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Beloved Australian soap star dies at age 85

<p>Beloved Australian soap star Leila Hayes has died at the age of 85. </p> <p>The popular actress died peacefully at a hospital in Sydney’s Northern Beaches after facing long-term health challenges, according to the post on a Facebook page announcing her death. </p> <p>Best known for her role on <em>Sons and Daughters</em>, Hayes also went on to dabble in singing, hosting a radio show and writing throughout her stellar career. </p> <p>Hayes appeared in popular drama series including <em>Homicide</em>, <em>Power Without Glory,</em> <em>The Sullivans</em>, <em>Prisoner</em>, and <em>Cop Shop</em>.</p> <p>She is best remembered for her of role of Beryl Palmer in the soap opera <em>Sons and Daughters</em>, playing the part in close to 1,000 episodes over the course of the show’s five-year run beginning in 1982.</p> <p>Hayes also proved herself as a radio presenter, hosting <em>New Day Australia</em> <em>with Leila Hayes</em> on Radio 2UE, a successful midnight-to-dawn program.</p> <p>The accomplished performer established the Leila Hayes Drama Studio in Melbourne in 1979 and branched out to Sydney in 1987, where she nurtured up-and-coming talent.</p> <p>The Drama Studio confirmed the news of Leila's passing, with her daughter Melissa sharing her thanks for all the kind messages of support. </p> <p>"Thank you for your condolences, shared memories and support. It means the world to me and my family at this difficult time," Leila's daughter wrote.</p> <p>"Yesterday’s message was not easy to share, and done only out of the great respect she had for all those who have followed, worked with or studied with her over the years. I am sure she would feel incredibly humbled by the overwhelmingly loving support. Thank you."</p> <p><em>Image credits: 7News</em></p>

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Channel Nine star shares "alarming" hospital photos

<p>Channel Nine star Leila McKinnon has shared a series of "alarming" photos from a hospital bed after undergoing surgery. </p> <p>The veteran newsreader revealed in a candid Instagram post on Thursday that she’d undergone “another delightful knee operation”, which had left her leg a startling shade of pink.</p> <p>“I may or may not be high as a kite right now after another delightful knee operation, but something alarming appears to have happened, is my leg pink?” McKinnon wrote alongside the images.</p> <p>“Surgical team did play some brilliant Chappell Roan tunes for me.”</p> <p>The mother-of-two, who is married to former Nine CEO David Gyngell, explained in the comments that the colour had come from a post-op disinfectant after her followers expressed their concerns. </p> <p>It’s understood McKinnon had undergone the operation to remove a pin inserted after an accident in 2022 which had seen her rushed to hospital.</p> <p>She posted a picture from her hospital bed along with X-rays of the injury at the time, along with a caption explaining that the injury was a result of a skiing accident. </p> <p>“Hey what did you do on the school holidays? I don’t want to show off or anything but I got a fancy piercing in my knee …” McKinnon said at the time. </p> <p><em>Image credits: Instagram </em></p>

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Nine presenter hospitalised after accident

