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The US says its military is targeting drone and missile systems in Iran as it continues to ramp up attacks on the country.

The world health organisation says 13 hospitals have also come under attack in Iran since the war began.

The death toll has in Iran has now exceeded one-thousand according to human rights groups.

The US says it can sustain the campaign against Tehran for as long as it wants to.

The Australian Defence Force says there's been another "unsafe interaction" with the Chinese military after a People's Liberation Army-Navy helicopter intercepted an Australian chopper in the Yellow Sea.

The Australian helicopter was forced to "take evasion to maintain a safe flight."

Nobody was injured but the ADF says it was an "unsafe and unprofessional manoeuvre that posed a risk to our aircraft and its personnel."

The US Justice Department has released more Epstein files, involving uncorroborated sexual assault allegations made by a woman against President Donald Trump.

It's been reviewing whether any records were improperly withheld, after several news platforms reported 2019 interviews with a woman who has allegations against Mr Trump were excluded.

She was interviewed by the FBI four times but only one interview was included in the publicly released files.

Mr Trump has consistently denied any wrongdoing. 

US President Donald Trump says American forces are striking Iranian drone and missile systems "every single hour".

Meanwhile, Gulf states are continuing to be hit by Iranian retaliatory attacks with Qatar's defence ministry saying a drone attack on Al Udeid air base, the biggest US base in the Middle East, has been prevented.

Meanwhile, Thousands of people have fled southern Beirut after Israel's military issued mass evacuation orders for the Lebanese capital.

The I-D-F says it is striking what it describes as Hezbollah infrastructure in the Dahiya neighbourhood, a densely populated commercial and residential area of Beirut.

The Greens say the presence of three Australian personnel on board a US submarine that sunk an Iranian ship off Sri Lanka makes Australia part of the ongoing war.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed the sailors were on the American vessel due to Australia's involvement in the AUKUS pact.

He insists they didn't participate in any offensive action against Iran, but Greens senator David Shoebridge says Australia is now part of the conflict.

Northern Territory Health is flying dozens of patients at Katherine hospital to Darwin as river levels rise in the Top End town.

This morning a flood emergency was declared for the Katherine and Daly River region, with heavy rainfall last night forecast to continue over the weekend.

Charles Darwin University has also evacuated its town and rural campuses, with flooding over the Stuart Highway forcing its closure near Pine Creek. 

Saudi Arabia and Bahrain both say they've intercepted ballistic missiles fired from Iran.

The Saudis say they destroyed three missiles aimed at the Prince Sultan air base, which also hosts American military personnel.

Meanwhile, Authorities in Bahrain say an Iranian missile strike in the capital, Manama, has hit two hotels and a residential building.

The Interior Ministry says it's caused material damage but no casualties have been reported.

Questions are being asked about Australia's involvement in the Middle East conflict, after prime minister Anthony Albanese confirmed three Australians were on board a US submarine that sank an Iranian warship.

87 people were killed in the strike near Sri Lanka earlier this week, but Mr Albanese says the Australian military personnel did not participate in any offensive action.

ADF members have been rotating through U-S submarines as part of the AUKUS agreement.

A Queensland magistrate has dismissed a seatbelt fine handed to a driver whose passenger slipped their belt under their arm mid-trip.

The infringement was captured by an AI-assisted camera installed on a freeway, prompting fresh concerns about the cameras' reliability across the country.

Drivers and lawyers say the technology is producing inaccurate fines and creating a backlog in the courts as more people challenge the infringements.

The Prime Minister's confirmed three Australian military personnel were on board the US submarine that sank an Iranian vessel off the coast of Sri Lanka earlier this week, which is a long way from the conflict zone in the Middle East.

Sri Lankan authorities recovered 87 bodies after the attack.

But Anthony Albanese says none of the personnel "participated in any offensive action" against Iran under "long-standing arrangements" with the United States.

This comes after his ministers spent all morning saying they couldn't comment on the situation, prompting criticism from the Greens that the government wasn't being sufficiently transparent.

The conflict in the Middle East has now spread to more than a dozen countries and will be high on the agenda when the Australian treasurer meets with dozens of economists today.

It's impact on inflation will be a key point of discussion.

The war's severely impacted air travel and Etihad Airways says it'll resume limited commercial flights between Abu Dhabi and key destinations, but while they don't include Australia, south east Asian hubs will reopen.

An investigation into the death of a teenage backpacker on Fraser Island found she perished from drowning due to a dingo attack.

The body of Piper James was found on a beach surrounded by dingoes and most have now been euthanased.

The coronial finding comes decades after the last fatal dingo attack on the island killed a nine-year-old boy. 

The war in the Middle East has now spread to more than a dozen countries and attention is focusing on how to get Australians out of the region.

Flights from Gulf states are starting to return Australians home, but it's a fluid situation given Iranian rockets continue to hit various places impacting what are normally busy airspaces.

Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke says Australian military aircraft sent to the Middle East will be focused on repatriation.

While he insists Australia won't be sending troops to fight in Iran, Opposition Leader Angus Taylor says he would give any request from the US serious consideration.

US President Donald Trump says the American military and Israel are demolishing Iranian targets 'far ahead of schedule'.

