/qresearch/ -  Q Research

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Albanese defends Australia’s social media crackdown from Trump admin’s ‘censorship’ blast

Rob Harris and Michael Koziol - September 23, 2026

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New York: Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has dismissed the US government’s public criticism of his plans to overhaul social media algorithms and regulate perceived harmful content, putting him at loggerheads with United States President Donald Trump.

The Trump administration issued a scathing statement on Tuesday afternoon (AEST), arguing the attempt to tackle social media harm announced earlier this month amounted to censorship and would disproportionately hit American companies.

Speaking to reporters in Manhattan, Albanese said he would not back away from prosecuting Australia’s interests.

“The digital duty of care is something that we’ve foreshadowed for some period of time,” he said.

“It’s not about giving government control; it’s about giving people back control over what they receive on their devices, which is why it is framed in that way.”

Less than an hour later, Albanese met Trump across town at a UN leaders reception at the Lotte Palace Hotel. Albanese posted a picture of the pair on his social media platforms, saying it was “always good to catch up” with the president. His office later described their interaction as a warm, positive but private conversation.

The US is particularly concerned by “potential mandates that would allow regulators to impose rigid, one-size-fits-all platform design requirements – such as forced chronological feeds or opt-in recommendation systems”.

It requested the Albanese government “withdraw any plans to mandate that platforms algorithmically suppress content based on ambiguous government-defined safety criteria”.

Issued by the US embassy in Canberra, the American response to the bill’s exposure draft came just as Albanese is in New York to speak at the United Nations, where he spruiked on Australia’s leadership in technology regulation.

In his speech to the UN, Trump also rejected what he called a “globalist scheme” to regulate AI – which Australia has joined – and said the US would officially rename artificial intelligence to “super intelligence” in a bid to rehabilitate the concept’s image.

Albanese, who spent Tuesday at the UN speaking on a panel with French President Emmanuel Macron and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez about protecting children, said there was a recognition that technology could bring enormous benefits, but the international community needed to “make sure that humans are in control”.

Albanese did not answer a question on whether he would refer to the technology as “super intelligence” instead of artificial intelligence, a push Trump has made to rehabilitate the concept’s image.

On the duty of care, the Trump administration has asked Australia to clarify how it would determine what constituted online harm, warning that vague definitions risked becoming a mechanism for “viewpoint-based censorship”.

Platforms were likely to over-moderate speech to avoid penalties of up to $109 million, the US concluded, leading to censorship of controversial views.

“Such a framework also risks reducing the reach of independent journalists or other voices whose content touches on sensitive or controversial topics that platforms may preemptively demote to comply with overbroad safety mandates,” the US government said.

It added that if the Australian government compelled platforms to filter content in algorithmic feeds, and that filtering drew in “protected speech”, then the impact would be materially indifferent to the government simply removing such speech from the platform.

“The US government would likely consider such a measure as facilitating censorship,” it said.

“The US government has made clear its opposition to foreign measures that result in extraterritorial censorship of protected speech by Americans online.”

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The US noted the majority of online platforms affected were American-owned and global, and that mandatory design features would likely impact content seen by users outside Australia.

If other countries adopted their own duty-of-care mandates, platforms could face incompatible design requirements “that are not technically or commercially scalable”, the US said. The most restrictive policy would likely win, it added.

The statement is the first substantive US government response to the proposed digital duty-of-care regime, which had already caught the eye of the big tech firms and their lobbyists in Washington. Its criticisms are inline with a statement from the US’s mission in London earlier this month over a similar British version of the laws.

The Coalition has also raised concerns over the bill, but it is likely to pass with the support of the Greens. Greens senator David Shoebridge said the statement was “an extraordinary act of direct foreign interference by the US embassy in domestic Australian politics”.

“The Australian government should publicly respond by rejecting efforts by the US embassy to dictate how Australia legislates for a digital duty of care,” he posted on X.

Under the changes, social media platforms will be required to protect under-18s from harmful content, with the government pointing to material that encourages eating disorders, glorifies crime or promotes “hostile ideas about women and gender equality” as examples.

The platforms will also be compelled to send a notification to new and existing users offering them a choice over their default feed. They will be able to opt out of receiving content recommended by an algorithm and only receive content shared by creators they choose to follow.

Communications Minister Anika Wells billed the reforms as a “global reckoning” on big tech, and the next step following Australia’s social media ban for under-16s.

The US statement – issued by its embassy in Canberra – landed only days after Trump’s new envoy to Australia, David Brat, arrived to take up the post.

Feedback on the exposure draft closed on Tuesday.

https://www.theage.com.au/world/north-america/us-raises-serious-concerns-about-australia-s-digital-duty-of-care-regime-20260922-p60zmr.html

https://x.com/AlboMP/status/2102565955415269667

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He will flag the need for an overhaul of multilateral institutions to revive faith in the rules-based system, while declaring the importance for more economic self-reliance. “Australia’s response to this is to actively seek to shape and build the order that replaces the old while preserving the rules that matter most,” he will say.

The rules-based trading order, he will add, is essential for growth in the Indo-Pacific region.

Mr Albanese’s speech sets the parameters of how he intends to push for reform of multilateral institutions if Australia is successful in its bid to become a temporary member of the powerful UN Security Council in 2029-30. Foreign Minister Penny Wong this week told The Australian the membership and veto system of the UN Security Council was not working, flagging a push for a greater influence from Asia and Africa.

Mr Trump used his address to world leaders on Wednesday (AEST) to declare he “totally ­rejects any attempt to construct a globalist scheme to control … artificial intelligence”, while reframing the technology as “super intelligence”.

Mr Trump’s speech to the UN general assembly came after the US embassy in Canberra released a statement condemning the Albanese government’s proposal to regulate algorithms through the digital duty of care bill.

The US statement raised concerns that the bill could amount to censorship and “raises significant concerns regarding fair competition, market access, and trade treatment for American companies”.

Responding to the Trump administration’s takedown of his agenda, Mr Albanese said he would “always stand up for Australia’s national interests”.

After more than 20 world leaders signed a statement this week calling for an international framework to regulate AI, Mr Albanese said he was receiving support from many world leaders on his proposals to ban social media for children, regulate algorithms and legislate safeguards for AI. “We have put forward a strong position, Australia,” he said. “I’m proud of what we have done on social media, and the fact that the European Union have now announced a major reform as well, joining the more than 20 countries have taken action. And artificial intelligence can boost our economy, it can boost productivity, it can advance healthcare in ways that were unimaginable a while ago, with breakthroughs.

“There are a range of advantages, but we need to make sure that humans are in control.”

On the sidelines of the UN, Mr Albanese held a inaugural bilateral meeting with British Prime Minister Andy Burnham and met Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi for the first time since he was accused of making fun of her gift of melons on a podcast. Other leaders he met included South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and French President Emmanuel Macron.

Mr Albanese was stunned when he was asked on Monday by a journalist if he felt like a “fraud” for receiving the global citizen award when he bungled the response to the Bondi terror attack and Newspoll showed his popularity was at an all-time low.

“No,” Mr Albanese said bluntly.

One Nation leader Pauline Hanson, who wants to pull Australia out of the UN, moved to capitalise on the exchange and portray Mr Albanese as being lauded by global elites while everyday Australians were struggling with cost of living pressures. “Anthony Albanese has jetted off to New York where he will be receiving an award for being a good global citizen,” she said. “While he collects a trophy from elites on a world stage, Australians’ lives are only getting worse. The Prime Minister cares more about flying across the world for some award than bringing down the price of groceries, fixing the rental crisis or cutting inflation and interest rates for Australians.”

Previous winners of the Atlantic Council’s Global Citizen Award are Mr Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Argentinan President Javier Milei.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/anthony-albanese-says-world-order-is-broken-after-trump-slapdown-on-ai-and-tech-reform/news-story/d8f7b9c58e6c297fb1ef8908052dee1b

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ze8MSD3vl5I

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Anthony Albanese receives elite global leadership honour in New York amid growing domestic pressure

GREG BROWN - 24 September 2026

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The Waldorf Astoria on Manhattan’s opulent Park Avenue is a lifetime away from Anthony Albanese’s humble beginnings growing up in social housing in Sydney’s inner west.

The Atlantic Council think tank chose one of New York’s finest hotels to adorn the Prime Minister with its prestigious “global citizen” award.

The former warrior of Labor’s Socialist Left faction has won the approval of an assembly of international guests that could only be described as elite.

The applause within the ballroom – filled with Champagne, tuxedos, flashy jewellery and chandeliers – was the ultimate juxtaposition of the political reality facing Albanese as his popularity plummets back home due to cost-of-living pressures and broken election promises.

Actor Keanu Reeves brought Hollywood cache to the evening when he presented one of four global citizen awards to Formula One boss Stefano Domenicali.

The contributions from entertainers did not end there, with Cynthia Erivo now able to add a global citizen award to her trophy cabinet that includes an Emmy, a Grammy and a Tony.

And where would the evening have been without the performance of critically acclaimed opera singer Miles Mykkanen?

With Australians growing angry at elevated inflation and the prospect of an interest rate hike next week, just the name of the award is a dream for One Nation leader Pauline Hanson’s populist pitch for The Lodge.

Albanese being dubbed a “global citizen” is sure to enhance Hanson’s narrative that he and the major parties are wedded to cosmopolitan ideals that sound grand on the world stage but do nothing to improve the everyday lives of struggling Australians.

The One Nation leader’s politics of grievance is flawed but Albanese has done himself no favours by breaching faith with the public over a series of broken promises and an aversion to being direct when he is asked uncomfortable questions.

On the one hand, Albanese is losing the trust of Australians; on the other, he has been lauded as a great example of leadership on the global stage.

It’s little wonder Albanese bristled at the beginning of the week when he was asked if he felt like a fraud for winning the international plaudit.

Finnish President Alexander Stubb was the other political leader given the award, previously won by leaders from across the political spectrum including French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

It has also been won by Argentinian President Javier Milei, the controversial right-wing leader who has been likened to Donald Trump and on Thursday (AEST) accused the United Nations of being “useless”.

The Atlantic Council chose Albanese for the award for playing “a leading role in strengthening Australia’s alliances and partnerships and advancing security and stability across the Indo-Pacific”.

“His leadership has reinforced Australia’s global engagement and deepened its role in shaping a more secure, stable and connected region,” the Council said.

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Explaining the timeline of the breach of Australia’s public healthcare system, Albanese said: “The AI agent found a way around those blocks, didn’t accept no for an answer.”

OpenAI said the breach was on June 18 when it acquired health data from the Medicare Statistics Reporting Service, an old website used mainly by academics. The OpenAI bot was conducting a research project.

Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles compared the portal’s security to a fence. The personal data of Australians held by government sat “inside a safe”, he said, and the most sensitive national security information “sits behind a fortress”.

The June incident was only discovered by OpenAI some time in August after the maker of ChatGPT launched a review of its agents’ actions following a breach at start-up Hugging Face, in late July.

The review also found OpenAI agents hacked a digital library at the University of New Mexico on May 25, targeted Data USA, which hosts employment information, and probed but did not hack the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, Vic Health and a NSW crime data site.

On September 10, OpenAI emailed Services Australia’s public email portal, rather than calling or emailing a senior official. Services Australia, a government agency, saw the email on September 11 and took four days to notify the Australian Signals Directorate, an intelligence outfit.

Finance Minister Katy Gallagher, who oversees Services Australia, learnt about the matter two days later. She then held talks with Marles on September 19 and 20 before speaking with OpenAI on September 22.

Gallagher said the inbox used by OpenAI was checked once a day. “Sometimes many of them are hoaxes,” she said.

OpenAI said its models had accessed “several Australian government websites and services” during an internal evaluation. The models were trying to look up answers and statistics for questions about Australia.

“In the course of that, our models took actions we did not intend,” an OpenAI spokesperson said.

Gallagher said she had asked whether $160 million allocated in the last budget to upgrade the cyber defences of Services Australia’s essential infrastructure could be brought forward. She has also asked for other legacy websites to be moved to secure platforms or decommissioned.

Opposition Leader Angus Taylor said Labor had been caught flat-footed and needed to create links with the frontier labs on Australian soil.

“They should have been getting access to the best possible models to strengthen our cyber defences,” he said.

Greens senator David Shoebridge said the US was “increasingly a rogue country that thinks that its military, its AI industry, its trade, can be weaponised against the rest of the world”.

“This government still seems hot to trot to bring OpenAI here, and other US corporations at scale. OpenAI has shown deep disrespect to the Australian government,” Shoebridge said.

https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/openai-breaches-medicare-albanese-reveals-20260924-p6100u.html

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

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Speaking ahead of addressing the UN in a discussion at the Asia Society with former prime minister Kevin Rudd, Mr Albanese said Thursday was the earliest he could go public with the hacking as he was able to confirm some details in a discussion with OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman.

Mr Albanese said he had only been alerted of the issue after he arrived in New York on September 20th and he “wanted to make sure that the announcements that were made were fact-based.