<p dir="ltr">Channel 9 presenter Leila McKinnon has revealed that she was rushed to hospital for emergency surgery.</p> <p dir="ltr">The 49-year-old shared photos to Instagram of herself in a hospital bed and some leg X-rays after suffering a serious accident.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Hey what did you do on the school holidays? I don’t want to show off or anything but I got a fancy piercing in my knee,” she wrote.</p> <p dir="ltr">She then asked her followers to guess how the accident occurred, giving them options.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Did I? a) throw myself into a mosh pit to get closer to Harry Styles? b) throw myself at a mountain at high speed? c) throw myself down the stairs in a high-heel related accident?”</p> <blockquote class="instagram-media" style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CczeWCpLoLN/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"> </div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <div style="padding: 12.5% 0;"> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; margin-bottom: 14px; align-items: center;"> <div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(0px) translateY(7px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; height: 12.5px; transform: rotate(-45deg) translateX(3px) translateY(1px); width: 12.5px; flex-grow: 0; margin-right: 14px; margin-left: 2px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; height: 12.5px; width: 12.5px; transform: translateX(9px) translateY(-18px);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: 8px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 20px; width: 20px;"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 2px solid transparent; border-left: 6px solid #f4f4f4; border-bottom: 2px solid transparent; transform: translateX(16px) translateY(-4px) rotate(30deg);"> </div> </div> <div style="margin-left: auto;"> <div style="width: 0px; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-right: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(16px);"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; flex-grow: 0; height: 12px; width: 16px; transform: translateY(-4px);"> </div> <div style="width: 0; height: 0; border-top: 8px solid #F4F4F4; border-left: 8px solid transparent; transform: translateY(-4px) translateX(8px);"> </div> </div> </div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center; margin-bottom: 24px;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 224px;"> </div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 144px;"> </div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CczeWCpLoLN/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Leila McKinnon (@leilamckinnon)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p dir="ltr">It’s been since confirmed that the <em>Ninja Warrior</em> host suffered a skiing incident, which suggests her second option is the answer.</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>The Today Show</em> co-host Karl Stefanovic left a comment on Leila’s Instagram, wishing her a speedy recovery. </p> <p dir="ltr">“Oh no Lala. That’s two of my co hosts down with dickyknees. Argh. Get well. X,” he wrote.</p> <p dir="ltr">Karl was referring to his co-host Allison Langdon who wound up in hospital after suffering a disastrous hydrofoiling accident while on-air in February last year.</p> <p dir="ltr">Other media personalities and talk show hosts left their well wishes as well. </p> <p dir="ltr">“Eek. Hope it’s a speedy recovery … just think of the knitting you’ll rip through,” Tim Davies commented.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Bugger. Knees aren’t safe at Nine. They should all be trembling,” Tracey Grimshaw wrote.</p> <p dir="ltr">“Ohhhh noooo- ouch!!! Hope you feel better soon. Lots love,” Jessica Rowe commented.</p> <p dir="ltr"><em>Images: Instagram</em></p>

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Oatlands crash mum shares joyful news

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The Sydney woman who lost her three children after they were struck by a drunk driver has announced that she is pregnant.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Leila Abdallah </span><a rel="noopener" href="https://honey.nine.com.au/latest/oatlands-crash-leila-abdallah-pregnant-again-after-losing-three-children-in-oatlands-crash-tragedy/070935f7-47ac-4c0e-8d86-b706af6221a5" target="_blank"><span style="font-weight: 400;">shared</span></a><span style="font-weight: 400;"> the news on Instagram, posting a sweet photo of herself and her husband Danny Abdallah cradling her growing tummy.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“God blessed us with a gift from above,” she captioned the post.</span></p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CW8MxwMhS5j/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CW8MxwMhS5j/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Leila Geagea Abdallah (@leila._abdallah)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The couple suffered the heartbreaking loss of their three children, Antony, 13, Angelina, 12, and Sienna, eight, as well as their niece, when a drunk driver struck the group of seven children as they walked to buy ice cream in Oatlands, in north-west Sydney.</span></p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CW8MCZsB3aw/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="14"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CW8MCZsB3aw/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Leila Geagea Abdallah (@leila._abdallah)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The families have been in an ongoing fight with Oatlands Golf Club, where the incident occurred, to have a permanent memorial installed near where the children died.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">So far, the plan, which was submitted by Parramatta Council on the families’ behalf, has been rejected because of its size.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Samuel Davidson, the driver responsible for the deaths, has since apologised to the families and faced court.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Mr Davidson was drunk while driving the vehicle, and a report made after the incident found he had been travelling up to 133 km/h in the 50 km/h zone. </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The vehicle was moving at about 111 km/h at the time of impact.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">He was convicted on four counts of manslaughter, and his punishment is yet to be decided on by the court.</span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">Image: @leila_abdullah (Instagram)</span></em></p>

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Savage Garden refuses to sell out their famous song

