1

november 30 (GmT) – december 1 (AeST), 2019

MIDDLE EASTAuSTrALIAuK

London on high alert

Police patrols have been stepped up in the capital after the London Bridge attack. The incident comes just weeks after the UK’s terrorism threat level was downgraded. Police said the stabbing, in which a man was shot dead by police, has been declared a terror incident. Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner Neil Basu said: “Public safety is obviously our top priority and we will be enhancing police patrols in the City and across London.”

Boris, Trump prepare to meet

Boris Johnson and Donald Trump have spoken ahead of the Nato summit – and are looking forward to meeting each other this week, a White House official said. The US president, who expressed his condolences to the Prime Minister after the London Bridge attack, is set to visit Buckingham Palace for a reception on Tuesday, before he joins world leaders in Watford the following day. The remarks from Judd Deere,

Iraqi PM resigns amid protests

Three anti-government protesters were shot dead and at least 58 wounded in Baghdad and southern Iraq, security and medical officials said, as Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi formally submitted his resignation to parliament. Lawmakers were expected to either vote or accept outright Abdul-Mahdi’s resignation letter in a parliamentary session, two members of parliament said.

Hostage never gave up

Freed Taliban hostage Timothy Weeks says he never gave up hope during his “long and tortuous” three years in captivity in Afghanistan. Speaking in public for the first time since his release, Weeks has thanked all those who helped secure his freedom. The 50-year-old Australian academic had spent lengthy periods in the dark in tiny, windowless cells at remote locations after being grabbed outside Kabul’s American University in 2016.

Labour elects new president

Claire Szabo has been voted in as Labour’s new party president. The vote was held at the party’s annual conference in Whanganui. Former president Nigel Haworth quit in September, amid claims he had mishandled complaints about sexual assault. Two inquiries into the allegations are still underway. Szabo is the Habitat for Humanity NZ chief executive and has spent the last 12 years as an active member of the party.

Three wounded in Hague attack

An assailant stabbed three people in a busy shopping district in the Netherlands, and police were searching for the suspect, authorities say. The attack came just hours after a man wearing a fake explosive vest stabbed several people in London, killing two, before he was tackled by members of the public and then fatally shot by officers. Police treated it as a terrorist attack.

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2

november 30 (GmT) – december 1 (AeST), 2019

ASIAAuSTrALIAuSA

Storms turn deadly

Wintry weather afflicted Thanksgiving weekend travelers across the United States as a powerful and dangerous storm moved eastward, dumping heavy snow from parts of California to the northern Midwest and inundating other areas with rain. Authorities found the bodies of two young children, including a 5-year-old boy, and a third child was missing in central Arizona after a vehicle was swept away while attempting to cross a runoff-swollen creek.

Boris promises review

Boris Johnson has promised the biggest review of Britain’s security, defence, and foreign policy since the end of the Cold War if he wins the general election. The Prime Minister has pledged to conduct the major review – delving into the Armed Forces, intelligence services, counter-terrorism forces, and serious organised crime – after the UK leaves the eU. Announcing his plan ahead of this week’s Nato summit, Johnson said the Nato alliance must be modernised.

China critical of uN

China accused the UN high commissioner for human rights of emboldening “radical violence” in Hong Kong by suggesting the city’s leader conduct an investigation into reports of excessive use of force by police. The back and forth came ahead of three marches in the semi-autonomous Chinese territory.

Labor go on the attack

Labor leader Anthony Albanese says the Morrison government thinks democracy is an “inconvenience”. Albanese has demanded Prime Minister Scott Morrison allow a debate in parliament on the police investigation surrounding energy Minister Angus Taylor. “He wants the whole parliament to be quiet and just listen to him,” Albanese said. “This government will not even defend itself and thinks that democracy is an inconvenience.”

Schools get funding boost

The prime minister has announced that nearly every state school will receive up to $400,000 to pay for building upgrades and maintenance. Jacinda Ardern revealed the nearly $400 million capital investment in her closing speech at the Labour Party annual conference in Whanganui. each eligible school will receive a minimum of $50,000, up to a maximum of $400,000, depending on their roll size.

Merkel under the pump

Members of germany’s junior governing party have chosen a left-leaning duo as its new leaders, a decision that could endanger the future of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s troubled coalition. Norbert Walter-Borjans and Saskia esken beat the rival team of Vice Chancellor olaf Scholz and Klara Geywitz in a runoff ballot of the Social Democrats’ members, according to results.

