Foreign Minister Penny Wong has stated that she believes the allegations made by Australian women who claim they were sexually assaulted and beaten by Israeli forces while detained during a humanitarian flotilla to Gaza. Wong described the treatment as 'unacceptable' and the allegations as 'distressing' during Senate estimates.
Meanwhile, the government of Nauru has issued a rare statement insisting it is a 'friendly' and 'welcoming' country. This follows a whistleblower's claims of 'serious threats of physical violence' against non-citizens sent there by the Albanese government.
In other news, Ahmed al-Ahmed, the Sydney man who disarmed a Bondi attacker, has been charged with assaulting his father. The Greens are urging Labor to delay NDIS cuts, and a woman accused of marrying Islamic State fighters allegedly lived with a teenage slave who was assaulted, a Melbourne court heard.
Hezbollah has rejected a US-brokered ceasefire plan, and Keir Starmer has criticised Elon Musk for 'interfering' in UK politics. Lex Greensill has been banned from running a UK company, and Germany has failed to win a UN Security Council seat, prompting introspection.
