RUSH HOUR: The stories you need to know today
A teenager has been arrested for the murder of his 16-year-old classmate. But it’s what he did with the body that has shocked authorities and the public.
Good morning, and welcome to our morning news coverage. We will be bringing you the best of what’s happening this morning, so you can get across the news quickly.
That’s it for our live #RUSHHOUR news blog. You can get across the stories you need to know today below or go to news.com.au for the latest headlines.
10am
A lion has lunged at its trainer during a circus performance in Egypt.
The frightening footage, uploaded to YouTube, showed renowned lion trainer Faten El-Helw going through the routine before the big cat pounced on her. The crowd, including children, can be heard screaming as the drama unfolded.
Faten El-Helw was dancing and waving to the audience when the lion leapt. She was taken to hospital in a stable condition.
It’s not the first time an animal has attacked her family. Her late husband and fellow trainer, Ibrahim El-Helw, died in 2004 when one of the animals turned on him.
9.50am
New Zealanders don’t want a new flag but Prime Minister John Key reckons he can convince them otherwise.
The Key Government will hold a two-step referendum process to decide whether or not New Zealand should keep its current flag. The first step will involve New Zealanders picking their favourite of three or four alternative designs.
“I suspect that public opinion is slightly opposed (rather than) in favour at the moment but I think we can probably get it slightly in favour to opposed, but we’ll wait a see,” the prime minister said.
“There are a lot of people saying: ‘I might be prepared to change, but I want to know what I’m changing to first’.”
9.25am
Tony Abbott remains prime minister after a move to spill the Liberal leadership failed. The prime minister is addressing his colleagues, 40 per cent of whom wanted a change in leadership.
Mr Abbott walked into the room shortly before the 9am meeting to consider a leadership spill motion. Deputy Liberal leader Julie Bishop was standing next to him. Behind him were ministerial colleagues including Mathias Cormann, Christopher Pyne, George Brandis, Josh Frydenberg and Joe Hockey.
LIVE BLOG: Leadership challenge unsuccessful
Communications Minister Malcolm Turnbull - considered most likely to challenge Mr Abbott if the spill motion succeeds - arrived earlier on his own.
9.20am
A 19-year-old who collapsed and died at a dance party at Sydney Olympic Stadium on Saturday is believed to have taken drugs.
Five others are in hospital, including a young man who is fighting for his life. All five are believed to have taken drugs at the event.
Police say the cause of the 19-year-old’s death is unknown at this stage but that post mortem and toxicology tests are being carried out.
It comes almost three months after Sydneysider Georgina Bartter, 19, died of a drug overdose at the Harbourlife festival.
9am
A man who was attacked by a shark at Byron Bay yesterday has described the experience as “a bit of a nibble”.
Jabez Reitman was left with a cut to his back and puncture wounds to his buttocks after he was bitten just 60m from shore by what he believes was a 2-3m shark.
Speaking to Sunrise this morning, Reitman said he was surrounded by a pod of dolphins when something dragged him under the water.
“That wasn’t a dolphin. That stings,” the father of one said while recounting the attack.
“I’d better get myself back to shore. I’m thanking my lucky stars.”
The attack took place about 6.45am. The surfer calmly paddled to shore before driving to the Byron Bay Hospital. From there he was later transferred to the Gold Coast University Hospital for surgery.
8.45am
Police have named the gunman who shot six people — killing four — before turning the gun on himself in a quiet suburban neighbourhood outside Atlanta yesterday.
Douglas County Sheriff’s Office said Cedric Prather, 33, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound after killing four people including his ex-wife, a 33-year-old man and two children aged 7 and 9.
The shooting happened about 3pm on Saturday local time about 32km west of Atlanta. Neighbours reportedly tried to help a number of the victims before emergency services arrived.
Teresa Carter, 59, said she heard the gunfire from inside her home but did not see what happened. Carter said she often saw the children playing in the driveway and around the neighborhood. They enjoyed petting her dog, she said.
A press conference is planned for Monday in Douglasville where more details of what unfolded will be revealed.
8.20am
The Liberal partyroom will gather for a meeting to determine the immediate future of the party at 9am this morning as latest Newspoll results show the prime minister’s approval rating is at a record low, the lowest for any prime minister since Paul Keating in 1994.
Party members will vote on whether to spill with 52 votes required for the leader and deputy leader positions to be declared vacant.