He said there urgently needed to be global architecture to regulate AI, citing a potential model could be based on the International Atomic Energy Agency.

“I think it is there is an element of urgency as well required because this technology is moving very, very fast, and we need to make sure that we have a responsibility to keep on top of it,” he said.

After declaring the global world order was no longer working when receiving the Atlantic Council’s “global citizen” award, Mr Albanese told the UN Australia would use its seat on the security council to push for a “more effective, representative and responsive UN that is equipped to address the fast-growing challenges of today”.

The Prime Minister said Australia supported a world where “no country dominates” and where disputes are settled through “rules and dialogue”.

“A safer world is one governed by rules, not by power and force alone,” he said.

“It is a world in which all countries have the freedom to decide their own future. And all countries have their decisions listened to.”

He said the multilateral system was under “immense strain”, but argued abandoning the rules-based order would be a mistake.

Mr Albanese also said like-minded nations needed to build “beyond multilateralism with new coalitions and partnerships to address and solve complex problems”.

“To protect the peace, to create a world of human dignity, to do justice to the UN’s mission we must embrace change and reform,” he said.

“Australia supports the rules and institutions that underpin open trade and connectivity,” he said.

“That order, based on agreed rules and institutions, faces massive disruption. This doesn’t mean abandoning multilateralism — it means working to reform it, so it’s up to the challenges ahead,” he said.

In a veiled crack at China, Mr Albanese said Australia had elevated its relations in the Indo-Pacific to “offer nations sovereign choice free from coercion”.

“We are developing these new partnerships while continuing to work closely with our principal ally the United States and our major trading partner in China,” he said.

He said the Iran war had a “devastating impact on the global economy”

“Australia has been consistent in our calls for a ceasefire and for the Strait of Hormuz to reopen and restore the freedom of navigation and trade,” he said.

“And we continue to call for Iran to halt its indiscriminate attacks in the region and to abandon any program to obtain nuclear weapons.”

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/politics/anthony-albanese-takes-aim-at-openai-hack-and-israels-west-bank-settlements-at-the-un/news-story/99c4b67d96476b266f6f9431c8e8af6c

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HpgNhIpKKe0

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OpenAI boss refuses to answer Medicare hack questions after Trump-Xi dinner

Michael Koziol and Paul Sakkal - September 25, 2026

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Washington: The billionaire boss of OpenAI, Sam Altman, refused to answer questions about the hacking of an Australian government website while leaving a White House dinner, as Prime Minister Anthony Albanese used the “unacceptable” incident to call for action at the United Nations.

Altman remained silent and did not answer four times when asked by this masthead what he would say to Australians about the breach, whether he should apologise or why it took months for OpenAI to detect and report it to the Australian government.

The OpenAI boss held his phone to his ear as he left the White House grounds following the state dinner with Donald Trump and Xi Jinping on Thursday night (US time). But he did stop to autograph cards for some waiting tech enthusiasts, before his minders ushered him into a waiting black SUV.

Jensen Huang, president and chief executive of chipmaker Nvidia, played down the incident and said it did not come up in discussions among the many tech bosses who attended the black-tie dinner.

“I don’t know very much about it,” Huang told this masthead. “I think it has already been addressed by just about everybody … Sam’s addressed it.”

Apple chairman Tim Cook, who met Albanese in California last week, also declined to comment on the matter as he left the White House dinner.

The tech bosses’ silence came as Albanese told the UN in New York that the AI bots’ infiltration of the Medicare Statistics Reporting Service showed why countries must develop standards to ensure that AI worked for people, not the other way around.

In Australia, some sources – who did not want to be named because they did not want to cut themselves off from the behind-the-scenes conversations – said the government was using gentler language in private than Albanese had employed in public.

One political source who had spoken to government officials said they had been emphasising the message of Defence Minister Richard Marles, who on Thursday described the impact of the incident as “minor”.

Another source said that officials were trying to make clear in private that while Albanese’s rhetoric was tough as he spruiked his AI regulation proposal at the United Nations, the cabinet’s disposition towards attracting frontier labs to Australia was unchanged.

Albanese’s deputy called the impact of the event important but “relatively minor” – terms that Albanese did not use. Marles’ rhetoric reflected Labor’s attempts to balance the risk and rewards of AI and its aim to maintain social licence for the emerging technology among Australian voters.

Late last month, Marles travelled to San Francisco to work on deals with Anthropic and OpenAI. Marles, who met Altman on the trip, said the negotiations were pivotal for national security and productivity growth.

Albanese brushed off criticism from the Coalition and One Nation about what they claimed was a politically convenient delay in announcing the break-in.

“It’s just nonsense. We were informed of this late. That’s one of the issues that I raised with Sam Altman when I spoke with him yesterday,” Albanese told News24.

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The hack gained global media coverage and sparked further conversations about the need for AI regulation, following dramatic statements by serving and former industry personnel, particularly at Anthropic.

Altman, Anthropic boss Dario Amodei and Elon Musk have all backed a co-ordinated industry slowdown – although Trump opposes such a move, arguing it would cede control to China.

In his interview with News24, Albanese acknowledged the hack was not malicious, though he insisted it was still serious.

“This was not a malicious act,” he said. “This was an act of an AI agent essentially being told ‘no’, [and] when told no, found a way to circumvent some of the barriers that were there.

“There’s no evidence there’s any harm been caused here. But that doesn’t mean that it’s not serious. It is an example of the implications we have been warning of – indeed, AI companies themselves have warned of.”

OpenAI and Anthropic have said they would not spend billions of dollars in Australia to train models unless Australia’s copyright laws were changed so that firms could pay money into a pool rather than enter into commercial agreements with individual creatives.

Nationals leader Matt Canavan said on News24 that tech firms’ approach could “only be described as blackmail efforts from large tech companies”.

But media bosses and Liberal frontbenchers have expressed optimism that the government can find a solution to fairly compensate rights holders without creating a wave of copyright lawsuits against tech firms in Australia.

Environment Minister Murray Watt continued the government’s tough line on Friday. “We have commissioned a taskforce to do an investigation of this event,” he told Seven’s Sunrise. “And if it is possible to press criminal charges, that will happen.”

https://www.theage.com.au/world/north-america/openai-boss-refuses-to-answer-medicare-hack-questions-after-trump-xi-dinner-20260925-p610je.html

‘My friend’: Emotional Albanese hugs Zelensky as historic Ukraine deal sealed

Rob Harris - September 24, 2026

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New York: Australia has inked a historic pact with Ukraine that commits Canberra to sustained defence and security cooperation with Kyiv while stopping short of a NATO-style guarantee to come to each other’s defence.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed the deal on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York on Wednesday (US time), with the government announcing a further $60 million in support.

The signing was marked by an emotional display from Albanese, who became visibly moved as he paid tribute to Zelensky’s leadership during more than four years of war.

The two leaders hugged when they met, with Zelensky – dressed in a formal black military uniform – thanking Australia for its support since the beginning of Russia’s invasion. Albanese said the agreement demonstrated that Australia’s support for Ukraine extended beyond financial and military assistance.

After the agreement was signed, Albanese appeared close to tears as he described the Ukrainian president as his “friend”. The pair have met several times since Albanese travelled to Kyiv within weeks of winning office in May 2022.

“I do want to just pay tribute to my friend here, and his leadership has been, I think, quite extraordinary,” Albanese said.

“Leading people in circumstances which are extraordinarily difficult, and which have been underestimated as well. I think Russia thought it could just steamroll through in a matter of weeks, and what we have found is that the people of Ukraine were underestimated, and their commitment.”

The package includes $45 million in Australian Defence Force equipment, $10 million for Ukraine’s energy sector and $5 million in humanitarian assistance, taking Australia’s total support since Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022 to almost $1.9 billion.

Australia has backed Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, imposing sanctions and providing defence, economic, energy and humanitarian assistance.

The 10-year agreement provides a framework for Australia and Ukraine to deepen military, intelligence, cyber and defence-industry cooperation, while also covering energy assistance, humanitarian support, reconstruction and efforts to counter Russian information operations.

Australia will continue providing military assistance and training and will explore opportunities for joint production of drones, missiles, air-defence systems and other defence technologies, including potential projects in Ukraine.

For Canberra, the arrangement also offers access to lessons from a Ukrainian military that has spent years fighting a much larger adversary.

Zelensky thanked Albanese for Australia’s ongoing support. He said the Australian people had “always been on the side of Ukraine”.

“You … geopolitically, always stood with us,” he said. “And today, we signed, I think, the strongest document between our countries, the strategic document, security agreement, and where we will have really will increase our cooperation and trade, and of course security, which is very important.

“It’s not about the time of the war. It’s all about [a] long-term agreement. It’s all for our people for their security.”

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The agreement was signed against a backdrop of renewed diplomatic activity over the war, with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio meeting Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in New York and announcing that Washington had invited Vladimir Putin to December’s G20 summit in Miami. Putin has not attended a G20 summit since 2019.

At the UN, Zelensky also defended Ukraine’s attacks on Russian oil infrastructure, despite Donald Trump urging him to stop strikes on refineries amid pressure on global fuel prices.

“For the first time in Russia’s history, we now hear that its pride, its oil industry, is running out of fumes,” Zelensky told the General Assembly.

“Our target is Russia’s ability to finance this war, to drag it out, to make it more brutal and more destructive.”

The government said Ukraine’s battlefield experience and defence industry would provide “valuable lessons”, while Australia’s entry into the UK and Norway-led Maritime Capability Coalition for Ukraine will give the ADF greater insight into advanced maritime capabilities and their operational use.

One of the most significant provisions includes what would happen if fighting formally ends and Russia attacks Ukraine again.

Under the agreement, either Australia or Ukraine can request consultations if Russia, or a Russian proxy, launches a new armed attack. The two governments would then be required to consult within 24 hours about measures or support that could help counter the attack.

The text, released after the meeting, did not commit Australia to automatically send troops or go to war in response to a future Russian attack, instead leaving any eventual response to be determined. It also makes clear that Australia’s commitments remain subject to domestic law, international obligations and its capacity.

Albanese told reporters he had no intention of having discussions with Putin if he attended the G20.

“I think that his actions have been reprehensible, have inflicted enormous damage, not just most importantly and directly, of course, on the people of Ukraine, but also on respect for international law,” he said.

The arrangement follows a broader model of bilateral security agreements developed by Ukraine and its international partners, designed to provide longer-term commitments even as the eventual shape of the war and any peace settlement remains uncertain.

The agreement also explicitly connects European and Indo-Pacific security, reflecting the Australian government’s broader argument that Russia’s invasion has implications for international security well beyond Europe.

The government also announced another round of sanctions against Russia, taking the total number imposed by Australia on Russia and its supporters to almost 1900 and the number of listed shadow-fleet vessels to almost 300.

https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/my-friend-emotional-albanese-hugs-zelensky-as-historic-ukraine-deal-sealed-20260924-p61006.html

https://www.dfat.gov.au/countries/ukraine/australia-ukraine-bilateral-security-agreement

https://x.com/ZelenskyyUa/status/2102828432547545189

https://x.com/ZelenskyyUa/status/2102828437106827395

https://x.com/AlboMP/status/2102829785009606872

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More than a wolf warrior: China’s top diplomat Liu Jinsong begins Canberra charm offensive

Matthew Knott - September 24, 2026

The days of the diplomatic deep freeze felt a long time ago as Beijing’s new ambassador to Australia rose to a podium at the Chinese embassy for a ceremony marking the assumption of his official duties.

Bonhomie was in the air on a dazzling spring day in the capital as Canberra’s diplomatic elite gathered to catch their first glimpse of Liu Jinsong, who presented his credentials to Governor-General Sam Mostyn last week. A soprano sung the soaring song I Love You, China; waiters laid out a traditional Chinese banquet of prawn dumplings and lamb chops.

Among those in the crowd were India’s high commissioner Nagesh Singh, Australia’s former ambassador to China Graham Fletcher and Israel’s deputy ambassador Amir Meron. Unsurprisingly, Meron did not exchange pleasantries with Iran’s charge d’ affaires Hossein Talebi (who has led the Iranian embassy since the nation’s ambassador was spectacularly expelled last year over the firebombing of Jewish sites in Sydney and Melbourne).

With Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Foreign Minister Penny Wong in New York for the United Nations General Assembly, the government was represented by officials from their departments and the Department of Defence.

Absent was new United States ambassador David Brat, who jetted into the country last week. In a quirk of timing, the top diplomats from the world’s two superpowers are beginning their Canberra postings at the same time. Reflecting the disorientating era in which we live, it was the US embassy lashing out at Australia this week (for trying to regulate big tech) while China’s was all smiles.

Clutching a glass of red wine, the fresh-faced 54-year-old Liu proposed a toast to the future of Australia-China relations, and a successful meeting in Washington between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Washington.

This was not time to emphasise differences but to accentuate the positive - and implore both sides to pursue even deeper ties.

