Sydney Harbour Bridge anti-Israel protests labelled ‘disgraceful'
'One last thing on the disgraceful anti-Israel protest yesterday, this is what the Albanese government has helped to unleash with its own attacks on Israel,' Mr Bolt said.
'Now the government is actually considering effectively rewarding Hamas by recognising a Palestinian state.'
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Sky News AU
3 minutes ago
- Sky News AU
Prime Minster Anthony Albanese's Palestine call with French President Emmanuel Macron branded 'performative politics'
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has been accused of "performative politics" over a phone call with French President Emmanuel Macron to discuss the ongoing conflict in Gaza. Mr Albanese spoke with the French leader following a huge protest in Sydney, which saw about 90,000 people march across the Harbour Bridge in support of Palestine. The French President is set to recognise a Palestinian state at the United Nations in September and will be joined in the gesture by United Kingdom Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer. Commenting on the call, The Australian's Foreign Editor Greg Sheridan said the Albanese government was demonstrating "really low-grade stuff" in relation to Palestine and the Middle East conflict. "They are not making any contribution to the Middle East at all. This is all about gesture and performative politics for their base in Australia and for managing the politics of the left in Australia," he told Sky News host Steve Price. "To recognise a Palestinian state without substantial negotiation with Israel, to recognise the Palestinian state as a direct result of the barbaric, unbelievable, epoch-marking, savage terrorism of October 7, is just futile and counterproductive. "It's a great reward for Hamas." Sheridan said he had been "quite critical" about Israel's conduct in Gaza in recent months, describing it as "futile" and having cost a "great deal internationally", but continued his rebuke of Mr Albanese for making "no useful contribution" to solving the humanitarian crisis. The journalist, though, said Mr Albanese had a "spasm of common sense" several weeks ago when he assigned conditions to any recognition of Palestine. "If those conditions are met, that's great, but if those conditions are not met the Albanese government says it's still going to recognise a Palestinian state anyway, because it says it is 'when, not if,'and its obviously doing it in concert with these other nations," Sheridan said, referring to remarks from Treasurer Jim Chlamers last week. "Now those conditions won't be met. The terrorist groups will still be attacking Israel, there won't an eradication of Hamas and all the rest of it. There won't be democratic reform... you can just bank on that. "This is all about gesture politics and the management of the left in Marrickville and Glebe and Richmond and what have you. It's got nothing at all to do with making any positive contribution in the Middle East and it is morally vacuous." Mr Chalmers' remarks came after Canada joined France and the UK in declaring their intention to recognise a Palestinian state, provided key conditions are met, including the exclusion of Hamas from any future leadership and the release of Israeli hostages. Prime Minister Mark Carney confirmed Canada would proceed with recognition by September, conditional on agreements from the West Bank's governing authority. Mr Chalmers welcomed the international developments and said the Albanese government was in ongoing talks with global counterparts to chart Australia's next steps. 'The Prime Minister and the Foreign Minister will respond in due course, but I welcome this momentum and this progress in the international community,' Mr Chalmers told Sky News. 'From an Australian point of view the recognition of the state of Palestine is a matter of when not if."
Sky News AU
3 minutes ago
- Sky News AU
'Time to switch out Chris Bowen': Sky News host tests ChatGPT on government's 2050 net zero targets
Sky News host Chris Kenny has tested out ChatGPT on 2050 net zero targets, finding answers which 'stack up against what the government is doing to us in its national energy self-harm'. He put the artificial intelligence application to the test by first asking whether Australia getting to net zero by 2050 was achievable. He said response initially gave him 'more spin than facts, more aspiration than reality' about solar and wind resources and the potential for green energy jobs. Mr Kenny asked the AI chatbot more challenging questions on net zero, which then gave him 'quite encouraging' answers. 'It recognised I was right to be sceptical, but it said net zero was technically possible. It conceded two crucial points. No one had built a renewable grid without backup and that renewables grids would all need coal, gas or nuclear backup,' he said. 'It's a bit like interviewing a green left politician, except you do eventually get to the truth with AI,' he said. 'So, I persisted [in questioning], and I got this apparently honest summary. It said that I was fundamentally right in my questioning of its assumptions. The chatbot told Chris Kenny "Australia is imposing significant costs on itself with minimal direct environmental benefit and only speculative economic upside." The chatbot told Mr Kenny that much of the case for Australia's transition "was based on projected benefits, political optics and climate diplomacy. Not clear, proven economic gain'. 'The public deserves realism, not marketing,' ChatGPT told Mr Kenny. 'It will cost money, create disruption, and may not deliver meaningful climate impact unless other nations act too. 'If framed as a long-term economic strategy, it needs clear evidence, not just slogans.' 'Wow, there's some artificial intelligence honesty. That's not me talking, that's ChatGPT,' Kenny said. 'That's it. Everything I've been saying about the renewable energy transition here for years, more than a decade even, is confirmed by the awesome fact-based reasoning of artificial intelligence. 'The facts on this argument all favour my case and they all stack up against what the government is doing to us in its national energy self-harm. 'It must be time to switch out Chris Bowen for ChatGPT."
