AAP Rolling News Bulletin for May 19 at 2330
Ebola (BUNIA)
Twenty-six more suspected Ebola deaths have been recorded in 24 hours in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, and the head of the World Health Organisation has expressed deep concern about the outbreak's spread.
The new deaths bring to 131 the fatalities associated with the outbreak in eastern DRC.
There have been 516 suspected cases and 33 confirmed cases in DRC, according to a daily bulletin published by health authorities, and two confirmed cases in neighbouring Uganda.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus declared the outbreak of the rare Bundibugyo strain of the virus a public health emergency of international concern on Saturday, the first time a WHO chief has done so before convening an emergency committee.
The outbreak has alarmed experts because it was able to spread for weeks undetected across a densely populated area ravaged by widespread armed violence.
Obit Hollingworth (CANBERRA)
Former governor-general Peter Hollingworth, who resigned over his handling of child sexual abuse in the Anglican Church, has died.
Dr Hollingworth, who devoted much of his life to fighting poverty, served as the Anglican archbishop of Brisbane for 11 years from 1990.
He died on Tuesday, aged 91.
Appointed governor-general in 2001 by former Liberal prime minister John Howard, Dr Hollingworth used his position to advocate for Indigenous rights and disadvantaged people.
But he spent less than two years in the role before being forced to resign.
In 2003, a board of inquiry into the handling of complaints of sexual abuse in the Anglican Diocese of Brisbane found that Dr Hollingworth, as archbishop, failed to act on knowledge of abuse.
Legal: Vlassakis (ADELAIDE)
Images of Snowtown killer James Vlassakis can be published for the first time after a court lifted a suppression order made 25 years ago.
On Tuesday, the South Australian Court of Appeal revoked the order that strictly banned publication of Vlassakis' image and description.
The decision followed an application by media outlets, who submitted the order was no longer valid.
It was imposed to protect Vlassakis' identity after he gave crucial evidence against the two other convicted Snowtown killers, John Bunting and Robert Wagner.
The court's ruling came as it considered arguments over whether Vlassakis, 46, who pleaded guilty to four of the 11 murders between 1992 and 1999, should be released on parole.
Last August, the Parole Board agreed to Vlassakis's release but Attorney-General Kyam Maher requested a review of the decision.
Legal: Jomaa (SYDNEY)
A man who tried to coerce women into sending sexual photos by threatening to post AI deepfakes of them online will be released from prison.
Benjamin Michael Jomaa, 32, was in April imprisoned for 27 months after admitting trying to extort eight women with AI-manipulated photos he scraped from their social media profiles.
In one instance, Jomaa manipulated a photo of sisters holidaying in Thailand to make it appear like they were topless before sending the image to them.
"If you don't respond, the photos are going online," Jomaa said in another message a local court judge read during sentencing.
That court was told Jomaa meticulously trawled social media pages of the victims and downloaded pictures of them.
He digitally altered the images to create pornographic composites he sent to women he considered "easy targets", demanding they provide him authentic nude images.
Specimens (MELBOURNE)
Families of more than 100 people whose remains were secretly kept after autopsies and given to a museum have received a formal apology, as authorities identify five people likely involved in the historic practice.
Tasmanian politicians of all stripes contributed apologies after Health Minister Bridget Archer moved a formal motion in the state's parliament on Tuesday.
Premier Jeremy Rockliff said the motion continued a tradition of acknowledging past wrongs and was needed to pay respects to affected families.
"Today we acknowledge the deep hurt of individuals and families who had their loved one's remains stolen, stolen from them and stolen from you," he said.
"That is why this apology is so needed and so important."
The state coroner in September released the findings of an investigation into 177 human specimens stored at the University of Tasmania's RA Rodda Museum from 1966 to 1991.
Legal: Gillham (MELBOURNE)
Cancelled pianist Jayon Gillham's commentary on Palestine during a classical music concert was a "middle finger" to those who had helped him build a stellar career, a court has been told.
Gillham performed Connor D'Netto's composition Witness at a Melbourne Symphony Orchestra concert in 2024, introducing the piece with comments about Israel killing journalists in Gaza.
The orchestra responded by cancelling his next appearance, and the performer is suing the MSO for unfair dismissal in the Federal Court.
The case is expected to test the limits of political speech for contractors in Australian workplaces.
On the second day of a 15-day trial, the court heard details of senior orchestra management's handling of the crisis in the days after Gillham's concert.
Alcohol (MELBOURNE)
Australians are being put at risk of dire health consequences as tainted illicit alcohol is unknowingly sold in bottle shops, prompting calls for stronger liquor regulation.
Researchers from the National Drug and Alcohol Research Centre, UNSW and National Drug Research Institute found almost one-in-three bottle shops visited across Victoria, NSW, and Queensland contained suspected illicit alcohol products.
"We're finding regular bottle shops are stocking products that we suspect are illicit, and that we've found have contaminants in them," postdoctoral research fellow Michala Kowalski told AAP.
The danger is compounded by people being lulled into a false sense of security, believing their purchase is legitimate because it came from a genuine retailer.
Researchers found contaminants like methanol and plastic debris in some products.
