- A counter-terrorism operation underway in Sydney.
- The US congress approves $145 billion in aid for Ukraine, Israel and allies in the Indo-Pacific.
- The government to fund support and education for those with chronic traumatic encephalopathy.
New South Wales police have confirmed a counter-terrorism operation is underway in Sydney in connection to a church stabbing in the city's west.
Several warrants are being executed involving a number of suspects and Sky News is reporting all suspects are under the age of 18 years old.
Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers has confirmed the warrants are connected to an investigation into the stabbing of a bishop in a Wakeley church which police allege was a terrorist act carried out by a 16-year-old boy.
"We understand that operational activity is occurring today in connection to the ongoing investigation into the Wakeley incident. Questions about this activity should be directed to the relevant law enforcement agencies. I wanted to take this opportunity to salute the courage of those involved and thank them for their professionalism."
A statement from New South Wales Police says their Joint Counter Terrorism Team is executing warrants currently but assures that "there is no current threat to public safety and no connection to Anzac Day commemorations."
The United States senate has approved a $145 billion aid package for Ukraine, Israel, Taiwan, and US partners in the Indo-Pacific.After months of delays, the sweeping foreign aid package finally passed congress with $93.6 billion going toward Ukraine's defence against Russia's invasion and almost $40 billion of aid to go to Israel as it wages its assault on Gaza. It also includes $12.5 billion that the U-S has committed to, as they put it, "counter communist China" in the Indo-Pacific.
President Joe Biden says he will sign the bill into law immediately.Despite being mildly critical of Israel's killing of civilians in Gaza, Senate Democratic majority leader Chuck Schumer celebrated the passage of the bill as a historic moment.
"This is an inflection point in history. Western democracy perhaps faced its greatest test since the end of the Cold War. The conflicts we see right now in Europe and the Middle East and the tensions of the Indo-Pacific will go a long way in shaping the balance of power between democracy and autocracy in the decades to come."
The package also includes a potential ban on the Chinese-controlled social media app TikTok, measures for the transfer of seized Russian assets to Ukraine and new sanctions on Iran.
Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers has acknowledged that Australia's annual inflation rate is still too high despite the government's efforts.The Australian Bureau of Statistics announced the higher than expected inflation rate today sitting at 3.6 per cent, with quarterly inflation lifting one per cent in the three months to December.
The data shows price rises in education, health, and housing have contributed to inflation levels.Despite this setback, annual inflation is still tracking in the right direction, falling from 4.1 per cent to 3.6 per cent in the 12 months until March.Treasurer Jim Chalmers says there's still much work to be done to reduce impacts on Australian consumers.
"Inflation has now almost halved since we were elected a couple of years ago. It is still too high, people are still under pressure, but we are making some progress. When we came to office inflation had a six in front of it, and now it has a three in front of it. And the budget next month will be about easing cost of living pressures rather than adding to them."
The government has committed to funding a support and education program for chronic traumatic encephalopathy or CTE. Yesterday rugby league legend Wally Lewis, known as "The King", made an impassioned plea for further funding into concussion and traumatic brain injuries research.Lewis was diagnosed with probable CTE last year, a form of dementia linked to repeated blows to the head. Sports and aged care minister Anika Wells says details for the funding will be announced in the federal budget.
"The King gets it right most of the time, and he's right about CTE, and that's why we're going to back him. And we're going to have more to say about that in the budget, but we wanted to use the opportunity today after he'd spoken at the National Press Club to back Wally in."
