TRANSCRIPT
- Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau resigns
- The US says it is confident of achieving a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas
- Bernard Tomic to make his first appearance on home soil in three years
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has resigned, citing rising discontent with his leadership and the abrupt resignation of his finance minister, which exposed internal government turmoil.
A visibly emotional Trudeau described himself as "a fighter" but admitted he was not the right leader to take the party into the next election, given what he calls obvious internal battles.
"As you all know, I am a fighter and I am not someone who backs away from a fight, particularly when a fight is as important as this one is. But I have always been driven by my love for Canada, by my desire to serve Canadians and by what is in the best interests of Canadians. And Canadians deserve a real choice in the next election. And it has become obvious to me with the internal battles that I cannot be the one to carry the liberal standard into the next election."
Mr Trudeau announced that Parliament, originally set to resume on the 27th of January, would be suspended until the 24th of March to allow time for a Liberal Party leadership race.
All three main opposition parties plan to bring a no-confidence vote when Parliament reconvenes, making a spring election under new Liberal leadership highly likely.
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Hamas officials say the group is ready to free 34 Israeli hostages in the first phase of a potential ceasefire deal with Israel.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken says he is confident that a ceasefire deal in Gaza will come together, adding it may happen after President Joe Biden leaves office.
The reports come shortly after the Biden administration approved an extra $8 billion US dollars in arms sales to Israel.
Antony Blinken says there has been intensified engagement by Hamas on reaching a ceasefire deal, but that it is not yet complete.
"We're working very hard to bring that over the finish line. And what we've seen in the last couple of weeks is a re-intensified engagement, including by Hamas. But we have yet to see agreement on the final points."
Israeli officials say Hamas is yet to provide the status of the 34 hostages it's willing to release.
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Northern Terriotry Chief Minister Lia Finocchiaro says record high prisoner numbers are forcing the government to convert a police watch-house into a temporary jail as new bail laws come into effect.
She says the Palmerston watch house is to be handed over to the Department of Corrections to house an overflow of prisoners for the foreseeable future.
The change to bail laws coincide with the Northern Territory reaching a new record of 2628 prisoners, accounting for more than one per cent of the population in the territory.
Justice reform advocates argue the tougher laws, which include granting police the powers to search school students for weapons, will be ineffective in reducing crime.
Ms Finocchiaro says the laws are about keeping serious offenders off the streets.
"We're seeing more people being arrested and remanded which means safer streets, the watch House at Palmerston station will be handed over to corrections for the foreseeable future, to help with the demand pressures as Declan's law comes online. "
**
Two men have died after their boat capsized in a popular holiday town in South Australia.
Emergency services were called to a beach on Monday where they discovered three people unresponsive on the shore.
Two men, aged 82 and 69, were pronounced dead at the scene.
A 59-year-old woman was taken to hospital.
More than 30 drownings have been recorded nationally this summer, with authorities urging Australians and tourists to prioritise safety in the water.
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Orthodox faithful in Istanbul in Türkiye have gathered to celebrate the Epiphany.
Orthodox Christians around the world on Monday marked the Epiphany - with a series of celebrations.
The ceremony involves singing, a mass, and a swimming event where members of the congregation compete to retrieve a wooden cross thrown by an Orthodox Priest.
This year's winner was Vasilis Konstantinidis, who said that he joins the ceremony in different cities every year to win the cross.
This man says the winner Vasilis has been participating in the swimming event for a number of years.
"It is very important. We actually do this every year in a different city and Vasilis, he is always winning, getting the cross. So yeah, it is very important for us."
Most of the world's 260 million plus Orthodox Christians live in Central and Eastern Europe · Russia, Ethiopia and Ukraine, Greece and parts of the Middle East.
**
And now to tennis.
Fallen tennis star Bernard Tomic is set to make his first appearance on Australian soil in three years when he plays to qualify for the Australian Open.
The former Wimbledon quarter-finalist and Australian number one returns to Melbourne Park this week where he needs to win three sudden-death matches to earn his spot in the Australian Open main draw for the first time since 2021.
Four years on, the former world number 17 is returning to Australia ranked 214th after spending time overseas.
Tomic faces Slovakian Jozef Kovalik in the first round of qualifying in his quest to make a 12th main-draw Open appearance.
