The United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees says it is halting aid deliveries through the main cargo crossing into the war-ravaged Gaza Strip because of the threat of armed gangs who have looted recent convoys. It blamed the breakdown of law and order in large part on Israeli policies.

Sunday's decision could worsen the humanitarian crisis in Gaza as the cold, rainy winter sets in, with hundreds of thousands of Palestinians living in squalid tent camps and reliant on international food aid. Experts were already warning of famine in the territory's north, which Israeli forces have almost completely isolated since early October.

Philippe Lazzarini, the head of UNRWA, the main aid provider in Gaza, said the route leading to the Kerem Shalom crossing is too dangerous on the Gaza side. Armed men looted nearly 100 trucks travelling on the route in mid-November, and he said gangs stole a smaller shipment on Saturday.

Kerem Shalom is the only crossing between Israel and Gaza that is designed for cargo shipments and has been the main artery for aid deliveries since the Rafah crossing with Egypt was shut down in May. Last month, nearly two-thirds of all aid entering Gaza came through Kerem Shalom, and in previous months it accounted for an even larger amount, according to Israeli figures.

In a post on X, Lazzarini largely blamed Israel for the breakdown of humanitarian operations in Gaza, citing "political decisions to restrict the amounts of aid", lack of safety on aid routes and Israel's targeting of the Hamas-run police force, which had previously provided public security.

There was no immediate comment from Israel on the decision.

Israel says it allows enough aid into Gaza and blames UNRWA and other agencies for failing to deliver it. It accuses UNRWA of having allowed Hamas to infiltrate its ranks — allegations denied by the UN agency — and passed legislation to sever ties with it last month.

Israeli strikes kill at least six people, including children

Israeli strikes in Gaza, meanwhile, killed at least six people overnight, including two young children, ages six and eight, in the tent where their family was sheltering, medical officials said on Sunday.

The strike in the Muwasi area, a sprawling tent camp housing hundreds of thousands of displaced people, also wounded the children's mother and their 8-month-old sister, according to nearby Nasser Hospital. An Associated Press reporter at the hospital saw the bodies.

A separate strike in the southern city of Rafah, on the border with Egypt, killed four men, according to hospital records.

The Israeli military said it was not aware of strikes in either location. Israel says it only targets militants and tries to avoid harming civilians, but its daily strikes across Gaza often kill women and children.

In a separate development, a projectile fired by Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen set off air raid sirens in central Israel. The Israeli military said it intercepted the projectile before it entered Israeli territory. The Houthis said they fired a ballistic missile at the northern Israeli city of Haifa.

Former defence minister accuses Israel of war crimes

A former top Israeli general and defence minister has accused the government of ethnic cleansing in northern Gaza, where Israeli forces have been waging the latest in a series of offensives against Hamas since early October.

The army has sealed off the northern towns of Beit Hanoun and Beit Lahiya, and the Jabaliya refugee camp, and allowed almost no humanitarian aid to enter. Tens of thousands of people have fled, while the United Nations estimates up to 75,000 remain.

Moshe Yaalon, who served as defence minister under Benjamin Netanyahu before quitting in 2016 and becoming a fierce critic of the prime minister, said the current far-right government is determined to "occupy, to annex, to ethnically cleanse".

Pressed by an interviewer with a local news outlet on Saturday, he said: "There is no Beit Lahiya. No Beit Hanoun. (They are) operating now in Jabaliya, and (they) are actually cleaning the territory of Arabs."

Yaalon doubled down on the remarks on Sunday in an interview with Israeli radio, saying "war crimes are being committed here".

Netanyahu's Likud party criticised his earlier remarks, accusing him of making "false statements" that are "a prize for the International Criminal Court and the camp of Israel haters".

The ICC has issued arrest warrants against Netanyahu, another former defence minister, Yoav Gallant, and a Hamas commander, accusing them of crimes against humanity. The International Court of Justice is investigating allegations of genocide against Israel.

Israel rejects the allegations and says both courts are biased against it.

Israel says Gaza ceasefire talks resume 'behind the scenes'

The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing some 1200 people, mostly civilians, and taking around people 250 hostage. Some 100 captives are still being held inside Gaza, around two-thirds of whom are believed to be alive.

Israel's retaliatory offensive has killed at least 44,429 Palestinians, more than half of them women and children, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which does not say how many of the dead were combatants. Israel says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence.

