The World Today

Victorians are being urged to get the flu jab, with an 81 per cent spike in the number of cases this year, compared to the same time last year. Experts say an earlier start to this year's season, and a higher than usual number of summer flu cases are behind the spike. More than one million people in Victoria have been vaccinated against flu this season.

Land clearing battles across the country are becoming increasingly bitter, with a death in NSW and huge fines in Queensland. Now farmers in Victoria are being threatened with legal action, after work to re-build old fences on their properties. And a stand-off is emerging, with one fight looking destined for the courts.

The Queensland Government says the state is on track to become carbon neutral by 2050. It comes after UNESCO called for 'strong climate action' to protect reefs around the world. But there are questions over how Queensland can achieve a zero emissions target, when the state is also a coal-driven economy.

Sitting three kilometres under the surface in the Northern Territory is a time capsule containing 118 trillion cubic feet of gas. The layered rock formations, known as the Velkerri Shale, is an organic rich environment with deposits from 14 million years ago. It's now a treasure trove for researchers examining the chemistry of the ancient oceans and atmosphere, and the nature of life from that time.

In the US, Republicans and Democrats have derided President Donald Trump's proposal for the US and Russia to join forces against cyber hacking. He raised the idea in his first meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin who denied his government had interfered in the US election. But that coincides with new claims that President Trump's own son met a Russian lawyer a year ago who allegedly offered information that could damage Hillary Clinton's election campaign.

As the Iraqi Prime Minister visits Mosul to celebrate a major strategic victory in the fight against Islamic State, analysts warn Iraq's deadly crisis is far from over. Overnight Iraqis declared they had taken back their country's second biggest city, which fell to the Islamic State three years ago and was once its stronghold. But ISIS has recovered from major strategic defeats in the past, and analysts stress the next big test of the authority of Mr Abadi's government will be whether or not it can prevent violent retribution against Islamic State fighters and smooth over sectarian tensions.

The Iraqi Prime Minister, Haider al-Abadi, has congratulated Iraqi forces for their victory over the Islamic State group in the northern city of Mosul, but aid groups are warning of major challenges ahead for the population. The World Today speaks to Andy Needham, a spokesman for the UNHCR in Iraq.

The former executive assistant and ex-lover of Seven West boss Tim Worner, Amber Harrison, is facing massive legal costs from Seven, amid claims that she continued to brief journalists in breach of a confidentiality agreement, despite her decision to walk away from her legal battle with the media giant. The ABC's senior business correspondent Peter Ryan has the latest from the Supreme Court in Sydney.

More students have come forward to express concerns about a culture of bullying and sexism within elite Australian university colleges. The issue was raised again last night when the parents of Stuart Kelly spoke out about their son's suicide just months after spending a night at Sydney University's St Paul's College. AM can now reveal more details about college life from one former resident of nearby St John's College who described feeling like a second class citizen just because she was a woman.

A snapshot of cases submitted to an Islamophobia register shows women with head coverings are most at risk of becoming the targets of public insults and threats, and even physical assaults. Advocates fear far more incidents go unreported.