Max Walden

America’s barmy battle to ban bawdy books Organised puritans are invading school libraries

There were roughly 10,000 book bans in America in 2023-24, a four-fold rise in two years, according to a free-speech group. Stories about death, sex and racism are the most vulnerable

Overwhelming grief of Gaza deaths forces principal from job he loves Sami Muamar says the grief, anguish and mental toll of constant death have forced him to leave the job he loves.

Palestinian Australian principal takes six months’ stress leave after more than 100 family members die in Gaza www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08...

Kmart facing legal action over belief it's sourcing products linked to forced labour Kmart is facing court action by a group who believe some of its products may have been sourced from factories in China linked to forced labour.

Kmart is facing legal action in the federal court, taken by an Australian-based Uyghur group, who say they have a reasonable belief the retail giant may be sourcing some of its products from factories linked to forced labour camps in Western China. www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08...

Medics aim to screen thousands of Gaza children for malnutrition Medics in Gaza said on Monday they were working to step up screening of young children for severe malnutrition amid fears that hunger is spreading as people flee to new areas.

Six more people died of starvation or malnutrition in Gaza over the past 24 hours, its health ministry said on August 3. The deaths raised the toll of those dying from what international humanitarian agencies say may be an unfolding famine to 175, the ministry said reut.rs/45f7BBs 6/6

'Now, there's nothing stopping them': Settlers trying new forms of intimidation In the Jordan Valley in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, teenage shepherds escorted by armed security guards are trying to push Palestinian villagers from their farms.

In the Israeli-occupied West Bank, shepherds and settlers are pushing out locals www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08...

Why some Australians will travel 9,000 kilometres to cast one vote Bangladesh has one of the world's largest overseas populations — yet almost none of them can vote from abroad.

Bangladesh will hold historic elections in 2026 but millions of its citizens - those who live and work overseas - will not be able to vote.

Some Bangladeshi Australians I spoke with want that to change www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08...

🇮🇩💪🏼🚒 …

But also 🇮🇩: “call-outs from students needing help with collecting their report cards showed there was a failure in the social support network.”

a bad map of the major language families of southeast asia

Want to see how good Chat-GPT is, the for-profit one that you pay for? I was curious if it could draw me a better map of the language families of Southeast Asia than I currently have. Here is what it produced.

wildly wrong, with confidence

Who you gonna call? In Indonesia, firefighters tackle ghosts and broken hearts In Indonesia, firefighters do not just battle flames — they pick up school report cards, banish ghosts, and comfort the broken-hearted. But these acts of public service throw a spotlight on other prob...

Who you gonna call? In Indonesia, firefighters tackle ghosts and broken hearts www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08...

Ravaged after a 12-day war with Israel, Iran is now closing in on 'day zero' As the atrocities in Gaza continue, another crisis is enveloping the Middle East — as record heat, drought and wildfires open up another devastating front.

After living through a 12-day war with Israel, the people of Iran have been hit with a second crisis, as devastating heat, a prolonged drought and decades of mismanagement culminate in severe water shortages. www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08...

Ancient Buddha jewels return to India after legal threat The nearly 350-piece collection has been purchased by an Indian businessman in what is being described as a "public-private partnership" with the Indian government.

Piprahwa gems return to India after New Delhi threatens Sotheby's auction house with legal action
www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08...

YouTube video by ABC News (Australia) Right wing Israeli rabbi accused of provocation at Jerusalem's holiest sites | ABC NEWS

Tensions boiling over in the heart of Jerusalem’s Old City, as Israeli authorities provocatively upend rules restricting Jews from praying at one of Islam’s holiest sites

📺 youtu.be/aWWt_tH7lZs?si

🎧 www.abc.net.au/listen/progr...

📱 www.abc.net.au/news/2025-08...

Farewell Tom Cowie - The Age

Trump to attend Asean summit after call with Malaysia’s Anwar Trump’s presence at the October summit will mark his first appearance at the diplomatic bloc’s key leaders’ meeting after years of no-shows.

US President Donald Trump will attend the Asean summit in October, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said on Thursday sc.mp/cy1ts

Superyachts part of 'sophisticated' drug cartel trade in Fiji, judge finds Seven men have been found guilty in Fiji's largest-ever drug trial, which was closely watched by a public concerned over a growing meth scourge in the country.

