Tag Archives: oceania

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North Korea fires unidentified projectile toward sea, Seoul says

South Korea’s military said on Saturday it detected North Korea firing at least one projectile toward its eastern sea.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff didn’t immediately say whether the weapon was ballistic or how far it flew.

The launch came as the United States and South Korea conduct their annual springtime joint military exercises involving thousands of troops while the Trump administration also wages an escalating war against Iran.

READ MORE: Leather-clad Kim shows off his 'excellent' small gun arsenal

The North has long described the allies’ drills as invasion rehearsals and often uses them as a pretext to dial up its own military demonstrations or weapons testing.

The launch came days after the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un on Tuesday criticised Washington and Seoul for proceeding with their drills at a perilous moment for global security, and warned that any challenge to the North’s safety would bring “terrible consequences.”

The 11-day Freedom Shield exercise, which runs until March 19, is one of two annual command post exercises conducted by the militaries of the United States and South Korea.

READ MORE: Will the pumps run dry? How the war in Iran is impacting Australia's oil supply

The largely computer-simulated drills are designed to test the allies’ joint operational capabilities, while incorporating evolving war scenarios and security challenges.

Freedom Shield will be accompanied by a field training program called Warrior Shield.

North Korea has repeatedly rejected Washington and Seoul’s calls to resume diplomacy aimed at winding down its nuclear program.

READ MORE: Iran war will end 'when I feel it in my bones', says Trump

Talks derailed in 2019 following the collapse of Kim’s second summit with US President Donald Trump during his first term.

Kim has made Russia the priority of his foreign policy, sending thousands of troops and large amounts of military equipment to support Moscow’s war in Ukraine, possibly in exchange for aid and military technology.

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Missile strikes helipad inside US Embassy compound in Baghdad

A missile struck a helipad inside the US Embassy in Baghdad, two security officials said.

The projectile landed within the embassy's boundaries after the Green Zone, the heavily fortified district in central Baghdad that houses Iraqi government institutions and foreign embassies, added the security officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity as they are not authorised to speak with the press.

Video obtained by The Associated Press showed smoke billowing from inside the compound.

READ MORE: Will the pumps run dry? How the war in Iran is impacting Australia's oil supply

A missile struck a helipad inside the US Embassy in Baghdad, two security officials said.

There was no immediate comment from the US Embassy in Baghdad.

On Friday, the embassy renewed its Level 4 security alert for Iraq, warning that Iran and Iran-aligned militia groups have previously carried out attacks against US citizens, interests and infrastructure, and "may continue to target them."

The sprawling embassy complex, one of the largest US diplomatic facilities in the world, has been repeatedly targeted by rockets and drones in the past by Iran-aligned militias.

These groups have recently stepped up attacks on bases hosting US and coalition troops.

A drone strike in northern Iraq on Thursday killed a French soldier and wounded several others stationed there as part of an international coalition.

READ MORE: Iran war will end 'when I feel it in my bones', says Trump

The US Embassy in Baghdad has been bombed.

US President Donald Trump has said the war with Iran will end "when I feel it in my bones".

Trump was asked on The Brian Kilmeade Show about the timeline of the war, which he previously described as a "brief excursion".

"When it's over –– and I don't think it's going to be long –– when it's over, this is going to bounce back so fast," the president said.

The US has attacked a piece of vital infrastructure in Iran that has so far been untouched by the war.

Donald Trump announced this morning that he had "executed one of the most powerful bombing raids in the history of the Middle East" on Kharg Island.

In a Truth Social post, the US president said he had destroyed every military target on what he described as "Iran's crown jewel".

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Cops warn of popular craze after it sent a TAFE campus into lockdown

Police have warned that a popular game can be treated like a real threat after a TAFE campus was put into lockdown after a girl was spotted walking around with a water pistol.

The message comes as emergency services were called to Campbelltown TAFE on Tuesday when a 16-year-old girl walked through the campus with a water pistol mistaken for a gun.

What many feared was a shooter on the loose turned out to be a teenager playing a viral TikTok game known as "Senior Assassin".

READ MORE: Photo of ex-British ambassador alongside Jeffrey Epstein and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor surfaces

Cambelltown TAFE descended into lockdown after it was reported there was a shooter on campus.

Police addressed the concern of the game in a social media post, saying that it can be treated as a "real threat".

"From a distance, these items can look very real.

READ MORE: Will the pumps run dry? How the war in Iran is impacting Australia's oil supply

"If someone reports a firearm to police, then we treat it as a genuine threat, and we respond accordingly," a NSW police officer said in the post.

"In that moment, we don't know it's just a game.

"A bit of fun can very quickly become a very serious situation."

Senior Assassin gained popularity in the 2010s thanks to it featuring on shows like Gossip Girl and iCarly.

But it has enjoyed a resurgence in recent years.

The rules of the game vary from place to place, but it essentially is based on a player squirting their "target" with a water pistol when they don't expect it.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DV0P7igkQ0I/?igsh=MWc2dWF0d2NoaXFldg%3D%3D

READ MORE: Trump weighs in on rumours Iran has put a dead man in charge

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Trump announces ‘one of the most powerful bombing raids in history’

The US has attacked a piece of vital infrastructure in Iran that has so far been untouched by the war.

Donald Trump announced this morning that he had "executed one of the most powerful bombing raids in the history of the Middle East" on Kharg Island.

In a Truth Social post, the US president said he had destroyed every military target on what he described as "Iran's crown jewel".

READ MORE: Trump says 'watch what happens to these deranged scumbags today'

Donald Trump announced his military had attacked Kharg Island.

"For reasons of decency, I have chosen NOT to wipe out the Oil Infrastructure on the Island," he said.

"However, should Iran, or anyone else, do anything to interfere with the Free and Safe Passage of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz, I will immediately reconsider this decision."

There is no word on casualties from the strike on the tiny island, which has a population of around 8000.

Because access to the island is restricted, it has a nickname locally as Forbidden Island.

Because Iran's coastline is too shallow for massive tankers, 90 per cent of Iran's oil is exported via Kharg Island.

READ MORE: Son of ousted king positions himself to take over in Iran

Kharg Island is the most valuable piece of economic infrastructure to Iran.

Oil is transported from the mainland to the island for supertankers to take out of the country. The terminal is able to load ten supertankers at once.

A military strike on oil infrastructure there would be devastating to the regime's economy.

Trump also bragged of US military capabilities in his Truth Social post.

"Iran has NO ability to defend anything that we want to attack — There is nothing they can do about it! 

"Iran will NEVER have a nuclear weapon, nor will it have the ability to threaten the United States of America, the Middle East or, for that matter, the World!"

He urged Iran's military to lay down their arms.

Earlier today it was reported that thousands of ground troops are being deployed by the US military to the Middle East.

READ MORE: The four-letter acronym that could pull Trump out of Iran

The Wall Street Journal reports the Pentagon has approved moving an additional 5000 Marines and sailors into the region.

The request for more troops was made by US Central Command and approved by Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth.

The troops of the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit are attached to the USS Tripoli, an amphibious assault ship usually based in Japan.

Neither the Pentagon or the White House have confirmed whether the transfer of the ship to the region is coming ahead of a ground invasion of Iran.

But in order for the US to have substantial numbers of troops on the ground from an amphibious invasion, they would need a vessel like this.

The 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit specialises in amphibious invasions.

Already there are 50,000 US troops in the region, but Donald Trump has demurred on whether he will order a ground invasion of Iran.

READ MORE: US deploys thousands more ground troops to the Middle East

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