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An alligator named Kanye at the Australian Reptile Park has been placed in isolation after displaying hostile behaviour as the weather got warmer.

Head of Reptiles at the park, Daniel Rumsey said Kanye is one of the biggest American alligators they have.

Mr Rumsey said the over 400 kilogram alligator had been charging keepers and was aggressive towards the other 54 alligators.

READ MORE: Human remains found in search for Gabby Petito's missing fiancé

Australian Reptile Park Director Tim Faulkner said the lagoon where the alligators were kept was normally quiet with no serious altercations between the alligators.

"Kanye has come out of hibernation explosive, therefore, a danger to himself, to the other alligators and staff."

"Kanye has made the other alligators very tense.

"He's a young bloke, full of testosterone and he's raising havoc right now, so the best thing to do is to send him to the naughty corner for some quiet time out."

But it was no easy feat.

It took a highly skilled team of over a dozen keepers to catch and move the almost four-metre-long alligator.

READ MORE: Gold Coast teenager allegedly fired from Pizza shop for receiving vaccine

"American alligators have one of the strongest jaw pressures of any animal and one bite can be life-threatening, so our amazing team had to take extreme care during the removal," Mr Faulkner said.

Kanye will spend around a month in an isolation area until the peak mating season is over.

A lone butterfly has been filmed resting on a leaf of the Coffs Harbour Butterfly House after a freak hail storm blew through northern NSW yesterday.

The attraction has lost 90 per cent of its animals, 9News can confirm.

The animals were either killed outright or escaped after hailstones the size of grapefruits pelted through the enclosure.

READ MORE: Human remains found in search for Gabby Petito's missing fiancé

Coffs Harbour SES Commander Jeannie Veitch said the storm led to a "record-breaking" 800 calls for help.

The owner of the tourist attraction has grave fears for the escaped butterflies as they can only survive in a tropical environment.

A number of threatened and endangered species were housed at the attraction including, the Ulysses butterfly and the wanderer, or monarch, butterfly.

Miley is 18 months old – but she has never met her grandparents on her mother's side because they've been banned from travelling to Australia for her whole life.

But finally, Miley's grandmother, Karen Capon, 57, is able to make plans to take the long flight to Sydney from London in November, thanks to a rule change expats in Australia have long been campaigning for.

Last week the Prime Minister announced parents of Australian citizens and permanent residents will be classed as 'immediate family' and can visit from overseas.

LIVE UPDATES: Uber driver diagnosed with COVID-19 in Queensland

The update came as relief for millions of Aussies – and Miley's mum Emily said she cried when she heard the news.

"I just get along with things but my mum's just so upset all the time," she told 9news.com.au.

READ MORE: Human remains found in search for Gabby Petito's missing fiancé

"Every time I speak to her she says, 'I've found a flight', but I say 'you can't get into the country."

The 30-year-old mother, who also has Leo, three, with Aussie partner Mitch Blenkhorn, hasn't seen her parents since February 2020 when she was pregnant with Miley who was born last May.

READ MORE: No way home for stranded Aussies with unrecognised vaccines

As Ms Capon has permanent residency she has been banned from leaving the country to visit her parents too.

She said she can't wait to introduce her mum to Miley and for her to see Leo, who was a baby when they last met.

"Nobody's met her at all," she said.

The family are awaiting further details about what exactly they need to do now.

With a third of Aussies born overseas, the change will affects millions of people.

READ MORE: 'I cannot leave him to die alone': Aussie teacher torn

https://twitter.com/ParentsFamily/status/1448923644877438983?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Defacto partners, spouses and dependant children have been allowed into Australia alongside citizens and PRs since the borders closed in March 2020 – if they could get a severely limited flight and do 14-days hotel quarantine – parents have not.

While exemptions can be applied for, they're hard to get even in cases of death or serious illness.

READ MORE: Gold Coast teenager allegedly fired from Pizza shop for receiving vaccine

Mrs Capon said expats have been upset to see many celebs allowed into Australia over the past year and a half – but their parents were barred.

