SBS News in Easy English 4 August 2025

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TRANSCRIPT

Welcome to SBS News in Easy English, I'm Camille Bianchi.
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New South Wales Police say around 90,000 people walked across the Sydney Harbour Bridge in a rainstorm, to support of Palestinians in Gaza.

The protesters want the Albanese government to sanction Israel.

Sunday was the first time the iconic bridge has been closed for an anti-war protest.

"We might be standing in the rain but it's nothing compared to the rain of the bombs and the bullets."

"This is nothing compared to what's happening in Palestine."

"We are not a noisy minority; this is the majority. The tide has turned. Sanction Israel now!"

"We're here using our voice, trying to make a change and pressure the government into doing something and taking a stand for these people."
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Police are asking for any information that could help solve cases of missing persons in Australia during National Missing Persons week.

Around 2,700 Australians have been missing for a long time.

Heather Marks went missing 42 years ago in Sydney.

Heather’s granddaughter, Natalie Jackson, is asking anyone who may know more about her grandmother’s disappearance – to come forward.

"On the 13th of April, Heather went missing last seen walking along Glover St, Rozelle, heading towards Leichhardt pool. If you were that day and know anything - no matter how small - I urge you to come forward. To the rest of Australia, she may be a missing person, but to us she is family. And we missing her dearly. A long-term missing person case brings immense emotional distress. For families, it is an endless journey of uncertainty marked by sadness, guilt and anger. Yet there is always a flicker of hope that one day we will have answers."
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The federal government has named Australia’s first National Commissioner for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People.

Sue-Anne Hunter will speak with Indigenous children and young people to make meaningful change on social issues and help meet Closing the Gap targets.

Professor Hunter says she wants to build on work that has already been done.

"Most of his work isn't new. It just hasn't progressed. So how do we actually do, and progress - reduce the rate of children in care, reduce our children in youth detention. How do we get better health outcomes, better education outcomes, how do we keep kids connected to their family, their country, their culture."

The latest Closing the Gap report showed the rate of Indigenous children in out-of-home care is getting worse... while Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children are 27 times more likely to be in youth detention.
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In cycling, Australian Lauretta Hanson says she is proud of her performance at the Tour de France Femmes].

Eight Australians participated in the race.

Hanson finished 75th out of 154 riders.

She says it takes dedication to compete.

"You see the level of professionalism in the athletes who have really dedicated a lot to be here. My preparation wasn't perfect, but it still takes a lot of hard work to be able to start the Tour de France. There are some incredibly strong athletes. They have dedicated a lot of time, their friends, their families, their teams as well. Spending a lot of time on altitude really focusing on their preparation and performance to give themselves and the team the best opportunity for yellow. It has been a very tough week. You have seen really exciting racing, really fast racing. And yeah, I am proud to be part of it."
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That's the latest SBS News in Easy English.

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