TRANSCRIPT
- The Israeli government approves the first phase of a ceasefire deal with Hamas.
- TikTok faces ban in the U-S after Supreme Court rejects appeal.
- And in sport, Daniel Sanders triumphs at the Dakar Rally.
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Israel's cabinet has approved a deal with Palestinian group Hamas for a ceasefire and release of hostages in the Gaza Strip.
In the early hours of Saturday after meeting for more than six hours, the government voted to ratify the agreement.
Under the deal the first of a series of hostage-for-prisoner exchanges will take place on Sunday as well as the beginning of a six-week ceasefire that could open the way to ending the 15-month war in Gaza.
Under the first phase of the three-stage deal, Hamas will release 33 Israeli hostages, including all women, children and men over 50.
Israel will release all Palestinian women and children under 19 detained in Israeli jails by the end of the first phase.
Michel Illouz, father of Israeli hostage Guy Illouz who died in captivity, says he's overjoyed for the families of the surviving hostages and thankful that he can finally bury his son.
"I welcome this deal with a joy in my heart for every hostage saved. I want to thank President Trump, President Biden, and both administration for making this finally happen. This deal comes too late for my son Guy whose life will not be saved, but he can be brought back home to burial here. Our work is not done. We will not rest until every hostage is home."
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Australia's Jewish community says its rattled by a string of antisemitic attacks, forcing extra vigilance and security measures for fear of becoming the next target.
Politicians and Jewish figures have called for National Cabinet to convene to address escalating antisemitism.
A house formerly owned by Executive Council of Australian Jewry co-chief executive Alex Ryvchin was targeted in an arson and graffiti attack on Friday.
Mr Ryvchin says more needs to done to combat hate.
"There is an evil at work in this country and we have to recognise that. There are people so consumed with hatred that they would seek to burn people because they disagree with their words. How we respond to things like this will determine the future of our country. I firmly believe that."
Following the attack, New South Wales Multicultural Minister Steve Kamper confirmed an incident of racially motivated anti-Arab graffiti on a small business in Wiley Park, in southwest Sydney.
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An Australian toddler has drowned in a villa swimming pool in a tourist hotspot in Bali.
Three-year-old Janna Al Easawi's father discovered her unconscious in her family's villa swimming pool in Seminyak on Thursday afternoon, according to media reports.
He and another woman tried to resuscitate the child but she was pronounced dead that afternoon.
The child's family urged parents to enrol children in swimming lessons, which Janaa had recently started.
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The United States Supreme Court has upheld a law banning TikTok in the country on national security grounds if its Chinese parent company ByteDance does not sell it.
The law was passed by an overwhelming bipartisan majority in Congress last year and signed by President Joe Biden.
The court's 9-0 decision throws the social media platform — and its 170 million American users — into limbo, and its fate in the hands of Donald Trump, who has vowed to rescue TikTok after returning to the presidency on Monday.
TikTok creator Dustin Tyler says the platform has been a major source of income for him.
"I'm very upset, sad, angry, many emotions. And it's going to affect me tremendously. I mean, this is my main platform is TikTok. I have other platforms that I monetise, but nothing monetises quite like TikTok. I'm a live streamer mainly. So, you know, I know that they've said, you know, you can use other platforms. It's, it's just not the same and anybody that uses TikTok or livestreams knows."
The ban is set to go ahead on Sunday.
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In sport,
Daniel Sanders has become only the second Australian to triumph at the Dakar Rally and the first motorcyclist in 16 years to lead from start to finish in the great two-week race.
Sanders flew home across the desert dunes to Shubaytah on his Red Bull KTM on Friday to seal a magnificent wire-to-wire triumph.
Sanders finished sixth over the final mass-start as he protected his nine-minute lead over his nearest rival, Spain's Monster Energy Honda rider, Tosha Schareina.
Sanders ended up losing only 10 seconds to Schareina as he triumphed in the provisional final standings by 8 minutes and 50 seconds to become the first Aussie for six years to prevail in the world's most challenging rally.
