AAP Rolling News Bulletin for May 27 at 0330
Terror Aust (CANBERRA)
A group of women and children linked to the Islamic State terror group has been searched and their devices downloaded by police on arrival at city airports after returning to Australia from years in detention.
The so-called "ISIS brides" travelled from a refugee camp in northern Syria for families of killed or detained Islamic State militants.
The first group of two women and their children touched down in Melbourne shortly after 4.30pm on Tuesday, having flown with Qatar Airways via Doha.
A group of four women and their children arrived at Sydney airport, where they were taken out a back entrance, avoiding waiting media.
Members of the Victoria and NSW Joint Counter Terrorism teams awaited the groups.
"The cohort was subject to a range of operational responses, including the searching of belongings and the downloading of their devices for investigative purposes," NSW and Victoria police said in a statement.
Brereton (CANBERRA)
The first head of Australia's national corruption watchdog rejects suggestions he should have been more transparent about connections with the defence establishment that led to his resignation.
But National Anti-Corruption Commissioner Paul Brereton has conceded the issue had become a distraction.
A day after announcing plans to step down in July after a turbulent three years as commissioner, Mr Brereton said he did not need to give the government more details about his defence ties because it was like asking what church he attends.
During an at times tense appearance before a parliamentary inquiry, Mr Brereton said questions about his ongoing work with the Inspector General of the Australian Defence Force - one of the agencies the National Anti-Corruption Commission had the power to investigate - had made it hard for the commission to get clear air.
White (DARWIN)
A year after a disabled Aboriginal man's death in a supermarket, his family has learned the two plain-clothes officers who forcibly restrained him will not be charged.
Kumanjayi White, 24, died in Alice Springs in May 2025 after the officers held him down, sparking national outrage and rallies calling for an independent investigation.
Northern Territory Police confirmed on Tuesday that the Director of Public Prosecutions had provided advice on the investigation into the death.
Police Commissioner Martin Dole said advice from prosecutors was that there was "no reasonable prospect of a successful prosecution".
He said the decision would cause "distress, pain and anger" for Mr White's family and the broader community and he urged a peaceful response to the decision.
Energy (CANBERRA)
Power bill relief is coming for households in most eastern states as solar and batteries chew into expensive gas and hydro generation to cover evening peaks.
Annual savings of more than $200 compared to the year prior have been confirmed for some residential customers on standing electricity offers, depending on their region and plan type.
Default market offers are updated each year by the energy regulator to reflect the cost of delivering electricity to businesses and households.
With the exception of South Australian households on flat rates, which are flagged for a 1.4 per cent increase, electricity prices are set to fall in the eastern states.
NSW homes on flat rates can expect falls between 3.4 per cent and 5 per cent, and by 7.2 per cent in southeast Queensland.
IRAN (WASHINGTON, D. C.)
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio says negotiating a deal with Iran could "take a few days", quashing hopes for an imminent end to the conflict a day after US forces conducted what Washington called defensive strikes in southern Iran.
Describing the strikes against targets including boats attempting to lay mines and missile launch sites, Rubio said the Strait of Hormuz has to be open "one way or the other".
"The straits have to be open, they're going to be open one way or the other, so they need to be open," Rubio told reporters on his plane in India's Jaipur.
Despite a ceasefire in place since early April, US Central Command said in a statement on Monday it had carried out fresh strikes designed "to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces".
Legal: Freeman (MELBOURNE)
The deadly shooting of cop-killer Dezi Freeman has exposed that specialist police continue to work without body-worn cameras, eight years after a state force began to roll out the technology.
None of the officers who gunned down Freeman in March at a remote property in Thologolong near the Victoria-NSW border were wearing body-worn cameras.
The officers were members of Victoria Police's special operations group, who conducted covert surveillance on the fugitive's location for a week before moving in and attempting to negotiate with him over several hours.
Victoria Police confirmed to AAP on Tuesday body-worn cameras currently in use were not compatible with the officers' specialist operational equipment, although a trial was nearing completion.
"Findings from this evaluation will inform any future decisions regarding broader implementation across the unit," a force spokesperson said.
AI CBA (SYDNEY)
The adoption of artificial intelligence in Australia and the world hasn't quite gone as expected, but it has underlined our need for human connection, according to one of the market leaders.
Founder and chief executive Sam Altman of OpenAI, which has been going for three and a half years, says while there's been strong take-up, the human element has turned out to be more intriguing.
And there have certainly been situations where he's found himself unwilling to use AI.
"I've felt that threshold - most strongly when I briefly tried to let AI do my messaging. You know, write my emails, my text messages, do Slack for me," he told business leaders at a conference in Sydney.
"Yet, I found it, like, surprisingly dehumanising to watch, even when I had it reply to messages.
Antisemitism (MELBOURNE)
Online harassment and intimidation has been directed at witnesses who have appeared before the anti-Semitism royal commission, with at least one incident referred to police.
