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Latest News

- Russia launches massive air attack on Ukraine, at least 12 dead

- The best places to stay in Byron Bay

- Pakistan anger over ‘inconsistent’ calls and technology ‘curse’

- The best wines to drink this summer for $25 and under

- Two dead, five critical after horror crash involving 21 people west of Sydney

- Where to go and what to do on New Year’s Eve in Melbourne

- Cometh the hour, Cummins the man

- Perfect 10: Proud Cummins joins exclusive 250 club with match-winning haul

World  • Europe  • Russia-Ukraine war

Russia launches massive air attack on Ukraine, at least 12 dead

By Yuliia Dysa and Tom Balmforth

Updated December 29, 2023 — 10.22pmfirst published at 8.50pm

Russia has unleashed one of its biggest missile attacks on Ukraine of the war so far, killing 12 civilians, wounding dozens more and hitting residential buildings in Kyiv, the south and west of the country, officials said on Friday.

Ten people in Kyiv were trapped under rubble at a warehouse damaged by falling debris, the city’s military administration said. A maternity ward was damaged in the city of Dnipro, but no casualties were reported, the governor said.

Firefighters work on a site of a building damaged after a Russian attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Friday.  Credit: AP

“Today, millions of Ukrainians awoke to the loud sound of explosions. I wish those sounds of explosions in Ukraine could be heard all around the world,” Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said, calling for Kyiv’s allies to step up their support.

The vast end-of-year aerial assault comes as uncertainty is swirling over the scale and staying power of future Western military and financial support for Kyiv nearly two years into the war with Russia.

“Russia attacked with everything it has in its arsenal ... Approximately 110 missiles were fired, most of which were shot down,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Telegram messenger.

Air Force Commander Mykola Oleshchuk suggested the strike was Russia’s largest aerial barrage since the February 2022 invasion, describing it on Telegram messenger as “the most massive attack from the air”.

A view of Kyiv after the latest Russian attack.  Credit: AP

Army chief General Valeriy Zaluzhnyi said the attack targeted critical infrastructure and industrial and military facilities. There was no immediate comment from Russia.

The energy ministry reported power outages in the regions of southern Odesa, northeastern Kharkiv, central Dnipropetrovsk and central Kyiv.

Ukraine has been warning for weeks that Russia could be stockpiling missiles to launch a major air attack on the energy system. Last year millions of people were plunged into darkness when Russian strikes pounded the power grid.

Five people were killed in the central region of Dnipropetrovsk where missiles hit a shopping centre, a privately held home and a six-storey residential building.

One person was confirmed dead at a warehouse in Kyiv, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said, revising down an earlier toll of two. Residential buildings and an uninhabited building were also hit, a senior military official said.

Three people were killed in the Black Sea port city of Odesa and at least 15 were wounded, including two children, as missiles hit residential buildings, the regional governor said.

In the Lviv region, which borders NATO member Poland, missile impacts were confirmed at an unnamed critical infrastructure facility, the president’s office said.

One person was killed in a damaged multi-storey residential building in the city of Lviv, the regional governor said. Three schools and a kindergarten were also damaged, the mayor said.

In the northeastern city of Kharkiv, a missile strike damaged a warehouse, industrial facility, a medical facility and a transport depot, the regional governor said. One person was killed and 11 others were injured, he said.

Missiles hit several infrastructure facilities in the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia and one person was killed, the interior minister said.

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Inspiration  • Byron Bay

The best places to stay in Byron Bay

By Angela Saurine

December 29, 2023 — 9.33pm

First discovered by surfers in the 1960s, Byron Bay’s popularity as a tourist destination began to evolve after the 1973 Aquarius Festival was held in nearby Nimbin. Backpackers started flocking to the NSW coastal town in the 1980s, and since Paul Hogan’s sidekick John ‘Strop’ Cornell bought the iconic Beach Hotel in 1990, the region has gone from strength to strength. While there are still plenty of hostels around, the accommodation offering has certainly gentrified over the years.

Elements of Byron

A sprawling resort with appeal across demographics.

Perfect for: Environmentally-conscious couples, families, girls’ getaways

Inspired by the elements of nature, this luxury resort blends effortlessly into native bushland a few kilometres north of town. The curved roof of the main pavilion was designed to reflect the windswept sand dunes on neighbouring Belongil Beach, and there’s a communal fire pit beside the large, lagoon-style pool. With everything from a nature playground and fairy trail to a stylish spa and an adults-only pool with a swim-up bar hidden among the high-tech, eco-friendly villas, the property appeals across demographics. Dine at Azure Bar and Grill, pop across the road to North Byron Hotel, or catch the solar train into Byron from North Beach Station.

From $515 a night. 144 Bayshore Dr, Byron Bay. Phone: (02) 6639 1500. See elementsofbyron.com.au

Raes on Wategos

Sleep to the soundtrack of the ocean.

Perfect for: Special occasions, romantic escapes

Fall asleep to the sound of waves crashing against the shore at this chic, Moroccan-inspired hotel overlooking Wategos Beach. With features such as enormous day beds and deep marble baths, the seven suites, which each have their own unique character, are so beautiful you won’t want to leave. If you do make it out, you can borrow an 88 surfboard and hit the waves, dine at the acclaimed Raes Dining Room downstairs or watch the sunset from the Cellar Bar terrace. A complimentary chauffeur service is also available.

From $950 a night. 6-8 Marine Parade, Byron Bay. Phone: (02) 6685 5366. See raes.com.au

The Sunseeker

A tropical oasis for sunseekers.  Credit: James Tolic

Perfect for: Couples, families

Venture behind the unassuming brick façade of this Californian-style roadside hotel and you’ll discover a surprisingly stylish and lovingly refurbished property bursting with tropical charm. As well as 12 hotel rooms split across two levels there are six inviting bungalows with small courtyards, outdoor baths and Weber barbecues, plus a three-bedroom house, The Residence, which boasts its own a sauna. Get your morning caffeine fix from the on-site coffee cart, housed in a vintage caravan, borrow a bike or scooter to ride into town or relax by the kidney-shaped pool with a drink from the bamboo bar before toasting marshmallows on the communal fire pit in the evening.

From $270 a night. 100 Bangalow Rd, Byron Bay. Phone: (02) 6685 8900. See thesunseeker.com.au

Gaia Retreat and Spa

A Komala Luxe Villa.

Perfect for: Solo travellers looking to rest and reset, couples, special celebrations

Restore your inner calm with a stay in a high-tech villa at this hinterland wellness retreat co-founded by much-loved Aussie Olivia-Newton John in 2005. It’s easy to fill your days at Gaia – which means spirit of Mother Earth – indulging in rejuvenating massages and facials from the on-site spa, and partaking in everything from yoga and pilates to reiki, Qi Gong and sound healing ceremonies. At night, guests converge in the Samoan longhouse-style Kukura House to dine on innovative healthy cuisine, incorporating vegetables grown in the kitchen garden and fish from the aquaponics pond, and sip sustainably and ethically-sourced or organic wine.

From $1875 a night (two-night minimum stay). 933 Fernleigh Rd, Brooklet. Phone: (02) 6687 1216. See gaiaretreat.com.au

The Atlantic Byron Bay

Relax by the magnesium pool.  Credit: Alicia Taylor Photography

Perfect for: Byron purists

If there’s one property that oozes Byron vibes, this is it. After being severely damaged in the 2022 floods, The Atlantic’s owners took the opportunity to give the beach house-style boutique hotel a major revamp before it reopened mid-2023. Backing onto a bushland reserve a couple of blocks from the main street, there are 20 rooms decorated with Caribbean-inspired artworks spread across three buildings with communal kitchens and laundries. There’s also a magnesium pool and deck lined with day beds, an electric moke jeep for zipping guests around town, and surfboards and bikes on hand.

From $330 a night. 13 Marvell St, Byron Bay. Phone: (02) 6685 5118. See atlanticbyronbay.com.au

The Brooklet

Cool off in the 25-metre mineral pool.  Credit: Abbie Melle

Perfect for: Kid-free breaks, solo travellers, significant birthday celebrations

Lie back in your freestanding bath and watch the clouds float across the rolling green hills from one of six contemporary brick villas at this adults-only hinterland hideaway, set on a 50-hectare macadamia and stone fruit farm next door to Gaia. Housed in the former tractor shed overlooking the mineral pool, the bar is the perfect place to enjoy a long lunch prepared in the outdoor kitchen with loved ones. The thoughtfully designed villas feature handmade ceramic tiles in the bathroom, SMEG appliances and gas fireplaces. There’s also a Japanese-style cedar hot tub, sauna, gym and tennis court, and a three-bedroom residence The Bails for larger groups.

From $750 a night. 841 Fernleigh Rd, Brooklet. Phone: 0413 120 409. See thebrooklet.com.au

Hotel Marvell

Bohemian luxe, or just luxe? The rooftop pool at Hotel Marvell.

Perfect for: Influencers, business travellers

Take in views over town to the misty mountains beyond from the rooftop pool at Hotel Marvell, in the centre of Byron Bay. No expense was spared when it came to building the architecturally-designed five-star hotel, which opened in 2023. There are 16 hotel rooms with smart TVs, Nespresso coffee machines and blackout blinds spread across three levels, plus six suites and two two-bedroom rooms. The buzzing rooftop bar is the place the start the night, before heading downstairs to in-house restaurant, Bonito, which is helmed by former Spicers Retreats chef Minh Le.

From $600 a night. 4 Marvell Street, Byron Bay. Phone: (02) 6685 7385. See hotelmarvell.com.au

Beach Suites Byron Bay

Beachfront digs, complete with private plunge pool.

Perfect for: Surfers, families, couples

A beach pad with your own private plunge pool? Yes, please! Open the gate from your Beachfront Studio and wander down the road to the Beach Hotel or splash out on a two- or three-bedroom Penthouse Suite to make the most of the views across the ocean towards the rocky outcrop Julian Rocks Nguthungulli Nature Reserve. The upmarket accommodation features marble bathrooms with spa baths (with bonus miniature rubber duckies), beachy paintings by local artists on the walls and sprinklings of coral. There’s also secure undercover parking, and you can borrow bikes or ebikes to get out and about.

From $395 a night. 20 Bay St, Byron Bay. Phone: (02) 6680 9944. See beachsuites.com.au

Hinterland House

A hinterland manor packed with heritage charm.

Perfect for: Family reunions, special occasions, corporate retreats

Gather 15 of your nearest and dearest and splurge on a stay at this heritage-listed house on the outskirts of Bangalow, around 15 minutes’ drive from Byron Bay. Built in 1906, the grand sandstone home sits on a working macadamia farm and has a wraparound verandah, with chandeliers, stained-glass windows and antique light switches adding to its charm. There’s room for the whole clan with four bedrooms – all with ensuite bathrooms – plus two adjoining cottages overlooking the pool and fire pit. You can book a spa therapist, yoga instructor or private chef to come to the home, which joined Private Collection by Spicers in 2022, and there’s a driver with an eight-seater Mercedes van on standby.

From $5500 a night (minimum three night stay). 1390 Hinterland Way, Bangalow. Phone: 0466 578 241. See hinterlandhouse.com.au

Crystalbrook Byron

Luxe facilities on 45-acres of sub-tropical rainforest.

Perfect for: Rejuvenating tropical escapes

Collect a bamboo room key from reception and meander along a timber boardwalk through the rainforest to your suite at Crystalbrook Byron. Previously known as the Byron at Byron, the 42-hectare property underwent a major refurbishment after being taken over in 2020 by sustainably focused hotel group Crystalbrook Collection, which also has offerings in Sydney, Newcastle, Brisbane and Cairns. The plastic-free resort has 92 suites fitted with timber louvre windows, rattan lamp shades and tropical print cushions. As well as access to Tallows Beach, just south of Byron Bay, there’s a heated pool, sauna, day spa and a tranquil on-site restaurant, Forest, with a menu showcasing native ingredients.

From $455 a night. 77/97 Broken Head Rd, Byron Bay. Phone: (02) 6639 2000. See crystalbrookcollection.com/byron

The Chalet Motel

A refurbished 1950s motel that’s oh-so Byron.

Perfect for: Budget conscious nostalgics

Embrace the retro vibe with a stay at this roadside motel in the seaside town of Brunswick Heads, around 15 minutes’ drive north of Byron. Originally opened in 1954, it has 12 refurbished rooms with quirky features like brass pineapple wall hooks, and vintage appliances. Guests are greeted with a pink neon sign with the words Simple Pleasures behind the bamboo reception desk. Photos capturing the local lifestyle adorn the walls, and there’s a pool and undercover barbecue area.

From $165 a night. 68 Tweed St, Brunswick Heads. Phone: (02) 6685 1257. See chaletmotel.com.au

Reflections Holiday Park Byron Bay

Direct beach access from the premium ocean villa.

Perfect for: Families, grey nomads

With a track leading straight down to Clarkes Beach, which has a tidal pool ideal for littlies, Reflections Holiday Park Byron Bay is as good as it gets for beach loving-families. The Park caters to a wide cross-section of budgets and styles, with powered and unpowered campsites through to tiny houses, cabins and contemporary villas with outdoor kitchens on the deck. There’s a playground and barbecue facilities, with mobile businesses like Kombi Keg and Byron Homemade Pizza popping up during school holidays, when activities such as tie-dying, bead making and pottery workshops are also on offer.

From $51 a night for unpowered campsites and $218 for cabins. 1 Lighthouse Rd, Byron Bay. Phone: (02) 6685 6496. See reflectionsholidayparks.com.au

Angela Saurine – Travel writer

Sport  • Cricket  • Boxing Day Test

Pakistan anger over ‘inconsistent’ calls and technology ‘curse’

By Andrew Wu

December 29, 2023 — 8.59pm

Pakistan coach Mohammad Hafeez has launched a blistering attack on the umpires and called for a review of the decision review system, slamming officials for their “inconsistent” calls and describing technology as a “curse on this beautiful game of cricket”.

In a fiery postscript to Australia’s series-sealing 79-run victory at the MCG, Hafeez said the tourists had been the better side and would have won if not for several line-ball calls that had fallen in Australia’s favour.

Pat Cummins appeals for an lbw decision on Pakistan’s Mohammad Rizwan during the fourth day at the MCG.  Credit: AP

Pakistan were making a bold bid for an unlikely win until Mohammad Rizwan was controversially given out on referral when on 35, with 98 needed.

Rizwan was adamant he had been struck on the forearm, a view shared by field umpire Michael Gough, but TV umpire Richard Illingworth disagreed, ruling it had struck the wristband of his glove.

Illingworth said he had detected a HotSpot mark and a spike on Snicko as the ball passed the wristband.

An angry Hafeez said Rizwan, who had told him the ball had not touched “anywhere near the gloves”, should not have been given out as there was insufficient evidence to overturn the initial decision.

“The umpire gave it not out, and there was no very conclusive kind of evidence where the decision has to be turned over,” Hafeez said. “So I don’t know how to say further than this. But this technology is basically putting the curse on this beautiful game of cricket. We need to address it very rightly.”

Pakistan’s Mohammad Rizwan leaves the ground after being given out.  Credit: AP

Australia captain Pat Cummins said he was adamant the right decision had been reached, saying the ball was “clearly off the glove strap”.

Pakistan also had four reviews turned down on umpire’s call, the two costliest coming in Australia’s second innings when Mitch Marsh was on 40 and Steve Smith on 25.

In both cases, the delivery was found to be clipping the stumps but because the initial decision was not out more than half the ball needed to be hitting for the decision to be overturned.

Marsh added another 56 runs, and Smith 25. Marsh had survived a simple chance from Abdullah Shafique when on 20.

“We made some mistakes as a team, we will take that, we will address those things but at the same time I believe inconsistent umpiring, technology curse, has really given us the result which should have been different,” Hafeez said.

“So I feel like these are the areas need to be addressed rightly.

“We play this beautiful game of cricket with a natural instinct, and we all know the basics of the game. But sometimes it seems like it’s a technology show.”

Cummins said that while technology was “not a perfect science”, he believed the decisions evened themselves out.

Hafeez also asserted Pakistan had been the better team across the four days.

“Our Pakistan team played better than the other team in general,” Hafeez said. “Our batting intent was better, our bowling was hitting in the right areas. Yes, we made some mistakes that we lost the game. But as a team I believe that there were a lot of right positives within the team to win the game.

“But unfortunately at the end we didn’t win the game.”

Coming off an Ashes series where England claimed to be the moral victors, Cummins refused to buy into the issue.

“It doesn’t really matter, it’s the team that wins in the end,” Cummins said.

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Andrew Wu writes on cricket and AFL for The AgeConnect via Twitter or email.

Updated

• National  • NSW  • Tragedy

Two dead, five critical after horror crash involving 21 people west of Sydney

By Anthony Segaert

Updated December 29, 2023 — 8.31pmfirst published at 3.03pm

Two people are dead and five others are in a critical condition after a crash that involved five cars and left vehicles entangled and debris strewn across the highway near Lithgow on Friday.

The incident brings the death toll on NSW’s roads this year to 351 – a 23 per cent increase on the three-year average toll – and prompted police to again urge people to drive safely ahead of the New Year holiday weekend.

More than 80 emergency personnel – including police, fire crews, ambulance and the SES – responded to the crash just before 1pm on the Great Western Highway at Wallerawang, about 15 kilometres from Lithgow and a two-hour drive west of Sydney.

Two cars with their bonnets destroyed lay across the three-lane highway as crews rushed to their assistance. A 4WD with a caravan attached was entangled with a motorbike trailer just next to them. Someone had picked up multiple suitcases, pillows and other travel items strewn out and neatly placed them on the side of the highway.

NSW Police Detective Superintendent Paul Glinn said the “pretty confronting” scene indicated some victims were on holidays.

Two adults were killed, and a number of children and teenagers were among the five critically injured. The 21 people involved in the crash were “adults through to infants”, Glinn said, with 15 taken to hospital.

Police believe one car travelling east hit another travelling west “at significant speed”, before they collided with the three other cars. Two of the three lanes were eastbound travel.

“The speed zones are 100km/h, so you can imagine the impact that that creates with the forces,” he said.

“If anybody witnessed the collision, or anyone’s got any form of dashcam [footage], that would be greatly assistive to us to help us understand exactly what occurred.”

Three children were flown by rescue helicopter to Westmead Children’s Hospital, including a nine-year-old girl with serious head injuries. A woman in her 30s was taken to Westmead Hospital; a woman in her 40s to Orange Hospital; and a male in his 50s to John Hunter Hospital in Newcastle. Nine other patients with minor injuries were transported to different hospitals.

Emergency services at the scene of the crash near Lithgow.  Credit: Nine News

A crime scene has been established. Police said they expected the road to reopen late on Friday night.

As of 8pm, the highway remained closed in both directions. Motorists are being urged to avoid the area. West and eastbound traffic diversions are in place at Barton Avenue, Pipers Flat Road, and Range Road, entering onto the highway.

Sydney road toll up 25 per cent

The tragedy is the latest in a shocking holiday season, lifting the number of people killed on NSW’s roads this year to 351. It marks a significant increase from the 291 fatalities recorded this time last year.

Last week, three people died in a single-vehicle accident at Gunnedah in northern NSW.

Seven people were also killed in six crashes over one weekend earlier in December, including a 17-year-old boy whose car burst into flames on the M5 motorway at Revesby.

The NRMA’s Peter Khoury said 70 per cent of deaths on Australian roads happened outside the capital cities.

“That statistic alone should terrify everyone,” he said. “This horrible year just won’t end when it comes to the road toll. Sydney was already up 25 per cent on last year. Nationally, the road toll is terrible, up seven per cent as of the end of November.

“We need people to do the basics: slow down, address fatigue, stop every couple of hours. If you’re drinking, don’t get in the car. Put your phone away.”

He said Australia needed to better collate and assess data about crashes, and that the country is largely “flying blind” when it came to using the data to prevent further incidents.

Double demerit points are in force during the Christmas and New Year holiday period, and police say they are targeting drink, drug, dangerous and distracted driving.

Speaking from the crash site, Glinn said: “Every time you get behind the wheel, you need to make good decisions. And ultimately, you’re responsible for what occurs.“

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Anthony Segaert is a reporter covering urban affairs at the Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via Twitter or email.

National  • Victoria  • What’s on

Where to go and what to do on New Year’s Eve in Melbourne

By Lachlan Abbott and Alex Crowe

December 29, 2023 — 7.33pm

The state has a new premier in Jacinta Allan. The nation has a new favourite team in the Matildas. The world has decided Barbie is cool again, and Taylor Swift isn’t just a popular musician, she’s a generational phenomenon.

But the more things change, the more they stay the same. Thousands of Melburnians will again flock to the CBD for a fireworks extravaganza as Victoria rings in the New Year – thrilling those looking forward to 2024, and providing a welcome farewell for those relieved to see the end of 2023.

The Age has compiled a guide to help you pick where to be when the fireworks kick off in Melbourne on Sunday night, as well as how to get there and what’s open on January 1.

When are the kid-friendly fireworks?

Families can enjoy the pyrotechnics at 9.30pm before the main show at midnight.

Fireworks over Domain Gardens from Fed Square last year.  Credit: Simon Schluter

Where can I watch the fireworks from?

The City of Melbourne has four official celebration zones – Docklands, Flagstaff Gardens, Kings Domain and Treasury Gardens. Each features DJs and other free musical entertainment from 6pm until 1am. Food trucks are also around for catering; all zones are alcohol-free.

The fireworks – which are launched from Melbourne’s skyscrapers and other landmarks – are best viewed from a position where the entire city skyline is visible. There will be a fireworks barge in Victoria Harbour – so if you’re lucky enough to be watching from a boat, you’ll need to stay 120 metres away. Channel Nine is the official broadcaster for those who wish to watch from home. (Nine Entertainment owns The Age.)

Those travelling to the CBD should note riverside viewing will be restricted. The Southbank Pedestrian Bridge, Sandridge Bridge and northern bank of the Yarra between Birrarung Marr and Bridge Street will be closed to the public on the night.

Across Victoria, you’ll be able to catch fireworks displays at Eastern Beach in Geelong, Breakwater in Warrnambool, and Rosalind Park in Bendigo (best viewed from Queen Elizabeth Oval).

There will be two fireworks displays at all three locations: at 9.30pm in Geelong and Warrnambool and 9.15pm in Bendigo for kids and early birds, and then again at midnight.

How can I travel to and from the city?

Melburnians may remember last year’s slow-moving hordes, which blocked major thoroughfares and made getting home difficult.

With up to 400,000 people expected to travel to the city to attend this year’s New Year’s Eve celebrations, extra services will run to help revellers get where they’re going.

A Melbourne bar packed ahead of New Year’s celebrations last year.  Credit: Simon Schluter

Public transport will follow a normal Sunday timetable across the metropolitan network, but city-loop train stations will be closed from just before midnight as a “crowd-control measure”, according to the City of Melbourne. Those staying for the midnight fireworks in the CBD will have to go to Southern Cross or Flinders Street stations if they want to take a train home.

Travel is free on all Victorian public transport from 6pm on December 31 until 6am on January 1.

What else is on?

There are plenty of other events to consider for the last weekend of the year if watching fireworks in a park isn’t your thing.

John Foreman’s 60-piece Australian Pops Orchestra will take over the Hamer Hall stage once again for the New Year’s Eve (& The Night Before) Gala Concert, with special guests Marina Prior and Michael Cormick. The Arts Centre will also host a balcony fireworks party directly after the show at 10.30pm.

Some of Melbourne’s best bars and restaurants are hosting parties too, including a Tulum Jungle Party at Arbory Afloat, canapes and cocktails at Transit Rooftop Bar, and a two-level party package at The Emerald Peacock on Lonsdale Street.

What’s the weather looking like?

The Bureau of Meteorology forecasts a partly cloudy day for Melbourne on New Year’s Eve with a maximum of 21 degrees.

The sun will make a bit of an appearance on New Year’s Day, with the bureau predicting a top of 25 degrees. While there is a slight chance of rain on January 1, the heavy downpours Melbourne experienced over Christmas are not currently forecast.

Which roads will be closed?

As Melbourne revellers make their way to the CBD, several city streets will be blocked off, including parts of major thoroughfares like Swanston Street, Flinders Street and Birdwood Avenue.

Crowd movements will be tightly managed in Melbourne’s CBD on New Year’s Eve.  Credit: City of Melbourne

Find the full list of road closures here.

Which shops will be open on New Year’s Day?

Most major supermarkets will be open, including Woolworths, Coles and Aldi.

If you’re after some retail therapy to bring in 2024, major shopping centres such as Chadstone, Melbourne Central, Highpoint and Doncaster will open at 10am.

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Lachlan Abbott is a reporter at The Age.Connect via Twitter or email.

Alex Crowe has worked as a breaking news reporter for The Age since June 2023. Previously, she was environment reporter at The Canberra Times.

Sport  • Cricket  • Boxing Day Test

Cometh the hour, Cummins the man

By Greg Baum

December 29, 2023 — 7.31pm

Perhaps the last turning point in an engrossing Test match was also the most symbolic.

It was when Australian captain Pat Cummins went around the wicket to Pakistan counterpart Shan Masood, found an outside edge for Steve Smith to take a smart low catch at second slip and so snipped off at 60 a budding century. Once Masood was gone, and despite some redoubtable lower-order hitting, it was always probable that Pakistan would run out of batting.

Pat Cummins celebrates after dismissing Pakistan’s Shan Masood on Friday.  Credit: AP

As much as an intriguing and fluctuating contest between two countries, this has been a study in their leadership. Neither captain was groomed for the post, nor much looked upon as a likely successor until suddenly he was in office.

Both were installed in crises. For Australia and Cummins, it was when scandal overtook his predecessor two years ago.

For Pakistan and Masood, it was after a disappointing World Cup led to a spill of virtually all positions, a common happening. Masood can count himself fortunate that he has only one former captain looking over his shoulder; sometimes it is six or seven.

Skipper Pat Cummins capped a brilliant display with 10 wickets for Australia in the win over Pakistan.  Credit: Getty Images

Cummins was an obvious appointment in the particular that he is his team’s best cricketer. Simply, Australia has had no better fast bowler. The figures fortify what the eye beholds. Ten wickets in this match and 252 at 22 in his career testify to the rare air he breathes. The question is what heights he might have touched if not for those five years away from Test cricket. It will remain forever moot.

Masood’s credentials were not so obvious; in 10 years, he has played just 31 Tests, for an average of less than 30. But he is an elegant batsman and now that he has been pressed into service has revealed himself as an eloquent frontman.

Each has brought to his team a modern ethos. For Cummins, it is for each man to express himself as best he sees fit, in his cricket and beyond. To date, it has served him and them well. Mitch Marsh’s countervailing near-century on Thursday was a prime example.

Masood’s policy is for his team to play attractive cricket, and not to resile from this even when it leads to a faltering, but to think of it as a step on the way to better things. He pledged this pre-series, and again after defeat in the first Test in Perth, and yet again on Christmas Day, and he pledged himself to lead the enterprise.

Shan Masood belts a delivery from Australia’s Mitchell Starc during the fourth day.  Credit: AP

In this match, he has honoured his word with a pair of relatively dashing half-centuries. On Friday, he made 60 at a faster clip than anyone else in the match, even racier than Marsh’s counter-attacking classic the day before.

His innings was full of exquisitely timed shots on both sides of the wicket. The best was to turn what would have been to anyone else a yorker from Mitch Starc into a clip for four behind square leg that even the Australians could only admire.

While Masood was there, Pakistan could hope to make good their ambition to break a run of 15 consecutive defeats in Australia, which now becomes 16. OK, it’s a pretty humble aspiration, but you have to start somewhere. It wasn’t here, but having pushed Australia to their limits here, Pakistan may in time look back on this Test as a developmental milestone.

Cummins’ pledge as captain, implicit rather than explicit, is to shoulder the responsibility when it weighs most heavily. He’s done all through a year that has brought many and varied spoils, most memorably in the World Cup final.

The most delicate decision a bowling captain has to make is when and how often to deploy himself. Cummins rotates his bowlers deftly, but clearly sees it as his role to insert himself at likely pivotal moments. It’s become a motif. After all, what captain would not call on his best bowler when most needed? Simply, Cummins leads from the front.

Australia celebrates victory in the Boxing Day Test.  Credit: Getty Images

On this sun-kissed Friday afternoon, he destabilised Pakistan’s run chase by defeating Imam-ul-Haq, tenderised Babar Azam for Josh Hazlewood’s later delectation, then returned when Masood was threatening to deal Pakistan back into this match and dealt with him.

It’s not just the wickets Cummins takes, but when he takes them and who he takes out that counts. It’s also that he is relentless. The conditions for bowling on Friday were as benign as they have been in this Test, yet every time Cummins took the ball, spectators leaned forward in their seats (those who were sitting).

When Mohammad Rizwan and Salman Ali Agha mounted an insurgency later in the day, it was Cummins again who returned, first to ruffle their feathers, then to dismiss Rizwan as he ducked into a short ball and it hit him … somewhere.

You can argue vehemently that under DRS protocols, this was a miscarriage of justice. But you can’t deny the bowler’s skill and the captain’s nerve to send the verdict upstairs. The end came indecently quickly from there. It wasn’t that Pakistan surrendered, but that they were as the team sheet suggested, over-matched. Their achievement was that only in the last two hours did the gulf become obvious.

So the natural order holds, but only after a Boxing Day contest worthy of the occasion, and for that we can be at least partly thankful to the stewardship of two accidental captains. For a crowning glory, Cricket Australia let the crowd onto the ground and Cummins, who might reasonably have had his feet up, joined teammates in signing autographs and taking selfies for the arrayed thousands.

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Greg Baum is chief sports columnist and associate editor with The Age.Connect via Twitter.

Updated

• Sport  • Cricket  • Boxing Day Test

Perfect 10: Proud Cummins joins exclusive 250 club with match-winning haul

By Malcolm Conn

December 29, 2023 — 7.28pm

Pat Cummins claimed his 250th Test wicket in dramatic circumstances as Australia strived, with increasing desperation, to eventually claim the second Test and the series against Pakistan at the MCG on Friday.

Chasing 317 for an unlikely victory, Pakistan lost by 79 runs on day four. Only once in 146 years of Test cricket at the ground has a team managed 300 or more to win batting last, England with 7-332 in 1928-29.

Cummins continues to stride ever deeper into the pantheon of Australia’s greatest bowlers, but his sole focus on this sunny afternoon was to overcome a spirited Pakistan challenge.

The series victory finished a year in which Australia won the World Test Championship for the first time, retained the Ashes in England and beat India, in India, to win the ODI World Cup.

“I’m really happy for few reasons. Personally, the main reason is that’s the best I felt bowling for a little while,” Cummins said. “My rhythm felt really good. I felt like I bowled with good pace, I knew where my wrist was and could control the seam, some good bouncers. I felt really happy with just how I was bowling if I didn’t take wickets.