<p>Hayes said he’s been approached recently by an advertising company wanting to use the band’s 1997 major hit – <em>Truly Madly Deeply</em> – which Hayes wrote.</p> <p>The singer made his fans laugh on Twitter by sharing the lyrics the advertising company wanted to use and Hayes posted: “If you knew how much money I turn down and how hard I fight to protect your high school memories.”</p> <p>The lyrics the company had pitched to him were:</p> <p><strong>VERSE 1</strong></p> <p><em>I’ll bring you Greek, I’ll bring you French, I’ll bring you Japanese. </em></p> <p><em>I’ll bring you Thai, Steak from the Pub, bring all the food that you need. </em></p> <p><em>Close to your door with every step, I’m outside holding your food. </em></p> <p><em>It will be warm, It will be tasty ‘cause I’m counting on a real good rating.</em></p> <p><em>That’s the reason I’m bringing, you Deep Fried Chicken </em></p> <p><strong>CHORUS 1</strong></p> <p><em>I want to stand with you on food mountain </em></p> <p><em>I want to float with you in some cheese. </em></p> <p><em>[insert brand name] Like this forever </em></p> <p><em>Until more fries rain down on me. </em></p> <p>Twitter users thanked the singer for not selling out and they described the advertising company’s lyrics as “truly madly cringy”, “awful” and “a travesty.”</p> <p>“These lyrics make me want to throw myself off food mountain,” tweeted <a rel="noopener" href="https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/music/savage-garden-star-darren-hayes-rejects-companys-awful-pitch/news-story/@daggerandpe" target="_blank">@daggerandpen</a>.</p> <p>“‘I want to float with you in some cheese’ is my new pick-up line,” wrote <a rel="noopener" href="https://twitter.com/clairenelson/status/1422342652658425858?s=20" target="_blank">@clairenelson</a>.</p> <p>And <a rel="noopener" href="https://twitter.com/timbyrneses/status/1422343095534854154?s=20" target="_blank">@timbyrneses</a> tweeted: “Could you still record it? The people need to hear this cringe.”</p> <p><em>Truly Madly Deeply</em> was a huge hit for Hayes and his Savage Garden bandmate, Daniel Jones, when it was released in 1997.</p> <p>The song went to number one on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in the US and it became the first song in the chart’s history to spend a full 52 weeks inside the top 30.</p> <p>In Australia it won the ARIA award for Single of the Year and was nominated for Song of the Year but lost out to another Savage Garden song, <em>To the Moon and Back</em>.</p> <p>Savage Garden won 10 ARIAs that year from 13 nominations.</p> <p><em>Image: Wikimedia Commons</em></p>

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Leila Abdallah thanks community for restoring memorial

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Leila and Danny Abdallah have thanked the community after the desecrated memorial for the four children who lost their lives in the Oatlands crash was restored.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">After the memorial was torn down by a vandal, Leila Adballah said it felt like a “knife was put in my heart”.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The simple memorial included framed photos of her children Anthony, 13, Angelina, 12, and Sienna Abdallah, nine, as well as their cousin Veronique Sakr, 11 that were hung on a fence in the Sydney suburb after their deaths in February last year.</span></p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CPekk9vBOZh/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CPekk9vBOZh/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Leila Geagea Abdallah (@leila._abdallah)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">On Sunday morning, the memorial - which is the only public memento to the children - was found desecrated, with the photos ripped off the fence.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Somebody had the nerve to strip down my kids’ pictures and strip down the temporary memorial on Bettington Rd where the kids passed away,” Leila Abdallah said on Instagram.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Obviously they didn’t have the courage to do it in the day. It was done at night,” she continued.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“All over Australia there are memorials in honour of people that have died in car accidents and I have never heard of anyone attempting to get rid of them.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“It disappoints me that the person wouldn’t have the decency to reach out and talk to me.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“It’s public space and we are allowed to have it there. This is the last memory I have with my children.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Memorial or no memorial that place will always be reminded of those beautiful children having their lives cut short.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Abdallah said she hopes a permanent memorial will be built in the near future.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Her husband, Danny, was seen at the memorial on Sunday restoring it.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">By Monday, the memorial had been restored to its former glory and had been adorned with numerous flower bouquets.</span></p> <blockquote style="background: #FFF; border: 0; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: 0 0 1px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.5),0 1px 10px 0 rgba(0,0,0,0.15); margin: 1px; max-width: 540px; min-width: 326px; padding: 0; width: calc(100% - 2px);" class="instagram-media" data-instgrm-captioned="" data-instgrm-permalink="https://www.instagram.com/p/CPheMCcBhnS/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" data-instgrm-version="13"> <div style="padding: 16px;"> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: row; align-items: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 50%; flex-grow: 0; height: 40px; margin-right: 14px; width: 40px;"></div> <div style="display: flex; flex-direction: column; flex-grow: 1; justify-content: center;"> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; margin-bottom: 6px; width: 100px;"></div> <div style="background-color: #f4f4f4; border-radius: 4px; flex-grow: 0; height: 14px; width: 60px;"></div> </div> </div> <div style="padding: 19% 0;"></div> <div style="display: block; height: 50px; margin: 0 auto 12px; width: 50px;"></div> <div style="padding-top: 8px;"> <div style="color: #3897f0; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: 550; line-height: 18px;">View this post on Instagram</div> </div> <p style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 17px; margin-bottom: 0; margin-top: 8px; overflow: hidden; padding: 8px 0 7px; text-align: center; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" rel="noopener" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CPheMCcBhnS/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank">A post shared by Leila Geagea Abdallah (@leila._abdallah)</a></p> </div> </blockquote> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">The mourning parents thanked the community for their support.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“Thank you for your love and support,” Leila said on social media on Monday afternoon.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“The Abdallah, Sakr, and Kassass family are blessed to have you all in our lives.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">“No matter what you go through, walk a peaceful path and God will do the rest.”</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">She concluded: “Stay loving, forgiving, and resilient.”</span></p>

