Australia

Police in Australia say they are responding to a developing incident at Sydney’s Bondi Beach after media outlets reported a shooting incident.

The Sydney Morning Herald reported shots at the beach on Sunday, saying multiple people had been injured. Television networks Sky and ABC aired footage showing people lying on the ground.

The New South Wales (NSW) police said two people were in custody, adding that the operation was ongoing.

“Anyone at the scene should take shelter,” they posted on X, calling on the public to avoid the area.

A spokesperson for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the government was aware “of an active security situation in Bondi”.

“We urge people in the vicinity to follow information from NSW Police,” said the spokesperson.

More to come…

Dec. 12 (UPI) — An Australian skydiver was left dangling from behind a plane at 15,000 feet after his parachute got caught on the tail of the aircraft, causing some heart-stopping moments for the jumper and the pilot.

The Australian Transport Safety Bureau released a report and video Thursday describing the incident that happened on Sept. 20 in which a skydiver’s reserve parachute deployed as he jumped and got caught on a horizontal stabilizer of the Cessna Caravan. The skydiver and the plane were able to land safely after several harrowing moments.

Skydiver Adrian Ferguson used a hook knife to cut himself free after suffering minor leg injuries when his legs crashed into the horizontal stabilizer. He was then able to deploy his main parachute safely, though it did get tangled in the cords from the reserve chute.

The plane took off and landed at Tully Airport, an airstrip in northern Queensland. There were 16 other parachutists on the plane, and all were able to jump safely. The divers were planning to do a 16-way formation jump, with a 17th jumper filming it. The jump was part of the annual Big Ways at the Beach event, hosted by the Far North Freefall group. The event is a multi-day event in which experienced skydivers complete large group formations in belly-to-earth freefall, the report said.

The pilot, who was wearing his own emergency parachute, was unsure if he could land the plane after Ferguson freed himself because the parachute and its cords remained tangled in the horizontal stabilizer, the report said.

“The pilot recalled feeling the aircraft suddenly pitch up, and observed the airspeed rapidly decreasing,” ATSB Chief Commissioner Angus Mitchell said. “Initially unaware of what had occurred, the pilot believed the aircraft had stalled, and pushed forward on the control column and applied some power in response. But upon being told there was a skydiver hung up on the tailplane, they reduced power again.”

Once all the jumpers had left the plane, the pilot had to consider what to do next.

“With all parachutists out of the aircraft, the pilot assessed they had limited pitch control, given the substantially damaged tailplane, which still had a portion of the reserve parachute wrapped around it,” Mitchell said. “With forward pressure they found they could achieve a gradual descent, and retracted the flap, which then allowed slightly more rudder, aileron and elevator control.”

Once he got close to the ground, the pilot realized he could land the plane.

“In difficult circumstances, the pilot managed to control the aircraft and land safely at Tully,” Mitchell said.

The report said that when Ferguson jumped, the handle that releases the emergency chute got snagged on the plane and was pulled open. Mitchell said the event should remind parachutists to be mindful of their handles, especially when exiting the plane.

“Carrying a hook knife — although it is not a regulatory requirement — could be lifesaving in the event of a premature reserve parachute deployment,” he said.

The investigation also found that the pilot had not ensured the plane was loaded within its weight and balance envelope for proper weight distribution of the craft. But that didn’t contribute to the accident.

“Fatal parachuting accidents have occurred in the past due to aircraft being loaded outside center-of-gravity limits, which highlights the importance of conducting aircraft weight and balance calculations prior to each load,” Mitchell said.

LADY Gaga was forced to stop her Sydney gig mid-show after one of her dancers fell off the stage.

The Poker Face hitmaker, 39, halted the action during her Mayhem Ball concert following heavy rain at the Accor Stadium.

The Sydney venue is open-air and, two hours after the show kicked off, the painful mishap brought a temporary stop to proceedings.

Lady Gaga kick-started her 31-song setlist with tracks Bloody Mary and Abracadabra.

She belted out the likes of Judas, Poker Face and Aura before the issue struck mid-way through Garden of Eden.

The track is from her 2025 album Mayhem on which the tour is named.

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With a soaking wet floor, the dancers charged to the front of the stage.

One, named Michael Dameski, fell down during the choreography and A Star Is Born actress Gaga was quick to wave her arms and call a stop to the show at around 9pm.

The singer and her dancers then retreated inside during a temporary pause, to try to find more suitable footwear.

They then resumed the show, with further tracks including Rain On Me, How Bad Do You Want Me and Always Remember Us This Way playing out.

FAN PRAISE

Fans were quick to praise Gaga’s actions in what was her last Aussie show of the tour.

One took to X to write: “Sending love and well wishes to Gaga’s dancer, Michael, who fell off stage during Garden Of Eden.

