Six British pro-Palestinian activists have been acquitted of aggravated burglary relating to a 2024 raid on a factory operated by Israeli defence firm Elbit, with a jury unable to reach verdicts on charges of criminal damage.
Prosecutors at London’s Woolwich Crown Court said on Wednesday the six defendants, whose trial began in November, were members of the now-banned group Palestine Action, which organised the assault on the Elbit Systems United Kingdom facility in Bristol, southwest England, in August last year.
The six – Charlotte Head, 29, Samuel Corner, 23, Leona Kamio, 30, Fatema Zainab Rajwani, 21, Zoe Rogers, 22, and Jordan Devlin, 31 – all denied charges of aggravated burglary, violent disorder and criminal damage.
Tony Maudsley has played undertaker George Shuttleworth on Coronation Street since 2020
Joe Crutchley Screen Time Reporter
12:15, 04 Feb 2026Updated 12:16, 04 Feb 2026
Coronation Street’s Tony Maudlsey gives rare look at family life as fans left swooning (Image: Karwai Tang/WireImage)
Coronation Street’s Tony Maudsley has delighted fans after giving them a rare look into his family life.
Tony joined the ITV soap in 2020 as George Shuttleworth, the son of the late undertaker Archie (Roy Hudd). Since then, he’s become a firm favourite with viewers.
In 2022, George’s family grew with the arrival of his sister Glenda, portrayed by Jodie Prenger, on the soap. The former cruise ship entertainer quickly won over viewers with her close bond with her doting brother.
He also played a part in several big storylines – including his relationships with Eileen Grimshaw (Sue Cleaver) – who left the soap last year – and his current romance with Christina Boyd (Amy Robbins).
As well as Corrie, Tony has appeared in Queer As Folk, Emmerdale and even the Harry Potter franchise in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. He also starred in the hit ITV sitcom Benidorm playing hairdresser Kenneth Du Beke from 2011 to 2018.
The telly star is also no stranger to keeping his loyal legion of 77k Instagram followers updated on his everyday life. And this week, he had his co-stars and fans swooning after an adorable family update.
Giving fans a rare look at his private life, Tony uploaded several photos of his adorable dog after their groom. He captioned the post: “Took Bosie to a new groomers today in Worsley Village and they did a great job! They even cleaned his teeth (well the few he’s got left!)”
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He added: “New business so give them a try if you’re local! Idyllic setting so perfect for a lovely walk, post-pamper!! Oh by the way that chunk of fur out of his leg wasn’t done by the groomer he had blood tests last week so that was down to the vet!”
Unsurprisingly, his co-stars and were left swooning by the post with Sally Carman writing: “Blow OUT,” along with a love heart eyes emoji. Someone else gushed: “Beautiful boy! Looking fab Bosie.” A third penned: “Omg he is so cute! That face!” Another said: “What a cutie!!!”
Coronation Street airs Monday to Friday at 8:30pm on ITV1 and ITVX
Armed men burned homes and shops in Woro, a remote village in north-central Kwara State bordering Niger State, authorities say.
Published On 4 Feb 20264 Feb 2026
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Armed men have killed at least 35 people and burned homes and shops in Woro, a remote village in Nigeria’s north-central Kwara State, authorities said.
“This morning, I was told that 35 to 40 dead bodies were counted,” Sa’idu Baba Ahmed, a local lawmaker in the Kaiama region, told the AFP news agency on Wednesday.
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“Many others escaped into the bush with gunshots,” Ahmed said, adding that more bodies could be found.
It was the deadliest assault this year in the district bordering Niger State, which armed gangs have attacked increasingly.
Villagers fled into the surrounding bushland as the armed men attacked Woro, Ahmed told the Reuters news agency by phone. Several people were still missing, he said.
The attack was confirmed by police, who did not provide casualty figures. The state government blamed the attack on “terrorist cells”.
Banditry and armed attacks on rural communities have surged across northwest and north-central Nigeria in recent years as gangs raid villages, kidnap residents and loot livestock.
Last week, a prominent Saudi Sheikh, Mohammed Al-Issa, visited the Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland to commemorate the 75th anniversary of its liberation, which signalled the end of the Nazi Holocaust. Although dozens of Muslim scholars have visited the site, where about one million Jews were killed during World War Two, according to the Auschwitz Memorial Centre’s press office, Al-Issa is the most senior Muslim religious leader to do so.
Visiting Auschwitz is not a problem for a Muslim; Islam orders Muslims to reject unjustified killing of any human being, no matter what their faith is. Al-Issa is a senior ally of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman (MBS), who apparently cares little for the sanctity of human life, though, and the visit to Auschwitz has very definite political connotations beyond any Islamic context.
By sending Al-Issa to the camp, Bin Salman wanted to show his support for Israel, which exploits the Holocaust for geopolitical colonial purposes. “The Israeli government decided that it alone was permitted to mark the 75th anniversary of the Allied liberation of Auschwitz [in modern day Poland] in 1945,” wrote journalist Richard Silverstein recently when he commented on the gathering of world leaders in Jerusalem for Benjamin Netanyahu’s Holocaust event.
Bin Salman uses Al Issa for such purposes, as if to demonstrate his own Zionist credentials. For example, the head of the Makkah-based Muslim World League is leading rapprochement efforts with Evangelical Christians who are, in the US at least, firm Zionists in their backing for the state of Israel. Al-Issa has called for a Muslim-Christian-Jewish interfaith delegation to travel to Jerusalem in what would, in effect, be a Zionist troika.
Zionism is not a religion, and there are many non-Jewish Zionists who desire or support the establishment of a Jewish state in occupied Palestine. The definition of Zionism does not mention the religion of its supporters, and Israeli writer Sheri Oz, is just one author who insists that non-Jews can be Zionists.
