A hole in the ozone layer over antarctica, thats fuelled by smoke from Wildfire Events in australia, is exposing wildlife to protentially damaging levels of uv light. Scientists from the University Of Wollongong say animals and plants are having to put more energy into avoiding the rays. Heres our science correspondent victoria gill. The ozone layer that protects us from the suns most harmful rays is healing gradually. But in antarctica, in cold high atmospheric clouds, a hole in that layer still appears every year. That Ozone Thinning or loss used to peak in september or october, when animals and plants are tucked under winter snow and marine animals are protected by sea ice. But its now lingering until december, well into the antarctic summer, when wildlife is much more vulnerable. Researchers say thats been driven in part by smoke from the australian wildfires in 2019 and 2020, which were fuelled by climate change. The researchers found evidence that antarctic plants might have to put more energy into producing their own protective sunscreen compounds. And krill, the marine crustaceans that are the foundation of The Food Chain in antarctica, move deeper into the ocean to avoid ultraviolet rays. While penguins and seals are covered by protective feathers and fur, Scientists Say exposure to harmful rays could damage their eyesight. The researchers say we can no longer take the recovery of the ozone layer for granted. Its more evidence, they point out, that Carbon Emissions have to be reduced quickly so that more bushfires dont put extra pressure on a vital shield in our atmosphere. Victoria gill, bbc news. We were joined by one of the authors of this research, distinguished Professor Sharon robinson from the University Of Wollongong. As pa rt of as part of our work on the United Nations environment programme, we have to look at how the uv and Ozone Depletion or change across the globe. A paper came out in the last few years which showed the uv index, which is the number we got on our phones which tells us whether we need to wear sunscreen, had gone up in antarctica from six, which is moderate, to m, which is extreme. 14 moderate, to m, which is extreme. 1a is what we have in summer in sydney. So that huge difference, which had occurred because of Ozone Depletion, made us think about also, what does that mean for the animals and plants that live in antarctica . And in the last four years, even though ozone is recovering, weve seen that the ozone hole has started in september and extended through to december. That was particularly concerning for me, because as a biologist, i know thats when most of the biology turns up in antarctica, to breed, pups are born, Penguin Chicks hatching and all the Plants And Animals come out from under the snow, so everything is happening. So uv at that time of year could be really concern for all those and plants. find year could be really concern for all those and plants. Those and plants. And ust talk us throu~h those and plants. And ust talk us through what those and plants. And ust talk us through what has those and plants. And just talk us through what has caused those and plants. And just talk us through what has caused this those and plants. And just talk us through what has caused this i. Those and plants. And just talk us i through what has caused this i think it is specifically the wildfires weve seen in australia. 50. It is specifically the wildfires weve seen in australia. So, any chemicals weve seen in australia. So, any chemicals we weve seen in australia. So, any chemicals we inject weve seen in australia. So, any chemicals we inject into weve seen in australia. So, any chemicals we inject into the chemicals we inject into The Stratosphere, many chemicals could destroy ozone. The 2019 20 bushfires were particularly intense so we know that Bushfire Smoke cut up into The Stratosphere as a result of that, that then gets distributed across the globe and it ended up affecting the globe and it ended up affecting the ozone hole for the following year, so that next summer, the ozone hole was particularly large and extended into december that year. Then we had two large volcanic eruptions, and again, volcanoes spew soffits into The Stratosphere or in the case of the big hunger tonga volcano, there produce a lot of water vapour, which out into The Stratosphere and because of a such a big explosion, it caused more Ozone Depletion. So even with the montreal protocol reducing cfcs most of those chemicals that we have been producing being taken out of The Stratosphere, there is still this thread to the ozone layer because of new chemicals being injected into The Stratosphere. New chemicals being inected into The Stratosphere. New chemicals being inected into The Stratosphere. Professor Sharon Robinson from The Stratosphere. Professor Sharon Robinson from the The Stratosphere. Professor Sharon Robinson from the university The Stratosphere. Professor Sharon Robinson from the university of. Robinson from the University Of Wollongong. Here in the uk, the governments being urged to take urgent action to stop unpaid carers unwittingly racking up thousands of pounds worth of debt. Carers are entitled to nearly £82 per week in benefits but only if they earn less than £151 in take home pay from otherjobs. Tens of thousands of carers owe money because of benefit overpayments. 