As it happened: Wong doesn’t rule out recognising Palestinian state; Albanese blasts Israel over Gaza ‘catastrophe’ in damning statement; Coalition blames Hamas for aid disruptions

Thank you for reading our national news blog. It has now closed for the day. We will be back soon with another live coverage of news, so please join us then.

Here’s a look at the biggest stories of the day:

• Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has lamented the starvation of children in Gaza and demanded Israel complies with international law to allow more aid trucks into the war-ravaged strip, but stopped short of joining France in recognising a Palestinian state.
• The Coalition criticised the prime minister’s wording, and said Hamas’ role in stifling aid to Gaza must be acknowledged.
• Labor MP Ed Husic and former Labor minister for foreign affairs Bob Carr said Australia should immediately join France in recognising the State of Palestine. Foreign Minister Penny Wong refused to rule out recognising a Palestinian state.
• The British government will sign a 50-year treaty with Australia to cement the AUKUS defence pact in a massive strategic and financial deal that includes a $41 billion pledge to scale up industry in both countries, amid fears US President Donald Trump will undercut AUKUS. Defence Minister Richard Marles and Wong met their counterparts in Sydney today.
• Trump has celebrated the Albanese government’s decision to lift import restrictions on American beef, declaring that “we are going to sell so much” to Australia and that the removal of the ban constituted “undeniable and irrefutable proof that US beef is the safest and best in the entire world”.
• Tributes are flowing for professional wrestler Hulk Hogan, who has died at the age of 71. Hogan was pronounced dead at a Florida hospital after authorities responded to a call about a cardiac arrest on Thursday morning (local time).

Australian billionaire Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest has terminated a major hydrogen project in the United States as Donald Trump slashes tax breaks for clean energy investments, and guts programs aimed at tackling climate change.

The Forrest-led Fortescue Metals Group said on Thursday it would not proceed with a $US550 million ($830 million) plan to begin producing zero-emissions hydrogen at a new plant in Arizona, blaming the “shift in priorities away from green energy” under the Trump administration.

Since returning to the White House, Trump has passed laws to end lucrative tax breaks for wind and solar farms, electric cars and other technologies that would help combat global warming, which he falsely calls a “hoax”, while enacting sweeping measures to make it cheaper and easier for companies to extract more fossil fuels.

The cancellation of the Arizona project comes as Forrest continues a years-long campaign to diversify Fortescue beyond its lucrative West Australian iron ore mines and into the production of green hydrogen, a promising future energy source that burns cleanly and could eventually help displace the use of coal, oil and gas in heavy industry.

While Fortescue insists it remains steadfast in its commitment to green hydrogen, it has been forced to hit the brakes on the speed of its ambitions over the past year, blaming the high cost and the vast amount of renewable energy required.

Read the full story here.

Australia and the UK’s new defence pact means little if the government has failed to meet with US President Donald Trump, says opposition spokeswoman for defence industry, Jacinta Nampijinpa Price.

Tomorrow, the UK and Australia will sign a 50-year treaty to cement the AUKUS defence deal. Speaking on Sky News, Price said this was “all well and good” but she was concerned by the United States’ continuing review of AUKUS.

Opposition spokeswoman for defence industry Jacinta Nampijinpa Price and Senator Sarah Henderson. Credit: Dominic Lorrimer

“Our prime minister has failed to have a face-to-face meeting with one of the world’s largest global leaders and as a result, we still don’t know what our alliance looks like with the US at the moment,” Price said.

“We should be working closely with the US.

“I don’t know what the prime minister is doing … but in terms of our strategic partnership with the US, it is well overdue.”

Nicola Gobbo’s million-dollar compensation fight with the Victorian government is not over, after the former barrister and police informer lodged an appeal late on Friday afternoon against her high-profile court loss.

Last month, a judge ruled for the first time that Gobbo broke the law during her time snitching on clients and threw out her four-year battle for compensation, ordering Gobbo to pay the state’s costs. From hiding, Gobbo issued a warning to anyone considering turning supergrass: “You will not be protected.”

The gangland barrister’s career came crashing down in late 2018 when it was publicly revealed she had been secretly spying on her clients for police as “Informer 3838” or “Lawyer X” at the height of Melbourne’s underworld war.

In her lawsuit, Gobbo claimed “negligence” and “malfeasance in public office” by a number of high-profile police officers had destroyed her life when they “groomed” her to snitch on gangland heavies, such as Tony Mokbel, and roll crooks against each other.

