Chaos at Cairns airport after security breach, man charged after alleged Engadine stabbing: Australia news live

An outbreak of a treatable sexually transmitted disease has led to a dramatic rise in the deaths of unborn babies.

Doctors fear more congenital syphilis fatalities are likely in Queensland, sparking calls for an increase in sexually transmitted infection screenings to bring it under control.

Syphilis cases are spiking in Queensland and affecting unborn babies after an outbreak in the state's northwest, Brisbane's Mater Mothers' Hospital said.

Four babies died in 2023 from congenital syphilis, when an infant is infected with the disease in the womb by their mother.

It was the highest annual congenital syphilis death toll recorded in the state this century.

"It is likely we will see more deaths if something doesn't change," the hospital's obstetric medicine and infectious disease specialist Jill Parkes-Smith said.

- AAP

Police say there are "too many suspects" at this stage following the shooting death of a notorious underworld figure known as the "Angel of Death".

Tarek Ayoub, 29, was treated by paramedics at the scene of the 3.30am execution-style shooting in Sydney's western suburb of Parramatta on Monday but could not be saved.

His killers remain on the run.

The Yagoona man was a well-known figure in organised crime circles and was referred to as "the Angel of Death", Homicide Squad commander Danny Doherty said.

"Mr Ayoub certainly lived by the sword and died by the sword," he told reporters.

"This is no surprise to the police that he was murdered in (this) way."

Such was his reputation and links to multiple crime networks, police were having a hard time drawing up a shortlist of potential killers.

Detective Superintendent Doherty said there were "too many suspects, too many motives" for killing Ayoub, who had been charged with a string of firearm and drug offences and had been linked to at least one murder investigation.

"So far we've established that he was visiting an associate at Parramatta, where he was shot down in the hail of bullets (in an) execution-style murder in this car park," he said.

- With AAP

There are chaotic scenes in Cairns Airport after a security breach.

All passengers who had passed security checks were forced to repeat the process after an "unscreened person attempted to enter a secure area", the airport said.

One passenger said his plane sat on the tarmac was also evacuated, sharing photos of huge queues inside the airport.

"This process is being carried out in line with our legislated requirements and there is no immediate risk. Safety and security is our highest priority and we appreciate your patience and understanding," the airport said.

If you ever needed a reminder to wear a helmet, this photo is certainly that.

This badly-damaged helmet, a $50 purchase from Anaconda, saved the life of Rebecca Cronan's 12-year-old daughter.

She bought it for her daughter Ruby after agreeing to buy her an e-scooter last week. Just days later, Ruby was hit by a car while riding it and was left trapped underneath, Nine News reported. She was placed in an induced coma but thankfully is now out of the coma and recovering.

E-scooter safety is an issue state governments around the country are looking to improve as the use of privately owned e-scooters grows.

A man allegedly behind a stabbing attack in Sydney's Engadine on Sunday morning has been charged with several offences.

Four people, including the 58-year-old charged and his female passenger, sustained lacerations following a two-vehicle collision on the Princes Highway. A female driver of the other vehicle sustained a broken wrist.

The man has been charged with the domestic violence related offence of wounding a person with intent to murder. He's been charged with hindering or resisting a police offer in the execution of duty alongside six other offences.

He will appear before Sutherland Local Court today.

The man who fatally shot schoolgirl Charlise Mutten and dumped her body in a barrel has been sentenced to life in prison for the "shockingly callous crime".

Justin Stein was found guilty of murder in June, despite his claims it was the girl's mother Kallista Mutten - with whom he was in a relationship - who shot the nine-year-old.

The 33-year-old was sentenced in the NSW Supreme Court on Monday to the maximum sentence of life in prison without parole.

Police located Charlise's body on January 18, 2022, near the Colo River, northwest of Sydney, with gunshot wounds to her face and lower back.

In handing down the sentence, Justice Helen Wilson said Stein likely shot the girl once in the back while she was trying to flee, before approaching her and firing another shot directly into her head.

"This was a shockingly callous crime," Ms Wilson said.

"The offender approached Charlise and discharged the second shot at close range.

"It was not survivable and was not intended to be."

- AAP

Imagine discovering this when you go to buy a flight heading overseas.

Qantas has apologised after a website glitch allowed travellers book first-class tickets to the US for up to $15,000 less than they should be.

And while Qantas terms and conditions state they are entitled to cancel and refund tickets when such scenarios occur, it has promised to fly all passengers who bought first-class tickets in business class, still giving those customers a significant saving, Nine News reported.

"Unfortunately, this is a case where the fare was actually too good to be true," a Qantas spokesperson said.