The war has destroyed vast areas of the coastal enclave and displaced 90 per cent of the population of 2.3 million, often multiple times.

Israel reached a ceasefire with Lebanon's Hezbollah militants last week that has largely held, but that agreement, brokered by the United States and France, did not address the ongoing war in Gaza. Iran — which supports Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis and armed groups in Syria and Iraq — has exchanged fire with Israel twice this year.

The United States, Qatar and Egypt have spent much of the past year trying to broker a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of the remaining hostages, but those efforts stalled as Israel rejected Hamas' demand for a complete withdrawal from the territory. The Biden administration has said it will make another push for a deal in its final weeks in office.

"There are negotiations taking place behind the scenes, and it can be done," Israel's mostly ceremonial president, Isaac Herzog, said Sunday.

He spoke after meeting with Yael Alexander, whose son, Israeli-American Edan Alexander, is being held by Hamas and appeared in a recent video released by the militants.

US President-elect Donald Trump has vowed to end the wars in the Middle East, without saying how. He was a staunch defender of Israel and its policies toward the Palestinians during his previous term.

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A driver felt something on her foot and looked down to find the fourth most venomous snake in the world had hidden itself in her car.

The woman discovered a tiger snake while driving on the Monash Freeway in Melbourne yesterday.

She managed to fight off the snake while weaving through traffic before pulling into an emergency lane.

READ MORE: Man, 31, charged with double murder of married Sydney couple

Police said officers were called to the freeway near the Toorak Road exit after reports a barefoot woman had been attempting to flag down cars.

"The woman explained that she had been travelling at 80km/h on the freeway when she felt something on her foot and looked down to find a deadly tiger snake slithering up her leg," police said in a statement.

Police called in Tim Nanninga from Melbourne Snake Control to relocate the snake.

"Normally when snakes are in cars they find a really nice little hidey hole and they can stay in for days and not come out but we were lucky the snake moved along to the back of the car," he told 9News. 

He captured the snake to be safely released into bushland later that afternoon.

"Passing motorists were left in bewilderment as the massive snake was safely removed from the vehicle," police said.

"And so ended one of the more bizarre welfare checks you'll ever hear about."

READ MORE: Man, 31, charged with double murder of married Sydney couple

The woman was assessed by paramedics to ensure she wasn't bitten by the snake and taken to hospital for observation.

"[It's] a miracle how she got off the road and safely parked the car and called Vic Pol," Nanninga said.

Tiger snakes are the fourth most venomous snake in the world. 

Experts say the recent tropical weather Melburnians have been experiencing is drawing the snakes out of the creeks and riverbeds.

Anyone who encounters a snake is advised not to approach it and call a professional. 

"Stay calm, keep your distance," Nanninga said.

"They're not going to chase after you, they're not out there to hurt you."

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An experienced hiker has been rescued after spending five days missing in Western Australia's Helena and Aurora Ranges Conservation Park.

Authorities received a welfare concern for the man, aged in his 70s, after he failed to return home from his hike on November 19.

Several resources were brought in and a significant land and air search began in the ranges the next day.

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Rain lashed over the region, making it all the more harder for officers.

Two days later, officers found the man's car at a camp site and narrowed their search to the surrounding area.

"We found all of his tent and equipment wet and saturated, it looked like he was missing for more than a couple of days," Senior Constable Dan Byrne said.

"There was an urgency there to try and find where he may have gone to."

READ MORE: Man falls off balcony and dies during police negotiation in Queensland

Officers used a drone to help them in their efforts but failed to find him and suspended the search for the night.

Those officers stayed at the site overnight and resumed the search the next morning, when they found the man safe and well just before 5.30am on Friday, November 22. 

They were told he had actually been missing for five days. 

"Coming across him walking out of the bush, well, talking to us was fantastic," Byrne said.

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"We definitely were aware that this might have gone another way and we might have been looking for a body rather than a person so to actually have him still alive after what would now be five days was fantastic.

"There was a hug when he found him and there were high-fives between us."

The hiker was uninjured but was taken to Southern Cross Hospital for assessment.

Police noted he was "dehydrated and tired".

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Among the top 10 are a handful of cities in western Europe, a famous US location and one lucky Australian city.

The current FBI director Christopher Wray would have to resign or be fired, with three years left of his 10-year term.

Rach Mac was awaiting test results at a hospital following a car accident when a doctor asked her: "Have you ever had any trauma to your neck?"

