Morning News Bulletin 2 November 2024

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TRANSCRIPT
Israeli strikes kill at least 64 people in Gaza
The family of the driver involved in a tragic Melbourne school crash speak out
Batsman Matt Short puts his hand up for captain
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Israeli strikes killed at least 64 people in the Gaza Strip on Friday as it continues bombing southern Lebanon.
Lebanon’s caretaker prime minister Najib Mikati says Israeli stubbornness in rejecting proposed solutions is responsible for the continued killing and destruction.
The Israeli military says it has killed senior Hamas official Izz al-Din Kassab, describing him as one of the last surviving high-ranking members of the group.
United Nations agencies say the situation in north Gaza is apocalyptic, with the entire population at risk of dying from disease, famine or Israeli violence.
President of the UN Human Rights Council Omar Zniber says they are calling for respect of international laws.
“The situation of the Palestinian people in Gaza, particularly, is catastrophic one, from the humanitarian point of view, from the situation as civilians, we are completely and fully aware of that. The Council is not inactive. We have taken many decisions on this issue, I mean this year and calling for, first, of the respect, of course, of the humanitarian international law, the international law and human rights laws.”
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Three days after devastating flash floods swept through Spanish towns, killing at least 205 people, shock is giving way to anger, frustration, and a surge of solidarity.
Spanish authorities raised the death toll to 205 on Friday, with 202 deaths reported in Valencia alone.
Many streets remain blocked by vehicles and debris, trapping some residents in their homes.
Electricity, running water, and stable phone connections are still absent in some areas.
The destruction from Tuesday and Wednesday’s storms has left survivors grappling with grief, recalling the aftermath of a tsunami.
According to Professor of Hydrology at Reading University, Hannah Cloke, the tragedy could have been largely avoided with a better warning system.
“Receiving warnings of an upcoming flood is an easy way of keeping yourself safe and your homes not damaged as well. You can take actions to prepare your homes for these types of floods. The fact that we didn’t hear those warnings, we saw people on the ground saying they hadn’t received the warnings in time, they were already neck-deep in water when they got those alerts on their cell phones, that suggests something has gone very wrong there with the warning system.”
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The family of the driver involved in a tragic school crash in Melbourne say they wish it was just a bad dream.
In a statement, the family said, “no words can truly convey the depth of this tragedy. To Jacks family, we can only offer our heartfelt condolences; our hearts go out to you and to every family affected by this loss.”
Auburn South grade five student, Jack Davey, died after he and other students sitting at a table were hit by the car which ploughed through a fence and into the school yard on Tuesday.
Two 11-year-old girls, a 10-year-old girl and a 10-year-old boy were seriously injured and taken to hospital.
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New figures reveal expenses for the N-D-I-S will be $1 billion lower than previously forecast in the 2024 to 2025 federal budget.
Laws, which came into effect in October, moved to cap growth for the scheme at eight per cent each year, following concerns about increasing spending.
The revised expense figures have shown the growth of the N-D-I-S in the current financial year will be 12 per cent, down from 19 per cent in the previous 12 months.
NDIS Minister, Bill Shorten, says while there has been criticism about the overhaul of the scheme, the reforms are improving the lives of people with disabilities.
“The scheme is changing lives but there have been problems with it. There have been problems because the scheme has been treated as the only lifeboat in the ocean for Australians with disability because there hasn’t been proper scrutiny of the payment system because whilst most providers are doing a great job – some are not. What we’re able to say today is the reform that Labor has put in place with people with disability with states and territories is improving the bottom line of the scheme, we’re getting better outcomes and we’re not having to spend quite as much money as we expected to.”
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To sport now…
Top order batsman Matt Short has put his hand up to stand in as captain with Mitchell Marsh away on paternity leave, along with Travis Head, for the three-match series against Pakistan this month.
Short has fewer than 20 white-ball internationals to his name but the 28-year-old Victorian led the Adelaide Strikers with confidence in the last Big Bash League tournament when promoted to captain the T20 side.
With none of Australia’s test regulars in the T20 squad against Pakistan, Short is seen among the contenders for the captaincy along with Glenn Maxwell, Adam Zampa and Josh Inglis.