A petition to make parents 'immediate family' gathered over 70,000 signatures and was presented by Sydney MP, Zali Steggall in June.

The new rule comes into place on November 1 for the whole nation.

However, it will initially mainly allow reunifications for families in NSW and the ACT as it will remain hard for parents who want to go to other states to travel, as they will be subject to those states' travel rules, even if they get a flight to Sydney.

Neither NSW nor ACT will have any quarantine for international flights, just proof of a negative COVID-19. Flight caps will also be dropped.

READ MORE: 'No end goal': Expats' heartbreak over COVID-19 border closures

Parents must also be vaccinated with a TGA recognised jab, which will mean those who have had those not on the list will remain locked out.

Foreign workers living here who don't have PR won't be able to get their parents over under the new rule either.

READ MORE: How to get your International COVID Vaccination Passport

However, with the travel ban ending for all jurisdictions on November 1, citizens and PRs will be allowed to leave the country to see family overseas without permission – but will be subject to state and territory rules flying back.

Temporary residents or other visa holders remain locked out of Australia if they leave.

When he announced the move last week Prime Minister Scott Morrison said it would be, "welcome news to Australians right across the country who were hoping to be reunited with their family members, their parents who are overseas.

"Now, in New South Wales's case, that means that those family members will be able to come into Sydney if they are vaccinated and not have to quarantine," he added.

READ MORE: Why tent zipper position is key clue in search for missing WA girl

Simone Holmes, a spokesperson for campaign group Parents are Immediate Family, said they were "relieved" at the news but need to know how it will be implemented and what will happen for states other than NSW.

"The general concern now is, unless people live in NSW there will still be no reunion with our parents," Ms Holmes said.

Contact journalist Sarah Swain: ss****@******om.au

Australian diplomats have called out China's "trade disruptive measures" against the country during an international meeting overnight.

In a hard-hitting statement to the World Trade Organisation, Australia's ambassador George Mina said punitive Chinese trade sanctions were "motivated by political considerations".

Australian exports to China, including wine, barley, coal and seafood, have been hit with punitive measures over the past 18 months amid worsening relations between the two countries.

READ MORE: Human remains found in search for Gabby Petito's missing fiancé

The Federal Government's statement to the WTO in Geneva said Beijing's policies had ramifications beyond icy relations with Australia.

"The implications of China's actions go beyond their impact on Australian exporters, they rise the risk and uncertainty of the China market for the global business community," Mr Mina said in the statement.

"By undermining agreed trade rules, China also undermines the multilateral trading system on which all WTO members apply.

"China says these actions reflect legitimate concerns; but there is a growing body of information that demonstrates China's actions are motivated by political considerations."

https://twitter.com/AusWTO/status/1450752226482339840?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

The Australian Government's statement to the WTO was included in an appraisal of China's trading policies.

Meanwhile, the impact of harsh Chinese tariffs on Australian wine exports has been revealed in a new report.

Industry body Wine Australia says global wine exports dropped by 24 per cent in the year to September 30.

The fall was driven by the collapse of the biggest market — China — which slapped tariffs on Australian wine 12 months ago.

In the year to September 2021, exports to China fell by 77 per cent to $274 million, down from the previous average of $1 billion a year.

READ MORE: Gold Coast teenager allegedly fired from Pizza shop for receiving vaccine

Chinese officials inflicted further economic pain for Aussie winegrowers when in March they declared tariffs of nearly 220 per cent would be extended for the next five years.

But producers of wines costing more than $200 have successfully diversified, increasing sales to South East Asia and Europe, including the UK, the report said.

Reporters and producers from Nine News, A Current Affair, TODAY and 60 Minutes have been recognised for their work with a string of nominations in the prestigious Walkley Awards for Excellence in Journalism.

All three finalists in the Television/News reporting category are Nine News reporters, with Amelia Adams recognised for her coverage of the Capitol attacks, Tim Arvier nominated for his reporting of ambulance delays in Queensland and Peter Fegan for his investigation into Australian politician Andrew Laming.

