Tuesday, 10 February - Kickstart my heart

Good morning, it’s Tuesday, 10 February. In your Squiz Today…

• Police have arrested dozens of protesters at a Sydney rally over Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s visit

• The Royals have weighed in on the Epstein scandal

• And another Aussie wins a super bowl ring… 🏈

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Squiz the Weather

Squiz Sayings

Said Liberal MP Jane Hume of the possibility Angus Taylor could challenge Sussan Ley's leadership of the newly reunited Coalition this week. It's not locked in, but after new polling sounding alarm bells for the Coalition, a Thursday or Friday vote is being floated. Watch this space…

Tensions boil over in Sydney

The Squiz

There were protests against Israeli President Isaac Herzog’s ongoing tour of Australia around the country last night, and while they mostly stayed peaceful, the Sydney rally turned violent… NSW police arrested 27 people, and Assistant Commissioner Peter McKenna accused speakers at the rally of inflaming tensions by asking the protesters to march through the city to state parliament. Under current NSW restrictions, that’s not allowed, but protesters have called the police response, which included the use of pepper spray, “over the top”, and said they should have been allowed to march regardless. 

Remind me why a march isn’t allowed?

Under new laws passed in the wake of the antisemitic terror attack at Bondi Beach on 14 December, police have a temporary power to prevent "non-static" (aka moving) protests. Rally organisers the Palestinian Action Group - who say Herzog is a war criminal who should not have been invited to Oz - tried and failed to have those powers overturned in the NSW Supreme Court yesterday. When the crowd tried to march anyway, police moved to disperse them - McKenna says they were “jostled, threatened and assaulted” when they did. But protesters say the police response was unprovoked - NSW Labor MP Anthony D’Adam has accused officers of punching and throwing a protester to the ground. Greens MP Abigail Boyd described it as "completely unnecessary violence from police", and another protest is planned outside Sydney City Police Station this afternoon.  

And what’s the latest on Herzog’s visit?

On his first day, the Israeli President visited the site of the attack, where he laid a wreath and 2 stones brought from Jerusalem at the Bondi Pavilion memorial to the victims. He'll head to Canberra and Melbourne from here... When asked about the protests, he accused them of undermining "my nation's right…of its mere existence." One other thing on the Bondi attack: a former undercover agent made allegations on ABC’s Four Corners last night that he shared intelligence with our spy agency ASIO that one of the shooters, Naveed Akram, had associations with Islamic State in 2019. ASIO says the ABC’s report “contains significant errors of fact” and says it may take “further action” against the broadcaster. ABC Managing Director Hugh Marks is up before Senate Estimates today, so you may well hear more about that…

Today is Safer Internet Day

A day we’re super serious about here at The Squiz. Newshounds, our digital literacy program for primary school kids, is all about teaching kids to think critically about the flood of content they’re exposed to online.

The social media ban will go some way to protecting our kids, but education is still fundamental. And crucially, that means teaching our kids to “Stop, Think & Check” before they get a smartphone in their hands.

To learn more or join the more than 5,000 classrooms around Australia who have already signed up to Newshounds - visit Squiz Kids…

Squiz the Rest

Jimmy Lai is handed his sentence

The pro-democracy activist, media tycoon and British citizen has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after being found guilty of colluding with foreign forces in his national security trial last year. The 78yo was the high-profile publisher of Apple Daily, a pro-democracy newspaper in Hong Kong - and while Chinese state media calls him an “anti-government instigator and traitor”, the UK government says his prosecution was “politically motivated”. He was charged under the controversial national security law China introduced in its special administrative region, Hong Kong, after its huge pro-democracy protests in 2019. Human rights groups say it’s “effectively a death sentence” for Lai, whose health is deteriorating. It’s not yet clear if he’ll appeal - when asked, his answer was “no comment”.

“An absolute injustice”...

…is how the parents of 19yo Aussies, Holly Bowles and Bianca Jones, who died from methanol poisoning in Laos in November 2024, described sentences handed down over their daughters' deaths yesterday. Ten staffers from the Nana Backpackers Hostel were convicted of destroying evidence and given suspended sentences with fines of around $185 by the People's Court in Vang Vieng. Holly's father, Shaun, called it "disappointing", while Bianca's father, Mark, said it had made "an unbearable grief even worse." Adding to that, the families said they only found out about the court case from the mother of another victim. Foreign Minister Penny Wong says Australia is continuing to push Laos for accountability and that charges "should reflect the seriousness of the tragedy". 

