The UN chief repeats calls for a Gaza ceasefire; the Prime Minister describes his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping as very successful; and in Tennis, a blow for Australia's hopes at the Billie Jean King Cup in Spain.
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TRANSCRIPT
- The UN chief repeats calls for a Gaza ceasefire
- The Prime Minister describes his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping as very successful
- And in Tennis, a blow for Australia's hopes at the Billie Jean King Cup in Spain
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres says Gaza is "becoming a graveyard for children" - as he repeated his call for a humanitarian ceasefire to allow for the delivery of much-needed aid.
Eighteen leaders of UN agencies have signed a joint statement demanding a ceasefire, saying enough is enough.
It comes as the death toll in Gaza over the last 30 days surpassed 10,000, according to the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health.
Mr Guterres says the case for a ceasefire becomes "more urgent with every passing hour".
"Gaza is becoming a graveyard for children, hundreds of girls and boys are reportedly killed or injured every day. More journalists have reportedly been killed over a four week period than in any conflict in at least three decades. More United Nations aid workers have been killed than in any comparable period in the history of our organization."
The UN and its partners have launched a humanitarian appeal to help the entire population of Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has invited Chinese President Xi Jinping to visit Australia.
The invitation was issued during their meeting in Beijing, which ran for more than an hour.
Mr Xi cracked a rare smile and gave a warm handshake upon greeting Mr Albanese in the Great Hall of the People.
The Chinese leader says the two countries have "worked out some problems," referencing points of contention including human rights and trade bans on Australian exports.
Mr Albanese says the meeting was "very successful", building upon the rapport established during their last meeting at the G20 in Bali last year.
"And I believe that we can all benefit from the greater understanding that comes from high level dialogue and people to people links. And that a strong relationship between our two countries will be beneficial into the future. Where differences arise, it's important that we have communication, from communication comes understanding."
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A community worker who founded a link-up service to help young people battling addiction has been named Australian of the Year for the Northern Territory.
Blair McFarland moved to central Australia in 1986 and founded the Central Australian Youth Link-Up Service as he watched the community struggle with the petrol sniffing epidemic of the 1990s.
His work was instrumental in bringing about the roll-out of an unsniffable fuel, known as Low Aromatic Fuel.
It resulted in a 95 per cent reduction in petrol sniffing.
Mr McFarland says he is proud of the work he has done, but there is still a lot more to do.
"The solution that we came up with addressed the symptom very well. There was a huge reduction in petrol sniffing. But we can't lose sight of the causes of petrol sniffing. And that is what we have been putting our energy into ever since. So yeah there is a lot more work to do - and it's about making life better for kids."
The award was announced at a ceremony at the Darwin Convention Centre on Monday evening.
The Senior Australian of the Year for the NT went to elder, teacher and community leader, Yalmay Yunupingu.
And the young Northern Territorian of the year was awarded to teenage medical student Peter Susanto.
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In tennis, Australia's Billie Jean King Cup hopes have taken a hit before a ball has even been hit, with newly-crowned world No.1 doubles star Storm Hunter caught up in a scheduling drama.
Hunter is in extreme doubt for Australia's opening tie at the "World Cup of tennis" after the rain-marred WTA Finals ran a day over time.
It was not immediately clear if Hunter was able to catch a flight from Cancun to Spain after losing her semi-final with Belgian Elise Mertens.
Even if she did, the 29-year-old would only arrive in Seville hours before Australia's clash with Slovenia.
Teammate Ellen Perez has already been ruled out after making the delayed doubles final in Mexico with American Nicole Melichar-Martinez.
