Exiled gangland boss Kazem Hamad linked to Victoria’s tobacco wars arrested in Iraq 14. January 2026 (05:16) Hamad arrested on behalf of Australian authorities for alleged drug traffickingFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAn exiled underworld boss connected to Victoria’s ongoing tobacco wars has been arrested in Iraq.Kazem “Kaz” Hamad was arrested on behalf of Australian law enforcement authorities for alleged drug trafficking, according to a statement from the Iraq’s National Centre for International Judicial Cooperation on Monday night. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Randa Abdel-Fattah threatens defamation action against South Australian premier Peter Malinauskas 14. January 2026 (04:06) Prominent Palestinian author’s removal from Adelaide writers’ week lineup led to unprecedented turmoil culminating in cancellation of festivalFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe South Australian premier, Peter Malinauskas, has received a legal notice from the Palestinian writer and academic at the heart of the Adelaide writers’ week maelstrom.On Wednesday, lawyers acting for Randa Abdel-Fattah served a formal concerns notice for defamation on the premier, suggesting the fallout from her cancellation from the 2026 event – which is itself is now cancelled – is far from over. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Labor considering extending new hate speech protections to LGBTQ+ Australians and religious groups 14. January 2026 (03:59) Anne Aly said the government was ‘open to considering extending the protections to other types of hate’Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastThe federal government will consider stronger legal protections for religious groups, people with a disability and LGBTQ+ Australians after new hate speech laws drafted in the wake of the Bondi beach shootings pass parliament.Parliament will sit on Monday and Tuesday next week to debate a bill which includes new hate speech and anti-vilification laws, powers to formally designate groups as proscribed organisations and provisions for the largest gun buyback scheme since the 1996 Port Arthur massacre. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Islamic prayer hall permanently closes after controversial cleric comes under scrutiny following Bondi terror attack 14. January 2026 (03:42) Al Madina Dawah centre in Bankstown announces move on Wednesday after local council issues ‘cease use’ directive on Wisam HaddadFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastAn Islamic prayer hall in Sydney associated with the controversial cleric Wisam Haddad, which had come under scrutiny since the Bondi massacre, says it has permanently closed.The Al Madina Dawah centre in Bankstown made the announcement in an image posted to its Facebook account on Wednesday morning. “The Al Madina Dawah centre is permanently closed,” it said, without providing any additional information.
Canterbury Bankstown council issued a “cease use” directive on Haddad last month, after surveilling the centre on Kitchener Parade and determining it never had approval to operate as a prayer hall, and was only recently approved to operate as a medical centre. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Trump says Renee Good probably a ‘wonderful person – but her actions were pretty tough’ 14. January 2026 (03:35) President speaks to CBS News about killing of woman by ICE agent and defends immigration crackdownDonald Trump has defended his administration’s increasingly violent immigration crackdown, describing the 37-year-old woman killed by federal agents as likely a “wonderful person” whose “tough” actions justified a lethal response.Trump’s comments, made during an interview with CBS News after his visit to a Ford factory in Detroit, came amid rising tensions between federal and local officials in Minneapolis after an ICE agent shot dead Renee Good at the wheel of her SUV on a residential street in Minneapolis last week. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Iran protests: what we know so far about the spiralling anti-government demonstrations 14. January 2026 (03:20) Protests began over the fall in value of the currency have grown into wider demonstrations and calls for the fall of Iran’s clerical establishmentIran protests live updatesTrump promises ‘help is on its way’ and tells Iranians to ‘keep protesting’ Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Iran protests live updates: Trump warns of ‘very strong action’ if Iran executes protesters, as death toll soars 14. January 2026 (02:47) US president says ‘help is on its way’, as reported death toll rises into the thousands and concerns Tehran may carry out first protest-related execution, that of Erfan Soltani Trump promises ‘help is on its way’ and tells Iranians to ‘keep protesting’Hundreds of gunshot eye injuries found in one Iranian hospital amid brutal crackdown on protests The death toll from a crackdown on protests in Iran has jumped to at least 2,571, including 12 children, activists said early on Wednesday.The figure came from the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which has been accurate in multiple rounds of unrest in Iran in recent years. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Winter storms kill five in Gaza amid desperate conditions in makeshift camps 14. January 2026 (02:41) At least four displaced Palestinians killed when strong winds caused walls to collapse onto their tents and a one-year-old boy died of hypothermiaStrong winter winds collapsed walls onto flimsy tents for Palestinians displaced by war in Gaza, killing at least four people, as dangerous living conditions persist after more than two years of devastating Israeli bombardment and aid shortfalls.A ceasefire has been in effect since October, but aid groups say that Palestinians broadly lack the shelter necessary to withstand frequent winter storms. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Trump says CBS anchor Tony Dokoupil wouldn’t have job if Kamala Harris had won 14. January 2026 (02:19) US president also says Paramount Skydance chief David Ellison, whom he called ‘amazing’, could be ‘bust’ if he’d lostDuring an interview with CBS Evening News, Donald Trump claimed new anchor Tony Dokoupil wouldn’t have his job if his opponent in the 2024 presidential election, Kamala Harris, had won.“A year and a half ago, our country was dead,” he argued. “We had a dead country. You wouldn’t have a job right now. If she got in, you probably wouldn’t have a job right now… You wouldn’t have this job, certainly whatever the hell they’re paying you.” Continue reading...(The Guardian)
Crypto coin firm touted by Eric Adams denies allegations of ‘rug pull’ scam 14. January 2026 (02:18) NYC Token, which hit market on Monday, surged to $580m and then rapidly plummeted as firm denies wrongdoingThe cryptocurrency launched by New York City’s former mayor Eric Adams is already in hot water, and now the company behind it is being forced to defend itself from accusations that it scammed people.Investors and cryptocurrency watchers say the asset, dubbed NYC Token, surged to about $580m shortly after it hit the market on Monday and then rapidly plummeted in value. Observers speculated that someone behind the scene may have carried out what’s known in the crypto world as a “rug pull” – when the creators of the asset quickly sell their investments. Continue reading...(The Guardian)