Meanwhile the Greens want the Albanese Government to explain if Australian troops were onboard a US submarine that torpedoed a Iranian war ship in Sri Lanka, well away from the conflict zone.

The government won't answer that question, but the Greens argue other countries provide that level of transparency.

The US Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem's been fired following criticism of her handling of Donald Trump's hardline immigration crackdown.

The secretary accused two civilians, shot dead by federal agents in Minnesota, of engaging in acts of domestic terrorism, despite video evidence not backing this up.

Oklahoma Senator Markwayne Mullin is her replacement.

US and Israel strikes are continuing to hit Iran as the war enters its sixth day and concerns are mounting that the conflict is widening.

US president Donald Trump is demanding to be directly involved in selecting a new leader in Iran.

He says the son of assassinated supreme leader Ali Khamanei would be "unacceptable" to him.

Meanwhile, the Israeli military says it's begun striking infrastructure of the militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon's capital, as civilians flee Beirut after evacuation warnings.

More Australians have arrived home from the Middle East on commercial flights, but authorities are warning it's still a fluid situation.

There have been fresh Iran strikes on Gulf states where Australians are stranded at major international airports.

Azerbaijan's also been drawn into the conflict, accusing Iran of carrying out two drone strikes on a village and airport.

Kurdish opposition fighters have told the ABC they are preparing for a ground invasion of Iran.

Economists are also closely watching rises in oil prices to see how it impacts the global economy and inflation is a particular concern especially in Australia.

The Queensland Coroner's Court has delivered a finding into what happened to backpacker Piper James who was found dead surrounded by dingoes on a beach a K'Gari, also known as Fraser Island.

The court ruled the 19-year-old's death was the result of a drowning due to, or as a consequence of, a dingo attack.

For more news at any time you can follow the ABC Top Stories podcast.

More passengers have landed in Australia from the Middle East overnight but thousands remain stranded across the region after days of travel chaos stemming from the war.

There are complaints of seats on planes being empty.

The Australian Government has crisis teams in the region to try and find ways to bring people home.

This comes as Iran unleashes a fresh barrage of missile and drone attacks across the region.

Israeli forces have also entered southern Lebanon and they've issued wide-ranging evacuation orders for southern Beirut, causing panic in the capital.

Israel's targeting Hezbollah militants who are aligned with Iran.

Azerbaijan's president is also vowing to retaliate after a drone hit its airport.

All of this is stoking fears of serious impacts to the global economy which could blow back on Australia.

In other news, US President Donald Trump has fired his Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, after months of controversy over his administration's immigration crackdown.

She accused two civilians shot dead by ICE agents of domestic terrorism despite video evidence not backing up those claims.

Parts of northern Australia are being warned about the potential of dangerous flooding.

A tropical low's hitting far north Queensland and has been dumping hundreds of millimetres of rain in some areas.

While people in the Northern Territory town of Katherine are on high alert as the town's river threatens to reach major flood level. 

The European Union says Iran's trying to drag as many countries into the Middle East conflict as possible, as stranded people desperately try and leave the region.

More Australians are returning home from Dubai with flights touching down in Sydney and Melbourne, after spending days stuck in the city.

But there's been fresh strikes in Abu Dhabi and it appears they were aimed at civilian targets including the airport.

This could further disrupt efforts to safely green light passenger flights out of the region.

The other flash point in the widening war is Lebanon, in particular the capital Beirut.

Israel's telling people across the southern suburbs to evacuate as it targets the Iranian backed militant group Hezbollah.

Israel's controversial far-right finance minister says one suburb in the south of the city, will soon resemble parts of Gaza.

Iran's also vowed to take revenge for a US torpedo attack on an Iranian warship off the coast of Sri Lanka, which killed more than 80 sailors.

North Queensland communities are being hit with heavy rain as a tropical low in the Coral Sea moves closer to the coast.

It's expected to cross the coast between Cairns and Ingham today.

Heavy rain, which may lead to flash flooding, is forecast to drench communities in the region.

Over 200 millimetres of rain has been recorded north of the Daintree in just six hours.

The war in the Middle East is escalating as Australians desperately try and leave the region.They're expressing relief at being back on Australian soil, after another commercial flight arrived from Dubai.

The planeload of passengers is the second to safely touch-down in Sydney after the deepening conflict sparked widespread cancellations.

But there could be further disruptions to flights out of those busy airport hubs in the region.

A fresh wave of Iranian strikes have hit Gulf states.

Some of the drones appear to be targeting Abu Dhabi's international airport, and this could complicate efforts to ensure passenger planes have safe passage out of the region.

A drone strike on an airport in Azerbaijan is also another sign Iran wants to widen the conflict.

The other area that's causing concern is the capital of Lebanon, Beirut.

Israel's targeting the Iranian-backed militant group Hezbollah and is warning people to leave areas of the city which have a reputation for being a stronghold for its fighters.

In other news, US President Donald Trump says he's installing a new Secretary of Homeland Security, to replace Kristi Noem (KRIS-tee NOHM), who's facing intense scrutiny over her handling of an immigration crackdown in Minnesota.

She faced backlash in January when she accused two US citizens shot dead by federal immigration agents in Minneapolis of committing "domestic terrorism."