Morning everyone.
Let’s start with good news for a change: the Socceroos only needed to avoid heavy defeat against Saudi Arabia to qualify for next year’s World Cup, but they did it in style with a 2-1 win.
In other news: the Albanese government has made a surprise decision to impose sanctions against two Israeli ministers, joining four other countries. Austria has declared three days of mourning after a school shooting left eight pupils dead, and the political fight over LA protests continues in the US.
Plus: Australia’s virtual collection of “weird animals”.
Australia
World Cup awaits | The Socceroos secured their qualification for the 2026 World Cup thanks to a 2-1 win over Saudi Arabia at King Abdullah Sports City Stadium where, crucially, they avoided heavy defeat.
Sanction surprise | Australia has joined the UK, Canada, New Zealand and Norway in placing sanctions on two Israeli government ministers, Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, for “inciting violence against Palestinians in the West Bank”. Penny Wong, in a joint statement with the other four countries, said their behaviour was “not acceptable”. Smotrich and Ben-Gvir are both critical to Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition government and have a history of extreme views. At home, Jewish groups have accused the Australian National University of making its campus “unsafe” after the board declined to adopt a definition of antisemitism endorsed by Universities Australia.
ABC to axe Q+A | The ABC’s managing director, Hugh Marks, is expected to unveil his first tranche of changes at the public broadcaster this morning, including a new round of redundancies and the axing of Q+A after 18 years.
‘They’re all so weird’ | A scientist at Flinders University has pioneered the creation of a publicly available virtual collection of 1,600 bones and skeletons of animals such as the southern marsupial mole in order to tackle the myth that Australian fauna is less evolved.
Excess excise | Economists say recent rises to the tobacco excise rate have not lowered smoking rates and the tax should be frozen or even “radically” reduced to address the soaring cigarette black market.
World
‘Dark day’ | Austria will hold three days of national mourning after a 21-year-old man shot dead eight pupils and an adult at his old high school and injured a dozen more before turning his weapon on himself. The chancellor, Christian Stocker, called it “a dark day in the history of our country”.
‘Un-American’ | Donald Trump has defended his decision to order more troops into Los Angeles to quell protests over federal immigration raids. His defence secretary, Pete Hegseth, said the soldiers would be there for 60 days and the House speaker, Mike Johnson, said California governor Gavin Newsom should be “tarred and feathered” for his handling of the protests. Celebrities have backed a social media post by Mark Ruffalo condemning the “authoritarian and un-American” response. Follow developments live.
One-state solution | Mike Huckabee, the US ambassador to Israel, says Washington is no longer pursuing the idea of an independent Palestinian state. Greta Thunberg has accused Israel of kidnapping her and her fellow activists in international waters after an attempt to break the Gaza blockade.
Malta mystery | Two men have been sentenced to life in prison for supplying the car bomb that killed the anti-corruption journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia in Malta eight years ago.
Crane to go | A giant crane that has blighted the skyline of Florence for almost 20 years is finally to be removed after city entrepreneurs clubbed together to pay for it to be dismantled.
Full Story
Palestinian journalist ‘living in two different worlds’ since fleeing Gaza
The Palestinian journalist Plestia Alaqad speaks to Nour Haydar about her new memoir recounting living under siege in Gaza and her love for her homeland.
In-depth
In the second part of our investigation into prison suicides, we examine the case of Suzzanne Davis who died while on remand in Western Australia in 2020 despite a coroner having warned about the danger of ligature points in cells. Chelsea Fisher, Suzzanne’s daughter, talks about the pain of her mother’s death and her anger at the failure of authorities to act.
Not the news
The latest TikTok health craze extols the virtues of kettlebell swings. Advocates say it can increase muscle mass, flatten your stomach and make your glutes stronger. In this week’s Antiviral column, Natasha May asks experts whether it’s safe or just a bad back waiting to happen.
Sport
Cricket | The World Test Championship between Australia and South Africa gets under way at Lord’s later today. Geoff Lemon writes that it may be an odd format, but the more it’s played the more relevant it seems.
Swimming | Canadian swimmer Summer McIntosh set a world record for the second time in three days with the 18-year-old eclipsing Hungarian great Katinka Hosszu in the 200m individual medley.
Football | The sacking of Ange Postecoglou – and his ability to project it almost as a triumph – shows that the Premier League has entered a post-truth phase, writes Jonathan Liew.
Media roundup
The Trump administration is pressuring Anthony Albanese to intervene in the dispute over compensation for investors after the New South Wales government confiscated the mining leases of NuCoal in 2014, the Australian reports. Maroondah hospital in Melbourne’s eastern suburbs is to close its speciality paediatric services, the Age claims. The Sydney Morning Herald celebrates the life of its longstanding cartoonist John Shakespeare, who has died aged 63.
What’s happening today
New South Wales | The state’s auditor general publishes a report on the mental health of police.
Business | Austrac begins its money laundering case against the Star casino at the federal court.
Canberra| The EU ambassador Gabriele Visentin addresses the National Press Club.
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Brain teaser
And finally, here are the Guardian’s crosswords to keep you entertained throughout the day. Until tomorrow.
