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TRANSCRIPT
- President Donald Trump evacuated from the White House Correspondents' Dinner
- Gina Rinehart's speech calling for tighter immigration criticised
- In the AFL, Fremantle win their sixth game in a row
A security incident has prompted the evacuation of President Donald Trump from the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.
Security agents drew their guns after loud bangs were heard in the venue, the Washington Hilton building.
The president was escorted offstage and ushered away from the room, as attendees were told to "get down".
Vice President JD Vance and members of Mr Trump's cabinet were also in attendance.
An administration official says Mr Trump and cabinet members are safe and okay.
Guests took cover under the table, before being directed to evacuate along with everybody else in the building.
AFP news agency is reporting a suspect is in custody, citing the Secret Service.
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Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi says his visit to Pakistan was very fruitful, but he doubts the United States is serious about a diplomatic solution to its war with Iran.
Mr Araqchi had earlier left Islamabad without signs of a breakthrough in talks with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and other senior officials.
President Donald Trump cancelled a trip to Islamabad by two US envoys, dealing a new setback to peace prospects.
Mr Trump said in a social media post that he had called off the planned visit by his special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner, citing what he said was tremendous confusion in the Iranian leadership.
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Remarks by Australian mining billionaire Gina Rinehart calling for stricter screening of immigrants have been criticised for stoking division.
Australia's richest woman used a speech at an Anzac Day event at the Sydney Opera House to call for an overhaul of immigration screening measures, saying immigrants should have their phones, laptops and social media checked before they enter the country.
She went on to say that we need to protect our country and only welcome peace-loving, contributing immigrants to our shores, saying 'what Australians really want their families lives hurt by terrorists?'
While Ms Rinehart didn't explicitly reference people of Muslim faith, she described people at pro-Palestinian rallies as 'yelling hate and death chants'.
Gamel Kheir, from the Lebanese Muslim Association, says Ms Reinhart's comments are racist.
"You know we don't accept racism in this country, and anyone who wants to push that racist element or that racist line should be put back in that hole they came out of. Otherwise, we're going down a very slippery slope. We're stoking the fire of division, and there's no coming back from it."
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Countries that have signed the landmark nuclear non-proliferation treaty are preparing to meet at the UN from Monday.
The conference is held every five years to evaluate the implementation of the treaty, which aims to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons, to promote complete disarmament, and to encourage cooperation on civilian nuclear projects.
The treaty has been signed by almost all the countries on the planet, including Australia - with notable exceptions like Israel, India, and Pakistan.
The UN high representative for disarmament affairs, Izumi Nakamitsu, says the risk of nuclear weapon use may grow, if an agreement is not reached at the conference.
"We believe that all state parties of the NPT really have a high stake in this review conference. We need to make sure of that. We need to prevent the use of nuclear weapons. W e need to put to rest the wrong narrative that more nuclear weapons states will guarantee our security. We see it the different way. The more nuclear weapon states there will be, the more risk of actual use of nuclear weapons."
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The head of the United Nations' nuclear watchdog says the Chernobyl nuclear disaster should not be seen as history but rather as a living responsibility.
The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Rafael Grossi, released a video message on the 40th anniversary of the disaster, saying his organisation had worked with Ukraine to understand what happened, communicate the truth, and support the long journey of recovery.
"That work continues - in the assessment of contaminated territories, in the monitoring of radiation health effects, and in the critically important challenge of decommissioning. The accident brought together the international community. We looked at the hardware, the human factors and the systemic sides of the issue."
Today, large swathes of the exclusion zone around the plant have close to normal levels of radiation, but some areas, particularly around the destroyed reactor, remain highly contaminated.
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And to sport, in the AFL, Fremantle have won their sixth game in a row, defeating Carlton by 14 points.
The result means the team maintains its place in the top two on the ladder.
Shai Bolton was awarded the Arthur Leggett Medal as best afield, with Luke Jackson also garnering praise for his two running goals.
Dockers coach Justin Longmuir says it is a great result, but there is room for improvement.
"Yeah, we've won six in a row and it is sometimes you finish off the game like that and you can walk off being a little bit disappointed. But games of footy are hard to win. I said to the players. I don't think Carlton's record replicates the footy they have been playing. They have been playing some really good footy. Collingwood came out and won by 90 points. And Carlton had a chance to draw the games last week. So games of footy are hard to win. So you need to enjoy them. But we also know we've got some work to do."
