Australia news LIVE: Albanese to conclude China visit in Chengdu; Trump dumps MAGA supporters over Epstein fallout
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6.48am
Israel steps up Syria strikes in Damascus attack
Israel struck Syria's military headquarters in Damascus on Wednesday and moved more troops to the border area in a bid, officials said, to prevent attacks against the Syrian Druze community.
Israeli forces have stepped up operations in Syria since Monday after deadly fighting between Druze, Bedouin groups and Syrian troops in the southern area of Suwayda.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said nearly 250 people have been killed in the clashes in recent days, with more than 20 being executed. Almost 140 of those killed are members of the Syrian security forces, the SOHR said.
On Wednesday afternoon, Syria's state news agency, Sana, reported that groups in Suwayda had agreed a ceasefire. There was no immediate comment from Israel on the truce and its military said strikes on southern Syria were continuing.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Israel and Syria were nearing 'a real deescalation'.
'It's complicated,' he said from the White House. 'We've been engaged with them all morning long and all night long, with both sides.'
6.40am
Trump dumps 'past' MAGA supporters over Epstein fallout
By Michael Koziol
US President Donald Trump has explicitly abandoned his MAGA supporters who are still demanding answers over the Jeffrey Epstein saga, claiming they are doing the Democrats' bidding and saying he no longer wants their support.
Despite the FBI and Attorney-General Pam Bondi drawing a line under the case this month, and saying there was no evidence accused sex trafficker Epstein was murdered or kept a client 'list', a large and influential section of Trump's Make America Great Again movement is not satisfied.
They are calling on the government to release more of the so-called 'Epstein files' – documents related to the case – and increasingly believe Trump's administration is part of a conspiracy to cover up Epstein's affairs and links to what they call 'the deep state'.
6.38am
What's making news today
By Daniel Lo Surdo
Hello and welcome to the national news live blog. My name is Daniel Lo Surdo, and I'll be helming our live coverage this morning.
Here's what is making news today:
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is in the western Chinese city of Chengdu today, after touring the Great Wall of China on Wednesday. Albanese is expected to attend a medical technology industry lunch and tour a factory from Australian hearing implant company Cochlear, as he concludes a six-day Chinese visit that has included meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang.
US President Donald Trump has abandoned his MAGA supporters who are still demanding answers over the Jeffrey Epstein saga, claiming they are doing the Democrats' bidding and saying he no longer wants their support. It comes after the FBI and Attorney-General Pam Bondi found no evidence that Epstein was murdered or kept a client list earlier this month, which has failed to quell belief that the Trump administration is part of a conspiracy to cover up Epstein's affairs.
The Australian sharemarket is expected to return to a positive day of trading after retreating on Wednesday. It follows a shaky day on Wall Street, which was rattled after Trump revealed that he had discussed the possibility of firing the head of the Federal Reserve. Trump has criticised the Federal Reserve for failing to cut interest rates this year, which would assist American households and businesses while strengthening the government's borrowing power.
Paul Gallen has defeated Sonny Bill Williams in a split points decision victory in an eight-round bout in Sydney on Wednesday night. A one-point penalty against Williams for holding in the seventh round proved decisive in delivering Gallen the victory.
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7NEWS
17 minutes ago
- 7NEWS
Here's what you should know about US President Donald Trump's new tariffs
US President Donald Trump just set new tariffs for countries across the globe, solidifying his extreme break with America's long-standing trade policy. The new tariff regime will not go into effect Friday, as expected. Instead, the tariffs will be implemented on August 7 to give US Customs and Border Protection sufficient time to make the necessary changes to collect the new duties. The 'universal' tariff for goods coming into the US will remain at 10 per cent, the same level that was implemented on April 2. But that 10 per cent rate will apply only to countries with which the US has a trade surplus – countries to which the US exports more than it imports. That applies to most countries, a senior administration official said. A 15 per cent rate will serve as the new tariff floor for countries with which the US has a trade deficit. About 40 countries will pay that new 15 per cent tariff. That tariff will be lower for many of those nations than the April 2 'reciprocal' tariffs, but it will be higher for a handful. More than a dozen countries have tariff rates that are higher than 15 per cent, either because they agreed to a trade framework with the US or because Trump sent their leaders a letter dictating a higher tariff. The official said those countries have among the highest trade deficits with the US. The new trade policy also establishes a 40 per cent additional penalty on so-called transshipments. Those are goods that are shipped from a high-tariff country to a low-tariff country and then re-shipped to the US. The US already imposes penalties and fines for goods that Customs and