Caring

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Leila Abdallah dedicates award to “all the bereaved mothers out there”

<p>The Sydney woman who lost three of her six children when they were struck by a drunk and drugged driver last year has been named mother of the year.</p> <p>Leila Abdallah and her husband Danny lost son Antony Abdallah, 13 and daughters Angelina Abdallah, 12, and Sienna Abdallah, eight when they were killed alongside their cousin Veronique Sakr, 11, on February 1 2020.</p> <p>The kids were riding their bikes on a footpath in Oatlands, northwest Sydney, when a Mitsubishi Triton ute hit them just before 8pm.</p> <p>The man behind the wheel, Samuel William Davidson, 31, was sentenced to 21 years behind bars with no parole last month at Parramatta District Court after pleading guilty to multiple charges including four counts of manslaughter, each carrying a maximum of 25 years in prison.</p> <p>Leila and Danny inspired others by forgiving Davidson, saying their frustration lay with the "way our culture loves drugs and alcohol".</p> <p>After winning this year’s annual accolade, Leila said she dedicated her award to all women grieving the loss of a child.</p> <p>“I’d like to dedicate the award to all the bereaved mothers out there,” she told Sydney radio 2GB on Thursday.</p> <p>“A lot of people have been inspired and touched with the forgiveness and they were able to forgive in their own family and accept their grief.</p> <p>“Kids are the biggest joy any parents can have.”</p> <p>Davidson had been drinking for 12 hours at his home nearby and was driving up to 133km/h just moments before he crashed into seven kids who were on their way to buy ice cream.</p> <p>Judge James Bennett said Davidson’s “horrific” actions and “menacing” driving that day revealed he had abandoned all moral responsibility.</p> <p>“The manner of driving was such that tragedy was inevitable,” Judge Bennett said. “The magnitude of the tragedy extends to the unimaginable.”</p> <p>The seven children were making their way to a local IGA store when they were blindsided by the out-of-control ute around 7:50pm.</p> <p>Family Voice Australia said Leila “has demonstrated grace, charity, and peace beyond measure despite the horrific loss she and her husband have suffered and continue to suffer”.</p> <p>“There could be no better example of how to deal with such a significant and life-changing family disaster than Mrs Abdallah has demonstrated, even though her heart must still be breaking daily because of the loss of three of her precious children.</p> <p>“Yet she continues to express forgiveness rather than seek revenge.”</p> <p>Family Voice Australia is hosting the annual Mother of the Year award for the first time this year, after Barnardos Australia revealed they will not be running the award after 25 years in February.</p>

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"I’m not upset": Leila Abdallah speaks out after home invasion

