Squiz Today – Thursday, 4 November

THE SQUIZ
Cleo Smith, the 4yo from Carnarvon in Western Oz who went missing from her tent at a campsite on 16 October, was found “alive, well, smiling” and alone in a local home a bit before 1am WA time yesterday morning. Get that up ya, 2021…

PULL IT TOGETHER… TAKE ME THROUGH IT
How is she? Cleo is out of hospital and is home with her family, and police said she’s “physically ok”. Detective Senior Sergeant Cameron Blaine – one of the 4 officers who discovered her – said she’s “a little energiser bunny. How she has that much energy … I wish I did. I’m about ready to go to sleep.”

What do we know about the man they have arrested? A 36-year-old man is in police custody in Carnarvon hospital, and no charges have been laid at this stage. Police say they don’t believe he’s linked to Cleo’s family, and he became a suspect on Tuesday.

And what have police said about her discovery? A bit about the moment she was found, but nothing about how they put the clues together to find her. “It was just that methodical grind of going through all the information we had, all the data, joining those dots together and finding that vital piece of information,” said lead investigator Detective Superintendent Rod Wilde.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
Police will continue to question the man they have in custody. In the meantime, people are reflecting on how remarkable it is that Cleo was found in good nick after 18 days. Xanthe Mallett, a criminologist at the University of Newcastle, said “I can’t remember a case like this off-hand when a child has been returned safe and well to their family after this length of time. I mean, this really is almost a miracle.” And until police get answers, it’s probably enough that Cleo’s home with her family. “Our family is whole again,” mum Ellie Smith posted to Insta yesterday.

Subs continue to sink Franco-Oz relations

Bombs away… French Ambassador Jean-Pierre Thébault says his country doesn’t want “cheap words” from Oz; it wants “proof of love”. That should be delivered through “tangible actions that embody the political will of Australia’s highest authorities to redefine positively the basis of our bilateral relationship,” Thébault said in an address to the National Press Club in Canberra yesterday. Sounds lofty… It’s not been a good week on the Franco-front with the Ambassador accusing the Morrison Government of “intentional deceit” on top of President Emmanuel Macron saying PM Scott Morrison had lied to him over the cancellation of French company Naval Group’s $90 billion submarine contract. Asked about it yesterday, Morrison said “It’s important now we just move on, frankly.”

WA inches towards reopening

Western Oz’s Premier Mark McGowan has talked about keeping his state’s border closed into next year, and we’ll get a sense of what that means tomorrow with the release of its roadmap. WA’s vaccination rate is 64.5% which is behind the national rate of 78.5%, so the roadmap will serve as a hurry along to residents… McGowan yesterday said that an extra $400 million will be spent on more hospital beds to help prepare the health system for COVID cases. And travel restrictions between NSW and WA will slightly ease on Saturday morning, as the ‘COVID state’ moves from “extreme risk” to the “high risk” category under WA’s system. It will mean that fully vaccinated New South Welshpeople from a narrow group – we’re talking military personnel, senior officials, and specialists – will be able to travel west. And exemptions will be granted to WA residents wanting to return or those with family there.

Ethiopian citizens told to get ready to fight

A state of emergency has been declared by the government led by PM Abiy Ahmed as fears build that an all-out war is imminent. Ok, let’s back that up a bit… It’s been nearly a year since Abiy – a former Nobel Peace Prize winner – sent troops to crush the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) in the country’s northern region – an area in dispute with the central government. Last night, the United Nations released a report saying there is evidence that “all parties to the conflict” have targeted civilians in fighting that has been marked by “extreme brutality” and genocide. Since the breakdown of a ceasefire a few weeks ago, the rebel group has captured 2 cities and could soon attack the capital Addis Ababa. That’s led the government to call on residents to register their weapons and get ready to protect their neighbourhoods. International efforts to broker a ceasefire between the government and the rebels have been unsuccessful, and the UN is calling on everyone to tone it down.

A win and a remarkable story

Professor Eddie Holmes from Sydney Uni has won the PM’s Prize for Science, worth $250,000. The ceremony was last night – virtually, of course… An expert on the evolution of viral diseases, he was Eddie on the spot when it came to COVID-19. After decades of studying how viruses evolve and jump between species, he has previously made important discoveries about the HIV, Ebola and Zika viruses. “I’m a bit like the Forrest Gump of COVID; I appear to be in every scene without knowing it,” he said. This time around, after building concern that Chinese authorities were hushing up the outbreak, he publicly shared the genome sequence of the SARS-CoV-2 virus for the first time in January last year, publishing it on behalf of Chinese scientists. It enabled researchers worldwide to get cracking, and his colleagues have called it “one the most important acts of data-sharing ever undertaken”. Give that man 2 prizes…

An honourable order for Olivia Newton-John

The Japanese Government will confer the Order of the Rising Sun – the country’s highest civilian honour – on Aussie singer Olivia Newton-John. Japan’s Ambassador to Oz (and magpie lover) Yamagami Shingo – announced the news yesterday, saying her music “made my youth colourful and endurable”. It’s not as random as it might seem… The British-born, American-based Aussie singer and cancer campaigner has been travelling to Japan since 1972 and was the first foreign artist to perform in Fukushima 4 years after the city’s forced evacuation due to an accident at a nuclear power plant. Japan says she has made a significant contribution to developing the nation’s musical culture and promoting friendly relations with Australia. Newton-John is stacking up the awards – she was made a dame in the Queen’s 2020 New Year honours.

Astronauts on the International Space Station have grown their own chillies from seeds – a first for the outpost. Adding them to tacos, the crew was excited…

The Bureau of Meteorology, affectionately known as the BOM, has released the images in its 2022 calendar featuring the best of weather from this year. How Forster, NSW survived that lightning strike IDK….

And sorry to tell you this, but you’re probably cleaning your teeth wrong. You need to do it for longer than 2 minutes twice a day, and there’s a specific technique you should be using. You’re welcome…

6.15am (AEDT) – The winner of the Booker Prize is announced

9.00pm (AEDT) – Men’s T20 Cricket World Cup – Australia v Bangladesh – Dubai, UAE

Australian Institute of Health and Welfare Release – Report on suicide and self-harm

Tonga’s National Day

Diwali – Hindu, Sikh, and Jain faiths celebrate the Festival of Lights and the victory of good over evil, light over darkness, and knowledge over ignorance

A birthday for actor Matthew McConaughey (1969)

Anniversary of:
• James Ritty patenting the first cash register to combat stealing by bartenders in his saloon in Dayton, Ohio (1879)
• archaeologist Howard Carter discovering the tomb of Tutankhamun in Egypt (1922)
• the premiere of the film Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (2001)
• the election of Republican Ronald Reagan (1980) and Democrat Barack Obama (2008)