Latest news with #Chatroulette
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
New 'raw' BBC series What It Feels Like For A Girl was a queer education for the cast
There's a moment in What It Feels Like For A Girl, the new anarchic coming-of-age BBC series, when a 14-year-old queer working-class kid from Nottingham is cycling through conversations on Chatroulette, hoping to land on someone ready to pull their trousers down on camera. For anyone who grew up in the early noughties, it's instantly evocative, landing us securely in the moment when the promise of the internet gave us a peek into the breadth of the world outside our small enclaves. It's a lynchpin moment for Byron, who sees a sexualised existence outside of his rigid, heteronormative upbringing, and plants just enough of a seed to want to seek something else — by any means necessary. He dives headfirst into an underground world of partying, drug-taking and sex work, and navigates his queer, and later trans, identity with the help of a group of 'Fallen Divas'. The show is based on acclaimed writer Paris Lees' memoir of the same name, which chronicled her upbringing in a working-class suburb of Nottingham. "I read the book, and completely fell in love. I felt like it was so unrestrained and honest and unflinching," Ellis Howard, the relative newcomer who plays Byron, tells Yahoo UK. "When I saw that it was being made, I thought, How and why are they making this? Because this is so raw for the BBC!" The series, like the book, is unrestrained in its portrayal of Lees' experiences, from the high highs of ecstasy-fuelled nights on the dancefloor raving to Livin' Joy to the dark lows of the abuse suffered at the hands of clients, groomers and partners and the decisions she makes that eventually land her in prison. Think of What It Feels Like For A Girl as a grungier spiritual sister to Skins, the other 2000s teen series that scandalised a generation of parents. For Lees, who was also the lead writer and executive producer on the series, it was important for young, queer, working-class actors to make up the cast of the show. Alongside Howard, Hannah Jones and Laquarn Lewis star as two of the 'Fallen Divas' who make up Byron's queer circle. In the series, the crew grow, bond and spar together like all teens navigating adolescence, all with the added threatening reality of being visibly queer and trans together. Off-screen, that experience was mirrored too. "This is a book made by a working-class trans woman [and] I've never seen this before," says Jones, who plays Sasha, who's part antagonist, part confidant to Byron. "I think the audacity and the gumption that Sasha had, the time and that Sasha had, I was like, I'm so drawn to that, I love that. It's such an important story to tell of a working-class trans person whose story isn't just about being trans." For Lewis, who stars as Byron's first queer friend Lady Die, starring in the series was an education as much as an experience. "It's still something that is new to me, queer culture. I'm gay, and it's all new, and I'm still learning, and I think this has been the best experience of my life. I've learned so much more and I've met so many more queer friends as well." It's clear that, through the weeks of making this series, Howard, Lewis and Jones are now joined at the hip. They finish each other's sentences, interject with inside jokes, affirm each other's opinions and speak with the mile-a-minute urgency of people who have been patiently waiting for months to finally be able to talk about the thing that's changed their lives. "I just felt so incredibly grateful every single day that I was on that set," says Howard, as he looks to Lewis and Jones. "I couldn't believe that we were making it, I couldn't believe who we were making it with, just like this ragtag gang of queers who liberated me on set and gave me a passport at my big old age to question who I was, and to affirm this new version of Ellis. I felt like I had my own renaissance." The series doesn't shy away from difficult topics that, on more than one occasion, are incredibly hard to watch. The sex work that Byron does in bathroom stalls and on damp shed mattresses is dangerous and bleak, and there's a constant fear that, at any second, something truly awful is going to happen to him; and the reality of transphobia and homophobia for Sasha and Lady Die in the early 2000s is spat like acid through the screen. In confronting these scary triggers, the cast said they had to confront their own vulnerabilities as well. "It is difficult acting-wise, because it's so raw on the page. I have no choice but to meet it, and meet it with [my] own traumas and mess and complications — and I that really cost something emotionally," says Howard. "I'm like, 'Well, if I've experienced these things, I want to reveal it on screen. I want someone to feel seen. I never felt