Penny Wong, Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Commonwealth of Australia, has recently urged Australian citizens in Lebanon to leave while they still can. An estimated 15,000 Australians remain in Lebanon after Israel initiated a ground operation in Hezbollah.

In 2022, New Zealand was lauded for passing the world's first generational smoking ban. In a surprising turn of events, New Zealand has backtracked its course on the ban, announcing a disappointing reversal that has drawn criticism from public health officials.

Malcolm Turnbull, the former prime minister of Australia, is leading the charge to curb Rupert Murdoch’s monopoly of influence.

In early December, The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) lifted interest rates for the eighth consecutive month, taking its benchmark to 3.1%.