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Foreign Aid

China will hand Solomon Islands a $30 million budget rescue package. A leading MP says basic details are missing

The leader of independent MPs in Solomon Islands is demanding the country's prime minister provide more information about a budget rescue package from China. 
A man in a suit and glasses stands in front of Chinese and Solomon Islands flags.

US to permanently close off pier getting aid into Gaza after failed re-anchoring efforts

The US government says delivering aid to Gazans through the US-built pier was always "intended as a temporary solution", calling for expanded access through land.
Satellite image of the sea and a pier.

analysis:Iran has elected its first reformist president in two decades. Can he deliver change?

Rather than move to give young Iranians more freedom, the Islamic Republic has become more hardline. Can Iran's new president, Masoud Pezeshkian, change that? And if not, the why did the regime allow him to run?
Updated
Man clenches his fists

'This is their hard-earned money': The battle these workers face claiming their super

Pacific Island workers coming home from Australia say it's a long and complicated process to get their superannuation — and the barriers appear to be stopping many from claiming their money.
A woman with a scarf and with sunglasses rested on her head, and a man in a jumper.

China has added a sprawling new palace to the skyline of Vanuatu's capital — but some fear it will be hard to maintain

China has handed over a massive newly-built presidential palace to Vanuatu days before the Pacific nation's prime minister is expected to visit Beijing.
An aerial shot shows a large complex of buildings with red roofs, including a palace, with a bay in the background.

No bomb shelters, no air raid sirens: Families on Lebanon's southern border head north as war looms

War in Lebanon will devastate the country and leave millions hungry, aid agencies warn as the country faces its most serious threat of violence in 20 years.
Updated
An elderly woman wearing a hijab and leaning on two walking sticks stands next to 2 men carrying food packages.

Before a visit to China, Solomon Islands' new PM arrived in Canberra with a security request

Solomon Islands Prime Minister Jeremiah Manele says he has asked Australia to help his country expand its police force to 3,000 officers after sitting down with Anthony Albanese for bilateral talks in Canberra.
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Anthony Albanese and Jeremiah Manele shake hands in front of a row of Australian and Solomon Islands flags.

Gaza aid pier resumes operation after temporary pause

Save the Children's Alexnadra Saieh says US aid initiatives like a humanitarian pier just build a 'mirage' of improved access in Gaza.
Pier Resumes Operation, Gaza Aid: A truck drives along a pier that extends into the sea.
Duration: 6 minutes 2 seconds

opinion:'They are relentless': On the front lines of Russia's disinformation war

Poland's response to the human tide from Ukraine is already a case study in effective crisis management. But dealing with Russian disinformation — now morphing into subversion and outright sabotage — has been a consistent problem.
A man wearing a hi-vis vest with the message I SPEAK ENGLISH AND POLISH written on it speaks with a group

G7 leaders commit to supporting Ukraine 'for as long as it takes' in war against Russia

The leaders' statement, issued towards the end of the summit in Apulia, Italy, caps off a summit marked by broad consensus on global conflicts but clashes on abortion and vaccine funding.
Six men and a woman, all wearing suits, stand on a podium with the words G7 Italia 2024 on it.

Israeli military announces 'tactical pauses' in southern Gaza fighting to boost aid flow

The Israeli Defense Forces says it will hold daily tactical pauses in military activity in parts of southern Gaza to allow more aid to flow into the area, where international aid organisations have warned of a growing humanitarian crisis. 
A soldier holds an Israeli flag while riding on a tank through the desert.

Australia moves to create training centre for Pacific police, as China looks to strike security deals

Australia looks to set up a 200-strong cohort of highly trained Pacific islands police officers to be sent to regional hotspots, under an ambitious initiative designed to strengthen the government’s strategic position in the region.
A police officer wearing a helmet and protective equipment, and carrying a large plastic shield, receives training

Mining magnate Andrew Forrest offers to overhaul Gaza border crossings to improve aid flow

Australian billionaire Andrew Forrest has offered to build and install automated gates at Gaza border crossings to improve the flow of aid into the region, but first it has to be acceptable to the Israelis.
Updated
An Israeli military convoy

What will happen now the US-built Gaza pier has broken?

A US-built pier helping to deliver vital aid to Palestinians on the brink of famine broke less than two weeks after its installation, so what happens now? 
Satellite image of the sea and a pier.

Local PNG official casts doubt on PNG landslide death toll, saying 162 people have died

Vast uncertainty surrounds the final death toll from last week's catastrophic landslide in Papua New Guinea's Enga Province with a local official saying he believes 162 people have been killed in the natural disaster — far fewer than estimated by the United Nations or the country's government.
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A man wipes tears away with his jacket, flanked by two other men looking downcast.

'The rocks keep falling': Warnings of another landslide prompt evacuation orders in Papua New Guinea

Concerns about a second landslide are compounded by worries about the possible outbreak of disease at the site.
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Men use long sticks to lift a large boulder in thick, wet mud looking strained

Thousands buried in Papua New Guinea landslide

It's been four days since a devastating landslide wiped out a small village in remote Papua New Guinea. As more footage emerges of the aftermath, the world is only just waking up to the scale of the disaster.
Updated
ABC News Current
Duration: 13 minutes 57 seconds

'A situation that is getting worse': Why only six bodies of the thousands feared dead in PNG have been recovered

The Papua New Guinea government says more than 2,000 people are believed to have been buried alive in a landslide. But the remains of only six people have been recovered so far.
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Digging with hands

Woman loses 18 members of her family in PNG landslide as hopes of finding survivors fade

The United Nations will hold an emergency meeting to further coordinate the response to the disaster, which has been hampered by the weather and tribal violence in the remote region.
Updated
A woman in a black and lime green top, with her hair in tight knots, speaks to a camera as people behind her search in rubble

People using bare hands to recover villagers in PNG landslide, with fears of up to 2,000 people buried

Papua New Guinea's government has warned the death toll from Friday's landslide in Enga province could jump dramatically.
Updated
Men try to lift a boulder as they dig for buried villagers following a landslide in Enga province, Papua New Guinea. 

Blinken vows unwavering support for Ukraine during Kyiv visit as Russian attacks intensify

The US secretary of state met with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, talked up Ukraine's prospects as a NATO candidate and even played guitar during the surprise visit.
An older white man in a suit looks serious as he walks through a town square surrounded by security.

Australia increases financial support to Tuvalu in face of competition with China

Australia and Tuvalu declare there are only a "narrow set of circumstances" where the federal government might trigger a contentious part of the Falepili Union which allows Canberra to veto security arrangements struck by the Pacific Island nation.
Updated
Woman and two men smile at camera.

Gaza aid 'choked off' after Israel seizes Rafah border crossing

Aid agencies warn of a humanitarian catastrophe as Israeli forces seize the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing in southern Gaza and close the flow of aid through the checkpoint.  
A toddler sits on the ground inside a tent, looking on, with his hand over his mouth, while several relatives sit behind

The West is taking elaborate measures to get food into Gaza. Why is the obvious solution not an option?

The West has taken to parachuting food aid into Gaza to help feed the people below. But on the ground, these meagre packages have sometimes turned deadly.
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An aerial view of a devastated coastal city shows two pallets of bundled goods dropping out of the air.

On board a British aerial mission delivering aid into Gaza

Israel denies it's limiting and blocking humanitarian aid from reaching Gaza. Allyson Horn goes onboard a British aerial mission to trying to get aid into the north.
Updated
On Board Aid Delivery, Gaza Airdrop: Aid delivery airbus Airforce A400 on the tarmac.
Duration: 2 minutes 23 seconds