Contemporary politics,local and international current affairs, science, music and extracts from the Queensland Newspaper "THE WORKER" documenting the proud history of the Labour Movement.
MAHATMA GANDHI ~ Truth never damages a cause that is just.
Donald Trump sued parent company Alphabet after the platforms suspended his accounts in 2021. (ABC News: Ian Cutmore)
In short:
YouTube
has agreed to pay $US22 million ($33.46 million) to US President Donald
Trump as part of a settlement to multiple plaintiffs who were banned
from the platform following the January 6 riots at the Capitol.
Mr Trump's $US22 million will be contributed to the Trust for the National Mall.
What's next?
Google confirmed the settlement but declined to comment beyond it.
Link copied
YouTube
has agreed to pay $US22 million ($33.46 million) to US President Donald
Trump as part of a $24.5 million settlement to multiple plaintiffs who
were banned from the platform following the January 6 riots at the
Capitol.
According to documents
filed in federal court in California, Mr Trump's $US22 million will be
contributed to the Trust for the National Mall and $US2.5 million will
go to other plaintiffs, including the American Conservative Union.
CNN said the contribution to the National Mall would support the construction of the White House State Ballroom.
Mr Trump sued parent company Google and other social media companies after the platforms suspended his accounts in 2021.
It follows a simple settlement from other sites that banned the president.
Google CEO Sundar Pichai (left) attended Mr Trump's inauguration. (Reuters: Saul Loeb/Pool)
Meta,
the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, in January settled a
lawsuit brought by Mr Trump, agreeing to pay $US25 million.
X agreed in February to pay about $US10 million to resolve their suspension of Mr Trump.
The settlement does not constitute an admission of liability, the filing says.
Google confirmed the settlement but declined to comment beyond it.
The disclosure of the settlement came a week before a scheduled October 6 court hearing to discuss the case.
Last
week, YouTube reinstated previously banned creators who had promoted
COVID-19 misinformation and false election-related content.
"YouTube
values conservative voices on its platform and recognizes that these
creators have extensive reach and play an important role in civic
discourse," a letter to the Republican chair of the House Judiciary
Committee read.
Mr Trump had already returned to YouTube in 2023, ahead of his second-term election campaign.
He
was originally banned for violating the platform's policy against
inciting violence after his supporters stormed the US Capitol as
Congress was certifying Joe Biden's victory in the 2020 presidential
election.
Australian-made lasers are set to become NATO's newest frontline defence against drones.
In short:
An Australian-made laser is set to become NATO's newest frontline defence system to combat drone strikes.
The high-powered laser is faster and cheaper than traditional missiles or cannons.
What's next?
An undisclosed NATO country is expected to receive the weapon in the next 18 months.
Link copied
Australia is helping to take the world into the era of Star Wars-style combat.
A
Canberra-made laser is about to become NATO's newest frontline defence
against enemy drones, in a deal experts say could transform the future
of warfare.
The high-powered
laser, nicknamed Apollo after the Greek God of Light, can destroy up to
20 drones a minute, at a cost of $1 per shot, which is faster and
cheaper than traditional missiles or cannons.
There have been several incursions in recent weeks by Russian drones into European airspace.
Electric
Optic Systems (EOS) told the ABC a Western European NATO country had
bought the Australian technology to bolster its air defence.
"There's
been a paradigm shift in warfare, particularly in Ukraine, which has
been driven by drones," EOS chief executive Andreas Schwer told the ABC.
"A drone costs you $1,000, but a missile needed to kill that drone is $500,000."
"It
is fast becoming an economic war and the only option for the defender
is to have cheaper solutions to destroy those drones. That's where the
laser comes into play."
The lasers are designed to burn through drones. (Supplied: EOS)
The Apollo eliminates drones by "thermal destruction".
It uses electricity to heat a target with light particles that burn through the structure until it melts, ignites, or explodes.
Lasers do have setbacks — their accuracy can be affected by humidity, rain, fog or dust, and their range remains limited.
They are more fragile than a canon and unlike missiles, they can not hit objects across terrain or through hills.