“And then as a team, just a huge year, all formats, a lot of success, and stop off by winning a series at home which we pride ourselves on doing. It’s a pretty satisfying way to end 2023.”

Pat Cummins starred for the Australians with 10 wickets in their win over Pakistan.  Credit: AP

Tension built late in the day as Cummins reviewed a not out caught behind decision off Mohammad Rizwan (35), with numerous replays examining whether the ball had touched Rizwan’s wristband on his right glove when he ducked into a short ball.

As television umpire Richard Illingworth pondered the replays, Pakistan’s wicketkeeper took off his gloves and showed standing umpires Michael Gough, who gave him not out, and Joel Wilson a mark on his forearm. It was to no avail as Illingworth eventually ruled in Cummins’ favour to give him his 250th wicket.

This was Cummins’ eighth wicket for the match, and he eventually finished with 10-97, as Australia requested the extra half an hour to try and force a result. He took 5-49 to go with his first innings 5-48.

Cummins became just the 10th Australian to claim 250 Test wickets and has the statistics to suggest he can be judged Australia’s best of all time at this magic milestone.

Australians after taking 250 Test wickets

- D Lillee: 48 Tests, 251 wickets, 23.37 average, 50.91 S/R

- S Warne: 55 Tests, 252 wickets, 24.01 average, 63.35 S/R

- G McGrath: 55 Tests, 251 wickets, 23.30 average, 52.80 S/R

- M Johnson: 57 Tests, 254 wickets, 27.50 average, 49.88 S/R

- P Cummins: 57 Tests, 252 wickets, 22.32 average, 46.70 S/R

- M Starc: 59 Tests, 252 wickets, 26.75 average, 48 S/R

- B Lee: 62 Tests, 253 wickets, 30.32 average, 51.58 S/R

- C McDermott: 62 Tests,  254 wickets, 28.66 average, 57.03 S/R

- J Gillespie: 68 Tests, 250 wickets, 26.17 average,  55.35 S/R

- N Lyon 68 Tests, 256 wickets, 32.85 average, 62.31 S/R

While no one will replace Dennis Lillee as the quintessential, raging, roaring Australian fast bowler, Cummins, 30, stands proudly with the man who was once his mentor.

Lillee reached 250 wickets in fewer Tests than any Australian, 48, compared to Cummins’ 57, but Australia’s current leading fast bowler, according to the International Cricket Council rankings, is the only player in the exclusive group to average under 23 and with a strike rate under 48 during this pivotal moment in their history.

Cummins is rated third on the ICC rankings. Such is the quality of this Australian attack that Nathan Lyon (5), Mitchell Starc (8) and Josh Hazlewood (10) are all in the top 10.

It is a remarkable achievement for someone who made his debut as Australia’s second-youngest cricketer at 18 years and 193 days with a player of the match performance in South Africa, then suffered stress fractures of the foot and failed to play another Test for almost six years.

“It came up on the big screen. I was 10th or something. I didn’t know I was that close, so that’s pretty special company,” Cummins said. “Nathan (Lyon) and Mitch (Starc) welcomed me into their club...

“It’s a really proud moment seeing the names that are up there that I’m alongside. The thing that’s most satisfying is the longevity that it takes to hit a few of those milestones, especially after missing a few years when I was a bit younger, so it’s always a nice little reminder.”

After Starc ensured the early removal of Abdullah Shafique (4) driving at a ball he could have left, Cummins removed stoic opener Imam-ul-Haq (12) off the back of an umpire’s call review, then won an important battle of the captains with Shan Masood (60 from 71 balls).

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Malcolm Conn is Chief Cricket Writer.Connect via Twitter or email.

Federal Politics

- Hezbollah claims rocket attack retribution for ‘martyred’ Australians

- Turnbull, Thatcher and Packer: Declassified files reveal tycoon’s brush with notorious Spycatcher case

- Delay on deadly stone import ban until states sort out own deadlines

- Send navy to the Red Sea for sake of local economy: Dutton

Politics  • Federal  • Israeli-Palestinian conflict

Hezbollah claims rocket attack retribution for ‘martyred’ Australians

By Perry Duffin and Rachel Clun

December 29, 2023 — 7.16pm

Hezbollah has claimed a missile attack on an Israeli village was retribution for an airstrike that killed Australian brothers – Ali and Ibrahim Bazzi – and Ibrahim’s wife Shorouq Hammoud, among others.

The Lebanese militant group and major political party on Friday claimed Ali Bazzi as one of their “mujahid” fighters, while describing his brother and sister-in-law as “wronged” or “oppressed” martyrs.

Mourners at a funeral in Lebanon with a photograph believed to be of Australian man Ibrahim Bazzi and his wife Shorouq Hammoud.  Credit: AP

The federal government is investigating the elder Bazzi’s links to Hezbollah, but federal minister Bill Shorten says they do not yet have all the facts.

Brothers Ibrahim, 27, and Ali Bazzi, 30, were killed in an airstrike in the centre of the city of Bint Jbeil on Tuesday, local media reported. Ibrahim’s wife, Hammoud, also died in the strike.

Hammoud had recently been granted an Australian visa and the couple planned to travel to Sydney.

A Hezbollah-linked channel on Friday claimed they had launched missile attacks into an Israeli border town Kiryat Shmona, following the strike that killed the Australians.

“At 16:30, targeting the Kiryat Shmona settlement (occupied Khalsa town) with thirty Katyusha rockets in response to the repeated crimes of the Israeli enemy and its targeting of civilian homes in Bint Jbeil,” a translated announcement read.

Hezbollah, which was established in 1982, has launched rocket strikes into Israel and skirmished with Israeli forces almost every day since the war began on October 7. It was declared a terrorist organisation by Australia in 2021.

Israeli online newspaper The Times of Israel reported the rocket attack on Kiryat Shmona on December 28, and shared images showing a hole blown in a wall, and a crater in a street.

There were no reports of injuries, the publication said, and said the attack was carried out “presumably by Hezbollah or an allied Palestinian terror group”.

A Hezbollah-linked Telegram channel, on Friday, posted a map of Kiryat Shmona, in northern Israel, claiming they had attacked with rockets after Australian Hezbollah fighter Ali Bazzi was killed in an airstrike.  Credit: Telegram

Other Hezbollah-linked Telegram channels, on Friday, released photographs and heavily produced videos of the trio, confirming the elder Bazzi brother was a fighter linked to the militant group.

“From the funeral of the martyred fighter on the path to Jerusalem, Ali Ahmad Saeed Bazzi … and the oppressed martyrs, Ibrahim Ahmad Saeed Bazzi and his wife Shorouk Saleh Hammoud, in the city of Bint Jbeil,” a translation of one video caption reads.

The footage showed a military funeral, in which men in military fatigues carry three coffins with the trio’s photographs on each casket.

The coffins are draped in Hezbollah’s yellow and green flag, which bears the Arabic script for “Hizb Allah”, or “Party of God”, and an assault rifle. A massive crowd chants and surges through a town centre behind the funeral procession.

Ibrahim ‘Bob’ Bazzi and his wife Shorouq Hammoud.  Credit: Wael Kassir Photography

The wording of the messages suggest Ibrahim Bazzi, known to friends as Bob, and his wife Hammoud, were not connected to Hezbollah – confirming what their friends and families had told The Sydney Morning Herald following their deaths.

“I told Bob ‘I want you to be careful in Lebanon, it’s not safe there’ … but we never thought his house would be bombed, he had nothing to do with this conflict,” his friend Ali Saab said.

Asked on Friday morning about the reported links of one of the brothers to the Hezbollah, NDIS Minister Bill Shorten said the government was still working to get all the facts.

“We’re investigating that question, trying to get to the bottom of it, assemble our facts,” he said on Nine’s Today show.

“The reality is Hezbollah is a terrorist organisation. They are currently launching attacks into Israel. It’s against the law for Australians to travel overseas to join proscribed terrorist organisations, but I must say we don’t have all the facts yet.”

A screenshot from Hezbollah Martyrs, eulogising Australian Ali Bazzi, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Bint Jbeil, Lebanon.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said Australians should not travel to Lebanon, and warned commercial flights out may not be available as the conflict continues.

“The Australian Government continues to advise do not travel to Lebanon due to the volatile security situation and the risk of the security situation deteriorating further,” a department spokesperson said in a statement.

“Australians in Lebanon who wish to leave should leave now while commercial flights remain available. The Australian Government may have limited ability to assist you to leave.”

While the numbers are still small, the amount of Australians registering for consular updates has doubled since early October to about 800.

Thousands of Australian citizens are in Lebanon, many of whom live there permanently. Ray Najar, who is president of the Australian Lebanese Association but was speaking in a personal capacity, said those who can should leave Lebanon now before it becomes too difficult.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong will visit Israel and other Middle Eastern countries next month in a bid to help secure an end to hostilities and prevent them from spreading further.

Opposition foreign affairs spokesman Simon Birmingham said Australia should urge Lebanon to enforce the 2006 UN resolution which called for the cessation of hostilities in southern Lebanon and northern Israel by removing the threat of Hezbollah.

“Hezbollah’s actions threaten the safety of both Israeli and Lebanese citizens, who deserve strong global support to remove this terrorist threat, including from Australia,”

But Najar said Lebanon could not remove Hezbollah because the group was too powerful in the country’s south, and any military presence there would cause another civil war. He said Australia should help the Lebanese government and military better defend its country by providing training and equipment.

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Perry Duffin is a crime reporter for the Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via Twitter or email.

Rachel Clun is an economics correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, based at Parliament House in Canberra.Connect via Twitter.

Politics  • Federal  • Publishing

Turnbull, Thatcher and Packer: Declassified files reveal tycoon’s brush with notorious Spycatcher case

By Shane Wright

December 29, 2023 — 6.24pm

Australian media mogul Kerry Packer was almost dragged into the Spycatcher case of the 1980s to help negotiate a deal that would have saved Margaret Thatcher’s British government from an embarrassing court loss that elevated the public and legal standing of Malcolm Turnbull.

Documents released on Friday by the British National Archives show key officials within the Thatcher government dramatically underestimated Turnbull, as well as Justice Philip Powell, who ruled in favour of former British spy Peter Wright.

Malcolm Turnbull with former British spy Peter Wright after their legal victory in December 1986.  Credit: John Nobley

In his book Spycatcher, Wright alleged that a former head of the British security service was a Soviet mole during the 1950s and 1960s. He also claimed former British Labour prime minister Harold Wilson was investigated by MI5 over claims he was being paid by the Soviet Union.

Both allegations had been dismissed by official agencies in Britain. They had also been the source of other books.

But the Thatcher government prevented Wright, who by the mid-1980s was living in Tasmania as an Australian citizen, from publishing Spycatcher in Britain. He then sought to publish the book in his new home nation, prompting the UK to take legal action to block it.

During the November 1986 trial, Wright and his publisher were represented by Turnbull.

The archives’ documents, which include handwritten comments from Thatcher, show that during the trial Turnbull suggested an out-of-court settlement that would have brought the legal proceedings to a halt.

Kerry Packer, who had recently sold Channel Nine to Alan Bond for $1 billion (and would buy it back from Bond for $250 million), was proposed as the mediator between the UK government and Wright.

But the idea was rejected, with Thatcher constantly reassured by her legal representatives that they would ultimately win the court case.

Thatcher and her government were being told that even if the court found in Wright’s favour, there was a better than 50 per cent chance it would be overturned either on appeal or in the High Court.

But both the NSW Court of Appeal and the High Court backed Powell’s decision.

British government document with a note from then prime minister Margaret Thatcher.  Credit: nationalarchives.gov.uk

In a note sent to Thatcher in early December, a British lawyer in Sydney wrote that Powell’s determination contained “no reasons, mostly assertions”. In the note’s margins, Thatcher responded: “We must appeal in my view – and all the way.”

In another handwritten message, on learning some of the accusations in Wright’s book, Thatcher noted: “I am utterly shattered by the revelations in the book. The consequences of publication would be enormous.”

The Spycatcher disclosures were the least of the government’s troubles.

Margaret Thatcher was assured her government was likely to succeed in the Spycatcher case.  Credit: Hulton Archive

Thatcher’s cabinet secretary, Sir Robert Armstrong, admitted under questioning from Turnbull that the government had been “economical with the truth”, causing major problems back in Britain.

Most papers in England were unable to report on the Spycatcher trial due to a local injunction. But in Scotland, papers took delight in the giving daily updates on the events taking place in Australia.

The documents also reveal British concerns that an American publisher that would release Spycatcher there. The UK government considered taking legal action in the United States to prevent its release, but this was rebuffed by American agencies due to the US Constitution’s first amendment protecting free speech.

At one point, then-British arts minister Richard Luce warned that American librarians attending an international conference could distribute Spycatcher across the UK.

“With many American librarians coming over … we know that at least one British librarian has arranged to receive a copy of Spycatcher from a colleague for his library,” he noted.

Labour members of the European parliament started reading out extracts of the book. These were included in its equivalent of Hansard, which was to be released through the British government’s own printer.

The book eventually went on sale in the UK in 1988 after England’s Law Lords confirmed it did not contain any secrets that risked British security.

Wright, who died in 1995, was denied receiving royalties on British sales of the book, but he eventually made millions from Spycatcher around the rest of the world.

Shane Wright – Shane is a senior economics correspondent for The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via Twitter or email.

Exclusive

• Politics  • Federal  • The Dust of Death

Delay on deadly stone import ban until states sort out own deadlines

By Angus Thompson

Updated December 29, 2023 — 5.46pmfirst published at 3.58pm

An import ban on engineered stone will not be imposed until all states and territories have announced a deadline on its prohibition, prompting fears that workplaces will continue to be left exposed.

State and territory workplace health and safety ministers agreed earlier this month to roll out the world’s first ban of the silicosis-linked slabs popular in kitchen renovations. However, not all jurisdictions backed the July 2024 deadline for blocking its use in construction.

Workplace Relations Minister Tony Burke will impose an import ban on engineered stone, but the date is not yet known.  Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

Occupational hygienist Kate Cole, who has repeatedly warned of the risks of silica dust, said that without an import ban, “we leave ourselves wide open to engineered stone still coming into our workplaces”.

“Engineered stone isn’t just imported by large suppliers like Caesarstone and Cosentino, it’s also imported from many smaller suppliers,” Cole said. “The import ban is a vital part of the wholesale ban of engineered stone in Australia.”

According to a communique from the meeting, federal Workplace Relations Minister Tony Burke also committed to ban the importation of engineered stone, but did not set a deadline for doing so.

A spokesperson for Burke confirmed to this masthead that the date of an import ban would not be announced until all jurisdictions had set deadlines for their own ban on the use, supply and manufacture of the material.

Burke said in October that: “An import ban on its own simply gives a green light to domestic production of the same substance.”

Sources privy to the discussions say Tasmania and the Northern Territory were the holdouts following the meeting.

On Friday, the responsible NT minister, Chansey Paech, updated the territory’s position to say it was also behind the July deadline. Comment has been sought from Tasmania.

The Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union national secretary, Zach Smith, has previously said it was critical for the government to ban engineered stone “at the shore”.

“This is a product that is currently wholly imported from overseas. It is critical that this isn’t just framed as an obligation on the states and territories to stop it being used in their respective jurisdictions,” Smith said earlier this month.

The announcement of a national ban came four months after a Safe Work Australia report delivered to ministers found there was no safe level of the dust emitted when engineered stone slabs are cut.

The watchdog’s report was commissioned after an investigation by this masthead and 60 Minutes this year revealed a growing number of workers were being diagnosed with silicosis.

A study on silicosis by Curtin University estimates that more than 275,000 workers – including miners, contractors, construction workers, stonemasons and tunnellers – are being exposed to high levels of crystalline silica, which is carcinogenic, and predicts up to 103,000 workers will be diagnosed with silicosis.

While a ban has been agreed upon, ministers have also agreed to give businesses who use it a grace period if they already signed contracts to use the product before the December 13 meeting.

The length of that period will be discussed at a meeting in March, where ministers will also come up with a framework for the safe handling of engineered stone that has already been installed in people’s homes when renovations are being conducted.

A spokesperson from manufacturer Cosentino said it would comply with an importation ban.

“We await further details from government on its implementation and transition period for existing contracts to be finalised at the March 2024 meeting of [work health and safety ministers],” they said, adding that the manufacturer was now rolling out a porcelain alternative to engineered stone.

“We urge all governments to match our efforts and make a speedy decision on the transition plan to provide much needed certainty to the building and construction industry and protect jobs.”

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Angus Thompson is a federal workplace, education and migration reporter for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.Connect via Twitter or email.

Exclusive

• Politics  • Federal  • Israeli-Palestinian conflict

Send navy to the Red Sea for sake of local economy: Dutton

By Paul Sakkal and Sumeyya Ilanbey

Updated December 29, 2023 — 9.36amfirst published at 4.20am

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton has claimed Labor’s decision to focus on its Indo-Pacific strategy over a US-led mission in the Red Sea will hurt Australians at home, as the cost of international shipping delays compounds backlogs from industrial action at local terminals.

The global benchmark oil price has risen about 8 per cent from its December low as Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen have continually targeted vessels in the Red Sea in protest at Israel’s months-long military campaign in Gaza.

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton.  Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

The US has formed the 20-nation Operation Prosperity Guardian to protect the Suez Canal and limit supply chain shocks, but Australia’s decision to send personnel rather than a frigate has been savaged by the Coalition.

Dutton told this masthead the Albanese government’s decision represented a “weak and incompetent” abandonment of our allies and noted that 12 per cent of global trade ran through the area.

“Whilst the Red Sea is a long way from Australia, it won’t be long before the effects of the crisis there is felt in our own economy, and, unfortunately for motorists, that’s likely to be at the bowser,” he said.

Former Labor defence minister Joel Fitzgibbon.  Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

“Shipping delays and alternative routes will only add extra fuel costs to cargo operators, and consumers, causing supply chain shocks at home.”

Former Labor defence minister Joel Fitzgibbon accused the Coalition of playing politics, noting universal support for the recent Defence Strategic Review’s recommendation that Australia focus its efforts on the Indo-Pacific rather than elsewhere.

“The Americans don’t need the assets. They need us there standing alongside them, and by providing navy personnel we’re doing that,” Fitzgibbon, who retired at the last election, said in an interview.

When questioned about its response to the US request, Labor has repeatedly emphasised the need to focus Australia’s military efforts on the nation’s immediate region. The government said it had responded positively by sending a group of navy officers.

A week after US President Joe Biden launched his maritime alliance to protect the route, many allies have stepped back.

Two of America’s European allies who were listed as contributors to Operation Prosperity Guardian – Italy and Spain – issued statements appearing to distance themselves from the maritime force.

Defence Minister Richard Marles said last week that Dutton and his ministers were arguing for an Australian return to Middle Eastern conflicts, demonstrating “how utterly clueless they are about Australia’s national interest”.

As Foreign Minister Penny Wong prepared to travel to Israel, the continuing conflict in the Middle East is forcing shipping firms to delay deliveries between Asia and Europe by sailing around the Cape of Good Hope. This is adding 10 to 14 days of travel and an estimated additional cost of about $US1 million ($1.46 million).

Danish shipping giant Maersk said earlier this week that it was preparing to resume shipping operations through the Red Sea but conceded ongoing security risks.

There have been fears globally that the flare-up in the Red Sea could trigger a surge in the price of oil at the bowser, but the hike in the price of Brent crude, the global benchmark, has not yet affected the price of Tapis, the benchmark used in Australia.

Houthi militants and supporters at a rally in Sanaa, Yemen, earlier this year.  Credit: AP

Brent, which fell slightly overnight on Wednesday to $US79.58 a barrel after weeks of increases, remains well below the heights of $US120 a barrel it was fetching following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year.

“Every time something happens in the Middle East, there is a jolt in the price of oil globally,” said Peter Khoury from NSW motoring body the NRMA. “We have not seen anything suggesting we’re going to see any change to what Australians are going to pay at the petrol station.”

But Adelaide University professor Peter Draper, an expert in international trade, said rises in global oil prices would probably have a knock-on effect in Australia. The professor did not expect a major increase in prices but noted they could rise further as the Israeli military indicated its operation in Gaza could carry on for months.

“It does seem to have been the major driver of price increases in the last few weeks,” he said.

In October, Reserve Bank boss Michele Bullock said the war between Hamas and Israel could keep inflation and oil prices higher for longer.

Paul Zalai, chief of the Freight and Trade Alliance, an international supply chain sector representative body, said prices of imported goods, not just oil, could rise across the board as a result of the Red Sea flare-up.

Shipping companies for months now have been under significant strain over crippling industrial action at DP World ports and a cyberattack on the stevedore’s systems.

The Maritime Union of Australia’s protected industrial action since October 1 has led to a backlog of more than 45,000 containers at terminals around Australia, according to The Australian Financial Review. The union was contacted for comment.

“The events in the Red Sea have compounded that [problem],” Zalai said. “We’re still waiting to see the full impacts in terms of freight rates and surcharges, but the indications are all the shipping lines will introduce various surcharges.”

The vast majority of Australia’s trade is with Asia. Some peak freight bodies, including Shipping Australia, believe Australia’s “geographic position may be working to at least partly mitigate the harm”.

At the Port of Melbourne, the country’s largest port for containerised and general cargo, about 7 per cent of full container trade passes the Suez Canal.

Zalai said while most people’s retail goods coming from Asia would be largely unaffected, consumers importing “leather lounges from Italy or exotic cheeses from Europe” could face delays and price rises.

with Reuters

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Paul Sakkal is the federal political correspondent for The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald, based in Canberra.Connect via Twitter.

Sumeyya Ilanbey is a business journalist for The Age and Sydney Morning HeraldConnect via Twitter or email.

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Letters

Opposition’s Red Sea strategies

December 29, 2023

Peter Dutton’s scaremongering doesn’t depend on niceties like the truth, as he says Labor should go to war with the Houthi in the Red Sea, but fails to say that only about 7 per cent of Australian container traffic goes through the Suez Canal (“Crisis in Red Sea a ‘threat to economy’”, December 29). This man’s strategies contribute to the misinformation that is desecrating our democratic discourse, and it needs to be called out for what it is: swamping the media with garbage that confuses and distracts the electorate. Barry Laing, Castle Cove

If Labor does something, Dutton et al attack it. If Labor doesn’t do something, that is attacked. The Liberal’s purely opportunistic MO. There would be a problem contrived if they send a frigate to the Middle East and a problem if they don’t. Inevitably labelling Labor “weak”. Dutton is allowed to grab headlines with these niggles, amplified and validated in the media, but they are purely cynical. A dog-whistle that petrol prices will be higher because we didn’t send a ship, only personnel, is nonsense. Even more significant is the attempt to downplay a focus on our Asia-Pacific backyard. No doubt to mask the Coalition’s abject failure there over nine years and to demean Labor’s success in repairing some damage. Foreign Minister Penny Wong just topped the Herald “popularity poll”. That needs undermining, as always, no matter the cost or consequence. Nick Wilson, Palm Beach

Peter Dutton has criticised the government for not sending a boat to the Red Sea. In an even bigger surprise, the sun will rise tomorrow. One day, Peter Dutton will really shock us by saying something positive, but I doubt we will live long enough to hear it. Ross Hudson, Mount Martha (VIC)

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton.  Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

When it came to carbon reduction, the Liberal Party firmly held that Australia could not make a globally significant impact. Now Peter Dutton suggests the dispatch of one Australian frigate to the Red Sea will somehow reduce international oil prices and fight inflation at home. Our politicians should be addressing local conflict caused by the crisis, not opportunistically exploiting it for political advantage. Colin Stokes, Camperdown

Peter Dutton’s thinking that one Australian naval ship at the Red Sea will help with the cost of living confirms he is not the type of prime minister we need for Australia. His reasoning is beyond belief. Peng Ee, Castle Cove

We are, by now, accustomed to mindless words from the office of Peter Dutton, but this tops it all; to commit an act of potential war for the economy, is really beyond the pale. Ian Usman Lewis, Kentucky

Get tough on the tree killers

To prevent Sydney’s current epidemic of view-improving tree poisoning (Letters, December 29), fines do not seem to be working, as they would represent just another “renovation” cost. What might work would be to brick up the windows of the beneficiary of such actions, and of any other properties they might own, for as long as it takes the trees to be fully grown back. Garry Dalrymple, Earlwood

Stage one, fine the tree vandals when they can be identified. Stage two, replant and surround the newly planted area with a large opaque, even ugly, fence until the trees are mature. Stage three, charge the vandals for any necessary maintenance of the trees or damage to the fence. John Connell, Bronte

Shall we ever see?

If the relatively massive fines and other punishments being requested by the Herald letter writers are needed to deter people from damaging trees, it strongly suggests people have little respect for the laws making damaging trees an offence. There is good reason why they don’t. Many trees are privately owned and people have fundamental rights to manage and to benefit from their own property. They rightfully will seek to exercise them. Until the public, through its various levels of government, pays due respect to the private owners of trees and allows owners to do as they best see fit with their own vegetation, don’t expect everyone to keep their hands off publicly owned trees. Ross Drynan, Lindfield

In this period of climate change, the need for trees and their benefits to our environment/ community is understated. The monetary value of a tree, from previous court records, is about $30,000 plus, so a maximum fine of $5 million is peanuts to the offenders of the recent removals on the north shore. The illegal removal of trees extends statewide and includes our state-controlled enterprises. The police should be the body that investigates these crimes, and it’s time that the true value of trees was recognised and penalties increased to include replacement cost, community service and incarceration. Brian McDonald, Willoughby

Our world is resolving

My resolutions for 2024 are to visit a workplace that the employees claim is just like a true family, with its tensions, bickering and resentments; to read a report of a wild weather event that states it was precedented; to locate the elusive loose-knit community.

Barry Wooldridge, Harden

One day, thinking ahead to 2024 and beyond, I hope I can talk on my phone to a person who isn’t on their digital machine searching, playing bridge, or buying or selling shares, houses or motorbikes. Just someone who can remember the technique of a phone conversation.

Mary Julian, Glebe

With Christmas this year falling on a Monday and New Year’s Day a week later, it feels very neat and organised. If we could return to holding Australia Day on the last Monday of January, as it always used to be, we could achieve a nice neat plan for our holiday season. If we were really bold, we could make Easter the second Sunday in April and eliminate any uncertainties for planning our year. What do you think?

Jim Martin, Narooma

Last word

It isn’t Best Letter material, but at least I can lay claim to having the final letter (Monday to Saturday) for 2023 – Happy New Year to everyone!

Allan Gibson, Cherrybrook

Full to bursting, Sydney is only going to get bigger

If Bob Carr stated in 2000 that Sydney was “full”, what would he say now? Almost certainly that Sydney was “bursting” – intolerably overcrowded with many people living under extreme stress (“The centre of political power is drifting south”, December 29). And yet probably perhaps 2 million more residents are expected by 2034. This is uncontrolled, arguably immoral, population growth, as the supply of housing, schools, health services and other infrastructure cannot possibly keep up. Are politicians asleep at the wheel in that they cannot see that existing problems will be accentuated? NSW, indeed Australia, desperately needs a well-thought-out population policy that involves ensuring every resident has affordable accommodation and accessible public transport, in fact, all the services which make for a stress-free civilised lifestyle in a clean environment. Geoff Harding, Chatswood

Sober warning

I hope MPs Richard Marles, Pat Conroy and Matt Keogh, those most responsible for our defence, grasp Mick Ryan’s sobering message that totalitarian forces threaten to make 2024 even worse than this year (“Australia is less ready to face a more dangerous world in 2024”, December 29). There is the menace posed by Xi, Putin and other authoritarians, the colossal cost of AUKUS adversely impacting our defence funds, the ongoing conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine, and even the outside possibility of a potentially ruinous Trump presidency in the US. We all need to pressure our MPs to realise we have no choice but to pay for our democratic way of life and that it won’t come cheap. Ron Sinclair, Windradyne

Flagging concern

The new Australian beach safety study which has found that 20 per cent of international students “thought the area between the flags was only for people who knew how to swim” shows that you just can’t assume anything when it comes to community safety messaging (“Red flag raised on beach safety signs”, December 29). Now I’m wondering if the people I saw over Christmas swimming all along un-patrolled sections of the beautiful but particularly treacherous Diamond Beach on the mid north coast really understood the dangers of what they were doing. Changing the signage to “stay between the flags” definitely seems like a sensible idea. Kerrie Wehbe, Blacktown

Look for the flags and stay safe

Silence? Bank on it

A damning opinion piece followed by two days of letters highly critical of the outrageous behaviour of banks that we all have to endure (Letters, December 29). A perfect opportunity for any of them to say mea culpa, we could do better. Instead – silence. How predictable. Just reinforces my long-held belief that complaining about banks is about as fruitful as complaining about Qantas. Ross MacPherson, Seaforth

I had a somewhat different experience with my bank (Westpac) when my husband died three years ago. I was put in touch with their “bereavement team” and our joint accounts were updated promptly. I did have to provide evidence of sufficient funds to support a new credit card in my name, but that was also done successfully. Not all banks have lost sight of the principle of customer service. Claire Edmonds, Floraville

Negative territory

The Libs and their dear leader are not only unlikeable but didn’t have and don’t have the necessary criteria your correspondent (Letters, December 29) nominates of “effective leadership, good governance and economic management”. Those attributes cannot be achieved by responding entirely in the negative and having no policies. And therein lies their problem. Judy Hungerford, Kew (Vic)

Wherefore are thou now?  Credit: Oscar Colman

I have worked at the door of a dual polling booth where it was necessary to direct people to their appropriate vote issuing desk, and by my reckoning at least 50 per cent of voters had no idea in which electorate they live nor the name of their local member, in spite of one being the then incumbent prime minister. Apathy may be a national problem, but who cares? Col Burns, Lugarno

As well as sheer ignorance, maybe seniors moments, distractions or a smattering of oppositional defiance could account for only 98 per cent of people surveyed identifying Scott Morrison and Anthony Albanese. On the bright side, it’s probably a higher percentage than would remember what they had for dinner last night. Doug Walker, Baulkham Hills

Now hear this

It was a popular prank when I was a young adult to scare English tourists with tales of our wildlife (Letters, December 29). A young Englishman who stayed with me one summer complained that “this country is insane, the animals all want to kill you”. I am not proud that when the cicadas began turning up, I cautioned him that he should avoid them as they have a nasty bite. He rarely went outside. Eva Elbourne, Pennant Hills

Maybe the cicadas are just telling your correspondent to switch off the telly and immerse himself in nature’s song? John Swanton, Coogee

Tracing contact

When discussing changes in the usage of the English language (Letters, December 29), what about the term to “reach out”? I always thought that “reaching out” implied some sort of emotional connection, as in, for example, offering condolences. Whatever happened to “contact”, “telephone”, “write to” etc? Geoffrey Watson, Gulmarrad

Liberty bell

The re-done one.  Credit: franckreporter

Recently refurbished and repainted in the original colours, Big Ben continues to welcome each new year – as first occurred on the last day of 1923, when BBC radio broadcasted from the belfry for that purpose. More importantly, throughout most of World War II, millions would listen to the nightly news, prefaced by the Silent Minute (measured by the 60 seconds required for the 9pm chiming and striking of the great clock). Big Ben was instrumental to the daily release of united silent prayer and reflection that encouraged millions in their resolve to defend liberty. Readers seeking a New Year’s resolution may wish to devote 60 seconds at 9pm each day for the same purpose. David d’Lima, Sturt (SA)

In the frame

Congratulations to Alex Ellinghausen (“Referendum snapshot takes Herald Photo of the Year”, December 29). The looks on the faces of the main subjects are a telling mixture of implacable anger, gratified smugness and irritated indifference. Job done, game over. And not a hint of goodwill or desire to do anything about anyone else’s disadvantage in sight. “Uncomfortable” indeed.

