SBS News in Easy English 24 June 2025
Welcome to SBS News in Easy English, I'm Camille Bianchi.
US President Donald Trump has announced that Israel and Iran have agreed to a ceasefire. On his own social media network, Truth Social, President Trump said 'It has been fully agreed by and between Israel and Iran that there will be a complete and total ceasefire'. Neither Iran nor Israel have confirmed Mr Trump's statement. Mr Trump has also said he is considering overthrowing the Iranian government. Reza Pahlavi says he is ready to take over from Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei as interim leader of Iran.
"I am here today to submit myself to my compatriots to lead them down this road of peace and democratic transition. I do not seek political power but rather to help our great nation navigate through this critical hour toward stability, freedom and justice."
More Australians are asking for help to leave the Middle East, with 2,900 in Iran and 1,300 in Israel. Foreign Minister Penny Wong says Australia has paused buses that were leaving from Israel, because of safety concerns. If airports re-open, some Australians may be able to leave either Israel or Iran on two planes sent from Australia. Senator Wong says there are no changes to the threat level for travellers.
"There are always risks - not only from escalation in the region, but also potential risks more broadly. I have indicated publicly that I have asked my department to consider whether - if there is any alteration to travel advice more generally."
The triple murder mushroom trial is expected to end this week, after nine weeks. The jury will go to consider whether accused killer Erin Paterson knew she was feeding three family members poisonous mushrooms. She denies knowing the mushrooms were poisonous and says it was a terrible accident. The story is world-famous and businesses in the town of Morwell, two hours east of Melbourne, says the trial has brought big business. Laura Heller and John Nicoll are local business owners.
'Even though it's not great circumstances, it has been very good for our community because it's brought people from outside the area into the area. As you probably know, people have been lining up, early mornings to try and get in the court room and things like that, so it's just been good that they've been able to come to our town and see what we have to offer. It has been pretty busy, lot of journalists and legal people staying here at the motel, so normally a quieter time of the year, it has been a bit of a boom."
The biggest group of First Nations students from a single degree have graduated from Monash University in Melbourne. 17 students from more than 20 communities have earned a Master of Indigenous Business Leadership, including Kaley Nicholson.
"There is nothing more self-determined or self-determining than having your own business. You make every decision; the success and failure of that business really rests on your shoulders. And so that's an incredibly daunting thing to think about, but also it's so freeing."
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News.com.au
21 minutes ago
- News.com.au
ASX200: Oil prices nosedive on Israel-Iran ceasefire promise
Apparent calm in the Middle East has subdued oil prices as Australian energy stocks took a hit on Tuesday. The benchmark ASX200 finished up 80 points to 8555.5, a 0.95 per cent gain on the day. Eight of eleven sectors were in the green. There were successful debuts for Virgin Australia and Greatland Resources, sparking hopes for a resurgence of initial public offerings on the ASX. But broader Middle East events hit Australia's big energy players hard. The sector was down 3.9 per cent on Tuesday, led by biggest player Woodside which lost 6.5 per cent to $24.16. 'The oil market just staged a masterclass in financial theatre – loud opening act, whispered finale,' independent analyst Stephen Innes said of fluctuations since the US bombing of Iran. 'After roaring to (US)$78.50 a barrel on weekend war headlines, crude did a hard about-face, nosediving over 7 per cent to close near $68.50, dragging the entire energy complex with it. It's not just a round trip. It's a mood swing with a ticker. 