Monday, 30 March - Can't get you out of my head

Good morning, it’s Monday, 30 March. In your Squiz Today…

• The war in the Middle East widens in its fifth week, as the Yemen-based Houthis get involved

• A big cleanup in Western Oz following Cyclone Narelle

• And Kylie Minogue is this year’s headliner for the AFL Grand Final

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Squiz the Weather

Squiz Sayings

Said Oz sprinter Lachie Kennedy on Saturday after beating rival Gout Gout in the 200m at the Maurie Plant Meet in Melbourne. Kennedy shot out of the blocks and won the race by 0.05 seconds - it’s handy that he loves winning, because he’s doing plenty of it…

Dire Straits

The Squiz

A new front has opened up in the war in the Middle East, with the Yemen-based Houthi rebel group firing missiles into Israel on Saturday. The missiles were intercepted, but it’s the first time the Houthis have actively been involved in the war, and it means that the conflict - and its human/economic cost - is only growing as it enters the fifth week. Given Yemen’s (and by extension, the Houthis) proximity to the Red Sea, their entry into the conflict could close another important shipping Strait - the Bab El-Mandeb Strait (which translates to ‘Gate of Tears’) - through which 12% of global seaborne oil passes. And that could make the current global fuel crisis even worse…

Remind me about the Houthis…

Named after their founder, Hussein al-Houthi, the Houthis are a militant group backed by Iran and based in Yemen. In that respect, they’re similar to Hezbollah in Lebanon (the Houthis have been considered a terrorist group by Oz since 2024), and they emerged sometime in the 1990s. They control much of northern Yemen (which borders Saudi Arabia), and they’ve been in the news a bunch for regular attacks on shipping vessels passing through the Red Sea, which extends from southern Egypt towards the Arabian Sea via the Gulf of Aden. Those attacks have subsided over the last year, but if they resume, it could mean that ships will no longer get from the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean, making for some severe economic headaches…

So… any updates on when the war might end?

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke to that over the weekend - he’s said it could be in the next couple of weeks - but there are also reports that the Pentagon is preparing for weeks of ground operations in Iran, which Iran has warned against. No matter when the war ends, though, the impact of the fuel crisis is likely to last much longer. Here in Oz, PM Anthony Albanese is convening national cabinet today to try and address the crisis and work out what to do about rising fuel prices and regular shortages. There are plenty of suggestions about - from fuel rationing, to free public transport (which Victoria and Tassie have brought in), to support for farmers in securing fertiliser. And pressure is building on the government during the crisis, with the latest Newspoll showing that Team Albo is polling at its lowest level since before last year’s election… 

Curious to know…

Squiz the Rest

West Oz faces a big cleanup…

…after Tropical Cyclone Narelle passed through the state’s west over the weekend, causing massive damage to regional areas. The tourist town of Exmouth, near the Ningaloo Reef, sent dozens of requests for State Emergency Service help, and all flights in and out of the town were called off as the local airport was significantly damaged. While Narelle has now dissipated, the timing - just before this Easter long weekend and in the middle of a global fuel crisis - is dreadful for tourism operators, who are calling on Aussies to come support the region as it rebuilds. It’s not just humans copping the brunt - conservationists are also calling on locals/visitors to keep an eye out for wildlife who might have been injured in the storm, with rescue efforts underway. Stay strong out there…

Massive protests over Trump

Millions of people have turned out across the world for No Kings Day, a regular event protesting the Trump administration. The first of these protests took place in June last year,  and they’re focused on what protesters perceive as Trump eroding the democratic institutions of the US. Organisers say it’s the most widespread version of the protests the country has ever seen, with Minnesota - the site of highly controversial immigration raids in recent months - the centrepiece this time around. Republicans have dismissed them as “Hate America Rallies”, but they come as Trump’s approval ratings drop to their lowest point in his second term - and ahead of midterm elections in November…