Adrian Connelly, Springwood

Alex Ellinghausen’s exquisitely timed photo presents a flash point moment in the debate for the Yes campaign … his winning image perfectly captured the No campaign – whitewashed and overexposed. Janet Argall, Dulwich Hill

Alex Ellinghausen’s winning photograph  Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

Congratulations Alex Ellinghausen. The look on Michaelia Cash’s face says it all. This was the culmination of everything the Coalition had been working so hard to create – black on black division. Thanks to Senator Price and a small band of contrarians, Cash & co could now sit back, and wash their hands of any racist claims. Phil Bradshaw, Naremburn

What a perfect, although dispiriting, choice. And how very percipient: people who engineered the No vote in the referendum for the sole purpose of embarrassing the government. The smugness of Michaelia Cash is balanced by what one would like to think is the regret of Barnaby Joyce and the interest of Sussan Ley who might find something else to disappoint her. How much longer will our Indigenous people wait for disinterested justice? A long while if this photo is any indication. Nola Tucker, Kiama

Quality learning is a numbers game

It amazes me that parents often choose private schools because they think their children will get a better education (“Teacher-student ratios revealed”, December 29), often based on hearsay or the school uniform. One of the most important things, especially in the early years, is class sizes, which I’m happy to see in the story. If parents investigated properly before enrolling their children in private schools, they would find many of the low-fee ones, including those in the Catholic systemic system, have class sizes in kindergarten that exceed 30. The local public school will have 20. Having taught for many years in the K-2 section of schools I can assure you that in those crucial early years every extra child has an impact on the learning of all the children. Mary Lawson, Marrickville

I feel sorry for parents trying to work out if an average teacher-to-student ratio of 16.5 is better for their children’s education than 10.6. Instead, parents should be looking for indicators of quality teaching and leadership, such as the extent to which children enjoy and improve their learning. They should also look for trends in the school’s trajectory of improvement in learning over time on indicators such as NAPLAN. Hetty Cislowski, Roseville

I was at a school where the average class size was 25. This has decreased across all schools, but one thing I note is the behaviour of students seems to dictate class size. Jenny Greenwood, Hunters Hill

Postscript

This Christmas/New Year time is often considered a “silly season”. You know, there’s not much hard news around so the media often moves to cats in yacht races, the meaning behind Australian heraldry and how many packets of cocaine can swim ashore this week.

The Herald letters writers, though, are made, mostly, of sterner stuff. There has been some light-hearted discussion about the being or not being of cicadas, and a continuation of the subject of death notices, but this week has also been about serious subjects.

It started with housing, the lack thereof, and a ticking-off for Premier Chris Minns and his plans to ease the crisis, which are not being well received by writers. There was also a lot of discussion about the ABC – is it right, right-wing or just past its prime? – as well as the media generally falling into the pitfall of “balance” by using too much conservative (mis)information.

Horror stories about banks abound all around. One mention of how badly one person was treated always brings a flood of letters agreeing, recounting similar stories and demanding more royal commissions, plus strong support for credit unions. (A readers’ tip to the big banks – service counts, get well-trained people back in the branches.)

Grammar is a perennial favourite subject on the letters page, taken far too seriously to be counted as part of a silly season. This week started with pleas for retaining the “-ing” (not, as you might think, a small monkey, but, alas, a grammatical suffix in danger of moving from “Vulnerable” to “Endangered”). Writers want Boxing Days, racing days and swimming meetings – politicians please note and, if possible, pass legislation.

Harriet Veitch, acting letters editor

- To submit a letter to the Sydney Morning Herald, email letters@smh.com.au. Click here for tips on how to submit letters.

- Catch up on the best letters and online comments on the topic of the week in our Friday wrap Yours. Sincerely

- The Opinion newsletter is a weekly wrap of views that will challenge, champion and inform. Sign up here.

National  • NSW  • City life

1000 trains, 8.5 tonnes of fireworks and a new ticket system: Your Sydney New Year’s Eve

By Anthony Segaert

December 29, 2023 — 3.49pm

Transport officials and police are bracing for Sydney’s biggest New Year’s Eve celebration in years, expecting more than one million people to gather at harbour venues that are now free to enter after the government scrapped the ticketing system.

Authorities have scheduled an additional 1000 trains and 1258 bus services and ramped up the frequency of light rail and metro services in preparation for the inundation of the CBD and harbour foreshore.

Sunday night’s attendance is expected to be higher than it was last year. Thirty-eight of the 49 vantage points across the harbour are free to enter on a first-in, first-served basis, fulfilling an election promise from the state government to abolish paid ticketing at most New Year’s Eve vantage spots.

Ticket-free entry returns

The requirement to pay for a ticket has been removed from Barangaroo Reserve, West Circular Quay, Mrs Macquarie’s Point, Campbells Cove and Hickson Road Reserve. Last year, tickets for these venues cost between $12.50 and $520.

Eleven sites remain ticketed, with those attending being the lucky winners of an online ballot that took place in September. Bradleys Head, Strickland Estate, Clark Island, Me-Mel (Goat Island) and Shark Island are all booked out. Instead of paying up to $286 for the venues, attendees will be charged “a modest fee” to cover the cost of transport to the venues.

The only spots permitted to charge significant sums for entry are Taronga Zoo and the Royal Botanic Garden, which hold charity status and are fundraising on the night.

The mostly free entry model marks the end of a years-long ticketing saga that was sparked in 2011 when the then-Office of Environment and Heritage introduced a “user-pays” model for entry to spots around the Botanic Garden and Bradleys Head. NSW Police encouraged the system as a way of maintaining crowd control, and North Sydney Council began ticketing for its locations in 2018.

During the pandemic, the Berejiklian government ordered ticketing to remain in place for social distancing. But in 2022, when restrictions on gatherings were removed, the tickets remained.

Thousands of extra transport services

Transport for NSW co-ordinator-general Howard Collins said his department was aiming to avoid a repeat of the train meltdown in August that left thousands of Matildas and Luke Combs fans stranded at Sydney Olympic Park when vandals destroyed signalling equipment.

Howard Collins said Transport for NSW are well-prepared for New Year’s Eve.  Credit: Flavio Brancaleone

“We have improved our security at over 32 sites. We’re working with the police to make sure we’ve actually barred many of those locations. And we have a lot of security and intelligence, and we have over 13,000 CCTV cameras,” he said.

“But you never know,” he sighed. “It’s an infrastructure which is 160, 170 years old. So there’s plenty of my team out there [just in case].”

8.5 tonnes of fireworks prepared

But when the masses settle in for the show, it’ll be – as always – spectacular.

Sixty people from Foti Fireworks, the family business that has overseen the displays for 27 years, have spent nearly two weeks working on barges around the harbour to prepare for the big night.

Five buildings in the CBD, in addition to the Sydney Harbour Bridge and Opera House, will be the launching spot of 8.5 tonnes of fireworks at 9pm and midnight.

The intricately planned wonder is connected by more than 23 kilometres of wiring across the harbour and city.

Sydney Lord Mayor Clover Moore, who will this week oversee her 19th New Year’s Eve celebration as the city’s leader, said the Foti family was “working tirelessly for a night to remember with their incredible and innovative fireworks displays”.

While organisers hope the ticketless evening will go off problem-free, Sydney has a long history of New Year’s Eve chaos.

Drunken crowds caused mayhem at a New Year rock concert at the Opera House in 1980 – the year Sydney began ringing in the fresh year in earnest with fireworks and a festival – prompting the government to move to a ticket-only admission system.

However, with a turnout of just 10,000 people, the Herald reported at the time that the evening “did not exactly start with a whimper, but it hardly started with a bang”.

The drunken crowds returned, in larger numbers, the following years. The Dictionary of Sydney reported that in 1986, business owners petitioned the government to cancel the fireworks – or move them to 8.30pm on New Year’s Day – to reduce the risk of damage to their shops.

Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.

Anthony Segaert is a reporter covering urban affairs at the Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via Twitter or email.

National  • NSW  • Photos of the Week

The Sydney Morning Herald’s Photos of the Week, December 28, 2023

23 Images

The best images from our award-winning photographers.

December 29, 2023 — 2.45pm

Save galleries for later

Add galleries to your saved list and come back to them any time.

1/23

Dennis Channells turning 72 on Christmas Day.  Credit:Steven Siewert

2/23

Ali Saab, Sam, Yousef and Kawthar Roumie, the close friends of Ibrahim ‘Bob’ Bazzi who was killed along with his wife and brother in an Israeli strike on the family home in the southern Lebanese town of Bint Jbeil.   Credit:Kate Geraghty

3/23

A line of severe thunderstorms track east over Tamarama Beach.  Credit:Wolter Peeters

4/23

Last-minute preparations before the start of the Sydney to Hobart yacht race.  Credit:Nick Moir

5/23

Christmas Day celebrations at Bronte Beach.  Credit:Flavio Brancaleone

6/23

Police confiscate alcoholic beverages from the public on Christmas Day at Bronte Beach.  Credit:Flavio Brancaleone

7/23

Palestinian Nakba survivor Father Aziz Abwi during mass on Christmas Day with the Palestinian Christian community at Sts Peter and Paul Antiochian Orthodox Church in Doonside.  Credit:Kate Geraghty

8/23

Stacey Chater with her husband Ralph with a photo of their son Brayden. This year was their second Christmas without Brayden, who died suddenly after contracting meningococcal B.  Credit:Louise Kennerley

9/23

Andoo Comanche sails out of the Sydney Heads at the start of the Sydney Hobart Yacht Race.  Credit:Flavio Brancaleone

10/23

Multiple storms collided over northern Sydney near Palm Beach.  Credit:Nick Moir

11/23

Volunteer lifesaver Masaki Shibata at Tamarama beach. He is a linguist and researcher who has written a research paper showing many foreign students don’t understand basic signs at the beach.  Credit:Wolter Peeters

12/23

Palestinian Nakba survivor Father Aziz Abwi conducts mass on Christmas Day with the Palestinian Christian community at Doonside’s Sts Peter and Paul Antiochian Orthodox Church.  Credit:Kate Geraghty

13/23

(From centre) Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, NSW Transport Minister Jo Haylen and NSW Premier Chris Minns met with Bill Crews at his Exodus foundation Christmas lunch in Ashfield.  Credit:Nick Moir

14/23

St Mary’s Cathedral is lit up as part of Christmas celebrations.  Credit:Wolter Peeters

15/23

Surf Life Saving NSW CEO Steve Pearce at Maroubra Beach.  Credit:Kate Geraghty

16/23

Shoppers in David Jones for the Boxing Day sales.  Credit:Kate Geraghty

17/23

Lisa Wilkinson and her barrister Sue Chrysanthou, SC, outside the Federal Court in Sydney.  Credit:Flavio Brancaleone

18/23

People seek refuge from the heat at Wentworth Falls, one of the most picturesque landscapes in the Blue Mountains.  Credit:Dean Sewell

19/23

Swimmers watch storm clouds over Mahon Pool, Maroubra.  Credit:Louise Kennerley

20/23

Family members at a drowning at Penrith Beach.  Credit:Wolter Peeters

21/23

Scallywag and Andoo Comanche at the start of the 2023 Sydney to Hobart Yacht race.   Credit:Louise Kennerley

22/23

Bustling Sydney Fish Market days before Christmas as shoppers stock up on their favourite seafood.  Credit:Dion Georgopoulos

23/23

Jess Reardon, 17, began working at McDonald’s when she was 14. Before that, she did odd jobs such as watering neighbours’ gardens and walking dogs.  Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Exclusive

• National  • NSW  • Courts

Sydney chiropractor touched woman inappropriately, tribunal finds

By Clare Sibthorpe

December 29, 2023 — 11.45am

Warning: graphic content

A Sydney chiropractor touched a patient’s breast and genital area during treatment, breaking professional boundaries that prevent physical or sexual exploitation, a civil tribunal has found.

Chris Vorillas strenuously denies all allegations of inappropriate touching, which the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) found was “not for sexual gratification” and “not intentional”.

Sydney chiropractor Chris Vorillas has stenuously denied the claims of inappropriate touching.  Credit: LinkedIn

The Health Care Complaints Commission (HCCC) is seeking to cancel the registration of Vorillas, who has directed his practice, Kinetic Healthcare, since 2014 in Sydney’s CBD and in Narellan in its southwest outskirts.

Seeking relief for neck and back pain, one woman attended Vorillas’ CBD clinic several times between October 17, 2019 and November 5, 2020. A day after her last treatment, she lodged a complaint with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA).

On November 19, restrictions were placed on Vorillas’ registration, including a ban on putting his hands on certain parts of any female patient’s upper chest, lower pelvis or upper thigh.

Following a three-day hearing in April, a recently published decision by NCAT revealed it established four of five complaints brought by the HCCC.

In her initial complaint to AHPRA, which NCAT found was “significant evidence” and “impossible to overlook”, the woman said Vorillas massaged her inner thigh before moving up the leg and inside her shorts.

“He moved my underpants to the left and briefly touched the right side of my labia majora, then [began] moving his hand quickly back down my leg,” she wrote. “This occurred a couple of times in swift movements, starting on or near my labia and then moving quickly down towards the inner knee.”

She claimed she was later lying on her left side when Vorillas placed his hand under her shirt and bra and directly on her right breast, before moving it over the breast and towards her armpit several times “in quick succession”.

Feeling “embarrassed and uncomfortable” about potential confrontation, she did not say anything to Vorillas, but later reported the behaviour due to “the potential risk it could occur to other patients”.

The tribunal found Vorillas placed his hands up her shorts, moved her underwear to one side, touched her labia majora and repeated the conduct. It also found he “placed his open hand underneath [the patient’s] T-shirt, touched [her] right breast” and repeated the movement.

It concluded the conduct was “inadvertent … not for any sexual gratification and not intentional”. But it found it breached the Chiropractic Board of Australia’s code of conduct by “fail[ing] to maintain professional boundaries so [the patient] was not exploited physically or sexually”.

In written submissions, Vorillas denied touching the patient’s breasts, pubic region or groin area – including underwear – during any session. He said he “initially focused on complaints relating to chronic neck pain and headaches, which later developed to shoulder and back tightness with hip restriction issues.”

Vorillas claimed he never placed his hand underneath the woman’s shirt and “always asked [her] to expose her intercostal region by lifting her shirt to the level she was comfortable with”, adding he explained each step of the treatment, which he’d done to her before.

While substantiating the complaint regarding November 5, 2022, NCAT found insufficient evidence regarding further accusations that Vorillas inappropriately massaged the patient during three other visits. It concluded the patient could not recall important details about those sessions.

When NCAT establishes a complaint, it has found it to be true on the balance of probabilities. This is lower than the criminal burden of proof, which is beyond reasonable doubt.

Vorillas did not “purposefully, gradually engage in increasingly inappropriate breaching of professional boundaries in relation to either [the patient’s] breast or labia”, NCAT found.

But, given the breast and labia are “sexual in nature,” it found the conduct was, too. It concluded the conduct fell below expected standards by risking bringing the profession into disrepute or reducing public confidence.

The inappropriate massage on November 5, 2022, related to the second of four established complaints.

Vorillas admitted to the first complaint that he failed to ensure the patient read, understood and signed a consent form before starting treatment on October 17, 2019, saying he’d since updated procedures. However, the tribunal dismissed further allegations he did not obtain her informed consent for groin, rib and chest massages on four visits, accepting he obtained verbal permission.

Vorillas also admitted to the third established complaint of failing to make and keep adequate records of four of the woman’s consultations, including tests and results. He said he’d improve record keeping.

The fourth and final established complaint, which Vorillas denied, was that his cumulative unsatisfactory conduct was serious enough to suspend or cancel his registration, a punishment the HCCC seeks.

The HCCC also wants to impose a two-year ban on Vorillas applying for a review of that decision, or providing health services.

A decision will be made after stage two proceedings next year.

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Clare Sibthorpe is a crime reporter for the Sydney Morning Herald.

National  • NSW  • Summer in Sydney

The ’fern: A mix of old and new, and don’t forget the Rabbitohs

By Mary Ward

December 29, 2023 — 5.00am

This article is part of our Summer in Sydney series, where Herald staff reveal the best – and worst – of our city in the hotter months.See all 11 stories.

My feet first hit the pavement on Chalmers Street on August 19, 2000. It was a chilly Saturday night and my dad and I had travelled the 30-odd kilometres into the city to watch South Sydney play the USA Tomahawks at Redfern Oval.

Aged six, I wasn’t aware I was sitting metres from where Paul Keating had delivered his 1992 address. For me, the greatest civil rights issue facing the people of Redfern was clear: the South Sydney Rabbitohs – my dad’s, and what would quickly become my, team – had been kicked out of the league.

The 20,000-strong crowd’s enemy wasn’t really the Tomahawks, of course. This was a fundraiser match, one of many matches and marches – and, ultimately, legal actions – which would happen such that, 18 months later, Dad and I were at the football stadium watching the pre-season Charity Shield game ahead of Souths’ return.

The South Sydney Rugby League Club’ s Save the Game rally in George Street 2000. They were protesting their exclusion from the NRL competition.  Credit: Jon Reid

Two Redfern locals sitting in front struck up a conversation: “Always bet against your own team,” one told me. “If you lose, you’ll have money to buy yourself a beer. If you win, someone will buy you a beer anyway.”

I, now aged eight, clocked that the man’s tray had four beers, so he clearly knew what he was on about. Souths and St George tied that game, although the advice hasn’t left me.

By 2016, I was living in Redfern, renting with two friends. We were all midway through increasingly elongated degrees at the nearby University of Sydney, editing the student newspaper.

You don’t see many student share houses in Redfern any more: the rent is just too high. It feels as if we came in at the end of an era, paying $720 a week for three bedrooms and only a few minutes’ stumble to the train station.

This nostalgia is, of course, laughable to anyone who was in the area 15 or even five years before that. I know this because they will tell you. Constantly.

Redfern is a suburb always being defined by what it was. The conversation in cabs comes with a barely veiled racism: “It used to be too dangerous to drive around here.” Then in only a few short years, the old warehouses became craft breweries and PR firms. A multicoloured mural on Lawson Street, which declared: “Love grows in the ’fern”, was painted over. Even Souths moved their training facilities to Heffron Park.

Redfern Convenience Store owner Hazem Sedda with members of the band Peking Duk .

It’s easy to look at Redfern and just see the trendy restaurants, identically renovated terraces and Birkenstock-wearers buying $16 loaves of bread at Carriageworks Farmers Market. But look a little closer and you’ll see the $10 lunch menu at the Glengarry, the Souths Cares van and an Insta-famous local convenience store.

The best of Redfern is where these things, old and new, end up in the same scene.

A few weeks back, there was a community barbeque at the Aboriginal Housing Company’s Pemulwuy development on The Block. Cooktops were set up out the front of the boxing gym as the families who’ve breathed new life into the area chatted and kids rode their bikes around.

Also in the queue for a sausage? That would be the Chinese international students living in the new Scape tower opposite. Everyone was chatting together. The mural may have been painted over, but love still grows in the ’fern.

Best cafe? Hunter’s Corner for classic breakfast fare and people-watching. Bending the rules slightly, the Redfern sandwich at Terracotta Roasters (thick slices of roast pumpkin, wilted spinach, goat cheese and relish) is exceptional, although it is technically served over the Darlington boundary.

The carpaccio frutti di mare at Fontana in Redfern.  Credit: Rhett Wyman

Best restaurant? Fontana, in the old Ron’s Upstairs space, is as good as everyone says.

Best beach, park or pool? … guess we are going with a park! The oval is the winner, but Eveleigh Green’s treehouse and community garden also deserve a mention.

First place you take visitors? On a proud tour of the new Redfern Station southern concourse.

Perfect night out in your suburb? Dinner at the Sunshine Inn followed by another drink or two at Arcadia Liquors. Then you can either head to Ciccone & Sons for ice cream, the Bearded Tit for more drinks or The Dock for a dance (or all three, judge not lest ye).

What would make your suburb better? A theatre space, after Giant Dwarf shut in 2021.

The 90-metre-long bridge provides lifts and stairs to all of Redfern station’s 10 above-ground platforms.  Credit: Dion Georgopoulos

Best secret spot in your suburb? Again bending the rules because it is in Eveleigh, but the Carriageworks’ blacksmiths workshop on a mid-week summer evening. Your company could include parents teaching kids to ride bikes, students on the set of a university film project, or a community choir singing Billy Bragg covers.

Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.

Mary Ward is a reporter at The Sun-Herald.Connect via Twitter or email.

Exclusive

• National  • NSW  • Crime

Nissy Nassif gives up fight for $200k seized by police

By Perry Duffin

December 29, 2023 — 5.00am

The ex-wife of fugitive developer Jean Nassif has given up a court bid to reclaim $200,000 cash seized from her handbags and wardrobe when police raided the developer’s Sydney waterfront mansion.

Court documents including the warrant, and the list of items seized by police, seen by the Herald, reveal what investigators were searching for – and exactly what they found.

Jean Nassif and his wife Nissy in happier times.  Credit: Instagram

The Chiswick mansion belonging to Jean Nassif was raided in February by a team of NSW Police armed with a warrant to seize any digital or hard copy records related to his development empire Toplace.

The company was placed into administration in July with debts of more than $1 billion, with creditors including a number of owners’ corporations that had obtained rectification orders to fix their faulty buildings.

The properties named on the warrant include Skyview Castle Hill, 888 Bourke Zetland, Jolyn Place Rosebery, Pemberton on the Park Botany, Astral Apartments Granville, Box Hill City Centre, Coward St Mascot, and any other developments completed since 2018.

The warrant also sought any electronics “used by Jean NASSIF which may contain digital records of the above business records, and communications with Ashlyn NASSIF… and other Toplace staff”.

The home of Toplace owner Jean Nassif in Chiswick, which was raided by police in February.  Credit: Kate Geraghty

The following day police would arrest Ashlyn Nassif, Jean’s daughter, and charge her with falsifying Toplace documents to get a $150 million Westpac loan released to the company. She is fighting the charges.

The police recorded what they found in the Nassif home on blue handwritten seizure forms: multiple phones, USBs, documents, ledgers and chequebooks.

The seizure forms also record bundles of cash in Australian, US and Lebanese currency, found in cupboards and designer handbags in the main bedroom.

The NSW Crime Commission early this month released a forfeiture notice for $190,000 and almost $10,000 worth of US bills.

Jean’s former wife, Nisserine, had for months been quietly vying to recover the money, saying it was gifted to her from friends and family and was leftover “allowance” from her developer husband.

She put the figure at $250,000 in a letter to police.

Nisserine, also known as Nissy, told the courts her former husband “left for Lebanon” in December 2022 and has not returned to Australia. They separated the same month police raided the family home, she added.

“I separated from my husband in mid-February 2023, my husband and I remain separated. We will not recommence our relationship,” she wrote in an affidavit in August.

Nissy Nassif with her children earlier this year.  Credit: Instagram

“My husband currently lives in Lebanon. From various news reports, I am aware he is wanted by police by virtue of outstanding warrants in his name. There are many matters I have read about in the media about Toplace developments.”

But Nisserine said she was not under any police investigation herself.

The money was important to her, she said in the affidavit, as she was the sole provider for her three children and had “limited financial support”.

Nisserine’s lawyers wrote to NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb and the officer in charge of the raid, in a June email seen by the Herald, saying Jean had left his family in a “dire financial situation”.

Police replied that the true owner of the money was unclear and Jean may have an interest.

“The monies were found by NSW Police in our client’s personal handbags and clothes pockets,” Nisserine’s lawyers replied.

“Surely it is not suggested that Mr Nassif carries handbags or wears our client’s clothes.”

The lawyers again insisted Nisserine would not rekindle the relationship with Jean, so the money would not be “misused or diverted to any person of interest”.

Part of the money, they added, came from Nisserine’s career as an event co-ordinator, and from gambling winnings.

The lawyers warned police they would invoice them for $50,000 in legal bills if the matter went to court – which it did in mid-December.

Nisserine was not in court on December 14 when her application was withdrawn and dismissed.

Jean Nassif remains on the run overseas, and is believed to move between South-East Asia and the Middle East.

Start the day with a summary of the day’s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter.

Perry Duffin is a crime reporter for the Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via Twitter or email.

Photography

Herald Photo of the Year captures defining moment in Voice campaign

Alex Ellinghausen’s photograph captures a charged atmosphere, but it also feels symbolic.

By Heath Gilmore

December 29, 2023

Indigenous members of the audience make their feelings known before opposition spokeswoman for Indigenous Australians, Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, addresses the National Press Club in Canberra on September 14, 2023, ahead of the Voice referendum. In the audience are prominent Coalition figures Barnaby Joyce, Michaelia Cash and Bridget McKenzie.  Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

Thousands of images and words came together to form the great narrative around the defeat of the referendum to establish an Indigenous Voice to parliament in the Australian Constitution.

Had the vote passed, the federal government argued, an advisory group would have been established to make recommendations to alleviate the social and economic inequalities experienced by Indigenous people.

Yet, 60 per cent of Australians voted against it on October 14, 2023, despite many wanting to formally recognise Indigenous people in the Constitution and to improve their lot in life.

A nation divided, with race its fault line.

Alex Ellinghausen’s photo from Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price’s address to the National Press Club in Canberra cuts to this deep division and the unimagined alliances that ensued around this referendum. For these reasons, his image Uncomfortable is the Herald’s 2023 Photo of the Year. It is the image that puts the exclamation point on the referendum narrative.

For the first time, a panel of four judges – Herald editor Bevan Shields, NSW state librarian Dr Caroline Butler-Bowdon, Powerhouse senior curator Sarah Rees and a photographer-at-large (who has no connection with the Herald but wishes to remain anonymous for professional reasons) – selected a Photo of the Year from a shortlist of 20 images (below) chosen by the photo desk.

Each judge chose three favourites, allocating three, two and one points. After these points were tallied, Ellinghausen’s image won. Kate Geraghty came a close second with her photograph of a gun-toting father taking a happy snap of his young son before praying together at the Western Wall in the Old City of Jerusalem.

A readers’ poll saw Dion Georgopoulos’ portrait of NSW Greens politician Sue Higginson come out on top.

Shields said Ellinghausen was a deserving winner.

“No other media outlet in Australia invests in photography in the way the Herald does,” he said. “It is an essential part of our offering to subscribers and enhances our journalism in ways we often don’t appreciate enough. We are very lucky to have such a skilled team.”

Ellinghausen is a photojournalist for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, and has won multiple photography awards. He was the first photographer to receive the Federal Parliamentary Australian Press Gallery Journalist of the Year award.

Price’s speech put the Coalition’s Indigenous spokeswoman in the spotlight – she was described by journalist Tony Wright as a “weaponised conservative woman who can say things out loud that white conservatives haven’t dared to say since the early 1960s”.

She declared there was no ongoing trauma or disadvantage among Aboriginal people stemming from colonisation – a position that places her at odds with almost all social researchers, historians and Indigenous leaders.

However, Price pointedly challenged whether some Australians preferred the symbolism of the Voice to parliament rather than confronting the harder issues of tackling endemic family violence and sexual abuse in some Indigenous communities.

She declared that it was racist to think that all Indigenous people should speak with one voice. “We are not one homogeneous group … [and] often disagreed on positions,” she said.

Ellinghausen said the image was taken in a small upstairs room at the press club because the more spacious reception room was undergoing renovations.

This created a more raucous and charged town hall atmosphere with politicians, media and members of the public jostling for space under the hot broadcast TV lighting.

It was a moment in the making. As Wright wrote: a band of Coalition figures — Nationals leader David Littleproud and his colleagues Barnaby Joyce and Bridget McKenzie, Liberal frontbencher Michaelia Cash and former Nationals MP Kay Hull — who trooped down to the National Press Club to listen to Price, whooped and tittered as she went far beyond her opposition to the Voice to parliament.

However, while Ellinghausen’s image captures that charged atmosphere, it also feels more symbolic.

An Indigenous woman calls out expressing her support for the No campaign and Ellinghausen fixes on a trio of Coalition figures. Under the harsh lights that bleach them whiter still, he reveals their pleasure and sly delight at the surprise outburst.

The intervention hints at the crushing rejection of the referendum to come.

Heath Gilmore is a journalist.Connect via Twitter or email.

World

- World population grows past 8 billion

- Maduro orders drills to counter ‘threat’ after British warship sent to Guyana

- What is Hezbollah? A guide

- World of photos, December 29, 2023

- Wars, Trump’s courtroom dramas and our new King: The world in 2023

- US state of Maine bars Donald Trump from 2024 ballot

- Who are the Republicans besides Trump running for president?

- Targeted for beliefs or actions, politicians in US hit by wave of ‘swatting’

- Israeli strikes across Gaza kill dozens of Palestinians, even in emptied north

- Nikki Haley fails to mention slavery when asked about cause of US Civil War

World  • North America  • Population

World population grows past 8 billion

By Mike Schneider

Updated December 29, 2023 — 4.04pmfirst published at 2.00pm

Washington: The world population grew by 75 million people over the past year and on New Year’s Day it will stand at more than 8 billion people, according to figures released by the US Census Bureau on Friday (AEDT).

The worldwide growth rate in the past year was just under 1 per cent. At the start of 2024, 4.3 births and two deaths are expected worldwide every second, according to the census bureau figures.

Crowds make their way along the pedestrian shopping area of Fuencarral street in central Madrid, Spain, on Wednesday.  Credit: Bloomberg

The projected world population on January 1 is 8,019,876,189, up 75,162,541 (0.95 per cent) from New Year’s Day 2023, according to the bureau using data from its International Database.

The bureau points out that there are many sources of uncertainty in estimating the global population, and it’s unlikely population milestones are reached on exact dates. For example, the United Nations Population Division estimates the world population reached 8 billion on November 15, 2022.

