A 6.1 magnitude earthquake has struck near Australia, according to Geoscience Australia. It was previously reported that the earthquake was “potentially tsunamigenic,” meaning it could cause a tsunami. However, that information has since been retracted. The US Geological Survey (USGS) has put the quake at a 5.9, with a depth of 10km (6.2 miles). The quake struck at 8:58am GMT, 1704.1km... 

Police have cordoned off a park area in Bunbury, Western Australia, where a man with explosives took at least one person hostage, according to local media. Police have confirmed there is a hostage situation in a park near the corner of Koombana Drive in Bunbury, according to a GWN7 News reporter. The situation began unfolding at around 8pm local time (12.00 GMT). It is believed that the man is in... 

A view of the community of Mimili in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara lands, a local Aboriginal area in northwest South Australia. The Australian government has decided to discontinue the provision of free water and electricity supplies to up to 200 indigenous communities, saying it can no longer afford the basic services, delegating it to state governments. The remote communities, located... 

A four-year-old Australian boy has received the world’s first treatment for managing type 1 diabetes after doctors fitted him with an artificial pancreas. The new device, which looks like an mp3 player, was attached to Xavier Hames’s body using several tubes inserted under his skin, Australian health officials said on Wednesday. The four-year-old became the first patient to use the new device... 

Firefighters working to douse flames in Western Australia on Jan.13, 2013. At least one person has died and dozens of homes have been destroyed as an intense wildfire rages through Australia’s west coast. The fire has damaged and destroyed at least 40 houses in the city of Perth. Four people have also been reported missing in Parkerville, the village where the fire started. “It has been confirmed... 

An emergency warning has been issued in Western Australia due to a bushfire that continues to rage toward the city of Perth. The Department of Fire and Emergency Services said on Monday that at least one person died in the flames that destroyed dozens of houses and forced the evacuation of hundreds of people in the suburbs of Perth, the capital city of Western Australia State. “It has been confirmed... 

Julian Assange’s newly formed Australian WikiLeaks Party (WLP) announced that if elected, it will immediately introduce a national shield law to protect a reporter’s right not to reveal a source, as current state-based shield laws are “inadequate.” “Only a uniform shield law covering the whole Commonwealth is acceptable,” WLP spokespersons Cassie Findlay and Sam Castro said. “Government... 

The initial stage of unprecedented radio telescope has been officially opened in Australia. The project will explore the universe in search of new galaxies, black holes, planets and even intelligent extraterrestrial life – if there is any. In the heart of red desert where man-made radio signals are minimal the AUS$152 million worth telescope will scan space for traces of the beginning of the universe,... 

The federal government has unveiled an historic agreement with mining magnate Gina Rinehart to import overseas workers to fill jobs in her iron ore project in Western Australia. The enterprise migration agreement (EMA) will be first used at the mining magnate’s $6.5 billion Roy Hill project, allowing Hancock Prospecting to bring in 1700 migrant workers on a temporary basis. Union leaders today... 

A home destroyed by the bushfire in Roleystone. Fifty-nine houses have been lost and 29 scorched in forest fires blazing 40 kilometres from the centre of Perth, officials in the Western Australia state capital said Monday. The Fire and Emergency Services Authority said there were no reports of deaths or injuries and that the winds fanning the flames were easing and they believed they had the fire under... 

THEY'RE HERE: Former KKK Grand Imperial Wizard Johnny Lee Clary in Perth. He says Klan violence is not limited to the US. The feared American racist organisation Ku Klux Klan has infiltrated Perth, a senior US-based KKK leader has claimed. Speaking from Arkansas, Thomas Robb, the US national director of the major Klan faction, The Knights Party, told The Sunday Times that the group — infamous... 

A so-called racist video posted on US-based internet site YouTube is yet to be removed, despite a Perth man being charged for allegedly uploading the “anti-Semitic” film. Police Commissioner Karl O’Callaghan today said his officers had so far been unsuccessful in their negotiations with YouTube to have the controversial video pulled from the site, but inquiries were continuing. Maylands...