The Guardian

Total fire bans and school closures as parts of state face worst fire danger in two years Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Temperatures soaring into the 30s and damaging wind gusts have prompted authorities in New South Wales to raise bushfire alerts to their highest levels in more than two years, as thunderstorms …

In Fritzi’s Footsteps tells story of a girl growing up in Leipzig who witnesses the fall of the Berlin Wall The creators of a children’s television series about life in communist East Germany have said they hope it will awaken interest in the region’s history, after it was awarded an International Emmy. Auf Fritzis Spuren (In Fritzi’s Footsteps) tells the story of a 12-year-old girl living in the…

Environmental charity Fidra says 168 of 195 SSSIs it surveyed are contaminated with tiny pellets Plastic nurdles have been found in 84% of important nature sites surveyed in the UK. Nurdles are tiny pellets that the plastics industry uses to make larger products. They were found in 168 of 195 sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs), so named because of the rare wildlife they harbour. They ar…

Another boy, 15, charged on Monday after 17-year-old boy died from wounds to thigh in Rouse Hill Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast A second teenage boy arrested in his home over his alleged “active role” in the stabbing murder of a 17-year-old in a suburban park will spend months in custody. The alleged victim died …

Treasurer Jim Chalmers says government deciding on energy rebate extension in ‘next few weeks’ as cost of living continues to bite Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Inflation has climbed to 3.8% in the year to October, from 3.6% the month before, as Jim Chalmers flagged he could announce further energy bill subsidie…

Director of audio concedes ‘there is always more to do’ on diversity as station staff express dismay at dearth of female presenters Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Sign up for Guardian Australia’s free weekly media newsletter here ABC radio’s chief, Ben Latimer, says “there is always more to do” on diversity after Chris Bath was replaced with a male presenter on ABC Sydney,…

Though president’s order is legally questionable, advocates worry community could be targeted for immigration raids In the days since the president said he would be ending a legal immigration status program for Somalis in Minnesota, local elected officials and community members said they will fight back. On Truth Social on Friday, Trump wrote that he would be “terminating, effective immediately” …

Interior department, which has defunded conservation organizations, claims fee hike is for conservation The interior department announced today new “America-first” entrance fees for national parks, commemorative annual passes featuring Donald Trump and “resident-only patriotic fee-free days for 2026” including Trump’s birthday. Starting next year, entrance fees for international visitors will mor…

Watchdog says force being applied ‘inconsistently, disproportionately, and without adequate justification’ Home Office contractors are over-using restraint in immigration detention centres and failing to tackle the toxic culture behind bars, according to the findings of a new watchdog report described as “deeply concerning”. By Force of Habit: How the Use of Force in Immigration Detention Has Los…

District judge in California says detainees who were already living in the US are legally entitled to a bond hearing A federal judge has ruled that Donald Trump’s administration cannot impose mandatory detention on thousands of migrants held by US immigration authorities without first giving them an opportunity to seek release on bond. US district judge Sunshine Sykes in Riverside, California, ce…

Senator uses parliament to accuse Albanese government of knowing David Adeang was ‘seriously corrupt’ yet still signing $2.5bn deportation deal Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Nauru’s President David Adeang, a predecessor and other individuals have been accused in the Senate of corruptly siphoning off millions of …

Exclusive: Officials frame strikes as self-defense against violence, without naming aggressor, while Trump claims they’re to stop US overdose deaths The Trump administration is framing its boat strikes against drug cartels in the Caribbean in part as a collective self-defense effort on behalf of US allies in the region, according to three people directly familiar with the administration’s interna…

Hakyung Lee was found guilty of murdering her children and concealing their remains in a storage locker A mother who murdered her two children and hid their bodies in suitcases stored inside a rented locker has been sentenced to life imprisonment in New Zealand. Hakyung Lee, a New Zealand citizen originally from South Korea, was found guilty earlier this year of killing her children in a crime th…

Steve Witkoff told Yuri Ushakov in October phone call that peace would require Russia gaining control of Donetsk Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff told a senior Kremlin official last month that achieving peace in Ukraine would require Russia gaining control of Donetsk and potentially a separate territorial exchange, according to a recording of their conversation obtained by Bloomberg. In…

The president of Nigeria, Bola Tinubu, said all 24 of the girls kidnapped last week had been rescued All 24 schoolgirls held by assailants after a mass abduction last week from a school in north-western Nigeria have been rescued, the country’s president announced on Tuesday. A total of 25 girls were abducted on 17 November from the Government Girls Comprehensive secondary school in Kebbi state’s …