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Arrernte elder William Tilmouth has received Australia’s top human rights honour for his lifelong advocacy for First Nations Australians.
A member of the Stolen Generations, Mr Tilmouth was named the winner of the Human Rights Medal at the Australian Human Rights Awards in Sydney.
He says his work, including as founding Chair of Children's Ground, has been about ensuring future generations of First Nations children can exercise their rights and their voice.
"I am proud to hold the responsibility and care for the oldest living culture in the world. The oldest system of governance, education, health, law and human rights. But we must face the daily battle against the system designed by assimilation, genocide and injustice."
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First Nations Peoples in Victoria have welcomed the formal start of the state's Treaty with Indigenous Australians.
A ceremony and celebration of culture, dance and community was held in Melbourne overnight [[12 Dec]] to mark the formal beginning of the agreement, which was signed and passed into Victorian law last month.
The Treaty elevates the First Peoples’ Assembly into a permanent, legislated body representing First Peoples and making decisions within existing Parliamentary and democratic structures.
Djaran Murray-Jackson represents the Dja Dja Wurrung People in the First Peoples Assembly of Victoria.
He told NITV it is exciting to see the progress made in delivering better outcomes for the community.
"I am excited and hopeful for the future. We got the first statewide Treaty in this country. And I am excited to see what we can deliver once we have the power to do things that we want to do with our people. I am really looking forward to next term - and seeing where we land; and deliver practical outcomes for our peoples."
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The European Union has announced it has indefinitely frozen Russia's assets in Europe until Russia ends its war on Ukraine and compensates for the damage.
It's a key step that will allow EU leaders to work out at a summit next week how to use the tens of billions of euros in Russian Central Bank assets to underwrite a huge loan to help Ukraine meet its financial and military needs over the next two years.
Russia’s Central Bank, meanwhile, says it has filed a lawsuit in Moscow against Belgian financial clearing house Euroclear for damages it says were caused when Russia was barred from managing its assets.
EU Commissioner for Economy, Valdis Dombrovskis, says he is not surprised by the move.
"We can expect that Russia will continue to launch speculative legal proceedings to prevent the EU from the EU from upholding the international law and to pursue the legal obligation for Russia to compensate Ukraine for the damages it has caused."
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US President Donald Trump says he hasn't seen the new photos from Jeffrey Epstein’s estate released by Democrats on the House Oversight Committee.
Democratic Party members of the U-S House of Representatives have put out more than 70 additional photos from the 95,000 or so they have from Epstein's estate.
They include a black and white photo of Mr Trump alongside six women whose faces have been blacked out.
Former U-S President Bill Clinton and the former British Prince, Andrew, are also shown in the photos released.
There is no suggestion that these pictures imply any wrongdoing - and many of those featured in them have denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein, including Mr Trump.
The President says he is not bothered by the release of the photos.
"Well, I haven't seen it. But everybody knew this man. He was all over Palm Beach. He has photos with everybody. And there almost hundreds and hundreds of people in the photos with him so, it is no big deal. I know nothing about it."
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Britain's King Charles says his treatment for cancer can be reduced in the new year.
The 77-year-old monarch was diagnosed with an unspecified form of cancer last February.
In a televised broadcast as part of a national cancer awareness campaign in Britain, King Charles says screening plays a vital role.
"I know from my own experience that a cancer diagnosis can feel overwhelming. Yet I also know that early detection is the key that can transform treatment journeys, giving invaluable time to medical teams and to their patients, the precious gift of hope. These are gifts we can all help deliver."
Buckingham Palace said his treatment is moving to a "precautionary phase" and his condition will be monitored to ensure his continued recovery.
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The cost of tickets to next year's FIFA World Cup has been criticised by fan groups, with Football Supporters Europe calling for an immediate halt to the sales of national team allocations for the tournament.
The European fan groups says based on price tables circulated to national associations, a supporter following their team from the first group match through to the final via the Participating Member Associations would pay almost five times the equivalent cost at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar... a minimum cost of $10,375.
