Their dramatic overnight exit came following days of secret wrangling that had seen both men holed up in Australia’s diplomatic missions to escape the clutches of China’s feared security police
An unexpected victory by Scott Morrison’s centre-right coalition has dashed hopes and set off a wave of self-harm including several hospitalisations
Australia winger Clyde Rathbone announced his retirement on Wednesday after suffering a nasty facial injury.
When a dark intruder smashed through his bedroom window and bounced on his bed, Beat Ettlin at first was relieved to discover it was a kangaroo.
No image available
/ 16 December 2008
A court in Australia has approved the use of Facebook to notify a couple that they lost their home after defaulting on a loan repayment.
Australia’s Catholic church has taken a swipe at foul-mouthed British chef Gordon Ramsay and demanded his reality television shows be either taken off air or shown at a later time. One episode broadcast recently featured Ramsay using a four-letter expletive more than 80 times, while he also shouts at a chef saying: ”You French pig.”
In the biggest pro-Beijing rally of the protest-marred Olympic torch relay, more than 10 000 Chinese Australians rallied in Canberra on Thursday, bringing a sea of red Chinese flags and drowning out Tibetan demonstrators. Protests and tight security have followed the Olympic torch around the world over the past month.
Police began an unprecedented security crackdown in Australia’s national capital, Canberra, on Wednesday to protect the Olympic flame from protests during the latest leg of the torch’s troubled journey around the world. China had hoped the torch’s progress would be a symbol of unity in the run-up to the Beijing Games.
The Sharks lost their discipline and unbeaten Super 14 rugby record as the tenacious ACT Brumbies stormed home for a dramatic 27-21 victory on Saturday. Last year’s beaten finalists looked set to stay unconquered after nine matches with a composed opening half to lead 18-7 at half-time, but the Brumbies steamed home in the second term.
Australian police were left red-faced by a handcuffed man who escaped in a patrol car on Tuesday while two officers were inspecting evidence outside. The man, wanted over a series of break-ins, escaped custody in Brisbane, in the northern state of Queensland, just minutes after he was handcuffed and placed in the back of the unmarked police car.
An Australian man who leapt on to a crocodile after it seized his wife in its jaws, wrestling and poking it in the eyes until it let go, was praised on Thursday as a hero by startled onlookers. The 2,5m croc charged late on Wednesday from shallow water at Litchfield National Park, a popular outback waterhole south of Darwin.
A television technician in French Polynesia has been suspended after he accidentally broadcast part of a pornographic movie shortly after a regular religious programme, Australian media reported on Wednesday. The mix-up occurred earlier this month on the Tahiti Nui television network.
With email replacing letters as a way of keeping in touch, an Australian museum on Tuesday said it wants to stop a valuable archive of daily life from being lost with the touch of a delete button. Sydney’s Powerhouse Museum is asking Australians to send them all kinds of emails and replies, including embarrassing messages.
A cattle farmer in Australia’s remote northern outback on Friday said he had found a giant ball of twisted metal, which he believes is space junk from a rocket used to launch communications satellites. James Stirton found the odd-shaped ball last year on on his 40 000 hectare property, about 800km west of Brisbane.
A senior Australian Rugby Union official agreed on Monday with aspects of a written complaint about South African referee Willie Roos’s performance during the ACT Brumbies’ loss to the Wellington Hurricanes on Friday night. Peter Marshall said Roos’s decision to award 39 penalties and free kicks had a negative impact on the game.
New Zealand’s Wellington Hurricanes stretched their winning streak to four games with a 33-15 Super 14 smashing of the ACT Brumbies at Canberra Stadium on Friday. The Hurricanes blew away the weakened Brumbies by five tries to two and condemned the Brumbies to their first home defeat in seven matches.
No image available
/ 23 February 2008
Wallaby Julian Huxley guided a bare-bones ACT Brumbies to a tense 22-20 Super 14 rugby win over New Zealand’s Otago Highlanders in Canberra on Saturday. The Brumbies, in a rebuilding phase after the loss of experienced halves George Gregan and Stephen Larkham, also went into the match without a further three injured Wallabies.
