‘If we don’t fight back, we don’t have a future’: the journalist taking on the ‘tech fascists’ of Silicon Valley

As Elon Musk, Peter Thiel and their peers have grown richer and more influential, Gil Durán argues they have all but abandoned democracy – and found the perfect government to enable them

theguardian.com

Novel taking on controversial palm oil industry wins $60,000 literary prize

Malaysian Australian author Omar Musa has taken out the Miles Franklin Literary Award with his second novel, Fierceland, set between Malaysian Borneo and Sydney.

abc.net.au

Before Hormuz, There Was Suez: What Trump Can Learn from Eisenhower

An emerging Oman-Iran deal may offend Washington’s instincts, but America’s real interest has never been control. It has always been keeping the world’s most important waterways open.

tritaparsi.substack.com

Minns government rejects hate speech advice it fought to keep secret

The Minns government has rejected key advice from a review it commissioned, which recommends hate speech laws be extended to protect more members of the community.

abc.net.au

Construction corruption: does not stop at the bottom so follow it to the top

Victoria’s construction royal commission must investigate crime, intimidation and labour abuse on building sites – but also the political, financial and procurement systems that allow corruption to flourish.

pearlsandirritations.com

NSW Police now required to turn on body-worn cameras when 'the job's on'

Thousands of NSW Police officers will from today be required to switch on their body-worn cameras when using police powers.

abc.net.au

We are US civil rights lawyers. Trump’s policies have driven us to seek justice internationally | Thomas Becker and Antonio Romanucci

On Tuesday, a human rights commission will hold an extraordinary hearing over the administration’s alleged attacks on protesters, journalists and others

theguardian.com

Breaking: Firefighters union boss exerted 'extraordinary' influence, report finds

The IBAC report found United Firefighters Union boss Peter Marshall had privileged access to government figures, but stopped short of any finding of corrupt conduct.

abc.net.au

'Our only option': Aboriginal police officers take racism allegations to court

Current and former Aboriginal community police officers have launched a class action alleging they were racially vilified, abused and underpaid while working for the NT Police Force.

abc.net.au

Ceuta did not threaten Europe. Europe’s response did.

A deadly border emergency was contained within 48 hours. European leaders recast it as an invasion, weakened the Union, and handed Europe’s enemies the dystopian story they wanted.

albertoalemanno.substack.com

Premier Ben Carroll appoints AI minister, scraps infrastructure portfolios in new-look cabinet

The sudden change of leadership last week, as well as the resignations of three cabinet members, has enabled the premier to make changes to a number of key portfolios.

theage.com.au

In pictures: Garma 2026, a festival for 'everyone'

The Garma Festival takes place across four days in Gulkula on Gumatj country in a stringybark forest at the top of an escarpment in north-east Arnhem Land. 

abc.net.au

AUKUS Infrastructure, part 6: It is not too late to change course

In the final part of a six-part series on AUKUS infrastructure, Peter Briggs argues that Pillar 1 cannot deliver on schedule or budget, and that Australia should pause its HEU pathway and assess proven LEU alternatives.

pearlsandirritations.com

Australia’s biggest showcase of Indigenous fashion hits the runway

Held across two sold-out shows in a new location, this year's Country to Couture features 21 collections crafted by artists and designers from communities across the country.

abc.net.au

ANALYSIS: A 13-year-old boy asked me a question no child should

In the tiny community of Baniyala in East Arnhem Land, I sat next to a 13-year-old boy who asked me a question no child should be asking.

abc.net.au

ANALYSIS: The South Korean drama that has global investors fixated

Balance is a fundamental principle of everyday life on the Korean peninsula, but the worst stock market crash in the nation's history threatens the livelihood of millions. 

abc.net.au

Morocco counts its dead and missing after mass swim to Ceuta

Families search for children not seen since 60,000 people crossed into Spanish enclave, as death toll rises to 72

ft.com

As retired US judges, we’re not used to speaking out. But we cannot be silent | Michael P Donnelly and Robert F Orr

We joined a recent bus tour of 30 judges, lawyers and advocates fighting not for any partisan aim, but for the rule of law itself

theguardian.com

Spain slams ‘selfish’ EU, sets up floating barriers

European Union states are demanding stricter international border controls and have called an emergency meeting as Spain reassures safety of Schengen Area.

