A man has been left fighting for life after a machete attack in Footscray.

The 24-year-old was stabbed several times after a group came to blows in front of locals and diners.

CCTV footage captured the chaotic brawl spilling out onto a Footscray street just before 9.30pm last night.

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Security cameras captured a car accelerating into the battling gangs.

One man is seen pulling out a machete and allegedly stabs a 24-year-old several times before they're pulled apart. 

"The police were everywhere, the area was barricaded," a local resident told 9News.

The 24-year-old stumbled onto the pavement before collapsing on a park bench along Albert Street. 

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Evidence of the brutal attack was still visible this morning.

A badly injured local man was taken to the Royal Melbourne with life-threatening injuries and had emergency surgery.

It's unclear whether the groups knew each other or if it was a targeted attack.

No-one has been arrested, with the attackers still on the run. 

Residents and business owners in Footscray told 9News they're fed up with the amount of crime and drug use in the area.

They're calling on the already stretched police force to ramp up patrols, especially at night. 

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Campaigners are calling for mandatory cashless cards to be introduced at pokies in Queensland pubs and clubs as Queenslanders lose a record amount of money to pokies machines.

The state's players have lost $3.5 billion to gaming machines in the past year, equal to more than $9.5 million a day, according to new data.

The billions were lost in about 41,000 pokies machines across the state.

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And that's only machines in clubs and pubs, not casinos.

Losses have jumped 46 per cent since the pandemic, and areas with some of the lowest median household incomes are losing the most.

In Logan, $128,954 are lost to each pokie machines every year, while in Lockyer Valley, $111,556 is lost per machine, and in Ipswich, its $101,876 per machine per year.

"It makes us sick to the stomach when we think of the miser that that loss and that massive figure underlines in terms of the impact on families," Alliance for Gambling Reform chief executive Martin Thomas told 9News.

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"What that data tells us is the gambling industry is predatory and it targets low income households in many cases – people that can least afford to lose this money."

Critics says mandatory electronic gaming cards could prevent patrons losing more than they bargained for.

"The carded play is a simple system where people just have to identify themselves first and then they can pre-set how much they want to lose in advance," said Thomas.

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The reforms would be similar to those being introduced in Victoria, where maximum loading limits are also being slashed from $1000 to $100.

"Once they've reached that limit, it might be $100 a week, then they're locked out of playing until that next week," said Thomas.

There is also a push in New South Wales for carded play in the coming years after a trial.

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"People should be able to choose how they spend their money," said Queensland Hotels Association chief executive Bernie Hogan, who disagrees with possible reforms.

"Are we going to put restrictions on people on how … what food they buy and what cars they drive? No we don't. This is people's choice."

Queensland's attorney-general said the findings from interstate will be considered before any changes are made.

There are many different ways to get help and information about gambling. You can visit the National Gambling Helpline or call on 1800 858 858.

A young mother says she has been left traumatised by a Melbourne shopping centre attack that police fear was racially motivated.

Two Muslim women, one of whom is pregnant, were hospitalised following the assaults at Pacific Epping on High Street in Epping about 1.10pm on Thursday.

One of the victims, a 27-year-old mother-of-two, was grocery shopping when a random woman slapped her across the face and shoved her to the ground.

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She suffered bruising across her body and said she is now too scared to leave her home.

"This lady, like out of nowhere, just came and like it was a punch, smack, something like that, right across my left side," she told 9News.

"I'm an Australian citizen, I was born here. Getting attacked in your own country is a bit wild."

About 10 minutes earlier, another woman, aged 30, had her hijab grabbed in an attack as she sat at a a cafe inside the shopping centre.

"She said [the attacker] came from behind and choked her with her hijab and wouldn't let go," the woman told 9News.

9News understands members of the public did not intervene during the incidents.

The attacker fled the scene on foot.

Both women were taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries and police are investigating.

"There is absolutely no place in our society for discriminatory, racist, or hate-based behaviour and such activity will not be tolerated," a spokesperson for Victoria Police said.

The Australian National Imams Council (ANIC) condemned the assaults.

"Both victims, one of whom is pregnant, were taken to Northern Hospital by ambulance for treatment after being left with bruises, scratches, and potentially long-term physical injuries," an ANIC spokesperson said. 

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"Despite the prompt response of police and ambulance officers at the scene, the aftermath of this incident has left the victims feeling ignored and fearing for their safety."

The spokesperson said one of the women was then subjected to online threats after sharing the incident in a local Facebook group.

