Stabbing at Sydney church a ‘terrorist act’: Australian police
Australian police are treating a stabbing at a Sydney church as a terrorist attack, New South Wales Police Commissioner Karen Webb said on Tuesday.
Australian states have closed their borders in an effort to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus.
For the first time in history, Western Australia (WA), the country’s largest state, closed its borders, according to the report.
Earlier on Friday, WA Premier Mark McGowan said, “These new harder border closures essentially mean we will be turning Western Australia into its own island, within an island”.
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“Western Australia is in a unique position. Our isolation is now our best defence. We need to use it to the best of our advantage”, he further added.
Meanwhile, the northeastern state of Queensland also tightened border restrictions with its neighbour New South Wales (NSW), denying entry to anyone without a valid reason.
NSW has been the hardest-hit in the country, accounting for close to half of the 5,000 confirmed cases as well as deaths.
Earlier in March, Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton had tested positive for the deadly virus.
Last week, Australia announced a nearly US$100 million boost in funding to tackle domestic violence after support services reported a spike in coronavirus-related family abuse.
With 336 cases of unknown origin, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian said laws restricting public gatherings and limiting people leaving their homes could be in place for as long as six months, and did not rule out extending that period if health experts recommended to do so.
“I echo the Prime Minister (Scott Morrison) – we’re in it for at least six months. Until there is a cure, a vaccine, this crisis is something we need to deal with,” Berejiklian said.
Prime Minister Morrison said the Aus$150 million boost — part of an additional Aus$1.1 billion in health-related spending announced Sunday — would be spent on telephone support services for both domestic violence victims and abusers.
Australian Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton announced on Friday that he has tested positive for the novel coronavirus.
(With inputs from agency)
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