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Murray River forecast to peak in coming days as 241mm of rain falls on Timber Creek in the Northern Territory in 24 hours

Putin orders defence chiefs to quickly get military all it needs; Russian forces accused of cover-up in demolishing Mariupol theatre after deadly airstrike

Rabuka accused the outgoing government of Frank Bainimarama of stoking ‘fear and chaos’ in the aftermath of the close electionSitiveni Rabuka has become Fiji’s prime minister after a coalition of parties voted to install him, signalling an end to Frank Bainimarama’s 16 years in power.The appointment of Rabuka on Saturday ended 10 days of uncertainty after an election delivered a hung parliament. Fiji’s Social Democratic Liberal party (Sodelpa) held the balance of power and on Friday voted to form a coalition with Rabuka’s People’s Alliance and the National Federation party. Continue reading...

Report, which also recommends linking Sydney to Wollongong and ranks Canberra route as a lower priority, cost taxpayers $390,000

Monarch expected to pay tribute to late mother during festive address from St George’s chapelKing Charles has chosen to broadcast his first Christmas message from St George’s chapel at Windsor Castle, where the committal service of his late mother, Queen Elizabeth, was held three months ago.In a photograph released before the broadcast on Christmas Day, the king is seen standing in the quire for his inaugural festive address to the country and the rest of the Commonwealth. Continue reading...

French media say a 69-year-old opened fire on group of people, and government says incident seemed to have been racially motivatedClashes have erupted in Paris after three people were killed in a shooting at a Kurdish cultural centre that the French government said appeared to have been racially motivated.French media reported that a 69-year-old man opened fire on a group of people at the Ahmet-Kaya centre on Rue d’Enghien in the 10th arrondissement on Friday morning. Shots were also fired at a hairdresser’s and a restaurant in the street. Three people have been wounded, one critically. Continue reading...

Paper says that ‘as a publisher, we realise that with free expression comes responsibility’The Sun has apologised for Jeremy Clarkson’s column, in which he said he “hated” the Duchess of Sussex, but has not stated whether any action has been taken against him.Last week’s column has become the Independent Press Standards Organisation’s most complained about article, with more than 17,500 people contacting it over the piece as of Tuesday morning. Continue reading...

US announces fresh sanctions; North Korea denies supplying weapons to Russia; Moscow-installed official in Kherson reportedly killed in car blast

Passengers report shorter queues than usual despite Border Force strike as military brought in to helpPassengers entered Heathrow braced for the sight of queues snaking their way around the airport and departure boards coldly telling them that their festive season was ruined.With concerns that travel problems could run into the new year as 1,000 Border Force staff began the first of eight days of strikes, those travelling through Europe’s busiest airport on the Friday before Christmas were apprehensive. Continue reading...

Symon Hill, 45, charged with using threatening or abusive words, or disorderly behaviour during Oxford eventA man has been charged over comments made during a proclamation ceremony for the king.Thames Valley police said on Friday that Symon Hill, 45, of Oxford, had been charged with using threatening or abusive words, or disorderly behaviour. Continue reading...

Inquest into men’s deaths hears they drowned after ‘wholly unsuitable’ dinghy capsized on 14 DecemberFour people who died when a small boat capsized in the Channel earlier this month are believed to be of Afghan and Senegalese heritage, an inquest into their deaths has heard.The four men’s identities have not yet been confirmed, the coroner’s court in Maidstone, Kent, was told on Friday. Continue reading...

Campaigners are putting teachers under pressure, says Jeremy Miles after verdict in high court challengeThe Welsh education minister has accused campaigners of putting teachers under pressure by deliberately spreading “misinformation” about the teaching of LGBTQ+ issues.Jeremy Miles also told of how he struggled to find his place in the world as a gay young person, in an era when “someone like me” did not exist as far as the school curriculum was concerned. Continue reading...

ONS survey finds 79% of adults plan to buy fewer presents and 73% say gifts will be cheaper than last yearMillions of shoppers are expected to rein in their spending as they head into the last day of Christmas shopping, according to official data that shows eight in 10 adults plan to buy fewer presents.Shoppers also plan to buy less expensive gifts to cope with a cost of living crisis in which soaring prices are eating into the spending power of the average household at a record rate. Continue reading...

