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Good morning. The threat posed by ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred is far from over. The rain is still bucketing down and parts of south-east Queensland and northern New South Wales are on flood watch, including parts of the Brisbane River. For many others, the massive clean-up after the storm has begun.
In other news, our exclusive report reveals the federal government was warned by officials in late 2023 that its “one-sided” support of Israel was putting Australia’s social cohesion at risk.
Overseas, millions of Palestinians could soon be left in the dark as Israel looks to sever electricity to Gaza as leverage against Hamas. And Moscow claims it is close to surrounding thousands of Ukrainian troops in its Kursk region with Russian forces on the advance.
Inside the Islamic State prisons the west is trying to forget
Michael Safi travelled to north-east Syria to speak to foreign Islamic State fighters imprisoned there. He discovered that a change in the US administration, and USAid funding cuts, mean there is a growing fear of prison breaks. The Kurdish forces running the prisons want foreign governments to take their fighters back. Many have refused – they prefer to forget about these IS legacies, even as global political events leave the prisons exposed.
Inside Islamic State prisons
Labor has secured another thumping victory over the Liberals in Western Australia, securing its third term in government. However, the results have also shown a statewide swing against Labor – and its sitting MPs face a tougher fight in the upcoming national election. Sarah Basford Canales looks at how the results in WA could hint at Labor’s fortunes (and challenges) in the looming federal vote.
One of Australia’s most successful artists, Vincent Fantauzzo, has opened up on his traumatic childhood in his new memoir, Unveiled. It tells stories not even his wife knew, including the “few forks in the road” that could have led him to life as a criminal instead of an artist. He speaks with Katie Cunningham about childhood abuse, Heath Ledger and what’s wrong with the art world.
Donald Trump’s top economic adviser has downplayed the prospect of Australia – or anyone – getting exemptions to the US president’s steel and aluminium tariffs, reports the Age. The NSW Rural Fire Service is spending millions retrofitting two Black Hawk helicopters, but it won’t be able to use them for floods, bushfires and other disasters, reports the Sydney Morning Herald. A series of alleged violent inmate attacks in South Australia has prompted union calls for greater resourcing in prisons, ABC News reports.