Friday, 10 October - I'm vanilla, baby

October 10, 2025

Good morning, it’s Friday, 10 October. In your Squiz Today…

  • The Gaza peace plan is a go

  • Police make an arrest over the LA wildfires

  • And a brilliant orange biscuit…

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Squiz the Weather

Squiz Sayings

"Did the baby have to come out of the sunroof????”

Said one commenter on a TikTok video about baby Cassian, a Nashville baby who broke records (and the interwebs) when he was born weighing a considerable 5.8kg - more than 2kg above the average. Mum and bub are doing fine and enjoying their online fame…

A breakthrough in Gaza

The Squiz

After days of negotiations, Israeli and Hamas officials have signed off on the first phase of the US-led plan to end the war in Gaza. We learned about it yesterday in what analysts called a “made-for-TV” moment, when one of US President Donald Trump's meetings was interrupted with a handwritten note about the imminent deal, which he confirmed shortly after. It comes a week after he shared his 20-point peace plan to end the war in Gaza - and 2 years after the 7 October Hamas terror attacks on Israel. Both Trump and Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu are framing it as a "turning point" in the war, and they're not alone - along with being welcomed by many world leaders, there have been celebrations in Israel and Gaza…

What’s been agreed to?

The full details haven’t been laid out yet, but here’s a good summary of what we do know. For Palestinians in Gaza, the key bit is that there will be a pause in fighting. It’s also not clear when that will start, but a spokesperson for Netanyahu said it’ll be within the next 24 hours. On that, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is pushing for a permanent ceasefire and the "immediate and unimpeded" flow of aid into Gaza to be secured ASAP. And, from Israel's perspective, the main thing is that Hamas has agreed to release the last 20 living hostages who are still held in Gaza, in exchange for 2,000 Palestinian prisoners who are being held by Israel. That's expected to happen within 72 hours of the ceasefire starting - Trump says it’ll probably go ahead on Monday.

What else should I know?

Firstly, Netanyahu has invited Trump to address the Knesset (the Israeli parliament), and Trump has said it’ll “likely” happen in the coming days. But as you might expect, it’s not all smooth sailing with the plan… One complication is that Israeli intelligence suggests Hamas may struggle to find and return the bodies of 28 dead hostages still in Gaza. Analysts say other sticking points for the next phases of the peace deal include questions over the future governance of Gaza and the disarmament of Hamas. Here at home, we've also mentioned the pro-Palestine march to the Sydney Opera House forecourt that was planned for this weekend… That’s now been blocked in court after a trio of judges agreed with police that it would present a “public safety risk”. Protestors in Sydney have made alternative plans, which you can see here, and protests are still scheduled to happen across the country.

Your wardrobe can make a difference

Next Saturday, 18 October, Uber is offering free courier pickups in Adelaide, Brisbane, Melbourne, Perth, and Sydney to get your quality pre-loved clothes to Red Cross drop off locations. Two-thirds of Aussies say they'd donate more if it were easier - and it could not be easier than booking it on the Uber or Uber Eats app... Donations like this fund vital Red Cross work across Australia, so to find out more, head to uber.com/redcross.

Squiz the Rest

Eyes on the prize

That’d be the Nobel Peace Prize, which will be awarded in Norway at 8pm AEDT tonight. While the rest of the Nobel Prizes are awarded in Sweden, it's a panel of 5 Norwegian judges who decide who receives one of the most famous prizes in the world. A big talking point this year is that it's an award President Trump has made no secret about wanting, so much so that reports say he has lobbied senior Norwegian politicians about it. Nobel experts say it’s unlikely he’ll win - and the decision was made on Monday before the Gaza ceasefire was agreed - but many in Norway are worried about blowback from the US if Trump doesn’t get the nod. We’ll find out today - but in the meantime, congrats are in order for Hungarian novelist László Krasznahorkai, who won the Nobel Prize for Literature last night.