The Perth mum-of-three had suffered a severe concussion and whiplash, but the doctor's question probed deeper than the injuries she sustained that day.

WARNING: This story contains details that some readers may find distressing.

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"I thought her question was pretty odd," she told 9news.com.au.

Mac is a domestic violence survivor who founded the DV charity Broken Crayons Still Colour after enduring years of physical and emotional abuse at the hands of her ex-partner.

"His go-to was to strangle me," she said.

Despite fleeing her attacker, Mac learnt at the hospital that day that she had suffered devastating long-term health impacts from the abuse.

"The doctor told me, 'I need you to make an urgent appointment with your GP, you have numerous lesions all over your thyroid, which would go hand-in-hand with so much trauma to your neck'," she said.

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After undergoing three biopsies, Mac tested positive for anaplastic thyroid cancer – an advanced and aggressive form of the disease. 

The first question she asked her doctor was whether the diagnosis was related to her abuse.

"They said there's always that chance," Mac said.

"I've had so many strangulations from my abuser and it's caused so much internal damage."

Mac said she was told the repeated strangulation had caused her lymph nodes to "work overtime" and as a result "they completely calcified".

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"My neck is my biggest trigger," she said.

"This has been the hardest thing to adjust to."

Since learning of her diagnosis, Mac has been campaigning for further research on the long-term health effects of fatal non-strangulation. 

She also wants to see hospitals conduct thorough neck examinations on patients who present with injuries after DV incidents.

"When I went to hospital and they were putting stitches in my face, I had broken ribs and everything else – I kept saying I can't swallow properly, there's something wrong with my neck," she said.

At least a quarter of Australian women who have experienced coercive control have been subjected to non-fatal strangulation, according to healthcare education provider Healthed.

READ MORE: 'Stop violence before it starts': How a simple question can help change men's attitudes towards women

The effects of non-fatal strangulation can include, neurological symptoms, memory loss and carotid artery dissection.

It can increase the risk of homicide by seven times.

Dr Jason Schreiber, a forensic physician from the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine, told 9news.com.au there was still no established association between strangulation trauma and cancer.

"There is a very vague suspicion that thyroid trauma, via haematoma, may possibly be related to cancer but nothing is really confirmed," Schreiber said.

Schreiber explained the main problem arising from strangulation is the brain's under-supply of oxygen.

"In many cases of non-fatal strangulation, there are no other injuries to the neck identified, both externally on the skin or internally in the neck," he said.

Schreiber said research was still being conducted into whether strangulation may cause other injuries and problems.

"I believe doctors and scientists are interested to find out more," he said.

"However, cancer does not seem to be in the forefront."

Last week, Mac had half of her thyroid removed, along with her lymph nodes, in a mammoth seven-hour operation. 

Her voice is croaky and she struggles to speak, but she's determined to finish the interview.

"Since I went public with my experience other women have come forward with troubles with their necks, their throats," she said.

"And I think there needs to be more research done, that there can be other issues."

Support is available from the National Sexual Assault, Domestic Family Violence Counselling Service at 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732).

Dashcam footage has captured a cyclist riding beside cars and weaving through heavy motorway traffic in South Australia.

The man was seen riding on the North-South motorway near Bolivar in Adelaide's northern suburbs just before 1.30pm yesterday.

The cyclist was recorded in the middle of the motorway, before veering across two lanes of traffic, moments before another car merged into the road.

READ MORE: 'Lovely' husband and wife found dead in their Western Sydney shop

The cyclist can then be seen swerving across four lanes of traffic while cars attempt to pass him.

The road has a 110km/h speed limit leaving more than a dozen cars stuck behind the idling rider at one point.

There were some cars who tried to create a buffer for the cyclist by trying to drive in front of him.

"(It was) very dangerous, not for him, but for other people too," witness Tarlochan Singh told 9News.

Police were called to the scene and a 57-year-old man from St Kilda was fined for riding contrary to road signs, moving into the path of a driver, and riding without a warning device.

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Laos police have reportedly arrested eight people in relation to a suspected mass methanol poisoning that killed two Melbourne teenagers, as it's confirmed a third Australian has fallen ill.

The head of security forces of Vang Vieng district Phut Buathong Boriban reportedly told local media eight staff members, including management, from NANA Backpackers Hostel, where all of the six victims are understood to have stayed, have been detained amid investigations.