Christine Ahern is a finalist in the Television/Video Current Affairs Short category for her coverage of the Epping Gardens aged care facility COVID-19 outbreak for A Current Affair and TODAY, as carers at the centre broke their silence over the deadly tragedy.

Meanwhile, Nick McKenzie and Joel Tozer's investigation into 'Nazis Next Door' has been recognised in two categories – Television /Video Current Affair Long and Investigative Journalism.

Reporters from Nine, including Nine newspapers The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and the AFR, received 21 nominations in total. The Awards take place in February in Tamworth, NSW.

A former US police officer who fatally shot Australian woman Justine Ruszczyk after she called 911 to report hearing a possible sexual assault behind her home is set to be sentenced on a lesser charge after his murder conviction was overturned in a case that drew widespread attention and was fraught with the issue of race.

Mohamed Noor was initially convicted of third-degree murder and manslaughter in the July 2017 fatal shooting of Ms Ruszczyk, a 40-year-old dual US-Australian citizen and yoga teacher who was engaged to be married.

With his 12 year and six month sentence for murder thrown out, he could be out on supervised release within months following this week's upcoming resentencing for second-degree manslaughter.

LIVE UPDATES: Warning virus-stricken nation could hit 100,000 daily cases

Last month, the Minnesota Supreme Court tossed out Noor's murder conviction and sentence, saying the third-degree murder statute doesn't fit the case. The justices said the charge can only apply when a defendant shows a "generalized indifference to human life," not when the conduct is directed at a particular person, as it was with Ms Ruszczyk.

Experts say the ruling means the third-degree murder conviction against former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin likely also will be tossed out but that would have little impact because Chauvin was also convicted of a more serious second-degree murder charge in the May 2020 death of George Floyd. He was sentenced to 22 years and six months in prison.

Noor testified at his 2019 trial that he and his partner were driving slowly in an alley when a loud bang on his police SUV made him fear for their lives. He said he saw a woman appear at the partner's window and raise her right arm before he fired a shot from the passenger seat, across his partner, to stop what he thought was a threat.

READ MORE: Human remains found in search for Gabby Petito's missing partner

Noor's remaining manslaughter conviction carries a sentence ranging from 41 to 57 months, with a presumptive sentence of four years, under state sentencing guidelines.

His attorneys, Tom Plunkett and Peter Wold, have asked for a 41-month term, saying the low end of the range would reflect Noor's good behavior behind bars and the harsh conditions he's faced during several months in segregation from the general prison population. Legal experts expect prosecutors to seek a sentence at the top end of the range.

Noor, who was fired after he was charged, has already served more than 29 months. In Minnesota, defendants with good behavior typically serve two-thirds of their prison sentences and the remainder on supervised release. If Noor receives the presumptive four years for manslaughter, he could be eligible for supervised release around the end of this year.

If the judge agrees with the defence and sentences Noor to 41 months, he could be eligible for supervised release — commonly known as parole — right away, though in these situations defendants are typically briefly returned to prison to work out logistics of the parole.

READ MORE: Position of tent zip has police fearing for Cleo

Marsh Halberg, a Minneapolis defense attorney who is not connected to the case, predicted Judge Kathryn Quaintance would sentence Noor to four years. However, he said: "The right thing to do would be to give him the low end … because he's been in solitary."

Noor has the right to make a statement at the hearing this week, though it was not immediately clear if he would. At his June 7, 2019, sentencing, he got emotional as he expressed regret for what he had done and apologized to Ms Ruszczyk's family.

"I caused this tragedy, and it is my burden," he said at the time.

"I can't apologize enough and I will never be able to make up the loss that I caused to Miss Ruszczyk's family."

Victims are expected to make statements. Prosecutors say Ms Ruszczyk's family members, who came from Australia for the 2019 trial, will not appear in person but might appear live via video.