like it was hard. I just felt like I had a responsibility to meet." "As women and as queer people, we have a wall up, a self-defence wall," says Jones. "And I think breaking that down to come into Sasha's world of craziness and unapologetic self was a hard thing for me, and that goes hand in hand with that of reliving some trauma and getting to the nitty gritty parts of my life and going, 'It's okay that this happens, I need to bring this all to the screen'." "I had never tucked to my penis ever before. I was in agony," says Lewis, to an immediate eruption of laughter from Howard and Jones, that's both elated and horrified. The three crumble immediately, that balancing of lightness and darkness that's so prevalent in What It Feels Like For A Girl naturally seeping through. "A big one for me was, Am I doing Lady Die justice? Am I doing the trans community justice? And am I doing queer people justice? Am I doing things right?" he immediately adds, cutting through the jokes with the reality of the albatross that hangs around all their necks with a series like this. There's a tricky line the young cast is aware they're having to walk right now. They don't want to represent all trans and queer people, but they also recognise that, in a time where conversations around LGBTQ+ identity are reaching a horrible and divisive fever pitch, it's inevitable that they'll be held up to some kind of standard. "You want people to actually have empathy for what's going on," says Lewis. "We're not trying to change people's minds, but [we want to] make sure that everybody has some sort of sympathy towards people's experiences, and it's like, okay, is this hard-hitting enough to make people actually want to look after humanity?" "Who knows about what that reaction will be, and best to not anticipate anything," adds Howard. "I'm trying to hold on to [that] I feel incredibly proud of this thing that we've created, and also the friendships that have formed as a result of it." What It Feels Like for a Girl will stream on BBC iPlayer from Tuesday, 3 June.
The Star
07-05-2025
- Politics
- The Star
A history lesson for Russians
ON a recent afternoon in Bila Tserkva, a quiet city in central Ukraine, a 59-year-old history teacher settled into a colourful cafe, opened a laptop and logged into Chatroulette, an online platform that connects strangers worldwide. His goal? To teach Russians, citizens of a nation that has invaded his, a bit of Ukrainian history. Within minutes, a middle-aged Russian man appeared on the screen, speaking from what looked like a grocery store. Vitalii Dribnytsia, the history teacher, wasted no time, opening with a deliberately provocative question: 'Who does Crimea belong to?' he asked, referring to the Ukrainian Black Sea peninsula that Russia illegally annexed in 2014. 'To us,' the man replied without hesitation. What followed was a dizzying exchange on the historical roots of Ukraine and Russia, Ukraine's war of independence from 1917 to 1921, and the Ukrainian language. At times, the Russian man hesitated about historical facts, but in the end, he waved it all away. 'The internet will tell you everything,' he said. 'Ukraine never existed and never will.' This was just one of hundreds of online conversations Dribnytsia, a former middle school and high school teacher, has had with random Russians over the past three years of war, as he seeks to challenge the Kremlin's narrative that Ukrainian nationhood is a fiction and, by extension, that Ukraine belongs to Russia. Almost every day, for several hours at a time, Dribnytsia engages with Russians on Chatroulette, using a matter-of-fact tone and sharp questions to try to debunk widely held beliefs in Russia: that Ukraine as a nation was created by the Soviet Union, that its leaders are neo-Nazis or that its language is merely a dialect of Russian. A monument in Kyiv honouring the victims of the Holodomor that killed millions of Ukrainians in 1932 and 1933. — Brendan Hoffman/The New York Times Videos of Dribnytsia's candid discussions, which he uploads to YouTube, have attracted a huge following in Ukraine. His YouTube channel, called 'Vox Veritatis,' Latin for 'The Voice of the Truth,' boasts nearly half a million subscribers, with Ukrainians watching the conversations to learn more about their own history and sharpen their arguments in defence of Ukraine's right to sovereignty. His exchanges have offered a rare and unusual window into the politicisation of history in Russia, shedding light on the ideological foundations behind Russia's attempts to erase Ukraine's past and identity, including by systematically destroying Ukrainian cultural sites. 'People usually don't know their own history. That's normal. But in this war, in Russia, it's not just ignorance – it's the weaponisation of history,' Dribnytsia said in a recent interview in Bila Tserkva, his hometown. 