"There
is certainly that aspect of science fiction, but they are not perhaps
as spectacular as the Star Wars lasers," Justin Bronk, senior airpower
and technology research fellow at defence think tank The Royal United
Services Institute (RUSI) told the ABC.
"The
relative silence of the laser weapons compared to what we grew up with
in video games and films might be a bit of a disappointment for some
people."
"Rather than
vaporising its target immediately, the laser causes damage and starts to
burn and then eventually the drone either disintegrates or slows down."
The war in Ukraine and the conflict in Gaza has accelerated the demand for rapid, low-cost air defence weapons.
Moscow has launched hundreds of drones across Ukraine and even into airspace in Poland in recent weeks.
"The
main thing that has made this technology particularly urgent is just
the sheer scale of both battlefield drone use and one-way attack drones
used by Russia and Ukraine in the ongoing war," Mr Bronk said.
"There
is a much greater awareness than there was a few years ago in Europe,
particularly about the urgent need for affordable short-range air
defence systems that can take out Unmanned Aerial Vehicles."
A
spokesperson for NATO said the alliance was "constantly looking into
innovations that strengthen our shared security, including new means of
defending against drones".
Dr
Schwer said western nations had realised they could not afford to
continue providing thousands of expensive missiles to Ukraine, which is
running out of inventory.
Each Patriot air defence system, together with its ammunition, is worth about $1.5 billion. (Reuters: Kacper Pempel)
The
US-made patriot air defence system currently used in Ukraine costs more
than $1 billion to acquire and uses million-dollar missiles for each
strike.
While other weapons
including missiles, rockets or cannons can destroy up to five targets a
minute, lasers can hit up to 20 drones per minute at a range of 6km and
can also fire directly upwards, something traditional weapons often can
not do.
"Progressively more and
more nations will feel they need these kinds of systems as a first step
to protect their critical infrastructure including airports, air bases
and nuclear power plants," Dr Schwer said.
Countries including Russia, China, UK, Germany and the United States have begun developing their own laser air defences.
Andreas Schwer says high-energy laser weapons are set to become integral to air defence systems. (Supplied: EOS)
The Apollo is being compared to Israel's much-anticipated Iron Beam laser, which is set to be deployed by the Israeli military.
The
Iron Beam is designed to work alongside Israel's famous Iron Dome
missile shield, to intercept and destroy short-range threats including
drones and rockets that are too small and cheap to be effectively
tackled with costly missiles.
Defence analysts say the 100-kilowatt Australian system matches it in power.
The
Australian laser costs tens of millions of dollars per system and is
due to be delivered to the undisclosed NATO country in the next 18
months.
"Ukrainians have asked
us multiple times to give them laser weapons, and we expect to sell it
further to clients across Europe, but also in the Middle East and Far
East Asia," Dr Schwer said.
"In
terms of cost, if a client is ordering a dozen units the price will go
down to less than $30 million a piece, which is comparable to a main
battle tank."
A NATO country will have access to the weaponry within two years. (Supplied: EOS)
EOS
has been developing laser weapons since the 1980s after it partnered
with the American Strategic Defence Programme, which began through a
government-to-government agreement. At the time, EOS was a
government-owned research institute.
Now
it is the only company outside the US that has developed lasers that
can also destroy objects in space, including satellites, from the
ground.
Dr Schwer said the
technology had been developed with the question in mind of how Europe
could protect its territory from being monitored by China or Russia from
space.
"How can we blind or
even disable those satellites permanently from the ground is something
that is becoming extremely important," Dr Schwer said.
"Whoever
can knock out and eliminate first the satellite fleet of the enemy, has
won the conflict, because there is no more surveillance, intelligence
or communication possible: it goes back to the old fighting way with
artillery shells and swords."
Moldovan voters are backing closer ties with Europe after allegations of Russian meddling. (Reuters: Vladislav Culiomza)
In short:
Voters in Moldova, a former Soviet country to the west of Ukraine, have backed a pro-Europe party.
More
than 50 per cent of voters voted for the Party of Action and
Solidarity, while the pro-Russia Patriotic Bloc received less than 25
per cent support.
European allies are hailing the result as a rejection of alleged Russian meddling.
