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9:45AM (AEST): Man arrested after ramming police car

A MOTORIST is in custody after ramming a police car in Melbourne's north. Read more
9:00AM (AEST): Space Cowboy sets sword-swallowing record

AN Australian street performer has set a new Guinness World Record by swallowing 18 swords at the same time. Read more
8:55AM (AEST): Unions push case for low paid wage increase

TRADE unions are gearing up for another battle on behalf of Australia's 1.3 million low-paid workers by campaigning for a catch-up increase to the federal minimum wage. Read more
8:46AM (AEST): JB Hi-Fi announces record half year profit

RETAILER JB Hi-Fi has reported a 29 per cent increase in net profit for the first half of 2009/10. Read more
8:06AM (AEST): Time to scrap Rudd climate plan - academics

A COALITION of academics has called on the Rudd Government to dump plans for an emissions trading scheme. Read more
8:03AM (AEST): Billions pumped into Dubai World

DUBAI says it has pumped $US6.2 billion ($7.2 billion) into Dubai World and is prepared to put even more money into the conglomerate. Read more
7:59AM (AEST): Dollar opens higher on Wall Street rally

THE dollar opened higher today as a late rally on Wall Street on Friday restored some confidence. Read more
7:53AM (AEST): Female candidate gunned down

A WOMAN planning to stand in Iraq's March 7 general election was gunned down yesterday in the restive northern city of Mosul. Read more
7:47AM (AEST): Family sought to live rent free

THE search is on for a family to live in Australia's first ever smart home. Read more
7:31AM (AEST): Rain letting up after weekend deluge

THE heavy rain has eased in New South Wales after thunderstorms and torrential downpours caused problems for hundreds of residents over the weekend. Read more
6:50AM (AEST): Huge explosion at US power plant

AS many as 50 people are feared dead in a blast at a US energy plant.
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6:04AM (AEST): Man 'threatens motorists with fake gun'

A MAN has been arrested after he terrorised passing Sydney motorists on a busy highway with a replica firearm, police say. Read more
4:38AM (AEST): Swiss skier survives 17 hours buried

SEARCH teams in the Swiss Alps today rescued a 21-year-old skier who survived 17 hours in the snow after being buried in an avalanche, local police said. Read more
4:10AM (AEST): Adviser says no counter terrorism threats

PRESIDENT Barack Obama's counter terrorism adviser John Brennan said today that he was unaware of any threats directed at the Super Bowl. Read more
3:53AM (AEST): Ten die on drifting Gulf migrant boat

AT least 10 migrants died and 30 were missing when the boat smuggling them from Somalia to Yemen suffered an engine failure in the Gulf of Aden, officials said today. Read more
3:50AM (AEST): Storm danger eases for NSW

THE immediate threat of more thunderstorms and torrential rain over NSW appears to have passed, the Bureau of Meteorology (BoM) says. Read more
2:53AM (AEST): Asian crime gangs cross the ethnic line

ORGANISED Asian crime syndicates have abandoned historic triad gang structures and reached out across ethnic lines to supply Australia's multi-billion dollar drug trade. Read more
2:10AM (AEST): Many homes unwary death traps

Many homes are ticking time bombs for their occupants who could die putting one step wrong. Read more
2:01AM (AEST): Israel arrests Australian activist in raid

AN Australian woman is one of two foreign activists arrested by Israel's military in a pre-dawn raid in the occupied West Bank. Read more
1:50AM (AEST): Toddler allegedly driven by drunk dad

AN unlicensed driver was caught drunk behind the wheel while his 18-month-old son sat on the front seat without a seat belt, police say. Read more
1:35AM (AEST): Police search for elderly man

POLICE are searching for an elderly Chinese man missing from his home in Melbourne's inner north since yesterday morning. Read more
1:28AM (AEST): Mum swept away by 'wall of water'

THE final tragic moments of a mother who was wrenched from the grip of her son by flash flooding in central Queensland have been described by police. Read more
1:14AM (AEST): Fire fight funding struggle continues

VOLUNTEER firefighters say they still need about an extra $7 million a year to deliver adequate training and support for members. Read more
12:55AM (AEST): Friends versus fitness or finances

QUALITY relationships are more important to Australians than financial security, health and fitness, or career success, a survey has found. Read more
12:17AM (AEST): Plucky man, 94, fights off home intruder

A MAN, aged 94, single-handedly wrestled and overpowered an intruder who tried to ransack his suburban home early yesterday. Read more
11:00PM (AEST): Critically-injured soccer fan dies

A BRITISH fan died after being found unconscious during a soccer game between England's Blackburn Rovers and Stoke City. Read more
10:53PM (AEST): Prehistoric human bones found

MALAYSIAN researchers believe they have discovered a new set of prehistoric human bones in a cave near the largest man-make lake in south east Asia, newspapers reported today. Read more
10:50PM (AEST): Shuttle Endeavour launch delayed

THE launch of the US space shuttle Endeavour has been delayed due to bad weather over the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, NASA officials said. Read more
10:46PM (AEST): Telephone alert grounds flight

A PASSENGER flight from Mumbai to Dubai was halted minutes before take-off when airline staff received a telephone call claiming there were "terrorists'' aboard, authorities say. Read more
10:42PM (AEST): Three dead in separate car crashes

THREE people have died in separate single vehicle accidents in country Victoria. Read more
10:38PM (AEST): Stricken plane makes emergency landing

A LIGHT aircraft has made an emergency landing at Jandakot Airport in Perth's southern suburbs. Read more
10:33PM (AEST): Big name cricketers set for Imparja Cup

