Tuesday 31 December 2002

Deaths in three states drive toll to 40, The Australian, 31 December, 2002.

Deaths in three states drive toll to 40: [1 All-round Country Edition]

Stapleton, JohnThe Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 31 Dec 2002: 6.
AUSTRALIA'S holiday road toll stands at 40 after deaths in NSW, South Australia and Western Australia yesterday. The toll is down from 44 for the same period last year.
NSW has shown spectacular improvement, cutting its road toll in half. A spokesman for NSW Police said: "Eight fatalities have been recorded on NSW roads so far this holiday period. That is compared to 16 for the same period last year.
The NSW toll rose to eight after the death of a 59-year-old man in far-western NSW on Saturday afternoon.

Full Text

Monday 30 December 2002

Friday 27 December 2002

Jihad sites target prayer centre veto - War on Terror, The Australian, 27 December, 2002.

Jihad sites target prayer centre veto - War on Terror: [1 All-round Country Edition]

John Stapleton, Patricia KarvelasThe Australian; Canberra, A.C.T. [Canberra, A.C.T] 27 Dec 2002: 5.
Show highlighting
THE decision by Sydney's Baulkham Hills Council to reject an application for a Muslim prayer centre has been highlighted on some international jihad web sites.
Abbas Aly, who proposed the prayer hall, was concerned to hear that Islamic radicals had taken up his cause on websites like almuhajiroun, closely linked with al-Qa'ida, and islammemo, also seen as a reliable source of al-Qa'ida information.
Islammemo.com, which was one of the first sites in the world to post al-Qa'ida's claims of responsibility for the Mombasa bombing in Kenya, quoted Muslim leaders saying the rejection reflected "the spread of feelings of hostility against Muslims".

Thursday 26 December 2002

Ex-detainees die as road toll hits 20, The Australian, 26 December, 2002.

Ex-detainees die as road toll hits 20: [1 All-round Country Edition]

John Stapleton, Andrew McGarryThe Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 26 Dec 2002: 3.
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TWO former Woomera detention centre inmates on their way from Adelaide to Melbourne for a holiday were killed instantly when their car hit a tree near theVictoria-South Australia border late on Christmas Eve.
Wali Hanifi, a spokesman for the Afghan Islamic Cultural Association of South Australia, said: "We don't think they had any relatives in Australia. It's very sad."
The NSW toll was four, less than half the toll last year. Queensland led the list of fatalities with seven.

Friday 20 December 2002

PM's plane forced down, The Australian, 20 December, 2002

PM's plane forced down: [3 All-round Metro Edition]

Stapleton, JohnThe Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 20 Dec 2002: 2.
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AN RAAF plane carrying Prime Minister John Howard and Defence Force chief Major-General Peter Cosgrove from Perth to Sydney was forced to turn back to Perth last night.

Proposal to monitor jihad sites, The Australian, 20 December, 2002.



Thursday 19 December 2002

Radical Islam websites recruit for jihad, The Australian, 19 December, 2002. Page One.




Radical Islam websites recruit for jihad: [1 All-round Country Edition]

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An Islamic website regarded as a credible source for al-Qa'ida information has canvassed the possibility of Australia -- which it says "persecutes" Muslims -- becoming an Islamic state.
Terrorism expert Rohan Gunaratna yesterday said radical Islamic websites had tried to recruit Muslim Australians to a jihad over thepast five years.
Professor Gunaratna said more than 1000 jihad websites were registered worldwide, many going unmonitored, allowing terrorists to recruit free from scrutiny. "Some of those websites have been playing a role in politicising, radicalising and mobilising the Australianmigrant communities and people have joined these groups from accessing their websites," he said.

Tuesday 17 December 2002

Transport operator pulls out, The Australian, 17 December, 2002.

Transport operator pulls out: [3 All-round Metro Edition]

The Australian [Canberra, A.C.T] 17 Dec 2002: 5.
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A LEADING operator of Victoria's privatised transport system announced yesterday that it would be handing back to the state Government control of significant parts of the metropolitan train and tram network, along with the country passenger lines, two days before Christmas.
The rail and tram privatisation, initiated during the Kennett era, has been plagued by operational turmoil and massive financial losses.
Yesterday the British-based National Express issued a statement saying it would be withdrawing from all train and tram operations in Australia effective next Monday.