The second-place candidate Colin Alder said Stoltz was a “solid advocate” for the region.

How many votes did comedian Jamaine Ross get after saying he did not want the job.

The 79-year-old says this will be his final term leading the Super City.

Denyer said he was “extremely happy and relieved” to be re-elected.

US President Donald Trump spoke on Friday with Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Corina Machado after his administration denounced the committee awarding her the honour.

Trump has made no secret of his desire to win the prize.

A growing number of world leaders have also said he should win the award.

READ MORE: 'Distressing' knife fight breaks out at shopping centre in Melbourne

Those calls increased as his Gaza peace plan gained momentum in recent days.

However, the nomination window closes at the end of January for the year, according to the award's website.

On Friday, the Nobel Committee announced the 2025 accolade would go to Machado for promoting democratic rights in Venezuela and "for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy."

Machado said in an interview with the Spanish newspaper El Pais that she had spoken with the US president but declined to offer details about their conversation.

The opposition leader, as she had in her post accepting the award, expressed gratitude to Trump.

In remarks Friday evening, Trump confirmed he spoke with Machado, adding that she was "very nice" in their call.

"The person who actually got the Nobel Prize called today, called me and said, 'I'm accepting this in honour of you, because you really deserved it,'" the president said.

"A very nice thing to do. I didn't, I didn't say, 'Then give it to me,' though I think she might have. She was very nice," Trump joked.

"I've been helping her along the way," Trump added.

READ MORE: Three dead as light plane crashes at airport south of Sydney

"They need a lot of help in Venezuela, it's a basic disaster. So, and you could also say it was given out for '24 and I was running for office in '24."

Shortly after the Nobel Prize announcement, the administration reacted negatively.

"The Nobel Committee proved they place politics over peace," White House communications director Steven Cheung said in a post on social media.

Machado won the award after years of efforts to promote democracy and has described her life's work as promoting "ballots over bullets."

She was driven into hiding in Venezuela amid a sharp crackdown on dissent by Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

Many in the Trump administration had previously praised Machado's work.

The administration has also repeatedly denounced Maduro and has deployed a substantial military presence to the region to combat "narcotrafficking" – a campaign that many see as an attempt to weaken and potentially drive the Venezuelan leader from power.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio was among a group of lawmakers, including now US Ambassador to the UN Mike Waltz, who nominated Machado for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2024.

READ MORE: Wall Street has worst day in months as Trump reignites trade war

"In our work as policymakers who strive for democracy and human rights in the face of dictatorial regimes in the Western Hemisphere and beyond, we have rarely witnessed such courage, selflessness, and firm grasp of morality as we have in María Corina Machado," they wrote in a letter in November 2024.

"It is our firm belief that María Corina Machado's courageous and selfless leadership, and unyielding dedication to the pursuit of peace and democratic ideals, make her a most deserving candidate for this prestigious award," the group of Florida lawmakers wrote.

In April, Rubio called her "the personification of resilience, tenacity, and patriotism," someone who "has never backed down from her mission of fighting for a free, fair, and democratic Venezuela."

Trump himself, before his inauguration in January, said she was a freedom fighter who "MUST stay SAFE and ALIVE!"

Machado on Friday dedicated her Nobel Prize "to the suffering people of Venezuela and to President Trump for his decisive support of our cause!"

However, there were no warm words from the president's allies after her win and the perceived snubbing of Trump.

Richard Grenell, Trump's envoy for Venezuela, declared the "Nobel Prize died years ago."

Benjamin Gedan, the Venezuelan director at the National Security Council under the Obama administration, said it appeared the Nobel Committee was sending a message to both the United States and the Venezuelan opposition in its choice to award Machado the prize.

"The White House has been sending signals that it might use military force to topple this regime, and that it has the support of Maria Corina to do so," Gedan told CNN.

"It seems to me that the Nobel Committee would prefer that both the United States and the Venezuelan opposition continue to fight peacefully for change.

