International news and global affairs
In Gaza, where forensic technology is scarce and detention records are hidden, thousands of people have disappeared. Some are under rubble. Others are in Israeli detention. The truth is that nobody really knows.
Yuki Tamura 
The Middle East conflict has forced a dramatic restructuring of global aviation routes, with Australian carriers like Qantas adding Singapore stopovers to flagship routes and rerouting passengers through Southeast Asian hubs instead of traditional Gulf connections.
Mitchell Tan 
Australia's decision to send surveillance aircraft and missiles to the Middle East reveals uncomfortable truths about how middle powers navigate geopolitical conflicts far from home.
Oliver Pemberton 
A Middle East conflict has shut down a fifth of global LNG supply, turning Australia's abundant gas reserves into a critical diplomatic bargaining chip as Japan and China compete for cargoes.
Rachel Thornbury 
President Trump has issued an ultimatum to Iran: fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours or face strikes on power plants. Yet intelligence assessments and Iranian rhetoric suggest compliance is unlikely.
Sophia Vargas 
Iran's newly appointed supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, controls luxury properties across Europe, the Middle East and North America. Experts now warn Australia's real estate sector may be vulnerable to his regime's assets.
Ella Sullivan 
Israel's systematic destruction of civilian infrastructure in southern Lebanon raises urgent questions about proportionality and international law compliance, as military strategy conflicts with humanitarian concerns.
Priya Narayanan 
Six oil tankers bound for Australia have been cancelled or deferred as the Strait of Hormuz blockade threatens fuel supplies. The government is pursuing diplomatic solutions with Asian partners while releasing strategic reserves.
Oliver Pemberton 
In South Africa's most unequal economy, young women called 'slay queens' pursue wealthy older men for financial security. The lifestyle looks glamorous online, but the reality is far darker.
Sarah Cheng 
When a woman died an hour into a Hong Kong-London flight, the crew faced an uncomfortable reality: there are protocols for managing death mid-air, and continuing to destination is often the right call.
James Callahan 
Saudi Arabia has expelled Iran's military attaché and four embassy staff after months of Iranian attacks on its territory. The expulsion marks the dramatic failure of a Chinese-brokered diplomatic agreement to restore relations.
Priya Narayanan 
President Trump's threat to 'obliterate' Iran's power plants reveals an administration struggling to reopen a shipping channel that has become an economic nightmare for allies and trading partners worldwide.
Yuki Tamura 
Australian Muslims celebrated Eid al-Fitr this week in a divided frame of mind: honouring tradition and family bonds while watching war unfold in homelands where relatives remain.
Daniel Kovac 
Donald Trump says the US is winning and considering an exit from the Middle East, yet his administration is sending more Marines to the region and oil prices continue to surge as Iran blockades the Strait of Hormuz.
Oliver Pemberton 
Abbas Ayoub has spent much of his adult life fleeing airstrikes. Now at 33, watching his Beirut neighborhood burn from the mountains, he confronts a brutal reality: displacement has become routine.
James Callahan 
Three weeks into the Iran-Israel conflict, intelligence agencies are employing extraordinary coordination between human spies and technical surveillance to track a rapidly evolving war across the Middle East.
Mitchell Tan 
The US military is deploying 2,500 additional Marines and three warships to the Middle East as the Iran war enters its fourth week, while Iran's new leader vows to maintain the Strait of Hormuz closure and continue attacks on regional targets.
Aisha Khoury 
When a French naval officer uploaded a deck run to Strava, he inadvertently broadcast his aircraft carrier's precise location in a volatile region. The incident signals deeper institutional failures in how military organisations manage technology risks.
Priya Narayanan 
Foreign Minister Penny Wong has urged against further escalation of the Middle East conflict in discussions with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, warning that Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz is destabilising global energy markets.
Zara Mitchell 
With the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed and oil prices surging, the International Energy Agency is pushing governments and businesses to cut consumption rather than chase supply.
Oliver Pemberton