Reported from the source

Quick summary: Australia has deployed two Royal Australian Air Force aircraft to the Middle East as a precautionary measure to assist tens of thousands of Australians stranded due to escalating regional conflict. Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong confirmed the first repatriation flight from Dubai has arrived and more are scheduled. Concurrently, a class action lawsuit for robodebt victims has a critical deadline of March 6th for registration to claim a $475 million settlement, with many eligible claimants yet to sign up. Other significant developments include a parliamentary inquiry into racism against First Nations people, the Queensland government ending its support for state literary awards, and student protests against the war on Iran.

The federal government has launched Operation Beech, deploying a C-17A Globemaster heavy transport aircraft and a KC-30A multi-role tanker transport, to aid Australians in the Middle East. This deployment is part of contingency planning as conflict sparked by American and Israeli strikes on Iran spreads. Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong welcomed the first flight from Dubai to Sydney, carrying over 230 Australians, and announced three additional flights are scheduled for Thursday. She expressed deep concern about the conflict’s spread, noting Iran’s attacks against 11 countries, including Turkey. As many as 24,000 Australians are reportedly stranded in the United Arab Emirates alone. Domestically, the federal minister for Indigenous Australians, Malarndirri McCarthy, announced a parliamentary inquiry into racism, hate, and violence directed at First Nations people. Lawyers running a class action on behalf of robodebt victims have urged individuals to register for a $475 million settlement by the March 6th deadline. Gordon Legal, which agreed to the settlement with the federal government, highlighted that only a quarter of the 482,530 potentially eligible claimants have registered to receive compensation. The Queensland government is set to cease backing its state literary awards, opting to “transition” them to an “alternative provider.” This decision follows controversies involving pro-Palestine statements by artists, which led to the stripping of an award from a winner and the cancellation of last year’s ceremony. At the University of Sydney, approximately 40 Students Against War protesters proceeded with a speakout against the war on Iran, despite warnings from university management and a recently enacted campus access policy requiring notice for demonstrations. Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney softened his support for US and Israeli strikes on Iran, stating he did not believe the attacks were legal and represented “another example of the failure of the international order,” even while welcoming the end of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s regime. Former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull commented on US compliance with international law, asserting it occurs “only when it suits it,” referencing Donald Trump’s past statements on the matter. The Greens party attributed the exodus from public schools to “decades of underfunding,” citing new data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics showing a record low percentage of students in government schools. They criticized Labor’s claims of fully funding public schools by 2034 and federal subsidies for private schools. Attorney-General Michelle Rowland confirmed that work is “under way” to address elder abuse, with announcements expected in the near future, acknowledging the issue isn’t discussed enough and involves collaboration between states and the commonwealth.

Source: www.theguardian.com