"I think the US reaction might reflect both things – frustration that Trump wasn't chosen but also discomfort with this critique of US policy in the Caribbean," he said.

READ MORE: Thousands of Palestinians return to what remains of their homes

Although Trump did not speak publicly about Machado's win until early on Friday evening, he had, however, thanked Russian President Vladimir Putin hours earlier.

"There have been cases where the committee has awarded the Nobel Peace Prize to people who have done nothing for peace," Putin said in remarks in Tajikistan on Friday.

"Whether the current US president deserves the Nobel Prize or not, I don't know. But he's really doing a lot to resolve complex crises that last for years, even decades," he said.

"Thank you to President Putin!" Trump wrote in on Truth social, following Friday's announcement, which included a clip of the Russian President who has perpetuated an ongoing war against Ukraine and has defied Trump's own efforts to bring that conflict to an end.

In a rare sighting, a massive python was spotted at a national park in South Australia's northern Eyre Peninsula.

The south-western carpet python was spotted by reintroduction ecologist Tali Moyle at the Gawler Ranges National Park and was posted to South Australia's National Parks and Wildlife Services Instagram account as it slithered along a dusty trail.

READ MORE: Warnings for 'destructive' winds in five states and territories

South-western carpet pythons – also known as Morelia imbricata – can grow anywhere from two-and-a-half metres to three metres in length and are usually nocturnal but occasionally bask in the sun.

Their natural habitats usually consist of patches of bushland, rocky outcrops and catchment areas.

The species of snake is native to Western Australia's south and South Australia's west.

DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP: Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. Available on the Apple App Store and Google Play.

French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday re-appointed Sebastien Lecornu as prime minister, just days after his resignation, asking him to try again to form a government and produce a budget in a bid to end the country's political deadlock.

Lecornu’s re-appointment followed days of intense negotiations and came less than a week after he resigned amid infighting in his freshly named government.

France is struggling with mounting economic challenges and ballooning debt, and the political crisis is aggravating its troubles and raising alarm across the European Union.

READ MORE: Wall Street has worst day in months as Trump reignites trade war

The appointment is widely seen as Macron's last chance to reinvigorate his second term, which runs until 2027.

Lacking a majority in the National Assembly to push through his agenda, Macron faces mounting criticism, including from within his own ranks, and has little room to maneuver.

Macron’s office released a one-sentence statement late Friday night announcing the appointment, one month after the statement issued a month ago when Lecornu was initially named and four days after he resigned.

READ MORE: Nineteen feared dead in US explosives factory blast

Lecornu said in a statement on social networks that he accepted the new job offer out of ″duty.″

He said he was given a mission ″to do everything to give France a budget by the end of the year and respond to the daily problems of our compatriots.″

All those who join his new government will have to renounce ambitions to run for president in 2027, Lecornu said, adding that the new Cabinet will ″incarnate renewal and a diversity of skills.″

″We must put an end to this political crisis that exasperates the French, and to this bad instability for France’s image and its interests,'' he wrote.

READ MORE: Major changes coming to how Aussies visit Europe from tomorrow

Lecornu abruptly resigned Monday, only hours after unveiling a new Cabinet that drew opposition from a key coalition partner.

The shock resignation prompted calls for Macron to step down or dissolve parliament again, as he did in June 2024.

But they remained unanswered, with the president instead announcing on Wednesday that he would name a successor to Lecornu within 48 hours.

Political party leaders met for more than two hours Friday with Macron, at his request.

Some cautioned that another prime minister picked from the ranks of Macron's fragile centrist camp would risk being disavowed by Parliament's powerful lower house, prolonging the crisis.

“How can one expect that all this will end well?" said Marine Tondelier, leader of The Ecologists party.

“The impression we get is that the more alone he is, the more rigid he becomes.”

Worried investors

Over the past year, Macron’s successive minority governments have collapsed in quick succession, leaving the European Union’s second-largest economy mired in political paralysis as France is faced with a debt crisis.

At the end of the first quarter of 2025, France’s public debt stood at US$3.9 trillion, or 114 per cent of gross domestic product.