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3

november 30 (GmT) – december 1 (AeST), 2019

NORTH AMERICA-UK

Prime Minister Boris Johnson and President Donald Trump. - AP

Boris and Trump ready for formal meetingBoris Johnson and Donald Trump have spoken ahead of the Nato summit – and are looking forward to meeting each other this week, a White House official said.

The US president, who expressed his condolences to the Prime Minister after the London Bridge attack, is set to visit Buckingham Palace for a reception on Tuesday, before he joins world leaders in Watford the following day.

The remarks from Judd Deere, White House deputy press secretary and special assistant to the president, are the first explicit confirmation that the two leaders will meet with one another.

Deere tweeted: “Today, @PoTUS @realDonaldTrump spoke w/ @10DowningStreet @BorisJohnson of the United Kingdom. The President expressed his condolences following the terrorist attack in London. The two leaders look forward to meeting with one another at the upcoming @NATo Leaders Meeting in the UK.”

The confirmation comes after an official said Trump is “absolutely cognisant” of the importance of not interfering in other nations’ elections.

Johnson has already warned Trump not to get involved in the general election campaign, after the president previously urged him to form a pact with Nigel Farage.

The Conservatives will be wary of any endorsements or comments from Trump during the visit, a week before the public goes to the polls on December 12.

When asked if Trump has been briefed and warned not to speak about the election on his trip, a senior US administration official said the president is “very conscious” of the fact “we do not interfere”.

Pressed further, the official added: “He also, as I suspect you know, likes Boris Johnson – Prime Minister Johnson, personally.

“But he is absolutely cognisant of not, again, wading into other countries’ elections.” ■

The area around London Bridge in central London after the terrorist attack. - PA

UK

Police presence to be increased in LondonPolice patrols have been stepped up in the capital after the London Bridge attack.

The incident comes just weeks after the UK’s terrorism threat level was downgraded.

Police said the stabbing, in which a man was shot dead by police, has been declared a terror incident.

Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner Neil Basu said: “Public safety is obviously our top priority and we will be enhancing police patrols in the City and across London.”

British Transport Police said they would have more officers, including firearms officers, on patrol in the capital from Friday night and at the weekend, at stations as well as on board trains.

The terrorism threat level was lowered on November 4 to “substantial” from “severe”, meaning attacks were thought to be “likely” rather than “highly likely”.

Announcing the decision, Home Secretary Priti Patel said: “Despite the change in the threat level, terrorism remains one of the most direct and immediate risks to our national security.

“Substantial continues to indicate a high level of threat, and an attack might well occur without further warning.

“As ever, the public should remain vigilant and report any concerns they may have to the police.

“government, police and intelligence agencies will continue to work tirelessly to address the threat posed by terrorism in all its forms.

“The threat level is kept under constant review.”The Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre (JTAC), an organisation

made up of government departments and other public bodies which reports to MI5, makes the decision on the threat level independently of ministers after weighing up intelligence and information on known terrorist groups.

A review is carried out every six months.The level was raised to “critical” in May 2017 after the

Manchester Arena bombing and it was later downgraded to “severe” in September of that year. ■

4

november 30 (GmT) – december 1 (AeST), 2019

NEW ZEALAND

New Labour party president Claire Szabo. - rNZ/Yvette McCullough

Labour votes in new party presidentClaire Szabo has been voted in as Labour’s new party president.

The vote was held at the party’s annual conference in Whanganui.

Former president Nigel Haworth quit in September, amid claims he had mishandled complaints about sexual assault.

Two inquiries into the allegations are still underway.Szabo is the Habitat for Humanity NZ chief executive and has

spent the last 12 years as an active member of the party.As president, Szabo is vowing to exemplify Labour’s values

and deal capably with the findings and recommendations expected to come out of the inquiries.

Szabo was asked how she would deal with those reports once they are completed.

She and the party would work through them very diligently, she told reporters, and in a timely way.

“We’re in a process of learning … and I don’t think that’s unlike most organisations, so we take that on board and I’ll be making sure that’s a process that’s led and executed well.”

She said there was not a long list of things that needed changing within Labour, but her first actions would be to review all of the party information, talk to the New Zealand council and go from there.

In her acceptance speech, Szabo said the New Zealand council has its work cut out for it.

“We, the indivisible Labour Party, have a big job ahead of us. We have a wonderful Labour government to re-elect in 2020.

“And we know what that means, we have funds to raise, we have policy to write, we have members to mobilise. I look forward to working with each and every one of you”, she said.

