7News Just In

President Donald Trump has abandoned his plan to impose a 20% toll on shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, replacing it with trade and investment deals with Gulf states. The reversal comes as the US launches fresh strikes against Iran and reinstates a naval blockade of Iranian ports, with more than 20 warships and hundreds of military aircraft enforcing it. The US and Iran continue to battle over control of the strait, with the ceasefire in tatters and no clear exit strategy from the conflict.

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Approximately 60,000 Victorian state school teachers will strike for 24 hours next Thursday, closing classrooms across 1,600 public schools as they march from Bourke Street Mall to Parliament. Teachers rejected a pay offer of 28-32% over four years, demanding 35% over three years, while negotiations continue with Education Minister Ben Carroll. Separately, business leaders are intensifying calls for a Royal Commission into Victoria's building industry after allegations of government pressure to help the CFMEU during hospital construction, with corruption estimated to have cost taxpayers $15 billion.

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A 35-year-old woman from Gilgandra in New South Wales' Central West has been charged with four counts of using a carriage service to make child abuse material. Strike Force Trawler detectives arrested the woman during an early morning raid on Tuesday after allegedly discovering child abuse material linked to an online account. She has been refused bail.

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Liberal MP Moira Deeming has submitted a 12-page statement to the Victorian Liberal Party executive requesting not to be disendorsed. The statement details her engagement with party processes and claims party officials instructed her to report allegations against fellow MP Matthew Guy to police, which were subsequently found to be without merit. Her Supreme Court action is scheduled to appear before a judge on Friday.

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A 70-year-old Greenacre man crashed into multiple vehicles and a shopfront window on Waterloo Road while driving with a blood alcohol reading of 0.151. Wayne Rix pleaded guilty at his first court appearance after security cameras captured the May incident. The judge sentenced him to a 12-month bond and suspended his licence for six months, noting he was fortunate no one was injured.

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Two people have been killed in a fatal collision on the McIvor Highway at Heathcote, north of Melbourne. The pair crashed into a truck at approximately 9.45pm, with the truck driver uninjured and assisting police with their investigation.

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Jesse Hadchiti, a 20-year-old nephew of former bikie boss Jay Malkoun, has been arrested and charged with 13 offences related to orchestrating Melbourne's tobacco and nightlife attacks. Police allege he used encrypted apps to recruit teenagers to carry out firebombings, shootings and kidnappings, and he faces additional charges as the investigation continues. A magistrate denied his application for a suppression order to prevent publication of his image.

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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has announced plans to establish an Office of Artificial Intelligence within the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, alongside a world-first AI framework to be legislated by early next year. The proposed laws will regulate data centres, requiring them to underwrite their own power supply, reduce electricity use when needed, and be efficient with water and land. The plan includes protections for workers' rights and intellectual property of creatives, with consultation at National Cabinet scheduled for next month.

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Gunmen opened fire on two homes in Melbourne's west in coordinated attacks allegedly ordered by the notorious Commission syndicate. The first shooting occurred at Gladstone Park, followed four hours later by another attack in Kealba, both targeting properties whose residents had already moved out after previous firebombings and threats.

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Two women walking rescue dogs on a trail in Kooyong, Melbourne's southeast, were allegedly attacked by a man who jumped out of bushes and attempted to sexually assault them. The women's dogs immediately chased the attacker, with one dog tearing his pants, forcing him to flee into a tunnel under the Monash Freeway. Police are searching for a man of African appearance wearing a black tracksuit and bright blue backpack.

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