<div class="post_body_wrapper"> <div class="post_body"> <div class="body_text redactor-styles redactor-in"> <p>The Abdallah family have tried to move on after losing three children in one accident, but the blows keep coming after they were robbed of several sentimental items by thieves on Wednesday.</p> <p>Danny and Leila Abdallah's family home was robbed by a masked intruder around 11:45 am just a year after their three children, Antony, 13, Angelina, 12 and nine-year-old Sienna as well as their 11-year-old niece Veronique were killed by an out-of-control driver in Oatlands last year.</p> <p>Leila, 36, said that she had been busy looking at photos of her children when she noticed someone leaving with a big black bag through the unlocked front door.</p> <p>“He took a lot of personal items (but) it’s not about the items, these items are sentimental to us,” she said to media yesterday.</p> <p>“With every item, we have memories of our kids. He took a watch but it’s not about the watch, this watch reminds me of me and Angelina walking together to the store to buy this watch.”</p> <p>“I was in shock, I just walked outside … people are looking at us thinking ‘you guys have been through enough this year.”</p> <p>Home security tapes show the moment the man fleed the scene in a stolen white Audi, with a man waiting in the car to escape quickly.</p> <p>Cumberland Police Area Commander Detective Superintendent Darryl Jobson said that the crime was "absolutely disgusting" given the "incredible ordeal" but has said that the crime did not appear to be targeted.</p> <p>“I appeal to the conscience of the people responsible for the crime to hand themselves in to the police and to return the property of those victims,” he said.</p> <p>“It is abhorrent to enter anyone’s home whilst people are there. It is a breach of people’s privacy.”</p> <p>Despite the robbery, Leila said that she's "not going to lose sleep over it".</p> <p>“I’m not going to lose sleep over it, at the end of the day life keeps going and there’s more to life than that,” she explained.</p> <p>“Life is challenging, life is full of challenges, and I definitely forgive him, I’m not upset … what matters most in life are my kids.</p> <p>“Family is more important than anything.”</p> </div> </div> </div>

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Thief breaks into home of family who lost three kids in crash tragedy

<p>A family who lost their three children in a horror car crash in February of 2020 have been robbed by a masked intruder in broad daylight.</p> <p>Leila Abdallah lost Anthony, Angelina and Sienna, who all died when a drunk and drugged driver ran them over in Oatlands.</p> <p>Now, she and her husband Danny have been hit with another blow after reports claim the mother was at her home in Telopea when a masked intruder broke inside at around 11:45 am on Wednesday.</p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7840982/abdallah-family-1.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/65f5855130d5435598d0854cad34b8dc" /></p> <p>Ms Abdallah was standing in the kitchen looking at photos of her children when she saw the perpetrator near the front door.</p> <p>He was holding a bag and other belongings but quickly fled when she confronted him.</p> <p>CCTV caught the man wearing black track pants and a dark blue hoodie.</p> <p>He was recorded running away from the house and hopping into a white Audi S3 Sedan.</p> <p>The man, who had an accomplice driver, had taken jewellery, handbags and other possessions from the upstairs bedrooms.</p> <p>Ms Abdallah told reporters that while the material value of the possessions was not important, some of the stolen items had sentimental value linked to her children.</p> <p>“He took a watch, but it’s not about the watch. This watch reminds me of me and Angelina walking to the store to buy this watch. So it’s a bit sentimental for us, and invading our privacy,” she said.</p> <p>“God’s watching him, God knows who he is,” Ms Abdallah went on to say, calling on the man to listen to his conscience.</p> <p>Ms Abdallah says the man may have taken an iPhone that belonged to her late son Anthony.</p> <p>The robber is believed to possibly have been inside for 10 minutes ransacking the bedrooms.</p> <p>Police are calling on the man and the driver of the Audi to turn themselves in, saying the Abdallahs have had to face horror after horror since losing their three children and their cousin Veronique Sakr.</p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7840981/abdallah-family-3.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/9a9e3b0d303f47a0bc936f30e2000660" /></p> <p>“In the last 12 months, the victims of the Telopea incident have endured an incredible ordeal,” Detective Superintendent Darryl Jobson, Cumberland area police commander said on Thursday.</p> <p>“And I appeal to the conscience of the people responsible for this crime to hand themselves in to the police, and I also appeal to them to return the property of those victims.”</p> <p>The intruder is described as being Caucasian, skinny, about 183 centimetres tall, aged in his 20s and with light hair.</p> <p>The Audi’s registration plates read as EGJ-56M, and is thought to have been stolen from North Rocks earlier this week.</p>