Szabo is a 41-year-old with a young family; she didn’t see anything notable in the fact both she and the Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern had the top leadership roles in the party.

actually unremarkable.” ■

Timothy Weeks with his sisters Alyssa Carter and Joanne Carter. - AAP

AUSTRALIA

Hostage never gave up hope while captiveFreed Taliban hostage Timothy Weeks says he never gave up hope during his “long and tortuous” three years in captivity in Afghanistan.

Speaking in public for the first time since his release almost two weeks ago, Weeks has thanked all those who helped secure his freedom.

The 50-year-old Australian academic had spent lengthy periods in the dark in tiny, windowless cells at remote locations after being grabbed outside Kabul’s American University in 2016.

His long-awaited release in November followed six previous unsuccessful attempts to by US Special Forces to free him, he said.

emerging from a dust cloud under the blades of a Black Hawk helicopter, a US Navy Seal took Weeks under his arm as he led him to freedom.

“From the moment I sighted both Black Hawk helicopters and was placed in the hands of Special Forces, I knew my long and tortuous ordeal had come to an end,” he said in Sydney flanked by his sisters Jo and Alyssa Carter.

“out of a big dust cloud came six Special Forces and they walked towards us and one of them stepped towards me and he just put his arm around me and he held me and he said, ‘Are you ok?’ And then he walked me back to the Black Hawk.”

Moments earlier Weeks had parted with his Taliban guards, even hugging some of them as they wished him well.

Speaking of previous rescue attempts, Weeks said “a number of times they missed us only by hours”.

one particular attempt in April had Weeks fearing for his life as his captors brought him into an underground tunnel in the early hours of the morning, telling him Daesh (IS) had arrived, when in fact it was the Navy Seals “right outside our door”.

Machine gun fire raged above and he at one point lost consciousness, having been pushed backwards and rolled into the tunnel. ■

5

november 30 (GmT) – december 1 (AeST), 2019

EUROPE

Dutch police secure a shopping street after a stabbing incident in the Netherlands. - AP

Three wounded in attack at The HagueAn assailant stabbed three people in a busy shopping district in the Netherlands, and police were searching for the suspect, authorities say.

The attack came just hours after a man wearing a fake explosive vest stabbed several people in London, killing two, before he was tackled by members of the public and then fatally shot by officers. Police treated it as a terrorist attack.

A Dutch police spokeswoman said it was too early to say whether a terror motive was to blame for the attack in The Hague.

The victims were all minors. It was unclear whether any of their wounds were life-threatening or whether they might have been hurt when the crowds of holiday shoppers panicked, police said.

The attack happened when a man attacked several people on the street. Authorities offered no immediate motive.

“We are keeping every scenario open,” police spokeswoman Marije Kuiper said.

The attack happened in an area teeming with shoppers. Supermarket chains and luxury shops were lit up with early Christmas decorations.

Police sealed off a wide perimeter behind which onlookers were kept at bay.

The Netherlands was shocked by a similar stabbing in Amsterdam a year ago, when two Americans were wounded in a knife attack that prosecutors say had a “terrorist motive.” ■

Security forces try to disperse Anti-government protesters in Baghdad, Iraq. - AP

MIDDLE EAST

Iraqi PM Adel Abdul-Mahdi resignsThree anti-government protesters were shot dead and at least 58 wounded in Baghdad and southern Iraq, security and medical officials said, as Prime Minister Adel Abdul-Mahdi formally submitted his resignation to parliament.

Lawmakers were expected to either vote or accept outright Abdul-Mahdi’s resignation letter in a parliamentary session, two members of parliament said.

The prime minister announced he would hand parliament his resignation amid mounting pressure from mass anti-government protests, a day after more than 40 demonstrators were killed by security forces in Baghdad and southern Iraq. The announcement also came after Iraq’s top Shiite cleric withdrew his support for the government in a weekly sermon.

The formal resignation came after an emergency Cabinet session earlier in which ministers approved the document and the resignation of key staffers, including Abdul-Mahdi’s chief of staff.

In a pre-recorded speech, Abdul-Mahdi addressed Iraqis, saying that following parliament’s recognition of his stepping down, the Cabinet would be demoted to caretaker status, unable to pass new laws and make key decisions.

He listed his government’s accomplishments, saying it had come to power during difficult times. “Not many people were optimistic that this government would move forward,” he said.

He said the government had managed to push through important job-creating projects and improve electricity generation.

“But unfortunately, these events took place,” he said, referring to the mass protest movement that engulfed Iraq on oct. 1. “We need to be fair to our people and listen to them.”

