Australia news LIVE: More aid for Gaza announced after Harbour Bridge protest; evacuation warnings issued after NSW flooding
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6.48am
TikTok ads drive defence enrolment surge
By Matthew Knott
Advertising on computer games and social media platforms like TikTok has helped drive the biggest surge in Defence Force recruitment in 15 years, a major turnaround that the federal government says has put the military on track to achieve ambitious growth targets.
The Australian Defence Force has been plagued by a recruitment and retention crisis in recent years, but in the past financial year, the military enlisted 7059 permanent personnel, the highest annual intake since 2009.
The full-time ADF workforce has now reached 61,189, slightly below its authorised strength of 62,700 permanent members but significantly up on previous estimates.
More than 75,000 people applied to join the ADF in the past year, the highest number in five years and a 28 per cent increase on the previous year.
6.45am
Israeli minister triggers condemnation after praying at flashpoint holy site
A far-right Israeli minister has visited and prayed at Jerusalem's most sensitive holy site, triggering regional condemnation and fears that the provocative move could further escalate tensions.
The visit on Sunday came as hospitals in Gaza said 33 more Palestinians seeking aid were killed by Israeli fire.
Photos and videos showed Itamar Ben-Gvir leading Jewish prayers at the compound, which is known by Jews as the Temple Mount, in the walled Old City of occupied East Jerusalem.
The hillside area is the most sacred site in Judaism and was home to the ancient biblical temples. Muslims call the site the Noble Sanctuary. Today, it is home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque, the third-holiest site in Islam.
6.41am
What's making news today
By Daniel Lo Surdo
Hello and welcome to the national news live blog. My name is Daniel Lo Surdo, and I'll be helming our live coverage this morning.
Here's what is making news today:
Foreign Minister Penny Wong has committed a further $20 million to the Gaza humanitarian response one day after some 90,000 pro-Palestine protesters walked across the Sydney Harbour Bridge to demand an end to a worsening crisis in the Middle East. It takes Australia's total contribution to $130 million, and will support humanitarian organisations to provide food and medical supplies.
Evacuation warnings have been issued in the NSW Hunter and Mid North Coast region amid major flooding on the Peel and Namoi Rivers. The flooding has prompted emergency warnings for parts of Gunnedah and Raymond Terrace after inundation occurred in areas adjacent to the river. The NSW State Emergency Service said they had responded to 18 flood rescues on Sunday night, with about 1500 volunteers activated.
The Australian sharemarket is expected to slide after Wall Street suffered its worst day since May after President Donald Trump imposed sweeping tariffs on US trading partners. Trump left trade penalties on Australian goods at its previously announced 10 per cent rate, and pushed back the beginning date to August 7, adding increasing uncertainty to the global trade picture.
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Sydney Morning Herald
15 minutes ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Albanese seeks call with Netanyahu following Sydney, Melbourne protests
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is pursuing a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after 90,000 people marched across the Sydney Harbour Bridge calling for an end to the war in Gaza and as pressure builds within Labor ranks for recognition of Palestinian statehood. Assistant Minister for Immigration Matt Thistlethwaite confirmed on Monday the call was being pursued, as Labor politicians backed the peaceful protest organised by the Palestine Action Group with at least three members of the federal caucus in attendance. Backbenchers Ed Husic, Alison Byrnes and Tony Sheldon marched with protesters on Sunday, putting further pressure on Albanese to recognise Palestine. Thistlethwaite condemned any forms of antisemitism or pro-Iran sentiments at the protest, telling Sky News people holding images of Iran's supreme leader Ali Khamenei was wrong. Loading 'A phone call [with Netanyahu] is being pursued. I don't believe that people should have been displaying photos of the Ayatollah Khamenei. I think that's provocative,' he said. 'Nonetheless, Australians have the right to protest and, as long as you do it peacefully and in accordance with the law, which is what occurred on the weekend, then every Australian has the right to protest.' The government has repeatedly said that recognition of a Palestinian state is a matter of timing. Allies in France, Canada and the United Kingdom have all laid the groundwork to recognise the state at the next United Nations General Assembly in September. Husic told ABC Radio National he hoped the government would immediately recognise a Palestinian state, arguing the protest sent a signal to Albanese that people want further action.
