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Hegseth meets with moderate Sen. Collins as he lobbies for key votes in the SenateSEATTLE ORCAS AND BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF BELLEVUE PARTNER TO LAUNCH HOLIDAY CRICKET AND SPORTS EQUIPMENT DRIVE

An Australian Senate committee has backed a bill that would ban social media for children under 16 but said social media platforms should not force users to submit personal data such as passport and other digital identification to prove their age. Australia plans to trial an age-verification system that may include biometrics or government identification to enforce a social media age cut-off, some of the toughest controls imposed by any country to date. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's centre-left Labor government is rushing to pass the bill, largely supported by the opposition Liberal party, by the end of the parliamentary year on Thursday. In its report published late on Tuesday, the Senate's environment and communications legislation committee said social media platforms "must set out alternative methods for assuring age as reasonable steps with consideration given to the age assurance trial." A progress report on the age assurance trial must be submitted by the communications minister to the parliament by Sept. 30, 2025, the committee said as it urged the government to "meaningfully engage" with youth when framing the law. "Young people, and in particular diverse cohorts, must be at the centre of the conversation as an age restriction is implemented to ensure there are constructive pathways for connection," committee Chair Senator Karen Grogan said. Some independent lawmakers have criticised the government for trying to pass the legislation in a week. The bill was introduced last Thursday, submissions on it closed on Friday, and a brief hearing was held on Monday. In separate submissions, Google and Facebook-owner Meta Platforms said the social media ban should be delayed until the age-verification trial finishes. Bytedance's TikTok said the bill needed more consultation, while Elon Musk's X said the proposed law might hurt children's human rights. The planned law would force social media platforms to take reasonable steps to ensure age-verification protections are in place. Companies could be fined up to A$49.5 million ($32 million) for systemic breaches. (Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.) Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the worldWASHINGTON (AP) — President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for intelligence chief, Tulsi Gabbard, faced fresh scrutiny Monday on Capitol Hill about her proximity to Russian-ally Syria amid the sudden collapse of that country’s hardline Assad rule. Gabbard ignored shouted questions about her 2017 visit to war-torn Syria as she ducked into one of several private meetings with senators who are being asked to confirm Trump’s unusual nominees . But the Democrat-turned-Republican Army National Reserve lieutenant colonel delivered a statement in which she reiterated her support for Trump’s America First approach to national security and a more limited U.S. military footprint overseas. “I want to address the issue that’s in the headlines right now: I stand in full support and wholeheartedly agree with the statements that President Trump has made over these last few days with regards to the developments in Syria,” Gabbard said exiting a Senate meeting. The incoming president’s Cabinet and top administrative choices are dividing his Republican allies and drawing concern , if not full opposition, from Democrats and others. Not just Gabbard, but other Trump nominees including Pentagon pick Pete Hegseth, were back at the Capitol ahead of what is expected to be volatile confirmation hearings next year. RELATED COVERAGE In promising to shake up Washington, Trump is in a class of his own Sen. Joni Ernst wants to hear from Hegseth on sex assault in the military and women in combat Military leaders are rattled by a list of ‘woke’ officers that a group urges Hegseth to fire The incoming president is working to put his team in place for an ambitious agenda of mass immigrant deportations, firing federal workers and rollbacks of U.S. support for Ukraine and NATO allies. “We’re going to sit down and visit, that’s what this is all about,” said Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., as he welcomed Gabbard into his office. The president-elect announced other appointments Monday, including his lawyer Harmeet Dhillon for assistant attorney general for civil rights at the Justice Department and Mark Paoletta as the returning general counsel of the Office of Management and Budget. Meanwhile, Defense Secretary pick Hegseth appeared to be picking up support from once-skeptical senators, the former Army National Guard major denying sexual misconduct allegations and pledging not to drink alcohol if he is confirmed. The president-elect’s choice to lead the FBI, Kash Patel , who has written extensively about locking up Trump’s foes and proposed dismantling the Federal Bureau of Investigation, launched his first visits with senators Monday. “I expect our Republican Senate is going to confirm all of President Trump’s nominees,” said Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., on social media. Despite widespread concern about the nominees’ qualifications and demeanors for the jobs that are among the highest positions in the U.S. government, Trump’s team is portraying the criticism against them as nothing more than political smears and innuendo. Showing that concern, nearly 100 former senior U.S. diplomats and intelligence and national security officials have urged Senate leaders to schedule closed-door hearings to allow for a full review of the government’s files on Gabbard. Trump’s allies have described the criticisms of Hegseth in particular as similar to those lodged against Brett Kavanaugh, the former president’s Supreme Court nominee who denied a sexual assault allegation and went on to be confirmed during Trump’s first term in office. Said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., about Hegseth: “Anonymous accusations are trying to destroy reputations again. We saw this with Kavanaugh. I won’t stand for it.” One widely watched Republican, Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa, herself a former Army National Guard lieutenant colonel and sexual assault survivor who had been criticized by Trump allies for her cool reception to Hegseth, appeared more open to him after their follow-up meeting Monday. “I appreciate Pete Hegseth’s responsiveness and respect for the process,” Ernst said in a statement. Ernst said that following “encouraging conversations,” he had committed to selecting a senior official who will “prioritize and strengthen my work to prevent sexual assault within the ranks. As I support Pete through this process, I look forward to a fair hearing based on truth, not anonymous sources.” Ernst also had praise for Patel — “He shares my passion for shaking up federal agencies” — and for Gabbard. Once a rising Democratic star, Gabbard, who represented Hawaii in Congress, arrived a decade ago in Washington, her surfboard in tow, a new generation of potential leaders. She ran unsuccessfully for president in 2020. But Gabbard abruptly left the party and briefly became an independent before joining with Trump’s 2024 campaign as one of his enthusiasts, in large part over his disdain for U.S. involvement overseas and opposition to helping Ukraine battle Russia. Her visit to Syria to meet with then-President Bashar Assad around the time of Trump’s first inauguration during the country’s bloody civil war stunned her former colleagues and the Washington national security establishment. The U.S. had severed diplomatic relations with Syria. Her visit was seen by some as legitimizing a brutal leader who was accused of war crimes. Gabbard has defended the trip, saying it’s important to open dialogue, but critics hear in her commentary echoes of Russia-fueled talking points. Assad fled to Moscow over the weekend after Islamist rebels overtook Syria in a surprise attack, ending his family’s five decades of rule. She said her own views have been shaped by “my multiple deployments and seeing firsthand the cost of war and the threat of Islamist terrorism.” Gabbard said, “It’s one of the many reasons why I appreciate President Trump’s leadership and his election, where he is fully committed, as he has said over and over, to bring about an end to wars.” Last week, the nearly 100 former officials, who served in both Democratic and Republican administrations, said in the letter to Senate leaders they were “alarmed” by the choice of Gabbard to oversee all 18 U.S. intelligence agencies. They said her past actions “call into question her ability to deliver unbiased intelligence briefings to the President, Congress, and to the entire national security apparatus.” The Office of the Director of National Intelligence was created after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks to coordinate the nation’s intelligence agencies and act as the president’s main intelligence adviser. ___ Associated Press writer Stephen Groves contributed to this report.

