/qnotables21/ - ===Q Notables 2021===

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15042210 (201045ZNOV21) Notable: Australian Special Forces war crimes prosecution could be blown up by legal minefield, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: A_special_forces_soldier_on_the_ground_in_Afghanistan.jpg

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War crimes prosecution could be blown up by legal minefield

Nick McKenzie and Chris Masters - November 20, 2021

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A three-year federal police investigation into alleged war crimes committed by an Australian special forces soldier in Afghanistan may have been compromised because detectives unwittingly obtained tainted information in what looms as a major blow to police and prosecutors.

The problem relates to the referral to the Australian Federal Police in 2018 of information uncovered by the military Inspector General’s war crime inquiry, known as the Brereton inquiry, which finished a year ago.

While police can act on much of the information uncovered by the Brereton inquiry, they are banned from using certain witness transcripts if they are infected by disclosures from soldiers who have since become police targets.

The issue doesn’t impact the AFP’s highest-profile war crimes inquiry into war hero and ex-SAS soldier Ben Roberts-Smith, and it hadn’t affected other war crimes investigations.

But according to four official sources not authorised to comment publicly, it has impacted on aspects of the AFP probe into a former SAS operator, known as soldier Q.

Soldier Q is under investigation over allegations he is implicated in one or more prisoner executions while serving with the SAS in Afghanistan some time between 2006 and 2010. The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald are aware of the precise allegations, including the fact that they have been partly corroborated by multiple witnesses, but is withholding them for legal reasons.

The existence of the police investigation into soldier Q has not before been made public, nor has the concern that the inquiries into him may have been inadvertently sullied.

The area of law that governs how police may use Brereton inquiry information is complex, partly because it has not been thoroughly tested before the High Court.

Four official sources who briefed The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald had differing opinions on the damage caused by the AFP’s handling of information, with one stating it was fatal to the man’s prosecution but another stressing that it could be remedied.

A third source said the Office of the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions was being unnecessarily conservative in its damage assessment, given the legal uncertainty and the fact that the criminal brief of evidence about soldier Q was yet to be finalised.

The AFP refused to comment, citing ongoing investigations.

The revelations are sensitive for the AFP given the high-profile nature of its war crimes investigations and concerns in defence and political circles that the agency lacked the legal expertise to investigate the allegations when they were referred to it by the Brereton inquiry in 2018.

But the potential compromise of an aspect of the AFP’s work is also significant because it highlights the challenges facing the newly created war crimes agency, the Office of the Special Investigator.

The office was launched in January to investigate the alleged war crimes unearthed by Justice Paul Brereton except those few cases referred to the AFP in 2018. It is the first anniversary of the Brereton inquiry’s final report, which last November identified credible information that up to 39 Afghan prisoners and civilians may have been executed by Australian special forces soldiers.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15046333 (210242ZNOV21) Notable: Video: ENORMOUS Protests Across Australia: Compilation Of Massive Rallies From Perth, Melbourne, Sydney+++ - Tim Truth

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ENORMOUS Protests Across Australia: Compilation Of Massive Rallies From Perth, Melbourne, Sydney+++

https://www.bitchute.com/video/WIzy09x566dT/

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15047902 (210754ZNOV21) Notable: AUKUS causing Xi ‘heartburn’, says White House, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Kurt_Campbell_says_that_given_the_accumulation_of_power_by_President_Xi_the_US_has_to_engage_in_this_current_period_of_relations_with_China.jpg

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>>130088

AUKUS causing Xi ‘heartburn’, says White House

Matthew Cranston - Nov 21, 2021

Washington | Australia’s AUKUS alliance with the US and Britain, amid a broader improvement in Washington’s relationship with its allies, causes “heartburn” for China’s leader Xi Jinping, according to the White House co-ordinator for the Indo-Pacific.

Kurt Campbell, the “Asia tsar” who sat by President Joe Biden’s side during his four-hour meeting on Monday (Tuesday AEDT) with Mr Xi, said the Chinese President was particularly rattled by the idea that the US was building “Cold War-like” alliances.

“I think it would be fair to say at the virtual meeting President Xi made very clear that a number of things that the United States is doing cause China some heartburn,” Mr Campbell told former national security adviser Stephen Hadley at an event organised by the United States Institute of Peace.

He said the creation this year of the AUKUS military capability deal with Australia and the UK, as well as the first in-person summit of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) in Washington, had not gone down well in Beijing.

“I think at the top of that list is our bilateral reinforcing and revitalising of bilateral security alliances with Japan, with South Korea, with Australia, the Philippines and Thailand; new partnerships that are of critical importance like Vietnam; the Quad; working constructively with India; AUKUS; and, frankly, talking to the Europeans in a more dynamic way,” Mr Campbell said.

“President Xi made clear that those from the Chinese perspective represented what they would describe as Cold War thinking.

“We believe they’re essential features.”

Engagement is crucial

The meeting between the two world leaders was interpreted by experts as “cordial” in tone, and reflective of an easing in immediate tensions. Many highlighted the contrast between that and the flare-up between the two sides when senior envoys met in Anchorage, Alaska in March and exchanged barbs on China’s economic coercion and human rights.

Mr Campbell said engagement was crucial as Mr Xi asserted his power both domestically and in the region.

“I think we recognise, given what’s happened in China – in which so much power has been accumulated by President Xi – that we have to engage in this current period of relations with China,” he said.

“I think the President, our team, recognises that it will be important to try to establish some guardrails that will keep the relationship from veering into dangerous arenas of confrontation.”

Mr Campbell said the run-up in military spending by China had been a motivating factor behind the creation of AUKUS.

“What we have witnessed is one of the largest military build-ups across every sector – shipbuilding, nuclear, a number of technologies that are concerning – on the part of China in modern times,” he said.

“We’re of the view that some of this is destabilising.

“Much of it has been done in a non-transparent manner. And I think behind the scenes, many in Asia are worried about this substantial, dramatic set of military investments. And indeed, some of those steps have led other countries to respond.

“And I would say AUKUS is one of those responses.”

Mr Campbell said that while the US could rely on its military might, it was now trying to fight China’s economic influence in the Indo-Pacific region with hands tied behind its back.

“The general metaphor about one hand or two hands tied behind your back, it may be even more than that, it’s maybe one foot tied back there as well,” he said.

“Our ticket to the big game has often been our military.

“In this new era that we are confronting in the Indo-Pacific, of course, there will be military issues that we have to focus on. But it’s really investment in technology, AI, quantum computing, 5G, human sciences – these are the arenas where the United States has enjoyed unique advantages. But frankly, our advantages have been tested and challenged.”

Mr Campbell said the efforts of the Biden administration to pass trillions of dollars in new spending legislation was crucial for this fight.

“What the President has tried to do with a series of engagements, and again across the aisle, is to make those investments so that we can in fact run faster,” he said.

“It’s not an accident that the virtual engagement between the two leaders happened on the day that the signing of the bipartisan infrastructure bill.”

https://www.afr.com/world/north-america/aukus-causing-xi-heartburn-says-white-house-20211120-p59ajk

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15047944 (210815ZNOV21) Notable: Former Australian PM Malcolm Turnbull says Huawei 5G would leave Canada’s networks vulnerable to China, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Former_Australian_prime_minister_Malcolm_Turnbull_speaks_during_the_UN_Climate_Change_Conference_COP26_in_Glasgow_Scotland_Nov_4_2021.jpg

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Former Australian PM Malcolm Turnbull says Huawei 5G would leave Canada’s networks vulnerable to China

STEVEN CHASE - 21 November 2021

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Former Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, who banned China’s Huawei Technologies from providing equipment for his country’s 5G wireless networks, says Canadians should ask themselves a question as they ponder whether to do the same: are they comfortable with leaving a vital piece of infrastructure vulnerable to the Chinese government?

A decision on whether to formally ban Shenzhen-based Huawei from Canada’s 5G networks – and presumably from successor networks still in development, such as 6G – is expected soon from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government.

Mr. Turnbull, who was attending the Halifax International Security Forum on Saturday, said in an interview that a key factor is trust: can China be relied upon not to manipulate Huawei’s technology for its own benefit?

He said the plight of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor should offer Canada sufficient insight. The two men were jailed for more than 1,000 days on charges Ottawa described as fraudulent. Their detention was widely regarded as retaliation for Canada arresting Meng Wanzhou, a Huawei executive, on behalf of the United States.

“You’ve just had two of your citizens held as hostages. You’re not dealing with a government … that pays too much attention to the rule of law,” Mr. Turnbull said. “You can’t fool yourself about that.”

He said Australia never accused Huawei of spying or being a “bad actor,” but simply concluded that allowing the company’s equipment in telecom networks was too risky.

“Canada has to, and will, make its own call on this. But we did a very thorough technical analysis on this,” he said.

“It wasn’t a political decision. I asked the Australian Signals Directorate to see if they could find a way to mitigate the risk. And the conclusion was we couldn’t. So that was why we made the call.”

According to Mr. Turnbull, the question facing Australia was: “Do you want the capability to do things adverse to your national interest in the hands of a company that absolutely would have to act at the direction of the Chinese government?”

When asked if Ottawa should ban Huawei, Mr. Turnbull offered this response: “The only reason not to would be if you are comfortable with a large part of one of your most vital enabling technologies being potentially able to be interfered with, misused, at the behest of the Communist Party.”

Mr. Turnbull said the manner in which China piled punitive trade actions on his country after current prime minister Scott Morrison called for an independent investigation into the origin of the novel coronavirus should show how comfortable Beijing is with breaking rules to punish others.

“The pattern of behavior suggests they are not averse to using some coercive leverage,” he said. China blocked Australian imports of a range of goods, including lobster, beef, barley and wine.

Mr. Turnbull argued that China is exhibiting conflicting behaviours as it both restricts trade with Australia and applies to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact. “There is a sort of almost cognitive dissonance going on,” he said. “How do you say ‘we’re going to use trade as a means of beating you up for daring to raise questions about the origins of the coronavirus and at the same time we want to join a free trade agreement with you’?”

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15054022 (220634ZNOV21) Notable: Australia to reopen to foreign visa holders in bid to revive economy, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: International_travellers_arrive_at_Sydney_Airport_in_the_wake_of_coronavirus_disease_COVID_19_border_restrictions_easing.jpg

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>>129854

Australia to reopen to foreign visa holders in bid to revive economy

Colin Packham and Renju Jose - NOVEMBER 22, 2021

CANBERRA/SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australia will allow foreign visa holders to enter the country from the start of December, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Monday, the latest step to restart international travel and support its economy.

Australia shut its international border in May 2020 and allowed only restricted numbers of citizens and permanent residents to enter in a bid to curtail the spread of COVID-19.

The rules were relaxed in recent weeks to allow foreign family members of citizens to enter, and Morrison said this will be scaled up from Dec. 1 to allow vaccinated students, business visa holders and refugees to arrive.

“The return of skilled workers and students to Australia is a major milestone in our pathway back,” Morrison told reporters in Canberra. Australia will also allow in vaccinated tourists from South Korea and Japan from Dec 1, he said.

The return of foreign students, who are worth about A$35 billion ($25 billion) a year to the Australian economy, will be a major boost for the education sector.

More than 235,000 foreigners, including about 160,000 students, held visas for Australia at the end of October, government data showed.

Many Australian universities have come to rely on foreign students, who make up about 21% of total enrolments, and the border closure led higher education facilities to lay off hundreds of staff.

Many students locked out of Australia have said they would switch to alternative universities if they were unable to begin face-to-face learning in 2022.

The relaxation of the border rules is also expected to ease labour shortages, which threaten to stymie an economic rebound.

“This will be critical relief for businesses who are struggling to find workers just to keep their doors open and for those who need highly specialised skills to unlock big projects,” said Jennifer Westacott, chief executive of the industry body, the Business Council.

Border rules, swift lockdowns and tough social distancing rules helped Australia to keep its coronavirus numbers far lower than many other comparable countries, with around 200,000 cases and 1,948 deaths.

Most new infections are being reported in Victoria state, which logged 1,029 cases on Monday. New South Wales, home to Sydney, reported 180 cases. Other states and territories are COVID-free or have very few cases.

($1 = 1.3824 Australian dollars)

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-australia/australia-to-reopen-to-foreign-visa-holders-in-bid-to-revive-economy-idUSKBN2I700T

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15054048 (220639ZNOV21) Notable: AUKUS: Treaty signing opens door to subs training, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: The_signing_of_the_treaty_comes_just_over_two_months_after_the_AUKUS_partnership.jpg

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AUKUS: Treaty signing opens door to subs training

BEN PACKHAM - NOVEMBER 21, 2021

Australia will sign a treaty with the US and Britain on ­Monday formalising access to the ­allies’ nuclear submarine ­secrets under the AUKUS strategic partnership.

The agreement, to be tabled in parliament, will allow Defence’s nuclear submarine taskforce to commence a detailed assessment of Australia’s submarine options, and open the door for Australian personnel to undergo nuclear training in the US and UK.

Defence Minister Peter Dutton will sign the “Exchange of Naval Nuclear Propulsion Information Agreement” in Canberra with US charge d’affaires Mike Goldman and British high commissioner Vicki Treadell.

The move follows a determination by US President Joe Biden at the weekend approving the sharing of US nuclear propulsion technology with Australia and Britain for “our mutual defence”.

Mr Dutton told The Australian the treaty was a key step forward, enabling detailed consultations between Australia and its allies on their closely guarded nuclear submarine technology.

“This agreement will support Australia in completing the 18 months of intensive and comprehensive examination of the requirements underpinning the delivery of nuclear-powered submarines,” he said.

“The US and the UK will be able to communicate to Australia naval nuclear propulsion information to determine the optimal pathway to acquire nuclear-­powered submarines for operation by the Royal Australian Navy.

“With access to the information this agreement delivers, coupled with the decades of naval nuclear-powered experience our UK and US partners have, Australia will also be positioned to be responsible and reliable stewards of this technology.”

The agreement will be considered by parliament’s joint standing committee on treaties, and will also be subject to domestic consideration in the US and UK. Mr Dutton said Australian personnel would now be able to commence education and training programs in the US and UK to learn “how to safely and effectively build, operate and support ­nuclear-powered submarines”.

The agreement would also allow Australia to get to work creating the necessary regulatory framework to enable the safe ­development and operation of nuclear propulsion, he said.

Mr Dutton stressed the agreement was consistent with Australia’s obligations under the UN’s Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. “Australia is not seeking nuclear weapons. The submarines will be conventionally armed. The agreement only allows for the sharing of naval nuclear propulsion information. No nuclear ­material or equipment can be transferred under this agreement.”

Indonesia, in particular, has expressed concerns about Australia’s promised nuclear sub­marines, suggesting they would exploit a “loophole” in the NPT.

The signing of the treaty comes just over two months after Scott Morrison, Mr Biden and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the AUKUS partnership.

The most likely submarine ­options for Australia are the US Virginia-class or the UK Astute.

The head of the government’s nuclear submarine taskforce, Vice-Admiral Jonathan Mead, said it was “very unlikely” Australia would get a design that had not been built before. He told a recent Defence estimates hearing that while all options were on the table, Australia intended to select a ­“mature design”.

Vice-Admiral Mead said he was working to achieve “early delivery” of the first boat, with a “worst-case scenario” of just one completed by 2040. The government has pledged the boats will be built in Adelaide, complicating what is already the most complex project the nation has considered.

Former US Indo-Pacific commander Harry Harris said last week he believed the construction timeframe could be “truncated” if the US, UK and Australia were “fully committed” to the plan.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/treaty-signing-opens-door-to-subs-training/news-story/2995fbfae303c2a05b42ce680cecdd14

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15054104 (220650ZNOV21) Notable: Historic moment Australia signs landmark deal with the US and UK to learn how to build nuclear submarines under AUKUS deal, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Defence_Minister_Peter_Dutton_signed_a_formal_agreement_alongside_the_US_and_UK_to_allow_the_countries_to_share_information_on_the_nuclear_powered_vessels.jpg, The_deal_marks_the_first_time_nuclear_powered_technology_between_the_US_and_UK_has_been_shared_with_another_country.jpg, Two_Australian_Collins_class_submarines_front_and_the_UK_nuclear_powered_attack_submarine_HMS_Astute_rear_are_seen_at_HMAS_Stirling_Royal_Australian_Navy_base_in_Perth_last_month.jpg

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>>130096

Historic moment Australia signs landmark deal with the US and UK to learn how to build nuclear submarines under AUKUS deal

ANDREW BROWN - 22 November 2021

Australia has taken the next step to acquire nuclear submarines as part of the controversial AUKUS security pact.

Defence Minister Peter Dutton signed a formal agreement alongside the US and UK to allow the countries to share information on the nuclear-powered vessels.

The agreement was signed in a ceremony on Monday alongside US Chargé d'Affaires Michael Goldman and UK High Commissioner Victoria Treadell.

Mr Dutton said the signing marked a key milestone for the future of the security pact.

'The agreement will allow, for the first time ever, the sharing of information in relation to nuclear-powered systems for Australia,' Mr Dutton told reporters on Monday.

'It's a remarkable achievement and the next step in bringing to fruition the submarines and other deals under AUKUS, which is very important.'

The submarine deal, first announced in September, triggered anger from the French government after Australia decided to scrap a $90 billion contract with the European powerhouse in favour of the AUKUS arrangement.

French President Emmanual Macron publicly accused Prime Minister Scott Morrison of being a liar about the circumstances leading up to the cancellation while the two leaders were at a recent G20 summit.

Mr Morrison said the deal was made in the national interest, despite some opposition to the new pact.

'This is a very important agreement for Australia's future security,' Mr Morrison told reporters in Canberra.

'There are plenty of others who don't want to see this go ahead, and that, I think, tells you why it's so important that we do.'

The prime minister reiterated Australia would still meet its obligations under a nuclear non-proliferation treaty, despite having access to nuclear submarines.

The deal marks the first time nuclear-powered technology between the US and UK has been shared with another country.

'The agreement will provide a mechanism for Australian personnel to access invaluable training and education from our US and UK counterparts,' Mr Morrison said.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10228635/AUKUS-Australia-Peter-Dutton-signs-deal-nuclear-powered-submarines.html

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15054175 (220709ZNOV21) Notable: Prosecutors ready to throw little black book at Ghislaine Maxwell, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Jeffrey_Epstein_and_Ghislaine_in_New_York_in_2005.jpg, The_Maxwell_siblings_in_2019_Anne_1_Kevin_2_Isabel_3_Ghislaine_4_Christine_5_Philip_6_and_Ian_7_.jpg

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Prosecutors ready to throw little black book at Ghislaine Maxwell

DIPESH GADHER - NOVEMBER 21, 2021

It is the little black book that could help to seal Ghislaine Maxwell’s fate.

US prosecutors have claimed that a contacts book belonging to the British socialite, which contains the names of her alleged victims, provides “compelling evidence of her guilt”.

The existence of the potentially incriminating document – ­labelled Government Exhibit 52 – has emerged just over a week before Maxwell, 59, is due to go on trial in New York over child sex trafficking charges.

The exhibit is among evidence and witness information that has been disclosed for the first time in US court filings.

In addition:

• Prosecutors intend to introduce testimony relating to two new under-age victims.

• A Polish-born former model who worked as a personal assistant to the late paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein is expected to testify against Maxwell.

• Staff at the luxury Florida villa used by Epstein and his British ex-girlfriend were allegedly told: “See nothing, hear nothing, say nothing.”

• As Maxwell’s long-awaited trial begins next Monday, her older brother, Ian, vowed that at least one of her six siblings would attend court each day to provide “moral support and comfort”. He said: “It’s absolutely essential … that Ghislaine is supported and is seen to be supported by her family. She’s on trial for her life.”

The proceeding in Manhattan are expected to last for about six weeks, with a brief pause over the Christmas weekend, when Maxwell turns 60. The Oxford graduate, who denies all the charges, will almost certainly die in jail if she is convicted on all six charges.

Prosecutors regard the contacts book, Exhibit 52, as a possible smoking gun. The document, which Maxwell’s lawyers have been seeking to strike out as evidence, appears to be a version of Epstein’s infamous “black book”, which contained the details of some of the world’s most powerful people, including Donald Trump and Prince Andrew.

The 97-page directory was taken from the couple’s villa in Palm Beach, Florida, by Alfredo Rodriguez, a former butler. He attempted to sell it for $US50,000 in 2009 to a man who turned out to be an undercover FBI agent.

According to court papers it was seen in Maxwell’s office and contains “contact information for victims who interacted with the defendant during the relevant time period … (it) is compelling evidence of her guilt”.

Maxwell’s defence team, however, describe the book as “an unauthenticated hearsay document from suspect sources”. If the exhibit is presented to the jury, her lawyers have expert witnesses who will cast doubt on its value.

The indictment against Maxwell covers the period from 1994 to 2004 and is primarily based on the testimony of four accusers, including one who was 14 when she claims she was first abused.

All four women are expected to give evidence at the trial using aliases or only their first names, although the jury will be supplied with their real identities.

One of the accusers, hitherto known as “Minor Victim 4”, is set to disclose the existence of two new under-age victims, according to the pre-trial court papers.

Anyone under 18 is regarded as a minor.

Another woman likely to be called by prosecutors is Adriana Ross, 38, a former model who was known as Epstein’s “scheduler”.

Ross, now believed to be an accountant, was allegedly asked by Epstein to clear computers and contacts books from the Palm Beach villa before a police raid in 2005. She is one of four female “co-conspirators” who were granted immunity from prosecution as part of Epstein’s plea deal in 2008 when he was convicted of procuring a child for prostitution and jailed for 18 months.

Other evidence that prosecutors want to put before the jury includes a manual governing rules for staff at Maxwell and Epstein’s former Florida home, where dozens of girls were allegedly abused.

“The relevance of the document is self-evident,” prosecutors argue. “Among other things, it directs employees to ‘see nothing, hear nothing, say nothing’.”

Epstein, 66, died in custody in 2019 while awaiting trial in New York for child sex offences.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/world/the-times/prosecutors-ready-to-throw-little-black-book-at-ghislaine-maxwell/news-story/5a48a7df59109bc2d9b3ae189a4e212c

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15059512 (230150ZNOV21) Notable: Shadow Foreign Minister Penny Wong accuses Peter Dutton of 'amping up' threat of war with China, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Penny_Wong_will_deliver_a_speech_saying_the_Coalition_is_amplifying_Beijing_s_fatalism_on_Taiwan.jpg

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>>>/qresearch/14988954

Shadow Foreign Minister Penny Wong accuses Peter Dutton of 'amping up' threat of war with China

Stephen Dziedzic - 23 November 2021

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Shadow Foreign Minister Penny Wong is set to accuse Defence Minister Peter Dutton of deliberately needling China's government and "amping up" the threat of war in a bid to improve the Coalition's chances of winning the next election.

Earlier this month Mr Dutton said it was "inconceivable" that Australia would not back the United States if there was a war over Taiwan, drawing a furious response from Chinese state media.

He later went on to criticise China's acting ambassador, which led to China's Foreign Affairs spokesperson Zhao Lijian rebuking Mr Dutton on Monday night for "making alarmist and jaw-dropping statements that would put Australia on the chariot of confrontation with China".

Senator Wong will tell the National Security College in Canberra on Tuesday that Mr Dutton's comments were "wildly out of step" with the policy of strategic ambiguity embraced by successive US administrations, which have traditionally declined to say if they would come to Taiwan's defence should China invade.

US President Joe Biden has created confusion about that policy several times since taking office, for example telling CNN last month the US had a "commitment" to defend Taiwan if the self-ruled island was attacked by the Chinese military.

However, the White House has repeatedly walked back his comments, seemingly reasserting the status quo.

'The most dangerous election tactic in Australian history'

In her speech, Senator Wong will call on ministers to choose their words more carefully on Taiwan, saying the Coalition seems intent on exploiting national security as an election issue.

"Amping up the prospect of war against a superpower is the most dangerous election tactic in Australian history," the speech reads.

"A tactic employed by irresponsible politicians who are desperate to hang on to power at any cost."

She will also argue that Mr Dutton's comments — as well as a warning from Home Affairs secretary Mike Pezzullo about the "drums of war" beating in the region — could actually feed into the Chinese government's narrative that war or unification with the mainland are the only two options facing Taiwan.

"Mr Dutton does Australians and the Taiwanese no favours by amplifying Beijing's fatalism," she will say.

"This is the worst in a litany of cases of the Morrison-Joyce government seeking to use foreign policy and national security for political advantage."

Senator Wong will emphasise that any conflict in the Taiwan Strait between the US and China could spiral out of control with potentially drastic consequences.

"The greatest risk to peace, stability and prosperity in our region is the risk of conflict in Taiwan. That said, it is not a risk that is contained to our region," her speech reads.

"The consequences of a kinetic conflict over Taiwan, with the potential for escalation, would be catastrophic for humanity.

"That is why successive Australian, American and regional governments have taken a careful and sober approach to cross-Strait relations."

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15059531 (230153ZNOV21) Notable: Transcript - Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian's Regular Press Conference on November 22, 2021, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Foreign_Ministry_Spokesperson_Zhao_Lijian_s_Regular_Press_Conference_on_November_22_2021.jpg

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>>130100

Transcript - Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian's Regular Press Conference on November 22, 2021

Dragon TV: The White House released on its website information on November 19 showing that the US President has approved the memorandum on the proposed Agreement between the Government of the United States of America, the Government of Australia, and the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland for the Exchange of Naval Nuclear Propulsion Information. The President also stated that the Agreement will make substantial and material contributions to the mutual defense and security and enhance trilateral security partnership among the three Parties known as "AUKUS". Do you have any comment?

Zhao Lijian: China has expressed grave concern over the nuclear submarine cooperation between the US, the UK and Australia, which deliberately escalates regional tensions, stimulates arms race, threatens regional peace and stability, and undermines international nuclear non-proliferation efforts. Many countries have expressed serious concerns over the possible negative consequences of the cooperation.

Under the current safeguards mechanism, the IAEA is unable to effectively monitor the nuclear power reactors and weapons-grade nuclear materials that the US and the UK are planning to provide to Australia, so as to ensure that relevant nuclear materials and technologies will not be used to develop nuclear weapons. Therefore, this move by the US, the UK and Australia will pose a huge risk of nuclear proliferation, clearly violate the object and purpose of the NPT and seriously impact the international nuclear non-proliferation regime.

It is extremely irresponsible for the three countries to forge the so-called agreement on the exchange of naval nuclear propulsion information, advance nuclear submarine cooperation in disregard of international rules and opposition of parties. What information will the three countries share? Is it consistent with the respective international obligations of the three countries? Will it lead to nuclear proliferation? How can the three countries ensure that relevant nuclear materials and nuclear technology will not be used to develop nuclear weapons? How to prevent its wrongdoings from provoking others to follow suit? The three countries have the obligation to make clear explanations to the international community on these issues.

—

Global Times: In response to the Chinese Embassy to Australia's remarks regarding Australia's nuclear-powered submarine deal, Australian Defence Minister Peter Dutton on November 19 called Chinese official's remarks provocative, silly and funny. Do you have any comment on that?

Zhao Lijian: Mr. Dutton's remarks are extremely absurd and irresponsible. As a senior official of the Australian government, he is obsessed with the Cold War mentality and ideological prejudices. Driven by selfish political gains, he has repeatedly made provocations, sensational and astonishing statements on China-related issues. He wouldn't scruple to hijack Australia onto the chariot in confrontation with China. His real intention has been exposed to all.

For a while, some Australian politicians have been hyping up "China threat", wantonly criticizing and attacking China, provoking tension and inciting confrontation and making all sorts of trouble. On issues relating to Taiwan, they grossly interfere in China's domestic affairs and bolster and embolden "Taiwan independence" forces. Its nuclear submarine cooperation with the US and the UK undermines international nuclear non-proliferation efforts, aggravates arms race, and has caused grave concern among regional countries. Such acts run counter to the trend for peace, development and cooperation in today's world and is detrimental to Australia's own interests and its international image.

Certain Australian politicians should discard the Cold War mentality and ideological bias and not to erect any "imaginary enemy" when it's completely uncalled for. If they attempt to pocket selfish political gains by singing the anti-China tune, they will end up shooting themselves in the foot and becoming a laughing stock in the world.

https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/mfa_eng/xwfw_665399/s2510_665401/2511_665403/t1919525.shtml

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15061019 (230503ZNOV21) Notable: How Australia is pushed to a belligerent path - Mu Lu - globaltimes.cn, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: How_Australia_is_pushed_to_a_belligerent_path.jpg

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How Australia is pushed to a belligerent path

Mu Lu - Nov 22, 2021

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Australia was seemingly a land of peace in the South Pacific. But it has gone further down the belligerent path. Its change of attitude toward China was accordingly rapid in the past few years.

How did Australia change so much in just a few years and get to this point?

Belligerent "deputy sheriff"

Former Australian diplomat Jocelyn Chey said in a recent interview with the Global Times, "ANZUS commits us to coming to the aid of the US in the case of an attack on their forces, not an attack by their forces, but over the last decade, Australian military forces have become more and more a kind of auxiliary force capable of being deployed to meet US requirements."

