Two thirds of Afghanistan is suffering from drought, with the United Nations warning up to two million people could be at risk of severe food shortages.

A precipitation deficit of 70 per cent has affected winter harvests, with many farmers delaying planting and running out of feed for livestock.

New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters met with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi for talks over the weekend discussing issues of peace and security in the asia-pacific.

New Zealand is the first western developed country to sign up to China’s One Belt One Road initiative, an infrastructure development scheme looking to link Europe and Asia.

Mr Peters, who has been labelled ‘anti-china’, had a change of tone, speaking highly of China-New Zealand relations says Chinese foreign minister.

The State government will publish regular court statistics about domestic and family violence.

It comes after the government introduced multiple reforms to help tackle domestic violence including a new criminal offence of strangulation, to increase penalties for breaches of domestic violence orders and to make domestic violence an aggravating factor in sentencing.

Attorney General and Minister for Justice Yvette D’Ath said the government hopes to increase victim’s faith in the system.

The Queensland Alliance for mental health has called upon the government for continued investment to cope with the increasing amount of Queenslander seeking mental health treatment.

QAMH said there is a rising rate of suicides, mental health-related emergency department presentations and community mental health contacts and more investment in community care is needed to relieve government services.  

An $8m taskforce set up by the federal government has been cautiously welcomed by doctors and Aboriginal community controlled health organisations working against HTLV-1.

Earlier this month it was found that several central Australian Aboriginal communities have the world’s highest rates of HTLV-1, a fatal virus with no cure or treatment.

Central Australia academic health centre is also working with Congress to convene a workshop in early August to discuss appropriate responses to HTLV-1.

Employers will be facing up to 10 years in prison and businesses will be fined $950,000 for wage theft if Labor government is re-elected in the November Victorian election.

It was announced at the Labor state conference on Saturday by the Victorian premier, Daniel Andrews, after increasing concern about wage theft and union campaigns.

Workers looking to recover wages will be expedited due to a simpler legal process with court fees being lowered and cases will be heard within 30 days.

Israeli defence minister Avigdor Lieberman says a sea barrier of fortified breakwater and barbed wire is due to be completed by the end of the year, which will prevent infiltrating Israel by sea.

The Israeli government started this project after discovering Hamas had entered Israel by sea in the 2014 conflict.

This comes as tensions are heightened in the region since the beginning of Palestinian protests to return to the area in late March.

The 5000 supporters of the far-right Alternative for Germany were outnumbered by anti-AfD demonstrators in a march down Berlin’s main station to protest immigration.

The party is notorious for their anti-immigration stance after Chancellor Angela Merkel’s decision to open Germany’s border to refugees in 2015.

German police estimate 20,000 anti-AfD protestors were present however protests broadly peaceful with only one minor injury reported.