Australia news LIVE: Australian IS brides turned back after leaving Syrian camp; Government should consider changes to tobacco excise, experts say

A large group of Australian Islamic State brides and their children left a Syrian camp on their way back to Australia late last night, but were turned around about 50 kilometres down the road and sent back to where they began.

It’s the latest frustration for 34 Australian women and children who have spent almost seven years in Syrian camps as the Australian government continues its refusal to repatriate them through official channels.

A camp official told this masthead their promised departure to the Syrian capital, Damascus, then Beirut, then Australia, had been paused for an unspecified period of time – possibly hours, possibly days.

It’s unclear why, but the official speculated that the three Australian men accompanying the women and children had not organised the correct permission between the factions governing the region.

The official insisted “it’s not cancelled, it’s postponed for a period of time”.

Read the full story from senior writer Michael Bachelard.

Good morning and welcome to our national news live blog for Tuesday, February 17. My name is Emily Kaine, and I’ll be helming our coverage this morning. Here’s what is making headlines.

• A large group of Australian Islamic State brides and their children left a Syrian camp on their way back to Australia late last night, but were turned around about 50 kilometres down the road and sent back to where they began. The 34 Australian women and children have spent almost seven years in Syrian camps as the Australian government continues its refusal to repatriate them through official channels.

• One of the nation’s biggest independent retailers has warned that nine out of every 10 cigarettes will be bought illegally by the end of the decade unless the federal government cuts tobacco excise, slashing the price of cigarettes by almost a third. Ritchies IGA, which operates 150 stores largely across Victoria and NSW, says Treasurer Jim Chalmers could repair the budget by billions of dollars and undermine criminal gangs by reversing years of bipartisan support for ever-higher rates of tobacco excise.

• A leaked hardline migration policy intended to show Sussan Ley was getting tough on immigration has been repudiated by two senior Liberal frontbenchers. The seven-point plan proposed banning migrants from terror hotspots across 13 countries and creating a $80 million taskforce – Operation Gatekeeper.
• Police returned to the South Australian outback yesterday to continue their search for evidence in the case of missing four-year-old Gus Lamont, who has not been seen since last year.

• Angus Taylor delivered his first public speech as opposition leader at the Centre for Independent Studies in Sydney yesterday afternoon, where he said the Coalition could fight both One Nation on the right and the community independents on the left. “We start by recognising the challenge, which is that we do need to change,” Taylor said.

Follow along as we bring you the latest live news updates from Australia and beyond throughout the day.