AAP Rolling News Bulletin for May 28 at 0130
Ebola (NAIROBI)
Uganda has closed its border with neighbouring Democratic Republic of Congo with immediate effect to try to limit the spread of Ebola, Uganda's government says.
The border will be closed for four weeks, except for Ebola response teams, humanitarian and security operations, and food and cargo transport, senior health official Diana Atwine told a press conference.
Uganda has reported seven Ebola cases and one death in the outbreak, whose epicentre is in DR Congo's Ituri province.
DR Congo has recorded more than 900 suspected cases and about 220 deaths, according to the World Health Organisation, which has declared the outbreak of the rare Bundibugyo strain of Ebola a public health emergency of international concern.
A local Ebola task force led by Vice President Jessica Alupo made the decision after a rise in Ugandan health workers exposed to the virus by DR Congolese patients who crossed the border before the outbreak was declared on May 15.
Mideast (JERUSALEM/CAIRO)
Israel says it has killed Hamas's newly appointed armed wing chief in Gaza, days after it killed his predecessor, while intensifying military pressure in Gaza and expanding operations in Lebanon.
The Israeli military said Mohammad Odeh was killed in an operation in Gaza on Tuesday.
A relative of Odeh confirmed his death to Reuters and said the funeral would take place after noon prayers in Gaza City.
Hamas has yet to issue an official statement, but a statement from his family said he was killed along with his wife and son.
Gaza health officials said six people, including at least one woman, were killed and more than 20 others were wounded in the same Israeli strike that destroyed an upper floor of an apartment building in the Rimal neighbourhood in Gaza City.
Legal: Star (SYDNEY)
Star's ex-boss has shown no remorse after failing to disclose possible criminal risks of overseas junkets which drew billions of dollars into the casino, a court has been told.
Former Star chief executive Matthias Bekier failed to inform the board of suspicious conduct committed by Chinese junket operator Suncity in 2018 and 2019, the Federal Court found in March.
That included bundles of cash being delivered to the service desk in blue cooler bags or cardboard boxes and junket staff hiding under blankets to stay out of the view of CCTV cameras.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission successfully sued Mr Bekier and former Star general counsel Paula Martin for breaches of their duties.
The watchdog on Wednesday sought hefty fines against the pair.
Reconciliation (CANBERRA)
Travis Lovett has arrived at Parliament House with a plea from his Aboriginal elders.
"I have walked my part of the road. Now I ask this country to walk the next part with us," he told a crowd of hundreds of people.
The Kerrupmara Gunditjmara man had just presented a kangaroo skin to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, inscribed with a letter calling for national truth-telling.
"The time has come for us to look honestly at ourselves," the first line reads.
Mr Lovett brought the message on a slow, 38-day walk, covering more than 500km of winding rivers from Melbourne to the nation's capital.
The final part of the journey was completed alongside hundreds of people from Canberra's Reconciliation Place to Parliament House, where he was met by the prime minister on Wednesday.
Ebola (HYDERABAD)
India has quarantined a woman from Uganda in the tech hub of Bengaluru for a suspected Ebola infection, in a case that would be the South Asian nation's first since 2014, if confirmed.
The news comes a day after Health Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda said India had not reported any cases of the disease, which the World Health Organization has declared a public health emergency of international concern.
The 28-year-old Ugandan national developed mild body ache, but is otherwise healthy, while results are awaited from tests of samples taken from her, a health ministry source said on Wednesday.
Domestic media said test results were expected within a day or two for the traveller, who arrived in the southern city from the western industrial city of Ahmedabad on her journey from the East African country.
Tax (CANBERRA)
Changes to capital gains taxes should still be broad to ensure one issue with the housing market isn't replaced by another, Treasurer Jim Chalmers says, despite business groups urging the reforms apply only to property.
The federal government will introduce its changes to the taxes to parliament on Thursday, in a bid to make it easier for more first home buyers to enter the market.
Under the changes, the 50 per cent discount on capital gains tax will be replaced from July 2027 with a rate based on inflation.
The government is still consulting with industry groups about potential carve-outs from the capital gains tax regime for startups, which could face their top marginal tax rate doubling to near 47 per cent when they sell their business.
Antisemitism (SYDNEY)
A senior NSW police officer has accused federal intelligence agencies of sometimes being less than forthcoming with sharing information.
NSW Police Deputy Commissioner for Investigations and Counter Terrorism David Hudson fronted the Royal Commission on Anti-Semitism and Social Cohesion on Wednesday.
The second block of the commission hearings is probing the law enforcement and intelligence response surrounding the Bondi Terror attack on December 14.
The deputy head of counterterrorism suggested to the commission that some law enforcement agencies use a wide-reaching government policy to justify not sharing information.
He said he has observed different agencies having different interpretations of the Protective Security Policy Framework in relation to what is allowed to be shared.
The framework is an overarching government policy that provides guidelines for organisations protecting their own information and people.
US Strike (WASHINGTON, D. C.)
