1. Murder charge over Parramatta Westfield stabbing

A 35-year-old Iranian man has been charged over the stabbing murder of a man in a Westfield shopping centre in Parramatta in western Sydney.

Westfield Parramatta.

Two men were arguing in the centre around 10:30am yesterday when one man stabbed the other in the chest with a knife, police say. Shoppers screamed as the horrifying event took place, News.com.au reports, with one woman yelling: “He’s killing him, he’s killing him!” The 40-year-old man had died by the time police arrived, police said. Witnesses said the man who has been charged left the knife in the victim’s chest, took off his shirt, made a phone call and smoked a

cigarette before his arrest.

Acting Superintendent Jenny Scholz says the argument was not gang-related and may have been over a lover, the ABC reports.

“My understanding that the two men are connected,” she said.

The man was refused bail and is due to face Parramatta Local Court today.

2. Transfer of asylum seekers back to Sri Lanka halted

UPDATE: The Australian Government has confirmed that they are holding a group of 153 asylum seekers off the coast of Australia, on a Customs vessel.

At the High Court hearing today was the first official confirmation that the group was being held on an Australian Customs vessel. During the hearing, the Australian Government also agreed not to return the asylum seekers to Sri Lanka without three day’s notice.

Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop confirmed to Sky News that the Government would abide by this decision, saying, “

We will of course abide by our undertakings to the court and we await the outcome, but the Australian Government has made it clear from the outset that we intend to disrupt the people smuggling trades.”

The ABC have reported that the asylum seekers could be kept at sea for weeks, if the High Court hears a legal challenge regarding their future.

Previously, Mamamia reported… 

The High Court yesterday granted a temporary injunction to halt the transfer of 153 asylum seekers, including 37 children, to Sri Lanka.

Solicitor George Newhouse, one of the lawyers who helped secure the temporary injunctions, told the ABC: “We argued that the asylum seekers are entitled to have their allegations – claims against the Sri Lankan government – heard and processed in accordance with the law.”

“The Minister can’t simply intercept them in the night and disappear them.”

Hours before the ruling, the Federal government confirmed another boat containing 41 asylum seekers had already been returned to the country, in a move that outraged refugee advocates and raised concerns that Australia may have breached international law.

The UN refugee agency, UNHCR, has said in a statement it was deeply concerned about the transfer, while legal scholars have told the ABC Australia’s actions could constitute ‘enforced disappearance.’

The injunction is only temporary until this afternoon, when the matter will be heard in the High Court this afternoon.

3. Allison Baden-Clay defence: did she jump?

Allison Baden-Clay.

Defence counsel Michael Byrne QC began his closing address in the Baden-Clay murder trial in Brisbane’s Supreme Court yesterday.

He posed a series of ‘what-ifs’, asking the jury to consider whether Allison Baden-Clay could have drowned, fallen or jumped from a bridge to her death. He added Baden-Clay had no motive to kill his wife, and reminded the jury that the defence’s expert psychiatric witness said there was a “high chance” Mrs Baden-Clay was relapsing in her depressing illness at the time of her death.

The defence will counsel will continue its closing statement today.

4. Jobless teachers in NSW

NSW is producing far more teachers than there are jobs, with more than 44,000 teachers unable to secure a permanent job in the state’s schools.

Universities produce 7500 new teaching graduates a year into a job market that cannot accommodate them, with particular shortages in the fields of maths and science at high schools in western Sydney.

5. Rolf Harris moving to cushy prison

Rolf Harris.

Convicted Paedophile Rold Harris, who was jailed on Friday, will soon be moved to a cushy open prison known as the ‘Savoy of Slammers.’

The 84-year-old UK entertainer will spend just four weeks at London’s notorious Wandsworth jail before he is transferred to Leyhill Prison, British media report.

Harris will be able to enjoy walks in the gardens and art courses, and will never be locked in his room, The Mirror reports. He will also receive a pension and a free TV due to his advanced age.

Peter Saunders, of the National Association of People Abused in Childhood, told The Mirror the move was ‘another slap in the face for victims.’