0ur reporter Dan Whitworth has the details. Good girl, thank you. Unpaid carers who look after a loved one do an incrediblejob often 2a hours a day, seven days a week, with very few breaks their lives dedicated to caring for someone else. Of the nearly six million carers across the uk, just under a million receive carer� s allowance thats worth about £80 a week. 175,000 of them also have a job, but theres an earnings limit of £151 take home pay a week. Go above that limit even byjust a few pence and you lose the entire allowance. Thats what happened to karina, who cares for her daughter, amber, who has complex needs and requires around the clock care. Karina unknowingly earned slightly above the limit at her part time supermarketjob, due to overtime, but wasnt told by The Department For Work And Pensions for three and a half years, so is now in the middle of slowly paying back £11,000. The system has to be a lot simpler. The forms need to be easier to fill in so you dont make these mistakes. You have to be. They need to stop the cliff edge so that if you earn over 50p too much, then maybe they take that away, not take all of it. Because theyre pushing people into poverty. Labour mp stephen timms, who chairs parliaments work and pensions committee, is urging the government to act quicker to warn those who have exceeded the earnings limit. The problem is most of those notifications seem to be completely ignored, so people carrying on carry on receiving the benefit, even though they arent entitled to it, and even though the department has been notified about that. We end up with these enormous accidental overpayments, which should never have been allowed. The dwp says overpayments account for 2. 1 of its £3. 3 billion annual spend on carer� s allowance. That works out at around £2,000 worth of debt for each of the 311,000 carers with overpayments in the last year. What we would like to see is a fundamental review of ca rer� s allowance and all benefits around it, because it is a very complicated system, and if you take one little bit of it, it will impact on all the others, so it needs a fundamental review. In the short term, we need the overpayments to be written off by this government in order to stop penalising the very lowest paid unpaid carers, who are looking after our most vulnerable in society. In a statement, the dwp said. With growing political and public pressure on this issue, campaigners will be hoping it stays that way in the weeks and months to come. Dan whitworth, bbc news. Elon musk� s Social Media Platform X has defended Publishing Posts showing a bishop in australia being stabbed during a sermon. The app, formerly known as twitter, rejected a regulators order to take down the content due to it being violent and offensive. In a post on friday, xs Global Government Affairs account said. It also said the content can be reasonably considered as part of Public Discussion or debate, under australian law. The order to take down the footage has sparked heated public exchanges between mr musk and australian officials. They claim that police have fears of the footage being used to encourage people to join terrorist groups. Dan svantesson is a professor specialising in internet law he explained how big a story this is in australia. This is dominating the news during the week, and more heated debates and more people exercising their free speech on this matter, the temperature has really risen. Ranging from elon musk being jailed two politicians being the enemy and threatening people and so on. Such comments have been made. 50 threatening people and so on. Such comments have been made. So what is the lehal comments have been made. So what is the legal position comments have been made. So what is the legal position on comments have been made. So what is the legal position on this the legal position on this particular issue . The legal position on this particular issue . The legal position on this articular issue . ~ ,. , particular issue . Well, the Starting Hoint here particular issue . Well, the Starting Point here i particular issue . Well, the Starting Point here i think particular issue . Well, the Starting Point here i think is particular issue . Well, the Starting Point here i think is that particular issue . Well, the Starting Point here i think is that every point here i think is that every responsible and mature platform should be deleting this sort of content voluntarily. 0ther content voluntarily. Other platforms, you know, the big ones we are used to have already done so, but x for some rather mysterious reason, decided to fight a sort of Free Speech Fight on this particular issue. The problem i think is that there is no realFree Speech Issue. The problem i think is that there is no real Free Speech Value in the content in question. So to frame it as a Free Speech Issue has been a bit misguided. The real issue, i think, been a bit misguided. The real issue, ithink, is been a bit misguided. The real issue, i think, is the impact that global take down orders can have on the internet as a whole. 