Australia news live: two repatriation flights from UAE expected to land; heavy rainfall warning for swathes of Queensland | Victoria
Two repatriation planes expected to land from UAE
The Prime Minister’s office said that as of 5.30am this morning, approximately 1,549 Australians had been repatriated from the Middle East on nine direct flights. Two planes are expected to land today from the United Arab Emirates and two more planes are planned to take off from Dubai airport if the airspace remains open.
Flights expected to land today are as follows:
-
EK406 is due to arrive in Melbourne (excluding Dubai) at 12:45 AEDT and is carrying approximately 151 Australians.
-
Flight EK412 to Sydney (excluding Dubai) is expected to land at approximately 1950 AEDT.
Flights scheduled to leave UAE today:
At around 7pm (AEDT) yesterday evening, Dubai International Airport was forced to close briefly as Iran launched missiles and drones at targets across the Gulf. The airport later reopened.
The first three buses carrying Australians from Doha, Qatar, will arrive in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, this morning, carrying 92 Australian citizens, permanent residents and their immediate family members, the PMO said.
Qatar Airways informed the Albanian government that 68 Australians left Doha yesterday on Qatar Airways flights to different European destinations.
important events
Penny Wong is asked how far Australia would go to support the war in Iran
Minister of Foreign Affairs Penny Wong He reiterated his claim that Australia was “not in a position to determine the legal basis for the decisions taken by the United States and Israel” regarding an attack on Iran.
Asked how far Australia would go to support the war effort, Wong told ABC TV’s Insiders:
Under these circumstances, it is best for us to always return to our position, both as a matter of goals and of conduct, which is why we have said: We are not engaging in any aggressive behavior, any aggressive action, against Iran.
When asked about US President Donald Trump’s statements that the US should be involved in choosing Iran’s next leader, Wong said:
The future and governance of Iran is ultimately a decision to be made by the Iranian people. And this is not just a value judgment, it is also a pragmatic judgment… Historically, we have seen that regime change is desired by external powers. And I think we all know that for there to be sustainable change, regime change, it has to be something that the people of that nation go back and seek.
Victorian Health and Ambulance Services Minister Mary-Anne Thomas said the victim of Friday’s alleged stabbing was with his family and the horrific incident was very worrying.
He cited the government’s toughened youth crime laws, which came into force just over a week ago and could result in young offenders receiving tougher sentences for serious offences.
Thomas said on Saturday:
Teens who commit violent crimes are about to discover that they will have adult time.
Opposition police spokesman Brad Battin said in a statement that the incident highlighted Labour’s failure to tackle youth crime and remove machetes from the streets.
Victorians continue to pay the price for Labour’s social safety failures, with nearly 2000 police vacancies, more than 40 stations closed or operating on reduced hours and PSOs removed from 120 train stations.
-AAP
Three teenagers are facing murder charges after a good Samaritan was killed in a “brutal” stabbing attack after he allegedly intervened and tried to help a 14-year-old student.
Emergency crews were called to Mernda train station in Melbourne’s northeast on Friday evening following reports of a fight between teenagers.
A group of passersby, including 22-year-old Mernda, stepped in to intervene after a group of teenagers attacked a 14-year-old boy.
Acting Homicide Detective Inspector, the man, who was being tried by passers-by to diffuse the situation, picked up the child and took him away from the situation and out of the train station. Nigel L’Estrange he told reporters on Saturday.
L’Estrange He continued:
Unfortunately, these four criminals followed both of them and then physically attacked the 22-year-old man, punching and kicking him and using sharp weapons in what can only be described as a brutal attack.
The injured person, who had a life-threatening condition, died at the scene despite first aid by medical teams.
Four male youths were arrested. A 16-year-old from Whittlesea, a 17-year-old from Geelong and an 18-year-old from Mill Park have been charged with murder and armed robbery. A 17-year-old teenager from Yarra City is in police custody in hospital and has not yet been interviewed.
The oldest suspect will appear in the Melbourne Magistrates Court on Sunday.
L’Estrange in question:
This is a tragic situation where our victim here was a good Samaritan who was trying to do the right thing.
He intervened, tried to protect this 14-year-old student, was not aggressive at all, tried to take him away from the scene, and as a result of the interaction, he lost his life.
– AAP
Two men die after being pulled from water on NSW Central Coast
Two men have died after being pulled from the water on the NSW Central Coast last night.
Emergency services were called to Little Beach at Bouddi on Saturday following reports of a body in the water, NSW Police said in a statement in the early hours of Sunday morning.
Brisbane Water Police District, PolAir and Marine Area Command also attended the scene, as well as NSW Ambulance Paramedics and NSW Marine Rescue volunteers.
A 46-year-old man was pulled from the water before being assessed by NSW Ambulance paramedics but died at the scene.
At around 6:10 p.m., police learned there was a second man believed still in the water and began a search. At around 20:00 in the evening, the body of the second man, 67 years old, was found and removed from the water.
A report will be prepared for the coroner.
Two repatriation planes expected to land from UAE
The Prime Minister’s office said that as of 5.30am this morning, approximately 1,549 Australians had been repatriated from the Middle East on nine direct flights. Two planes are expected to land today from the United Arab Emirates and two more planes are planned to take off from Dubai airport if the airspace remains open.
Flights expected to land today are as follows:
-
It will transport approximately 151 Australians to Melbourne (excluding Dubai) on EK406 at 12:45 AEDT.
-
Flight EK412 to Sydney (excluding Dubai) is expected to land at approximately 1950 AEDT.
Flights scheduled to leave UAE today:
At around 7pm (AEDT) yesterday evening, Dubai International Airport was forced to close briefly as Iran launched missiles and drones at targets across the Gulf. The airport later reopened.
The first three buses carrying Australians from Doha, Qatar, will arrive in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, this morning, carrying 92 Australian citizens, permanent residents and their immediate family members, the PMO said.
Qatar Airways informed the Albanian government that 68 Australians left Doha yesterday on Qatar Airways flights to different European destinations.
Good morning
Welcome to Guardian Australia’s Sunday live news blog. My name is Stephanie Convery and today I will be bringing you the latest news.
The Prime Minister’s office initially said 1,549 Australians had been repatriated from the Middle East on nine direct flights as of 5.30am this morning. Two flights from the United Arab Emirates are expected to land today, and two more flights are scheduled to depart Dubai airport until the airspace remains open. We’ll tell you more about that in a moment.
Meanwhile, the Bureau of Meteorology has issued a severe weather warning for the northern and south-eastern regions of Queensland due to continued heavy rainfall. It is expected to increase on Sunday and continue until Monday. We’ll have more information about this soon.
Let’s grab a coffee and go inside.