More than half of Brisbane company’s digital assets were deposited with Sam Bankman-Fried’s exchange

Bombs exploded outside the consulate and in the basement of the Bondi club on 23 December 1982

Australia’s financial intelligence agency warns that Russian paramilitary groups are soliciting crypto via social media to buy weapons for Ukraine conflict

Treasurer reveals goal alongside MPs and candidates who are facing off against teal challengers at March election

Nida Mohammad Nadeem says ban was necessary to prevent mixing of genders as rare protests break outThe minister of higher education in Afghanistan’s Taliban government has defended his decision to ban women from universities – a decree that triggered a global backlash and protests inside the country.Afghanistan’s Taliban-run administration announced earlier this week it had closed universities to women partly due to female students not adhering to its interpretation of the Islamic dress code and interaction between students of different genders. Continue reading...

The member for Calare, who will now sit as an independent, said he ‘fundamentally disagreed’ with party’s position

PwC predicts increase in divorces, slide in house prices and drop in happiness indexBritish wages next year will fall back to 2006 levels, while 2023 will also bring a slide in house prices and an increase in divorces, according to a forecast that finds the UK is on course to be a less happy place to live.The consultancy firm PwC said a look ahead to 2023 showed there were few positive indicators, with most measures of the UK’s economic and social performance going into reverse. Continue reading...

Take care using candles and electric heaters, fire authorities warn, as Ofgem reveals gas and electricity bills are up by 86%Fire authorities have urged householders to take care when using candles, wood burners and electric heaters to cut energy bills this Christmas after a spate of recent house fires.Flat fires in Uxbridge and Harwich this month were caused by candles; fire chiefs in Cumbria, Hereford and Worcester reported more fires as householders used unswept chimneys and candles; and last month in Wakefield a blaze was caused by a tumble dryer being used overnight to save money. Continue reading...

Damien Bendall, who went on to murder his pregnant partner and three children, rated as ‘medium’ rather than ‘high risk’The probation officer who judged Damien Bendall, who has been jailed for life for murdering three children and his pregnant partner, to be “medium” rather than “high risk” has reportedly been sacked for gross misconduct.Bendall, 32, was sentenced to five whole-life sentences this week for the killings in Killamarsh, Derbyshire last September, which took place three months after he was given a suspended sentence for arson. Continue reading...

Ambulance workers to take further industrial action in January and nurses union also expected to keep up the pressure on ministersThe NHS is facing months of disruption early next year as health unions ramp up their campaign of strikes in protest against the government’s “pitiful” pay award and refusal to countenance improving it.Ambulance services in England will be hit by two days of strikes on 11 and 23 January by members of Unison, and the union has decided that these stoppages will last for longer and involve more staff than this week’s strike, as part of a deliberate escalation of its industrial action. Continue reading...

Teenager was killed on Tuesday night in central London in incident in which another 16-year-old was injuredA 16-year-old boy who was stabbed to death in central London on Tuesday night has been named by police as Jamaly Samba Baibu.The teenager was killed following an incident just after 10.30pm in Seward Street, Clerkenwell, the Metropolitan police said. Another 16-year-old boy was injured. Continue reading...

Threatening to use UK powers to block law is a gift to independence campaigners but weaponises trans issue in run-up to general electionJust moments after the Scottish parliament voted to pass the SNP’s gender recognition legislation on Thursday, the debate was disrupted by protesters shouting from the public gallery, underlining just how controversial the new law is.Yet Nicola Sturgeon, who has fought for six years to get the measures on to the statute book, regards it as a big win. But within minutes the UK government had announced it was pressing pause on the act, throwing the Scottish government’s plans into disarray and threatening a constitutional crisis. Continue reading...

US intelligence official tells Reuters news agency Russian mercenary group received arms shipment from North KoreaA Christmas tree at Sofia Square in Kyiv, Ukraine, on 21 December.In homes and schools around Bosnia, young people this December have been preparing gift boxes they hope will put a smile on the faces of their peers living through war in Ukraine – as such presents did for many of their parents a generation ago.Responding to an appeal launched by a small Sarajevo museum, hundreds of Bosnian children have been filling small boxes with warm clothes, toys, candies and other simple gifts to be delivered to the children of Ukraine in time for the New Year.For parents and educators who are helping them select what to send, the experience has awakened rare happy memories from the time when they were on the receiving end of the kindness of strangers while growing up in constant fear of death. Continue reading...

Vladimir Putin dismisses weapon as ‘outdated’ as he implies that Ukraine may have to cede territory for peace

Prime minister appoints Historic England chair to role that had been vacant for six months

Chief minister pledges ‘rigorous and independent’ inquiry as police confirm the dead are nine missing after blastThe nine people who died after an explosion at a block of flats in Jersey have been formally identified.The blast, which took place just after 4am on 10 December, destroyed the building in St Helier. On Thursday, the States of Jersey police confirmed postmortems had been carried out and the people named as missing had been identified as those who died. Continue reading...

