What a day of news.
Thanks for reading today’s live national news blog. This is where we’ll end today’s coverage.
To conclude, here’s a look back at what we covered today:
WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is set to arrive in Australia as early as Wednesday night after agreeing to a plea deal with US prosecutors, bringing a sudden end to his long-running legal saga and delighting his relatives and supporters.
Labor Senator Fatima Payman has become the party’s first member to cross the floor in decades after she voted with the Greens to recognise Palestinian statehood. Earlier, Payman said she had been warned she could be expelled for not toeing the party line, but a spokesperson for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s office has since said: “There is no mandated sanction in these circumstances and previous caucus members have crossed the floor without facing expulsion.”
In NSW, the Director of Public Prosecutions announced late this afternoon that ex-rugby star Jarryd Hayne will not face a fourth trial over the alleged sexual assault of a 26-year-old woman in her Newcastle home on the night of the 2018 NRL grand final.
In Victoria, a jury has found former airline pilot Gregory Lynn guilty of murdering Carol Clay – but not Russell Hill – in the high-profile missing campers case after a five-week trial.
In Queensland, the Brisbane Times reports risky synthetic stimulants have been found in samples people thought were ecstasy and cocaine at Brisbane’s fixed-site drug-checking facility in its first month of operation.
In Western Australia, a man had to be rescued from a hole in a Perth backyard this afternoon after he became trapped up to his waist in sand.
In sport news, the Australian men’s cricket team was knocked out of the Twenty20 World Cup today.
In business/media news, journalist and presenter Antoinette Lattouf’s termination dispute against the ABC will go to trial after mediation talks ended in a stalemate today.
Thanks again for your company. Have a lovely night.