'Oil, once again, played both the arsonist and the fireman – igniting fears with every missile and then soothing them just as fast when Tehran's 'retaliation' turned out to be more of a press release than a war cry.' The latest fluctuation in oil prices came off the back of Donald Trump announcing a ceasefire between Israel and Iran. The global Brent crude benchmark fell almost 4 per cent on Tuesday to $US66 per barrel and US WTI lost 5 per cent to $US65. Oil and gas explorer Karoon Energy shed 6.5 per cent to finish at $1.95, while Santos slipped 1.5 per cent to $7.66. Domestically, the City of Sydney has announced a ban on new homes having gas appliances, while the Victorian government will phase out gas hot water systems from 2027. Following energy stocks, the ASX utilities sector also fell into the red Tuesday, as Origin Energy fell 2.5 per cent and APA Group lost 1.7 per cent. AGL slipped 1 per cent and Genesis Energy shed 0.95 per cent. Looking to the top of the tables, materials led the bourse's Tuesday charge into positive territory. Rio Tinto and Hancock Prospecting announced a $2.5bn, 50-50 split investment to extend the Hope Downs iron ore project. Rio also flagged $20bn of new mine, equipment and plant investment in the coming three years. In turn, Rio's share price gained a tick over 3 per cent to $104.94. At the checkout, investors flocked to KFC operator Collins Foods. The small-cap had a finger-lickin' day, spiking 17.4 per cent. The intraday high peaked at 26 per cent, as a full year profit fall of 89 per cent was announced. Investors are hoping the price has bottomed out. There were also two highly promising IPOs. London-listed gold and copper miner Greatland Resources rocketed to $7.30, gaining 43.7 per cent on debut. Virgin Australia successfully relaunched as well, closing with an 11.4 per cent gain, to $3.23. The two floats were worth a combined $1bn.
News.com.au
21 minutes ago
- News.com.au
Fresh details of alleged gang rape as 19yo denied bail
WARNING: Distressing content One of four teenagers charged over the alleged gang rape of a 17-year-old in Sydney has been denied bail, with a court hearing details of the harrowing allegations. Four teenagers – the youngest aged just 14 – have been charged with the sexual assault of the girl in Sydney's west in December last year. Police allege the attack lasted more than six hours. Adam Abdul-Hamid, 19, was arrested at a Heckenberg home in Sydney's southwest last week and charged with five counts of aggravated sex assault. He on Tuesday appeared via videolink in Campbelltown Local Court in an attempt to be freed on bail, with the court hearing details of the allegations. The court was told the prosecution alleges that Abdul-Hamid was involved in the 'prolonged and sustained' sexual assault of the girl. It's been alleged that during the incident, Mr Abdul-Hamid took the girl's mobile phone and sent a text message to himself, the court was told. The Crown prosecution opposed his release on bail, citing the risk of further alleged offending, the danger to the community and the alleged victim, and the risk of communicating with his co-accused. The court was told that during the ordeal it was alleged that Mr Adbul-Hamid was asked by one of his co-accused: 'Do you want to have a turn.' He responded, 'No, I'm all right,' the court was told on Tuesday. Outside court last week, his solicitor said Mr Abdul-Hamid maintained his innocence. His barrister Troy Edwards SC on Tuesday told the court that the onus was on the prosecution to prove a joint criminal enterprise. Mr Edwards argued that Mr Abdul-Hamid had a clean criminal record, he had not tried to abscond in the seven months since the alleged incident and described the Crown case as 'weak'. He also proposed bail conditions that amounted to home detention. Officers allege the 17-year-old girl was at a Liverpool shopping centre on December 15 when she was approached by an unknown 16-year-old boy. Police allege the male had no prior contact with the girl before striking up a conversation with her. It is alleged the 16-year-old followed the girl to her car, and she reluctantly allowed him into her vehicle before he allegedly sexually assaulted the woman. Police allege the teen then made a video call to his co-accused. The girl allegedly agreed to drive the man to a park in Sadleir on the understanding he would get out of the car when they arrived. It is alleged that instead, when they got to the park, another two men got into the car and sexually assaulted the girl. They were allegedly soon joined by a fourth man who arrived in another car, then continued the assault as the girl was driven around. Police allege the group left the girl in her car about six hours later at 11.30pm. She contacted a friend and reported the alleged attack to police. The court was told on Tuesday that a hairbrush was allegedly used during the alleged assault. Magistrate Peter Thompson said they were 'certainly serious' allegations that 'strike at the heart of matters that go to the protection of the community'. 'At this stage, the risk remains unacceptable and bail will be refused,' Mr Thompson said. Outside court, Mr Abdul-Hamid's family members shielded themselves from the media with umbrellas as they hastily exited towards a waiting car, dumping the umbrellas on the ground as the vehicle took off. Mr Abdul-Hamid will appear in court again in August.
