attendees. Australians have been watching "an avalanche of atrocities that cannot be denied or erased", Foster told the crowd. "As a country we've said much but not acted as we must," he said. About an hour into the march and with increasing concerns for public safety, police urged protesters on the bridge to turn around "to avoid a crowd crush" and "risk of injury due to the huge number of people taking part". The force permitted protesters to return southbound across the bridge to the Sydney CBD after the march was initially proposed to end in North Sydney. By 5pm, bridge lanes had reopened in both directions. NSW Police Acting Commissioner Peter McKenna estimated attendance at about 90,000 people and described the crowd as the largest he had seen in Sydney. "We were really overwhelmed with numbers," he told reporters on Sunday evening, noting attendees were well behaved and thanking them for complying with police orders. Acting Assistant Commissioner Adam Johnson described the situation as "perilous" and worried police were going to have a "major incident with potential loss of life". "I can honestly say in my 35 years of policing, that was a perilous situation ... I've never seen a more perilous situation," he said. Rally speaker and independent Jewish journalist and author Antony Loewenstein said he saw "no evidence" the huge number of people who attended were in any physical danger due to the crowd's size. "Police are trying to create a fiction around an event they maybe weren't prepared for," he said. Federal Opposition Leader Sussan Ley questioned the shutting down of a "critical piece of infrastructure" in Sydney. "I respect the right of free speech and protest, but this is taking it to another level ... the protest could happen elsewhere," Ms Ley told Sky News. Labor backbencher Ed Husic, who has been more outspoken on ending the war in Gaza, emphasised unity. First time protesters and friends Ian Robertson, 74, and Greg Mullins, 66, said they hoped their attendance could make a difference. "The world's gone mad," Mr Mullins told AAP. "I came today because I don't want my kids telling me what were you doing when this mass murder and genocide was going on," Mr Robertson said. About 25,000 protesters also marched through Melbourne to block a major CBD thoroughfare but were stopped by a wall of riot police at the entrance to the King Street Bridge. Many in the crowd banged pots and pans in a nod to mounting concerns about mass starvation in Gaza. More than 60,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war in Gaza, according to local health authorities, while the United Nations says dozens of people have died in recent weeks due to starvation. Israel's military campaign began after militant group Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1200 people and taking more than 251 hostages. An unprecedented throng of protesters turned the Sydney Harbour Bridge into a sea of Palestinian flags and the centrepoint of public resistance to Israel's military action in Gaza. About 90,000 turned out on a wet and windy Sunday to spotlight suffering in Gaza after a police order to prohibit the protest was rejected by a court. Organiser Palestine Action Group said it aimed to draw attention to what the United Nations has described as worsening famine conditions in Gaza. Several Labor MPs including former NSW Labor premier and former federal foreign minister Bob Carr joined the march in defiance of Premier Chris Minns alongside multiple Greens and independent colleagues. The premier previously warned the city would "descend into chaos" if the protest went ahead. WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange joined Mr Carr at the rally with the pair seen leading the crowd and clutching a giant "Save Gaza" placard. Former Socceroos captain Craig Foster and former boxer and rugby league star Anthony Mundine added to the list of prominent attendees. Australians have been watching "an avalanche of atrocities that cannot be denied or erased", Foster told the crowd. "As a country we've said much but not acted as we must," he said. About an hour into the march and with increasing concerns for public safety, police urged protesters on the bridge to turn around "to avoid a crowd crush" and "risk of injury due to the huge number of people taking part". The force permitted protesters to return southbound across the bridge to the Sydney CBD after the march was initially proposed to end in North Sydney. By 5pm, bridge lanes had reopened in both directions. NSW Police Acting Commissioner Peter McKenna estimated attendance at about 90,000 people and described the crowd as the largest he had seen in Sydney. "We were really overwhelmed with numbers," he told reporters on Sunday evening, noting attendees were well behaved and thanking them for complying with police orders. Acting Assistant Commissioner Adam Johnson described the situation as "perilous" and worried police were going to have a "major incident with potential loss of life". "I can honestly say in my 35 years of policing, that was a perilous situation ... I've never seen a more perilous situation," he said. Rally speaker and independent Jewish journalist and author Antony Loewenstein said he saw "no evidence" the huge number of people who attended were in any physical danger due to the crowd's size. "Police are trying to create a fiction around an event they maybe weren't prepared for," he said. Federal Opposition Leader Sussan Ley questioned the shutting down of a "critical piece of infrastructure" in Sydney. "I respect the right of free speech and protest, but this is taking it to another level ... the protest could happen elsewhere," Ms Ley told Sky News. Labor backbencher Ed Husic, who has been more outspoken on ending the war in Gaza, emphasised unity. First time protesters and friends Ian Robertson, 74, and Greg Mullins, 66, said they hoped their attendance could make a difference. "The world's gone mad," Mr Mullins told AAP. "I came today because I don't want my kids telling me what were you doing when this mass murder and genocide was going on," Mr Robertson said. About 25,000 protesters also marched through Melbourne to block a major CBD thoroughfare but were stopped by a wall of riot police at the entrance to the King Street Bridge. Many in the crowd banged pots and pans in a nod to mounting concerns about mass starvation in Gaza. More than 60,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war in Gaza, according to local health authorities, while the United Nations says dozens of people have died in recent weeks due to starvation. Israel's military campaign began after militant group Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1200 people and taking more than 251 hostages.
