Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has criticised the former Morrison government for allegedly withholding documents regarding the decision by the Howard government to enter the Iraq war in 2003.
A public non-disclosure of nearly 80 government documents, including files on the choice to enter the war, will be reviewed.
The 2003 cabinet records released on January 1 were provided to the National Archives in 2020 by Scott Morrison's Liberal government but the Prime Minister has revealed the previous administration failed to provide 78 documents during the transfer.
In response, the government has started an independent review led by former director-general of security of Australia Dennis Richardson.
Mr Albanese says Australians have the right to know the whole truth, especially considering the Australian soldiers who lost their lives due to the conflict.
"Australians have a right to know the basis upon which Australia went to war in Iraq. Australians lost their lives during that conflict and we know that some of the stated reasons for going to war was not correct in terms of the weapons of mass destruction that was alleged Iraq had at that time."
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has paid his respects to five crew members who died when their coast guard aircraft collided with a Japan Airlines plane at Tokyo's Haneda airport.
All 379 people on board the passenger aircraft were able to escape alive after the airliner burst into flames following the incident which killed five of the six coast guards.
The smaller plane was heading to Niigata airport on the Japanese west coast to deliver aid following a devastating earthquake which struck the region on New Year's Day.
Prime Minister Kishida has offered his condolences and says the crew had carried out their job with honour and a strong sense of duty.
"These people who have passed away had carried out their jobs with a strong sense of duty and responsibility for the disaster-stricken areas and victims. This is a very unfortunate incident, and I would like to offer my sincere condolences while expressing my respect and gratitude for their sense of duty.”
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confirmed 12 Australians who were onboard the Japan Airlines flight are now safe and accounted for.
An alleged gunman has been charged with murder over the daylight shooting of convicted drug lord Alen Moradian in Sydney.
Police have charged three additional men over the shooting in a Bondi car park in 2023, with a 24-year-old man arrested at a home in Fairfield Heights who is alleged by police to have pulled the trigger in the highly orchestrated shooting.
He has been charged with five offences including murder, drug and firearm related offences, and participating in a criminal group.
Two other men, aged 27 and 28, were arrested at an address in Macquarie Park yesterday, with the younger man subsequently charged with eight firearm offences and the older man with drug-related offences.
Two kayakers have been rescued in Tasmania's north after spending more than 10 hours missing.
The man and his teenage son were kayaking along the South Esk River yesterday but failed to reach their destination of Hadspen.
They were last seen at 3.15pm and a concerned family member contacted police about 9pm, with an air and ground search starting not long after.
A drone pilot found the two kayakers on a small island near Mill Dam about 1.20am this morning.
Air crews could not land due to heavy tree coverage so surf lifesaving vessels were deployed and the pair were rescued uninjured about 4.30am.