The US military says it has carried out a strike on a vessel suspected of transporting drugs in the eastern Pacific Ocean, killing one man and leaving two survivors.
Video posted on social media by US Southern Command shows a boat speeding through water before exploding into flames. Southern Command said it "immediately notified the US Coast Guard to activate the Search and Rescue system for the survivors".
"Following the engagement, USSOUTHCOM immediately notified the US Coast Guard to activate the Search and Rescue system for the survivors. No US military forces were harmed," the US Southern Command said on X.
The Trump administration's campaign of blowing up alleged drug-trafficking vessels in Latin American waters, including the eastern Pacific and the Caribbean Sea, has gone on since September and killed at least 194 people.
In finance ...
Economy (CANBERRA)
Australia's headline inflation rate fell sharper than expected in April, but a rise in the underlying measure will be cause for concern at the Reserve Bank.
A decline in petrol prices as a result of the government's fuel excise cut caused the increase in the annual consumer price index to fall to 4.2 per cent, from 4.6 per cent in March, the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported on Wednesday.
Forecasters had been expecting the headline inflation rate to fall to 4.4 per cent.
However, the trimmed mean, which omits volatile items and gives a better sense of the underlying pulse, edged up to 3.4 per cent, in line with the consensus of forecasters.
While the slightly softer-than-expected reading won't add to the case for more rate hikes, the RBA board will be wary not to take too much confidence out of one month of data.
Legal: Westpac (MELBOURNE)
Westpac has been fined $26 million for grossly negligent conduct after failing to respond to customers in financial hardship.
Federal Court Judge Tim McEvoy on Tuesday found that while the bank's conduct was not deliberate, it occurred over a relatively lengthy period, from 2017 to 2023.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission pursued Westpac in 2023 after it was found the bank had failed to respond to more than 200 online hardship requests from its customers over the six-year period.
Justice McEvoy found the requests were made by customers of Westpac and its subsidiaries St George Bank, Bank SA and Bank of Melbourne.
The customers were struggling to keep up with repayments on home loans, credit cards, personal loans, car loans and other responsibilities.
In entertainment ...
Cleese (LONDON)
Comedic great John Cleese is to embark on a UK tour celebrating more than 50 years since the release of Monty Python And The Holy Grail.
The 86-year-old will host a 45-minute Q and A session with fans after a screening of the 1975 film introduced by the star.
"I'm delighted to be celebrating more than 50 years of Holy Grail with these incredible live events around the country, mainly because I genuinely never expected either the film or myself to last this long," Cleese said
The sessions will see Cleese reflect on the making of the film and its legacy, with fans able to ask their own questions.
The tour will begin at Basingstoke Anvil Arts on September 1 and run until its final show at Leeds Grand Theatre on September 22, stopping at Manchester, Newcastle and Birmingham, with tickets priced at £39.50 ($A75).
ABC (PERTH)
The national broadcaster's director of news has resigned after four years in the job, citing personal and professional reasons.
Justin Stevens said it had been an "incredibly tough but immensely rewarding" tenure in the role, as he announced his immediate departure on Wednesday.
"For reasons both professional and personal, now is the right time for me to move on and for someone else to take over the helm of the best news team in the country," he said on his LinkedIn page
Mr Stevens, who worked at the broadcaster for 19 years, said the ABC was the nation's most complex and scrutinised news organisation.
"I have sought to strengthen and defend our journalism without being blind to our stumbles," he said.
In sport ...
RL Origin (SYDNEY)
Ethan Strange has inspired the biggest comeback in State of Origin history, starring on his debut to give the Blues a 22-20 series-opening win over a 12-man Queensland.
Maroons fullback Kalyn Ponga was sent off for a 58th-minute shoulder charge and Strange came to life to carry the Blues to victory at a rain-soaked Accor Stadium in Sydney on Wednesday.
Ponga was dismissed for a high shot on Blues winger Tolu Koula and at the time Billy Slater's men led 20-6 after a magnificent first-half display from rookie Maroons No.7 Sam Walker.
But Queensland could not hold on with Strange, halfback Nathan Cleary and fullback James Tedesco - the scorer of the match-winning try - on his Origin return, helping NSW home.
AFL Giants (SYDNEY)
GWS star Clayton Oliver won't waste time dwelling on the past, insisting a "reunion'' with Melbourne will be like any other game.
In career-best form and enjoying his football again, Oliver will face the Demons in Alice Springs on Sunday for the first time since being pushed out under new Melbourne coach Steven King.
The 2021 premiership Demon, who was contracted until 2030, left after being told he did not fit into the club's midfield plans.
He was eventually lured to the harbour city by former Melbourne teammates Toby Bedford and Jesse Hogan.
And like Bedford and Hogan, the 29-year-old has rediscovered the form that made him a three-time All-Australian midfielder and four-time club best-and-fairest.
Across his first 11 games for the Giants and in injured midfield bull Tom Green's absence, Oliver has boasted an "elite" average of 31.7 disposals and 8.5 clearances.
Ends Bulletin
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