☕️ Israel’s plan to “take control” of Gaza

In case you missed it, former Australian of the Year Richard Scolyer was among the 90,000 people who ran the City2Surf yesterday in Sydney.

Scolyer, who is a renowned melanoma researcher, was diagnosed with terminal brain cancer in 2023.

“I figure I’m only here for a short time so I’ll make the most of it,” he told The Sydney Morning Herald on the weekend.

“I’m not giving up now.”

“I can confirm that we will be phasing out greyhound racing by June 30, 2029… With participation in the sport down considerably and animal welfare concerns continuing, it’s time to draw a line in the sand."
Tasmanian Premier Jeremy Rockliff, announcing the state would become the second jurisdiction after the ACT to pull all government funding for greyhound racing by the end of 2029, effectively ending the operation of the industry.

908,574
The number of people Japan’s population lost in 2024, marking its steepest annual population decline since records began in 1968. Japan recorded 686,061 births and nearly 1.6 million deaths last year. Japanese authorities have called its ageing population a “quiet emergency”.

1973
At a birthday party in the Bronx, ‘hip hop’ was born. DJ Kool Herc is credited with being the first to loop the instrumental breaks in songs with two turntables so partygoers could dance and speak over their favourite parts of a song. These extended breakbeats, which became known as Kool Herc’s signature “Merry-Go-Round” technique, also became the musical foundation of the 70s breakdance movement.

Over the last week, the WNBA, the top women’s basketball league in the U.S, has seen several incidents of sex toys being thrown onto the court.

Now, a spokesperson for a cryptocurrency memecoin has claimed responsibility.

Here’s what to know.

There have been at least three instances of attendees throwing sex toys onto the court during WNBA games in the last few days.

The latest incident occurred in Los Angeles on Tuesday night (local time), during a game between the Indiana Fever and the LA Sparks.

The game was briefly halted when a sex toy was thrown at the court late in the second quarter, almost striking Fever player Sophie Cunningham.

The WNBA responded by re-stating its policy that anyone who throws objects onto the court will be ejected from the game, banned for at least one year, and could face legal action.

On her podcast last week, Cunningham said: “How are we ever going to get taken seriously?”

Minnesota Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve said: “Sexualisation... is what’s used to hold women down and this is no different, this is just the latest version.”

In an interview with newspaper USA Today, an anonymous spokesperson for the cryptocurrency meme coin ‘Green Dildo Coin’ claimed responsibility.

According to the spokesperson, the coin was launched in late July as a protest against “toxic” crypto culture, and the incidents were intended to draw attention to the coin.

“We didn’t do this because like we dislike women’s sports… Creating disruption at games is like, it happens in every single sport… Fans doing random things to more or less create attention,” they said.

Reporting by George Finlayson.

Israel’s security cabinet has approved a plan for its military to take control of Gaza.

It comes after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed on Thursday his intention for Israel to occupy Gaza in an interview with Fox News.

Last week, the United Nations (UN) warned that Israel taking control of Gaza “would risk catastrophic consequences”. The World Health Organisation has said the “worst-case scenario of famine is now unfolding in the Gaza Strip”.

Here’s the latest.

On Thursday, in an interview with Fox News, Netanyahu was asked if Israel will “take control of all of Gaza”. He responded: “We intend to.”

Netanyahu said Israel does not “want to keep it”, but wants to “hand it over to Arab forces”.

Since that interview, Israel’s security cabinet has approved the plan for the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) to “prepare for the takeover of Gaza City”.

In a statement to X, the Prime Minister’s office said there were five “principles” of its take over of Gaza. They are:

“1.The disarming of Hamas.

2. The return of all the hostages – the living and the deceased.

3. The demilitarisation of the Gaza Strip.

4. Israeli security control in the Gaza Strip.

5. The establishment of an alternative civil administration that is neither Hamas nor the Palestinian Authority.”

Israel has killed more than 60,000 Palestinians since the conflict began in 2023, according to data cited by the UN.

The latest conflict started on 7 October 2023, when Hamas launched an attack on Israel. According to data cited by the UN, roughly 1,200 people were killed.

Hamas, which Australia lists as a terrorist organisation, captured about 240 hostages. About 50 remain, with an estimated 20 believed to be alive.

Israel responded by declaring war and bombarding Gaza.

Israel’s war in Gaza has caused a humanitarian crisis. Much of Gaza’s population is experiencing famine.

The UN says Israel “continues to severely restrict humanitarian assistance entering Gaza.”

Israeli forces have killed more than 1,200 Palestinians trying to access food supplies since the end of May.

According to the World Health Organisation, there have been 74 malnutrition-related deaths in Gaza this year, 63 of which occurred last month.

Last week, senior UN official Miroslav Jenča addressed reports of Netanyahu’s plans to take control of Gaza. (These comments were made before Netanyahu’s interview.)

Jenča said: “This would risk catastrophic consequences for millions of Palestinians and could further endanger the lives of the remaining hostages in Gaza.”

“The situation in Gaza is horrifying - it is unbearable,” he added.

According to international media, IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir opposed Israel’s plan to occupy Gaza. It’s reported that military leadership pushed for a ceasefire agreement, instead of an increased military operation.

The peak body representing the families of hostages, the Hostages and Missing Families Forum, is strongly opposed to Israel taking over Gaza. In a statement, it said “escalating the fighting is a death sentence and immediate disappearance for our loved ones”.

According to international media, Hamas responded to Netanyahu’s comments in a statement, saying they show he is “planning to continue his approach of genocide and displacement by committing more crimes”.

Hamas also said the comments “represent a clear reversal of the course of negotiations and clearly reveal the true motives behind his withdrawal from the final round”.

The U.S. is Israel’s closest ally. On Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump would not say if he supports the take-over, saying it is “pretty much up to Israel”.

Trump said his focus is on delivering food and supplies to people in Gaza, saying they’re “not doing too well with the food”.

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said: “Australia calls on Israel to not go down this path, which will only worsen the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza”.

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The donation comes from Perth businessman Ted Powell, and will go towards Murdoch University’s veterinary school and animal teaching hospital. According to a statement from the uni, its existing vet school will be replaced by a state-of-the-art facility, “large enough to support a 50% increase in the number of vet students who can be trained in Western Australia.” Powell said his late wife Dee, who was an animal lover, would be “really, really proud of this project.” Vice Chancellor Professor Andrew Deeks thanked the philanthropist for his generosity, and said the funding would “improve the safety and wellbeing of staff, students and animals alike”. Powell is encouraging anyone “financially well-off to consider giving to worthy causes,” like education and medicine.

Want more good news? Sign up to our weekly Good Newsletter here - we promise it’ll make your week better!

Reporting by Emma Gillespie.

A new study has found a 2000-year-old mummy from a nomadic culture in Siberia has a tattoo!

Researchers used high-resolution digital imaging techniques to view the tattoos on the mummy’s skin, in a landmark first for research into prehistoric tattooing.

Historically, scientists have used early drawings of tattoos to understand the style and tools used during certain time periods.

The images produced in this study found differing detail in the tattoos on each arm, however, suggesting tattooing was a skilled craft that had to be learned over time.

Reporting by Rosa Bowden.

On Friday morning, NSW MP Gareth Ward resigned from State Parliament just moments before he was due to be expelled by his fellow MPs.

Ward was found guilty of sexual assault offences last month and is currently in jail awaiting sentencing.

Today we're breaking down what happened, why it took so long to get to this point, and what happens next.