World - Thursday, June 18, 2026

Treasurer says carve-outs to capital gains tax discount came after ‘getting the consultation right’. Follow today’s news live • Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast There were two small earthquakes in New South Wales this morning, according to Geoscience Australia. A 3.4 magnitude quake hit near Orange around 5.45am this morning, with at least 108 people reporting they felt the shakes. And a 3.2 magnitude temblor hit near Wilcannia two hours earlier. Just two people reported feeling that quake. If we’re given the choice between taking the easier path politically or doing the more difficult thing, but the right thing in the interests of particularly first home buyers, young people, workers in the tax system, then it will be worth it. Obviously, there’s a big partisan political campaign against these changes. We understand that. We anticipated that. We expected that. But it’s worth it because our job isn’t just to take the easy political options. The more important thing than the politics of this is to get the policy right, to get the substance right. Because at the end of the day, what matters most is the tax system and the housing market are broken. We are acting to fix it. Continue reading...

The vice president delivered a rebuke to Israeli critics of the agreement, warning them not to alienate their most important ally, as the administration sought to rebut mounting criticism of the deal.

Niger has been fighting a militant Islamist insurgency for a decade and in January suspected jihadists attacked the same airport.

Musical stars and retired politicians from less polarised era seeming antidote to cage fights on White House lawn The Barack Obama presidential center opened in Chicago on Thursday after more than a decade in the making amid a musical fanfare and paeans to democratic principles that evoked a previous age, all while delivering an implied rebuke to Donald Trump . Featuring appearances by a cast of musical stars and retired politicians from a less polarised era, it was a seemingly perfect antidote to the crass spectacle of cage fights on the White House lawn. Continue reading...

Alexander Sokurov has questioned the Russian president about government repression, but he is still controversial among his country’s exiles.

Amid India's push to isolate Pakistan, shifting geopolitics have elevated Islamabad's diplomatic profile. President Trump's meeting with Modi suggests New Delhi is looking to regain momentum.

Former presidents, heads of state and celebrities converged on a lakefront park in Chicago’s South Side to dedicate the Obama Presidential Center Sign up for the Breaking News US email He calls the situation a “win-win” for the US. Vance is here, and he starts by claiming that Trump’s peace deal with Iran “is already bearing real fruits for the American people”, with 12.5m barrels going through the strait of Hormuz last night and gas prices dropping below $4 today for the first time since the conflict began. Continue reading...

The US defence secretary's move follows a US decision to scale back its commitments to a high readiness force within the alliance.

A man is being held on suspicion of attempted murder after a boy was critically injured when he ended up in a crocodile enclosure at a zoo outside Cambridge, the authorities said.

Iran’s hardline parliament speaker and key negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf warned that Tehran would not honor its commitments under a newly signed memorandum with the U.S. if Washington fails to uphold its side of the deal.