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TRANSCRIPT
- A hostage exchange deal between Israel and Hamas back on track after an inital delay;
- Australia closing on on meeting its 2030 emissions reduction targets;
- And in sport, Super netball stars boycott the Australian Netball Awards over a pay dispute.
Families of hostages released by Hamas and prisoners freed by Israel are continuing to celebrate return of their loved ones, on the second day of the four-day truce mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the United States.
13 Israelis have been freed along with 4 Thai nationals, while 39 Palestinians have been released from Israeli jails.
The second round of releases was temporarily delayed after Hamas claimed Israel had stopped the entry of aid trucks into northern Gaza.
Chairman of Kibbutz Be'eri, Amit Solve, is happy to share some good news to kibbutz residents after so much horror.
"What a relief, finally we see them home the people that we knew, that are supposed to be released today and we see them and we saw them and it's quite a relief. Although you know some a lot of other abductees, people are still there. So it's joy with anticipation."
In East Jerusalem, celebrations welcoming the release of the 39 Palestinian prisoners have been muted amid heavy Israeli police presence and raids on houses.
The Palestinian Prisoners' Club advocacy group reports that 17 Palestinians have been arrested the same day the 39 were released.
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The Opposition says the federal government needs to look beyond renewables and consider nuclear energy in order to keep electricity prices down and meet energy targets.
Energy and Climate Minister Chris Bowen has said Australia is close to meeting its 2030 emissions reduction target, but would not answer questions on ABC Insiders program about how much the government's renewable energy investment scheme would cost taxpayers.
Mr Bowen says the program's aim to meet an 80 per cent renewable energy target by 2030 is making up for "10 years of denial and delay" caused by previous Coalition governments.
But Opposition senator Michaelia Cash has criticised the government for its "obsession" with renewables, telling SKY news Australia will be attending the COP28 climate summit as an "international outlier".
"Chris Bowen's and Labor's - this ideological approach to 'renewables only' is the wrong way to go. You need to have everything on the table if you really do want, over the longer term, to reduce emissions, to keep the lights on, and to keep prices down."
COP28 is the United Nations 28th annual climate summit, beginning in Dubai on the 30th of November.
Governments will gather to discuss how to limit and prepare for future climate change.
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Protesters have spent the night blockading the world's largest coal port over what they say is the failure of government to act on climate change.
Several hundred protesters blocked Newcastle Port's shipping lane on Saturday, remaining overnight and into Sunday with the action due to end at 4pm.
The group behind the protest, Rising Tide, claims over half a million tonnes of coal will be prevented from leaving the port for the duration of the action.
Protesters are demanding the government stop allowing new coal projects, tax fossil fuel export profits at 75 per cent to fund community and industrial transition, and pay for climate loss and damage.
Rising Tide community organiser and spokesperson Zack Schofield said safety was paramount as the protesters spent the night on the water, rostered in two hour shifts.
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In netball,
Netball's Courtney Bruce has won the 2023 Liz Ellis Diamond, for the second time.
The 29-year-old defended received the top gong - which she won also in 2021 - at the Australian netball awards on Saturday night for her stellar peformance with the West Coast Fever and the Diamonds.
But, many super netball players boycotted the event over a fair pay dispute.
Bruce was also crowned international player of the year, becoming the sixth Diamond in the last decade to collect both awards.