The explains the discrepancy: “Many of the world’s most populous countries (such as India and Nigeria), haven’t conducted a census in over 10 years, and many countries lack civil registration and vital statistics systems that accurately record births and deaths among their population.

“Given the lack of precise population data worldwide, the UN and Census Bureau estimates are not that far apart, and both imply similar overall trends.”

The growth rate for the United States in the past year was 0.53 per cent, about half the worldwide figure. The US added 1.7 million people and will have a population on New Year’s Day of 335.8 million people.

If the current pace continues through the end of the decade, the 2020s could be the slowest-growing decade in US history, yielding a growth rate of less than 4 per cent over the 10-year-period from 2020 to 2030, said William Frey, a demographer at the Brookings Institution think tank.

The slowest-growing decade currently was in the aftermath of the Great Depression in the 1930s when the growth rate was 7.3 per cent.

“Of course growth may tick up a bit as we leave the pandemic years. But it would still be difficult to get to 7.3 per cent,” Frey said.

At the start of 2024, the United States is expected to experience one birth every nine seconds and one death every 9.5 seconds.

However, immigration will keep the population from dropping. Net international migration is expected to add one person to the US population every 28.3 seconds. This combination of births, deaths and net international migration will increase the US population by one person every 24.2 seconds.

Canada’s experienced one of the fastest population growth rates in the world, largely due to a sharp rise in temporary foreign workers and international students.

It accelerated to 3.2 per cent growth over the past year, rising by 1.25 million in the year to October 1 – the largest number in any 12-month period since its creation in 1867, according to new data from Statistics Canada.

Almost all the increase was driven by a surge in international migration. Canada accepted 454,590 new permanent residents over the past year, while bringing in 804,690 non-permanent residents, a category that includes temporary workers, foreign students and, to a lesser extent, refugees.

The surge of newcomers brought Canada’s population to an estimated 40.5 million, slightly more than California.

The last time Canada’s population grew at a faster rate was in the late 1950s, during the postwar baby boom and a period when the country was accepting Hungarian refugees fleeing Soviet repression.

It is expanding much faster than any G7 nation, China or India – in fact, most countries growing at a similar pace are in Africa, according to 2021 data.

AP, Bloomberg

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World  • South America  • Border disputes

Maduro orders drills to counter ‘threat’ after British warship sent to Guyana

By Manuel Rueda

December 29, 2023 — 3.39pm

Bogota, Colombia: Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro has ordered his armed forces to conduct defensive exercises in the Eastern Caribbean after the United Kingdom sent a warship towards Guyana’s territorial waters after he claimed to have the right to annex part of his neighbouring country’s lands.

In a nationally televised address, Maduro said that 6000 Venezuelan troops, including air and naval forces, would conduct joint operations off the nation’s eastern coast – near the border with Guyana.

A woman sells fruit in front of a mural of a Venezuelan map with the Essequibo territory (bottom right of map) included and the words “All of Venezuela. Vote yes five time on December 3”, in Caracas.  Credit: AP

Maduro described the impending arrival of British ship HMS Trent to Guyana’s shores as a “threat” to his country. He argued the ship’s deployment violated a recent agreement between the South American nations.

“We believe in diplomacy, in dialogue and in peace, but no one is going to threaten Venezuela,” Maduro said in a room accompanied by a dozen military commanders. “This is an unacceptable threat to any sovereign country in Latin America.”

Venezuela and Guyana are currently involved in a border dispute over the Essequibo, a sparsely populated region the size of Florida with vast oil deposits off its shores.

The region has been under Guyana’s control for decades, but in December, Venezuela relaunched its historical claim to the Essequibo through a referendum in which it asked its voters whether the Essequibo should be turned into a Venezuelan state.

As tensions over the region escalated, the leaders of both countries met on the Caribbean island of St Vincent, and signed an agreement which said they would solve their dispute through nonviolent means.

During the talks, however, Guyana’s President Irfan Ali said his nation reserved its right to work with its partners to ensure the defence of his country.

On Thursday, Guyanese officials described the visit of HMS Trent as a planned activity aimed at improving the nation’s defence capabilities and said the ship’s visit would continue as scheduled.

“Nothing that we do or have done is threatening Venezuela,” Guyana’s Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo told reporters in Georgetown, the nation’s capital.

The British ship HMS Trent has been sent to the waters off Guyana as tensions rise after Venezula revived a claim over part of Guyana’s territory.  Credit: Shaun Roster/CC

HMS Trent is a patrol and rescue ship that was recently used to intercept drug traffickers off the West Coast of Africa. It can accommodate up to 30 sailors and a contingent of 18 marines, and is equipped with 30mm cannons and a landing pad for helicopters and drones.

The ship had been sent to Barbados in early December to intercept drug traffickers, but its mission was changed on December 24 when it was sent to Guyana. Authorities did not specify when it was expected to arrive off Guyana’s shores.

The British Defence Ministry said the ship would be conducting joint operations with Guyana’s defence forces.

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro with first lady Cilia Flores, centre, and Vice President Delcy Rodrigues.  Credit: Bloomberg

The nation of 800,000 people has a small military that is made up of 3000 soldiers, 200 sailors and four small patrol boats known as Barracudas.

Venezuela says it was the victim of a land theft conspiracy in 1899, when Guyana was a British colony and arbitrators from Britain, Russia and the United States decided the boundary. The US represented Venezuela in part because the Venezuelan government had broken off diplomatic relations with Britain.

Venezuelan officials contend Americans and Europeans colluded to cheat their country out of the land. They also argue that an agreement among Venezuela, Britain and the colony of British Guiana signed in 1966 to resolve the dispute effectively nullified the original arbitration.

Guyana maintains the initial accord is legal and binding and asked the United Nations’ top court in 2018 to rule it as such, but a decision is years away. The century-old dispute was recently reignited with the discovery of oil in Guyana.

AP

Updated

• World  • Middle East  • Israeli-Palestinian conflict

What is Hezbollah? A guide

By Lucy Cormack

Updated December 29, 2023 — 2.50pmfirst published October 17, 2023 — 8.58am

Since the outbreak of this Israel-Hamas war on October 7, Hezbollah and allied groups have clashed almost daily with Israeli forces on the Lebanon-Israel border, increasing fears of the conflict expanding beyond the Gaza Strip and into other parts of the Middle East.

The militant group and major Lebanese political party dominates political and security institutions, controls southern Lebanon and acts as a proxy for Iran, with one of the organisation’s most senior figures insisting in October the party was “fully ready” to contribute to the fighting in support of Palestinians.

On October 26, two Australian brothers Ali and Ibrahim Bazzi, as well as Ibrahim’s wife Shorouk Hammoud, died in an Israeli night airstrike that hit their house in Bint Jbeil, south Lebanon. Hammoud had recently been granted an Australian visa and the couple planned to travel soon to Sydney, Reuters reported.

Hezbollah said Ali Bazzi, who received a military style funeral, was one of its fighters.

A Hezbollah fighter kisses the coffin of Ali Bazzi, who was killed in the airstrike.  Credit: AP

So, what is Hezbollah, how did it form, and what does Iran have to do with it?

What is Hezbollah?

Hezbollah is a Lebanese Shiite Muslim militant group that emerged in the early 1980s during the 15-year Lebanese civil war. Its ideology calls for the destruction of the Israeli state and pledges allegiance to Iran’s supreme leader.

It has been behind a number of deadly terror attacks around the world and has been declared a terrorist organisation by Australia, the US, Israel, the United Kingdom and the European Union and several countries across the Arab world.

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah speaks to supporters in southern Beirut via video link.  Credit: AP

The radical group, which constitutes a political party and a military arm, receives hundreds of millions of dollars, as well as substantial training and weapons from Iran. The name Hezbollah translates to “party of God” or “party of Allah”. It has been led by Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah since 1992 when it entered politics.

While it is designated internationally as a terrorist group, its political wing in Lebanon has also developed a substantial social services network for its supporters. However, political support for Hezbollah has fallen, with the group and its allies losing their parliamentary majority in Lebanon’s most recent 2022 election, when they secured 62 seats in the country’s 128-member parliament.

The Centre for Strategic and International Studies has described the group as “the world’s most heavily armed, non-state actor ... a militia trained like an army and equipped like a state”, given its hefty military arsenal which is said to include at least 130,000 rockets. Hezbollah has claimed it has about 100,000 fighters.

How was Hezbollah formed?

Hezbollah was founded by Iran’s Revolutionary Guards to export its Islamic Revolution. It first formed out of the Lebanese civil war, which began in 1975 when infighting was sparked between Lebanon’s sectarian communities – Christians, Shiite and Sunni Muslims.

A growing number of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon increased the Sunni population, while Shiites felt marginalised by the ruling Christian minority, according to the Council on Foreign Relations.

“Amid the infighting, Israeli forces invaded southern Lebanon in 1978 and again in 1982 to expel Palestinian guerrilla fighters that used the region as their base to attack Israel,” the Washington think tank says.

Lebanese Shiite clerics then grew Hezbollah with the goal of driving Israel from Lebanon and establishing an Islamic republic. The movement had the strong backing of Iran, which continues today, through funds and militia training. Today, its military wing is the main military force in Lebanon.

While Israel withdrew from Beirut by September 1982, it would maintain an almost two-decade occupation of a zone in southern Lebanon, finally pulling out of the area in 2000.

A Hezbollah supporter during a rally in Beirut’s southern suburbs, celebrating the Hamas attacks on Israel.  Credit: AP

Are Hamas and Hezbollah allies?

Hezbollah is part of a regional alliance made up of Iran, Syria and the Palestinian Hamas group. All broadly oppose US policy in the Middle East and Israel. Both are designated terrorist organisations and like Hamas, Hezbollah does not recognise the right for the state Israel to exist.

One of the most important differences between the two is that Hamas originates from the Sunni Muslim Brotherhood, while Hezbollah is a Shiite Muslim organisation. While they were on opposite sides of the Syrian civil war, they have maintained close regional ties and support at various times, including during the Israeli occupation of southern Lebanon.

Both enjoy substantial financial and military backing from Iran.

Hamas has ruled the Gaza Strip since 2007.  Credit: AP

As the full scale of Hamas’ land, sea and air invasion dawned last week, Hezbollah released a statement congratulating “the resisting Palestinian people,” for the “heroic operation”.

The Lebanese militia said the Hamas attack was a “response to the continued crimes of the occupation and the continued assault on holy sites”.

“Our hearts are with you. Our minds are with you. Our souls are with you. Our history and guns and our rockets are with you,” a Hezbollah official said in another statement.

Why is Hezbollah fighting Israel?

Since the violence between Israel and Hamas erupted last week, there have been mounting fears of it escalating into a broader regional conflict that could involve Hezbollah and hitherto, Iran.

Icy relations between Israel and Hezbollah date back to Israel’s occupation of southern Lebanon in 1978. The two last fought in a war in 2006, after Israeli forces invaded Lebanon to respond to Hezbollah attacks on Israeli settlements. Rocket attacks and heavy fighting ensued, while Israel launched a naval blockade of Lebanon.

The Council on Foreign Relations describes Israel as Hezbollah’s “main enemy” since 1978, adding that the scale of weaponry provided to the group by Iran ensures Hezbollah is “an increasingly dangerous threat to Israel”.

“Hezbollah and Israel have yet to relapse into full-blown war, but the group reiterated its commitment to the destruction of the Israeli state in its 2009 manifesto,” the council states.

Analysts say Israel is ready for a two-front war. There have already been artillery exchanges across the Israel-Lebanon frontier, while missiles were fired from Lebanon on Sunday in retaliation for the death of a Reuters journalist and the wounding of six in a strike last week from the direction of Israel. A Hezbollah spokeswoman said the increased strikes represented a “warning” and did not mean the Iran-backed militant group had decided to enter the war.

A supporter of an Iran-backed militia holds a poster of slain Iranian General Qassem Soleimani, left, and deputy commander Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis during a protest by pro-Iranian militiamen in Iraq last year.  Credit: AP

Why does Iran support Hezbollah?

Since its inception, Hezbollah has served as a proxy for Iran.

Iran and its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps first provided the funds and training to establish Hezbollah as it saw an opportunity to further its influence in the Arab world. The US State Department estimates Iran funds Hezbollah to the tune of US$700 million-$US1 billion a year.

One of Hezbollah’s earliest manifestos in 1985 said the Iranian regime was “the vanguard and new nucleus of the leading Islamic State in the world,” vowing to abide by the orders of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khomeini.

Hezbollah is a key member of Iran’s so-called “Axis of Resistance,” which refers to an alliance of proxy forces in the region, including Iran, Palestinian militant groups and Syria.

Iran has warned Israel of escalation if it continued aggressions against Palestinians.

What’s the risk of Hezbollah getting involved?

Hezbollah deputy chief Naim Qassem last week said the group would not be swayed by calls for it to stay on the sidelines and that the party was “fully ready” to join the fighting.

“The behind-the-scenes calls with us by great powers, Arab countries, envoys of the United Nations, directly and indirectly telling us not to interfere will have no effect,” he told supporters in southern Beirut in remarks reported by Reuters news agency.

Fears continue to mount of the conflict spilling over to Lebanon. The US has repeatedly urged state and non-state actors against attempting to take advantage of the Israel-Hamas war, while deploying two aircraft carrier battle groups to the region.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the military posture was not meant as a provocation, rather, “it’s meant as a deterrent”.

“No one should do anything that could add fuel to the fire in any other place,” Blinken added.

Israel has told residents living near the northern border with Lebanon – 28 communities – to evacuate the area.

The Israel Defence Force has highlighted the increasingly delicate situation on the border, with Hezbollah increasing anti-tank strikes, saying the group was doing so “under the direction” of Iran.

Since the recent fighting with Hamas began, Israel has conducted the largest military mobilisation effort in its history, calling up more than 300,000 troops to ensure it is also prepared for any potential outbreak of violence with Hezbollah.

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Lucy Cormack is a journalist for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, based in Dubai.Connect via Twitter.

World  • North America  • Photography

World of photos, December 29, 2023

10 Images

The best photos from the international wire agencies as chosen by our picture editors.

December 29, 2023 — 2.44pm

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1/10

Pigeons fly over a beggar woman sitting by a roadside under a thick fog on a cold morning in Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir.  Credit:AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan

2/10

Marius Lindvik of Switzerland competes in the qualification run during the FIS World Cup Ski Jumping Four Hills Tournament Men Oberstdorf Individual HS137 in Oberstdorf, Germany.  Credit:Daniel Kopatsch/Getty Images

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The River Danube bursts its banks and floods the Jane Haining quay in downtown Budapest, Hungary.  Credit:Zoltan Balogh/MTI via AP

4/10

A visitor stands near a display showing earth during an exhibition about China’s space program in Beijing. China’s burgeoning space program plans to place astronauts on the moon before 2030 and expand the country’s orbiting space station against the background of a rivalry with the U.S. for reaching new milestones in outer space, reflecting their competition for influence on global events.  Credit:AP Photo/Ng Han Guan

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Surfers wait for a wave in high surf at Manhattan Beach, California. The National Weather Service has issued high surf warnings for much of the West Coast and parts of Hawaii, describing the waves and rip currents expected to hit certain coastlines as potentially dangerous and life-threatening.  Credit:AP Photo/Richard Vogel

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Heavy equipment is used to demolish the house where four University of Idaho students were killed in 2022 in Moscow, Idaho. Students Ethan Chapin, Xana Kernodle, Madison Mogen and Kaylee Goncalves were fatally stabbed there in November 2022.   Credit:AP Photo/Ted S. Warren

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Sarah Thompson walks her dog while watching the surf in Stinson Beach, California.  Credit:AP Photo/Ethan Swope

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Dry crude oil covers the ground near La Salina crude oil shipping terminal in Cabimas, Zulia state, Venezuela.  Credit:AP Photo/Matias Delacroix

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A bride wades through wave on a beach as she posing for wedding photo during a sunset in Xiamen in southeast China’s Fujian province.  Credit:AP Photo/Andy Wong

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An aerial view shows a house roof blown off in the aftermath of a tornado in Stalybridge, England. Houses in the Tameside area of Greater Manchester have been damaged by a localised tornado during Storm Gerrit. Police declared a major incident last night as roofs were torn off the houses and trees uprooted, but no reported injuries.  Credit:Ryan Jenkins/Getty Images

World politics

Wars, Trump’s courtroom dramas and our new King: The world in 2023

By Eryk Bagshaw, Chris Barrett, Lucy Cormack, Rob Harris, Farrah Tomazin, Lia Timson and James Lemon

December 29, 2023

Year in Review 2023  Credit: Marija Ercegovac

So much has happened this year, you’d be forgiven for thinking the world packed up two years in one. Too many headlines have been consumed by war, especially in the second half, but many more were written on hot topics, from China’s growing influence around the globe, to the comings and goings in the corridors of power, to the changing climate.

Here are some of the biggest stories in a look-back compiled by our correspondents.

North Asia

This was the year China was meant to re-engage with the world. After three years of COVID lockdowns, the Chinese government finally lifted restrictions, reopened borders and said it was ready to do business.

But the population was weighed down by years of anxiety and fear of what tomorrow might bring. The Chinese shut their wallets, pushing the economy into deflation, while the government struggled to convince foreign investors to return to the world’s second-largest market.

One in five young graduates remain jobless. The government has become so desperate to stimulate activity that it is offering them $500 monthly to retrain as farmers and rural teachers.

The deterioration in the Chinese economy has forced Beijing to change its foreign policy settings after years of wolf-warrior diplomacy won it few friends and new enemies.

Apart from a rogue spy balloon that was shot down over the United States in February, the Chinese government has been at pains to repair fractured ties around the world, first with the United States, but also with Australia.

That job was made more difficult after the unexplained disappearance of foreign minister Qin Gang in July and defence minister Li Shangfu in September.

There was less mystery about the sudden release of Australian journalist Cheng Lei from jail in October - just weeks before Anthony Albanese became the first Australian prime minister to visit China in seven years. Premier Li Qiang called Albanese “a handsome boy”. Albanese discussed how cute pandas were with President Xi Jinping, and they pledged to “move forward in a really positive way” after years of economic coercion and diplomatic hostility.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Chinese President Xi Jinping during a meeting in Beijing in November.  Credit: AAP

The sudden bonhomie in the Great Hall of the People was jarring in a country that is still sending fighter jets weekly to harass neighbouring Taiwan and has wiped out freedom of speech in Hong Kong, where not even free flights have been able to lure tourists back to what was once a global financial and cultural hub.

Just over the East China Sea, South Korea and Japan have been watching closely. Both have hardened their resistance towards Beijing as it looks to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida hosted world leaders at the G7 in Hiroshima, where they condemned China for any “unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force or coercion.”

Kishida has been focused on protecting Japan’s national security as its economy wobbles, but he too finished the year in trouble with approval ratings below 30 per cent.– Eryk Bagshaw, North Asia correspondent

Quad leaders meet on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Hiroshima in May.  Credit: AP

South-East Asia

In President Joko Widodo’s penultimate year in power in Indonesia, there was much focus on the emergence of a family political dynasty as his eldest son was named the running mate for 2024 election frontrunner Prabowo Subianto. The country also made headlines for the wrong reasons when it was stripped of the Under-20 men’s football World Cup for refusing to host an Israeli team.

Widodo was warmly welcomed to Australia in July and won a sought-after deal for the neighbours to co-operate on producing batteries for electric vehicles. Also on the Australian front, the arrest of Queenslander Bodhi Risby-Jones in Aceh grabbed attention, as did the disappearance and then rescue of four tourists off the coast of Sumatra.

In the Philippines, President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos jnr reinforced defence ties with the United States as well as with Australia as Manila was subjected to escalating coercion from China in the South China Sea. On the domestic fron,t there was shock at the assassination of provincial governor Roel Degamo – even in one of the most dangerous countries in the world for elected officials. In better news, outspoken senator Leila de Lima, a vocal critic of former president Rodrigo Duterte and his war on drugs, was finally released after six years behind bars.

Thailand topped the regional bill for political drama as the progressive Move Forward Party scored a stunning national election victory, humbling the conservative establishment, but was blocked from forming government. After a stalemate, Pheu Thai, long associated with former leader Thaksin Shinawatra, eventually took charge of a coalition of compromise with military proxy parties, thrusting ex-property tycoon Srettha Thavisin into the prime ministership and facilitating Shinawatra’s return from exile. There was sadness at the death in the UK of Duangphet Phromthep, the captain of the Thai boys’ soccer team trapped in a cave in 2018. Amid the horror of Hamas’ October 7 attack on southern Israel, meanwhile, 39 Thai farm workers near Gaza were killed and 32 were taken hostage.

The scourge of corruption and money laundering threatened to dent the clean image projected by financial hub Singapore. A cabinet minister was arrested over a graft probe for the first time since 1986, and in a separate scandal, $SGD2.8 billion ($3.1 billion) in assets was seized and 10 Chinese suspects nabbed over the illegal flow of cash through the city-state. After leading since 2004, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong also announced he would hand the baton to deputy Lawrence Wong next year in advance of an election in 2025.

In Malaysia, Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim came through his first 12 months in charge with a semblance of stability, not insignificant after the political turbulence of the preceding three years, keeping the peace in a unity government composed of former foes and withstanding the headwinds created by rising Islamic fervour. Anwar also revelled as a statesman on the global stage, particularly with his fierce backing of the Palestinian cause. Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar of Johor was picked as the next king of Malaysia, where occupation of the throne rotates between state rulers.

New Timor-Leste Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao delivers a speech during his inauguration in Dili in July.  Credit: AP

Independence hero Xanana Gusmao returned to the top job with a runaway election win in Timor-Leste, vowing to secure a deal to pipe gas from the Greater Sunrise fields to the Timorese coastline that would have ramifications for geopolitics as well as for the tiny nation’s economy. Gusmao also raised doubts over whether the junta in conflict-ravaged Myanmar could be brought to heel by ASEAN, the regional grouping of which Timor-Leste is to become the 11th member.

Armed ethnic groups in Myanmar banded together to capture dozens of military outposts, a setback for the generals as they confront mounting resistance almost three years after a coup. Deposed former leader Aung San Suu Kyi remained detained amid her family’s concerns about her health.

Superpowers courted manufacturing giant Vietnam, which played host to both US President Joe Biden and Chinese leader Xi Jinping in 2023. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese also made his way to Hanoi to mark 50 years of relations, and Vietnamese-Australian pro-democracy activist Chau Van Kham was freed from prison soon after. Corruption was also big news in Vietnam, where an anti-graft cleanout resulted in the ousting of president Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

There were few surprises with the election result in Cambodia, which sealed a handover from Hun Sen, the prime minister since 1985, to his son Hun Manet. – Chris Barrett, South-east Asia correspondent

Police detain a supporter of Pakistan’s former prime minister Imran Khan protesting against his arrest in Lahore in May.   Credit: AP

South Asia

India marked a historic milestone in 2023 when it overtook China to become the world’s most populous nation. It is now home to 1.41 billion people and is forecast to reach 1.67 billion by mid-century, making it the world’s unrivalled population colossus. Its growing economic and global clout was underscored when Prime Minister Narendra Modi hosted the influential G20 leaders summit in Delhi in September. Ties between India and Australia have improved rapidly during the past decade, and this continued in 2023. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese made two trips to India during the year, while Modi became the first Indian PM to visit Australia twice when he met Albanese in Sydney in June. - Matt Wade, former India correspondent

The arrest of deposed prime minister Imran Khan in May triggered violent unrest in Pakistan, where supporters of the cricket champion turned politician torched military facilities in protest. The security establishment hit back in deadly clashes, detaining leaders from Khan’s party and as many as 10,000 of its workers, according to the cricket champion turned politician. Khan himself was slapped with more than 150 charges his supporters say were designed to sideline him from February’s election, and in August, he was jailed for selling state gifts. Amid the turmoil, Pakistan reached agreement with the International Monetary Fund for a $US3 billion ($4.5 billion) bailout package to help prop up an economy that had been on the verge of collapse. And Pakistani rescuers pulled seven children and a man to safety after their cable car became stranded high over a remote ravine in August, ending an ordeal lasting more than 15 hours. – Chris Barrett

Europe

On one long June night, Russia’s notorious mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin staged a dramatic insurrection, sending an armoured convoy towards Moscow and posing the greatest threat to Vladimir Putin’s grip on power in three decades.

Putin accused his former ally of treason, of embarking on an armed rebellion, “a stab in the back of our country”. But by the end of that weekend, Prigozhin had called off the whole thing and ordered his men back to base. Weeks later he was killed in a plane crash. Putin eulogised his friend. It was justice, Soviet style.

Almost 22 months after Russia invaded Ukraine, the war continues to cast a dire shadow across Europe. Putin’s actions have not only plunged his own nation into economic peril, but fuelled a cost-of-living crisis, complete with spiralling energy costs, across the Continent. These issues, plus continued migration from Africa and parts of the Middle East, have fuelled a populist backlash and political unrest.

That has political forces branding themselves “conservative” and “patriotic” eyeing next year’s European Union elections as a prime test.

Geert Wilders’ rise in the Netherlands is one example of the surging far right in Europe.  Credit: Getty Images

Just a few weeks ago Slovakia’s election elevated Leftist leader Robert Fico, in a coalition with nationalist parties, to prime minister, after he pledged to end military support for Ukraine and criticised sanctions on Russia. His moves threaten to further strain fragile democratic standards and erode EU unity on Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Fico had previously quit as prime minister in 2018 amid mass public protests against corruption after a journalist was murdered.

The resurgence of far-right and other populist forces is worrisome for liberal democracies across Europe – but nowhere more so than in Germany. October’s breakthrough by the anti-immigration, Eurosceptic Alternative for Germany in regional elections in two western states confirmed that its appeal is no longer confined to disgruntled voters in the former communist east. Chancellor Olaf Scholz has conceded the number of people seeking asylum in the country – some 450,000 since the beginning of last year, on top of 1 million Ukrainian refugees – is too high.

Finland’s new government was sworn in on June 20, with rock-star prime minister Sanna Marin being dumped by voters to install its most right-wing government in recent history. But geography ensures Russia’s actions remain a central piece of the new government’s foreign and defence policy, as well as its efforts to ramp up support for Ukraine.

The seismic result from Dutch populist Geert Wilders winning the most seats at the recent election in the Netherlands, normally a socially liberal and centrist nation, is perhaps a sign of things to come. Sweden and Denmark have also had to wrestle with issues surrounding freedom of religion, with outbreaks of Islamophobia.

King Charles III stands after being crowned during his coronation ceremony in Westminster Abbey in London on May 6.  Credit: Getty Images

Britain has enjoyed a year of relative stability, compared to the revolving door at No. 10 Downing Street last year, but Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has had to put out a few spot fires, mainly on the recurring theme of immigration. A new King was crowned for the first time in more than 80 years in May, with Charles III putting his stamp on a new, slimmed down monarchy. A deep royal family feud continues to attracted media interest. - Rob Harris, Europe correspondent

Middle East

This time last year, Palestinians under occupation had just suffered their most deadly year since 2005. Twelve months on, violence has continued to swell across Israeli occupied territories while war has erupted in the heavily blockaded Gaza Strip.

Hamas’ October 7 invasion of Israel by land, air and sea claimed more than 1200 Israeli lives and led to the kidnapping of hundreds. By December, more than 20,000 Gazans had been killed in Israel’s retaliatory aerial bombardment.

While it initially sparked fears of a wider regional conflict by other Iran-backed groups like Hezbollah in Lebanon, the worst of the fighting has so far remained largely contained to Gaza.

Israel’s retaliation has attracted regional condemnation, especially with women and children being among the majority of casualties, in particular from neighbouring countries like Jordan, where about 60 per cent of the population is Palestinian.

Iran has insisted it had no prior knowledge of Hamas’ October 7 killing spree, despite being the biggest financial backer of the terrorist group and others like Hezbollah and Palestinian Islamic Jihad which make up its so-called “axis of resistance”. This year also marked the one-year anniversary of Mahsa Amini’s death in police custody, which sparked the mass “Woman, Life, Freedom” protests across Iran. Women who do not wear headscarves in public continue to be targeted and jailed in growing numbers under draconian laws.

The break in fighting in Gaza gave way to the long-awaited return of some Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails, as well as the passage of urgent humanitarian aid following tense diplomatic negotiations largely driven by Qatar, the US and Egypt.

Yemen’s Houthi rebels recently attacked ships in the Red Sea, keeping alive fears that the conflict could yet spill over and prompting the US to ask for reinforcements.

The petro-kingdom for Saudi Arabia led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has continued charging ahead on its mission to diversify its economy, as it looks to remake itself in a post-oil-dependent future. Harnessing the soft-power of sport, Riyadh continues to woo the world’s most popular sports – and its stars – into its orbit, pumping billions into football, golf, Formula 1 racing and pro-wrestling.

It’s been a big year for the Gulf states, not least the United Arab Emirates, which hosted the UN global climate summit known as COP28 in Dubai in December. The oil-producing kingdom was a contentious choice for the host of a conference designed to combat global warming. - Lucy Cormack, reporter, Dubai

North America

It was a United States year marked by political dysfunction, global and domestic tragedy, and the cultural phenomenon of Taylor Swift.

But no other person dominated the headlines more than former US president Donald Trump.

The incendiary Republican kicked off 2023 being blamed by his party for its poor performance at the midterm elections, yet ended the year as the overwhelming frontrunner to win the 2024 presidential nomination - despite facing 91 criminal charges across four separate trials next year.

Donald Trump’s Georgia mugshot.  Credit: Reuters

His astonishing political resurrection began in March when a New York grand jury voted to indict him for paying hush money to a porn star, giving Trump leverage to fundraise and campaign as the victim of a targeted “witch-hunt”.

Soon enough, the unprecedented in America became the norm, with Trump being indicted a further three times: in Florida over the mishandling of classified documents; in Washington DC for attempting to overthrow the results of the 2020 election; and in Georgia for attempting to stop Joe Biden’s victory in that state.

There was no shortage of other political scandals on both sides of the aisle. In the deeply divided Congress, senior Republican Kevin McCarthy became the first House Speaker in history to be ousted by his own side.

Rookie politician and serial fabulist George Santos was also indicted, and later expelled from Congress, for identity theft and misusing campaign funds.

And President Joe Biden’s son Hunter was charged with tax evasion and minor gun violations - an issue that Republicans have used to repeatedly attack his father.

Adding to the challenging landscape he faces, Biden’s agenda now hangs in the balance as his pleas to provide more aid to Ukraine is mired in partisan battles and his support of Israel’s war against Hamas threatens to tear apart the broad coalition he needs to win re-election next November.

But the 81-year-old president has confronted a myriad of domestic woes, too: from the fickle US economy and the ongoing concerns about this age, to the perennial crisis at the US-Mexico border.