Moira Deeming is dropped

The high-profile Victorian Liberal MP lost a preselection battle for her party’s Upper House ticket yesterday, meaning she’s likely to exit parliament at this year’s Victorian state election in November. Deeming has been at the centre of a difficult few years for the party, after her appearance at an anti-trans rights rally in 2023 was crashed by neo-Nazi protesters. That led to criticism from then-leader John Pesutto - Deeming sued him for defamation over that and won. Despite the legal battle, Deeming had support from both Liberal leader Jess Wilson and leading conservative figures like former PM Tony Abbott. Her failure to be preselected will mean more internal turmoil for Wilson as the state election approaches, with some predicting Deeming will defect to One Nation, so watch this space…

Tiger Woods is in trouble again

The famous golfer has been involved in another major car crash over the weekend, his third since 2009. Woods was arrested on charges of driving under the influence (DUI) after flipping his car near his house in Florida. Local police say that the 50-yo had been driving at “high speeds” on a residential road, and that he was arrested after refusing to take a urine test. Before the crash, Woods - who hasn’t played in a professional tournament since 2024 - was thought to be gearing up to make an appearance at the US Masters, the tournament he won 5 times between 1997 and 2019, when it gets underway on 10 April. That seems unlikely now - an investigation is underway, with a court date likely to be set today…

Hopefully the police can catch a break…

…in an investigation into who stole 413,793 KitKats (yes, we know the exact amount) that were en route from Italy to Poland on the weekend. Manufacturers Nestlé say that the bars were on their way from the factory to the distribution centre when they were pilfered, and there are no leads on who the culprits might be. The bars may well be sold illegally by the thieves, but they can be traced by their batch numbers, so Nestlé has asked European choc-lovers to scan the batch number on any KitKats they come across and check if they’re part of the bounty (the other kind of Bounty). A KitKat spokesperson says that while the company “appreciates the criminals’ exceptional taste”, cargo theft is becoming a big problem. The hunt for the KitKatburglars is on…

Apropos of Nothing

The Sydney Kings have claimed a 2-1 lead over the Adelaide 36ers in the 5-game NBL finals series - with Game 4 set for Wednesday. It’s been a spicy series so far - this ending to Game 2 on Friday had everything: a buzzer-beater, a crowd going bananas, and a fair chunk of aggro… 

And after not even managing to begin the race at the first 2 Grands Prix of the season, Aussie F1 driver Oscar Piastri turned things around with a second-place finish at the Japanese GP yesterday. Turns out he just needed to be able to, you know, start…

And we now know who this year’s headline entertainment for the AFL Grand Final will be - none other than our very own Kylie Minogue. Despite calls for it to move to the evening, the game will stay at 2:30pm - so Minogue might have to change the lyrics to On a Day Like This…

Squiz the Day

8.00am (AEDT) - AFR Healthcare Summit - Sydney

10:15am (AEDT) - Judgement is due in the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s case against credit card company Mastercard over alleged anti-competitive practices, which was first launched in 2022 - Sydney 

10:30am (AEDT) - Cricket: Day 5 of a thrilling Sheffield Shield final between Victoria and South Australia - after Oz keeper Alex Carey scored a hundred on Day 4, Victoria need 94 runs to win with 5 wickets in hand - Melbourne

11:30am (AEDT) - Don Farrell, the federal Minister for Trade and Tourism, will address the National Press Club on the recent free trade agreement between Australia and the European Union - Canberra

ABS data release: deaths due to acute respiratory infections, February 2026

International Day of Zero Waste

Federal Parliament sitting - House and Senate (until 1 April)

National Doctors' Day

World Bipolar Day 

Birthdays for singer Eric Clapton (1945), rapper MC Hammer (1962), singer Celine Dion (1968), singer Norah Jones (1979) and tennis player Sam Stosur (1984)

Anniversary of:

• the US buying Alaska from Russia (1867)

• the birthday of painter Vincent Van Gogh (1853) and IKEA founder Ingvar Kamprad (1926)

• US President Ronald Reagan being shot and wounded in an assassination attempt (1981)

• the death of Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother (2002)

• the Morrison Government announcing the introduction of the JobKeeper payment (2020)