Mohammad Bin Salman and Netanyahu – Cartoon [Tasnimnews.com/Wikipedia]
We should not be shocked, therefore, to see a Zionist Muslim leader in these trying times. It is reasonable to say that Bin Salman’s grandfather and father were Zionists, as close friends of Zionist leaders. Logic suggests that Bin Salman comes from a Zionist dynasty.
This has been evident from his close relationship with Zionists and positive approaches to the Israeli occupation and establishment of a Jewish state in Palestine, calling it “[the Jews’] ancestral homeland”. This means that he has no issue with the ethnic cleansing of almost 800,000 Palestinians in 1948, during which thousands were killed and their homes demolished in order to establish the Zionist state of Israel.
“The ‘Jewish state’ claim is how Zionism has tried to mask its intrinsic Apartheid, under the veil of a supposed ‘self-determination of the Jewish people’,” wrote Israeli blogger Jonathan Ofir in Mondoweiss in 2018, “and for the Palestinians it has meant their dispossession.”
As the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, Crown Prince Bin Salman has imprisoned dozens of Palestinians, including representatives of Hamas. In doing so he is serving Israel’s interests. Moreover, he has blamed the Palestinians for not making peace with the occupation state. Bin Salman “excoriated the Palestinians for missing key opportunities,” wrote Danial Benjamin in Moment magazine. He pointed out that the prince’s father, King Salman, has played the role of counterweight by saying that Saudi Arabia “permanently stands by Palestine and its people’s right to an independent state with occupied East Jerusalem as its capital.”
Israeli journalist Barak Ravid of Israel’s Channel 13News reported Bin Salman as saying: “In the last several decades the Palestinian leadership has missed one opportunity after the other and rejected all the peace proposals it was given. It is about time the Palestinians take the proposals and agree to come to the negotiations table or shut up and stop complaining.” This is reminiscent of the words of the late Israeli Foreign Minister Abba Eban, one of the Zionist founders of Israel, that the Palestinians “never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity.”
Bin Salman’s Zionism is also very clear in his bold support for US President Donald Trump’s deal of the century, which achieves Zionist goals in Palestine at the expense of Palestinian rights. He participated in the Bahrain conference, the forum where the economic side of the US deal was announced, where he gave “cover to several other Arab countries to attend the event and infuriated the Palestinians.”
US President Donald Trump looks over at Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammad bin Salman al-Saud as they line up for the family photo during the opening day of Argentina G20 Leaders’ Summit 2018 at Costa Salguero on 30 November 2018 in Buenos Aires, Argentina [Daniel Jayo/Getty Images]
While discussing the issue of the current Saudi support for Israeli policies and practices in Palestine with a credible Palestinian official last week, he told me that the Palestinians had contacted the Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro to ask him not to relocate his country’s embassy to Jerusalem. “The Saudis have been putting pressure on us in order to relocate our embassy to Jerusalem,” replied the Brazilian leader. What more evidence of Mohammad Bin Salman’s Zionism do we need?
The founder of Friends of Zion Museum is American Evangelical Christian Mike Evans. He said, after visiting a number of the Gulf States, that, “The leaders [there] are more pro-Israel than a lot of Jews.” This was a specific reference to Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince, and his counterpart in the UAE, Mohammed Bin Zayed.
“All versions of Zionism lead to the same reactionary end of unbridled expansionism and continued settler colonial genocide of [the] Palestinian people,” Israeli-American writer and photographer Yoav Litvin wrote for Al Jazeera. We may well see an Israeli Embassy opened in Riyadh in the near future, and a Saudi Embassy in Tel Aviv or, more likely, Jerusalem. Is Mohammad Bin Salman a Zionist? There’s no doubt about it.
The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.
Over 1,000 Love Island viewers have complained to Ofcom after Sean Stone and Scott van der Suis went head-to-head round the firepit in one episode, with Sean calling him a ‘bully’
The tenth edition of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup will take place in India and Sri Lanka from February 7 to March 8, 2026.
Twenty teams will be competing in 55 matches for the chance to win cricket’s most prestigious T20 trophy.
But cricket is a game with a list of commonly used terms and phrases that might confuse those new to it.
In this illustrated guide, Al Jazeera breaks down cricket lingo and helps you understand the game beloved by nearly two billion people.
What is the aim of the game?
Cricket is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams consisting of 11 players each.
The game is divided into two parts, known as innings.
In the first innings, following a coin toss, the first team bats while the other team bowls and fields.
The batting team should try to score the highest number of runs in the allotted time, while the bowling team has to try to prevent them from scoring.
The bowling team has dedicated bowlers, while the remaining players, spread across the ground, try to prevent the batters from scoring runs as well as catch the ball to get the batters out.
In the second innings, the bowling team now gets a turn to bat and try to score more runs than their opposition.
The team with the highest number of runs at the end of the day wins the game.
What does T20 mean?
There are three different formats in cricket, each with its own duration and rules.
Each format has its own defined set of “overs”.
An “over” consists of six deliveries by the bowler.
In a T20 match, which usually lasts three to four hours, each team is given 20 overs (120 balls) to score the most number of runs. This format of the game is designed to be shorter and faster-paced, which provides more excitement for spectators.
A One Day International (ODI) match typically lasts about seven to eight hours. Each team is given a total of 300 deliveries, which are divided into 50 overs, to score the most number of runs.
A Test match is the longest and oldest format of the game, played over a maximum of five days. It is considered a test of endurance and skill. Each day has a minimum of 90 overs. Both teams have two innings each.
The cricket field and pitch
Cricket is played in a large, oval-shaped field, typically about 150 metres (164 yards) in diameter at its widest point and surrounded by a boundary rope.
In the centre of the field is the pitch, a rectangular area about 20 metres long (22 yards) and 3 metres (3.3 yards) wide, where most of the action takes place.