'I'm just trying to set the record straight.' A burly man with a white beard, Dribnytsia knows from experience how history can be used as a political tool. He studied history in Kyiv in the final years that Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union, when liberalising reforms were beginning to lift the lid on decades of hushed-up historical events. He still remembers one of his professors describing the Holodomor, the Kremlin-engineered famine that killed millions of Ukrainians in 1932-33, as 'an invention of Western bourgeois historians' – only for students to later read about the famine in Pravda, the Communist Party's official newspaper. 'We entered university as typical Soviet students. But by the time we graduated, the ideological landscape had completely changed,' said Dribnytsia, who graduated with a master's degree in 1991, the year the Soviet Union collapsed and Ukraine declared independence. He began teaching the same year, using textbooks that had not yet been updated from Soviet times. Dribnytsia had to rely on his own research and books written by little-known reformist historians to present a version of events as accurate as possible. 'I understood that I had to teach children this new information – the facts that had either been hidden from us or distorted by Soviet history,' he said. Former students of Dribnytsia in Bila Tserkva remember him as a demanding yet passionate teacher. 'He wanted each of us to know our history because a person can only move forward and make informed decisions by understanding the past,' said Iryna Semyhailo, 31, now a math teacher in Bila Tserkva. In 2021, Dribnytsia retired because of serious health issues. That summer, Russian President Vladimir Putin published a 5,300-word essay distorting history to claim that Ukrainians and Russians are 'one people' – an argument he would later use to try to justify his invasion as a liberation of Ukraine from the West. Alarmed by the Kremlin's propaganda, Dribnytsia began devoting his time to engaging in online discussions with Russians about history. But what started as an attempt at open dialogue quickly evolved into a project focused on debunking Moscow's narrative, particularly after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in early 2022. Drawing from his teaching skills, Dribnytsia often peppers his interlocutors with precise questions and cuts them off to point out factual errors – ultimately pushing them to confront the inconsistencies in their reasoning. In a video of a conversation recorded two years ago, seen by 1.7 million people, Dribnytsia responds to a man who claims that Russians and Ukrainians are brothers, echoing Putin's argument. 'How do you define brotherly nations?' Dribnytsia asks. 'From history,' the man replies. 'We have a shared past.' 'If Austrians and Hungarians lived in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, does that mean Austrians and Hungarians are brothers?' Dribnytsia snaps back, pointing to two nations that are now neighbours but speak different languages and have distinct traditions. The Russian man then points out that Russia and Ukraine share a common religion, Christian Orthodoxy. Dribnytsia responds by noting that about a tenth of Ukrainians are Greek Catholics, before pressing again: why should Russians and Ukrainians be considered brothers? 'Maybe I'm mistaken,' the Russian man concedes, 'though I don't think so.' Since mid-2021, Dribnytsia has recorded more than 1,500 conversations – enough to plant seeds of doubt in some of his interlocutors, though he often encounters outright hostility. By his own admission, he hasn't had much success changing peoples' minds. Most Russians he encounters either dismiss his arguments outright or echo Kremlin talking points. Only a small minority, usually those who oppose the war, engage in genuine historical debates, he says. During a recent online chat, a Russian woman praised Dribnytsia's work, urging him to keep 'laying out the facts.' Dimitri, a 27-year-old Russian who opposes the war, said in a phone interview that the videos had taught him about events overlooked in Russian textbooks, such as the existence of a Ukrainian state in the late 1910s. Over time, Dribnytsia realised his true audience isn't Russians, but the millions of Ukrainians who were educated in Soviet times and now want to update their knowledge – part of a broader movement in wartime Ukraine to break free from decades of Soviet and Russian influences. Some of his videos, where he discusses the first appearance of Ukraine on world maps or the complex history of Ukrainian nationalist movements – two topics that were either ignored or distorted in Soviet textbooks – have garnered more than 1 million views. 