The World Today

Several Coalition MPs are backing Labor's push to expand community refugee sponsorships. Proponents argue that it would allow Australia to shoulder more of the global refugee burden at no cost to the taxpayer and help to boost regional communities. But there's also resistance from some in the Coalition, who say there aren't enough jobs to support a greater refugee intake.

The Immigration Department says Iranians make up the biggest group of asylum seekers in Australia who are yet to apply for refugee protection. Officials have told a Senate estimates hearing that 7,194 people who arrived by boat under the previous Labor government are yet to lodge an application. They've been given until October to do or so face the prospect of deportation.

Some north Queenslanders have expressed frustration that coal mining giant Adani has postponed its final investment decision for its multi-billion-dollar coal mine project. The company says it needs clarity from the State Government over lower or deferred royalties. And some say the matter has become a political embarrassment for the Queensland Premier. But some economists and energy experts point out that Adani's reaction shows its project doesn't stack up.

Australian-born actress and comedian Rebel Wilson has given evidence for the first time in her case against a media publisher. The Hollywood star is suing Bauer media over articles that allegedly insinuated she was a liar and that she embellished her back story to make it in Hollywood.

Many Australian businesses are failing to embrace technologies that'll bring on the so-called 'Fourth Industrial Revolution'. Research from the Australian Industry Group shows businesses not using digital technologies, had less profit and revenue. The business group also thinks not enough attention is being paid to cyber security threats. Some of the ideas changing the way we work are on show at the CeBIT technology expo in Sydney.

Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has welcomed an apparent shift in US policy towards Iran. President Donald Trump has used a common distrust of Iran and its nuclear ambitions to unite the region against Islamist terrorism and Iranian aggression. The US President is on the second leg of his first foreign tour, visiting Israel and the Palestinian city of Bethlehem, before heading to Europe. But his comments have drawn a defiant response from Tehran.

In what human rights groups describe as a new low, two men will be publicly caned in Aceh this morning after being found guilty of having gay sex. The men will receive 85 lashes each. Aceh is the only province in Indonesia where Sharia law can be enforced and where homosexuality is illegal. But in a further sign of the growing conservatism across the country, more than 100 men were arrested at a gay club in Jakarta on the weekend.

Nepal's tourism industry and mountaineers say there's no evidence Mount Everest is becoming more dangerous, despite climbers flocking there in near record numbers. On Sunday, Australian climber Frank Marchetti was among four people who perished, trying to scale the world's highest mountain. His death brings this month's tally to six, but observers say that's normal.

The Tasmanian Government is spending almost $4 million on new specialist staff to administer medicinal cannabis from hospitals. GPs will refer patients to neurologists who will prescribe the drug. But a man who uses medicinal cannabis for pain relief and runs a support group for other users says the medicinal cannabis will be five times as expensive as the drugs available on the black market.

Scientists in Australia have detected a fast radio burst, just four days after switching on a partly completed radio telescope in Western Australia. Once finished, it's hoped that the device will allow scientists to detect one of the bursts every day or two, which may help them to understand why such bursts exist and where they're coming from. They could also help scientists discover more about where matter in the universe is located.