The commission is probing the intelligence and law enforcement response leading up to the Bondi Beach terror attack on December 14 which claimed the lives of 15 innocent people.
In a first block of hearings, witnesses from the Jewish community gave evidence about their experiences of anti-Semitism.
Commissioner Virginia Bell opened Tuesday's hearing with a warning to those engaging in online harassment and intimidation of witnesses.
"The commission is keeping a close eye on these instances and recording these offensive social media posts," she said.
"Quite what this undiluted level of hatred and bigotry directed towards members of the Jewish community is thought to benefit by those who post these remarks is lost on me.
In finance ...
AI Business (SYDNEY)
Australia is well-positioned to take advantage of the global boom in artificial intelligence but governments and regulators need to get the policy settings right so they don't stifle start-ups.
That's the message from two of the country's biggest entrepreneurs in the AI space, including the head of an infrastructure company that operates a network of energy-efficient data centres, which power the technology.
"This is unquestionably the significant industrial transformation in modern history," the head of stock exchange listed NextDC, Craig Scroggie, told a conference in Sydney on Tuesday.
Mr Scroggie echoed comments made earlier in the day by OpenAI founder and chief executive Sam Altman about Australia potentially sitting in a sweet spot in AI development.
Both noted the nation's stable security and political environment, clear regulatory regimes, and natural energy resources, which could underpin its future as a global leader,
Aroa (SYDNEY)
Sales of a high-tech wrap derived from sheep guts that assists in human healing is behind solid traction and profits in the United States for an ASX-listed Kiwi company.
Aroa Biosurgery made $NZ103.9 million ($84.9 million) in revenue in the year ended March 31, up 23 per cent from 2024/25, the company announced on Tuesday.
Its gross profit rose 23 per cent to $NZ88.8 million ($72.5 million) and Aroa posted normalised earnings of $NZ11 million ($9 million), beating guidance of $5 million to $8 million, in what the company called a "breakout year".
Sales of Aroa's Myriad collagen matrix, which is made from sheep forestomach tissue, were up 54 per cent to $NZ49.5 million ($40.4 million).
Aroa chief executive and founder Brian Ward told analysts the company makes a 90 per cent profit margin on Myriad sales and its healing properties are backed by strong clinical evidence.
In entertainment ...
Andrews (LONDON)
Dame Julie Andrews has made a rare public appearance in a video for the World Parkinson's Congress.
The 90-year-old legend, who became a global star in the film world with her roles in the likes of Mary Poppins and The Sound of Music, appeared in a video message shared on YouTube by the World Parkinson Coalition, as they addressed attendees at the event and commented that she knows "well how devastating" the disease can be.
She said in the clip: "Good evening, everyone, I'm Julie Andrews and I'm pleased to welcome you to the seventh World Parkinson's Congress.
"Your participation is invaluable as we seek to find a cure to this terrible disease. I know well how devastating it can be.
Hathaway (LONDON)
Anne Hathaway was "legally blind" in her left eye for 10 years during a secret health battle.
The Devil Wears Prada 2 star, 43, has confessed she struggled with her sight throughout her 30s and was diagnosed with early-onset cataracts which left her "half blind" for the best part of a decade before she underwent surgery to restore her vision.
During an appearance on The New York Times' Popcast podcast, Hathaway explained: "This is maybe too much information. I was half blind for 10 years.
"It impacted my vision so much that I was basically legally blind out of my left eye and I wound up getting surgery. And I didn't realise how bad it had gotten until I could finally see the full spectrum."
In sport ...
Cri Aust (LONDON)
Josh Inglis will captain Australia in the forthcoming ODI series in Pakistan after Mitch Marsh was ruled out with an ankle injury sustained playing in the Indian Premier League.
Marsh will undergo further assessment and treatment in Perth and "his availability for the white ball tour of Bangladesh will be determined in due course," said a Cricket Australia spokesperson on Tuesday evening.
Inglis is the fourth choice skipper as regular captain Pat Cummins and his deputy Travis Head were already missing from the squad due to ongoing commitments in the IPL with Sunrisers Hyderabad.
He led a similarly understrength Australia in November 2024, also against Pakistan in white ball matches, when he became the first English-born player to captain Australia for more than 130 years.
Ten Open Aust (PARIS)
Wildcard Adam Walton has pulled off the biggest victory of his career at the French Open, staying cool in the Paris heat to shock a frazzled Daniil Medvedev for the second time in nine months.
The Queenslander took advantage of one of the former world No.1's Jekyll and Hyde days, hanging tough in the final set to come from behind and win 6-2 1-6 6-1 1-6 6-4 in three hours 22 minutes on Court Suzanne Lenglen.
When he was 4-2 down in a much more closely fought fifth set after four curiously uneven stanzas, it looked as if the 27-year-old from Brisbane would miss out on repeating his previous career-best triumph over Medvedev at the Cincinnati Open last August.
But he regrouped, won the next two games and then survived a couple of break points in the crucial penultimate game, before the Russian imploded to be broken to love.
Ends Bulletin
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