Taylor Swift performs in Buenos Aires in November during the Eras tour.  Credit: AP

Outside politics, one of the most gripping North America stories for 2023 took place in June when a small submersible disappeared off the coast of Canada during a voyage to the wreckage of the Titanic. Four days later, after a frantic international search, debris from the vehicle was found on the ocean floor, confirming that it had imploded, killing all five people on board.

This year wasn’t all doom and gloom, at least not for Taylor Swift. The 33-year-old singer-songwriter cemented her place as one of the biggest pop icons of all time when her Eras tour became the first to gross more than $US1 billion ($1.4 billion).

Economies soared in the cities she visited, romance blossomed in the form of Kansas City Chief’s Travis Kelce and US universities such as Harvard, New York and Arizona began offering courses to study the phenomenon. - Farrah Tomazin, North America correspondent

South America

The year began in Brazil with a calm before the storm in the inauguration of President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva on January 1, which passed without incident despite fears of violence. That came with the invasion of Congress, Supreme Court and Presidential Palace by thousands of supporters of former president Jair Bolsonaro on January 8, in a copycat riot of the US Capitol by Donald Trump supporters a year and two days earlier. Like Trump, Bolsonaro cast doubts about the electoral system and implied the election was stolen from him. He wasn’t in Brasilia to attempt to retake power, however, having travelled to the United States for an extended holiday – a move that disappointed many supporters. After several months in Florida, the former far-right leader is back in Brazil facing a number of investigations, including in connection with the riots and misappropriation of presidential gifts. His successor, Lula, has pressed on with his domestic, international and environmental agenda, pledging, among other things, to not get involved in the Ukraine war, stay close to the BRICS group of countries – including Russia and China – and arrest deforestation of the Amazon.

Supporters of Brazil’s former Brazilian president Jair Bolsonaro, storm the Supreme Court building in Brasilia, on January 8, in an attack bearing similarities to the riot at the US Capitol a year earlier.  Credit: AP

The year closed with a Trumpian election in Argentina, where Javier Milei, a far-right libertarian was elected despite his penchant for cloning – he has several cloned dogs he considers his children and chainsaws, and promise to dolarise the economy. His first trip overseas as president-elect was to New York to advance his conversion to Judaism and cement his support for Israel. With an economy in tatters, voters chose Milei, a political outsider, instead of finance minister Sergio Massa whom they blamed for the crisis.

The Venezuelan crisis continued, albeit with fewer sanctions imposed by the United States. A late move by President Nicolas Maduro vowing to annex two-thirds of its neighbour Guyana’s territory was deemed an act of desperation by a leader who is under the spotlight to hold honest elections next year. Having held a referendum to justify the land grab, he’s not done with it yet.

In Ecuador, violence marred the election campaign, with candidate Fernando Villavicencio, a vocal critic of corruption and organised crime, assassinated during a campaign rally. In October, Daniel Noboa, an inexperienced politician and an heir to a fortune built on the banana trade, won the presidential run-off election, held amid unprecedented violence.

Deadly anti-government protests in Peru lasted weeks earlier in the year, closing down most of the country, creating nationwide chaos and stranding dozens of Australians in Machu Picchu.

In this photo released by Colombia’s Armed Forces Press Office, soldiers and indigenous men pose for a photo with the four indigenous children who were missing after a deadly plane crash.  Credit: Colombia’s Armed Force Press Agency/AP

In Colombia, officials appear to have finally found a solution to the ever-growing herd of hippos descended from the late drug lord Pablo Escobar’s pets – they said they would sterilise some, possibly euthanise some and relocate others to sanctuaries in other countries. The epic tale of four children aged 13, 9, 4 and a baby, who survived a plane crash after being lost in the depths of the Amazon jungle for weeks captivated the world. – Lia Timson, deputy world editor

Africa

More than 350 people have been killed so far in East Africa amid severe flooding in November and December. More than a million people have been displaced across Kenya, Somalia, Ethiopia, and Tanzania.

People cross a flooded area on makeshift raft in north-east Kenya in November.  Credit: AP

The flooding followed the most severe period of drought the Horn of Africa had suffered in four decades, which began in 2020 and led to widespread displacement and hunger.

The drought led to the death of almost 10 million livestock and, of those animals that survived, tens of thousands drowned in the floods, aid groups said.

An ongoing civil war in Sudan, between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces paramilitary group, has already killed at least 10,000 people – a number the United Nations said was likely much higher.

General Abdourahamane Tchiani makes a statement on TV in July declaring he is the head of state.  Credit: AP

There were two coups d’etat in Africa this year: in Gabon and Niger.

In Niger, the Presidential Guard arrested president Mohamed Bazoum and its commander, General Abdourahamane Tchiani, proclaimed himself leader in July. It was the first coup since 2010 – there were several attempts in between – and the fifth following independence from France in 1960.

Tchiani said he took control of the country to reverse what he called Niger’s demise under Bazoum, but later promised to hand the country back to civilian rule within three years. He has since turned to other African nations also run by juntas for support.

In Gabon, which had been ruled by the Bongo family for 56 years since independence from France in 1967, Ali Bongo was toppled from government in August after being accused of election fraud. It was the eighth successful coup in Central and West Africa since 2020.

Gabon’s armed forces took control of government buildings in the capital, Libreville, just minutes after Bongo was declared the winner of an election riddled with irregularities, according to opposition politicians and independent observers.

Brigadier general Brice Oligui, the commander of the Republican Guard responsible for protecting government buildings, remains interim president and chairman of the Committee for the Transition and Restoration of Institutions. – James Lemon, world producer, reporter

Oceania

The year opened with the shock resignation of New Zealand prime minister Jacinda Ardern on January 23. She didn’t leave office until February, leaving Chris Hipkins in charge until a general election in October. Then it took another six weeks for the country to get a new government last month, complete with a quirky job-share deputy prime ministership.

In charge now is a centre-right coalition led by Chris Luxon’s National party, along with the ACT and NZ First parties. In a tweak to convention, the colourful NZ First leader Winston Peters is Luxon’s deputy for the first half of the term, with ACT leader David Seymour taking over the job in June 2025.

As its first act, New Zealand’s new centre-right coalition announced it would repeal pioneering legislation (brought in by the Ardern government) outlawing the sale of tobacco to anyone born after January 2009, citing the impact it would have on tax revenue.

Jacinda Ardern giving her final speech to New Zealand’s parliament in Wellington in April.  Credit: AP

Like most economies, New Zealand is in the grip of a cost-of-living crisis fuelled by rising inflation, both of which were key campaign issues during the October 14 general election when the other Chris (Hipkins) was turfed as PM. Crime also emerged as a prominent concern after a surge in robberies and vehicle ram raids.

Hundreds of so-called smash-and-grabs swept across New Zealand, where vehicle ram raids of retail stores and milk bars became the crime du jour of young groups that clocked an average of at least two a day in the first six months of the year.

And in news that surprised no one, the All Blacks won the Bledisloe Cup - again. – Lucy Cormack, reporter

In other parts of the Pacific, there was a different kind of competition.

After attempting to push through a Pacific-wide economic and security deal last year China announced itself as a major regional player. It followed up with a policing deal with Fiji and began negotiations over a free trade deal with Papua New Guinea.

Beijing’s big spending diplomacy has divided leaders in the region, while also winning over locals who want foreign investment to stimulate struggling economies. Nowhere was the more visible than in the Solomon Islands. Honiara signed a security deal with China last year. By November one of the region’s poorest countries was hosting the Pacific Games. The $120 million national stadium was entirely bankrolled by China. – Eryk Baghaw, North Asia correspondent

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Eryk Bagshaw is the North Asia correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.Connect via Twitter or email.

Chris Barrett is the South-East Asia correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.Connect via Twitter or email.

Lucy Cormack is a journalist for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age, based in Dubai.Connect via Twitter.

Rob Harris is Europe correspondent for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.Connect via email.

Farrah Tomazin is the North America correspondent for The Age and Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via Twitter or email.

Lia Timson is Deputy Foreign Editor at The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via Twitter.

James Lemon is a journalist on the World team.Connect via Twitter or email.

World  • North America  • US Votes 2024

US state of Maine bars Donald Trump from 2024 ballot

By David Sharp and Nicholas Riccardi

December 29, 2023 — 11.15am

Washington: Maine’s Democratic secretary of state has removed former president Donald Trump from the state’s presidential primary ballot under the US Constitution’s insurrection clause, becoming the first election official to act unilaterally in a decision that has potential electoral college consequences.

While Maine has just four electoral votes, it’s one of two states to split them. Trump won one of Maine’s electors in 2020, so having him off the ballot there should he emerge as the Republican general election candidate could have outsized implications in a race that is expected to be narrowly decided.

Former US president Donald Trump.  Credit: AP

The decision by Secretary of State Shenna Bellows follows a December ruling by the Colorado Supreme Court that booted Trump from the ballot there under Section 3 of the 14th Amendment. Colorado is a Democratic-leaning state that is not expected to be competitive for Republicans in November.

Bellows found that Trump could not re-run for his prior job because his role in the January 6, 2021 attack on the US Capitol violated Section 3, which bans from office those who “engaged in insurrection”.

“The US Constitution does not tolerate an assault on the foundations of our government,” Bellows wrote in a 34-page ruling.

Trump’s campaign said it would quickly file an objection to the “atrocious” decision.

Maine Secretary of State Shenna Bellows.  Credit: AP

Lawyers for Trump have disputed that he engaged in insurrection and argued that his remarks to supporters on the day of the 2021 riot were protected by his right to free speech.

Bellows made the ruling after some state residents, including a bipartisan group of former lawmakers, challenged Trump’s position on the ballot.

Her decision came one day after Trump’s lawyers asked her to disqualify herself over tweets that they said showed bias.

She called the Capitol attack an “insurrection” and bemoaned that Trump wasn’t convicted by the US Senate after being impeached by the US House.

Bellows won’t have the final word on Trump’s political career. Her decision can be appealed to Maine’s courts. The US Supreme Court is expected to make a final decision on whether Trump can still run for president early next year.

Activists have asked state election officials across the country to remove Trump from their states’ primary ballots under Section 3. Until Bellows’ ruling, all of them had rejected the request, often saying they were waiting for courts to give direction on how to interpret the clause, which has been used only a handful of times since the years following the Civil War.

Maine law mandated that Bellows hold a public hearing over the issue, which she did in December.

A lawyer and former executive director of the Maine chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, Bellows allowed each side to submit additional arguments after the Colorado Supreme Court’s historic December 19 decision that Section 3 barred Trump from the ballot.

Trump’s campaign has said it will appeal that court’s 4-3 ruling to the US Supreme Court, which has never ruled on Section 3.

Whatever the high court decides will apply to every state, including Maine.

The Maine decision shows the potential perils to Trump if the issue is decided on a state-by-state basis. He lost Colorado by 13 percentage points in 2020 and does not need it to win the presidency. But Maine divides its electoral votes by congressional districts, and Trump has twice won the state’s second congressional district.

If he’s not on the ballot there, he would start his 2024 campaign down one electoral college vote.

The secretary of state’s office said it was not aware of the office previously striking a presidential candidate from the ballot, but other candidates for lower offices have been removed that way.

AP, Reuters

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World  • North America  • US Votes 2024

Who are the Republicans besides Trump running for president?

December 29, 2023 — 10.47am

Donald Trump isn’t the only Republican running for the US presidency.

While he is far and away the most popular among Republican voters, he is also the most legally conflicted. He faces four criminal trials for, among other things, alleged election subversion or the mishandling of classified documents.

Trump’s Republican rivals.  Credit: Nathan Perri

On Friday (AEDT), the state of Maine removed Trump from the state’s presidential primary ballot under the US Constitution’s insurrection clause, a move which could deprive him of a vote in the electoral college.

With American politics in an increasingly unpredictable phase, any one of the rival Republican candidates may eventually play a part in the direction of the party in 2024, or the election itself.

Nikki Haley, for example, could emerge as the moderate alternative to Trump. So who are the other Republicans running to become president in 2024?

Nikki Haley

A former South Carolina governor and Trump’s ambassador to the United Nations, Haley, 51, has emphasised her relative youth compared to Biden, 81, and Trump, as well as her background as the daughter of Indian immigrants.

Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley speaks during a town hall event in Iowa on May 17.  Credit: AP

Haley has gained a reputation in the Republican Party as a solid conservative who has the ability to address issues of gender and race in a more credible fashion than many of her peers. She has also pitched herself as a stalwart defender of American interests abroad.

She earned 12 per cent support among Republicans, according to the Reuters/Ipsos survey. In state-level polls, Haley has typically led rival Ron DeSantis in South Carolina and New Hampshire, where she has secured Governor Chris Sununu’s endorsement.

Ron DeSantis

The Florida governor has positioned himself to the right of Trump on several key social issues such as abortion, but his campaign has struggled to gain traction and he remains 50 percentage points behind the former president in the Reuters/Ipsos December poll with 11 per cent.

Republican presidential candidate Florida Governor Ron DeSantis.  Credit: AP

DeSantis, 45, has fired staff and rebooted his campaign several times, but those steps have done little to boost his candidacy. His campaign says it is focused on stopping Trump in Iowa, where the party will hold its first nominating contest in January.

He got a lift on November 6 when Iowa’s popular governor, Kim Reynolds, endorsed him, and rose slightly in a recent statewide poll.

Vivek Ramaswamy

A former biotechnology investor and executive, Ramaswamy, 38, started a company in 2022 to pressure firms to abandon environmental, social and corporate governance initiatives.

Republican presidential candidate businessman Vivek Ramaswamy.  Credit: AP

The political outsider has stoked grassroots chatter as a potential alternative to Trump but has failed to gain traction with just 7 per cent support in the Reuters/Ipsos survey.

Ramaswamy is a fervent supporter of the former president, and has drawn his rivals’ ire for his verbal attacks at candidate debates. He has also voiced support for conspiracy theories, including suggesting that Trump supporters’ January 6, 2021, attack on the US Capitol was an inside job, and has pledged to pardon Trump if elected.

Chris Christie

Christie, 61, advised Trump’s 2020 White House campaign, but became a vocal critic of the former president after the January 6 attack, and has stepped up his verbal attacks as Trump faced a growing number of criminal charges.

Former New Jersey governor Chris Christie.  Credit: AP

The former New Jersey governor and federal prosecutor has said he is increasingly convinced Trump will be convicted, and has cast himself as one of the few Republicans willing to directly take on Trump over his actions rather than appease him.

Christie saw just 2 per cent support in the latest poll.

Asa Hutchinson

The former Arkansas governor launched his bid for the White House in April, with a call for Trump to step aside to deal with the former president’s first indictment.

Former Arkansas governor Asa Hutchinson is running for president.   Credit: AP

Hutchinson, 73, has touted his experience leading his deeply conservative state as proof he can deliver on policies Republican voters care about, citing tax cuts and job creation initiatives.

Hutchinson only qualified for the first Republican debate and saw no support in the Reuters/Ipsos December poll.

Reuters

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World  • North America  • US politics

Targeted for beliefs or actions, politicians in US hit by wave of ‘swatting’

By Azi Paybarah

December 29, 2023 — 7.29am

Washington: The holidays have ushered in a rash of swatting incidents in the United States targeting politicians across the country with phony calls for help, leading heavily armed law enforcement personnel to show up at the homes of unsuspecting members of Congress and other elected officials.

The most high-profile episode came on Christmas Day, when US Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene announced on X, formerly Twitter, “I was just swatted. This is like the 8th time. On Christmas with my family here”.

Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene.  Credit: AP

Other similar episodes have followed this week in locations as varied as Cayuga County, New York, DeKalb County, Georgia, Lincoln, Nebraska, and Licking County, Ohio.

Most have targeted Republicans, but Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, a Democrat, was among those who had law enforcement investigate a matter near her home following a report of a shooting that police determined was a hoax.

These episodes are the latest in a dangerous trend of people trying to send law enforcement personnel to homes, businesses or schools by falsely claiming a violent crime is under way or just took place. (“Swatting” is derived by SWAT, the acronym for “Special Weapons and Tactics” teams, first responder units used in hostage and high-risk situations in the US.)

Lauren R. Shapiro, a professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said lawmakers may be targeted over specific legislation, or because of their more broadly held beliefs and positions.

When “someone disagrees with a person’s beliefs/statements/etc., the person made lash out by launching a harassment campaign, stalking, swatting, etc., to try to intimidate the target into silence,” Shapiro said in an email.

Another expert said high-profile episodes targeting lawmakers could spur copycats.

“People learn of those threats, and it spreads,” said Gregory H. Winger, an assistant professor focusing on cybersecurity at the University of Cincinnati’s School of International and Public Affairs.

In Greene’s case, a man in New York called a Georgia suicide hotline and falsely claimed that he had shot his girlfriend at Greene’s address. Following that episode on Christmas Day, several other lawmakers in Georgia and around the country were similarly targeted.

About an hour after Greene’s social media post, former Nebraska state senator Adam Morfeld wrote on X, “Merry Christmas to all, except for the jerk who called 911 pretending to be me claiming I was going to kill myself.”

Representative Brandon Williams also announced that day on social media that “our home was swatted this afternoon.”

The day after Christmas, “numerous” sheriff’s deputies responded to the home of Ohio state Representative Kevin D. Miller “on a false report of a shooting,” he wrote on X. The event “put several lives at risk and was a huge waste of resources”.

Several state senators in Georgia have also been targeted this week, prompting calls for state legislation to strengthen laws against swatting. Among those targeted was state Senator Clint Dixon. He was watching football with his wife on Christmas night at his Buford home when police arrived in response to a caller who said he had killed his wife and was holding someone else hostage, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

When a member of Congress is targeted by a swatting call, the US Capitol Police seeks to “work closely with our local and federal law enforcement partners,” the agency said in a statement. “To protect ongoing investigations and to minimise the risk of copy-cats, we cannot provide more details at this time.”

Swatting has been employed as an intimidation tactic for more than 15 years. In early 2008, the FBI’s website warned of the “new phenomenon of ‘Swatting,’” calling it a “much more serious twist” on the old crime of hacking into phone companies to make long-distance calls. Since then, the problem has grown in frequency and severity.

In 2017, police in Wichita fatally shot a 28-year-old man who opened the front door of the home they had been summoned to by a phony call about a hostage situation.

In 2020, a 60-year-old man in Tennessee died of a heart attack after armed police surrounded his home while responding to a false report that someone had been shot at that address.

Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer of NY.  Credit: AP

In April, US Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer called on the FBI to investigate dozens of swatting episodes aimed at schools.

In October, The Washington Post reported that over the past year, more than 500 schools in the United States had been subjected to a coordinated swatting effort, based on a review of media reports and dozens of public records requests.

One widely cited figure comes from Kevin Kolbye, a former FBI swatting expert, who told the Economist that he estimated the number of swatting episodes went from about 400 in 2011 to more than 1000 in 2019.

In the past two decades, there have probably been 20,000 swatting episodes, according Shapiro, the professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice and author of the book Cyberpredators and Their Prey. It “has been a problem for a while.”

The problem has grown as law enforcement personnel have been responding to an increasing number of mass shootings and domestic threats, according to Winger, who said swatters found a way to “weaponise police responses”.

The increased public safety challenges posed by active shooters and other assailants, plus fake calls for emergency responses, “are two sides of the same coin,” Winger said. “How do you know whether that is a real situation or somebody being swatted, because the phone call you get is often quite similar.”

Shapiro said legislation to combat swatting and train personnel how to monitor and identify it has been hindered in Congress for years.

One reason for the delay is that lawmakers who support such legislation can become victims of it, Shapiro said.

The Washington Post

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World  • Middle East  • Israeli-Palestinian conflict

Israeli strikes across Gaza kill dozens of Palestinians, even in emptied north

By Jack Jeffery, Samy Magdy and Wafaa Shurafa

December 29, 2023 — 6.42am

Deir al-Balah, Gaza Strip: Israeli forces have continued to bombard cities, towns and refugee camps across Gaza, killing dozens of people in a widening air and ground offensive against Hamas that has forced thousands more to flee from homes and shelters in recent days.

Much of northern Gaza has been levelled, and it has been largely depopulated and isolated from the rest of the territory for weeks. Many fear a similar fate awaits the south as Israel expands its offensive to most of the tiny enclave.

People inspect damage to their homes caused by Israeli air strikes on December in Rafah, Gaza.   Credit: Getty

Israeli soldiers stand on top of armoured personnel carriers (APC) near the Israeli-Gaza border.  Credit: AP

An Israeli airstrike on a home in the northern town of Beit Lahiyeh — one of the first targets of the ground invasion that began in October — buried at least 21 people, including women and children, according to a family member.

Bassel Kheir al-Din, a journalist with a local TV station, said the strike flattened his family house and severely damaged three neighbouring homes. He said 12 members of his family — including three children ages 2, 7 and 8 — were buried and presumed dead, and that nine neighbours were missing.

In central Gaza, Israeli warplanes and artillery pounded the built-up Bureij and Nuseirat refugee camps, levelling buildings, residents said. Israel said this week it would expand its ground offensive into central Gaza. The Israeli military typically launches waves of airstrikes and shelling before troops and tanks move in.

A hospital in the nearby town of Deir al-Balah received the bodies of 25 people killed overnight, including five children and seven women, hospital records showed Thursday. Nonstop explosions could be heard throughout the night in the town where hundreds of thousands of people have sought shelter, with many spending cold nights sleeping on sidewalks.

“It was another night of killing and massacres,” said Saeed Moustafa, a resident of the Nuseirat camp. He said people were still crying out from the rubble of a house hit Wednesday by an airstrike.

“We are unable to get them out. We hear their screams, but we don’t have equipment,” he said.

Farther south, in Khan Younis, the Palestinian Red Crescent said a strike near its Al-Amal Hospital killed at least 10 people and wounded another 12. Much of the city’s population has left, but many are sheltering near Al-Amal and another hospital, hoping they will be spared from the bombardment.

A strike on Thursday evening destroyed a residential building in the town of Rafah, at the southernmost end of Gaza, killing at least 18 people, doctors at the nearby Al-Kuwaiti Hospital said.

Rami Abu Mosab, who lives in the Bureij refugee camp, said thousands of people have fled their homes in recent days because of the intense bombardment. He plans to remain there because nowhere in Gaza is safe.

“Here is death and there is death,” he said, “To die in your home is better.”

The war has already killed more than 20,000 Palestinians and driven around 85 per cent of the population of 2.3 million from their homes.

Israel has vowed to dismantle Hamas — which is still putting up stiff resistance, even in the north — and bring back more than 100 hostages still held by the militants after their October 7 attack into southern Israel, in which some 1200 people, mostly civilians, were killed.

Israeli officials have brushed off international calls for a ceasefire, saying it would amount to a victory for Hamas.

The United States — while providing crucial support for the offensive — has urged Israel to take greater measures to spare civilians and allow in more aid.

But humanitarian workers say the amount of food, fuel and medical supplies entering is still far below what is needed, and 1 in 4 Palestinians in Gaza is starving, according to UN officials.

Another wave of displacement

Bureij and Nuseirat are among several camps across the region that were built to house hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees from the 1948 war surrounding Israel’s creation. They have since grown into crowded residential neighbourhoods.

Palestinian citizens inspect the effects of destruction caused by air strikes on their homes in the Khuza’a area in Khan Younis, Gaza.   Credit: Getty

Some 700,000 Palestinians fled or were driven from their homes during that conflict, an exodus the Palestinians refer to as the Nakba, or catastrophe. Some 1.9 million have been displaced within Gaza since October 7.

As Israel has broadened its offensive, fleeing Palestinians have packed into areas along the Egyptian border and the southern Mediterranean coastline, where shelters and tent camps are overflowing. Even in those areas, Israel continues to strike what it says are militant targets.

The UN humanitarian office said the scale and intensity of the fighting impedes its aid deliveries. The office, known as OCHA, cited blocked roads, a scarcity of fuel and telecommunications blackouts as some of the obstacles hampering the humanitarian response.

Still, it said the UN World Food Program provided food parcels to about a half-million people in UN shelters in southern and central Gaza since Saturday.

The Israeli military blames the high civilian death toll on Hamas, which positions fighters, tunnels and rocket launchers in dense residential areas. But the military rarely comments on individual strikes.

Israel’s offensive in Gaza has already been one of the most devastating military campaigns in recent history. More than 21,300 Palestinians, most of them women and children, have been killed, according to the Health Ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza. Another 55,600 have been wounded, it says. Those counts do not differentiate between civilians and combatants.

The military says it has killed thousands of militants, without presenting evidence, and that 167 of its soldiers have been killed and hundreds wounded in the ground offensive.

AP

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World  • North America  • US Votes 2024

Nikki Haley fails to mention slavery when asked about cause of US Civil War

By Gram Slattery

December 29, 2023 — 5.39am

Washington: Republican presidential contender Nikki Haley declined on Wednesday night to say that slavery was one of the main reasons for the US Civil War, an omission she corrected later, but not before drawing rebukes from Democrats and some of her opponents.

Haley, who is vying to be her party’s nominee in the 2024 presidential election, was asked by an audience member at a town hall in northern New Hampshire what she believed to be the cause of the Civil War, according to an exchange captured by CNN and several other media outlets.

Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley.  Credit: AP

In response, Haley first paused, and said: “Well, don’t come at me with an easy question.”

She then added: “I mean, I think the cause of the Civil War was basically how government was going to run, what you could and couldn’t do, the freedoms in what people could and couldn’t do.”

After some back and forth, the man who asked the question responded: “In the year 2023, it’s astonishing to me that you answer that question without mentioning the word ‘slavery’.”

There is broad consensus among scholars that slavery was the main cause of the war, which occurred between 1861 and 1865. The Southern states, which seceded, opposed attempts by Northern states to limit the institution of slavery, particularly in western territories.

On Thursday morning, Haley sought to walk back her comments on The Pulse of NH, a radio show.

“Of course the Civil War was about slavery, that’s the easy part,” she said. “Yes, I know it was about slavery. I am from the South.”

Haley made similar comments pointing to slavery as the cause of the Civil War during another town hall in New Hampshire later on Thursday (Washington time).

It is unclear whether the incident will have any impact on the race, but Haley’s opponents were quick to criticise her, and her original comments are unlikely to help in New Hampshire, whose residents fought against slavery.

Democratic President Joe Biden posted a video of Haley’s exchange on social media with the caption: “It was about slavery”.

The press secretary for Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, another Republican presidential contender, pointed to critical comments by a number of DeSantis advisers on X.

“If Nikki Haley can’t answer this basic political 101 question and then it takes her over 12 hrs to sloppily attempt to clean it up, she just isn’t ready for the bright lights of the nomination process,” wrote senior DeSantis adviser David Polyansky.

A representative for former president Donald Trump, the frontrunner for the Republican nomination, did not respond to a request for comment.

Haley, like many public officials from the US South, has a history of defending aspects of the Confederacy, as the states that seceded are known. She served as governor of South Carolina, the first state to secede, from 2011 to 2017.

Haley said in 2010 that the state had a right to secede. In 2015, she signed a bill into law removing the Confederate battle flag from the grounds of the state capitol following the murder of nine Black churchgoers by white supremacist Dylann Roof.

She was later criticised by some elected officials for describing that flag as a symbol of “heritage” for some Southerners.

Trump himself has been accused of downplaying the historical legacy of slavery in the United States.

At a 2020 event marking the 223rd anniversary of the signing of the US Constitution, he argued that America’s founding “set in motion the unstoppable chain of events that abolished slavery, secured civil rights, defeated communism and fascism and built the most fair, equal and prosperous nation in human history”.

But he did not mention the two centuries of slavery in America.

Issues surrounding the origins of the Civil War and its heritage are still much of the fabric of Haley’s home state of South Carolina, and she has been pressed on the war’s origins before.

As she ran for governor in 2010, Haley, in an interview with a now-defunct activist group then known as the Palmetto Patriots, described the war as between two disparate sides fighting for “tradition” and “change” and said the Confederate flag was “not something that is racist”.

The Confederate flag is understood by many to be a racist symbol.  Credit: AP

Trump is winning the Republican presidential nominating contest with 61 per cent support, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll conducted earlier in December, while Haley and DeSantis are tied with 11 per cent.

Haley is performing significantly better in New Hampshire, which is the second state after Iowa to select a preferred Republican nominee. She has about 25 per cent support there, according to polling averages.

Reuters, AP

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National

- Home Affairs flags probe of St Vincent’s cybersecurity after Christmas hack

National  • Victoria  • Cyber security

Home Affairs flags probe of St Vincent’s cybersecurity after Christmas hack

By Rachael Dexter and Angus Thomson

December 29, 2023 — 7.00pm

St Vincent’s Health could be fined over the Christmas data hack if Home Affairs finds it failed to meet international cyber safety standards, as the Melbourne and Sydney hospitals are considered critical infrastructure.

A week after the theft of the data was discovered, the nation’s largest not-for-profit operator of aged care homes and hospitals is unable to say if patient data has been compromised, admitting in a statement released on Friday that while there was no evidence personal information had been stolen, they were still trying to work out what data had been stolen by cybercriminals.

St Vincent’s Hospital in Sydney.  Credit: Peter Rae

A Home Affairs spokesperson on Friday said its Cyber and Infrastructure Security Centre “may choose to undertake regulatory investigations into this incident” once initial investigations were completed.

“Critical infrastructure entities with the Risk Management Program requirements are required to have a Risk Management Program in place already, including covering cyber risks,” the spokesperson said.

The discovery of the breach of the network’s defences came just one month after the federal government’s own long-awaited cybersecurity strategywarned the health care sector’s cyber defence systems were alarmingly unsophisticated.

“Our hospitals and general practitioners hold some of the most sensitive data about Australians and their families. However, the health sector also has one of the lowest cyber maturities across industry,” the report read.

A newly released study from global cybersecurity firm Proofpoint this month also found that over a third of Australia’s top-ranked private and public hospitals were failing on basic cybersecurity measures.

Several major public hospitals are listed as critical infrastructure under federal legislation- alongside other services designated essential for everyday life, such as energy, food, water, transport and communications companies.

A spokesperson for the hospital said it had a risk management plan in place as required by the regulator.

Two sources with knowledge of the investigation, who were not authorised to speak publicly, said between one to two gigabytes of data was stolen.

On Friday, the hospital network briefed its 30,000 staff and issued a public statement saying it had not detected any evidence that personal information was among the trove of copied data.

“Our experts are working around the clock to ascertain the contents of the data copied and stolen from us. This is a complex and highly technical activity,” the statement read.

“Should we discover that any sensitive data has been stolen by cyber criminals, we will do all we can to contact those affected and give them information about the steps they can take to protect themselves and support them through that process.”

The federal government, which is working with St Vincent’s and cybersecurity consultants CyberCX on the investigation, also confirmed it was yet to receive any “notifications” that personal data had been stolen.

