
Australian father stranded in Iraq issues urgent Christmas plea amid legal limbo
An Australian father, Dr. Robert Pether, who spent more than four years in an Iraqi prison under what he calls “bogus charges,” has issued a desperate Christmas plea, urging Australians to push the government to

One Nation surges as Coalition support collapses, polling shows
Support for Pauline Hanson’s One Nation party has more than doubled since the federal election, placing the right-wing party ahead of the Greens in primary vote intentions, according to new polling. The Guardian Essential poll,

Historic intervention in housing market: 5% Deposit Scheme sparks debate over property prices
The Labor government has delivered on its election promise to expand the Home Guarantee Scheme, cutting required deposits from 20% to just 5% for first-home buyers, effective October 1, 2025, instead of January 2026. The

Aged care Workers receive another pay boost in Australia
The Fair Work Commission’s decision increases wages for hundreds of thousands of aged care employees. The Australian government announced today further wage increases for aged care workers following a decision by the Fair Work Commission.

China temporarily bans BHP iron ore exports, raising concerns in Australia
Prime Minister Albanese urges quick resolution to maintain smooth market operations. China has temporarily banned iron ore exports from BHP, Australia’s largest mining company, sparking concern in the Australian government. According to Bloomberg reports, the

Sussan Ley slams Albanese over UK Labour speech funded by taxpayers
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s decision to address the UK Labour Party’s annual conference in Liverpool has sparked fierce criticism at home, with Opposition Leader Sussan Ley accusing him of “crossing the line” and engaging in

Anthony Albanese invites UAE retail giant LuLu to Australia
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has shown keen interest in the international retail chain LuLu Hypermarket, inviting Indian billionaire MA Yusuff Ali to consider expanding the company into Australia. The invitation came during the Prime

Holiday traffic normalizes after Tuesday’s gridlock
After yesterday’s disruptions, traffic on the Athens–Lamia and Athens–Corinth highways is expected to return to normal today, Wednesday, as farmers and traffic police coordinated to improve vehicle flow ahead of Christmas. On Tuesday, drivers faced queues of up to 20 kilometres due to farmers’ roadblocks, leaving many stranded for hours.

Autonomy
The government intends to allow universities and not the education ministry to set the number of students they will admit each year. That addresses a basic need, the need (for many and varied reasons) for

Alarm bell
To avoid the errors of the past the current government must move swiftly to address the deficiencies left behind by previous ones. The extent of the natural disasters by which Greece was struck over the

Theofilus
About 150 years ago, the influential folk artist Theophilus (Theophilus Kefalas – Hatzimichail) was born in the village of Vareia, on the south-eastern tip of the island of Lesvos, overlooking the shores of Asia Minor.

Greek elections: Landslide victory for centre-right New Democracy party
Incumbent prime minister Alexis Tsipras, of Syriza, calls rival Kyriakos Mitsotakis to concede defeat Voters in Greece have given Kyria-kos Mitsotakis’ centre-right New Democracy party a resounding mandate to form a new government after it

Ballot Box stolen from polling center in Exarchia and set on fire
At least one ballot box was stolen from a polling station in the anarchists’ district of Exarchia in Athens and were allegedly set on fire. The unprecedented incidents took place on early Sunday evening short

‘Evdokia’ the 1200 Year Old Olive Tree in Corfu, Greece
An imposing olive tree on Corfu, known as ‘Evdokia’ by the locals, has been estimated to be between 1086 and 1200 years old, according to stu-dies by German scientists from the Dresden University of Technology.

Australian father stranded in Iraq issues urgent Christmas plea amid legal limbo
An Australian father, Dr. Robert Pether, who spent more than four years in an Iraqi prison under what he calls “bogus charges,” has issued a desperate Christmas plea, urging Australians to push the government to secure his safe return. Dr. Pether was arrested in Iraq in 2021 and sentenced to

Baltimore: Francis Scott Key Bridge collapses – 6 presumed dead
via the Associated Press A cargo ship lost power and rammed into a major bridge in Baltimore early Tuesday, destroying the span in a matter of seconds and plunging it into the river in a

Moscow terror attack a blow to Putin, who promised Russia security
Barely a week since Vladimir Putin secured his fifth presidential term, Russia has been plunged into carnage and disarray. The appalling attack on the vast Crocus City Hall concert venue and shopping complex near Moscow,

Shock and dismay from the UN and EU over terrorist attacks in Moscow, but who was behind it?
The EU is shocked and dismayed by the reports of a terrorist attack in the Crocus City Hall in Moscow. The EU condemns any attacks against civilians. Our thoughts are with all those Russian citizens

World Happiness Report 2024
While the top ten countries remain largely unchanged, there has been much more action in the top twenty Finland has retained its position as the happiest country in the world for the seventh consecutive year,

Putin: Is he now more powerful than ever?
Vladimir Putin wins fifth term as President of Russia with a record percentage Vladimir Putin has secured his fifth term as president of Russia with a record-breaking percentage, amid protests and allegations. What does this

War in Ukraine: from caution to panic, what Macron’s change of heart hides
This is an exceedingly rare and fascinating article in the French magazine Marianne, who got access to “several confidential defense reports” from the French army on the situation in Ukraine: https://marianne.net/monde/europe/guerre-en-ukraine-endurance-russe-echec-de-la-contre-offensive-ce-que-cache-le-virage-de-macron . This explains the

