A public appeal has been launched after an unidentified man allegedly approached two young girls and offered them sweets in Sydney's inner west yesterday.

Two girls, aged 7 and 4, were on Percy Street in Rozelle at around 10.30am yesterday when the unknown man drove up to them and offered them lollies.

After a short time, one of their family members came out onto the street and the man drove off towards Denison Street.

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Police have released CCTV footage of a vehicle, hoping to speak to the driver who may assist their inquiries.

The driver is described as being a man of Caucasian appearance, aged in his 60s or 70s with an unshaven beard.

He was last seen wearing a white long-sleeved shirt and driving a dark grey Toyota Camry sedan.

Police are urging anyone with information on the man to contact Leichhardt Police or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

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More than 6000 people have been killed in Iran's bloody crackdown on unrest, human rights groups claim, as protests reach the one-month mark.

The Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), which has been accurate in multiple rounds of unrest in Iran, said 6126 people had been killed in clashes between protesters and government forces in the last 30 days.

The organisation said 5777 of these victims were protesters and 49 were non-protesters or civilians.

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They estimate 86 children have died, and 214 people associated with government forces have also been killed since authorities cracked down harshly on unrest at the end of last month.

The government has limited internet access inside Iran, making it difficult to verify the true death toll.

HRANA claims it is investigating more than 17,000 potential deaths. 

"Widespread internet disruptions and shutdowns have remained one of the government's main tools for restricting the flow of information and reducing protesters' ability to organise," it said.

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"This situation has effectively caused serious disruption to citizens' access to information, communication with family members, online services, and independent media."

Government sources claim that the death toll is only just over 3000, 2427 of which are civilians and security forces.

They have labelled the rest "terrorists".

In the past, Iran's theocracy has undercounted or not reported fatalities from unrest.

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That death toll exceeds that of any other round of protest or unrest there in decades, and recalls the chaos surrounding Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution.

HRANA figures state nearly 42,000 people have been arrested, and more than 11,000 have been severely injured in the process.

Iranian state media has tried to blame forces abroad, including the USA, for the protests.

However, the regime remains broadly unable to address the country's ailing economy, which is still squeezed by international sanctions, particularly over its nuclear program.

– with Associated Press

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The ABC has launched an investigation after several unauthorised posts were made on one of its social media accounts, including images of an adult performer.

Screenshots seen by 9news.com.au showed multiple posts on the ABC News Facebook page this afternoon, one of which was an image of a notorious adult content creator.

The images were seen at around 1.15pm, and were deleted from the public broadcaster's Facebook account within minutes.

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An ABC spokesperson said the breach came after a staff account was compromised.

"[This] resulted in unauthorised access to the ABC News Facebook page, where several images were briefly posted," the spokesperson said.

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"Access was quickly secured, the content removed, and an investigation is underway to review and strengthen our security controls."

9news.com.au is not suggesting any wrongdoing on behalf of anyone at the ABC.

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Auckland will lose 29 branches, while Christchurch will see 22 closures.

Tauranga City Council and the Government are considering separate inquiries.

The cane toad's devastating march across northern Australia is almost complete, with the invasive species expected to be widespread in Western Australia's Pilbara by 2041 if left unchecked, a sobering new study has found.

The toxic creatures could colonise three-quarters of the Pilbara, threatening 25 native species in the biodiversity hotspot, the study led by Curtin University has found.

These include several species of native marsupial predators like northern quolls, ghost bat and kaluta, as well as frog-eating snakes, blue-tongue skinks, and goannas.

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Eradicating the toads from the Pilbara once they're established would be "virtually impossible" and would cost "billions", according to the study's lead author, Dr Judy Dunlop.

However, co-author Dr Chris Jolly from Charles Darwin University says a containment strategy is still possible.

Cane toads require access to freshwater as they migrate and spread.

The pests have populated the Northern Territory in the last two decades.

