Good afternoon. The former Liberal staffer Nicky Hamer was in the witness box today at Bruce Lehrmann’s defamation proceedings against Network Ten and Lisa Wilkinson. Hamer told the court she had raised an alleged interaction between Bruce Lehrmann and Brittany Higgins with the Liberal senator Linda Reynolds weeks before the alleged rape.
Hamer said Lehrmann had said Higgins was “good looking” and asked Hamer to invite her to the pub for a drink. When they met for a drink, Hamer said Higgins had to leave early and Lehrmann hadn’t wanted her to leave so had grabbed her phone so she couldn’t call an Uber. When Hamer defended Higgins’ right to leave, Hamer said Lehrmann had called her a “feminist”.
Hamer said she had reported the exchange to Reynolds, who told Hamer she would speak to Lehrmann and a fellow staffer, Jesse Wotton, about it.
Lehrmann has always maintained his innocence and pleaded not guilty to a charge of sexual intercourse without consent.
Top news
US imposes visa bans on Israeli settlers responsible for violence | In a rare punitive move against Israel, the US has announced it will impose travel bans on extremist Jewish settlers implicated in attacks on Palestinians in the West Bank. It comes as the UN’s top aid official said the Israeli military campaign in southern Gaza had been just as devastating as in the north, creating “apocalyptic” conditions and ending any possibility of meaningful humanitarian operations. The UN has heard accounts of sexual violence during the 7 October attacks by Hamas in a meeting where speakers also attacked women’s rights activists and UN officials for not doing more to investigate or condemn the crimes.
Australia ends finance for overseas fossil fuel expansion | The Australian government has been praised for joining a global partnership committed to stopping billions of dollars in foreign aid and loans being spent on fossil fuel expansion but the decision has also prompted renewed calls for it to reconsider polluting subsidies at home. Scientists warn many of the gravest threats to humanity are drawing closer as carbon pollution heats the planet to ever more dangerous levels.
First heatwave of summer | Half of Australia will be blanketed in a widespread heatwave by the end of this week, enduring days of high temperatures with little reprieve. A cool change will begin making its way across the country at the weekend but high temperatures will continue for much of inland NSW. In Queensland Australia’s first tropical cyclone of the season has formed. It is expected to become severe from Thursday and potentially reach the Queensland coast by next week.
FBI arrests US man in connection with Wieambilla shootings | The FBIC has arrested a man in Arizona in connection with last year’s religiously motivated terrorist attack on a remote Queensland property in Wieambilla.
Biden running for US president in 2024 because Trump is | The US president said he was not sure he would be seeking re-election in next year’s election were he not likely to be facing Donald Trump. His remarks came as Joe Biden spoke about the risks Trump posed to democracy, amid fears a second Trump term would be far more autocratic than the first.
China looms in background of Taiwan election | Taiwanese elections have always been colourful and often messy but this year adds another layer. Voters are faced with a choice of continuity with the ruling Democratic Progressive party or change, with an opposition that favours closer ties with Beijing.
Full Story
Why is the Israel-Hamas conflict so deadly for journalists? More reporters are believed to have been killed in this conflict than any in decades. Jonathan Dagher, from Reporters Without Borders, discusses what it means for public understanding of the region
What they said …
***
“I will just say this to Labor – stop engaging in a race to the bottom with Peter Dutton, because if you give in on one thing, he’ll come back the next day and ask for another” – the Greens leader, Adam Bandt, criticising Labor for giving into “Dutton’s fear campaign” after the high court ruling against immigration detention.
In numbers
Before bed read
The festive season wasn’t always about mince pies and wanton consumerism. Ancient folklore was more O Holy Fright than O Holy Night.
As Emma Beddington scrolled through pictures of shadowy, ragged, often armed seasonal figures from European winter folklore, she began to wonder, why is it so chilling? In her quest for answers, she has pulled together 10 of the most demonic depictions of Europe’s disturbing Christmas customs.
Daily word game
Today’s starter word is: ALES. You have five goes to get the longest word including the starter word. Play Wordiply.
Sign up
If you would like to receive this Afternoon Update to your email inbox every weekday, sign up here. And start your day with a curated breakdown of the key stories you need to know. Sign up for our Morning Mail newsletter here.
