POLITICS & POLICY

Treasurer Jim Chalmers dismissed Coalition's announcement as "not a serious policy proposal," but stopped short of ruling out matching the commitment once more details emerge.

A fragile ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war was holding Monday, following the dramatic exchange of three hostages for 90 Palestinian prisoners in an agreement aimed at ending more than 15 months of war in Gaza.

Military medic Natalya carried a jug of water blessed by priests at the Sviatogirsk monastery in east Ukraine as she celebrated Orthodox Epiphany in a Russian-affiliated church, despite the war.

Columns of people hundreds strong were making their way home in northern Gaza on Sunday, flanked on both sides by countless buildings turned to rubble, as a ceasefire took effect in the Palestinian territory.

A ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war is to begin on Sunday at 0630 GMT, with three Israeli hostages to be released from captivity in return for a first group of Palestinian prisoners.

Telegram founder Pavel Durov has told investigating magistrates in France, where he is charged with multiple infractions linked to enabling organised crime, that he "realised the seriousness of all the allegations", according to a source close to the case.

Impeached South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol attended court for the first time on Saturday to fight a request by investigators to extend his detention as they probe his failed martial law bid.

A ceasefire in the Gaza war will begin Sunday morning at 0630 GMT, mediator Qatar said on Saturday after Israel's cabinet voted to approve the truce and hostage-prisoner release deal.

The United States offered to extend its signature African investment project into the troubled east of the Democratic Republic of Congo as an incentive for a peace deal, but Rwanda has backed away, a senior US diplomat said.

Russia and Iran signed a new treaty on Friday underpinning their economic and military cooperation, in what both sides cast as a major milestone in their relations.

France's President Emmanuel Macron was in Lebanon on Friday, where he was due to meet his newly-elected counterpart and offer support to leaders seeking to open a new chapter in their country's turbulent history.

An Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal expected to take effect on Sunday has sparked hope for life-saving aid to reach Palestinians, but aid agencies warn of obstacles from destroyed infrastructure, massive need and collapsed law and order.

Israel's security cabinet was set to meet Friday to approve a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release deal that should take effect this weekend.

For seven years, US director David Lynch drank the same chocolate milkshake each day at the same time from the same place in Los Angeles because he believed it helped his creativity.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer signed a "landmark" 100-year partnership agreement with Ukraine during an unannounced visit to the war-torn country on Thursday, seeking to shore up support for Kyiv before Donald Trump returns to the White House.

Millions of pilgrims hoping to cleanse their sins by ritual baths at India's Kumbh Mela festival rely on key lavatory workers to clear up behind them -- those born on the lowest rung of the Hindu caste system.

Qatar and the United States announced Wednesday a ceasefire and hostage-release deal between Israel and Hamas, adding they hoped it would pave the way for a permanent end to the war in Gaza.

Mediators said Israel and Hamas agreed Wednesday to a ceasefire and a deal to release hostages held in Gaza, but Israel cautioned that some final sticking points still needed to be ironed out.

Shorten, who is set to become vice-chancellor at the University of Canberra in February, denied that his early resignation was aimed at clearing the decks ahead of the election. "That is not the case," he said when asked about the timing.

South Korea's Yoon Suk Yeol rose from star prosecutor to the presidency in just a few years, but after a series of scandals and a bungled martial law decree, he's become the country's first-ever sitting president to be arrested.

South Korea has endured six weeks of political turmoil since President Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law and sent soldiers and helicopters to parliament.

Mediators were making a final push Wednesday to seal a Gaza truce and hostage release deal, after a Qatari official involved in the talks expressed hope an agreement could be reached "very soon".

South Korean investigators tried to arrest impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol on Wednesday over his failed martial law bid, using ladders to enter his residence compound after clashes broke out when his guards blocked the main gate.

Donald Trump's second presidential term promises a return to tariffs as he pressures partners and rivals to tackle everything from migration to drug trafficking, while protecting US industries -- in moves that could trigger new trade wars.

Donald Trump's cabinet nominees go under the microscope in a frenzied week on Capitol Hill starting Tuesday, as US senators hold confirmation hearings that could make or break their political careers.

Ukraine fired missiles and drones at factories and energy facilities across Russia early on Tuesday, sparking fires hundreds of kilometres (miles) from the frontline, a source in Ukraine's SBU security services said.

Brazilian teenager Joao Fonseca stunned ninth seed Andrey Rublev in a major Australian Open shock on Tuesday as racquet-smashing 2024 finalist Daniil Medvedev narrowly avoided the same fate.

US President-elect Donald Trump would have been convicted for his alleged effort to overturn the 2020 election result if he hadn't been re-elected four years later, said a report by then special counsel Jack Smith released early Tuesday.

Key mediator Qatar said negotiations for a Gaza truce and hostage release deal were in their "final stages" on Tuesday, adding that it was hopeful an agreement could be reached "very soon".