At each end of the pitch are three wooden sticks known as wickets or stumps, with two bails atop them.
The batter stands in front of these wickets inside a specified area known as the batting crease. It is from there that he or she will strike the incoming ball from the bowler.
During the match, the batting team will actually have two players on the field, one on either end of the pitch, to take turns in hitting the ball.
The bowling team, meanwhile, will have all 11 players scattered throughout the field to minimise the number of runs their opponents can score.
Some of the most common positions are shown below:
How are runs scored?
The aim for the batters is to score as many runs as possible by hitting the ball in the gaps between the fielders or over the boundary rope.
To score a run, the batter needs to hit the ball and then, together with their batting partner, run to the opposite side of the pitch before the fielder returns the ball; otherwise, they can be run out.
A single run is scored when both batters safely complete one run, a two-run when they complete two runs, and so on.
If a batter hits the ball along the ground and it reaches the boundary rope, then four runs are awarded.
To signal that four runs have been scored, the umpire moves his right hand from one side to the other, repeatedly waving it back and forth horizontally.
Umpire Paul Reiffel (R) signals four runs during a Test match between West Indies and India [Randy Brooks/AFP]
The maximum, six runs, is scored when the batter hits the ball directly over the boundary before it bounces. This shot is the most rewarding but also among the riskiest, due to the chances of getting bowled or caught.
To signal a six, the umpire will raise both hands above his head, which the fans will often imitate.
Umpire Michael Gough (R) signals for six runs during a One Day International cricket match between Zimbabwe and Ireland [Jekesai Njikizana/AFP]
How does a player get ‘out’?
There are several ways to get a batter out, with each out referred to as “losing a wicket”.
Since cricket is played with pairs of batsmen, when 10 players from the batting team are dismissed, their innings concludes, and the sum of the runs they scored sets the target score for the bowling team.
The most common ways of getting a player out include:
Bowled: This happens if the batter misses the ball, and it goes on to hit the wicket.
Caught: A batter is caught out when they hit the ball and a fielder catches it before it touches the ground.
Run-Out: A run-out happens when the fielding team throws the ball at the wicket while the batter is trying to score a run and before they can reach the opposite side of the pitch.
LBW (Leg Before Wicket): This decision depends on various factors, but in a nutshell, a batter can be given out LBW if the ball hits their legs while they are standing in front of the wicket, thus preventing the wicket from being hit.
To signal an “out”, the umpire who is standing in the middle of the field will raise his index finger to signify that a batter has been dismissed.
This gesture is often referred to as the umpire having “raised the finger” or “given the finger”.
The on-field umpire signals an out for Australia’s Pat Cummins before the decision is overturned following a review [Andrew Boyers/Reuters]
How do you read the score?
To follow the score in cricket, you need to look at three numbers.
The first is the number of runs a team has scored – the higher the number, the better.
The second indicates the number of “outs” or “wickets”. Once 10 players are out, their batting innings come to an end.
The third is the number of overs that have been bowled.
Combined, a score may look like this: 109-5 (10 overs)
This means that 109 runs have been scored, 5 players are out, and 10 overs have been completed.
(Al Jazeera)
Typically, teams make anywhere from 100 to 250 runs during a T20 match. A score of 100 is considered low to defend, while 250 runs is usually very strong.
The highest score in international T20 cricket was between Zimbabwe and The Gambia in 2024.
Zimbabwe batted first and scored a huge 344-4 in their 20 overs. In response, The Gambia only managed 54 runs before losing all 10 of their wickets.
‘We won’t see anything on national territory that resembles what’s been seen in the US,’ Italy’s interior minister says.
Published On 4 Feb 20264 Feb 2026
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Agents from the divisive United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency will have no operational role in the Winter Olympics, Italy’s interior minister has said days before the Milan-Cortina Games open.
ICE’s Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), which is a separate investigative arm of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) from the department carrying out the US immigration crackdown, will operate within US diplomatic missions only and “are not operational agents” and “have no executive function”, Matteo Piantedosi told the Italian Parliament on Wednesday.
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He said the outrage over the HSI presence, including the Milan mayor’s warning that they were not welcome in the city during the February 6-22 Winter Games, was “completely unfounded”.
“ICE does not and will never be able to carry out operational police activities on our national territory,” Piantedosi said.
The minister aimed to clarify the news of the contentious deployment of ICE agents, which prompted protests in the Italian metropolis.
“Security and public order are ensured exclusively by our police forces,” he said.
“During the Milan-Cortina Games, the members of this agency will be engaged solely in analysis and information exchange with the Italian authorities,” he added.
“The presence of personnel linked to the ICE agency is certainly not a sudden and unilateral initiative to undermine our national sovereignty, as some have portrayed, but rather compliance with a legally binding international agreement entered into by Italy.”
Last week, the US agency said it will support the “Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service and host nation to vet and mitigate risks from transnational criminal organisations”.
Following the announcement, Milan Mayor Giuseppe Sala said ICE would not be welcome in his city.
“This is a militia that kills … It’s clear that they are not welcome in Milan. There’s no doubt about it. Can’t we just say no to [US President Donald] Trump for once?” he said in an interview with RTL 102.5 radio.
ICE said its operations in Italy are separate from the immigration crackdown ordered by Trump in the US.
The Italian interior minister confirmed that the agency’s role would be limited.
“We will not see anything on national territory that resembles what has been seen in the media in the United States,” Piantedosi said.
“The concerns that have inspired the controversy of the last few days are therefore completely unfounded, and this information allows me to definitively dispel them.”
You may have read recently how minions of the Trump administration removed an exhibit about slavery from the President’s House in Philadelphia (where George Washington lived, with slaves) as part of its ongoing sop to MAGA sensitivities and campaign to erase history in favor of a fairy tale in which the worst thing Washington ever did was chop down a cherry tree.
