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Cardinal George Pell had told friends of his desire to spend his final years in Australia, but in the end, he would spend some of his last days furiously working on a fierce criticism of the Vatican.Only after his death have his recent critical writings of the church and its leader been revealed, including claims he anonymously published scathing pieces under a pseudonym."The most recent articles that have come out that have been critical, quite critical of the Francis papacy," Elise Anne Allen, from the Catholic news site the Crux, told the ABC."One thing Pope Francis appreciated about him at...

George Pell, an innocent man, spent 405 days in prison after two great institutions failed to discharge their responsibilities in a proper manner: the justice system and the media. ..... The clearest lesson from the Pell affair is the need to bolster the presumption of innocence. This is the golden thread that is supposed to run through the justice system, protecting us from the kind of hysteria that almost destroyed the cardinal. ..... In the Pell case, many of those in public life – and that includes the media – forgot that they had an interest in upholding the presumption...

Vatican journalists are reporting Australia’s most senior Catholic, Cardinal George Pell, has died following complications from hip replacement surgery. The Herald Sun has sought confirmation from a number of Cardinal Pell’s representatives. He was 81. Since being acquitted of child sexual abuse offences by the High Court in 2020 Pell had spent time between Rome and Sydney. Despite having convictions on five child sexual abuse charges over the abuse of two choir boys quashed by the High Court, the Cardinal was being sued by the father of one of the boys. The boy died of a heroin overdose in 2014...

Eighty years ago, the Royal Australian Navy won its only Victoria Cross. It was awarded 78 years later, after decades of campaigning by a host of advocates, but primarily as a result of the dedication of Garry Ivory, one of Teddy’s nephews, and the tireless Guy Barnett, a veteran MP from Tasmania. For that was where the 18 year old Ordinary Seaman Sheean had hailed from, but it was north of faraway Darwin where he died, as the corvette HMAS Armidale sank under the torment of a host of Japanese aircraft, bombing, strafing and firing torpedoes.What sort of man was...

Law students at the University of Sydney will be required to complete a new assessment after a student complained the current one, which used her name, mocked her political views.Freya Leach, 19, is a member of the Conservative club and the Young Liberals.She said her second-year criminal law cohorts were given a fictional scenario as part of an end of semester test in which a character – a uni student named “Freya” – murders one of her left-leaning peers. The namesake character also deliberately infects a sexual partner with HIV.Ms Leach requested an apology from the university, claiming the law...

It was a typical Saturday night in Bali and the Kuta Beach tourist strip was heaving with people. Locals and foreigners — including many Australians — waded through the main street of Jalan Legian, leaving crowded restaurants and pouring into bustling bars. A steady line of cars passed by, offering passengers a glimpse into Bali’s party scene from the safety of their tinted windows. It was October 12, 2002, and the night was just getting started. Warning: This article contains graphic accounts of the Bali bombings and the immediate aftermath of the scene in Kuta Beach, including descriptions of injured...

A Liberal frontbencher has lashed out at Australian officials who questioned why embattled soldier Ben Roberts-Smith was invited to Queen Elizabeth II's funeral - describing the saga as a disgrace.Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is taking a group of dignitaries, VIPs and 'everyday' Australians to London via his VIP jet to attend the funeral of Her Majesty next Monday at Westminister Abbey.But that invitation wasn't extended to Mr Roberts-Smith or other Victoria Cross recipients - with the controversial digger spotted at Brisbane International Airport on Thursday boarding a commercial flight to London.Shadow defence minister Phillip Thompson slammed Australian embassy staff who...

The Queen is under medical supervision after doctors became concerned for her health, Buckingham Palace revealed today, as Prince Charles, Camilla and Prince William raced to Balmoral to be with her. Her Majesty's immediate family members have been informed about the downturn, leading to her two main heirs going to her bedside amid escalating fears for the monarch's wellbeing. A royal spokesman said: 'Following further evaluation this morning, The Queen's doctors are concerned for Her Majesty's health and have recommended she remain under medical supervision. The Queen remains comfortable and at Balmoral.'

The story of the midget submarine raids on Sydney is one in which senior commanders bungled and got away with it. Meanwhile, the commanders of the small ships that attacked and sunk two of the submarines went unrewarded.On the Sunday night of May 31, 1942, 80 years ago, Sydney Harbour was attacked by three midget submarines of the Imperial Japanese Navy. They had been launched by five large fleet submarines from outside the port. In the raid, the accommodation vessel Kuttabul of the Royal Australian Navy was sunk by a torpedo impacting nearby and 21 sailors died.In a night of,...