France’s poverty rate also reached 15.4 per cent in 2023, its highest level since records began in 1996, according to the latest data available from the national statistics institute.

The economic and political struggles are worrying financial markets, ratings agencies and the European Commission, which has been pushing France to comply with EU rules limiting debt.

The newly reappointed PM faces challenges

The two biggest opposition parties in the National Assembly, the far-right National Rally and the far-left France Unbowed party, weren't invited to the discussions Friday.

The National Rally wants Macron to hold fresh legislative elections and France Unbowed wants him to resign.

Lecornu argued earlier this week that Macron’s centrist bloc, its allies, and parts of the opposition could still clump together into a working government.

“There’s a majority that can govern,” he said.

“I feel that a path is still possible. It is difficult.”

READ MORE: Gust of wind blows baseball player's plane into apartment building

Lecornu will now have to seek compromises to avoid an immediate vote of no confidence and may even be forced to abandon an extremely unpopular pension reform that was one of Macron's signature policies in his second presidential term.

Rammed through parliament without a vote in 2023 despite mass protests, it gradually raises the retirement age from 62 to 64.

Opposition parties want it to be scrapped.

The political deadlock stems from Macron’s shock decision in June 2024 to dissolve the National Assembly.

The snap elections produced a hung parliament, with no bloc able to command a majority in the 577-seat chamber.

The gridlock has unnerved investors, infuriated voters, and stalled efforts to curb France’s spiraling deficit and public debt.

Without stable support, Macron’s governments have stumbled from one crisis to the next, collapsing as they sought backing for unpopular spending cuts.

Lecornu’s resignation, just 14 hours after announcing his Cabinet, underscored the fragility of the president’s coalition amid deep political and personal rivalries.

DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP: Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. Available on the Apple App Store and Google Play.

A blast that levelled an explosives plant in rural Tennessee has left nineteen people missing and feared dead, authorities said.

Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said the blast at Accurate Energetic Systems, which supplies the military, was one of the worst scenes he's ever seen. He said multiple people were killed but declined to say how many, referring to the nineteen missing as "souls" because officials were still speaking to family.

"There's nothing to describe. It's gone," Davis said of the plant.

READ MORE: Putin praises Trump after failing to win the Nobel prize

The blast occurred about 7:45am, Davis said, with aerial footage by WTVF-TV showing the smouldering hilltop facility and the burnt-out shells of vehicles.

People reported hearing and feeling the explosion from kilometres away. The company's website says it makes and tests explosives at an eight-building facility that sprawls across wooded hills in the Bucksnort area, about ninety-seven kilometres southwest of Nashville.

Davis said investigators are trying to determine what happened and couldn't say what caused the explosion.

There's no further danger of explosions, and the scene was under control Friday afternoon, according to Grey Collier, a spokesperson for the Humphreys County Emergency Management Agency.

Emergency crews were initially unable to enter the plant because of continuing detonations, Hickman County Advanced EMT David Stewart said by phone. He didn't have any details on casualties.

Accurate Energetic Systems, based in nearby McEwen, did not immediately respond to a phone message seeking comment Friday morning.

"This is a tragedy for our community," McEwen Mayor Brad Rachford said in an email. He referred further comment to a county official.

Residents in Lobelville, a twenty-minute drive from the scene, said they felt their homes shake and some people captured the loud boom of the explosion on their home cameras.

The blast rattled Gentry Stover from his sleep.

"I thought the house had collapsed with me inside of it," he said by phone. "I live very close to Accurate and I realised about thirty seconds after I woke up that it had to have been that."

State Rep. Jody Barrett, a Republican from the neighbouring town of Dickson, was worried about the possible economic impact because the plant is a key employer in the area.

"We live probably 15 miles (24km) as the crow flies and we absolutely heard it at the house," Barrett said.

"It sounded like something going through the roof of our house."

READ MORE: Palestinians return to what remains of their homes

DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP: Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. Available on the Apple App Store and Google Play.