The study of history is by nature messy, replete with conflicting interpretations and incomplete puzzles, but it’s what you need to know in order not to repeat it. PBS, lately defunded by conservatives but not disassembled, is among the institutions working to bring it to the people — indeed, the only television outlet seriously devoted to it. (History Channel is just a name.) Premiering Tuesday and continuing weekly is the four-part series “Black and Jewish America: An Interwoven History,” presented by Henry Louis Gates Jr., at the start of what happens to be Black History Month.
Gates, who also hosts the PBS genealogy series “Finding Your Roots,” has presented such documentaries as “Africa’s Great Civilizations” and “Great Migrations: A People on the Move,” has made cameo appearances in HBO’s “Watchmen” series and “The Simpsons.” He teaches at Harvard and is a well-known public figure — a history communicator, scholar and storyteller and a minor TV star the world also knows as “Skip.” Even-tempered and even-handed, he’s a good guide through the minefields of racial history — he keeps you from blowing up. You might find yourself angry at the material, but not with Gates.
“Under the floorboards of Western culture run two streams, continuously,” he says. “One is antisemitism, one is anti-Black racism,” whose purpose here is to explore “the areas of overlap.” They aren’t the only victims of bigotry in American history and modern America; Italians and Irish immigrants had their turn, too. White supremacy, which is very much alive in the land — turn on the news — disdains every people of color. But as people who shared the experience of being “mocked and feared, blamed and banished, envied and imitated,” often allied, sometimes antagonists, theirs is a special case.
Gates has assembled a stimulating, illuminating, maddening, saddening, but often inspiring, story of their relations with the world and one another. (Here and there he reaches a little outside his theme.) At 75, he’s lived through a good slice of the history illuminated here, including “our brief golden age” of the 1960s Civil Rights Movement, and though he structures his series as a pendulum swinging between worse and better news, he scrupulously bookends it in a hopeful mood, with a Seder to start and a discussion with students to end. His insistence that no one is safe until everyone is safe, can seem to portend a future in which no one will ever be safe, though as a teacher I assume he’s more sanguine. His manner, at least, is encouraging.
The Seder, which begins with a singing of “Go Down Moses (Let My People Go),” gathers a tableful of Black, white and biracial Jews — each distinguished enough to have their own Wikipedia pages — in a roundtable discussion. Participants include New Yorker editor David Remnick, author Jamaica Kincaid, journalist Esther Fein, rabbi Shais Rishon, Angela Buchdahl (the first East Asian American to be ordained as a rabbi); and culinary historian Michael Twitty, who provides the doubly meal — kosher salt collard greens, West African brisket and potato kugel with sweet and white potatoes and Creole spice.
Though both Jews and Black people faced (and face) discrimination, their American journeys were launched, says Gates, “on different trajectories,” one group chased from nominally Christian countries, the subject of durable medieval superstitions, the other dragged from their homes. Though the mass of Jewish migration, escaping Russian pogroms and Nazi Germany in succeeding waves, occurred in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, some arrived before the revolution; but the Constitution, which enshrined religious freedom, granted them legal rights. (This presumably did not help the Jews of African descent Gates says were present here early on.) Black people, kidnapped and enslaved, had none, and as freedom was gained, new laws were written to hold them in place.
Gates posits a sympathy between immigrant and first- and second-generation Jewish Americans in the 20th century and disadvantaged Black people, based on a common experience of oppression; Jewish newspapers used the word “pogrom” to describe violence against Black people in the South. And Jews, many raised with a sense of social justice, were disproportionately represented among white activists in the Civil Rights Movement. This would change: Where Martin Luther King declared “I’m more convinced than ever before that our destiny is tied up with the destiny of our Jewish brothers and vice versa, and we must work together,” later Black activists, like Stokely Carmichael preferred to go it alone, promoting self-determination and even separation.
Still, many of the stories here are based on Black and Jewish friendships. We learn of W. E. B. Du Bois and Joel Spingarn, who sat together on the board of the NAACP and to whom Du Bois dedicated his 1940 autobiography “Dusk of Dawn.” Of Tuskegee Institute founder Booker T. Washington and philanthropist Julius Rosenwald, a president of Sears, Roebuck and Co., who built schools — more than 5,000 nationally, eventually — for systemically disadvantaged Black students. (Graduates included Maya Angelou and John Lewis.) Of Chicago rabbi Abraham Heschel, bringing 15 other white rabbis down to Selma, Ala., in 1964 at the request of King, where their arrest made headlines — which translated to political pressure.
In music, we meet Louis Armstrong, who as a boy worked and stayed with a Jewish family, and wore a Star of David, and his manager Joe Glaser. We’re told the story of Billie Holiday‘s lynching ballad “Strange Fruit,” written by Abel Meeropol (under his pseudonym Lewis Allan), recorded by Milt Gabler for his Commodore label and performed regularly by Holiday at Barney Josephson’s Cafe Society, New York’s first truly integrated nightclub. And we hear Paul Robeson, daring to sing in Yiddish in a concert in Moscow, in support of Itzik Feffer, a Jewish poet imprisoned (and later murdered) by the Soviets.
As a social and political history covering two intersecting storylines for more than the length of the nation, it’s packed with incident and facts — the Klan resurgent after World War I (six million members, it says here); the 1936 Berlin Olympics, where Jesse Owens triumphed and the U.S. committee pulled two Jewish sprinters from competition; racist Nazi policies, borrowed from American Jim Crow, and the Holocaust. Also the domestic destabilizing effects of wars in the Middle East. Jews and Black people will find themselves on the opposite sides of some questions.
