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Today's reading time is 7 minutes. - Miko Santos
Australia officially recognized Palestine as a sovereign state alongside the United Kingdom and Canada, with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese announcing the decision from New York as part of efforts toward a two-state solution. The move has drawn sharp criticism from the opposition, with Shadow Foreign Minister Michaelia Cash calling it a reward to Hamas terrorists and arguing the recognition comes while hostages remain captive and Hamas controls Gaza. Palestinian Authority officials welcomed the recognition but emphasized words must be backed by action, while Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared a Palestinian state "will not happen" and faced calls from his cabinet to expand West Bank settlements in response.
A separate telecommunications crisis has engulfed Australia after an Optus triple zero outage linked to four deaths, marking the company's second major emergency services failure in less than two years. Communications Minister Annika Wells revealed Optus knew about problems Thursday morning but failed to properly notify authorities until Friday afternoon, with South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas saying his government learned of the deaths only through media reports. The Australian Communications and Media Authority launched a formal investigation, with potential penalties reaching $250,000 per contravention and calls growing for criminal charges against executives.
Instagram begins rolling out AI age screening technology across Australia from Monday, automatically identifying users under 18 and placing them in restricted Teen Accounts that blur nudity and limit messaging capabilities. The technology deployment precedes the Albanese government's social media ban for under-16s taking effect December 10, 2025, with companies facing fines up to $49.5 million for non-compliance. Meta argues app stores should implement verification systems allowing parental control at download, while overseas data shows nine in 10 accounts remain unchanged after AI screening.
South Australia continues battling persistent algal blooms that have cleared from areas like Victor Harbour but persist in metropolitan Adelaide beaches and the Gulf St. Vincent, with Premier Peter Malinauskas linking the marine die-offs to climate change impacts. Meanwhile, Australia and Turkey remain locked in diplomatic negotiations over hosting next year's COP climate conference, with Adelaide the proposed venue if Australia's joint Pacific bid succeeds, though Germany's Bonn would serve as default host without consensus.
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