TRANSCRIPT
In this bulletin;
- The US sends its advisers to Israel as Gaza ceasefire threatened;
- Opposition leader Sussan Ley calls on Kevin Rudd to resign;
- And in sport, a joint bid to host the 2031 Women's World Cup.
The US has sent its senior advisers to meet with Israel's Prime Minister in Jerusalem to discuss the security challenges and political opportunities they face.
Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have met Benjamin Netanyahu, after a weekend of renewed violence when Israel's military launched airstrikes that Gaza's Health Ministry says killed at least *45 Palestinians.
It follows a Palestinian attack which killed two Israeli soldiers.
Despite the escalation, both Israel and Hamas have reaffirmed their commitment to the ceasefire.
United Nations spokesperson Stephane Dujarric says they welcome both parties reaffirming their commitments to implementing the ceasefire in Gaza but remain concerned with the recent air strikes.
"We do, however, remain concerned by all acts of violence in Gaza and the reported attacks and strikes that took place yesterday. We urge all parties to honor all of their commitments to ensure the protection of civilians and avoid any actions that could lead to a renewal of hostilities and undermine humanitarian operations."
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Affected customers were complaining on social media platforms after a tech failure at Amazon’s cloud computing company AWS triggered a global outage.
This user expressed her concerns on TikTok after not being able to access two platforms online.
"By me being a trader I was concerned because Robin Hood and Weibo was lagging. And it led me to think if you really don't have cash in your house, it just shows how fragile the system is. You can have money in the bank one day, it don't have a glitch and those numbers could be wiped out."
Hundreds of applications and services were affected, including airlines, banks and retail payment services globally - and major companies in Australia like Telstra, Optus and the Commonwealth Bank.
Downdetector says 2,000 companies globally reported connectivity issues, as did 8.1 million users - including 418,000 in Australia.
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Federal opposition leader Sussan Ley says Kevin Rudd's position as Australia's Ambassador to the U-S is no longer tenable.
Earlier, US President Donald Trump made remarks in the Oval Office about comments made by Mr Rudd in 2021, in which the former PM described Mr Trump as 'a village idiot', among other things.
However, after telling Mr Rudd that he does not like him, Donald Trump reportedly told journalists afterwards that 'all is forgiven'.
Despite this, Sussan Ley says she stands by her calls for him to step down.
"Whether it be ongoing work in tariffs, higher profile for the quad, all of the other issues that may come to pass in what is our most important relationship, we need to have everyone working incredibly hard to be trusted, to be respected and to understand the domestic implications for what happens when you sit at a table in the Oval Office."
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Nationals MP Barnaby Joyce has said it is an honour that he has concluded his term in a "dignified way" to allow others to take up the course.
Over the weekend, Mr Joyce announced his plans to leave the party, saying he won't contest his seat of New England in 2028.
He thanked the community in Tamworth today for allowing him to represent them for 15 years.
"First and foremost my love and my affection and my service for the people of New England continues on, and my gratitude at the incredible honour they have given me to represent this area [[Tamworth]] for 15 years. Now I think 15 years is a pretty good time."
Mr Joyce earlier said he spoke to One Nation leader Pauline Hanson, but it remains unclear if a final decision has been made on whether he will join the party.
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To sport now...
The football federations of the United States, Mexico, Costa Rica and Jamaica have announced a joint bid to host the 2031 Women's World Cup.
The 2031 Fifa Women's World Cup will be the first edition to feature 48 teams, compared to the previous 32, adopting a 12-group format that will increase the number of games from 64 to 104.
In a joint statement, the four federations say the proposal aims to deliver the most impactful tournament in history and leave a lasting legacy for women's football across North America, Central America, and the Caribbean.
If successful, it would be the first Women's World Cup staged across four countries and the first to bring World Cup matches to Jamaica and Costa Rica.