US first lady Melania Trump said she had secured an open line of communication with Russian President Vladimir Putin about repatriating Ukrainian children caught up in the war with Russia, and that some have been returned to their families with more to be reunited soon.

"This remains an ongoing effort," she told reporters at the White House on Friday. She said Putin had responded to her letter earlier this year and that they remained in touch.

"President Putin and I have had an open channel of communication about the welfare of these children," she said.

READ MORE: Putin praises Trump's peace efforts after he failed to win Nobel prize

"For the past few months, both sides have participated in several back-channel meetings and calls."

The communication between the Russian president and the US first lady is unusual and reflects a minor bright spot in what have otherwise been largely futile attempts by Washington to end the war that Russia started with its invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

President Trump, who has long touted a strong relationship with Putin and invited him to a summit in Alaska in August, has expressed frustration with the Russian leader in recent weeks for not ending the war, which Trump had promised as a candidate to do within a day.

Trump delivered a letter from his wife to Putin at the Alaska meeting.

Ukraine has called the abductions of tens of thousands of its children to Russia or Russian-occupied territory without the consent of family or guardians a war crime that meets the UN treaty definition of genocide.

Previously Moscow has said it has been protecting vulnerable children from a war zone.

The first lady said on Friday her representative was working directly with Putin's team to secure the safe reunification of children with their families between Russia and Ukraine.

Eight children had been returned to their families within the last 24 hours, she said.

"Russia continues to cooperate with the United States in various areas, including humanitarian ones. We appreciate Melania Trump's humanitarian leadership," said Russia's presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev, who was involved in discussions.

DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP: Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. Available on the Apple App Store and Google Play.

Tens of thousands of Palestinians headed back to the heavily destroyed northern Gaza Strip on Friday as a US-brokered ceasefire came into effect in a deal that raised hopes for ending the Israel-Hamas war. All the remaining hostages were set to be released within days.

Questions remain over who will govern Gaza as Israeli troops gradually pull back and whether Hamas will disarm, as called for in US President Donald Trump's ceasefire plan.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who unilaterally ended a ceasefire in March, hinted that Israel might renew its offensive if Hamas does not give up its weapons.

The latest truce nevertheless marks a key step toward ending a ruinous two-year war that was triggered by Hamas' 2023 attack on Israel.

The fighting has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and displaced around 90 per cent of the Gaza population of some 2 million, often multiple times.

Many of them will find fields of rubble where their homes once stood.

The military confirmed the start of the ceasefire on Friday, and the remaining 48 hostages, around 20 of them believed to be alive, are to be released by Monday.

Palestinians said heavy shelling in parts of Gaza earlier on Friday had mostly stopped after the military's announcement.

Netanyahu said in a televised statement on Friday that the next stages would see Hamas disarm and Gaza demilitarised.

"If this is achieved the easy way — so be it. If not — it will be achieved the hard way," Netanyahu said. He added that Hamas agreed to the deal "only when it felt that the sword was on its neck — and it is still on its neck."

The Israeli military has said it will continue to operate defensively from the roughly 50 per cent of Gaza it still controls after pulling back to agreed-upon lines.

Meanwhile, the United Nations was given the green light by Israel to begin delivering scaled-up aid into Gaza starting Sunday, a UN official said. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss details not yet made public.

The aid will include 170,000 metric tons that have already been positioned in neighboring countries such as Jordan and Egypt as humanitarian officials awaited permission from Israeli forces to restart their work.

In the last several months, the UN and its humanitarian partners have only been able to deliver 20 per cent of the aid needed in the Gaza Strip, according to UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher.

People on the move

A steady stream of people, the vast majority on foot, crammed onto a coastal road in the central Gaza Strip, heading north to see what might remain of their homes.

It was a repeat of emotional scenes from an earlier ceasefire in January. Others headed to other parts of the Palestinian territory in the south.

The destruction they find this time will be even greater, after Israel waged a new offensive in Gaza City, in the north, in recent weeks.

