Monday, 19 August - Let that pony run

Take Mondays easy with Marley Spoon

Good morning, it’s Monday, 19 August. In your Squiz Today…

  • Ukraine strengthens its surprise offensive inside Russia

  • NSW Liberals threaten legal action over missed deadline

  • And a clean winner of a kid…

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Squiz the Weather

Squiz Sayings

"I was so convinced that I wasn't going to win this that I said that if I did win it, I would have all the nominees' initials tattooed on my arse live tomorrow morning."

Said TV presenter Larry Emdur after winning the Gold Logie last night - and no doubt ratings for The Morning Show will spike this morning…

Turning the tables on Russia

The Squiz

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky says his troops’ positions in Russia’s Kursk region are “strengthening” as its deepest offensive over the border since the war began 2.5 years ago continues. Yesterday, Russian officials claimed Ukraine has “completely destroyed” a strategically important bridge used to get supplies to its troops, and Ukraine claimed it’s still making progress and is now controlling over 80 Russian settlements. It marks the biggest attack on Russian soil since World War II, and experts say it’s a significant shift in the dynamic with Ukraine asserting itself in the conflict. 

How did Ukraine do it?

It’s been made possible thanks to the supply of military hardware and ammunition from the West. Russian officials say the  "terrorist invasion" won’t change the course of the war, and while it’s too early to know if that’s the case, it’s embarrassing for Russian President Vladimir Putin… Experts say his military didn’t see the attack coming due to Ukraine’s excellent planning of the secret offensive (which even Ukraine’s allies didn’t expect…), which has led to it controlling more than 1,000km2 of enemy territory. Ukraine spent weeks building up a force using soldiers from “battle-hardened units”, and since crossing the border, air defences, supporting artillery, and jamming devices to prevent Russian military communications have sustained the offensive. Analysts say it shows “there is no such thing as war fatigue” for Ukraine, as overnight it blew up a second Russian bridge… 

What’s next? 

Ukraine’s long-term plan isn’t clear - it could continue pushing into Russian territory or return to its own front line where reports say Russian troops are making gains. Experts say it depends on whether the objective is to make a point to Moscow that “great powers do not lose their territories” or if it wants to really hurt Russia. Either way, even Putin’s staunchest allies are concerned, with Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko saying leaders should “sit down at the negotiating table and end this scuffle." Whether anyone could broker ceasefire talks is a big TBD… Ahead of that, Ukraine may have bigger issues to address as experts warned its Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant is “deteriorating” after a drone strike on Saturday. International Atomic Energy Agency boss Rafael Grossi says he’s concerned for the safety of Europe’s largest nuclear facility and called for “maximum restraint from all sides.”

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Squiz the Rest

Gaza ceasefire hopes continue to flicker

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has landed in Israel for talks with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu as part of efforts to conclude a ceasefire deal to end the fighting between Israel and Hamas and free Israeli hostages. Talks in Doha are due to resume this week after US President Joe Biden said on Friday that negotiations last week brought the parties "closer than we have ever been" to making a deal. For their part, the Israelis have expressed "cautious optimism", while a senior Hamas official was less enthusiastic... They say no progress has been made and mediators are "selling illusions". As that plays out, it’s been a hectic weekend in the region. Israel launched deadly strikes on central Gaza, and there have been tit-for-tat strikes between Israel and Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. 

Taking a stuff-up to court

As our federal pollies reconvene in Canberra to continue the debate over visas issued to people fleeing the war in Gaza, the drama over the NSW Liberal Party’s failure to nominate around 140 of its candidates for local government elections isn’t over. The party is getting ready for a legal case claiming the state's Electoral Commission didn't play by the rules when it didn’t provide the required 7-day notice before the close of nominations. A request for an extension after things went pear-shaped last week was knocked back, and the party’s director Richard Shields has been sacked with whispers of more to come... The disaster has raised questions about the NSW Liberals’ ability to govern, with reports today saying the federal branch of the Libs could take control of the state division (paywall) - and Premier Chris Minns (note: a Labor leader…) saying if they can’t get their paperwork in time, "they can't govern New South Wales." 

