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By John Irish, Maya Gebeily and Ari Rabinovitch Destruction in the Mount Lebanon village of Maaysra after an Israeli airstrike on 25 September 2024. Photo: AFP The US and France sought to hammer out a 21-day ceasefire in the Lebanon conflict between Israel and the militant group Hezbollah late on Wednesday while Israel's military chief said a ground assault was possible after heavy airstrikes. As fears rose that the conflict could spark a wider Middle East war, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said the US and France would give details about their proposal for a temporary ceasefire in Lebanon very soon. "We are counting on both parties to accept it without delay, in order to protect civilian populations and allow for diplomatic negotiations to begin," Barrot, who was due to t...

By Fiona Pepper and Claire Slattery for ABC's Big Ideas Podcast Thanks to fictional crime dramas, the general public has unrealistic expectations around the process of forensic investigations. (file image) Photo: Getty Images / Jacob Wackerhausen We've long had a morbid fascination with murder and crime. This has become even clearer in recent years with the popularity of long-running television crime shows like CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and Silent Witness. So how close is TV crime drama to the real thing? WARNING: This story contains content that readers may find distressing. Three forensic pathologists tell ABC Radio National's Big Ideas what it's actually like to work in the field. And spoiler alert: These experts say there is no crime drama that comes close to the real thing....

By Michelle Nichols, Reuters Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky speaking to the United Nations General Assembly. Photo: SPENCER PLATT/Getty Images/AFP Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday dismissed efforts by China and Brazil to end Russia's war in Ukraine, questioning why the pair were proposing an alternative to his own peace formula and warning: "You will not boost your power at Ukraine's expense." Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Nine months later Zelensky announced a 10-point peace plan to bring a just end to the war on the basis of the founding UN Charter and international law. Moscow rejected the plan. "The peace formula has already existed for two years, and maybe somebody wants a Nobel Prize for their political biography, for (a) frozen truce, inste...

By Hanan Dervisevic, ABC Fans were hoping for a night reminiscent of Netflix's wildly popular period romance Bridgerton. Photo: © 2024 Netflix, Inc. For fans of Netflix's wildly popular period romance Bridgerton, the chance to immerse oneself in the lavish costumes of the show is a dream come true. So fans in the US state of Michigan were excited by the prospect of an event billed as the "Detroit Bridgerton Ball". And with tickets reportedly costing between $US150 (NZ$243) and $US1000, expectations were high. However, as some guests reported on social media, it was hardly the event of the season. Now photos of the event have gone viral on social media, drawing comparisons to the infamous Willy Wonka-themed event in Scotland earlier this year. One attendee posted this photo of the ...

Steve Hinds. Photo: World Rugby The rugby community is mourning the death of long-serving New Zealand administrator Steve Hinds, who had risen to a key role in the global game. Hinds died following a short illness, prompting tributes from World Rugby, where he was the organisation's first full-time Citing Commissioner Manager. Hinds was a citing commissioner at three successive men's World Cups in 2007, 2011 and 2015 before joining World Rugby in 2017 where he oversaw the team of citing commissioners at the three subsequent World Cups, including the 2023 edition in France. On the playing field, Hinds was an influential lock forward for Wellington in the late 1970s and early '80s. He also represented the New Zealand Combined Services and New Zealand Police and played international matche...