TRANSCRIPT
More than 30,000 people have evacuated their homes in the U-S city of Los Angeles as two wildfires burn through the areas between Malibu and Santa Monica.
Los Angeles Governor Gavin Newsom has declared a state of emergency in the region as the fires are not yet under control [[check updates]].
Witnesses in the area say they saw multiple homes and vehicles on fire as heavy winds intensify the blaze.
LA County Resident Neeta Sreekanth was hiking in the area when the fire broke out.
She told CNN that she didn't realise what was happening until her dog alerted her.
"For the past few months, typically, this is around the time that we get a ton of rain. So without that, and just walking up the trail, my dog got freaked out because it sounded like some sort of explosion when it first started. So as we started the hike, you couldn't really see anything. It was a clear, beautiful day, obviously windy with the weather that we have, but during the hike that all of a sudden I turned around and I saw just a puff of smoke go up."
The Prime Minister has beefed up his unofficial election campaign with a visit to a remote cattle station.
With Australians heading to the polls before 17 May, Anthony Albanese has launched a whirlwind tour of marginal seats across Queensland, the Northern Territory, and Western Australia.
On Wednesday, at Mount Isa, he underscored the economic advantages of China lifting its suspension on Australian beef exports.
"Red meat exports to China at the time of the suspension of exports were worth something in the order of two billion dollars. They have now all restrictions have been lifted, and it has bounced back to represent value of more than two billion dollars. And the cattle station, we're visiting today, this morning, will export to China and does do that as part of its market."
Palestinian health authorities say Israeli airstrikes have killed at least five people in the Gaza Strip, including two infants
The killings bring the death toll in the last 36 hours to 51, as the Palestinian Health Ministry raises the official death toll to 45,936.
Among those killed was a four month old boy, who was killed in a strike on his family house in the Bureij refugee camp.
In Khan Younis, Sobhi Farahat says he was with a group of children just hours before a missile hit them.
"Are children your target, (Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu? Is that your target, Netanyahu - that you, the world and (U.S. President-elect Donald) Trump threaten and slaughter our children for the sake of 200 hostages? What did these children do? What did we do?"
Meanwhile in Israel, family members of the hostages who remain in Gaza are continuing to protest in the streets as ceasefire and hostage release deals make little progress.
Zahiro-Shahar Mor is the nephew of one of the hostages, he says he is hopeful the presidency of Donald Trump will push things along.
"I have to be optimistic because maybe President Trump's election will get like, you know, will jolt the system either way because for the past 15 months everything was stuck. So maybe him coming to power will get, you know, the balance of power differently."
The 23-year-old hiker who went missing for 13 days near Kosciuszko National Park had little more than a couple of muesli bars to sustain him in the rugged terrain.
Hadi Nazari was found by rescue teams on Wednesday afternoon after he was reported missing on boxing day when he failed to return to a campsite after hiking.
Speaking to police, Mr Nazari says he came across a hut in the mountains where he found two muesli bars, adding he found water and foraged for berries wherever he could.
Mr Nazari has since been taken to hospital for assessment.
State Emergency Services Chief Superintendent Benjamin Pickup says the outcome has brought a huge amount of relief to everyone involved.
"It's definitely a huge positive outcome for the family and for the searches you get really passionately involved in, in finding that and returning, returning them to loved ones. So there's a lot of pride in all the agencies and our volunteers that have been up there today. That'll be a huge sign of relief for them having such positive outcome"
In football,
French coach Didier Deschamps is set to step down from his position after the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the US, Canada and Mexico.
The 56-year-old has been in the role since 2012, leading the French national team to the World Cup trophy at the 2018 tournament in Russia.
Under his guidance, the French team has also appeared in the World Cup final of 2022 and the Euro final of 2016.
Deschamps is one of the three people to have won the World Cup trophy both as a player and a manager, with the other two being Mario Zagallo and Franc Beckenbauer.
He has been recognised with both the Knight and Officer Orders of the French Legion of Honour for his services to the national team.