President-elect says transition team have found ‘simplest things not being done’ as result of Bolsonaro mismanagementPublic services in Brazil face a “very real threat of collapse” as a result of the mismanagement by the outgoing far-right government, and the incoming administration will have a “herculean task” in rebuilding damaged institutions, particularly in the fields of health, education and the environment, the country’s president-elect has said.Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva beat the far-right incumbent, Jair Bolsonaro, in a tightly fought election in October and is due to take power on 1 January. Continue reading...

Scottish secretary hints that Westminster may use rare power to block new law which removes need for diagnosis of gender dysphoria for gender recognition certificateAt the Scottish parliament Nicola Sturgeon, the first minister, is taking questions. Douglas Ross, the Scottish Conservative leader, asks about the gender recognition reform (Scotland) bill and amendments rejected by the Scottish government. He says the bill would allow a man standing trial for raping a woman to force his victim to refer to him as a woman, not a man, and he asks Sturgeon why she voted against an amendment that would have prevented this.In response, Sturgeon says many amendments have been rejected in the past days. She says where amendments were rejected, it was often because there were alternative ways to add safeguards to the bill. These new safeguards covered sex offenders, she says.Health and care is under huge strain in the run-up to Christmas. These figures suggest there is absolutely no slack in the system, which is dangerously close to overheating completely.A key part of the problem is that the vast majority of hospital beds are full – around 95% – including with thousands of patients fit to be discharged. The lack of community and social care means they’ll be spending this Christmas in hospital. Continue reading...

Unison members to take industrial action on 11 and 23 January in dispute over pay and staffingAmbulance workers across England will stage two further strikes on 11 and 23 January in the dispute over pay and staffing, Unison has announced.Members of the union in five ambulance services in England will take industrial action. Continue reading...

Party sees identifying 50-year-old male home-owners as key to electoral successYou’ve met Mondeo Man and Worcester Woman, now meet the key swing voter Labour hopes will win them the next election: middle-aged mortgage man.Party insiders say they are being ruthless about targeting exactly the kind of voters they believe will put them back into power, homing in on people who previously lost faith with Labour but have been personally affected by the spike in interest rates caused by Liz Truss’ “mini-budget”. Continue reading...

Elements of Netanyahu-led coalition have been openly hostile and rolling back of some gay laws is on agendaThe prospect of the far right joining government after Israel’s recent election has left the country’s LGBTQ+ community fearing for the future.Elements of the incoming coalition led by the prime minister-elect Benjamin Netanyahu have not hidden the fact that they are hostile to Palestinians and LGBTQ+ people. Continue reading...

Thirty-nine people imprisoned for forcing a procession in Sicily to pay homage to crime boss Francesco La Rocca in 2016A judge in Sicily has handed down jail sentences totalling 80 years to 39 people for diverting a Good Friday religious procession to the house of a mafia family and paying homage to an imprisoned crime boss.People were carrying a statue of Jesus Christ through the Sicilian village of San Michele Di Ganzaria at Easter in 2016 when a group stopped the cortege, moved it away from the agreed itinerary and forced it to pass in front of the house of the mafia godfather Francesco La Rocca. Continue reading...

MSPs vote in favour of plans to allow people to legally change their gender through system of self-identificationPlans to make it easier and less intrusive for individuals to legally change their gender through a system of self-identification, extending to 16- and 17-year-olds for the first time, will become law in Scotland.Six years after it was proposed by the first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, following two of the largest public consultations in the history of the Scottish parliament and amid an increasingly toxic and polarised political discourse, the bill was passed by MSPs on Thursday in a specially extended session. Continue reading...

Rhianon Bragg of north Wales fears her ex-partner will soon be freed and has been given more ‘ammunition’The Ministry of Justice is facing criticism for accidentally sending a violent stalker intimate details of the anguish his victim and her family suffered because of his horrifying campaign.Rhianon Bragg, who fears Gareth Wyn Jones could target her and her family again when he is freed from prison, said the MoJ had given him more “ammunition”. Continue reading...

Government says it has made its biggest ever intervention to keep rise below inflation, but Labour condemns ‘sick joke’Rail fares in England will rise by up to 5.9% in March after what the government called “its biggest ever intervention” to keep the cost of travel below soaring inflation.It is the first time in more than 25 years that regulated rail fares have increased by less than inflation. The leap in the cost of rail travel, the biggest in the last decade, will take effect from 5 March. Continue reading...

