Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Alan Vaarwerk

Afternoon Update: Albanese’s strongest Israel condemnation yet; NSW MP guilty of sexual abuse; and saying bye-bye to Spotify

The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, expressed major concern over the ongoing humanitarian situation in Gaza.
The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, expressed major concern over the ongoing humanitarian situation in Gaza. Photograph: Lukas Coch/AAP

Good afternoon. Anthony Albanese has condemned Israel for “the killing of civilians, including children” seeking aid in Gaza, but stopped short of following France’s lead in committing to recognise a Palestinian state.

In the Australian government’s strongest condemnation of Israel yet, the prime minister said the situation in Gaza “has gone beyond the world’s worst fears”, and the denial of aid “cannot be defended or ignored”.

Albanese made clear Australia was sticking with its stance on Israel and the Palestinian territories, saying the country was still committed to a two-state solution. The French president, Emmanuel Macron, committed overnight to recognising a Palestinian state, becoming the first major western power to do so.

Top news

Podcast

Resetting the Liberals: Zoe McKenzie on reform, climate and winning back women – Australian Politics podcast

As parliament resumes, the focus shifts to how the major parties plan to reset. Guardian Australia’s chief political correspondent, Tom McIlroy, speaks to Liberal MP for Flinders and shadow assistant minister Zoe McKenzie. She weighs in on the climate challenge ahead for her party and for Sussan Ley as they try to find a credible path to net zero.

What they said …

***

“I was literally hanging on to each and every word the judge was saying. I was anticipating, waiting for the things I hoped to hear. The more I listened, the more emotional I became” – Cynthia Houniuhi

In a packed courtroom in The Hague, thousands of kilometres from home, tension hung in the air as the international court of justice handed down its historic advisory opinion on climate change. For Houniuhi – one of the original 27 Pacific law students who sparked the global legal campaign that led to the ruling – this win wasn’t just political, it was personal.

In numbers

Thailand’s interior ministry said residents from four provinces along the Cambodia border had been moved to shelters, and the death toll had risen to 14, as the two countries fight their bloodiest military clashes in over a decade. Both blamed each other for starting a morning clash at a disputed area of the Thai-Cambodian border, which quickly escalated from small arms fire to heavy shelling in at least six locations.

Before bed read

Music – like film, TV and food – is now served to us effortlessly, instantly. Can trading in streaming algorithms for vinyl, iPods and radio bring some soul back to the way we discover and listen to music? Frankie Adkins quit Spotify for a month to find out.

Daily word game

Today’s starter word is: SERS. You have five goes to get the longest word including the starter word. Play Wordiply.

Sign up

If you would like to receive this Afternoon Update to your email inbox every weekday, sign up here, or start your day with a curated breakdown of the key stories you need to know with our Morning Mail newsletter. You can follow the latest in US politics by signing up for This Week in Trumpland.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.