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TRANSCRIPT
In this bulletin;
- Donald Trump issues new threat to Iran over the Strait of Hormuz
- Lebanon's President calls for negotiations to end Israel-Hezbollah fighting
- In the National Basketball League, The Sydney Kings clinch their sixth title, after defeating Adelaide
Iran’s culture minister has dismissed US President Donald Trump’s latest threats, calling him an "unstable, delusional figure".
Mr Trump said he would strike Iran’s power plants and bridges this Tuesday, if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed to marine traffic.
He earlier threatened to attack Iran’s infrastructure, if it fails to reopen the strait by Monday.
A spokesperson for Iran's president says the reopening of the vital waterway can only happen, if transit revenues are partially set aside to compensate Iran for war damages.
Iran’s Minister of Cultural Affairs and Tourism, Sayed Reza Salihi-Amir, says Mr Trump's changing positions make it hard to take him seriously.
(Farsi* then translated into English): "Iranian society generally does not pay attention to his statements, as it believes he lacks personal, behavioural, and verbal balance, and constantly shifts between contradictory positions.
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Lebanon's President Joseph Aoun has called for negotiations to end the war in the Middle East between Israel and Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah.
Lebanon’s health ministry says more than 1,400 people in Lebanon have been in killed in the past month of war, and over a million people have been displaced.
Mr Aoun says with the ongoing strikes, Lebanon could turn into Gaza.
(Arabic* then translated into English): "It’s true that Israel wants to do in Lebanon what it did in Gaza. Our duty is to not let it get to how it got in Gaza. When we said we wanted to negotiate, some said, what is the point diplomacy? I would like to say to some, what’s the point of the war? We now have 1400 martyrs, 4000 wounded, thousands of homes destroyed, 1.2 million displaced."
According to local health authorities, since October 7, 2023, Israel's war with Hamas in Gaza has killed more than 72,000 Palestinian and displaced most of the population.
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The Pope has used his Easter Sunday address to denounce wars across the globe.
Pope Leo has given his address called Urbi et Orbi - Latin for 'To the city of Rome and to the World' - to thousands gathered at St Peter's Square.
In an unusually brief and direct speech, he says leaders should move freely towards peace.
(Italian* then translated into English) "Let those who have weapons lay them down. Let those who have the power to unleash wars choose peace. Not a peace imposed by force, but through dialogue. Not with the desire to dominate others, but to encounter them."
This is Pope Leo's first Easter as Pope.
He has announced he will return to St Peter's Square next weekend to host a prayer vigil for peace.
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Motorists are being warned to take care on the road after a spate of fatal incidents over the Easter long weekend.
Three people died - and two are in critical condition - after three separate road incidents across Queensland on Saturday.
Acting Inspector Peter Venz says police are investigating whether one of the incidents was linked to a large-scale hooning event.
"The timings that operation were to coincide with intelligence that we had received from our intel units as to the meeting times and locations of the vehicles for that hooning event. I won't comment as to whether this vehicle is linked to that hooning event that will form part of our investigation."
In South Australia, two men died in a fatal motorcycle collision on Saturday afternoon.
Separately, a 19-year-old man died when his vehicle collided with a tree in the Northern Territory.
NRMA spokesperson Peter Khoury has urged drivers to be patient when using the roads and to keep in mind police will be out in force.
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Former Nationals leader David Littleproud says the government must reduce spending to tackle inflation and make energy more affordable.
He says when it comes to the federal budget in May, short-term relief with energy rebates is not the solution.
Mr Littleproud has told Channel Nine, tax benefits for those purchasing electric vehicles should be scrapped among other measures.
"The second thing you do is take away this tax on our energy generators. The Albanese government taxes our energy generators because they're coal and gas at the moment. And that's the majority of our generation. It's called the safeguard mechansim. You would scrap that immediately. In fact, they could do that with a stroke of a pen now. Chris Bowen and Anthony Albanese could sign that, and that would be a ministerial order that would take effect, and that would reduce your energy bill immediately."
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In basketball, the Sydney Kings have clinched their sixth NBL title, with a 113-101 overtime defeat of Adelaide.
Kings guard Kendric Davis was crowned championship series most valuable player for producing 35 points and 14 assists in front of an all-time NBL record crowd in Sydney.
The Sixers took a seven-point lead into the final change, and maintained their advantage until the last minute as they chased a fairytale first title since 2002.
But it was a two-point game when Davis slotted one under the basket in the final 30 seconds, before a Tim Soares tip-in tied the scores at 95-95 with six seconds remaining.
Coach Brian Goorjian says he is proud of the way the team came together to deliver this result.
"The camaraderie and the teamship of continuing to move forward. So six down, going on an 18-6 run at home; and winning like we won. Not only winning, but again all the stuff through the day. And then winning in this form, with these guys was everything for me."
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