CRICKET got another step closer to becoming Australia's favourite sport tonight when Jason Gillespie and Matthew Hayden went head to head in Alice Springs. Read more
10:29PM (AEST): Couple survive light plane crash

A MAN and a woman have escaped unhurt after their light plane crashed at Baxter, on Victoria's Mornington Peninsula. Read more
10:26PM (AEST): Youth centre escapee caught

A TEENAGER has been recaptured after escaping from a youth detention centre at Deloraine, in Tasmania's north. Read more
9:55PM (AEST): Mother dies, 21 rescued after floods

A MOTHER has died and another 20 people needed rescuing after heavy flooding in central Queensland, the Department of Community Safety says. Read more
9:47PM (AEST): Test-tube boys could inherit infertility

DOCTORS uncovered the first evidence that fathers of test-tube babies may pass on their infertility to their sons, The Sunday Times of London reported. Read more
9:36PM (AEST): Lawyers to get big Ground Zero payout

LAWYERS in the battle over Ground Zero worker compensation could bag up to half of the $US4 billion ($4.6 billion) available to pay September 11 recovery workers for toxic injuries, the New York Post reported today. Read more
9:15PM (AEST): Five cops injured in not-so-sweet 16th

FIVE police officers were injured when they attempted to shut down a 16th birthday party last night in Sydney's western suburbs. Read more
9:12PM (AEST): G-7 continues to keep stimulus in place

GROUP of Seven financial officials, at a joint briefing meeting in northern Canada today, said they will continue providing support to their economies until the financial recovery has taken hold. Read more
9:05PM (AEST): Rainstorm triggers fatal accidents

A FIERCE overnight rainstorm pounded southern California and triggered a mudslide in the city of La Cañada Flintridge, the Los Angeles Times reported today. Read more
8:58PM (AEST): Clouds postpone space shuttle launch

NASA postponed the launch of the space shuttle Endeavour today because of cloudy skies over the Kennedy Space Centre in Florida. Read more
6:35PM (AEST): Toyota to recall Prius cars, reports say

TOYOTA will this week announce the recall of 300,000 of its flagship Prius hybrid because of brake flaws, reports said today. Read more
5:56PM (AEST): Car-crash teens 'were not drag racing'

THE five teenaged friends were a stone's throw from their western Sydney homes when their car slammed into a pole. Read more
5:46PM (AEST): Police hunting trio after man shot dead

A MAN shot dead in Sydney's west is believed to have been gunned down by a trio with possible links to an outlaw motorcycle gang. Read more
4:32PM (AEST): Victims of Black Saturday remembered

A MINUTES silence from noon today has marked the first anniversary of the Black Saturday bushfires tragedy that claimed 173 lives. Read more
4:06PM (AEST): Website to give 'green map' of Sydney

A NEW website that will provide a "green map" of Sydney will help locals and tourists find parks, walking tracks and reserves. Read more
3:53PM (AEST): Regulator 'shocked' by nurse's sacking

THE Fair Work Ombudsman has issued a stern warning to a Melbourne nursing home over what it describes as heartless and shabby treatment of a long-serving elderly employee. Read more
3:25PM (AEST): Banks warned against rate rise excuse

TREASURER Wayne Swan has warned the banks not to use the withdrawal of the Government's deposit guarantee as an excuse to slug consumers with higher interest rates. Read more
2:36PM (AEST): Government removes bank guarantee

THE Federal Government is withdrawing its guarantee scheme for banks as it is no longer needed given the strength of the Australian financial system. Read more
2:14PM (AEST): Three teens dead after P-plater crash

TWO young men and a teenage girl are dead after a car driven by a P-plater struck a power pole in Sydney's west. Read more
1:52PM (AEST): Father tells memorial service of his loss

A BEREAVED father has spoken of the torture of losing his wife and two sons during a memorial to mark the first anniversary of Black Saturday in Marysville. Read more
1:37PM (AEST): Clean-up day launched to attack graffiti

NSW residents are being urged to pick up a brush and cleaning products and take part in Australia's first graffiti action day. Read more
11:54AM (AEST): Bushfire courage 'inspired the nation'

THE anniversary of the Black Saturday bushfires will forever be a day of mourning, but the Federal Government says it's also a day to reflect on the nation's tremendous strength. Read more
10:06AM (AEST): Teens stabbed in back at party

AN 18-year-old has been charged after two teenagers were stabbed in the back at a house party on the NSW south coast, police said today. Read more
9:43AM (AEST): Mop-up begins but more storms on way

THE mop up has begun after a night of wild storms which flooded roads and homes, brought down trees. Read more
9:21AM (AEST): Britain to cut number of student visas

BRITAIN is to cut the number of visas it hands out to foreign students in a bid to stop people breaking the rules by working illegally, officials said today. Read more
8:19AM (AEST): 'Snowmageddon' paralyses US east coast

A RECORD-breaking blizzard dumped thick snow across the US east coast overnight. Read more
8:01AM (AEST): Kidnappers free Darfur Red Cross worker

FRENCH Red Cross worker Laurent Maurice arrived in Khartoum hours after being freed following 89 days in captivity. Read more
7:56AM (AEST): Teenage boy swept away in floodwaters

A TEENAGER has died after trying to cross a flooded creek in a car with his friends. Read more
7:22AM (AEST): Burqa-clad bank thieves rob post office

THIEVES wearing burqas held up a post office with a handgun concealed beneath an Islamic-style full veil. Read more

Today's news highlights

Teen's death posted on Facebook first

FACEBOOK has delivered a family the worst possible news after police fail to report a teen's death.

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Pictures

Darwin explosion

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NYE celebration preparations

Cities around the world prepare to celebrate the New Year

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