Mickey the 'monster': Sinister allegations behind spectacular corporate unravelling

It could be argued that no American president has been as enamoured with violence as Donald Trump. He appears to relish all of it: the spectacle, the promise of it taking place, and, lately, its bloody reality, as - at the time of recording - American bombs continue to drop on Iran.So, is this the key to to understanding the US president's motivation or all the other wars he’s planning?Today, international and political editor Peter Hartcher on which which country Trump has set his sights on next, and whether Australia is now at war with Iran.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Five female Iranian soccer players, in Australia competing for the Asian Cup, escaped in the night from their handlers to seek refuge from their home country, which is in the middle of a war with the US and Israel.Initially another two women decided to join them and defected a day later, but on Wednesday afternoon, one of the pair changed their mind and contacted Iranian officials with the intention of returning home.Today, in a bonus episode, crime and justice reporter Amber Schultz joins us from Malaysia, where she has been tracking the rest of the team on their journey back to Iran.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Thousands of people in Lebanon have fled their homes due to Israeli airstrikes and forced evacuations as the conflict between Israel and Hezbollah escalated this week. Today, Europe correspondent David Crowe and photojournalist Kate Geraghty report from Lebanon, after the US and Israel’s war on Iran expanded to the region. Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The lieutenant governor of Texas has called it “the biggest theft from the people of Texas in the history of Texas”. He was referring to the work of Australian gamblers who scooped up a $US95 million jackpot. And this is the kicker: they did it by buying up nearly every single lottery ticket and, they say, by following all the rules.Today, investigative reporter Patrick Begley on the Australians who took down the Texan lottery.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Micky Ahuja catapulted his company MA Services from nothing to the big time to become the security provider of choice to the federal government retail giants like Coles and Bunnings, and a major sponsor of AFL clubs.But his empire was a house of cards. Today Nick McKenzie on one of the more spectacular and disturbing corporate unravellings in recent memory. Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Israel and the United States are at war with Iran in a rapidly escalating conflict that Australia seems to be trying to avoid as much as possible. Today, we'll talk about how viable it is to be neutral these days, and whether Australia is doing its duty as a middle power. We'll also discuss the Liberal Party review that Opposition Leader Angus Taylor and others tried to keep it secret, only to have it leaked by none other than the prime minister himself this week. Joining Jacqueline Maley today is foreign affairs correspondent Matthew Knott and chief political correspondent Paul Sakkal.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Only six days since the United States and Israel began bombing Iran, the destruction is mounting. More than 800 people have been killed, including Iranian schoolchildren and American service members.  What will it take to stop this war? And what might compel Donald Trump to end it, if he can?  Today, international and political editor Peter Hartcher on Trump's tactics, and how his MAGA base is responding.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this bonus episode of Inside Politics, we’re joined by the Nationals leader David Littleproud.He’s a man under pressure – commentators, Liberal MPs and some of his own colleagues blamed January’s split on the 49-year-old from Chinchilla in regional Queensland.Today, chief political correspondent Paul Sakkal and Littleproud discuss the Coalition rupture and what’s next under the leadership of Angus Taylor.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

If leading figures of the AI boom, like OpenAI chief Sam Altman, have their way, much of the world (or better yet, space) will be covered in data centres. But what about the havoc their construction is wreaking on our neighbourhoods? Today, investigative reporter Clay Lucas, on the Australians living next door to these loud, energy-sucking centres that some say are a threat to our environment. And whether our state governments are letting a rapidly evolving, resource-intensive industry expand largely unchecked.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Only days before US President Donald Trump declared war on Iran, another Epstein files bombshell dropped — this one, relating to allegations against the American president. An investigation revealed that the Department of Justice withheld more than 50 pages of FBI interviews and notes from conversations with a woman who accused Donald Trump of sexual abuse, decades ago, when she was between 13 and 15 years old. Today Foreign Policy magazine deputy editor Amelia Lester on what some Democrats are calling “the largest government cover-up in modern history”, and if it could hurt Donald Trump.Subscribe to The Age & SMH: https://subscribe.smh.com.au/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.