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Josephine Asher with the top stories…

Josephine Asher with the top stories…

Josephine Asher with the top stories.

Josephine Asher with your top stories on this Saturday morning.

Josephine Asher with your top stories on this Saturday morning.

Listen to the latest updates from ABC News

Listen to the latest updates from ABC News

Listen to the latest updates from ABC News

A 20-year-old man from regional WA has been charged with preparing for a terrorist act. Police allege the man was planning a mass casualty event at public buildings including WA parliament house, police headquarters and Muslim faith places of worship, before being arrested. The WA Premier Roger Cook says it will be alleged the man was motivated by a white supremacist ideology. The state's Joint Counter Terrorism Team — made up of WA Police, the Australian Federal Police and ASIO, arrested the Bindoon man at a house on Thursday. Police will allege the man was acting alone. He 's been charged with acting in preparation for a terrorist act, using a carriage service to menace or harass, possessing a prohibited weapon and two firearms offences. A slow-moving rain band running almost the length of central Australia is forecast to cause flash flooding and severe thunderstorms to a number of states of the coming days. South Australia, Victoria and south-west New South Wales are forecast to receive what could be the heaviest rainfall in more than a decade. The system is also forecast to impact large parts of the Northern Territory and western Queensland, and is forecast to continue moving east over the weekend and into next week. The Liberal Party has revealed it won't be publicly releasing its review of last year's disastrous federal election loss. Party elders Pru Goward and Nick Minchin authored the report, examining the reasons for the loss and how the party can rebuild its standing among voters. Earlier this year, the ABC revealed the review had been delayed because former opposition leader Peter Dutton had claimed parts of it were defamatory to him and his staff.

South Australia's emergency services are "planning for the worst" ahead of possible intense rainfall of up to 120 millimetres in parts of the state, which may lead to flash flooding. The weather bureau says a humid tropical air mass over southern Northern Territory is moving south, bringing widespread rain and potential thunderstorms to South Australia. A severe weather warning is place for parts of the state's north and west. At least four states across the country are facing extreme weather and heavy rain sparked by a rare weather pattern sitting above central Australia. Pakistan's defence minister has declared 'open war' with Afghanistan's Taliban government amid an escalation in cross-border attacks. Pakistani military jets have bombed the Afghan capital, Kabul, and some provinces, in what it says were retaliatory attacks. The Taliban said earlier it had attacked multiple Pakistani army positions along the countries' shared border after Pakistani air strikes inside Afghanistan earlier this week. Comedian Magda Szubanski has announced she's in remission following her cancer diagnosis. In May last year, the 64-year old revealed she was being treated for the rare stage four mantle cell lymphoma. In a career spanning 40 years, Szubanksi is best known for her role as Sharon Strzelecki in the sitcom Kath and Kim.

Former US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, has defended her husband Bill Clinton before a Congressional committee investigating files related to late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Ms Clinton has submitted to hours of questioning, during which she said she didn't remember ever meeting Epstein. Bill Clinton is also due to testify in closed door hearings tomorrow, and will be the first former US president to appear before Congress since 1983. Opposition Leader Angus Taylor has paid tribute to his predecessor Sussan Ley and thanked her for her service, after she formally resigned from federal parliament. Ms Ley foreshadowed earlier this month she'd stand down as the Member for Farrer after being ousted as Liberal leader by Mr Taylor. Her resignation will trigger a by-election in her regional New South Wales seat, which is expected to be contested by at least four candidates. ASIC is taking legal action over allegations around 39,000 Budget Direct customers lost online discounts they were promised and were overcharged. The court action is against Auto and General, the underwriter for Budget Direct. The corporate regulator alleges consumers lost more than  $3million between March 2020 and July 2024 because of the misconduct.