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Drunk driver who killed four children receives 21 years in prison: “No sentence can help ease that pain”

<p>Samuel William Davidson will spend a minimum of 21 years behind bars after he ploughed into a group of children on a Sydney pavement, a court has ruled on Friday.</p> <p>The man, who was on drugs, drunk and speeding was sentenced to a maximum of 28 years in jail for the tragic crash in Oatlands killed siblings Antony, 13, Angelina, 12, and Sienna Abdallah, 8, and their cousin Veronique Sakr, 11.</p> <p>He will be eligible for release in January 2041.</p> <p>Danny Abdallah, the father who lost three of his children in the devastating crash said nothing could bring them back, and the lengthy jail term was “God’s will.”</p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7840643/oatlands-children-1.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/de3c9b35c61d4357bbfdb22374af89d8" /></p> <p>“Whether he gets one year or 100 years we won’t get Antony, Angelina, Sienna and Veronique back,” he said while standing alongside his stricken wife Leila.</p> <p>“The most beautiful, innocent and pure-hearted children were killed on the 1st of February 2020</p> <p>“We will all have our hearts broken until the day we take our last breath and no sentence can help ease that pain.”</p> <p>Mr Abdallah said the sentence meant that the Davidson family had also lost a son, meaning it was a “lose-lose” situation for everyone.</p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7840642/oatlands-children-2.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/1cc506b89c8b47518d037831bfafeb81" /></p> <p>“Our focus was never really about what serving a sentence was going to be,” he said.</p> <p>“When we made that choice of forgiveness we focused on our kids.</p> <p>“We knew justice would be served and it was served because it was God’s will this sentence.”</p> <p>The mother of Veronique, Bridget Sakr said too many lives have been lost due to dangerous driving that is often influenced by drugs and alcohol.</p> <p>On February 22, seven children were walking along the footpath to a local IGA. They had been meaning to buy ice cream to evade the summer heat.</p> <p>At around 7:30 pm, the group of kids were hit by Davidson who had been travelling at 133km/h after 12 hours of drinking and drug-taking.</p> <p>Judge Bennett revealed that the graphic scene had seen the kid’s bodies found metres apart from each other.</p> <p>Out of the seven that were struck, only three survived with horrible injuries.</p> <p><img style="width: 0px; height: 0px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7840644/oatlands-children.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/5e2000f47cfb43ebb5c6b9de97a072ea" /></p> <p>Judge James Bennett spoke in court on Friday, saying Davidson’s “horrific” actions and “menacing” driving that day showed he had abandoned all his morals.</p> <p>“The manner of driving was such that tragedy was inevitable,” the judge said.</p> <p>“The magnitude of the tragedy extends to the unimaginable.”</p>

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First Christmas without them

