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TRANSCRIPT
Australia has voted in favour of two resolutions on the war in Gaza at the United Nations General Assembly.
The first resolution calls for an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire.
The second expresses support for the mandate of the U-N's Palestinian Relief Agency, better known as UNRWA.
Australia's ambassador the UN, James Larsen, says without a ceasefire, more lives will be lost.
"Australia is committed to working with the international community to end this conflict, to stop the suffering and immediately secure the release of all hostages held by Hamas. Tomorrow marks one year since Australia joined 152 other countries in voting for a ceaasefire in this Assembly, further delay will only see more lives lost. This resolution demands for a full rapid, unhindered humantarian assistance to Gaza has never been more necessary."
Global tech company Meta is experiencing major disruptions across its platforms, including Facebook, Messenger, Whatsapp and Instagram.
The outages are particularly affecting Facebook Logins, Messenger, and an extensive suite of business tools.
Down detector, a website that monitors outages, has logged thousands of reports from consumers.
In a statement posted to X Meta says it is aware of the issues and working to fix them.
Syria's new interim prime minister, Mohammed al-Bashir, says he aims to bring back millions of Syrian refugees, protect all citizens and provide basic services.
However, he acknowledges it will be difficult because the country lacks foreign currency.
It comes after a coalition of Syrian rebels launched a 12-day offensive that toppled the government of President Bashar al-Assad.
At a morgue in Damascus, Hlala Merei is among those looking for news about her family members after they disappeared.
She says she fears they were imprisoned or killed by the toppled Syrian government.
"I lost my sons in 2013. I've been submitting requests to the military police and the military court, but they kept telling me they don't have them. Since 2013, I have not seen them, nor do I know their fate. Bring back my sons."
Being overweight or obese has now overtaken tobacco smoking as the leading risk factor for disease in Australia this year.
A new report by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare finds Australians lost an estimated 5.8 million years of healthy life in 2024 due to disease and dying prematurely.
According to the report, 65.8 per cent of Australians aged 18 years and over were overweight or obese.
The CEO of the Public Health Association of Australia, [[Mr]] Terry Slevin, says more money needs to be invested in prevention to prevent steeper costs to individuals and the health system in the future.
In sports, the formal announcement of the first Papua New Guinea team in the NRL has been announced.
Papua New Guinea's Prime Minister, James Marapeis in Australia - and is meeting with Anthony Albanese.
They're have confirmed that a PNG team will enter the competition from 2028 - after two years of talks.
Both governments are allocating money for the initiative, with the Australian government expected to commit $600 million over 10 years.
The team is seen as a vital tool in Australia's diplomatic efforts in the Pacific.
