Burke also won’t confirm Australians on US submarine
Tony Burke was asked earlier if he would confirm there were two Australian sailors on the American submarine that sank an Iranian warship. He said he respected the question but wouldn’t give an answer, telling RN:
We don’t confirm the location of Australian military personnel on any operation that our allies might conduct.
He was pressed about any confusion between the reports and government messaging saying Australia wasn’t involved in the war. Burke said he wasn’t in a position to comment on the submarine strikes, adding:
We’re certainly not directing any involvement in this conflict.
Key events
Israeli ambassador questions facts behind bombing of girls’ school in Iran
Hillel Newman was asked about the bombing of a school in Iran that killed at least 165 students. He cast doubt on the details around the blast, saying the bombing “has not been authenticated” and “one cannot believe pictures or even photos or words that come out of Iran”.
What I would like to say is that there’s a clear distinction between the activity and the operation of the US and Israel, which is a joint operation. It’s not an Israeli operation, it’s a joint US-Israel operation. There’s a clear distinction. We target military installations.
The school was struck on the first day of US and Israeli strikes on the country. The UN human rights office has called for an investigation into the deadly attack.
Newman told RN:
Our attacks are pinpointed and quite accurate against military installations. That’s why you don’t hear great numbers of civilians that have been affected. Regarding the school, therefore, we have our doubts. We cannot believe anything that comes out of Iran.
There are a few options regarding the school. One is that it’s not even true.
He said it will take Israel “time to get the truth”.
I can assure you, there was no intention to hit any school. There’s no intention to hit any civilian. There are mistakes that can happen during a war, but we’re not even sure that this is the case. It might even have been Iranian fire that fell short on the school, if it was a school.
New Israeli ambassador to Australia says war with Iran will continue ‘as long as we need’
Israel’s new ambassador to Australia, Hillel Newman, said the conflict between the country and Iran will continue “as long as we need” to achieve multiple objectives, including removing the threat of Iranian nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
Newman just spoke to RN, saying Israel wanted new leadership in Iran that is not a “war-mongering leadership” that tries to “annihilate the state of Israel”. He said:
The people of Iran must decide their future. We’re not deciding for them their future. It’s their choice. But we’re trying to remove the fear barrier. The people do want to change. They want to change their regime. They’re oppressed.
Burke says Herzog’s secret meeting with Asio nothing ‘unusual’
Burke was just asked why Israeli president Isaac Herzog held a secret meeting with the boss of Asio during his trip to Australia last month.
He said people were “reading too much” into a simple conversation that happens all the time.
When you get dignitaries or ministers visiting from other countries, they make their requests for who they want to have conversations with and who they want to meet with. And so it’s not unusual for requests to come through for security agencies.
Obviously, I meet with foreign security agencies. They’re always on my list when I travel. But when someone makes a request, then if it’s possible for a meeting to be conducted, a meeting’s conducted.
Tony Burke says commercial flights needed to unclog backlog of travellers stuck in Middle East
Tony Burke, the minister for home affairs, is also speaking about flights back to Australia.
He said more than 100,000 people are stranded in the Middle East and travellers needed commercial airspace to reopen more broadly to unclog that backup of people trying to return home. Burke told RN:
When something like this happens, normally our process has been to get people to the transport hubs. This time, the transport hubs have also been attacked … The commercial flights are now starting to come. But obviously, the airlines are having to not only make sure they’ve got planes available but also make sure that it’s safe to fly.
Our priority is being able to get Australians safe and get them back home. The simple reality is when you’ve got more than 100,000 people in the region who have been stranded, a charter flight option isn’t going to scratch the surface on that. You really need to rely on the commercial airlines. And, as I say overnight and this morning, that’s now started.
Minister won’t say if Australians were on US submarine that sunk Iranian warship
King would not speak about reports that Australian personnel were on board a US submarine when it torpedoed and sank an Iranian warship off the coast of Sri Lanka yesterday, killing at least 87 people.
Defence sources told the Guardian yesterday that they believe two Australians were on board the submarine.
King said she would not talk about crews or operational matters, saying there are longstanding arrangements with foreign governments over such deployments. She told RN Breakfast:
It really isn’t appropriate to go into those details.
She added that Australians were “absolutely” training with the US Navy.
We do have personnel training through the Aukus system, as one would expect, and we’ve been very open about that. But for operational security reasons, the Australian Defence Force does not and should not disclose specific details regarding third country deployments. And no one would expect us to.
Minister says repatriation flights are ‘good news’ for stranded travellers
The federal resources minister, Madeleine King, is speaking on RN Breakfast this morning about the repatriation flights. She said it is “good news” that more flights are taking place, with four scheduled flights from Dubai and two from Abu Dhabi in the next 24 hours.
King added there’s been chatter that Qatar Airways could soon begin a limited number of relief flights as well.
It’s a long way from home, and there are Australians caught out a long way from home. And the Department of Foreign Affairs is working very hard to make sure every Australian finds their way to a safe place and hopefully home.
Two flights from Dubai land in Sydney and Melbourne
A second commercial flight landed in Sydney last night from Dubai and the first made its way to Melbourne from the Middle Eastern hub.
An Emirates plane touched down just before 11pm in Sydney, with another arriving in Melbourne about 6.20am this morning. A third plane, from Abu Dhabi to Sydney, is set to arrive just after 9.30am.
Australians shared tearful stories on arrival.
“It’s just been so stressful hearing everything, and especially being five months’ pregnant and not knowing what’s happening,” one traveller told the ABC last night.
Emirates and Etihad is still only operating limited flights until further notice, while Qatari airspace around Doha remains closed.
With the limited re‑opening of airspace, Emirates is operating a reduced flight schedule until further notice. Visit https://t.co/A2RdND1Gjr for more information.
These flights are open for booking and we are accommodating customers with earlier bookings as a priority.… pic.twitter.com/a0R100YFUL
— Emirates Support (@EmiratesSupport) March 5, 2026
Good morning, Nick Visser here to take on Friday’s news. Let’s get to it.
Tropical low brings severe weather to far north Queensland coast
Emergency crews are ready and sandbag stations are in place in towns along Queensland’s far north coast, with heavy rain, flooding and damaging winds forecast on Friday as a tropical low tracks north-east of Cairns, AAP reported this morning.
A cyclone watch for the region was cancelled yesterday after the system was considered a very low chance of intensifying before hitting the coast.
The “disconnected” tropical low was likely to reach the coast by this afternoon between Cairns and Townsville before moving south-west into central Queensland at the weekend, the Bureau of Meteorology’s Angus Hines said.
We’ll bring you more updates on this through the day.
Australia to change luxury car tax to close EU trade deal
Tom McIlroy
Australia looks set to make changes to the luxury car tax as part of concessions to secure a free trade deal with the European Union.
Both sides have been talking up significant progress on the negotiations and a visit to Australia by the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, could be announced within days.
The luxury car tax has been a sticking point and Guardian Australia has been told the current $80,000 threshold could be increased to at least $100,000, in a concession to European manufacturers including BMW and Mercedes-Benz.
Cars with a value over the LCT threshold attract an LCT rate of 33%.
The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, confirmed the government had indicated a willingness to include the luxury car tax thresholds in the FTA discussions.
“We are trying to finalise that EU free trade deal as soon as we can,” he said, paying tribute to the trade minister, Don Farrell, and the foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong.
Welcome
Good morning and welcome to our live news blog. I’m Martin Farrer with the best of the breaking news before I hand the news reins to Nick Visser.
