TRANSCRIPT
- Claims North Korea has provided Russia with ballistic missiles and launchers for use in Ukraine
- Alice Springs Police call for information regarding the death of a 19-year-old on New Year's Day
- David Warner's farewell test is hampered by Sydney weather
Newly declassified White House documents have revealed that North Korea has recently sold ballistic missiles and launchers to Russia.
The US National Security spokesperson John Kirby says the U-S intends to raise what he says are "alarming developments", with the UN Security Council.
The White House says they plan to impose additional sanctions on North Korean arms deals with Russia.
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US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is to depart for the Middle East, including a stop in Israel.
A senior US official said US diplomatic envoy Amos Hochstein will also travel to Israel to work to soothe tensions between Israel and Hezbollah.
US President Joe Biden spoke by phone to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in recent days as he works to improve access to Gaza for humanitarian aid and gain the release of hostages held by Hamas.
State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller made the announcement.
"First, he will discuss immediate measures to increase substantially humanitarian assistance to Gaza. The United States has played a critical role in unlocking humanitarian assistance for the Palestinian people, but conditions remain extremely difficult. The secretary will stress the imperative of expanding and sustaining safe access for humanitarian organizations to deliver food, water, medicine as well as for commercial goods to enter all areas of Gaza."
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Bill Clinton, Donald Trump and Prince Andrew are among those named in a series of court documents who are said to have maintained close links with former financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The over 900 documents were released after a U-S court order and over 50 names have been made public.
Despite the deceased Epstein's poor reputation, a person's inclusion in the documents does not automatically imply any wrongdoing on their behalf.
More names and their connection to Epstein are expected to be released in the future.
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Police in the Northern Territory have seized a car they believe could be connected to the death of a young man near Alice Springs, whose body was found on a remote highway near Undoolya Station on New Year's Day.
Assistant Commissioner Travis Wurst says the seized car is a black coloured, dual-cab Ford Ranger ute which is understood to have been driven around Alice Springs during the early morning on New Year’s Day through until the early afternoon.
He has asked the community to come forward with dashcam footage if they saw the car during that time.
"Any information that anyone has about that vehicle, or anything else we're aware of that may relate to this particular tragedy, we ask those members of the public to come forward... All avenues of this investigation are open and we are looking at it objectively. That is why the vehicle is currently being forensically examined."
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Homebuyers stuck in limbo due to unfinished houses have been thrown a lifeline, with West Australian government loans to help struggling builders complete projects.
The $10 million program will provide interest-free loans of up to $300,000 for WA builders with houses that have been under construction for more than two years.
State Treasurer Rita Saffioti says this program aims to help those who have bought a house but aren't in a position to live in it due to high building costs.
"This is all about making sure home owners have the ability to move into a home that they've purchased or they've been building for a number of years. It's targeted for those homes that have started more than two years ago. So, as we said, we believe there are hundreds of these types of homes that are out there, where they're in a stalemate with the builder. The builder doesn't have the ability to finish those projects. And we're creating a new facility to support the completion of those projects."
The loan facility is intended to assist residential builders with cashflow problems, prevent more construction company insolvencies and boost housing supply.
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In cricket,
David Warner's farewell Test has been overshadowed by Sydney's poor weather and cricket's archaic rules, with half of the day lost to bad light and rain.
After Warner was dismissed for 34 before lunch on day two in what could prove his last Test innings, play was interrupted with Australia 2-116 in reply to Pakistan's 313.
Lights were on at the SCG and the conditions were gloomy, but the decision to take players from the field for bad light was met with boos from the crowd and criticism from former players.
Players stayed off for a further 40 minutes while 25,000 fans remained in attendance, before rain began to fall and the day was officially washed out.