Even at four hours, it’s a survey course, streamlined but not simplistic, and as such it will fly through some points and elide others; there are whole volumes dedicated elsewhere to what constitutes a single sentence here, and libraries dedicated to some of these figures. (Why not read some?) The view is not singular, and as such, there’ll be something for everyone to question, especially as Jews and Black people are often described as a community, when neither is heterogeneous. (Jews don’t even agree on what makes a Jew.)
But whatever goes back and forth between then, the world has its own ideas. “People who hate Jews,” says Gates, “uncannily hate Black people too. Because when the stuff hits the fan, they’re coming after both of us.”
US President Donald Trump lashed out at a journalist, calling her the ‘worst reporter’, after she questioned him about survivors of the late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Trump’s name appears in the Epstein files. He has not been accused of any crimes by Epstein’s victims and has denied any wrongdoing.
The official Super Bowl halftime show on Sunday will feature Bad Bunny, the Grammy winner for album of the year, at the height of his powers and influence. Those upset by his onstage comments about the dignity of Latinos and immigrants, however, can turn to a competing bill featuring Kid Rock and Gabby Barrett.
Rock, the perennial MAGA raconteur and country-rock singer, will perform for the far-right activist group Turning Point USA’s counterprogramming event streaming across the conservative mediasphere. Turning Point USA is the activist group founded by the late Charlie Kirk, who was killed last year at a speaking event in Utah.
“We plan to play great songs for folks who love America,” Rock said in a statement announcing the bill. “We’re approaching this show like David and Goliath. Competing with the pro football machine and a global pop superstar is almost impossible … or is it?”
“He’s said he’s having a dance party, wearing a dress and singing in Spanish? Cool. We plan to play great songs for folks who love America,” Rock said, in an overt jab at the actual Super Bowl halftime show headliner.
Veteran country acts Lee Brice and Brantley Gilbert and Barrett, an “American Idol” alum with a 2019 Hot 100 hit in “I Hope,” will also perform.
While Rock’s right-wing politics have largely eclipsed his musical relevance in 2026, he’s recently tried to position himself as a power broker for MAGA-friendly concerts with just enough plausible appeal for more neutral country and rock fans. His planned 2026 touring festival, Rock the Country, is set to feature Blake Shelton, recent Grammy winner Jelly Roll, Creed and Miranda Lambert, but lost Ludacris and Morgan Wade following blowback from fans.
When Bad Bunny was booked for the Super Bowl in October, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said, “I didn’t even know who Bad Bunny was. But it sounds like a terrible decision, in my view, from what I’m hearing. It sounds like he’s not someone who appeals to a broader audience.”
“There are so many eyes on the Super Bowl — a lot of young, impressionable children. And, in my view, you would have Lee Greenwood, or role models, doing that. Not somebody like this, ” he added.
President Trump said a bill featuring the Grammy-winning Puerto Rican superstar — and the famously anti-Trump punk band Green Day — was part of the reason he would not attend the game this year. “I’m anti-them. I think it’s a terrible choice,” he said. “All it does is sow hatred. Terrible.”
Harden, an 11-time All-Star, was traded for the fifth time in his career after two and a half seasons at the LA Clippers.
Published On 4 Feb 20264 Feb 2026
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The Cavaliers and Clippers have finalised a trade that sends 11-time All-Star James Harden to Cleveland, with Darius Garland and a second-round pick going to Los Angeles, ESPN and The Athletic both reported late on Tuesday.
Harden, 36, was held out of the Clippers’ lineup the last two games for what the team labelled personal reasons.
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The former NBA MVP and three-time scoring champ is averaging 25.4 points, 8.1 assists and 4.8 rebounds in 44 games this season, his 17th in the NBA.
Harden could block any trade because he is technically under contract for just this season, which requires his approval for the swap. The second year of his two-year, $81.5m deal is a player option, which is not fully guaranteed.
Garland, 26, has been sidelined since January 14 with a Grade 1 right toe sprain.
The two-time All-Star is averaging 18.0 points and 6.9 assists over 26 games this season. He is in the third year of a five-year, $197.2m contract.
The Cavaliers (30-21) are in contention in the Eastern Conference, one of four teams with either 30 or 31 wins behind first-place Detroit (36-12), which explains the desire to make a big move by acquiring Harden.
The Clippers, 23-26, remain in play-in contention in the West, currently in ninth place.
The NBA trade deadline is Thursday at 3pm ET (20:00 GMT).
Harden, centre, is averaging 25.4 points per game this season, his highest scoring clip since 2020-21 [Bart Young/Getty Images via AFP]
Seven months after the Washington peace accord between the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Rwanda, the implementation of its terms stands at 23.3 per cent. The accord was signed in June 2025 under the watch of the President Donald Trump administration.
In January 2026, the Barometer of Peace Agreements in Africa reported that, while diplomatic initiatives have advanced, essential security obligations remain unmet, making the core implementation of the peace deal unfulfilled. Released on Feb. 1, the BPAA report reveals that progress remains limited and unequal, and is losing its dynamism.
The report highlights several positive developments observed between Jan. 1 and Jan. 31, particularly in the institutional and diplomatic context. The African Union adopted a new mediation framework in Lome, and facilitators conducted tours in Kinshasa, Kigali, and Bujumbura. However, these efforts have not resulted in tangible progress.
The Doha process, designed to complement Washington’s framework, has stalled since November 2025, leaving six protocols unresolved and further complicating coordination between parallel peace efforts, according to the BPAA.
Another key observation of the report is that the AU’s new mediation structure, though innovative, suffers from unclear coordination and lacks a standard methodology, raising concerns about its ability to harmonise Washington and Doha processes effectively.
Angolan President João Lourenço engaged Congolese authorities, opposition, and civil society in consultations to revive dialogue. Meanwhile, the U.S. Congress held hearings on the state of the peace process, underscoring Washington’s sponsorship of the accord.