Tony Abbott remains the preferred prime minister among Liberal voters followed by Julie Bishop, however Malcolm Turnbull received the bulk of the public vote in a poll published by The Australian.
SPILL LIVE BLOG: Follow the latest spill news as it unfolds
8.10am
Comedian Bill Cosby has cancelled back-to-back shows in Boston after an actress joined a growing list of women who have accused him of unwanted sexual advances on the set of The Cosby Show.
Former fashion model Helen Gumpel claims Cosby made lewd gestures toward her and made her sit on a couch in his dressing room while he stood uncomfortably close to her face. Gumpel made the claims during a news conference at a Boston hotel on Sunday.
Shortly after, the 77-year-old entertainer cancelled his shows, blaming impending “treacherous” weather.
At least 15 women have made sexual assault accusations against Cosby, who denies any wrongdoing.
RELATED: Cosby joke that shocked at Golden Globes
7.45am
At least 14 people have been killed in riots at a soccer match near Cairo, almost three years after football riots in Egypt killed 74 people.
Fights erupted during the Egyptian Premier League clash between Zamalek and ENPPI at Air Defence Stadium on Sunday night local time. State TV reported an investigation had begun into what started the riots.
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Zamalek fans posted a message on the group’s official Facebook page declaring the violence began because authorities were channeling supporters through a narrow barbed-wire door. They posted pictures and names of 22 people they said had been killed in the clashes.
Soccer riots are nothing new in Egypt where police often clash with supporters inside and outside the stadium. The deadliest riot in Egypt’s soccer history came during a 2012 match between Al-Masry and Al-Ahly.
7.20am
Did somebody try to execute Michael Jackson in the 1980s? That’s the claim in a book based on journals penned by Jackson’s ex-manager.
The Mirror reports that Frank Dileo, who played a gangster in the Scorsese film Goodfellas, used his influence to call off a hit on the King of Pop.
The book details other aspects of Jackson’s life. It suggests he underwent multiple operations on his face because he couldn’t stand to look like his father Joseph.
7.05am
Questions have been raised about the way police handled the Sydney Siege.
Siege survivor Marcia Mikhael, who was paid to tell her story, accused police of bungling the rescue operation and argued the army should have taken control.
The 38-year-old Westpac project manager was one of only seven people who endured the terrifying 16-hour ordeal on December 15 until the bloody end.
MORE: Liz Hayes accuses Jeff Kennett of slur over Sydney Siege
“I know there are a lot of officers there (who) probably risked their lives to be there and I thank them from the bottom of my heart. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not being ungrateful to them...but I just think that maybe the Army would’ve been better, more appropriate to be handling this situation,” she said.
Read her account of the ordeal in full here.
7am
Tony Abbott has become the subject of a parody of Four Weddings and a Funeral in an online video that’s been viewed thousands of times.
In the video, the PM plays best man at the wedding of Bernard (wedding 2 for those keeping track). But instead of congratulating the groom, the PM launches into a speech about knighting Prince Philip, to the raucous laughter of those in attendance.
6.30am
Two sisters have been deported from Cambodia for taking nude photographs at one of the world’s most sacred Buddhist temples, Angkor Wat.
Lisdsey Adams, 22, and Leslie Adams, 20, allegedly took nude pictures of one another at the Preah Khan temple, part of the world heritage site, according to the Mirror.
The sisters, from Arizona, lowered their pants and “took pictures of their buttocks”, local police said.
Last week three French tourists were deported for doing the same.
3 French Tourists Arrested for TAKING NUDE PICS: http://t.co/C0Sac0teC5 #AngkorWat #SiemReap #Cambodia pic.twitter.com/UsvTLDbKQU
— Daniel Mackevili (@Mackevili) January 30, 20156am
A teenager who allegedly shot his 16-year-old classmate in the face was picked up by police after he took a selfie of himself posing with the body.
According to police, Maxwell Marion Morton, 16, took a selfie at the crime scene and sent it to another teenager using SnapChat, a mobile phone app that allows users to send photos that disappear after a few seconds. The boy who received the photo saved it before the message deleted itself, according to TribLive.
The Pennslyvania teen confessed to killing classmate Ryan Mangan, after police searched his home on Friday and found a 9mm handgun hidden under the basement steps.
He has been charged with first-degree murder, homicide and possession of a firearm by a minor in connection with the death of Mangan.
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