TRANSCRIPT
Welcome to SBS News In Easy English. I'm Catriona Stirrat.
Activists in Iran say at least 35 people have been killed and more than 1200 arrested in economic protests across more than 250 locations.
The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency says 29 protesters, four children and two members of Iran's security forces have been killed in the protests that have been ongoing for more than a week.
The protests began when shopkeepers demonstrated on the streets of Tehran in late December to express their anger at another sharp fall in the value of the Iranian currency against the US dollar.
In an effort to quell public outrage, government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani says the government will provide cash handouts of around $10 per month to compensate for surging prices.
"The government has passed a bill to pay all Iranian households, let me emphasize that the household must be Iranian and residing inside Iran, 1 million Tomans a month for each household member."
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More than half of the country is set to endure extremely hot temperatures in what's expected to be the worst heatwave since the Black Summer bushfires.
The Bureau of Meteorology is warning that hot, dry conditions will create extreme fire conditions across multiple states, with temperatures reaching 45C degrees in some parts of the country.
The conditions are set to be their worst since the 2019-20 summer bushfires that killed more than 30 people directly and burned through millions of hectares.
Angus Hines from the Bureau says there are a few impacts people should be mindful of.
"I just want to reiterate a couple of the key impacts which come with those very, very hot conditions which we're anticipating this week. First and foremost, it is that increased risk of bushfire, if any bushfires do get going under these conditions, they can spread extremely quickly and be very difficult or impossible to control and contain. It can be very hard to stay cool and get a good night's sleep under hot weather, particularly with those hot nighttime temperatures and we can see stress on the power and infrastructure networks as we do have a lot of heat across the country."
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A 92-year-old federal judge is overseeing the high-profile New York trial of deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife.
The veteran Clinton appointee, Alvin Hellerstein, is managing the proceedings following his recent block of Trump-era deportation efforts against Venezuelan migrants.
Judge Hellerstein is bringing decades of experience to the bench, having previously rejected Donald Trump’s request to move a state fraud case into federal court.
Mr Hellerstein is often emphasising how his personal background and Jewish identity drives his commitment to fairness and advocacy for the marginalised.
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Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen says Donald Trump must be taken seriously over his repeated claims that the United States needs Greenland for national security, while warning against any threat to NATO unity.
Speaking in Copenhagen, Ms Frederiksen stresses Greenland, an autonomous Danish territory, does not want to become part of the United States, and says borders cannot be changed by force.
"I believe that the American President should be taken seriously when he says that he wants Greenland. But I also want to make it clear that if the United States chooses to attack another NATO country militarily, then everything stops. That is, including our NATO and thus the security that has been provided since the end of the Second World War."
Her comments come after growing European concern after Washington’s seizure of Venezuela’s president, and renewed fears in Denmark that Greenland could face similar pressure.
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Novak Djokovic has withdrawn from next week’s Adelaide International, saying he is not yet physically ready to return to competition as he prepares for a record-extending 11th title at the Australian Open.
The Serbian star posted on Instagram that his focus has shifted fully to Melbourne, with the season’s first Grand Slam beginning just a week after the Adelaide tournament.
“To all my fans in Adelaide, unfortunately I’m not quite physically ready to compete in the Adelaide International next week. It’s personally very disappointing to me as I have such great memories of winning the title there two years ago. My focus is now on my preparation for the Australian Open.”
That was SBS News in Easy English. I'm Catriona Stirrat.
