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Australia begins cleanup after floods kill 5, strand thousands

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Australia begins cleanup after floods kill 5, strand thousands

Hundreds of residents remain in evacuation centres, with 52 rescues made overnight despite conditions easing.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has announced the start of a cleanup operation in eastern Australia after record-breaking floods killed five people and stranded tens of thousands of people.

Damage assessments are under way for the coastal region of New South Wales in the east, where at least 10,000 properties are thought to have been damaged, the state’s emergency services agency said on Saturday.

Conditions have eased since Friday after days of relentless rain isolated towns, swept away livestock and destroyed homes, the agency added.

“We’re continuing to work closely across federal, state and local governments to make sure Australians get the support they need now and through recovery,” Albanese posted on X.

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Despite improving conditions, hundreds of residents remain in evacuation centres with 52 rescues made overnight, State Emergency Services commissioner Mike Wassing said.

Joanna Ally reacts as she cleans up the Manning Support Services centre in Taree [Hollie Adams/Reuters]

The death toll from flooding rose to five after a man in his 80s was found at a flooded property about 50km (32 miles) from Taree, one of the worst-hit towns, police said.

It’s “awful to hear the news of more loss of life”, Albanese said after being forced to cancel his trip to Taree on Friday due to floodwaters.

At their worst, the flooding isolated about 50,000 people and submerged roads in the country’s most populous state.

Coastal areas were left littered with debris and dead animals after a powerful storm system dumped months’ worth of rain in three days.

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Train services, including airport services, were affected by flooded tracks. Sydney airport shut two of its three runways for an hour on Friday morning, delaying flights.

Australia has suffered a series of extreme weather events in recent years, which experts have attributed to climate change.

Frequent flooding has caused widespread devastation in the country since early 2021, following droughts and bushfires at the end of the last decade.

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‘28 Years Later: The Bone Temple’ Launches Atop U.K., Ireland Box Office

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‘28 Years Later: The Bone Temple’ Launches Atop U.K., Ireland Box Office

Sony’s “28 Years Later: The Bone Temple” launched atop the U.K. and Ireland box office, opening to £3.3 million ($4.5 million) and taking the No. 1 spot, according to Comscore.

Lionsgate U.K.’s “The Housemaid” moved to second place in its fourth weekend, adding $3.8 million for a robust cumulative total of $30.5 million. Universal’s awards-season contender “Hamnet” placed third, earning $3.5 million in its sophomore frame and pushing its running total to $11.3 million.

Disney’s tentpole “Avatar: Fire and Ash” continued its strong run in fourth place with $2.3 million, lifting its cumulative gross to $51.8 million. Entertainment Film Distributors’ “Marty Supreme” rounded out the top five, collecting $2 million in its fourth weekend for a $16 million total.

Further down the chart, Disney’s “Zootopia 2” landed sixth with $1.3 million, taking its total to $41.1 million. Disney also debuted “Rental Family” in seventh, where it opened to $705,000. Warner Bros.’ reissue of “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring” opened in eighth place with $639,000.

Paramount’s “The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants” claimed ninth place, adding $631,000 for a cumulative $10 million, while Sony’s “Anaconda” completed the top 10 with $406,000, bringing its total haul to $7 million.

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A varied slate rolls into U.K. and Irish cinemas from Jan. 22, led by event cinema and a cluster of high-profile wide releases. The National Theatre brings “Hamlet – NT Live 2026” to the big screen, while Trafalgar Releasing adds music documentary fare with “Megadeth: Behind the Mask.”

The week’s biggest commercial muscle arrives on Jan. 23 with Universal’s “The History of Sound,” Oliver Hermanus’ romantic drama starring Paul Mescal and Josh O’Connor, which lands on 300+ screens. Sony is opening cyber thriller “Mercy,” while Entertainment Film Distributors unleashes genre sequel “Return to Silent Hill,” targeting horror fans. Vertigo Releasing is opening “Saipan,” a soccer drama headlined by Steve Coogan, Éanna Hardwicke and Alice Lowe.

Family audiences are catered for with Miracle/Dazzler’s animated “Dogs at the Opera,” while Lionsgate U.K. releases “H Is for Hawk,” the adaptation of Helen Macdonald’s acclaimed memoir. Mubi adds arthouse weight with Park Chan-wook’s Oscar-shortlisted “No Other Choice,” and AA Films U.K. brings in Bollywood war film “Border 2.” Rounding out the slate is BUFF Studios’ “Heavyweight,” a boxing drama featuring Nicholas Pinnock and Jason Isaacs.