"We insist on an overhaul of current protocols to ensure that all Islamophobic attacks are taken seriously, and that those affected receive the necessary follow-up and referrals to victim support services," the spokesperson added.

Anyone who witnessed the assaults is urged to contact police or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

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An Adelaide psychologist has created a unique video game to help children navigate anxiety and mental health challenges. 

Drawing from her extensive experience working with children, April Benjamin identified a disconnect between traditional therapeutic methods and the way children prefer to engage.

"Kids were really struggling to maintain therapeutic outcomes because a lot of therapy involves homework tasks," Benjamin told 9News. 

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Recognising the need for a more engaging approach, she devised a game called Taming Yore Dragon that incorporates key therapeutic concepts in a fun and interactive way.

"It was wonderful to see the kids play it, and they were having so much fun, I don't think they noticed they were learning (cognitive behavioural therapy), but the parents really understood what the kids were doing," Benjamin said.

She's aiming to bring the game to the market within the next two months, and hopes other child psychologists will adopt the game as part of their therapeutic approach.

Until then, Taming Yore Dragon will be available on game platform Steam for around $30.

This article was produced with the assistance of 9ExPress.

Gold Coast wrestler Danielle Glanville, better known as Harley Cameron, has returned to Queensland after leaving the cabaret stage of Dracula's on the Gold Coast to grace wrestling rings worldwide.

Cameron showcased her newfound wrestling talents in front of an adoring hometown crowd, describing it as a "full circle moment" since leaving the Gold Coast uncertain of her future.

"I left here when I had no idea what I was going to do when i moved to America, it's nice to come back to have achieved this," she said.

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Despite not securing a victory in her Brisbane match during the All Elite Wrestling tour, Cameron's performance was met with enthusiastic cheers from her dedicated fans.

She told 9News that nearly 100 friends and family members had come to support her.

Cameron's journey to wrestling stardom began with her years of experience on the Dracula's stage, where she honed performance skills that have proven invaluable in her new profession.

"A lot of people like to say it's not real," she said.

"What we do is very real.

"It requires extreme levels of athleticism and dedication."

This article was produced with the assistance of 9ExPress.

An Artificial Intelligence (AI) powered robot companion is helping Victoria's aged care population fight loneliness.

Colourful humanoid friend Abi loves to dance, blows bubbles and speaks 90 languages to help aged care residents and staff communicate.

But most importantly, she can recognise people, understands emotions and can build friendships.

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Andromeda founder Grace Brown said Abi's purpose was to combat isolation.

"Around 60 per cent of people in aged care never receive visits from friends or family," Brown said.

"People see her as a grandchild, they don't see a robot.

"Our big-picture mission is to replace one billion hours of loneliness and isolation with joy and companionship."

Abi is being trialled at an aged-care home in the Melbourne suburb of Prahran, with hopes she will be present across 22 aged-care facilities in Victoria by the middle of the year.

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Erik de Haart, who survived and heroically helped save others in the 2002 Bali bombings, has died.

Coogee Dolphins club president Wayne Hack shared the news with "profound sadness" that de Haart had died suddenly.

"Erik was a loyal servant, life member and sponsor of our club," he said.

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"He will forever be remembered in the immediate aftermath of the Bali tragedy of 2002 as a hero.

"The Coogee Dolphins would like to extend our deepest and heartfelt sympathies to Erik's immediate and extended family and his many friends."

Haart and his rugby league club teammates had arrived in Bali and were at the Sari Club on October 12, 2002.

That night, two bombs orchestrated by terrorist groups exploded at the Sari Club and Paddy's Bar.

A total of 202 people, including 88 Australians, were killed and another 240 people were injured.

A third bomb struck near the US consulate in Denpasar.

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de Haart lost six of his friends but helped save others and pull them from the burning ruins of the Sari Club. 

"I heard these girls crying for help, screaming. They were behind a section of the roof that had fallen in," de Haart told AAP in 2016.

"The flames from the burning thatch were probably knee to mid-thigh high. I had to make a decision.

"Do I try and get them out and perhaps die in the attempt?

"I had to walk away and leave those girls to die and it's something that's haunted me for a long, long time … It's made me feel like an impostor.

"People say 'you're a hero'. And I remember those girls and I don't think I'm a hero."

Various members of the terrorist group Jemaah Islamiyah were convicted over the bombings and three were sentenced to death.

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A Sydney nurse who allegedly threatened to harm Israeli patients in a video with a social media influencer has apologised again through his lawyer and vowed to cooperate with police.