"It is what we have learnt from toads in the NT that has provided the crucial information to inform the potential impacts of toads if they were to make it into the Pilbara, as well as understanding how and when they might get there," Jolly said.

The Northern Territory had naturally occurring containment zones using seawater, with coastal locations such as Groote Eylandt and the Tiwi Islands acting as refuges for wildlife like northern quolls.

Currently, the toads are approaching a naturally dry region where the Great Sandy Desert meets the ocean as they approach Western Australia.

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There, the only water sources are man-made cattle watering points.

Upgrading these water sources from open dams to concrete tanks and troughs designed to be inaccessible to the toads would remove the "stepping stones" used by the toads to cross the arid zone.

"This targeted intervention could halt their advance into the Pilbara, protecting its unique biodiversity and reducing the risk of catastrophic declines in native species such as northern quolls, ghost bats, goannas, and blue-tongue skinks," Dunlop said.

Dunlop said it was always preferable to prevent an environmental hazard before it occurs.

"The investment required for containment is modest compared to the astronomical costs and low feasibility of eradication."

The report authors suggest a similar strategy could also be used in the Northern Territory's arid zones, reducing their numbers during the dry season.

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Top Republicans are distancing themselves from the Trump administration over the actions of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol in Minneapolis.

Typically the party has been in lockstep with the president on every position he takes.

But some influential figures are breaking ranks with the administration after the shooting death of Minneapolis nurse Alex Pretti.

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In the hours after Pretti's death, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem described Pretti's actions as an "act of domestic terrorism".

"I don't know of any peaceful protester that shows up with a gun and ammunition rather than a sign," she said of Pretti in the hours after his death.

"This is a violent riot when you have someone showing up with weapons and are using them to assault law enforcement officers."

Noem's comments have not been well-received.

"Officials who rush to judgment before all the facts are known undermine public trust and the law-enforcement mission," Utah Senator John Curtis said.

 "I disagree with Secretary Noem's premature DHS response, which came before all the facts were known and weakened confidence."

Six other Republican senators have also called for a more thorough investigation into the shooting.

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Multiple video angles of the shooting showed Pretti did not have his hands on his holstered gun at any point during the confrontation.

The gun had been taken away from him before the first shot was fired by Border Patrol agents.

Pretti was an intensive care nurse and was filming law enforcement agents at the time of his death.

He had been pepper-sprayed and was being held down on the ground by several agents before he was shot ten times in five seconds.

America's second most powerful Republican, Texas Governor Greg Abbott, has called for a change to the White House's approach.

"In general, we need to have respect for law enforcement officers in the country," Abbott said.

"They are law enforcement officers. And so they, being the White House, need to recalibrate on what needs to be done to make sure that respect is going to be re-instilled."

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State and local law enforcement are seeking an order preventing the federal government from destroying evidence in the Pretti investigation.

The administration is not co-operating with a local investigation, and the federal case is being handled by ICE itself.

Democrats, meanwhile, are pushing for Noem to be impeached as Secretary of Homeland Security.

Nearly two-thirds of the House of Representatives Democrats have signed on to a resolution to impeach Noem.

"We call for an immediate stand down of ICE and CBP interior enforcement operations and demand the resignation of the Secretary of Homeland Security," a statement from a group of Democratic lawmakers said.

"Current leadership has failed to protect civil liberties, ensure accountability, or maintain the public trust."

But no elected Republican has joined them yet.

Noem will testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee on March 3.

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An iconic lookout in the Blue Mountains has been closed after the local council claimed a growing number of visitors were ignoring safety warnings.

Lincoln's Rock is located in Wentworth Falls, west of Sydney, and features uninterrupted views of the World Heritage Blue Mountains National Park.

With the site being unfenced, visitors are able to sit on the edge of the rock and look out towards Mount Solitary and the Jamison Valley, making it a popular picture spot and giving the location a growing reputation on social media.

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There was a particular surge in visits to the rock after K-Pop star Jennie posted a video of herself sitting on the edge of the rock in 2023.

