Tag Archives: Australia

A 60-year-old surfer was attacked and killed by a 3-meter (10-foot) great white shark off the coast of northern New South Wales state on Sunday, officials said. The man received a bite to the back of his thigh and was brought to the shore by other surfers who had fought …

Tens of thousands of Australians defied government calls to stay at home Saturday by spilling onto the streets for Black Lives Matter protests in major towns and cities across the country. Marchers in Sydney, Melbourne and elsewhere rejected arguments from law enforcement and conservative leaders that mass protests could fuel …

An Australian Federal Police-led investigation has smashed open a domestic online network of alleged child sex offenders, who are accused of abusing and exploiting Australian children and recording the horrific crimes to share with others. Nine men across three states – New South Wales, Queensland and Western Australia – have …

Australia is set for its first recession in 29 years as the country feels the impact of the virus pandemic. Official figures show that the economy shrank by 0.3% in the first three months of the year, amid bushfires and the early stages of the outbreak. Economists expect data for …

  From Auckland, New Zealand to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil to Berlin, Germany, protesters around the world took to the streets to show solidarity with demonstrators in the US over the death of George Floyd while in police custody.

Mining giant Rio Tinto has apologised for blowing up 46,000-year-old Aboriginal caves in Western Australia dating back to the last Ice Age. The Juukan Gorge caves, in the Pilbara region, were destroyed last Sunday as Rio Tinto expanded an iron ore project agreed with the authorities. Many prehistoric artefacts have …

Protesters have marched in the US for six consecutive nights over the death of George Floyd at the hands of a police officer. Their anger over the killing of the unarmed black man has now spread worldwide. Over the weekend demonstrators gathered in London, Berlin, and Auckland, among other cities, …

At least 12 people have been injured after a car crashed into a Muslim clothing shop in Sydney on Thursday afternoon. Local emergency services said 11 pedestrians and the male driver had been treated at the scene of Hijab House in Greenacre, on the corner of Waterloo and Boronia roads. …

World leaders, organizations and banks on Monday pledged 7.4 billion euros ($8 billion) for research to find a vaccine against the new coronavirus, but warned that it is just the start of an effort that must be sustained over time to beat the disease. The funds, pledged at a video-conference …

Police in Western Australia has shot dead a man after several people were stabbed at a shopping center in the Pilbara region. Five people were injured in the attack at the South Hedland Square center – two of them are in a serious condition. Witnesses told local media they saw …

More than two million Australians have downloaded an app to trace contacts of COVID-19 patients hours after its release, the government said on Monday, as states set out plans to expand testing for the infection. Prime minister Scott Morrison has said more testing and widespread use of the CovidSafe phone …

Australia sought support for an international probe into the origins of the coronavirus pandemic in calls with U.S. President Donald Trump and major powers, but France and Britain said now was the time to fight the virus and not apportion blame. Australia’s push for an independent review of the origins …

Australia’s highest court acquitted former Vatican treasurer George Pell on Tuesday of sexually assaulting two teenaged choirboys in the 1990s, freeing the 78-year-old cardinal after 404 days in jail. The Vatican welcomed the decision and praised Pell for having “waited for the truth to be ascertained”. In a statement, it …

Australia’s top court says it will hand down its judgment next week on the appeal made by Cardinal George Pell, who is convicted of child sex abuse. On Thursday, the country’s High Court said in a statement that it would rule on the ex-Vatican treasurer’s appeal “at 10 a.m. local …

A man accused of deadly attacks on mosques in the New Zealand city of Christchurch a year ago has pleaded guilty to 51 charges of murder. Brenton Tarrant, 29, also admitted the attempted murder of another 40 people, and one terrorism charge. He had previously denied the charges and was …

Major sporting nations Australia and Canada quit the Tokyo 2020 Olympics on Monday as organizers faced global pressure to postpone the Games due to the coronavirus crisis for the first time in their 124-year modern history. Putting back the July 24-Aug. 9 event, as is looking inevitable, would be a …

Sunbathers, surfers, and tourists were banned from Bondi Beach on Saturday in efforts to contain the coronavirus, which has now infected more than 1,000 people in Australia. Lifeguards emptied the sands of daytrippers and police taped off entrances to the beach in Sydney, before closing several more of the city’s …

A light plane crashed in heavy monsoon rains on the northeastern tip of Australia on Wednesday, killing all five people on board, police said. The chartered flight, carrying four government workers and the pilot, had twice tried to land near Lockhart River, on Queensland’s Cape York Peninsula. “The plane approached …

A former Australian police officer was to appear in court Thursday charged with over 100 sexually related offenses, including dozens of rapes. The former Western Australian officer, who resigned after being charged by internal affairs in 2018, allegedly assaulted and raped numerous women over a decade during dates arranged online. …

New Zealand police said on Wednesday they have stepped up patrols at two mosques ahead of the first anniversary of a shooting that killed 51 worshippers after a distressing image linked to one of the mosques appeared on social media. A lone gunman used a semi-automatic gun to kill worshippers …