Police are still working to determine if any charges can be laid against nurses Ahmad Rashad Nadir and Sarah Abu Lebdeh after the video emerged last week.

Today, Nadir's lawyer Mohamad Sakr apologised once again on behalf of his client.

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"By no means does he protect what he has done or hide from it," he said.

"He does not represent a community of faith."

Detectives have yet to formally interview both nurses after only receiving the full video from an Israeli influencer over the weekend. 

Sakr told 9News that Nadir is planning on attending Bankstown Police Station once he is mentally fit to do so. 

"He is more than happy to cooperate with police," he said.

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Western Australian Senator Fatima Payman condemned the nurses for their "terrible comment" but said they are being treated as if they had "committed the absolute worst crime imaginable".

"The prime minister has commented. Premiers and ministers have weighed in. The entire media landscape has been consumed by the story, front page news around the country for days on end," she said in a social media video.

"These individuals have been fired, banned from ever working as nurses again, raided by police, placed under the most intense public scrutiny, and now [they are] the ones being hospitalised.

"They've apologised, they've been punished. What is the end goal here? What exactly are we trying to achieve justice or just public humiliation?"

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Payman compared the treatment the nurses have received to The Daily Telegraph's alleged failed stunt with a Jewish activist at Cairo Takeaway in Newtown last week.

"If we hold two 20-somethings accountable, how can we allow a major media organisation to get off scot-free?" she said.

Payman's comments echoed a statement from the Lebanese Muslim Association, saying the controversy isn't about what was said in the video of the nurses, but instead "the speed, intensity and uniformity of response" from the government and the media and the "calculated and politically-motivated outrage".

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A legal loophole that allowed alleged murderers to argue they killed someone in self-defence while affected by self-induced intoxication will soon be closed in South Australia.

The campaign for the law change was spearheaded by the family of Synamin Bell, whose killer, Cody Edwards, successfully used the defence to have his murder charge downgraded to manslaughter.

Edwards was given an 11-year sentence over Bell's death.

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"It's heartbreaking. This guy is going to be out pretty much at the turn of the decade, and he shouldn't be out," said the victim's brother, Paul.

The family launched a fight for the legal loophole to be closed, and today were successful, when South Australian Attorney-General Kyam Maher announced the introduction of "Synamin's Law".

It will prevent killers from arguing self-defence when their psychosis is brought on by their own decision to take drugs. 

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"I think all South Australians were shocked with many aspects of this case," Maher said. 

"No one should have to go through what Synamin Bell's family and friends have gone through."

The closing of the legal loophole has been welcomed by the family, who say they'll now have some peace knowing their fight will help others.

"We've paid the ultimate price. But hopefully the price we paid means no one else has to pay that price," Paul Bell said.

This article was produced with the assistance of 9ExPress.

A historic coin worth $525,000 that was stolen from a Polish museum has finally been returned by the Australian Federal Police (AFP) after it ended up in the hands of a Perth collector.

The 1813 Holey Dollar coin was stolen from a museum collection in Toruń, Poland, sometime between 2011 and 2018, leading Polish authorities to run a global investigation to track it down.

They discovered it had been exported into Germany, where it was offered for sale in two auctions.

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It then made its way to Melbourne, Australia, where it was sold at auction to an Australian collector in Perth for $525,000.

The AFP, in cooperation with the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts, seized the coin in Perth on August 26 last year after the owner was identified through the most recent seller, an Australian company specialising in rare coins.

The coin was then surrendered to the AFP willingly.

"It is not expected any Australian-based individuals will face criminal charges, as all local transactions were made in good faith," an AFP spokesperson said.

"All parties were unaware at the time the coin had been stolen."

The coin was formally returned to representatives of the Polish government by Arts Minister Tony Burke on behalf of the Australian government at a ceremony at the Embassy of Poland on February 14.

It is believed to be the first time Australian law enforcement has arranged the return of a cultural object to the European nation.

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The coin is significant to Poland, and the Regional Museum of Toruń, for historical, cultural, and monetary reasons.

It was struck from a Spanish silver dollar minted at the Mexico Mint in 1777 during the reign of King Charles III of Spain.

It is also of significance to Australia as Holey Dollars were created to address a shortage of coins in the then-colony of New South Wales.

Marcin Kawałowski, Poland's chargé d'affaires in Australia, praised the AFP's efforts to have the object returned to his country.

"As a diplomat, I obviously recognise the importance of official agreements and political declarations, but it gives me great satisfaction when I can witness the practical dimension of successful bilateral cooperation," he said.