Two ADF aircraft sent to assist Australians stranded in Middle East – as it happened

This blog is now closedJacinta Nampijinpa Price charged taxpayers to fly husband to CPAC where she railed against government spendingGet our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcastLiberal senator says military assets should be used ‘if necessary’ to repatriate AustraliansThe shadow defence minister, James Paterson, says the Middle East is a “challenging” environment for commercial airlines to fly in, with airports in the region being struck by Iran.If those commercial options are not available, then every other option needs to be considered, including using ADF assets to repatriate Australians if that’s necessary.We have used military planes to evacuate Australians from conflict zones. And if that’s necessary in this instance, if it’s possible in this instance, then obviously the government will have our bipartisan support.But we also take this position with some regret, because the current conflict is another example of the failure of the international order, despite decades of