“With cyber incidents like these across a large network of many different systems, it often takes some time to confidently ascertain how the incident occurred, what the threat actor did, what systems they accessed and what was taken,” said acting national cybersecurity coordinator, Hamish Hansford.

Cyber Security Cooperative Research Centre chief executive Rachael Falk said that hospitals are custodians of “extremely sensitive data” and it was incumbent upon them to keep up with the latest standards set by the regulator.

“It’s another sobering reminder that we end 2023 with yet another data breach,” she said. “In particular, hospitals need to be on notice, and they need to [ask]: ‘have we got our cybersecurity settings right? Are we doing everything necessary to protect valuable patient data?’”

The federal opposition has seized on the government for a perceived lack of transparency and urgency over the data breach, which this masthead first revealed on December 22.

On Friday, shadow minister for health Senator Anne Ruston and shadow minister for home affairs James Paterson issued a joint statement stating it was “baffling” that neither Health Minister Mark Butler nor Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil had commented on the matter, leaving it to acting ministers to make public statements on the hack.

”Australians are rightly concerned about their privacy, especially with regard to personal health records,” they said. “The Albanese government must demonstrate to the Australian public that they are taking this matter seriously by being transparent about what they know and what they are doing.”

Butler and O’Neil are on leave.

The health provider said that it first “began responding to a cybersecurity incident” on December 19, but it was not until December 21 that St Vincent’s found that data had been removed from its network, according to the statement.

No cyber criminal activity has been detected on the network since December 20, a spokesperson said.

St Vincent’s operates hospitals across NSW, Victoria and Queensland, including three public and 10 private hospitals and 26 aged care facilities.

The health provider has stressed the hack has not affected its ability to run its hospitals or aged care facilities.

The attack is the latest data breach to hit a major Australian company, with Optus and Medibank suffering cyber incidents in late 2022, while major ports operator DP World Australia shut down its terminals last month after a major cybersecurity attack.

St Vincent’s has set up a dedicated support line for affected patients on 1300 124 507, as well as a dedicated email address stvincentscybersafety@svha.org.au

Cut through the noise of federal politics with news, views and expert analysis. Subscribers can sign up to our weekly Inside Politics newsletter.

Rachael Dexter is a City reporter for The Age, previously with The Sunday Age.Connect via Twitter, Facebook or email.

Angus Thomson is a reporter covering health at the Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via Twitter or email.

Business

- ASX slips on last trading session of the year, but local bourse records strongest annual gains since 2021

- The late-night email to Tim Cook that set the Apple Watch saga in motion

- L’Oreal heiress Francoise Bettencourt Meyers becomes first woman with $US100 billion fortune

- Costs stack up as payments go digital, but some insist we’ll never go cashless

- Buy now, pay later companies commit to better access to hardship support schemes

Updated

• Business  • Markets  • Shares

ASX slips on last trading session of the year, but local bourse records strongest annual gains since 2021

By Sumeyya Ilanbey

Updated December 29, 2023 — 5.35pmfirst published at 11.50am

The Australian sharemarket ended the final trading session of 2023 in a slump after the price of oil, iron and gold fell overnight, but the local bourse rallied 8 per cent this year predominantly on the back of strong growth over the past two months.

The S&P/ASX200 has had its best annual return since 2021, closing at 7590.8 on Friday. It slipped 23.5 points, or 0.3 per cent, snapping a two-day rally. The benchmark is within 40 points of a record high set in August 2021.

Iron ore heavyweights slipped after overnight falls in the price of the steel commodity.  Credit: Wayne Taylor

Eightcap market analyst Zoran Kresovic said despite Friday’s slip, the local bourse had done “exceptionally, exceptionally” well.

“The market closed off slightly for a couple of different factors: we’ve had a strong run over the last couple of weeks and given it’s the last day, there have been a lot less participants in the market,” Kresovic said.

“There’s a bit of profit taking purely on the basis that people are trying to balance their books, and the price of crude oil and iron pulled back.”

He expected the ASX to pass its peak in mid-January as institutional investors returned from their summer break.

On Friday, only communication services (up 0.13 per cent) and utilities (up 0.56 per cent) stocks finished the day in the green, with energy (down 0.88 per cent) and mining (down 0.56 per cent) stocks falling the sharpest.

Energy giants Woodside (down 1.1 per cent), Santos (down 0.9 per cent) and Ampol (down 0.3 per cent) all fell after the price of Brent crude slipped 1.4 per cent overnight to $US75.80 a barrel, as more shipping companies said they were ready to transit the Red Sea route.

Iron ore heavyweights BHP (down 0.6 per cent), Fortescue (down 0.4 per cent) and Rio Tinto (down 0.5 per cent) declined after overnight falls in the price of the steel commodity, which was trading 1.8 per cent lower at $US138.70 a tonne.

Gold miner Newmont Corporation also tumbled 2.6 per cent after the price of spot gold slipped 0.3 per cent to $US2072.25 an ounce at 1.49pm in New York.

Origin Energy recorded the sharpest increase among large-cap stocks after its shares lifted 1 per cent, followed by James Hardie Industries (up 0.9 per cent) and Insurance Australia (up 0.7 per cent.

On the flipside, Newmont Corporation was the weakest large-cap stock, followed by Meridian Energy (down 1.9 per cent), Mercury NZ (down 1.8 per cent) and GQG Partners (down 1.7 per cent).

World shares edged up on Thursday as expectations of interest rate cuts stretched a rally in US stocks, while benchmark Treasury yields and the dollar lifted slightly from five-month lows.

On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.14 per cent, while the Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500 were little changed. The S&P index has climbed 11.6 per cent this quarter and closed within a whisker of its all-time closing peak, while its price-to-earnings ratio is up by a quarter on the year at 24.0.

The MSCI world equity index, which tracks shares in 47 countries, gained 0.08 per cent. European shares ticked down, but stood near a 23-month high hit two weeks ago and were on course for gains of about 12.5 per cent this year.

“Right now, we really do not want to step in front of Santa’s gift-laden sleigh,” Scott Wren, senior global market strategist at Wells Fargo Investment Institute, wrote in a note Thursday. “It appears the rally could very well put the S&P 500 Index at or very near an all-time record high as we close out the year.”

Still, Wren said the market “will struggle to post meaningful gains in the first part of the year while the economy continues to slow”.

The number of Americans filing initial claims for unemployment benefits rose last week, according to data released on Thursday (Washington time), indicating the labor market continues to cool in the year’s fourth quarter.

“Claims data have told a consistent story in recent months of slowing hiring, but still limited layoffs,” Citi analysts wrote in a note.

Even so, investors have ramped up bets on rapid-fire rate cuts next year from the US Federal Reserve.

“The rapid decline in inflation is likely to lead the Fed to cut early and fast to reset the policy rate from a level that most participants will likely soon see as far offside,” analysts at Goldman Sachs wrote in a note.

“We expect three consecutive 25-basis point cuts in March, May, and June, followed by one cut per quarter until the funds rate reaches 3.25-3.5 per cent in 2025 Q3. Our forecast implies five cuts in 2024 and 3 more cuts in 2025,” Goldman Sachs said.

Earlier, MSCI’s broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside of Japan added 1.4 per cent, boosted by gains in Chinese stocks. The index is up about 7.4 per cent this quarter.

People commuting by bicycle ride past a construction site during rush hour in Beijing.  Credit: Getty

Yields on 10-year Treasury notes stood at 3.844 per cent, slightly up on the day after hitting a five-month low overnight. The two-year yield ticked back up on the day to 4.275 per cent, having been as high as 5.295 per cent as recently as October.

The lower levels, while consistent with the overall trend, were helped by robust demand at a five-year Treasury auction.

with Reuters

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Sumeyya Ilanbey is a business journalist for The Age and Sydney Morning HeraldConnect via Twitter or email.

Business  • Companies  • Wearables

The late-night email to Tim Cook that set the Apple Watch saga in motion

By Mark Gurman

December 29, 2023 — 3.00pm

At about 1am California time in 2013, a scientist emailed Apple chief executive officer Tim Cook with an irresistible pitch.

“I strongly believe that we can develop the new wave of technology that will make Apple the No. 1 brand in the medical, fitness and wellness market,” he wrote in the email, which was later included in legal documents. Some 10 hours after the message was sent, an Apple recruiter was in touch. And just weeks after that, the engineer was working at the tech company on a smartwatch with health sensors.

Tim Cook, chief executive officer of Apple.  Credit: Bloomberg

A flurry of activity began. Within a few months at Apple, the employee asked the company to file about a dozen patents related to sensors and algorithms for determining a person’s blood-oxygen level from a wearable device. But this wasn’t just any engineer. He had been the chief technical officer of Cercacor Laboratories, the sister company of Masimo, which went on to get the US to ban the Apple Watch.

Apple’s decision to hire this technical whiz – a Stanford engineering PhD named Marcelo Lamego – is seen as the spark that sent Masimo’s lawyers after Apple. While the iPhone maker denies it did anything wrong, Masimo cited the poaching of employees as part of claims that the iPhone maker infringed its patents.

The dispute culminated this month in Apple having to pull its latest watches from the company’s US stores, hobbling a business that generates roughly $US17 billion in annual sales. A US appellate court on Wednesday temporarily halted the ban on sales of the Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2. The company responded by putting the products back on shelves in some of its US retail stores on Wednesday, with online sales to resume on Thursday (Washington time).

Masimo, a relatively obscure maker of medical devices based in Irvine, California, argues that Lamego seized its prized asset – the ability to non-invasively and accurately capture the level of oxygen in a person’s blood – and took it to Apple. The feature ultimately helped turn the watch into more of a health device, solidifying its status as the wearable industry’s best-selling product.

Lamego joined Masimo in 2003 as a research scientist before becoming Cercacor’s tech chief around 2006. Cercacor was a spin-off of Masimo, and both companies are run by CEO Joe Kiani, who helped invent much of their core technology.

Lawyers for Masimo say that Lamego lacked prior knowledge about how to develop the blood-oxygen feature (his previous studies were about neural interfaces rather than health sensors). He learned how to build the technology at Kiani’s companies and delivered it to Apple, they say.

Lamego then resigned from Apple in July 2014, just months after joining. Masimo argues that he left after Apple got what it needed. The reality, according to longtime Apple executive Steve Hotelling, is that Lamego didn’t fit in at the company. He clashed with managers, demanded multimillion-dollar budgets and wanted the ability to hire his own engineers without approval, Hotelling said in a deposition that was part of a court fight between the companies. After weeks of discussions, Lamego left Apple.

The first Apple Watch was announced three months later, in September 2014. It didn’t have the blood-oxygen sensor and instead relied on more basic technologies, such as a pulse reader.

Apple first approached Lamego to join about a year before his email to Cook. The overture happened around the time executives from Apple and Masimo met in 2013, a moment that has become another focal point in the dispute between the two companies. Lamego declined to join Apple at the time, but his tune changed after Kiani refused to make him the chief technology officer of Masimo as well, lawyers for the medical company argue.

When Apple met with Masimo, it was seeking technology and talent that could bolster its work on the watch. At the time, Masimo believed Apple was interested in doing a deal. The company alleged in a 2020 lawsuit that Apple used the meeting to instead learn about its technology and lay the groundwork for hiring its people. In addition to enlisting Lamego, Apple hired Masimo’s former chief medical officer and about 20 other staffers, the medical device company said. Masimo failed to convince a jury of its claims this year.

While the Lamego email was a key piece of evidence for Masimo’s lawyers, the effort didn’t make much headway with the judge after a senior Apple engineer testified that development of the blood-oxygen feature started in late 2014 – after Lamego had already left. Further, the judge threw out parts of the case relating to Apple’s practice of hiring Masimo employees, saying that “recruiting or hiring employees from another company, including from a competitor, does not on its own constitute improper means”. The judge also dismissed the idea that Apple stole trade secrets and a jury sided with Apple six-to-one.

After his stint at Apple, Lamego ended up starting his own company, True Wearables. In 2016, he released a device called the Oxxiom, which he called the world’s first continuous and disposable blood-oxygen sensor. Masimo sued the start-up and won a court order blocking it from selling the product. Lamego didn’t respond to requests for comment.

Masimo accuses Apple of stealing trade secrets and improperly using its inventions for health monitoring in the Apple Watch.

When Masimo filed its initial lawsuit, Apple hadn’t yet brought a blood-oxygen sensor to market. But eight months later, the Apple Watch Series 6 was introduced with the feature – known in the industry as pulse oximetry – as its key new addition. That led Masimo to file a separate complaint with the US International Trade Commission in 2021 alleging that the feature infringed its patents.

The ITC concurred in October and ordered Apple to remove infringing models from the US, including the current Series 9 and Ultra 2. That prohibition took effect this week after the White House declined to intervene.

Apple said it strongly disagreed with the ITC decision and was “taking all measures to return Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 to customers in the US as soon as possible”. A representative for Masimo declined to comment. Wednesday’s ruling by an appeals court in Washington paused the ITC’s ban while Apple seeks a longer stay.

Blood oxygen is frequently called the fifth vital sign. A proper level of oxygen saturation – the percentage of oxygen floating in one’s bloodstream compared with the maximum it could be – is a requirement for functions such as breathing, moving and thinking. It has long been one of the first diagnostics when a patient arrives at a hospital or doctor’s office. And the measurement became key at the height of the COVID pandemic, when doctors said that a reading under 95 per cent could suggest a person was struggling to breathe due to the virus.

Apple argues that Masimo sued it to clear the field for its own consumer-focused wearables. Masimo recently released the W1, a square smartwatch with an array of health sensors. And it’s planning to soon release the Freedom watch, which has more health capabilities and a round, more modern-looking design. In an attempt to reach more consumers, it acquired Sound United, owner of speaker maker Bowers & Wilkins, for more than $US1 billion last year.

Apple countersued Masimo in 2022, saying that the W1 took the design of the Apple Watch. “Masimo copied from Apple Watch and is freeriding on Apple’s hard work,” the company said.

Kiani said earlier this month that Apple should have done things differently.

“They didn’t have to steal our people — we could have worked with them,” he said. “These guys have been caught with their hands in the cookie jar, and — instead of being embarrassed and doing the right thing — they’re blaming everybody and fighting everybody.”

Kiani said that Apple executives once called him the “Steve Jobs of healthcare”. “Maybe it’s time they think different,” he said.

Masimo is a fixture in hospitals. Its equipment for tracking blood oxygen, blood management and other measures is used on more than 200 million patients a year, the company says. But part of its revenue over the past two decades has stemmed from lawsuits against medical device competitors, including Royal Philips NV, that turned into settlements or licensing agreements.

Kiani migrated from Iran when he was nine and started Masimo in 1989, five years after the original Mac went on sale. While his company now has thousands of workers globally, a market valuation of $US6 billion and annual revenue of about $US2 billion, Kiani says Masimo started as an underdog just like Apple. He says he took out a second mortgage in his 20s to fund development of the start-up in his garage. Though there was already medical gear to monitor blood oxygen, Kiani’s breakthrough was tracking it during movement or on people with weak pulses – key features for mass-market wearable devices.

He’s also friends with US President Joe Biden, one person who could have stopped the Apple Watch sales ban. The White House has the ability to veto import bans to the US, a power it has rarely used. One case came in 2013, when former president Barack Obama overturned an iPhone ban spurred by a patent dispute with Samsung Electronics. But that was an easier move politically: it involved picking a homegrown American company over a South Korean competitor. The headquarters of Apple and Masimo are both in California.

Masimo’s goal, people close to the matter say, was for the trade commission to impose its ban in the summer. That would have probably led Apple to delay the release of its new models, which are typically unveiled in September, and wiped out the holiday season. Instead, the ban only affected about a week of sales in Apple’s December quarter. It also only applied to Apple’s own stores; outside retailers like Best Buy could still sell the watches – at least until their inventory ran out.

And Apple believes it’s well on its way to a fix apart from its appeal of the trade commission ruling. The company had engineers race to change the software algorithms and presentation of its blood-oxygen app to sidestep Kiani’s claims. It’s now up to the US customs agency to determine if those tweaks are sufficient to allow the smartwatches back on the market. A decision is expected on January 12.

For his part, Kiani doesn’t believe a software fix will resolve a dispute that involves hardware patents. “I don’t think that could work,” he said.

In any case, Kiani and Masimo have gone further than anyone before them. Many companies have made arguments that Apple has stolen their technology and poached staff, putting them out of business or sending them into bankruptcy. But they’ve rarely gotten much traction.

The Apple Watch Ultra 2.  Credit: Bloomberg

A further mark of success for Kiani would be a settlement, which would bring a payday but also vindication. Masimo’s website touts all the companies that license its technology and adding Apple to that list would be a triumph. It also would give Masimo marketing muscle for promoting its own products. Apple says it has held mediation talks with Masimo and that it expects to hold more.

In its earlier suit, which ended with a deadlocked jury, Masimo wanted Apple to pay more than US$3 billion in damages. Kiani isn’t saying how much money it would take to reach a licensing agreement now. But he does plan to insist on one concession: “There needs to be an apology.” If that doesn’t happen, the two companies are scheduled to return to court – again over patents – in late October.

Bloomberg

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Business  • Companies  • Billionaires

L’Oreal heiress Francoise Bettencourt Meyers becomes first woman with $US100 billion fortune

By Tara Patel

December 29, 2023 — 1.30pm

Francoise Bettencourt Meyers has become the first woman to amass a $US100 billion ($146 billion) fortune, marking another milestone for the heiress and for France’s expanding fashion and cosmetics industries.

Her wealth jumped to $US100.1 billion on Thursday, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. The milestone came as shares of L’Oreal, the beauty products empire founded by her grandfather, rose to a record high, with the stock set for its best year since 1998. She’s the 12th-richest person in the world, just behind Mexico’s Carlos Slim.

Francoise Bettencourt Meyers is the 12th-richest person in the world, just behind Mexico’s Carlos Slim.  Credit: Getty Images

Despite the gain, Bettencourt Meyers’ fortune is still significantly less than that of French compatriot Bernard Arnault, founder of luxury goods purveyor LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton, who is second in the global ranking with $US179 billion.

France’s growing domination of luxury retail has spawned several other ultra-rich families, including the clan behind Hermes International, who have amassed Europe’s largest family fortune, and the Wertheimer brothers, who own Chanel.

The reclusive Bettencourt Meyers, 70, is vice-chair of the board of L’Oreal, a globe-spanning €241 billion ($390 billion) company in which she and her family are the single biggest shareholders with a stake of nearly 35 per cent. Her sons, Jean-Victor Meyers and Nicolas Meyers, are also directors. The firm was founded in 1909 by Bettencourt Meyers’ chemist grandfather, Eugene Schueller, to produce and sell a hair dye he had developed. It has been run by executives from outside the family for decades.

Bettencourt Meyers keeps her life private, shunning the glitzy social life sought by many of the world’s wealthy. She has written two books – a five-volume study of the Bible and a genealogy of the Greek gods – and is known for playing piano for hours every day.

As an only child, Bettencourt Meyers came into her wealth following the 2017 death of her mother, Liliane Bettencourt, with whom she had an at times contentious relationship. A legal battle in the aughts grew from a family feud to a political scandal that centred on whether the elderly mother was fit to manage the family’s wealth.

Last month, Netflix came out with a three-part documentary relating the saga, L’Affaire Bettencourt, which featured a former French president and secret recordings made by a butler.

L’Oreal grew rapidly in the decade leading up to the pandemic, but took a hit when people in lockdown used less make-up. That was followed by a rapid rebound as consumers splurged on luxury items, sending the shares up 35 per cent this year.

Liliane Bettencourt, left, oversaw the transformation of L’Oreal into the world’s biggest beauty company. When she died, her daughter Francoise Bettencourt Meyers, right, became the world’s richest woman.  Credit: AP

The company’s stock could rise another 12 per cent over the next year as its product and geographic diversity shows resilience, according to Consumer Edge Research analyst Brett Cooper.

Bettencourt Meyers also chairs her family’s holding company, Tethys, which has the L’Oreal stake. Her husband, Jean-Pierre Meyers, is chief executive. In 2016, the two set up the subsidiary Tethys Invest, which bets on areas that don’t compete with the company.

With the stated intention of making “direct long-term investments in entrepreneurial projects”, the CEO of Tethys Invest is Alexandre Benais, a former Lazard investment banker.

Tethys Invest recently acquired a stake in French insurance broker April Group. Last year, it bought into decade-old fashion brand Sezane, and has also invested in French private hospital operator Elsan. The firm is partly funded by L’Oreal dividends.

Bloomberg

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Cash

Costs stack up as payments go digital, but some insist we’ll never go cashless

By Millie Muroi

December 29, 2023

Carrying cash is fast becoming a relic of the past. While some argue it should be kept alive as a payment method, others think keeping it around will only prolong economic pain.

In December, Reserve Bank governor Michele Bullock warned that the collapse in the use of cash was putting strain on the entire payment system as the share of payments made with physical money shrank from 70 per cent in 2007 to 13 per cent last year, as consumers switched to digital payments.

The Reserve Bank, which is responsible for issuing banknotes, signalled this month that it would ensure Australians could continue to access cash.  Credit: Erin Jonasson

Days later, Treasurer Jim Chalmers vowed to keep banknotes in circulation, saying it was an obligation to make sure those who wanted to access cash – especially in the regions – would be able to do so if they wanted. Even so, some of the country’s biggest banks are highlighting the growing cost to business – and banks – of cash payments.

In an interview with this masthead, NAB business banking executive Julie Rynski said she believed a cashless society is coming – and that while businesses were incurring fees for accepting card payments, it was mostly being passed on to consumers.

Rynski also said it was a way for some businesses to improve the efficiency of their operations. “If you think about their end of day, they don’t have to worry about counting their cash or going to the bank,” she said.

While stores holding less cash on site could deter criminals looking to rob a business, Rynski said it also sharpened the banks’ focus on cybersecurity as criminals followed the money into the digital realm.

From 2022 to 2023, the total value of cash in circulation fell to $1.1 billion, dropping for the first time since 1966 when Australia moved from pounds to dollars. At the same time, banks and other companies receive thousands of cyberattacks per minute from criminals looking to compromise data and penetrate the digital vault of businesses.

Cash has become increasingly difficult to access with companies removing ATMs or banks phasing out cash from their branches.

Convenience chain 7-Eleven, which has had ATMs across most of its stores in the past, said in December that it would phase out ATMs (but it will continue to offer cash across the counter). And this year, Macquarie Bank – which has three branches across Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane – said customers would no longer be able to deposit cash, though would still be able to withdraw cash.

While some people still carry cash in their pockets its usage is on the decline, according to NAB chief executive Ross McEwan. “99 per cent of our transactions now are completely cashless, it’s all electronic,” he said. “Across the counter, it’s just dropped like a stone, it’s dropping at about 16 to 20 per cent a year and has been for the last five to six years.”

However, McEwan said there would always be a place for cash in society. “It’s not cashless – it’s less cash,” he said.

Proponents of cash argue that it plays an important role for vulnerable people including family violence survivors who may seek the anonymity that comes with cash payments or lack access to phones, debit cards or the internet.

The Reserve Bank, which not only oversees monetary policy but is also responsible for the nation’s payments system and issuing banknotes, signalled this month that it would ensure Australians could continue to access cash.

Bullock, the RBA governor, said that despite the decline in cash usage, it continued to be an important means of payment for some people and a precautionary store of wealth for others. It was also an important back-up method of payment during system outages or natural disasters, she said.

“The RBA places a high priority on the community continuing to have reasonable access to cash withdrawal and deposit services,” Bullock said.

While the distance people need to travel to access cash services hasn’t changed substantially in the past few years, the RBA governor said this may not be the case in future as the cost of providing cash services increased.

ANZ’s managing director of customer engagement, Katherine Bray, said that while there was continued cash dependency among small businesses in particular, the cost of moving cash around was becoming prohibitively expensive.

“As the cost of cash increases, and the volume very rapidly decreases, we will reach a sort of nexus on this,” she said.

In June, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission gave the green light for the tie-up of two of the country’s biggest cash transporters – Armaguard and Prosegur – creating a near monopoly.

This came as the two companies said they were operating at a loss and the competition watchdog found the industry was in structural decline, raising the risk of a “rapid exit” by either of the two suppliers, which would reduce the availability of cash.

In late November, banks said they had been advised by Armaguard that its viability was being put at risk by the rapid decline in cash usage, prompting emergency talks between the banks, the Reserve Bank and the federal Treasury.

The banks say that if Armaguard exits the market, it could reduce the availability of cash to banks and other businesses.

Bray from ANZ said it was a polarising topic “because there’s so much of the community that’s so far past [cash], they’re not really sure why it’s a conversation, but for other smaller parts of the community, they feel like they are being left behind”.

Australia has rapidly taken up digital payments, but countries such as Sweden have taken a step further. In March, cash became no longer accepted as a means of payment in Sweden after the passage of a law that enabled merchants to make customers pay electronically.

While Bray thinks the natural run-off of cash in Australia appears to be some time down the track, she said there would probably be some form of intervention to bring cash to an end earlier as had been the case in other markets.

“I don’t think [cash] gets to run off naturally,” she said. “I would expect there to be interventions, as we’ve seen with cheques, and as we’ve seen in other geographies on cash, to expedite the process.”

The Business Briefing newsletter delivers major stories, exclusive coverage and expert opinion. Sign up to get it every weekday morning.

Millie Muroi is a business reporter at The Sydney Morning Herald covering banks, financial services and markets.Connect via Twitter or email.

Business  • Banking & finance  • BNPL

Buy now, pay later companies commit to better access to hardship support schemes

By Sumeyya Ilanbey

December 29, 2023 — 5.00am

Buy now, pay later companies have committed to improving access to hardship support schemes and proactively supporting vulnerable customers who are in a debt spiral and struggling to repay their loans.

The Australian Finance Industry Association, which represents buy now, pay later (BNPL) operators, has released interim guidelines to protect customers ahead of the federal government’s intended regulation of the popular short-term loans.

The Australian Finance Industry Association has released interim guidelines to protect customers ahead of the federal government’s intended regulation of the popular short-term loans.  Credit: Louie Douvis

The changes have been triggered by an independent review that said the new code should encourage BNPL firms, such as AfterPay and ZipPay, to be more proactive in dealing with financial hardship, and it should “introduce specific and clear commitments to assist people experiencing vulnerabilities”.

The interim guideline requires operators to promote the use of new digital tools to identify suspicious activity; increase their communication with customers; improve training programs for staff to identify and support vulnerable customers; and better promote their complaints processes.

“During the Christmas period, the pressure on finances can increase, adding to the cost of living pressures impacting many Australians,” Australian Finance Industry Association chief Diane Tate said.

“More than 6.3 million Australians now use BNPL products because it helps them budget, they don’t get charged interest and it is an easy-to-use digital technology. In an environment where cost of living pressures are increasing on many consumers, it is important they have access to the right product that meets their needs.”

Earlier this year, the association released an independent review of the industry’s code of practice that made 51 recommendations, with several of those focused on BNPL firms’ dealings with vulnerable customers, after consumer groups said the products were commonly used by people who could be disadvantaged, including those on low incomes.

The review, by consultancy Promontory, however, did not deal with the highly contested issue of whether customers should be subject to thorough affordability checks.

BNPL products are short-term instalment loans that compete with credit cards, but because they are not technically credit under the law, they can be approved without a credit check. The federal government said there were about 7 million active accounts in Australia, with the average consumer using it for 18 transactions a year with an average transaction amount of $136.

“The industry is asking for customers who are feeling financially stressed or experiencing a change in their personal circumstances to let the BNPL provider know,” Tate said.

“We really encourage people to speak up. And we are making sure the industry is doing as much as they can, whether they see a change in payment patterns, to identify what’s going on and what support they can provide.”

New laws to regulate BNPL providers have been delayed, but Financial Services Minister Stephen Jones last month told the Australian Financial Review the government still intended to bring the industry under credit laws and introduce proportionate responsible lending obligations as part of a crackdown on the sector.

Under the changes, BNPL operators will have to comply with the National Consumer Credit Protection Act and hold an Australian credit licence.

The new laws will also require providers to have processes to handle dispute resolution and hardship claims. The new laws will also seek to stamp out unacceptable marketing by the groups and require groups to show their products are suitable for their users.

The industry has been under intense scrutiny, especially as the cost of living crisis bites. The NSW Advocate for Children and Young People this month noted the widespread use of BNPL products by youth for healthcare.

Last month, the Reserve Bank published data from its 2022 Consumer Payments Survey which showed 40 per cent of Australians aged 18 to 39 had used a BNPL service in the past year, compared with 10 per cent of people aged 65 and over.

The Business Briefing newsletter delivers major stories, exclusive coverage and expert opinion. Sign up to get it every weekday morning.

Sumeyya Ilanbey is a business journalist for The Age and Sydney Morning HeraldConnect via Twitter or email.

Culture

- New books: What’s in store in 2024

- No glamour in this prize-winning portrayal of a traumatised addict

- A propulsive mystery of secrets in a closeted world

- Why The Tourist’s Danielle Macdonald believes in trusting your gut

- How a classic set in the Edwardian era became a modern gay epic

- Inside the lustful reimagining of Bosch’s garden at the NGV Triennial

- Five must-see concerts (and a few more) happening in January

- Could Next Goal Wins be Taika Waititi’s first own goal?

- Murder, mayhem, villainy! 10 best crime reads of 2023

- From Mao to the CIA, how books have been vehicles and victims of war

Culture  • Books  • Literature

New books: What’s in store in 2024

By Jane Sullivan

December 29, 2023 — 4.00pm

Next year Salman Rushdie will tell us what it’s like to survive attempted murder and Helen Garner will tell us what it’s like to play in an under-16s footy team. And many authors will tell us, in fiction, nonfiction and poetry, what it’s like to be a First Nations person.

CRIME AND THRILLS

New novels are on the way from Garry Disher (Sanctuary, Text, April); Michael Robotham (Storm Child, Simon & Schuster, July); J. P. Pomare (Seventeen Years Later, Hachette, August); Sulari Gentill (The Mystery Writer, Ultimo, March); Hayley Scrivenor (Macmillan, late 2024); Dervla McTiernan (What Happened to Nina? HarperCollins, March); Nicola Moriarty (Every Last Suspect, HarperCollins, June); Michael Brissenden (Smoke, Affirm, July), and Benjamin Stevenson (Fool Me Twice, Penguin Random House, June). Later in the year, expect novels from Matthew Reilly and Liane Moriarty (Macmillan).

Sulari Gentill is back in criminal mode with The Mystery Writer.  Credit:

Writers turning to crime include Steven Carroll with the first in a detective series, Death of a Foreign Gentleman (HarperCollins, April); Glenna Thomson (Gone, PRH, February); and Cardinal and Witness author Louise Milligan (Pheasants Nest, Allen & Unwin, April).

