Good morning. As black smoke chokes Tehran after a new wave of strikes, Israel has vowed to target anyone picked to be Iran’s new supreme leader amid indications Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s successor has been chosen.
Workers have accused a call centre operator contracted to Services Australia of fabricating performance data, dismissing privacy breaches, penalising staff for taking leave and denying them proper breaks.
There is alarm as New South Wales continues to test levels of lead in children’s blood with machines that have been recalled around the world due to inaccurate results. And Ben Tudhope has won silver at the Winter Paralympics – while the Matildas left it late to salvage a draw against South Korea.
Australia
Call centre claims | A major outsourced call centre operator has been accused of pressuring managers to fabricate performance statistics and sweep privacy breaches involving Centrelink customers “under the rug”.
LeadCare II alarm | NSW Health has continued to use a machine known to produce inaccurate results to test child blood lead levels in communities affected by lead contamination, such as Broken Hill.
Analysis | Average grocery prices have recorded “eight consecutive quarters of year-on-year price declines”, Woolworths declared in its half-year results. But here’s why that claim doesn’t pass the pub test.
Foreign policy | Australia is considering offering military support to assist Gulf nations facing Iran’s strikes, but will not send a ground troop deployment into Iran, foreign minister Penny Wong says.
‘Crocs everywhere’ | Flood-affected residents in the NT have been warned not to swim in crocodile-filled waters, as tropical lows continue to bring major flood warnings and heavy rains.
Plumes of powder | Parramatta’s Indian community celebrates the Hindu festival of Holi with dancing, laughter and plenty of bright-hued dust thrown into the sky (and on each other).
World
Middle East crisis | Iran has threatened to attack oil facilities across the Persian Gulf after a new wave of Israeli strikes; Iranians have described scenes of catastrophe after Tehran’s oil depots were bombed; Israel has warned it will target whoever is chosen as Iran’s new supreme leader; the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is being seen as Iran’s Berlin Wall moment, Robert Tait writes; and there’s alarm as America’s “secretary of war” Pete Hegseth revels in the carnage.
Russia-Ukraine war | Ukraine is struggling as US focus shifts to Iran – but, as Shaun Walker explains, the violent turmoil in the Middle East presents Kyiv with opportunities as well as challenges.
Nepal elections | Balendra Shah, the rapper turned politician and popular figurehead of a gen Z revolution, looks set to become Nepal’s next prime minister after his party won by an unprecedented margin.
Epstein fallout | After the release of the Epstein files which have disgraced her father, Princess Eugenie has stepped down as patron of the UK charity Anti-Slavery International.
Testing times | German chancellor Friedrich Merz’s centre-right CDU is set to face a regional election, the first of several this year in which it hopes to stem the rise of the far-right Alternative für Deutschland.
Can you hear me? | Earth’s leading alien hunters believe extraterrestrials could be out there – but they’re just having a hard time getting through to us because there is stormy weather in space.
Full Story
The anti-climate policy blowing a hole in Labor’s budget
This year, the federal government will spend billions on a scheme that makes it cheaper for miners and other industries to use diesel and petrol. It’s known as the fuel tax credit scheme, and there are growing calls for it to be wound back. With the federal budget under pressure, Nour Haydar speaks with Adam Morton about the impacts of the most costly anti-climate policy in it.
In-depth
An eight-minute meeting at a suburban business park in Melbourne’s west has become the latest flashpoint in the Victorian Liberal party’s internal ructions. The Laverton branch had gathered for what was meant to be a routine vote to elect delegates ahead of November’s state election. But MP Moira Deeming’s supporters claim they were given an incorrect formatted address for the meeting and then locked out – sparking allegations there was “a fix”.
Not the news
In the latest of our Kindness of strangers series, we hear from a reader who fell apart while boarding a long-haul flight as she contended with the loss of her beloved dad. Amid a flood of tears, the “bodybuilder-type guy” seated next to her offered up a pack of tissues and motioned for her to rest her head on his big, beefy shoulder – bringing a chance of blessed sleep on a long flight, and helping ease the transition through grief.
Sport
Football | The Matildas scored late in a see-sawing draw with South Korea, with their defensive frailties and missed chances putting them on a rocky Asian Cup road; there are also “grave concerns” for Iran’s return home after their elimination.
Winter Paralympics | Australian Ben Tudhope has claimed silver amid snowboard cross chaos at the Winter Paralympics – see the pictures of all the action from day two.
Cricket | Sanju Samson and Jasprit Bumrah helped India retain the T20 World Cup with a final thrashing of New Zealand; and a ruthless Australia defeated India in Alyssa Healy’s last Test.
Motorsport | George Russell won the Australian Grand Prix in a thrilling F1 season-opener; there was home town heartbreak as Oscar Piastri crashed out before it began; and Lando Norris has warned new F1 rules pose danger.
Baseball | Emperor Naruhito watched Shohei Ohtani and Japan survive a scare against Australia at the World Baseball Classic.
Media roundup
Labor is locked in high-stakes talks to keep Australia’s last two oil refineries open as Middle East fuel shock fears deepen, the Age reports. A controversial tourist tax is being introduced for the Twelve Apostles on Victoria’s Great Ocean Road, ABC News reports. And policies intended to help solve the New South Wales housing crisis are being used by developers to revive and expand previously rejected projects, the Sydney Morning Herald reports.
What’s happening today
Age verification | New codes requiring porn sites and a range of other services to check the ages of users attempting to access pornography, extremely violent material or self-harm content are now in effect.
Sport | The Women’s Asian Cup action continues with North Korea facing China in Parramatta and Bangladesh taking on Uzbekistan in Perth.
Victoria and ACT | A public holiday.
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Brain teaser
And finally, here are the Guardian’s crosswords to keep you entertained throughout the day. Until tomorrow.
