January 16, 2013 A new cyber safety program will teach Australian middle-school students about cyberbullying, keeping passwords private and the dangers of posting embarrassing photos and videos online.

January 16, 2013 Victorian Opposition Leader Daniel Andrews has defended his decision not to contact the family of a teenager involved in a car accident with his wife, saying he did not want to compromise the police investigation into the collision.

January 16, 2013 Prime Minister Julia Gillard has assured religious groups they will have the 'freedom' under a new rights bill to discriminate against homosexuals and others they deem sinners, according to the head of the Australian Christian Lobby.

January 16, 2013 North Korea wants to set up a new embassy in Canberra, possibly signalling the hermit state's intention under its young leader Kim Jong-un to inch towards greater engagement with the world.

January 16, 2013 THE unfolding crisis in Mali is Australia's first great test as a member of the United Nations Security Council, said the Australian ambassador to the UN, Gary Quinlan, after an emergency meeting called by France.

January 16, 2013 A Tamil woman locked in immigration detention for the term of her pregnancy after the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation branded her a security risk, has given birth to a boy.

January 16, 2013 Churches and charities should pay compensation directly to survivors of childhood sexual abuse, and the terms of reference should be broadened, says the chief executive of the group of those formerly in child institutions.

January 16, 2013 The federal government has condemned an opposition MP for posting inflammatory comments about racial tensions in Queensland on Twitter.

January 15, 2013 North Korea wants to set up a new embassy in Canberra, possibly signalling the hermit state's intention under its young leader Kim Jong-un to inch towards greater engagement with the world.

January 15, 2013 Australia will formally hand over responsibility for security in Afghanistan's Uruzgan province - where most diggers are based - to the Afghan military by the end of this year, Defence Minister Stephen Smith has said.