The leader of a Russian opposition party has been sentenced in Moscow today as protests against the trial continue

Opposition Leader and Kremiln Critic Alexei Navalny will serve two years in gaol on charges of fraud.  This comes after days of protests outside the court protesting the charges which opposition figures have said are politically motivated.

The Wreck Bay Aboriginal Community Council has launched a class action against the federal government for loss of culture after the chemical contamination of Jervis (Jarvis) Bay water.

The residents of Wreck Bay, on the New South Wales south coast, allege Defence negligently allowed the harmful PFAS chemicals to leech into groundwater.

Traditional Owner James Williams says that he can’t teach the younger generation like he was taught, Defence has erected signs warning against fishing from waterways in the area.

The former Defence Minister Christopher Pyne’s lobbying firm have engaged in another weapons manufacturer called DroneShield.

Mr Pyne, as a former minister, was barred until November last year for lobbying on official matters previously dealt with in his portfolio.  Pyne’s lobbying firm is now directly courting federal MP’s. 

There is currently no law that prevents former ministers from lobbying after 18 months on previous portfolio matters once they have left office.

University of Queensland researchers are studying the unique digestion of marsupials in an effort to understand their low-methane-production.

Methane-producing archaea found in some native Australian herbivores like kangaroos, wombats, and koalas appear to be quite different to those found in other animals.

By understanding native animal digestion better, UQ researchers hope to reduce methane emissions in livestock, decrease greenhouse gas emissions from the agricultural sector, and positively impact climate change.

A new gas exploration company has been given the go-ahead to prospect for fossil fuels in the Bowen and Surat basins. 

This has been one of the many projects given the green light in the area in the last year. 8,205 square kilometers of land has been released for gas exploration in the area. 

The Palaszczuk government is investing 5 million dollars into developing a proposed 500 kilometer gas transmission pipeline to connect the Bowen Basin to domestic and export markets.

Iran’s foreign minister has asked Europe to mediate negotiations with the United States regarding a return to the 2015 deal.

This is the first time Iran has expressed interest in negotiating with Washington since the US withdrew from the nuclear deal in 2018.

The deal limits Iran’s uranium enrichment program, preventing it from achieving nuclear weapons capabilities, while easing Western economic sanctions on the country.

Some of Australia’s largest media companies including NewsCorp and Nine Entertainment, have pleaded guilty to contempt of court and breaching suppression orders over their coverage of the Cardinal George Pell trial.

The companies submitted guilty pleas in exchange for the Victorian Supreme Court dismissing its charges against individual journalists who illegally published details of the case.

Cardinal Pell, once the third most powerful member of the Catholic Church, had five child sexual abuse convictions overturned last year.

Communications Minister Paul Fletcher says search engines such as Bing and DuckDuckGo are ready to take over from market heavyweight Google as the company threatens to withdraw from Australia.

Google’s threat comes in response to a proposed bill that would force it to pay for journalism it provides links to in an attempt to boost Australia’s troubled media industry. 

The Media Entertainment and Arts Alliance is one of several groups cautioning against the bill, saying it is unclear how funds will be spent.