'I'm learning a lot from him,' said Natalia Tylina, a 64-year-old Ukrainian retiree who described herself as 'formed in the Soviet Union.' She said she now feels more confident to argue with acquaintances who 'don't know our history at all' and spread Russian narratives. In his conversations, Dribnytsia is often asked about the darker chapters of Ukrainian history, including the collaboration of nationalist movements with the Nazis during World War II. He doesn't shy away from the topic, acknowledging their collaboration while also noting that the Nazis later suppressed those same groups. Three years of war and as much time trying to correct historical falsehoods have taken a toll on Dribnytsia. He loses his calm more often during online conversations, and he has come to believe it is futile to try to change the minds of his Russian interlocutors. 'Most of them go on Chatroulette to target Ukrainians and push their fabricated narratives,' he said. 'They're not here to hear a different perspective or learn something new.' Yaroslav Hrytsak, a prominent Ukrainian historian who has watched Dribnytsia's videos, said his work might seem in vain. But if nobody sets the record straight, he noted, then 'Mr. Putin wins.' 'His efforts actually make perfect sense,' Hrytsak said. 'It's about restoring our dignity, proving that Ukraine as a nation exists.' — ©2025 The New York Times Company This article originally appeared in The New York Times
New York Times
17-04-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
The Ukrainian Schoolmaster Teaching History to His Invaders
On a recent afternoon in Bila Tserkva, a quiet city in central Ukraine, a 59-year-old history teacher settled into a colorful cafe, opened a laptop and logged into Chatroulette, an online platform that connects strangers worldwide. His goal? To teach Russians, citizens of a nation that has invaded his, a bit of Ukrainian history. Within minutes, a middle-aged Russian man appeared on the screen, speaking from what looked like a grocery store. Vitalii Dribnytsia, the history teacher, wasted no time, opening with a deliberately provocative question: 'Who does Crimea belong to?' he asked, referring to the Ukrainian Black Sea peninsula that Russia illegally annexed in 2014. 'To us,' the man replied without hesitation. What followed was a dizzying exchange on the historical roots of Ukraine and Russia, Ukraine's war of independence from 1917 to 1921, and the Ukrainian language. At times, the Russian man hesitated about historical facts, but in the end, he waved it all away. 'The internet will tell you everything,' he said. 'Ukraine never existed and never will.' This was just one of hundreds of online conversations Mr. Dribnytsia, a former middle school and high school teacher, has had with random Russians over the past three years of war, as he seeks to challenge the Kremlin's narrative that Ukrainian nationhood is a fiction and, by extension, that Ukraine belongs to Russia. Almost every day, for several hours at a time, Mr. Dribnytsia engages with Russians on Chatroulette, using a matter-of-fact tone and sharp questions to try to debunk widely held beliefs in Russia: that Ukraine as a nation was created by the Soviet Union, that its leaders are neo-Nazis or that its language is merely a dialect of Russian. Videos of Mr. Dribnytsia's candid discussions, which he uploads to YouTube, have attracted a huge following in Ukraine. His YouTube channel, called 'Vox Veritatis,' Latin for 'The Voice of the Truth,' boasts nearly half a million subscribers, with Ukrainians watching the conversations to learn more about their own history and sharpen their arguments in defense of Ukraine's right to sovereignty. His exchanges have offered a rare and unusual window into the politicization of history in Russia, shedding light on the ideological foundations behind Russia's attempts to erase Ukraine's past and identity, including by systematically destroying Ukrainian cultural sites. 'People usually don't know their own history. That's normal. But in this war, in Russia, it's not just ignorance — it's the weaponization of history,' Mr. Dribnytsia said in a recent interview in Bila Tserkva, his hometown. 'I'm just trying to set the record straight.' A burly man with a white beard, Mr. Dribnytsia knows from experience how history can be used as a political tool. He studied history in Kyiv in the final years that Ukraine was part of the Soviet Union, when liberalizing reforms were beginning to lift the lid on decades of hushed-up historical events. He still remembers one of his professors describing the Holodomor, the Kremlin-engineered famine that killed millions of Ukrainians in 1932-33, as 'an invention of Western bourgeois historians' — only for students to later read about the famine in Pravda, the Communist Party's official newspaper. 