The content of ANZUS (a security treaty among Australia, New Zealand and the US) is not complicated, with broad rules for how the other two parties should react when one party is under an armed attack. However, Canberra is trying to elevate the treaty from defensive to offensive by proactively vowing to participate in US offensive military attacks on other countries. "If Canberra sends troops to the Taiwan Straits, it will be an act of aggression grossly trampling China's sovereignty," said Chinese military expert Song Zhongping.

Chen Hong, a professor and director of the Australian Studies Center at Shanghai-based East China Normal University, told the Global Times that there has been a big shift in Australia's view of its role: It sees itself as an active player in US' anti-China strategy, rather than just a follower.

"This is a relatively dangerous signal," Chen said. Canberra is no longer satisfied with its roles as an assistant, follower or "deputy sheriff," so it is emphasizing more on its military role and position. Australia has been playing the role of a daring vanguard for the US - even before Washington takes actions, Canberra has already rushed out. "AUKUS has allowed Australia to have nuclear-powered submarines. When it possesses the technology, it may be able to research, develop and even deploy its own nuclear weapons," Chen noted.

"Australia has been on a belligerent path, and it continues going far far away. When there is a whiff of gunpowder in the air, it could bring the risk of insecurity to the country," Chen continued.

Canberra under warmongers

People with real power in Australia's defense spheres such as Defense Minister Peter Dutton and Home Affairs Secretary Mike Pezzullo have uttered wild words to hype a war with China. Anyway, they are not worried whether a war really breaks out. As The Guardian wrote in April, "Dutton and Pezzullo talk up the beating drums of war - but it is not them who will have to fight."

Politicians' warmongering remarks repeatedly made headlines while Australia's diplomatic voice became almost about only military and security as Canberra turned more and more bellicose. Dutton, who is far-right, has a batch of solid supporters. If Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison doesn't share the same view with Dutton in some issues, he may have to face the rebounds from the Dutton camp, which does no good to strengthen Morrison's position. Therefore, Morrison has been in synergy with Dutton, keeping silent on Dutton's words as a deliberate catering to far-right forces. Consequently, Dutton and his fellows have become more vocal.

Echoing the bellicose politicians, Rupert Murdoch's media outlets in Australia have been working hard to incite war, with articles in the Sydney Morning Herald, The Australian and others constantly attacking China. Sky News Australia, controlled by the Murdoch family, recently aired a two-part program entitled "China Rising" in which Dutton again sells his false accusations against China, engaging in information warfare and creating an atmosphere of war.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15061053 (230510ZNOV21) Notable: Jacqui Lambie fires up again, slamming Scott Morrison as ‘worst PM on record’

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Jacqui Lambie fires up again, slamming Scott Morrison as ‘worst PM on record’

Outspoken Senator Jacqui Lambie has blown up for the second time in two days. This time she had a cutthroat message for Scott Morrison.

Outspoken independent senator Jacqui Lambie has unleashed on Scott Morrison, accusing him of lying and labelling him as the worst Prime Minister in history.

Senator Lambie screeched across the Senate chamber as she repeatedly lashed Mr Morrison and his government for their “incompetence,” stating she was looking forward to the Coalition losing the upcoming federal election.

“You are finished in the next election. You’re gone,” Senator Lambie said.

“You're finished in Tasmania. I reckon your two seats are gone. They’re completely gone.

“And I look forward to doing that. I look forward to running my own candidates in those seats, and passing those preferences where they deserve to go – not to political liars.”

The enraged Senator then narrowed-in her attack on the Prime Minister, blasting Mr Morrison for failing to deliver on many of his election promises.

“(The Coalition) have gone from one prime minister to another and this is the worst one on record,” she said.

“He’s incompetent. He’s not a leader and I’m enjoying watching him and you fall apart.”

Senator Lambie said it was “shameful” that the government had failed to establish a federal Independent Commission Against Corruption almost three years on from when Mr Morrison first promised to do so.

“It’s been 1076 days the PM stood up and told the country they’d get an integrity commission in this term of parliament,” she said.

“He told us that he was committed to getting it done – another lie.”

Labor and the Crossbench rallied together to try to debate independent MP Helen Haine’s own version of an ICAC bill in the Senate, but the motion failed by one vote.

Senator Lambie’s outburst follows a series of explosive speeches from the outspoken politician.

On Monday, she gave a powerful speech in response to One Nation leader Pauline Hanson, who introduced a bill to ban mandatory vaccinations and overturn state and territory leader’s requirements for full vaccination to be required in some settings.

https://www.news.com.au/national/politics/george-christensen-to-abstain-cross-floor-in-protest-of-vaccine-mandates/news-story/8269d3b9e9b2a0de76b136b9d2b2f9d2

Aussie MPs been freaking out all day

Wonder why

Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane 500k + protesters more in other cities

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15061072 (230512ZNOV21) Notable: Gladys Berejiklian reacts after NSW Health advice on Sydney lockdown released, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: ClipboardImage.png, ClipboardImage.png, ClipboardImage.png, ClipboardImage.png

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Gladys Berejiklian reacts after NSW Health advice on Sydney lockdown released

Gladys Berejiklian has spoken publicly for the first time since bombshell emails were released about Sydney’s lockdown.

Gladys Berejiklian has said she’s “not interested” in talking about the Sydney lockdown in her first comments since secret coronavirus advice was released to the public.

The former NSW premier, who was in charge for most of the city’s recent 15-week lockdown, brushed off questions from an NCA NewsWire reporter outside her Willoughby electorate office on Tuesday.

Ms Berejiklian declined when asked if she wished to set the record straight on the emailed health advice sent by chief health officer Kerry Chant during the height of the coronavirus crisis.

“I’m not interested in talking to you,” Ms Berejiklian said.

One of the newly released emails, sent by Dr Chant to Health Minister Brad Hazzard, recommended the government apply “consistent” rules across the city.

Although the email was sent on August 14, and while Ms Berejiklian frequently argued her lockdown decisions were based on NSW Health advice, the city’s western and southwestern suburbs remained under tougher restrictions until September 20.

But when asked why she didn’t take that piece of advice, Ms Berejiklian said again: “I’m not interested in talking to you.”

Ms Berejiklian was also asked about comments that Western Sydney Minister Stuart Ayres made earlier in the morning.

Mr Ayres defended the decision to lock down Sydney’s west harder than the rest of the city and said he didn’t want to perpetuate a “victim mentality”.

“I’m no longer the premier, have a lovely day,” Ms Berejiklian replied to a question about Mr Ayres’ comments.

Ms Berejiklian quit as premier on October 5.

She remains the MP for Willoughby in Sydney’s north shore and has said she will resign from that position once a by-election can be arranged.

https://www.news.com.au/national/nsw-act/news/western-sydney-mayors-call-for-apology-after-bombshell-documents-released-on-covid-lockdown/news-story/ec125c65415d2d5203f4e3922acf3d0d

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15061842 (230731ZNOV21) Notable: Judge rules Seven West Media’s secret Ben Roberts-Smith report will not be available at defamation trial, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Ben_Roberts_Smith_is_suing_the_Age_the_Sydney_Morning_Herald_and_the_Canberra_Times_for_defamation_over_a_series_of_reports_published_in_2018.jpg

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>>129862

Judge rules Seven’s secret Ben Roberts-Smith report will not be available at defamation trial

Network commissioned confidential report after allegations of war crimes against former SAS corporal

Ben Doherty - 23 Nov 2021

A secret report ordered by Channel Seven into allegations of war crimes against Ben Roberts-Smith will not be made available to a defamation trial, with a judge ruling that the document is legally privileged.

In 2018, after three newspapers published allegations the former SAS corporal and Victoria Cross recipient committed a series of war crimes while on deployment in Afghanistan, Roberts-Smith’s employer, Seven West Media, commissioned a confidential report into the allegations against him.

Roberts-Smith, who emphatically denies the allegations, is suing the Age, the Sydney Morning Herald and the Canberra Times for defamation in the federal court.

In a decision handed down on Tuesday, Justice Wendy Abraham said journalist Ross Coulthart, then an employee of the public relations firm Cato & Clegg, was commissioned by the general counsel and commercial director of Seven West Media, Bruce McWilliam, to “prepare a report” on the Roberts-Smith allegations. The report was to consider and summarise “all of the known rumours and allegations that are circulating or have been published about Ben Roberts-Smith and get his response to each of them, as well as conduct investigations and make other enquiries as you see fit”.

Coulthart was told to give the report directly to McWilliam, who would pass it on to legal counsel.

McWilliam told Roberts-Smith the document would be useful for Seven West Media “as we will likely also be attacked for continuing to employ you”.

“I also think a copy should be provided to the chairman [Kerry Stokes] so that he is in a position to obtain can get [sic] legal advice on where things stand and so that he can continue to back you.”

Stokes was ultimately given a copy of the report. Roberts-Smith, whose defamation action was being bankrolled by Seven West Media at the time, was not.

Lawyers for the three newspapers sought to subpoena Coulthart’s report, arguing that the “dominant purpose” of the report was not to assist in obtaining legal advice, but “the commercial and reputational concerns of Mr Stokes, and Seven West Media were the primary reasons for its commission”.

Abraham did not agree, ruling that the document was legally privileged and did not have to be handed over.

The dispute follows debate in court last week about whether the newspapers will be allowed to call an additional witness in their defence against Roberts-Smith’s defamation action.

A former comrade of Roberts-Smith, who was serving on his patrol at the scene of an alleged war crime, has, subsequent to the trial starting, agreed to give evidence.

The former soldier, known as Person 56, was a member of Roberts-Smith’s patrol in the village of Darwan, in Uruzgan province, on 11 September 2012.

The newspapers’ reporting has alleged that on that day Roberts-Smith took a handcuffed non-combatant, a farmer named Ali Jan, and forced him to kneel on the edge of a 10m-high cliff, before kicking him off.

Ali Jan was then carried to a different place and shot, either by Roberts-Smith, or by a subordinate soldier under his command, the newspapers allege in their defence.

Roberts-Smith has consistently and strenuously denied the allegation as “completely without any foundation in truth”.

The newspapers, seeking to defend their reporting as true, have been seeking to subpoena Person 56.

Roberts-Smith has vociferously denied the newspaper’s account of Ali Jan’s death, telling the court the man purported to be Ali Jan was a “spotter” – a forward scout who reports soldiers’ movements to insurgents – shot after being discovered hiding in a cornfield. He says the man was in possession of a radio and was a legitimate military target.

Roberts-Smith’s lawyers have opposed allowing Person 56 to testify, suggesting they had done a deal with the newspapers to only talk about specific issues. The newspapers deny any such deal but say they expect the witness to object if asked about matters other than Darwan. The court has reserved its decision on the issue.

The defamation trial – which started in 2018 – remains part heard.

It is likely to recommence early in the new year.

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/nov/23/judge-rules-sevens-secret-ben-roberts-smith-report-will-not-be-available-at-defamation-trial

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15061903 (230749ZNOV21) Notable: Ghislaine Maxwell's brother Ian says he doubts his sister will get a fair hearing at her trial on sex trafficking and other charges which is due to start next week, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: File_picture_of_Ghislaine_Maxwell_with_her_family_she_stands_to_her_father_s_left_in_the_top_row_third_from_the_left_.jpg

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Ghislaine Maxwell: Brother Ian says she will not get fair hearing at trial

Ghislaine Maxwell's brother, Ian, has said he doubts his sister will get a fair hearing at her trial on sex trafficking and other charges which is due to start next week.

bbc.com - 23 November 2021

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Ms Maxwell, the daughter of the late media mogul Robert Maxwell, has been accused of trafficking minors for her former lover Jeffrey Epstein.

She has been in a New York jail since her arrest in July 2020.

The former socialite has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

"I think my sister's probably relieved finally that it is starting because she's been in prison now for over 500 days in isolation, so this has to come to an end," Ian Maxwell told BBC Radio 4's World at One programme. "The trial is starting, so I think there is relief on her part, and, I think, the family's part."

Mr Maxwell said he fears the media interest in his sister's case will jeopardise her shot at a fair trial.

"I think that there are several reasons for that; the enormous amount of negative media coverage of Ghislaine for at least the last 18 months - it's only been going in one direction and that level of negative reporting which is not coming in any other direction than against her, I think it has a potential to poison the jury pool at some level if they are only hearing one side of the story and not the other.

"I am not here to go against the accusers or to talk about innocence and guilt, the reason I think this is a difficult process is because the way in which the authorities have chosen to proceed against my sister and to lock her up in isolation is wrong. It is an abuse of human rights and an abuse of the due process that has taken place," he said.

One of Ms Maxwell's accusers, Virginia Giuffre, alleges she was recruited by her while working at former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate some 20 years ago "for the purpose of being trafficked".

She alleges she had sexual encounters on Epstein's private island in the Caribbean and in his homes in Palm Beach and New York.

"Ghislaine Maxwell [is] the one who abused me on a regular basis. She's the one that procured me, told me what to do, trained me as a sex slave, abused me physically, abused me mentally. She's the one who I believe, in my heart of hearts, deserves to come forward and have justice happen to her more than anybody," she said in a deposition released last year.

Ms Maxwell has branded Ms Giuffre "an absolute liar".

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15062079 (230841ZNOV21) Notable: RealGhislaine Tweet: Calling All Tattoo-lovers! Another example of press prejudice - tattoo described as a "snake" is in fact roses with vine and leaves, the meaning of which is " love, beauty, braveness, and sacrifice", MISSING MEDIA/FILES: A_snake_tattoo_is_visible_on_Ghislaine_Maxwell_s_lower_back_as_she_sits_astride_a_Harley_Davidson_motorbike.jpg, RG_4.jpg, FE0hqnJXEAA59QX.png

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SNAKING A RIDE - Ghislaine Maxwell flashes snake tattoo on her back as she beams in biker jacket on motorbike

James Beal - 19 Nov 2021

A SNAKE tattoo is visible on Ghislaine Maxwell’s lower back as she sits astride a Harley-Davidson motorbike.

Maxwell is grinning behind shades in the pic, believed to have been taken around 2003.

The picture was displayed in billionaire paedophile Jeffrey Epstein's mansion in Palm Beach, Florida, where he was accused of sickening sex attacks on underage girls.

Epstein bought his six-bedroom Palm Beach home – near ex-US President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate – for £2million in 1990.

In 2005 Palm Beach cops launched an investigation after girls as young as 14 reported being recruited from high school to perform “massages” on Epstein – where they were abused.

Epstein cut a deal with prosecutors and was sentenced to just 18 months in prison in 2008 for procuring an underage girl for prostitution.

Dozens of women and young girls have now come forward claiming they were sexually abused and raped at the property.

Juan Alessi, Epstein’s former butler, swore on oath that he set up massage tables every day as Andrew “spent weeks with us”.

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/16791408/ghislaine-maxwell-tattoo-motorbike/

—

RealGhislaine Tweet

Calling All Tattoo-lovers! Another example of press prejudice - tattoo described as a "snake" is in fact roses with vine and leaves, the meaning of which is " love, beauty, braveness, and sacrifice"

https://twitter.com/RealGhislaine/status/1462862594327330821

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15064544 (231844ZNOV21) Notable: South Korea President Moon Jae-in's Australian visit to strengthen strategic and economic ties, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: A_visit_from_South_Korean_President_Moon_Jae_in_would_send_a_strong_message_to_China_that_its_efforts_to_isolate_Australia_from_key_regional_partners_have_been_unsuccessful.jpg

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South Korea President Moon Jae-in visit to strengthen ties

BEN PACKHAM - NOVEMBER 23, 2021

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Australian and South Korean officials are working on plans for an official visit by President Moon Jae-in to Australia before the end of the year, as the nation moves to strengthen strategic and economic ties with its fourth-largest trading partner.

The likely mid-December visit is being planned to mark the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the countries, and would include the signing of a “comprehensive strategic partnership” agreement.

The trip, which is yet to be finalised, would give a leg-up to Korean defence company Hanwha as it vies for a $20bn contract to build infantry fighting vehicles for the Australian Army.

It would also send a strong message to China that its efforts to isolate Australia from key regional partners have been unsuccessful.

Australia’s former ambassador to South Korea Bill Paterson said the trip would be highly significant, confirming the strength of the bilateral relationship and the nations’ shared strategic interests.

“The Chinese won’t be particularly pleased at a South Korean visit to a Quad and AUKUS ­member at this time,” he said. “I think Korea is trying to signal it does share interests with Australia and the United States in the Indo-Pacific.”

Mr Paterson said the federal government was keen to encourage South Korea’s “clear intentions” to look at Australia as a future energy supplier and a ­potential source of critical minerals to sustain its tech manufacturing sector. He said South Korea would likely seek supplier ­relationships and equity stakes in future Australian hydrogen projects to support its planned green energy transition.

Australia exported $25.2bn worth of goods and services to South Korea in 2020, including more than $18bn worth of iron ore, coal, natural gas and beef.

“Governments on both sides haven’t really given this relationship the sort of sustained attention it deserves,” Mr Paterson said.

Hanwha was confirmed last year as the preferred contractor to build 30 self-propelled howitzers and 15 ammunition resupply vehicles in Geelong under a $1.3bn contract. Hanwha is the underdog to clinch the much bigger ­infantry fighting vehicle contract behind German company Rheinmetall, which is already building Boxer armoured reconnaissance vehicles at Ipswich in Queensland.

But Australia’s need to boost defence ties with South Korea and Mr Moon’s likely visit suggest the Korean vehicle could become the frontrunner for the new ­contract.

The proposed visit would come ahead of the conclusion of Mr Moon’s five-year presidential term in March next year, giving him additional diplomatic room to bolster his country’s relationship with Australia without causing long-term problems with China.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15068915 (240630ZNOV21) Notable: Australia lists neo-Nazi group The Base and Hezbollah as terrorist organisations, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Home_affairs_minister_Karen_Andrews_described_The_Base_as_a_violent_racist_neo_Nazi_group_as_she_announced_it_would_be_added_to_the_terror_list.jpg

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Australia lists neo-Nazi group The Base and Hezbollah as terrorist organisations

Home affairs minister Karen Andrews updates terror list, making membership of either group a crime

Daniel Hurst - 24 Nov 2021

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The Australian government will list the neo-Nazi group The Base as a terrorist organisation, together with the entirety of the Lebanese Shia political party and militant group Hezbollah.

The home affairs minister, Karen Andrews, announced the plan to designate the two groups under Australia’s criminal code, which outlaws being a member, providing support to or associating with listed terrorist organisations.

Andrews described The Base – which has already been proscribed as a terrorist group by Canada and the UK – as “a violent, racist, neo-Nazi group known by security agencies to be planning and preparing terrorist attacks”. It was, she said, known to have organised paramilitary training camps overseas.

The government also moved on Wednesday to expand the listing of Hezbollah, which represents the Lebanese Shia community and has military, political and social components.

Hezbollah’s External Security Organisation has been designated as a terror organisation in Australia since 2003, but broadening it to cover the entire group follows the lead of the US, Canada and the UK.

Police have previously raised concern that the existing listing requires prosecutors to prove an individual supports Hezbollah’s external security organisation specifically.

Andrews said Hezbollah “continues to threaten terrorist attacks and provides support to terrorist organisations such as Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hamas’ Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades”.

The minister was unable to specify on Wednesday how many members each of the groups had in Australia, saying the numbers were “fluid”. But she said the listings were based on advice about “real” and “credible” threats posed to Australia.

The move follows long-standing calls for the government to list far-right groups, after warnings from intelligence agency ASIO about the growing threat they pose.

Some within the government have previously raised concern about the use of the phrase right-wing extremism, and ASIO now classes them under the umbrella category of ideologically motivated violent extremists.

ASIO says this “ideologically motivated” category now accounts for about 50% of its priority onshore counter-terrorism caseload, with the remainder being religiously motivated violent extremism.

Asked why it had taken so long to list The Base, Andrews said she did not take such designations lightly and wanted to make sure the groups met the legislative tests.

She said authorities were concerned about The Base’s activities in Australia and would “closely look at their membership and we will take action once they are fully listed under the criminal code”.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15068991 (240648ZNOV21) Notable: Dutton accuses Labor of ‘crab-walking’ away from AUKUS defence pact, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Defence_Minister_Peter_Dutton_says_Penny_Wong_has_failed_to_stand_up_for_Australian_values.jpg

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>>130100

Dutton accuses Labor of ‘crab-walking’ away from AUKUS defence pact

Anthony Galloway - November 23, 2021

Defence Minister Peter Dutton says federal Labor won’t stand up for Australian values in the face of Chinese attacks and accused it of “crab-walking” away from the AUKUS defence agreement in the angriest dispute between the two major parties over foreign policy in years.

Mr Dutton on Tuesday lashed Opposition foreign affairs spokeswoman Penny Wong for delivering a “very irresponsible” and “embarrassing” speech in which she argued the Defence Minister was hyping up the threat of war over Taiwan for domestic political advantage. Senator Wong hit back late on Tuesday to say Mr Dutton was lying about her speech and Labor backed the AUKUS deal.

Mr Dutton said Senator Wong should have denounced China’s acting ambassador in Canberra for attacking the AUKUS defence agreement and in doing so had failed to stand up for Australian values.

“I think the Labor Party has demonstrated, just as they did on boats… when they get into government, they go weak at the knees,” Mr Dutton said.

“Penny Wong has demonstrated today, already, that the Labor Party has gone weak at the knees, and we’re not even through the election.

“The acting [Chinese] ambassador is attacking Australian values… and Senator Wong wasn’t standing up for those values.”

Mr Dutton suggested Senator Wong’s speech was evidence that Labor “has a very different position when it comes to the alliance” with the US.

“The Labor Party is crab walking away from AUKUS. And it’s demonstrated again today by Senator Wong’s comments,” Mr Dutton said.

Senator Wong responded by saying Mr Dutton was “proving my point by lying about what I said in my speech today, lying about Labor’s position on AUKUS and ANZUS, and abandoning long-held bipartisan foreign policy positions”.

“Labor supports AUKUS, we support ANZUS, and we are sticking to the long-held bipartisan position on Taiwan, even if Mr Dutton is walking away from it,” she said.

Labor leader Anthony Albanese and Senator Wong have said they support the AUKUS agreement with the US and Britain, including a proposal to build nuclear-propelled submarines for Australia. But Labor has been increasingly airing its concerns about a potential capability gap with the submarines not to enter service until as late as the 2040s.

In her speech to the National Security College in Canberra, Senator Wong also accused Mr Dutton of being “wildly out of step” with the US after he declared it would be “inconceivable” that Australia would not join in an American operation to defend the island.

For decades, Australia has followed the US’s policy of “strategic ambiguity” towards Taiwan – meaning they do not state publicly whether they would defend it in the event of an attack by China, which regards Taiwan as a renegade province.

Mr Dutton denied he was ditching a policy of strategic ambiguity, saying he was being realistic about the Chinese Communist Party’s ambitions. “You don’t deter an adversary and you don’t maintain peace in our region from a position of weakness,” he said.

Mr Dutton said Senator’s Wong speech “could have been written by Paul Keating”, referring to the former Labor prime minister who has been critical of the government’s policies in standing up to China.

“It was such a sop to Paul Keating, it was quite embarrassing,” he said.

“The fact is that we have a very serious situation in the Indo-Pacific... the Chinese Communist Party has a presence in 20 different locations in the South China Sea, they’re butting up against the Japanese shipping vessels in the East China Sea.

“And there are many other points that you can identify in our region and around the world where there is concerning actions by the Communist Party of China.”

China’s foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian also launched a personal attack on Mr Dutton, claiming he was “obsessed with the Cold War mentality and ideological prejudices”.

“Driven by selfish political gains, he has repeatedly made provocations, sensational and astonishing statements on China-related issues,” Mr Zhao said.

“He wouldn’t scruple to hijack Australia onto the chariot in confrontation with China. His real intention has been exposed to all.”

https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/embarrassing-dutton-accuses-labor-of-walking-away-from-aukus-defence-pact-20211123-p59bfy.html

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15069027 (240656ZNOV21) Notable: Cardinal George Pell Denounces ‘Madness’ of Climate Change Fanaticism, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Cardinal_George_Pell_Denounces_Madness_of_Climate_Change_Fanaticism.jpg, Swedish_climate_activist_Greta_Thunberg_poses_for_a_picture_holding_a_sign_reading_School_strike_for_Climate_as_she_protests_in_front_of_the_Swedish_Parliament_Riksdagen_in_Stockholm_on_November_19_2021.jpg

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Cardinal George Pell Denounces ‘Madness’ of Climate Change Fanaticism

THOMAS D. WILLIAMS, PH.D.- 23 Nov 2021

Australian Cardinal George Pell has come out against climate alarmism in the third and final volume of his Prison Journal, published this month.

The “relentless propaganda for catastrophic man-induced climate change continues unabashed,” Cardinal Pell laments, while slamming absurd attempts to link bush fires to coal mining.

In Pell’s analysis, the hysteria of climate alarmists assumes a distinctly religious ardor, filling a void in the post-Christian West.

“When God is out of the equation and hell is banned from the public imagination, catastrophic climate change fills the gap as the current fear, and many are reluctant to concede that we are powerless in the face of the millennial patterns of climate change,” he asserts.

“But many neo-pagans do finish up fearing something which is not too demanding on them personally,” he suggests. “An atomic war has been replaced by the hypothesis of damaging climate change. It doesn’t seem to matter that even if we did know cause and effect accurately in the climate world, we in Australia could do nothing to change any end result.”

Much ignorance accompanies climate alarmism, Pell proposes, but pandering to fanaticism is never a good plan.

“I am not sure how many community leaders, including the politicians, know the basics of the history and science of climate change, understand the uncertainty of the diagnoses and the uselessness of the proposed remedies,” the cardinal states.

“The average world temperature has been increasing in fits, starts, and stops since the Little Ice Age and over the last two hundred years,” he observes. “No computer model so far has predicted accurately future temperature changes or patterns.”

“Billions of dollars are expended on the climate change academic-industrial complex, one of the most expensive follies in history,” he continues. “Somehow it is symbolic that children are not being led up the garden path by the Pied Piper; rather, gullible or cynical adults are being led by a sixteen- year-old girl.”

“What cost increases for electricity, how many power blackouts will be needed before this madness is curbed?” he asks. “The pagan Greeks were onto something when they claimed that those whom the gods wanted to destroy they first made mad.”

Pell also notes that “weather predicting is not an exact science for the weeks or months ahead and even more uncertain when we speak of ‘climate changes,’ which are constituted by blocks of weather for thirty years.”

The cardinal also critiques Boris Johnson’s full embrace of the climate change agenda.

“Boris Johnson disappointed me by coming out to acknowledge the cloud of carbon dioxide enveloping us, foreshadowing electric cars and announcing a claim to leadership for Britain in this climate-change era,” Pell declares. “He has captured the ‘zeitgeist’ for the moment, but I hope he doesn’t believe the pseudo-science behind it.”

This is not the first time Cardinal Pell has criticized climate change alarmism and the bizarre trappings of the movement.

“I still believe the climate change debate proceeds on the wrong premises, i.e., that increases of carbon dioxide certainly raise the temperature and that we have the human capacity to modify climate (weather over a thirty-year period),” he wrote in the first volume of his Prison Journal, which was released last December.

“We should remember King Canute, who realised he couldn’t stop the incoming tide.”

Pell also expresses concern over the Vatican’s marriage to climate change, noting that it could wind up looking like the Galileo affair in hindsight.

“The climate change movement is now a worldwide financial colossus, ruthless and intolerant, colossally expensive, a useful substitute for religion for too many,” he observes. “Unfortunately, many in the Vatican have jumped onto the climate change bandwagon, despite the encyclical Laudato si’ twice acknowledging that the Church should leave science to the scientists. It could be a mistake like the one the papacy made with Galileo.”

“I suspect history will judge the emphasis on the threat of climate change as bizarre. The climate is always changing, and, despite the bluster, we don’t know what raises global temperatures,” he declares.

And while “it is political suicide to be sceptical of or hostile to the climate-change movement,” he quips, “someone will cry out eventually that the emperor has no clothes.”

https://www.breitbart.com/environment/2021/11/23/cardinal-george-pell-denounces-madness-of-climate-change-fanaticism/

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15069113 (240718ZNOV21) Notable: Mount Isa paedophile Brendan Curt Shulz sentenced to nine years in prison after major child sex abuse bust in Philippines, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Thirteen_children_were_rescued_following_a_police_raid_on_a_property_in_the_Philippines_city_of_Zamboanga.jpg, 37_year_old_Mount_Isa_man_Brendan_Curt_Schulz_has_been_sentenced_to_nine_years_prison.jpg

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Mount Isa paedophile sentenced after major child sex abuse bust in Philippines

Larissa Waterson - 24 November 2021

A 37-year-old Mount Isa man has been sentenced to nine years in prison after pleading guilty to 33 charges relating to the sexual abuse of children in the Philippines.

Brendan Curt Shulz was sentenced in the Queensland Supreme Court at Mount Isa on Tuesday and will be eligible for parole in 2026.