ANZAC graves are damaged in Gallipoli

Wildfires that were sparked by an electrical fault and whipped up by strong winds have damaged some of the historic ANZAC war graves in Gallipoli, Turkey. The Commonwealth War Graves Commission looks after over 30 cemeteries on the Gallipoli Peninsula, where more than 7,200 Australians are buried - it has had to evacuate staff. On Saturday, PM Anthony Albanese said he is worried because Gallipoli is "sacred ground". Officials say efforts are ongoing to control the fires and there are plans in place to assess and remediate any damage to the war graves. More than 130 fires have been burning over the last week, mainly in the country’s west, after being served a cocktail of dangerous conditions featuring low humidity, high winds, and high temperatures. 

Vale Black Caviar

Horse lovers and racing aficionados will likely be a bit long in the face following the death of champion racehorse Black Caviar a couple of days shy of her 18th birthday. Coming before Winx and after Makybe Diva, she boasted a record 25 wins from 25 starts between 2009-13. And the backstory is a little unusual… Trainer Peter Moody, a knock-about-bloke from the Queensland bush, paid $210,000 for her as an injury-prone filly in 2008 and turned her into a champion. "At the stables and at the races, she was all business, and you didn't want to be messing with her. At home … she was like a big teddy bear.” She was euthanised after giving birth to a foal and contracting laminitis, a disease that prevents horses from walking. Considered one of the top racehorses of the modern era, the Victorian Racing Club said she will be remembered as “simply the best.” 

What a kid…

Say hello to Heman Bekele, a 15yo from Virginia who's been crowned TIME's Kid of the Year for 2024. What has he done to earn the title? Oh, just invented a soap that could treat/prevent skin cancer… Born in Ethiopia before moving to the US as a littl’un, Bekele was moved to action by workers toiling in the sun without skin protection. "It’s absolutely incredible to think that one day my bar of soap will be able to make a direct impact on somebody else’s life," Bekele said. His story, along with those of other young achievers recognised by TIME and TIME for Kids, shines a light on the potential of young people to make a difference. And it gives us pause for thought about our time at that age eating chips at the mall and what that did for humanity… 

Apropos of Nothing

The folk of Hughenden in remote Queensland are scratching their heads over the surprise appearance of a freshwater crocodile in their local lake. The town is a good 300km from the coast, so it's a bit of a mystery how ‘Houdini’ ended up there. First spotted in June before disappearing in July, a recent sighting has many confused - and staying out of the water…

Another surprise water-dweller to make itself known is a serpent-like oarfish that’s popped up on the San Diego coast. Usually found in the lightless depths of the ocean, it’s just the 20th known instance of a dead one washing up in California since 1901. It’s pretty funny lookin’... 

And a fisherman was hospitalised after being knocked unconscious by a whale’s tail off the coast of Tweed Heads in NSW yesterday morning. Paramedics said the man “couldn’t remember the event” afterwards which is a shame - it’s a knockout tale…

Squiz the Day

From 4.08am (AEST) - Sydney Metro City rail service opens - it’s a 15.5km extension of the Metro North West line from Chatswood going under Sydney Harbour and through the city to Sydenham

8.00am (AEST) - Launch of the Adult Media Literacy in 2024 report - Canberra

10.00am (AEST) - Both houses of the Federal Parliament are sitting until Thursday arvo

From dusk - A 'blue' sturgeon supermoon will light up skies

Company results - Ampol, Lendlease, Suncorp

Start of National Skills Week (until 25 August) 

Afghanistan’s Independence Day

International Orangutan Day

Birthdays for Bill Clinton (1946) and Missy Higgins (1983)

Anniversary of:

  • Coco Chanel’s birthday (1883)

  • Soviet satellite Korabl-Sputnik 2 carrying 2 dogs, 2 rats, 40 mice, one rabbit and fruit flies into orbit (1960)

  • The Beatles’ All You Need is Love hitting #1 (1967)

  • the release of Lady Gaga’s record-breaking debut album The Fame (2008)