“China and Australia have no historical grievances and no fundamental conflicts of interest,” Liu said.

“We should be partners of mutual trust and mutual success. We must remain true to the original aspiration and uphold the right way of conducting relations between our two countries. We must promote mutually beneficial and win-win outcomes through practical cooperation.”

As well as upgrading the China-Australia free trade agreement, Liu called for the nations to explore cooperation in areas as artificial intelligence, clean energy and green minerals.

Liu’s predecessor Xiao Qian was a savvy operator whose tenure spanned the shift as COVID-era trade restrictions melted away and normal diplomatic contact resumed. But Xiao’s charm offensive often came with a Sichuan pepper kick – as when he accused ASIO of fabricating foreign interference claims, urged Australians to be wary of Japan and warned of retaliation if Australia takes back the Port of Darwin from a Chinese-owned company.

Liu is best known for a photo taken last year when he was Beijing’s Asian Affairs chief. Following a meeting with Japanese counterpart Masaaki Kanai, Liu was filmed looking down at his opposite number dismissively as Kanai appeared to bow (he was leaning in to listen to a translator). The photo went viral in China because it seemed to suggest Japan had been forced into position of subservience after a period of rising tensions between the two nations.

Australian Institute of International Affairs chief executive Bryce Wakefield, who attended Thursday’s welcoming ceremony, says Liu should not be pigeonholed or underestimated. “His seniority, particularly as head of the Asia bureau, suggests that Beijing is taking its relationship with Australia seriously,” he argues.

“He is capable of taking a forceful public line, as seen in his dealings with Japan, but reducing him to a ‘wolf warrior’ misses the experience and policy range he brings to the Canberra posting. He seems to be more a competent technocrat who can navigate complex relations.”

Flashpoints - missiles over the Pacific, espionage accusations, trade disputes - are sure to emerge as Liu’s posting continues, straining diplomatic ties. But this was a day for sweetness, not spice.

https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/more-than-a-wolf-warrior-china-s-top-diplomat-begins-canberra-charm-offensive-20260924-p6102t.html

https://au.china-embassy.gov.cn/eng/dshd/202609/t20260925_12031289.htm

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2.5 hours’ sleep, oysters and ironed underwear: Alan Jones’ butler reveals his routine

Clare Sibthorpe - September 24, 2026

Alan Jones’ butler has described delivering weekly flowers to a former athlete who was allegedly indecently assaulted by the then-broadcaster, while denying seeing inappropriate behaviour.

David Allan, who worked as Jones’ butler for nearly two decades, gave evidence in the former 2GB titan’s indecent assault and sexual touching trial in the Local Court on Thursday.

Jones, 85, has pleaded not guilty to 21 charges relating to five men over 17 years from 2003 to 2020. He denies that any alleged physical acts occurred.

Allan’s domestic duties stemmed from Jones’ “extraordinarily brutal regime of work hours” as an early morning radio host. The court heard that Jones regularly had only 2.5 hours of sleep each night.

Allan would cook for the near-daily prominent guests, serving lunches that became dinners and weekend feasts when Jones was off-air. Between managing dietary needs and oyster preferences, he ironed Jones’ underwear and handkerchiefs.

The former butler would ask if Jones wanted “crust on or off” when “knock[ing] up a few sandwiches”.

“I’d do all the cleaning … polish the shoes and clean the loos and everything else you do in the household,” he said.

Among Jones’ “endless” guests in the sporting world was a man dubbed in the trial as complainant “M”, Allan told the court.

“M” alleged Jones kissed him non-consensually on the corner of his mouth at an event in Sydney about a decade ago, and repeatedly on the cheek, moving towards his mouth, years later at the broadcaster’s Circular Quay apartment.

Asked by Crown prosecutor Georgina Wright, SC, how Jones would greet “M” when he visited the 85-year-old’s harbourside apartment, Allan said it was “always the same as that all sports people seem to do”.

“It’s a hug, slap on the bottom, grab each other, ‘hello, champion’, and sit down and chat away, and off they go,” he said.

“Did you say slap on the bottom?” Wright asked.

“Well, it’s probably the wrong thing to say today. They slap each other; it’s what they do, sportsmen, [they] do it all the time. They score a try, they all get around, snuggle up and that, whatever they do.”

Wright clarified that she was only asking about “M”. The former butler replied that Jones would say, “hello, champion” and he did not recall him saying anything else.

There is no suggestion of wrongdoing by Jones regarding Allan’s remarks.

Each Monday for about “a couple of months”, Allan would pick up fresh flowers from the markets and deliver them to “M”’s home.

He said Jones did not specifically say why he was buying and giving flowers to “M”, but would say “just get some”.

The witness said the flowers were also taken directly by “M” from Jones’ apartment or delivered by the driver and other contacts.

Earlier in the trial, “M” testified that Jones sent him weekly flowers for years and that he sent the former radio host flowers at least once.

He described first speaking to Jones in a telephone interview when he was a junior athlete, and meeting him socially from his early 20s. The alleged kisses occurred when he was in his 30s.

Jones’ barrister Claire O’Neill asked during cross-examination if Allan had ever witnessed “any behaviour by Mr Jones towards a male athlete that was inappropriate in that time period”.

The man responded: “No, I can’t say I did.”

He said he also did not see any inappropriate behaviour towards a different complainant in the trial, referred to as “C”.

“C” regularly visited Jones’ apartment while working as his employee and undertook a range of professional and personal duties, including driving. The man, who is decades younger than Jones, earlier told the court Jones kissed him non-consensually on multiple occasions in lifts at Jones’ apartment or the 2GB studios. He alleged Jones touched his penis over his clothes several times, including under a table at a group lunch, where Allan was among the guests.

Allan said he may have recalled the lunch in question but did not recall if “C” was there.

The witness agreed with O’Neill that Jones would “occasionally hug people … or give them a kiss on the cheek” when saying hello or goodbye.

He accepted there were occasions Jones would touch someone’s back or shoulder “in a friendly manner”.

O’Neill suggested Allan occasionally saw Jones “touch someone’s leg as if to make a point”.

“I guess I’ve seen that, I suppose I might have seen that,” he replied.

The trial before Judge Glenn Walsh continues.

https://www.theage.com.au/national/nsw/butler-describes-delivering-weekly-flowers-to-alan-jones-alleged-victim-20260924-p61051.html

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Australian Federal Police lay 115 additional charges on alleged childcare abuser Hamish Tait

abc.net.au - 26 September 2026

The Australian Federal Police (AFP) has laid an additional 115 charges against a former Sydney childcare worker who allegedly abused more than 130 children.

Hamish Tait is now facing 444 charges related to the alleged abuse of children over a 16-year period.

The additional charges laid on Friday include 105 counts of producing child abuse material, one count of carrying out a sexual act with a child under 10, five counts of filming a person engaged in a private act in circumstances of aggravation, and four counts of possessing child abuse material.

The AFP said the charges related to the exploitation of children known to Mr Tait, and those who attended five early childhood education facilities in Sydney's north-west in which he worked at or attended.

The alleged offending is said to have occurred between 2009 and 2025.

The additional charges relate to previously identified alleged victims, with no further people identified, the AFP noted.

Mr Tait, 35, has been remanded in custody since he was arrested and first charged by the AFP in July.

The matter remains before the courts and is next scheduled to be heard at Parramatta Local Court on October 8.

2.4 million electronic files reviewed

The investigation, dubbed Operation Moonbi, has involved the review and analysis of 2.4 million electronic files.

Police established a website under Operation Moonbi, which included a list of the more than 55 childcare centres where Mr Tait worked at or attended between 2009 and 2025, predominantly in Sydney's north-west.

Alleged abuse has been identified at five centres.

In July, the AFP released images of distinctive clothing in an attempt to identify alleged victims.

The images were found on electronic devices seized as part of the investigation under Operation Moonbi.

AFP Detective Acting Inspector Emmanuel Tsardoulias previously described victim identification work as "painstaking and detailed".

"Our victim ID team is tenacious, committed and will stop at nothing to identify children or victims of child exploitation," he said.

Australian Federal Police - Operation Moonbi

https://www.afp.gov.au/news-centre/community-information/operation-moonbi

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-09-25/childcare-worker-hamish-tait-more-charges-alleged-child-abuse/107197998

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>>25067333

U.S. Embassy Australia Tweet

Sep 25, 2026

Ambassador-designate Dave Brat is in Australia and looks forward to further strengthening the U.S.-Australia Alliance, creating new opportunities together, and meeting Australians in every state and territory.

See you soon, Australia!

https://x.com/USEmbAustralia/status/2103365790783398174

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>>25042795

Australian preacher linked to notorious Sydney cleric urges followers to ‘take up arms’

Paul Sakkal - September 28, 2026

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An associate of a notorious Islamic preacher linked to the Bondi shooters has called on followers to take up arms against Christians and Jews, putting the spotlight back on radical preachers after the major parties shelved attempts to rein them in.

A young and increasingly popular preacher from Melbourne’s southeast who goes by Abu Ahmad said in a July sermon that adherents should not “take the Jews and the Christians for friends”.

“For the sake of Allah, it includes the obligation to declare enmity for his sake, opposition for the sake of Allah. It is to declare opposition: indeed, to take up arms against his enemies, to shun them and to stay far from them both in word and deed,” he said in a clip posted to his Al Bayyinah Islamic Centre’s social media feed.

“This proves that simple opposition of the spirit is not enough and that it must be complete by honouring of your commitment.”

The Al Bayyinah Islamic Centre was established in Springvale in 2024. It has regularly posted on Instagram with another account called Station of the Seekers, which has featured Islamic State sympathisers.

The Al Bayyina centre has also been supported by Sydney-based preacher Wissam Haddad, who is linked to the Al Madina Dawah Centre, a prayer hall in Sydney’s Bankstown.

Bondi shooter Naveed Akram reportedly attended the Al Madina centre and formed connections with Islamic State supporters through people he met there. Akram and his father, Sajid, are alleged to have killed 15 people at a Chanukah event at Bondi Beach.

The call to take up arms will renew focus on extremism 10 months after one of Australia’s worst alleged terror attacks and raise questions about why hate preachers can still call for violence against Jews and Christians from their unofficial pulpits.

Parliament descended into chaos in mid-January when Prime Minister Anthony Albanese tried to pass legislation prohibiting neo-Nazi and Islamist groups and criminalising the promotion of hatred via anti-vilification laws.

The Nationals feared cracking down on violent rhetoric risked inhibiting free speech and giving a future government power to target conservatives, while the Greens worried the move would curtail legitimate criticism of Israel’s bloody war in Gaza.

The lack of support for stronger hate speech laws meant Albanese sliced the bill in half, banning hate groups but dropping laws that would have given authorities more scope to target hate preachers and neo-Nazis who vilify based on race, gender or religion.

Without these extra powers, authorities have been privately grumbling about their inability to target these unofficial suburban firebrands.

The national security community remains concerned about the threat. Former spy boss Denis Richardson declared a fortnight ago that Australia should be able to have an open debate about fringe radicals in the Muslim community without demonising all Australian Muslims.

A few days later, ASIO boss Mike Burgess said the chance of a terror attack was more likely than the terror threat level – “probable” – suggested. Meanwhile, lawyer Josh Bornstein last month questioned why the royal commission into antisemitism did not spend more time probing Haddad and antisemitic neo-Nazis.

The AFP continues to target IS sympathisers. In mid-September, it arrested half a dozen men who had been sharing Islamic State propaganda. On Wednesday, it arrested a 65-year-old alleged member of a terrorist organisation who is accused of sharing thousands of extremist files and ISIS propaganda.

This masthead is not suggesting Abu Ahmad is under investigation or that he supports Islamic State. The Al Bayyinah centre was contacted for comment.

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Ahmad gave his talk in mid-July. He said opposition for the sake of Allah was “to feel anger at the enemies of Allah and to struggle against them”. He also mentioned a book famous for promoting antisemitic conspiracy theories.

“If the aim of the enemies of Islam whether they are atheists or Jews or Christians or modernists or Zionists or communists is the emasculation of … Muslims, and the erosion of their unique character in order to make them the ass of the chosen people … then the urgency of this issue should become clear to every Muslim,” he said.

Haddad has previously urged his “Melbourne brothers” to show support for Al Bayyinah and attend its weekly players, which are displayed in slick social media videos on YouTube, Instagram and TikTok. In early 2025, Ahmad reportedly visited the Bankstown centre linked to Haddad and delivered a sermon that took aim at “infidel” Western powers that colonised the Middle East.

An ABC Four Corners investigation, aired in April last year, also reported connections between Abu Ahmed’s outfit and Haddad.

“Haddad rapidly expanded Al Madinah Dawah Centre, turbocharged his online influence, and re-energised a national pro-IS network, which now includes an affiliated prayer centre in Melbourne, Al Bayyinah Islamic Centre,” the ABC reported in April 2025.

Associate professor Josh Roose, a Deakin University professor who tracks extremism, said Haddad had effectively set up an “outpost” in Melbourne.