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Moldova's
pro-European ruling party has won a resounding victory over its
Russian-leaning rival in a key parliamentary election in a major boost
for the country's bid to join the European Union and break away from
Moscow's orbit.
The
surprisingly strong performance on Sunday, local time, by President Maia
Sandu's Party of Action and Solidarity (PAS) against the Patriotic Bloc
was a relief for the government and its EU partners, who accused Moscow
of seeking to influence the vote.
"This is not just a party's victory — it is Moldova's victory. The European path is our way forward," Ms Sandu said on X.
With
all votes counted on Monday, local time, PAS won 50.2 per cent versus
24.2 per cent for the Patriotic Bloc, which had sought to steer Moldova —
a small former Soviet republic lying between Ukraine and EU member
Romania — closer to Russia.
"The
people of Moldova … chose democracy, reform and a European future in
the face of pressure and interference from Russia," Antonio Costa,
president of the European Council, which represents the EU's 27 member
states, said on X.
The leaders
of France, Germany and Poland, in a joint statement, congratulated
Moldova for "the peaceful conduct of the election, despite unprecedented
interference by Russia, including with vote-buying schemes and
disinformation".
Moldovan President Maia Sandu says the result is a rejection of alleged Russian interference. (Reuters: Vladislav Culiomza)
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the election result showed that Moscow had failed to "destabilise" Moldova.
However,
Moscow — which denies the accusations of meddling — has accused
Moldovan authorities of preventing hundreds of thousands of its citizens
who live in Russia from voting by providing only two polling stations
for the large diaspora.
Russia 'using the Republic of Moldova as a laboratory'
Clara
Volintiru, director of the Black Sea Trust at the German Marshall Fund
of the United States, told ABC's The World that the country had
struggled with an energy crisis and economic downturn stemming from
Russia's war in Ukraine.
The Russian government is accused of attempting to sway voters using disinformation. (Reuters: Ramil Sitdikov)
Ms
Volintiru said that, given these factors, it was "in a sense surprising
that a governing party managed to hold on to a majority in parliament
and not get its position eroded".
European
leaders, including Germany's Friedrich Merz and France's Emmanuel
Macron, had visited the country in the lead-up to polling day to
encourage Moldovans to stick with key Western allies.
"On
the other side, Russia has deployed multiple destabilising techniques
and malign interferences into the electoral process and we can only
expect that to continue," she said.
She said Russia was interested in Moldova because its position could allow a second front to be opened in its war in Ukraine.
"Probably more than that [though] is the significance of piloting destabilising techniques," she added.
"Russia
is using the Republic of Moldova as a laboratory for … hybrid warfare
that is leading not just against Moldova but the entire European
continent and beyond."
In
Moldova, first-time voter Ana-Maria Orsu, 18, said she had noticed that
many young people like her had turned out to cast their ballot.
"I think we have a bright future ahead of us," she said in the capital, Chisinau, on Monday.
Pro-Russia opposition alleges voting violations
PAS leaders had called Sunday's election the most consequential since Moldova's independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.
Ms Sandu's government said Russia had attempted to sway the vote through widespread disinformation and vote-buying.
Igor Dodon is considered a pro-Russia figure. (Reuters: Vladislav Culiomza)
Patriotic
Bloc co-leader Igor Dodon, a former Moldovan president, said his party
had filed documents to the Central Electoral Commission that proved
voting violations.
"PAS is
clinging to power through the diaspora votes," Mr Dodon said, referring
to the large number of Moldovans who live and work in Europe, as around
100 opposition supporters protested outside parliament.
Mr
Dodon also said, without providing evidence, that more than 200,000
people living in Transdniestria, a pro-Russian separatist region, had
been denied the chance to vote.
Ms
Sandu rejected that criticism, saying Moldova could not influence what
happened in a region that did not recognise Moldovan government control.
"We
have done our best to provide the conditions for the people from the
Transdniestrian region who have been genuinely participating in the
elections process … to come and vote and they have been able to do
that," she said.
Observers cite flaws in election process
The
Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, which sent an
observer mission to Moldova, said the election had been competitive
despite flaws.
The election
demonstrated a "high level of commitment to democracy amid unprecedented
hybrid threats [coming] from Russia," said Paula Cardoso,
co-coordinator of the OSCE mission.