A Fiji High Court judge says "sophisticated drug cartels" were involved in a methamphetamine trafficking operation disrupted by police in a record drug bust last year.
www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07...

Puppet ban

In the sweltering streets of Jakarta, buskers carry towering, hollow puppets and pass around a bucket for donations. Now, they fear becoming outlaws
u.afp.com/Sg9t

Singapore prepared to recognise State of Palestine in principle, says envoy at high-level UN meeting It reiterates its call for an immediate ceasefire and negotiated two-state solution. Read more at straitstimes.com. Read more at straitstimes.com.

Singapore prepared to recognise State of Palestine in principle, says envoy at high-level UN meeting www.straitstimes.com/singapore/si...

BREAKING: Prime Minister Mark Carney says Canada intends to recognise the state of Palestine at the UN in September

With YouTube now in, the teen social media ban is set to exclude another platform: LinkedIn

Australia is giving one social media platform an exemption, but not the one you might have expected: LinkedIn.

ABC statement on journalists in Gaza - About the ABC The ABC is the only Australian media organisation with a permanent presence in the region and we have repeatedly tried to get reporters back into Gaza

"The ABC calls on Israel to again allow international journalists to report independently from Gaza, to allow all journalists to move in and out of Gaza and to ensure journalists in Gaza are safe."
www.abc.net.au/about/media-...

Anti-Muslim post shadows Nova Peris’ election to Olympic sport board The gold medallist became a Hockey Australia director weeks after sharing a comment that called Muslims “Satan worshipping cockroaches that need to be eradicated”.

Olympic gold medallist and former Labor senator Nova Peris was elected as a director of Hockey Australia just weeks after sharing a comment on social media from an anonymous account that called Muslims “Satan worshipping cockroaches that need to be eradicated”.
www.smh.com.au/national/ant...

For the first time, India has overtaken China as the No. 1 exporter of smartphones to the United States, following Apple’s tariff-driven manufacturing pivot to New Delhi. cnn.it/4l3JZpq

Six hundred deaths, little justice: The ongoing toll of deaths in custody With more than 600 Indigenous deaths in custody since the royal commission, First Nations families say the staggering toll is Australia's shame.

Six hundred lives lost since Australia's Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07...

The Islamic Council of Victoria reports multiple recent security incidents at its Melbourne mosque, including an envelope of suspicious white powder being found in the donations box and being targeted by a far-right group

Israeli human rights groups say their country is committing genocide in Gaza For the first time, the two leading human rights organisations have called for the international community to put pressure on the Netanyahu government to change course in the Palestinian territory.

Two Israeli human rights organisations, B'Tselem and Physicians for Human Rights Israel, have labelled the country's actions in Gaza as "genocide". www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07...

Shelling continues as Thai, Cambodian leaders prepare to meet US says its officials are ready to help at the talks, set to be held in Malaysia

Shelling continues as Thai, Cambodian leaders prepare to meet
https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/International-relations/Thailand-Cambodia-conflict/Shelling-continues-as-Thai-Cambodian-leaders-prepare-to-meet

Palestinian journalists in Gaza ‘being starved’, media watchdog says Committee to Protect Journalists says reporters are losing consciousness from hunger and at risk of Israeli attacks

Palestinian journalists in Gaza ‘being starved’, media watchdog says https://on.ft.com/4fe9y5M

‘We are neighbours’: Fleeing Thais and Cambodians call for peace Despite the divisions between the two countries, some Cambodians and Thais are calling for peace. Read more at straitstimes.com. Read more at straitstimes.com.

I'm really intrigued by Suwan Promsri's comments in this AFP story. He's a 73 y.o. Thai man who has lived along the border forever, so has seen it all. He says before people were 'indifferent' but social media nationalism is making things much worse www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia...

Thailand, Cambodia open to ceasefire talks The border conflict that has killed at least 33 people and displaced more than 150,000 from their homes.

Thailand, Cambodia open to ceasefire talks

'The writing is on the wall': China may have reached peak emissions Experts say Beijing's commitment to renewable energy is revolutionising the country's energy usage, and it could impact the fight against global warming and a key Australian industry.

Climate experts say China's carbon emissions may have peaked, which could affect global climate targets, the fight against global warming — and the Australian coal industry. www.abc.net.au/news/2025-07...