5 h. ago Woman killed by falling tree branch in NSW storms as landslide and flood warnings issued for Sydney

Residents near Narrabeen Lagoon told to leave on Saturday night, after death of woman near WollongongFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastSummer storms on Australia’s east coast have claimed one life and threatened dozens more as flood waters rise.Residents and holidaymakers have been told they can return back after being evacuated Narrabeen Lagoon in Sydney’s northern beaches overnight on Saturday, while a landslide damaged three homes and injured at least one woman 20km north, at Great Mackerel beach. Continue reading...

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6 h. ago Australia news live: NSW dog owners face jail time for leaving pets in cars; flood warnings issued for Sydney

Under the proposals, offenders could be fined a maximum of $44,000 and sentenced to a year in prison. Follow updates liveGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast‘Brazen’ judge comments highlight family court failuresLegal experts have criticised the handling of abuse cases in family court, after a woman and alleged survivor of domestic abuse alleged a judge suggested she be taken to a park to “fight it out” with her former partner.The judge has evidence before them of family violence, which by definition is a pattern of violence, control and abuse of power, and yet has opted to collude with the alleged perpetrator, emboldening this person to continue his offences.The fact that these attitudes permeate the justice system does not surprise me but it is shocking how brazen (these comments) are.” Continue reading...

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8 h. ago Australia news live: woman dead in powerful storm as landslide and flood warnings issued for Sydney

Woman killed by tree branch as NSW SES records more than 800 calls for help. Follow updates liveGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastNew South Wales State Emergency Services have received over 1400 calls for help and 20 requests for flood rescues after Sydney has been lashed with torrential rain.SES Assistant Commissioner Sonya Alston, speaking to ABC News, says the main areas affected by flash flooding and storm-related incidents are Illawarra, Sydney and the Hunter area.We did have an evacuation at Narrabeen overnight due to the rapid rising waters there and the localised heavy rainfall, so that continues around that. Those particular areas with the weather also moving up north, we’ll see around the north eastern New South Wales experiencing some of that heavy winds, heavy rain and large wind gusts.We’re hoping to see a little bit of relief for the Illawarra area today. But still in that Sydney northern area. So again urging everyone to keep safe, keep inside...

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3 d. ago ‘Dangerous’ pipe bombs found detonated on Canberra footpaths, police say

Police believe no one hurt but urge public not to pick up explosive devices and say more may be foundFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastNearly a dozen pipe bombs, some of them already detonated, have been found on footpaths and in parks in the nation’s capital, sparking a major police investigation and warnings not to touch the potentially explosive items.ACT police Det Acting Insp Anna Wronski could not say where the pipe bombs came from or who was behind them, but said the matter was being taken extremely seriously. Continue reading...

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5 d. ago Australian author Craig Silvey charged with possessing and distributing child exploitation material

Jasper Jones and Runt writer charged after search warrant issued at his Fremantle home on MondayFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastProminent Australian author Craig Silvey has been charged with possessing and distributing child exploitation material.Silvey, 43, had a search warrant issued at his Fremantle home on Monday, 12 January, where detectives allegedly found him “actively engaging with other child exploitation offenders online”. Continue reading...

Culture

5 d. ago Who will replace Rudd as US ambassador? Defence boss, career diplomat and former ministers in mix

Analysts and experts say the PM would do well to consider the Aukus alliance and reactions from Maga base in making his choiceFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastFormer Labor ministers, the defence department boss and a career diplomat are among the names being touted by government figures to replace Kevin Rudd as Australia’s ambassador in Washington.Rudd, the former prime minister and foreign minister, won praise for stabilising relations with the US president, Donald Trump, on Monday, after the surprise announcement he would depart a year early to return to the Asia Society thinktank. Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago Adelaide writers’ week 2026 cancelled as board apologises to Randa Abdel

Almost all remaining festival board members have resigned following backlash to decision to disinvite the Palestinian Australian authorFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAdelaide writers’ week 2026 has been cancelled after more than 180 authors and speakers dropped out in protest of the decision to disinvite the Palestinian Australian author Randa Abdel-Fattah.In a statement on Tuesday afternoon, the Adelaide festival board announced the event, which was scheduled to begin at the end of February, would no longer go ahead. The statement also said the remaining members of the board would resign – with the exception of the Adelaide city council representative whose term expires in February. Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago ‘Anonymity online is an illusion’: NSW teen charged over alleged mass shooting hoax in US

Police say the boy is part of an alleged decentralised online crime network falsely claiming mass shootings are taking placeFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA teenager in New South Wales was charged after allegedly making multiple hoax reports to emergency services – a practice known as “swatting” – falsely claiming mass shootings were taking place at major retail and educational institutions in the US. The Australian federal police (AFP) charged the boy on 18 December, claiming he is part of an alleged decentralised online crime network hiding behind keyboards in order to trigger an “urgent and large-scale emergency response”.Officers seized a number of electronic devices and a prohibited firearm in the juvenile’s possession as part of Taskforce Pompilid established in October 2025. Continue reading...

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6 d. ago Meta blocked nearly 550,000 accounts in first days of Australia’s under

Tech giant says ongoing compliance will be a ‘multi-layered process’ as UK Labour faces pressure to bring in similar ban for teenagersFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastMeta has deactivated more than half a million accounts for teenagers across Facebook, Instagram and Threads as a result of Australia’s under-16s social media ban, the company has announced.Just over one month since the ban came into effect, Meta announced on Monday that between 4 December, when the company began deactivating accounts, and 11 December, 544,052 accounts Meta believed to be held by users under 16 were deactivated. Continue reading...

