Voting has closed in the Italian election and early predictions are pointing towards a hung parliament.

The election has been relatively split between  center right and left parties with other anti-establishment and far right parties taking a cut of the votes.

Analysts predict Silvio Berlusconi’s centre right coalition will win the most seats despite Mr Berlusconi being ineligible to hold office until 2019 because of a tax fraud conviction.

Heavy rains have bought flooding to parts of Kenya, as many parts of the country are hit by unseasonable downpours.

Rainfall is generally scarce in Kenya, and tends to pass quickly. However, a recent 22mm of downpour has been enough to cause significant flooding and disrupt traffic in Narobi on Saturday.

Despite the mass inconveniences of flooding, many residents have welcomed the rain as the country is in the midst of an ongoing drought.

Australia’s “yellow lid bin” recycling system is at serious risk – with recent reports finding considerable amounts of recyclable materials still being dumped in landfill.  

The industry is feeling the effects of China’s import ban which came into effect at the beginning of the year, with 600,000 tonnes of recycling now being stockpiled in warehouses across the country.

Aung Zaw Win, a former Rohingya MP has been arrested in Myanmar, in a move that has been condemned as a further escalation of the attacks on the Rohingya community.

The former MP was arrested at Yangon international airport on Wednesday as he was about to depart to Bangkok on a business trip.

He currently remains in custody in Mingaladon police station, and despite being held for five days has not undergone any questioning.

A historic first has seen a woman from Pakistan’s marginalised Hindu minority elected to the senate in an election over the weekend.

Krishna Kumari, a member of the Pakistan People’s Party, is from the so-called untouchables, the lowest rung of the caste system that still prevails in Pakistan.

Kumari, who was raised in a remote district and often worked in fields alongside her parents, will take the oath of office later this month.

National Children’s Commissioner Megan Mitchell’s 2017 Children’s Rights Report has reported young parents are at risk of poor health and have limited access to education.

While the report found teenage pregnancy has declined in recent years, Commissioner Mitchell’s eight-month report found 64 percent of young parents had stopped attending school and only 30 percent of the participant’s schools supported their attendance.

Queensland premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has spoken positively of gas and renewable energy, when queried about the Adani coal mine on her first day back from a trade visit to the United States.

The premier touched on recent investments from the gas and renewable energy industries in Queensland, and spoke of her hopes to see many resource projects plans go ahead.

Consecutive state governments have been scolded by disability groups and senior law firms as Queensland’s new trains failed to meet international disability access standards.

The Human Rights Commission refused an application made by the Palaszczuk government for a three-year exemption for failing to include disabled toilets on board, despite the $4.4 billion price tag on the trains.