“If authorities don’t crack down on these centres as soon as they emerge, then we’re inviting, quite frankly, extremists, Salafists, jihadist Islam, into the suburbs,” Roose said.

“This is the problem with the hate speech laws as they are. Calling to take up arms is more radical than anything Hizb ut-Tahrir ever said, and they were banned.”

Roose said Abu Ahmad could defend any charge by arguing that his call to arms was colloquial or general, rather than a specific call to violence. He said there had been a rise in extremism and atomisation around the world in the social media age, evident in the growth of extreme misogyny and organised neo-Nazi activities in Australia.

Last month, Federal Court judge Ian Jackman called out the judiciary’s “dogmatism” on free speech that he said had given too much leeway for religious extremists to spread hate against Jews, urging a reconsideration of the implied freedom of political communication that gained recognition in the 1990s.

“It would not have occurred to Australians in the 1990s that other Australians would abuse their freedom of political communication to publicly intimidate and vilify Jews,” he said in a speech at the Samuel Griffiths Society, a conservative legal fraternity that has long opposed anti-vilification laws.

https://www.theage.com.au/politics/federal/australian-preacher-linked-to-notorious-sydney-cleric-urges-followers-to-take-up-arms-20260928-p610kx.html

https://qresear.ch/?q=Wissam+Haddad

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Swedish extremism network member jailed for abuse of Australian girl

Perry Duffin and Riley Walter - September 28, 2026

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Warning: Graphic content

Members of violent international extremism networks are coercing young Australians into harming themselves while evading authorities as they move across online platforms under multiple aliases.

Swedish court documents obtained by this masthead reveal the groups’ involvement in attacks in several countries, including the repeated abuse of an Australian girl who was blackmailed into strangling her family’s pet cat and committing self-mutilation.

Dismantling the networks has emerged as a top priority for Australian law enforcement officials, who believe rapidly evolving technology and the use of online platforms to groom and manipulate children are driving the rise of online harm to young people.

Almost a year after Australian Federal Police Commissioner Krissy Barrett used her maiden National Press Club address to sound the alarm on the networks, court documents tendered during the sentencing of Swedish teenager Kevin Johansson detail the methods used by members to target and manipulate vulnerable teenagers.

Johansson, 18, was this month sentenced to a decade in prison for a raft of offences, including two counts of attempted murder of a victim in Germany, and six counts of raping the Australian girl, who was aged 15 at the time of the offending.

According to the Umea District Court judgment, first reported by Swedish media outlet Expressen and obtained by this masthead, Johansson joined the networks at 15 and began communicating with the Australian girl, whom he forced to torture her family’s pet cat and self-mutilate.

Johansson, who was known within the online networks as “Chai” and “Norah Slimey”, blackmailed the teenager, using sexual content she had filmed at his request, into strangling the cat on camera and writing his online moniker in her own blood.

The girl was aware that material shared with Johansson, including her identity, could be used against her if she refused, according to the court judgment. Initially, the girl believed Johansson was a kind and loving figure.

After the girl refused Johansson’s demand that she kill her family’s cat, he falsely reported her father to Australian authorities, telling police that he was in possession of firearms and planned to shoot members of his family. The fabricated tip-off – known within the networks as “swatting” – triggered an almost immediate response from heavily armed tactical officers.

Johansson was also convicted for encouraging a German teenager to die by suicide, and his role in several knife attacks, some of which were live-streamed. The 18-year-old, who was linked to the attacks through another of his online aliases, edited and distributed footage of the incidents, according to the court judgment, and directed some of the teenage attackers. Johansson has not been charged with any criminal offences in Australia.

Barrett last year launched Taskforce Pompilid amid growing concern about the networks’ targeting of Australian girls. “They are crimefluencers, and are motivated by anarchy and hurting others, with most of their victims pre-teen or teenage girls,” Barrett said last October.

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The Australian Centre to Counter Child Exploitation has received 176 reports since last January related to what authorities call sadistic online exploitation. Two prominent networks, 764 and NLM – an acronym for No Lives Matter – typically comprise members from English-speaking countries and share beliefs on violent extremism, nihilism, Nazism, satanism and sadism.

The networks operate within a larger group called The Com – or The Community – and coerce vulnerable teenagers into committing sexualised self-harm or violence against other people. They have reached children through gaming platforms such as Roblox, and messaging apps Discord and Telegram.

One of 764’s ringleaders, Kyle Spitze, was last month sentenced to 77 years in prison – the longest federal prison sentence ever imposed on a nihilistic violent extremist, according to the US Department of Justice. The Australian girl targeted by Johansson was also one of Spitze’s victims.

The groups operate with a culture similar to multi-player online gaming networks and, in some instances, trade victims, said Assistant Commissioner Sandra Booth, who leads the AFP’s cyber and special investigations unit.

“To be accepted into these networks, perpetrators often have to pass a test or undertake a task, such as providing videos of the self-harm of others, or other gory content,” Booth said.

“Status can be gained by sharing increasingly extreme and harmful content.”

Booth said that while authorities believed several Australians were associated with the networks, the complex and fluid nature of the groups presented challenges in determining the scale of their involvement.

“What is particularly concerning is that these groups target and exploit vulnerable people, and children and young people can be involved as both victims and offenders,” Booth said.

“The reality is with this insidious crime type, children are being harmed in what we hope would be their safe place – in their homes, with their families nearby. In many cases, by the time law enforcement becomes aware of this activity, significant financial, physical or psychological harm has already occurred and victims are already suffering the consequences.”

The AFP is investigating allegations that an Australian offender coerced an overseas child to physically hurt a younger sibling, Booth said. The children were removed from harm while the investigation is ongoing. Barrett last year said officers had made three local arrests and identified 59 alleged network members.

Booth said authorities had identified another overseas victim using material found on electronic devices seized during a separate investigation and alerted overseas counterparts, who intervened.

She said parents, carers and educators played a vital role in helping children safely navigate online platforms.

“Open conversations about online activity and digital responsibility are essential.

“Families need to know who their children are engaging with online.”

If you or anyone you know needs support, you can contact the National Sexual Assault, Domestic and Family Violence Counselling Service at 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732), Lifeline (13 11 14), the Suicide Call Back Service (1300 659 467), Beyond Blue (1300 22 4636) and Kids Helpline (1800 55 1800).

https://www.1800respect.org.au/

https://www.lifeline.org.au/

https://www.suicidecallbackservice.org.au/

https://www.beyondblue.org.au/

https://www.kidshelpline.com.au/

https://www.theage.com.au/national/swedish-extremism-network-member-jailed-for-abuse-of-australian-girl-20260928-p60zsr.html

https://www.expressen.se/nyheter/krim/18-aringen-misstanks-for-grova-sadistiska-brott/

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‘Exclude her’: British Jews urge UK to bar entry of Australian author over October 7 remarks

David Crowe - September 29, 2026

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London: Britain’s peak Jewish group has urged the UK government to prevent Australian author Randa Abdel-Fattah from visiting the country after an outcry over her past remarks about the October 7, 2023 attacks on Israel.

The Board of Deputies of British Jews said it was concerned at plans for Abdel-Fattah to promote her new novel in the UK when she had previously described the Hamas attacks as “exhilarating” and a sign of hope.

“At a time when Jewish communities are remembering the victims of 7 October, providing a platform to someone who has spoken of that day in such terms is profoundly insensitive,” the board said.

“We urge the Home Secretary [Shabana Mahmood] to use her powers to exclude her from the UK.”

The statement heightens the debate about the author’s visit next week after a Conservative Party frontbencher, Chris Philp, called on the UK government to consider refusing or cancelling any visa or travel clearance she might have.

Mahmood has not made any public comment on the case but the Home Office said it was committed to “rooting out antisemitism” and anyone spreading hatred.

Abdel-Fattah, who is Palestinian-Australian, was dropped from the Adelaide Writers’ Week this year due to her remarks about Israel, leading 180 writers to quit the literary festival.

While South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas strongly criticised Abdel-Fattah, the Adelaide Festival board later apologised to the author and offered her a place at its 2027 events.

The controversy centres on social media posts and statements by Abdel-Fattah about the October 7 attacks, when Hamas crossed into Israel and killed 1195 people. Those killed included 36 children and hundreds of adult civilians, such as 364 people attending the Nova music festival.

Survivors of the attack reported sexual violence against victims, but Abdel-Fattah dismissed this as “rape atrocity propaganda” despite a detailed investigation reporting a pattern of rape, mutilation and extreme brutality against women on the day.

Hamas is listed by Australia and other nations as a terrorist organisation.

One year after the October 7 attacks, Abdel-Fattah wrote about the events using messages that described it in positive terms.

“If you ask me about hope, there was a glimmer on October 7,” she wrote. “It was palpable, real, and exhilarating. If you ask me about confusion, fear, and expectations, they were there in the early hours and days.”

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Abdel-Fattah’s novel, Discipline, concerns the personal and public debates about Israel and Palestine and is published outside Australia by London publisher Oneworld.

The writer is due to speak at events in the UK and Ireland from Wednesday night, although Cambridge University’s Newnham College Literary Festival chose in early September to cancel her planned appearance. Oneworld lists five speaking events in Dublin, Manchester and London.

Philp wrote to Mahmood on Sunday to ask her to look at ways to stop the book tour going ahead, although he said this would depend upon the legal power to do so.

“The government cannot say that it is determined to confront extremism while failing to scrutinise overseas speakers whose rhetoric appears to celebrate or excuse the events of October 7 and refuse to describe a proscribed terrorist organisation for what they are,” he wrote.

“The timing makes this visit particularly concerning. Ms Abdel-Fattah’s tour falls around the anniversary of the October 7 atrocities, at a time when British Jewish communities continue to face acute security.

“I therefore urge you to review Ms Abdel-Fattah’s case as a matter of urgency and, if the relevant legal threshold is met, refuse or cancel any Electronic Travel Authorisation, entry clearance or other permission required for her to enter the UK.”

Abdel-Fattah made a brief remark on Instagram when the Cambridge festival stopped plans for her appearance this month: “Another literary festival, another cancellation.”

She has not made any public response to Philp’s request for her to be banned from Britain, and she could not be reached by this masthead. Oneworld did not respond to a request for comment.

In her response in January to the Adelaide Festival, however, she argued for the right of authors to speak despite attempts to silence them.

“To be Palestinian in this world is to confront the violence of erasure, gaslighting and dehumanisation over and over again,” she wrote.

“It is heartbreaking to think about the lost opportunities that marginalised and debut writers will face with such boycotts, especially in circumstances when so many had debut books.

“We must do everything we can to hold decision makers accountable for callously abdicating their duty of care towards us all.”

https://www.theage.com.au/world/europe/exclude-her-british-jews-urge-uk-to-bar-entry-for-australian-author-over-october-7-remarks-20260929-p61189.html

https://qresear.ch/?q=Randa+Abdel-Fattah

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In a lengthy blog post, OpenAI apologised for the Medicare breach and revealed how its models also hacked into NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research, Victorian Department of Health and the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. It said its chief strategy officer Jason Kwon will attend the Senate inquiry next week.

“During internal training and evaluation in June, we were running an experimental, internal-only OpenAI model that was not intended for public release and without the full set of safeguards used in our publicly available products. In the course of this training and evaluation, it accessed Services Australia’s Medicare Statistics Reporting Service. Our review to date has found no evidence that anyone’s medical records were accessed,” OpenAI said.

“When we do internal training and evaluation on our models, we assign them tasks drawn from a broad collection of research questions spanning many subjects, reflecting the kinds of detailed questions users might ask. This trains a model to find, interpret and analyse publicly available information so the model can be more useful to people. Our models are supposed to answer these questions using publicly published statistics.”

Open AI said one of the tasks assigned to the model was to research government spending per person on medicines for skin conditions in Victorian communities.

“The model had difficulty obtaining that information, and it took actions that we had not authorised it to take. In the course of looking for this information at Services Australia’s Medicare Statistics Reporting Service, it discovered a way to gain non-public access to the service.

“It then used this access to review technical system information and source code related to the service – all still with the objective of trying to find the information it was originally looking for. We did not intend for this activity to occur, and the access to the service and follow-on activity should not have happened.”

Dan Greengarten, chief executive of cybersecurity firm Orro, said agentic AI models given live internet access do not require explicit instructions to breach restricted networks. Instead, they continuously test unconventional methods until they succeed without ever encountering a system command that halts their progress.

“An agent doesn’t go rogue on its own. Someone decides to give an experimental model live internet access and a goal to pursue. The question frontier model providers now need to answer is how those tests are contained, who is accountable when an agent crosses a line, and how quickly affected organisations are told,” Mr Greengarten said.

“This isn’t the first incident of its kind this year and it won’t be the last.”

The SAP report recommended substantial portions of information and communications technology “sustainment” budgets – currently consumed by the upkeep of ageing legacy platforms – be directed towards sovereign cloud migration.