The palace weighs in

After King Charles was heckled at another public event over ex-Prince Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor's ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, Buckingham Palace has issued a statement. It says the King has made clear his "profound concern" over the allegations against his brother - and he stands "ready to support" the police if approached. It's the second big statement from the Royals over the scandal after Prince William and Princess Kate said they were “deeply concerned” by revelations in the latest documents from the Epstein files, and their "thoughts remain focused on the victims". Pressure on Mountbatten-Windsor to testify before a US inquiry is building after UK police confirmed they're looking into claims he shared secret reports while trade envoy with Epstein. And the fallout has now spread to the British parliament, where PM Keir Starmer is staring down calls to resign…

Vale Jon Kudelka

The Tasmanian political cartoonist has died at the age of 53yo after being diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour in 2024. His wife Margaret shared the news yesterday, saying he “died peacefully in South Hobart on Sunday afternoon, surrounded by his family and friends”. Kudelka had a long career as a cartoonist, dating all the way back to when he sold his first cartoon at 9yo. Impressive… Starting at the Hobart Mercury in 1993, he went on to draw cartoons for more than 3 decades, including 20 years The Australian - and won numerous awards, including Walkleys for best cartoon in 2008 and 2018. Margaret said he was “deeply loved and admired by many … even by the politicians he relentlessly skewered in his award-winning cartoons (many of whom have his work on their walls)”. 

We’ve got another Aussie Super Bowl winner… 

… after punter Michael Dickson put in an outstanding performance to help the Seattle Seahawks beat the New England Patriots 29-13 yesterday. He’s now the second Aussie to win a Super Bowl as an onfield player, following Jordan Mailata with the Philadelphia Eagles last year. Dickson says it’s the “best feeling” and he’s looking forward to returning to Australia for “some chips with chicken salt - craving that - and a parmi”. Away from the onfield action, Bad Bunny’s halftime show featured plenty of big cameos, including Lady Gaga and Ricky Martin, and an actual wedding. Rockers Green Day handled the pre-game show, and if you’re just here for the ads, we’ve found a comprehensive ranking of all 54 of them…

Apropos of Nothing

Ever wondered about the most expensive rice in the world? Us neither, but FYI - Kinmemai Premium has the market cornered. A box costs about $104, features grains that are shiny “like a diamond”, and has a “well-balanced” flavour. Probably too fancy for our homemade sushi…

Move over, Disney World… The first Pokémon theme park has just opened in Japan, where fans of the video game franchise can get up close with their favourite characters in the form of life-sized statues, rides, food stalls and merch. Gotta catch ‘em all (sorry, we had to…).

And our Aussie athletes are over in Italy to excel on the ice - but we’re awarding an extra gold medal to snowboarder Scotty James for his social media game. If anyone can take on Hugh Grant in moves (and hair) it’s him…

Squiz the Day

6.00am (AEDT): Winter Olympics: Aussies Tess Coady and Mela Stalker are going for gold in the snowboard big air final as we press go on the newsletter this morning. Catch the action on 9Now…

10.00am (AEST) - A public hearing for the inquiry into the CFMEU and misconduct in the construction industry (until 13 February) - Brisbane

9.00am (AWST) - Author Craig Silvey is due to return to Fremantle Magistrates Court, where he’s facing charges of possessing and distributing child exploitation material - Perth

Macquarie Group’s 2026 Operational Briefing is set to be released to shareholders

It’s Safer Internet Day

Birthdays for actors Laura Dern (1967), Elizabeth Banks (1974) and Chloë Grace Moretz (1997)

Anniversary of:

• the debut of the Tom & Jerry cartoon (1940)

• the sinking of the HMAS Voyager after colliding with aircraft carrier HMAS Melbourne near Jervis Bay, NSW, killing 82 people (1964)

• IBM’s Deep Blue becoming the first computer to win a game of chess against a reigning human chess champion - in this case Garry Kasparov (1996)

• more than 30 bushfires in NSW being put out by the heaviest rainfall in 30 years, helping end one of Australia’s worst bushfire seasons ever (2020)