Australia

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Players in Strict Quarantine Before Aussie Open in 'Revolt'

Some participants are under more rigid lockdown orders than others due to positive COVID cases

(Newser) - A "growing controversy" is brewing Down Under as the tennis world gears up for the Australian Open. The BBC reports three people have tested positive for COVID—two players and a "nonplaying participant," per Victoria state health officials—and quarantine protocols are frustrating players, while locals are...

US Leg Band Is Pigeon's Saving Grace in Australia

Well, the fact that it was counterfeit, that is

(Newser) - A pigeon in Australia can coo in peace after his marking as an American almost got him killed . The emaciated pigeon, spotted Dec. 26 in Melbourne, was wearing a leg band that identified it as a racing pigeon who'd left Oregon in October. Australian authorities therefore assumed the pigeon—...

Australia to Kill US Pigeon That Made It Across the Pacific

It considers the racing pigeon a quarantine threat

(Newser) - A racing pigeon has survived an extraordinary 8,000-mile Pacific Ocean crossing from the United States to find a new home in Australia. Now authorities consider the bird a quarantine risk and plan to kill it. Kevin Celli-Bird said Thursday he discovered that the exhausted bird that arrived in his...

Fugitive Discovered Hiding Naked in Mangroves

At least Luke Voskresensky got a beer out of it

(Newser) - A naked Australian on the run from police found himself clinging to a tree above a swamp frequented by crocodiles before he was rescued Sunday. Kevin Joiner and Cam Faust were laying crab traps near East Point, not far from the Northern Territory capital of Darwin, when they heard cries...

Scientists Slam 'Flag-Waving' Antarctica Airport Project

It could start a destructive 'construction race'

(Newser) - Australia is planning to build a new airport in Antarctica—but scientists say a project that would involve displacing penguin colonies and using more than 115,000 tons of concrete sets a very bad precedent. Environmental scientists say the project at the Davis research station would add an estimated 40%...

Australia Drops One Word From National Anthem

'Young and free' is now 'one and free'

(Newser) - In Australia, where 2021 arrived earlier than in most of the rest of the world, Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced a surprise change to the national anthem on New Year's Eve. Morrison said that as of Jan. 1, the second line of "Advance Australia Fair" would change from...

Royal Caribbean Moves to Block Volcano Eruption Suits

On NZ disaster, cruise line says it can only be sued in Australia, not US where it's headquartered

(Newser) - One of the world's largest cruise companies is taking legal action halfway around the world to prevent it from being sued in the US over the deadly volcanic eruption on New Zealand's White Island. Most of the 47 people on the island when it erupted on Dec. 9,...

Father, Son Rescued After Friends Walk 31 Miles for Help

The group got stuck in floodwaters, trio left to get help

(Newser) - Three people went to great lengths to save a father and his 10-year-old son stranded in the Australian outback this week. All five had been driving through northwest Queensland on Sunday when their car became stuck on flooded roads; they spent the night in the vehicle, the BBC reports. The...

Couple Killed in Apparently Random 'Terrorism Incident'

Australian couple found dead in their home

(Newser) - Australian detectives suspect the deaths of an elderly couple in their Brisbane home is a “terrorism incident” perpetrated by a knife-wielding man who was shot dead by police, officials said on Friday. Raghe Abdi, 22, threatened police with a knife before he was shot dead on a highway on...

Tasmanian Devils May Survive Contagious Cancer After All
Tasmanian Devils Get Good
News on Cancer Front
NEW STUDY
Dec 15, 2020 8:27 AM CST

Tasmanian Devils Get Good News on Cancer Front

Gruesome facial cancer 'might eventually go extinct'

(Newser) - A new study is offering hope for Tasmanian devils, an endangered species battling a contagious cancer. Devil facial tumor disease is a nasty condition causing deep mouth sores that eventually lead to starvation. Since it was first discovered in 1996, researchers have feared the disease would prompt the extinction of...

Mom Falls to Death at 'Perfect Selfie' Spot

Rosy Loomba climbed past safety barriers, warning signs at Australian national park, police say

(Newser) - A weekend family outing turned tragic after a mom plummeted to her death off a cliff in front of her husband and two young sons while trying to take a photo. News.com.au reports that 38-year-old Rosy Loomba was hiking with her family Saturday in Grampians National Park, in...

'Sometimes You Trip': COVID Vaccine Is Abandoned

'We can’t have any issues with confidence right now,' says Australia's PM

(Newser) - For the first time, one of the dozens of potential COVID vaccines in development around the world has been abandoned. Australia announced Friday that a vaccine project has been terminated because volunteers in clinical trials received false positives in HIV tests, Business Insider reports. The $750 million project, a collaboration...

Australia to Mining Firm: Rebuild Those Ancient Caves

Rio Tinto detonated explosives to access iron ore

(Newser) - Calling the destruction of 46,000-year-old Aboriginal caves "inexcusable," lawmakers in Western Australia have ordered a mining firm to rebuild caves that are among the country's most significant archaeological sites, the BBC reports. The company, Rio Tinto, detonated explosives in May to access $96 million in iron...

Man Explains What Great-White Attack Felt Like

Surfer had to paddle to shore then walk 1K feet for help

(Newser) - Dion Lynch says it felt like "being hit by a truck." ABC reports he was sitting on his board in the waters off Kangaroo Island, and turned to the left to see what had barreled into him—and saw the shark as it let go. It was a...

Ranger Has Unusual Theory on Kangaroo Attack

Blames jogger's Sarah Jessica Parker perfume

(Newser) - An Aussie woman says she'll never wear her Sarah Jessica Parker perfume again, at least not while she's out for a run, after a frightening incident with a resident kangaroo over the weekend. Tracy Noonan tells the 3AW Breakfast radio program she was jogging Saturday in the Melbourne...

Look Who Turned Up in Australian Christmas Tree

An apparently confused koala

(Newser) - On one side of the world, an adorable owl emerged from the Rockefeller Christmas tree. On the other side, a cute, curious koala emerged from a fake tree to startle an Australian family. Amanda McCormick was in shock after finding the koala in the living room of her home in...

Australia Horrified by China's 'Repugnant' Tweet

Doctored image shows Australian soldier with knife to child's throat

(Newser) - The report was shocking, but one response to it was "repugnant." So says Australia, which earlier this month released a military report that found "credible information" evidence that elite Australian troops murdered 39 Afghan prisoners, farmers, and civilians. Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lijian Zhao on Monday tweeted...

Here's What Iran Got for Releasing an Australian

Thailand says it transferred home 3 men involved in botched 2012 bomb plot

(Newser) - Thailand said Thursday it transferred three Iranians involved in a botched 2012 bomb plot back to Tehran, as Iran released an Australian academic who was imprisoned for more than two years on spying charges. While Thai officials declined to call it a swap and Iran referred to the men as...

Woman Freed After 'Long and Traumatic' Iran Ordeal

Kylie Moore-Gilbert, 33, imprisoned in 2018 after academic conference

(Newser) - Australia's prime minister said he's “thrilled and relieved” after Iran released in a prisoner swap a 33-year-old academic who was imprisoned for more than two years on spying charges, but added it would take time for Kylie Moore-Gilbert to process her “horrible” ordeal. Iran first announced...

'What on Earth Is Going On' With Australia's Shark Attacks?

The year's 8 fatalities thus far is most since 1929

(Newser) - "What on earth is going on?" That's the question shark experts have been asking about Australia, which on Sunday suffered its 8th fatal shark attack . The only deadlier year on record was 1929 and its nine shark-related deaths. And most years don't come close, with the annual...

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