South Korea has scrambled dozens of military aircraft, including advanced F35 fighter jets, after spotting 180 North Korean warplanes flying in North Korean territory in what appeared to be a defiant show of strength.

North Korea’s aerial exercises on Friday came after the North test-fired around 30 ballistic missiles during the two previous days, including an intercontinental ballistic missile on Thursday that triggered evacuation warnings in Japan, in an angry response to US-South Korea joint air force drills involving hundreds of their warplanes.

South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the North Korean warplanes were detected in various areas inland and along the country’s eastern and western coasts, but they did not come particularly close to the inter-Korean border.

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None of those planes breached the South Korean military’s virtual “tactical action” line, which is designated 20 to 50 kilometres north of the Koreas’ land and sea boundaries for monitoring purposes to give the South enough time to respond to provocations or attacks.

The South still scrambled 80 of its own warplanes, including an unspecified number of F35 fighters, but there weren’t any immediate reports of clashes.

US and South Korean forces were also separately conducting their “Vigilant Storm” combined aerial exercise, which involved some 240 warplanes, including F35s.

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The training had been scheduled through Friday, but the allies extended it to Saturday in response to North Korea’s intensified testing activity this week.

The extension of the drills was announced on Thursday after the North test-fired an ICBM, which triggered evacuation alerts in northern Japan, and followed the event with two short-range ballistic missile launches into the sea.

A senior North Korean military official issued a statement threatening retaliation over the extension of the drills, and the North about an hour later fired three additional missiles into the sea.

On Wednesday, North Korea fired more than 20 missiles, the most it has launched in a single day.

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After already setting an annual record with dozens of ballistic missile launches in 2022, North Korea has further dialled up its testing activity since late September, including what it described as simulated nuclear attacks on South Korean and US targets.

It has said its tests are meant as a warning against the United States’ military drills with allies South Korea and Japan which it portrays as rehearsals for a potential invasion.

Experts say North Korea is escalating brinkmanship aimed at forcing the United States to accept it as a nuclear power and at negotiating economic and security concessions from a position of strength.

Moments before his green-eyed ex-partner chopped him to death with an axe, a man changed the contact name of his new lover to "Mark" on his phone.

The 34-year-old Sydney woman, who cannot be named as it would identify her children, has been sentenced to 27 years in prison for murdering her ex in a jealous quest for revenge.

"It is clear the deceased's senseless death has had a severe impact on those who love him," Supreme Court Justice Natalie Adams said at the woman's sentencing on Friday.

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"No sentence could possibly ease the grief of those that were close to him."

She pleaded guilty to murdering her long-term partner as he was lying down looking at his iPad in a Sydney townhouse in September 2020.

The woman earlier made Google searches about murder, including "Killing someone with axe what part of body to go for".

At the time she was subject to an AVO after her partner told police she stabbed him with a meat cleaver, while he had three convictions involving violence against her.

The pair's on and off relationship was "volatile" and "marred with domestic violence," the judge found.

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He had been convicted of violent offences against her in 2010, 2011 and in March 2019.

According to the agreed facts of the case, he was with a different woman when his ex-partner rang and messaged him.

He told the woman it was his ex-partner, describing her as dangerous being both violent and abusive.

"She hit me with a big machete, she is f—ing wild," he said.

She sent 19 text messages to the effect of suggesting he was having sex with someone and tried to call him from around 5.30am to 1pm.

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Before the murder, she did more searches including "What is the fastest part of body to kill someone with the axe".

In the early evening, she called a cab to take her to Bunnings, asked the driver to wait, went inside and bought a Trojan brand half axe.

She later sent texts including: "You guys might hear something on the news I might be in prison I can't deal with it any more".

She went to the police station, confessing to the murder but told a string of lies including that her partner had produced a knife.

He was found to have died from multiple chop wounds to his head.

The woman appeared via video link in court, showing little emotion during her sentencing.

She will be eligible for parole in November, 2039.

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A 22-year-old Newcastle man who raped a woman at knifepoint in her home will spend at least 10 years behind bars for what a judge called a "callous, cruel and violent" crime.

On Friday afternoon, Acting Judge Helen Latham ordered that Jonah Somasundaram remain behind bars for at most 14 years for a robbery and sexual assault in a North Lambton residence on July 29, 2021.

"This was a sustained, terrifying ordeal inflicted on the victim by a complete stranger … It was callous, cruel and violent," the judge said in Newcastle District Court.

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"This offender was fully aware of the serious nature of the assault … The offender persisted … in the face of the victim's protest and struggle."

Earlier on Friday, Somasundaram told the court he did not know why he committed the sexual assault.

"I honestly don't know what was going through my mind at the time," he said via an online link from prison.

"I can't understand why I done it. It's not something I'd normally do."

He pleaded guilty to one count of armed robbery and two counts of aggravated sexual assault on June 22 this year.

In delivering her sentence, Latham also took into account two alternative counts of aggravated sexual assault.

