Police seize 2.7 tonnes of cocaine in Australia’s biggest-ever drug bust; Patients left waiting as ambulance ramping hits dangerous new levels; And in sport, Australia seals a clean sweep in the T20 cricket series against Bangladesh.
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TRANSCRIPT:
- Police seize 2.7 tonnes of cocaine in Australia’s biggest-ever drug bust
- Patients left waiting as ambulance ramping hits dangerous new levels
- Australia seals a clean sweep in the T20 cricket series against Bangladesh
Police have seized 2.7 tonnes of cocaine in what’s being described as Australia’s biggest-ever cocaine bust.
The haul, worth an estimated 816 million dollars, was found in plastic tubs buried in underground bunkers beneath shipping containers in western Sydney.
Police allege the drugs were shipped into North Queensland, then transported south for a Sydney organised crime group.
Two Sydney men have been charged, while investigations into the wider syndicate are continuing.
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The Australian Medical Association (AMA) says ambulance ramping has reached its most dangerous level in years.
Its latest report card shows handover delays are getting worse, with ambulances spending far longer stuck outside hospitals than they were five years ago.
More than 2.4 million Australians arrived at emergency departments by ambulance in 2024-25.
AMA president Danielle McMullen says too many patients are being left waiting before they can be properly treated.
" We've seen a record year of ambulance demand. More ambulance call outs than ever before, and more than half of people calling an ambulance needing to go to emergency departments. So that's more than 2.4 million ambulances arriving at our emergency departments right around the country. That's busy enough, and yet when they get there, we're finding far too many Australians are stuck in that ambulance, waiting too long to be seen definitively in the emergency department."
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Australia’s largest poultry producer has locked down its Western Australian farms, after the deadly H5N1 bird flu strain was detected in wild seabirds.
The virus was confirmed in a sick brown skua near Esperance, with a second bird also returning a preliminary positive result.
At least 16 sick or dead birds have now been reported along the WA coast.
Aurelie Labbe from the WA Seabird Conservation Network says the virus may already be more widespread than first thought.
"It's a huge stretch of coastline, not very well monitored for the arrival of the disease. It’s very unlikely that we would have found patient zero if patient one, the petrel, is confirmed to be H5NX as well.”
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Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem says Israel must withdraw from Lebanon, warning there will be no security zone for Israeli forces in the south.
He says the group will respond to any Israeli breach of the ceasefire.
The warning comes after Israeli officials said troops remain free to act against threats inside Lebanon.
Qassem is also calling on Lebanon’s government to improve ties with Iran.
“There is no such thing as a ceasefire that grants Israel freedom of action. A ceasefire means a complete halt to hostilities, by air, land, and sea - and no further advances - in preparation for the withdrawal, which should take place according to a rapid, time-bound schedule. There can be no gains for Israel under such an arrangement. Anything short of that is unacceptable.”
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In the World Cup, Uruguay and Cape Verde have played out a two-all draw in their tournament group clash.
Uruguay led twice, but Cape Verde fought back on both occasions to secure a valuable point.
The result leaves Group H wide open heading into the final round of matches.
Uruguay now faces Spain, while Cape Verde takes on Saudi Arabia with knockout hopes still alive.
SBS says over one third of Australians have tuned into S-B-S's FIFA World Cup 2026 broadcast over the first nine days of the cup.
An estimated 3.4 million people watched the Socceroos’ 2-0 loss to the host nation USA early on Saturday morning (20 June).
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And in cricket, Australia has claimed a three-nil T20 series win over Bangladesh, after taking the final match by seven wickets in Chattogram.
Bangladesh struggled with the bat, finishing on eight for 109 from its 20 overs.
Fast bowler Spencer Johnson led Australia’s attack, taking two wickets for just six runs, the most economical four-over spell by an Australian in men’s T20 internationals.
Australia made light work of the chase, with captain Mitchell Marsh smashing 60 off 28 balls as the tourists reached the target with nine overs to spare.