ABC News
41 minutes ago
- ABC News
Six months out from deadline, online safety chief tempers social media ban expectations
The commissioner tasked with overseeing the implementation of Australia's world-leading laws to get children and teenagers off social media says the ban is unlikely to catch all underage users immediately. While e-Safety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant said she was confident work was on track to meet the December 10 deadline as planned, she also flagged that it was wrong to expect the ban would mean under-16s were immediately scrubbed from platforms when it came into force. "This legislation does not give us a mandate to cut the Coral Cable or deplatform social media apps on stores," she told the National Press Club in Canberra on Tuesday. "Nor should we create expectations that every child's social media account will magically disappear overnight." In her address, she characterised the controversial laws as a social media "delay" rather than an outright ban, despite its blanket application for all Australians under the age of 16 — even if they already own an account or have parental consent. Communications Minister Anika Wells will determine what platforms will fall under the ban's umbrella, with TikTok, Instagram, Snapchat and Facebook already named. On Tuesday, it was revealed the commissioner provided advice to Ms Wells stating YouTube should also be captured, despite the previous communications minister initially having carved it out. The provided rationale was new research conducted by the eSafety Commission that found YouTube was the most common platform where young people experienced harm, which included viewing violent, misogynistic and dangerous content. Dr Inman Grant's task is to figure out how the laws will be implemented, including deciding on the "reasonable steps" social media companies will be expected to take and enforcing the laws, which include fines of up to $50 million for platforms that do not comply. There are no penalties for young people or parents who circumnavigate the rules. The guidelines given to social media companies, she said, would likely include what age assurance and privacy measures they needed to have in place and the "level of proactive detection required by services to identify underage users". It is so far unclear how exactly social media platforms will ascertain users' ages. The commissioner said it would likely involve a combination of age assurance methods — "a waterfall of effective techniques and tools" — rather than one mandated technology. A government-commissioned trial of available age assurance technology found last week that options existed to verify the ages of users "privately, robustly and effectively", but the preliminary report did not include any details of the specific tests nor how the 53 different technologies involved fared. "There will be challenges with each one of them, but what the preliminary findings do say is that the technology is here and it's possible," the commissioner said. "None is going to solve every use case, but again, we expect that companies will take layered approaches." Shadow communications minister Melissa McIntosh called on the government to make it clear what it expected from social media platforms, including which ones were covered by the laws, with just months to go before the deadline. "There are more questions than answers right now, including what verification technology will be required, which platforms are in or out and what constitutes platforms taking reasonable steps to implement social media age minimum standards by 10 December 2025," she said in a statement on Tuesday. The commissioner, who was to begin consultations this week, said there would be more clarity once the minister made her final determination of the rules. "We may be building the plane a little bit as we're flying it … but I'm very confident we can get there," Dr Inman Grant said. While the commissioner conceded that there would be ways for young people to work around the bans, including through the use of VPNs, she said the goal was to change norms around social media use. "We are not building a great Australian internet firewall, but we are seeking to protect under-16s from those unseen yet powerful forces in the form of harmful and deceptive design features that currently drive their engagement online," she said. "For that reason, it may be more accurate to frame this as a social media delay." The delay, she argued, would buy time to deliver improved online safety education to young people grappling with the rise of artificial intelligence, deepfakes, bullying and tailored algorithms. It would also, she said, shift the onus to manage young people's online access off parents and onto tech giants. "This world-leading legislation seeks to shift the burden of reducing harm away from parents and carers and back onto the companies themselves — the companies who own and run these platforms and profit from Australian children," she said.
