AP - The powerful earthquake that smashed buildings, cracked roads and twisted rail lines around the New Zealand city of Christchurch also ripped a new fault line in the Earth's surface, a geologist said Sunday.

AFP - Australia's conservative leader Tony Abbott told three minority MPs who will decide if he should become prime minister that he was offering a "fresh start" in an 11th-hour plea for their support.

AP - Investigators expressed confidence Sunday that they will learn why an airplane carrying skydivers crashed in flames near a popular tourist spot in New Zealand's Southern Alps, killing four Europeans and five New Zealanders.

AP - An 11-year-old boy was recovering Saturday after a sea lion mauled him at a popular Sydney zoo's aquarium show as horrified visitors looked on.

AFP - An 11-year-old Australian boy was recovering in hospital Saturday after reportedly being left with a "dirty great hole in his belly" after being mauled by a sea lion during a show at a Sydney zoo.

AP - Whether or not she emerges as winner following recent elections, Australia's first woman prime minister will have led the nation's oldest political party to one of the lowest points in its 119-year history.

AFP - An Australian man was attacked by a shark which mauled his face and neck during a holiday in the South Pacific Solomon Islands, officials said on Friday.

AFP - A French climber dubbed "Spiderman" for scaling skyscrapers without ropes or equipment pleaded not guilty Friday to putting lives at risk after his latest stunt in Australia.

AP - A French skyscraper climber nicknamed "Spiderman" pleaded not guilty Friday to charges related to his bare-handed climb up a 57-story building in downtown Sydney.

AFP - A Thai-owned firm Friday rejected Indonesia's 2.4 billion US dollar compensation claim over a major oil spill off Australia's north which campaigners say hit the livelihoods of thousands of poor fishermen.

Reuters - One of three independent MPs needed by Australia's Prime Minister Julia Gillard to form a minority government hinted on Friday he could negotiate on Labor's mining profits tax he has previously opposed.

AFP - A key independent MP Thursday backed Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard to form a government after deadlocked polls, leaving her just two seats short of a parliamentary majority.

AFP - Passengers on a Sydney-bound Qantas jet rocked by an exploding engine Thursday described how the plane felt like it had hit a "speed bump" and showered flames and sparks like fireworks.

AFP - An Australian school was under fire Thursday after erasing the word "gay" from iconic song "Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree" to stop children tittering.

AP - An Australian school principal has asked students to stop using the word "gay" when singing a classic children's song, but said Thursday no offense was intended — he was simply trying to keep the kids from laughing.

AFP - Australia's economy surged 1.2 percent in the three months to June, the biggest jump in three years, data showed Wednesday, boosted by a surprise recovery in consumer spending and soaring mining exports.

AFP - More than 80 asylum-seekers broke out of an Australian immigration detention centre on Wednesday after days of riots and staged a seven-hour protest outside, police said.

AFP - Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard pledged on Tuesday to work towards a minority government and rejected a quick return to the polls after national elections failed to produce a clear winner.

AFP - More than 100 alleged people-smugglers from Indonesia launched a second day of protests at an Australian immigration prison Monday, defying police negotiators and remaining on the roof, officials said.