<p><span>The grieving parents who lost their children after a drunk driver ran into a group of kids walking to get ice cream in Sydney’s west, have opened up about how they will deal with their first family Christmas without them.</span><br /><br /><span>Danny and Leila Abdallah spoke at an event to raise money for charity,<em> Feel the Magic,</em> which aims to help children who are grieving the loss of someone special.</span><br /><br /><span>Their son Antony, 13 and daughters Angelina, 12, and Sienna, 8, were struck on a footpath in Oatlands alongside their cousin Veronique Sakr, 11 in February this year after a drunk and drug-affected driver, Samuel Davidson, crashed into them.</span></p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7839065/abdullah-family-1.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/2e75a3fd82214fd99c8793d68336d1e0" /><br /><br /><span>A fifth child was left in a critical condition and spent 80 days in hospital but survived, while two other children were also injured.</span><br /><br /><span>Mrs Abdallah said holidays have been difficult to cope with since the tragedy occurred and this Christmas Eve would have been Angelina’s 13th birthday.</span><br /><br /><span>“That’s why we named her Angelina, which means ‘little angel’,” she told the event on Thursday night.</span><br /><br /><span>“Christmas is a very hard moment for us … We’re just trying to be ourselves and focus on our healing of mind, body and soul.”</span><br /><br /><span>Mr Abdallah said that while this holiday season will be difficult, he was determined to bring “joy” to his three other children.</span><br /><br /><span>“We’re trying to have our Christmas as it was last year so they can at least feel that joy,” the father-of-six said.</span></p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7839068/abdullah-family-2.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/cc94774156c9474188e4ad4dbd45ddc0" /><br /><br /><span>“Even if we don’t feel that joy because we miss them (Antony, Angelina and Sienna), we’re trying to do it for our kids.”</span><br /><br /><span>He said his kids were in the “best possible place” after losing their siblings.</span><br /><br /><span>“My heart is broken. I have no motivation,” Mr Abdallah said.</span><br /><br /><span>“It's painful but I can’t let them (my wife and other children) down … They’ve given me that purpose to wake up every morning.</span><br /><br /><span>“You need to build a trusted team around you to get through grief because it’s something you can’t do on your own.”</span><br /><br /><span>Mrs Abdallah told the audience she had began attending church daily, exercised six days a week and surrounded herself with positive people to help her cope with the loss.</span><br /><br /><span>Veronique’s mother Bridget Sakr — who also attended the event — said her faith, hope and having a purpose to live and look after her son got her out of bed each day.</span></p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 281.25px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7839066/abdullah-family-4.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/0d9c154762b84b518240ef6ee10c8b4b" /><br /><br /><span>“Knowing our children are in heaven. They’re alive. We just can’t physically see them but they’re with us all the time,” she said.</span><br /><br /><span>“I have a family to support and be a role model for and there is hope for all of us to see our children flourish.”</span></p>

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MP suffers collapse during speech in parliament

<p>Labor MP Chris Hayes suffered a collapse while giving a speech during parliament at Midday on Thursday.</p> <p>The politician was speaking about child sexual abuse when he suddenly said “I’ve got a problem” and clutched at his chest.</p> <p>Mr Hayes was taken to hospital.</p> <p>Labor leader Anthony Albanese says his collapse was a "sudden medical event".</p> <p>According to Mr Albanese, the MP “recovered quickly".</p> <p>The opposition leader praised Labor MP Dr Mike Freelander and Nationals MP Dr David Gillespie for rushing to provide Mr Hayes with assistance.</p> <p>"He is in good spirits, and we all wish him a very speedy recovery and I say to the chief opposition whip, if you want to leave he should just ask for it," Mr Albanese said.</p> <p>"There are easier ways to get it then what occurred this morning."</p> <p>Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has offered his support to Mr Hayes.</p> <p>Before thanking Mr Albanese for the health update, he sent prayers to the MP and his family.</p> <p>"We may disagree on many things in this place, but we all agree Chris Hayes is a very good bloke," Mr Morrison said on Thursday.</p> <p>The MP, who is the Chief Opposition Whip, was speaking on the anniversary of the national apology to survivors and victims of institutional child sexual abuse before the incident.</p> <p><span>Mr Hayes has held the seat of Fowler in Sydney's south-west since 2010.</span></p>

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Liz Hayes breaks down after revealing her father died in extraordinary hospital blunder