However,
Ms Cardoso said the decision by authorities to exclude two parties from
the ballot just days before it happened "limited their right to seek
effective remedy". The parties were barred amid allegations of illegal
financing.
Moldova —
with a population of 2.4 million people who have been buffeted by the
war in Ukraine, alleged Russian meddling and energy shortages — has long
vacillated between Russia and Europe.
The
Patriotic Bloc and other opposition groups had sought to tap into voter
anger over economic pain and the slow pace of reforms.
Inflation remains stubbornly high at around 7 per cent, while Moldovans also shoulder higher costs for imported energy.
Anastasia
Pociumban of the German Council on Foreign Relations said PAS now faced
a huge challenge in "bridging the divides" in the country and better
communicating the benefits of EU accession to more sceptical Moldovans.
Where the plan considers Gaza's future, its key elements can be distilled to far fewer than its stated 20 points. (Reuters/ Kevin Lamarque)
Link copied
US
President Donald Trump is pitching a peace plan for Gaza — it appears
to be a new version of existing proposals to end the conflict.
It
was rewritten by key advisor Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner
(the president's former Middle East envoy) to be more palatable to
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
It
echoes the February 2024 Biden plan and much of the French-Saudi plan
endorsed at the United Nations earlier this month, prioritising an end
to the war and the full release of Israeli hostages as soon as both
Israel and Hamas accept the deal.
Where the plan considers Gaza's future, its key elements can be distilled to far fewer than its stated 20 points:
Gazans can stay in Gaza and those who left (or still want to leave) will be allowed to return.
The
Palestinian Authority (PA) — the agency with limited government of a
small part of the Israeli-occupied West Bank — will be the eventual
governing body of the strip, if it meets required reforms.
Hamas will have to disarm and an amnesty will be granted to those members who accept "peaceful coexistence" with Israel.
Israeli
troops will be replaced by an international stabilisation force, which
will then be replaced by a new Palestinian police force.
There will be (eventually) a pathway to an independent Palestinian state.
Trump outlines plan for 'eternal peace' in the Middle East.
Several key elements of this plan directly contradict Israel's stated aims and "red lines".
Israel says Hamas must be destroyed (not granted amnesty and/or safe passage out of the strip)
Israel says the Palestinian Authority can have no role in Gaza
Israel says it must retain "security control" of Gaza, not an international force
Israel says there will never be a Palestinian state west of the Jordan River (ie, in the land once known as Palestine)
That
said, Israel's prime minister could simply agree to the plan and then
say key elements are not being met to Israel's satisfaction, giving a
pretext for prolonged Israeli presence in Gaza and the delay of steps
towards a Palestinian state.
The
likely ones Israel would use are Hamas disarmament (the group has not
agreed to disarm, even if it accepts a ceasefire) and PA reform.
The
plan also has some strange elements, notably the proposed return of
former British prime minister Tony Blair to the Middle East as
coordinator of the "Board of Peace", Mr Trump's name for the
transitional authority in charge of funding and managing the recovery.
Tony Blair served as prime minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007. (Reuters/ Phil Noble )
He is broadly hated around the Middle East for his role in pushing the Western invasion of Iraq.
The Palestinian Authority rated Blair — and the Quartet's — performance as "useless, useless, useless" back in 2012, saying he should "pack up his desk … and go home".
That
said, there are many positive elements in the plan that will be
welcomed by Palestinians, not least the acknowledgement that they will
not be forced out of the territory, or can return if they leave.
The deployment of an international force in Gaza could also bring the chance Palestinians need to break free of Hamas.
The
group retains significant influence, not least because Israel's conduct
of the war — killing tens of thousands of civilians, blocking the entry
of food and destroying their homes and infrastructure — has ensured its
forces are the biggest threat to Palestinian civilians.
"They
[the Israelis] tend to overlook that their own approach to the war
failed the fundamental test of dealing with a guerilla conflict: to
protect the population," former ambassador and peace negotiator Dennis
Ross wrote in the Washington Post.
"Hamas retains the power to intimidate the population because the IDF's mission has not been to protect them."
