Scott Morrison Apologies To Victims Of Child Sex Abuse

Prime Minister Scott Morrison has offered a national apology to victims of child sex abuse, following a five year inquiry that involved more than 8,000 cases.

 

Australia set up a scheme this year to compensate victims up to $150,000 each, but are yet to decide if they will adopt recommendations from the national inquiry, most notably the recommendation for Catholic priests to report child abuse they may learn about in confessional.

 

Israeli City Erase Women From Public Eye

An ultra-orthodox municipality just east of Tel Aviv has edited a female politician out of a billboard ad, this is not for the first time, Israeli city is erasing women from the public eye, and censoring them from billboards.

 

Tzipi Livni, a female leader in the liberal opposition party Hatnua, was edited out of a billboard in densely populated Bnei Brak, while her male-colleagues remained.

 

Prosecco Production Damages Italy's Environment

It seems like there is bad news for Prosecco lovers, as the skyrocketing demand for the sparking wine has caused damage to soil in the vineyards of Italy.

 

With 400 million kilograms of soil eroding yearly, geographers suggest it is not sustainable and could jeopardise the future of the regions vineyards and production of Prosecco.

 

Researchers from the University of Padua in Italy calculated that the Prosecco industry was responsible for 74 percent of the regions total soil erosion.

Funding to Keep Yellow Crazy Ants from Establishing Super Colonies in North Queensland has 6 Months Left

Funding to keep the invasive ant species, Yellow Crazy Ants, from establishing super colonies in Queensland’s wet tropics world heritage area has less than six months of funding left.

The Wet Tropics Management Authority is asking the state and federal governments for a $6 million per year package for the next seven years.

The WTMA says this will be enough time to eradicate the yellow crazy ant from what is considered the world’s oldest continuing forest and a “living museum” to ancient plants and species.

Politicians Concerned About Meme-Warfare

Experts warn that Australian is not prepared for meme warfare, with politicians and researchers concerned with the spread of political misinformation on Instagram.

Australia is estimated to have 9 million active Instagram accounts each month, with speculations made into whether Australians are prepared for the way social media manipulates, misleads and influences the national conversation.

Brisbane Warned to Expect King Tide

Brisbane warned to brace for flooding as king tide hits, this king tides are expected to inundate parts of south-east Queensland this week, with people urged to avoid parking their cars in areas prone to flooding.

The highest tide peak was expected to be 2.77 meters at 10.31am on Tuesday at Whyte Island, the Brisbane Bar, where the Bureau of Meteorology measures tides.

The Brisbane City Council warned that higher than average high tides may be experienced in low-lying areas near the coast and riverside locations from Monday to Thursday.

Town of Walgett Fears Water Shortage

Indigenous people and farmers alike in the New South Wales town of Walgett have expressed fears that only six months remain until they run out of water.

Elders who have lived within the area their whole life have reportedly never seen the river this depleted and doubt it can be recovered. The NSW Health has issued an alert for the use of bore water, describing a possible risk of amoebic meningitis.

Fourteen Russian's Die After Two Ships Were Struck

Russia's transport ministry report that at least 14 crew members have died after two ships caught fire in the Kerch Strait near Crimea.

Fourteen people were killed, and five were missing off Russia-annexed Crimea in the Black Sea on Monday after a fire engulfed gas tankers sailing under the flag of Tanzania.

The spokesman for Russia's Federal Agency for Maritime and River Transport Alexei Kravchenko said there are 11 bodies, and another three people went under water.

Rise of Murders in Mexico

Murders in Mexico rose by 33 percent in 2018, breaking the record for a second year running, underlining the task facing the new president who has pledged to reduce violence in the country.

Official data from the Interior Ministry shows more than 33,000 murder probes compared with the previous year’s 25,000.

Mexico has struggled with managing violence as tension grows between the government and drug cartels; resulting in fragmentation of gangs and increasingly vicious internecine fighting.