☕️ Rex to keep flying in regional Aus

You might remember that a couple of weeks ago I told you about some deliverability issues we've been having with our newsletter. Today, the issue has finally been fixed and everyone should be seeing this again!

Welcome back to all those who were away. You didn't miss much – oh, except for a few comebacks (Raygun and Donald Trump, I'm looking at you.)

It's lovely to have you all here. We have Nish, TDA's lead developer, to thank. He's been working tirelessly over the past two weeks to make sure you can all be here. Thank you Nish!

P.S. Here is today’s riddle: A lily pad is growing in a small pond. Every day, it doubles in size. On the 20th day, the lily pad covers the entire pond. Which day was the lily pad only half the size of the pond?

“It is obvious America has charted a different course now and the government here needs to course correct and make sure they are working with and not against our most important ally.”
Opposition Leader Peter Dutton on the recent election of Donald Trump as U.S. President.

630,700
How many tourists visited Australia in September 2024, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics — close to pre-COVID levels.

1916
Prime Minister William Hughes was expelled from the Labor Party because he supported conscription during the referendum on compulsory enlisting.

The Federal Government will give domestic airline Rex $80 million to continue operating regional routes.

Rex Airlines went into voluntary administration in July, laying off more than 600 workers.

Voluntary administration means a company can’t afford to pay its debts, and has appointed an independent body to take control of its operations.

It comes as new figures from Australia’s competition watchdog show 98% of domestic travel is now serviced by Qantas and Virgin.

Rex is a regional-focused carrier. Prior to entering administration in July, it was Australia’s third-largest airline.

The company had been struggling to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic. In the 2022/23 financial year, it recorded a loss of $30 million.

Financial services firm Ernst and Young (EY) took over as administrator in July.

While it’s stopped flying between major cities, Rex is still running flights to and from regional towns.

Today, the Federal Government announced it was giving Rex $80 million to continue operations.

The funding will go towards running “critical services for regional communities”.

For example, Rex flies in and out of the regional NSW town of Albury.

On a typical day, Qantas and Rex are the only two commercial airlines running flights to and from Albury Airport.

In a statement, Transport Minister Catherine King and Workplace Relations Minister Murray Watt said sacked Rex workers will be able to get early access to the ‘Fair Entitlements Guarantee’. This is a Government payout for workers who’ve been laid off from a bankrupt business.

Rex currently isn’t listed as bankrupt.

EY has applied to the Federal Court to continue as the administrator until the end of the financial year, in order to “secure a commercial future for the airline”.

Earlier today, the Australian Consumer and Competition Commission (ACCC) announced 98% of domestic travellers are flying on Qantas or Virgin.

There has been a 13% jump in average airfares between the major cities in Australia and a 6% drop in the number of seats available since Rex entered administration.

ACCC Commissioner Anna Brakey said: “With less competition, there is less choice for consumers and less incentive for airlines to offer cheaper airfares.”

Shadow Transport Minister Senator Bridget McKenzie told TDA “Australia is now the least competitive market in the world” for air travel.

“We have seen two regional airlines collapse under the Albanese Government.

“All the Government has done is kick the can down the road past the date of the next election.”

Reporting by Harry Sekulich.

The future of ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas remains uncertain after Qatar announced it was suspending its mediation efforts.

Qatar has acted as a key ceasefire negotiator between Israel and Hamas over the last year.

It comes after Israeli airstrikes in northern Gaza and Lebanon killed at least 63 people over the weekend. Authorities in Syria claim an Israeli strike killed seven people on Sunday.

The United Nations (UN) also released new data last week showing women and children made up 70% of deaths in Gaza over the past year.

Hamas, a terrorist organisation, launched an attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, killing at least 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages.

101 hostages remain captive in Gaza.

Israel responded by declaring war on Hamas and bombarding Gaza.

Data cited by the UN shows around 43,400 Palestinians have been killed in the past 13 months. The war has caused a humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

A day after Hamas’ attack, Hezbollah, which is based in Lebanon and backed by Iran, began launching rockets at Israel.

