Good afternoon.
Donald Trump has said the US “will take very strong action” against Iran if the regime starts to execute people as part of its crackdown on anti-government protests. The US president did not elaborate on what shape that action would take, although his options may be limited.
Erfan Soltani, 26, is reportedly facing imminent execution while the death toll since the unrest started has surpassed 2,500, according to an activist group.
Here’s a summary of what we know so far as live coverage continues.
Top news
Human activity helped make 2025 third-hottest year on record, experts say
Labor considering extending new hate speech protections to LGBTQ+ Australians and religious groups
Man accused of making threats against MP says he stands for ‘Team Australia’ after court appearance
Australian 16-year-old Antonio Arena scores with first touch on debut for Italian giants Roma
BTS announces return with world tour to hit Australia in 2027
In video
In the days after the Bondi beach terror attack, a deepfaked video – with a Guardian watermark on screen – of AFP commissioner Krissy Barrett claiming four Indian nationals had been arrested went viral. As Guardian Australia’s technology reporter Josh Taylor explains, these deepfakes are getting easier to make.
What they said …
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“We have never met and he has never attempted to contact me.”
Randa Abdel-Fattah has accused the South Australian premier, Peter Malinauskas, of making harmful public statements about her after her appearance at Adelaide writers’ week was cancelled. Lawyers acting for the Palestinian writer and academic have served a formal concerns notice for defamation on the premier.
Full Story
Why AI datacentres are draining our energy and water
Australia wants in on the artificial intelligence boom, but datacentres needed to run AI require huge amounts of electricity and water. Climate and environment reporter Petra Stock speaks with Nour Haydar about the increasing concerns over the environmental impact of datacentres.
Before bed read
There is an unwritten rule in professional tennis tournaments around the world: do not hog the practice court. Tumaini Carayol asked pros in Melbourne for the Australian Open about the hidden hierarchy of pre-match training – and what to do if someone is running over time.
Daily word game
Today’s starter word is: CHIC. You have five goes to get the longest word including the starter word. Play Wordiply.
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