“The lenient approach sends a message to other people that they might not have to suffer serious consequences for abusing children… If Harris had robbed a few banks he wouldn’t be going to an open prison, when in fact he robbed something far more important,” he said.

Harris was sentenced to five years and nine months in jail on Friday.

6. Selfie danger at Tour de France

S

elfies are posing a danger to cyclists at the Tour de France.

Simon Yates, who is riding for Australia’s Orica GreenEDGE team, told the Courier Mail: “The crowd support in England was amazing. The only real complaint was people taking selfies in the middle of the bunch and having their back to the peloton.”

“Everyone is out there having fun and a lot of people don’t realise we’re coming past at 60kph and we use every inch of the roads.”

There were several spills on Sunday’s second stage from York to Sheffield, the Courier Mail reports.

Three riders fell on the climb on the sprint to the finish at Harrogate the previous day due to crowd congestion.

7. 11-year-old boy with cerebral palsy is left disappointed after Disney on Ice show

An 11-year-old boy with cerebral palsy was left disappointed at a recent Disney on Ice show after staff at Melbourne’s HiSense Arena allegedly did not know where the wheelchair accessible route to his seat was.

Essential Baby reports that Elias Anderson, who is non-verbal and uses a wheelchair, had been counting the days until he would see his hero Buzz Lightyear — but had to spend the first part of the show facing a set of concrete chairs.

“When you have a disability the barriers you face are often almost invisible,’’ Elias’s mum Margie said. “But this set of concrete stairs that stood between Elias and everybody else who was enjoying was a very stark barrier and it was very upsetting,” Margie said.

Essential Baby reports that when Margia and Elias were finally shown their seats, other patrons were already sitting in them — and staff would not initially ask them to move. Margie and Elias eventually positioned themselves in front of the seats in which they were supposed to be sitting, forcing the other patrons to move.

Margie described this disappointing treatment on the EB forums and the HiSense Arena Facebook page last week, receiving many messages of support in response.

Essential Baby reports a HiSense Arena spokeswoman apologised for the “regrettable” incident in a statement, Essential Baby reports.

“The family in question accepted complimentary tickets to return … and we will work with them to ensure a positive outcome on their next visit. We apologise unreservedly for the family’s experience and we are immediately reviewing our customer experience processes,” the statement says.

8. Missing Melbourne boy

Emanuel Fraser.

Police are asking for help to find a 12-year-old missing boy from Thomastown in Melbourne’s north.

Emanuel Fraser disappeared on June 21. He was last seen at his home on Lincoln Drive, where he told his mother he was going to a park.

He later called home asking to stay at a friend’s house but was told he was not allowed to, the ABC reports.

Police said there have been a number of reported sightings of Emanuel, including one last week, but they have not been able to confirm them.

Emanuel is described as being of Pacific Islander appearance and 175cm tall with a thin build, brown hair and hazel eyes.

Those with information should call 000.

9. Children of same-sex parents ‘healthier’

A new study has shown that children of same-sex couples experience higher levels of health and family cohesion than those from traditional families, The Guardian reports.

The University of Melbourne researchers surveyed 315 same-sex parents and found that the children raised by same-sex partners scored 6 percent higher on average than the general population on measures of general health and family cohesion.

They were equivalent to the general population on measures of behaviour, mental health and self-esteem, and temperament and mood, The Guardian reports.

But the stigma associated with their parents’ sexual orientation is an ongoing challenge for these children, the researchers warned.  

10. Woman with terminal cancer forced to lie on hospital floor

A photo of a terminally ill chemotherapy patient lying on a hospital floor has gone viral after her sister posted it to Facebook. 

The photo, posted on Saturday, shows Amanda Veitch — who has cancer — covered in a blanket on the floor of Gold Coast University Hospital, the Daily Mail reports.

Veitch is using a rolled-up jacket as a pillow in the photo.

‘Could they not find some type of bed??? She is full of chemotherapy and at high risk of infection!!,’ Ms Maree wrote in a caption accompanying the photo, which was first obtained by the Gold Coast Bulletin.