Hello, Australia! – A big shocker in Australian politics – The UK counts down to one of the tightest and most contentious elections in years – France chooses more spying – And a lot more in your CareerSpot World News Briefs:

“It is with a mix of optimism, pride, excitement and sadness that I am resigning the leadership and leaving the Senate,” said Christine Milne in a shocking announcement this morning, ending her term as leader of the Greens and in the upper house.  She insisted she was not pushed and is leaving on her own terms.  Victorian Senator Richard DiNatale stood unopposed and was elected to replace her.  It leaves the Greens without Milne’s experience two years before the next Federal election, but DiNatale will be backed by Queensland Senator Larissa Waters and WA Senator Scott Ludlam as “co-deputy leaders”. 

Britain’s political leaders are making their final appeals to the voters before Thursday’s election.  Labour and the Conservatives are locked in a tight race.  And although there’s a slight edge developing for the Tories, it’s too close to call.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu must present his government to President Reuven Rivlin on Wednesday.  It’s looking like whatever he comes up with, it’ll be held hostage by backbenchers who will be able to threaten to quit and destroy Bibi’s 61-seat majority in the Knesset.  One of his main right-wing allies has already bailed out over Netanyahu’s refusal to promise to build more Jewish settlements on Palestinian land.

Burundi’s constitutional court ruled that President Pierre Nkurunziza can indeed run for a third term.  This comes after one of the judge fled the country rather than make the decision.  Burundi has been rocked by street protests from the opposition, who say that a third term for Nkurunziza violates the del that brought an end to the country’s civil war ten years ago.

France’s Parliament approved a controversial law giving the nation’s spy agency more power to conduct surveillance.  The aim is to eavesdrop on and disrupt plots by terrorists.  The law was drafted shortly after the January terrorist attacks in Paris in which 17 people died.  Critics say mass surveillance gives the state too much power and threatens the independence of the Internet in France.

A US Judge in Miami sentenced a Guatemalan drug trafficker known as “the Queen of the South” – and promptly put a five-year seal on the case, preventing any reporting of how much time that Marllory Chacon Rossell will spend in prison.  Prosecutors refused to comment on the highly unusual move.  She was accused of running a drug network that extended from Guatemala to Colombia, Venezuela, Panama, Honduras, and Mexico.

The US government approved a ferry service to run between Miami and Havana, Cuba, the first such service in more than 50 years.  The US slapped an economic embargo on Cuba in 1960, and President Barack Obama is taking it apart piece by piece since it didn’t work.  “If all goes smoothly we could have things up and running by September,” said Joseph Hinson, president of the Miami-based United Americas Shipping Services, which was granted one of the ferry licenses.