Diphtheria (DARWIN)
One of Australia's worst diphtheria outbreaks has spread across three states amid fears the respiratory disease has claimed a life in an outback community.
The National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System reports 133 notifications of the disease in the Northern Territory since the outbreak began in March.
It has since spread to Western Australia where 79 cases have been reported plus another six in South Australia and up to five in Queensland.
NT health authorities are also awaiting results from an autopsy report about a possible diphtheria-related death in a remote territory community.
Federal Health Minister Mark Butler described it as the biggest diphtheria outbreak in Australia for decades.
"There's no question this is serious", he told ABC Radio on Tuesday.
In finance ...
Economy (CANBERRA)
Australian businesses and consumers have been urged to keep their inflation expectations in check as the Reserve Bank warns "self-fulfilling prophecies" may lead to a recession.
Conflict in the Middle East has shocked economies, disrupting oil and gas markets and driving inflation in Australia and elsewhere.
It is costly for businesses to change their prices every time expenses increase, which leads many to try account for future expected costs when setting prices in the present.
But the RBA's chief economist Sarah Hunter, speaking at the Bloomberg Forum in Sydney, warned inflation expectations must be kept tethered.
"If businesses and households expect high future inflation, this can become a self-fulfilling prophecy as these expectations get baked into contracts for goods, services and wages," she said on Tuesday.
Anglo (BRISBANE)
It is not every day a mining deal comes with houses, childcare centres and the town water supply thrown in.
But in central Queensland, a big slice of country town Middlemount has been included in a deal struck to sell off a multinational company's Australian steelmaking mines.
However Anglo American's mega deal has come under fire from a local mayor, warning it amounts to the sale of "entire communities".
Anglo American is set to leave Queensland after selling its five Australian steelmaking mines to Dhilmar Limited in a move worth about $5.8 billion.
The deal is far more than a routine change of hands in the coalfields, with purpose-built mining town Middlemount set to be impacted.
Dhilmar is expected to take control of about 600 houses in Middlemount set aside for mine workers and essential staff such as teachers, nurses and police officers, making the new owner one of the town's biggest landlords.
In entertainment ...
Eurovision (VIENNA)
Austrian police recorded about 500 cyber attacks targeting the Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna, authorities say.
Michael Takàcs, head of Austria's federal police, said the attempted acts of cyber sabotage were thwarted.
They targeted not only the Eurovision website but also access control systems at the venue.
The perpetrators sought to disrupt, slow down or disable systems, Takàcs said at a press conference on Monday, adding that no details were available on those responsible or their motives.
Interior Minister Gerhard Karner said the goal had been to ensure a safe and peaceful event.
"We succeeded," he said, noting that no serious incidents were reported at live broadcasts, public viewing events or related demonstrations.
Austria's Interior Ministry State Secretary Jörg Leichtfried said authorities closely monitored potential threats from Islamist extremists and violent groups linked to Iran.
UK MAFS (LONDON)
A British broadcaster has pulled all episodes of Married at First Sight UK from its platforms after three contestants claimed they were sexually assaulted by on-screen partners on the matchmaking reality show.
Channel 4 said the allegations were "very serious", and the British government said on Tuesday there must be "consequences for criminality or wrongdoing".
Married at First Sight is an international reality TV franchise inspired by a Danish original, with editions in countries including the US, Australia and South Africa.
Strangers are matched by experts and move in together after mock wedding ceremonies.
Two women who appeared on the British show say they were raped by their on-screen husbands, and a third claims she was subjected to a non-consensual sexual act.
In sport ...
Soc Aust (MELBOURNE)
Cash-strapped Football Australia (FA) is set to cut more than 20 per cent of its staff in response to a looming second-straight record financial loss.
But chief executive Martin Kugeler is adamant the serious belt-tightening won't impact the Socceroos or Matildas, who are preparing for their respective World Cups.
Kugeler on Tuesday confirmed FA would undergo a "significant reset and restructure" to allow it to work within its financial means, in response to a loss that would exceed last year's record $8.5 million deficit.
"Two significant losses, and increasing losses year-on-year, is obviously not a situation that is sustainable or acceptable," Kugeler said.
FA held an all-staff meeting on Tuesday morning regarding the financial news and separate meetings were held with affected staff throughout the day.
Ath Oceania (DARWIN)
Rising sprint sensation Aidan Murphy has gone within a whisker of breaking one of the oldest records in Australian athletics with a stunning 400m run of 44.44 seconds at the Oceania championships in Darwin.
With countrymen Thomas Reynolds and Luke van Ratingen pushing him all the way on Tuesday, the 22-year-old Murphy took full advantage of the hot conditions at Arafura Stadium.
He stripped 0.37 off his personal best to move to second on the Australian all time list, just six hundredths of a second shy of Darren Clark's national record, which has stood untouched since the 1988 Seoul Olympics.
"We're right there," said Murphy.
"If the national record isn't broken this year, it's just a matter of time.
"Depending on who it is I don't know, but we're all just around the corner and slowly chipping away at that milestone."
Ends Bulletin
Rolling News Desk inquiries : 02 9322 8611