SBS Australia
3 hours ago
- SBS Australia
'A threat no one else sees': The daily, invisible burden of racism for First Nations Australians
Reconciliation Australia published a report in June charting a 15 percent increase in Indigenous people's experiences of racism over the past decade. It concluded that racism is an everyday reality for First Nations people. Kelleigh Ryan, a psychologist and descendant of the Kabi Kabi people and Australian South Sea Islanders, said the failed Voice Referendum brought up a lot of challenges for First Nations people. LISTEN TO Rumours, Racism and the Referendum "It was a great loss. And so it became this invisible blanket of aggression that people had a lot of difficulty with and those who didn't have time and space to grieve were still having to work through that grief," she said. Reconciliation Australia's research found young people and multicultural communities were the most likely to participate in truth-telling activities and celebrations of First Nations culture. Celebrating, reflecting, mourning: Indigenous and migrant perspectives on January 26 Jordan Young, a Darambal man, runs workshops that teach Indigenous culture to schools and businesses. He told SBS Examines it's helped break down negative stereotypes. You're not born with racism, it's a learned trait. "So being able to give these kids another viewpoint, another perspective on Aboriginal culture, is very, very important." This episode of Understanding Hate looks at the rising racism towards Indigenous Australians, and how we can combat the harms.
SBS Australia
3 hours ago
- SBS Australia
Israel must allow 'unimpeded' access to Gaza, ministers say, while announcing $20m in aid
The federal government has announced an additional $20 million in aid to humanitarian organisations in Gaza, with a minister calling on Israel to allow "immediate and unimpeded aid access" into the besieged enclave. The additional funding seeks to support organisations that have "the scale and capacity to respond quickly to deliver food, medical supplies for field hospitals and other lifesaving support to women and children in Gaza," a statement read. It said the government had now committed over $130 million in humanitarian assistance to civilians in Gaza and Lebanon since 7 October 2023. The Gaza health ministry said on Sunday that six more people had died of starvation and malnutrition in the past 24 hours, raising the toll of those dying of such causes to 175, including 93 children, since the war began. In response to a rising international outcry, Israel announced steps last week to let more aid reach the population, including pausing fighting for part of the day in some areas, approving air drops and announcing protected routes for aid convoys. United Nations agencies have said that airdrops of food are insufficient and that Israel must let in far more aid by land and open up access to the war-devastated territory where starvation has been spreading. Upon announcing the $20 million support package, International Development Minister Anne Aly said humanitarian organisations "must be allowed to do their vital work and deliver aid at scale". "We continue to call on Israel to allow immediate and unimpeded aid access into Gaza." Foreign Minister Penny Wong said her government had "consistently been part of the international call on Israel to allow a full and immediate resumption of aid to Gaza, in line with the binding orders of the International Court of Justice". "Australia will continue to work with the international community to call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire, the release of hostages and a two-state solution — the only path to enduring peace and security for the Israeli and Palestinian peoples," she added. According to the statement, the newly announced aid will consist of: $2 million for relief support with the UK, through our existing partnership arrangement $6 million to the UN World Food Programme for the provision and distribution of food supplies $5 million to UNICEF for nutritional support to children at risk of starvation $5 million to the International Committee of the Red Cross to meet essential needs, including access to healthcare $2 million to the Jordan Hashemite Charity Organization to provide medical supplies to support the operation of field hospitals in Gaza — With additional reporting from Reuters.
