Australia news LIVE: Liberals see off One Nation challenge; US fast-tracks arms deals for Middle East allies

Accused child killer Jefferson Lewis allegedly pushed a children’s toy pram into Charles Creek Camp when he emerged from hiding on Thursday, the NT News reports.

Lewis was bashed by residents when he entered the camp before being treated by paramedics and detained by police. He was taken to Darwin where he remains in custody but has not been charged.

A crumpled child’s toy pusher sits at the scene, as well as a pink plastic unicorn toy, the NT News reported.

Also at the scene were remnants of the paramedic response including bandage, rubber gloves, face masks and medical scissors.

A police spokesman said any evidence related to the abduction and death of Kumanjayi Little Baby had been collected from the scene.

It has been a week since five-year-old Kumanjayi Little Baby was abducted from her home at the Old Timers Camp, and it has been three days since her tiny body was found in a river bed.

The Liberal Party claimed victory in the Victorian state seat of Nepean on Saturday night, despite a cut to their primary vote and serious challenges from a rising One Nation and a popular local independent.

Opposition Leader Jess Wilson told a jubilant crowd of party faithful she was excited to welcome Liberal candidate Anthony Marsh as the next member for Nepean.

She took the stage at the Verve Bar at Rye Hotel just after 9pm, when with 79.23 per cent of the vote counted, Marsh had 38.49 per cent of the primary vote – enough to push him to victory on preferences.

“I have stood by Anthony for weeks, I worked alongside him for months on this byelection campaign, and he had worked tirelessly every single day to listen to the residents down here on the peninsula,” Wilson said.

Election analysts called the election for Marsh by 8pm. But his primary vote was well down on departing MP Sam Groth’s 48.1 per cent mark vote when he won the seat at the 2022 election.

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The Trump administration has ​bypassed congressional review to approve military sales totalling over US$8.6 billion (A$12 billion) to Middle Eastern allies Israel, Qatar, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates.

The State Department announcements on Friday came as the US and Israel’s war against Iran marked nine weeks since its start and more than three weeks since a fragile ceasefire came into effect. The State Department said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio determined that an emergency existed that required immediate sales to those countries and waived the congressional review requirements for the sales.

The announcements included approving military sales to Qatar of Patriot air and missile defence replenishment services costing $4.01 billion and of Advanced Precision Kill Weapon Systems (APKWS) costing $992.4 million.

They also included approval of the sale to Kuwait of an integrated battle command system costing $2.5 billion and to Israel of Advanced Precision Kill Weapon Systems costing $992.4 million. The State Department approved a sale to the UAE of APKWS for $147.6 million.

Reuters