Mr Shulz was arrested in May, 2020, in relation to the sexual abuse of 13 children in the city of Zamboanga. A woman, who was related to the children, was also arrested.

Seven boys and six girls were rescued from a location in Zamboanga following a joint investigation between the Australian Federal Police and Philippines authorities.

Mr Shulz was found guilty of charges relating to the persistent sexual abuse of children, procuring children for sexual abuse and transmitting sexual abuse material.

He was also convicted of unlawfully possessing restricted drugs and child exploitation material.

Detective Superintendent Andrew Perkins of the AFP told News Corp, "collaborative cross-border efforts'' targeting offenders exploiting children in the Philippines should send a strong deterrent message.

"We are committed to targeting offenders involved as abusers, consumers or facilitators in this trade, irrespective of their location," he said.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-11-24/man-charged-with-philippines-child-sex-abuse-sentenced/100646460

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15069190 (240736ZNOV21) Notable: Virginia Giuffre Will Not Take Witness Stand in Ghislaine Maxwell’s Trial: Report, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: RG_5.jpg, Virginia_Giuffre_Will_Not_Take_Witness_Stand_in_Ghislaine_Maxwell_s_Trial_Report.jpg

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>>130109

RealGhislaine Tweet

The prosecution is taking a pass on the loudest, probably highest paid witness ? If so, that speaks volumes as to her lack of credibility!

https://twitter.com/RealGhislaine/status/1463137061901328388

—

Virginia Giuffre Will Not Take Witness Stand in Ghislaine Maxwell’s Trial: Report

STRONG AND SILENT TYPE

AJ McDougall - Nov. 22, 2021

Virginia Roberts Giuffre, Jeffrey Epstein and Ghislaine Maxwell’s highest-profile accuser, will not be testifying against Maxwell at her upcoming trial, according to Vanity Fair. The magazine, citing a source close to the case, reported Monday that Giuffre will instead hold off-the-record remote briefings for reporters during the trial. Giuffre is the only public accuser to name names of those alleged to have been involved in Epstein’s sex-trafficking ring, among them Prince Andrew and Alan Dershowitz. Vanity Fair also reported, however, that at least four accusers will testify against Maxwell. Three of those accusers will be granted anonymity.

It was reported last week that prosecutors would implicate two other accomplices besides Maxwell in the disgraced late mogul’s illegal dealings. But neither of the unnamed co-conspirators is “available to testify,” according to The New York Times. Prosecutors have also indicated in court documents that they’ll be focused on determining Maxwell’s alleged role in grooming and trafficking minors, disappointing those who were hoping a bigger fish would be ensnared during the trial. “What are we going to learn?” a frustrated lawyer who has represented some of Epstein’s victims asked Vanity Fair.

Read it at Vanity Fair:

https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2021/11/ghislaine-maxwells-trial-opens-a-new-chapter-in-heinous-jeffrey-epstein-saga

https://www.thedailybeast.com/virginia-roberts-giuffre-will-not-take-witness-stand-in-ghislaine-maxwells-trial-report-says

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15069238 (240756ZNOV21) Notable: Prince Andrew accusations left out of Epstein-Maxwell case, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Britain_s_Prince_Andrew_speaks_during_a_television_interview_at_the_Royal_Chapel_of_All_Saints_at_Royal_Lodge_Windsor_England_April_11_2021.jpg, Virginia_Roberts_Giuffre_speaks_during_a_press_conference_outside_a_Manhattan_court_in_New_York_Aug_27_2019.jpg

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Prince Andrew accusations left out of Epstein-Maxwell case

DAVID B. CARUSO, JIM MUSTIAN and MICHAEL R. SISAK - 23 November 2021

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NEW YORK (AP) — When Jeffrey Epstein’s longtime companion Ghislaine Maxwell goes on trial next week, the accuser who captivated the public most, with claims she was trafficked to Britain’s Prince Andrew and other prominent men, won’t be part of the case.

U.S. prosecutors chose not to bring charges in connection with Virginia Giuffre, who says Epstein and Maxwell flew her around the world when she was 17 and 18 for sexual encounters with billionaires, politicians, royals and heads of state.

She isn’t expected to be called as a witness in Maxwell’s trial, either.

Prosecutors will focus instead on four other women who say they were recruited by Maxwell as teenagers to be abused by Epstein. None has alleged the type of abuse by powerful international figures that Giuffre has detailed in interviews and court filings.

Bypassing Giuffre’s allegations about Andrew will keep the most explosive allegations against Maxwell out of the trial, but it will also allow prosecutors to avoid a big risk.

Records, witnesses and photos back up many parts of Giuffre’s account of her time with Epstein, the financier who died by suicide in 2019 while jailed ahead of his own sex trafficking trial. But Giuffre has acknowledged getting key details wrong in her story over the years, including initially falsely saying in a lawsuit that she had been 15 when Epstein began to abuse her.

The men she’s accused have spent years attacking her credibility. Maxwell’s lawyers might have tried to have some of them testify.

Besides Andrew, Giuffre has said she was sexually trafficked to former New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson, former U.S. Sen. George Mitchell, the noted lawyer Alan Dershowitz, the French modeling scout Jean Luc Brunel and the billionaire Glenn Dubin, among others.

All have said her accounts are fabricated.

David Weinstein, a former federal prosecutor who’s not involved in the case, said making Giuffre part of the Maxwell case could have complicated matters unnecessarily.

“There is no reason to give the defense anything to work with that can sow the seeds of reasonable doubt,” Weinstein said.

Giuffre’s lawyers declined an interview request, but she has stood by her allegations and repeatedly shown a willingness to go into civil court to prove them, sitting in depositions and assembling a legal team that includes one of America’s most influential lawyers, David Boies.

In a 2019 interview with Dateline NBC, she said inconsistencies in her story were the innocent mistakes of trying to recall events that happened years ago, when she was a traumatized teenager.

“When you are abused, you know your abuser,” she said. “I might not have my dates right. I might not have my times right ... but I know their faces and I know what they’ve done to me.”

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15076199 (250731ZNOV21) Notable: Solomon Islands PM Manasseh Sogavare has asked for Australian help to regain control of the nation’s capital Honiara, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Large_crowds_are_seen_as_buildings_burn_in_the_Solomon_Island_s_capital_of_Honiara_in_the_Chinatown_district_as_civil_unrest_continues_for_a_second_day.jpg, Large_crowds_are_seen_in_the_Solomon_Island_s_capital_of_Honiara_as_civil_unrest_continues_for_a_second_day.jpg, Parents_have_been_told_to_keep_their_children_at_home_as_the_unrest_continues.jpg, Smoke_and_flames_billow_from_a_building_after_protesters_attempted_to_storm_the_parliament_in_the_Solomon_Islands_capital_Honiara_which_has_since_been_placed_under_curfew.jpg

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Solomon Islands PM Manasseh Sogavare has asked for Australian help to regain control of the nation’s capital

BEN PACKHAM and GEOFF CHAMBERS - NOVEMBER 25, 2021

Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare has asked for Australian help to restore order in the nation’s capital amid a second day of rioting, with Defence and Australian Federal Police personnel on standby to fly out to the Pacific Island nation.

The national security committee of cabinet will consider the request for help in coming hours, after crisis talks between the Sogavare Government and the Australian High Commission in Honiara.

Senior government sources said ADF and AFP were readying to depart, but a decision was yet to be made on whether they would be deployed, or in what capacity.

There are understood to be deep concerns in the government about propping up Mr Sogavare, who has been a critic of Australia and whose government is widely unpopular.

But if Australia doesn’t intervene, it risks Mr Sogavare seeking assistance from China.

The Australian has learned senior Solomon Islands police — who have been forced to withdraw from large areas of Honiara — have had talks with Mr Sogavare in an effort to secure his resignation.One longtime watcher of Solomon Islands politics said if Australian troops were deployed, it could have the effect of rescuing the leadership of the “lifelong Australian antagonist”.

Australian diplomats confined to homes

Australian diplomats and their families were confined to their homes as large numbers of rioters from the country’s largest island province of Malaita burned a number of public and private buildings in the capital, including at least one police station, a bank, and a number of Chinese-owned shops.

They have called for Mr Sogavare’s resignation, and unsuccessfully attempted to storm the nation’s parliament.

They are angry about perceived neglect by the central government. There is also lingering dissatisfaction at the Solomons’ decision to switch diplomatic allegiances from Taiwan to China in 2019.

Mr Sogavare made a formal request for assistance to the Australian government after ordering a 36-hour lockdown, which is being defined by protesters.

“No one is above the law … these people will face the consequences of their actions,” he said.

“I had honestly thought that we had gone past the darkest days in the history of our country, however … (these) events are a painful reminder that we have a long way to go.”

The violence began after a boatload of people from the country’s most populous island Malaita, which is pro-Taiwan, arrived in Honiara for a peaceful protest pressuring Mr Sogavare to resign.

The protest turned violent after a grass hut near the Solomons parliament caught fire.

The Australian understands the situation on the ground, which is currently contained to Honiara, dramatically worsened on Thursday as locals looted shops in Chinatown and burnt-down buildings.

After ordering the lockdown, which was due to end on Friday morning, Mr Sogavare described the violent protests as “another sad and unfortunate event aimed at bringing a democratically elected government down”.

Parents have been told to keep their children at home and for businesses to lockup their premises.

Mr Sogavare, who has established closer ties with Beijing since reclaiming the top job in 2019, has come under pressure from Malaitan Premier Daniel Suidani to end relations with China.

ADF and AFP personnel spent a decade stationed in the country under the Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands, which was stood-up in response to a bloody ethnic conflict known locally as “the tensions”.

The Morrison government will be wary about being drawn into a lengthy intervention, following the 2003-2017 Regional Assistance Mission to Solomon Islands, or RAMSI, which cost more than $2.6bn.

RAMSI was established by former prime minister John Howard in response to a formal request by the Solomons government to help broker peace between rival Malaitan and Guadalcanal militants, and rebuild the country.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/solomon-islands-pm-manasseh-sogavare-has-asked-for-australian-help-to-regain-control-of-the-nations-capital/news-story/ce802d262685d10f192a52c338ab2f9c

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15076253 (250757ZNOV21) Notable: Stella Moris on fiancé Julian Assange: ‘This isn’t about him, it’s about press freedom’, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Stella_Moris_on_fianc_Julian_Assange_This_isn_t_about_him_it_s_about_press_freedom_.jpg, Stella_Moris_and_Assange_s_sons_Gabriel_four_and_Max_two.jpg

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Stella Moris on fiancé Julian Assange: ‘This isn’t about him, it’s about press freedom’

Katie Strick - 24 November 2021

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Stella Moris - fiancée of the incarcerated WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange and mother of his two youngest children - takes a deep sigh and holds her head up in her hands. The South African-born lawyer turned freedom-of-information campaigner has had a whirlwind 24 hours, even by her standards.

Since returning to London on an overnight train, she has reunited with hers and Assange’s sons, Gabriel, four, and Max, two; made a speech to journalists on press freedom; and squeezed in a fleeting visit to HMP Belmarsh, the maximum security prison in south-east London where her husband-to-be has been locked up since 2019 while he awaits the outcome of a US extradition appeal at the High Court. When we meet at the Frontline Club, a private members’ club for journalists in Paddington, she is wearing a grey beanie hat and navy polo neck and speaks quietly, nervously scratching her hands around the diamond engagement ring she bought for herself on Assange’s behalf while he was in the Ecuadorian embassy in 2016.

The result of Assange’s appeal should be known by Christmas (though he will not be immediately released unless America formally drops its case). In the meantime, Moris, 38, has been fighting a second battle. After our meeting, she is rushing straight off to meet her lawyer about their legal action against the deputy prime minister Dominic Raab and the Belmarsh prison governor, who she claims were blocking her and Assange from getting married inside the prison. Just hours later, the news she has been battling for comes through: after five years of trying, she and the Australian-born whistleblower have been granted permission to marry. Moris is relieved that “reason has prevailed” in her marriage battle, calling the delays a “completely outrageous and illegal interference in [their] private lives”.

But it’s hardly happily ever after. Marrying in a small Catholic ceremony in Belmarsh is hardly the wedding she dreamed of and she fears for her fiancée's life while he remains in jail. “I’ve never seen him this thin...,” she says, anxiously. According to Moris, her fiancée is “desperate” and deeply unwell after months trapped behind bars with some of the country’s most dangerous offenders. At a point in late 2019, prison authorities believed him to be at risk of suicide and he was put in a mental health ward, sharing a room with a serial killer.

“[That Julian should spend] a single day in prison is... incomprehensible,” says Moris, reaching desperately for her handbag whenever her phone rings in case it’s a call from Assange (he has to initiate calls and they cut off after 10 minutes). She visits once a week and they can hug as long as she takes an antigen test - a “happy moment”, after being barred from visits over lockdown. She tries not to make it a heavy experience for the boys but the place is “cold and oppressive” and even the children have to keep their masks on and go through five layers of extreme security on each side (Max, the youngest, has only met his father since he’s been in Belmarsh).

Even by spy movie standards, his and Moris’ extraordinary love story sounds fantastical: an entire relationship forged inside a single diplomatic building, secret from the rest of the world and under the watchful eye of the CIA. The pair met in 2011 while Moris was working in Assange’s legal team during his seven years seeking refuge inside the Ecuadorian embassy. Assange, 50, was claiming diplomatic asylum at the time after exposing thousands of documents relating to the Afghanistan and Iraq wars in 2010 (including footage of US soldiers shooting and killing civilians from a helicopter in Iraq). The US said Wikileaks had put its intelligence and military lives at risk, while Assange and his supporters argued that the public had a right to know and that the US was shooting the messenger. At the same time, Assange was also being threatened with extradition to Sweden, having been accused by two women of forcing them to have unprotected sex (he has always denied the accusations and has never been charged).

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15076292 (250818ZNOV21) Notable: Cardinal Pell Speaks About New Book - 'Prison Journal Volume 3: The High Court Frees an Innocent Man', MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Cardinal_George_Pell_was_at_St_Mary_of_the_Assumption_Catholic_Church_in_Park_City_Nov_15_18.jpg

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Cardinal Pell Speaks About New Book

Nov. 26, 2021 - Marie Mischel

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PARK CITY — Cardinal George Pell, who spent 404 days in solitary confinement in an Australian prison until his conviction on charges of sexual abuse of a minor was overturned in 2020 by the High Court of Australia in a unanimous decision, kept a daily journal of his ordeal. After his release from prison, that journal was published in three volumes, the third of which was released on Nov. 2.

The cardinal wrote approximately three pages each day, always ending with a prayer or reflection taken from wide-ranging sources: the Psalms, various saints, John Donne and Shakespeare, to name a few.

Prison Journal Volume 3: The High Court Frees an Innocent Man covers the period of Cardinal Pell’s imprisonment from Dec. 1, 2019 to April 8, 2020, the day after his release. These days happened to be the First Sunday of Advent and the Wednesday of Holy Week, respectively. In the entry that opens the book, the cardinal notes that “[T]he liturgical year is a wonderful invention …” but one that he had taken “somewhat for granted. … However, I have a new and deeper appreciation for Lent and Easter, Pentecost, Advent and Christmas, and even Ordinary Time, as they give structure and purpose to my quiet life in jail.”

Continuing his thought, he adds that “In the yearly cycle of feasts, we [Christians] celebrate what has been achieved by God’s people and look forward in hope.”

In an interview with the Intermountain Catholic, the cardinal said that life in prison “is very humdrum. So you welcome the weekly visits from the chaplain, you welcome when there’s an interesting program on [television]; I’m very interested in sports – there’s Aussie rules football and test cricket.”

While “life is pretty quiet in jail,” that quiet could be broken by other prisoners “who were sometimes very angry, sometimes very anguished,” he said.

Then, with humor that occasionally comes out in his book, he added that the quiet life in jail “was good preparation for COVID isolation.”

The entries in the journal cover an eclectic mixture of topics: the cardinal mentions visits from friends and supporters who included Anthony Abbott, the former prime minster of Australia, and Father Victor Martinez, the Australian superior of Opus Dei; the contents of his meals – he enjoys Cadbury’s chocolate; musings on the contents of letters he received (according to a press release from his publisher, he was sent more than 3,500 letters), his exercise program that included a self-imposed goal of at least 100 ping pong volleys in a row. He also commented on worldwide events such as the financial scandal at the Vatican and global warming.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15081688 (261016ZNOV21) Notable: Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Commonwealth of Australia - "In his NPC speech, Australian Defence Minister Peter Dutton continued preaching his quixotic misunderstanding of China’s foreign policy", MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Chinese_Embassy_Spokesperson_s_Remarks_2021_11_26.jpg

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>>130125

Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Commonwealth of Australia

Chinese Embassy Spokesperson’s Remarks - 2021-11-26

In his NPC speech, Australian Defence Minister Peter Dutton continued preaching his quixotic misunderstanding of China’s foreign policy, distorting China’s efforts to safeguard sovereignty and territorial integrity, misguiding the Australian people on regional situations and priorities, and fanning conflict and division between peoples and nations. It is inconceivable that China-Australia relationship will take on a good momentum or the overall interest of regional countries, including that of Australia, will be better promoted if the Australian Government bases its national strategy on such visionless analysis and outdated mentality.

http://au.china-embassy.org/eng/sghdxwfb_1/202111/t20211126_10453713.htm

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15081691 (261017ZNOV21) Notable: ‘Visionless, outdated’: China’s fury over Peter Dutton’s speech, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Defence_Minister_Peter_Dutton_has_spoken_at_the_National_Press_Club.jpg

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>>130125

>>130126

‘Visionless, outdated’: China’s fury over Peter Dutton’s speech

ASHLEIGH GLEESON - NOVEMBER 26, 2021

The Chinese embassy has issued a scathing statement after Defence Minister Peter Dutton gave a speech warning Beijing was ramping up its military power and engaging in “increasingly alarming activities”.

During an address to the National Press Club in Canberra, Mr Dutton warned about the consequences of Beijing taking back Taiwan and said any conflict with China in the Indo Pacific would be “catastrophic”.

“If Taiwan is taken, surely the Shenkakus are next,” Mr Dutton said, referring to a group of uninhabited islands in the East China Sea.

He said in the absence of “counterpressure”, the Chinese government would become the sole security and economic partner for Indo Pacific nations.

“Now, that is a not just a perilous military and economic situation for our country, but for so many more,” he said.

The Chinese embassy in Australia was quick to fire back, issuing a statement on Thursday afternoon which accused Mr Dutton of “preaching his quixotic misunderstanding of China’s foreign policy”.

The statement said he was “distorting China’s efforts to safeguard sovereignty and territorial integrity” and “misguiding the Australian people on regional situations and priorities, and fanning conflict and division between peoples and nations”.

“It is inconceivable that China-Australia relationship will take on a good momentum or the overall interest of regional countries, including that of Australia, will be better promoted if the Australian government bases its national strategy on such visionless analysis and outdated mentality,” the statement said.

During his speech, Mr Dutton said that China’s naval battle force had more than tripled in size over the past two decades alone to become the biggest navy in the world, with 355 ships and submarines.

He said every major city in Australia, including Hobart, was in range of China’s missiles which were projected to reach between 700 and 1000 nuclear warheads in the next decade.

“Today, we face the most significant change in our strategic environment since the Second World War,” he said.

“Once again, Australia finds herself in a region at the centre epicentre of global strategic competition, a region witness to a military build-up of a scale and ambition that historically has rarely been associated with peaceful outcomes.

“Along with peoples of the Indo-Pacific and the world, Australians have watched, and we’ve watched very closely as the Chinese government has engaged in increasingly alarming activities.”

Mr Dutton said he had spoken many times with Prime Minister Scott Morrison about how “we live in the echoes of the 1930s”.

“There are many men and women who, as parents, sent their children off to conflict in the near region and across Europe and many other parts of the world and those soldiers and those veterans suffered and paid a great price and I never want to see that repeated,” he said.

“The world would be foolish to repeat the mistakes of the 1930s.

“We live in times of high tension but the region is not on an inevitable path to conflict.

“But only if all countries of goodwill ensure together we do our utmost to steer clear of the cliff face.”

He said conflict needed to be avoided, however “acquiescence or appeasement is a tactic that is a cul-de-sac of strategic misfortune or worse”.

“Were conflict to come about through misunderstanding, through miscalculation or through hostility, it would be calamitous for us all,” he said.

“Australia’s position is very clear. Conflict must be avoided.

“I believe we should call out actions that are destabilising and contrary to the interests of Australia in our region.

“We do this because the Australian people expect it of their government but we also do it because we must amplify voices silenced by coercion, yet which seek the same peace and stability as us.”

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/peter-dutton-says-chinas-activities-increasingly-alarming-during-national-press-club-address/news-story/e350fb5117975744e5b7d4097abf3e3f

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15081695 (261018ZNOV21) Notable: ‘Mistakes of the 1930s’: Peter Dutton ramps up China rhetoric as Keating calls him a ‘dangerous personality’, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Australian_defence_minister_Peter_Dutton_addressing_the_National_Press_Club_in_Canberra_He_warned_against_repeating_the_mistakes_of_the_1930s_in_dealing_with_China.jpg

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>>130125

‘Mistakes of the 1930s’: Peter Dutton ramps up China rhetoric as Keating calls him a ‘dangerous personality’

Defence minister says price of inaction on Taiwan could be higher than coming to its aid, as he talks of ‘dark clouds’ in the region

Daniel Hurst - 26 Nov 2021

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Australia’s defence minister has ramped up his pre-election warnings about the threat posed by China, declaring Beijing wants countries to be “tributary states” and is building up its military at a scale that is unlikely to be peaceful.

Peter Dutton said on Friday “dark clouds” were forming in the region, and countries “would be foolish to repeat the mistakes of the 1930s”.

He said the price of Australia coming to Taiwan’s aid in a military conflict may be lower than the consequences of inaction, while accusing his critics of engaging in “simplistic” or “wishful thinking” about China’s change in posture.

China’s embassy hit back at Dutton, saying he was “fanning conflict and division”, and it hinted at further harm to the already-strained relationship between Australia and its largest trading partner.

Dutton, a significant conservative figure in Scott Morrison’s government, said China’s president, Xi Jinping, was not bluffing about Beijing’s determination to take Taiwan by the 2040s.

Dutton argued China would not stop there. “If Taiwan is taken, surely the Senkakus are next,” he said, referring to uninhabited islets in the East China Sea administered by Japan but claimed by China, where they are known as Diaoyu Dao.

The minister predicted China would also impose a more coercive relationship with other countries in the region, resulting in “a perilous military and economic situation for our country and many others”.

Just days after he was accused by the opposition of dangerously amping up the prospect of war for domestic political purposes, Dutton injected an election message into his speech.

He said it was a “time of great uncertainty” and Australians “can be certain that the government – the Morrison government – will act to keep them safe”.

“Over the next decade, China’s nuclear warhead stockpile – estimated to be in the 200s last year – is projected to reach between 700 and 1,000 warheads,” Dutton told the National Press Club on Friday.

“Every major city in Australia, including Hobart, is within range of China’s missiles.”

Dutton said the Indo-Pacific was “witness to a military build-up of a scale and ambition that, historically, has rarely been associated with peaceful outcomes”.

Dutton said despite high tensions, the region was not on an inevitable path to conflict, “but only if all countries of goodwill ensure together we do our utmost to steer clear of the cliff face”.

“Does the Chinese government wish to occupy other countries? Not in my judgement,” Dutton said.

“But they do see us as tributary states – and that surrender of sovereignty and abandonment of any adherence to the international rule of law is what our country has fought against since federation.

“It has come at great human cost and any repeat of the mistakes of the 1930s would again exact a great cost on our country and many more.”

Dutton’s speech reflects increasing concerns held by the Australian government about China’s military buildup and its activities in the South and East China seas and the ratcheting up of military pressure against Taiwan.

But his intervention also reinforces efforts by the Morrison government to portray Labor as weak on national security and on China ahead of the election – even though there is generally bipartisan consensus on the strategic challenges in the region.

Labor’s foreign affairs spokesperson, Penny Wong, said Dutton’s speech was a case of “desperate political tactics”. She said Dutton, a one-time contender for the prime ministership who fell short in the 2018 Liberal party vote, was auditioning for Morrison’s job.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15081711 (261022ZNOV21) Notable: Statement by PJ Keating - Press Club comments by Defence Minister Peter Dutton - 26 November 2021, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: TB_1.jpg, FFGDt4NVcAc_oGd.jpg

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>>130125

>>130128

Dutton a ‘dangerous personality’: Keating

afr.com - 26 November 2021

Former prime minister Paul Keating has issued a response to comments by Defence Minister Peter Dutton at his National Press Club address today.

Dutton compared Keating, who has advocated for avoiding conflict with China, to the late former British prime minister Neville Chamberlain who was seen as an appeaser of Nazi Germany as he sought to avoid war in the 30s.

The Defence Minister also used his Friday speech to warn every Australian capital was in range of a Chinese nuclear attack and of the potential for war.

Keating says Dutton outlined a “chillingly aggressive and unrealistic scenario” on Friday afternoon.

“Peter Dutton is a dangerous personality, who unfortunately is the Minister of Defence in Australia,” Keating says.

“[Dutton], by his incautious utterances, persists in injecting Australia into a potentially explosive situation in North Asia.

“A situation Australia is not in any position to manage or control, let alone to succeed and prosper in.”

Dutton has said Australia would have to join the United States in any war on China over Taiwan, but would not outline on Friday whether that meant Australia would simply act as a base or commit combat troops.

https://www.afr.com/politics/federal/discovery-of-new-covid-19-variant-prompts-call-for-urgent-who-meeting-20211125-p59cc2

—

Statement by PJ Keating

Press Club comments by Defence Minister Peter Dutton

At today’s Press Club event, Minister Peter Dutton outlined a chillingly aggressive and unrealistic scenario as to Australia’s foreign and defence posture in the region.

A posture which is unremittingly unrealistic and inappropriate to Australia’s vulnerable geographic circumstances.

Peter Dutton is a dangerous personality, who unfortunately is the Minister of Defence in Australia. Peter Dutton, by his incautious utterances, persists in injecting Australia into a potentially explosive situation in North Asia – a situation Australia is not in any position to manage or control, let alone to succeed and prosper in.

As a central minister in the Morrison government, with strategic responsibilities, Peter Dutton ignored and went out of his way to ignore, attempts by President Biden in his recent meeting with President Xi Jinping, to reach some sort of understanding or détente in the relationship between United States and China.

Peter Dutton is all for cheering on the United States as the balancing power in Asia but not for cheering on its President in his earnest attempts to eke out a more sustainable strategic and commercial relationship between the two countries. And while simply not cheering President Biden on, not even referring to the importance or significance of the conversation between the two leaders.

Peter Dutton speaks noisily about the so called ‘cost of inaction’ but is silent about ‘action’ of the kind that the United States is currently and assiduously undertaking.

PJ Keating

26 November 2021

https://twitter.com/TroyBramston/status/1464096184235032576

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15081740 (261038ZNOV21) Notable: Chinese spy ship spotted circling Australia’s coast for three weeks, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: The_PLA_Navy_General_Intelligence_Ship_Yuhengxing_operating_off_Australia_s_east_coast_in_August_2021_The_green_crosshair_is_a_standard_feature_of_ADF_imaging_equipment.jpg, The_Yuhengxing_spent_three_weeks_travelling_south_along_Australia_s_coast_monitoring_a_number_of_sensitive_military_installations_The_other_ship_is_HMAS_Supply.jpg

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Chinese spy ship spotted circling Australia’s coast for three weeks

Scott Morrison says the revelation that a sophisticated Chinese spy ship circled Australia’s coast earlier this year highlights the “very serious situation”.

Frank Chung - November 26, 2021

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Scott Morrison says the revelation that a sophisticated Chinese spy ship circled Australia’s coast earlier this year highlights the “very serious situation” in the Indo-Pacific.

“I think the presence of the Chinese Navy – which we were aware of, and they were keeping a close eye on us and we were keeping a close eye on them – the importance of that is to highlight Australians that there is a very serious situation in the Indo-Pacific,” the Prime Minister told reporters in Adelaide.

“They have every right to be where they are. We knew they were there. They are able to be there under international maritime law. But don’t think for a second that we were not keeping an eye on them as they were seeking to keep an eye on us.”

Mr Morrison said it showed “Australia has to be able to stand up, and that requires great strength”.

“I have been criticised by many for the strong stance I have taken on this issue,” he said.

“You need strength to take Australia through a time like this. There is never a time for weakness when it comes to leading a federal government, particularly at a time when you are dealing with these very significant security issues and the economic challenges that we have. We are seeing that at large in the South Pacific even now in the Solomons where we have people on the ground right now.”

The Daily Telegraph first reported on Friday that the vessel had been spotted circling Australia’s coast for three weeks in August and September, collecting electronic intelligence as it travelled past sensitive military installations.

It was believed to be a Dongdiao-class spy ship, similar to one which monitored the Talisman Sabre military exercises between Australia and the US earlier this year.

