Israel, Iran exchange further missile attacks

SBS Australia

14 hours ago

Listen to Australian and world news, and follow trending topics with SBS News Podcasts .
TRANSCRIPT
The death toll rises as Israel and Iran exchange missile attacks for a third day
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to meet with Canada's Mark Carney at the G7 summit
Bulldogs defeat the Rabbitohs at Olympic Park Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says Iran will stop attacking Israel when Israel stops attacking Iran, as the death toll from Israeli strikes surpasses 400 people. In Israel, at least 13 people are dead, as Iranian missiles evaded Israeli air defences to strike buildings in the heart of the country. Israel launched its biggest-ever air offensive against Iran early on Friday, striking residential buildings, military sites and scientists. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Iran can't be allowed to have nuclear weapons. "We can't have the world's most dangerous regime have the world's most dangerous weapons. We are protecting ourselves, but by doing so we are protecting many others." Iran insists its nuclear activities are entirely peaceful and that it would never seek to develop or acquire nuclear weapons. Israel, which launched the first strikes, is believed to possess nuclear weapons, though it has never confirmed this. Yemen's Houthi militant group says it has targeted Israel with several ballistic missiles. It marks the first time an ally of Iran has reportedly joined the fray since the conflict erupted on Friday. Houthi Military Spokesperson, Yahya Sarea, described the attack in a televised address. "The missile force of the Yemeni Armed Forces carried out a military operation targeting sensitive Israeli enemy targets in the occupied area of Jaffa using a number of Palestine 2 hypersonic ballistic missiles at various times over the past 24 hours. This operation was coordinated with the operations carried out by the Iranian army against the criminal Israeli enemy. The operations successfully achieved their objectives, thanks be to Allah.' An Israeli military official says Israel has targeted the Houthis' chief of staff in a strike on Sanaa. Group of Seven leaders are meeting in Canada amid growing divides with the US over foreign policy and trade. With host country Canada working to avoid clashes with Donald Trump, the conflict between Israel and Iran is likely to dominate the agenda. As summit host, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has decided to abandon the annual practice of issuing a joint statement, or communique, at the end of the meeting. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer says it will be a good opportunity to discuss their shared challenges. "Obviously the conflict with Israel and Iran is centrepiece and this provides the opportunity to talk to our co-leaders about the fast-moving situation, and to make our strong case together that there must be de-escalation of this conflict in the interests of the region and of course the world." Meanwhile, US tariffs policy is expected to dominate discussion when Prime Minister Anthony Albanese meets with Mark Carney at the G7 summit. Both leaders have had to deal with the impact of the US president's tariffs on their economies. The meeting will come ahead of Mr Albanese's meeting with US President Donald Trump, scheduled for Tuesday on the sidelines of the summit. A new report from the Grattan Institute says one in 10 low-income Australians who are billed for specialist medical appointments are paying almost $500 per year. The report found fees for specialist appointments have soared by 73 per cent since 2010, with almost a million people skipping or delaying appointments because of the cost. It recommends reform around training for specialists, investment in public clinics, initiatives to help GPs manage more care, and reducing subsidies for specialists who charge high fees. The Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs have beaten the South Sydney Rabbitohs 24-18 at their shared home ground in Olympic park. The Bulldogs held a comfortable 18-nil lead in the first half due to tries from Toby Sexton, Marcelo Montoya and Connor Tracey when the match was suddenly interrupted by a lightning storm in the 32nd minute. Players were taken off the field for almost half an hour, and when play resumed, the game turned on its head. A late fightback by the Bunnies - including a try by record setter Alex Johnston - reduced the deficit to just 6 points.
But the Souths couldn't score again and ultimately handed the two points to the Bulldogs.