TRANSCRIPT
- Pauline Hanson suspended from the Senate for seven days...
- Afghanistan's Taliban says Pakistan's strikes kill at least ten...
- Nick Kyrgios to play at Kooyong Classic as he steps up bid for Australian Open wildcard.
Pauline Hanson has been suspended from the Senate for seven days after she was censured with 55 to five votes, following her burqa stunt in parliament yesterday.
Foreign Minister Penny Wong moved the motion after Ms Hanson's spoke in the senate chamber earlier.
The One Nation leader said wearing the burqa is not a religious requirement, and that it has been imposed on women to wear it by their male family members.
"I have stood up for the Jewish people of this community - I'm not Jewish but the way they were treated beaten by some of the people in this chamber and the Greens wearing a keffiyeh that wasn't pulled up at all. The whole fact is that everyone has a right to their faith and I respect 116 of Australian constitution where the Commonwealth can not impose any religious observance on anyone."
Ms Hanson referred to Greens Deputy Leader Mehreen Faruqi as the "pot calling the kettle black", after Ms Faruqi condemned the stunt yesterday.
A Taliban official says at least nine children and a woman have been killed, after Pakistani forces bombed the home of a local resident in the country's southeastern area of Khost province.
The attach took place on the border regions of Kunar and Paktika, injuring another four civilians.
The Pakistani and Afghan militaries clashed in October killing dozens, in its worst violence since the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in 2021.
Both sides signed a ceasefire in Doha the same month, but peace talks in Turkiye fell through due to a disagreement.
The Albanese government is announcing funding for a new AI Safety Institute, which will begin at the end of the year.
The aim of the Institute is to help Australia capture economic opportunities while keeping Australians safe from AI risks.
The new body tests and monitors AI models and works across a global network of safety institutes.
Industry Minister Tim Ayres made the announcement today, fulfilling a commitment made at the Seoul AI Summit.
"It will do all of the work that is required as artificial intelligence evolves, as the opportunities and the challenges evolve in advising government on on focusing on regulatory reform or capability gaps that may emerge within government."
Rangers in Western Australia's Kimberley region - are taking teenage boys on camps to teach them about respectful relationships.
According to government health statistics*, domestic violence is a huge issue across Australia with Indigenous women 34 times more likely to end up in hospital due to an assault, and 11 times more likely to die.
The community led camp gives elders a chance to tell teenage boys that domestic violence is wrong, with talks on how to manage anger.
This participant Kingsley Malay shares what he believes a good relationship entails.
"We are just here to talk about domestic violence and healthy relationships. I think a good relationship will need communications, respect, listen to each other and trust."
The Australian Bureau of Statistics has announced the 2026 Census topics with updated LGBTIQ+ questions on sexual orientation and gender.
In 2024, the federal government said it would count sexual orientation and gender identity for the first time in 2026.
Online news outlet QNews is reporting that updated information from the 2026 Census will be released in three phases.
Advocay group Equality Australia has welcomed the move saying the census date to be released in 2027 will provide crucial information that will better understand what services LGBTIQ+ communities need.
And in sport,
Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios will contest the returning Kooyong Classic in Melbourne as the former Wimbledon finalist continues his surprise bid to make a competitive comeback at the Australian Open.
The January 13-15 dates has been added to his packed schedule, with exhibition matches next month in the US against Ben Shelton and Tommy Paul.
This, before the widely anticipated match against women's world No.1 Aryna Sabalenka in Dubai on December 28.
Knee and wrist surgeries have restricted the one-time world No.13 to just six matches in just over three years.
But he is hoping to play the Brisbane International and the Australian Open if he is physically fit following the exhibition matches.