The singer and actress has over 89 million followers on Instagram.

Some people have also carved their names or initials in the rock over many decades, causing degradation concerns.

However, the Blue Mountains City Council announced it was closing the lookout until April, on the grounds that the site is not equipped to safely deal with the massive increase in visitors.

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Mayor Mark Greenhill claims some visitors are ignoring basic safety warnings.

"Lincoln's Rock is a stunning but inherently dangerous clifftop location within a World Heritage-listed area," he said.

"While we understand how much locals and tourists value this site, we cannot in good conscience keep it open while people ignore basic safety precautions at an unfenced cliff edge."

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Greenhill said Lincoln's Rock would be closed until April 30 at least as the Council reviews options to make the site safer, as well as protecting the local environment.

"As the popularity of the site has grown, visitors have ventured further into intact bushland which significantly impacts upon native vegetation and wildlife," he claimed.

Greenhill said the Council would look to address several issues during the closure, including illegal parking, littering and traffic congestion.

The popular site didn't have a car park for years, with a small, basic one created in 2021.

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Multiple celebrities have begun posting about the recent shootings in Minneapolis by federal agents that claimed the lives of two American citizens.

Alex Pretti and Renee Good were both fatally shot by federal agents involved in supposed round-ups of illegal immigrants, with White House officials immediately classing both deaths as the result of "self defence" against "domestic terrorists" and "assassins".

Local authorities have proven more sceptical about the justified nature of the shootings, while video captured by bystanders at both scenes appear to show elements that contradict federal narratives.

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Federal agents from ICE and Border Patrol have also been accused of other violent acts in the city, including toward citizenship holders.

Now, on the back of Pretti's death after he approached agents, allegedly while in possession of a licensed firearm, Hollywood A-listers are speaking out.

Two celebrities known for speaking their values – The Last of Us star Pedro Pascal and singer Billie Eilish – were among the loudest.

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https://www.instagram.com/p/DT9490DDnWq/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp

Pascal shared multiple posts to his Instagram Sunday night drawing attention to the killing of both Pretti and Good.

One of Pascal's posts included drawings of Pretti and Good with the words "Pretti Good reason for a national strike" along with snippets from a New York Times editorial titled "Two People Are Dead. Americans Deserve to Know the Truth."

Actress Jamie Lee Curtis shared the same image on Instagram. Actor Edward Norton, speaking to the Los Angeles Times at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, also called for a general strike.

Writing on Instagram, Pascal said: "Truth is a line of demarcation between a democratic government and an authoritarian regime. Mr Pretti and Renee Good are dead. The American people deserve to know what happened." He also tagged the New York Times.

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On Instagram, Eilish posted to her stories several times, including one calling Pretti "a real American hero".

Eilish called out the overwhelming silence from many of America's cultural luminaries, posting a selfie with the words: "hey my fellow celebrities u gonna speak up? or"

Others have joined the growing chorus, including singer Katy Perry, and actor-directors Natalie Portman and Olivia Wilde.

Actor Tessa Thompson, who has previously protested ICE, posted a message to her Instagram story saying "This is what service and protection looks like" along with a clip of media coverage.

By Monday morning, singer Katy Perry was urging her Instagram followers to write to their senators.

"I could not be prouder to be American right now, by the way the Americans are acting. And I could not be sadder to be American right now with the way the government is behaving," Portman told Deadline.

Actor and comedian DL Hughley also posted to social media – though earlier than most, shortly after Good's shooting.

"There is no living with this Trump magafascism. It must be removed from power before it commits even more horrific atrocities and forcibly shuts down any real possibility of resistance."

Hughley also shared a quote from poet Langston Hughes which read, "Fascism is a new name for the terror black people have always faced in America."

Elsewhere, actors Mark Ruffalo and Glenn Close, no strangers to speaking out, also condemned the violence by federal agents.