“So grateful that Gaga paused the show to check on him. True professionalism and compassion.”

Another put: “She’s so special the way she ran straight over, climbed down and made sure he was okay.”

Gaga kicked off the tour’s epic global run in Las Vegas in July.

The show is a dramatic depiction of Gaga’s lifelong battles with the “light and dark” inside herself.

Unlikely Celeb Pals

EMINEM and Sir Elton John have come out tops in a poll on unlikely celeb pals – were you aware of these famous connections?

TOP 15 UNLIKELY DUOS:

1. Elton John and Eminem
2. Lady Gaga and Tony Bennett
3. Laurel and Hardy
4. Han Solo and Chewbacca
5. GK Barry and Rev Richard Coles
6. Ed Sheeran and Courteney Cox
7. Snoop Dogg and Martha Stewart
8. Noel Fielding and Alison Hammond
9. Georgia Toffolo and Stanley Johnson
10. Simon Cowell and Cheryl Cole
11. Walter White and Jesse Pinkman
12. Sam Thompson and Pete Wicks
13. Bette Midler and 50 Cent
14. Harry Styles and Lizzo
15. Pitbull and John Travolta

Gaga’s career has seen a meteoric resurgence this year, following the release of her seventh album Mayhem in March.

Singles Abracadabra and Disease broke into the Top Ten, while her Bruno Mars collaboration Die With A Smile became one of the biggest hits of the year worldwide.

Yet it hasn’t come without incident, after she previously fell off stage in front of fans during one live show.

SPEAK OUT

Speaking to Bizarre as Mayhem was released, a source explained that Gaga has finally found inner peace after years of struggling with her pop star persona and the real person behind it, Stefani Germanotta.

The insider explained: “Gaga has never hidden her real self from the world.

“But she’s more comfortable now in her ability to associate herself as the creator instead of the product.

“The person she wakes up as is the same person who hits the stage.”

The singer’s energetic routines showed that she has fully recovered from a hip injury and fibromyalgia, a condition which caused musculoskeletal pain, extreme fatigue and deep anxiety — and resulted in the cancellation of part of her Joanne world tour in 2018.

The Ashes returns on 17 December (23:30 GMT, 16 Dec) with the third Test taking place at the Adelaide Oval.

England are 2-0 down and must win the third Test to have a chance of regaining the Ashes.

The Oval has hosted plenty of memorable moments, how many do you remember? Good luck!

Dili, East Timor – On the 50th anniversary of Indonesia’s invasion of East Timor, longtime independence advocate and now the country’s President Jose Ramos-Horta reflected on the last half-century of politics and diplomacy in his country.

Ramos-Horta was serving as the foreign minister of the newly declared Democratic Republic of East Timor in the days leading up to Indonesia’s invasion in December 1975.

Formed by the independence party Fretilin after colonial Portugal’s withdrawal from the country, the new government in East Timor’s capital Dili was under pressure from Indonesia and its threat of invasion.

As the danger intensified, Ramos-Horta flew to the United Nations in New York to plead for international recognition and protection for East Timor’s fragile independence. Despite unanimous support at the UN for Timorese self-determination, Indonesian troops launched their invasion on December 7, 1975.

Ramos-Horta’s colleagues, including Prime Minister Nicolau Lobato and other Fretilin leaders, either went into hiding or were killed in the ensuing attack. Unable to return home, Ramos-Horta became East Timor’s voice in exile for the next 24 years.

During his exile, Ramos-Horta lobbied governments, human rights organisations, and the UN to condemn Indonesia’s occupation, which resulted in the deaths of an estimated 200,000 Timorese through conflict, famine, and repression.

Silenced by a military-imposed media blackout for much of the 1980s, it was only in the 1990s that reports of Indonesian atrocities – including the 1991 Santa Cruz massacre – began to filter out and East Timor’s struggle for independence gained international attention.

Ramos-Horta’s tireless advocacy earned him a Nobel Peace Prize, along with Bishop Carlos Belo, in 1996.

A UN-sponsored referendum delivered an overwhelming vote for independence in 1999, leading to a fully independent East Timor in 2002. However, the country continues to face economic challenges and remains one of Southeast Asia’s poorest nations.

In the years overseeing his country’s transition from conflict to reconciliation, Ramos-Horta has held the roles of foreign minister, prime minister and now president.

Al Jazeera’s Ali MC sat down with Ramos-Horta on a recent trip to East Timor, where the president spoke about his country’s long road to peace and hopes for it to prosper from membership of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), increased trade with China, and development of the offshore Greater Sunrise gas field.

Al Jazeera: Reflecting on your role as an ambassador for East Timor after Indonesia’s 1975 invasion, what were some of the key challenges that you faced while advocating for your country on the international stage?

Ramos-Horta: First, we were in the midst of the Cold War with that catastrophic US engagement in the wars against North Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos.