At least 400 people have died since the leaderless uprising shook Iraq with thousands of Iraqis taking to the streets in Baghdad and the predominantly Shiite southern Iraq decrying corruption, poor services, lack of jobs and calling for an end to the post-2003 political system. ■

6

november 30 (GmT) – december 1 (AeST), 2019

UK

Prime Minister Boris Johnson. - PA

Boris pledges defence, security reviewBoris Johnson has promised the biggest review of Britain’s security, defence, and foreign policy since the end of the Cold War if he wins the General Election.

The Prime Minister has pledged to conduct the major review – delving into the Armed Forces, intelligence services, counter-terrorism forces, and serious organised crime – after the UK leaves the european Union.

Announcing his plan ahead of this week’s Nato summit, Johnson said the Nato alliance must be modernised rather than abandoned.

This review would be run from No 10 Downing Street and would be one of the Prime Minister’s priorities in 2020, the Conservative Party said.

The party said the review would examine Whitehall’s thinking on all aspects of deterrence, and consider ways in which technological surprise could threaten security.

The review would examine how Whitehall could be reformed to support integrated policy-making and operational planning across departments and agencies.

The Ministry of Defence, the Treasury, the Home Office, the Foreign Office, the DFID, and the Cabinet Office must modernise and use outside experts much more effectively, the Tories said.

Legal frameworks for all security forces operating at home and abroad would be examined, as well as the entire procurement process used by the Armed Forces, intelligence agencies and other security forces.

The review will also look at how the UK would prevent foreign governments acquiring breakthrough technologies, as well as considering how to strengthen British investments in space and the most advanced quantum technologies. ■

University of Northern Colorado facilities management staff shovel snow. - AP

NORTH AMERICA

Powerful storm pushes into the MidwestWintry weather afflicted Thanksgiving weekend travelers across the united States as a powerful and dangerous storm moved eastward, dumping heavy snow from parts of California to the northern Midwest and inundating other areas with rain.

Authorities found the bodies of two young children, including a 5-year-old boy, and a third child was missing in central Arizona after a vehicle was swept away while attempting to cross a runoff-swollen creek. A storm-related death also was reported in South Dakota.

The National Weather Service said the storm was expected to drop 6 to 12 inches (15-30 centimeters) of snow from the northern Plains states into Minnesota, Wisconsin and Upper Michigan.

Blizzard conditions early Saturday were already buffeting the High Plains. The city of Duluth, Minnesota, issued a “no travel advisory” beginning at noon Saturday because of a major snow storm it termed “historic.”

Duluth officials asked the public to be patient as plows clear roadways and recommended that drivers stay off the roads to prevent accidents and let officers respond more quickly to emergencies.

Farther south, rain and thunderstorms were forecast along and ahead of the cold front, with heavy rainfall possible Saturday in parts of the Tennessee and ohio Valleys.

Forecasters said a new storm is expected to bring California several feet of mountain snow, rain and gusty winds through the weekend. Another system is forecast to develop in the mid-Atlantic Sunday, moving as a nor’easter into Monday.

Airlines at o’Hare International and Midway International in Chicago reported average delays of 15 minutes as a winter storm headed toward the Midwest with heavy snow and ice and gusty winds.

The companies said they had canceled 27 flights at O’Hare and two at Midway as people scramble to get home on the year’s busiest travel weekend. ■

7

november 30 (GmT) – december 1 (AeST), 2019

NEW ZEALAND

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern. - rNZ/Yvette McCullough

Ardern announces funding boost for schoolsThe prime minister has announced that nearly every state school will receive up to $400,000 to pay for building upgrades and maintenance.

Jacinda Ardern revealed the nearly $400 million capital investment in her closing speech at the Labour Party annual conference in Whanganui.

each eligible school will receive a minimum of $50,000, up to a maximum of $400,000, depending on their roll size.

The one-off cash injection is the first project to be announced in the government’s infrastructure package that Finance Minister grant robertson signalled yesterday aimed at stimulating the economy and creating jobs.

Ardern said this was the biggest investment in school maintenance in at least 25 years.

“We must use the good times to create further opportunities to lift people up. That means acting now.

“With record low-interest rates there has never been a better time to get our economy and people working, and to do that through the win-win of investing in getting the basics right,” Ardern said.

She told the crowd at the royal Wanganui opera House, of all the schools she had visited as a politician, she would be at a loss to name one that didn’t have a need.

“Whether it was a school that had set up a nursing station in a hallway, or schools that fundraise and rely on parents just to create spaces like halls and gyms - there is always more to do.