"Alex Pretti is a hero," Ruffalo wrote on Bluesky, resharing a post about Pretti being a nurse with the Veterans Administration and a dog owner.

Prior to that he also shared a link to the video of Pretti being shot, writing: "Cold blooded murder in the streets of the USA by an occupying military gang, creating havoc. We have fought wars in other countries for less than this."

On Instagram, Close read from prepared remarks, saying that while she has been mostly out of the country since September, she has "watched, with the rest of the world, our democracy being systematically disemboweled and torn apart."

Other voices also heard

Meanwhile, some Republicans in Congress are pushing for a deeper investigation into the shootings, and the White House has walked back some of its more flammatory rhetoric, but has warned protesters not to impede federal officers.

After weeks of sniping at each other, US President Donald Trump and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz actually spoke by phone, with both charactersing the conversation as positive.

Trump wrote in a social media post earlier Monday that the two "actually" seem to be on the same page in wanting to work together on immigration issues in Minnesota.

He said the people the administration is seeking "are any and all Criminals that they have in their possession" and Walz "very respectfully, understood that."

Walz's office released a statement saying the White House had agreed to look into either reducing the number of federal agents in Minnesota or working with the state "in a more coordinated fashion on immigration enforcement regarding violent criminals."

With CNN and Associated Press.

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Australia has been urged to do better on keeping children and Indigenous people out of prison, treat refugees and asylum seekers more fairly and step up its efforts to fight climate change, in a major United Nations review of its human rights record.

The UN Human Rights Council review heard overnight from dozens of countries, many of whom also called on Canberra to implement a national human rights act, potentially including specific hate speech provisions

There was also a call for more action on climate change from some countries, including Pacific Island neighbours Fiji and Nauru.

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Australia came in for the heaviest criticism on the age of criminal responsibility, particularly in relation to the overrepresentation of Indigenous children in prisons.

Responding to the review, Australian Human Rights Commission President Hugh de Kretser said as a "wealthy, stable democracy, Australia should be leading the world on human rights", saying the review highlighted many areas where we "must do better".

"The strongest concerns raised by countries went to the rights of First Peoples, particularly around inequality, racial discrimination and justice outcomes.  

"In particular many countries called on Australia to raise the age of criminal responsibility. 

"In most Australian jurisdictions, children as young as 10 can be arrested, prosecuted and jailed. This is inhumane and remains out of step with international human rights standards. 

"First Peoples are hit hardest by these unjust laws. The international community is calling us out on this."

Kathryn Haigh, the first assistant secretary in the Attorney-General's Department international cooperation and human rights division, said Australian states and territories were primarily responsible for handling their own criminal justice systems but said there'd been improvements since 2021.

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"This has included investing in fit for purpose prisons, rehabilitation and reintegration programmes, diversionary programmes and non-custodial options to reduce recidivism and prison populations, including programmes to reduce the over-representation of First Nations peoples," she said.

"Australia recognises that it must do more to address the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in the criminal justice system".

She gave five commitments to the review from the Australian government. 

She said it would review the Disability Discrimination Act in accordance with royal commission recommendations, increase appropriate affordable housing for Indigenous people, deliver the Our Ways – Strong Ways – Our Voices plan to end domestic and family violence, legislating the National Commission and National Commissioner for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children and young people, and to increase investment into dementia. 

National Indigenous Australians Agency CEO Julie-Ann Guivarra acknowledged more progress was needed to achieve lasting change for First Nations people but insisted the country was acting with "urgency and resolve".

"[Australia's] is a rich, proud and deeply remarkable story, a story of hope, achievement and survival against the odds," she said.

"Our stories are intertwined, but as the Closing the Gap Report routinely lays bare, there are still too many areas in which we are not together. 

"We have made progress, but real change takes continued effort to listen to First Nations voices, to act and to deliver practical outcomes that improves lives. 

"Our goal is clear, to close the gap and ensure equal life outcomes for all Australians."

The report is set to be adopted on Friday afternoon (early Saturday AEDT).

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