Politics

6 d. ago Three arrested after alleged racially motivated attack on Muslim religious leader in Victoria

Police allege a 47-year-old imam was assaulted after he and his wife were forced off the road by three people in Melbourne’s south-eastFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastA Victorian Muslim religious leader was punched in the face after he and his wife were allegedly forced from their car on a Melbourne freeway in what police allege was a racially motivated attack.Police allege the pair were travelling along the South Gippsland Highway in Melbourne’s south-east at 7.40pm on Saturday when they were “racially abused” by three occupants of a small black hatchback. Continue reading...

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7 d. ago Adelaide festival did not dump Jewish columnist from 2024 program despite request from Randa Abdel

Palestinian academic rejects accusations of hypocrisy, saying board resisted attempts to remove Thomas Friedman, while cancelling her invitation this yearFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe Adelaide festival board did not dump a Jewish columnist from its 2024 lineup at Adelaide writers’ week, despite being lobbied by a group of 10 academics – including Randa Abdel-Fattah – to do so.On Saturday South Australia’s premier, Peter Malinauskas, claimed that the board had dumped the New York Times pro-Israel columnist Thomas Friedman in 2024, and reiterated his support for the festival board’s decision on Thursday to remove Abdel-Fattah, a Palestinian Australian academic, from this year’s program. Continue reading...

Politics

8 d. ago More than 100 buildings destroyed and 300,000 hectares burned as Victoria’s bushfires rage

Fires may continue for ‘weeks’, authorities warn, as three missing people found safeFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAt least 119 structures are believed to be lost in bushfires across Victoria and more than 300,000 hectares of bushland has been burned as the state continues to battle blazes that may rage for “weeks”.Emergency management commissioner, Tim Wiebusch, told the media on Saturday that about 50 homes had been lost in the Ravenswood and Harcourt fire, which was believed to be a “conservative number”. The Bendigo railway line had also been damaged by fire and was closed. Continue reading...

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8 d. ago More than 100 buildings destroyed and 300,000ha of bushland burned as Victoria’s bushfires rage

Fires may continue for ‘weeks’, authorities warn, as three missing people found safeFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAt least 119 structures are believed to be lost in bushfires across Victoria and more than 300,000 hectares of bushland has been burned as the state continues to battle blazes that may rage for “weeks”.Emergency management commissioner, Tim Wiebusch, told the media on Saturday that around 50 homes had been lost in the Ravenswood and Harcout fire, which was believed to be a “conservative number”. The Bendigo railway line had also been damaged by fire and was closed. Continue reading...

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8 d. ago Australia bushfires latest: Three missing as ‘catastrophic’ fires cut power to 90,000 homes in 46C heat

Several properties have been destroyed, and police said a man, woman and child remain unaccounted for

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9 d. ago Australia bushfires latest: Three missing as ‘catastrophic’ wildfires hit Victoria town ‘like a bomb’

Several properties have been destroyed, and police said a man, woman and child remain unaccounted for

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9 d. ago ‘Toughest conditions imaginable’: Victorians urged to shelter inside from heatwave as tropical cyclone heads for Queensland

Heatwave warnings in place for nearly all states and territories as Sydney braces for 43C forecast on SaturdayFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastVictorians have been urged to stay inside as Melbourne’s mercury climbs towards 42C amid a heatwave engulfing much of Australia to descend on Sydney on Saturday.Anthony Albanese met officials in Canberra for a briefing on the extreme conditions and said these were “difficult times” for the country. Continue reading...

Politics

9 d. ago Dozens of writers boycott Adelaide festival after it dumps pro

Miles Franklin winner Michelle de Kretser among more than 24 people who have pulled out of annual writers’ festival to protest Abdel-Fattah’s axingFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastDozens of authors, journalists, media personalities and a sponsor are boycotting the Adelaide festival after it dumped Palestinian Australian author Randa Abdel-Fattah from its annual writers’ week lineup, citing concerns over “cultural sensitivity” in the wake of the Bondi terror attack.More speakers were expected to withdraw from the festival, with speculation that other high-profile figures were coordinating their exit announcements. Continue reading...

Politics

9 d. ago Almost 50 writers boycott Adelaide festival after it dumps pro

Helen Garner and Miles Franklin winner Michelle de Kretser among 45 people who have pulled out of annual writers’ festival to protest Abdel-Fattah’s axingFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe Adelaide festival has pulled down part of its website as dozens of speakers said they were boycotting writers’ week, after Palestinian Australian author Randa Abdel-Fattah was dumped from the lineup with the board citing “cultural sensitivity” concerns in the wake of the Bondi terror attack.The page promoting the schedule of authors, journalists, academics and commentators was “unpublished” on Friday following widespread condemnation of the board’s decision to remove Abdel-Fattah. Continue reading...

Politics

9 d. ago In Queensland tens of thousands of cattle die of thirst and hunger encircled by fresh water and grass

‘It sounds completely absurd,’ one grazier says. ‘But they are actually perishing because they are not drinking’Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastStranded upon sodden islands that dot the submerged plains of outback north-west Queensland, encircled by fresh water and with grass growing before their eyes, tens of thousands of cattle are dying of thirst and hunger.“It sounds completely absurd,” grazier Angus Propsting says. “But they are actually perishing because they are not drinking, even though they are surrounded by water.” Continue reading...

Politics

9 d. ago Albanese announces royal commission after Bondi attack as he defends not calling inquiry earlier

Prime minister confirms commission on antisemitism and social cohesion after initially resisting demands for a broad national inquiryFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe prime minister has confirmed his government will call a federal royal commission after the Bondi terror attack, with Anthony Albanese backflipping on an earlier stance against a wide-ranging commonwealth inquiry.Albanese announced on Thursday the federal royal commission will examine four key areas, including the prevalence of antisemitism, how law enforcement will respond to antisemitism, the circumstances surrounding the alleged Bondi attack and strengthening social cohesion. Continue reading...

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