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Somasundaram said he had an argument with his father and had polished off two six-packs of beer before he arrived at the 20-year-old victim's home.

He broke in expecting to steal money before stumbling across the victim wearing a hoodie sitting at her desk. He told the court he grabbed a steak knife from the kitchen thinking the woman was actually a man.

After taking the victim's Samsung mobile phone and ordering her to remove all her clothes, he then forced himself upon her, demanding she call him her "bitch" and penetrating her multiple times.

During a struggle, which ensued after the victim got hold of the knife, she suffered from a slash wound across her hand.

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In a brief victim impact statement read to the court, the woman spoke of how the attack had disrupted her life, made it difficult for her to trust and made her terrified of future home invasions.

"The incident has made me more wary of men and suspicious of people I don't know, making it hard for me to make friends," she wrote.

Somasundaram was asked how he felt about these comments from the victim.

"It makes me feel sick and ashamed. I wish it never happened," he said.

Defence counsel Ben Bickford said that while Somasundaram appeared "emotionally blunted" during his evidence, his remorse was real.

"That doesn't mean necessarily that his remorse is contrived. It doesn't mean it's not real," he told the court.

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Crown prosecutors said the attack was prolonged and all about obtaining sexual gratification.

"It would have been a nightmare for (the victim), terrifying, humiliating," the court was told.

In jail since his arrest on July 30, 2022, Somasundaram admitted getting into fights with other inmates and being twice disciplined for brewing prison-made alcohol.

He said he had caught COVID-19 twice while behind bars and impacted by pandemic lockdowns.

Latham took Somasundaram's arduous time in prison into account when imposing her sentence. She also adjusted his jail-time because of his youth and added a 25 per cent discount because of his guilty pleas.

However, she noted that his prospects of rehabilitation were "uncertain" because he had not shown the capacity to realise the impacts of his crime and had failed to acknowledge his issues with alcohol.

He could have a high risk of reoffending if inebriated, the judge said.

Somasundaram told the court he would undergo whatever treatment programs were offered in jail, saying his completion of the Salvation Army's eight-week Positive Lifestyle Program had taught him valuable lessons including how to think before he acted.

If you or someone you know is impacted by sexual assault, domestic or family violence, call 1800RESPECT on 1800 737 732 or visit 1800RESPECT.org.au.

Premier Daniel Andrews is under investigation by Victoria's anti-corruption agency.

Independent Broad‑based Anti‑corruption (IBAC) is investigating more than $3 million in grants awarded to Victoria's Health Workers Union before the 2018 election.

This comes just 10 days before early voting begins for the Victorian election.

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According to a report by The Age, witnesses have been asked whether advisors to Andrews or then-minister Jill Hennessey pressured the Health Department into signing off on the grants, despite objections from officials.

Andrews refused to answer questions about the investigation when questioned by media today. 

"I've got nothing to add," Andrews said.

"The work that IBAC does or doesn't do is a matter for them. You should talk to them."

IBAC has not yet responded to questions about the inquiry.

The premier was at a Caulfield dog park this morning to announce that he will put $20 million towards animal welfare, creating six new dog parks, if he is re-elected on November 26.

"This is about supporting pet shelters, rescue animals, it's all about making sure we do the most humane thing," Andrews said.

The proposed package would upgrade 22 dog parks across the state as well as establish six new ones.

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Meanwhile, the Opposition today promised to put $160 million towards expanding Victoria's bus network over four years if Matthew Guy is elected as premier.

The proposed plan would establish 45 new bus routes across Melbourne's outer suburbs and in regional towns and would review another 20 bus routes.

Guy said the announcement was "responsible and sensible" and could be achieved in his first term as premier.

Coalition Public Transport spokesman Danny O'Brien said the plan would address the "plenty of public transport deserts in Victoria", while existing bus routes would also be assessed to improve frequency and reliability.

The Public Transport Users Association's Daniel Bowen has supported the proposal, saying "public transport is long overdue to see some serious commitments to improve buses around Victoria".

Serial con artist Samantha Azzopardi will spend at least eight months behind bars for lying to police that she was an abused 14-year-old French girl.

Jail time against the 33-year-old compulsive liar's 100th charge was ordered at Waverley Local Court on Friday.

Azzopardi will spend a maximum 17 months behind bars for misleading police by pretending to be a French teenager last August.

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At the time, she was also on a community corrections order for a similar offence. This order has been revoked given Friday's sentence.

Contacting religious charity Jewish House, she said she was called Enslie Cohen and had been a victim of abuse. This caused a five-hour search by multiple agencies around Sydney's eastern suburbs to find her fictitious foster family's home.

While claiming she only spoke French, she refused to talk with a French-speaking police officer.

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A canny case worker recognised elements in this con that were similar to prior stories by Azzopardi.

Even after the arrest, she still continued her lies, signing paperwork handed to her by a custody manager under the name of Emily Ramberger.

With a backdated sentence, she will be eligible for parole on January 15 next year.

