Australians in Lebanon told "now is the time to leave"; Two people found dead on a boat moored in Sydney, in mysterious circumstances; And paddler Jessica Fox claims another gold medal, becoming Australia's most successful Olympian.
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TRANSCRIPT
In this bulletin;
- Australians in Lebanon told "now is the time to leave";
- Two people found dead on a boat moored in Sydney, in mysterious circumstances;
- And paddler Jessica Fox claims another gold medal, becoming Australia's most successful Olympian.
The Australian government is urging its citizens to leave Lebanon as soon as possible, as fears grow over an all-out conflict in the Middle East.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong says if Australians don't leave now, they may be stranded for some time, and the government may not be in a position to help.
"Now is not the time for Australians in the region to wait and see what happens. Now is the time to leave. If you are in Australia and thinking of travelling to Lebanon, do not. There is a real risk that the conflict in the region escalates seriously. The security situation could deteriorate quickly with little or no notice. Some commercial flights are still operating. If you can leave, you should. Beirut airport could close completely if the situation worsens, and if that happens, the government may not be able to help Australians still in Lebanon to evacuate."
The warning follows Israeli attacks in south Beirut and Tehran, which the head of the United Nations has described as a dangerous escalation.
Israeli strikes killed Hamas's top political leader Ismail Haniyeh yesterday, as well as a top commander in Iran's ally Hezbollah in Beirut.
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The United Nations Security Council has held an emergency meeting after Israel's pre-dawn strike on the Iranian capital, Tehran.
Iran's representative Ali Bahreini accuses Israel of terrorism, and says Security Council members failed to condemn the assassination of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh.
"This act of terror is just another manifestation of Israel's decade long patterns of terrorism and sabotage, targeting Palestinians and other supporters and sympathisers of the Palestinian cause across the region and beyond. The Security Council has failed in this in its duty to maintain international peace and security, and a draft press statement proposed by Russia in condemning the Israeli atrocious act was blocked by the United States, United Kingdom and France."
Meanwhile, Israel's representative Jonathan Miller defended what he called a precise strike against a senior terrorist.
"We will defend ourselves and respond with great force against those who harm us. The state of Israel will not stand idly by. We will continue to defend ourselves and our citizens. The world must support Israel at this time and demand Hezbollah's compliance with the Security Council Resolutions 1701 by ceasing its attacks, withdrawing to the north of the Litani River, and disarming."
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Two people have been found dead on a boat moored on Sydney's north shore.
Sydney Water Police found the bodies of a man and woman on Wednesday night, at a mooring at Tunks Park, Cammeray.
Fire and Rescue personnel were called after fumes were detected on board.
The two are believed to be aged in their 50s or 60s.
Police were told the two intended spending Monday night on the boat, and concerns were raised when they didn't return.
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And to the Olympics,
Australia's Jessica Fox has dominated the games yet again - becoming the second ever Australian athlete outside of swimming to win three individual gold medals.
Her sixth individual medal surpasses the five individual medals won by Ian Thorpe, Leisel Jones, Shirley Strickland, Shane Gould, Anna Meares and Ariarne Titmus, who joined this group in Paris.
Fox has now become the most successful athlete in Olympic canoe slalom history with six medals - surpassing Slovakian Michal Martikan.
A medal in the K1 was her fourth consecutive in that discipline - the only Australian to achieve four consecutive medals in the same individual event.
