Attack on Australian politician follows years of threats to public figures
Concerns grow over increasingly toxic political dialogue in a country where politicians traditionally live in their electorates with minimal security.
Independent Australian lawmaker Helen Haines, 65, remains in critical condition at a Melbourne hospital after being struck by a car in what Prime Minister Anthony Albanese described as a deliberate attack. The incident occurred Monday afternoon in the town of Wangaratta, Victoria, when a Toyota Land Cruiser struck Haines while she was standing by the trunk of her parked vehicle.
According to the Daily Times and Euronews, the driver performed a sharp U-turn before driving into her. Local media reported Tuesday that Haines has lost a leg following emergency overnight surgery.
The 43-year-old driver was detained at the scene by members of the public and remains in custody. Channel News Asia reports that a local barber, Ricky Jefferies, assisted by pulling the man from the vehicle and removing a knife from his pocket before holding him until police arrived. Prime Minister Albanese stated that the national counterterrorism team is investigating the incident, noting that the act appeared aimed at causing harm.
Brief written by urgent.news from Japan Today, Daily Times, Euronews, Channel News Asia, Free Malaysia Today — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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- Attack on Australian politician follows years of threats to public figures freemalaysiatoday.com
- Attack on Australian politician follows years of threats to public figures nst.com.my
- Attack on Australian politician follows years of threats to public figures jpost.com
- Australian PM confirms vehicle attack on independent lawmaker dailytimes.com.pk
- Australian lawmaker injured in car attack loses leg: media japantoday.com
- How the attack on an Australian MP unfolded bbc.co.uk