Sydney Morning Herald
15 minutes ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
US and Israeli officials float idea of ‘all or nothing' Gaza deal
Steve Witkoff, the Trump administration's special envoy to the Middle East, who is visiting the region, met with families of Israeli hostages on Saturday and told them that President Donald Trump now wants to see all the living hostages released at once. Loading 'No piecemeal deals, that doesn't work,' he said, according to an audio recording of part of the meeting published by the Ynet Hebrew news site. 'Now we think that we have to shift this negotiation to 'all or nothing' – everybody comes home,' he said. 'We have a plan around it,' he added, without elaborating. A participant in the meeting confirmed that Witkoff made such remarks. Israel and Hamas do not negotiate directly. Instead, negotiations for a ceasefire between the two sides have run through intermediaries: the United States, Qatar and Egypt. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Trump are said to be working on a new proposal that would involve presenting Hamas with an ultimatum, according to reports in the Israeli news media that were confirmed Sunday by a person familiar with the matter. The White House was not immediately available for comment. Under the terms of the ultimatum, Hamas would have to release the remaining hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and agree to terms to end the war that include the group's disarmament. Otherwise, the Israeli military would continue its campaign. 'This has been our demand from the beginning' Mahmoud Mardawi, a Hamas official, said the Palestinian armed group had yet to receive a formal Israeli proposal for a comprehensive deal from Arab mediators. He said that while Hamas supported such an agreement in principle, it would not disarm, which has long been a core Israeli condition. 'This has been our demand from the beginning: an end to the war, the release of prisoners, and day-after arrangements in the Gaza Strip – a clear and comprehensive deal,' Mardawi said in a phone interview. Loading The prospects of any rapid advancement toward such a deal appear dim. Hamas has consistently rejected Israel's terms for ending the war throughout the negotiations. On Saturday, the group said in a statement that it would not disarm unless a Palestinian state was established, despite a call from Arab states last week for the group to do so. The Israeli government opposes Palestinian statehood. On Sunday, Itamar Ben-Gvir, the Israeli national security minister, visited the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, which Jews revere as the Temple Mount, long a tinderbox for Israeli-Palestinian tensions. Arab leaders denounced Ben-Gvir's ascent to the site – during which he openly prayed – as a provocation. 'It's important to convey from this place that we should immediately conquer Gaza, exercise our sovereignty there, and eliminate every last Hamas member,' Ben-Gvir said from the site, in a video shared by his office. Many Israelis say they support a comprehensive deal to return all the hostages and end the war. But many are sceptical that such a deal can be achieved under the conditions set by the hardline Israeli government, which has vowed to continue fighting until Hamas surrenders or is destroyed. On Sunday night, Netanyahu argued that Hamas 'does not want a deal' and vowed to press on in the attempt 'to release our captive sons, eliminate Hamas and ensure that Gaza no longer poses a threat to Israel'. 'Give us victory' Given the firm positions of both sides, an Israeli and American push for a comprehensive deal may not bring an agreement closer, according to analysts. 'Hamas is essentially saying to Israel: 'If you want the 20 living hostages out, give us a full victory',' said Ehud Yaari, an Israel-based fellow of the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, an independent research group. Hamas' terms are far beyond what Netanyahu would accept, Yaari said. But, he added, the prime minister 'has to keep convincing the Israeli public and his own voters that he is doing everything he can, and he has to reassure the families of the hostages'. Mardawi said that Hamas saw little reason to negotiate with Israel, given the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza. 'What is the point of talks when people are dying of starvation?' he said.
Sydney Morning Herald
15 minutes ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
‘It's not open season on the bridge': Premier's verdict on protest that stopped traffic
The premier is warning 'it's not open season on the bridge' as the government scrambles to determine if Sunday's march across Sydney's main landmark will set a precedent for future demonstrations. The peaceful march – which police estimated to comprise 90,000 people, though protesters put that figure at 200,000 to 300,000 – passed without arrests or injuries as the demonstrators called for sanctions against Israel and the free flow of aid to starving Palestinians in Gaza. Premier Chris Minns said his government is considering whether a judgment in the Supreme Court to authorise the protest will make it easier for other groups to stage similar marches, after Sunday's action cost the state 'millions'. 'No one should assume it's open season on the bridge,' Minns said. 'We're not going to have a situation where the anti-vaccine group has it one Saturday, and then the weekend after that, critical mass takes over and then the weekend after that we have an environmental cause, and then the weekend after that because of an industrial dispute.' Minns said if a precedent was set, it's something the government would consider more closely with a view of balancing the right to protest with the right for Sydneysiders to access the city on weekends. Last-minute changes to the route created some confusion on Sunday, compounded when police sent out several text messages telling protesters not to proceed to North Sydney as planned and instead turn back to the city. When asked whether police added to confusion or catastrophised what was a peaceful demonstration, Minns backed the actions of police. 'I think you'd be a real hard marker to knock police here,' he said. 'It's a logistically difficult thing to navigate because you've got a confined space and an overwhelming number of people.'