The military bombed high-rises and blew up homes in what it said was an attempt to destroy Hamas' remaining military infrastructure.

Palestinians have expressed relief that the war may end, tempered with concern about the future and lingering pain from the staggering death and destruction.

"There wasn't much joy, but the ceasefire somewhat eased the pain of death and bloodshed, and the pain of our loved ones and brothers who suffered in this war," said Jamal Mesbah, who was displaced from the north and plans to return.

In Gaza's southern city of Khan Younis, hundreds of Palestinians returning to their homes found wrecked buildings, rubble and destruction after Israeli troops withdrew.

"There was nothing left. Just a few clothes, pieces of wood and pots," said Fatma Radwan, who was displaced from Khan Younis. People were still trying to retrieve bodies from under the rubble, she added.

Many buildings were flattened, and none was undamaged, as people went back to search for their belongings.

"We came to a place that is unidentifiable. An unidentifiable town. Destruction is everywhere," said Hani Omran, who was also displaced from Khan Younis.

The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel on October 7, 2023, killing some 1200 people and taking 251 hostage.

In Israel's ensuing offensive, more than 67,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza and nearly 170,000 wounded, according to Gaza's Health Ministry, which doesn't differentiate between civilians and combatants but says around half the deaths were women and children.

The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government, and the United Nations and many independent experts consider its figures to be the most reliable estimate of wartime casualties.

The war has also triggered other conflicts in the region, sparked worldwide protests and led to allegations of genocide that Israel denies.

How the agreement is expected to unfold

Israel is set to release around 2000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the remaining hostages.

A list Israel published Friday did not include high-profile prisoner Marwan Barghouti, the most popular Palestinian leader and a potentially unifying figure.

Israel views him and other high-profile prisoners as terrorists and has refused to release them in past exchanges.

Khalil al-Hayya, a senior Hamas official and lead negotiator, said on Thursday evening that all women and children held in Israeli jails will be freed.

The hostage and prisoner releases are expected to begin Monday, two Egyptian officials briefed on the talks and a Hamas official said, though another official said they could occur as early as Sunday night. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to be publicly named speaking about the negotiations.

A relative of one of the Israeli hostages believed to have died in captivity says the family is hoping that his body will be returned for burial.

"It's a measured sense of hope in all hostage families,'' said Stephen Brisley, whose sister, Lianne Sharabi, and her two teenage daughters were killed at Kibbutz Be-eri in southern Israel on October 7, 2023.

Lianne's husband, Eli Sharabi, was eventually released, but his brother, Yossi, is believed to have died in an air strike in January 2024. The family hopes to give him a dignified burial.

"It's a guarded optimism because it's the kind of optimism that's born out of heartbreaking experience. We hold our hope lightly because we've had our hopes dashed before," Brisley told The Associated Press from his home in South Wales.

"It still feels like a long way between the announcement of the deal and actually getting Yossi's body back to bury him.''

As part of the deal, five border crossings are expected to reopen, including the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt, Egyptian and Hamas officials said. That will allow aid to flow into the territory, parts of which are experiencing famine.

The Trump plan calls for Israel to maintain an open-ended military presence inside Gaza, along its border with Israel. An international force, comprised largely of troops from Arab and Muslim countries, would be responsible for security inside Gaza.

To help support and monitor the ceasefire deal, US officials said they would send about 200 troops to Israel as part of a broader, international team. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss details not authorised for release.

The US would also lead a massive internationally funded reconstruction effort.

The plan also envisions an eventual role for the Palestinian Authority — something Netanyahu has long opposed. But it requires the authority, which administers parts of the West Bank, to undergo a sweeping reform program that could take years.

The Trump plan is even more vague about a future Palestinian state, which Netanyahu firmly rejects.

DOWNLOAD THE 9NEWS APP: Stay across all the latest in breaking news, sport, politics and the weather via our news app and get notifications sent straight to your smartphone. Available on the Apple App Store and Google Play.