Maya Jamieson

Dozens of activists have protested outside a high profile conservative conference in Sydney held over the weekend. They were opposing giving a platform to those addressing the Conservative Political Action Conference – or CPAC - billed as the biggest gathering of conservatives in Australia.

Palestinian officials have rejected the first proposals by President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, as part of his long awaited Middle East peace plan. The economic plan will be presented at a conference in Bahrain next week, but the Palestinian Authority has said it will boycott the…

Wharf number five at Sydney's Circular Quay was the venue for a special anniversary on the weekend. At that spot 70 years ago, the SS Luciana Manara docked, having sailed from the Mediterranean port cities of Marseille and Genoa with hundreds of passengers – many of whom survived the Holocaust in Germany and Poland. It was one of the hundreds of boats that brought Holocaust survivors to Australia, including the parents of Velvel Lederman. "A few of us came on the ferry and…

There's a fresh warning over public health after testing of several imported cosmetics, including Hashmi Surmi Special and Hashmi Kohl Aswad eyeliners, revealed an 84 per cent lead content. The products were also found to contain high levels of dangerous metals such as arsenic, cadmium, chromium and mercury. NSW Minister for Better Regulation Matt Kean says concerns were raised when three children from the same family became sick. “Doctor’s tested the children and found e…

‘Jirga’ is described as 'a modern morality tale' about a former Australian soldier, Mike, who returns to Afghanistan to apologise to the family of an unarmed civilian he killed in the heat of the battle. “He's been living with this guilt and he goes back to make good a war crime that he committed,” Director Benjamin Gilmour told SBS. The paramedic turned film director says he set out to paint a picture of the 'true Afghanistan'. "Jir…

Australia may be a continent but when it comes to the English-Australian accent, it's pretty much standard across the states. Researchers from the University of Melbourne say it's less to do with geography and more to do with history. "For instance you can tell when someone's from the south of England or north of England, you can tell when someone's from Wales; you can tell when someone's from Scotland" says Professor John Hajek from the School of Languages a…

The four were arrested as minors, aged between 13 and 17, after allegedly participating in pro-democracy protests during 2011 and 2012.   They were sentenced to death after reportedly being tortured into ‘confessions’ and convicted in secret trials. "We've now seen 11 executions in just two days which is an unprecedented rate of executions for Saudi Arabia and deeply troubling," Maya Foa, Director of London-based human rights organisation Reprieve, told SBS Worl…

Saudi authorities say the offences were committed in the Qatif region of the oil-rich Eastern Province of the country. But Amnesty International has accused the Saudi government of carrying out a "systematic crackdown" which has seen "virtually all independent human rights activists and other critics silenced, prosecuted and sentenced to lengthy prison terms or forced to flee the country". A report this year by human rights organisation Reprieve found that 41 per cent…

Scotland's First Minister says the Scottish Parliament may be able to stop the UK leaving the European Union, but is the claim correct?