<p>Renowned<span> </span><em>60 Minutes</em><span> </span>journalist Liz Hayes suffered an emotional breakdown as she revealed her father died due to a major hospital mishap.</p> <p>Hayes father Brian Ryan, 88, passed away on September 11 last year as a result of a “catastrophic” stroke after he wasn’t given his prescribed medication for eight days. </p> <p>“I couldn't pretend that this was somebody else's story,” Hayes said on the Channel Nine program on Sunday night. </p> <p>“He said he was always fearful something like that would happen. I instinctively knew that what I was witnessing was wrong.”</p> <p>Mr Ryan had developed pneumonia last year before being taken to a local hospital in his hometown of Manning River, on the NSW mid-north coast.</p> <p>He was then transferred to another hospital where he successfully beat the infection.</p> <p>“In the country I think it is accepted that the medical services aren't like the city. But it is also trusted that there would be great care, dignity and as many resources as could possibly be found in the country,” she said. </p> <p>But it didn’t end there, as on September 7, just a few short hours after Hayes said goodnight, Mr Ryan suffered a stroke and was rushed to the hospital.</p> <p>“At two in the morning, Dad was wheeled into an empty room in a ward on the top floor,” she said.</p> <p>“Other than his family, no one came to see him or us. We were standing there thinking ‘something must happen now’, you don't just park a patient and don't tell somebody.</p> <p>“His notes were just plonked on the end of the bed and that's when I saw the terrible truth.”</p> <p>Hayes said it was then that she found out that her father - who had a heart condition - hadn't been given his prescribed blood thinner tablets, Apixaban, for eight days. </p> <p>“Dad's medical notes states that the doctor from the private hospital came to the emergency department to advise that he hadn't been given the critical medication,” she said. </p> <p>“If that hadn't had happened to dad I feel confident he wouldn't have suffered that stroke and he would still be here.</p> <p><img style="width: 500px; height: 309.93690851735016px;" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/7837832/2.jpg" alt="" data-udi="umb://media/406d1749fb634835bbcf0956b0aea298" /></p> <p>“I can't believe something that simple could go wrong,” she said through tears.  </p> <p>“Of all the medications not to give him, that was the most important medication for him to have.”</p> <p>Hayes then shared a video she took on the day her dad passed away, as she sat by his side while he laid in bed.</p> <p>“This is my dad. We were to take him home today, but we're not, because of what's been called ‘an error’,” she told the camera. </p> <p>“Dad is now dying because of some terrible mistakes that were made with his medication.”</p> <p>The hospital launched an investigation which resulted in discovering the doctor had prescribed the wrong medication when he was admitted.</p> <p>Hayes then decided to look into the matter herself, and discovered the rural hospital only had one doctor on the ward.</p> <p>“Doctors were brought in often from outside of the area. And when the lights went out, so too did the doctor,” she said. </p> <p>“On the night of dad's stroke, the doctor on duty wasn't actually in the hospital - but was on call.”</p> <p>Hayes said investigating her father's horrific death was like experiencing “a very personal trauma”.</p> <p>“You're trying to walk through this pool of grief but there's a journalist always inside you going ‘this is just wrong’,” she said.</p> <p>Hayes revealed that after launching her own investigation, dozens of doctors came forward saying they wanted to expose the state of the hospital but were afraid of the consequences.</p> <p>NSW Shadow Minister for Health Ryan Park said rural public hospitals are begging for more resources. </p> <p>“This is Australia in 2020. We should pride ourselves on having universal access to healthcare,” Park said. </p> <p>“At the moment, a postcode is determining the level of access to healthcare that you get, and that's simply not right.</p> <p>“If some of these stories were coming out of a major Sydney hospital, there'd be a riot on the street and there would be action within the day.”</p>

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Can you guess the identity of this Aussie TV presenter?

<p>We love when our favourite local celebs share childhood photos! Some of them, like <a href="/entertainment/movies/2017/08/can-you-guess-who-this-hollywood-actress-is/" target="_blank"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Naomi Watts</span></strong></a>, have barely aged a day, while others, like <a href="/entertainment/art/2017/07/can-you-guess-the-identity-of-this-aussie-media-personality/" target="_blank"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">Zoe Foster Blake</span></strong></a>, were a little harder to identify. Now, the latest TV star to share an adorable throwback picture looks totally unrecognisable! Can you guess who she is? We’ll give you a couple of hints – she’s a regular on Channel 9, and often hosts<em> A Current Affair</em>.</p> <p>Still not quite sure? You might be surprised to learn the child in this adorable ‘70s snap is none other than Leila McKinnon!</p> <p><img width="500" height="625" src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/40958/image__500x625.jpg" alt="Image_ (412)" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"/></p> <p>The 44-year-old journo took to Instagram to share the cute school photo, writing, “Throwback Thursday to when I discovered stripes and circles and argyle and checks and red and brown and blue and yellow and green were SUCH A STYLISH COMBO.”</p> <p>Were you able to correctly guess who the fresh-faced youngster grew up to be? Let us know in the comments below!</p>

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