TRANSCRIPT
- Optus's technical outage causing a triple-0 failure is unacceptable, minister says.
- A British couple detained by the Taliban in Afghanistan for nearly eight months is released.
- And in AFL, Geelong beats Hawthorn into the Grand Final but loses star defender Tom Stewart to concussion.
Federal Communications Minister Anika Wells says Optus' technical failure linked to three deaths is incredibly serious and completely unacceptable.
Optus Chief Executive Stephen Rue has confirmed three people died after a technical outage meant dozens of people couldn't dial 000 on Thursday (September 18).
In a statement, Ms Wells says no Triple Zero outage is acceptable, and the incident will be thoroughly investigated.
The investigation is still ongoing, but Mr Rue says around 600 people in South Australia, the Northern Territory and Western Australia have been affected.
Mr Rue apologised to those who have been affected.
"I want to offer a sincere apology to all customers who could not connect to emergency services when they needed them most. And I offer my sincere and heartfelt condolences to the families and friends of the people who passed away. I am so sorry for your loss."
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A British couple detained by the Taliban in Afghanistan for nearly eight months has been released.
The Taliban says Peter Reynolds and his wife Barbie had broken laws, and are now released after going through judicial proceedings.
No other details have been given for their detention.
The couple lived in Afghanistan for nearly two decades, running a charitable organisation that was later approved by the Taliban when they took power in 2021.
Their release was mediated by Qatar, where they are headed to before returning to the United Kingdom.
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French president Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte are to present photos to a court in the United States to prove Mrs Macron is a woman.
The couple have launched a defamation case against right-wing influencer Candace Owens, who claims Mrs Macron was born a man.
Their lawyer, Tom Clare, told the BBC the couple are prepared to submit photos taken during Mrs Macron's pregnancy and scientific evidence to the court.
"We are prepared to supply all of those materials, we are just gonna do it in open court, where there are rules, where the rules and evidence apply, where there is proof, and where that can be done publicly in a way that people will see how it's presented."
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A researcher who has analysed trends from a large data set of more than 9,000 Australian households says Australians are working for much longer.
Every year since 2001, the results from the HILDA (Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia) survey is released by the University of Melbourne and the Melbourne Institute.
This year's report has found a significant shift in household wealth, super balances and health outcomes, which has push backed the age at which Australians can retire.
Report author Dr Inga Lass says 1 in 3 Australians in their late 60s is still working.
"On the good side, we have increased longevity, and in good health that allow people to stay in the workforce longer. On the other hand, many people are now working longer for economic reasons because we've seen an increase of age pension age, and we've seen an increase of cost of living."
There is no official retirement age in Australia, but to be eligible for the age pension, you must be at least 67 years of age.
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Former Greens candidate for Grayndler, Hannah Thomas, whose eye was injured during her arrest at a pro-Palestinian rally, has been awarded legal costs amounting to about $22,000, after all charges against her were dropped.
Ms Thomas was arrested during a protest in June, after her lawyer alleges she was punched by a New South Wales police officer.
At the time, the state's assistant police commissioner said he'd reviewed body worn camera footage and found no information that showed police misconduct.
Police said they tried to move her and other members of a protest group away from the scene.
Another three people were also arrested and their charges have also been dropped.
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And to sport,
Geelong coach Chris Scott says Tom Stewart's "shattering" concussion that rules the star Cat (Geelong) out of the AFL grand final is hard to take.
The defender was concussed in a first-quarter tackle from Hawks (Hawthorn) forward Mabior Chol in last night's preliminary final.
He was assisted from the ground and quickly substituted.
Geelong fought back from an early 21-point deficit to claim a 17.13 (115) to 13.7 (85) preliminary final win at the M-C-G.
But due to the AFL's 12-day concussion protocols, Stewart has been immediately ruled out of next Saturday's grand final against either Collingwood or Brisbane.
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