On the ground, however, the BPAA revealed that clashes between the Congolese army and the M23 rebels continued across North and South Kivu, undermining ceasefire commitments despite the group’s withdrawal from Uvira in line with international demands.
The think tank further observed that monitoring structures have weakened, with the Joint Security Coordination Mechanism and Joint Oversight Committee failing to meet in December and January, leaving violations and delays unaddressed.
Humanitarian access remains restricted, with displaced populations and civilians caught in escalating violence, underscoring the urgent need for both governments to prioritise civilian protection and relief.
“The global execution rates remain unchanged at 23.3% without evolution as compared to the level recorded in November and December 2025, and the intensification of fighting continues, exacerbating the already precarious conditions of the civilian population,” the report stated.
Despite the expedited Washington process, the situation on the ground remains troubling, with tensions between the two countries persisting. As the accord enters its eighth month, the gap between diplomatic promises and realities on the ground raises pressing questions about whether regional and international actors can salvage momentum before the agreement slips into irrelevance.
Seven months post the Washington peace accord between the DRC and Rwanda, implementation remains at 23.3%.
Although diplomatic efforts have advanced, security measures lag behind, leaving the peace process unfulfilled. The January 2026 BPAA report indicates that progress is uneven and lacks momentum.
There have been institutional advancements, like a new AU mediation framework and diplomatic outreach, but no significant progress. The Doha process has also stalled, complicating coordination between peace efforts. The AU’s new structure suffers from unclear coordination, impeding effective harmonization of peace efforts.
Efforts by Angola for dialogue revival and U.S. Congressional hearings emphasize the accord’s importance. However, fighting persists between the Congolese army and M23 rebels, violating ceasefire commitments. Monitoring structures have weakened, and humanitarian access is restricted, worsening the civilian situation.
Despite these diplomatic efforts, the unresolved issues and intensified conflicts emphasize the need for urgent action to prevent the peace accord from losing relevance. The situation remains tense, with questions about the efficacy of regional and international intervention to reinvigorate the peace process.
Today host Savannah Guthrie’s mother Nancy was last seen on Saturday night at her Arizona home – and now TMZ claim to have received a random note in relation to her kidnapping
07:56, 04 Feb 2026Updated 07:56, 04 Feb 2026
Savannah Guthrie’s mother was reported missing on Sunday(Image: savannahguthrie/Instagram)
There has been a new develop in the case of Today host Savannah Guthrie’s missing mother, with TMZ claiming to have received a “ransom note” in relation to her kidnapping. Savannah’s 84-year-old mother Nancy was reportedly taken from her home in Arizona’s Catalina Hills on Feb 1 before the alarm was raised by a family member later that day.
The police confirmed yesterday that they are treating Nancy’s disappearance as a crime after making a “very concerning” discovering in her home. Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said: “We do in fact have a crime scene.
“We do in fact have a crime. She did not leave on her own. We know that.”
Now, American news outlet TMZ is claiming to have received a ransom note from Nancy’s kidnappers, asking for millions of dollars in Bitcoin to be sent to a specific Bitcoin address. In a video posted to TMZ’s X page, host Harvey Levin told the camera: “So we got something in our email that looks like a, is written like, a ransom note for Savannah Guthrie’s mother.”
Co-host Charles Latibeaudiere added: “Specific requests for specific amounts of money, bitcoin.” Harvey added: “And also they say at the bottom, there are certain things they are saying about what she was wearing and damage to the house.
“We have contacted the sheriff’s department, and we want to get them this letter. We had a little trouble getting through to the right person. We spoke with someone who is now forwarding this to somebody in the detective bureau. If my phone rings, I may have to stop.”
Charles added: “What’s interesting is, you know, there was just a news conference that just ended with the sheriff, and he was asked about—we’re going to do this segment in a few minutes—but he was asked about a ransom note, and he just said, ‘We are following all leads.'”
Harvey warned viewers that they don’t know whether the note is “authentic or not”, but noted that it did contain details about the crime scene. “They are acting as if, ‘Yeah, only we would know these things and we’re serious.’
“And there’s a dollar demand and an ‘or else’ in there, so we will let you know as this develops.”
They revealed that the Bitcoin address listed in the note is a legitimate address. Meanwhile, the Pima County Sheriff’s Department wrote on X, writing that they are “aware of reports circulating about possible ransom note(s) regarding the investigation into Nancy Guthrie”.
In light of her mother’s disappearance, Savannah announced last night that she would be dropping out of hosting duties at the upcoming 2026 Winter Olympics opening ceremony as “she focuses on being with her family during this difficult time,” an NBC Sports spokesperson said.
“Thank you for lifting your prayers with ours for our beloved mom, our dearest Nancy, a woman of deep conviction, a good and faithful servant,” she wrote on Instagram on Monday.
US President Donald Trump has said that talks with Iran are continuing to try to de-escalate tensions in the Gulf, even as the US military announced shooting down an Iranian drone that approached its aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea.
Around 2,900 athletes from more than 90 countries will compete on the ice and snow at Milan-Cortina 2026.
The world’s biggest winter sports stars will descend on northern Italy from Friday 6 February and there’s certain to be thrills, drama and breakout performances.
BBC Sport takes a look at some of the global stars and stories to look out for.
Vonn was airlifted to hospital in Switzerland after crashing in the final World Cup race of the season but remains determined to compete in her fifth Olympics, despite the serious injury.
The veteran skier is no stranger to a comeback having retired in 2019 because of injury before undergoing partial replacement knee surgery on her right knee and returning to the sport in 2024.
The four-time overall World Cup winner is unsure whether she will be able to compete in the super-G and team events but, as a heavy favourite for the downhill gold before suffering the injury, she is determined to make the start gate at what will likely be her last Olympics.
