Australia First

Hak Ja Han, leader of South Korea's Unification Church and widow of founder Sun Myung Moon, was sentenced to two years in prison by a Seoul court for violating the political funds act, embezzling church money, and bribery. According to ABC News Australia, Dr. Edward...

Tens of thousands of Palestinian students in occupied East Jerusalem did not return to school on the first day of the academic year due to a dispute over curriculum content and disagreements over teacher permits between Palestinian authorities and Israeli officials. Palestinian parents have accused...

American forces attacked two rocket launchers on Larak Island in the Strait of Hormuz, marking the first known US military strike on Iran since President Trump paused military operations in late July 2026. Iran responded by launching missiles at US military bases in Jordan, with...

The U.S. military conducted strikes against Iran on August 31, 2026, marking the first such action in weeks as the ongoing conflict between the countries surpassed six months. President Trump characterized the campaign as "very limited" but stated the military would "smack" Iran again if...

KPMG Australia faces a deepening crisis following a whistleblower scandal that has triggered mass layoffs, leadership resignations, and government contract bans. Major client Macquarie Group terminated KPMG as its auditor last week, marking a significant blow to the firm's reputation and bottom line. Former KPMG...

Comedian Josh Johnson describes a difficult visit to Salt Lake City in a recent stand-up segment, recounting specific moments from the trip through personal observation and comedic commentary. The bit draws on his firsthand experience in the city.

Kevin Warsh delivered his first address as Federal Reserve chairman at the Jackson Hole Economic Symposium on August 31, 2026, taking a hawkish stance on inflation and signaling no near-term rate cuts. According to analysis from economist Paul Krugman, Warsh's speech contradicted his prior messaging...

Africa's first Shaolin temple has opened in Lusaka, Zambia, offering Shaolin Kung Fu training to local students, Africanews reports. According to Africanews, the facility's operators describe it as providing opportunity and hope to Zambian youth through martial arts training. The outlet frames the development as...

South Korean President Lee appointed six new ministers on August 31, 2026, in his administration's first major Cabinet reshuffle, according to Arirang News.

Australian workers experienced a real wage decline between 2021 and 2023 following the post-pandemic economic adjustment, according to ABC News analysis. Australians born in the 1990s have become the first generation in modern Australian history to earn less in real terms than their predecessors at...

Meta agreed to implement major changes to its social media platforms following a settlement with multiple US states over social media addiction claims, including a two-hour daily time limit on Facebook and Instagram and the removal of public 'like' counts on posts for users under...

Flash floods struck the Nepal-Tibet border region on Wednesday, killing at least 579 people in Nepal and seven in Tibet, with nearly 2,500 people missing across both areas, according to ABC News Australia. Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is, per the report, 'urgently'...

Fay Manners became the first British woman to open a new climbing route on the Eiger North Face, completing the ascent alongside Swiss partner Roger Schaeli. Manners, a former data scientist, now represents The North Face as a full-time sponsored alpinist.

Nermin Hadzic, CEO of Bloomteq and co-founder of Bosnia and Herzegovina's first AI institute, says Albania is leading the Balkans in artificial intelligence adoption. According to Hadzic, Albania demonstrates a collective national motivation toward AI development, inspired in part by Mira Murati, co-founder and CEO...

France 24 reports on a new analysis of Nigeria's abduction crisis, examining the financial scale of ransom payments fueling kidnappings across the country. The report quantifies how kidnapping has become a lucrative criminal enterprise, with gangs targeting wealthy families, students, and travelers. The broadcast also...

Chinese artist Gao Zhen, part of the internationally known Gao Brothers artistic duo, was sentenced to three years in prison for "infringing upon the reputation of heroes" over satirical sculptures depicting Mao Zedong. The sentence has prompted international condemnation and calls for his immediate release...

Queensland police are investigating an alleged sexual assault of a teenage girl in residential care, according to ABC News Australia. Legislation to establish Queensland's new protection commission has also been introduced into state parliament, ABC News Australia reports.