Hamas
already accepted a US ceasefire proposal in August — but Israel then
demanded the group release all the hostages at once and bombed the Hamas
negotiators when they met to discuss the amended offer in Doha in early
September.
The group has
indicated it wants to sign a deal, but its key requirements haven't
really changed since it first agreed to a ceasefire in July 2024 — it
demands Israel withdraw from most of Gaza and agree to end the war.
The
Trump plan contains elements that run counter to the goals of both
Hamas (survival and continued armed struggle from within the Palestinian
territories) and Israel (control of Gaza, destruction of Hamas,
prevention of the Palestinian Authority taking over, prevention of a
Palestinian state), but it delivers many things the rest of the world
wants.
The test is whether Donald Trump can make Israel and Hamas accept it
Key points of Trump's peace plan:
No permanent emigration
Pathway to future Palestinian state
Hamas to disarm
Deradicalisation process to make Gaza a "terror-free zone" that will not threaten Israel
Gaza to be redeveloped for the benefit of its people, including being turned into a tax-free "special economic zone".
All living and dead hostages to be returned within 48 hours of Israel accepting the deal
Palestinian
security prisoners to be released, including some on life sentences for
killing Israelis, as well as 1,000 Gazans arrested since the war and
bodies held by Israel.
Amnesty for Hamas members who commit to peaceful coexistence and safe passage out of Gaza for those who want to leave
An aid surge, with delivery overseen by the UN and Red Crescent.
A transitional government to run the strip until the PA completes a reform program
International stabilisation force
IDF
to hand over territory it occupies as the international force deploys,
even if Hamas is not fully disarmed or remains in parts of Gaza
Israel guarantees not to strike Qatar again
Creation of a pathway to peaceful coexistence between Israel and Palestinians
Robot for lunar exploration and Earth construction, Charlotte.
In short:
Developers
have unveiled a spider-like robot called Charlotte they say could help
build homes, at Sydney's International Astronautical Congress.
The semi-autonomous robot combines robotics with 3D printing.
Charlotte has received financial support from the NSW government.
Link copied
Developers
of a speedy, "spider-like" robot named Charlotte believe it could be
building homes on Earth within years, and eventually further lunar
exploration.
The
semi-autonomous robot combines robotics with 3D printing, enabling it to
turn raw materials directly into building structures and walls.
While
it is still in the research and development phase, a scaled-down
prototype has been showcased at the 76th International Astronautical
Congress (IAC) in Sydney this week.
Charlotte has been unveiled at the IAC in Sydney. (Supplied: Crest Robotics and Earthbuilt Technology)
Charlotte,
the brainchild of Crest Robotics and Earthbuilt Technology, also aims
to eliminate carbon-intensive steps typically involved in traditional
construction.
Founding director
of Crest Robotics, Clyde Webster said it was designed to be the
"smallest possible thing" to 3D print a home by moving and straddling
walls onsite.
"Charlotte's a pretty amazing technology," Dr Webster said.
"It's a spider-like … animal, bio-inspired creation that is meant to help resolve some of our highest housing crises.
"It's essentially a giant, massive 3D printer that's going to be able to print homes out of sustainable building materials."
Clyde Webster describes the technology behind Charlotte as "pretty amazing". (ABC News: Pablo Viñales)
'Will work at speed of over 100 bricklayers'
Earthbuilt Technology co-founder, Jan Golembiewski said the technology was advanced, but the concept simple.
"The
building materials that we use today, even a simple brick has so many
processes involved and some of them very, very carbon intensive," Dr
Golembiewski said.
"Earthbuilt takes all of that process and puts it into one single machine, one single process.
"Raw materials go in and walls come out, and that cuts out all the costs and all the carbon.
"It will work at the speed of over 100 bricklayers."
Jan Golembiewski says some building materials are very carbon intensive. (ABC News: Pablo Viñales)
Dr Webster believes the use of robotics will be pivotal in addressing major challenges in the construction sector.
"Robotics is the key to solving the housing crisis in Australia and generally the labour productivity crisis,"
he said.
"We've
reached a point in construction, especially where productivity has
stagnated — and it has for the last couple of decades — and we can't
just keep throwing more and more people at it."
