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News.com.au
5 days ago
- Politics
- News.com.au
Tony Burke seeks answers after Hamas sympathiser granted visa
The country's border chief is seeking answers after revelations a Hamas sympathiser was granted an Australian visa. Palestinian woman Mona Zahed has been living in tents with her young family for much of the 22-month war in Gaza – a conflict triggered by Hamas' October 7 attacks on Israel in 2023. The militant group killed more than 1200 in the unprecedented assault, including entire families, and witnesses reported horrific instances of sexual violence. Fighters took hundreds more hostage as they retreated into Gaza, where dozens remain captive. The Herald Sun revealed on Friday that Ms Zahed praised the attack on social media at the time. 'We woke up and got God's kingdom,' she wrote of the worst loss of Jewish life since the Holocaust. She secured a visa with the support of Melbourne artist Matt Chun, who claims to have raised tens of thousands of dollars to help Ms Zahed, her husband and four children secure visas. Hamas is a listed terrorist organisation in Australia and the Albanese government has repeatedly condemned the October 7 attacks. A spokesperson for Home Affairs and Immigration Minister Tony Burke said the Albanese government 'is serious' about keeping hatred out of Australia. 'This is a serious issue, the government is taking it seriously. Questions were put to the department as soon as the minister's office became aware,' the spokesperson said. 'The government is serious in its view about not importing hatred and we set a higher bar when the purpose of someone's visit is a speaking tour.' Ms Zahed has not entered Australia. Mr Burke has faced criticism this week after revealing he had rejected dozens of visas to protect 'social cohesion', with the opposition calling on him to clarify what 'standard' he held applications to. Plans to occupy Gaza The response from Mr Burke's office is in line with Anthony Albanese's rhetoric on not bringing the war in Gaza to Australia. It is no small task, as many Australians have family affected on both sides. Nearly two years of fighting has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and reduced most of Gaza to rubble. Israel's chokehold on aid getting into the war-ravaged territory has also caused fears of famine, local health officials reporting nearly 200 deaths from starvation. Foreign journalists are not allowed into Gaza to verify exact figures, but the reports tally with independent monitors and the situation has prompted a push from Israel's allies to recognise a Palestinian state. The Prime Minister has neither committed to nor ruled out doing so at the UN General Assembly next month. The Israeli government early on Friday (local time) confirmed it would go ahead with a full occupation of Gaza, as foreshadowed by Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday. 'The (Israel Defence Forces) will prepare to take control of Gaza City while providing humanitarian aid to the civilian population outside the combat zones,' the Israeli Prime Minister's office said in a statement. It said it also outlined conditions for 'ending the war'. The conditions include Hamas' disarmament, the return of all hostages, Gaza's demilitarisation with Israeli security control and a viable civilian government that is neither Hamas nor the Palestinian Authority. 'An absolute majority of cabinet ministers believed that the alternative plan presented to the cabinet would not achieve the defeat of Hamas or the return of the abductees,' the statement said.