Sussan Ley has officially handed in her resignation from parliament after a decades-long career. Most recently she was the first female leader of the federal Liberal Party at a time the Coalition was recovering from an election thumping. She was recently rolled by Angus Taylor for the top job after dire polling. It triggers a by-election in the regional New South Wales seat of Farrer which will closely watched to see if a recent surge in polling for One Nation, actually leads to success at the ballot box. The former first lady of the United States Hillary Clinton has fronted the media after submitting to hours closed door questioning for a congressional investigation into Jeffrey Epstein. She says she wanted to hearing to be public and insists she never remembers even meeting the disgraced paedophile. The former secretary of state insists the moves to summon her to give evidence were a distraction when scrutiny should be on high profile Republicans namely president Donald Trump. A Victorian-based federal Liberal MP says he feels distressed after a far-right group interrupted an event he was hosting in Melbourne's south-east last night. Goldstein MP Tim Wilson was confronted about immigration policies by the leader of the National Workers Alliance, an ethno-nationalist group wanting Australia to be a state for only those of European descent.

Labor's not shutting down media reports that federal treasury's modelling changes to negative gearing ahead of the budget. Critics of the contentious tax break say it helps property investors make large sums through buying multiple homes, while others struggle to break into the housing market. Health Minister Mark Butler says the government's been 'thinking about options' to give young Australians a 'fairer go'. But the opposition believes any changes to negative gearing won't boost housing supply. Former secretary of state, Hillary Clinton has given evidence to a US congressional committee examining the Epstein files and she'll soon be followed by her husband and former president Bill Clinton. While her testimony was behind closed doors she released her opening statement. She says she doesn't remember meeting the disgraced paedophile and she talked up her record of cracking down on human trafficking. Her appearance is also raising conversation about whether US president Donald Trump should appear given he's in the Epstein files, although he denies any wrongdoing. Wet weather's been causing havoc across Sydney. Commuters are experiencing rail delays, dozens of people have been rescued and there's been hundreds of calls for help. Flooding has been hitting large parts of the country this week and residents in South Australia, in particular Adelaide, are preparing for a deluge this weekend.

Political debate in Canberra is focusing on housing policy but working out what to do is proving divisive, given it involves going after tax breaks. There are reports Treasury's looking at new rules which would limit Australians to negatively gearing a maximum of two investment properties. The move would be in addition to potential changes around capital gains tax discount for existing properties. Labor's under pressure to help more people buy a home amid concerns the housing crisis is contributing to an intergenerational wealth divide. The former US secretary of state Hilary Clinton has testified behind closed doors to a Congressional committee about what she knew about the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. While the full transcript hasn't been released the former first lady's put her opening statement on social media. She says she doesn't remember meeting the notorious paedophile and she accused the committee of calling her to give evidence as a distraction, arguing that US president Donald Trump has legitimate questions to answer about his dealings with Jeffrey Epstein. A slow moving storm has led to homes being evacuated in south western Sydney and more than 40 flood rescues. A dozen properties in Fairfield were evacuated overnight and six people have been rescued. That comes as South Australians, especially people around Adelaide, prepare for a drenching on the weekend, and potential flash flooding.

Former First Lady Hillary Clinton is testifying in a landmark deposition for an investigation related to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.   Clinton and her husband, former president Bill Clinton, face questions about what, if anything, they knew about the notorious paedophile's illegal activities. Hillary Clinton insists she doesn't remember meeting Jeffrey Epstein and US president Donald Trump should be the one facing questions, arguing he deserves more scrutiny. Former President Bill Clinton is due to testify tomorrow. The New South Wales State Emergency Service has received more than 800 calls in the last 24 hours as heavy rainfall lashes parts of Sydney. The deluge has prompted dozens of flood rescues and led to around 12 homes being evacuated due to rising floodwaters. Meanwhile South Australian authorities are urging people to prepare for heavy rain and flash flooding over the next few days, as heavy falls are expected in Adelaide on the weekend. Tasmanian police say they've provisionally identified human bones as belonging to Belgian tourist Celine Cremer who went missing in the state's wilderness. The official determination of identity will be made by the coroner, as police give their condolences to her family. The 31-year-old disappeared on a hike in the state's north west in 2023, but the official search turned up nothing. But recently a volunteer search party, led by a private investigator made a breakthrough finding her mobile phone which then led to the discovery of human remains.

