TRANSCRIPT
The Palestinian community has hit back at opposition leader Peter Dutton's calls to halt the flow of asylum seekers from Gaza to Australia.
Mr Dutton says the intake of Palestinians should stop until strict vetting measures are in place.
The group Palestinian Christians in Australia say his comments are dehumanising and serve to fuel hate.
PCIA director Suzan Wahhab says the comments also generalise a community diverse in ethnicity and religion.
She says it results in a sense of helplessness for many already traumatised by war and displacement.
"Look, they feel powerless. They feel they can't speak up and they feel like they're not welcome in Australia. We don't want politicians to gaslight the real issue and keep saying we don't want Palestinians to come to Australia. Palestinians would not be coming to Australia if they have not been driven out of their homes not once, but twice."
***
United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken is urging Hamas to accept a US-mediated proposal for a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal, after what he described as a "very constructive" meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Talks in Qatar last week paused without a breakthrough, but the negotiations are expected to resume this week based on the US proposal to bridge the gaps between Israel and Hamas.
Mr Blinken says it's vital the respective parties make good on their commitments.
"In a very constructive meeting with Prime Minister Netanyahu today, he confirmed to me that Israel accepts the bridging proposal. That he supports it. It's now incumbent on Hamas to do the same. And then the parties, with the help of the mediators, the United States, Egypt and Qatar, have to come together and complete the process of reaching clear understandings about how they'll implement the commitments."
This comes as there were reports an Israeli strike on Monday evening local time targeted a Hezbollah arms depot in Lebanon's eastern Bekaa Valley.
Meanwhile, five people were killed and several injured after an Israeli airstrike on an internet distribution facility in west Khan Younis on Monday.
At least 40 thousand people have been killed, according to Palestinian health authorities, and nearly 2.3 million people have been displaced as a result of Israel's military campaign on Gaza.
***
Linda Reynolds' chief of staff, at the time Brittany Higgins was allegedly raped in parliament, won't be called to testify in the politician's defamation trial on account of a medical report.
Ms Reynolds is suing her former staffer Ms Higgins - who is defending the claim - over a series of social media posts containing alleged mistruths that she believes damaged her reputation.
Former chief of staff Fiona Brown was expected to provide evidence about what unfolded in the days after Ms Higgins was allegedly raped in the ex-defence minister's suite in 2019.
But she was exempted on Monday [[19 Aug]] from facing the court after her psychiatric report and a medical report were provided to the court.
Instead, the court is expected to use Ms Brown's redacted affidavit and cross-examination transcript from Bruce Lehrmann's failed defamation trial against Network Ten and journalist Lisa Wilkinson, and her evidence at his aborted criminal trial for rape.
***
The New South Wales government has released its most sophisticated predictions yet on climate change- saying they show how urgently-required action is on the matter.
The third set of forecasts show more hot days, less cold nights, and more severe fire weather days are inevitable.
But the forecasts project a 1.3 degree rise in temperature by the year 2090 if emissions are kept low, as opposed to a 4 degree rise if emissions are high.
The forecasts show climate change will affect the Alpine ecosystems, ski season, and even water supply for Australia's most-populous state.
New South Wales' Environment Minister, Penny Sharpe, says the new projections will help protect the state's critical infrastructure.
New South Wales is committed to reaching net-zero emissions by the year 2050.
***
In cycling, Australian Kaden Groves has narrowly missed out on victory in stage three of the Vuelta a Espana, which has taken place in Portugal.
He's finished second, beaten in a sprint to the line by race leader Wout van Aert [[voot van art]] of Belgium.
Groves has finished ahead of van Aert, the overall race leader, in stage two.
It's van Aert's first victory in a stage of any race since Febraury.
van Aert, who now leads the race by 13 seconds overall, says his victory is a triumph of patience.
"It is worth it to be patient. So, it has been quite a while since I could raise my hands and this feels so good."]
