TRANSCRIPT
- Australia signs a $400 million deal with Nauru to deport hundreds of former detainees
- Families seek closure on the International Day of the Disappeared
- And in cycling, Spain's Juan Ayuso wins stage seven of the Vuelta a Espana
Refugee advocates have condemned the lack of transparency around a $400 million deal signed between Australia and Nauru to take around 280 people who were detained long-term in Australian immigration detention centres.
A landmark High Court ruling in November 2023 resulted in many of the group - called the NZYQ cohort - being released into the Australian community.
The new deal was signed yesterday during a visit to Nauru by Australia's Home Affairs Minister, Tony Burke.
In a statement, he says the arrangement would "allow the continued management of the NZYQ cohort".
Greens Senator David Shoebridge has criticised the deal and the laws that have made it possible.
"This is another secret deal from Nauru, to literally make one of our closest Pacific neighbours into a penal colony; instead of treating them with respect and equality, really reaching back to the worst of Australia's colonial mentality. We know what the government's rhetoric is, but they're not telling the truth. These laws apply to up to a hundred-thousand people on bridging visas and without protection in this country. It is not limited to just the NZYQ cohort."
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The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement says it is handling more than 154,000 [[154,200]] open cases of missing persons related to the Russia-Ukraine conflict - a significant increase from previous years.
The group works across borders to search for missing persons and reconnect families separated by war, disasters and migration.
On the International Day of the Disappeared, the Red Cross says the number of people registered as missing globally has increased by nearly 70 per cent over the past five years - to a total of 284,000.
After months of uncertainty, Nataliia received confirmation that her husband - a Ukrainian soldier - had been killed on the frontline.
She says she's grateful to the Red Cross for facilitating the return of her husband's remains. And she says many others don't know if their loved ones are dead or alive.
"I met with a fellow soldier of Oleh, and he confirmed that he knew Oleh had died. But no one had seen or found the body. And this whole year of searching had been just awful, it had been hell. There are so many people going through the torment of not knowing – tens of thousands of them."
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The World Health Organization has warned of a worsening global cholera crisis, with outbreaks in 31 countries this year.
More than 409-thousand (409,222) cases have been recorded - mostly in the Eastern Mediterranean region and in Africa.
There have also been 4,738 deaths globally, the majority in Africa.
The UN health agency says there is a very high risk of further spread within and between countries; and that the primary drivers of the preventable disease are conflict and poverty, particularly in rural and flood-affected areas.
The acute intestinal infection spreads through food and water contaminated with bacteria, often from faeces.
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In sports, the top teams in the national men's and women's leagues for wheelchair basketball, are competing for the championship title this weekend.
The semi-finals and finals are taking place in Sydney, with the winners to be crowned tomorrow.
Medal-winning former Dutch Paralympian Koen Jansens is a board member of Wheelchair Basketball Australia.
He told SBS, the pandemic did impact the sport, and it is great seeing the growth in the national league.
"Running national leagues is super important to make sure that we keep building players and the talent to compete at the international level when we go to Paralympic Games. And with Brisbane (Olympics 2032) coming up in seven years - this is critical. So having strong leagues - and having lots of energy for the game locally in Australia. So it has been really exciting."
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And in cycling,
Spaniard Juan Ayuso has won stage seven of the Vuelta a España.
Ayuso was the first to get away early in the stage, before he was joined by a group of 11 riders, including Australian teammate and stage six winner Jay Vine.
And with 11 kilometres left to the finish, the Spaniard made his move again.
The 22-year-old showed a remarkable recovery from his collapse in the Pyrenees the previous day.
Ayuso says it feels good to win his first individual Vuelta stage.
"It's amazing. After the Giro when I won my first Grand Tour stage, to win a stage here in La Vuelta which for me is my favourite race and the way I especially won it today is something I think I will remember always and I'm just super proud."
And you can watch all stages of the Vuelta a España broadcast live on SBS On Demand, and SBS VICELAND.
