SpaceX has launched the largest rocket system ever from its spaceport in Boca Chica Texas. The crewless vehicle - Starship - successfully took off, but exploded mid-air after its rocket stages failed to separate. Elon Musk, SpaceX's CEO who has celebrated previous failures, said the first test was always a 50-50 bet.

Kopernik Shores

Giant Starship rocket explodes after launch

First, the race to space was just about getting there. Now it's about getting a lot of people or a lot of heavy equipment off our planet at once. At least it is for SpaceX CEO Elon Musk. Starship is supposed to be the largest vehicle ever sent to space. Standing at 120 meters in stainless steel, it's designed to propel 100 people, or more than 100 tons of equipment, to orbit. And Musk is the only space entrepreneur making that bet. He says it could ferry passengers around the world in half an hour. But he says his ultimate vision, to colonize Mars, is built on ideals. Life can't just be about solving problems. They have to be things that inspire you. And going out there and being a multi-planet species and being a space-faring civilization and making science fiction not fiction forever, I think that's one of those things. Musk has had a tough year. Tesla, his electric car company, is facing competition in a sector it used to dominate. And after paying $44 billion for Twitter in October, he told employees in March the company is now worth half that. But in just a decade, SpaceX has proven that rockets, once thought disposable, can be safely reused. Getting Starship to the launch pad has not been cheap. In 2020 and 21, early versions performed spectacular flips and plunges over the swamps of southern Texas but exploded on landing. The other way of viewing this is that this is just an experiment. Like we're going to do this and then see if this is a possibility of a market. But if you can treat a $100 million rocket as an experiment, there's a lot of things that you can consider experiments. The bigger question is how or why such a craft would ever be used. We don't have any of the systems in place on how to handle that sort of volume of people, what that social organization would look like. I would say that when it comes to thinking about Starship and what the future might bring for it, just because we can build a rocket doesn't mean that we can build a civilization. Musk, who has celebrated previous failures, said the first test was always a 50-50 bet. A safe prediction. Colin Baker, Al Jazeera.

Tension between Iran and Israel dominated the final day of discussions at the G7 meeting in Italy. Foreign ministers called for de-escalation, while threatening further sanctions against Iran.

Capri

G7 considers further sanctions against Iran

Social media giant X has been directed by the eSafety Commissioner of Australia to remove certain posts related to the stabbing of a Sydney bishop. However Elon Musk and X have publicly defied these demands, critiquing the requests as censorship.

Canberra

Elon Musk slams request by Australian Government

Explosions echoed over an Iranian city in what sources said was an Israeli attack, but Tehran played down the incident and indicated it had no plans for retaliation - a response that appeared gauged towards averting region-wide war.

Washington

Israel-Gaza War

Iran signals 'no retaliation' for Israeli strikes

A man has died and multiple people are injured after a bus and car crashed, following a police pursuit outside Dubbo, Central West NSW.

Dubbo

Driver dead, multiple injuries following police pursuit

The U.S. House of Representatives advanced a $95 billion legislative package to provide aid to Ukraine, Israel and the Indo-Pacific in a broad bipartisan vote, overcoming hardline Republican opposition that had held it up for months.

Major military aid deal for Ukraine one step closer

Wait times for elective surgery and emergency treatment are at dangerous new highs according to figures from the Australian Medical Association. The revelation coincides with a meeting of the nation's health ministers to negotiate a new hospitals funding agreement.

Elective surgery wait times longest on record

Russian night-time strikes killed eight people, including two children, and injured 18 in Ukraine's central Dnipropetrovsk region, the interior ministry said.

Dnipro

Ukraine Invasion

Ukraine says eight killed in Russian strikes

Israeli media cited foreign reports of an Israeli strike on Iran in the absence of official public comment, while Iranian television reports played down the attack - many not even mentioning the "Zionist entity," Iran's term for Israel. Muted responses suggested neither side wanted to escalate the conflict.

Tehran

Israel, Iran both muted in response to Isfahan attack

At least 69 people across Pakistan died in the past week after heavy rainfall caused severe flooding, according to the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). Apart from those killed, dozens have suffered injuries from lightning strikes and buildings collapsing, local media reported.

Chaman

Dozens killed in Pakistan as heavy rain causes flooding

South Korea's government has announced a compromise in its medical reform plans in a bid to end a two-month walkout by doctors, and also said President Yoon Suk Yeol would meet the opposition leader for the first time after two years in office.

Seoul

South Korea government to compromise on medical reforms

Ukraine says it has shot down a Russian strategic bomber 185 miles from its border on Friday (April 19) after the warplane took part in an airstrike that killed at least eight people in the central Dnipropetrovsk region.

Stavropol

Ukraine downs Russian strategic bomber after strike

Explosions echoed over an Iranian city in what sources described as an Israeli attack, but Tehran played down the incident and indicated it had no plans for retaliation - a response that appeared gauged towards averting region-wide war.