US officials arrest an alleged arsonist…

…on charges of starting one of those deadly LA fires that dominated headlines at the start of the year. This was the Palisades fire, which destroyed thousands of homes across LA and killed 12 people. US officials announced yesterday they’ve charged 29yo Jonathan Rinderknecht with destruction of property by means of fire - but that could be followed by more charges, including murder. Acting US Attorney Bill Essayli says Rinderknecht lit the fire on New Year’s Day and gave away information during interviews with police that he couldn’t have known unless he started it. He’ll appear in the US Federal Court next week - and as for the other major fire that happened around the same time (which is called the Eaton fire), the cause of that one is still TBD…

No ban for 4chan

We’re now 2 months away from the government’s upcoming social media ban on under-16yos, and the questions on how this is all going to work are still coming… The latest platform in the spotlight is 4chan, a controversial internet forum where users can stay completely anonymous. eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant was asked during Senate Estimates if the ban would include 4chan, but she said that since it's "really an image board", it's off the hook - for now, at least. Inman Grant says she's recommended 6 platforms - YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, X, and Snapchat - as no-go zones for young'uns as of 10 December. And despite concerns about how the tech will work, it’s not deterring other countries from joining the fray - this week, we learned the Danish will be following our lead…

The Vics top the uni list

Staff and students at the University of Melbourne might be walking a little taller today as a new ranking says it’s the best uni in Australia. This global list comes from The Times Higher Education (THE) magazine, and Melbourne Uni placed 37th, ahead of the University of Sydney at 53 and Monash University at 58. THE spokesman (cool title) Phil Baty said Australia was bucking the trend of many Western universities by continuing to improve their results post-COVID. But good luck ever beating the UK’s Oxford University, which claimed its 10th top spot on the trot. And if you feel like you’ve seen this story before, you’re not wrong - there was another ranking by a different organisation earlier in the year, with Melbourne topping the Oz contingent on that list too. It must be doing something right…

Vanilla that’s all killer, no filler

Stop, collaborate and listen, because consumer advocacy group Choice has taken on the toughest job in the media by taste-testing various vanilla ice creams - and it reckons home brands are the go over the pricier products. Specifically, the Coles Irresistible Vanilla Bean got the highest rating on the list (at a price of 65c per 100ml), with Aldi and Woolworths home brands also getting a big tick. More ‘premium’ brands like Connoisseur and Häagen-Dazs didn’t get much love despite their higher price tags, so if you’re stocking up, maybe don’t spend up as well… The full results breakdown is here, if you'd like to plan your shop or spend the weekend doing your own taste-test experiment, which sounds like a pretty good time to us…

Friday Lites - 3 things we liked this week

It’s been school holidays and you know what that means - snacks, and plenty of them. These Chocolate Dipped Orange Shortbread bickies take no time to whip up and they give a pleasing Jaffa kick - 100% recommend with a cuppa or for throwing to hungry teenagers…

For a mystery show with a difference, check out Code of Silence on SBS On Demand… It stars British actor Rose Ayling-Ellis as a deaf caterer who becomes part of a police operation thanks to her lip-reading skills. Ayling-Ellis is excellent, and it's a brisk 6-episode sprint…

Hades was a 2020 action video game set in the world of Greek mythology, and its beautiful art style and addictive gameplay made it an instant hit. The sequel Hades II just dropped, and it might be even better - the gamer in your life can’t go too wrong with these ones…

Squiz the Day

Friday
7.00am (AEDT) - Australian activists Abu Bakr Rafiq, Juliet Lamont, and Hamish Paterson, who were detained by Israel aboard the Global Sumud Flotilla, will arrive back in Australia - Sydney 

10.00am (AEDT) - Federal Parliament will deliver supplementary budget estimates - Canberra

12.30pm (AEST) - Queensland Treasurer and Energy Minister David Janetzki will speak at the Queensland Media Club to release the state’s 5-year energy roadmap - Brisbane 

1.30pm (ACDT) - Aboriginal elder Sue Haseldine of the Kokatha people will call on Premier Peter Malinauskas at South Australian Parliament to stop Southern Launch’s rocket testing in the state’s far west - Adelaide

6.00pm (AEDT) - The 2025 MAKE Award for innovation in Australian craft and design will be announced - Sydney

7.00pm (AEDT) - Soccer: the inaugural match of the new football competition, the Australian Championship, will see South Melbourne play Sydney Olympic at Lakeside Stadium - Melbourne 

6.30pm (AEST) - Hockey: Brisbane v Perth in Round 1 of the men’s Hockey One competition - Brisbane, watch on 7plus

8.00pm (AEDT) - The Nobel Prize for Peace is to be announced at The Norwegian Nobel Committee - Oslo, Norway

8.15pm (AEST) - Hockey: Brisbane v Perth in Round 1 of the women’s Hockey One competition - Brisbane, watch on 7plus

