News headlines
- Australian Defence to scale down the procurement of tanks
- Australians pay tribute to Bayy Humphries
- Sudan's army has agreed to help evacuate foreign nationals
- Military aircraft arrives in Djibouti to relocate S. Korean nationals in Sudan
- Australia removes hurdles from Kiwi residents gaining citizenship
Further details are expected to be revealed following recommendations that Australian Defence Force projects be stripped back immediately to cut costs, including a reduction in infantry fighting vehicles from 450 to 129.
The Defence Strategic Review also urges an expansion or acceleration of programs for medium and heavy landing craft, long-range missiles and mobile land-based missiles used to strike maritime targets.
However, it says a second regiment of self-propelled howitzer artillery should be cancelled.
The review was foreshadowed by a change in defence posture to focus more on long-range strike capability and being able to combat and deter adversaries further from Australia's shores.
It was conducted by former defence force chief Angus Houston and former defence minister Stephen Smith, independently of government.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is among those paying tribute to actor and satirist Barry Humphries who has died at the age of 89.
Humphries died on Saturday at St Vincent's Hospital in Sydney surrounded by his immediate family.
In a statement released on Saturday night, his family said "he was completely himself until the very end, never losing his brilliant mind, his unique wit and generosity of spirit."
Paying tribute on Twitter, Mr Albanese has said Humphries had entertained us through a galaxy of personas, from Dame Edna to Sandy Stone but the brightest star in that galaxy was always Barry.
Sudan's army has agreed to help evacuate foreign nationals as gunfire and air strikes continue across Khartoum.
The statement, citing army chief Abdel Fatteh al-Burhan, was released on Saturday after Rapid Support Forces [[RSF]] leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo promised to open airports for evacuations.
It comes as violence continues in Sudan despite both the army and the R-S-F promising to uphold a three-day ceasefire from Friday for Islam's Eid al-Fitr holiday.
Thomas Okedi is the North Darfur State Area manager of the Norwegian Refugee Council, based in Al-Fashir in West Sudan.
A military aircraft on a mission to evacuate South Korean nationals in war-torn Sudan arrived at a U.S. base in nearby Djibouti, Saturday, according to the defense ministry.
The C-130J transport plane, carrying 50 personnel, including security and medical staff, left for Djibouti the previous day, as the airport in the Sudanese capital of Khartoum is currently closed.
The evacuation plan came as the fighting between rival forces in the African nation has been intensifying recently. The total number of South Koreans in Sudan is estimated at 29.
New Zealand leaders are playing down fears the lure of Australian citizenship could bring about a fresh brain drain.
This weekend, the Australian government announced a massive change to its citizenship regime, removing hurdles from Kiwi residents gaining citizenship.
The announcement has gone down a treat with New Zealanders, with about 400,000 believed to be eligible for an Australian passport when the new regime kicks in from July.
With citizenship comes a suite of rights, including access to welfare benefits, public housing, student allowances and loans, and to work in public service roles.
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SBS 한국어 뉴스: 2023년 4월 22일 토요일
SBS Korean
22/04/202303:55