READ MORE: Murder conviction for ex-officer who shot Justine Ruszczyk overturned

Ms Ruszczyk's death angered citizens in the US and Australia, and led to the resignation of Minneapolis' police chief. It also led the department to change its policy on body cameras; Noor and his partner didn't have theirs activated when they were investigating Ms Ruszczyk's 911 call.

Noor, who is Somali-American, was believed to be the first Minnesota officer convicted of murder for an on-duty shooting. Activists who had long called for officers to be held accountable for the deadly use of force applauded the murder conviction but lamented that it came in a case in which the officer is Black and his victim was white. Some questioned whether the case was treated the same as police shootings involving Black victims.

Days after Noor's conviction, Minneapolis agreed to pay US$20 million ($26.61 million) to Ms Ruszczyk's family. It was believed to be the largest settlement stemming from police violence in Minnesota to that point, with Mayor Jacob Frey citing Noor's unprecedented conviction for the large settlement.

But the state Supreme Court ultimately ruled the murder conviction didn't fit the evidence. The decision devastated Ms Ruszczyk's loved ones.

Her fiancé, Don Damond said at the time of the ruling: "None of this can hurt my heart more than it has been, but now it truly feels like there has been no justice for Justine."

But others said said it was the right decision.

"This should've never been allowed to go to trial on that (murder) charge," said Mr Halberg.

"It may feel good to charge something like that because it sounds like you are being more zealous as a prosecutor, but the law doesn't fit."

Detectives have found "what appears to be human remains" at a Florida park along with several items appearing to belong to Brian Laundrie, the missing fiancé of Gabby Petito.

FBI Tampa confirmed the items of interest and human remains were found at Carlton Reserve in connection to the search for Mr Laundrie and had been underwater until recently.

The human remains are yet to be identified, but Special Agent in Charge Michael McPherson said officials also found a backpack and a notebook.

READ MORE: 'Not alive or not there': Experts on Brian Laundrie's survival chances

https://twitter.com/apiotrowski9/status/1450923578728202243

"Earlier today, investigators found what appears to be human remains, along with personal items, such as a backpack and notebook, belonging to Brian Laundrie," Mr McPherson said in a press conference.

"These items were found in an area that up until recently have been underwater.

"We don't have all the answers yet."

Earlier in the search, the Sarasota Sheriff's Office deployed the Sheriff's Underwater Recovery Force, which consists of "highly trained underwater specialists," who were "called upon to search for evidence of crimes and victims of drowning, water accidents and foul play," according to the sheriff's office website.

READ MORE: No suspects as the search continues for missing Cleo Smith

The Sarasota County Medical Examiner and a cadaver dog were called to the park where an FBI evidence response team is processing the scene.

Mr Laundrie's parents, Chris and Roberta Laundrie, informed the FBI and the North Port Police Department Tuesday night that they intended to come to Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park on Wednesday morning to search for him, family attorney Steven Bertolino said.

https://twitter.com/FBITampa/status/1450887057052774400

Law enforcement met them there Wednesday morning, he said.

After a "brief search" off a trail Mr Laundrie frequented, the family and law enforcement found "some articles" belonging to him, Mr Bertolino said.

Mr Bertolino said that law enforcement is now conducting a more thorough investigation of that area.

READ MORE: Gabby Petito's parents to be reunited with daughter's remains

The Sarasota County Sheriff's Office Emergency Response Team and the Lee County Sheriff's Office are also now on scene along with a mobile unit and a tent.

The discovery comes amid an exhaustive search for Mr Laundrie that has now stretched over a month and as authorities try to piece together what happened to Ms Petito.

The Myakkahatchee Creek Environmental Park is on 160 acres of heavily wooded land in North Port, Florida, with trails and a camping area.

The park connects to the Carlton Reserve, a 25,000-acre nature reserve that has been the primary search location for investigators.

Searchers had previously used swamp buggies and airboats to scour the swampy terrain, but the area has dried out recently due to clearer weather.

How we got here

Ms Petito, 22, and Mr Laundrie, 23, travelled around the western US in a white van this summer, all while regularly posting photos and stories to their social media pages.