ABS data releases: Monthly Business Turnover, August 2025

Fiji celebrates its 55th anniversary of independence from the UK 

Party Foundation Day in North Korea, marking the 80th anniversary of the foundation of the Workers' Party of Korea 

World Homeless DayWorld Egg Day - to celebrate, Australian Eggs will donate over 30,000 eggs to Two Good Co as part of the organisation’s delivery of 30,000 meals each year to women in crisis - Sydney

🥣 World Porridge Day 

Birthdays for author Nora Roberts (1950) and rock singer David Lee Roth (1954) 

Anniversary of:

  • the deaths of Dutch navigator Abel Tasman (1659), singer Édith Piaf (1963), American filmmaker Orson Welles (1985), Russian-American actor Yul Brynner (1985), actor Christopher Reeve (2004), and opera singer Dame Joan Sutherland (2010)

  • the first dinner jacket (tuxedo) being worn to an autumn ball at Tuxedo Park, NY (1886)

  • the formation of the Women's Social and Political Union by Emmeline Pankhurst to fight for women's rights in Britain (1903)

  • the release of the Beach Boys single Good Vibrations (1966)

Saturday
10.30am (AEDT) - Football: Socceroos v Canada in an international friendly at Stade Saputo - Montreal, Canada, watch on Paramount+

11.00am (AEDT) - Basketball: The WNBA finals continue with Game 4 between the Las Vegas Aces v Phoenix Mercury - Phoenix, US, watch on Kayo 

7.45pm (AEDT) - The Sveriges Riksbank Prize for Economic Sciences will be announced at The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences - Stockholm, Sweden

7.30pm (AWST) - WWE: Crown Jewel event at RAC Arena will feature wrestling superstars, including John Cena and Aussie Rhea Ripley - Perth

The Narromine Dolly Parton Festival gets underway - Narromine, NSW

French President Emmanuel Macron is expected to name a new French Prime Minister - the country’s sixth in 2 years…

It's 50 years since the premiere of Saturday Night Live, which aired in 1975, and the 50th wedding anniversary for Bill and Hillary Clinton - celebrations all round 

Birthdays for actors Dawn French (1957) and Joan Cusack (1962), and rapper Cardi B (1992)

Anniversary of:

  • the inauguration of the University of Sydney, Australia's oldest university (1852)

  • the birthdays of the first Governor of NSW, Arthur Phillip (1738), former First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt (1884), and actor Luke Perry (1966)

  • the release of John Lennon's single Imagine (1971)

Sunday
3.45am (AEDT) - Triathlon: Women’s Hawaii Ironman gets underway in the Ironman World Championships - Kailua-Kona, US, watch live on DAZN or catch the recap on YouTube

From 10.45am (AEDT) - Marches for Palestine will be held across the country to mark 2 years since Israel began its offensive in Gaza - Australia-wide

2.00pm (AEDT) - Rugby league: the annual Australian PM XIII v PNG PM XIII women's international match will take place at Santos National Football Stadium - Port Moresby, PNG, watch on Channel 9

4.00pm (AEDT) - Rugby league: men’s Test of the Australian PM XIII v PNG PM XIII competition follows at Santos National Football Stadium - Port Moresby, PNG, watch on Channel 9

4.00pm (ACDT) - Netball: The third and final match between Australia and South Africa kicks off at Adelaide Entertainment Centre - Adelaide, watch free on Kayo Freebies

8.30pm (AEDT) - Cricket: Australia v India in the Women's ICC Cricket World Cup - Visakhapatnam, India

Cameroon will vote in presidential elections, with the country’s current 92yo president, Paul Biya, seeking re-election for an 8th term in office

A new digitised entry system will be rolled out in the EU, which will see 29 European countries require face and fingerprint scans at border checks 

Independence Day in Equatorial Guinea

National Carers Week begins (until 18 October)

Birthdays for actors Hugh Jackman (1968) and Josh Hutcherson (1992)

Anniversary of:

  • the first Oktoberfest, when the Bavarian royalty invited the citizens of Munich to join the celebration of the marriage of Crown Prince Ludwig of Bavaria to Princess Therese von Sachsen-Hildburghausen (1810)

  • Scottish chemist Charles Macintosh begins selling raincoats (macs) after patenting them (1823)

  • the Day of Six Billion: when the 6 billionth human in the world was born (1999)

  • the Bali terrorist attacks that killed 202 people - including 88 Australians (2002)

  • the re-election of Bolivian president Evo Morales (2014)