Marler to retire from rugby on Friday, a month after quitting international duty with EnglandPRATTVILLE, Ala. (AP) — A federal judge has ordered an Alabama city to allow an LGBTQ+ pride group to participate in the city's Christmas parade on Friday, after the mayor initially blocked the group from the annual event citing unspecified “safety concerns.” U.S. District Judge R. Austin Huffaker Jr. ruled that the City of Prattville violated Prattville Pride's First Amendment right to free speech and 14th Amendment right to equal protection under the law when it banned the group from running a float in the annual Christmas parade one day before the event was set to take place. “The City removed Prattville Pride from the parade based on its belief that certain members of the public who oppose Prattville Pride, and what is stands for, would react in a disruptive way. But discrimination based on a message’s content 'cannot be tolerated under the First Amendment,' ” Huffaker wrote in his opinion. The ruling required the city to provide at least two police officers to escort the float throughout the parade. On Thursday, Prattville Pride requested additional security measures from law enforcement. In response, Mayor Bill Gillespie Jr released a statement banning the group from the parade altogether, citing “serious safety concerns.” Huffaker's ruling said that, leading up to the event, some community members “voiced vehement opposition” to the group's inclusion in the parade, but that “the City has presented no evidence of legitimate, true threats of physical violence.” Gillespie's office referred to a statement posted on the city's social media in response to a request for comment. “The City respects the ruling of the Court and will comply with its order. The safety of everyone involved with the parade is a priority,” city officials said in a statement on social media. Prattville Pride celebrated the ruling on social media. “The Christmas parade is a cherished holiday tradition, and we are excited to celebrate alongside our neighbors and friends in the spirit of love, joy, and unity," the group wrote. Prattville is a small city of about 40,000 people, just north of the capital of Montgomery.

Federal judge rules Alabama city must allow gay pride float at Christmas parade