The Dongdaio-class is capable of monitoring communications and radar signals and the electromagnetic spectrum as well as employing other surveillance methods such as optical sensors.

Defence sources told The Daily Telegraph the ship entered Australia’s 200km exclusive economic zone off the coast of Darwin in August before slowly heading south, hugging the coastline.

It reportedly monitored a number of crucial military training areas as it travelled as far south as Sydney, before heading across the Tasman towards New Zealand.

Defence and government officials this morning confirmed the report.

“I can certainly confirm there was a Chinese military vessel operating off the east coast of Australia that transited through the Torres Strait,” Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews told Seven’s Sunrise program on Friday.

“We are very closely monitoring all vessels that approach Australia and whilst this particular vessel was in our exclusive economic zone and we respect the sovereignty of that particular vessel, we will always respect that level of sovereignty, we do closely monitor any vessel as part of our routine border protection matters but of course, we are very conscious of any vessel is that are in or approaching our waters.”

Under United Nations freedom of navigation rules, it is legal for foreign vessels to enter another country’s exclusive economic zone. Territorial waters extend 12 nautical miles from the coast.

China routinely sends spy ships to monitor military exercises near Australia, including in 2017 and 2019.

But the appearance this time was reportedly considered unusual as there were no exercises or war games taking place.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15081800 (261114ZNOV21) Notable: Australia’s border to remain open to South Africa despite emergence of new Covid variant, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Only_a_quarter_of_South_Africa_s_population_is_vaccinated_as_concerns_grow_about_a_new_Covid_variant_detected.jpg

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>>129854

Australia’s border to remain open to South Africa despite emergence of new Covid variant

Health minister Greg Hunt says officials were assessing the threat but had advised there was ‘no basis for change’ to border arrangements at this stage

Michael McGowan - 26 Nov 2021

Australia has no plans to restrict flights from South Africa, despite the emergence of a new variant of Covid-19 which has prompted the UK to shut its borders to the country.

As the World Health Organisation called an urgent meeting to discuss the new variant detected in South Africa, Australia’s health minister, Greg Hunt, said on Friday that officials were assessing the threat posed by the strain and would not yet introduce restrictions on arrivals from southern Africa.

While Australia would “be able to act quickly if there’s advice”, Hunt told media the country’s chief medical officer, Paul Kelly, had advised him there was “no basis for change” in border arrangements.

The UK on Friday announced it would ban flights from southern parts of Africa amid concern about the emerging B.1.1.529 variant, but Hunt said international health authorities were still gathering information about it.

“The world is learning and looking [at] the strain,” he said. He had been briefed by both Kelly and the secretary of the department of health, Brendan Murphy, on Friday morning.

“At this stage they are gathering information [but] we’re flexible and if the medical advice is we need to change then we won’t hesitate,” Hunt said.

He said a repatriation flight from South Africa had arrived in Australia last week and the returnees had been in quarantine at Howard Springs in the Northern Territory. He was not aware of any cases of the new strain being detected in Australia.

It comes as Dr Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO’s technical lead on Covid-19, said in a question-and-answer livestream on Friday that information about the strain was still emerging.

“What we do know is that this variant has a large number of mutations. And the concern is that when you have so many mutations, it can have an impact on how the virus behaves,” she said.

The emergence of a new strain is by no means a first. Another variant, C.1.2, was also detected in South Africa earlier this year, but has not proven as infectious as the more common Delta strain.

However, the B.1.1.529 variant has raised concerns in the international community due to the “extremely high number” of mutations, which some researchers fear could help the virus evade immunity.

Whether or not the strain is classified a variant of concern by the WHO, its emergence has drawn renewed attention to efforts to help increase global vaccination rates.

South Africa’s vaccination rate is only about 24% while in neighbouring Botswana, where the strain has also been detected, only one in five people have been vaccinated.

Prof Catherine Bennett, an epidemiologist from the University of Deakin, said the rest of the world needed to do more to increase global vaccination rates.

“Australia has now contributed 9m doses to partners in the region, some to the Covax program, some to funding, but it isn’t enough,” she said.

While Australia was “rightly” focused on our region, she said, low rates of vaccination across the globe remained a substantial problem.

“Vaccination rates like in Botswana really does leave you vulnerable,” Bennett said.

“It doesn’t have to be a super-infectious strain of the virus, it just has to get into places with those low vaccination rates. We don’t know what will happen with this, it might fizzle out and the vaccine might work just as well. But if any of those things isn’t quite right, you are putting yourself in a position where the virus might just make a bit of a leap in its evolutionary development.”

On Friday Hunt defended international efforts for developing countries, saying there had been “extraordinarily high” rates of vaccination in some of those countries.

“Our spare vaccines are being provided but beyond that we’re also working directly through the Covax program,” he said.

“South Africa is doing everything it can to encourage vaccination within its population and to continue to expand its distribution network, but there are different challenges in different countries.”

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/nov/26/australias-border-to-remain-open-to-south-africa-despite-emergence-of-new-covid-variant

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15081812 (261119ZNOV21) Notable: New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern open to alliances beyond Five Eyes, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: New_Zealand_Prime_Minister_Jacinda_Ardern_is_open_to_other_alliances_beyond_Five_Eyes_she_says.jpg

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NZ PM open to alliances beyond Five Eyes

Jane Wardell - NOVEMBER 26 2021

New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has expressed support for its Five Eyes alliance with Australia, Britain, Canada and the United States, but says her country would also consider other economic alliances in the Pacific region.

NZ has faced increasing pressure from some elements among Western allies over its reluctance to use the Five Eyes intelligence and security alliance to criticise its top trading partner, China.

"We do have important alliances we are part of and we consider fit for purpose and we consider need to be used for the functions for which they were originally established," Ardern said on Friday in an interview for the upcoming Reuters Next conference.

"Beyond that, we consider that there's benefit to seeing a range of other actors in our region showing greater interest, not just in the strategic environment but the economic architecture for example of our region.

"We welcome other countries becoming more closely aligned through multilateral trade agreements, through bilateral trade agreements."

NZ Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta raised eyebrows earlier this year when she said she was uncomfortable about expanding the role of Five Eyes beyond a security and intelligence framework.

Mahuta also said NZ needed to maintain and respect China's "particular customs, traditions and values".

China, which takes almost one-third of NZ's exports, has accused Five Eyes of ganging up on it by issuing statements on Hong Kong and the treatment of ethnic Muslim Uyhgurs in Xinjiang.

Ardern, who earlier this year said that differences with China were "becoming harder to reconcile", said there was "no question that China's posture has changed in many ways".

"Over the last decade, I do think that we've seen a different dynamic, and a different range of leaders with a strategic interest in our region and that does pose challenges," she said.

"New Zealand, though, has been utterly consistent. We've always jealously guarded our foreign policy independent positions and continue to do so."

https://www.cowraguardian.com.au/story/7528215/nz-pm-open-to-alliances-beyond-five-eyes/

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15086619 (270415ZNOV21) Notable: Video: Government introduces bans on Africa travel over new Omicron COVID variant

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>>130133

Government introduces bans on Africa travel over new Omicron COVID variant

James Massola, Latika Bourke and Sally Rawsthorne - November 27, 2021

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The federal government has announced all flights from the nine southern African countries affected by the new coronavirus strain, Omicron, will be suspended for two weeks.

Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt on Saturday said the travel restrictions also apply to people, such as international students and skilled migrants arriving under travel bubble arrangements who have been in any of the nine countries within the past 14 days.

These countries are South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Lesotho, Eswatini, Seychelles, Malawi and Mozambique.

Anyone who has already arrived in Australia and has been in any of the countries within the past 14 days, must immediately isolate themselves and get tested.

Mr Hunt also stressed that the emergence of the variant of concern came as the country was in a very different position that earlier in the pandemic.

He said there were no known cases of the Omicron variant in Australia.

“We’ll just note that there are 20 people in quarantine in Howard Springs in the Northern Territory who’ve arrived from South Africa in the last week,” he said.

They had all been tested with just one positive case and that case would be examined further.

“The difference is that we now have strong vaccines, we have one of the highest level of coverage in the world, we have one of the most recently vaccinated populations in the world. We have strong public health and social measures and we also have, most significantly, a well-prepared hospital system.”

Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly on Saturday said the new variant of concern was the 13th identified so far in the pandemic and there was no evidence that it led to more severe illness.

“We do know that it is it does contain a large number of mutations. It is quite different to previous variants that we’ve been watching, but at this point other than understanding that it is transmissible between humans and is transmitting, particularly in South Africa, but also in those surrounding countries,” he said.

“We did not at this point have any clear indication that it is more severe, or any definite indication of issues in relation to the vaccine. So I think they’re crucial points to the reason why we’re taking this precautionary approach, which is proportionate to that risk.”

Europe, Britain and a host of other countries closed their borders to non-residents arriving from the Southern Africa countries due to the emergence of the variant.

There are no direct flights between South Africa and Australia at present, but a series of other precautionary measures are likely to be announced later on Saturday.

The NSW government does not plan to make any changes to the post-lockdown reopening road map, despite concerns about a new and highly transmissible variant of COVID-19.

NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard told reporters on Saturday that the Omicron variant appeared highly contagious

“That’s concerning for anyone in public health across the world. At this stage, on the early evidence, it is possibly even more transmissible [than Delta],” he said.

“It could be something which is going to cause us a degree of concern going forward. We don’t know if... any of the vaccines will work with the Omicron variant.”

A Victorian Health Department statement said the government was “working with our Commonwealth and state colleagues to better understand the potential implications of this new variant and which mitigation strategies are required to keep Australians protected”.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15086626 (270416ZNOV21) Notable: Video: Government introduces bans on Africa travel over new Omicron COVID variant

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>>130134

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UNSW epidemiologist Mary-Louise McLaws said there was evidence that the new Omicron strain had been found in people in Israel, Botswana, Hong Kong, Malawi and Belgium.

“Although the numbers are low, if this strain has been allocated as a variant of concern, then one of the determinations apart from lab-based, with 32 changes to the spike protein, must have come from a determination that there is more transmissibility,” she said.

“It hasn’t evaded diagnostic tests, there is no evidence it is evading treatment and no evidence it is more deadly, so I would suggest it [the classification as a variant of concern] would be based on infectivity. This is very concerning because Delta was already 60 per cent more infectious that Alpha.”

“It’s not just in South Africa any more. They [the federal government] need to learn the lessons from Delta. Our quarantine system has failed on numerous occasions, the system’s failure of one person has been a lesson in how infectious Delta has been, those lessons need to be well taken, if they don’t the group of people in Australia that haven’t been fully vaccinated will suffer.

“We saw one person who the system failed to ensure was vaccinated, to ensure was tested regularly, has now resulted in over 172,000 cases in Australia.

“We have about 69 per cent vaccine coverage of the total population. For 12 plus it’s about 84 per cent, that’s great but it’s not enough to protect us from the introduction of a highly infectious variant.”

Nancy Baxter, an epidemiologist and head of Melbourne University’s School of Population and Global Health, said that Australia needed to close its borders to travellers from southern African nations.

“Although this is currently classified as a ‘variant of concern’ because we are not sure about the risk, there is mounting evidence in South Africa of rapid transmission, and because of the many mutations in the spike protein there is theoretical risk that the Omicron variant will be able to evade immunity (from both vaccination and infection) more than previous variants,” she said.

“That is a potentially extremely dangerous combination. Until we know more we need to adopt the precautionary principle and do what we can to keep this new variant out.”

The WHO’s Technical Advisory Group overnight said Omicron had a large number of mutations that made it concerning, and that preliminary evidence suggested “an increased risk of reinfection” compared to the other variants of concern, including Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Delta.

“The number of cases of this variant appears to be increasing in almost all provinces in South Africa,” the group said in a statement.

“This variant has been detected at faster rates than previous surges in infection, suggesting that this variant may have a growth advantage.”

The WHO has asked countries to step up their surveillance and genomic sequencing and report all cases and clusters.

The White House also imposed a travel ban and extended it to include Malawi.

There have been no cases of Omicron detected in Britain, but one found in Belgium. Belgium’s Health Minister Frank Vandenbroucke told a news conference that the case had been found four days ago in an unvaccinated woman with flu-like symptoms who had travelled from Egypt via Turkey.

None of her household contacts had developed symptoms but were being tested.

“It is a suspicious variant. We do not know if it is a very dangerous variant,” Vandenbroucke said.

The first case of the infection, previously called B.1.1.529, was detected in South Africa on November 9.

Britain moved ahead of the WHO’s declaration, announcing on Thursday night (local time) that it was closing its borders to South Africa and five other countries on Friday, causing chaos at airports.

Health Secretary Sajid Javid said there were “early indications that suggest it may be more transmissible and vaccines less effective”.

“We are concerned that this new variant may pose substantial risk to public health. The variant has an unusually large number of mutations,” Javid told the Commons.

https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/morrison-government-preparing-to-tighten-quarantine-rules-as-new-variant-emerges-20211127-p59co5.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WfHKWXKrdmY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DyB1MWnBTCQ

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15087495 (270845ZNOV21) Notable: South African traveller in Howard Springs quarantine tested for new Omicron COVID variant, as Katherine moves from lockdown to lockout, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: A_COVID_positive_man_who_travelled_from_South_Africa_is_being_tested_for_the_new_Omicron_variant_of_concern_during_his_stay_at_Howard_Springs_quarantine_facility.jpg, Ms_Fyles_also_announced_one_new_local_case_of_the_virus.jpg

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>>130133

South African traveller in Howard Springs quarantine tested for new Omicron COVID variant, as Katherine moves from lockdown to lockout

Alicia Perera - 27 November 2021

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There has been one new local case of COVID-19 recorded in the Northern Territory in the past 24 hours.

The case, which takes the total number of cases in the Territory outbreak to 53, is a 50-year-old man who is a household contact of existing cases.

NT Health Minister Natasha Fyles said the man had been at the Howard Springs quarantine facility throughout his infectious period, meaning he posed "no risk" to the community.

Separately, another case of COVID-19 — a traveller from South Africa — has been recorded in the NT from an international repatriation flight that arrived on November 25.

Ms Fyles said health authorities were still waiting to find out if the person was carrying the new Omicron variant of concern.

"We don't have the genomic sequencing of that case yet but that will be undertaken in the coming days," she said.

"That case has been in the Howard Springs Centre for National Resilience since they arrived, so [they are] very low risk to the community."

M Fyles said that as a result of the promising results in recent days, the Greater Katherine area would move from a lockdown into a lockout from 12pm today.

Under the lockout, fully vaccinated people will be required to wear a face mask but can otherwise continue life as normal.

However, unvaccinated people will be subject to full lockdown restrictions, including only being able to leave their homes for five reasons: to receive medical treatment, access essential goods or services, perform essential work, exercise or provide care and support.

During the lockout period, fully vaccinated people will be able to leave Katherine to travel to other areas by going through an application process, though they will need to get tested and continue wearing a mask in public.

Vaccinated residents will need proof of their vaccine status when out in the community as they will be subject to checks.

The lockout is expected to end on December 7 — two weeks from November 23, when the last case was out in the community.

The Rockhole community will also move into a lockout at the same time as Katherine, Ms Fyles said.

However, residents of Binjari will remain in a hard lockdown for the time being, as authorities wait to conduct a third round of tests tomorrow, the results for which won't come back until early next week.

No new public exposure sites were announced today and Ms Fyles said none were expected to be announced given the new local case was in quarantine while infectious.

She also said wastewater from the Bicentennial Road catchment in Katherine, which has previously tested positive for COVID fragments, had now weakened to a mere presumptive positive result.

Ms Fyles said overall it was good news for the Territory.

"We're probably in the best place that we've been in for some time, but we're certainly not at a point where we can become complacent," she said.

She asked people to continue to take care and "remain vigilant" about the risks.

"We are feeling very confident around the situation in Katherine, but we do ask people to remain vigilant," she said.

"We have had COVID, [and] it potentially still is in our community."

There are now 536 close contacts linked to the Katherine COVID cluster.

Of those, 530 have been contacted, and 510 have tested negative for the virus.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15087552 (270925ZNOV21) Notable: ‘Freedom’ rally fills Melbourne’s streets again to protest vaccine mandates, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Protesters_carrying_signs.jpg, Aboriginal_flags_were_on_display.jpg, A_protester_at_Saturday_s_freedom_rally.jpg, _My_body_my_future_.jpg, Signs_at_the_rally.jpg

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>>130137

‘Freedom’ rally fills Melbourne’s streets again to protest vaccine mandates

Tom Cowie and Ashleigh McMillan - November 27, 2021

Colourful, vocal but peaceful demonstrators took over Melbourne’s streets on Saturday, marching through the CBD to condemn vaccination mandates, pandemic legislation and other health measures introduced by the Andrews government.

Victoria Police estimated there were about 20,000 protesters, who chanted, waved flags, banged drums and blew horns as they marched from the steps of State Parliament through the CBD and then back to Treasury Gardens.

There was a noticeable presence of Aboriginal flags at the rally after some of the anti-lockdown groups behind the protest circulated misinformation online, falsely claiming that ADF personnel were forcibly vaccinating Indigenous communities in the Northern Territory.

During his Welcome to Country, Djab Wurrung man Zellanach Djab Mara said there was “satanic warfare” occurring in Victoria.

“I’m pro-choice, it doesn’t matter to me if you’ve been vaccinated or not… that’s your choice,” he said. “Don’t worry about shutting Dan Andrews down, shut the whole system down.”

One Nation senator Pauline Hanson spoke at a corresponding protest on the Gold Coast, telling the crowd she would make Prime Minister Scott Morrison a “lame duck” in federal Parliament until his government overruled state vaccine mandates.

A Sydney event, addressed by former Liberal MP Craig Kelly, also drew thousands of people.

The rallies were promoted under the name Millions March Against Mandatory Vaccines and followed a similar-sized event last week, which organisers claimed drew a crowd in the hundreds of thousands.

At one point, the demonstration stretched out all the way along Bourke Street, Queen Street and Flinders Street, bringing traffic in surrounding roads to a standstill. People carried signs with slogans such as “my body, my choice”, “kill the bill” and “sack Dan Andrews”. Others alluded to QAnon conspiracy theories.

Some placards displayed Bible verses, including one that read “why are ye fearful, oh ye of little faith”. Underneath the sign, a man wheeled a speaker playing a speech by Martin Luther King.

“I used to live in a Communist country before I came here from Croatia,” said one protester carrying a statue of the Virgin Mary on his shoulders, “and this is much worse than that.”

Linda and Andrew Chan said they had joined the crowd because they opposed vaccination mandates as well as plans to inoculate those under the age of 12.

While the pair said they are both fully vaccinated – with Ms Chan working as a nurse – they felt it was unfair that people were unable to retain employment or go out to dinner if they do not have two jabs.

“I’m against people being forced to take it just to be able to work,” Ms Chan said.

Vaccination mandates were a common reason for people joining the protest.

Geelong school teacher Karni, who did not wish to give her last name, said she had lost her job because she didn’t want to get the vaccine.

“We think it’s our freedom of choice to what we put in our body,” she said.

Bob, another protester who declined to give his last name, said he had attended the past three demonstrations, driving from East Gippsland.

“I can’t go and buy a pair of shoes because I haven’t had the government sponsored injection,” he said.

“And if I want to go to Bunnings I’ve got to line up with a checkpoint and share my government approved paperwork. Get stuffed, get stuffed. We don’t live in that kind of society.”

Connie Maruna from Taylors Lakes said she was not against all vaccines but she did not believe the COVID-19 jab had been properly researched.

“The reason that I’m here is that I believe that the Victorian government has really excessively used their power,” she said.

Jackie Dundee, a key figure in the anti-lockdown movement, told the crowd the pandemic was “not about our health, it’s about totalitarian control”.

“Both the federal and state governments have gone beyond their legislative powers,” she said.

“We have got to implement protections for our children.”

In Sydney, thousands of people gathered at Hyde Park to hear from former Liberal MP Craig Kelly, who spoke out against vaccination passports.

“Thank you to this great crowd for being part of Australian history,” said Mr Kelly, who plans to stand as a candidate for Clive Palmer’s United Australia Party.

“The Prime Minister [Scott Morrison] can end this discrimination, end vaccine passports, in Parliament. But he doesn’t.”

Mr Kelly said UAP supporters would “blast them all out” – referring to the federal government – at the next election.

https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/freedom-rally-fills-melbourne-s-streets-again-to-protest-vaccine-mandates-20211127-p59cq3.html

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15087600 (271013ZNOV21) Notable: Maxwell’s brother says US prosecutors seeking to ‘break’ her - Prosecution is “the most over-hyped trial of the century”, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: RG_6.jpg

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>>130116

RealGhislaine Tweet

EXTREME CAUTION - any alleged "victim" or their lawyer who is speaking out to the media is NOT someone upon whom the government has chosen to rely at trial or they would not be allowed to speak. If the government can’t rely upon them you should not either.

https://twitter.com/RealGhislaine/status/1464261296468205572

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15087627 (271037ZNOV21) Notable: Transcript - Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian’s Regular Press Conference on November 26, 2021, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Foreign_Ministry_Spokesperson_Zhao_Lijian_s_Regular_Press_Conference_on_November_26_2021.jpg

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>>130130

>>130119

Transcript - Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian’s Regular Press Conference on November 26, 2021

Bloomberg: Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said that a Chinese surveillance ship off Australia’s coast was a very serious situation in the “Indo-Pacific”. This Chinese ship was circulating the coast of Australia for around three weeks in August and in September. Does China have any comment?

Zhao Lijian: Certain Australian politicians, driven by selfish gains, are very keen on making remarks that incite confrontation. Such behavior is deeply irresponsible and unpopular.

I want to stress that China is always a builder of world peace, a contributor to global development and a guardian of international order. China’s development is an opportunity for the world. Despite all the benefits it has long enjoyed from cooperation with China, Australia is now hyping up the so-called “China threat theory”. It is groundless, immoral and will eventually hurt Australia’s own interests.

—

Xinhua News Agency: According to reports, Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare of Solomon Islands accused certain politicians of inciting riot in his remarks, saying he will not surrender to rioters and will never resign under pressure. He also said that the riot was encouraged by forces that wanted to thwart the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Solomon Islands. There are also comments saying that many of the demonstrators are from the pro-Taiwan Malaita province and that the establishment of diplomatic ties with China may be the reason behind the rioting. Does China have any comment?

Zhao Lijian: China is closely monitoring the latest developments in Solomon Islands. We condemn the violence that has caused serious damage and property loss and support the Solomon Islands government’s efforts to end the violence and chaos. We are confident that under the leadership of Prime Minister Sogavare, the Solomon Islands government has the capability to restore social order at an early date and stabilize the domestic situation. China is taking all necessary measures to safeguard the safety and lawful rights and interests of Chinese citizens and institutions in Solomon Islands.

It is universal knowledge that the one-China principle is a norm governing international relations and an invincible trend with overwhelming popular support. The establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Solomon Islands is a correct choice in keeping with the trend of the times that can stand the test of history. Since the establishment of diplomatic ties, bilateral relations have come a long way with fruitful outcomes in practical cooperation in various sectors, receiving Solomon Islands people’s sincere support and endorsement. As facts have proven, the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Solomon Islands serves the fundamental and long-term interests of Solomon Islands. All attempts to disrupt the normal development of relations between our two sides are nothing but futile.

—

AFP: On Solomon Islands. Are Chinese citizens there safe? Does China advise Chinese citizens to leave Solomon Islands?

Zhao Lijian: According to reports, several local shops run by Chinese citizens were looted by mobsters. I have not received reports of Chinese casualties so far.

RIA Novosti: I also want to follow up on the Solomon Islands. I wonder if China is considering sending troops and police to Solomon Islands like Australia did?

Zhao Lijian: I haven’t heard of any request of this nature from the Solomon Islands government. We hope that relevant sides will respect the sovereignty of Solomon Islands.

https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/mfa_eng/xwfw_665399/s2510_665401/2511_665403/202111/t20211126_10454007.html

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15087660 (271107ZNOV21) Notable: More border bans flagged as Omicron variant alarms chief health officers, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Federal_Health_Minister_Greg_Hunt_says_Australia_won_t_hesitate_to_take_further_action_in_response_to_a_new_COVID_19_variant.jpg

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>>130134

More border bans flagged as Omicron variant alarms chief health officers

James Massola, Lisa Visentin, Sally Rawsthorne and Latika Bourke - November 27, 2021

The federal government is prepared to slap further travel bans on arrivals from overseas as NSW on Saturday moved to introduce a 72-hour isolation requirement for all international arrivals.

As health officials were scrambling to understand the seriousness of the new COVID-19 Omicron variant, Australia closed all borders to all non-citizens from nine southern African nations.

The Sunday Age and The Sun-Herald can reveal that several state and territory chief health officers pushed for a temporary pause on all overseas arrivals during a meeting of the Australian Health Protection Principal Committees on Saturday.

Two sources familiar with details of the AHPPC discussions said several state and territory health officers expressed “significant concerns” about the fact that Australia’s recently reopened borders left the country exposed to the Omicron variant.

In a sign of how seriously authorities are taking the emergence of the Omicron variant, federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said that even with 92.2 per cent of Australians aged 16 and over having had a first jab, the government “will be implementing additional precautionary border security measures in order to protect Australians whilst more is learnt about the nature and impact of the Omicron variant”.

NSW went further on Saturday evening, announcing that all travellers who have been in any other overseas country during the 14-day period before their arrival in the state must travel directly to their place of residence or accommodation and isolate for 72 hours, pending further health advice.

Anyone who had already arrived in the state who has been in any of the nine countries in the previous 14 days has to immediately get tested and isolate for 14 days.

Premier Dominic Perrottet said the “NSW Government will continue to put community safety first by taking these precautionary but important steps until more information becomes available”.

There are no known cases of the Omicron strain in Australia, and fewer than 100 people have arrived from southern Africa since November 1.

Asked if the federal government could go further than the temporary suspension of flights from affected countries, Mr Hunt said: “If the medical evidence shows that further actions are required, we will not hesitate to take them. And that may involve strengthening or expanding the restrictions.”

Federal Labor leader Anthony Albanese urged the Morrison government to go further and reintroduce a period of quarantine as soon as possible for “all relevant international visitors whilst an assessment of what the potential health impact of this variant will be”.

In reality, that could mean a much larger list of countries, including parts of Europe and North Asia.

“The precautionary principle should apply here,” he said.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15092340 (280744ZNOV21) Notable: Two returned travellers from southern Africa test positive to omicron Covid variant in NSW, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Scott_Morrison_says_Australia_is_well_placed_to_deal_with_the_new_variant.jpg, Authorities_are_working_to_determine_if_the_infected_travellers_have_the_Omicron_variant.jpg, Federal_Health_Minister_Greg_Hunt_said_Australia_was_in_a_good_position_to_fight_the_new_variant.jpg, All_international_arrivals_into_Victoria_and_NSW_regardless_of_their_origin_must_now_quarantine_for_72_hours.jpg, Australia_has_already_enforced_border_restrictions_amid_the_spread_of_the_variant_globally.jpg

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>>130134

Two returned travellers from southern Africa test positive to omicron Covid variant in NSW

Genomic sequencing on two returned travellers has confirmed the new Covid-19 variant Omicron has officially reached Australian shores.

Rhiannon Tuffield, Steve Zemek and Anthony Piovesan - November 28, 2021

Genomic testing has confirmed two overseas travellers who returned to Sydney on Saturday have been infected with the new Omicron Covid-19 variant of concern.

NSW Health in a statement confirmed the development on Sunday afternoon after earlier noting the two passengers had undergone testing upon arrival and returned positive results for Covid-19.

Both passengers arrived in Sydney from southern Africa on Saturday night.

The two positive cases, who were asymptomatic, were in isolation in the Special Health Accommodation – Both were fully vaccinated.

The two passengers were among 14 people from southern Africa who arrived on Qatar Airways QR908 flight, Doha to Sydney, which touched down about 7pm.

The remaining 12 passengers from southern Africa are undertaking 14 days of hotel quarantine in the Special Health Accommodation.

Around 260 passengers and aircrew on the flight are considered close contacts and have been directed to isolate.

Scott Morrison earlier on Sunday avoided making a kneejerk decision on Australia’s border, maintaining there were “too many unknowns” about the Omicron variant.

The emergence of the new variant has led to dozens of countries closing their borders and placing restrictions on multiple southern African countries, with Australia last night closing its border entirely to several destinations.

Australian now joins Britain, Germany, South Africa, Botswana, Belgium, Hong Kong and Israel will confirmed infections of Omicron.

The Prime Minister on Sunday called the new variant “concerning”, but said there were still too many questions about it to prompt rash decisions.

“We’ve always said there will be new variants. This is the nature of the pandemic — Australia is in the strongest position as we possibly can be to deal with these sorts of issues,” he said.

“This is not like it was back in February and March of 2020 — we now have good knowledge, good advice, the uncertainties are not like they used to be, we have good systems.”

NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard emphasised that Omicron was still not well understood.