“Sovereign cloud is not just about where data sits. It’s about who controls it, protects it and how confidently government and industry can modernise and innovate knowing their digital foundations are secure and compliant,” SAP Australia New Zealand managing director Angela Colantuono said.

“For citizens and businesses that provides a greater sense of trust in the security, reliability, and innovation of the digital services they depend on every day.”

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/technology/openai-apologises-for-medicare-hack-amid-warnings-over-australias-vulnerable-government-systems/news-story/de7c78c907462bcdea089c63be9eace0

https://openai.com/index/how-we-will-do-better-for-australia/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7fCSlacIHCg

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Ben Roberts-Smith and Anthony Albanese likely to cross paths at war service

Victoria Cross awardee Ben Roberts-Smith was granted permission today to attend a National Commemorative Service marking the twenty-fifth anniversary of war, an event the Prime Minister is expected to speak at.

Aaron Patrick - 29 September 2026

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Ben Roberts-Smith was today granted permission by a judge to attend a major service for the Afghanistan War, where Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is expected to pay tribute to veterans who fought Australia’s longest military conflict.

The approval of changes to Mr Roberts-Smith’s bail conditions - he has been charged with five counts of the war crime of murder - was necessary to allow for the former Special Air Service Regiment corporal to attend the National Commemorative Service at the Australian War Memorial, where his Victoria Cross for valour is displayed.

Mr Albanese has agreed to speak at what could be the largest single gathering of veterans, outside of Anzac Day, of a war that some believe has been overshadowed by allegations special forces soldiers executed prisoners. Mr Albanese was aware when he accepted the invitation that Mr Roberts-Smith was likely be present.

The prosecution of Mr Roberts-Smith and former SAS colleague Oliver Schulz has become a political debate too, potentially making Mr Roberts-Smith’s presence a focus of resentment among some veterans towards the decision by the government to allocate $300 million over 10 years investigating and prosecuting them.

Another potential attendee at the commemoration, Liberal MP and former SAS officer Andrew Hastie has acknowledged he cooperated with military lawyers and journalists who investigated Mr Roberts-Smith out of what he described as respect for the law and the regiment’s honour.

Mr Hastie’s office did not respond when asked if he planned to attend the service in Canberra to mark the twenty-fifth anniversary of the start of the war. He recently said he does not expect to give evidence in Mr Roberts-Smith’s murder trial.

Respect and gratitude

The October 11 event has been organised to allow Australian Defence Force personnel, veterans, families and the public to pay their respects to the 47 personnel who died as a result of their service in Afghanistan, the 263 Australians wounded and the estimated 26,000 to 30,000 who directly participated in what were called Operation Slipper and Operation Highroad.

“The 25th anniversary commemoration offers all Australians an opportunity to express their respect and gratitude to those who put themselves in harm’s way,” the Australian War Memorial’s notice of the event says.

The event will be held from 10am to 11.30am. At 4.30pm a Last Post ceremony will be held at the War Memorial’s commemorative courtyard in honour of the soldiers who died in Afghanistan and whose subsequent deaths were attributed to the war. Five were members of the SAS: Andrew Russell, Matthew Locke, Sean McCarthy, Jason Brown and Blaine Diddams.

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During a 12-minute hearing at a local court in central Sydney, Mr Roberts-Smith appeared over video from his Brisbane home. Wearing a white, open-necked shirt, he only spoke twice, to confirm he could hear and see what was going on in the court and to acknowledge Judge Susan Horan’s decision.

The federal Director of Public Prosecutions did not oppose Mr Roberts-Smith’s request to fly to Canberra on Saturday, October 10, and return the following day, barrister Sean Flood SC said. Under his bail conditions, Mr Roberts-Smith’s travel is severely limited and he is not allowed to communicate with other veterans who could be witnesses in the case against him.

He is required to tell the Office of the Special Investigator, which has investigated him for five years, what flight he is taking to Canberra and where he will stay. A clause was added to his bail conditions protecting him from arrest if he inadvertently comes into contact with potential witnesses.

“He is not to discuss or communicate about any aspect of the current prosecution against him or Oliver Schulz other than to lawyers or his immediate family,” Judge Horan said in court. “The variation is granted. All other conditions remain the same.”

Mr Roberts-Smith replied: “Yes, your honour.”

The only other time Mr Roberts-Smith received permission to attend a public event outside of Queensland was for the opening of an extension to the Australian War Memorial on June 23. With his presence expected to dominate coverage of the event, he pulled out at the last minute, citing illness.

He has not been required to enter a plea but has strongly defended himself against the charges, which are based on confessions by other SAS soldiers who said they executed prisoners, according to court documents. No date has been set for his trial, which could be years away.

The charges against were approved by Labor Attorney-General Michelle Rowland this year under laws introduced by the Howard Coalition Government in 2002. Mr Roberts-Smith was arrested at Sydney Airport in front of his family on April 7. Prosecutors have said they will seek life sentences.

After quickly approving the changes to his bail, Judge Horan considered a separate application covering legal orders preventing the media from identifying some planned witnesses.

https://thenightly.com.au/australia/ben-roberts-smith-and-anthony-albanese-likely-to-cross-paths-at-war-service–c-22940579

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‘Bike boy’ Ryan Meuleman warned after bid to downplay toddler carjacking

MOHAMMAD ALFARES - 29 September 2026

The accused thief attempting to sue former Victorian premier Daniel Andrews for defamation was told his bid to downplay an alleged child carjacking was “not good enough”.

Ryan Meuleman, 28, is facing possible jail time after being charged with carjacking a mother and her twin toddlers while wearing only his underwear and a hoodie.

He is expected to plead guilty to burglary and theft before sentencing.

His lawyer, Tom Smedley, said his client had spent around five months in custody since being charged.

During a brief summary argument on Tuesday, Mr Smedley described the alleged offending as “opportunistic, brazen and unsophisticated”, and said the value of the items taken in a separate burglary was low.

But Victorian magistrate Samantha Seoud raised concerns about the more serious elements involving an incident in which police say Mr Meuleman tried to steal a $50,000 Kia while young children were inside.

Ms Seoud said the force and violence alleged in the incident indicated the matter could be too serious for the lower court jurisdiction.

The court heard a woman was sitting in her idling car outside a Pakenham laundromat on May 3 with her three-year-old twins when the accused thief allegedly jumped into the driver’s seat. Police say the pair struggled over the gear stick before Mr Meuleman drove the car a short distance.

The woman’s husband heard her cries for help and intervened, pulling the alleged carjacker from the Kia Sportage and holding him until police arrived. The incident was captured on CCTV footage.

“It (the police summary) says that he used both hands to overpower her (the victim) … not the gear stick,” Ms Seoud said.

“I’m stuck on the carjacking elements – this is where I think your application is going to fall short … it’s not good enough to turn up and say it’s just a carjacking with two kids in the back.

“It’s very serious.”

Mr Meuleman was already on bail, charged with commercial burglary and theft, when the alleged incident occurred.

His lawyer said the carjacking allegation was not put on the basis of violence against a person, arguing any struggle was centred on the car’s gear stick rather than the occupants.

He also told the court Mr Meuleman’s offending was linked to a spiral in mental health and drug use, and that he was detoxing in custody.

The matter was adjourned until next week.

Mr Meuleman became known as “bike boy” when, as a teenager in 2013, he was seriously injured in a collision with a Ford Territory driven by Mr Andrews’ wife, Catherine.

Mr Andrews, opposition leader at the time, was also in the car.

About 13 years on, the fallout from the incident continues, with Mr Meuleman in the middle of legal action he lodged against the couple in the Federal Court, alleging they defamed him in a 2024 media statement.

Mr and Ms Andrews are defending the Federal Court defamation claim and have always denied any wrongdoing in relation to the 2013 collision.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/bike-boy-ryan-meuleman-warned-after-bid-to-downplay-toddler-carjacking/news-story/0f89dd11e49bf161755a4e54f289a90b

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‘Show trial’: Pro-Palestine group says royal commission blocked it from testifying

JAMES DOWLING - 29 September 2026

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Australia’s most prolific pro-Palestine group says it lobbied to appear before the antisemitism royal commission and was repeatedly knocked back, matching calls from Jewish leaders, senior judicial figures, politicians and national security experts that protest leaders should be compelled to give evidence.

The Palestine Action Group, which held weekly anti-Israel rallies for more than a year after the October 7 Hamas attacks, told The Australian it had sought a substantial role in the Antisemitism and Social Cohesion Royal Commission’s proceedings but was granted permission to enter only a single witness statement.

In its one appearance during the hearings, rather than sitting in the witness box, its lawyers were given an opportunity to grill a Jewish community leader on Israeli military tactics.

The activists are planning their next major demonstration for four days after the three-year commemoration of the terror attack on southern Israel that killed more than 1200 Israelis.

PAG’s demand to play an ­active role in the inquiry aligned with demands of some of its most strident critics, who argued its members should have been publicly scrutinised by the royal commission.

After questions were put to organiser Josh Lees, who jointly co-ordinated the group’s march across the Sydney Harbour Bridge last year, a spokesperson said PAG was frustrated it was “given very little opportunity to respond and correct the record” at the inquiry.

“The Palestine Action Group made multiple submissions to the royal commission, sought to give evidence, and our legal team sought much greater leave to appear and cross-examine witnesses,” the spokesperson told The Australian.

“Despite this, and the extensive discussion of and false accusations made against the Palestine solidarity movement in the commission, we were given very little opportunity to respond and correct the record, with the commission accepting just one witness statement into evidence and granting our lawyers leave to cross-examine for just one day.”

The group called former High Court Justice Virginia Bell’s inquiry a “show trial”.

It will hold a rally marking “three years of genocide and resistance” on October 11 at Sydney’s Hyde Park. The group last year tried and failed to organise a march in the days after the October 7 anniversary outside the Sydney Opera House.

Lawyers for PAG used their one day of cross-examination to question then-NSW Jewish Board of Deputies chief David Ossip on the scale and timing of Israel’s initial military retaliation on Gaza. It caused acrimony among Jewish community figures, with Ms Bell vigorously denying an accusation by Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-chief Alex Ryvchin that she had let PAG and APAN “hijack” her inquiry.

Mr Lees said the group had not been contacted by the commission since public hearings wrapped last month. He claimed had been directed not to share PAG’s witness statement publicly.

“Unfortunately, the royal commission has played out as a farce, a show trial of the Palestine movement designed to falsely conflate opposition to the genocide in Gaza, and opposition to the state of Israel carrying it out, with antisemitism,” the spokesperson said.

“We are determined to defend our democratic rights to protest and oppose genocide, and we oppose the authoritarian demands which have been raised by the pro-Israel lobby to censor or ban anti-genocide speech in our ­public domain, institutions and the media.”

(continued)

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The October 11 rally will be timed alongside demonstrations in other state and regional capitals.

Its demands include expelling Israeli ambassador Hillel Newman, launching war crime investigations against Israel Defence Forces soldiers in Australia, and dropping criminal charges against protesters from February’s demonstration against visiting Israeli President Isaac Herzog and the 12 activists taken to court after clashing with police at the Indo Pacific International defence expo last November.

It will be held four days after Jewish and Israeli community groups commemorate the October 7 attack at a dawn memorial service.

Many of Ms Bell’s critics say the absence of protest leaders from the commission’s witness list was a glaring oversight, and clamoured at the end of its public hearings last month for Ms Bell to request a substantial extension in order to put alleged perpetrators of antisemitism in the witness box.

Former disability royal commission chair Ronald Sackville said the commission’s examination of protests lacked “any depth”, while senior Jewish MP Julian Leeser said: “The problem with failing to call people to account is it sends a signal to the protest organisers … (that) there’s no consequence at all.”

Students for Palestine organiser Yasmine Johnson was one of the few anti-Israel advocates called before the inquiry and gave evidence during its analysis of antisemitism on university campuses.

In her appearance she denied racism or antisemitism by student activists at pro-Palestine campus encampments nationwide and defended using the chants “Globalise the intifada” and “There’s only one solution, intifada revolution”, despite acknowledging the history of intifada violence.

“I don’t hold movements for the justice of the oppressed to a standard that says there can never be any violence,” she said.

“The intifadas were acts of mass resistance by Palestinians to their oppression.”

Ms Bell pointed to the history of terror­ist violence used in the second intifada, suggesting it muddied suggestions the slogan was peaceful.

Ms Johnson said: “In a context where Palestinians have been put in a concentration camp in Gaza, or at the time where we’re facing massive oppression in Gaza and the expansion of settlements in the West Bank, that intifada was also a legitimate act of resistance by a people under occupation.”

Counsel assisting the commission Richard Lancaster also cited a portion of a submission from Jewish pro-Palestine activist Judith Treanor in an opening preamble ahead of the protest hearing when Mr Ossip was questioned.