Her prior frauds include duping Irish and Canadian police into believing she was a human trafficking victim, acting as a qualified nanny to a Victorian couple, and claiming in a Bendigo mental health clinic she was a pregnant and abused 14-year-old.

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She was released by Victorian authorities in May 2021 for fraud and child stealing, only to spark another false investigation in late 2021 in NSW while posing as a 14-year-old.

Waverley police say she has been charged 100 times in Australia, mainly for fraud and deception-related offences.

"It is apparent that the accused is a compulsive liar and suffers from several mental health issues which no doubt is a catalyst for her offending," a statement of facts says.

A protester has been banned from Parliament House for 12 months by the Australian Federal Police (AFP) after she glued her hand to an exhibition piece in Canberra.

The protester stuck her hand to part of the suffrage exhibition at around 11am on Friday and was escorted out of the building by AFP officers.

Organisers say it's the launch of a new campaign, which demands the government stop giving subsidies to the fossil fuel industry.

READ MORE: Dad and partner charged over baby's 'torture' and death in Queensland

Security and police removed the woman's hand from the painting and the artwork is was cleaned.

Another protestor was also escorted out of the building.

The case of a man and woman each charged with murder over the death of their seven-month-old baby boy has been mentioned in court for the first time.

Reinhardt Bosch, 33, and Noemi Kondacs, 22, appeared separately via video link in Brisbane Magistrates Court on Friday, facing one count each of murder and torture.

Mark Platt from Sun and Co Lawyers represented the co-accused during their brief mentions and said alternative representation is being sought for Kondacs.

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Bosch and Kondacs only spoke when asked if they could hear the judge.

Bosch faces an additional charge of assault occasioning bodily harm.

The Magistrates Court does not have jurisdiction to hear bail applications for murder charges, and their matters were adjourned for December 5.

Queensland Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll said the pair were the baby's parents.

"Getting a brief from my officers, it was just the most horrendous and confronting scene that you could ever face as a police officer," Carroll told ABC radio today.

Ambulance officers called police to a home on Mount Samson Road in Yugar, north of Brisbane, about 6.45am yesterday in relation to the unresponsive boy.

The couple was taken into custody at the scene where the infant was located deceased, police said.

"The investigations uncovered injuries to the child that are enough for us to charge with murder," Detective Inspector David Jackman said on Thursday.

Bosch made the initial call to paramedics, Jackman said.

The couple were not previously known to police, and nor was the address.

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern will front party faithful at the Labour Party’s annual conference in Auckland tonight.Ardern donning her “Labour leader” hat will seek to rouse the Labour Party faithful for the party’s last conference…

One of two men accused of diving to retrieve cocaine from a ship berthed in Dunedin, New Zealand, has denied conspiring to import the class A drug.

Carlos Davide Ferreira-Sampaio, 45, of Portugal, and Matthew Luke Hodder, 31, of Melbourne, Australia, each face a maximum sentence of 14 years' imprisonment.

The pair, who are jointly charged with conspiring to import a class A drug, appeared via audiovisual link before Judge Emma Smith in the Dunedin District Court on Friday.

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They were arrested after allegedly smuggling cocaine into New Zealand, via a vessel berthed at Port Otago.

Ferreria-Sampaio, via his lawyer, entered a plea of not guilty, and elected a trial by jury.

Hodder, who did not have a lawyer in court, indicated he was not in a position to enter a plea.

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The arrests followed an investigation into an international crime syndicate allegedly involved in smuggling drugs into New Zealand.

It is understood the cocaine had been in a compartment welded onto the hull of a vessel.

Hodder was remanded in custody to reappear on November 17, while Ferreria-Sampaio was remanded in custody to reappear on January 20.

This story was reproduced with permission from Stuff.co.nz.

Melbourne is set to take the title of Australia's largest city from Sydney on September 7, 2030, according to data from McCrindle Research.

Melbourne currently has about 100,000 fewer residents than Sydney, but social researcher and demographer Mark McCrindle is confident Melbourne "will take the crown in a few years".

He claimed Melbourne's population is growing faster than Sydney's because the Victorian capital beats its New South Wales counterpart in two ways.

READ MORE: Australian population likely to increase by three million people by 2030

"Firstly, affordability — house prices, as steep as they are in Melbourne, are significantly below Sydney's," McCrindle told radio station 3AW.

"Secondly, livability — for seven of the prior 10 years of this decade, we had Melbourne as the world's most livable city."

McCrindle claimed people are leaving Sydney for Melbourne, while the southern capital is also gaining more residents from overseas migration than its northern neighbour.

But neither regions are the fastest growing in Australia right now.

That title goes to south-east Queensland.

Melbourne has been Australia's largest city before.

"As a result of the Gold Rush and until the 1890's, Melbourne was Australia's largest city," the report read.

"But back then, Melbourne was a side show to Victoria's growth, home to just one in four Victorians."

READ MORE: World expected to reach peak population before 2100