Australia news LIVE: Pro-Palestine university protesters face arrest; Israeli PM admits Gaza strike ‘mistake’

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7.01amHigh noon looms for pro-Palestine university protesters
6.50amThis morning’s headlines at a glance

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7.20am

Albanese government reveals expert review to tackle violence against women

By David Crowe and Lachlan Abbott

Australians are being promised new federal measures to protect women from domestic violence after a series of horrific attacks, with leading feminist Anne Summers warning about the growing problem as she joins an expert panel to advise on solutions.

In a statement on Tuesday morning, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese formally announced the panel to conduct a rapid review into best-practice prevention approaches to combat violence against women.

Anne Summers says domestic violence is getting worse.Credit: Danielle Smith

The panel will be co-convened by the Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence commissioner, Micaela Cronin, the executive director of the Commonwealth Office for Women, Padma Raman, and the secretary of the Department of Social Services, Ray Griggs.

Alongside Summers, the panel includes author and educator Jess Hill, University of Melbourne research fellow Zac Seidler, diversity and inclusion consultant Todd Fernando, RMIT Centre for Innovative Justice associate director Elena Campbell and Victoria Police assistant commissioner Leigh Gassner.

Speaking to this masthead, Summers said the increase in technology-enabled abuse was “really quite horrific”.

High noon looms for pro-Palestine university protesters

By Bray Boland

The clock is ticking for students camped at the Australian National University as a police deadline to vacate the area by noon approaches and those refusing to leave risk further action.

Police told the protesters on Monday they could continue to protest but that it had to be at another location.

The Gaza solidarity encampment at the Australian National University (ANU) in Canberra on Monday.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

“Your current position is situated within the primary fire evacuation zone for the Kambri precinct,” the police said. “Non-compliance with this direction by 12pm [on Tuesday] may result in further action by ACT Police.”

Yesterday, those at the camp said they would hold on as they prepared to spend another night in tents amid chilly temperatures.

The ANU pro-Palestine encampment is demanding the university cut ties with weapons manufacturing companies, disclose and divest from all entities complicit in the “genocide in Gaza” and cut academic ties with Israel.

The escalation at ANU follows news of other camps at the University of Melbourne and Curtin University in Western Australia packing up and going home.

AAP

6.55am

Netanyahu admits ‘tragic mistake’ after Israeli strike on Rafah camp kills dozens

By Nidal al-Mughrabi and Dan Williams

Cairo/Jerusalem: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged Monday that a “tragic mistake” had been made after an Israeli airstrike triggered a fire that officials say killed 45 people in a tent camp in the Gazan city of Rafah.

The mistake only added to the surging international criticism Israel has faced over its war with Hamas, with even its closest allies expressing outrage at civilian deaths.

Palestinians look at the destruction after an Israeli strike where displaced people were staying in Rafah, Gaza Strip.Credit: AP

“Despite our utmost efforts not to harm innocent civilians, last night, there was a tragic mistake,” Netanyahu said in an address to Israel’s parliament. “We are investigating the incident and will obtain a conclusion because this is our policy.”

Palestinian families rushed to hospitals to prepare their dead for burial after a strike late on Sunday night set tents and rickety metal shelters ablaze.

Read the latest news about the Gaza conflict here.

6.50am

This morning’s headlines at a glance

Good morning, and thanks for your company.

It’s Tuesday, May 28. I’m Lachlan Abbott, and I’ll be steering our live coverage for the first half of the day.

Here’s what’s making news this morning:

Nearly a fifth of former immigration detainees freed following the High Court’s landmark decision in November have since been charged with state offences.
Labor MPs have accused Liberal politicians, including NSW senator Dave Sharma, of encouraging extremism by appearing at a Parliament House event organised by a controversial right-wing pro-Israel group whose star speaker has dismissed a two-state solution as a fantasy.
A blowout in building costs combined with high interest rates has discouraged new development of apartment towers, and the constrained supply is putting upward pressure on rents, according to experts.
The ABC’s chief political correspondent for the 7.30 program, Laura Tingle, has come under fire for comments she made at a Sydney Writers’ Festival event at which she reportedly criticised Opposition Leader Peter Dutton and declared Australia a “racist country”.
In NSW, Clover Moore has announced she will seek an unprecedented sixth term as lord mayor of Sydney.
In Victoria, a long-promised freight hub for Melbourne’s west has been deferred indefinitely, despite years of campaigning from councils, industry and even Premier Jacinta Allan.
In Western Australia, it has been revealed the Perth man who murdered two innocent women inside their suburban home on Friday owned 13 firearms.
In Queensland, new analysis shows Brisbane has the most expensive off-street parking of any CBD in Australia.

The Sydney Morning Herald