Border Protection agents deem to be transshipped. The 40 per cent will come on top of that, a senior administration official said. Trump signed an executive order increasing the tariff rate on Canadian goods that aren't exempt from the USMCA free-trade agreement from 25 per cent to 35 per cent. The higher tariff rate will go into effect on Friday local time. A senior Trump administration official described conversations with Canada surrounding fentanyl and tariffs on products in their country as less constructive than with Mexico, which received a 90-day pause on higher tariffs. Ontario Premier Doug Ford said the higher tariff rate is 'concerning,' especially with other tariffs still in place. And the president and CEO of Canada's Chamber of Commerce called the statement released by the White House tonight 'more fact-less tariff turbulence.' Changes in tariffs On April 2, President Donald Trump declared a US economic emergency and announced tariffs of at least 10 per cent across all countries, with rates even higher for 60 countries or trading blocs that have a high trade deficit with the US. He deemed it 'Liberation Day'. Tonight, the president announced adjustments to some of those reciprocal tariffs ahead of his midnight deadline. Here's what is different: Angola: 32 per cent to 15 per cent Bangladesh: 37 per cent to 20 per cent Bosnia and Herzegovina: 35 per cent to 30 per cent Botswana: 37 per cent to 15 per cent Brunei: 24 per cent to 25 per cent Cambodia: 49 per cent to 19 per cent Cameroon: 11 per cent to 15 per cent Chad: 13 per cent to 15 per cent Côte d`Ivoire: 21 per cent to 15 per cent Democratic Republic of the Congo: 11 per cent to 15 per cent Equatorial Guinea: 13 per cent to 15 per cent European Union: 20 per cent to 15 per cent (for most goods) Falkland Islands: 41 per cent to 10 per cent Fiji: 32 per cent to 15 per cent Guyana: 38 per cent to 15 per cent India: 26 per cent to 25 per cent Indonesia: 32 per cent to 19 per cent Iraq: 39 per cent to 35 per cent Israel: 17 per cent to 15 per cent Japan: 24 per cent to 15 per cent Jordan: 20 per cent to 15 per cent Kazakhstan: 27 per cent to 25 per cent Laos: 48 per cent to 40 per cent Lesotho: 50 per cent to 15 per cent Libya: 31 per cent to 30 per cent Liechtenstein: 37 per cent to 15 per cent Madagascar: 47 per cent to 15 per cent Malawi: 17 per cent to 15 per cent Malaysia: 24 per cent to 19 per cent Mauritius: 40 per cent to 15 per cent Moldova: 31 per cent to 25 per cent Mozambique: 16 per cent to 15 per cent Myanmar: 44 per cent to 40 per cent Namibia: 21 per cent to 15 per cent Nauru: 30 per cent to 15 per cent Nigeria: 14 per cent to 15 per cent North Macedonia: 33 per cent to 15 per cent Pakistan: 29 per cent to 19 per cent Philippines: 17 per cent to 19 per cent Serbia: 37 per cent to 35 per cent South Korea: 30 per cent to 15 per cent Sri Lanka: 44 per cent to 20 per cent Switzerland: 31 per cent to 39 per cent Taiwan: 32 per cent to 20 per cent Thailand: 36 per cent to 19 per cent Tunisia: 28 per cent to 25 per cent Vanuatu: 22 per cent to 15 per cent Vietnam: 46 per cent to 20 per cent Zambia: 17 per cent to 15 per cent Zimbabwe: 18 per cent to 15 per cent
Herald Sun
33 minutes ago
- Herald Sun
Trump envoy to inspect Gaza aid as pressure mounts on Israel
President Donald Trump's envoy met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday ahead of a visit to inspect aid distribution in Gaza, as a deadly food crisis drove mounting international pressure for a ceasefire. Witkoff, who has been involved in months of stalled negotiations for a ceasefire and hostage release deal, met Netanyahu shortly after his arrival, the Israeli leader's office said. On Friday, he is to visit Gaza, the White House announced. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that Witkoff, who visited Gaza in January, would inspect "distribution sites and secure a plan to deliver more food and meet with local Gazans to hear firsthand about this dire situation on the ground". German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul also met Netanyahu in Jerusalem, and afterwards declared: "The humanitarian disaster in Gaza is beyond imagination. "Here, the Israeli government must act quickly, safely and effectively to provide humanitarian and medical aid to prevent mass starvation from becoming a reality," he said. "I have the impression that this has been understood today." Even as Wadephul met Israeli leaders, the armed wing of Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad released a video showing German-Israeli hostage Rom Braslavksi. In the six-minute video, Braslavski, speaking in Hebrew, is seen watching recent news footage of the crisis in Gaza. He identifies himself and pleads with the Israeli government to secure his release. Braslavski was a security guard at the Nova music festival, one of the sites targeted by Hamas and other Palestinian fighters in the October 2023 attack that sparked the Gaza war. In an example of the deadly problems facing aid efforts in Gaza, the territory's civil defence agency said that at least 58 Palestinians were killed late Wednesday when Israeli forces opened fire on a crowd attempting to block an aid convoy. - Hungry crowd - The Israeli military said troops had fired "warning shots" as Gazans gathered around the aid trucks. An AFP correspondent saw stacks of bullet-riddled corpses in Gaza City's Al-Shifa Hospital. Jameel Ashour, who lost a relative in the shooting, told AFP at the overflowing morgue that Israeli troops opened fire after "people saw thieves stealing and dropping food and the hungry crowd rushed in hopes of getting some". Witkoff has been the top US representative in indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas but talks in Doha broke down last week and Israel and the United States recalled their delegations. Israel is under mounting international pressure to agree a ceasefire and allow the world to flood Gaza with food, with Canada and Portugal the latest Western governments to announce plans to recognise a Palestinian state. - International pressure - Trump criticised Canada's decision and, in a post on his Truth Social network, placed the blame for the crisis squarely on Palestinian militant group Hamas. "The fastest way to end the Humanitarian Crises in Gaza is for Hamas to SURRENDER AND RELEASE THE HOSTAGES!!!" declared Trump, one of Israel's staunchest international supporters. Earlier this week, however, the US president contradicted Netanyahu's insistence that reports of hunger in Gaza were exaggerated, warning that the territory faces "real starvation". UN-backed experts have reported "famine is now unfolding" in Gaza, with images of sick and emaciated children drawing international outrage. The US State Department said it would deny visas to officials from the Palestinian Authority, which exercises limited self-rule in parts of the Israeli-occupied West Bank -- the core of any future Palestinian state. - 'This is what death looks like' - The October 2023 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to a tally based on official figures. Of the 251 people seized, 49 are still held in Gaza, including 27 declared dead by the Israeli military. The Israeli offensive, nearing its 23rd month, has killed at least 60,249 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to Hamas-run Gaza's health ministry. This week UN aid agencies said deaths from starvation had begun. The civil defence agency said Israeli attacks across Gaza on Thursday killed at least 32 people. "Enough!" cried Najah Aish Umm Fadi, who lost relatives in a strike on a camp for the displaced in central Gaza. "We put up with being hungry, but now the death of children who had just been born?" Further north, Amir Zaqot told AFP after getting his hands on some of the aid parachuted from planes, that "this is what death looks like. People are fighting each other with knives". "If the crossings were opened... food could reach us. But this is nonsense," Zaqot said of the airdrops. Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties accessing many areas mean AFP cannot independently verify tolls and details provided by the civil defence and other parties. burs-dc/kir Originally published as Trump envoy to inspect Gaza aid as pressure mounts on Israel
Sky News AU
40 minutes ago
- Sky News AU
Aussie activists ‘psychologically brutalised' by Israeli soldiers
A pair of Aussie activists have touched down in Sydney after they spent several weeks in Israeli Defence Forces custody after a failed mission to supply food and aid to the starving people of Gaza. Journalist and filmmaker Tan Safi and activist Robert Martin were part of a 21-strong crew that set sail aboard the 'Handala' as part of a humanitarian mission. Since Israel began military operations in Gaza in October 2023, 60,000 Palestinians have been killed in a campaign that prominent Israeli humanitarian organisations labelled as 'genocide' on Monday. While speaking to the media at Sydney Airport on Friday morning, the pair said they were 'psychologically brutalised' by their captors. 'We were in international waters at the time, and we were taken completely against our will and just brutalised psychologically in every way,' Safi said. 'We were on a hunger and water strike, but the only time they offered food was once and it was a tomato about (the size of a golf ball),' she said. In a video published on Sunday, Safi said she had been 'abducted' by the Israeli military, and urged supporters to 'put pressure on the Australian government to sanction Israel'. The Freedom Flotilla departed from Syracuse, Italy, on July 13, fully equipped with humanitarian supplies, en route to Gaza. Free Gaza Australia, the Australian branch of the Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) that organised the expedition, said the cargo of the Handala 'carried desperately needed lifesaving humanitarian cargo, including baby formula, food, and medical supplies, to the Palestinian people in Gaza'. At about midnight on July 26, the Handala was intercepted by the Israeli military about 80km miles off the coast of Gaza – an area that is considered to be international waters. Footage shows the moment Israeli troops boarded the flotilla, brandishing assault weapons and pointing them in the direction of flotilla activists who sat in the middle of their ship with hands outstretched. The crew had agreed before their arrest they would engage in a hunger strike in solidarity with Palestinians. Every crew member has now been deported to their country of residence or are in the process of repatriation. In a social media post on Friday morning, Free Gaza Australia said plans were already under way for another expedition to Palestine. 'Robert and Tan are home and we're already preparing the next Freedom Flotilla boat to break the siege of Gaza. We sail until Palestine is free,' it said. Allegations have also surfaced of other Freedom Flotilla crew members being abused by IDF soldiers. The FFC said US crew member Chris Smalls was beaten, kicked and choked by at least seven IDF soldiers as he and the other crew members were being detained in the only physical display of brutality catalogued by members of the Flotilla. Among the activists was Greta Thunberg, who has since been sent back to Sweden by Israeli authorities. Originally published as Aussie activists 'psychologically brutalised' by Israeli soldiers