But he said keeping tabs on returning travellers from the countries of concern presented challenges, noting that the Delta variant took three weeks to sweep across 53 countries.

“We have to expect that Omicron may well already be here,” Mr Hazzard said.

Preliminary evidence suggests Omicron can spread rapidly, including between people who are double-vaccinated, and scientists are determining if the new variant can reduce the protection of vaccines.

But Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt has downplayed the severity of the new strain.

He said preliminary evidence, subject to emerging details, suggested there were no signs the strain was a “more dangerous disease” in terms of its impact on hospitalisation, serious illness or loss of life.

Mr Hunt also said there were no signs as yet that the strain was resistant to Covid-19 vaccines.

“But constant updating of medical advice has been what we’ve done throughout the pandemic and will continue to do,” he told reporters on Sunday morning.

Australia swiftly moved to close its borders to a number of African countries overnight, after dozens of other countries imposed travel rules on southern Africa.

Meanwhile, Northern Territory authorities have been waiting on test results for a confirmed Covid case to rule out the new variant.

About 20 travellers believed to have travelled from South Africa were repatriated last week and are currently quarantining at Howard Springs.

One person has so far tested positive.

Authorities at home are attempting to track down at least 100 Australians who recently arrived home from the nine African nations without quarantine.

Those people will need to be tested, and quarantine immediately for 14 days.

Australia chief medical officer Paul Kelly will update state and territory counterparts daily.

https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/national/two-returned-travellers-from-southern-africa-test-positive-to-covid-in-nsw-sparking-fears-it-is-the-new-variant/news-story/ef65f91d41854ba29f830fa3589a2363

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15092398 (280802ZNOV21) Notable: AUKUS deal endangers international security order: Chinese, Russian representatives - Xinhua - news.cn, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Wang_Qun_R_Chinese_envoy_to_the_United_Nations_and_other_international_organizations_in_Vienna_and_Mikhail_Ulyanov_Russia_s_permanent_representative_to_international_organizations_in_Vienna.jpg

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AUKUS deal endangers international security order: Chinese, Russian representatives

Xinhua - 2021-11-27

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VIENNA, Nov. 27 (Xinhua) - Chinese and Russian envoys expressed their solemn stance against the AUKUS nuclear submarine deal between the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia at the IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) Board of Governors meeting in Vienna on Friday.

The board set up a new agenda suggested by China, and for the first time dedicated discussions on the "Transfer of nuclear materials in the context of AUKUS and its safeguards in all aspects under the NPT (Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons)."

The trilateral nuclear submarine deal "endangered the international non-proliferation mechanism and global strategic balance and stability, as well as the post-war international security order," stated Wang Qun, Chinese envoy to the United Nations and other international organizations in Vienna, and Mikhail Ulyanov, Russia's permanent representative to international organizations in Vienna, at a joint press conference after the meeting.

AUKUS nuclear submarine deal intensified regional tensions and increased the risk of an arms race, and "Russia is deeply concerned about this," said Ulyanov.

At present, all U.S. nuclear submarines use weapon-grade highly-enriched uranium. If the trilateral nuclear submarine cooperation is to proceed, Australia will obtain a large amount of weapon-grade nuclear materials, which will seriously impact the international nuclear non-proliferation system, Ulyanov said.

AUKUS not only violates the relevant norms of comprehensive safeguards agreements, but will also have a serious negative impact on the New Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty and the construction of nuclear-weapon-free zones, he said.

The United States, the United Kingdom and Australia concealed the progress of nuclear submarine cooperation from the international community, which is extremely non-transparent, Ulyanov stressed, adding that the three must report the relevant situation in a timely manner.

Wang emphasized that in September, after the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia announced the establishment of AUKUS, under which the United States and the United Kingdom will assist Australia's acquisition of nuclear-powered submarines, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi pointed out that the trilateral deal will give rise to "five dangers" and "three risks," affecting non-proliferation regime, regional security and strategic stability, which was widely echoed by the international community.

The three countries draw lines with ideology and create new military blocs, and will exacerbate geographical tensions, said Wang, adding that, at a time when the international community generally opposed the Cold War and division, the United States flagrantly violated its policy of not engaging in a new Cold War, organized an Anglo-Saxon "small circle" and placed its geopolitical interests above international solidarity - a typical Cold War mentality.

This move will stimulate regional countries to step up their military development, and even seek to break through the nuclear threshold, pushing up the risk of military conflicts, which China firmly opposes, he stressed.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15092480 (280840ZNOV21) Notable: Dutton’s grim warning over Taiwan ‘spot on’: PM, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Prime_Minister_Scott_Morrison_says_Australia_cannot_afford_to_show_weakness_on_national_security.jpg, Taiwanese_soldiers_salute_during_National_Day_celebrations_in_front_of_the_Presidential_Building_in_Taipei_Taiwan_s_status_was_high_up_the_meeting_s_agenda.jpg

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>>130125

Dutton’s grim warning over Taiwan ‘spot on’: PM

Andrew Tillett and Michael Smith - Nov 28, 2021

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Scott Morrison says Australia cannot afford to show “weakness” in the face of China’s growing combativeness, backing in Defence Minister Peter Dutton’s dire assessment that the loss of Taiwan would be the first step in Beijing’s domination of the region.

As China’s military stepped up air and naval drills near Taiwan, Beijing responded to Mr Dutton’s speech by accusing Canberra of hyping up the “China threat theory” and warned it would hurt Australia’s interests as one of its chief propagandists compared Morrison’s Cabinet to a “lunatic asylum”.

In the strongest speech by an Australian minister against China for decades, Mr Dutton told the National Press Club on Friday that appeasement of China would not work as the Communist Party sought to turn the region into a series of tributary states.

Elaborating on earlier comments that it would be “inconceivable” Australia would not join the US to defend Taiwan if China invaded the democratic island, Mr Dutton predicted that if China succeeded, it would then try to take Japanese administered Senkaku Islands and reshape the regional order.

Mr Morrison said he and Mr Dutton had discussed the speech ahead of its delivery, and “the Defence Minister is spot on when it comes to the uncertain environment in which we live”.

“He simply set out very clearly I think what the facts are, and the facts are very clear,” Mr Morrison said.

“We’re a free country and we intend to stay that way. This is not a time where Australia can afford weakness. This is not a time where Australia can afford people having an each way bet on national security.”

While China’s Foreign Ministry did not directly name Mr Dutton, it accused “certain Australian politicians” of inciting a confrontation with China.

“Such behaviour is deeply irresponsible and unpopular,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said.

He was responding to a question about Mr Morrison’s comments last week relating to a Chinese spy ship that was loitering off Australia’s coast but doing so legally in international waters.

“Despite all the benefits it has long enjoyed from co-operation with China, Australia is now hyping up the so-called ‘China threat theory’. It is groundless, immoral and will eventually hurt Australia’s own interests,” Mr Zhao said.

China’s Wolf Warrior diplomats have toned down their criticism of the United States, Australia and other Western critics in the past month as it seeks to boost its international credibility ahead of the Winter Olympics in February. But while Xi Jinping held talks with US President Joe Biden two weeks ago, there is little sign of a thaw in Sino-Australian relations.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15094387 (281847ZNOV21) Notable: Omicron - New, highly transmissible strain of virus arrives in Australia, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: With_Omicron_triggering_new_restrictions_on_international_travel_passengers_decide_caution_is_the_best_policy_as_they_arrive_at_Sydney_airport_on_Sunday.jpg, WHAT_S_CHANGED.jpg, An_arriving_passenger_in_protective_gear_at_Sydney_International_Airport_on_Sunday.jpg

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>>130134

New, highly transmissible strain of virus arrives in Australia

STEPHEN RICE and JOSEPH LAM - NOVEMBER 28, 2021

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Two passengers who tested positive for Covid-19 on arrival in Sydney from southern Africa on Saturday night have been confirmed as infected with the new, highly transmissible Omicron strain.

The development came as thousands of returning Australians face at least three days of home isolation, with concerns growing that the new Covid strain will be “impossible to keep out”, despite the nation closing its borders to nine African countries.

The two infected travellers, both asymptomatic and fully vaccinated, were among 29 who had entered Australia via countries of concern.

About 260 people, including passengers and air crew, have been determined to be close contacts and have been ordered to go into isolation.

Across the nation’s airports, international arrivals took extra precautions over the Omicron strain as they prepared to enter quarantine.

Passengers arriving in Sydney Airport on Sunday morning on a flight from Guangzhou, China, wore hazmat suits and anti-Covid-19 face shields as they passed through immigration.

Authorities in Victoria and NSW have ordered all overseas arrivals to isolate at home for 72 hours, as authorities respond with caution to the new Covid-19 variant which reportedly has more than 30 mutations and has been shown to be highly transmissible.

The measures apply to all ­arrivals, regardless of their departure point.

Health authorities are now racing to identify all passengers who may have been in contact with the two cases.

Some travellers arriving from the affected African nations ­queried why they were being forced to undergo a two-week quarantine when passengers they had sat next to on the plane were asked to spend only three days in self-isolation at home.

The federal government has not ruled out closing international borders in response to the threat.

Health Minister Greg Hunt said he “will not hesitate” to make changes based on health advice, but added there was currently no evidence that Omicron was more dangerous than the Delta strain or more resistant to vaccination.

Travel and tourism chiefs expressed concern about the impact of the new strain on confidence in the industry. Flight Centre founder Graham Turner told The Australian he expected to see a drop in bookings over the next few days but predicted the new restrictions would last only a couple of weeks.

“If the vaccines are effective against the new strain, it won’t change anything in the medium term,” he said. “It just depends on how panicked governments get; it’s a political thing, they have to show they’re doing something.”

NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet said his government’s intention was not to move away from the December 15 deadline for a further easing of restrictions but “These variants are highly transmissible and it’s highly certain they will get into countries around the world”.

“That is just the reality of the situation,” he said.

Victoria chief health officer Brett Sutton said the variant would likely become the new dominant strain but it might be “a step too far” to close borders to all international arrivals.

“It’s going to be impossible to keep out, I imagine, so it’s still important to buy time,” he said.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15098219 (290705ZNOV21) Notable: Ghislaine Maxwell sex-trafficking trial set to begin - Prosecutors will allege she “assisted, facilitated, and contributed” to Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse of girls, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Jeffrey_Epstein_and_Ghislaine_Maxwell_in_2005.jpg, Ghislaine_Maxwell_stands_before_US_District_Judge_Alison_J_Nathan_with_her_defence_team_of_Bobbi_Sternheim_Christian_Everdell_Laura_Menninger_Jeffrey_Pagliuca_during_a_pre_trial_hearing.jpg, Prince_Andrew_and_Virginia_Roberts_at_Ghislaine_Maxwell_s_townhouse_in_London_on_March_13_2001.jpg

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Ghislaine Maxwell sex-trafficking trial set to begin

Prosecutors in the Ghislaine Maxwell sex trafficking case will allege she “assisted, facilitated, and contributed” to Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse of girls.

Megan Palin - November 29, 2021

The long-awaited trial of convicted sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein’s alleged madam Ghislaine Maxwell is set to get underway at a federal court in New York on Monday local time.

Prosecutors allege that Maxwell “assisted, facilitated, and contributed” to Epstein’s abuse of girls as young as 14-years-old, dating back decades.

“Maxwell played a critical role in helping Epstein identify, befriend and groom minor victims for abuse,” then-acting US lawyer Audrey Strauss told reporters following Maxwell’s arrest.

“In some cases, Maxwell participated in the abuse herself.”

Maxwell, 59, faces eight criminal counts tied to alleged efforts to lure minors to engage in illegal sex acts, conspiracy to transport minors with intent to engage in criminal sexual activity, and sex trafficking conspiracy. She has denied all allegations against her, previously telling a court she has not committed any crimes.

The sprawling saga is now set to come to a head with proceedings primed to likely stir the mixture of lurid detail and extreme wealth that has sustained global interest in her case.

Prosecutors are expected to argue that Maxwell worked with Epstein to sexually abuse girls between 1994 and 2004. Maxwell lived with Epstein for years and was his frequent companion on glamorous trips around the world.

He was found dead in August 2019 in a Manhattan jail while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. His death was ruled a suicide. Maxwell’s lawyers are expected to argue she is being punished by proxy for Epstein’s crimes.

The prosecution’s case will hinge on the testimony of four women who say the British socialite helped the late financier sexually abuse them decades ago.

Maxwell’s lawyers have said that they plan to cast doubt on the accusers’ accounts, in part by using Elizabeth Loftus, a psychologist and professor at the University of California, Irvine School of Law, on the stand to explain how people can develop false memories of past events.

“She will explain how, in a case like this one, suggestion can lead individuals to the construction of distorted memories,” Jeffrey Pagliuca, a lawyer for Maxwell, said in the filing.

US District Judge Alison Nathan of the Southern District of New York has limited the scope of the trial to focusing specifically on allegations that she helped Epstein recruit and abuse four underage girls in the 1990s.

The prosecution will subsequently not be allowed to delve unnecessarily into the social and business relationships of Epstein, which included former Presidents Bill Clinton and Donald Trump, and Britain’s Prince Andrew.

In partially redacted recent court filings, federal prosecutors and lawyers for Maxwell argued over whether “Exhibit 52” – a “little black book” that was once kept in Epstein’s mansion and lists contact information for rich and powerful people — can be entered into evidence at her trial, The Times reports.

US prosecutors allege the directory contains “compelling evidence of her guilt” including “contact information for victims who interacted with the defendant during the relevant time period”, according to court papers.

Maxwell’s lawyers claim the document is “an unauthenticated hearsay document from suspect sources”.

“Ms Maxwell requests that the government be precluded from discussing the book at trial prior to a proper evidentiary foundation being established,” Maxwell’s lawyers wrote in a court filing.

At the request of Maxwell’s lawyers, Judge Nathan asked candidates during jury selection: “Do you have any opinion about people who are wealthy or have luxurious lifestyles that might make it difficult for you to be fair and impartial?” Twelve jurors selected from a pool of hundreds will be impanelled prior to opening statements on Monday.

Maxwell is not likely to be questioned about allegations made by Australian woman Virginia Roberts Giuffre, an alleged victim who said in a civil lawsuit that Maxwell trafficked her to Prince Andrew when she was 17. He has denied the allegations.

Maxwell has been held without bail in a Brooklyn jail since her arrest at her luxurious hide-out in Bedford, New Hampshire in July 2020.

Her brother, Ian Maxwell, 65, has said one of her six siblings will support her in court each day. The trial is expected to last six weeks.

https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/world/ghislaine-maxwell-sextrafficking-trial-set-to-begin/news-story/2f455d98c79ba009540de5a0b8754a7c

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15098226 (290707ZNOV21) Notable: TRIAL SKIP - Prince Andrew’s rape accuser Virginia Giuffre won’t give evidence at Ghislaine Maxwell’s trial, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Virginia_Giuffre_who_says_she_was_recruited_by_Maxwell_for_Jeffrey_Epstein_s_child_sex_gang_won_t_give_evidence_to_the_court_in_New_York.jpg

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>>130152

TRIAL SKIP - Prince Andrew’s rape accuser won’t give evidence at Ghislaine Maxwell’s trial

James Beal - 27 Nov 2021

PRINCE Andrew will avoid being thrust into the spotlight at Ghislaine Maxwell’s sex-trafficking trial tomorrow.

Maxwell, 59, will face four alleged victims in the dock, but the Duke’s rape accuser will not be one of them.

Virginia Giuffre — who says she was recruited by Maxwell for Jeffrey Epstein’s child sex gang and sexually assaulted by Prince Andrew — won’t give evidence to the court in New York.

Her lawyer David Boies told The Sun On Sunday that she won’t be attending court even to observe — instead hoping to see “justice done” from afar.

He said: “The one thing we don’t want to do, is do something that throws this trial off track — or give Maxwell’s attorneys any excuse to do anything.

"If you’re there in court, it’s so much harder not to say something. We’ll just have to sit back, light a candle and send positive messages.”

Prince Andrew vehemently denies her allegations.

Maxwell is facing 80 years in jail on six charges, including sex trafficking of a minor.

She is the first person to face a jury over charges linked to Epstein, who killed himself in jail in 2019 to avoid justice.

It emerged in court this week that two of the four victims due to give testimony against her were actually over the age of consent, according to local laws.

Maxwell is accused of grooming a 17-year-old in London — above the UK age of consent — urging her to massage Epstein knowing he would engage in sexual activity with her.

And victim Annie Farmer is alleged to have been brought to Epstein’s ranch in New Mexico aged 16, which was then the US state’s age of consent.

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/16871437/prince-andrew-accuser-court-ghislaine-maxwell-trial/

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15104713 (300716ZNOV21) Notable: Victoria's pandemic bill set to pass as independent MP Rod Barton negotiates with Andrews government, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Victorian_Premier_Daniel_Andrews_has_been_pushing_to_get_the_pandemic_laws_through.jpg, Transport_Matters_party_leader_and_Eastern_Metropolitan_Region_MP_Rod_Barton_has_been_negotiating_with_the_government.jpg

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>>130047

Victoria's pandemic bill set to pass as independent MP Rod Barton negotiates with Andrews government

abc.net.au - 30 November 2021

The Victorian government's contentious pandemic legislation looks set to pass parliament after a crossbencher agreed to support an amended version of the bill.

Transport Matters MP Rod Barton will vote in favour of the legislation if six amendments are made.

They include a new joint parliamentary committee to review public health orders and an independent panel to review appeals to detention under public health orders.

Mr Barton said the amended bill was a very "different beast" from the original.

"This is a far better bill than what we had," he said.

"And we have curbed the powers of this government."

Mr Barton said that, with the State of Emergency set to expire on December 15, a decision had to be made.

"We had two choices to think about: one, will the government reintroduce the State of Emergency? And I don't think that's palatable to anybody. Or we go to a situation where we have no pandemic powers at all," Mr Barton said.

"Just think about the ramifications of what that would be for this state. You can imagine how quickly the borders would be shut to us from other states."

Mr Barton denied he had entered into any deals with the government in exchange for his support.

"There is no deal," he said.

"My relationship with the government is frosty at the best of times. I have been battling them all the time. I did what had to be done."

The proposed bill faced defeat in the Upper House after former minister Adem Somyurek declared he would vote against it in its current form.

Premier Daniel Andrews said they had entered into negotiations with the crossbencher in good faith.

Mr Andrews said the proposed laws were not just for this pandemic but any such future event.

He said the bill enabled specific pandemic laws enacted with powers to be held by the elected government, not by officials.

"We need these rules, I wish we didn't … I wish this was over with a big full-stop, but it is not," he said.

"There are challenges that we continue to face. We have to have rules in place to keep us open."

"These were rigorous negotiations — and we thank Rod Barton, who came to the table in good faith."

Designed to replace State of Emergency laws used to bring in restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic, the proposed laws give the government the legal basis for lockdowns, mandatory mask-wearing, vaccine mandates and curfews.

The proposed legislation has been the subject of intense debate, attracting protests outside the Victorian parliament for a number of weeks.

Victorian Opposition Leader Matthew Guy criticised the lack of transparency around the negotiations.

"They haven't even bothered to discuss changes," he said. "They haven't bothered to even talk. They have gone to one person, maybe two, tried to pick them off, and that's the way they have done business."

However, Mr Guy said, they had pushed for the parliament to have oversight over the new law.

"I think Victorians want to know the parliament has got the power to manage this process, not just one individual," Mr Guy said.

Meanwhile, crossbench MP Clifford Hayes said he had decided not to support the bill after a "series of discussions" with the government.

However, the Human Rights Law Centre legal director Daniel Webb welcomed the amendments, saying it would lead to stronger human rights protections and increased independent oversight of the government's pandemic response.

"The new bill isn't perfect, but it is a big improvement on the existing law," Ms Webb said.

"There are new human rights and transparency safeguards in there that aren't in the laws in other states, like greater transparency around the health evidence and human rights justification for all restrictions, clear appeal rights for anyone who is detained, and a much more compassionate approach to enforcing fines.

"The safeguards in the bill will help government make better decisions and strike the right balance between our right to life and public health and other individual rights and freedoms."

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-11-30/victorian-government-pandemic-bill-transport-matters-rod-barton/100660380

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15104811 (300757ZNOV21) Notable: RealGhislaine Tweet: We encourage everyone to allow the evidence to unfold in court and to exercise restraint and respect for the administration of criminal justice., MISSING MEDIA/FILES: RG_7.jpg

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>>130152

RealGhislaine Tweet

We encourage everyone to allow the evidence to unfold in court and to exercise restraint and respect for the administration of criminal justice.

https://twitter.com/RealGhislaine/status/1465304542321405955

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15104816 (300758ZNOV21) Notable: Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell's trial begins with opening statements, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Ghislaine_Maxwell_served_vulnerable_young_girls_up_to_be_sexually_abused_a_New_York_prosecutor_has_alleged.jpg, Ghislaine_Maxwell_wore_a_mask_in_court_and_was_seen_taking_notes_during_the_opening_statements.jpg, Sarah_Ransome_an_alleged_victim_of_Jeffrey_Epstein_and_Ghislaine_Maxwell_attended_the_court.jpg

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>>130152

Jeffrey Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell's trial begins with opening statements

Reuters/AP - 30 November 2021

1/2

Ghislaine Maxwell's lawyer has told a jury that the sex abuse charges against the British socialite were for things that deceased financier Jeffrey Epstein had done and that the memories of the accusers had been "manipulated".

"The charges against Ghislaine Maxwell are for things that Jeffrey Epstein did, but she is not Jeffrey Epstein," defence attorney Bobbi Sternheim said in her opening statement on Monday afternoon local time.

Ms Maxwell is on trial in Manhattan federal court for recruiting and grooming four young girls for Epstein to abuse between 1994 and 2004.

Epstein died in jail in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking and sex abuse charges.

Prosecutors say that Ms Maxwell — a former employee and romantic partner of Epstein's — sent gifts such as lingerie and discussed sexual topics with the girls to win their trust before encouraging them to give Epstein erotic massages, according to the 2021 indictment against her.

"She preyed on vulnerable young girls, manipulated them, and served them up to be sexually abused," assistant district attorney Lara Pomerantz said in the prosecution's opening statement.

Ms Maxwell, 59, has pleaded not guilty to eight charges of sex trafficking and other crimes, including two counts of perjury that will be tried at a later date.

In court, Ms Maxwell appeared wearing a white face mask amid the COVID-19 pandemic. She faces up to 80 years in prison if convicted on all counts.

The prosecutor spoke from an enclosed plastic see-through box that allowed her to take off her mask.

Earlier, 12 jurors and six alternates were sworn in to hear the case, which is expected to last six weeks.

Four accusers are expected to testify as government witnesses in the trial.

Prosecutors said other witnesses would include family members of the accusers, pilots who flew Epstein and his alleged victims in private planes and former employees at Epstein's Palm Beach residence.

Ms Maxwell frequently wrote during the morning proceedings, sometimes handing notes to her lawyers.

Prosecutors have said Ms Maxwell encouraged the girls to massage Epstein while they were fully or partially nude.

In some cases, Epstein or Ms Maxwell would pay them cash or offer to pay for their travel or education, and Epstein sometimes masturbated or touched the girls' genitals during the massages, prosecutors said.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15104897 (300835ZNOV21) Notable: US military plans for greater presence in Australia as it confronts China's power, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: A_Pentagon_paper_has_outlined_US_military_plans_to_upgrade_Australian_bases.jpg

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US military plans for greater presence in Australia as it confronts China's power

Andrew Greene - 30 November 2021

Plans for US military upgrades of Australian defence bases to counter China have been highlighted in a long-awaited Pentagon study, which contains no actual major reshuffling of American forces worldwide.

The Biden administration has released some details of its global posture review, but the Pentagon document overseen by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will remain largely classified.

"In Australia, you'll see new rotational fighter and bomber aircraft deployments, you'll see ground forces training and increased logistics cooperation," US Under Secretary of Defense Mara Karlin told reporters.

"More broadly across the Indo-Pacific, you'll see a range of infrastructure improvements in Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands and Australia."

Dr Karlin added that the Indo-Pacific region was a major focus of the assessment, because of Mr Austin's emphasis on "China as the pacing challenge" for the department.

Dr Karlin said the previously flagged base upgrades in Australia should "hopefully come to fruition in coming years" and included logistics facilities, fuel storage, munitions storage and airfield upgrades.

The global posture review also directs the department to focus more on the region by "reducing" the number of troops and equipment in other areas of the world, "to enable improved war-fighting readiness and increased activities" in the Indo-Pacific.

Many details about the repositioning of military capabilities were classified and some others had been previously announced, but the review contained no major reshuffling of forces as the US moves to take on Beijing while deterring Russia and fighting terrorism in the Middle East and Africa.

In Washington, defence analysts believe the review's lack of sizeable adjustments to military forces in Asia shows the challenges the US faces in rebalancing resources to confront China while maintaining other global commitments.

Earlier this year, the ABC revealed senior American and Australian officials had discussed options for expanded military cooperation, including a proposal to form a new joint US marines and ADF training brigade based in Darwin.

Australia recently signed on to a strengthened military pact with the US and United Kingdom, known as AUKUS, to improve intelligence and technology sharing between the nations.

The ABC has approached Defence Minister Peter Dutton for comment on the review.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-11-30/cph-us-plans-upgrades-to-runways-in-australia/100661190

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15107339 (301836ZNOV21) Notable: Taiwan seeks closer ties with Australia amid China aggression, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Taiwanese_Foreign_Minister_Joseph_Wu_says_he_admires_Australia_s_natural_passion_and_its_history_of_speaking_out_and_fighting_to_safeguard_freedom_and_democracy.jpg

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Taiwan seeks closer ties with Australia amid China aggression

WILL GLASGOW - NOVEMBER 30, 2021

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Taiwan has thanked Australia for bluntly telling Chinese President Xi Jinping not to invade it and ­declared that the Morrison government’s strong comments are helping avoid conflict in the ­region.

In an interview with The Australian in Taipei, Foreign Minister Joseph Wu expressed deep ­appreciation for the Morrison government’s escalating concerns and said that, while it was Taiwan’s responsibility to defend itself, Australia and other allies were helping to preserve stability through their support for Taiwan.

“As I say all the time, I have a kangaroo in my heart,” Mr Wu said, pointing to his kangaroo lapel pin.

Mr Wu said he admired Australia’s “natural passion’’ and its history of speaking out and fighting to safeguard freedom and democracy.

Mr Wu in 2013 visited Canberra and the Australian War Memorial and said it had “changed my whole perspective on Australia”.

“Australia is so far away from the rest of the world, but look at Australia’s record,” he said.

“Participating in battles, or wars, in terms of safeguarding freedom and democracy. Also, in terms of fighting together with allies. It’s very touching.”

Mr Wu, who was sanctioned weeks ago by Beijing, said his government cherished Australia’s rising concern.

“There’s a natural passion of the Australians … When other fellow democracies are threatened, they will like to speak out,” he said. “Australia is not alone in supporting Taiwan in that way.”

Mr Wu also asked for closer ­relations with Canberra.

One of the most senior figures in President Tsai Ing-wen’s democratically elected government, Mr Wu called for regular ­cabinet-level contact between Taipei and Canberra and expressed his admiration for Australia’s contribution to world security.

Australia cut formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan in 1972 when Gough Whitlam recognised China, and has maintained a “one China’’ policy since then, which only allows an unofficial relationship.

Mr Wu’s comments come amid a furious debate in Australia about how best to co-ordinate with allies to deter Mr Xi’s Communist Party from launching a war against ­Taiwan.

Defence Minister Peter Dutton last week told the National Press Club that Australia must stand up to China or face the loss of national sovereignty as a “tributary state’’. He warned that if China took Taiwan it would swiftly become the region’s dominant power.

Mr Dutton also warned that China’s territorial ambitions would not be satisfied by Taiwan’s fall, with the disputed, Japanese-administered Senkaku Islands its next target as it sought to transform the regional order in a direct threat to Australia’s security and prosperity.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15107430 (301847ZNOV21) Notable: Ghislane Maxwell trial: Jeffrey Epstein pilot Larry Visoski says cockpit door always closed, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Ghislaine_Maxwell_L_and_Jeffrey_Epstein_R_.jpg, Ghislaine_Maxwell_embraces_her_defence_lawyers.jpg, Prince_Andrew_and_Virginia_Roberts_at_Ghislaine_Maxwell_s_townhouse_in_London_in_2001.jpg

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>>130152

Ghislane Maxwell trial: Jeffrey Epstein pilot Larry Visoski says cockpit door always closed

Jeffrey Epstein’s longtime pilot says the cockpit door on his private plane was always closed during flights as he denied seeing any sex acts.

New York Post / news.com.au - December 1, 2021

Jeffrey Epstein’s longtime pilot, Lawrence Paul Visoski Jr., said under cross examination that he never witnessed sex acts or underage girls without their parents aboard several private aircraft that he piloted for the multi-millionaire paedophile.

“I never saw any sexual activity, no,” the New York Post reports Mr Visoski as telling defence lawyer Christian Everdell, who quizzed the pilot on the stand about the 1000 or so flights he piloted from the early 1990s to 2004.

