G'day. It's Thursday, November 25 and you're reading The Loop, a quick wrap-up of the news you need to know about.
One thing you should know
Australian Defence Force personnel and federal police will be deployed to Solomon Islands after riots broke out on the streets of the capital, Honiara, for the second day.
- Police yesterday used tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse large crowds demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare
- The Defence deployment includes troops from the Army's 3rd Brigade, medical personnel and military police, and a total of more than 70 AFP officers will be travelling there today and tomorrow
- Prime Minister Scott Morrison says Australia's presence is to provide "stability and security" — not to interfere in internal affairs
Foreign Minister Marise Payne said during a press conference this afternoon that staff and families at the Australian mission in Honiara were safe.
Late breaking news
Caroline Springs man Greg Lynn has been charged with the murder of missing Victorian campers Russell Hill and Carol Clay.
The 55-year-old was arrested on Monday and spent several days being questioned by police in Gippsland.
Victoria Police Crime Command Assistant Commissioner Bob Hill told a press conference that the investigation is "far from over".
What else is going on
- NT Chief Minister Michael Gunner has denounced misinformation spread by anti-vaxxers and overseas conspiracy theorists during a COVID press conference — and he didn't hold back. He took aim at "insane, unhinged stuff spreading online" from "people who have nothing better than to really make up lies about us, because their own lives are so small and so sad".
- Young soccer player Danny Hodgson has been moved out of the intensive care unit at Royal Perth Hospital almost three months after he was attacked and critically injured on a night out. His parents, Nicola and Peter, rushed to Australia from the UK to be by his side after they were granted a travel exemption — they said in a statement today that Danny still has "a long road ahead to recover" and thanked West Australians for their support and care.
News alerts you might have missed
- SA has recorded three new COVID cases, with three interstate flights listed as exposure sites. All three cases are now in quarantine facilities
- The NSW Government has revised its plan to ease COVID-19 restrictions, with changes to mask requirements, density limits and check-in rules
Not signed up for ABC News alerts and want updates like these in real-time? Head to the ABC News app homepage ➡️ Settings ➡️ Notifications and tailor your alerts to what you want to know.
What Australia has been searching for online
- Ahmaud Arbery. ICYMI earlier, three men have been convicted for the murder of the 25-year-old while he was jogging down the street in the US state of Georgia last year. Greg McMichael, his son Travis and neighbour William "Roddie" Bryan weren't even charged until a video of the shooting emerged, two months after Ahmaud's death.
- The religious discrimination bill. PM Scott Morrison officially introduced it to parliament today, saying Australians of various religions are "concerned about the lack of religious protection against the prevalence of cancel culture on campuses and in Australian corporate life", but some Liberal MPs are urging the PM to strengthen protections for gay students and teachers.
One more thing
Ricky Owens has shared a yarn about a run-in with one of Australia's most venomous snakes — and says it was his good mate, Gordon, who raised the alarm that the sneaky danger noodle had slithered its way into his south-west Victorian home.
Ricky says Gordon had been acting strangely for a while when he started scratching around some shopping bags on the floor. When Ricky picked up the bags, he came face-to-face with a metre-long tiger snake.
After getting a good shock, Ricky put Gordon outside and the nope rope proceeded to try to hide under the fridge.
With the spicy noodle safely over the back fence and both Gordon and Ricky unharmed, it might be a funny story now, but there's a serious lesson here.
Mount Gambier snake catcher and educator David Miles says it's likely to be a bumper snake season and has warned people not to leave their doors open.
You're up to date
ABC/wires
