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Mar 5, 2026 - World

Australian PM also announces new annual emergency ministers meeting to boost cooperation on natural disasters. Follow today’s news liveGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastLiberal senator says military assets should be used ‘if necessary’ to repatriate AustraliansThe shadow defence minister, James Paterson, says the Middle East is a “challenging” environment for commercial airlines to fly in, with airports in the region being struck by Iran.If those commercial options are not available, then every other option needs to be considered, including using ADF assets to repatriate Australians if that’s necessary.We have used military planes to evacuate Australians from conflict zones. And if that’s necessary in this instance, if it’s possible in this instance, then obviously the government will have our bipartisan support.But we also take this position with some regret, because the current conflict is another example of the failure of the international order, despite decades of UN security council resolutions, the work of the International Atomic Energy Agency in a succession of sanctions and diplomatic frameworks, Iran’s nuclear threat remains, and now United States and Israel have acted without engaging the UN or consulting with allies, including Canada.The question is: where to from here? Given we have a rapidly spreading conflict and growing threats to civilian life across the region, Canada reaffirms that international law binds all belligerents.The action that was taken, we weren’t consulted on it. There was not a process, a broader process for it. It would appear, prima facie … to be inconsistent with international law. Continue reading...

Mar 5, 2026 - World

More than 80 people killed and 32 crew members rescued alive from the 180-crew frigate Iris DenaAnalysis: Trump administration still not settled on reasons for warTell us: how have you been affected by the conflict?Lebanese state media said that four people were killed and six more were wounded in an Israeli strike on a building in Baalbek in eastern Lebanon on Wednesday.“The initial toll is four killed and six wounded, and work is underway to rescue families from under the rubble,” Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency said. Continue reading...

Mar 5, 2026 - World

Chief Warrant Officer Robert Marzan, 54, and Maj Jeffrey O’Brien, 45, were from California and IowaThe Pentagon has released the names of the final two of the six soldiers who were killed during a recent drone strike in Kuwait. They were killed on Sunday, the day after the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran. Their names were released by the US Department of Defense on Wednesday.The two soldiers were identified as Chief Warrant Officer Robert Marzan, 54, and Maj Jeffrey O’Brien, 45. They were from Sacramento, California, and Indianola, Iowa, respectively. Continue reading...

Mar 5, 2026 - World

The Arctic Metagaz had been carrying 61,000 tonnes of liquefied natural gas when it exploded; Ukrainian drones reported to have hit southern Russia. What we know on day 1,471Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, has accused Ukraine of carrying out a attack on one of its liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers, which exploded and sank into the Mediterranean Sea off Libya. Explosions were reported on the Arctic Metagaz, which had been carrying 61,000 tonnes of LNG, on Tuesday night when the ship was about 150 miles (240km) off the coast of Libya. Ukraine has not commented on the sinking on the ship, which had been under US and EU sanctions. Russia’s transport ministry had claimed that the Arctic Metagaz had been hit by Ukrainian drones launched from the Libyan coast.Ukrainian drones damaged Russian civilian sites in the south-western region of Saratov, Roman Busgarin, the area’s governor said early on Thursday. Saratov airport and other airports in the southern and central regions were closed late on Wednesday and early on Thursday. Three injuries were reported.A prolonged energy crisis caused by the widening war in the Middle East may offer the Russian war machine an economic lifeline just as it was beginning to show signs of strain over its war in Ukraine. Russia could receive a windfall if disruption in the Middle East pushes buyers towards its energy, while a possible slowdown in western arms supplies to Ukraine as the US military action in Iran continues could give Russia a further boost.Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that trilateral talks with Washington and Moscow about ending Ukraine’s war in Russia would resume, once the situation in Iran and the Middle East permitted. The Ukrainian president also said that he spoke to the king of Bahrain and the crown prince of Kuwait about the conflict in the Middle East on Wednesday.Ukraine has said it will boycott Friday’s opening ceremony of the Paralympics in Milan-Cortina, Italy, over the participation of Russian athletes. Athletes from Russia and Belarus had been banned from the 2022 Winter Paralympics over its war in Ukraine, but were allowed to compete as neutral athletes in the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. The Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, Latvia and Poland were set to join Ukraine in its boycott on Friday. Continue reading...

Mar 5, 2026 - World

Misty Roberts, 43, faces sentences of up to 10 and seven years in prison after July 2024 sexual assault at pool partyThe former mayor of a Louisiana city has been convicted of raping a 16-year-old boy during a party at her house while she was still in office.Misty Roberts, 43, faces sentences of up to 10 and seven years in prison after a jury in the municipality of DeRidder on Tuesday found her guilty of two felonies: carnal knowledge of a juvenile – or statutory rape – as well as indecent behavior with a minor. Continue reading...