Exclusive: Richard Marles told Australia’s Special Air Service Regiment members have expressed ‘anger and grief’ about the situation

For many struggling to survive on jobseeker payments, the yuletide celebration is just another dayJustin Seymour tries to switch off this time of year. “Around big holidays like Christmas, I try to shut it all out,” he said. “I see ads on YouTube … ‘I’m going to be spending Christmas with my family, I’m going to be having this amazing time.’ It makes me depressed.”Seymour, 28, is one of about 3.3 million people in Australia, including 761,000 children, who will likely spend Christmas in poverty, according to the latest research from University of New South Wales and the Australian Council of Social Service. Continue reading...

Murder inquiry launched after three people stabbed, one fatally, in HandsworthA murder inquiry has been launched after one of three people found stabbed in Birmingham died of their injuries.Police said a 24-year-old man was arrested after two men and a woman were taken to hospital from the scene in Soho Road, Handsworth, in the early hours of Thursday. One person died in hospital. Continue reading...

British Chambers of Commerce presents government with urgent recommendations as members report struggling to sell into EU

‘Unprecedented’ number watch sunrise on Salisbury Plain and savour the prospect of days growing longerIt was a misty, drizzly kind of morning but it did not matter a bit for a record-breaking crowd that made the pilgrimage to Stonehenge for the winter solstice.As the sun rose on Salisbury Plain, they sang, chanted, danced, banged drums, hugged or simply mulled over the cheerful idea that from now on the days would grow longer. Continue reading...

‘Knock-on effects’ predicted after dispute in England and Wales led to ‘substantial reduction in 999 calls’

Financial sanctions relate to audit of building materials firm’s statements for years 2015 and 2016Deloitte has been fined more than £900,000 by the accounting watchdog after failures in its audit of the building materials firm SIG.The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) also handed a fine of £36,250 to Simon Manning, who was the audit engagement partner working on the account. Continue reading...

Simple structures protect 900-year-old church from seawater that previously proved damagingIt is a simple solution, but one that may keep the marble columns and valuable mosaics of St Mark’s Basilica in Venice safe from seawater-induced erosion: a set of glass barriers installed around the 900-year-old church has kept its floors dry during frequent high tides.Even after it evaporates, water leaves behind salt crystals that corrode the marble bases of the columns and the floor mosaics, said Mario Piana, the architect and restoration expert in charge of St Mark’s. Continue reading...

Officials have refused to issue emergency documents to Michael Omidire, 21, who travelled to country on a Ghanaian passportA British university student has been stuck in Kenya since September, unable to return home because UK officials have refused to issue him with emergency travel documentation.Michael Omidire, who was born in the UK and brought up in London, has missed a full term of university as a result of his protracted struggle to organise paperwork to allow him to travel back to the UK. He was unable to celebrate his 21st birthday with his family in London earlier this month, and it is unlikely that he will be able to return to the UK in time for Christmas. Continue reading...

Four Corners host says report has huge implications for the ability of the broadcaster to ‘fearlessly’ pursue public interest journalismThe high-profile ABC journalist whose Four Corners documentary about Fox News was found to have breached the public broadcasters editorial code, has hit back at adverse findings by Australia’s media watchdog.The Australian Communications and Media Authority (Acma) found on Wednesday that reporter Sarah Ferguson’s two-part documentary Fox and the Big Lie breached the accuracy and fair dealing requirements of the ABC’s editorial code, but did not violate impartiality standards.Sign up for Five Great Reads, Guardian Australia’s email newsletter of the week’s best stories Continue reading...

Frank Bainimarama, the prime minister, is yet to concede defeat, while opposition parties claim enough seats to form governmentFiji’s military will assist police in maintaining “security and stability” after last week’s election delivered a hung parliament, the country’s police commissioner has said – an alarming development in a country where there have been four military coups in the past 35 years.The Pacific country is waiting for its president to recall parliament so lawmakers can vote for a new prime minister after a national election showed no party received a clear majority. Continue reading...

Rising costs, increased demand and a collapse in public fundraising mean palliative care providers face ‘very difficult decisions’Hospice charities providing end-of-life services in partnership with the NHS have warned they will have to shut beds and sack staff because of the catastrophic impact of rising energy bills on their day-to-day running costs.The UK’s network of independent, mainly voluntary-run palliative care providers said hospices were experiencing a perfect storm of soaring costs and rising demand just as revenues from traditional public fundraising methods are collapsing. Continue reading...