16 more hostages released by Hamas on the final day of an extended truce; Australia working to get 67 more citizens out of Gaza; And in sport, players reject a Netball Australia offer to end a long running pay dispute.
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TRANSCRIPT
- 16 more hostages released by Hamas on the final day of an extended truce;
- Australia working to get 67 more citizens out of Gaza;
- And in sport, players have rejected a Netball Australia deal to end a long running pay dispute.
Hamas has released 16 more hostages on the final day of an extended truce in its war with Israel in Gaza.
The group is understood to include Israelis, dual nationals, and Thai citizens.
Qatar foreign ministry spokesperson Majed Al-Ansari has said in a statement that Israel will release 30 Palestinian prisoners - 16 minors and 14 women - tonight, as part of an exchange deal under the truce.
Talks are still underway to extend the truce even further, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has declared that Israel is determined to resume fighting Hamas when the ceasefire ends.
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan says that scenario must be avoided.
"The danger is that if this ceasefire, if this truce expires, that we will return to the killing at the scale that we have seen, which is unbearable. Many, many thousands - 16,000 civilians - dead so far, most of them women and children."
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Australian officials are continuing to assist 67 people who want to leave Gaza - but they say the situation is dire on the final day of a temporary ceasefire.
Officials have managed to secure the safe passage of 131 Australians from the besieged strip since the bombardments began.
Those who left were met by Australian officials at the Egyptian border and provided onward travel to the capital Cairo, where they received more necessities such as nappies, baby formula, accommodation and assistance getting home.
Assistant Foreign Affairs Minister Tim Watts says it remains extremely difficult for more Australians to leave Gaza, but consular officials are doing their best to help them.
"You often see relieved and emotional Australians being interviewed at airports on the TV news on their return from a crisis area. But what the public often doesn't see though is the thousands of hours of work from Australian consular officials around the world that helps make these happy outcomes a reality."
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The OECD has released its projections for the Australian economy - and they are predicting the nation is about to head into a "sluggish year".
The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development says growth could even be more muted if inflation proves stubborn or China's economy slumps.
The think tank expects higher interest rates and inflation to weigh on housing investment as well as on spending for households without big savings buffers.
But Treasurer Jim Chalmers says he remains confident Australia is facing challenging global circumstances from a position of strength.
"Now we're not getting carried away about these very welcome and very encouraging inflation figures. We know these monthly numbers bounce around a bit, and we know that inflation is still too high. We know that Australians are under substantial pressure. That's why it is so encouraging to see the ABS yesterday, Deloitte and the OECD overnight, Westpac and others, provide a fulsome endorsement of the government's economic strategy."
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Every state and territory in Australia has been placed on a heightened alert following the release of this year's seasonal bushfire outlook.
The National Council for fire and emergency services says significant rain over the past few years has in fact led to more vegetation growth and difficult conditions to complete hazard reduction burns.
The outlook says the conditions will continue to dry out fuel loads in areas across Australia, including some affected during the 2019-20 Black Summer season.
Emergency Management Minister Murray Watt says the outlook is a clear reminder all Australians need to be prepared.
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To sport,
Players have rejected a deal from Netball Australia to end a long-running pay dispute, saying the lock-in deal would have forced players back to work while key aspects of the partnership model were still being negotiatied.
Netball Australia had hoped to reach an end to the bitter saga by offering an 11 per cent pay rise back-dated to the 1st of October and agreeing to the first-ever revenue-sharing arrangement.
But the Australian Netball Players' Association say players won't return to work until the terms of the partnership model are finalised.
They are seeking 15 per cent of revenue above what is forecast from any new sponsors.