The commission declined to comment.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/show-trial-propalestine-group-says-royal-commission-blocked-it-from-testifying/news-story/f5582e187c9c4472e5128d8eef998f34

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Pentagon says expanded Australian footprint will deter China

JOE KELLY - 30 September 2026

The Pentagon is linking an expansion of US military access in Australia to efforts to deter China in the Indo-Pacific and lists the signing of a new agreement with Canberra as a “historic breakthrough” that will strengthen American “access, basing and overflight” rights in the region.

An update on the implementation of the 2026 National Defence Strategy submitted this month to the Senate armed services committee by the Defence Under Secretary Elbridge Colby says department is “making important progress” with Australia.

The update frames Australia as having an increasingly important role in the administration’s Indo-Pacific strategy, but warns the performance of the US submarine industrial base underpinning the AUKUS agreement has fallen badly behind schedule.

In the document, Mr Colby – who oversaw the Pentagon’s review of AUKUS – says the Trump administration continues to “strengthen deterrence by denial” along the “first island chain” to ensure that conflict with Beijing remains “infeasible”, “unattractive” and “irrational”.

However, he stressed that the signing of a new “agreed facilities and access memorandum of understanding [MoU]” with Australia “significantly increases US access”.

The MoU was framed as a “milestone” that would improve American’s “ability to posture US forces during peacetime, crisis and conflict”.

It comes after Defence Minister Richard Marles and US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth met on September 2 at the Pentagon and agreed to “accelerate force posture initiatives at Australian bases, bolster co-operation in combined logistics and build greater interoperability through joint exercises”.

Following the meeting, Mr Marles said that he talked about “expanding the breadth and the complexity of what we’re already doing in relation to force posture”, but said he would have more to say at the upcoming AUSMIN meetings.

Mr Colby informed the Senate armed services committee that the administration had “made significant progress on burden-sharing in the Indo-Pacific” and made clear Donald Trump’s directive to proceed “full-steam ahead” on AUKUS – the trilateral security partnership between the US, the UK and Australia.

“With the Department of War’s AUKUS review and its recommendations as a road map, that is precisely what we and our Australian counterparts are doing,” he said. “Under AUKUS Pillar I, the department is laser focused on establishing Submarine Rotational Force-West (SRF-West) and rotating US Virginia-class submarines to Western Australia, beginning next year.”

He noted that in May, Mr Hegseth and Mr Marles had concluded a cost-sharing arrangement to “secure more than $5bn in Australian infrastructure support to the US rotational submarine presence at SRF-West”.

But Mr Colby also acknowledged the ongoing challenges for the US in providing Australia with three Virginia-class submarines from the early 2030s.

He noted that US shipyards were delivering Virginia-class boats at about half the rate needed to meet America’s own requirements – far below the 2.33 submarines a year needed to meet its AUKUS Pillar 1 obligations.

Further confirmation was provided in his update to the committee that the timeline to lift production of Virginia-class submarines to two per year had slipped by about four years – with this target not to be reached until 2032.

“Virginia-class deliveries have run at roughly 1.1 to 1.2 boats per year since 2022, against a requirement of 2.0 for US needs alone and approximately 2.33 to also meet AUKUS Pillar 1 obligations,” he said.

“The Congressional Budget Office has reported construction running an average of about four years late against originally contracted delivery dates, with delays not materially improving despite substantial industrial-base investment.

“The two-per-year rate is not now expected until approximately 2032, a slip from earlier goals.”

The update provided by Mr Colby listed the administration’s top objectives as defending the US homeland; deterring China in the Indo-Pacific; increasing burden sharing with US allies; and supercharging the US defence industrial base.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/pentagon-says-expanded-australian-footprint-will-deter-china/news-story/7cd0df6953ea6db91688879c6bf245ae

>>25032096

Charge dropped against Chinese national accused of foreign interference

Peter Lusted - 30 September 2026

One of three Chinese nationals accused of foreign interference has had the charge against him dropped by a Canberra court.

The 26-year-old man, whose name was suppressed, was charged in February with one count of reckless foreign interference by the Australian Counter Foreign Interference Taskforce.

He was accused of covertly collecting information about the Canberra branch of Guan Yin Citta, a Buddhist group that is banned in China.

He was one of three Chinese nationals who were arrested over the matter.

But his charge was dropped in the ACT Magistrates Court this morning.

Two women remain accused

Two women in their 30s are still facing charges, with their matters due to return to court in December.

One of the women, 32-year-old Siru Zheng, was also arrested in February and charged with reckless foreign interference.

Both Ms Zheng and the man were allegedly linked to another woman, now 38, who was arrested last year on the same charge. She is now also facing another charge of intentional foreign interference.

News of the alleged spy operation broke last year when police searched the older woman's home, revealing six Hermes handbags worth tens of thousands of dollars, a Rolex watch receipt for $24,000, and large quantities of goods from luxury brands including Burberry, Gucci, and Lois Vuitton.

Court documents released in February showed the police case relied heavily on communications via the encrypted messaging app WeChat between the accused and an official working for China's Public Security Bureau.

Police allege the older woman, who is also an Australian permanent resident, first contacted the other woman and the man from China in May 2022, giving them a list of targets about which to gather information within the Buddhist group.

Police said the man asked what topics he should investigate and the woman replied: "All of them".

"Get to investigating immediately. The priority is to investigate the current status of the Guan Yin Citta and their official site," she said.

Messages showed they were also asked to investigate the response to the 2021 death of Guan Yin Citta's leader, Chinese-born Australian Richard Jin Hong Lu.

The contact from China also urged them to come up with street addresses for people linked to the Buddhist group.

The two women are free on bail.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-09-30/charges-against-alleged-chinese-spy-dropped/107211166

>>25077571

DAVID BRAT OFFICIALLY ASSUMES DUTIES AS U.S. AMBASSADOR TO AUSTRALIA

U.S. EMBASSY IN CANBERRA - SEPTEMBER 30, 2026

The U.S. Embassy and Consulates in Australia welcome Ambassador David Brat as he officially begins his role as President Trump’s representative in Canberra.

Ambassador Brat presented his credentials on September 29 to the Governor-General, Her Excellency Sam Mostyn AC in a ceremony at Government House in Canberra.

His priorities in Australia are to deepen the defense relationship, advance the AUKUS pact, strengthen cooperation on critical minerals, and expand trade and investment.

In his first official act, Ambassador Brat paid tribute to Australian service men and women by laying a wreath at the Australian War Memorial, reflecting upon more than a century of shared service and sacrifice.

“Australia has been our closest ally and friend for generations. It’s an honor to visit such an awe-inspiring tribute as Ambassador,” he said.

“U.S. and Australian soldiers have fought side-by-side and stood shoulder-to-shoulder for decades in times of war and times of peace. I look forward to furthering our longstanding defense partnership during my posting to Australia.”

Last night, Ambassador Brat hosted a reception for the finalists of the 2026 AmCham Alliance Awards, which recognize industry leaders and innovators contributing to the U.S.-Australia alliance.

“Our two nations are investing in each other more than ever before, and our economic ties have never been stronger,” Ambassador Brat said. “Maintaining this momentum by delivering on commercial deals is a top priority for President Trump.”

“It was wonderful to host these AmCham Alliance Award finalists from a wide variety of sectors, including technology, cyber security, energy, and space.”

Ambassador Brat previously served as Senior Vice President of Business Relations at Liberty University and was a two-term Congressman, elected as the U.S. Representative for Virginia’s 7th Congressional District, serving from 2014 to 2019.

He said he looks forward to meeting with government, business, and industry leaders, as well as everyday Aussies across the country – with a particular focus on our sports ties.

“Both of our nations are crazy about sports, and I can’t wait to get out there, whether it’s tennis, NRL, AFL, rugby, or cricket,” he said.

“I’m excited to meet Australians from all walks of life, and cannot wait to meet face to face.”

https://au.usembassy.gov/david-brat-officially-assumes-duties-as-u-s-ambassador-to-australia/

https://x.com/USEmbAustralia/status/2105181451985854515

>>25067394

Alleged ISIS support network emerges during Mohamed Bakit bail hearing

LIAM BEATTY - 1 October 2026

Details of an alleged Australian ISIS support network have surfaced in a Melbourne court, as a 65-year-old man accused of sharing thousands of extremist files seeks bail.

Mohamed Musse Bakit, 65, was arrested and charged by the Victorian Joint Counter Terrorism Team (JCTT) after allegedly distributing thousands of files of extremist material online.

Mr Bakit appeared in the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court on Thursday where he is seeking to be released on bail to his home in Carlton.

Police allege Mr Bakit was a pledged member of Islamic State between December 2018 and April 2020, and was the “most active contributor” to a WhatsApp group where he posted extremist material including propaganda, execution videos and content “glorifying” the terror organisation.

During the hearing, Australian Federal Police detective senior constable Katharine Dillon said the WhatsApp group was alleged to have been created in 2014 by Queenslander Dr Omar Elamin and the “majority” of members were from Queensland.

Dr Elamin, the court was told, was believed to have travelled to Libya in 2016 to join Islamic State.

No charges have been laid against Dr Elamin and he is believed to still be overseas.

Constable Dillion said there was an ongoing effort by the JCTT to contact alleged members of the WhatsApp group in Queensland, whom she described as “sympathisers or supporters” with Islamic State as opposed to avowed members.

No charges have been laid against any other members of the group, the court was told.

The officer said Mr Bakit first came to the attention of authorities in December 2020 when his phone and other devices were searched by the Australian Border force before he boarded a flight to Egypt.

It’s alleged officers found a recording of a preacher “advocating jihad” on a USB, with the accused man explaining he’d received the USB from a person at the Kuraby Mosque in Queensland.

On his return to Australia in June the following year, it’s alleged he acknowledged the lectures could be seen as extremist, and said he’d been given them by a “doctor in Brisbane”.

Mr Bakit allegedly said he was a participant in a WhatsApp group around the “plight of Sunni Muslims” and supported ISIS “insofar as it opposed” the Assad regime in Syria, Constable Dillion said.

Police allege Mr Bakit and Dr Elamin remained in contact between 2014 and 2017, with the accused man replying to a post in the WhatsApp group about Dr Elamin’s travel to Libya with “Allah is the greatest” and “Omar has won”.

“These communications demonstrate support for Elamin and his efforts overseas,” Constable Dillion alleged.

It’s alleged Mr Bakit was a prolific poster in the WhatsApp group, sharing almost 10,000 images, videos, audio recordings and documents between 2016 and 2019.

These allegedly included official ISIS propaganda and publications, sermons from extremist preachers and videos of the execution of hostages and suicide bombings.

Within the group, it’s alleged other’s praised Mr Bakit as “our esteemed brother” and “the voice that shouts the truth”.

During a raid on his home in July 2024, extremist material was allegedly found on his phone, including the infamous 2004 beheading of United States national Nicholas Bird.

Under cross-examination from Mr Bakit’s barrister Michael McGrath, Constable Dillion confirmed Mr Bakit had denied ever pledging allegiance to Islamic State or being a member.

She agreed there was no evidence Mr Bakit had shared any extremist material in the past eight years or that she could say when the material was allegedly downloaded on his phone.

Constable Dillion also agreed Mr Bakit had remained “at liberty” in the community, with no further alleged offences, since July 2024 while also voluntarily participating in two police interviews.

Arguing in support of bail, Mr McGrath said there were “triable issues” with each of the charges his client is facing, including whether he’d actually pledged allegiance to Islamic State as opposed to sharing a “pro forma” pledge within a group of like-minded people.

He said Mr Bakit had suffered serious and permanent disability requiring care following a stroke in 2023 and had other health conditions including heart disease.

Deputy Chief Magistrate Gerard Lethbridge said he would hand down his decision on bail next week.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/latest-news/alleged-whatsapp-group-of-islamic-state-supporters-raised-during-bail-application-for-alleged-terror-group-member-mohamed-bakit/news-story/d42c107738346b9155a16ba748e694a8

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‘In prison by Christmas’: One Nation attacks Andrews, Allan in campaign launch

Patrick Hatch - October 3, 2026

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A prominent One Nation Victorian candidate has threatened to jail former premiers Daniel Andrews and Jacinta Allan “by Christmas” if the insurgent right-wing party wins November’s state election.

The pledge by Mark Nicholson – mirroring Donald Trump’s promise to “lock up” Hillary Clinton – was met with rapturous applause by a crowd of about 750 party faithful at One Nation’s campaign launch at the Crown Conference Centre in Southbank on Saturday.

Party founder Pauline Hanson helped present the 112 candidates who will contest every lower house and upper house seat in the November 28 poll, while railing against the legacy of 12 years of Labor government.

A 63-page policy document, titled The Real Deal, outlines One Nation’s plan to make Victoria the toughest state on crime, repeal a raft of taxes, cancel the Suburban Rail Loop, rip up the Treaty with First Nations Victorians, and roll back renewable energy projects while lifting the state’s ban on nuclear power.

The party is yet to produce costings for any of its policies, as major parties typically do.

In a slickly produced event, One Nation’s leading candidates adopted a revolutionary tone.