50 global takedown orders can have on the internet as a whole. The internet as a whole. So what are our the internet as a whole. So what are your personal the internet as a whole. So what are your personal thoughts . The internet as a whole. So what are your personal thoughts . Is the internet as a whole. So what are your personal thoughts . Is a the internet as a whole. So what are your personal thoughts . Is a case i the internet as a whole. So what are your personal thoughts . Is a case of free speech . I your personal thoughts . Is a case of free speech . Free speech . I dont think there is an free free speech . I dont think there is any Free Speech Free speech . I dont think there is any Free Speech Value free speech . I dont think there is any Free Speech Value in free speech . I dont think there is any Free Speech Value in the any Free Speech Value in the content. X should have removed it from the start. The unfortunate situation in now is that the safety commissioner has had to step in and its going to court and so on. And then there are things that my view have been in the wrong direction too, in that the court order is global removal. X had the ability to make its content inaccessible to australians about the safety commissioner did not see that a sufficient and requested global take down. You can imagine how quickly that escalates, if every country can ask every platform to remove anything that is unlawful in a given country. Hamas has insisted that it wont release any more israeli hostages without an end to the war in gaza, after the Group Released a video of one israeli american captive, Hersh Goldberg polin. His parents have urged both sides to seize the moment and get a deal done. 0ur middle east correspondent Lucy Williamson has been speaking to one former hostage, Moran Stella Yanai, about the conditions she was held in, and fears for those who remain. Through the night, we had hunches and we felt something is going on. Just after dawn on the 7th of october, Moran Stella Yanai heard the first sounds of hamas gunmen approaching the nova festival site. Half of the people of 232 road was already murdered and people in the tent area was already murdering and we didnt know. As the gunmen stormed the site, she ran into nearby fields. Twice she says she was caught by groups of hamas followers and talked her way out by pretending to be arab. The third time, she wasnt so lucky. I heard cuckoo and we raised our head up and the terrorists were standing on top of the mountain, smiling, happy. We found them. She was put in a car with nine gunmen and driven into gaza. Its like a bull being entered to an arena. Everybody� s happy. The civilians, the children, the women, the men. And then the car door opened. And then i felt somebody trying to pull my leg. And then i felt a pipe in my knee. All we can think of at that point is please let it end fast, like one hit to the head and i will not feel anything. Moran was held captive for sa days, moved between seven different locations, Quickly Learning Strategies to survive. What happened in the first house. Stay there. Doesnt come with you to the second house. It will not come with you to the third house. You need really to protect your story and come to the new house. My friends what are you talking about . Im fine, the terrorists, the hamas, everybody. Why . Because. If something will happen to a girl, in the arab culture, they will probably kill the terrorist and the girl, too. You mean something sexual . Yeah. What happened in this house left in this house. So its not only sexual, its also violent. What did happen . For me, it was more violence. Its like when you move from house to house, you need to be examined to see if youre not hiding something on you. Its a really necessary test, as they explained it to you. I always try to explain to people that rape is a really big word. Its not only the act. Even when a guy stands in the front of your door, and you sit down and hes staring at you for ten minutes straight. Its power. Five, six times a day, every day for sa days. Trust me. Thats rape. Moran was released in a Ceasefire Deal last november in exchange for palestinian prisoners held in israeli jails. Her hamas captors filming the handover. I heard that people were saying, but they were happy, looking happy when they came out, you know. Nobody heard the whisper under the nose that im saying to the boy next to me, its like, hold on five more minutes. Do not start to cry now. Stay smiling. 0k . Do not cry now. Like, the minute we cross the border to egypt, we waited for that minute that we can scream and cry, because we couldnt do it. We couldnt do it. We were hiding on the first day. We couldnt do it when they were dragging us into gaza. And we couldnt do it when we sat down in the houses. 0bviously, thats the first thing i promise to myself, that the minute will step in my country, i will scream the loudest i can. Because nobody will take my voice any more. Staying in the us pro palestinian protests are continuing at major universities as several have called police in leading to hundreds of arrests. At Columbia University in new york the epicenter of the demonstrations a Student Leader has been barred from the campus over comments he previously made. At the same time, columbias senate, which makes decisions on behalf of students and teachers, has voted to investigate how the universitys leadership handled the protests. Nomia iqbal reports from new york. Another day and another encampment has cropped up in the us. In this part of new york, students camped outside the city college. We should make sure that the Administration Knows that we will not back down. Sarah is palestinian american. Students here and faculty here are not scared of anything. Theyre willing to risk their ca