However, Mr Visoski said the cockpit door was always closed during flights, making it impossible to see what was going on in the passenger area.

Mr Visoski, who worked for Mr. Epstein for nearly 30 years, was the first witness called by prosecutors in the sex-trafficking trial of Ghislaine Maxwell, Mr. Epstein’s longtime companion.

He said that Epstein did not mandate that the cockpit door be closed, and that he had invited them to walk to the back of the aircraft if, for example, they had to use the rest room.

He said Ms Maxwell was Epstein’s “number two” and that he always viewed their relationship as “more personal than business.”

He testified that Ms Maxwell was approximately 30 when he met her in 1991, and claimed “we interacted quite often. She was on a lot of the flights.”

On day two of Maxwell’s trial Mr Visoski said he did not notice any underage girls without their parents on the planes.

That included both Epstein accuser Virginia Roberts and a victim identified as “Jane” at the trial.

Mr Visoski said he flew Roberts in the mid to late 90s, but believed her to be a “shorter woman with dirty blonde hair.”

He added that he believed a passenger named Jane was a “mature woman with some piercing powder blue eyes.”

Prosecutors entered a birth certificate for Jane into evidence under seal.

Yesterday, a jury heard Maxwell enforced a “culture of silence” in Epstein’s houses to ensure that his crimes never came to light.

“Ghislaine Maxwell was Jeffrey Epstein’s best friend and right hand,” said Lara Pomerantz in an opening statement for the prosecution.

The daughter of the British press baron Robert Maxwell was not merely an aide to Epstein’s abuse of minors, Ms Pomerantz said. “She was essential to this scheme. As an adult woman she was able to provide a cover of respectability.”

Ms Maxwell helped Epstein to recruit, befriend and groom victims, Ms Pomerantz said. She said the teenagers targeted by Maxwell and Epstein were drawn from poor families and that the two preyed particularly on the children of single mothers.

Epstein was the owner of palatial homes in Manhattan, Paris and Palm Beach, as well as an entire island in the Caribbean, she said.

She suggested that Ms Maxwell acted to keep her erstwhile partner happy, “to ensure that Epstein’s sexual appetites remained satisfied.”

Ms Maxwell, 59, is charged with conspiring to lure and “transport” four teenage girls between 1994 and 2004, encouraging them to travel to Epstein’s properties in New York, Florida and New Mexico.

She also faces charges of sex trafficking in relation to one of those alleged victims, who says she was recruited in 2001 at the age of 14 and was paid to engage in sex acts with Epstein and to recruit other girls.

Epstein was charged with sex trafficking in 2019 and took his own life in a Manhattan jail while awaiting trial.

Ms Maxwell was arrested nearly a year later in New Hampshire and has been held in a Brooklyn jail, without bail, for 16 months.

She denies all the charges.

The trial continues.

https://www.news.com.au/world/north-america/ghislane-maxwell-trial-jeffrey-epstein-pilot-larry-visoski-says-cockpit-door-always-closed/news-story/0b9e32775918da91c03b5e025236cee4

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15112201 (010645ZDEC21) Notable: Sydney braces for more Omicron cases but no lockdowns for now, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Travellers_and_flight_crew_members_arrive_at_the_international_terminal_at_Sydney_Airport.jpg

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>>130134

Sydney braces for more Omicron cases but no lockdowns for now

Renju Jose and Stefica Nicol Bikes - December 1, 2021

SYDNEY, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Australian authorities on Wednesday flagged another probable case of the Omicron variant in Sydney as they braced for more infections after at least two international travellers visited several locations in the city while likely infectious.

Officials in New South Wales (NSW), home to Sydney, said initial testing "strongly indicates" a man in his 40s, who arrived from southern Africa on Nov. 25, had been infected with the Omicron variant and had spent time in the community.

"We believe it is likely it will be confirmed later this afternoon as a definite Omicron case," NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard told reporters, but he ruled out lockdowns to contain the newly identified variant.

"I feel like it's time for a change in approach. We don't know how many more variants of this virus are going to come," Hazzard said.

Sydney, Australia's largest city, came out of nearly four months of lockdown in early October to contain a Delta outbreak and has been gradually easing curbs after higher vaccinations.

Omicron has prompted Australia to delay by two weeks its plans to reopen its borders from Wednesday to skilled migrants and foreign students. Mandatory two-week quarantine has been enforced for citizens returning from southern African countries.

Vaccinated Australians reaching Sydney and Melbourne from all other countries must now quarantine for 72 hours. Other states have not opened their international borders yet.

"It's very confusing, it was very emotional ... I did lots of praying. I just thought I'm going to land here and see what happens," Lorelle Molde, who returned to Australia from the United States, told Reuters at the Sydney airport.

When confirmed, the latest probable case would bring the total number of confirmed infections in Australia to seven, with six detected in NSW.

The other person who contracted the Omicron variant is in isolation in the quarantine facility in the remote Northern Territory. Police said three people were taken into custody after escaping from the facility early Wednesday morning.

Authorities on Tuesday confirmed the country's first community case of the new variant but the national cabinet decided against more restrictions and to wait for more data on its severity and transmissibility.

Australia has recorded around 212,000 cases and 2,012 deaths from COVID-19.

https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/sydney-braces-more-omicron-cases-no-lockdowns-now-2021-12-01/

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15112316 (010726ZDEC21) Notable: Video: In Conversation: White House Indo-Pacific Coordinator Kurt Campbell speaks with Michael Fullilove - Lowy Institute

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>>130165

In Conversation: White House Indo-Pacific Coordinator Kurt Campbell speaks with Michael Fullilove

Lowy Institute

Dec 1, 2021

The White House Indo-Pacific Coordinator Kurt Campbell spoke to Lowy Institute Executive Director Michael Fullilove as part of the digital conference 'The Indo-Pacific Operating System'. Broadcast on 1 December 2021.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8ED9UhTstw

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15112337 (010736ZDEC21) Notable: Cardinal Pell says jail helped him understand Christ's suffering, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Australian_Cardinal_George_Pell_was_in_jail_for_13_months.jpg

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Cardinal Pell says jail helped him understand Christ's suffering

Jeff Grant, Catholic News Service - December 01, 2021

Australian Cardinal George Pell, jailed for more than a year for sex abuse crimes he ultimately was cleared of, said the experience enabled him to understand suffering as a redemptive process that allows one to identify closely with Christ.

"Suffering accepted in faith can be good and useful. Like gold, it can be used for good purposes," Cardinal Pell told a gathering of Catholic medical professionals and their guests in Phoenix Nov. 20.

Reminding his audience Jesus told his followers, "whoever does not accept his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple," the cardinal said "that makes it difficult for Christians."

But, he added, "It is through his suffering and death while a powerless victim that the Lord redeemed us."

"All this only makes sense if we accept in faith that suffering can be redemptive – turned to a good purpose when united with Jesus' suffering and death," the cardinal continued. "It is through his suffering and death while a powerless victim that the Lord redeemed us; released the grace so that our sins and the worst crimes could be forgiven."

The former prefect of the Vatican's Secretariat of the Economy, Cardinal Pell left the position in 2017 to defend himself. The office oversees Vatican finances, and the cardinal was eyeing several reforms at the time.

He was convicted by an Australian jury in late 2018 of molesting two choirboys in 1996 while archbishop of Melbourne. He served 405 days behind bars, including five months in solitary confinement to protect him from jailhouse attack.

Cardinal Pell had maintained his innocence, but after the verdict was made public in February 2019, he was sentenced to a maximum of six years in prison – with a possibility of parole after three years and eight months. It wasn't until April 7, 2020, when Australia's High Court, acting on the cardinal's appeal, found the trial jury had failed to give proper weight to witness testimony.

The high court overturned the conviction. It cited a reasonable doubt in the testimony of Cardinal Pell's lone accuser, stating there was "a significant possibility an innocent person (was) convicted because the evidence did not establish guilt to the requisite standard of proof."

In a statement the day of his release, Cardinal Pell said that he holds "no ill will" toward his accuser.

During Cardinal Pell's Phoenix visit, he was hailed by local church leaders and laity.

"For more than 13 months, he was a prisoner for a crime he did not commit. His witness to the religious freedom and rights of conscience remaining steadfast to the truth certainly is something we are all grateful for," Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted of Phoenix told Catholic News Service.

"I was so impressed by his calm demeanor. He's been through an experience none of us can comprehend," added Dr. Thomas D. Shellenberger, president of the Catholic Physicians Guild of Phoenix. The guild is part of the national Catholic Medical Association, which fosters Catholic moral and ethical principles in medicine.

Cardinal Pell's Nov. 20 address highlighted a dinner following the annual White Mass for health care professionals at the diocese's Virginia G. Piper Chapel in downtown Phoenix.

The cardinal read excerpts from Volume 1 of his "Prison Journal," published in December 2020. Volume 2 was released in May.

Sometimes interjecting thoughts on his case, the cardinal's journal offered impressions of his daily readings from the Book of Job, the Old Testament account of a righteous, respected Jew's struggle with God to understand an avalanche of personal suffering. In the end, God tells Job face-to-face that while He allowed the suffering, it was not the result of Job's sins.

During one excerpt, Cardinal Pell read from Job, "If God weighs me on honest scales, being God, he cannot fail to see my innocence," before adding his reflection: "Which (was) exactly my prayer in this bizarre cathedral case."

"The Book of Job was written to contest the iron rule the Jewish people believed prevailed in history: Actions are rewarded and punished in this life," said the cardinal. "Job's friends believed it was his sins that explained his misfortunes. However, Job returned to prosperity, and God rebuked his friends."

Cardinal Pell recalled a fellow priest who often brought up Job in conversation. "I always replied I hoped to be like Job, because his fortunes were restored in this life.'"

"Job's message was, and is still, that we should still believe even when we cannot understand."

https://www.ucanews.com/news/cardinal-pell-says-jail-helped-him-understand-christs-suffering/95175

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15112375 (010800ZDEC21) Notable: Lijian Zhao Tweet: China firmly rejects the extremely irresponsible remarks of #Australian Defence Minister Peter Dutton. Certain Australian politicians should stop hyping the “China threat” narrative for selfish political gains, and stop going further down the wrong path to the point of no return., MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Chinese_Foreign_Ministry_spokesman_Zhao_Lijian.jpg, Defence_Minister_Peter_Dutton_addressing_the_National_Press_Club_last_week.jpg, LZ_.jpg

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>>130125

>>130146

‘Delusional miscalculation’: Beijing lashes out at Defence Minister Peter Dutton

Tensions continue to rise between Australia and China, as Beijing blasts Defence Minister Peter Dutton for what it branded “delusional miscalculation”.

Matthew Killoran - December 1, 2021

Beijing has lashed out at Defence Minister Peter Dutton, accusing him of “delusional miscalculation” after his hawkish speech in which he questioned if Taiwan would “satisfy” China.

In an address to the National Press Club last week, Mr Dutton said the strategic climate in Australia’s region had “echoes of the 1930s” and said the Chinese Community Party saw other countries in the area as “tributary states”.

China’s foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian over night named Mr Dutton directly and accused him of “delusional miscalculation on China’s foreign policy”.

“He brazenly distorted China’s efforts to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity, mislead the Australian people on the regional situation and priorities, and incite conflict and division between countries and peoples,” Mr Zhao said.

“The remarks run counter to the trend of peace, development and co-operation in our world today and are detrimental to regional peace and stability.

China firmly rejects such irresponsible remarks. Visionary people in Australia have also criticised them.”

He said “certain Australian politicians” should “stop hyping up the ‘China threat’ narrative for selfish political gain”.

In a more ominous warning he described it as going down “the wrong path towards the point of no return”.

Opposition foreign affairs spokeswoman Senator Penny Wong last week said Mr Dutton was “amping up war” and “playing politics and national affairs”, while also added that China’s economic coercion and flouting of agreements were “not the behaviours of a responsible global power”.

Mr Dutton said Australians expected their governments to “speak frankly” about challenges the nation faced.

“In my view, acquiescence or appeasement is a tactic that a cul-de-sac of strategic misfortune or worse,” he said.

“If China takes a path other than peace – it’s catastrophic, I don’t want to see it.

“I’ll do everything I can to deter it and we’ll deter it from a position of strength, not weakness.”

https://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/delusional-miscalculation-beijing-lashes-out-at-defence-minister-peter-dutton/news-story/39315ff17300978fd5601607d09cd7ed

—

Lijian Zhao 赵立坚 Tweet

China government official

China firmly rejects the extremely irresponsible remarks of #Australian Defence Minister Peter Dutton. Certain Australian politicians should stop hyping the “China threat” narrative for selfish political gains, and stop going further down the wrong path to the point of no return.

https://twitter.com/zlj517/status/1465649777413025802

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15112379 (010803ZDEC21) Notable: Transcript - Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian’s Regular Press Conference on November 30, 2021, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Foreign_Ministry_Spokesperson_Zhao_Lijian_s_Regular_Press_Conference_on_November_30_2021.jpg

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>>130168

Transcript - Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Zhao Lijian’s Regular Press Conference on November 30, 2021

Phoenix TV: Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison reportedly said that Australia cannot afford to show “weakness” in the face of China’s growing combativeness and backed Defence Minister Peter Dutton’s assessment of the situation. Do you have any comment?

Zhao Lijian: Australian Defence Minister Peter Dutton continued with his delusional miscalculation on China’s foreign policy in his address at the National Press Club. He brazenly distorted China’s efforts to safeguard national sovereignty and territorial integrity, mislead the Australian people on the regional situation and priorities, and incite conflict and division between countries and peoples. The remarks run counter to the trend of peace, development and cooperation in our world today and are detrimental to regional peace and stability. China firmly rejects such irresponsible remarks. Many visionary people in Australia have also criticized them.

Australia has benefited from China’s development. China has never done anything that undermines Australia’s sovereignty. The Australian side should view China and China’s development in an objective and rational light and avoid strategic miscalculation. We urge certain Australian politicians to stop hyping up the “China threat” narrative for selfish political gain and stop going further down the wrong path towards the point of no return.

https://www.fmprc.gov.cn/mfa_eng/xwfw_665399/s2510_665401/2511_665403/202111/t20211130_10459153.html

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15112426 (010827ZDEC21) Notable: Jeffrey Epstein's pilot and an alleged victim testify at Ghislaine Maxwell's sex trafficking trial, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: An_alleged_victim_Jane_testified_on_the_second_day_of_Ghislaine_Maxwell_s_trial.jpg, A_pilot_who_flew_Epstein_s_planes_for_decades_says_Ms_Maxwell_was_his_number_2_.jpg, Ms_Maxwell_is_yet_to_take_the_stand.jpg

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>>130152

Jeffrey Epstein's pilot and an alleged victim testify at Ghislaine Maxwell's sex trafficking trial

Barbara Miller - 1 December 2021

1/2

A woman who is central to the prosecution case against Ghislaine Maxwell has taken the stand in the sex-trafficking trial, testifying that Ms Maxwell and Jeffrey Epstein began abusing her when she was just 14 years old.

Warning: This story discusses alleged child sexual abuse and suicide.

The testimony from the woman, known by the pseudonym Jane, came on the second day of Ms Maxwell's trial in New York.

Ms Maxwell, 59, faces sex trafficking and other charges for allegedly recruiting and grooming Jane and three other underage girls for Epstein to abuse between 1994 and 2004.

She has pleaded not guilty to all charges, and her lawyers have said she is being used as a scapegoat for the dead financier's alleged crimes.

A prosecutor began by asking Jane how old she was when she had "sexual contact" with Epstein.

"Fourteen years old," she responded in a quiet voice.

She also was asked if there was ever anyone else in the room when there was sexual contact.

"Ghislaine Maxwell," she replied.

Jane told the court Ms Maxwell was not only in the room but on occasion took part in the abuse, undressing in front of her, instructing her how to give sexual massages to Epstein and fondling her breasts.

She said Ms Maxwell and Epstein first approached her and a group of friends while they were eating ice cream at an arts summer camp in Michigan in the summer of 1994.

Jane was a singer, but she said her family was struggling financially after her father's death the prior year.

After camp ended, Epstein invited her and her mother over for tea, Jane said, adding that she was later invited by Ms Maxwell and other Epstein employees to come on her own.

The witness said she was confused about the relationship between Ms Maxwell and Epstein, initially assuming they were a married couple and later wondering if they were best friends, or if Ms Maxwell was an employee.

She said Ms Maxwell "seemed a little bit odd and quirky, but she was nice".

At first the contact with the pair was casual, though Jane said "there was a lot of braggery" about their connections to famous people, including Donald Trump and Bill Clinton.

When Jane visited, they would eat together, watch movies and go shopping for gifts including underwear from Victoria's Secret, she said.

Epstein also handed her money most times she visited, paid for her voice lessons and other items she needed for school.

Jane testified that on one of the occasions she visited Epstein and Ms Maxwell, Epstein offered to help her with her singing career before ending the conversation abruptly.

"He just took my hand and said 'follow me'," Jane said.

Epstein took her to the pool house and pulled down his pants, Jane testified.

"He pulled me on top of himself and proceeded to masturbate on me and then he got up and went into the bathroom and cleaned himself up," Jane said.

The witness said she felt "frozen in fear".

"I was terrified and felt gross and I felt ashamed."

The abuse, Jane testified, went on for years, including at Epstein's New York residence, where sometimes other women were present and "it would just sort of turn into this orgy".

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15112430 (010829ZDEC21) Notable: Ghislaine Maxwell helped abuse me from age 14, first accuser tells trial, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Ghislaine_Maxwell_the_British_socialite_charged_with_recruiting_and_grooming_underage_girls_for_the_late_financier_Jeffrey_Epstein.jpg

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>>130152

Ghislaine Maxwell helped abuse me from age 14, first accuser tells trial

WILL PAVIA - DECEMBER 1, 2021

1/2

The first accuser to give evidence at Ghislaine Maxwell’s trial has described being sexually abused by the financier Jeffrey Epstein when she was 14 while the British heiress calmly issued instructions.

“Ghislaine was very casual, ­acting like it wasn’t a big deal,” said the witness, who is now an actor and was testifying under the pseudonym Jane.

In her testimony to Manhattan federal court she described “sexualised massages” and sexual encounters with Epstein and Maxwell at which “other people were present – Ghislaine would take her clothes off and it turned into an orgy,” she said.

“They were kissing and performing oral sex on each other and full-on intercourse.”

Jane, now 41, said she was abused “pretty much every time” that she visited Epstein’s house as a teenager, starting at the age of 14.

“Whether it was just him or whether there were other women involved or me and Jeffrey and Ghislaine, it all started to seem the same after a while and I just became numb to it.”

Ms Maxwell, 59, has been charged with conspiring to entice and “transport” girls she knew were under-age to be sexually abused by Epstein, and with sex trafficking between 1994 and 2004. She has pleaded not guilty.

Jane told the court that she first met Epstein in 1994 at a music camp in Michigan, where he introduced himself as a donor. Discovering that they both lived in Palm Beach, Epstein asked for her mother’s phone number.

The then teenager’s father had died of leukemia nine months earlier. The family was bankrupt and had lost their home in Palm Beach, Florida.

She said that after she returned home, she and her mother were invited to Epstein’s mansion, where, over tea and pastries, she was asked what she wanted to do with her life. Epstein and Ms Maxwell began to take her shopping for clothes and to the cinema. “There was a lot of bragging about how they were friends with everyone,” she said – they mentioned Donald Trump and Bill Clinton.

Invited to Epstein’s home one day, he told her she needed to focus on her aspirations “whether that be acting, modelling, singing,” she said. “Then he took my hand and said: ‘Follow me,’” she said.

She said he took her into the pool house and led her on to a futon where he “pulled his pants down and masturbated on me”, she said. Afterwards “he went to the bathroom, cleaned himself and acted like nothing happened” while she remained “frozen in fear”.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15119168 (020802ZDEC21) Notable: WA Nationals MP and former Bunbury councillor James Hayward charged with child sex offences, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Nationals_MP_James_Hayward_is_a_former_Bunbury_councillor_and_Nationals_WA_president.jpg, James_Hayward_also_ran_a_TV_production_company_in_WA_s_South_West.jpg, James_Hayward_right_with_former_Nationals_WA_Leader_Brendon_Grylls_at_a_Nationals_function_in_2017.jpg

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WA Nationals MP and former Bunbury councillor James Hayward charged with child sex offences

Rhiannon Shine and Joanna Menagh - 2 December 2021

WA Nationals MP James Hayward has appeared in the Perth Magistrate's court charged with child sexual offences.

It is understood the charges relate to the alleged indecent assault of an eight-year-old girl earlier this year.

CONTENT WARNING: This story contains material some readers might find distressing.

Mr Hayward was charged with three counts of indecent dealings with a child, one count of procuring a child to do an indecent act and one count of persistent sexual conduct.

He was not required to enter a plea and his lawyer Amanda Blackburn applied for bail, which police opposed.

Hayward taken to hospital

Ms Blackburn said Mr Hayward had attempted self-harm yesterday and had been taken to Royal Perth Hospital.

She said he had been discharged after five or six hours and seemed "calm and lucid" today.

But the police prosecutor said there was a concern Mr Hayward would attempt to use his "position of power" to interfere in the judicial process.

The prosecutor also expressed concern about the possibility of self-harm, revealing that Mr Hayward had sent an email to his wife in the early hours of Wednesday "saying his goodbyes".

The court heard it then took police several hours to locate Mr Hayward.

Police also claimed Mr Hayward had shown a "distinct lack of awareness" about what was described as his "ongoing behaviour with the victim".

Magistrate Nicholas Lemmon granted Mr Hayward bail with a $30,000 surety, noting that the charges were serious and including strict conditions to be monitored closely by police.

These include Mr Hayward having to report five times a week to police and not being allowed to have any unsupervised contact with children under 16.

Barnaby Joyce says issue is for WA Nationals

Mr Hayward is the former state president of the Nationals WA and a former Bunbury councillor.

In a statement, Deputy Prime Minister and Federal Nationals leader Barnaby Joyce said he would leave it to the relevant authorities to comment.

"As to the political matters, that is for the Leader of the WA Nationals to address," he said.

"As it is now a serious legal proceeding, I will not be commenting further."

Hayward a former journalist

Mr Hayward worked as a TV journalist for many years, based in the Pilbara, before he entered politics.

The MP, who represents the South West Region, was elected to Parliament at the 2021 March state election.

The Nationals MP was appointed opposition spokesman for Local Government, Water and Regional Cities.

WA Premier Mark McGowan said he had been briefed on the matter, but did not want to comment further.

"All I would say is this is a matter for the police and the courts," he said.

"Obviously I don't to say anything that might prejudice any proceedings that might be in play."

According to Mr Hayward's political biography, he lives in Bunbury with his family.

"James has travelled extensively through regional WA and lived and worked across the state as a journalist for GWN7.

"He spent a period of time as chief of staff for the busy Channel Seven Perth newsroom," the biography reads.

"James settled in Bunbury where he purchased a business in 2008.

"James has a solid understanding of local, state and federal issues that matter to the South West region."

As well as previously being the state president of the Nationals WA, he was also a former federal vice-president of the Nationals.

The ABC has attempted to contact Mr Hayward and the WA Nationals.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-12-02/wa-nationals-mp-james-hayward-charged-child-sex-offences/100669446

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15119194 (020810ZDEC21) Notable: Australia Omicron count edges higher, health authorities on edge, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: A_traveller_arrives_at_the_international_terminal_at_Sydney_Airport_as_countries_react_to_the_new_coronavirus_Omicron_variant.jpg

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>>129854

Australia Omicron count edges higher, health authorities on edge

Byron Kaye - December 2, 2021

SYDNEY, Dec 2 (Reuters) - Australia's tally of people with the new Omicron variant of COVID-19 edged higher on Thursday, prompting state governments to bolster domestic border controls as health experts wait to learn more about the dangers posed by the strain.

The country's most populous state, New South Wales, reported its seventh case of the variant, a person who arrived on Nov. 23 from Doha, Qatar, and noted that the person had not been in southern Africa, suggesting they caught the virus on the flight.

While the Australian federal government has urged states to avoid a return to the stop-start lockdowns that have defined the country's virus response, health authorities urged caution until they knew more about Omicron's infectiousness and virulence.

"We know this virus is dangerous, it does come out in some different forms," New South Wales Health Minister Brad Hazzard told reporters.

"Don't take it lightly."

The state's capital, Sydney, Australia's largest city, came out of nearly four months of lockdown to contain a Delta outbreak in early October and has been gradually easing curbs as vaccination rates have risen.

But other state governments have been upping their restrictions on interstate arrivals. South Australia, which has no recorded Omicron cases, said it would make all people arriving from New South Wales take a COVID test.

The tourism-friendly island state of Tasmania said this week it would ban most overseas arrivals, at odds with federal government moves to allow vaccinated Australians entry into the country if they undertake home quarantine.

Australia has also delayed by two weeks its plan to reopen borders to skilled migrants and foreign students, while citizens returning from southern African countries must undertake two weeks of hotel quarantine.

Australia's closed international border and tough restrictions on domestic movement helped it avoid the high numbers of COVID-19 deaths recorded in many other countries, with about 212,000 cases and 2,000 deaths.

https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/australia-omicron-count-edges-higher-health-authorities-edge-2021-12-02/

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15119202 (020814ZDEC21) Notable: Thousands of protesters ignored as Dan Andrew's pandemic bill enforced

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Dictator Dan's pandemic bill passed.

I will cheer when this man is hanged.

https://www.msn.com/en-au/news/australia/thousands-of-protesters-ignored-as-dan-andrews-pandemic-bill-enforced/ar-AARn2H2

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews' controversial 'pandemic bill' has passed the state's upper house and will take effect in weeks.

The Public Health and Wellbeing Amendment (Pandemic Management) Bill passed the upper house 20 votes to 18 on Thursday afternoon.

Transport Matters MP Rod Barton, Animal Justice Party MP Andy Meddick, Reason Party MP Fiona Patten and Greens leader Samantha Ratnam voted with the government on the bill.

It means the Premier and Health Minister - rather than the chief health officer - will have the power to declare a pandemic.

They will also enforce restrictions during a health crisis from December 16, when Victoria's state of emergency expires.

The upper house sat for 21 hours debating several amendments to the bill this week.

The legislation became a lightning rod for anti-lockdown and anti-vaccination groups, who have occupied the steps of state parliament for weeks in protest.

Protesters slam the proposed bill as 'dangerous legislation' that gives the premiere, Dan Andrews, too much power.

Scott Morrison condemned protesters after a mock gallows and inflatable Dan Andrews were used to hang the fake premiere.

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15119349 (020906ZDEC21) Notable: RealGhislaine Tweet: Ghislaine, is not allowed ANY coffee or food of any kind during the court proceedings. She is not allowed to see her attorneys during the lunch break or after the court ends for the day, not any legal calls she's hustled out of the courtroom. NO THANK YOU TO #US MARSHALL SERVICE, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: RG_8.jpg

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>>130152

>>130177

RealGhislaine Tweet

Ghislaine, is not allowed ANY coffee or food of any kind during the court proceedings. She is not allowed to see her attorneys during the lunch break or after the court ends for the day, not any legal calls she's hustled out of the courtroom. NO THANK YOU TO #US MARSHALL SERVICE

https://twitter.com/RealGhislaine/status/1466030473252163584

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15121153 (021751ZDEC21) Notable: Labor to back Scott Morrison on Beijing’s Winter Olympics boycott, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Penny_Wong_says_the_case_of_Peng_Shuai_raises_serious_concerns_about_athlete_safety_.jpg, Richard_Colbeck.jpg, Peng_Shuai.jpg, Liberals_are_urging_Scott_Morrison_to_announce_a_diplomatic_boycott_of_the_Games.jpg

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Labor to back Scott Morrison on Beijing’s Winter Olympics boycott

BEN PACKHAM - DECEMBER 2, 2021

Labor has offered to work with Scott Morrison to come to an agreed national position on a ­potential diplomatic boycott of next year’s Beijing Winter Olympics, amid growing internal pressure on the government to block officials from attending.

The move follows the Women’s Tennis Association’s announcement on Thursday of a ban on tournaments in China over concerns for the welfare of Chinese player Peng Shuai.

“The case of Peng Shuai raises serious concerns about athlete safety,” opposition foreign affairs spokeswoman Penny Wong told The Australian.

“In light of this and ongoing concerns about the human rights situation in China, Labor is willing to work with the government to agree a bipartisan, national position on the level of Australia’s ­diplomatic representation at the Winter Olympics.”

The Prime Minister told the Coalition partyroom on Tuesday that he was carefully considering whether Australia would mount a diplomatic boycott of the games.

The Australian understands Sports Minister Richard Colbeck will not attend the Olympics even if the government stops short of an official boycott.

Australian Olympic Committee president John Coates, who has argued strongly against a diplomatic boycott, said it was up to the government whether Mr Colbeck attended the games.