No image available
/ 13 February 2008
Australia apologised on Wednesday for the historic mistreatment of Aborigines, moving many Aborigines to tears and prompting cheers from huge crowds gathered in cities across the nation. ”Today, the Parliament has come together to right a great wrong,” said Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.
No image available
/ 12 February 2008
Aborigines playing didgeridoos and smeared with white body paint overturned hundreds of years of British tradition in Australia on Tuesday by taking part in the official opening of the nation’s new parliamentary session. The ceremony came a day before Prime Minister Kevin Rudd delivers an historic apology to Aborigines for past policies.
No image available
/ 12 February 2008
Sri Lanka hammered India by eight wickets on Tuesday to revive their hopes in the rain-hit tri-series. Set a revised 154 to win from 21 overs, Sri Lanka reached the rain-adjusted target with two overs to spare for their first win of the series. Rain has played havoc with the series, with the first two matches washed out.
No image available
/ 22 January 2008
The death of Heath Ledger was a tragic accident, his Australian family said on Wednesday after the actor was found dead at his New York apartment. ”We, Heath’s family, can confirm the very tragic, untimely and accidental passing of our dearly loved son, brother and doting father of Matilda,” his father Kim said.
No image available
/ 17 January 2008
Proving boomerangs really do come back, an Australian town was on Thursday celebrating the return of a boomerang stolen from an outback museum by an American tourist 25 years ago. The boomerang was posted home to the city of Mount Isa in the northern state of Queensland by a Vermont man who named himself in a letter only as Peter.
No image available
/ 14 January 2008
An Australian man who waved out a car window at two young women was expected to lose his arm on Monday after it was almost severed by another passing vehicle. the 20-year-old was a passenger in a pick-up truck at Bunbury, in Western Australia state, when he waved at two women in a car wash.
No image available
/ 11 January 2008
A drunken Australian man who took a nap between railway tracks has had a miraculous escape after he was run over by a freight train and received only minor injuries and a bump on the head. The 20-year-old, whose name was not released, fell asleep at a level crossing at Port Augusta, in South Australia state, newspapers said on Friday.
India resumed its cricket tour of Australia on Wednesday, arriving in Canberra two days behind schedule after the International Cricket Council brokered a peace settlement. The Indians are in the Australian capital for Thursday’s tour match against an Australian Capital Territory XI.
Australian police launched a criminal investigation on Wednesday after the Israeli, United States and British embassies were sent packages containing white powder, forcing evacuation of the Israeli and American missions. ”We are treating all three as linked until we can prove otherwise,” a police spokesperson said.
No image available
/ 18 December 2007
Australia will send a fisheries patrol ship to shadow Japan’s whaling fleet near Antarctica and gather evidence for a possible international court challenge to halt the yearly slaughter. The icebreaker Oceanic Viking would leave for the Southern Ocean in days to follow the Japanese fleet.
No image available
/ 5 December 2007
A Santa in an Australian department store said on Wednesday he has been sacked for saying ”ho ho ho” and singing Christmas songs to children. Employment company Westaff had earlier asked its Santas to say ”ha ha ha” because the word ”ho”, which is American slang for whore, could offend women.
No image available
/ 28 November 2007
Australia’s Prime Minister-elect Kevin Rudd arrived in the nation’s capital on Wednesday to choose his new Cabinet, aides said, as outgoing John Howard and his vanquished team cleared out their desks. Rudd (50) stormed to power in a landslide election victory on Saturday that wiped out Howard’s conservative government after almost 12 years in office.
No image available
/ 14 November 2007
One man was killed and another was then seriously injured when they tried to climb a tree at night to recapture a pet cockatoo in Australia. The bird’s 72-year-old owner fell as he tried to recover the pet in the country town of Bendigo in southern Victoria state. He was taken to hospital for treatment, police said.
No image available
/ 24 October 2007
Australia slapped financial sanctions on Burma’s generals and their families on Wednesday as supporters of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi marked her 12 years in captivity with protests in 12 cities. Foreign Minister Alexander Downer said the measures would hit 418 people, including leader Senior General Than Shwe.
Australia has placed a freeze on the settlement of refugees from Africa, but Prime Minister John Howard denied on Wednesday that the decision was a pre-election pitch to immigration-wary voters. Immigration Minister Kevin Andrews said refugees from Africa were having problems integrating in Australian communities.