TRANSCRIPT
- Jewish leaders says the first anniversary of the October 7 attack is a day of mourning
- US Green Party says vice presidential Kamala Harris could lose American Arab and Muslim vote in key battleground states over her support for Israel
- James Tedesco has been dumped as the Australian Test captain
The Executive Council of Australian Jewry has called for more efforts to rescue Israelis still held hostage in the Gaza Strip after last year's October 7 attacks by Palestinian militant group Hamas.
Around 1200 people were killed in the co-ordinated attacks , and about 250 others were taken as hostages to Gaza.
In response, Israel launched military action which has now killed more than 41,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's health ministry.
Executive Council of Australian Jewry chief, Alex Ryvchin, is calling for today's anniversary to be a day of mourning and commemoration.
"The fact that over 100 people remain in captivity, it’s a national tragedy for the Jewish people. And the fact that a year has passed and so much has occurred for us as a community, so much has happened in our own personal lives, and all the while, these people are languishing in hell, second by second, minute by minute, and frankly, nothing is being done for them."
Meanwhile, Simone Abel, head of legal at the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, is calling for more action to combat antisemitism at Australian universities.
"We're going to be calling for greater accountability in the coming year and seeking to push the very poor leadership at many of the universities to take positive actions to address this rising problem for our Jewish students and staff."
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US Green Party candidate Jill Stein says widespread anger among Arab Americans and Muslims over the US support for Israel's bombardment of Gaza and Lebanon could cost Vice President Kamala Harris the election.
Pollss show Stein garnering just 1 per cent ahead of the vote in the November presidential election, while Harris and her Republican rival, former President Donald Trump, are neck and neck.
Stein has told Reuters that the Democrats have lost the Muslim American and the Arab American vote in key battleground states .... that helped propel President Joe Biden to victory in the 2020 election.
"The Democrats are very much shooting themselves in the foot. And this is really established by multiple polls that shows that in Michigan, Arizona, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Georgia, the...In swing states, the Democratic vote is very much at risk because the Democrats have lost the Muslim-American and the Arab-American vote, more so in some states than others. But they're definitely going to be losing, according to all polling so far."
Dr Stein, who has been campaigning on a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and an immediate US arms embargo on Israel, won 40 per cent of the Muslim vote in Michigan in an August poll by the Council on American Islamic Relations, that also put her ahead of Harris and Trump among Muslims in Arizona and Wisconsin.
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Auction clearance rates continue to fall across the country as the economy slows down because of the high cost of living.
Australia has seen the lowest preliminary clearance rate in nearly two years.
Property data firm CoreLogic says the auction clearance rate for Australia's capital cities fell to 63.9 percent last week, mainly because of public holidays in several states.
That's the lowest clearance rate since December 2022 when it fell to nearly 56 percent.
Just over 1900 auctions were held across capital cities last week, up from just over 1800 the previous week.
A low preliminary clearance rate in Sydney was the main reason for the drop in clearance rates in capital cities.
Sydney also recorded a sharp drop in auction volume, with only 524 homes going under the hammer as the market took a breather for the Labour Day long weekend.
The number of auctions rose to 1,059 in Melbourne after dropping over the previous week because of the AFL Grand Final holiday.
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Parliamentary Library analysis commissioned by the Greens has found Labor's the Help to Buy scheme won't assist the key professions identified by the government to buy a home.
The Help to Buy scheme will assist 40,000 people across four years to buy a home, with the government putting forward up to 40 per cent equity to help in the purchase of a home.
Labor claimed the shared equity scheme would help nurses, childcare workers, teachers and paramedics buy a home, but the analysis found that the scheme's income limits of $90,000 for an individual would preclude many of the identified professions.
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James Tedesco has been dumped as Australian Test captain as Mal Meninga completed the most radical shake-up of his tenure as Kangaroos coach.
Penrith's Isaah Yeo will take over the role with Tedesco omitted for the first time since his debut in 2018.
Eight players will make their test debut, including premiership-winning forward Lindsay Smith, and Storm winger Xavier Coates.
Coach Mal Meninga says he hopes the decision is widely accepted.
"Outstanding player, outstanding person, so they're the two great qualities that we want in an Australian captain. Then obviously what he does on the footy field, and around the team is tremendous. He understands winning, he understands how to lead winning teams as well."
The Kangaroos will play in the Pacific Championships, with the first game against Tonga on Friday October 18.
