Australia

Australian rugby league coach and former player dies aged 49

Green guided North Queensland Cowboys to their first National Rugby League (NRL) premiership title in 2015.

As a player, he made 162 appearances across five different clubs during a 10-year career, before retiring in 2004.

At the time of his death, he was the head coach of Queensland in the State of Origin Series.

Queensland Police said there were "no suspicious circumstances" around Green's death and that a report will be prepared for the coroner.

Green's family said they are "devastated" by his loss.

Olivia Newton-John: Australia mourns a national sweetheart

It's no wonder that Hollywood is mourning her and that tributes have come from her star friends from Britain as well.

But Australia has and will always claim her as its "darling" and "sweetheart".

Obituary: Olivia Newton-John

This is where she started her musical career, even though she grew up wanting to be a vet and then a policewoman.

Newton-John formed a girl group with three other school friends at 14 and started performing in a café run by her sister's boyfriend.

Australians grew up with a young Olivia Newton-John on their screens.

Qantas asks executives to work as baggage handlers for three months

The firm's head of operations is looking for at least 100 volunteers to work at Sydney and Melbourne airports.

Tasks include loading and unloading bags as well as driving vehicles to move luggage around airports.

Like much of the global airline industry, Qantas is struggling to resume its services as borders reopen.

Australia’s Charisma Amoe-Tarrant lifts for her late mother and uncle

"That's for my mum, and also my uncle who passed away from cancer, and I know he was also very supportive of my lifting, like my mum," she said.

"All the lifting is for them."

Amoe-Tarrant was born in Nauru and lived there until she was 12 years of age.

Her mother died of kidney problems in 2009, so she and her siblings were adopted by their grandparents, who brought them to Australia.

Four years ago, Amoe-Tarrant won a silver medal for her country of birth, and now the 23-year-old has one as an Australian.

Cooper starts as Rennie names Wallabies team for Pumas

In other notable selections by Wallabies coach Dave Rennie for the clash on Sunday (AEST), Quade Cooper takes over the No.10 jumper from Noah Lolesio and Tom Wright wins the vacant fullback spot ahead of Jordan Petaia, who will start on the wing.

Cooper missed the recent England series after injuring his calf during the warm-up for the first Test and his call-up provides a spicy sidebar after his international career was all but ended by Michael Cheika, now coach of the Pumas.

Actor breaks up knife fight in Australia

The actor, who has starred in Slumdog Millionaire, witnessed the fight in Adelaide on Monday (1 August).

A man and a woman were reportedly fighting in the street and in a convenience store when the man was stabbed in the chest.

Patel's spokesman said the star "acted on his natural instinct". The man who was stabbed is expected to survive.

"We can confirm that last night, in Adelaide, Dev Patel and his friends witnessed a violent altercation that was already in progress outside of a convenience store," representatives for Patel told BBC News.

Piece of SpaceX capsule crashes to Earth in field

But on closer inspection - and verification from experts - he learned it had fallen from space.

The Australian Space Agency (ASA) later said it came from a SpaceX capsule.

Experts described the discovery as "rare" and "exciting" - but said such events may become more common.

The object landed on 9 July in a large area of fields, but was not discovered by Mr Miners until several weeks later.

Two other pieces were later found nearby, and the ASA asked anyone who came across further items to contact a debris hotline set up by SpaceX.

Saudi women in Sydney: Sisters' bodies lay undiscovered for a month

Sisters Asra Abdullah Alsehli, 24, and Amaal Abdullah Alsehli, 23, were found dead on 7 June in separate beds at home in the suburb of Canterbury.

Police, who were called to the property for a welfare check, said the women are believed to have died in early May.

But despite "extensive inquiries", they still do not know how or why.

The sisters moved to Australia from Saudi Arabia in 2017 and may have sought asylum, The Sydney Morning Herald reported. Police refused to confirm this, saying they do not comment on residential status.

Historic pride jersey sparks player boycott in Australia

On Thursday, the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles will become the first team in the competition ever to don a kit which promotes LGBT inclusivity in the sport.

But players weren't consulted and some object to the move on religious and cultural grounds.

The club apologised for its handling of the situation.

Coach Des Hasler said the club had made a "significant mistake" that had caused "confusion, discomfort and pain for many people, in particular those groups whose human rights we were in fact attempting to support".

Number of Australians who have had Covid-19 jumps in June survey

Researchers have conducted their second "serosurvey", testing blood donations for the presence of antibodies to SARS-CoV-2, to find the prevalence of infection had almost tripled since late February when it was estimated to be 17 per cent.

Kirby Institute senior research fellow Dr Dorothy Machalek said while the results revealed there was a "huge amount" of community transmission, it was not a surprise.