TRANSCRIPT:
- A day of reflection on the Bondi terror attack set for December 21st;
- Jacinta Allan confirms her husband pulled over for drink driving;
- The South-east Melbourne Phoenix celebrating a dramatic win in basketball.
The Prime Minister has announced a national day of reflection to remember the victims of the Bondi mass shooting.
"Today, I confirm that the federal and New South Wales governments have declared Sunday, twenty first of December, a day of reflection, to honour the victims of the horrific terrorist attack at Bondi Beach and to stand in solidarity with the Jewish community. Further my government and the New South Wales Government and other premiers as well will work closely with the Jewish community on arrangements for a national day of mourning to be held in the new year."
Anthony Albanese has also announced a national gun buyback scheme, as the states and territories work on measures to tighten up firearms laws.
It will be the largest buyback scheme since the Howard government initiated one in 1996, after the Port Arthur massacre.
"We know that one of these terrorists held a firearm license and had six guns, in spite of living in the middle of Sydney's suburbs there at Bonnyrigg. There's no reason why someone in that situation needed that many guns."
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The husband of Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan has lost his driver's licence for a drink driving offence.
The Premier has confirmed her husband Yorick Piper was on his way to the supermarket in Bendigo when he was pulled over and breath tested, resulting in an on the spot fine and losing his licence for three months
She says he blew point zero five.
"On the evening before, on Wednesday evening, we had celebrated our son's birthday with family at a local pub before we headed home around 8pm. My husband is also currently taking medication for a health issue, and as a result of the medication mixing with the alcohol from the night before he simply shouldn't have been driving the following morning. He understands that, I understand that, and for this we are both truly sorry."
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An Australian man has been jailed for 12 years in Bali for smuggling cocaine to the tourist island.
The 43 year old from Cairns was arrested in May when police raided his rented house near Kuta beach, seizing 1.7 kilograms of cocaine in 206 clip plastic bags.
His arrest had come about after an investigation conducted by Bali police anti-drug surveillance teams who reported the man had received two suspicious packages sent by mail from England.
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The UN Human Rights Office says more than 1000 civilians were killed when a Sudanese paramilitary group took over a famine-stricken displacement camp in Sudan in April.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, says their report shows about a third of those who died at the Zamzam camp in Sudan's western region of Darfur were summarily executed.
The R-S-F has not responded to the reports, and has previously denied harming civilians.
But Mr Turk says the atrocities were committed with impunity, and are consistent with what his office has repeatedly documented.
"Such deliberate killing of civilians or persons hors de combat may constitute the war crime of murder. There must be an impartial, thorough and effective investigation into the attack on the camp, and those responsible for serious violations of international law must be punished.”
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The United States has announced new sanctions on the International Criminal Court, as it investigates Israel for possible war crimes.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has targeted two ICC judges over their role in the probe, with the sanctions to include the possibility of freezing of assets in US jurisdictions and a ban on travel to the United States.
The measures against the pair are the latest in a series of ICC judges and staffers to be targeted by the Republican administration for approving or advancing criminal complaints about Israel and the United States, which aren't members of the court.
Deputy UN spokesperson Farhan Haq says all of the sanctions are of great concern.
"While the U.N. and the International Criminal Court are separate institutions with separate and distinct mandates, the U.N. considers the ICC a key pillar of international criminal justice."
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The Bureau of Meteorology has released its Christmas Day forecast.
Australians in south-eastern states have been told to expect cool to mild conditions, while the north and west of the country is set for a hot day.
Senior Meteorologist Miriam Bradbury says it will be mostly dry in Victoria and South Australia, with showers predicted in northern and Western Tasmania - and a varied slate for New South Wales.
"On Christmas Day we'll have a few coastal showers moving through, but there won't be too much rainfall in them, generally, less than five millimetres or so in most parts, remaining fairly patchy."
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To sport and in basketball news,
The South-east Melbourne Phoenix are celebrating a dramatic 77-to-76 win over the Perth Wildcats, after Josh Brown scored with just 1.5 seconds remaining.
The Wildcats came to the front at quarter-time, before Perth dominated the second term with a 14 point lead at half-time.
They continued to lead until the 11th second when Dylan Windler fouled Josh Brown, making way for a late comeback from their opponents.