abc.net.au

Trump, Kushner, oligarchs and flamingos. Welcome to Albania's revolution

Albania's coastline has become a hotspot for cheap European summer sojourns but as Ivanka Trump claims her Christopher Columbus moment locals are adamant that their island is not for sale.

abc.net.au

From playing on a rock to rocking out — the 'steep rise' of Wild Honey

The grandsons of Yothu Yindi's lead singer have ambitions to take their band Wild Honey from Garma to the MCG and beyond. 

abc.net.au

Ceuta regains cautious calm after unprecedented migrant surge, but European rifts deepen

The Spanish autonomous city of Ceuta is slowly returning to a fragile sense of normality after one of the largest irregular border crossings in recent European history. Nearly all of the estimated 50,000 to 60,000 people who entered the North African enclave from Morocco in late July have left, Spanish authorities confirmed, while new physical barriers are being installed to deter further attempts. The autonomous city of Ceuta is trying to regain a sense of calm. Authorities have begun installing protective barriers along the breakwater where at least 60,000 people crossed irregularly. https://t.co/z1XYu7y83t pic.twitter.com/uQBy84hNXN — euronews (@euronews) August 1, 2026 Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska described the situation as “almost entirely reversed” on 1 August. More than 48,000 of those who crossed -mostly young Moroccan men – returned voluntarily to Morocco within roughly 48 hours under the supervision of Spanish police and military forces. Overnight crossings had fallen to near zero. At least 67 people died during the chaotic rush, some by drowning while swimming around the Tarajal breakwater and others in stampedes at the fence. Authorities moved quickly to reinforce the frontier. Civil Guard officers began installing a 500-metre floating barrier off the Tarajal breakwater, consisting of an inflatable structure with a submerged section up to one metre deep, supplemented by naval buoys. 🇲🇦🇪🇸 Spain has completed the installation of a 500-metre floating containment barrier at the Tarajal breakwater in Ceuta. The pneumatic fence rises 30–70 cm above the water and extends one metre below the surface in an effort to deter migrants. Follow: @europa pic.twitter.com/ozgCRfSw2m — Europa.com (@europa) August 1, 2026 Reinforced police and military deployments remain in place. Local shops and restaurants cautiously reopened after a lockdown of more than 24 hours, though the city’s annual festivities for its patron saint, the Virgin of Africa, were cancelled. Residents described lingering fear and uncertainty even as streets emptied of the sudden crowds that had overwhelmed a city of about 83,000 people. Spanish officials stressed that no migrants moved onward from Ceuta to mainland Spain or the rest of the Schengen area, citing existing controls that treat the enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla as special external territories. Cooperation with Moroccan authorities was credited for the rapid reversal. Diplomatic scars Yet the crisis has left clear diplomatic scars across the European Union. Italy, under Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, suspended aspects of the Schengen free-movement arrangements with Spain for one month, reimposing targeted checks on non-EU nationals arriving by air or sea. Meloni called the images from Ceuta “shocking” and framed uncontrolled immigration as a threat to European security. Finland and Denmark backed similar steps, while leaders from 22 EU countries issued a joint letter criticising Spain’s broader migration policies – including plans to regularise large numbers of undocumented migrants – as potential “pull factors.” Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez strongly condemned the reactions. He described some governments’ responses as “selfish, polarising and unlawful,” driven by “prejudice, fake news, ignorance or political interest,” and noted that Ceuta itself is not fully integrated into the Schengen free-movement zone in the same way as the Spanish mainland. Spain summoned Italy’s ambassador in protest over the rhetoric. An emergency video conference of EU interior ministers was scheduled to address the fallout. EU institutions, led by the European Commission, emphasized that Ceuta and Melilla operate under special Schengen rules with existing controls preventing onward movement to the mainland, prioritized coordinated action to secure the EU’s external borders, and scheduled an emergency meeting of interior ministers while rejecting immediate calls to suspend Spain from the free-movement zone. While physical barriers and rapid returns appear effective in the short term, the episode has exposed deeper tensions over shared responsibility for external borders, migration incentives, and the integrity of the Schengen system. For Ceuta’s residents, the immediate priority remains restoring everyday life after days of disruption, shortages, and fear – aware that the political aftershocks may last longer than the physical ones. Edited by g.g. Caption: Spanish Civil Guard officials patrol the streets as Spain reopens borders with Morocco, in the Spanish enclave of Melilla, 1 August 2026. Violent clashes occurred along the border perimeter for two days as migrants attempted to enter Ceuta and Melilla from Morocco. EPA/Giner

eualive.net