Aussie

⚠️ ANOTHER WAR MEMORIAL VANDALISED IN VICTORIA

A war memorial at Dobie in western Victoria has been vandalised, with its commemorative plaque stolen and an Aboriginal flag, “land back” and “lest we forget the frontier wars” spray-painted across it.

It comes just weeks after the nearby Beaufort war memorial was also defaced with slogans including “death to Australia” and “death to the ADF.”

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🚨 AFRICAN MEN TURN ON TRUCK DRIVER AFTER HE FILMS MACHETE ROAD RAGE CLASH

Confronting footage from Runcorn, Brisbane shows two men armed with a hammer and machete during a road rage clash with two Afghan men, before turning on a truck driver who began filming them.

The driver was allegedly dragged into a struggle after the men demanded his phone and keys, with one accused of trying to stab him through the truck window. Both men were charged over the incident.

One of them, Echibaketa Byamungu, has since pleaded guilty and will be sentenced next week. Just one day after the road rage attack, he was spared jail for a separate assault on a Brisbane bus driver.

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🚨 QUEENSLAND EDUCATION DUMPS LGBTQ+ PROGRAM AFTER PARENT BACKLASH

Queensland’s Department of Education will leave Pride in Diversity, an LGBTQ+ workplace program run by health organisation ACON, following a review and a parent-led petition against the relationship.

The department had recently received Platinum Tier status, the program’s highest recognition for sustained LGBTQ+ workplace inclusion.

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🚨 ALLEGED LEADER OF GLOBAL HACKING GROUP ARRESTED IN PERTH

The AFP and WA Police, working with the FBI, have arrested 21-year-old Perth man Ruben Ian Thomson, the alleged leader of cybercrime group TeamPCP.

The group is accused of tampering with widely used software updates to deliver malware, potentially compromising more than 1,000 organisations worldwide. A second WA man was also arrested as part of the investigation.

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🚨 AFRICAN IMMIGRANT ATTACKED 10-YEAR-OLD CANCER PATIENT AND STABBED HIS MUM

A 10-year-old boy battling brain cancer was attacked and punched in the face by an African immigrant outside Victoria Police headquarters while in Melbourne for medical treatment.

When his 46-year-old mother tried to protect him, she was put in a headlock and stabbed seven times with scissors, suffering a fractured leg and other injuries.

The accused, Jerry Sowood, 27, has been reported as a Liberian-born African immigrant. In court, he sarcastically remarked: “At least they’re both still breathing.”

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🚨 TWO CHARGED AFTER $1.5M DRUG HAUL IN SYDNEY RAIDS

NSW Police have charged two men after raids in Old Guildford and Edmondson Park allegedly uncovered a major organised crime drug supply operation.

Detectives seized cocaine, ketamine, MDMA, cannabis and around 30kg of THC gummies, with an estimated street value of $1.5 million. The two men, aged 26 and 40, face 35 charges between them and were refused bail.

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⚠️ VICTORIAN LABOR MOVES TO LET POLICE ACCESS BANK RECORDS WITHOUT A WARRANT

Victorian Labor has introduced last-minute amendments that would let police obtain a person’s financial records without first getting a judicial warrant, and without notifying the account holder.

The power would apply to any suspected indictable offence, not just organised crime. Community legal groups say the change removes an important independent safeguard and are calling for the amendments to be withdrawn.

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⚠️ CRICKET AUSTRALIA CLEARS TRANS PLAYER FOR WOMEN’S CRICKET

Former Mumbai Under-19 cricketer Anaya Bangar, who transitioned from male to female, has been cleared to immediately play women’s Premier Cricket in Australia.

Under Cricket Australia’s community rules, clubs must allow players to compete according to their gender identity and cannot require hormone or medical testing. Bangar could also become eligible for the WBBL from March 2027 if Cricket Australia’s testosterone requirements are met.

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🚨 ONE NATION SURGES TO WITHIN 3 POINTS OF LABOR

A new YouGov/News24 Pulse poll has Labor on 29%, with One Nation surging to 26%, now just three points behind and five points ahead of the Coalition on primary vote.

Anthony Albanese’s approval has also fallen to 35%, with 59% disapproving of his performance.

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🚨 FORMER ATO BOSS ACCUSED OF PAYING NO TAX

Former Tax Commissioner Chris Jordan has been accused of paying “little or no income tax” while working at KPMG, one of the world’s biggest tax and accounting firms.

A whistleblower alleges Jordan promoted tax schemes, received $1.2 million in secret commissions and kept money in an Isle of Man account to avoid Australian tax. He later went on to run the ATO for more than a decade.

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🚨 NSW TO USE FACIAL RECOGNITION IN POKIES ROOMS

The Minns Government will require pubs and clubs with pokies to use facial recognition technology from 2028, scanning patrons against a new statewide gambling exclusion register.

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⚠️ ISLAMIC MEDIA GROUP GIVEN ‘SOCIAL COHESION’ GRANT

The antisemitism royal commission has heard OPN Media, the parent company of Sydney Islamic outlet OnePath Network, received a $308,000 Home Affairs grant under a program intended to promote multicultural media and social cohesion.

OnePath interviewed US influencer Sneako during his Australian visit before he was deported and banned from returning.

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