The eight men from Vang Vieng are aged between 23 and 47 years old, according to Laos media outlet Laophattana News.

READ MORE: More victims of suspected methanol poisoning in Laos named

Melbourne teens Holly Bowles and Bianca Jones, both aged 19, died last week after consuming a suspected methanol-tainted drink in Laos during a backpacking trip.

Today it was revealed a third Australian had fallen victim to what is believed to have been a mass-poisoning event.

It's understood the Department of Foreign Affairs is supporting a dual national who is in a stable condition.

It was also working with families, authorities and third parties to repatriate the bodies of best friends Jones and Bowles back to Australia from Thailand, where they died in separate hospitals.

US man James Louis Hutson, 57, British lawyer Simone White, 28, and Danes Anne-Sofie Orkild Coyman, 20, and Frela Vennervald Sorensen, 21 have been named as the other victims of the suspected poisoning.

It's understood some guests at NANA Backpackers Hostel had been given free shots at the hostel bar on November 11, before a number of backpackers, including Bowles and Jones, continued onto other bars.

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Bowles and Jones then stayed in their hostel room for the whole day on November 12 and failed to check out as scheduled on November 13.

They were rushed to hospital after raising the alarm about their conditions with hostel staff.

It is believed all six victims consumed drinks tainted with methanol, which is not intended for consumption and is frequently used as fuel and in products such as antifreeze.

Consuming just 25 to 90 millilitres of methanol can be fatal according to the Methanol Institute. 

A teenage girl has been sentenced to 100 hours of community service despite pleading guilty to causing a crash that killed an unborn baby and seriously injured her mother.

The sentencing was the first test of Sophie's Law in Queensland, which recognises the loss of an unborn baby as an aggravating factor to be considered during sentencing

Haylee 's is still suffering the consequences of the horrific crash in Ipswich six months ago.

READ MORE: Eight detained amid Laos mass-poisoning probe

Loccisano was left in a coma and lost her unborn baby, Celest, at 25 weeks.

A 17-year-old girl, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, was behind the wheel of a Toyota RAV4 that hit Loccisano's car.

The court heard she was changing music with her passenger and looked away before causing the crash.

The 17-year-old was sentenced to 100 hours of community service, disqualified from driving for six months and had no conviction recorded.

"I just don't have much to say at this time, I don't have much to comment on," Loccisano said outside court.

"I just wish she had more justice.

READ MORE: High school teacher charged with child offences

"It just wasn't enough, it wasn't enough for her life to be taken."

Loccisano's mother, Teresa, was driving their Toyota Hilux when it was hit.

"She killed my granddaughter and nearly killed my daughter and she's just walked away," she told 9News.

"Every day, I think about how I should have had my little granddaughter there. She should be giggling, she should be laughing."

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The 17-year-old's lawyer, James Godbolt, said the teenager was "very sorry".

"She's obviously very sorry, and it's a terrible tragedy, and nothing can make it right," he said.

Sophie's Law passed parliament last year, formalising a generally held principal that the destruction of an unborn baby is an aggravating factor to be considered during sentencing.

This was its first official test.

Sarah Milosevic has long campaigned for this change, since losing her own unborn baby, Sophie, in a crash 10 years ago.

"The reality is that she killed Celeste, and she damaged Hayley and her family, and that will live with them forever because it still lives with us forever," Milosevic said.

Today, Loccisano and her mother were afforded the chance to read out their victim impact statements about the pain of never meeting the little one they had been expecting for so long.

A 90-year-old man has been left with a broken back after an incident in a North Queensland shopping centre car park.

Kevin Whelan was pulled out of his car from behind and kicked to the ground at the Townsville centre last Saturday evening.

"If I had a bloody gun I'd shoot the bastard," Whelan said.

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He was left with a broken back in two places.

"It bloody hurt hey. Christ it hurt," he told 9News.

"I couldn't get up honestly, I could not get up."

Police are speaking with a 64-year-old man in relation to the attack.

No charges have been laid.

"It's really wrong, that you've got to worry whether to go to your car if you're going to get attacked," Whelan's daughter Joanne Hutana said.

READ MORE: Eight detained amid Laos mass-poisoning probe

Whelan has lived Queensland's north for 30 years, but says he barely recognises the city he once loved so much.

"I wouldn't even walk out to the mailbox at night now. No way mate," he said.