TRANSCRIPT
In today's bulletin,
- Donald Trump says he won't rule out putting troops on the ground in Iran
- The PM says Australia's ability to provide consular assistance to citizens in Iran is extremely limited
- And in sport, Australia's women's football team prepares to face Iran at the Women's Asian Cup
US President Donald Trump says they took their 'last, best chance' to hit Iran and stop the country's regime, and is not ruling out putting American troops on the ground.
He says he ordered the attacks on Iran as Tehran's nuclear development and a ballistic missile program was growing rapidly, claims for which there has been no evidence provided by Washington D-C.
The US President says the US military is continuing to carry out large-scale combat operations.
"The United States military continues to carry out large scale combat operations in Iran to eliminate the grave threats posed to America by this terrible terrorist regime..We warned Iran not to make any attempt to rebuild at a different location because they were unable to use the ones we so powerfully blew up. But they ignored those warnings and refused to cease their pursuit of nuclear weapons."
In its third day, U-S and Israeli forces have so far struck hundreds of targets across Iran.
This includes the Islamic republic's missiles, navy and command-and-control sites.
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Residents of Lebanon's capital Beirut have fled the city on foot and by car, after Israel launched a barrage of airstrikes on what it says are Hezbollah targets.
According to a Lebanese Health Ministry official, 52 people had been killed and more than 150 injured in the strikes in Lebanon.
Israel said it attacked sites connected to Lebanon's Shi'ite Muslim Hezbollah militants, one of Tehran's principal allies in the Middle East, after Hezbollah said it launched missiles and drones toward Israel in retaliation for the killing of Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
Feryal Sawan is among those who have fled their homes, and is sheltering at a makeshift site near Beirut's seaside.
"We were in the Dahiyeh (Beirut's southern suburbs) and the three strikes happened. My children wanted to have their Suhur (pre-dawn meal during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan), we couldn't have Suhur because of the strikes. So we came straight here, and my children are still fasting. As you can see, we are still staying here. I don't know where our fate is going."
A spokesperson for the Israeli Defence Force has said there are no immediate plans to launch a ground invasion in Lebanon.
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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says Australia's ability to provide consular assistance to citizens in Iran is extremely limited.
Around 115,000 Australians are believed to be in the Middle East region, with many trapped by the closure of airspaces.
Do not travel warnings are in place for Bahrain, Israel, Kuwait, Lebanon, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Palestine, Syria, Yemen and Iran.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese says the government's first priority is the safety of Australians in the region.
"We understand how distressing and challenging this time is, and we will do all that we can to provide you with information and to support you. We continue to advise Australians to not travel to Iran and to leave as soon as possible if it is safe to do so. Our ability to provide consular assistance in Iran is extremely limited due to the correct decision that we made to expel the Iranian Ambassador and close our embassy in Tehran."
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The United States has imposed sanctions on the Rwanda Defence Force, with the White House saying it expects Rwanda to imminently withdraw troops from Congo.
Overnight, drones attacked the airport serving Kisangani, a strategic city in northeast Congo from active front lines in the east.
Congolese officials are blaming the M-23 rebel group and neighbouring Rwanda.
The Trump Administration signed a minerals deal with Congo in December, and is attempting to de-militarise conflict zones.
Democratic Republic of Congo, which hosts the world's largest cobalt supply and rich copper and lithium reserves, is central to the U-S' push to reduce Western nations' reliance on China for rare minerals.
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The gender pay gap appears to be improving.
The Workplace Gender Equality Agency 's Employer Gender Pay Gaps Report finds more employer gender pay gaps are smaller today than they were a year ago.
WGEA CEO, Mary Wooldridge, says the publication of employer gender pay gaps has motivated employers to take action on gender equality and prioritise fairness.
However, she says there is still more work to do to ensure Australia workplaces are truly gender-equal.
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Australia's women's football team is preparing to face Iran at the Women's Asian Cup.
After opening the tournament with a 1-nil win over the Philippines.
Sam Kerr's first international goal in 851 days was enough to see the Matildas past a gritty Philippines outfit in Perth.
The team's coach Joe Montemurro says the focus for both sides will be on the pitch, come Thursday night, and he hopes the game on the Gold Coast can be a showcase of football's ability to unite.
"I think football is a family. Football's an amazing family. And I think with the Asian Cup, we can showcase some amazing athletes and some amazing people and we're supporting the team and supporting whatever comes, but we want to make sure that the focus is on football."
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