Victorian leader Warren Pickering – who has long history of endorsing conspiracy theories and railing against the influence of foreign “globalists” – said the upcoming election was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to change the course of Australian politics.

“This is an opportunity to shape the established order to its core,” he said. “We are ready to take this state back and put it into the hands of those who built it. We must assume control of our own destiny here in Victoria.”

Nicholson, the creator of One Nation’s online cartoon series and their lead candidate for the Northern Metropolitan upper house region, said that “heads are going to roll” should the party win power.

“Dan Andrews, Jacinta Allan – they’re going to be in prison by Christmas,” he said. “This is a revolution. This is a movement. And this is how, together, we can take Victoria back.”

Hanson meanwhile invoked the state’s history as a place of anti-government rebellion.

“This is the state of Ned Kelly. This is the state of the Eureka Stockade, where the miners at Ballarat raised a flag, drew a line in the sand, and told the government, their government: enough,” she said.

In a speech laden with nostalgia for a bygone era, Hanson mourned the decline of Victoria’s manufacturing and automotive industries, drawing heavy applause.

“I remember how strong and prosperous Victoria once was,” she said. “But that was a long time ago.”

The latest Resolve Political Monitor, conducted for The Age, showed One Nation attracting 23 per cent of first preference votes in Victoria. Labor was polling at 25 per cent and the Coalition at 28 per cent.

If repeated on the November 28 election, that support would likely result in One Nation winning eight upper house seats – possibly giving it the balance of power – and potentially several lower house seats.

One Nation has only ever won one seat in Victoria’s parliament, with Rikkie-Lee Tyrrell currently representing the Northern Victoria upper house region.

Nicholson said the party was riding a national wave of support for One Nation, which started with its win in the Farrer byelection and continued with its performance in the South Australia state election.

“And now the orange wave is about to hit Victoria, which will reverberate across the country and build a tsunami that’s about to make its way to Canberra,” he said. “Folks, we’re taking over.”

(continued)

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Hanson and the party’s candidates steered clear of One Nation’s traditional political priority of opposing immigration and multiculturalism, but it was an event that revelled in political incorrectness.

It opened with an AI-produced video including a young black man with a machete, while Nicholson joked about holding a Welcome to Country and sarcastically used the Wurundjeri words Narrm (Melbourne) and Wominjeka (welcome).

One Nation’s policy document proposes boosting police numbers, speeding up the court hearings including by introducing a 24/7 bail court, and introducing harsher sentences for violent crimes.

News crews from the ABC and SBS were refused entry to the campaign launch. The party’s national leadership has banned the public broadcaster and The Guardian from events earlier this year, while it has previously also barred The Age in response to its reporting.

Michael Slezak, the federal president of media at the Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance, said One Nation’s ban on certain news outlets was a threat to press freedom and breached the public’s right to know. “When one of us is attacked with impunity, it sets a new standard of behaviour that will impact us all,” he said.

But while some of the media were barred, prominent neo-Nazi Michael Nelson got inside for the launch.

Nelson, of the now outlawed National Socialist Network, posted pictures on social media from inside the conference hall – past the tight security at the ticketed event – wearing a One Nation cap.

Nelson also tried to gatecrash a Melbourne One Nation fundraiser earlier this year, but that time was twice stopped at the door.

One Nation candidates have previously spoken at March for Australia rallies organised by members of the neo-Nazi group and last month, federal One Nation MP Barnaby Joyce had to brush aside questions after he “inadvertently” bumped into NSN leader Thomas Sewell at a Canberra casino, claiming he didn’t realise who Sewell was until some time into their discussion.

A group of about 30 protesters gathered outside the event at Crown in heavy rain on Saturday.

http://archive.today/i8gRt

Pacific Islands get their climate moment with pre-COP meeting, but the guest list is thin

Peter Hobson - October 2, 2026

CANBERRA, Oct 2 (Reuters) - Australia's efforts to put Pacific island nations at the centre of global climate diplomacy are falling short of ambitions, with few leaders from outside the region planning to attend a gathering in Tuvalu and Fiji next week, diplomats and officials say.

Australia and its Pacific island partners sought to turn the pre-COP conference - a forerunner to the UN's flagship COP31 event - into a headline-grabbing moment when some of the world's most recognisable leaders would visit a tiny atoll threatened by rising seas and extreme weather.

A big event would also help Canberra win favour with island nations and counter Chinese influence in a region that has become a strategic flashpoint.

However, the only leaders from outside the Pacific bloc whose attendance conference organisers have confirmed are those of Antigua and Barbuda, Cabo Verde, Thailand, the Maldives and East Timor.

"We were hoping for more," said Ralph Regenvanu, climate minister of Vanuatu. "It just reflects the lack of attention and priority given to what Pacific nations consider the greatest threat to their future," he told Reuters.

Still, around 30 representatives of countries and institutions will attend the leaders' segment, the Fiji government said, making this the first pre-COP attended by presidents or prime ministers.

"One leader showing up, even from the Pacific, is a big step," said Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr. But he called out countries that want to be Pacific partners and will not attend: "If you're a true partner, then deliver."

While the Australian government has trumpeted the event's importance, opposition parties that have rejected climate action have criticised the meeting and branded the low turnout "a diplomatic disaster."

A spokesperson for Australia's climate ministry said pre-COP would elevate Pacific climate leadership and progress the region's climate goals.

VULNERABILITIES AND SOLUTIONS

Pacific priorities include limiting global warming to 1.5° Celsius above pre-industrial levels to avoid the worst effects of climate change, protecting oceans and greater access to funds to make their land and economies more resilient.

Island governments are seeking donations to a Pacific Resilience Facility that will finance climate projects across the region.

The UN's environment body said last month the world was set to exceed the 1.5-degree target in the coming years, fuelling more extreme weather and intensifying pressure on low-lying communities.

Leaders at pre-COP – which runs from October 5-8 - will spend about a day in Tuvalu, a group of atolls that is home to around 10,000 people, before signing a declaration in Fiji.

Around 4,000 delegates are expected in Fiji, where negotiators will spend several days progressing agreements to be struck at COP31 in Turkey in November.

In Tuvalu, leaders will travel by canoe and see reclaimed land designed to withstand sea-level rise and solar projects to reduce dependence on diesel, Tuvalu Climate Minister Maina Talia said.

"Our fate will be defined by the major polluters," Talia said. "We are hoping the leaders will see our vulnerabilities - but also solutions that will keep us afloat."

Diplomats from several Western nations said they could not justify sending their leaders on a multi-day journey when they would also be expected at COP31 in Turkey weeks later.

While images of leaders in Tuvalu could send a powerful message, Australia seemed more interested in using the event for a diplomatic win than as a means of progressing climate negotiations, one European diplomat said.

Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs did not respond to a request for comment on that criticism.

OUR MOMENT

Australia is the biggest provider of aid in the Pacific but also one of the world's biggest exporters of fossil fuels, shipping coal and liquefied natural gas worth around $100 billion a year.

It continues to approve gas and coal projects despite protest from many Pacific nations.

Palau's Whipps said he would rather Australia benefit from fossil fuels than countries like Russia or Saudi Arabia that he said were less committed to a green transition or supporting vulnerable nations.

"If someone's going to make money, it might as well be Australia," he said.

Australia initially wanted to host COP31 and make it the first 'Pacific COP'. Turkey secured hosting rights, but Canberra is leading negotiations and giving Pacific Islands a bigger role than they typically get.

"The Pacific is doing everything that it can to influence decision makers," said Lynda Tabuya, Fiji's climate minister. "This is our moment."

https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/cop/pacific-islands-get-their-climate-moment-with-pre-cop-meeting-guest-list-is-thin-2026-10-02/

>>25039066

Alleged drug kingpin Arash Ebrahimi Far arrested in Colombia

Cason Ho - 2 October 2026

One of Western Australia's most-wanted and notorious alleged drug kingpins, nicknamed "The Kid", has been detained in Colombia and is awaiting potential extradition, according to authorities.

Arash Ebrahimi Far, an Australian-Iranian national, had been hiding in Colombia since December 2018, according to the National Police of Colombia.

Authorities in Western Australia have been building a case against Mr Ebrahimi Far for years, alleging he was operating a large-scale criminal network and shipping drugs back to WA.

"Finding him is not the hard part, it's bringing him back," WA Police Commissioner Col Blanch told The West Australian newspaper in 2022.

After years of waiting, authorities appear to be on the cusp of bringing the alleged drug baron back to WA to face prosecution.

Wounded by gunfire

In a statement, Colombian police said the Australian Federal Police (AFP) had assisted the Colombian Directorate of Criminal Investigation and Interpol to detain Mr Ebrahimi Far, known in the underworld as "Ash".

"He has been identified as a high-value target by Australian judicial authorities and was the subject of an Interpol Red Notice for drug trafficking and money laundering," the statement said.

Police said they arrested Mr Ebrahimi Far while he was leaving a hospital, where he had received treatment "after being wounded by gunfire".

"The operation took place at a hospital in the municipality of Copacabana … Interpol investigators intercepted alias 'Ash' at the very moment he was trying to leave the medical facility to escape the authorities," police said.

"The fugitive had been receiving medical care after being wounded by gunfire several days earlier, in circumstances that are currently being investigated."

The AFP would not comment on the details of the operation, saying in a statement "arrests in Colombia are a matter for Colombian authorities".

A spokesperson from Attorney General Michelle Rowland's office said the arrest was made "pursuant to an Interpol Red Notice published by Australia".

"The individual is wanted to face prosecution in Australia," the spokesperson said.

"As this matter is currently with Colombian authorities for consideration, it would not be appropriate to comment further."

Top leader in network

Colombian authorities described Mr Ebrahimi Far as one of the "top leaders of a large-scale criminal network".

"This organisation has the capacity to sell and bring in vast quantities of narcotics, as well as handle millions in cash and arsenals of firearms," Colonel Elver Vicente Alfonso Sanabria said.

"To stay off the radar of intelligence agencies, the organisation coordinated its illicit activities through encrypted communication platforms."

Colombian police said Mr Ebrahimi Far would be formally handed over to Australian authorities.

The WA police commissioner vented his frustrations last year at the pace of the extradition process.

"As organised crime becomes so transnational, which it has, and the profits are so large, we are going to see the impact at the downstream affect here in WA," Commissioner Blanch told 102.5 ABC Perth in December.

"I need to make sure that our Commonwealth framework is able to take out those kingpins that are either over east or overseas."

Extradition could be appealed

Australian National University international law professor Donald Rothwell said WA police would need to present evidence to the federal government to argue for extradition.

"It's the Commonwealth government which will ultimately be making the request of, in this case, the Colombian government," he said.

Professor Rothwell said drug crimes were typically recognised across borders, but said Mr Ebrahimi Far could potentially appeal his extradition.

"Anyone who has been arrested and detained and is subject to extradition can seek to challenge that extradition within the national courts of the country where they are," he said.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2026-10-02/alleged-drug-kingpin-arash-ebrahimi-far-arrested-in-colombia/107221142

AFP, ASIO investigate Australian links of accused Flydubai hijacker

Andrew Tillett - Oct 4, 2026

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London | Federal police and ASIO are investigating the co-pilot who allegedly tried to hijack an Israel-bound flight over his time in Australia after it was revealed he studied engineering at a local university.

Multiple international media outlets have identified the co-pilot as Hammam al-Hammami, as more details emerge about his life after last week’s terrifying Flydubai flight.

Disaster was averted on Wednesday after passengers and crew subdued the co-pilot, who had attacked the captain in what Israeli officials said was an apparent attempt to crash the plane carrying more than 170 passengers and crew just over two hours after it took off from Dubai.

Although Emirati authorities and the airline have not publicly identified the attacker, Israeli officials have previously said he is an Omani national. Oman has not commented on the incident.

Both Israel and the UAE have launched investigations into the alleged attempted attack, centring around how al-Hammami was able to be part of the flight crew.

Also being examined are al-Hammami’s motives, whether he had been radicalised and whether he was acting as part of a plot orchestrated by Iran.

A LinkedIn profile seen by several US media outlets before it was deleted said al-Hammami had previously studied engineering at an Australian university. The profile said he had studied at RMIT University in Victoria, according to the New York Times.

The Australian Financial Review has not been able to independently verify the claim and the university declined to comment because of the investigation, referring inquiries to the Australian Federal Police.

The Federal Police said in a statement that the Victorian Joint Counter Terrorism Team, made up of the AFP, Victoria Police and ASIO, were investigating the man’s links to Australia.

The Financial Review has been told by a source familiar with al-Hammami case’s but not authorised to speak publicly that he had been granted a student visa in 2014, and it was ended in 2019 after routine checks found he had left Australia.

When asked about the investigation, Victorian Premier Ben Carroll said he had not been briefed on the potential connections to the state.

“It’s concerning, and I will follow that up as a matter of priority,” he said. “I met with the prime minister last week, and will always continue to work with our law enforcement agencies to keep Victoria safe.”