Then, you can say – the US defeat, if not military defeat, it was a total political defeat at the hands of the Vietnamese. So, it was in the midst of all of this that Indonesia invaded Timor-Leste [the official Portuguese-language name for East Timor], on December 7, 1975. The day before, US President Gerald Ford and Secretary of State Kissinger were in Jakarta, and they officially gave the green light to President Soeharto to invade – immorally – with the use of American weapons.

So, it was within this context that it was very challenging for us to mobilise sympathy, support and the media. The invasion merited only one small, short column in The New York Times.

In Australia, there was more coverage. But the coverage didn’t last long, because Indonesia did a very good job, with Australian complicity, in blocking any news out of East Timor. At that time, not a single journalist came – the first foreign journalist to come here was in 1987.

The absence of [proof of] death is the worst enemy of any struggle. There were terrible massacres on the day of the invasion, hundreds of people shot and dumped into the sea, including an Australian, Roger East [a journalist killed by Indonesian forces on the day of the invasion].

Many, many countless people shot on the spot. Many were alive and dragged to the port of Dili, shot and fell into the sea. Many more killed randomly around town. And zero media coverage, not a single camera.

AJ: How did that lack of media coverage make it difficult for you, as an ambassador overseas, to describe to the international community exactly what was happening in East Timor?

Ramos-Horta: Terribly difficult.

To mobilise people who are potentially sympathetic, you can do so effectively if you have a backup for what you say, what you allege, what you report. This must be backed up with visuals.

But people were sympathetic and listened to me. I was persuasive enough for them to believe what might be going on.

AJ: Given your own personal experience in the struggle for independence in East Timor, does that influence the way that you advocate? Does that bring a more personal response to your diplomacy?

Ramos-Horta: My personal instinct as a person is not shaped by anyone, by any school, any religion. It is me, always, against injustice and abuse.

Then came our experience and the fight for independence. When we fought for independence and for freedom, I went around the world begging for support, begging for sympathy. Then, we became independent.

Well, how can I not show sympathy in a real way towards the Palestinians? Why would I not show sympathy in a real way towards the people of Myanmar? Just showing sympathy, because we cannot do much more.

What can we do? We are not even a mid-sized country. But speaking out – a voice – is very important.

AJ: What are your reflections on what has occurred in Gaza?

Ramos-Horta: It is one of the most abominable humanitarian catastrophes in modern times, in the 21st century, next to the killing fields in Cambodia during Pol Pot’s regime.

The amount of bombs dropped on Gaza is more than the combined amount of the bombs dropped on London and Dresden during World War II, and more than the bombs dropped on Cambodia by the Americans during the Vietnam War.

The suffering inflicted on civilians, women and children is just unbelievable.

How we, human beings in this 21st century, can descend so low and how Israel, a country that I always admired, first out of sympathy for what Jewish people went through, through their lives, through their history – always persecuted, always having to flee, and then culminating in the horrendous Holocaust. When you survive a Holocaust experience, like the Jews, I would think that you are a person that is the most sympathetic to anyone yearning for freedom, for peace, for dignity. Because you understand.

They [Israelis] are doing the opposite.

And you have to understand, also, the people who are on the other side. You know the Palestinians, who had 70 years of occupation and brutality, they are not going to show any sympathy to the Jews or Israelis. So, this whole situation has generated hatred and polarisation as never before.

AJ: What can the international community learn from the experience of East Timor and people such as yourself?

Ramos-Horta: I am thoroughly disillusioned with the so-called international community, particularly the West, that enjoy entertaining themselves lecturing Third World countries on democracy, human rights, transparency, anticorruption, etc, etc.

They could never find the case to help poorer countries getting out of extreme poverty. But they found billions of dollars for the last three years to pump into the war in Ukraine.

I don’t condemn that. It is white people supporting white people being attacked. But then they are silent on Israel as it bulldozes the whole of Palestine; carpet bombing, killing tens of thousands of civilians.

And yet, with incredible, nauseating hypocrisy, when they are asked to comment on this, they say Israel has the right to defend itself!

Defend itself against children, against women, against students, against academics, against universities, that they bulldoze completely. Defend themselves against doctors and nurses in hospitals that they bulldoze.

And in an incredible contortion, you have the secretary-general of NATO say Iran presents a threat to the whole world. I know the whole world, literally, and I don’t know of anyone in the whole world that I know that considers Iran a threat to them.

I feel nauseated with such dishonesty, such inhumanity. So, I’m thoroughly disappointed. And I was always an admirer of the West.

AJ: Reflecting on many decades in politics in East Timor, is there anything that stands out to you as a personal success or something that you feel most proud about?

