Latest Cronulla, New South Wales Stories

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian Prime Minister John Howard has called on migrants, particularly Muslims, to integrate into Australian society by quickly learning English -- sparking warnings his comments may lead to race riots. The head of the government's Muslim advisory committee, Ameer Ali, said on Friday that Howard's comments could fuel race riots like those at Sydney's Cronulla beach last December. "We have already witnessed one incident in Sydney recently in Cronulla, I don't want...

By Mark Bendeich SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian police patrolled Sydney's beaches in buggies and on horses decorated with tinsel and reindeer antlers on Sunday, as fears of fresh racial violence dissolved into a quiet Christmas Day. On Cronulla beach, where gangs of white surfers and ethnic Lebanese clashed in alcohol-fuelled riots two weeks ago, families spread out across the sand and children ran into the sea -- all under the watchful eye of dozens of armed, uniformed police....

By James ReganSYDNEY (Reuters) - Disagreements, sometimes violent, about who owns the beach in Australia are not new.Long before this month's ethnic riots in some of Sydney's most popular seaside communities, surfers, lifeguards and people who live inland were drawing battle lines in the sand."When you are sharing the ocean with like-minded people, the beach becomes like your church," said psychologist Richard Bennett, author of "The Surfer's Mind.""If someone is...

By Michelle Nichols CANBERRA (Reuters) - Australia was soul-searching on Tuesday over the racial violence that has gripped Sydney's beachside suburbs with an opinion poll showing three-quarters of Australians believe their country is racist. The ACNielsen poll, published in The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper, prompted Prime Minister John Howard to say for the first time that racial tensions had played a hand in the violence, though he denied most Australians were racist. "There are...

By Michael Perry SYDNEY (Reuters) - A security crackdown on Sydney's beaches will be extended over Christmas after further racial violence over the weekend was averted with police arresting seven men with Molotov cocktails and confiscating scores of weapons. Police Commissioner Ken Moroney said on Monday that as calm returned to the beaches, police numbers would be reduced -- but 800 officers would be scheduled on duty until the end of January to deal with the threat of violence. "I...

By Jim Regan SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian police "locked down" two Sydney suburbs on Sunday night, allowing only residents through roadblocks, fearing fresh outbreaks of racial violence after seizing Molotov cocktails. Police said Australia's famous Bondi Beach and the suburb of Brighton-le-Sands near Sydney airport had been sealed off after people were arrested carrying Molotov cocktails. "Only residents can come into Bondi. They have to show proof of residence, like a driver's...

By Jim Regan SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian police seized petrol bombs, knives and iron bars around Sydney beaches on Sunday, along with mobile phones used to spread racist messages, in a huge security operation to prevent fresh inter-communal violence. Police put an extra 500 police on the beaches of Australia's biggest city, taking the total cordon to about 2,000. Officers patrolled on horseback and set up checkpoints around some of Sydney's favorite summer playgrounds, including...

By Jim Regan SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian police boosted security around Sydney's beaches on Sunday, fearing fresh outbreaks of racial violence as they seized petrol bombs, knives, iron bars and mobile phones used to spread racist text messages. Police patrolled beaches on horseback and set up checkpoints around some of the city's favorite summer playgrounds, including Bondi Beach, where a peaceful holiday mood was edged by fears of fresh violence between whites and ethnic Lebanese....

By Jim Regan SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian police stepped up security around Sydney's beaches on Sunday, fearing fresh racial violence after officers manning road-blocks found knives in cars, and hate messages circulated by mobile phone. Police patrolled beaches on horseback and set up checkpoints around some of the city's favorite summer playgrounds, including Bondi Beach, where a peaceful holiday mood was edged by fears of fresh violence between whites and ethnic Lebanese. "I don't...

By Jim Regan SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australian police stepped up security around Sydney's beaches on Sunday, fearing another eruption of racial violence after road-blocks found cars carrying knives, while hate messages circulated by mobile phone. Police patrolled beaches on horse-back and set up checkpoints around some of the city's favorite summer playgrounds, including Bondi Beach, where the holiday mood was infused by fears of fresh violence between whites and ethnic Lebanese. "I don't...