Debut crime novels include The Community by Christine Gregory (Ultimo, July); All The Missing Children by Zahid Gamieldien (Ultimo, August); All You Took From Me by Lisa Kenway (Transit Lounge, August); and The Beacon by P. A. Thomas (Echo, February). Georgia Harper’s What I Would Do For You (Vintage, March) imagines what would happen if victims’ families were allowed to kill murderers.

From overseas, Richard Osman will launch a new crime series (PRH, September) he describes as “Thursday Murder Club meets the Da Vinci Code”. And Kate Atkinson has another Jackson Brodie novel, Death at the Sign of the Rook (PRH, September).

FICTION

Three new works are coming from Australian authors who have died. The End of the Morning, an autobiographical novel from Charmian Clift (NewSouth, May), was unfinished when Clift died in 1969, but she left a fully revised typescript. We All Lived in Bondi Then (Scribe, January) is a collection of short stories written by Georgia Blain before her death in 2016. Shirley Barrett, who died in 2022, has left us her last novel, Mrs Hopkins (A&U, June) about a girls’ school on Cockatoo Island in 1871.

Shankari Chandran has a new novel out in May  Credit: Janie Barrett

Miles Franklin winner Shankari Chandran has a story about refugees, Safe Haven (Ultimo, May). The 2019 Readings Award winner Alice Robinson has a new speculative fiction novel, If You Go (Affirm, July).

Amy Brown has a novel about Miles Franklin’s sister Linda (My Brilliant Sister, Simon & Schuster, February); Gail Jones presents a fictionalised biography of Joseph Conrad (One Another, Text, March); Alan Attwood follows the escape artist in Houdini Unbound (Melbourne Books, May). Francesca De Tores’ Saltblood (Bloomsbury, April) retells the life of the pirate Mary Read; Katrina Kell’s story is about the model who posed for the famous nude portrait (Chloe, Echo, February); and Michelle de Kretser’s Theory and Practice (Text, November) is about the moral complexities that arise when writing a thesis on Virginia Woolf.

Catherine McKinnon looks at love, war and friendship in To Sing of War (Fourth Estate, May). Ceridwen Dovey writes about human-made objects in outer space (Only the Astronauts, PRH, June); Malcolm Knox explores Stalinist Russia (The First Friend, A&U, October), and David Dyer writes about the Apollo 11 mission (This Kingdom of Dust, Hamish Hamilton, October).

Gail Jones’ new novel is about Joseph Conrad.  Credit:

There are new books from Brian Castro (Ruins and Fragments, Giramondo, late 2024); Rodney Hall (Vortex, Picador, October); Jessie Tu (Honeyeater, A&U, July); Melanie Cheng (The Burrow, Text, September), and Jock Serong (Cherrywood, HarperCollins, September). Bestselling duo Anne Buist and Graeme Simsion return in The Glass House (Hachette, April).

From overseas, look out for Long Island, Colm Toibin’s sequel to Brooklyn (Picador, May), and a culture wars novel from Lionel Shriver, Mania (HarperCollins, April). In September, Picador will release the English translation of French star Michel Houellebecq’s novel Annihilation.

Also coming: Andrew O’Hagan’s Caledonian Road (Faber, April); Pulitzer Prize winner Hisham Matar’s My Friends (PRH, January); Call Me By Your Name author Andre Aciman’s The Gentleman from Peru (Faber, April); and Miranda Darling’s Thunderhead (Scribe, March).

The Book of Love (Bloomsbury, February), the first novel from Pulitzer Prize finalist and “Genius Grant” fellow Kelly Link, is about dead teenagers coming back to life. The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu (Bloomsbury, March) is the first of China’s bestselling apocalyptic space-opera trilogy, soon to be a Netflix series. And Kiley Reid, author of the bestselling Such a Fun Age, returns with Come and Get It (Bloomsbury, February).

Kazuo Ishiguro’s lyrics written for jazz singer Stacey Kent are being published in March.  Credit: Chris Pizzello via AP

In March, Giramondo is publishing the joint winners of the 2022 Novel Prize, It Lasts Forever and Then it’s Over by Anne de Marcken, and Tell by Jonathan Buckley.

Kazuo Ishiguro is publishing the lyrics he wrote for jazz singer Stacey Kent in The Summer We Crossed Europe in the Rain (Faber, March). And bestselling novelist Amor Towles turns his hand to short stories in Table for Two (PRH, April).

BIG DEBUTS

The Star on the Grave by Linda Margolin Royal (Affirm, February) is a novel based on the true story of the “Japanese Schindler” who rescued her father and grandparents during World War II. Another wartime novel is Maya’s Dance by Helen Signy (Simon & Schuster, March) based on a true Holocaust story.

Award-winning debuts include The Deed by Richell Prize winner Susanna Begbie (Hachette, May), Depth of Field by Dorothy Hewett Award winner Kirsty Iltners (UWA, May), and The Skeleton House by Fogarty Literary Award winner Katherine Allum (Fremantle, June). Amanda Creely’s Nameless (UWA, March) was shortlisted for the Dorothy Hewett Award, and Ruby Todd’s Bright Objects (A&U, May) was shortlisted for the 2023 Victorian Premier’s unpublished manuscript award.

Richell Prize winner Susannah Begbie’s book is published in May.  Credit:

Kyra Geddes’ The Story Thief (Affirm, May) was inspired by Henry Lawson’s story The Drover’s Wife. The heroine of Belinda Cranston’s The Changing Room (Transit Lounge, May) is inspired to travel by cartoon character Mr Benn. And Bri Lee makes her fiction debut with The Work (A&U, April).

TRUE STORIES

Magda Szubanski’s second memoir (Text, October) is about her journey from daughter to orphan, from comedian to campaigner. Peter Goldsworthy writes about his illness in The Cancer Finishing School (PRH, March). Dassi Erlich writes about becoming a target for a predatory teacher in In Bad Faith (Hachette, February) and Rebel Wilson tells us about her acting life in Rebel Rising (HarperCollins, April).

Biographies include Brenda Niall’s portrait of Picnic at Hanging Rock author Joan Lindsay (Text, October), and Hermina Burns on artist Albert Tucker’s wife in Barbara Tucker: The Art of Being (MUP, February). As a follow-up to her Shirley Hazzard biography, Brigitta Olubas has co-edited Shirley Hazzard and Elizabeth Harrower: The Letters (NewSouth, May) with Susan Wyndham.

Sporting stories include swimming superstar Michael Klim’s memoir, Klim, (Hachette, September); Oscar Piastri: The Rookie by Andre van Leeuwen (PRH, March); Inside Out, a memoir from former footballer Erin Phillips, with Samantha Lane (Hardie Grant, March), and world surfing champion Pauline Menczer (Breaking the Waves, Affirm, June, with Luke Benedictus).

Magda Szubanski has written a second memoir, which will be published in October.  Credit: Simon Schluter

International memoirs include Salman Rushdie’s Knife: Meditations after an Attempted Murder (PRH, April); drag queen RuPaul’s The House of Hidden Meanings (HarperCollins, March); Hugh Hefner’s widow Crystal Hefner (Only Say Good Things, PRH, January), and television star Gillian Anderson exploring women’s sexuality in Want (Bloomsbury, September).

Gillian Anderson explores women’s sexuality.  Credit: AP

And there’s a footy book with a difference: Helen Garner has spent a year embedded with an under-16s football team (Text, July).

FIRST NATIONS WRITING

Dark Emu author Bruce Pascoe is back with Black Duck: A Year at Yumburra (with Lyn Harwood, Thames & Hudson, April), a memoir of life on their farm.

New fiction includes Dirrayawadha: Rise Up by Anita Heiss (Simon & Schuster, August); Compassion by Julie Janson (Magabala, March); Sharlene Allsopp’s dystopian debut novel, The Great Undoing (Ultimo, February), and Mykaela Saunders’ short stories, Always Will Be (UQP, March). Fremantle is releasing a 25-year anniversary edition of Kim Scott’s Benang.

Bruce Pascoe is back with a book about life on his farm.  Credit: Rhett Wyman

UQP essay collections include Black Witness: The Power of Indigenous Media by Amy McQuire (June); Shapeshifting, edited by Ellen van Neerven and Jeanine Leane (October); Words to Sing the World Alive edited by Jasmin McGaughey and The Poets Voice (November), in which leading writers discuss their favourite First Nations words, and Weaving with Words by Larissa Behrendt (November). Other essay collections are Growing Up Torres Strait Islander in Australia, edited by Samantha Faulkner (Black Inc, August), and When Cops are Criminals, edited by Veronica Gorrie (Scribe, September).

Poetry collections include Jeanine Leane’s Gawimarra (UQP, February); Jazz Money’s The Fire Inside (UQP, August); Tossed Up By the Beak of a Cormorant by Nandi Chinna and Anne Poelina (Fremantle, July); Woven, edited by Anne-Marie Te Whiu (Magabala/Red Room Poetry, February); Not Telling by Alison Barton (Puncher & Wattmann), and Refugia by Elfie Shiosaki (Magabala, July).

There will be a 25th anniversary edition of Kim Scott’s novel Benang and he is the subject of a book by Tony Birch.  Credit: Eddie Jim

In the Black Inc’s Writers on Writers series, Tony Birch examines Kim Scott (April) and Tara June Winch considers Alexis Wright (October). Ashlee Donohue’s memoir Because I Love Him (Magabala, May) looks at the impact of domestic violence on families. Some People Want to Shoot Me by Wayne Bergmann and Madeleine Dickie (Fremantle, March) takes us behind the scenes of a native title battle.

Tara June Winch is writing about Alexis Wright.  Credit: Justin McManus

Writing on Indigenous life and history includes Cassandra Pybus on the theft of Aboriginal remains in A Very Secret Trade (A&U, May), and Worimi man Joshua Gilbert on Australia’s Agricultural Identity (PRH, October). Other books are Land Back, edited by Heidi Norman (NewSouth, July); Richard Broome’s Aboriginal Victorians (A&U, February), and Clare Wright’s The Yirrkala Bark Petition (Text, October).

For the first time, Macbeth appears in an Aboriginal language in Shakespeare on the Noongar Stage: Language Revival and Hecate, by Clint and Kylie Bracknell (Upswell, May).

POETRY

The Boat author Nam Le has an “explosive” book-length poem, 36 Ways of Writing a Vietnamese Poem (Scribner, March). John Kinsella has a collected poems volume, Spirals (UWA, March). Other poets with new or selected works include Judith Bishop (Circadia, UQP, May); David Brooks (The Other Side of Daylight, UQP, March); Suneeta Peres da Costa (The Prodigal, Giramondo, late 2024); and Judith Beveridge (Tintinnabulum, Giramondo, August).

Monument by Bonny Cassidy (Giramondo, February) is a poetry and prose volume. And the late poet Robert Adamson has left us a prose collection, Birds and Fish: Life on the Hawkesbury (Upswell, February).

POLITICS AND PRESSING ISSUES

Two political commentators who feature in these pages have new books with Black Inc. Peter Hartcher examines Australia’s place in the new Cold War (September), and Robert Manne has a political memoir (December). Former UK prime minister Tony Blair writes On Government (PRH, March) and former independent MP Kerryn Phelps has a memoir, Power of Balance (Hardie Grant, April).

Andrew Fowler looks at “the submarine fiasco that sank Australia’s sovereignty” in Nuked (MUP, August), while James Connor and Ben Wadham examine institutional abuse within the Australian Defence Force in Warrior Soldier Brigand (MUP, July).

Novelist James Bradley has an environmental book, Deep Water (PRH, April). Other climate change books are Clive Hamilton and George Wilkenfeld’s Living Hot (Hardie Gant, June); Paul Hardisty’s account of trying to save the Great Barrier Reef, In Hot Water (Affirm, June), and Royce Kurmelovs’ critique of the oil and gas industries, Slick (UQP, August).

Jane Sullivan’s novel Murder in Punch Lane (Echo) will be published in July.

The Booklist is a weekly newsletter for book lovers from books editor Jason Steger. Get it delivered every Friday.

Jane Sullivan is a books columnist and reviewer for The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

Culture  • Books  • Review

No glamour in this prize-winning portrayal of a traumatised addict

By James Antoniou

December 29, 2023 — 4.00pm

FICTION

So Close to Home

Mick Cummins

Affirm Press, $34.99

Literature centred on opiate addiction has a long history. Whether as memoir (Thomas De Quincey’s Confessions of an English Opium-Eater, Kate Holden’s In My Skin), or fictionalised from experience (William S. Burroughs’ self-mythologising Junkie), it is often drawn from life. The latest Australian writer weighing in is Mick Cummins, whose debut novel, So Close to Home, which won the Victorian Premier’s unpublished manuscript award, is informed by his years as a social worker and reacts against glamorisation of the subject.

Mick Cummins’ novel, So Close to Home, won the Victorian Premier’s unpublished manuscript award.  Credit: Joe Armao

Arguably, a residual glamour can be seen through a glass darkly, however gritty the literary portrayal might seem. It stalks the bohemian love triangle in Helen Garner’s Monkey Grip, and leaps into lyricism in the chemical folie a deux of Luke Davies’ Candy. Mainstream culture embraced it wholesale in the “dirty realism” of the 1990s, prompted by the success of Irvine Welsh’s Trainspotting, and a fashion for “heroin chic” followed in its wake.

As ghoulish as that trend might seem, you can cut the authors who inspired it a bit of slack. The lived reality of all-consuming addiction can be dull, soul-crushingly lonely, acutely undramatic; any novel that renders it too faithfully may risk embodying those very qualities. Cummins only just avoids that fate, and the lugubrious, beaten-down, social-realist lens he brings to the theme may have some readers pining for Welsh’s more rakish grit.

No one could accuse this book of glamour. It follows Aaron, an 18-year-old hooked on heroin who has been kicked out of home by his mother. He lives wilfully in the shadows, shooting up surreptitiously around Melbourne and hanging out with fellow addict Dave and his schizophrenic partner, Samantha. He steals for his next fix, sometimes from his mother. The lows are relayed in scrupulous detail and, even when he is shooting up, there are few highs. All pleasure here is tinged with pain.

Credit:

To finance his addiction, Aaron regularly has sex with a predatory older man for cash. From the outset, he wishes death on the nameless “Man” – “all he wants to do is smash his fists into that head, over and over”. The extreme reaction is due not only to the Man’s odiousness, or even to drug-induced paranoia, but the fact their arrangement gives Aaron traumatic flashbacks to childhood sexual abuse he suffered in the care of his grandfather.

This is a character completely up against trauma. Even so, the power dynamic between him and the Man can feel too baldly drawn. The exploitation is working both ways, after all, but even if it weren’t, it would make for more compelling fiction if the antagonist were not entirely dehumanised.

The Man is not the book’s only schematic character, though. Aaron himself is not permitted to have many complicated or ambivalent thoughts about his sex work, his addiction, or the father who denies that the childhood abuse took place. Sometimes he feels less like a fully formed person and more like a sociological case study. If there is no semblance of agency, at least, there is nothing much at stake.

After speaking with his father about the abuse, Aaron wishes for his mother’s comfort and “knows that it is wishful thinking. Heroin is the only thing that will kill his father’s words reverberating through every cell in his body. It didn’t happen, Aaron. You imagined it all. Look what you’ve done to us!”

Identifying a causal trauma for substance abuse is a common enough habit among addicts, but here it feels too casually reinforced. In any case, this trauma feels so implacable there is never any question as to the protagonist’s decisions. One person’s inexorable slide into addiction may be a tragic and all-too-common outcome in the real world; it can make for an unrelentingly piteous read.

Being an addict doesn’t mean you lose your sense of humour, nor does it make you a cipher or fallen angel. As someone who has lost a parent to drug abuse, it seems to me that part of the situation’s brutality is that the fully formed person you know and love is still present, just buried amid the addiction that is claiming them.

Fundamentally, drug addicts are as capable of good and bad as the rest of us, but Cummins has created such a doomed and abject victim, it’s as if he doesn’t want to risk readers disliking Aaron, or fully empathising with him either. As such, the book contracts to the level of a social or “problem” novel about drugs and homelessness in Australia. Rather than leaving an aesthetic mark, its likely legacy will be awareness-raising around those pressing contemporary issues.

The Booklist is a weekly newsletter for book lovers from books editor Jason Steger. Get it delivered every Friday.

Culture  • Books  • Review

A propulsive mystery of secrets in a closeted world

By Jessie Tu

December 29, 2023 — 4.00pm

FICTION

Deep in the Forest

Erina Reddan

Pantera Press, $32.99

Charli Trenthan is 27 and desperate to leave her home town of Stone Lake in the deep hinterlands of Victoria. In two weeks, she’s off to Venice to work with the world-expert on Venetian sunk-panel bookbinding, a practice that developed in the late Renaissance. After years chasing her dream job overseas, everything is about to change for the better.

Yet trauma lingers on the surface. She is still haunted by the death of her mother in a hit-and-run a year earlier. Shortly after, she was accused of starting a fire that destroyed several properties belonging to important families in town. Since then, she has hidden inside the house she shared with her mother, focusing on her last commission before her European exodus.

She’s been asked to bind a book for the Sanctuary, a mysterious gated community that purports to offer a pathway towards healing for addicts. Yet nobody in town really knows what goes on there. It has an eerie history – two years ago, a young teenager disappeared from its grounds. Nobody sees anyone going in or leaving.

As Charli prods around the Sanctuary researching for her book, she finds herself seduced by the centre’s charismatic consigliere, Zack, a former Marine recovering from PTSD, whose body “sizzles with unconscious power”. He admits that the centre can seem strange from the outside. “There are certain things, practices, expectations that are frankly, pretty last century,” he tells her.

The Sanctuary paints itself as an “intentional sustainability community” and “an alternative to capitalism” that “provides equally for all”. Yet no animals are allowed and the residents are mainly young women who are given names such as Serenity, Prudence, Mercy and Kindness. “We have God’s beauty inside the Sanctuary,” Zach reminds Charli, even as she suspects something insidious going on.

Erina Reddan has written a propulsive domestic drama.  Credit: Jacqui Henshaw

One morning, during her daily run, Charli makes a horrifying discovery: a dead baby boy in the frozen lake by the forest – “like a perfect pressed flower under the ice”. Whose could it be? More pressingly, should she risk reporting it?

If she tells the police, she’ll be embroiled in another police investigation. She’s already suspected of slipping off a charge of arson. It’s bad timing. If she tells them, she’ll definitely miss her opportunity to escape to Venice.

Credit:

A chance encounter with a teenage resident, Harmony, compels Charli to stay. Harmony claims the baby is hers and that she was forced to give it up by the centre’s leader, Reverend Robert Hallaron. (Think Keith Raniere and Tony Robbins’ lovechild). “I couldn’t give birth inside the Sanctuary walls,” she confesses to Charli. “He would have belonged to them.”

But nobody else believes the young resident – for how could she have got pregnant when the centre has strict abstinence rules? “Sexual intercourse is a sacred act … reserved for marriage,” the Reverend assures Charli. No such thing could have occurred to Harmony. “We look after our own,” he repeats, like a cult’s mantra.

Reddan’s propulsive domestic drama takes another shocking turn when a private investigation reveals that the deceased baby’s DNA does not match that of Harmony. This thrilling crime narrative contains the creepy elements of fantasy sci-fi, without compromising character development and plot intrigue. The cover alone alludes to the dystopian terrors of The Handmaid’s Tale while its nimble descriptions of the Sanctuary’s mystic spaces harkens to Ari Aster’s sensational folk horror film, Midsommar.

Though the story is occasionally weighed down by the heroine’s prolix introspection, her dogged fight to unmask the gruesome practices inside the Sanctuary will leave you couch-bound and wired to the end.

The Booklist is a weekly newsletter for book lovers from books editor Jason Steger. Get it delivered every Friday.

Jessie Tu is the author of the novel A Lonely Girl is a Dangerous Thing. She is a journalist at Women's Agenda and a book critic for the SMH and The Age.

Streaming

Why The Tourist’s Danielle Macdonald believes in trusting your gut

By Karl Quinn

December 29, 2023

Danielle Macdonald is home in Sydney working on The Last Anniversary with Nicole Kidman and Miranda Richardson.  Credit: Dominic Lorrimer

Season one of The Tourist, which was set in outback Australia, was the most-watched drama in the UK in 2022, as an amnesia-addled man played by Jamie Dornan (Fifty Shades of Grey) rattled his way from one near-tragedy to another, all the while unearthing details of his shady past with the help of a rookie cop played by Danielle Macdonald.

Season two begins 14 months later, with the pair engulfed in a fog of marijuana smoke and each other’s arms as they rattle across some exotic locale by train.

Clearly a lot has happened since a text message from Helen (Macdonald) arrived just in time to stop a guilt-riddled Elliott (Dornan) from ending it all in a swill of booze and pills. So how exactly did we get here?

“Helen and Elliot have been frolicking around the world, travelling and ignoring reality and just being in a happy little honeymoon bubble,” Macdonald says of the off-screen in-between-time.

They’re not actually married, she hastens to add. “They’ve just been living very happily and in love and ignoring the real world.”

It’s quite a leap of faith, and of logic, given some of the things Elliott either did or was accused of doing in the first season. And Macdonald admits it did on occasion give her pause while they were shooting season two in Ireland.

“I was like, ‘do we remember when he kidnapped her – does anyone else remember that?’,” she says with a laugh.

Helen may have the sleuthing instincts of a born detective, but she also has the desire to be happy. And with Elliott, she has decided to embrace what she knows about the man in the present rather than be steered by what others have said about who he may or may not have been in the past.

“She’s like, ‘we’re happy. This is who he is now. None of it existed’,” she says. “And we don’t even know if it’s necessarily true. He just was told this [information about his criminal past, including as a heroin trafficker] by a random person. There is no confirmation.”

In other words the show demands its protagonist, and its audience, address a central dilemma: Do you judge someone by their past, or by their actions in the present?

The running man: In season two of The Tourist, Elliott (Jamie Dornan) is again trying to escape a past he can barely comprehend.  Credit: Stan

While its dramatic elements are rather heightened (increasingly to comedic effect in season two), the fact Elliott is a tabula rasa – his mind continually being written over with new information that erases the old – offers a kind of allegory about relationships in general. When you come into a new one, you have, to a degree at least, the opportunity to reset, to wipe out the person you were in past relationships. Or do you?

“The funny thing is, if you don’t deal with things they always come back and rear their ugly heads,” says Macdonald. “And that is what we see in season two: There was a fresh slate, but you can’t really run away from things that have happened, you have to confront it at some point and make peace with it. That’s really what season two uncovers.”

Macdonald is talking to this masthead at the Sydney Opera House, on a day off production of the latest Liane Moriarty project to make the transition to screen (Foxtel’s The Last Anniversary, which also stars Nicole Kidman, Teresa Palmer and Miranda Richardson). Though she was born not far away on the northern beaches, this is only the second time she has worked in her hometown, the first coming in the 2019 Helen Reddy biopic I Am Woman.

Aged just 18 and realising she was unlikely ever to be cast in Home and Away or Neighbours, Macdonald – who is now 32 – packed her bags and tried her luck in Hollywood. It took time and a host of smaller roles, but her performance as a working-class girl with dreams of becoming a successful rapper in 2017’s Patti Cake$ put her on the map, critically speaking at least.

Breakout role: Macdonald had a critical hit in 2017 as aspiring rapper Patricia Dombrowski in Patti Cake$.  Credit: Sundance Institute

“Did it feel too hard, did it feel like maybe it would never happen? Sure,” she says of the early years of struggle. “But there was nothing in me that was ever like, ‘I’m going home’. It just never felt that way. I’m a big believer in trusting your gut instinct, and for some reason my gut instinct was always, ‘this is where you should be, just keep going’. And I still feel that way.”

The roles have come with gratifying regularity since Patti, though few have been as big as Helen in The Tourist. And she’s positively revelling in the fact she is finally able to base herself professionally (for a little while at least) in the city in which she was raised.

“This is so exciting because I get to be home, living life in a way that feels really familiar, but also quite long ago,” she says. “This is really special. I love getting to film here.”

Her regular base is LA, but she has been there only a few weeks in the past 12 months, leaving the care of her rescue animals (dogs and cats) to her housemates. “I have amazing friends that I live with, which makes my life so much easier because I can leave and come back,” she says. “I’d never want this situation to change because I’m gone so much and I want to be around my friends when I’m back.”

When brothers Harry and Jack Williams (The Missing, Liar) created The Tourist they envisaged it as a one-and-done project. It took two years for the idea of a second season to percolate to the surface, and the fact it did owes much, Macdonald suspects, to the fact Harry’s wife grew up in a town that straddled Northern Ireland and the Republic, on the front line of The Troubles.

“He could definitely draw from his wife elements of this combativeness that Ireland has in its history,” says Macdonald, noting that sectarian conflict is replaced by family rivalries in the show.

She’s no longer working the beat, but Helen hasn’t lost her nose for a clue.  Credit: Stan

Now that the difficult second season is out of the way, what chance that Helen and Elliott might keep up the travels, and the troubles, in a season three?

“I don’t know. I know as much as you do,” she says. “But I know one thing about them – they don’t do something just because someone’s throwing money at them to do it, which is quite rare. So if they had a story they really wanted to tell, I think they would do it. But otherwise I can’t imagine them doing it.”

So, if Macdonald got a call: ‘hey, we want to do a third season, where should it be’, what would the answer be?

“You know what’s funny, Harry Williams actually did ask me this,” she says. “And I said Greece, because of the Greek element in season one. We don’t know why he was ever in Greece, do we? So that was just my logical brain working.”

But if her tourist brain was working, where would it be?

“Oh my gosh, for the landscape and just for the complete madness that could ensue, I would say Iceland,” says Macdonald.

“That would be an entirely different thing from Australia and Ireland, but also you can imagine some really crazy stuff going on there. So personally, I’d be saying, ‘let’s go to Iceland’.”

The Tourist season 2 is on Stan from January 2. Stan and this masthead are both owned by Nine.

Contact the author at kquinn@theage.com.au, follow him on Facebook at karlquinnjournalist and on Twitter @karlkwin, and read more of his work here.

Find out the next TV, streaming series and movies to add to your must-sees. Get The Watchlist delivered every Thursday.

Karl Quinn is a senior culture writer at The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via Twitter, Facebook or email.

Culture  • Theatre  • Stage shows

How a classic set in the Edwardian era became a modern gay epic

By Richard Jinman

December 29, 2023 — 10.30am

For most of his 20s and into his early 30s, Matthew Lopez partied hard. As a young, gay man living in New York, he was determined to extract every ounce of fun from his adopted home, a wonderland that seemed the antithesis of the dull Florida city where he was raised.

“Oh, I drank and did a lot of drugs,” says the 46-year-old American playwright with a shrug. “I did f--- all work for quite a long time. There’s a period of my life where there’s really not much to report.”

Naturally, it was a lot of fun for a while. But as his life began to resemble “a Rufus Wainwright album”, he knew a day would come when the record would stop spinning one way or another. For the author of The Inheritance, one of the most acclaimed plays of recent years, that moment was October 6, 2010, his first day of sobriety.

Playwright Matthew Lopez, whose play The Inheritance opens in Melbourne next month.  Credit: Emil Cohen

“About the time I got sober, I heard a line in a play: ‘alcohol is the thief of time’. That went into my head like a heat-seeking missile. It was the beginning of the end of my drinking,” he says. “I don’t do anything half-arsed, even my flame-outs. I turned that corner [quitting drinking] very sharply. The ne’er-do-well years ended just like that and the years of work started almost immediately.”

Less than 90 days after his last drink, he began rehearsals for the off-Broadway production of his play, The Whipping Man. The story of a Jewish confederate soldier who celebrates Passover with two of his former slaves in the aftermath of the American Civil War put him on the theatrical map. Each day, he’d leave rehearsals and go straight to an AA meeting. He says: “I do believe that if I hadn’t stopped drinking, I’d either be dead or I’d want to be dead.”

Instead, decades later, Lopez finds himself in a far happier place. Since leaving New York two years ago, he, his American husband, Brandon Clarke, and a dog called Rugby have found a new home in Hackney, a fashionable London borough. “I find London a much more liveable city than New York,” he says. “The Brits have found a balance between work and life that Americans have never even tried to find.”

Meanwhile, his first shot at directing a movie – the romcom Red, White & Royal Blue – has become a hit straight out of the box. It became Prime Video’s most streamed title and the platform’s third most-watched romcom of all time after its release in August. Based on the book by Casey McQuiston, the story of a secret liaison between an American president’s son and a British prince features two gorgeous leads, plenty of culture clash gags and a much-discussed sex scene.

Some of the cast members from The Inheritance, left to right: Tomas Kantor, Javon King, Karl Richmond, Charles Purcell and Dion Mills.  Credit: Eddie Jim

Lopez’s reputation has been burnished by the success of Red, White & Royal Blue, but doesn’t rest on it. The Inheritance, his epic play (almost seven hours long) about a group of middle-class, gay men living in contemporary New York, was hailed as “perhaps the most important American play of the century” when it opened at London’s Young Vic theatre in 2018. The play, whose title is a reference to both spiritual and material forms of inheritance and the debt each generation owes to the one that precedes it, received similar accolades when it transferred to Broadway in 2019 (Lopez won the Tony Award for best play, a category he’d already won at the UK’s Olivier Awards).

Melbourne audiences can make up their own minds when The Inheritance has its Australian premiere at fortyfivedownstairs in January.

The blueprint for Lopez’s play is a book that made an indelible impression on him growing up in Florida. Howards End, the turn-of-the-century novel by English author E.M. Forster, was published in 1910, but in Lopez’s hands it becomes a story about a clique of middle-class, gay men living in New York on the eve of the 2016 presidential election.

Zakhar Perez (left) and Nicholas Galitzine in Red, White & Royal Blue, Lopez’s film directorial debut.

The connection he feels for Forster and his work runs deep. It also reveals a great deal about his early life and the forces that shaped him. Born and raised in Panama City, on the edge of the Gulf of Mexico, Lopez always felt like an outsider. His mother was of Polish and Russian descent, his father was born in Puerto Rico. In a part of Florida where racial lines were drawn between white and black communities, it was hard for a young, gay Latino to find his place.

Culture, in the form of books, films, theatre and dance, offered an escape and the possibility of a bigger life. But Panama City was not an easy place for a boy to embrace the performing arts. “I remember my mother taking me to enrol in a ballet class and they literally would not take me,” he recalls. “The idea was that they didn’t want me to be gay. Hah, too late!”

Lopez spent a great deal of time on his own. Books and films, such as the 1992 production of Howards End starring Emma Thompson and Anthony Hopkins, allowed his imagination to float freely. “Movies and reading were huge for me from an early age,” he says. “And then, when I was old enough, I got involved in community theatre. I found a lot of pleasure and a sense of identity there.”

