Unaisi Ratubalavu
Then Commander of the Fiji Military Forces, Colonel Ian Thorpe.
Picture: FILE
In 1979, 28 Fiji soldiers serving with the United Nations peacekeeping force in Southern Lebanon were abducted by Palestinian forces there.
Luckily, they were released unharmed. This ordeal was published in detail in The Fiji Times on Wednesday, July 4, 1979, and was adapted from a story in the Australian Associated Press.
The event was later confirmed at a news conference by then Commander of the Fiji Military Forces, Colonel Ian Thorpe.
He said soldiers from B Company were overwhelmed by about 40 armed men of the extreme left-wing branch of the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine ( PFLP).
Labor has accused the Morrison government of using the federal budget as a shameless political fix without a proper job creation plan.
While Treasurer Josh Frydenberg made employment the centrepiece of his third budget on Tuesday, the federal opposition believe he missed an opportunity.
Shadow treasurer Jim Chalmers said the government had delivered another marketing exercise that failed to address key issues. It is a shameless political fix, rather than the genuine reform needed to make Australia s economy stronger, broader and more sustainable, he said.
Shadow treasurer Jim Chalmers said the government had delivered another marketing exercise that failed to address key issues
News by Anthony Keane
Premium Content There s not a lot of losers in this year s Budget, which features extra government spending everywhere you look. The spending spree is best illustrated by the fact that the combined deficit for the next three years - $285 billion - is higher than what was forecast in last October s Budget, despite the much stronger-than-expected economy.
WOMEN: A $345 million package of health measures targets women and girls, focusing on anxiety and depression, cancers and reproductive health. There are also new measures to address domestic violence and workplace harassment, and to encourage female leadership in business.
SINGLE PARENTS: A new Family Home Guarantee Scheme will help single parents with dependent children buy a home with just a 2 per cent deposit, if they are able to service the loan.
Australia s low and middle income earners will get almost $8billion back from the government after a key tax break was extended.
As expected, the 2021/22 federal budget has retained a number of tax relief measures to support Australia s economic recovery.
The Low and Middle Income Tax Offset, accessed after tax returns are filed, will be available for another financial year at a cost of $7.8billion.
Australia s low and middle income earners will get almost $8billion back from the government after a key tax break was extended
The decision is expected to benefit more than 10million people and is worth up to $1,080 for individuals and $2,160 for dual income couples.
Australians split from their families have received the devastating news that the international border will remain closed until at least mid-2022.
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg predicted in Tuesday night s Budget that Australians would be banned from leaving the country for all but essential reasons until the middle of next year.
Officials assume there will then be a gradual return to normal travel after that point, but there are fears that airlines will be slow to come back to Australia, choking supply of flights and making tickets prohibitively expensive.
The further long delay in allowing visitors was also likely to bankrupt tourism-related businesses, among those few that have been able to survive this far.