Mikaela Shiffrin – alpine skiing
Image source, Getty Images
Age: 30 Nation: United States
Mikaela Shiffrin is the greatest alpine skier of all time and, competing at her fourth Olympics, has said she wants to “make peace” with the Games following disappointment in Beijing along with serious injury and mental health struggles.
The five-time overall World Cup winner has 108 World Cup wins, securing victory in the opening five slalom events of the season which, when added to her victory in the final slalom of last season, equalled her own record of six consecutive wins in the discipline.
But the two-time Olympic champion will be targeting a return to the podium in Cortina while her fiance Aleksander Aamodt Kilde is also on the comeback trail from a bad injury.
Maxim Naumov – figure skating
Image source, Getty Images
Age: 24 Nation: United States
American figure skater Maxim Naumov’s participation in the Milan-Cortina Games could be emotional as he makes his Olympic debut after his parents were killed in a plane crash in Washington DC last year.
Naumov’s dream to make Team USA was one of the last things he spoke about with his parents before they were killed.
His parents, Vadim Naumov and Evgenia Shishkova, skated for Russia and were world champions in pairs figure skating in 1994.
Emily Harrop – skimo
Image source, Getty Images
Age: 28 Nation: France
Ski mountaineering, or ‘skimo’, is making its Olympic debut at Milan-Cortina and, while Great Britain have failed to qualify an athlete in the Games’ new sport, France’s Emily Harrop is the next best thing.
With English parents, Harrop could have competed for Team GB but having relocated to the French Alps as a child she opted to represent France.
Harrop is well placed for an Olympic medal having finished the 2025 season with seven wins out of seven races at the ski mountaineering World Cup, winning the sprint and overall crystal globe for the fourth consecutive season.
Jutta Leerdam – speed skating
Image source, Getty Images
Age: 28 Nation: Netherlands
Dutch speed skater Jutta Leerdam will compete in the 1,000m and 500m in Milan.
A former world sprint champion, Leerdam also won a silver medal in the 1,000m at the 2022 Beijing Olympics.
She is also engaged to YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul, who can often be spotted at competitions and will be cheering her on from the sidelines in Italy.
Finley Melville Ives – freestyle skiing
Image source, Getty Images
Age: 19 Nation: New Zealand
Teenager Finley Melville Ives arrives in Italy as one of the most exciting prospects on the freestyle skiing circuit.
Ives’ parents are both snowboard instructors and his twin brother followed in their footsteps, but Ives opted instead for skis from a young age.
His breakout season came last year when he claimed his first World Cup victory in Calgary then weeks later became the halfpipe world champion in Engadin, Switzerland, beating Olympic greats Alex Ferreira and Nick Goepper along the way.
Eileen Gu – freestyle skiing
Image source, Getty Images
Age: 22 Nation: China
Born and raised in California, freestyle skier Eileen Gu was China’s poster girl for Beijing 2022, where – aged 18 – she won gold in the big air and freeski halfpipe competitions and silver in the slopestyle.
In addition to her Olympic triumphs, she is also a two-time world champion and three-time Winter X Games champion.
Away from the snow, Gu is one of the most famous winter sports athletes in the world and has modelled in New York, Barcelona, Paris and at Milan Fashion Week while also studying quantum physics at Stanford University.
NHL stars – ice hockey
Image source, Getty Images
For the first time since Sochi 2014, the National Hockey League is permitting its athletes to participate in the Winter Olympics.
NHL stars did not travel to the 2018 or 2022 Games because of financial disputes and pandemic-related complications but will return to the ice this year.
In their absence, the last two men’s titles have been won by Olympic teams from Russia and Finland while the United States failed to win a medal at both events, but this could be a huge boost to their hopes of returning to the podium.
Chloe Kim – snowboarding
Image source, Getty Images
Age: 25 Nation: United States
Eight years after winning gold as a 17-year-old in Pyeongchang, American halfpipe snowboarder Chloe Kim is going for a three-peat in Italy.
She successfully defended her title in Beijing four years ago but her preparations for Milan-Cortina have been disrupted after she dislocated her shoulder at the beginning of the year.
She said in an update on Instagram she was “good to go” for the Games, where she will aim to become the first woman to win three consecutive Olympic gold medals in the halfpipe.
Francesco Friedrich – Bobsleigh
Image source, Getty Images
Age: 35 Nation: Germany
Legendary German bobsleigh pilot Francesco Friedrich arrives in Italy hoping to become the first man do the treble double – winning two and four-man gold for the third Games in a row.
He is a 16-time world champion across the two and four-man events while he has well over 100 World Cup podium finishes, claiming a 50th victory in the two-man earlier this year.
Germany tend to dominate the Olympic bobsleigh events and the question is whether anyone can stop him from making history.
Arianna Fontana – speed skating
Image source, Getty Images
Age: 35 Nation: Italy
Competing at her sixth Games, Arianna Fontana is an 11-time Winter Olympic medallist and has won medals at her five previous appearances – including as a 15-year-old in Turin.
Twenty years later, the short track skater is also aiming to compete in long track speed skating.
Two-time Olympic champion Fontana will also be one of Italy’s flag bearers at the opening ceremony at the San Siro.
Lucas Pinheiro Braathen – alpine skiing
Image source, Getty Images
Age: 25 Nation: Brazil
Norwegian-born skier Lucas Pinheiro Braathen could make history in Italy by winning a first Winter Olympics medal for a South American country after he switched allegiance to compete for his mother’s home country of Brazil.
The slalom and giant slalom expert retired in 2023 having competed for Norway but returned in 2025 to represent Brazil and became the first Brazilian to finish on a World Cup podium last year before claiming the country’s first victory this season to add to his five for Norway.
A charismatic and deep-thinking character, Braathen says that people don’t believe him when he tells them he represents Brazil in alpine skiing.
