From jewel coloured tree dwellers, to sneaky sea snakes, these are the most venomous, and terrifying, reptiles in the world.

Victorian police have arrested five teens in connection to a series of alleged homophobic assaults in parklands.

Officers allege the teens "catfished" the men, using a dating app to lure them to parklands in Ashwood, in Melbourne's east.

The victims were allegedly assaulted and subjected to homophobic slurs.

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In a statement, police detailed three alleged incidents on Harlequin Avenue.

The most recent was on January 7, while the earliest was on December 16 last year, they said.

In the most serious alleged attack a 42-year-old victim sustained "facial injuries".

The teens, the youngest of whom were 14, were arrested yesterday morning after a search warrant was issued for three separate properties in Ashwood.

"The boys were all released yesterday afternoon and are expected to be charged on summons with assault and robbery offences," police said.

"A 19-year-old Ashwood man was also arrested on 27 January, 2022 as part of the ongoing investigation."

He will appear at Ringwood Magistrates' Court for attempted robbery and recklessly cause injury.

Britain's Prince Andrew has agreed to give a statement under oath on March 10 in the United Kingdom as part of the civil case against him, a source close to the Duke of York told CNN on Saturday.

Virginia Giuffre, who alleges she was trafficked by disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, is suing the Prince Andrew for damages claiming she was sexually abused by him at 17.

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Prince Andrews has denied all allegations.

Ms Giuffre "still hasn't committed to a date or location for her deposition," the source added.

At the end of January, Ms Giuffre's lawyer David Boies said in a statement that her legal team were looking "forward to confronting Prince Andrew with his denials and attempts to blame Ms Giuffre for her own abuse at his deposition and at trial."

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By John Gerritsen of RNZ The Tertiary Education Union is worried small polytechnics will not survive a major overhaul of tertiary education funding.From the start of next year the Government is nearly doubling its funding for…

A prisoner who was released for a tangi is on the run in Northland after crashing into a fence on State Highway 1 yesterday near Whangārei. The man, an inmate at the Northland Region Corrections Facility, crashed a vehicle…

Military flights have dropped off emergency supplies to outback areas in South Australia that have become isolated after severe flood damage.

RAAF and ADF planes have been dropping emergency supplies to the stranded towns in the past week, and South Australian Premier Steven Marshall today confirmed 13 more flights dropped off 36 and a half tonnes of vital items in Coober Pedy.

In some good news for the area, floodwaters are continuing to recede on the Stuart Highway north of Glendambo, which is allowing the road to re-open in a staggered way.

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The highway's closure has been causing major supply issues, but from Sunday, heavy vehicles and emergency services will be able to cross one at a time under police escort.

This will be followed by high-clearance four-wheel drives crossing on Tuesday.

It is hoped that the highway will be re-opened to everyone else by February 11.

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A two-week major emergency declaration was established on January 28 by the state government after significant flooding and storm damage affected parts of the far north.

Houses have been damaged and major freight lines cut off, forcing some outback towns including Coober Pedy and Glendambo to become isolated.

Melbourne researchers have discovered a new treatment that sends some children's peanut allergies into remission.

The Murdoch Children's Research Institute has developed a combination treatment that appears to send the allergy into remission in around half of the children that have the condition.

"We've now shown in this study that it gives you a very significant improvement in quality of life," Murdoch Children's Research Institute Professor Mimi Tang said.

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The key aspect of the new treatment is immunotherapy, which involves the gradual introduction of allergenic food along with a regular dose of probiotic.

"What we found is that adding the probiotic reduced the rate of gastrointestinal side effects, particularly in children aged one to five," Prof. Tang said.

The institute conducted a trial of the treatment that involved two hundred children aged between one and 10.

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It was found that after 18 months of treatment, 51 per cent of those who had received oral immunotherapy and 46 per cent who had also taken a probiotic were in clinical remission.

It meant they could freely eat a standard serve of peanuts without any issues.

"What it means for the patient is that they can stop treatment and introduce peanut into their diet as and when they like," Prof. Tang said.

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Nine-year-old Declan has suffered from a severe peanut allergy since he was four.

After participating in the clinical trial, he is in clinical remission and now eats peanuts regularly.

"Now we just give him his peanut M&M's and he heads off into another room and I don't even feel like I have to be near him, and he just has it and reports back that everything's fine," Declan's mother, Kate Lawlor, said.

By RNZ Covid-19 Response Minister Chris Hipkins says there is no need to panic as the country records its largest daily total of new community cases since the pandemic began.New Zealand has recorded the highest number of community…

Two emergency bushfire warnings are now in place for residents in Western Australia's south west region.

People in parts of Shadforth and William Bay in the Shire of Denmark, and in Hester Brook and Bridgetown in the Shire of Bridgetown, have been warned to leave their homes in order to survive the bushfire in the area.

"You are in danger and need to act immediately to survive. There is a threat to lives and homes," the warning from the Department of Fire and Emergency Services said.

READ MORE: Warning of catastrophic fire conditions for parts of WA

"If the way is clear, leave now for a safer place.

"Do not wait and see, leaving at the last minute is deadly."

Residents have been told if they cannot leave, they should shelter in their home.

"Go to a room in your home away from the fire front and make sure you can easily escape," the warning said.

https://twitter.com/dfes_wa/status/1489847219083972609?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

"Choose a room with two exits and water such as a kitchen or laundry.

"If you are not at home, it's too dangerous to return."

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The warning has been issued to people bounded by Boat Harbour Road and Board Road to the west, Scotsdale Road to the north, Walter Road and Turner Road to the east, and the coastline to the south.

Firefighters are actively battling the blaze.

Blistering conditions are hampering firefighting efforts across the state, with Perth on track to hit 39C today.

Albany is forecast to hit 41C, and Geraldton has hit its forecast peak of 38C.

Cooler weather is forecast tomorrow in much of the state, with hopes of some rain.