Those posts abruptly stopped in late August, though, and Mr Laundrie then returned by himself to their home in North Point, Florida, where they lived with his parents, on September 1.

Ms Petito's family, unable to get in contact with her, reported her missing 10 days later, launching a national search.

https://twitter.com/FBITampa/status/1450887057052774400?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

Mr Laundrie declined to cooperate with the investigation into her whereabouts, and soon after, he also went missing. His family told investigators they believed he had gone to a sprawling nature reserve nearby.

Ms Petito's remains were found in a national forest in Wyoming on September 19 near where the couple had last been seen together.

Teton County Coroner Dr Brent Blue ruled her death a homicide and said that she died by strangulation.

What we know about Brian Laundrie's disappearance

"We believe this was strangling by a human being," Blue told CNN's Anderson Cooper.

Mr Laundrie has not been explicitly connected to Ms Petito's homicide, but he is the subject of a federal arrest warrant for unauthorised use of another person's debit card in the days after Ms Petito last spoke with her family.

Though their social media posts appear idyllic, their relationship was full of tension and conflict in recent months.

Ms Petito called her mother regularly, and those conversations appeared to reveal there was "more and more tension" in Ms Petito's relationship, according to a police affidavit for a search warrant of an external hard drive found in the couple's van.

In addition, the couple was involved in a domestic dispute and were stopped by police in August in Moab, Utah, after a 911 caller told dispatchers he saw a man hitting a woman, according to audio provided by the Grand County Sheriff's Office.

In a report from Moab police, another witness told police he saw the couple arguing over a phone.

The witness said that when Mr Laundrie got into the van, Ms Petito appeared to hit him in the arm and then climbed through the driver's side door as if he had locked her out, the report states.

After interviewing Ms Petito, Mr Laundrie and the witness, the officers describe the incident as an argument that turned into a physical fight involving pushing and scratching.

With CNN

Nikolas Cruz has pleaded guilty to murdering 17 people during a rampage at his former high school in Parkland, Florida, leaving a jury to decide whether he will be executed for one of the United States' deadliest school shootings.

Relatives of the victims who sat in the courtroom and watched the hearing via Zoom shook their heads or broke down in tears as Cruz entered his pleas and later apologised for his crimes.

"Today we saw a cold and calculating killer confess to the murder of my daughter Gina and 16 other innocent victims at their school," Tony Montalto said. "His guilty pleas are the first step in the judicial process but there is no change for my family. Our bright, beautiful, and beloved daughter Gina is gone while her killer still enjoys the blessing of life in prison."

READ MORE: Parents of missing WA girl Cleo Smith make emotional plea

The guilty pleas will set the stage for a penalty trial in which 12 jurors will determine whether Cruz, 23, should be sentenced to death or life in prison without parole. Given the case's notoriety, Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer plans to screen thousands of prospective jurors. Jury selection is scheduled to begin on January 4.

Cruz entered his pleas after answering a long list of questions from Scherer aimed at confirming his mental competency. He was charged with 17 counts of murder and 17 counts of attempted first-degree murder for those wounded in the February 14, 2018, attack at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, located just outside Fort Lauderdale.

As several parents shook their heads, Cruz apologised, saying, "I'm very sorry for what I did. … I can't live with myself sometimes." He also added that he wished it was up to the survivors to determine whether he lived or died.

Anthony Borges, a former Stoneman Douglas student who was shot five times and severely wounded, told reporters after the hearing that he accepted Cruz's apology, but noted that it was not up to him to decide the confessed murderer's fate.

READ MORE: Price of groceries set to increase amid global container shortage

"He made a decision to shoot the school," Borges said. "I am not God to make the decision to kill him or not. That's not my decision. My decision is to be a better person and to change the world for every kid. I don't want this to happen to anybody again. It hurts. It hurts. It really hurts. So, I am just going to keep going. That's it."

Cruz's attorneys announced his intention to plead guilty during a hearing last week.