The federal government's crackdown on childcare centres could see nine stripped of their funding, because they're not meeting proper standards. The focus on dodgy operators follows allegations of child abuse and poor quality in the sector which is in high demand but struggling with workforce shortages. More than a 100,000 staff across Australia have also registered for new mandatory child safety training so they can better detect, stop and report abuse. Health authorities are investigating a cluster of fungal infections at a transplant ward at a Sydney Hospital, after two people died and four others fell ill late last year. It's thought the common fungus that's found in dirt and dust could be potentially linked to construction works at the hospital. The fungus is harmless to most people, but can cause illness to the immunocompromised. The ward at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital is also undergoing a deep clean and air quality testing. The former First Lady of the United States, Hillary Clinton, has been testifying in a landmark deposition in the investigation into the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.   She's blasted the congressional committee for summoning her, but not US president Donald Trump. The former Secretary of State argues she has no information to help the investigation, yet the president faces legitimate questions about his relationship with the disgraced paedophile.

Nine Australian childcare centres could be stripped of taxpayer funding for failing to meet the bare minimum safety and quality standards. The unnamed childcare centres have been given until the end of the month to lift their game. The services were among more than 60 placed on notice last year. It's part of a federal government crackdown on dodgy operators, following allegations of child abuse and other failures that have rocked the sector. Health authorities are investigating a cluster of fungal infections at a liver and kidney transplant ward at Sydney's Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, after two people died and four others fell ill. The infections are linked to a common mould fungus which can be found in plants, dirt, dust, and also at construction sites. It's harmless to most people but can be dangerous to those who are immunocompromised. Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has testified she has no information regarding the criminal activities of convicted paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. She's called for President Donald Trump to face the same scrutiny as her and her husband Bill, given he also appears in the Epstein files. She did acknowledge she'd interacted with Epstein's associate Ghislaine Maxwell at conferences hosted by the Clinton Foundation. It's the first of two days of congressional hearings, which will also see former President Bill Clinton answer questions about his association with Epstein. South Australia's state emergency service is urging people to prepare for heavy rain and flash flooding over the next few days. The pastoral districts have already copped a deluge this week. The weather bureau says the heaviest rain is due in Adelaide on Sunday evening, where totals could reach 100 millimetres. And the federal opposition's criticised the updated cost of the government's new national emergency warning system. The technology was initially expected to cost about $10 million, but the bill's now due to come in at around $132 million. AusAlert aims to send faster alerts to mobile devices. But one independent regional MP wants to see disaster roaming put in place. That would mean allow mobile users to switch to a competitor's network in the event of an emergency.

Listen to the latest updates from ABC News

Listen to the latest updates from ABC News

Health authorities are investigating a cluster of fungal infections at a transplant ward at Sydney's Royal Prince Alfred Hospital, after two people died and four others fell ill. The infections are linked to common mould known as Aspergillus fungus which can be found in plants, dirt, dust, and also at construction sites. Sydney Local Health District says construction work at the hospital could have been a potential cause. Two former patients of Melbourne gynaecologist Dr Simon Gordon have set up a private support group which they say has been joined by almost 200 women in two days. An ABC Four Corners investigation revealed Dr Gordon's patients were repeatedly operated on for what they were told was severe endometriosis despite that diagnosis not being seen in pathology results. Dr Simon Gordon has now been referred to police and maintains he acted responsibly and ethically and always in the patients best interests. Federal Opposition frontbencher Melissa McIntosh says she cringed when she heard the Prime Minister label former Australian of the Year and child sexual abuse survivor Grace Tame as "difficult". Anthony Albanese's comment came at an event in Melbourne yesterday, when asked to describe a range of public figures in one word. He clarified today that he was referring to her difficult life - but Ms Tame responded to say that it was a "patronising cop out from a total coward". Ms McIntosh says the PM should also understand the connotations of the word when directed at a woman.