Convinced he wanted to be an actor, Lopez majored in theatre at the University of South Florida. He was 21 when he came out – “late by contemporary standards, but pretty early for the mid ’90s” – and moved to New York to embark on his decade of hedonism.

When he sat down to write The Inheritance, Lopez thought about Howards End and the intense connection he still felt with the book and its author (Forster was gay, but never publicly acknowledged his sexuality). He set out to see if he could “queer” the novel, transposing each of Forster’s Edwardians to modern-day New York, changing their names and sometimes their gender, but keeping the essence of their character intact.

Only one of Forster’s characters, the stoic Henry Wilcox, keeps his full name in the play, re-emerging as a wealthy, gay businessman who (gasp) votes Republican. Forster himself makes an appearance as Morgan (the author’s middle name), assuming the role of a mentor and social conscience to the young urbanites. And Howards End, the country house that becomes a symbol of England’s past and future in Forster’s novel, morphs into a building in upstate New York that became a refuge for dying men at the peak of the AIDS crisis.

Like Forster, Lopez uses social class to draw distinctions between his characters. He also highlights the tensions between several generations of gay men – those who endured the trauma of the AIDS epidemic, those who came of age as queer culture became mainstream, and the young men trying to make sense of the past and an increasingly uncertain future.

You can understand why Lopez has described The Inheritance, only half-jokingly, as “the ultimate in fanfiction”.

Lopez also wove his own experiences into his characters. Toby Darling, The Inheritance’s rendering of the novel’s impulsive Helen Schlegel, is a successful, self-absorbed writer with a talent for harming himself and others. Toby becomes addicted to sex, parties and drugs, and Lopez readily admits he’s the character he most identifies with. “The work I did creating Toby was a kind of excavation … he’s what I might look like if I hadn’t gotten sober.”

Toby’s former boyfriend, Eric Glass – an avatar of the book’s Margaret Schlegel – is a counterpoint to Toby’s all-consuming narcissism. Eric is the play’s moral compass, a bookish Jewish intellectual who tries to see the best in all the men in his milieu. And once again, he has a deep significance for the man who created him. “Eric is the person I long to be,” says Lopez. “Eric Glass is a goal, Toby Darling is a horrible ‘what if’.”

The Inheritance is at fortyfivedownstairs, January 17 to February 11 (180 minutes per part, including intervals). fortyfivedownstairs.com

Culture  • Art & design  • Performing arts

Inside the lustful reimagining of Bosch’s garden at the NGV Triennial

By Stephanie Bunbury

December 29, 2023 — 10.00am

Men race around a phallic fountain on two-legged horses that, on closer examination, are actually penises with reins. A fat brain is covered in eyes; there are heads held together in a bunch like balloons; a slithering snake is about to strike with a head shaped like a mouth with its tongue sticking out. Impossible things, rendered with the precision smoothness of digital imaging technology: SMACK’s modern interpretation of Hieronymus Bosch’s Garden of Earthly Delights is a festival of the ominously artificial.

SMACK collective members Ton Meijdam, Thom Snels and Béla Zsigmond.  Credit: Robert van den Berge

SMACK is a collective of three artists based in Breda, a picturesque city in the Netherlands, who have been working together since 2005. Ton Meijdam, Thom Snels and Béla Zsigmond met at art school. “I was studying graphic design,” remembers Meijdam. “I didn’t want to work at a company making logos.” Instead, they lampoon consumer culture and online life in computer animated works – some of which are also turned into objects in the real world – using the kinds of fantastic imagery seen in the wilder reaches of gaming.

The Bosch project dates back to 2014, when a curator at what is now the Stedelijk Museum Breda invited them – along with three other artists – to help mark the 500th anniversary of Bosch’s death with a contemporary response to his best-known work. The triptych, including The Garden of Earthly Delights, flanked on either side by the Garden of Eden and a grisly depiction of Hell, hangs in the Prado in Madrid. “She said: ‘Every Bosch will be in the Netherlands this year except for this one because the Prado don’t lend it out; they are afraid they will never get it back’,” remembers Snels.

“So that’s how the first idea came. But it’s funny because we do a lot of research for every project and with every research since 2005, we have had Bosch in there. I have been a fan of Bosch since the beginning. I think we are fascinated by him because when you look at other paintings of the time, it seems like he came from another planet. How could he be paid by the church to make what are almost pornographic images, while holding them up as religious?”

In Bosch’s hands, the Fall of Man became dynamic, infused with these sinners’ misdirected energies. Unconstrained by the rules of classical perspective that would soon be adopted by Dutch painters, Bosch piled events and characters on top of each other. Snels describes it as the first comic book ever made. Zsigmond says “it’s like a whole two-hour movie in one image”.

Rendered in 4K animation, SMACK’s video is based on the central panel of the famous triptych.

The museum’s first proposal was that they animate Bosch’s imagery, which they didn’t want to do. Then came another idea: to make a 21st-century version of his whirl of fears, sins and punishments. His first scene shows Adam and Eve, already succumbing to the allure of sin; the second, which Snels says is more correctly translated as the “Garden of Lusts”, shows the many temptations of the flesh to be enjoyed in life;r while the third shows the terrible retribution that awaits. That kind of threat doesn’t carry much weight any more.

“That was one of the big changes in the theme of this compared with Bosch,” agrees Szigmond. “From that Christian way of living, we now have thousands of different kinds of belief and not necessarily about God. Apple is also a kind of belief system. Technology. Even Disney is an ideology, so they are all merging into each other and splintering into a thousand pieces, a mosaic of different beliefs.

“But it’s not a question of whether hell exists or not. It’s more a reflection of the morality of the times. That’s what made it interesting for us.” Thus we see a Harvey Weinstein figure clinging to an Oscar on a pile of genitalia. “He went to online hell because he was judged by the public and was the worst person on the planet at that moment. So that was a kind of hell.” A hunter is flattened under the beast he once turned into a rug.

A gambler struggles to wrench a fruit machine from his head. An audience of innocent animals watch bemused from one side as the humans frolic in their delusions. “We really copied their positions from Bosch,” says Szigmond. “They are wild animals outside this circus, looking just like we used to look at zoo animals.”

Inevitably, they will slide over into hell. “In the old days you always saw the masses being punished,” says Snels. The theology of the 15th century dictated that people were damned just by being born. “But we wanted to depict the lusts of now. The biggest thing we wanted to show is how vanity and individualism is working. Nowadays you don’t need a hell where the masses are punished. Everyone has a punishment made to measure.”

SMACK’s re-interpretation of Bosch’s work interrogates modern concerns such as consumerism and technology.

Their collective favourite is the character trapped in a hash sign, no doubt an internet addict. They are all digital natives. His fate could be theirs. “Of course I see myself in several of these situations as well, eh?” says Szigmond.

“This one with the bottle, for instance. And sometimes I am a liar, like every one of us, I guess. It’s not what we think is a sin. It is about morality now, what the Western world thinks is bad. That was the hardest part: not to be the judge, but a mirror. You can judge something pretty fast.”

Of course, they do judge. Like Hieronymus Bosch himself, they have clearly relished creating their demons and grotesques, the maggot they say is a security guard and the pig reduced by human appetites to a mere pig-shaped bag of mince. Piles of clapped-out appliances, including a rocket, are the junk of a throwaway society. Mea culpa, mea maxima culpa. And while everything glows in pastel colours, the atmosphere is brutal.

But the mirror tells us that is who we are. “When you see these picture of old times and the meaning of it and look at us now, actually the big things haven’t changed at all,” says Szigmond. “Only the context has changed. Technology has moved on, but our behaviour is exactly the same. Which is funny and sad at the same time.”

SMACK - The Garden of Earthly Delights, is part of the NGV Triennial, at NGV International until April 7, 2024.

Stephanie Bunbury is a film and culture writer for The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald.

Culture  • Music  • Live music

Five must-see concerts (and a few more) happening in January

By James Jennings

December 29, 2023 — 6.00am

From a breakthrough Grammy winner to a multifaceted international solo artist, and local “yob rock” royalty, there’s no shortage of variety when it comes to starting 2024 with live music. Grab your tickets and bust out the dancing shoes – here are five gigs you won’t want to miss in January.

Bad Boy Chiller Crew

Metro Theatre, January 9

UK act Bad Boy Chiller Crew are bound for Australia.  Credit:

A group purpose-built to not only chronicle hedonistic misadventures but actually conjure them into being, this trio from Bradford, UK, mash together an unlikely combo of rough-as-guts rapping and peppy dance music into the ultimate party soundtrack.

Self-described “charvas” (defined by the group as “a disparaging term for a poor or uneducated young person, especially one who behaves in a brash or vulgar manner and wears ostentatious clothing and jewellery”), the trio of Gareth “GK” Kelly, Sam “Clive” Robinson and Kane Welsh deal in “bassline”, a sunny style of house music designed to keep punters’ feet on the dance floor.

If it sounds a bit hectic and your “what happened last night?!” days are behind you, Romy Madley Croft from UK dance outfit the XX will be playing a less crazed strain of dance music at Liberty Hall on January 3.

Nabihah Iqbal

Phoenix Central Park, January 11 / Moonshine Bar, January 13

British Pakistani artist Nabihah Iqbal released her second album this year.  Credit:

Musician, DJ, broadcaster, writer, curator, and former legal professional, British Pakistani artist Nabihah Iqbal is a creative powerhouse and rare jack of all trades who is mastering them all.

This year was particularly busy for Iqbal. She curated the esteemed Brighton Festival as guest director, hosted a biweekly show on NTS Radio that’s been running since 2013 and, most impressively, released her second album, Dreamer, a stellar collection that fuses dream pop, new wave, post-punk and dance music.

There are several opportunities to see Iqbal (originally known by the name Throwing Shade) in January, with two shows at Phoenix Central Park (free gigs with tickets allocated via ballot) and a second show at Moonshine Bar, which is part of the Thirsty Mile at Walsh Bay Arts Precinct.

Cosmic Psychos

Metro Theatre, January 13

Cosmic Psychos are celebrating 40 years of live performance.  Credit:

Influential (according to famous grunge-era fans like Kurt Cobain and Eddie Vedder), beer-fuelled (listen to Nice Day to Go to the Pub, Letter to My Liver and 100 Cans of Beer) and inspiration to the current crop of Oz “yob rock” (check out the Chats, and Amyl and the Sniffers), Aussie pub rock legends Cosmic Psychos are touring to commemorate 40 years of live, sweaty, good ol’ rock’n’roll.

Starting out as a school band with the punk-as-hell name Rancid Spam, the much-loved Psychos have one remaining original band member, 62-year-old bass player and vocalist Ross Knight, who spends most of his time living and working on the rural Victorian farm where he grew up.

As Knight readily admits, he’s been rewriting the same song with the same three chords for 40 years now, but when you’re on to a bruising, beer-soaked winner, why change?

The Breeders

Enmore Theatre, January 22

The Breeders spent much of 2023 on the road supporting Olivia Rodrigo, as well as playing their own gigs.  Credit:

Indie rock legends the Breeders, led by ex-Pixie Kim Deal and twin sister Kelley, spent the majority of 2023 on the road, both supporting Breeders’ superfan Olivia Rodrigo on an arena tour and playing multiple shows to celebrate the 30th anniversary of their landmark 1993 album Last Splash.

The party hits Sydney this month with that LP’s original line-up, which is rounded out by bassist Josephine Wiggs and drummer Jim MacPherson.

Another Breeders superfan, Courtney Barnett, will be playing at the City Recital Hall on January 20, and considering Barnett and the Deal sisters have appeared on each other’s albums in the past, don’t be surprised if there’s some unannounced special guest appearances at each respective show.

Will Olivia Rodrigo’s hordes of fans turn up to the Breeders to check out their idol’s idols? Here’s hoping.

Steve Lacy

Sydney Opera House, January 31-February 1

Californian alternative R&B artist Steve Lacy was named one of the 100 most influential people by Time last year.  Credit:

Sometimes all it takes is one song to catapult an artist from “reasonably famous” to “win a Grammy and sell out two nights at the Sydney Opera House” level of fame.

For Californian alternative R&B artist Steve Lacy, that next tier of fame arrived thanks to the song Bad Habit from his 2022 album Gemini Rights, a track that blew up on TikTok (the modern metric for songs that are a hit with Gen Z), went to number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and led to Lacy being named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine last year.

If you only see one artist this year that created their debut solo release (2017’s Steve Lacy’s Demo) on an iPhone before going on to win a Grammy six years later, make it Lacy.

Which gigs are you looking forward to seeing this summer? 2024 starts with a crop of pop exports from the UK with Declan McKenna, Holly Humberstone, Bruno Major, Griff, Raye, and American pop stars Gracie Abrams, Noah Kahan, and Melanie Martinez. There’s also some fiery punk with NOFX on their final tour, hardcore act OFF!, plus hip-hop and R&B stars Brent Faiyaz, Blackstreet and Montell Jordan, or Juicy Fest with T.I., T-Pain, the Game and Ashanti. If dancing is your thing, there’s Goldie, Overmono and Summer Dance with Bicep, Ross From Friends and Willo. Or for something a little different, Unknown Mortal Orchestra or Neil Gaiman and FourPlay String Quartet. Let us know in the comments.

Find out the next TV, streaming series and movies to add to your must-sees. Get The Watchlist delivered every Thursday.

★★

• Culture  • Movies  • Review

Could Next Goal Wins be Taika Waititi’s first own goal?

By Jake Wilson

December 29, 2023 — 5.30am

Read more reviews in our collection of the films released this summer.See all 8 stories.

NEXT GOAL WINS ★★

(M) 104 minutes

In his early successes such as Boy and Hunt For The Wilderpeople, writer-director Taika Waititi appeared in full control of his brand of apologetic yet knowing New Zealand humour, combining a flat, faux-naif style with a sure grasp of mainstream storytelling mechanics.

Michael Fassbender plays Dutch-American coach Thomas Rongen, who is brought in to revitalise the American Samoa soccer team in Next Goal Wins.

Then Hollywood came calling. No shame on Waititi for seizing his big chance, but the choice to do so may have left him artistically stranded: an underdog pose gets harder to sustain once you have a couple of Marvel blockbusters under your belt.

His sports comedy Next Goal Wins finds him somewhere close to home turf, in theory at least. Shot before his 2022 Thor: Love and Thunder, it’s a loose adaptation of the 2014 documentary of the same title, which recounts how the famously unsuccessful soccer team of American Samoa managed to lift their game with aid from the Dutch-American coach Thomas Rongen (played by Michael Fassbender).

Kaimana (left) plays Jaiyah Saelua, a faʻafafine (third gender) player, in Next Goal Wins.

Waititi’s soccer scenes were shot in Hawaii, thousands of kilometres north of the actual team’s home base, with at least some of the locals played by New Zealanders of Samoan heritage (including familiar faces from his previous films). That said, I’m in no position to judge how authentic anything might appear from an American Samoan perspective.

What I can report is that the script follows the usual feelgood formula in a more than usually doggedly literal way. Fassbender’s Rongen is the central character, a miserable screw-up consigned to a dead-end job either to get him out of the picture or so the easygoing locals will renew his love of the game for its own sake. One factually accurate aspect of this set-up is held back until Waititi can spring it on us for maximum emotional effect, an especially crude form of manipulation.

In other ways, too, Waititi’s willed clunkiness grows ever harder to distinguish from a genuine lack of craft. The ad hoc compositions couldn’t be further from the precision of Wes Anderson, who he’s mimicked in the past. Nor does he have anything like the invisible skill Bobby Farrelly brought to a comparable story in his recent Champions, which consists of integrating a wide range of performers into an ensemble and giving them all a chance to shine.

Fassbender does what he can to hold things together as the gruff foil to a remarkably humble and polite group of eccentrics (going in, it occurred to me, I’d never really seen him do comedy; in a way I still haven’t).

Among the supporting cast members left to fend for themselves, Elizabeth Moss as Rongen’s ex-wife appears to be in a different and more nuanced movie from anyone else. But the real standout is the energetically scene-stealing newcomer Kaimana as Jaiyah Saelua, a faʻafafine (third gender) player who becomes Rongen’s closest ally on the team. At this point, it’s hard to tell if she’s a born actress or a born reality TV star, but either way her career should be worth watching.

Next Goal Wins is released in cinemas on January 1.

Find out the next TV, streaming series and movies to add to your must-sees. Get The Watchlist delivered every Thursday.

Jake Wilson is a film critic for The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald.

Culture  • Books  • Review

Murder, mayhem, villainy! 10 best crime reads of 2023

By Sue Turnbull

December 29, 2023 — 5.00am

It’s been a stellar year for crime fiction. Local authors continued to thrive, and more and more publishers here and overseas recognised the huge appetites readers have for murder, mayhem, villainy and, perhaps, a bit of restorative justice.

Rural noir is the way local authors have really stamped their presence in the international market. Just think of the blazing path set by Peter Temple and then Jane Harper, both winners of British Crime Writers Association “daggers”. And they’re not alone. Michael Robotham has won two of the coveted awards for his crime fiction. Chris Hammer, another Australian writer with a dagger in his hand, continued his barnstorming march into the bestseller lists with The Seven, as his first novel, Scrublands, made its debut in a small-screen adaptation.

Jay Ryan as Father Byron Swift in Scrublands.  Credit: Stan

My top 10 crime reads for 2023 is an eclectic mix: five Australian authors, two Americans, two Brits and one Indian.

Age of Vice, Deepti Kapoor

Deepti Kapoor made an impressive debut with Age of Vice, which follows the consequences of an apparently random murder while illuminating the highs and lows of the Indian caste system.

At the bottom is Ajay, a lower-caste boy from Uttar Pradesh sold into slavery at the age of eight. A fast learner, Ajay grows up to become the adoring valet of Sunny Wadia, the spoilt son of one of India’s most notorious criminal families. Sonny himself is captivated by Neda, an investigative journalist from the cultural elite that looks down on the crass materialism of modern India as exemplified by the corrupt Wadias. Forget The Sopranos, this is gangsterdom Indian style.

Deepti Kapoor’s Age of Vice illuminates the highs and lows of the Indian caste system.  Credit: Getty

All the Sinners Bleed, S.A. Cosby

S.A. Cosby was another revelation in 2023 with All the Sinners Bleed, the third stand-alone crime novel by this black American author. It was also on the summer reading list of former president Barack Obama.

Set in the south, All the Sinners Bleed follows the career of Titus Crown, the first black sheriff of Charon county who has to deal with a school shooting, a suicide by cop and a serial killer targeting black American children. It’s a grim scenario but so beautifully written, it might just move you to tears. The tender relationship between Titus and his ageing father is one of the absolute joys of this book.

Small Mercies, Dennis Lehane

Dennis Lehane also hits all the right buttons in Small Mercies, a thriller featuring a desperate Irish-American mother from the housing projects in South Boston trying to find her missing daughter. Mary Pat Fennessey has already lost one child to post-traumatic stress disorder and a heroin overdose, and she’s not going to give up on another.

The backdrop is the summer of 1974 when it was determined by the powers that be that desegregation could be accomplished by busing white children into black schools and vice-versa. Like Cosby, Lehane uses the architecture of the thriller to make acute points about racism in America while telling an affecting story about the people caught in the rip.

Author Candice Fox.

Fire with Fire, Candice Fox

Set in Los Angeles, Fire with Fire, by Australian treasure Candice Fox, also features a missing child. Tilly Delaney disappeared at Santa Monica beach two years ago and her parents want the police to reopen what they consider was a botched investigation.

To achieve their ends, the Delaneys lay siege to a forensic laboratory and threaten to burn vital DNA samples every two hours unless the police get a move on. It’s a tense scenario, relieved by Fox’s whip-smart dialogue and wry humour as evident in the oddball relationship between underground cop Detective Charlie Hoskins and rookie cop Lynette, who inadvertently blows his cover by engaging in a dodgy one-night stand.

The Seven, Chris Hammer

After winning a swag of awards with The Tilt, Chris Hammer’s latest, The Seven, continues his exploration of landscape and memory in the multipurpose genre of the police procedural. Set in the regional town of Yuwonderie (fictional), which derives its irrigation from the Murrumbidgee (real), the action unfolds in a series of flashbacks in different eras as detectives Ivan Lucic and Nell Buchanan investigate the murder of a descendant of one of the town’s seven founding families. This may be Hammer’s most intricate, and trenchant, plot to date.

Broken Bay, Margaret Hickey

Margaret Hickey uses a similar flashback strategy in her latest, Broken Bay, set on South Australia’s limestone coast where the land can crack like a “giant pav”. With a gut-wrenching opening liable to give those with claustrophobia night sweats, Hickey illuminates the perils of cave diving with the discovery of a body in an underwater cavern that sets the plot in motion. The always engaging Detective Sergeant Mark Ariti just happens to be holidaying nearby and is soon embroiled in complicated internecine local politics while sampling the souvlaki and pondering his love life.

The Wiregrass, Adrian Hyland

Adrian Hyland has been quietly writing exceptional Australian crime fiction for some time. Diamond Dove from 2007 is one of my all-time favourites. In The Wiregrass, he picks up on the career of feisty police officer Jesse Redpath who has relocated from the Northern Territory to regional Victoria just in time to get lashed by a ferocious storm, rescue a drowning woman and stumble across a dead local, apparently crushed by a falling tree. As always, Hyland pays exquisite attention to the environment, as Jesse probes the undergrowth to root out the inevitable crime.

Killer Traitor Spy, Tim Ayliffe

ABC news supremo Tim Ayliffe has his finger on the political pulse. Killer Traitor Spy is prefaced by a comment from the director-general of ASIO that “there are more foreign intelligence operatives and their proxies operating in Australia now than at the height of the Cold War”.

But what are they up to? In this thriller, the fourth featuring investigative journalist John Bailey, Ayliffe hits the ground running with the attempted poisoning of a Russian informant in a political intrigue that encompasses Russian interference, CIA involvement and Canberra.

Slow Horses, Mick Herron

For a rather different take on the aftermath of the Cold War, it’s hard to go past Mick Herron’s brilliant satirical series of spy thrillers that begins with Slow Horses, now a TV series starring Gary Oldman. Still not sure? Start with The Secret Hours, which functions as a stand-alone, but is set in the same conspiratorial world and has the best opening line of the year: “The worst smell in the world is a dead badger.” And then we’re off in a series of quirky scenarios that are typical of Herron’s wry take on a world characterised by failed ambition and blundering espionage.

Mick Herron’s The Secret Hours is set in similar conspiratorial territory as his Slough House novels.  Credit: Alamy

The Private Life of Spies, Alexander McCall Smith

When one spy story is hardly enough, Alexander McCall Smith’s whimsical The Private Life of Spies offers five tales based on a series of apocryphal events. For instance, while it was rumoured during World War II that German spies were being dropped into England dressed as nuns, McCall Smith imagines the “what-if”. And so we encounter the glorious tale of reluctant spy Conradin Muller who is dropped, with his habit, by a Luftwaffe aircraft into a Suffolk field and adopted by the local nuns as one of their own. Heart-warming and funny, these are the cheering stories that every ardent crime fiction fan might welcome this holiday season.

The Booklist is a weekly newsletter for book lovers from books editor Jason Steger. Get it delivered every Friday.

Culture  • Books  • Review

From Mao to the CIA, how books have been vehicles and victims of war

By Stuart Kells

December 29, 2023 — 5.00am

BOOKS

The Book at War: Libraries and Readers in an Age of Conflict

Andrew Pettegree

Profile Books, $55

Andrew Pettegree’s latest offering has a lot in common with his 2021 book, The Library: A Fragile History, co-authored with Arthur der Weduwen. Both works feature a pacy, middle-brow style. In both cases, the structural unit is the factoid – and there are certainly some great factoids.

From The Book at War we learn that a young Mao Zedong worked in the Beijing University library, recording the names of people who came to read newspapers. Mao had arrived at Beijing having already read translations of Rousseau’s The Social Contract, Montesquieu’s L’esprit des lois and Adam Smith’s The Wealth of Nations.

An American soldier takes a break as she makes her way back to the US from Iraq in February 2004.  Credit: AP

His library role “increased his sense of alienation”. Patrons avoided and ignored him. “I tried to begin conversations with them on political and cultural subjects [Mao wrote], but they were very busy men. They had no time to listen to an assistant librarian speaking southern dialect.”

During World War II, the American intelligence services displayed a suave incompetence. In Istanbul, the local head of US intelligence, Chicago banker Lanning “Packy” Macfarland, had his cover “so comprehensively blown that when he entered the local casino, the band would strike up Boo Boo Baby, I’m a Spy”.

Credit:

Staff working for the Americans reported directly to Russian or Turkish intelligence, while the British ambassador’s personal valet was spying for the Germans.

The US Army’s formidable capability in cryptography had been shut down before the war on the grounds that “gentlemen don’t read other people’s mail”. When America joined the conflict in 1941, “a panicked appeal went out to US citizens to send in their postcards and holiday snaps of foreign destinations. This produced a deluge of mail of little operational use, consisting largely of equestrian monuments and seagulls”.

All told, about 500 million books were “lost, destroyed or abandoned” during World War II. The retreating British Expeditionary Force in Belgium and France left behind 200,000 Penguin paperbacks.

In post-war East Germany, the Stasi secret police established a poetry circle, overseen by “a well published comrade who would report back to his superiors on the ideological reliability of the work shared”.

The Americans invested heavily in their intelligence apparatus. Pettegree documents CIA-funded publications around the world, including the periodicals Quadrant in Australia and Quest in India, along with more than a thousand books, among them translations of Machiavelli’s The Prince and T.S. Eliot’s The Waste Land and Four Quartets. The 1954 “Bible Balloon project … involved floating 10,000 balloons carrying Bibles across the Iron Curtain”.

The American Library Association readies books for dispatch to troops serving in World War I.  Credit: Getty

As this selection indicates, the scope of The Book at War is ambitious, extending to libraries, authorship, espionage, maps, science, rhetoric, Biggles and an alliteration of Ps: publishing, propaganda, pedagogy, poetry, periodicals, passivism, pamphlets, pulps and Penguins.

As with Pettegree’s Library volume, The Book at War traverses ground already well tilled by recent and authoritative works. Examples in this case include Valerie Holman’s Print for Victory, Scott Anderson’s The Quiet Americans and Burning the Books by Bodleian Library director Richard Ovenden.

Again like the Library book, the geographical framing is universal, but the picture is limited, focusing mostly on Britain, Europe and the US. In the consideration of military conflicts, The Book at War is disproportionately concerned with World War II.

Torrential rain floods a US Army camp in New Guinea in July 1944.  Credit:

Despite all the fascinating factoids, Pettegree makes few attempts at synthesis, such as a theory of the role of books in war.

When he does theorise he sometimes grasps too far, such as when he suggests the bombing of libraries is not always a tragedy, and when he claims Oxford’s irreplaceable Bodleian (spared by German bombers) was a legitimate military target.

That claim is one of several instances in which the work is oddly sympathetic to the Axis powers. Another example concerns a cartoonish image of an Allied soldier bayoneting Adolf Hitler’s behind. Bob Maynard drew the picture and used it to advertise fountain pens in wartime Penguins.

When books with that iconic and defiant image were sent to prisoner of war camps in occupied Europe, the Axis authorities banned Penguins from the camps. Pettegree says the decision to send books with the image was “tactless”.

The jacket flap of The Book at War makes the big claim that it is “the definitive story of how books, writers and readers have gone to war and how literature has become both a deadly weapon and one of history’s most persuasive arguments for peace”.

It is certainly a monumental testament to the richness of this meta-field of books and war. It serves as an introduction to various sub-literatures, but its scope is too broad and jangly to be definitive.

The Booklist is a weekly newsletter for book lovers from books editor Jason Steger. Get it delivered every Friday.

Environment

The top News headlines from The Sydney Morning Herald. For all the news, visit https://www.smh.com.au

Table of Contents

Sydney Morning Herald: 29 Dec, 2023

Latest News

Russia launches massive air attack on Ukraine, at least 12 dead

The best places to stay in Byron Bay

Pakistan anger over ‘inconsistent’ calls and technology ‘curse’

The best wines to drink this summer for $25 and under

Two dead, five critical after horror crash involving 21 people west of Sydney

Where to go and what to do on New Year’s Eve in Melbourne

Cometh the hour, Cummins the man

Perfect 10: Proud Cummins joins exclusive 250 club with match-winning haul

Federal Politics

Hezbollah claims rocket attack retribution for ‘martyred’ Australians

Turnbull, Thatcher and Packer: Declassified files reveal tycoon’s brush with notorious Spycatcher case

Delay on deadly stone import ban until states sort out own deadlines

Send navy to the Red Sea for sake of local economy: Dutton

NSW News

Opposition’s Red Sea strategies

1000 trains, 8.5 tonnes of fireworks and a new ticket system: Your Sydney New Year’s Eve

The Sydney Morning Herald’s Photos of the Week, December 28, 2023

Sydney chiropractor touched woman inappropriately, tribunal finds

Summer in Sydney 2023/24

The ’fern: A mix of old and new, and don’t forget the Rabbitohs

Nissy Nassif gives up fight for $200k seized by police

Herald Photo of the Year captures defining moment in Voice campaign

World

World population grows past 8 billion

Maduro orders drills to counter ‘threat’ after British warship sent to Guyana

What is Hezbollah? A guide

World of photos, December 29, 2023

Wars, Trump’s courtroom dramas and our new King: The world in 2023

US state of Maine bars Donald Trump from 2024 ballot

Who are the Republicans besides Trump running for president?

Targeted for beliefs or actions, politicians in US hit by wave of ‘swatting’

Israeli strikes across Gaza kill dozens of Palestinians, even in emptied north

Nikki Haley fails to mention slavery when asked about cause of US Civil War

National

Home Affairs flags probe of St Vincent’s cybersecurity after Christmas hack

Business

ASX slips on last trading session of the year, but local bourse records strongest annual gains since 2021

The late-night email to Tim Cook that set the Apple Watch saga in motion

L’Oreal heiress Francoise Bettencourt Meyers becomes first woman with $US100 billion fortune

Costs stack up as payments go digital, but some insist we’ll never go cashless

Buy now, pay later companies commit to better access to hardship support schemes

Culture

New books: What’s in store in 2024

No glamour in this prize-winning portrayal of a traumatised addict

A propulsive mystery of secrets in a closeted world

Why The Tourist’s Danielle Macdonald believes in trusting your gut

How a classic set in the Edwardian era became a modern gay epic

Inside the lustful reimagining of Bosch’s garden at the NGV Triennial

Five must-see concerts (and a few more) happening in January

Could Next Goal Wins be Taika Waititi’s first own goal?

Murder, mayhem, villainy! 10 best crime reads of 2023

From Mao to the CIA, how books have been vehicles and victims of war