Caroline Kennedy, the daughter of JFK and America's new ambassador to Australia, has jokingly hit out at a reporter for speaking over his female colleague. Ms Kennedy, daughter of assassinated US president John F. Kennedy, landed in Sydney on Friday morning and met with journalists to discuss what her role as the US's ambassador to Australia will look like. As she was hit with a flurry of questions, Ms Kennedy called out a moment where a male journalist appeared to speak over his female colleague, Seven News' Isabelle Mullen. In a typical press gallery media conference, the two journalists were...

On my twenty-first birthday I welcome the opportunity to speak to all the peoples of the British Commonwealth and Empire, wherever they live, whatever race they come from, and whatever language they speak.Let me begin by saying 'thank you' to all the thousands of kind people who have sent me messages of good will. This is a happy day for me; but it is also one that brings serious thoughts, thoughts of life looming ahead with all its challenges and with all its opportunity.At such a time it is a great help to know that there are multitudes of friends...

The Federal Government has decided to cancel Novak Djokovic’s visa because it was “in the public interest to do so”, casting serious doubt over whether the 20-time grand slam champion will compete in the Australian Open. Last week’s decision to cancel Djokovic’s visa was overturned in the Federal Circuit Court on Monday, but Federal Immigration Minister Alex Hawke still had the final say on whether the world No. 1 is allowed to stay in the country. Hawke was tasked with choosing whether the 34-year-old was a risk to the health and safety of the Australia community, but “lengthy further submissions”...

Novak Djokovic has sensationally admitted to lying on his entry declaration, saying “human error” was the cause of his faulty entry declaration – amid growing concerns over the world No.1’s movements around the time of his positive Covid result last December. Djokovic took to Instagram on Wednesday as he waited for further clearance on his visa application – which was again delayed by a further 24 hours after further submissions from his legal team over a possible cancellation by Immigration Minister Alex Hawke. But in doing so he made the significant admission that he had incorrectly ticked a box on...

The Novak Djokovic saga has a new twist, with fellow players starting to turn on the ‘selfish’ world No.1 amid accusations of favourable treatment over his anti-vaccination stance. As British great Andy Murray called on Djokovic to come clean over the outstanding questions relating to his botched visa documentation, Portugal’s Joao Sousa spoke out on the double standards that have allowed the defending champion to “find a way around (anti-vaccination) rules”. “I respect that he fights for what he believes and I can be empathetic with what he is going through in Australia, but it’s a bit selfish from him...

The Australian Border Force are investigating whether Novak Djokovic lied on his entry form. It appears he made a false declaration claiming he had not travelled in the 14 days leading up to his arrival in Melbourne, the Herald Sun reports. All travellers arriving in Australia are asked if they have 'travelled or will travel in the 14 days prior to your flight to Australia'. They are also warned: 'Giving false or misleading information is a serious offence. You may also be liable to a civil penalty for giving false or misleading information.' Djokovic ticked 'No' in response to the...

Novak Djokovic has won his court case. Judge Kelly found the decision to cancel the visa was “unreasonable.

Novak Djokovic’s legal team revealed a letter clearing the player to enter the country, but the document may not be the “rubber stamp” they think it is.The plot has continued to thicken in the Novak Djokovic visa saga as his legal team claims the world No. 1 had received word from the Department of Home Affairs that he had met “the requirements for a quarantine-free arrival into Australia”.However, the claim appears to refer to the Australian Travel Declaration which is an app travellers can use to give an indication of whether they will be allowed into Australia based on information...

This is the smoking gun that proves Tennis Australia wrongly — and knowingly — told the world’s best tennis players, including Novak Djokovic, how they could play in the first grand slam of the year even though they knew the proper rules for players who were unvaccinated against Covid was not as clear cut. An information sheet, obtained by News Corp, was emailed by Tennis Australia to the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP) early last month, then passed on to the world’s top players. The document shows that Tennis Australia informed players there was a two-step process to follow so...

Barty reveals pre-Aussie Open mindset Barty reveals pre-Aussie Open mindset Novak’s ’wildly anti-scientific’ beliefs exposed Novak’s ’wildly anti-scientific’ beliefs exposed Insta post responsible for Novak disaster Insta post responsible for Novak disaster Novak Djokovic’s visa has been cancelled and his Australian Open campaign is in tatters. The tennis star was told to leave the country after he was stopped upon entering Australia despite claiming to have a vaccine exemption, sparking global controversy. Djokovic will reportedly be transported to a quarantine hotel in the city before boarding a flight back to Europe, but is expected to try and challenge the decision...

Chinese hackers came within minutes of shutting down a series of power stations capable of lighting three million homes in a sneak cyber attack of a sort experts warn are becoming increasingly common – and which could be used to limit Australia’s ability to respond to a military crisis in the future. On November 27, Queensland’s CS Energy was subjected to a sustained ransomware attack which sources familiar with the matter say was only stopped at the last minute before it had the potential to shut down the company’s two thermal coal plants. Had the attack been successful, it could...