Good afternoon. A 45-year-old Western Australian man has been charged with aggravated assault after he allegedly tied three children with cable ties in a Broome driveway on Tuesday afternoon in response to an alleged trespassing incident.
Video shared on social media shows a man in a driveway arguing with members of the public who were urging him to untie the children – aged six, seven and eight.
“They were frightened. They were crying, shaking and singing out for their mum,” one of the women filming alleged. “We were yelling at him to tell them to release them.”
Top news
Sam Kerr’s lawyers seek to have charge thrown out | Legal representatives of the Matildas captain will attempt to have a criminal charge of racially aggravated harassment thrown out in a UK court hearing in April. The 30-year-old appeared in Kingston crown court on Monday accused of using insulting, threatening or abusive words that caused alarm or distress to a police officer in January 2023. She pleaded not guilty. The four-day trial is scheduled for February 2025, more than two years after the alleged offence.
Australia’s sluggish economic growth | GDP in the December quarter rose 0.2%, and 2023 finished with an annual growth of 1.5%, as interest rates hit home. The results are in line with much of the OECD. The US clocked 3.1% growth in 2023, while the Euro-area posted 0.1% growth, Canada 0.5% and Japan 1%. The UK’s economy shrank 0.2% last year.
West Gate Bridge climate protesters jailed | Two protesters – Deanna “Violet” Coco and Bradley Homewood – pleaded guilty to two counts of public nuisance by obstructing motorists and obstructing police and emergency service workers. Both were sentenced to 21 days imprisonment. “I feel like I have no choice left. I’ve tried all the conventional methods of campaigning and nothing has worked,” Homewood said, defending his actions. The state Labor premier, Jacinta Allan, called the protesters “idiots”.
Writers puzzled after State Library Victoria cancels workshops | The library has cancelled a series of writing events out of concerns over “child and cultural safety”, leaving some of the participants demanding an explanation. Three writers – Omar Sakr, Jinghua Qian and Alison Evans – say the library has refused to provide any further explanation despite repeated requests, leaving them to speculate as to whether the cancellations are related to their vocal support of the Palestinian people in recent months.
Historical sexual abuse in Victorian schools | The Victorian education department had a “culture of covering up” allegations of abuse in public schools to protect reputations, an inquiry has found, describing it as an “appalling and systemic failure”. The inquiry identified 109 alleged victims of abuse perpetrated by four teachers between 1960 and 1994.
Palestinians ‘beaten and sexually assaulted’, UN report claims | An internal UN report, seen by the Guardian, describes widespread abuse of Palestinians in Israeli detention centres, including beatings, dog attacks, the prolonged use of stress positions and sexual assault. The report was compiled by UNRWA and is largely based on interviews of Palestinian detainees released at the Kerem Shalom crossing point since December. Israel denies the allegations.
UK patience with Israel wearing thin | David Cameron is expected to tell the Israeli cabinet minister Benny Gantz that UK patience is wearing thin at the lack of humanitarian aid reaching the people of Gaza at a meeting in London on Wednesday. Separately, five members of the British SAS have been arrested by military police on suspicion of allegedly committing war crimes while on operations in Syria.
Trump, Biden on track to sweep Super Tuesday | Donald Trump’s Republican presidential nomination is all but certain to be confirmed, as he looks set to win big with 16 US states and one territory holding primaries. On the Democratic side of the ballot, Joe Biden is on track to defeat his also-ran challengers, but aides remain concerned by low turnout and protest votes over his handling of the Israel-Gaza war.
Taiwan’s deputy foreign minister heads to Tuvalu | The visit comes after Tuvalu’s new government vowed to stick with Taipei amid speculation it may switch allegiance to Beijing. Tuvalu, with a population of about 11,000, is one of just 12 countries that still maintain formal diplomatic relations with Taiwan rather than China.
Full Story
Black Box episode one: the connectionists
We’ve launched a new podcast series looking at the collision between artificial intelligence and us. This first episode is the story of Geoffrey Hinton, a man who set out to understand the brain and ended up working with a group of researchers who invented a technology so powerful that even they don’t truly understand how it works. Listen to this 39-minute episode and check out the series page.
What they said …
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“I know that people were disrupted and I’ve got sympathy for people – it’s frustrating to have your day disrupted like that. But look at the disruption that’s been caused by climate change.” – Ellen Sandell, Greens MP for Melbourne on the West Gate Bridge protest
Sandell added it was “very brave” of the protesters to go out there and sound the alarm about the climate crisis.
In numbers
A total of 2 million hectares of Queensland forest were destroyed in that timeframe, according to new analysis.
Before bed read
The Sofronoff saga has shattered whatever confidence we had in our legal system, writes Geoffrey Watson – a former counsel assisting the NSW Independent Commission Against Corruption and a director of the Centre for Public Integrity.
Here’s what went wrong – read the column.
Daily word game
Today’s starter word is: DUCE. You have five goes to get the longest word including the starter word. Play Wordiply.
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