TRANSCRIPT
- Hamas to release 50 hostages after Israel agrees to a four-day ceasefire
- The government announces plans to overhaul online safety
- Argentina beats Brazil 1-NIL in their World Cup Qualifer
Hamas will free 50 women and children held as hostages, after the Israeli government voted to back a four-day pause in fighting.
In exchange, Israel will release 150 Palestinians imprisoned in Israel, also understood to be women and children, and allow hundreds of trucks carrying humanitarian aid and fuel to enter the Gaza Strip.
The Israeli government has said it will extend the ceasefire by one day for every ten additional hostages that are released.
Israel has agreed not to attack or arrest anyone in Gaza during the truce period.
The Qatar government, which has been mediating the negotiations, says the starting time for the truce will be announced within the next 24 hours.
_
The Prime Minister and the Opposition Leader have both denounced rising anti-Semitism at the opening of the Melbourne Holocaust Museum
The opening attended by leaders across the political spectrum, including Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, Opposition leader Peter Dutton, Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan and Liberal Senator James Paterson.
In a speech, the Prime Minister referenced the conflict between Israel and Hamas and says it has led to a rise in anti-Semitism in Australia.
"My government is acting to make it clear there is no place in Australia for symbols that glorify the horrors of the Holocaust. And there is no place for those who seek to profit from the trade in these evil symbols, or use them to promote their hatred. We owe it to our multicultural society, our Jewish community, and our survivors."
_
The federal government has announced plans to overhaul online safety to address emerging issues including gambling advertising, artificial intelligence, online dating and targeted racial abuse.
In a wide-ranging address to the National Press Club today, Communications Minister Michelle Rowland has announced a review of the current Online Safety Act, to be led by former ACCC commissioner Delia Rickard and involving public consultation.
The minister has argued Australia's regulatory framework is playing "catch up" on a number of fronts including privacy, misinformation and the protection of children from illegal or harmful material.
She says reform is needed to regulate the "power imbalance" created by social media companies whose decisions affect billions of users globally.
"By sheer size, market dominance and influence, these platforms are also the site of a huge information asymmetry and power imbalance. Many platforms have taken on some responsibility, establishing terms of service and content policies to address online harms. But it is clearly not enough. Perpetrators continue to use these platforms to do harm."
_
An epidemiologist says Australia's low COVID-19 booster rates amount to a public health failure.
Just 27 per cent of people aged 75 or over have had a booster in the last 6 months and for people under 65, the booster rate is 5.5 per cent.
The latest monovalent vaccines which have been available in Europe and the United States for months will be on offer to Australians from December 11.
Associate Professor James Trauer from Monash University says Australia's low booster rates are concerning and represent a public health failure.
"Yeah, I think it is I mean I guess it's the most important protection that we have now. We can't modify community transmission and I don't think it's necessary to so we really do have to focus on the vulnerable groups. The elderly are at the highest risk and ATAGI's guidance is pretty clear that people over 75 should be getting the vaccines so it's very concerning that there's not enough, there's not high enough coverage."
_
In football,
World champions Argentina have beaten Brazil 1-nil in their World Cup Qualifier, after a delayed start due to police clashes with fans.
The Argentinian football team were forced to leave the pitch before kick-off, when fans began fighting during the national anthems being played.
The match between South America's fiercest footballing rivals was able to start after the situation calmed, after a delay of about 30 minutes.
