CAIRNS, Australia: The mother of seven of eight children killed in Australia was charged with their murder Sunday, police said, describing it as the most tragic episode in their career as a makeshift memorial saw an outpouring of grief.
The 37-year-old, named in local media as Mersane Warria, was charged with eight counts of murder after the bodies of the children — four girls and four boys aged between two to 14 — were found in the northern city of Cairns on Friday morning.
The murders have stunned Australia, still reeling from a dramatic siege in a central Sydney cafe this week, which left two hostages and a gunman dead, and prompted widespread shock and anger.
“I would suspect it might be the most tragic event we have had to deal with,” Cairns detective inspector Bruno Asnicar told reporters.
“All of the family has been advised (of the charges). This is very raw and it is a very emotive time for everybody. The family is deeply upset but the community is pulling together.”
The woman remained under guard in a Cairns hospital after being arrested on Saturday and appeared before a magistrate at a bedside hearing, Queensland police said in a statement.
Police said the woman, who is the mother of the seven younger children and the aunt of the 14-year-old girl, has sustained injuries that are not life-threatening.
There will be a formal hearing in a Cairns court on Monday, with police set to oppose bail.
Officers have not revealed the cause of death of the children but said they were looking into various scenarios, including suffocation.
“We are considering that (suffocation) and that’s why it’s taking a bit of time,” Asnicar said earlier Sunday.
Police previously said that knives were found at the house where the bodies were discovered.
Autopsies on the children were continuing and would be completed late Sunday at the earliest, police said.
In moving scenes at the makeshift memorial established in a park near the crime scene, a man believed to be the father of the three youngest children wailed “my babies, my babies,” Fairfax Media reported.
He was joined at the shrine of flowers and teddy bears by other mourning relatives from the victims’ Torres Strait Islander community.
“The last time I saw her she kissed me. She said she loved me and she asked for Aus$100 which I said I’d give to her on Saturday morning on her birthday,” the father of the oldest victim told Fairfax. “My daughter, she was beautiful.”
Queensland Police have not officially confirmed the identity of the mother or the family for cultural reasons. In some indigenous cultures it is considered disrespectful to say a deceased person’s name.
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Mother charged with murder of eight children in Australia
Mother charged with murder of eight children in Australia
Taiwan says reached ‘general consensus’ with US on trade deal
- Taiwan has reached a “general consensus” with the United Sates on a trade deal, the democratic island’s negotiators said Tuesday, after months of talks
TAIPEI: Taiwan has reached a “general consensus” with the United Sates on a trade deal, the democratic island’s negotiators said Tuesday, after months of talks.
Taiwan and the United States began negotiations in April to hash out a trade deal after US President Donald Trump slapped a 32 percent tariff on Taiwanese exports, which was later lowered to 20 percent, as part of his sweep of measures against dozens of trade partners.
Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te has pledged to boost investment in the United States and increase defense spending as his government tries to further reduce the levy on its shipments, as well as avoid a toll on its semiconductor chip exports.
“The goal of the US-Taiwan tariff negotiations has always been to seek reciprocal tariff reductions without stacking tariffs, and to obtain preferential treatment under Section 232 for semiconductors, semiconductor derivatives, and other items,” the Office of Trade Negotiations said in a statement, adding there was a “general consensus” on these issues.
Section 232 refers to part of the US Trade Expansion Act that allows tariffs to be imposed when national security is found to be at risk.
“Both sides are currently discussing the schedule for a concluding meeting, and an announcement will be made once it is confirmed,” the statement said.
Taiwan’s trade officials also vowed to provide “a complete explanation of the negotiations and the agreement” to the opposition-controlled parliament and the public.
American soil
Taiwan is a powerhouse in the manufacturing of semiconductor chips, which are the lifeblood of the global economy, as well as other electronics.
Trump has previously accused Taiwan of stealing the US chip industry and his administration had made clear it wants more of the critical technology made on American soil.
The US government launched investigations under Section 232 into semiconductors and chip-making equipment last year.
Taiwan’s trade surplus with the United States was the seventh highest of any country in 2024, reaching $73.9 billion.
More than half of its exports to the United States are information and communications technology products, including semiconductors.
Lai has been at pains to find favor with Trump, vowing to raise defense spending to more than three percent of GDP this year and five percent by 2030.
TSMC, which is the world’s largest contract chip maker, also has pledged to invest an additional $100 billion in the United States.
But Taiwanese Deputy Foreign Minister Francois Chih-chung Wu told AFP recently that Taiwan planned to keep making the “most advanced” chips on home soil.
Taiwan and the United States began negotiations in April to hash out a trade deal after US President Donald Trump slapped a 32 percent tariff on Taiwanese exports, which was later lowered to 20 percent, as part of his sweep of measures against dozens of trade partners.
Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te has pledged to boost investment in the United States and increase defense spending as his government tries to further reduce the levy on its shipments, as well as avoid a toll on its semiconductor chip exports.
“The goal of the US-Taiwan tariff negotiations has always been to seek reciprocal tariff reductions without stacking tariffs, and to obtain preferential treatment under Section 232 for semiconductors, semiconductor derivatives, and other items,” the Office of Trade Negotiations said in a statement, adding there was a “general consensus” on these issues.
Section 232 refers to part of the US Trade Expansion Act that allows tariffs to be imposed when national security is found to be at risk.
“Both sides are currently discussing the schedule for a concluding meeting, and an announcement will be made once it is confirmed,” the statement said.
Taiwan’s trade officials also vowed to provide “a complete explanation of the negotiations and the agreement” to the opposition-controlled parliament and the public.
American soil
Taiwan is a powerhouse in the manufacturing of semiconductor chips, which are the lifeblood of the global economy, as well as other electronics.
Trump has previously accused Taiwan of stealing the US chip industry and his administration had made clear it wants more of the critical technology made on American soil.
The US government launched investigations under Section 232 into semiconductors and chip-making equipment last year.
Taiwan’s trade surplus with the United States was the seventh highest of any country in 2024, reaching $73.9 billion.
More than half of its exports to the United States are information and communications technology products, including semiconductors.
Lai has been at pains to find favor with Trump, vowing to raise defense spending to more than three percent of GDP this year and five percent by 2030.
TSMC, which is the world’s largest contract chip maker, also has pledged to invest an additional $100 billion in the United States.
But Taiwanese Deputy Foreign Minister Francois Chih-chung Wu told AFP recently that Taiwan planned to keep making the “most advanced” chips on home soil.
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