Since then, Israel has launched strikes and ground attacks in Lebanon.

More than 3,100 people in Lebanon have been killed in the conflict, according to UN figures.

Over a year into the conflict, Qatar has suspended its efforts to negotiate a ceasefire between Hamas and Israel.

The country has been a key facilitator (along with the U.S. and Egypt) in ceasefire talks, including mediations that led to a brief pause in fighting in the early stages of the war.

Many senior Hamas leaders have been based out of Qatar since 2012, including Ismail Haniyeh. Haniyeh was the group’s political leader before his assassination in Iran in July.

Qatar’s Foreign Ministry has said it refuses to mediate further discussions between Israel and Hamas until both parties show a “willingness and seriousness to end the brutal war”.

There are also reports that the outgoing Biden administration recently called for Hamas officials to be expelled from Qatar because of the stalled negotiations.

Qatari officials have not directly confirmed this.

It comes as Israeli airstrikes in northern Gaza killed more than 40 people over the weekend.

Local media and the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights said 24 people were killed and around 30 others were injured when the strikes destroyed a three-storey home.

Israel’s military said it had “eliminated dozens of terrorists and dismantled many terror infrastructure sites” in the Jabalia area.

In northern Lebanon, an Israeli airstrike on the village of Almat killed 23 people, including seven children, according to Lebanon’s health ministry.

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said the strikes were targeted at weapons storage sites and Hezbollah members.

Earlier this week, a Hezbollah rocket killed an Israeli teenager in the country’s north.

In Syria, at least seven people were killed and 14 injured in strikes near Damascus, according to the UK-based Syrian Observatory For Human Rights.

The group said that one of those killed was Hezbollah’s commander in Syria. It said the strikes were targeted at an apartment building inhabited by Lebanese families and Hezbollah members.

Israel has not commented on the strike.

The strikes follow the UN’s latest six-month update on the human rights situation in Gaza.

The findings from the UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) cover the period from November 2023 to April 2024.

The OHCHR found more than 70% of deaths in Gaza were women and children. About 80% of deaths occurred in residential buildings.

Children under 14 years old represented the highest proportion of verified deaths.

UN Human Rights chief, Volker Türk, said the monitoring showed an “unprecedented level of killing and injury of civilians”.

“Tragically, these documented patterns of violations continue unabated, over one year after the start of the war.”

The Israeli government has not commented on the OHCHR report.

Senior leaders and officials have previously denied Israel is targeting civilians in Gaza.

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🍊 Referee banned from EPL. More details here.
🍊 There's still one team in the NBA that hasn't lost. Who's 12-0?
🍊 The Chopperoos won their 5th world title. The what??
🗞️ Also in the Sport Newsletter: tennis, boxing, and more…

New York University Researchers conducted tests on human cells taken from nerve tissue and kidney tissue. Findings published in the journal Nature show cells were exposed to patterns and signals to mimic neurotransmitters. The cells responded by activating a type of gene that brain cells switch on when forming memories.

NYU researchers said the discovery shows non-brain cells can “learn and store” memories too, and could lead to new treatment options for memory-related conditions.

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

Reporting by Achol Arok.

Would you line up to get a whiff of a flower that smells like rotting flesh?

Well, over in Geelong, people did just that!

The Titan Arum, aka the corpse flower, only blooms for about 24 to 48 hours around every 10 years. To see the corpse flower in bloom and to experience its rotting flesh aroma is a rare occasion.

This week, a corpse flower is in bloom at the Geelong Botanic Gardens.

While hundreds of people flocked to see the flower in person, thousands more tuned in on a live stream — not that you can smell it through the screen!

Reporting by Nandini Dhir.

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Riddle answer: The 19th day.

The future of ceasefire talks between Israel and Hamas remains uncertain after Qatar announced it was suspending its mediation efforts.

Qatar has acted as a key ceasefire negotiator over the last year, but now, that could all be changing.

On today's podcast, we'll explain the latest on the hostilities between the two parties, and whether a change of government in the U.S. will have an impact on the outcome of the war.