LAST WEEK THIS MORNING
Australian war crimes
After an inquiry into the Australian defence force the Australian government has stripped the medals off of former military officers who are alleged war criminals.
Defence minister, Richard Marles, made the announcement on Thursday following the longstanding recommendations of the Brereton inquiry into war crimes in Afghanistan.
The government decided to cancel the awards of a small group of officers who held command positions in Afghanistan during a time in which war crimes are alleged to have been committed.
Marles said the final step of government action in the long-debated issue of command accountability emanates from the Brereton reports.
Although he will not disclose the names or details of the alleged war criminals, Marles sent letters to the affected individuals to notify them of their award status.
Maltese added that the action meant Australia was holding itself accountable for the allegations.
After Labor’s win in the 2022 election, Marles told the Guardian that he was committed to reforming the ADF by responding to the historical Brereton inquiry.
The Brereton inquiry, conducted by Maj Gen Paul Brereton, was a four year long report that concluded in 2020.
The report evidences the wrongful killing of 39 people and alleged torture of two others by 25 current and former Australian special forces personnel in Afghanistan.
Brereton included in the report that the “moral command responsibility and accountability for what happened under their command and control” rests on the shoulders of special operations leaders.
It is not evident that Thursday's announcement relates to those accused of actually committing the misconduct, as Criminal allegations are the responsibility of the Office of the Special Investigator.
The stripping of the medals is separate from criminal investigations and prosecutions matters which are handled independently from the government.
What is clear is that successive governments since the conclusion of the report have delayed the final decision on command accountability.
At the conclusion of the report to Peter Dutton, the then defence minister, the oversight panel led by former intelligence watchdog Vivienne Thom raised concerns about his failure to act.
It said, “the failure for any accountability to be required from senior officers … is widely resented in the [special forces] and a factor contributing to lowered morale.”
It is contentious who exactly is responsible for these actions, and if those in command are responsible for the actions of their subordinates.
Crossbench senator Jacqui Lambie called the government “insensitive” and accused Marles of “throwing our diggers under the bus” for making the announcement shortly after the royal commission into veteran suicide.
Rawan Arraf, The executive director of the Australian Centre for International Justice on the other hand said that the announcement should have come sooner and had “serious shortcomings.”
“[It is] disappointing that it has taken the Australian government over three-and-a-half years to address redress avenues for Afghan victims and their families,” he said.
Harris-Trump Debate
Last Tuesday, approximately 67.1 million people tuned in to watch the presidential debate between Donald Trump and Kamala Harris
This is a 31% increase from the June debate between US President Joe Biden and Trump in June.
The debate was shown on 17 different networks, but was coordinated by ABC News. Fox News was the network with the highest number of viewers, at 9.1 million.
According to Nielsen data, there was a distinct increase in younger and middle-age demographic viewers. 53% more adults aged 18-49 tuned in compared to the Trump-Biden debate.
The debate was the first time both presidential candidates had met, with both candidates shaking hands at the beginning.
Both parties spoke on key issues including border immigration, the economy and abortion access.
Harris struck a nerve when she brought up his rallies, saying that people leave “early out of exhaustion and boredom.”
She also claimed that world leaders have called Trump “a disgrace” for refusing to concede the 2020 election.
The debate took an unexpected turn when Trump, talking on immigration, brought up an online conspiracy theory involving Haitian immigrants stealing and eating pets.
“In Springfield, they’re eating the dogs, the people that came in, they’re eating the cats…they’re eating the pets of the people that live there. And this is what’s happening in our country, and it’s a shame,” Trump said.
Debate moderator David Muir fact-checked Trump live, saying that Springfield’s city manager had told ABC News that “there have been no credible reports of specific claims of pets being harmed, injured or abused by individuals within the immigrant community,”
Harris was largely proclaimed the winner of the debate. A CNN flash poll showed a 63% to 37% split of viewers who believed that Harris had performed better. Prior to the debate, these voters were 50-50 on who would win.
Despite this, Trump’s campaign publicly declared victory.
After the debate, Taylor Swift endorsed the Harris-Waltz ticket to her Instagram followers, encouraging them to register to vote.
After her endorsement, the voter registration website recorded nearly 338,000 new visitors.
The record viewership for a presidential debate was 84 million people in the 2016 debate between Trump and Hillary Clinton.
Astronauts in space
NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams might be spending almost a year in space by the time they will be able to return to Earth in a trip forecasted for next February.
The pair publicly commented on the ordeal for the first time since the Boeing craft that took them to the International Space Station returned without them earlier this month, posing too much of a risk for them to journey back on.
Hazards included various thruster failures and helium leaks prior to arriving at the space station.
The pair have said that despite missing their families, they are grateful for the prolonged time on the International Space Station.
“This is my happy place. I love being up here in space,” Williams said.
Wilmore jokes that he is happy for the lack of joint pain while in zero-gravity.
Despite the perks, Wilmore said he would miss out on family milestones such as his daughter’s final high school year.
The pair have said that they do not feel ill will towards Boeing or NASA, confident that they will eventually return home.
“That’s how it goes in this business,” said Williams. “You have to turn the page and look at the next opportunity.”
Next year, the new SpaceX Dragon craft will bring them home. Boeing’s future prospects in NASA’s commercial crew program remains uncertain.
Moo Deng: the internet famous hippo
Two-month-old pygmy hippo Moo Deng is attracting legions of fans to the Thai zoo where she lives.
Her short stature and adorable personality have made her a social media sensation since zoo keepers began posting her antics online.
According to Khao Kheow Open Zoo, visitor numbers have almost doubled since her birth.
Moo Deng’s name, which translates to ‘bouncy pig’ in Thai, was chosen by popular vote. Her sisters, Moo Tun (stewed pork) and Moo Wan (sweet pork), also have pork-related names.
However, not all of Moo Deng’s fame has been positive. Her popularity has resulted in visitors mistreating the animal.
Videos show individuals throwing shellfish and splashing water on Moo Deng to wake her up.
These actions have been condemned by the zoo, with CCTV cameras being installed around the enclosure and legal action threatened against perpetrators.
Crowd management strategies have also been introduced, with groups no larger than 50 minutes being allowed to look at the pygmy hippopotamuses for up to five minutes.
The zoo has capitalised on Moo Deng’s star quality, introducing themed merchandise in their stores.
Makeup brand Sephora Thailand has advertised a new line of Moo Deng inspired blushes so fans can “wear your blush like a baby hippo”.