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Trump confirms he invited Putin to join his Board of Peace: ‘He’s been invited’

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Trump confirms he invited Putin to join his Board of Peace: ‘He’s been invited’

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U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday confirmed that Russian President Vladimir Putin received an invitation to join his new Board of Peace that will supervise the next phase of the Gaza peace plan.

Trump confirmed Putin’s invitation while speaking to reporters at the College Football National Championship Game in Florida, where Indiana defeated Miami.

“Yeah, he’s been invited,” Trump told reporters.

SIX COUNTRIES CONFIRM US INVITATIONS TO GAZA PEACE BOARD

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President Donald Trump greets Russian President Vladimir Putin as he arrives at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, Alaska.  (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

The Kremlin said earlier on Monday that Putin had received the invitation, adding that it is now “studying the details” and will seek clarity of “all the nuances” in communications with the U.S. government.

France has also received an invitation but does not plan to join the Board of Peace “at this stage,” a French official close to President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday.

The French official said the issue is raising questions, particularly with regard to respect for the principles and structure of the United Nations.

U.S. President Donald Trump meets Russian President Vladimir Putin in Anchorage, Alaska. (REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque)

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Asked at the championship game about Macron being unlikely to join, Trump took jabs at his French counterpart and threatened tariffs for refusing to accept the invitation.

“Well, nobody wants him because he’s going to be out of office very soon,” Trump said of Macron.

“I’ll put a 200% tariff on his wines and champagnes, and he’ll join,” he added. “But he doesn’t have to join.”

LINDSEY GRAHAM MEETS WITH MOSSAD DIRECTOR DURING TRIP TO ISRAEL

U.S. President Donald Trump and French President Emmanuel Macron shake hands. (REUTERS/Suzanne Plunkett/Pool)

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Several other countries have also received invitations, including Israel, Canada, Belarus, Slovenia and Thailand.

Morocco, Vietnam, Kazakhstan, Hungary and Argentina have already accepted invitations.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Australia closes dozens of east coast beaches after shark attacks

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Australia closes dozens of east coast beaches after shark attacks

NSW coastline has seen four shark attacks since Sunday, as experts say rainy conditions draw sharks to beach areas.

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Dozens of beaches along Australia’s eastern New South Wales (NSW) coastline have been closed following four confirmed shark attacks since the weekend.

The latest attack came on Tuesday near the town of Port Macquarie, about 400km (248 miles) north of Sydney, where a 39-year-old surfer was bitten by a shark at Point Plomer, according to Australia’s ABC News.

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Authorities say the victim escaped serious injury, but beaches around Port Macquarie were shuttered on Tuesday following the attack as the government-run Shark Smart App indicated dozens of recent shark sightings near NSW beaches.

Sydney’s Northern Beaches Council also shuttered its beaches for at least 48 hours after a 27-year-old man was left in critical condition on Monday night following a shark attack at a beach in the Sydney suburb of Manly.

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A young surfer at northern Sydney’s Dee Why beach narrowly escaped a shark attack the same day, although the shark bit a chunk out of his surfboard, according to ABC.

On Sunday, a 12-year-old was seriously injured by a shark while swimming at a beach in eastern Sydney, ABC reported.

“If you’re thinking about going for a swim, think of going to a local pool because at this stage, we’re advising that beaches are unsafe,” Steven Pearce, the chief executive of Surf Life Saving New South Wales, told reporters following the beach closures.

The beaches of NSW have been extra busy as Australians enjoy their summer holidays, but experts say recent heavy rains around Sydney have also created ideal conditions for shark attacks.

Brackish water makes it difficult to see, while sewage run-off from rainwater has drawn in baitfish and sharks to coastal areas, according to Chris Pepin-Neff, an academic and expert on shark behaviour.

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“Stay out of Sydney Harbour and the beach after a rainstorm. Wait 72 hours after a storm to swim in the harbour and be mindful of swimming or surfing at ocean beaches for 24 hours after a large downpour,” Pepin-Neff wrote on Tuesday in an op-ed for the Sydney Morning Herald newspaper.

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