SBS Australia
an hour ago
- SBS Australia
Dozens killed in Gaza while seeking aid
Listen to Australian and world news, and follow trending topics with SBS News Podcasts . TRANSCRIPT Health officials say at least 38 Palestinians were killed by Israeli forces while seeking aid. Tasmanian Labor to move no-confidence motion against re-appointed Premier Jeremy Rockliff. The National Indigenous Tennis Carnival kicks off in Darwin. At least 38 Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza Strip while seeking aid from United Nations convoys and sites run by an Israeli-backed American contractor, according to local health officials. It comes as the UN human rights office reported last week that some 1400 Palestinians have been killed seeking aid since May, with nearly all reportedly killed by Israeli fire. Another 25 people, including several women and children, have been killed in the latest Israeli air strikes, according to local hospitals in Gaza. UN Secretary-General spokesman, Farhan Haq, says the duel threat of attacks from Israel and starvation has been catastrophic. "More people are being killed and injured either along convoy routes or where they are staying. The situation is beyond catastrophic. Hospitals are overstretched. Patients are lying on the floor or in the streets, suffering, as beds, medical supplies and equipment are severely lacking. Starvation continues to happen, and today the Ministry of Health reported five new malnutrition-related deaths in the past 24 hours, bringing the total to about almost 200 deaths, half of whom are children." The latest killings come as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to announce further military action — and possibly plans for Israel to fully reoccupy Gaza. The Israeli military says troops fired warning shots as Palestinians advanced toward them, and that it was not aware of any casualties. United States President Donald Trump says special envoy Steve Witkoff made great progress in a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The meeting comes two days ahead of a US deadline set for Russia to agree to peace in Ukraine or face new sanctions. White House officials say the talks went well and that Moscow is eager to continue engaging with the US. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio says more announcements on the matter are expected soon. "We'll have more to say about that later on today. We'll be confirming it. Ambassador Witkoff is on his way back now. I just got off the phone with him a few minutes ago. We'll have some other discussions throughout the day and there will be some announcements real soon, maybe positive, maybe not, we'll see." The Tasmanian Labor Party says they will move a motion of no-confidence in the Liberals when the state parliament resumes on August 19. It comes after the state's Liberal premier Jeremy Rockliff was re-appointed by Governor Barbara Baker, following a snap election that resulted in a hung parliament. But Ms Baker also stresses that the parliament will have the final say on who should be the premier. The state's opposition leader Dean Winter says Tasmanians can be assured that the motion won't lead to a new election, but it will decide if whether Liberals and Labor will form the government. "Under the Liberals we've seen three early election in a row, and that's gotta change, which means we need to change the way parliament works, and we need to change the government. The crossbenchers have seen the way that the government led by Jeremy Rockliff has been operating now for the past 15 months, in particular, but even longer than that. It's been a lack of consultation, a lack of respect, and only a couple of weeks ago, the Premier was attacking those independents and crossbenchers through the election campaign." Mr Rockliff and his cabinet will be sworn in next week. Controversial MP Mark Latham has been labelled a 'one-trick pony' after fending off a Labor-led censure bid in the New South Wales state parliament. The censure failed after the coalition opposition, the Greens and minor party MPs voted to adjourn it until October. The failed motion came after the one-time prime ministerial hopeful used parliamentary privilege in the upper house to reveal details about a police commissioner and an independent MP, and amid several scandals, including taking photos of women MPs without their knowledge. The government's upper house leader Penny Sharpe says the result is disappointing. The National Indigenous Tennis Carnival has kicked off in Darwin on Wednesday, with over 160 First Nations players across Australia joining the game. This is the 6th year of the Tennis Carnival, and this year, the Carnival was opened by Tenins icon Evonne Goolagong Cawley. The 74-year-old Wiradjuri woman and 14-time Grand Slam winner says the event means more than just playing tennis. "I can't believe that this has been going for six years, and rightly says, it's one of the most unique programs that I have ever been in. It's not just about Tennis, it's about education, meeting up with friends, making new friends."