Following the pleas Wednesday, former Broward State Attorney Mike Satz recounted the details of the murders. Cruz killed 14 students and three staff members on Valentine's Day 2018 during a seven-minute rampage through a three-story building at Stoneman Douglas, investigators said. They said he shot victims in the hallways and in classrooms with an AR-15 semiautomatic rifle. Cruz had been expelled from Stoneman Douglas a year earlier after a history of threatening, frightening, unusual and sometimes violent behaviour that dated back to preschool.

The shootings caused some Stoneman Douglas students to launch the March for Our Lives movement, which pushes for stronger gun restrictions nationally.

READ MORE: No way home for stranded Aussies with unrecognised vaccines

Since days after the shooting, Cruz's attorneys had offered to have him plead guilty in exchange for a life sentence, saying that would spare the community the emotional turmoil of reliving the attack at trial. But Satz rejected the offer, saying Cruz deserved a death sentence, and appointed himself lead prosecutor. Satz, 79, stepped down as state attorney in January after 44 years, but remains Cruz's chief prosecutor.

His successor, Harold Pryor, is opposed to the death penalty but has said he will follow the law. Like Satz, he never accepted the defence offer — as an elected official, that would have been difficult, even in liberal Broward County, where Democrats outnumber Republicans by more than 2 to 1.

By having Cruz plead guilty, his attorneys will be able to argue during the penalty hearing that he took responsibility for his actions.

Queen Elizabeth has reluctantly accepted medical advice to rest for a few days and has canceled a trip to Northern Ireland, Buckingham Palace said last night.

The palace didn't offer specifics on the decision, but says the 95-year-old monarch is "in good spirits", and disappointed that she will no longer be able to visit Northern Ireland for engagements Wednesday and Thursday.

"The Queen sends her warmest good wishes to the people of Northern Ireland, and looks forward to visiting in the future,'' the palace said.

READ MORE: The Queen slams 'irritating' world leaders

She is resting at Windsor Castle, where she has stayed since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic last year. The decision to cancel the trip was understood to not be COVID related.

ITV News Royal Editor Chris Ship also tweeted saying he had been advised it was not related to coronavirus.

"We are told there is 'no cause for alarm' about the Queen's health and she was seen as recently as last night at a reception at Windsor Castle for the Global Investment Summit," Ship said.

https://twitter.com/chrisshipitv/status/1450770969803509762

Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, leader of the Democratic Unionist Party in Northern Ireland, sent his well wishes.

"We thank Her Majesty for her good wishes to the people of Northern Ireland and trust that she will keep well and benefit from a period of rest," he said on Twitter.

"It is always a joy to have Her Majesty in Royal Hillsborough and we look forward to a further visit in the near future."

Church leaders in Northern Ireland released a joint statement saying they were sorry she would not be there to attend the Service of Reconciliation and Hope in Armagh.

The decision comes just days after Elizabeth was seen using a walking stick at a major public event when attending a Westminster Abbey service marking the centenary of the Royal British Legion, an armed forces charity.

She had previously been photographed using a cane in 2003, but that was after she underwent knee surgery.

Britain's longest-lived and longest-reigning monarch, Elizabeth is due to celebrate her Platinum Jubilee — 70 years on the throne — next year.

Despite her age, the Queen, whose husband Prince Philip died earlier this year, still keeps a busy schedule of royal duties.

The day before the palace announced she needed to rest, she held audiences with diplomats, and that night she hosted a reception at Windsor Castle for global business leaders.

She's reported to have had more than a dozen engagements in as many days leading up to the medical advice on Wednesday.

Earlier this week the monarch politely declined the honour of being named "Oldie of the Year" by a British magazine.

The Oldie magazine on Tuesday published the Queen's response to its suggestion that she follow in the footsteps of former recipients, such as actor Olivia de Havilland and artist David Hockney.

"Her Majesty believes you are as old as you feel, as such The Queen does not believe she meets the relevant criteria to be able to accept, and hopes you will find a more worthy recipient," said a letter from her assistant private secretary, Tom Laing-Baker.

He ended the letter "with Her Majesty's warmest best wishes".