Al-Hammami, 29, also studied remotely at a university in Britain and spent time in Syria, where his mother comes from.

Citing sources speaking anonymously, CNN reported al-Hammami had been removed from a previous job flying for Oman Air last year because of concerns he harboured extremist views. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the co-pilot had undergone “Islamist radical indoctrination”.

Captain, passengers hailed as heroes

Al-Hammami is accused of attacking the flight’s captain over Jordanian airspace before plunging the plane into a rapid nosedive plummeting 16,625 feet (5000m) in just over 30 seconds according to flight radar data.

A badly wounded Captain Smit Machchhar and several Israeli passengers on board the flight have been hailed as heroes for managing to wrestle back control of the plane from Al-Hammami and preventing what could have been a mass murder. Two off-duty pilots on the plane managed an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia despite the force ripping the rudder off the plane’s tail.

“Investigations into the incident involving Flydubai flight FZ1073 found that the co-pilot had attempted to carry out a terrorist attack,” prosecutor general Hamad Saif Al Shamsi said in a statement carried by the UAE’s state news agency.

The co-pilot attacked the pilot inside the cockpit with a crash axe and attempted to take control of the aircraft, the prosecutor general said. A crash axe is typically kept in the cockpit for use during emergencies such as crashes.

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The investigation into flight FZ1073, including the suspect’s motives, was continuing, and the findings would be released once the “necessary procedures” had been completed, the prosecutor general said.

The UAE is leading the investigation. Flydubai is the low-cost offshoot of Emirates and owned by Dubai’s government.

The prosecutor general’s comments were the first by Emirati investigators to describe the incident as an attempted terrorist attack. Following the release of the prosecutor general’s statement, Anwar Gargash, a senior adviser to the UAE president, said on X that the Gulf country had zero tolerance for terrorism and would show no leniency towards extremist rhetoric.

Flydubai said the circumstances surrounding the incident were still under investigation and that it was not in a position to comment further, a spokesperson said on Saturday.

In his first public comments on the incident, Flydubai chief executive Ghaith al Ghaith said on Friday that the flight diverted after a “safety incident” inside the cockpit.

The co-pilot was transferred from Saudi Arabia to Abu Dhabi on Thursday. A source briefed on the investigation told Reuters on Friday that Israeli officials were expected to question the co-pilot in the UAE. The source declined to say which Israeli agency or authority would take part.

An Israeli government official told Reuters on Friday that Israeli investigators would take part in the UAE-led investigation alongside Emirati authorities, seeking to determine what happened and examine the suspect’s motives and background.

Under protocols between Israel and the UAE, foreign nationals of countries which do not have diplomatic relations with Israel, which includes Oman, are not allowed to fly aircraft on routes to and from Israel.

It was not clear how the co-pilot came to be assigned to the flight to Tel Aviv, posing questions for both the airline and Israeli security and transport agencies.

On Friday, Netanyahu said Israel was looking into whether the co-pilot had acted under anyone’s direction, warning that anyone involved would pay a “heavy price”.

https://www.afr.com/world/middle-east/flydubai-co-pilot-used-axe-in-attempted-terrorist-attack-uae-says-20261003-p612ly

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/03/world/middleeast/oman-flydubai-flight-1073-pilot-radicalized.html

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Unlock AUKUS Act: Inside the push for Australia to supply world’s most lethal weapons

A bill in Congress aims to speed up sharing of knowledge of cutting-edge drones and arms, and open the door to Australia exporting home-made weapons.

Jessica Gardner - Oct 4, 2026

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US Congress is pushing ahead to give the green light to seamless sharing of knowledge of American cutting-edge drones and missiles with Australia so the hardware can eventually be made on Australian soil and sold to Western allies, including the United States.

At the urging of the Australian government and the embassy in Washington, and with the support of State Department officials, almost two dozen bipartisan politicians have sponsored a bill to speed up the transfer.

The push comes as US President Donald Trump’s seven-month war in Iran has chewed through weapons stocks, causing alarm in some quarters of Washington about the military’s ability to respond to other conflicts.

The US administration has also urged allies to lift defence spending and bolster their own capabilities, which is seeding a global military manufacturing renaissance as governments seek resilience amid increased uncertainty and a disrupted world order.

The Unlock AUKUS Act, which passed the House in July but has not been reported on, removes export controls on highly destructive hardware, such as long-range guided missiles, autonomous drones and hypersonic propulsion technologies that allow weapons to fly at five times the speed of sound.

The red-tape-cutting exercise aims to fast track collaboration on weapons development between Australia, the United Kingdom and the US to deter Beijing’s ambitions in the Indo-Pacific. But it may also spur export opportunities for Australia’s fledgling $12 billion defence industry.

American Enterprise Institute senior fellow Zack Cooper said the broader AUKUS defence pact had strong support in Congress and there was appetite to put a rocket under pillar two. This initiative aims to foster collaboration on high-tech defence applications, but has struggled for relevance and attention alongside the costlier and more controversial first pillar focus on submarines.

“There’s a desire to accelerate what we’re doing, especially under pillar two,” said Cooper, a national security scholar focused on US strategy in Asia. “And given the problems that the US is having on the munitions side, anything that bolsters allied ability to produce munitions and export them, I think, is seen as a good thing right now.”

In April 2024, the Albanese government committed $21 billion for its so-called guided weapons and explosive ordnance enterprise, which spurred defence giant Lockheed Martin to begin building missiles at a new plant in Port Wakefield, South Australia.

Lockheed Martin senior vice president of global business development and strategy Dan Tenney said the company was keen to use its new Australian outpost to make weapons for export, and moves by US politicians to enhance collaboration could help.

“Our desire is to provide capabilities not just for Australia, but well beyond,” he said in an interview at the company’s office in Arlington, Virginia.

“We support the [US] government continuing to make activities that make trade and interoperability stronger, and so AUKUS has been very important to us, not just in the first phases, but subsequent areas that are being looked at.”

Lockheed tested its short-range Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System at the Woomera test range in April, and is taking steps to build its long-range Precision Strike Missiles in Australia in future.

The PrSM, which can travel more than 500 kilometres, was used in combat for the first time against Iranian targets in March. By August, according to Reuters, the US Army had used “virtually all” of its PrSMs, which cost more than $US1 million ($1.4 million) each.

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The bill’s three main proponents are Democrat senator Tim Kaine, Republican senator Pete Ricketts and House Republican Bill Huizenga.

Many of the 22 co-sponsors engage regularly with the embassy or visiting Australian ministers or have travelled on Congressional delegations to Australia. Ricketts, a former Republican governor of Nebraska, is a senior foreign policy player in the party and met Defence Minister Richard Marles at the Shangri-La Defence Forum in Singapore in May.

“We need to cut through any remaining red tape to streamline defence collaboration,” Ricketts said in a statement, adding that the effort would help “to maintain our collective, technological edge”.

A spokeswoman for Marles said the regulatory change was “critical” for AUKUS and GWEO projects to move “at the pace required to meet the strategic demands”.

“Australia is making a record investment in sovereign missile manufacturing and rapidly building the capability to produce some of the most advanced guided weapons in the world,” she said.

Pumping out long-range missiles

A second missile factory developed with Norway’s Kongsberg will open in Newcastle, NSW, next year.

Under what is known as the AUKUS licence-free environment, defence technology, parts and products can be transferred and sold between partner nations without needing permits, but items on the Missile Technology Control Regime are ineligible. The MTCR was set up in the 1980s to curtail the proliferation of ballistic missiles and weapons of mass destruction.

The bill seeks to remove that MTCR exclusion, which would increase the proportion of goods eligible for the AUKUS licence-free environment from 70 per cent to about 95 per cent.

Tom Karako, director of the Missile Defence Project at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, said that although he had been “ringing the bell” on what he warns has been a “generational depletion” of missiles by the US military, Australia would be seen as a possible supplier only when it was pumping out long-range missiles.

“Australia has been very clear about its desire to get this capability and to build this sort of capability … [but] I don’t think they’re quite there yet,” he said.

Abe Denmark, a former Pentagon official who is now a partner at advisory firm The Asia Group, said defence manufacturers needed an export component to be viable.

“We’re still on the path from idea to implementation, but it’s an important step, and it’s a great opportunity for Australian companies to be a part of the American supply chain,” he said.

Not all the technology transfer will be one way. Australian-made innovations such as Boeing’s autonomous Ghost Bat drone would become eligible for the licence-free environment.

The Unlock AUKUS Act moved through the House after it was tucked into an annual defence policy bill covering discretionary spending. In the Senate, the act quickly received a nod from the powerful foreign relations committee without objections.

Now, though, the Senate will consider it as part of the $US1.5 trillion defence policy bill that came out of the House, and although that legislative push missed the October 1 start of the financial year, proponents hope for progress by next month.

https://www.afr.com/world/north-america/inside-the-push-for-australia-to-supply-world-s-most-lethal-weapons-20261004-p612ij

>>25100854

Hanson declares Labor ‘finished’ in Victoria, promises One Nation election ‘shockwave’

MOHAMMAD ALFARES - 4 October 2026

One Nation leader Pauline Hanson has predicted the Liberals will need her support to govern in Victoria after November’s state election, a day after her party members chanted that former Labor premiers Daniel Andrews and Jacinta Allan should be “locked up”.

Speaking to supporters at a campaign event in Labor’s heartland in Corio on Sunday, Senator Hanson said One Nation’s Victorian campaign could deliver a “shockwave” through state and federal parliaments.

The populist leader took a go-kart for a ride and met with supporters as she took her election campaign directly to voters after a 1000-person launch on Saturday.

“Daniel Andrews, Jacinta Allan and Ben Carroll shut your businesses, took your children out of school, and they tore Victorian families apart,” Senator Hanson on Saturday told her supporters at the Crown Casino launch.

The crowd responded with cries of “Lock him up!” and “Put him in jail!”, resembling the “Lock her up!” mantra of Donald Trump’s MAGA rallies decrying Hillary Clinton in 2016.

Asked whether he wanted to see former premiers Jacinta Allan and Daniel Andrews imprisoned over allegations of CFMEU misuse of taxpayer money on Victorian Big Build sites, opposition Treasury spokesman Tim Wilson said nobody was above the law.

“I also believe in due process, that’s why a royal commission should be able to do its job. And more importantly, we need a Coalition government to make sure that due process is followed,” he told News24.

Speaking to supporters in Corio on Sunday, Senator Hanson followed up her controversial rally by telling voters that state opposition leader Jess Wilson would need her help to secure an anti-Labor ­majority in Spring Street.

“I truly believe Labor is finished in this state,” Senator Hanson said on Sunday morning. “And I also believe that the Liberals will not form government without the help of One Nation, whether it’s the lower or the upper house.”

She also pointed to One Nation’s recent wins in South Australia and Western Australia as evidence the party could disrupt established political strongholds.

“I want the biggest shockwave to go through the political establishment in this country with the wins in Victoria that I believe we will have,” she said.

Senator Hanson said One Nation’s role would be to ensure whichever party formed government delivered a “good government for the people”.

“Our job is not to make it easy for them but to ensure that we get good government for the people,” she said.

After signing merchandise and posing for photographs with supporters, Senator Hanson jumped in a go-kart and did one lap alongside Victorian One Nation leader Warren Pickering. Following the lap, Mr Pickering said voters were demanding an alternative to the major parties.

“We’re not contesting as a matter of hope; contesting is a matter of necessity,” Mr Pickering said.

“We don’t think there’s any such thing as safe seats anymore,” he said. “We’re going to see three-way contests all over the state.”

The event also drew support from members of Melbourne’s Indian community, with many citing a growing shift away from Labor because of housing pressures, government spending, energy policy and community safety.

Radhika Agarwal said she wanted governments to be held accountable for whether their policies were financially sustainable and delivered better outcomes for ordinary Victorians.

Supporters Senthil Rajan and Dev Kanwadkar said they believed there was growing frustration with the major parties and backed One Nation’s “Australia first” approach.

In Melbourne, thousands of motorbike riders gathered in front of Parliament House to protest over the state of Victorian roads, declaring “enough is enough”.

The protest, which was attended by Ms Wilson, was prompted by the death of motorbike rider Peter Mason, 71, who died after hitting a pothole on the Western Freeway at Trawhalla last month.

“We’re sick of burying our mates,” rally organiser Michael White told the crowd. “It’s not about Labor, Liberal, left or right – what we want our politicians to do is become decent human beings and fix the problem that is killing Victorians.”

Mr White and fellow organiser Paul Pohv said they had spoken with Premier Ben Carroll, who did not attend the rally, for 30 minutes about the state of the roads.

Ms Wilson attacked the government’s “disgraceful” management of roads, but her address prompted some heckling.

https://www.theaustralian.com.au/nation/hanson-declares-labor-finished-in-victoria-promises-one-nation-election-shockwave/news-story/525a42c989dbdae5fcd9ad522e84fa76