“It is not an issue for the International Olympic Committee or the AOC. It’s the government’s call, other than to note in our case there is still much to observe and learn looking ahead to Brisbane 2032, and our minister sits on the (World Anti-Doping Agency) board as a government representative,” Mr Coates said.

Liberal MP Kevin Andrews called on Mr Morrison in the ­Coalition party room this week to announce a diplomatic boycott of the Games, thereby allowing Australia’s athletes to compete while also taking a stand against China’s human rights abuses.

Mr Morrison replied that he was “very carefully considering the issues” with Mr Colbeck and Foreign Minister Marise Payne.

Liberal senators Eric Abetz and David Fawcett have also called on Mr Morrison in an August letter to announce a diplomatic boycott of the Games, while Liberal senator Concetta Fierravanti-Wells and Labor MP Peter Khalil have publicly called for one. Senator Colbeck’s office said there had been no decision on whether the minister would attend the Games, which will be held from February 4-20 in a “closed-loop” bubble without foreign spectators.

However, multiple senior government sources told The Australian he would not travel to China for the event. It is understood the government is set to blame Senator Colbeck’s non-attendance on strict Covid rules introduced for the Games, which would restrict his movement around the capital.

“It’s all but pointless from a diplomatic perspective for (Senator Colbeck) to go,” one source said.

The bigger question for the government is whether or not Australia’s ambassador to China, Graham Fletcher, will represent the government at the Games.

Peng, the former women’s doubles world No.1, recently alleged on social media that she was assaulted by China’s former vice-premier Zhang Gaoli. She then promptly disappeared from view.

Chinese media reported Peng had attended a junior tournament in Beijing and spoke with Thomas Bach, the IOC president, saying she was “safe and well”.

But the WTA said it still had “serious doubts that she is free, safe and not subject to censorship, ­coercion and intimidation”.

It’s expected Australia will wait until the US announces a decision on sending American officials to the Olympics in Beijing before ­announcing its own position.

President Joe Biden has been facing calls from both sides of congress for a US diplomatic boycott, revealing last month it was something he was considering.

China has condemned calls for such a boycott as “malicious hype”, while saying it has no plans to invite a large number of foreign officials because of Covid-19 risks.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/labor-to-back-scott-morrison-on-beijings-winter-olympics-boycott/news-story/6100ad9949d3b13dba198410c55bddcc

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15121171 (021754ZDEC21) Notable: US President Joe Biden chose AUKUS pact over greenhouse policy: Influential US Democrats John Podesta and Todd Stern, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: US_President_Joe_Biden_in_Washington_on_Thursday_AEDT_.jpg

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US President Joe Biden chose AUKUS pact over greenhouse policy

TROY BRAMSTON - DECEMBER 2, 2021

Joe Biden has not pressed Scott Morrison over Australia’s “dismal” record on climate change because he is prioritising building a new security architecture in the Asia-Pacific, including confronting China, over international ­action on reducing emissions.

Influential US Democrats John Podesta and Todd Stern, who are close to the White House, have revealed that the US President made a calculated decision to work with Australia and Britain to establish AUKUS, and not let this be derailed by public disagreements on climate change.

“The Biden administration has not pressed Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison to improve his country’s dismal record on reducing emissions,” they say in a new essay.

“Morrison, of course, recently committed to partnering with the UK and the US to form a pact known as AUKUS that allows Australia to acquire nuclear-powered submarines.”

Mr Podesta is a former chief of staff to president Bill Clinton and senior adviser to president Barack Obama on climate and energy policy. Mr Stern was special envoy for climate change under Mr Obama.

“When the climate agenda comes into conflict with traditional national security concerns, particularly issues in­vol­ving great-power competition, the administration’s commitment has wavered,” they say.

“The administration’s decision to confront China across a range of security, economic, and human rights issues is understandable, but that priority has had unfortunate consequences for safeguarding the environment.”

Writing in the journal Foreign Affairs, they say the “glaring example” of Mr Biden prioritising international security concerns, including the rise of a more assertive China, over international action on climate change is how the White House ignored Australia’s record as possibly the “worst-­performing advanced economy” on emissions reduction.

“Strengthening US security architecture in the Asia-Pacific may make sense but there was no excuse to look the other way as Morrison leads perhaps the worst-performing advanced economy on climate change,” Mr Podesta and Mr Stern write.

“If climate is going to be a central priority, the US needs to demonstrate that commitment. The Biden administration has done an excellent overall job on climate change but needs to hold firm on making (it) a top-tier concern and not let it fade in the face of other national security priorities.”

Mr Podesta, who chaired Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign in 2016, is close to Mr Biden. In an interview with The Australian in March 2019, he predicted Mr Biden would win the Democratic Party nomination and defeat Donald Trump.

The essay is being interpreted in foreign policy circles in Australia and the US as reflecting the views of the White House, which is critical of the Morrison government’s climate change policies but chose not to expose this publicly as it prioritises the alliance ­relationship.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/defence/us-president-joe-biden-chose-aukus-pact-over-greenhouse-policy/news-story/088c5a652bf4c9920468eabd66b4d2fa

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15126574 (030934ZDEC21) Notable: Australia records first Omicron community case, authorities hold nerve for now, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Pedestrians_walk_through_a_shopping_plaza_in_the_city_centre_as_the_state_of_New_South_Wales_surpasses_the_90_percent_double_dose_coronavirus_disease_COVID_19_vaccination_target_for_its_population_aged_16_and_over.jpg

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>>129854

Australia records first Omicron community case, authorities hold nerve for now

Byron Kaye - December 3, 2021

SYDNEY, Dec 3 (Reuters) - Australia on Friday reported its first community transmission of the new Omicron coronavirus variant, but authorities held steady on a plan to reopen the economy amid hopes it would prove to be milder than previous strains.

The new case, a school student from Sydney, was the first confirmed Omicron infection of a person who had not travelled overseas, a sign the variant was now in the community, authorities in New South Wales state said.

"Transmission is always a concern but we again need to keep it in perspective," NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard told reporters, explaining why Australia's most populous state was not reversing its staged reopening from strict lockdowns imposed in July due to the Delta variant.

"Worldwide there is no clarity around whether this particular variant is going to cause us anywhere near the problems that the earlier variants caused us."

Australia now has nine confirmed cases of the Omicron variant, eight in NSW, where a third of the country's 25 million people live. Although some states have tightened domestic border controls, the federal government is hoping to avoid a return to stop-start lockdowns.

Even so, it has postponed by two weeks a plan to let foreign students and skilled migrants into the country, and Australians returning from southern Africa must complete two weeks of hotel quarantine.

Asked if the federal government would stop targeting arrivals from southern Africa, now that the new variant was no longer limited to people who had been there, Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt said "we will continue to review the medical advice, but we follow it because it has kept Australia safe."

Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly, the government's top health adviser, said Australia would not recommend bringing forward vaccine booster shots, as other countries have done, as there was "no evidence" this would improve protection against Omicron.

Australia's aggressive COVID-19 response has helped it avoid the high numbers of COVID-19 deaths recorded in many other countries, with about 212,000 cases and 2,000 deaths.

The country's remote Northern Territory, which is home to most of its indigenous population, recorded its first COVID-19 death, an indigenous woman in her 70s.

https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/australia-records-first-omicron-community-case-authorities-hold-nerve-now-2021-12-03/

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15126709 (031055ZDEC21) Notable: Ben Roberts-Smith defamation trial set to resume in February, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Ben_Roberts_Smith_outside_the_Federal_Court_in_Sydney_earlier_this_year.jpg

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>>130106

Ben Roberts-Smith defamation trial set to resume in February

Michaela Whitbourn - December 3, 2021

War veteran Ben Roberts-Smith’s defamation trial against The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald is set to resume in February after a six-month pause owing to coronavirus restrictions.

On Friday, Federal Court Justice Anthony Besanko, appearing via video link from Adelaide, ordered that the trial would resume in Sydney on Wednesday, February 2.

Mr Roberts-Smith is suing The Age, the Herald and The Canberra Times over a series of stories starting in June 2018 that he alleges accuse him of war crimes and an act of domestic violence against a woman with whom he was having an extramarital affair. He denies all wrongdoing. The media outlets are seeking to rely on a defence of truth.

Barrister Nicholas Owens, SC, acting for the media outlets, told Justice Besanko on Friday that the newspapers’ preferred start date was February 14.

The outlets intend to call a number of witnesses from Western Australia who are affected by border restrictions in that state.

West Australian Premier Mark McGowan has indicated his state’s borders will reopen when 90 per cent of residents aged 12 and up are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, which is expected to happen in late January or early February.

Mr Owens said a February 14 start date was at the “cautious end of that period that the premier has indicated”.

Arthur Moses, SC, appearing for Mr Roberts-Smith, said he didn’t “mean to be disrespectful to statements made by the WA premier” but it was not clear when interstate travel would resume without restriction and “the Federal Court can’t be held hostage to whims of decisions by a state premier”.

“It’s been three-and-a-half years since the proceedings were commenced,” Mr Moses said.

By February, it would have been seven months since Mr Roberts-Smith gave evidence in the proceedings, he added. Mr Moses proposed that the trial should resume on January 31.

“At the moment, we are delaying and delaying this matter based on press statements made by a premier of a state, and that is no way in which the administration of justice can continue in this case,” Mr Moses said.

Justice Besanko said the trial would resume on Wednesday, February 2.

He told Mr Owens that if circumstances changed and he needed to make an application in January to delay the trial “for a short period of time, you can make that application and I’ll consider it on the evidence”.

https://www.smh.com.au/national/ben-roberts-smith-defamation-trial-set-to-resume-in-february-20211203-p59en0.html

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15126731 (031119ZDEC21) Notable: ‘You should never look at his eyes’: Ghislaine Maxwell ordered staff not to address Jeffrey Epstein, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Virginia_Roberts_Giuffre_tells_the_BBC_s_Panorama_program_in_2019_she_was_a_trafficking_victim_of_Jeffrey_Epstein_s.jpg, NBC_Dateline_interviewed_several_Jeffrey_Epstein_accusers_along_with_Virginia_Roberts_Giuffre_right_in_2019.jpg, Jeffrey_Epstein_and_Ghislaine_Maxwell_in_New_York_in_2005.jpg

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>>130152

‘You should never look at his eyes’: Ghislaine Maxwell ordered staff not to address Jeffrey Epstein

Karen Freifeld and Luc Cohen - December 3, 2021

1/2

New York: Ghislaine Maxwell was the “lady of the house” at now-deceased financier Jeffrey Epstein’s Palm Beach estate, a former house manager testified at the British socialite’s sex abuse trial in Manhattan federal court on Thursday (Friday AEDT).

Juan Alessi, who worked full-time for Epstein, said Maxwell was with Epstein “95 per cent of the time” he was at the property.

He said one of Epstein’s accusers, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, visited “very often” after encountering Maxwell at former president Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club. Alessi said he was chauffeuring Maxwell when she had him stop the car so she could pop out and talk to Giuffre, who was working as a spa attendant.

Alessi said he sometimes picked up Giuffre, who now lives in Australia, or another accuser, “Jane”, from their homes, on instructions from Maxwell or Epstein, and would bring the visitors to Maxwell at her desk.

After that, it was “not my job to see where they were,” he said.

One time, Giuffre brought her boyfriend into the house with her, he said, and Maxwell said the man needed to leave and wait in the car.

Alessi said he saw also “many, many, many” young adult female visitors who appeared to be in their late 20s, often lounging topless by the pool.

He worked at Epstein’s sprawling home from 1990 to 2002 — and admits he returned two years later to steal $US6300 in cash from Epstein’s desk. He said Epstein confronted him about the theft and agreed not to press charges if Alessi repaid him, which Alessi said he did.

Epstein killed himself in jail in 2019, while charged with sex trafficking counts that alleged he abused dozens of underage girls in New York and Florida. The case against Maxwell stems from four now-adult women who said she helped him victimise them.

Giuffre’s allegations, which include claims that Epstein and Maxwell trafficked her at age 17 and 18 to other prominent men who have denied it, including Prince Andrew, are not part of the case.

Maxwell, 59, the daughter of late British media baron Robert Maxwell, has pleaded not guilty to eight counts of sex trafficking and other charges. Her lawyers say prosecutors are going after her because they can’t try Epstein.

The Associated Press does not typically identify people who say they are victims of sexual assault unless they decide to tell their stories publicly, as Giuffre has done.

Maxwell, a British socialite, was Epstein’s onetime girlfriend and, later, employee. Prosecutors said she took the girls on shopping trips and movie outings, talked to them about their lives and encouraged them to accept financial help from him.

The government also says she also helped to create a sexualised atmosphere by talking with the girls about sex and encouraging them to give Epstein massages, and the woman identified as “Jane” testified this week that she had sexual interactions with Epstein at age 14 with Maxwell in the room and sometimes participating. Maxwell’s lawyers pointed to FBI documents that said the woman gave the government a different account in 2019; she questioned the documents’ accuracy.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15126744 (031129ZDEC21) Notable: Campbell appeases Australia as Washington steals Canberra’s market share - Global Times - globaltimes.cn, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Campbell_appeases_Australia_as_Washington_steals_Canberra_s_market_share.jpg

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>>130165

>>130166

Campbell appeases Australia as Washington steals Canberra’s market share

Global Times - Dec 02, 2021

To put Australia at ease as the most loyal pawn of the US strategy toward China, some American politicians need to make hollow promises from time to time, trying to give Canberra placebos. But such so-called reassurances cannot hide one single and simple fact: The Australian government lacks real diplomatic autonomy to make choices in line with its own strategic interests.

US Indo-Pacific Coordinator Kurt Campbell on Wednesday said that Australia will not lose "sovereignty" under the AUKUS deal. "I fully understand how important sovereignty and independence is for Australia. So I don't want to leave any sense that somehow that would be lost," he claimed at an event hosted by the Lowy Institute. Again, Campbell targeted China by accusing the country of waging "dramatic economic warfare" against the US ally.

But seriously, how much "sovereignty" is there left for Australia to "lose"? Although Campbell called Australia a "close ally" and stressed that it is not merely an "adjunct to Washington," Canberra has been closely following the US' strategy and even completely turned to the US. It is much too obvious whether Australia is a close ally or an adjunct to the US.

"Under the AUKUS deal, the use of nuclear submarines technology is too sensitive for Australia to decide alone. Therefore, Australia will have to listen to the US in terms of its future strategy and tactics. It has become a pawn serving the US' Indo-Pacific Strategy," Guo Chunmei, an expert on Australian studies with the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, told the Global Times.

"Considering that some Australian politicians have made a rational and objective assessment on the Morrison administration's China policy, Campbell had to say those hollow words to appease Australia," she said.

In fact, Australia not only has little autonomy left, but is also being taken advantage of by the US in the name of a "close ally." Just one day before Campbell said those words, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported that the US and its allies are the "biggest beneficiaries" of Australia's trade row with China. As Washington is appeasing Canberra, it is also pointing its finger at Beijing while quietly dividing up Canberra's interests.

Campbell and his like have spared no effort to fan the flames in China-Australia relations. By following his words, Australia itself will have to bear the cost in the end. Washington does not have to shoulder any responsibility and can even profit from it. Anyone can see the US' trick, but Australia is still obsessed with it.

"Australia has a sense of insecurity and strategic anxiety, and the US does not have as much dominant power as before. Therefore, Washington hopes to take advantage of allies and partners to confront China. Australia has been passively, or proactively, tied to the US chariot. Canberra is led by Washington strategically, and rational voices in Australia are muted to some extent," Guo said.

However, Australia will not really be respected by flattering the US. For example, the US has taken the chance to steal Australia's market share, and it also limited exports of Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines when the epidemic was raging in Australia. Worse, US President Joe Biden even seemed to forget Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison's name in September, calling him "that fellow down under." Is it really worthwhile for Australia to forsake its autonomy to serve the US just because of Washington's lip service?

Under US hegemony, Australia has enjoyed the benefits and status far exceeding its political and economic value, at the cost of losing sovereignty. But this is like the "Sword of Damocles" - when and if the US turns its back on the "close ally" and even stabs it in the back, Australia will be powerless and confused after losing the support of its "big brother."

https://www.globaltimes.cn/page/202112/1240544.shtml

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15132639 (040857ZDEC21) Notable: ‘Taiwan at China’s mercy’, Trump says in new podcast - 'What Really Happened in Wuhan' - Investigative journalist Sharri Markson, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Donald_Trump_being_interviewed_by_Sharri_Markson_on_SkyNews.jpg

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‘Taiwan at China’s mercy’, Trump says in new podcast

SHARRI MARKSON - DECEMBER 3, 2021

1/2

Former US president Donald Trump says the risk of China ­invading Taiwan has escalated under the “weak leadership” of his successor, Joe Biden, in the wake of Afghanistan’s collapse.

Mr Trump predicted “bad things” could unfold in Taiwan – and he claimed they would not transpire if he were still president.

“I think China had a lot more respect for the United States when I was president and, frankly, respect for me,” he said, noting his relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping soured over his condemnation of China’s culpability for Covid-19.

“China does not respect our country anymore. They respected it a lot when I was president, they don’t respect it now and certainly they don’t respect Joe Biden and I think probably bad things could happen with respect to Taiwan.

“They see very weak leadership, pathetic leadership. I also think that when you look at ­Afghanistan where they moved out the military before they moved out the civilians, where they left all of this, you know, hundreds of millions of dollars and even billions of dollars of equipment behind without taking it out, I think it’s very disgraceful.”

The 45th president made the comments in the extended interview for the Sky News documentary, What Really Happened in Wuhan. The full interview with Mr Trump features for the first time in The Australian’s new podcast by the same name, released on Saturday.

The Chinese Communist Party’s propaganda outlet, the Global Times, had warned America’s leadership failure after ­Afghanistan indicated the US would not lift a finger should China invade Taiwan. Asked about this proposition, Mr Trump said China had no ongoing ­respect for the US under Mr Biden’s presidency, which could lead to the invasion of Taiwan.

“When I was president, I had an understanding with China, I had a very good relationship with China and President Xi, they would never have said that,” he said.

Mr Trump said he was not confident the Biden administration would defend Taiwan militarily should there be a forced reunification with mainland China.

“I don’t know whether or not he (Biden) would come (to ­Taiwan’s aid), you’d have to ask that question to him,” Mr Trump said. “But I can tell you during my years as president China had a lot of respect for the United States.”

Criticising how Mr Biden handled the Afghanistan withdrawal, Mr Trump said the correct strategy was simple.

“The first thing you take out are the civilians. The next thing you take out is the military equipment and then you take out the military when everything is finished,” he said. “And bomb the bases before you leave, so that ­nobody else can use them.”

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15132646 (040901ZDEC21) Notable: Video: Tucker Carlson: What Really Happened in Wuhan (EXCLUSIVE) - Sky News Australia

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>>130190

Tucker Carlson: What Really Happened in Wuhan (EXCLUSIVE)

Sky News Australia

Dec 1, 2021

Fox News host Tucker Carlson sits down with Sky News Australia’s Sharri Markson to discuss What Really Happened in Wuhan, the culmination of Ms Markson’s investigation into the origins of COVID-19.

Mr Carlson discusses issues with decisions made by Dr Anthony Fauci and his role in funding controversial research in Wuhan, where the disease was first discovered.

The pair are joined by Sky News Australia host Chris Kenny who moderates the conversation.

To read more about What Really Happened in Wuhan, grab a copy of Sharri Markson's new book here: https://linktr.ee/WhatReallyHappenedInWuhan

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3U8OcBWI47w

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15132719 (040927ZDEC21) Notable: Australia Omicron variant spreads, testing reopening plans, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: A_medical_worker_carries_RT_PCR_swab_tests_at_a_pre_departure_coronavirus_disease_COVID_19_testing_facility_as_countries_react_to_the_new_coronavirus_Omicron_variant.jpg

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>>129854

Australia Omicron variant spreads, testing reopening plans

Lidia Kelly - December 4, 2021

MELBOURNE, Dec 4 (Reuters) - The Omicron coronavirus variant spread in Australia on Saturday, testing plans to reopen the economy as a cluster in Sydney grew to 13 cases and an infection was suspected in the state of Queensland.

Federal authorities are sticking with a plan to reopen the economy on the hope that the new variant proves to be milder than previous strains, but some state and territory governments have moved to tighten their domestic border controls.

Australia reported its first community transmission of Omicron on Friday at a school in Sydney. Authorities are investigating the source and said more cases were expected.

Queensland authorities suspected its first Omicron case in a person who travelled from South Africa and that genome sequencing was ongoing.

"The public health unit have ruled out that it is Delta but we haven't been able to confirm if it is Omicron," state Health Minister Yvette D'Ath. "But it is being treated as if it is."

Authorities in South Australia said on Saturday that arrivals from New South Wales, Victoria and the capital territory will be tested. The state reopened its domestic borders only days ago for the first time in months.

Several thousand people protested vaccination mandates in Melbourne, with the demonstrations now a weekly event that has been attracting groups of regular citizens, as well as far-right and conspiracy theory supporters.

A smaller counter-protest called to stop the far-right movement in the city and support vaccinations.

The state of Victoria, home to Melbourne, requires full vaccination to access most hospitality services and non-essential retail, as well as to work in health care and many other industries.

Nearly 88% of Australians over the age of 16 have been fully vaccinated, health data showed.

Anti-vaccination supporters number in single digits in Australia, according to polls. But unvaccinated patients make up the vast majority of those hospitalised with the coronavirus. In Victoria, 90% of the 44 people in the intensive care have not been fully vaccinated, health data showed.

Despite battling many outbreaks this year, leading to months of lockdown in Sydney and Melbourne - Australia's largest cities - the country has had only about 834 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 7.9 deaths per 100,000 people, according to the World Health Organisation, a fraction of many other developed nations.

Australia has had just under 215,000 cases in total and 2,042 deaths.

https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/australia-omicron-variant-spreads-testing-reopening-plans-2021-12-04/

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15132815 (041015ZDEC21) Notable: Ghislaine Maxwell trial: Butler drove accuser from school to Epstein’s Palm Beach mansion, court hears, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: This_courtroom_sketch_shows_Ghislaine_maxwell_during_her_trial_on_charges_of_sex_trafficking_in_New_York_City_on_December_1_2021.jpg, Virginia_Giuffre_pictured_in_an_image_submitted_in_evidence_at_the_trial_of_Ghislaine_Maxwell.jpg, The_pool_at_Jeffrey_Epstein_s_Palm_Beach_mansion_Image_submitted_at_the_trial_of_Ghislaine_Maxwell.jpg, Jeffrey_Epstein_pictured_with_personal_assistant_Sarah_Kellen_Submitted_to_evidence_in_the_trial_of_Ghislaine_Maxwell.jpg

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>>130152

Ghislaine Maxwell trial: Butler drove accuser from school to Epstein’s Palm Beach mansion, court hears

JUSTIN VALLEJO - DECEMBER 4, 2021

A woman accusing Ghislaine Maxwell of grooming her as a 14-year-old was allegedly picked up from school and driven directly to the Palm Beach mansion of Jeffrey Epstein, according to his former housekeeper.

Juan Patricio Alessi told a New York court that Ms Maxwell’s accuser, identified as “Jane”, first visited with her mother in 1994 before she began coming alone.

He said Epstein’s Australian accuser Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who has a separate civil lawsuit against Ms Maxwell, was also chauffeured from her home to Epstein’s beach house, where she worked as a spa attendant.

When Ms Giuffre brought a boyfriend in the house on one occasion, he said Ms Maxwell told the man to leave and wait in the car.

Ms Giuffre was a frequent visitor to the property and also travelled with Ms Maxwell and Epstein on his private jet. He said she looked young, had long blonde hair and “a long white uniform, like the nurses.”

Once Mr Alessi had dropped them off at the house, it was “not my job to see where they were,” he told the court.

In Friday’s testimony, Mr Alessi said he never heard anyone scream in distress or look afraid, and that he would have done something to stop it if he had.

Under cross-examination by Ms Maxwell’s defence lawyers on Friday, Mr Alessi admitted to breaking into Epstein’s home and stealing $6,300 in 2004, about two years after he stopped working for the convicted paedophile.

The jury was shown a video inside the Palm Beach mansion taken in 2005 that showed photos of Epstein with Pope John Paul, and another with Fidel Castro.

Pictures that weren’t always in the mansion, however, were those of Ms Maxwell herself. Mr Alessi testified that he was told to remove pictures of Ms Maxwell when other women visited the home

Maxwell has pleaded not guilty to the charges of grooming and trafficking underage girls, and her lawyers insist she is a scapegoat for Epstein, whose 2019 death in prison while awaiting trial was ruled a suicide.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/latest-news/ghislaine-maxwell-trail-butler-chauffeured-accuser-from-school-to-epsteins-palm-beach-mansion/news-story/5d5bfc1da1e6db58ee2b34791687531c

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15132846 (041027ZDEC21) Notable: Jurors at Maxwell trial shown Epstein's massage table, photo of sex toys, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: A_massage_table_is_displayed_in_court_during_the_trial_of_Ghislaine_Maxwell_the_Jeffrey_Epstein_associate_accused_of_sex_trafficking_in_a_courtroom_sketch_in_New_York_City_U_S_December_3_2021.jpg, Ghislaine_Maxwell_listens_as_Juan_Alessi_not_shown_who_worked_full_time_for_Jeffrey_Epstein_from_1991_to_2002_is_cross_examined_by_defense_attorney_Jeffrey_Pagliuca.jpg, Juan_Alessi_Jeffrey_Epstein_s_house_manager_testifies_during_the_trial_of_Ghislaine_Maxwell_the_Epstein_associate_accused_of_sex_trafficking_in_a_courtroom_sketch_in_New_York_City_U_S_December_2_2021.jpg, Kevin_Maxwell_and_Isabel_Maxwell_brother_and_sister_of_Ghislaine_Maxwell_arrive_at_court_during_the_fifth_day_of_the_trial_of_Ghislaine_Maxwell_the_Jeffrey_Epstein_associate_accused_of_sex_trafficking.jpg, Teresa_Helm_arrives_at_court_during_the_fifth_day_of_the_trial_of_Ghislaine_Maxwell_the_Jeffrey_Epstein_associate_accused_of_sex_trafficking_in_the_Manhattan_borough_of_New_York_City_New_York_U_S_December_3_2021.jpg

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>>130152

Jurors at Maxwell trial shown Epstein's massage table, photo of sex toys

Luc Cohen - December 4, 2021

NEW YORK, Dec 3 (Reuters) - A green massage table seized from Jeffrey Epstein's Palm Beach estate was carried into a Manhattan federal courtroom on Friday, where British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell is on trial for her alleged role in the sex abuse of underage girls.

Prosecutors have said many of Epstein's encounters with teenagers began as massages before escalating, calling the term "massage" a "ruse" to get girls to touch Epstein.

Maxwell, 59, has pleaded not guilty to eight counts of sex trafficking and other crimes for allegedly recruiting and grooming girls for Epstein to abuse.

Her attorneys argue she is being scapegoated because Epstein cannot be prosecuted, after killing himself in a Manhattan jail in 2019 at age 66 while awaiting trial on sex abuse charges. Maxwell is a former Epstein girlfriend.

Jeffrey Parkinson, a retired police officer involved in the 2005 search as part of an investigation into Epstein's conduct, testified on the fifth day of Maxwell's trial that he carried the massage table from Epstein's estate.

Prosecutor Maurene Comey also showed jurors a photo of a box labeled "Twin Torpedos" that a colleague of Parkinson's, Michael Dawson, said contained sex toys taken from an upstairs closet.

"We were looking for massage tables, we were looking for massage oils, we were looking for sex toys, we were looking for correspondence," Dawson testified on Friday afternoon.

The demonstrations came after Epstein's former house manager, Juan Alessi, completed his own testimony.

Alessi had testified on Thursday that Epstein was receiving about three massages every day by the time he left his job in 2002.

He said he sometimes found sex toys while cleaning the massage room and stored them in Maxwell's bathroom.

Alessi called Maxwell the "lady of the house" at the Palm Beach property, saying she often directed him to schedule Epstein's massages, and that he sometimes drove her on scouting missions to spas to find new therapists for Epstein.

A woman who identified herself as Jane testified this week that she frequently massaged Epstein at the Palm Beach home while she was a teenager in the mid-1990s.

She said Epstein often touched her sexually during their encounters, in which Maxwell sometimes participated. Epstein sometimes paid her, she added.

Alessi testified that Jane's real name was in a directory he kept of Epstein's masseusses. He also said that before Epstein and Maxwell arrived in Florida for the weekend, the house staff was instructed to place several $100 bills in Epstein's cars.

Maxwell's attorneys on Friday sought to challenge Jane's recollection of the events when cross-examining Alessi.

They questioned his recollection of having met Jane in 1994, when she said she was first abused at 14, pointing to an earlier statement he made that he met her years later, when she might have been of legal age.

Alessi replied that he did not remember the precise year he met Jane.