But Supreme Court judge Melinda Richards found “Ms Gobbo’s own illegal conduct put her at risk of harm”.

Read the full exclusive story here.

The government should follow France’s lead and formally recognise Palestine, says outspoken Labor MP Ed Husic.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese made his strongest criticism of Israel in a statement today in which he lamented the starvation of Gazan children but stopped short of committing to officially recognise a Palestinian state.

Labor MP Ed Husic.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

French President Emmanuel Macron today said France would officially recognise Palestine from next month.

Speaking on ABC Afternoon Briefing, Husic said Australia “has the perfect opportunity” to recognise the State of Palestine.

“We should move to recognise Palestine now, standing alongside France, because there will be a number of countries that will do so ... the time is now for us to stand and step forward and say we will recognise the State of Palestine now.”

The Australian bourse has lost ground despite tech industries spurring the US market to modest overnight gains.

The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index on Friday dropped 42.5 points, or 0.49 per cent, to 8666.9, while the broader All Ordinaries was down 45.1 points, or 0.5 per cent, to 8934.3.

For the week, the ASX200 dropped 1 per cent, its worst weekly performance since a 3.9 per cent decline in the first week of April.

The week’s losses amounted to giving back about half of last week’s 2.1 per cent gains.

AAP

The ASX has ended its worst week since early April. Credit: Oscar Colman

The opposition spokesman for early education says the shadow-banning of male childcare educators is concerning, as childcare centres react to horrific allegations of child abuse in day-care facilities

It follows reporting in this masthead that male childcare workers have been turned away from centres and had casual shifts cancelled following the abuse allegations.

“I can understand the concerns expressed around male childcare workers and unfortunately, the statistics highlight that the prevalent perpetrators are males,” said Tasmanian senator Jonathon Duniam.

“What we need is a system that removes the risk of anything happening, that protects children in every situation and every setting in every centre.”

If Australia acts quickly to officially recognise Palestine, it could prompt global allies such as Canada, New Zealand and the UK to do the same, says former foreign affairs minister Bob Carr.

“Spain, Ireland, Sweden, Norway have recognised Palestine so it is on its way to becoming a consensus position in regards to … like-minded countries,” Carr told the ABC’s Afternoon Briefing.

Today, French President Emmanuel Macron said France would officially recognise Palestine as a state starting next month.

If Australia did the same, it would send a “powerful message to Israel that it is not being treated like a pariah state”, Carr said.

Neither Foreign Minister Penny Wong nor her UK counterpart, David Lammy, have ruled out recognising a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly in September, a move which has seen French President Emmanuel Macron rebuked by Israel.

Asked to clarify whether the politicians had ruled out supporting Palestinian statehood, both reiterated their desire to see a two-state solution and to end the humanitarian suffering but they did not directly respond to the question.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong and Defence Minister Richard Marles meet their UK counterparts on Friday. Credit: AAPIMAGE

“I think we all are distressed by the ongoing violence, the deaths of so many innocent civilians, the images of children starving, the … humanitarian catastrophe that is worsening before our eyes, and we all want it to stop,” said Wong.

“We are committed to making a two-state solution a reality. I’ve outlined the challenges associated with that.”

UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy said: “I repeat that a ceasefire is the quickest and easiest way to achieve that and a sustained ceasefire that lasts, not a pause.

“We recognise that there are those who do not believe in two states. Well, if you believe in one state, then you have to answer the question about equality for all citizens before the law.”

President Macron said on Friday (AEST) that France would officially recognise Palestine as a state starting next month as a way to ensure peace in the Middle East.

Israel and the United States criticised the move. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it rewarded terror and “risks creating another Iranian proxy”.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong says recognition of a Palestinian state and a two-state solution is the only hope of assuring peace for Israelis and Palestinians.

Asked if Australia would recognise Palestinian statehood at the United Nations General Assembly, Wong said: “In relation to two states … we no longer see recognition at the end of a peace process only. And we remain committed to working with other countries on working towards a two-state solution.

“It is ultimately the only hope of peace and breaking the cycle of violence and assuring the security and aspirations of peace for both Israelis and Palestinians.”

Wong said there was no role of Hamas in a future Palestinian state but the Palestinian Authority could play a larger role in fostering peace.