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Saturday's news in less than 2 minutes

Edward Snowden.

 

 

 

 

1. Venezuela and Nicaragua have offered NSA Whistleblower, Edward Snowden, asylum, according to the ABC. The announcement comes after Wikileaks released information detailing that Snowden had applied for asylum in 27 countries. Snowden is currently believed to be hiding in a Moscow airport transit area, after leaking details of top-secret American and British government public surveillance programs to the press.

2. Scotland Yard have announced that they are reopening the Madeleine McCann case, with 38 ‘persons of interest’ set to be investigated. The 2007 Portuguese inquiry into the disappearance of the toddler on a family holiday to Praia da Luz, a resort in the Algarve region of Portugal, ended inconclusively.

3. False allegations of child sexual abuse are increasingly being used as a tool in Australian custody cases, a retiring Family Court judge has claimed. Speaking exclusively to Fairfax, Justice David Collier said that the line of argument is “a horrible weapon” but one that those who employ it know will be an effective way of removing the other parent from the child’s life.

4. Violence has continued on the streets of Cairo following the ousting of former Egyptian president, Mohammed Morsi. The nation’s Health Ministry has reported at least 17 deaths have occurred during the protests. Dominant Islamist organisation, The Muslim Brotherhood, has warned that unless Morsi is reinstated, the violence will continue. 

5. A communique between Australia and Indonesia has solidified a cooperative approach when it comes to ‘boat people.’ The document, signed by PM Kevin Rudd and Indonesian President Susilo Bambang commits both nations to finding regional solutions for the people smuggling problem. The agreement directly rebukes the Coalition’s plan to focus on unilateral management if they come to power. The Coalition’s plan has not been well-received in Indonesia, as it makes it easier for Australia to return asylum seekers to Indonesia’s duty of care.

6. An 11-year-old girl’s pregnancy has sparked fierce debate in Chile over abortion laws. The fifth-grader was a victim of sexual abuse and doctors have stated that both the girl and the baby are at high risk. Abortions at any stage of pregnancy are currently illegal in the heavily Catholic country.

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See Item 8. (Image from Buzzfeed)
See Item 8. (Image from Buzzfeed)

7. A man has been denied a NZ Visa application, because authorities refuse to believe that he is really in love with his New Zealander wife. 22-year-old Indian-born Balwinder Singh married 59-year-old Gyn Kessell last year, but when Singh tried to apply for a Visa, Immigration NZ reportedly replied: “We have noted that you and your partner have a significant age gap, and noting the religious and cultural differences between you and your partner, we are not convinced that this relationship is likely to endure.”

8. Children in Brazil are learning how to speak English by correcting spelling and grammar mistakes in celebrity tweets. The kids from Red Balloon English Language School in Sao Paolo are tweeted celebrities like Rhianna and Justin Bieber giving them a head’s up on when to use there/their/they’re and helping them out with possessive apostrophes. Click here to see more of the tweets.

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