Liberal MP makes first public comments since Australia’s most decorated living soldier, whom he served alongside, was charged with war crimesFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe Liberal MP, Andrew Hastie, says Ben Roberts-Smith is entitled to the presumption of innocence but “none of us are above the law” in his first public comments since Australia’s most decorated living soldier was charged with war crimes.Hastie served alongside Roberts-Smith in Afghanistan and was among the 21 Special Air Service (SAS) who gave evidence in the defamation case he brought against the Nine newspapers. Continue reading...

Ben Roberts-Smith entitled to presumption of innocence but ‘none of us are above the law’, Andrew Hastie says
Liberal MP makes first public comments since Australia’s most decorated living soldier, whom he served alongside, was charged with war crimes Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast The Liberal MP, Andrew Hastie, says Ben Roberts-Smith is entitled to the presumption of innocence but “none of us are above the law” in his first public comments since Australia’s most decorated living soldier was charged with war crimes. Hastie served alongside Roberts-Smith in Afghanistan and was among the 21 Special Air Service (SAS) who gave evidence in the defamation case he brought against the Nine newspapers. Continue reading...
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Iran cannot ‘hijack’ strait of Hormuz with shipping tolls, says Yvette Cooper – UK politics live
As Keir Starmer continues his Gulf visit, foreign secretary says laws of the sea prevent Tehran from charging for passage of ‘international transit route’ Good morning. Keir Starmer is still in the Gulf, and Yvette Cooper, the foreign secretary, has been doing a round of interviews this morning, ahead of delivering a speech on foreign policy this evening. As Jamie Grierson reports, Cooper has been arguing forcefully that Lebanon must be included in the US-Iran ceasefire. The starting point here is this is an international transit route. It’s international shipping that uses this. This is part of the international law of the sea. This is a a route between the high seas; it is a trading route. As part of the international maritime law, this is a transit route between the high seas. And whether you talk about Dover or Gibraltar or other straits around the world, there may be territorial waters there, but there’s also an international shipping route and an international transit route, which means that freedom of navigation principles apply and that countries cannot simply hijack those kinds of international transit routes and unilaterally apply tolls. They cannot do that as part of the laws of the sea and the United Nations conventions. Continue reading...

Middle East crisis live: Trump warns Iran to comply with ‘real agreement’ as ceasefire in doubt over Israeli attacks on Lebanon
US president warns that the US will start ‘shooting’ again unless Iran fully complies with deal Middle East ceasefire in serious doubt as Israel assaults Lebanon and Iran blocks oil tankers The UK foreign minister, Yvette Cooper, has said Lebanon must be included in any ceasefire agreement. In other remarks now being reported by Reuters, Cooper added that shipping through the strait of Hormuz must be toll-free. Amid ceasefire talks, Tehran has proposed fees or tolls on vessels to safely pass through the strait. Donald Trump on Wednesday suggested the US and Iran could collect tolls in a joint venture, while the White House said the priority was reopening the strait without limitations. And my principles and values made sure that our decisions were that we wouldn’t get involved in the action without a lawful basis, without a viable, thought-through plan.” Continue reading...

UK man jailed for sexually abusing nine-year-old girl has Australian visa reinstated by tribunal
An eighty-three-year-old man successfully appealed the automatic revocation of his permanent resident visa after being sentenced to 14 months in prison Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast An elderly UK man who served a prison sentence for sexually abusing his step granddaughter when she was nine years old has had his Australian visa reinstated by a tribunal because of his “strong ties to Australia”. The eighty-three-year-old was sentenced to 14 months prison in the Western Australia district court in February 2024 for molesting the girl in the presence of another child. In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is 13 11 14. In the US, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline is 1-800-273-8255. In the UK, Samaritans can be contacted on 116 123. Other international suicide helplines can be found at befrienders.org Continue reading...

Argentine MPs approve Milei-backed bill to allow mining in glaciers
Argentina's lower house of parliament on Thursday approved a bill backed by President Javier Milei to permit mining in glacier regions. Environmentalists and scientists have warned that mining in in frozen parts of the Andes mountains would threaten water resources. The law takes effect once it is published in the official gazette.