Charlotte is a semi-autonomous robot that combines robotics with 3D printing. (Supplied: Crest Robotics and Earthbuilt Technology)
Researcher
in project management and infrastructure at the University of Sydney,
Neda Mohammadi, said robotics would be essential to deal with labour
shortages and minimising delays.
"Labour constraints and delays are the two challenges of housing," Dr Mohammadi said.
"If
you're able to free up those repetitive and high-risk tasks … like a
force multiplier, smaller teams that are doing existing work can do a
lot more.
"When there is an
imbalance in the scale of work that is required and the limited pool of
skilled people that you have, robotics can really help close that gap
and augment the workforce we already have."
Lunar ambitions
Charlotte's developers are aiming for the robot to be used to further lunar exploration. (Supplied: Crest Robotics and Earthbuilt Technology)
While
the goal for Charlotte is already ambitious, it goes beyond Earth, with
the developers also aiming for it to be used to further lunar
exploration.
Dr Webster hopes it will eventually build shelters on extraterrestrial terrain.
"The
NASA Artemis missions are returning humans to the moon, they're
planning their first launch of man missions in 2027 with the Artemis III
launch," he said.
"In the
coming years, after we get the first man missions back, we're open to
start trialling technologies that can do this construction of
infrastructure [on the moon].
"By
supporting this technology and doing it in an extreme environment like
in space, we actually make solving problems here on Earth a lot easier."
Charlotte
has received financial support from the NSW government through the
state's Space+ program, and its creators are hopeful of garnering more
funds from space research partners at the IAC.
The
gathering is held once a year and is regarded as the world's premier
space event with more than 6,000 participants annually, ranging from
academia to the space industry.
A group of polar bears now occupy a deserted research station in the Arctic.
In short:
Drone footage shows polar bears inhabiting an abandoned Soviet-era weather station off Russia.
Scientists
left the research station, which is in an abandoned village, soon after
the Soviet Union's collapse over three decades ago.
What's next?
Scientists say polar bears are spending more time on land due to climate change.
Link copied
Polar bears have taken over an abandoned Soviet polar research station on a small island off Russia's far north-eastern coast.
Vadim
Makhorov, a travel blogger, used a drone to film the bears roaming in
and out of the facility's scattered buildings in the late summer Arctic
sun this month on Kolyuchin Island in the Chukchi Sea.
One snapped at the drone as it approached, while others playfully poked their heads out of the buildings as they were filmed.
"I think they see these houses as shelter from the wind, rain and other things," Mr Makhorov said.
A polar bear living in the abandoned Soviet-era research station in Russia. (Reuters: Supplied/@makhorov on Instagram)
Scientists
left the research station, which is in an abandoned village, soon after
the Soviet Union's collapse over three decades ago.
Mr Makhorov said more than 20 bears are active on the island itself.
Polar bears mostly live alone, but they are not inherently antisocial.
When they are not competing for food or for sexual partners, they can show their sociable side, researchers say.
The research station is based on Kolyuchin Island in the Chukchi Sea, in Russia's far north-east. (Reuters: Supplied/@makhorov on Instagram)
When there is not enough ice, the bears migrate further north in the summer and gather on land to search for food.
Mr Makhorov said a few years ago, a whale carcass attracted more than 200 polar bears.
"Everybody ate, no-one disturbed anyone."
Polar bears together in an abandoned building. (Reuters: Supplied/@makhorov on Instagram)
Over the years, polar bears have wandered into inhabited towns or villages.
To
prevent this from happening, people put bars with spikes on the
windows, or put "bear slippers" — boards with nails — in front of the
door.
More than 20 bears are active on the island. (Reuters: Supplied/@makhorov on Instagram)
The Arctic predators are no strangers to the feeling of comfort and cosiness, Mr Makhorov wrote on Instagram.
"In sunny weather, you [polar bears] can lie on your belly in the yard."
The Kolyuchin Island in the Chukchi Sea. (Reuters: Supplied/@makhorov on Instagram)
The
International Union for the Conservation of Nature, the Russian Arctic
is host to four polar bear sub-populations, each named after the seas
they inhabit: Barents, Kara, Laptev and Chukchi.
