Labor Party politics in Australia can be a nasty and nail-biting business. The final episode between Julia Gillard and Kevin Rudd, played out over the past 48 hours, reveals this to be the case.

It is the lot of many leaders to be more admired and appreciated abroad than in their own domains, writes the NZ Herald in an editorial.

Only Australians call it a "spill". However peculiar their coinage to describe the triggering of a party leadership vote, it's gloriously apt, writes Toby Manhire.

Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is firmly back in power and facing the harsh realities of rebuilding his Government.

Kevin Rudd has urged fellow lawmakers to be "a little kinder and gentler" toward each other following the internal coup that ousted Julia Gillard.

Kevin Rudd has been sworn in again as Australia's prime minister, as it appeared likely the country will go to the polls earlier than planned September 14 election.

Labor has finally made the decision it ought to have taken long ago, but the counter-revolution has been extremely bloody and there are bodies all over the place.

Kevin Rudd will be sworn in as Australian prime minister - again - by the governor-general this morning following Julia Gillard's ousting as Labor leader.

Australians could be forgive who would be running a country of 22.3 million people and a A$1.5 trillion economy by breakfast today, writes Kathy Marks.

Kevin Rudd has won the Australian Labor Party leadership vote, defeating Julia Gillard by 57 votes to 45.

You can't help wondering how Julia Gillard's spin doctor had the folly to suggest staging a photo of her knitting a kangaroo, writes Kathy Marks.

A secretly-filmed video has recorded a people smuggler admitting to Indonesian police protection of the trade in boat people sailing to Australia.

Ecuador's Foreign Minister said his country was "analysing" a request for asylum by fugitive United States intelligence leaker Edward Snowden.

It's unlikely belated Western military aid will help moderate rebels attend peace talks as equals, Instead, Washington should orchestrate an accommodation.

With an election due in September, Australian voters can only hope that there is much less talk about sexuality and nether-regions and more about policy, writes Irfan Yusuf.

Gillard has been the victim of appalling levels of sexism, writes Marian Sawyer. With some justification she has made her gender a political issue.

The Chinese Communist Party is notorious for the ruthlessness with which it pursues its opponents.

Syrian state media had announced that "Operation Northern Storm" would retake Aleppo "within days" after regime forces captured Qusair at the beginning of June.

Among the few possessions Edward Snowden had with him when he met journalists at Hong Kong's Mira Hotel was a copy of Angler.

Regime change would geographically isolate Hizbollah from critical Iranian support, significantly weakening Iran's influence in the region, writes Chris Mahony.

The resounding victory by moderate cleric Hassan Rowhani in the Iranian presidential election was a welcome surprise.

A former head of Czech military intelligence has admitted following the wife of the country's Prime Minister on the orders of a female aide at the centre of a sex and corruption scandal.

Opposition fighters in Syria are preparing for a major onslaught by government forces in their northern strongholds around Aleppo.

Two years ago, at the beginning of the violence in Syria, I was asked to write a blog in the British Medical Journal on behalf of Medecins Sans Frontieres.

Israel is worried about continued arms supplies to the Syrian regime from Russia.

The danger is that the techniques devised today by NSA data miners to track potential terrorists may tomorrow be employed by private sector, writes Gehan Gunasekara.

The Australian Parliament continues to sit in a surreal session in which policy still takes second place to a leadership spill.