Ramos-Horta: I feel proud that we have been able to keep the country at peace. We have zero political violence. We have zero ethnic-based or religious-based tensions or violence. We don’t have even organised crime. We have never had a bank robbery or armed robbery in someone’s home. We don’t have that. And we are ranked among having the freest media in the world and the freest democracy in the world. I’m proud of my contribution in that.

AJ: East Timor is set to join the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). What will be the benefits of being a part of that?

Ramos-Horta: We’ll be part of a community of 700 million people, a community whose combined GDP is at least $4 trillion.

And that means the possibility of Timor-Leste benefitting from our neighbours is greater. There will be more free movement of capital. There’ll be more people attracted to visit Timor-Leste and more embassies opening.

These are the benefits of being associated with an organisation like ASEAN. There are concrete, material benefits besides the importance of the strategic alliance, the strategic partnership, with our neighbours.

AJ: China is really emerging in the Southeast Asia and Pacific regions. Are there any tensions over East Timor’s relationship with China?

Ramos-Horta: We don’t view China as an enemy of anyone, unlike some in America.

The US is not able to digest the fact that China today is a global superpower, that China today is a major global financial and economic power. That it is no longer the US that rules this unipolar world, that it has a competitor.

But the Chinese are very modest, and they say they are not competing to be number one with the US.

Any rational, intelligent person who is informed about China – even if a leader emerged in China that would view Australia and the US with hostility – would, in his right mind, think that you can overpower the US economically and militarily.

AJ: What is the projected benefit economically for East Timor from the Greater Sunrise Gas Field?

Ramos-Horta: The existing studies point to it taking seven years for the whole project to be completed and deliver gas and revenue to Timor-Leste.

But long before that, the day we sign the agreement, within the following few months, two years, a lot of investments already start to happen. Because we have to build all the infrastructure on the south coast that will run into the tens of millions of dollars, hundreds of millions of dollars.

The pipeline will take its time to reach Timor, but the pipeline will be served by all the infrastructure built on the south coast, plus housing. Hundreds, maybe thousands of houses for workers, for people and so on. Then improvement in the agriculture sector. Farmers in the community benefitting because they will sell produce to the company, to the workers and so on.

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Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese was joined by 12-year-old campaigner Florence Brodribb at an event to welcome the start of Australia’s world-first ban on social media for under-16s.

Children under 16 can no longer access 10 of the world’s biggest platforms, including Facebook, TikTok and Instagram.

Australia has banned children under 16 from social media in a world-first, as other countries consider similar age-based measures amid rising concerns over its effects on children’s health and safety.

Under the new law, which came into effect at midnight local time on Wednesday (13:00 GMT on Tuesday), 10 of the biggest platforms face $33m in fines if they fail to purge Australia-based users younger than 16.

The law has been criticised by major technology companies and free speech campaigners, but praised by parents and child advocates.

The Australian government says unprecedented measures are needed to protect children from “predatory algorithms” filling phone screens with bullying, sex and violence.

“Too often, social media isn’t social at all,” Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said in advance of the ban.

“Instead, it’s used as a weapon for bullies, a platform for peer pressure, a driver of anxiety, a vehicle for scammers and, worst of all, a tool for online predators.”

The law states that Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, Snapchat and Reddit are forbidden from creating or keeping accounts belonging to users in Australia under 16.

Streaming platforms Kick and Twitch are also on the government’s blacklist, as are message boards Threads and X. Popular apps and websites such as Roblox, Pinterest and WhatsApp are currently exempt – but the government has stressed that the list remains under review.

Meta, YouTube and other social media giants have already condemned the ban.

YouTube, in particular, has attacked the law, describing it as “rushed” and saying it would only push children into deeper, darker corners of the internet.

While most platforms have begrudgingly agreed to comply, for now, legal challenges are in the wind.

Online discussion site Reddit said Tuesday it could not confirm local media reports that said it would seek to overturn the ban in Australia’s High Court.

The Sydney-based internet rights group Digital Freedom Project has already launched its own bid to have teenagers reinstated to social media.

Some parents, tired of seeing children stuck to their phones, see the ban as a relief.

Father-of-five Dany Elachi said the restrictions were a long-overdue “line in the sand”.

“We need to err on the side of caution before putting anything addictive in the hands of children,” he told the AFP news agency.

The Australian government concedes the ban will be far from perfect at the outset, and canny teenagers will find ways to circumvent it.

Social media companies bear the sole responsibility for checking users are 16 or older.

Some platforms say they will use AI tools to estimate ages based on photos, while young users may also choose to prove their age by uploading a government ID.

There is keen interest in whether Australia’s sweeping restrictions can work as regulators around the globe wrestle with the potential dangers of social media.

Malaysia indicated it was planning to introduce a similar ban next year.

Australia’s Communications Minister Anika Wells said last week that the European Commission, France, Denmark, Greece, Romania and New Zealand were also interested in setting a minimum age for social media.