Morning News Bulletin 12 June 2024

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Source: SBS News

Hamas says it is ready to negotiate on a Gaza ceasefire deal, China's Premier to begin a four-day trip to Australia, The Socceroos defeat Palestine 5-0.


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TRANSCRIPT:


  • Hamas says it is ready to negotiate on a Gaza ceasefire deal.
  • China's Premier to begin a four-day trip to Australia The Socceroos defeat Palestine 5-0.
  • A senior Hamas official says the group accepts a United Nations resolution on a Gaza ceasefire and is ready to negotiate details.
The proposal sets out conditions for a "full and complete ceasefire", the release of hostages held by Hamas, the return of dead hostages' remains and the exchange of Palestinian prisoners.

United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken says he met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv and he "reaffirmed his commitment to the proposal."

Mr Blinken says the world has made it clear that there is strong support for the Gaza ceasefire proposal.

"The United Nations Security Council, in effect, speaking for the entire international community, made it as clear as it possibly could be that this is what the world is looking for. 14 votes for, no votes against. Something quite rare, at the Security Council these days. And I think that speaks volumes too."

He says this latest visit is focused on rallying support for the ceasefire proposal, boosting the entry of humanitarian aid and advancing postwar plans for Gaza's governance.]]

Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General António Guterres says solutions are urgently needed to ensure aid reaches Palestinians enduring more than eight months of war in Gaza.

He spoke at an emergency international conference in Jordan on the humanitarian response for Gaza.

Aid to Gaza has been severely restricted, particularly since the closure in May of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt.

Mr Guterres says 293 staff from the UN agency delivering aid in Gaza have died.

"The security of UNRWA and our humanitarian partners are vital to moving lifesaving aid over the body and to where it needs to go within Gaza. Deliveries require safe routes and effective de-confliction mechanisms to ensure their security."

Chinese Premier Li Qiang is set to visit Australia later this week marking the first visit by a Chinese premier to the country since 2017.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Premier Li will hold talks in Canberra as part of the Annual Leaders' Meeting.

During his four-day visit, Mr Li will also visit Adelaide and Western Australia.

China imposed trade restrictions on a raft of Australian agricultural and mineral products during a diplomatic dispute in 2020 which have now been largely eased.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says the visit will be an opportunity to strengthen bilateral ties.

"Australia continues to pursue a stable and direct relationship with China, with dialogue at its core. Our approach has been patient calibrated and deliberate. Cooperate where we can disagree where we must engage in our national interest."

The Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance Northern Territory has welcomed federal government funding aimed at targeting period poverty in remote First Nations communities.

The Australian government has announced it will provide $12.5 million over four years to the National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation to work with communities to distribute free period products.

The cost of these products in some remote communities in the Territory can be almost double what is paid in metropolitan areas.

Erin Lew Fatt is the deputy is CEO of AMSANT.

She says the community distribution is critical.

"An important part of this announcement is the funding being allocated to our national peak body, NACCHO. This will ensure a community-led approach that will engage and work together to create access to these products. It will allow our women, our girls and our gender diverse people to feel comfortable to continue working and living comfortably every day."

Urgent talks are being planned to determine the safety of Australia's drinking water supply, following a landmark ruling in the United States.

Experts want Australia's standards to be lifted in line with recently tightened U-S regulations, after they cut the maximum level of cancer-causing so-called "forever chemicals" allowed in U-S drinking water.

Federal Health Minister Mark Butler has asked for an urgent briefing on the U-S developments.

A federally-funded University of Queensland study published in 2011 found high levels of the contaminants in about half of drinking water samples taken from 34 locations across the nation.

Dr Kerry Chant from New South Wales Health says recent testing has shown the presence of forever chemicals in tap water is already at - or below - the new US standards.

The Socceroos have beaten Palestine 5-0 in Perth to finish their first phase of qualifying for the World Cup with a perfect six-from-six wins and a 22-0 for-and-against record.

Socceroos coach Graham Arnold has set his team the goal of dominating the next round of World Cup qualifying.

Despite their dominance, it was not enough for Australia to overtake South Korea in the world rankings, meaning they miss out on a spot in pot one for the next round of qualifying.

Only the top two teams from each group of six in the next phase will earn automatic qualification for the 2026 World Cup.

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