'We entered university as typical Soviet students. But by the time we graduated, the ideological landscape had completely changed,' said Mr. Dribnytsia, who graduated with a master's degree in 1991, the year the Soviet Union collapsed and Ukraine declared independence. He began teaching the same year, using textbooks that had not yet been updated from Soviet times. Mr. Dribnytsia had to rely on his own research and books written by little-known reformist historians to present a version of events as accurate as possible. 'I understood that I had to teach children this new information — the facts that had either been hidden from us or distorted by Soviet history,' he said. Former students of Mr. Dribnytsia in Bila Tserkva remember him as a demanding yet passionate teacher. 'He wanted each of us to know our history because a person can only move forward and make informed decisions by understanding the past,' said Iryna Semyhailo, 31, now a math teacher in Bila Tserkva. In 2021, Mr. Dribnytsia retired because of serious health issues. That summer, Mr. Putin published a 5,300-word essay distorting history to claim that Ukrainians and Russians are 'one people' — an argument he would later use to justify his invasion as a liberation of Ukraine from the West. Alarmed by the Kremlin's propaganda, Mr. Dribnytsia began devoting his time to engaging in online discussions with Russians about history. But what started as an attempt at open dialogue quickly evolved into a project focused on debunking Moscow's narrative, particularly after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in early 2022. Drawing from his teaching skills, Mr. Dribnytsia often peppers his interlocutors with precise questions and cuts them off to point out factual errors — ultimately pushing them to confront the inconsistencies in their reasoning. In a video of a conversation recorded two years ago, seen by 1.7 million people, Mr. Dribnytsia responds to a man who claims that Russians and Ukrainians are brothers, echoing Mr. Putin's argument. 'How do you define brotherly nations?' Mr. Dribnytsia asks. 'From history,' the man replies. 'We have a shared past.' 'If Austrians and Hungarians lived in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, does that mean Austrians and Hungarians are brothers?' Mr. Dribnytsia snaps back, pointing to two nations that are now neighbors but speak different languages and have distinct traditions. The Russian man then points out that Russia and Ukraine share a common religion, Christian Orthodoxy. Mr. Dribnytsia responds by noting that about a tenth of Ukrainians are Greek Catholics, before pressing again: why should Russians and Ukrainians be considered brothers? 'Maybe I'm mistaken,' the Russian man concedes, 'though I don't think so.' Since mid-2021, Mr. Dribnytsia has recorded over 1,500 conversations — enough to plant seeds of doubt in some of his interlocutors, though he often encounters outright hostility. By his own admission, he hasn't had much success changing peoples' minds. Most Russians he encounters either dismiss his arguments outright or echo Kremlin talking points. Only a small minority, usually those who oppose the war, engage in genuine historical debates, he says. During a recent online chat, a Russian woman praised Mr. Dribnytsia's work, urging him to keep 'laying out the facts.' Dimitri, a 27-year-old Russian who opposes the war, said in a phone interview that the videos had taught him about events overlooked in Russian textbooks, such as the existence of a Ukrainian state in the late 1910s. Over time, Mr. Dribnytsia realized his true audience isn't Russians, but the millions of Ukrainians who were educated in Soviet times and now want to update their knowledge — part of a broader movement in wartime Ukraine to break free from decades of Soviet and Russian influences. Some of his videos, where he discusses the first appearance of Ukraine on world maps or the complex history of Ukrainian nationalist movements — two topics that were either ignored or distorted in Soviet textbooks — have garnered over a million views. 'I'm learning a lot from him,' said Natalia Tylina, a 64-year-old Ukrainian retiree who described herself as 'formed in the Soviet Union.' She said she now feels more confident to argue with acquaintances who 'don't know our history at all' and spread Russian narratives. In his conversations, Mr. Dribnytsia is often asked about the darker chapters of Ukrainian history, including the collaboration of nationalist movements with the Nazis during World War II. He doesn't shy away from the topic, acknowledging their collaboration while also noting that the Nazis later suppressed those same groups. Three years of war and as much time trying to correct historical falsehoods have taken a toll on Mr. Dribnytsia. He loses his calm more often during online conversations, and he has come to believe it is futile to try to change the minds of his Russian interlocutors. 'Most of them go on Chatroulette to target Ukrainians and push their fabricated narratives,' he said. 'They're not here to hear a different perspective or learn something new.' Yaroslav Hrytsak, a prominent Ukrainian historian who has watched Mr. Dribnytsia's videos, said his work might seem in vain. But if nobody sets the record straight, he noted, then 'Mr. Putin wins.' 'His efforts actually make perfect sense,' Mr. Hrytsak said. 'It's about restoring our dignity, proving that Ukraine as a nation exists.'
