Australia records the biggest diphtheria outbreak in decades; Lebanon says Israeli airstrikes kill 19 in the south; In basketball, the Opals to face China before the Women’s World Cup.
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TRANSCRIPT
In this bulletin;
- Australia records the biggest diphtheria outbreak in decades.
- Lebanon says Israeli airstrikes kill 19 in the south.
- In basketball, the Opals to face China before the Women’s World Cup.
Health authorities are trying to contain the worst outbreak of diphtheria in decades.
More than 130 cases have been reported in the Northern Territory with one suspected death.
Western Australia has detected around 80 cases and there have also been cases in South Australia and Queensland.
Professor of Epidemiology at Adelaide University Adrian Esterman says the current outbreak involves both types of the bacterial infection.
"There are two types of diphtheria. There's one that attacks the skin and one that attacks the lungs and throat and that's respiratory diphtheria and the current outbreak is a mixture of the two."
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Lebanon's health ministry says Israeli airstrikes have killed at least 19 people in the country's south.
The ministry says a single strike on a home in the town of Deir Qanoun killed ten people.
The deaths comes after the US said Lebanon and Israel has agreed to extend a ceasefire by 45 days.
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A man has died and four others have been seriously injured after a shooting at a home in Sydney’s south-west.
Police say the men began presenting at Liverpool and Fairfield hospitals from about 8:30 last night, with a 28-year-old dying a short time later.
The four injured men, aged between 19 and 32, are being treated for gunshot and other wounds.
A crime scene has been established at the Canley Heights property, and homicide detectives are investigating.
Fairfield Police Commander Craig Middleton says two men are being sought.
"I can confirm that police are looking for two males that entered the premises shortly before 8:20pm where a number of gunshots were heard. They fled that premises and decamped in a vehicle that has not been recovered by police at this stage. I can also confirm that we believe that this is a targeted attack, although the motive for this attack is unclear at this stage."
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United States President Donald Trump says the war with Iran will end soon and oil prices will fall.
His comments come after Vice President J D Vance reported significant progress in talks between the US and Iran aimed at stopping Iran rebuilding its nuclear capabilities in future, while avoiding a return to military conflict.
Donald Trump says the Iranians are eager to forge a deal.
"It's going to happen and it's going to happen fast and you're going to see oil prices plummet, they're going to come down. there's so much oil out there, they're going to come plummenting down."
The International Energy Agency has warned global oil stockpiles are being depleted rapidly and says current stockpiles may only last several weeks at current depletion levels.
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New South Wales is preparing to expand nurse staffing reforms across public hospitals.
The next stage will set a minimum of one nurse for every four patients on morning and afternoon shifts in general medical, surgical and specialty wards.
The Minns government says the rollout will include wards such as neurology, respiratory, cardiology and oncology.
More than 900 full-time equivalent nurses have already been recruited as part of staffing changes in emergency departments.
The government says the reforms are needed as hospitals face growing pressure, with more patients arriving seriously ill or with complex conditions.
Premier Chris Minns says the changes are about improving care and supporting frontline staff.
"We're really grateful that we can come together and announce this, and that we've gotten past some of our recent industrial challenges on IRC, but we can now focus on ensuring that this programme is worked out to benefit both the workforce and patients who come through emergency partners or who are on boards of public hospitals."
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The Opals will face China in Melbourne on the 7th and 9th of July in a major test ahead of the FIBA Women’s World Cup in Germany this September.
The series will bring together two of the world’s leading women’s basketball nations, as Australia continues preparations for the tournament in Germany.
Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan says hosting the matches is another major sporting win for the state.
"Chinese visitors come here in very large number, year in, year out. They make a multi-billion contribution to our visitor economy, and this major event will build on that. It'll put many, many eyeballs in China back onto Melbourne while this game is on. There's something like over 300 million basketballers in China, so there'll be plenty of eyes tuned into this match, and that will turn into tourism and investment opportunities."
The series will also feature the She Hoops Festival of Girls, aimed at supporting the next generation of female players, coaches and officials.