“The problems have been made worse over the nine years where the previous government didn’t do enough to plan for or fully fund the strong population growth we’re seeing,” she said. ■

Labor leader Anthony Albanese. - AAP

AUSTRALIA

Labor slam government on democracyLabor leader Anthony Albanese says the Morrison government thinks democracy is an “inconvenience”.

Albanese has demanded Prime Minister Scott Morrison allow a debate in parliament on the police investigation surrounding energy Minister Angus Taylor.

“He wants the whole parliament to be quiet and just listen to him,” Albanese said.

“This government will not even defend itself and thinks that democracy is an inconvenience.”

“It’s not good enough. Democracy relies upon accountability.”He also repeated criticism of Morrison’s phone call to the

NSW police chief about the investigation but said it was up to police when to release their findings.

“Unlike the prime minister, I won’t be interfering in that investigation,” Albanese said.

He defended Labor’s refusal to have one of its own sit out of parliament next week to allow Taylor to attend an international energy conference overseas.

“You could pick anyone at random from the backbench and they would do better representing Australia on energy and emissions trading issues,” Albanese said.

Albanese said Taylor was an international laughing stock and Foreign Minister Marise Payne could go in his place.

“This minister should be gone, he shouldn’t be representing Australia in international forums,” Albanese said.

“He should be sitting on the back bench.”Taylor is under investigation for giving a newspaper doctored

documents to attack the travel expenses of the Sydney lord mayor. ■

8

november 30 (GmT) – december 1 (AeST), 2019

Merkel feeling heat from left leaning leadershipMembers of Germany’s junior governing party have chosen a left-leaning duo as its new leaders, a decision that could endanger the future of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s troubled coalition.

Norbert Walter-Borjans and Saskia esken beat the rival team of Vice Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Klara Geywitz in a runoff ballot of the Social Democrats’ members, according to results.

Walter-Borjans and esken won the support of 53 per cent of members who voted. Their appointment still needs the formal approval of a party congress next week, which also is expected to consider whether the party should stay in the “grand coalition” of germany’s traditional big parties led by the center-right Merkel.

While Scholz and geywitz strongly favored staying in the coalition, Walter-Borjans and esken have sounded much more skeptical and advocated changes to the coalition agreement.

The Social Democrats have been without an elected leader since Andrea Nahles quit in frustration nearly six months ago. The party decided to ask its 426000-strong membership who should take on the task of pulling it out of a lengthy poll slump.

The new leaders aren’t household names to many germans.Walter-Borjans is best-known for a 2010-2017 stint as

finance minister of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany’s most populous state, during which regional authorities purchased data on potential tax cheats with money hidden in Swiss bank accounts.

esken is a federal lawmaker.Scholz, who is also Germany’s finance minister, vowed his

support for the leaders-elect. He said after the vote that the party has made a decision “and all must rally behind it.”

The Social Democrats have provided three of germany’s eight post-World War II chancellors but have served as junior partners in three of Merkel’s four governments since 2005. They joined the current coalition only reluctantly last year after Merkel was unable to put together an alternative alliance. ■

EUROPE

german Chancellor Angela Merkel. - AP

China criticise UN over Hong KongChina accused the uN high commissioner for human rights of emboldening “radical violence” in Hong Kong by suggesting the city’s leader conduct an investigation into reports of excessive use of force by police.

The back and forth came ahead of three marches in the semi-autonomous Chinese territory.

The UN commissioner, Michelle Bachelet, wrote in an opinion piece in the South China Morning Post that Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam’s government must prioritize “meaningful, inclusive” dialogue to resolve the crisis.

She urged Lam to hold an “independent and impartial judge-led investigation” into police conduct of protests. It has been one of key demands of pro-democracy demonstrations that have roiled the territory since June.

China’s UN mission in geneva said that Bachelet’s article interferes in the internal affairs of China and exerts pressure on the city’s government and police, which “will only embolden the rioters to conduct more severe radical violence.”

It said Bachelet made “inappropriate comments” on the situation in Hong Kong and that the Chinese side had lodged a strong protest in response.

Since the unrest broke, protesters have disrupted traffic, smashed public facilities and pro-China shops, and hurled gasoline bombs in pitched battles with riot police who have responded with volleys of tear gas and water cannons.

The occupation of several universities by protesters earlier this month after fiery clashes with police capped one of the most violent chapters in the turmoil, which has contributed to the city’s first recession in a decade. ■

People hold balloons as they take part in a “No Tear gas” rally in Hong Kong. - AP

ASIA