Iran signals no retaliation against Israel after drone attack

The United States voted against a Palestinian request to the United Nations Security Council for full UN membership, blocking the world body's recognition of a Palestinian state. The draft resolution received 12 votes in favour, two abstentions from the UK and Switzerland, and one vote against.

New York

U.S. vetoes Palestinian request for U.N. membership

Indonesian authorities closed an airport and residents left homes near an erupting volcano due to the dangers of spreading ash, falling rocks, hot volcanic clouds and the possibility of a tsunami.

Sulawesi

Tsunami warning after Indonesia volcano erupts

Israel has attacked Iran, three people familiar with the matter said, as Iranian state media reported that its forces had destroyed drones, days after Iran launched a retaliatory drone strike on Israel.

Israel strikes targets in Iran: Sources

Police have interviewed the sixteen-year-old accused of stabbing a Western Sydney Bishop during an alleged terror attack last Sunday. He's now facing terrorism charges that carry lengthy jail terms.

Council of the City of Sydney

Teen facing life behind bars after terror charges

Kenya's military chief, General Francis Ogolla, was among 10 people killed in a military helicopter crash shortly after take-off, President William Ruto announced. The helicopter was visiting troops combating cattle rustling when it crashed minutes after takeoff, Ruto said.

Nairobi

Kenya's military chief killed in helicopter crash

After a few setbacks, 12 jurors and one alternate have been selected for Donald Trump's hush-money trial. The former U.S. president is lashing out, calling the trial 'unfair' even after he was accused of violating a gag order.

12 jurors picked for Trump's hush money trial

Indonesian rescuers raced to evacuate thousands of people Thursday after a volcano erupted five times, forcing authorities to close a nearby airport and issue a warning that the crater collapsing into the sea could cause a tsunami.

North Sulawesi

Indonesian volcano's multiple eruptions prompt evacuations

The U.S. has reinstated oil sanctions against Venezuela's government, arguing it has not met conditions to hold fair and competitive elections as negotiated with U.S. envoys and the opposition last year. However, the U.S. oil company Chevron will be allowed to continue a joint venture with the Venezuelan state oil company.

Caracas

U.S. reimposes sanctions on Venezuela’s oil, gas sectors

Friday sees the start of the general election in India. Voting in the world's largest democracy will last nearly six weeks. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking a third term. But the ruling BJP is criticized for promoting a Hindu nationalist agenda and cracking down on the opposition.

New Delhi

Voting set to begin in India's national election

The U.S. House of Representatives will have its long-awaited vote on aid for Ukraine, Israel and the Indo-Pacific as soon as Saturday, Republican Speaker Mike Johnson said, paving the way for its possible passage despite fierce objections from the right wing of his conference.

U.S. House to vote on Ukraine and Israel aid

The E.U. and U.S. have pledged to impose new sanctions on Iran following its attack on Israel. The E.U.'s top diplomat, Josep Borrell, says these further sanctions will be discussed by European leaders at their summit in Brussels, which is now under way.

Brussels

E.U., U.S. pledge to impose new sanctions on Iran

A Sydney bishop stabbed by a teenager in an alleged terrorism incident has spoken from hospital, saying he forgives his attacker.

Doonside

Bishop forgives attacker as rioters granted bail

An alleged ringleader behind a major drug importation syndicate has been arrested, after a number of 'cocaine bricks' washed up on Sydney and Central Coast beaches late last year.

Manly

Smuggler behind beach 'cocaine bricks' arrested

The Democratic-majority U.S. Senate dismissed impeachment charges against President Joe Biden's top border official, bringing a swift end to an effort that House of Representatives Republicans launched months ago.

U.S. Senate ends impeachment bid against Mayorkas

The owner of a wellness retreat near Ballarat has shared her 'deep sorrow and shock' following the death of a 53-year-old woman. It's understood Rachael Dixon consumed a drink made with mushrooms before she died.

Clunes

Wellness retreat 'shock' at mushroom death

The dry desert countries of Oman and the U.A.E. are dealing with the aftermath of deadly flash floods caused by more than one year's worth of rain falling in just 24 hours, which some are attributing to climate change.

Dubai

Climate Crisis

Record rainfall causes deadly floods in U.A.E., Oman

Germany has urged the European Union and NATO member states to bolster Ukraine's air defenses as quickly as possible as Russian missiles pounded Ukrainian cities and its president repeated urgent calls for support. The Netherlands, Czechia and Denmark quickly rallied behind the proposal.

NATO looks to bolster Ukraine air defenses

Bondi Junction shopping centre will reopen today for a community reflection day before resuming normal trading hours from Friday. Meanwhile, six victims from the stabbing attack remain in hospital, with two women in ICU.