Daily Mail
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Labor government 'grants' visa to Palestinian woman who praised Hamas terrorist attack on Israel: 'Praise be to Allah'
A Palestinian woman who praised Hamas 's October 7 massacre has reportedly been granted a visa to come to Australia, despite Prime Minister Anthony Albanese welcoming a report calling for applicants to be barred for extremist views. Mona Zahed, a chef and married mother of four who lives in Gaza, celebrated the terrorist attacks that claimed the lives of 1,200 people on October 7, 2023. 'We woke up and got God's kingdom,' she wrote, the day after the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust, which also saw 251 people taken hostage by Hamas terrorists. In a now-deleted post, Ms Zahed shared a photo of terrified Nova music festivalgoers fleeing for their lives alongside a picture of refugees fleeing the 'Nakba' or catastrophe in 1948, which established the state of Israel and saw the mass displacement of Palestinians. 'Praise be to Allah who has kept us alive to see this day,' Ms Zahed captioned the post, first reported by the Herald Sun. Ms Zahed, who wrote a cookbook while living in a displacement tent in southern Gaza called Tabkha: Recipes from Under the Rubble, has been supported by Melbourne-based artist Matt Chun. Last month, Mr Chun revealed that his partner Tess Cullity, who publishes the cookbook, had been 'working alongside human rights lawyers to secure safe passage for Mona and her family from Gaza to Wurundjeri Land' (Melbourne). 'Finally, against all odds, Tess has visas approved.' In a now-deleted post, Ms Zahed shared a photo of terrified Nova music festivalgoers fleeing for their lives alongside a picture of refugees fleeing the 'Nakba' or catastrophe in 1948 which established the state of Israel and saw the mass displacement of Palestinians Mr Chun and his partner have helped raise almost $29,000 for Mona and her family. The artist also celebrated the Hamas terrorist attacks, sharing a picture of the Palestinian flag with the title 'land back.' The caption read: 'Power to the freedom fighters. Death to the occupation. Resistance by any means necessary. Liberation from the River to the Sea.' This comes just weeks after Prime Minister Albanese welcomed a report from Jillian Segal, the government's special envoy to combat antisemitism, which recommended screening visa applicants for anti-Semitic views. Opposition Home Affairs spokesman Andrew Hastie said that if Ms Zahed had been granted a visa, it represented 'yet another immigration failure by the Albanese Labor government.' 'Any person that shows support for a terrorist organisation should not be granted a visa to Australia,' he said. 'If a visa has been granted, Tony Burke must immediately explain why, under his watch, an individual who celebrated the October 7 terrorist attack has been allowed to enter our country.' The Daily Mail approached the Department of Home Affairs, which is responsible for granting visas, for comment.
Yahoo
29-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
State lawmakers plans for homeowners insurance relief faces hurdles
HONOLULU (KHON2) — State lawmakers say they're looking at all they can to help homeowners deal with sky-rocketing insurance rates. But experts say it's a tough road ahead. Download the free KHON2 app for iOS or Android to stay informed on the latest news Because of massive disasters like the Lahaina wildfire and the fires in Los Angeles, insurance experts are predicting a grim future for insurance rates. 'I foresee the rates will stay high and depending on how the rest of 2025 goes, if we continue to see disasters that are worse than expected, then we will probably see higher rates in the future as well,' said insurance agent Kendrick Nishiguchi. One plan that lawmakers have to help is to resurrect the Hawaii Property Insurance Association and the Hawaii Hurricane Relief Fund. But that admittedly has some hurdles. 'HPIA is not set up to write condominium insurance,' said Matt Chun, HPIA board chair at a joint committee hearing at the state capitol. 'It's a new, developing event, emerging event. I believe some of the catalyst is the Lahaina, Maui fires because what it did is, it made a lot of our standard carriers gunshy, re-evaluate what they'd like to write, and started to not wanna write some of these buildings.' HPIA is already operating but needs to be re-structured to help the current situation. But the Hurricane Relief Fund is starting from scratch and is still finalizing contract details with consultant AON. 'There's been no firm timeline,' said Ed Haik, HHRF board chair at the same hearing. 'We're still in the contracting phase which really is not incumbent on hid or the board so far.' 'If you guys are not under contract yet, can you also start looking for a different company to contract with? Because this is, I mean, getting a little ridiculous I think,' said Rep. Scot Matayoshi, House Consumer Protection & Commerce chair. 'It's a difficult problem,' said Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole, Senate Commerce & Consumer Protection chair. 'It's scary. You know if the state of Hawaii just started providing insurance to all homeowners statewide and we have another catastrophe, we could go bankrupt.' Lawmakers are looking at at least 10 insurance bills this session. While even they admit there might not be a silver bullet to the problem, they are looking at anything and everything to help.'I think people need to temper their expecations a little too,' Matayoshi said. 'I think people are expecting us come up with a silver bullet, but with the LA wildfires, with other natural disasters around the world really, the re-insurance market is gonna go up and I want people to just be prepared that the solution may not as immediate as they'd like.' 'Nothings gonna come quickly enough,' Keohokalole said. 'And we're not likely be able to reduce prices back to what people remember, but we can try and provide some relief and stabilize the market.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