The Guardian
12-02-2025
- Health
- The Guardian
Minister to meet staff at Bankstown hospital as two nurses' anti-Israeli video threats investigated
The New South Wales health minister says he will meet with staff at Bankstown hospital after footage emerged on social media of two of its nurses threatening Israeli patients, one of whom has since issued an apology. The video attracted widespread political condemnation after it was published by the Israeli content creator Max Veifer, depicting an edited online conversation he had with the two staff members on a video chat platform similar to Chatroulette. On Wednesday the health minister, Ryan Park, identified the pair as nurses from Bankstown hospital and said they had been stood down. In the video, Veifer asked a man wearing scrubs with a NSW Health insignia, who identified himself as a doctor, and a woman sitting beside him what they would do if an Israeli were to come to their hospital, and the woman responded: 'I won't treat them, I will kill them.' The man said: 'You have no idea how many [Israelis] came to this hospital, and I sent them to Jahannam [hell]. I literally sent them to Jahannam.' Mohamad Sakr, a solicitor who is representing the male nurse, said on Wednesday his client had sincerely apologised to the individual in question and the broader Jewish community. 'He understands what has happened, he is trying to make amends,' he said. Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email 'He has never appeared before the court in relation to any criminal matters. He is a person of prior good character. It is unfortunate to find himself in a situation like this.' Park told Channel Seven's Sunrise on Thursday that Jewish patients 'have every right to have lost confidence' in the NSW Health system and he would work as hard as he could to rebuild that trust. 'I understand the Jewish community has been rocked by this,' the minister said. 'I've spoken to a number of rabbis overnight. I've spoken to the Jewish Board of Deputies. It is my job to regain that trust in the health system.' Park said he would meet the leadership and general staff at the hospital on Thursday to discuss the matter and make his expectations clear. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion '[I will] make sure that they feel supported that if they see any of this type of behaviour, they feel confident enough to say it and they feel confident enough to know that the government will act on it,' he said. Park said there had been a 'quick analysis' on Wednesday and overnight to check if there had been adverse patient outcomes at the hospital and to check how they had been cared for. It 'didn't indicate that that particular hospital had any outlying issues around adverse patient outcomes', he said – but there would be a more detailed check in coming days, and Park pledged to make the results public. 'I need to make sure that there have been no other incidents of this type of behaviour that has impacted on patient care in any way, shape or form in our hospitals,' he said. 'This is an issue that we need to confront … This behaviour is not acceptable.' He confirmed on Wednesday that NSW police and the NSW Healthcare Complaints Commission would both investigate. The shadow home affairs minister, James Paterson, welcomed news that NSW police were investigating and that the pair had been stood down from their jobs. But he told Sky News on Thursday he wanted to see more action from the federal government. 'The federal government regulates the health profession in terms of the registration of doctors and nurses and, as of last night, those two nurses were still registered through the national regulator,' he said. 'That registration should be stripped because, while they've been banned from the NSW public health system, that doesn't stop them working in the private system, and they shouldn't be anywhere near any patients, [given] they've said that they wouldn't treat people based on their nationality or ethnicity. 'For anyone to think it's a good idea to say this in any context, but to say it at their workplace, in their uniforms, on a recorded video, just shows how rampant this problem [of antisemitism] is and how decisive leadership is needed to tackle it.' The prime minister, Anthony Albanese, called the footage 'sickening and shameful' on Wednesday. The federal health minister, Mark Butler, and the minister for home affairs, Tony Burke, released a joint statement condemning the video, labelling it 'as chilling as it is vile'.
