The Federal Court found that immigration minister Peter Dutton unreasonably delayed making decisions on refugees’ applications for citizenship. Advocates say that the decision will provide hope to thousands who have had their cases ‘put in the bottom drawer’.
Michael Pezzullo, the Secretary of the Department of Immigration and Border Protection, travelled to the US to shore up the refugee resettlement deal that Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull struck with outgoing President Barack Obama. Pezzullo and other senior bureaucrats discussed operational details of the deal in a series of meetings with Department of Homeland Security officials and figures connected to President-elect Trump.
The planned evacuation of refugees from Aleppo, Syria was halted amid reports of an attack on a convoy leaving rebel-held areas. Late in the week, opposition rebels and pro-government forces reached a new deal to enable over 6000 remaining civilians and fighters to leave the besieged city.