Maxwell's trial is expected to resume on Monday and last into January.

https://www.reuters.com/world/us/ghislaine-maxwells-lawyers-grill-ex-epstein-employee-who-testified-about-2021-12-03/

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15138487 (050605ZDEC21) Notable: Former soldier and Values Party founder Heston Russell lied about selling porn online while fundraising for veterans charity, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Australian_Values_Party_founder_Heston_Russell.jpg, Adrian_Sutter_the_founder_and_chief_executive_of_veterans_charity_Swiss_8.jpg, Heston_Russell_told_Swiss_8_he_would_only_post_humorous_innuendo_and_risqu_snaps_on_his_OnlyFans_account.jpg

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>>130083

Former soldier and Values Party founder Heston Russell lied about selling porn online while fundraising for veterans charity

Josh Robertson - 5 December 2021

1/3

A high-profile former soldier who plans to run for federal parliament sold pornography while fundraising for a veterans charity and lied about it.

Warning: This article contains images and descriptions of a sexually explicit nature.

Australian Values Party founder Heston Russell misled the charity about his use of the website OnlyFans and handed over less than a third of the money he claimed to have raised, according to the charity's staff.

Mr Russell last year told his then-employer, Swiss 8, he would raise money on OnlyFans by sharing "risqué" content but no "nudity of any kind".

However, ABC Investigations has obtained evidence that Mr Russell sold explicit images via OnlyFans just weeks later, charging $US60 ($94 at the time) on Anzac Day last year for a picture of himself holding his erect penis.

"Obviously, we're a veteran-led mental health charity," said Swiss 8 chief executive Adrian Sutter, who served in Afghanistan with the First Battalion Royal Australian Regiment.

"We're not in the business of selling pornography."

"Heston Russell, in my mind, does not hold or does not understand the values that are unique and positive to Australians," he said.

"I personally don't think Heston Russell should be allowed to be a leader in this country, no."

OnlyFans is a subscription website that in 2020 became notorious for sex workers and others selling explicit content to subscribers.

It requires content sellers to provide identification and be "verified" before allowing them to withdraw their earnings or set their prices.

Late last year it said it would block sexually explicit photos and videos but reversed the ban after a backlash from users.

Mr Russell's OnlyFans account promised "all proceeds" would go to Swiss 8, where he worked for five months last year as chief strategy and partnerships officer.

His OnlyFans activity created much discussion in an online gay chat forum, which led to members of the public bringing it to the charity's attention.

"By the time we asked him to pull it down, he said he'd raised over $US15,000," Mr Sutter said.

"My response and the Swiss 8 board's response was that selling porn is not what this charity's about, regardless of how much money it makes."

Charity received nothing until it sent legal letter

Mr Sutter said the charity, which counts as a patron the veteran and federal Liberal MP for Herbert, Phillip Thompson, did not receive "a cent" from Mr Russell until after he was terminated in July last year.

"Whether or not he ever intended to donate that money I'm unsure — but he gave us his word that he would, and he didn't."

In November last year, the charity sent Mr Russell a legal letter alleging he breached his employment contract by stealing intellectual property and trying to poach clients for his own rival organisation, Voice of a Veteran.

It demanded that he "immediately cease and desist in engaging in [that] conduct" and return any "client lists, phones or computers".

It told Mr Russell that "during your tenure with Swiss 8 … it is understood that either the deliverables were not met or … were otherwise deemed to be inadequate".

"Accordingly, your employment with Swiss 8 ceased on or about 03 July 2020 (Termination Date)."

In December, Mr Russell donated $5,000 to Swiss 8 via its website (the charity's payment records show he tried and failed to donate $10,000 on the same day).

"And that is all we've had financially from Heston Russell," Mr Sutter said.

"And it was only after a prompt from our legal team that we got anything from him at all."

Mr Russell declined an interview.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15138500 (050609ZDEC21) Notable: Parliament House closed after Adam Bandt's staffer tests positive to COVID-19, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: A_staff_member_for_Greens_leader_Adam_Bandt_has_tested_positive_to_COVID_19_in_Melbourne.jpg

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>>129854

Parliament House closed after Adam Bandt's staffer tests positive to COVID-19

Michael Doyle - 5 December 2021

Parliament House has been closed after one of Adam Bandt's staff members tested positive for COVID-19.

A spokesperson for Mr Bandt said the staff member, who was in Canberra during the last sitting week of parliament, returned the positive result in Melbourne.

The staff member is fully vaccinated, according to the spokesperson.

Mr Bandt has today returned a negative test and is no longer in isolation.

He had been isolating over the weekend while he awaited the test result.

Other members of his team have also tested negative for the virus.

Tasmanian Greens Senator Nick McKim, however, remains in isolation after being named a close contact.

He said he was exposed to the virus while in Canberra and was notified when he returned to Tasmania.

He is fully vaccinated and so far, has tested negative for the virus.

Mr McKim has been in isolation since returning to the state, in accordance with Tasmania's COVID-19 requirements.

Health authorities in the ACT are now trying to determine if Mr Bandt's staff member was infectious while he was in the capital.

Federal parliament has been closed to the public as a precautionary measure, less than 24 hours since re-opening after the year's final sitting week.

"ACT Health are working to identify possibly close contacts, and exposure locations at Parliament House and elsewhere in the ACT between November 30 and December 2, 2021. More information will be provided as soon as it is available," a Department of Parliamentary Services statement said.

"Masks were mandatory in the building during the last two sitting weeks."

The ACT recorded seven new COVID-19 infections on Saturday and announced its first case of the Omicron variant on Friday.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-12-05/greens-leader-adam-bandt-in-isolation/100675114

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15138506 (050610ZDEC21) Notable: Australia regulator approves Pfizer vaccine for children 5-11, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: A_healthcare_professional_prepares_a_dose_of_the_Pfizer_coronavirus_disease_COVID_19_vaccine_as_high_risk_workers_receive_the_first_vaccines_in_the_state_of_Victoria_s_rollout_of_the_program.jpg

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>>129854

Australia regulator approves Pfizer vaccine for children 5-11

Lidia Kelly - DECEMBER 5, 2021

MELBOURNE (Reuters) - Australia’s medicine regulator on Sunday provisionally approved the Pfizer Inc coronavirus vaccine for children between the ages of 5 and 11, with the health minister saying the rollout could begin from Jan. 10.

The Therapeutics Goods Administration “have made a careful, thorough assessment, determined that it is safe and effective and that it is in the interests of children and Australians for children 5 to 11 to be vaccinated,” said Health Minister Greg Hunt.

After initial delays with its general COVID-19 inoculation programme, Australia has swiftly become one of the world’s most-vaccinated countries, with nearly 88% of Australians over the age of 16 having received two doses.

The high vaccination has helped slow the spread of the virus and promote a speedy economic recovery, with the government planning to raise its 2022 growth forecast within weeks.

The efficacy of vaccines against the new Omicron variant, which is spreading in Australia, remains unknown.

The most populous state, New South Wales, reported two more Omicron cases on Sunday, bringing the total to 15 cases, and the Australian Capital Territory confirmed its second.

Parliament House was closed over the weekend to the public until further notice after a staffer to a member of parliament tested positive to COVID-19 after the legislature’s final sitting week of the year on Friday.

The variant of that infection case has not been disclosed, but health authorities said the staff was fully vaccinated.

While nationwide vaccinations are voluntary, states and territories have mandated shots for many occupations, and some require full vaccination to access most hospitality services and non-essential retail.

Australia’s overall childhood immunisation coverage is also one of the highest in the world, with 95% of 5-year-olds inoculated with vaccines recommended for their age, health data showed.

The Pfizer vaccine for those children still needs the approval of the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunisation. Once approved, it will be available to about 2.3 million children in the 5-to-11 age group.

Despite battling many outbreaks this year, leading to months of lockdown in Sydney and Melbourne - Australia’s largest cities - the country has had only about 834 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 7.9 deaths per 100,000 people, according to the World Health Organisation, a fraction of the toll in many other developed nations.

Australia has had just under 217,000 cases in total and 2,042 deaths.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-australia/australia-regulator-approves-pfizer-vaccine-for-children-5-11-idUSKBN2IJ0OM

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15144383 (060818ZDEC21) Notable: United States pushes back on New Zealand and other allies' hopes of joining AUKUS, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Australia_the_UK_and_US_struck_the_AUKUS_agreement_earlier_this_year.jpg, Australia_wants_nuclear_powered_submarines_to_replace_its_ageing_Collins_class_submarines.jpg

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United States pushes back on New Zealand and other allies' hopes of joining AUKUS

Andrew Greene - 6 December 2021

One of America's most senior military commanders has dismissed suggestions the AUKUS security partnership could soon be expanded to include other allies such as New Zealand or Japan.

The head of the United States Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM), Admiral John Aquilino, also declared Australia's decision to join the tripartite grouping was driven by a fear of China's rapidly military rise.

In September, the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia unveiled the AUKUS deal, which is exploring options on how to replace Australia's ageing Collins-class submarines with a nuclear-powered fleet.

Since the announcement there have been both public and private diplomatic calls to invite other strategic allies into the partnership, with the departing British defence chief even suggesting in October that the grouping was never intended to be exclusive.

Appearing at the Reagan National Defence Forum in California at the weekend, Admiral Aquilino gently pushed back against any talk of an imminent expansion to AUKUS.

"We haven't discussed specifically adding to AUKUS with other nations at this point — but that shouldn't subtract or detract from our ability to execute increased cooperation through other means other than just nuclear propulsion," he said.

While the United States did not see a need to expand AUKUS, the INDOPACOM commander said his nation was: "Ready to take on any of those additional efforts that our partners and allies are interested in and start those discussions."

Admiral Aquilino also discussed Australia's motivations for joining AUKUS, suggesting China's growing dominance was the primary reason.

"That has driven the Australians to assess the capabilities they need, and this was an Australian decision, to be able to invest in a nuclear submarine program, that provides the capabilities they need against the security threats in the region that they see," he said.

"AUKUS is a different and an additional security relationship that will be extremely helpful to keep that peace and prosperity in the region – so I certainly welcome it.

"Australia has made a big step and I think it will increase the security in the region".

When asked whether there were any concerns in the region about the commitment of the United States, the senior naval officer said he had not detected such sentiment during recent meetings with treaty partners.

"For 80 years we have generated the security and prosperity that's existed throughout the Indo-Pacific – the US is a Pacific nation, we've been there, we've been with these allies and partners for all those years.

"Japan, Korea, Thailand, Australia and the Philippines – everything I see from those nations, as well as the rest of the nations in the region, is there is no concern about the strength of the US alliances and partnerships."

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-12-06/united-states-pushes-back-new-zealand-joining-aukus/100677496

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15144501 (060918ZDEC21) Notable: US to announce diplomatic boycott of Beijing Winter Olympics, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: President_Joe_Biden_s_administration_is_expected_to_announce_a_diplomatic_boycott_of_the_Beijing_Winter_Olympics_this_week.jpg

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>>130180

>>130183

US to announce diplomatic boycott of Beijing Winter Olympics

Matthew Knott and Eryk Bagshaw - December 6, 2021

1/2

The Biden administration’s planned diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Olympics has paved the way for Australia to join a US-led coalition and formalise its response to alleged human rights abuses by Beijing.

The Australian government has no plans to send any representatives to the Winter Games in February but an imminent announcement of a US boycott has fuelled a debate within the Coalition about an official boycott, as several other countries including the United Kingdom and Canada considering joining the US.

That will give Australia cover to avoid being singled out by China as it was last year when it pushed for an inquiry into the origins of COVID-19 and lobbied for a ban on Chinese telecommunications firm Huawei, triggering $20 billion in trade strikes from Beijing and an extended diplomatic freeze.

Government MPs, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal matters, said the US announcement would tip the government in favour of a formal diplomatic boycott. Labor has also given its public support for a diplomatic boycott.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Friday that the government “was considering those matters and working through those issues”.

Canberra’s position has hardened since last week when the government was considering an unofficial boycott by not sending any ministers while blaming the decision on COVID restrictions.

A spokesman for Foreign Minister Marise Payne said a decision on whether the government would be represented at the Games, and how, had not been made.

Several US media outlets, including CNN, reported on Monday that the White House is preparing to announce this week that no American officials will attend the Games next year to protest against human rights violations in China.

A diplomatic boycott is seen as a compromise position that allows nations to send a message to China while still allowing their athletes to compete in the Games.

Australia and 19 other countries including the United States and Japan last week refused to sign the United Nations Olympics truce to ensure that conflicts do not disrupt the Games.

China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the 173 other sponsors showed the overwhelming support of a majority of countries “for the Beijing Games and international Olympic movement”.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is the only world leader who has so far confirmed he will be attending the Games in Beijing in February.

Biden’s expected announcement comes in the same week that he will host an online summit of the world’s leading democracies. The leaders of China and Russia have not been invited to the event.

Earlier this year, Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a close Biden ally, called for a diplomatic boycott of the Games.

“We cannot proceed as if nothing is wrong about the Olympics going to China,” Pelosi told a House of Representatives hearing on human rights in May. “Silence is inexcusable. It enables China’s abuses.”

Pelosi continued: “For heads of state to go to China, in light of a genocide that is ongoing while you’re sitting there in your seats, really begs the question.

“What moral authority do you have to speak about human rights any place in the world if you’re willing to pay your respects to the Chinese government as they commit genocide?”

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15147771 (062309ZDEC21) Notable: Major disruption likely in NSW as train drivers, bus drivers and teachers walk off the job

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Major disruption likely in NSW as train drivers, bus drivers and teachers walk off the job

NSW commuters face a day of chaos today, as train and bus workers go on strike on the same day the state's public school teachers walk off the job.

Key points:

Train staff are striking over privatisation fears

Bus drivers in south-west Sydney are taking action over pay and contracts

The industrial action by transport workers comes on the same day as the NSW teachers' strike

Major disruptions to rail services are expected across New South Wales as train drivers take industrial action in a dispute over privatisation and safety conditions.

The Rail Tram and Bus Union has warned that travellers should expect lengthy delays, as its members refuse to operate the foreign-made trains that make up 75 per cent of the state's fleet.

Buses will also be out of action in Sydney's south-west between Parramatta, Liverpool and Bonnyrigg, as 300 drivers strike over a pay and conditions dispute with Transit Systems, their employer after privatisation.

Yesterday, 1,200 bus drivers in the inner west stopped work for 24 hours, calling for the NSW government to intervene as negotiations with Transit Systems stalled.

Adding to the government's headaches, teachers across the state will also strike today for the first time in a decade over staff shortages and pay.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-12-07/train-strikes-to-cause-chaos-in-sydney/100678550

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15149978 (070649ZDEC21) Notable: George Christensen uses US conspiracy show 'Infowars' appearance to call for Australian embassy protests, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Christensen_appears_on_far_right_conspiracy_theorist_s_show.jpg

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George Christensen uses US conspiracy show appearance to call for Australian embassy protests

Nick Bonyhady - December 6, 2021

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Coalition backbencher George Christensen has urged viewers of a far-right American conspiracy theorist’s online show, which has been banned by Facebook and YouTube, to hold rallies outside Australian embassies to protest over coronavirus restrictions.

The Liberal National Party MP, who will step down at the next election, last week appeared on Infowars founder Alex Jones’ web program, describing the conspiracy theorist as a “beacon”. This was despite Jones’ history of spreading false claims, including about Australia’s coronavirus response.

In the roughly half hour-long broadcast published last week, Mr Christensen reiterated many of the points he has made publicly before, including arguments that coronavirus restrictions in Australia have been unduly harsh and disproportionate to the risk of the virus. He also called for an end to vaccine passports.

He also agreed with false claims made by Jones on the show, which has been largely banned from Facebook and YouTube for breaching policies on promoting hate and harassment.

Former Nationals leader Michael McCormack said he was beyond disappointed with the video, especially Mr Christensen’s depiction of Australia as a country that had abandoned rights and needed help, and called for the backbencher to be pulled into line.

“I know the leader of the National Party [Barnaby Joyce] has said you can’t poke the bear [Mr Christensen] well the bear shouldn’t go on American television and run his country down. That’s what he’s done. I’m sorry that’s what he’s done and stronger action is needed,” Mr McCormack said.

“Something needs to happen to tell George that this isn’t acceptable by a National Party MP, to go on and run our country down.”

Far-right figures in the US have depicted Australia as a tyrannical state during COVID-19 and railed against restrictions put in place to curb transmission of the virus.

In one exchange on the show, Mr Christensen urged Jones’ international viewers to protest outside Australian embassies. “The rest of the free world, please stand with us, please support us, and every time we see people out there protesting, whether in front of an embassy or elsewhere... it really does embolden the patriots, the people who are for freedom in our country to stand up,” he said.

Mr Christensen did not challenge Jones when the latter compared Australian COVID-19 quarantine facilities with Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz, on the basis of purported images showing both had electric fences.

(continued)

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15149986 (070651ZDEC21) Notable: Nationals condemn Christensen’s appearance on ‘dark corners of the internet’, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: George_Christensen_has_come_under_fire_from_senior_Coalition_colleagues_for_appearing_on_Alex_Jones_show.jpg, Alex_Jones_listens_during_a_Senate_Intelligence_Committee_hearing_in_Washington_DC.jpg

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>>130204

Nationals condemn Christensen’s appearance on ‘dark corners of the internet’

Nick Bonyhady - December 7, 2021

The Nationals leadership has condemned outspoken backbencher George Christensen for his appearance on the show of a US conspiracy theorist in the “dark corners of the internet” who has falsely claimed mass shootings were staged and spread misinformation about coronavirus vaccines.

Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce and Agriculture Minister David Littleproud both spoke to Mr Christensen on Tuesday after his appearance on Alex Jones’ show was publicised and distanced themselves from his views but declared they supported his right to free speech.

On the web show aired last week, Jones compared Australian quarantine facilities to a Nazi concentration camp, prompting no rebuke and a chuckle from Mr Christensen. Mr Christensen also called for protests outside Australian embassies to draw attention to coronavirus restrictions.

Alex Jones was booted off social media channels - Facebook, Twitter and YouTube - in 2018, with his content also removed by Spotify and Apple from their respective podcast and app services, for breaching policies on promotion of hate and harassment.

A spokesman for Mr Joyce, who is travelling in the United Kingdom, said the Deputy Prime Minister did not agree with Mr Christensen’s comments and had spoken to him, but did not disclose the details of the conversation.

“Mr Christensen has the right to say what he believes,” the spokesman said.

The acting Nationals leader, Mr Littleproud, said he respected Mr Christensen’s freedom of speech but urged him to reflect on his responsibilities as a member of Parliament and judgment in speaking with Jones, who he said had a chequered past.

“It’s not appropriate. I condemn his comments and I think it was an error of judgment for him to go on that program,” Mr Littleproud said. “Obviously, we want to work constructively with George but know that there are limits and there are boundaries that we, as federal politicians, have to adhere to.”

He said those limits applied to the “dark corners of the internet” just as much as in Parliament.

Former Minister for Veterans’ Affairs, Darren Chester, went further. He said on Twitter that there were many Nationals MPs doing their best to represent regional Australia.

“Like me, they condemn the conspiracy theories, lack of respect and ill-informed comments of Christensen,” said Mr Chester, who is aligned with a group of Nationals that did not support Mr Joyce for the party’s leadership, unlike Mr Christensen.

Employment Minister Stuart Robert took particular aim at the Auschwitz comments that Mr Christensen did not contest. “I haven’t heard the comments, but on face value... it’s completely and utterly inappropriate for anyone to make light of the Holocaust and the devastation that occurred,” Mr Robert said. “It is flat out vile.”

Mr Christensen has announced he will leave Parliament at the next election and controls a useful vote for the government in the finely balanced House of Representatives.

Rather than promoting the Liberal National Party, of which he is a member, his social media accounts are primarily devoted to promoting his own brand, Nation First.

Mr Christensen has been repeatedly criticised by his colleagues for airing unpopular views during the pandemic, such as calling for police officers to be arrested after protests in Melbourne.

Former Nationals leader Michael McCormack was the first of his colleagues to speak publicly about Mr Christensen’s appearance in Jones’ show, saying on Monday that the Queensland MP should be spending time in his electorate, helping community groups and encouraging vaccinations.

“He’d be far better off talking to people such as that than sit up late at night and talk to an American TV host about how dreadful his own country is, in his view,” Mr McCormack told The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has not commented on Mr Christensen’s appearance while Labor has urged Mr Morrison to haul Mr Christensen into line.

Around the time of Jones’ show, Mr Christensen, whose office have not responded to requests for comment, suggested it was calculated to cause outrage.

“Watch lefty and MSM [mainstream media] heads explode when they hear Alex Jones of Infowars is backing my speeches,” he posted on the messaging app Telegram.

https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/nationals-condemn-christensen-s-appearance-on-dark-corners-of-the-internet-20211207-p59fga.html

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15149992 (070653ZDEC21) Notable: Video: Infowars: S.O.S. to the World — Stand Up Against Medical Tyranny! - Australian MP George Christensen of nationfirst.substack.com joins The Alex Jones Show

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>>130204

Infowars: S.O.S. to the World — Stand Up Against Medical Tyranny!

George

December 1, 2021

Australian MP George Christensen of nationfirst.substack.com joins The Alex Jones Show to send a global S.O.S. to take a stand against medical tyranny now!

https://vimeo.com/652041454

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15150001 (070657ZDEC21) Notable: Q Post #2166 - AJ [TEMPLATE] WAS DESIGNED TO ATTACK/CENSOR 'QANON' [primary obj], MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Q_2089.jpg, Q_2123.jpg, Q_2166.jpg

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>>130204

Q Post #2089

Sep 5 2018 11:39:27 (EST)

Ask yourself a (simple) logical question…

Why are the majority of 'Q' attacks by "PRO_MAGA" supporters coming from AJ [MOS backed] and/or AJ known associates?

Why are we a threat to them?

Why not simply publish an original picture +/- 1,2,3 secs to establish credibility?

Why was this done in the past?

We knew this type of "attack" was coming.

PREDICTABLE.

FAKE NEWS.

ATTACKS WILL ONLY INTENSIFY.

Q

https://qanon.pub/#2089

—

Q Post #2123

Sep 9 2018 17:55:52 (EST)

Last and final comment(s) re: AJ & Associates [attempts]

Logical thinking.

https://twitter.com/JackPosobiec/status/1038778638613839872

[0:21]

Breitbart article linked [2 days prior] to the article being published?

Reconcile.

Note the time?

[9:41]

[100%]

Note Apple’s stock image(s)?

[9:41]

[100%]

Reconcile.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMfCvmykRxg&app=desktop

Reconcile.

https://twitter.com/JackPosobiec/status/1038858004899266564

https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/974008177271410688.html

Reconcile.

Attempts to deceive AUTISTS/ANONS will FAIL.

We are a threat to their livelihood [+CLAS].

Do not let their attempts corrupt GOOD organizations.

Think OANN.

They want you DIVIDED.

Stay STRONG.

Stay TOGETHER.

https://twitter.com/TuckerCarlson/status/1038898688725270533

“Division keeps them in power.”

Q

https://qanon.pub/#2123

—

Q Post #2166

Sep 12 2018 15:45:33 (EST)

https://www.theverge.com/2018/9/12/17847186/reddit-qanon-milliondollarextreme-ban-sam-hyde

https://www.cnet.com/news/reddit-bans-qanon-subreddit-that-featured-pro-trump-conspiracy-theories/

CONTENT VIOLATIONS?

STAY STRONG.

STAY TOGETHER.

CENSORSHIP WILL FAIL.

THOSE THEY ATTACK THE MOST ARE THE BIGGEST THREAT.

EXPECT TWITTER/FB FORCE NEXT.

AJ [TEMPLATE] WAS DESIGNED TO ATTACK/CENSOR 'QANON' [primary obj].

Q

https://qanon.pub/#2166

>AJ [MOS backed]

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15150170 (070804ZDEC21) Notable: Prime Minister Scott Morrison denounces comments equating the Holocaust and Australia's COVID-19 quarantine measures, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: George_Christensen_has_been_criticised_for_taking_part_in_a_conspiracy_theorist_s_online_show.jpg

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>>130204

PM denounces Holocaust-quarantine links

Andrew Brown and Paul Osborne - 7 December 2021

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has denounced comments equating the Holocaust and Australia's COVID-19 quarantine measures.

Queensland Nationals MP George Christensen used an appearance on a US conspiracy theorist's online show to advocate for protests outside Australian consulates over the country's COVID-19 restrictions.

At one point during the InfoWars interview, Mr Christensen laughed when host Alex Jones compared Australia's quarantine facilities to the Auschwitz concentration camp.

"I denounce the comments in the strongest possible terms," Mr Morrison said in a statement on Tuesday.

"The Holocaust was an evil abomination. Respect for the victims requires that it never be referenced in such a trivial and insensitive manner."

The InfoWars program has been banned on Facebook and YouTube for hate speech violations and has made multiple false claims about the pandemic.

Labor senator Katy Gallagher said Mr Christensen's comments could lead to Australian diplomats in consulates being targeted.

"Encouraging protest action or inciting violence at Australian embassies overseas, where we have public servants working in the national interest ... is a particularly dangerous comment," she told reporters in Canberra.

"He finds that funny, (but) this is a line that has been crossed."

Acting Nationals leader David Littleproud condemned Mr Christensen's comments and said he had spoken with his colleague.

"(It) was an error of judgment for him to go on that program," Mr Littleproud said.

"I have asked him to reflect on that, and his judgment around having an interview with a US commentator that has somewhat of a chequered past."

The Queensland MP, who is retiring at the next election, previously compared restrictions to the regimes of Adolf Hitler and Pol Pot during a speech in parliament, and also urged civil disobedience.

Senator Gallagher said the comments were indicative of a pattern of behaviour from Mr Christensen and urged Mr Morrison to bring him into line.

"(Mr Christensen) has consistently been out spreading disinformation, misinformation, stoking division and fear," she said.

"It's got to a point when the prime minister should be taking action. I can't imagine a situation under any other prime minister where a member of their own government would be allowed to be free-range like this."

However, Nationals senator Matt Canavan said he did not have a problem with Mr Christensen appearing on InfoWars.

"Just because you go on a show, doesn't mean you agree with everything," he told Sky News.

"People are free, of course, to protest ... Australian government policies, wherever they are in the world."

https://thewest.com.au/politics/mps-conspiracy-show-appearance-condemned-c-4845929

Originally posted at >>>/qresearch/15150288 (070900ZDEC21) Notable: Government witness ‘Kate’ testifies Ghislaine Maxwell groomed her for sex acts with Jeffrey Epstein, MISSING MEDIA/FILES: Witness_Kate_is_cross_examined_by_defense_attorney_Bobbi_Sternheim.jpg

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>>130152

Government witness ‘Kate’ testifies Ghislaine Maxwell groomed her for sex acts with Jeffrey Epstein

"Kate" claimed she initially thought Maxwell was her "friend."

James Hill and Ali Dukakis - 7 December 2021

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As the criminal trial of British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, the longtime companion of serial sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, entered its second week, a woman identified by the pseudonym "Kate" testified that Maxwell recruited and groomed her for sexual activity with Epstein when she was a young woman, under the pretense that they were "friends."

"Kate" said she was approximately 17 years old and living in London when she met Maxwell during a trip to Paris. "Kate" gave Maxwell her phone number, she said, and Maxwell called her a few weeks later to invite her over for tea. "Kate" was excited, she said, to have made such a "sophisticated and elegant" connection.

"She seemed to be everything I wanted to be," she said. "She seemed as excited as I was to have a new friend."

Within a few weeks, "Kate" said," she was engaging in sexually explicit massages with Epstein at Maxwell's London townhouse, which was in the same neighborhood where "Kate" then lived with her mother.

Prior to her testimony, Judge Alison Nathan read to the jury a "limiting instruction" informing them that "Kate" was over the legal age of consent at all relevant times and locations, and therefore the jury cannot convict Maxwell of any charges in the indictment based on her testimony. The government is thus only permitted to describe her as a "witness" but not a "victim."

Prosecutors argued that "Kate's" testimony was relevant to show Maxwell's modus operandi and that Maxwell knew that massages with Epstein would be sexualized.

During her first trip to Maxwell's home in London, "Kate" said she noticed lots of photographs of Maxwell with an older man with peppered hair. The man in the pictures, she learned later, was Epstein, and Maxwell introduced "Kate" to him as "the girl I told you about" on her next visit.

Maxwell, "Kate" said, encouraged her to massage Epstein's feet and shoulders. Epstein was "very approving," she said, but then he took a phone call, "Kate" said, and Maxwell ushered her out. A few weeks later, "Kate" said, Maxwell called again, claiming a massage therapist had cancelled at the last minute, and she asked if "Kate" could "do her a favor" by coming over to massage Epstein again.

This time, "Kate" said Maxwell led her upstairs to a small, dimly-lit room with a massage table. Epstein was wearing a robe, but he took it off after Kate entered. Maxwell, she said, closed the door. Asked by Assistant U.S. Attorney Lara Pomerantz if Epstein initiated sexual conduct with her during the massage, Kate answered, "Yes."

On her way out, "Kate" said Maxwell asked, "How did it go? Did you have fun? Was it good? She seemed very excited and happy and thanked me again."

(continued)