"As a gesture of goodwill, we're rebooking customers in Business Class at no additional cost. Customers also have the option of a full refund."

Breaking news from Perth now. Police are urgently searching for a man with a knife who threatened people at an inner-city train station before fleeing.

WA Police have released the following image of the man who approached members of the public at Leederville train station around 7.30am and urged people not to approach the man and call police.

A passer-by who bravely protected a woman during a stabbing rampage on a major Sydney highway was "unbelievable", another witness says.

Six people were hurt after a driver crashed at Engadine, in the city's south, began stabbing his passenger and attacked those trying to stop the assault on Sunday morning.

The driver, who is yet to be charged, reacted violently when his passenger changed the car radio station, witnesses were told.

Steve Mace, the chair of NRL club Cronulla who witnessed the incident, lauded a fellow passer-by who intervened and put himself between the woman and the knife-wielding driver despite suffering a serious stab wound.

"Getting her in and out of that car to dodge the stab wounds was unbelievable," Mr Mace told Sydney radio 2GB on Monday.

The men initially pulled the bloodied woman from the car, only to return her to the car when the driver ran around to continue the assault.

Video from witnesses shows a man holding the passenger door shut as the driver, with blood across his white shirt, moving about the rear of the car and shouting.

Read more here.

- AAP

NSW Police and the NSW government are offering $500,000 for the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for the suspected murder of Laura Haworth more than 15 years ago.

The last confirmed contact with Laura, then aged 23, was on Saturday 5 January 2008, was from a house in Collett Street, Queanbeyan, New South Wales.

A week later, Laura’s red Mazda 121 was later located at Kanangra Court, Reid in the ACT.

Despite extensive investigations, the mother of two, has never been found and Police believe she may have met with foul play.

“It’s critical that anyone with information passes that onto police who have worked tirelessly to investigate Laura’s disappearance,” Minister for Police and Counter-terrorism Yasmin Catley said.

Well it's that time of year again. Protective magpies are swooping once again and how's this for an encounter.

The cyclist was struck several times by the magpie and fair play to her, she managed to keep her cool.

"Oh my god, this magpie... it's actually so funny," she tells the camera.

NSW is being warned to batten down the hatches as the wild winds that swept Victoria head east.

Parts of the Illawarra, south coast, Goulburn and Katoomba can expect damaging wind gusts in excess of 90km/h until Monday afternoon.

Nowra, Bowral, Braidwood, Goulburn and Selwyn could also get a lashing.

On the mountains, average winds stronger than 80km/h with gusts up to 125km/h are expected above 1900m.

Just before 8pm on Sunday, wind gusts at Thredbo hit 128km/h.

The State Emergency Service is telling people to move vehicles under cover or away from trees, secure loose items around the house, keep away from fallen power lines, and be aware that bushfires may have changed the landscape around you, including weakening trees.

The Victorian SES received 422 calls for help from 9am to 9pm on Sunday, as the weather system swept through. Hailstones bigger than golf balls, some close to tennis ball size, fell around Bendigo in central Victoria.

Read more here.

- NCA NewsWire

In a developing story, a woman's body has been found on a Melbourne beach this morning.

The discovery was made at Edithvale, in the city's southeast, about 6.30am, with Victoria Police yet to determine the circumstances around the death.

More details will be released by authorities when available, Victoria Police said.

A buyers agent with 30 years experience says price guides on homes have become "meaningless" and says underquoting, which is an illegal practice, is now rife in the property market.

Paul Mulligan told news.com.au he sees the practice "every single day" and involves real estate agents listing properties at a guide price far lower than what it eventually sells for, often to draw in plenty of interest.

The publication analysed the inner-Sydney property market for two months and found homes regularly being sold for hundreds of thousands of dollars more than the guide price.

So do you think a guide price is useless now? Have your say below.

Is it really happening?!

Oasis, Liam Gallagher and Noel Gallagher are set to make an announcement following strong rumours the iconic band will reform after 15 years.

Social accounts for all three revealed a brief video showing the date August 27 followed by 8am. Assuming that's local UK time, that'll be 5pm tomorrow (AEST).

Earlier in the day, Liam Gallagher tweeted he "never did like that word FORMER", sending fans into a frenzy.

The ACCC has fired a warning shot to Qantas and Virgin, saying it has a close eye on prices after Bonza’s collapse and Rex’s uncertain future.

When Rex started flying between the capital cities in 2021, prices on those routes dropped 25 per cent.

The consumer watchdog has reaffirmed its close watch on Qantas and Virgin in a Domestic Airline Competition report, released on Thursday, in the wake of Rex entering voluntary administration and cancelling its city-to-city routes.

Read more here.

- NCA NewsWire