
Nationals heavyweight rules out leadership tilt as Littleproud faces challenge
A senior figure within the Nationals has ruled out mounting a leadership challenge against David Littleproud, as internal pressure continues to build on the party leader ahead of parliament’s return. Nationals senator Matt Canavan has

No paperwork, increasing rent: Sydney landlords exploiting international students
International students are being exploited by landlords in Sydney’s tight housing market, a new report has found. International students in Sydney are falling victim to financial exploitation by dodgy landlords, who are overcharging on bonds,

Record number of Aussies rush to file tax returns
A record number of Australians have lodged their tax returns in the hope of getting their hands on a hefty refund. About 650,000 people have already filed their tax returns, with this year’s early rush

Better Managing Australia’s future population growth
Key elements of the Morrison Government’s plan to better manage Australia’s future population have come into effect today. Launched in March this year, the Population Plan has four broad components: Easing the population pressures

60,000 tons of donation waste going to landfill
Australian charities are contributing to a large chunk of landfill pollution in the country because of donations that can’t be used. Things like soiled clothing, mattresses and old electrical appliances are being donated to stores

Killer flu season sees record numbers of cases and deaths – and it’s only just beginning
A killer flu season has seen almost as many people diagnosed with the virus so far this year as there were in the whole of 2018. Health bosses today issued renewed calls for people to

Election campaign: Morrison, Shorten pledge transport funds
Prime Minister Scott Morrison is promising to spend $4 billion on Melbourne’s shelved East West Link road project, even though the state Labor Government has ruled out its construction. • A Coalition government would fund a

The hidden prayer of the Greek Alphabet
An ancient prayer—an invocation—has existed and functioned silently within the Greek alphabet since its very inception. The hidden prayer of the Greek Alphabet. The sequence of the letters in their full pronunciation (Alpha, Beta, Gamma, etc.) is by no means accidental. Beneath it lies a complete grammatical, syntactic and semantic

Greek Christmas Question: Melomakarona or Kourabiedes?
This is the eternal Christmas question Greeks are challenged with every year: the traditional to-die-for Greek sweets during the festive days: Melomakarona or Kourabiedes? Melomakarona are egg-shaped calorie-bombs. They are soft and soaked in syrup

Germany: All EU members must take in Migrants
The continuing debate over migration is, at its core, about European federalism and the degree to which the European Union will be allowed to usurp decision-making powers from its 28 member states. If everything goes

Greek court hands down maximum sentences in Siemens bribery case; prominent defendants tried in absentia
A three-justice Athens appellate court on Monday handed down mostly the maximum possible prison sentences to defendants convicted last month in the more than decade-old Siemens bribery and money laundering case – although four of

EU Backs Athens and Nicosia, asks Turkey to publish Turkish – Libyan accord
During the daily briefing of the European Commission in Brussels on Wednesday, the EU asked Turkey to publish its agreement with Libya, and at the same time expressed its unequivocal solidarity with Greece and Cyprus
Dendias: Turkey blackmailed Libya
The Libyan-Turkish memorandum delineating common maritime boundaries in the Mediterranean is the product of Turkish blackmail to the embattled Libyan government and is totally devoid of substance, Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias said Sunday. “The Turkish

Greece issues damning statement following Turkey’s disrespectful remarks on Pontian Genocide
The Greek Foreign Ministry issued a damning response on Sunday morning to the Turkish slander published on Saturday evening regarding a conference about the Pontian Genocide, where Greece’s PM was present giving a speech. The

Israel orders Doctors Without Borders to halt operations in Gaza by February 28
Israel has announced it will terminate the activities of Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières – MSF) in the Gaza Strip by February 28, citing the organisation’s refusal to provide a list of its Palestinian employees. In a statement, the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs, which oversees the registration of humanitarian

Why the EU drifted into irrelevance and how anti-democratic governance accelerated the decline
The European Union’s slide into geopolitical and economic irrelevance has nothing to do with Donald Trump. Here’s Why the EU drifted into irrelevance and how anti-democratic governance accelerated the decline. It is structural, self-inflicted, and

From Somaliland to Cyprus: Why occupation is not self-rule
Jerusalem’s decision reflects a principle, not an exception. Somaliland was sovereign before union and has governed itself since that union collapsed. The analogies invoked against its recognition fail on both law and fact. From Somaliland

Bittersweet Christmas in Bethlehem as the city celebrates for the first time in two years
Bethlehem, the birthplace of Jesus, marked a deeply symbolic and emotionally charged Christmas on Thursday, celebrating the holy season for the first time in two years amid a backdrop of conflict, loss and fragile hope.

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

British man accused of drugging and raping wife over 13 years alongside five accomplices
A 49-year-old British man has been charged with systematically drugging and raping his former wife over more than a decade, alongside five other men, according to Wiltshire Police. The six men face over 60 charges

Libyan military chief killed in Falcon 50 jet crash in Ankara
A private Falcon 50 jet crashed near Ankara on Tuesday evening, killing all five people on board, including Libya’s Chief of the General Staff, General Mohamed Ali Ahmed Al-Haddad. The aircraft had departed from Ankara