Yahoo
12-02-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Australian nurses fired after allegedly saying in video they'd kill Israelis
Sydney — Two Australian nurses have been removed from their jobs over a video that appears to show them bragging they would kill Israeli patients in their hospital, authorities said Wednesday. Video released by Israeli influencer Max Veifer on social media appeared to show him in an online chat with a male and a female nurse at a Sydney hospital. "I am so upset that you are Israeli, eventually you are going to get killed," the male nurse tells him in an antisemitic tirade. Asked by Veifer how they would treat Israeli patients, the male nurse says he has sent many Israeli patients to hell. The female nurse says: "I won't treat them, I will kill them." Some of the dialogue was censored and it was not immediately possible to verify the full circumstances or contents of the conversation or the recording. The video, posted to TikTok, was unavailable on the platform later Wednesday. Screengrabs posted online showed a logo for the Chatroulette website in the corner of the video, suggesting Veifer may have connected with the Australian nurses by chance on that platform, before reposting the video on his TikTok channel. The male nurse reportedly told Sydney's Daily Telegraph newspaper the incident was a "joke, a misunderstanding" and promised to apologize. Relatives of the female nurse were quoted by The Australian as saying she was having an anxiety attack over the furor. Veifer told Australian broadcaster Sky News he had filmed the video the previous evening. "I was shocked but I had a mission to accomplish, you know. I had to expose them," he said. It follows a series of antisemitic incidents over recent months in which vandals have torched a Sydney childcare center, firebombed a Melbourne synagogue and scrawled antisemitic graffiti in Jewish neighborhoods. "This video is disgusting. It is shocking. It is appalling," New South Wales Health Minister Ryan Park told reporters, announcing an investigation by the state's police and health authorities. The pair had been "stood down immediately" from their jobs at Bankstown-Lidcombe Hospital in southwest Sydney, he added, saying: "Those people subject to that investigation will not ever be working for New South Wales Health again." Park said an initial assessment of the hospital's records indicated that it had been operating safely and with care. The state's police force said it had identified the nurses and "a thorough investigation is underway." "This is a sad day for our country — it is unthinkable that we are confronted with, and forced to investigate, such an appalling incident," said New South Wales police commissioner Karen Webb. Police had interviewed staff, seized security video and established where in the hospital the two nurses had allegedly been filmed, she said. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told parliament he had seen the video. "It is driven by hate, and it is disgusting. The comments are vile, the footage is sickening and it is shameful," he said. About one year ago, Australia's parliament enacted landmark legislation banning the performance of the Nazi salute in public and outlawing the display or sale of Nazi hate symbols such as the swastika. Trump, Musk take questions at White House Flu deaths outpace COVID deaths in 22 states for first time since pandemic began Latest news on Trump's apparent work with Putin for Fogel's release