Adeliia Petrosian – figure skating
Image source, Getty Images
Age: 18 Nation: Independent Neutral Athlete
Russian skater Adeliia Petrosian is one of around 20 Russian or Belarusian athletes competing under a neutral flag in Italy.
The teenager had not competed internationally at senior level until the Olympic qualifiers because of the ban on Russian athletes but is a genuine medal contender having won the qualifying event.
She is coached by the controversial Eteri Tutberidze, who coached Kamila Valieva during the Beijing 2022 Olympics. Valieva was given a four-year ban for doping after she helped Russia to win team gold before it was then revealed she had failed a drug test before the start of the Games.
Ilia Malinin – figure skating
Image source, Getty Images
Age: 21 Nation: United States
Ilia Malinin is the only skater to have successfully landed the quadruple Axel, skating’s most difficult jump, in competition, earning him the nickname the ‘Quad God’.
The American, born to Olympic figure skaters Tatiana Malinina and Roman Skorniakov, is the hot favourite for the men’s singles title in Italy with previous routines including seven quads and a back flip.
The reigning world champion will be competing at his first Olympics having controversially been left out of the US team in Beijing.
Spanish figure skater Tomàs-Llorenç Guarino Sabaté said Tuesday that he may be able to skate his Minions-themed program at the Olympics after all. He shared on Instagram that Universal is allowing him to use the music from its popular animated franchise for the “special occasion” and said he is working to clear the remaining hurdles.
“There are still a couple things to be tied up with the other 2 musics of the program but we are so close to accomplishing it!” Guarino Sabaté wrote in his update thanking his supporters. “I’m so happy to see that the minions hitting Olympic ice is becoming real again!! I’ll keep you posted!”
A six-time Spanish national champion, Guarino Sabaté said on Monday that he had been informed Friday — exactly a week before the opening ceremony of the Milan-Cortina Games — that the medley of “Minions” music he had skated to, while dressed in blue overalls and a yellow shirt, through the entirety of the season could not be used at the Olympics due to copyright issues. This meant that Guarino Sabaté, who had been set to make his Olympics debut with his Minions-themed short program on Feb. 10, would need to change his plans last minute. How bananas.
The cheery yellow creatures are a signature of Universal and Illumination’s “Despicable Me” film franchise. NBCUniversal owns the U.S. media rights to the Olympics.
“Finding out about this … so close to the most important competition of my life, was incredibly disappointing,” Guarino Sabaté wrote in his post sharing the initial news. “This season I competed with my Minions short program to bring joy and playful style to the ice while still meeting every required element to show that skating as a male Olympic figure skater can be fun. … Nevertheless, I will face this challenge head on and do my best to make the best of it.”
The Olympian said then that he had followed the proper procedures and submitted his music through the International Skating Union’s recommended rights clearance system in August. The situation has brought to attention to the complexities of music licensing and how it affects artistic sports like figure skating. Contemporary music is not in the public domain and skaters are responsible for clearing their own music.
For now, fans will just have to remain hopeful that Guarino Sabaté’s dream of bringing joyous Minion mayhem to the Olympic ice will come true in the end.
1 of 2 | A bereaved family member places a name tag on the remains of a family member who was killed during the Jeju Massacre. Photo courtesy of Jeju Provincial Office
JEJU ISLAND, South Korea, Feb. 3 (UPI) — Seven sets of remains belonging to victims of an early Cold War massacre were returned to their families on South Korea’s resort island of Jeju on Tuesday, more than seven decades after they disappeared amid the government’s bloody crackdown on a communist revolt.
The remains of the seven Jeju Massacre victims arrived at Jeju International Airport from Gimpo at about 2 p.m. local time Tuesday, where they were received by Jeju Gov. Oh Young-hoon, heads of various Jeju Massacre-related organizations and representatives of the bereaved families.
“I pray for the repose of the seven victims who had to lie without names for so many years, and I offer my words of comfort to the families who endured time without knowing the fate of their loved ones,” Oh said in his memorial address.
An estimated 30,000 islanders were killed between 1947 and 1954 during South Korea’s bloody anti-communist eradication campaign that literally decimated the island’s population of 300,000 and razed hundreds of villages.
Thousands of people went missing during the massacre, symbolized by the Cemetery of the Missing within the Jeju 4.3 Peace Park, just south of Jeju City, where nearly 4,000 tombstones are etched with the names of islanders who disappeared during the seven-year period and are presumed dead.
Hundreds were executed and buried en masse at what is now known as Jeju International Airport following trumped-up court-martial trials, while more than 2,000 disappeared into the mainland prison system.
Since the mid-2000s, the Jeju government has spearheaded a program to find the bodies of those who went missing and identify them.
A total of 426 sets of remains have been exhumed, 387 from excavation sites at the Jeju International Airport, with the remainder found elsewhere on the island and on the mainland.
Three of the victims have been named as Kim Sa-rim, Yang Dal-hyo and Kang Du-nam, who were identified from remains excavated at the Golryeonggol, Daejeon, site, where roughly 1,400 sets of remains of civilians massacred during the Korean War have been recovered overall.
The remains of Im Tae-hoon and Song Du-seon were excavated from the Gyeongsan Cobalt Mine, where prisoners were executed when the Korean War began, marking the first time remains excavated at the Cobalt Mine have been identified.
Only one other body excavated from the Daejeon site has been confirmed as a victim of the Jeju Massacre — Kim Han-hong, who was returned to the island in 2023.
The final two sets of remains, excavated from Jeju International Airport, belonged to Song Tae-woo and Kang In-gyeong.
After arriving on Jeju, the remains were transported to the Jeju 4.3 Peace Park for an event to return them to the island, commemorate them and console their bereaved families, according to the Jeju provincial government. Some 200 people were in attendance.
“We have finally found our family member who was sacrificed without any crime,” Kang Jun-ho, the grandson of the late Song Du-seon, said.
“It is very late, but I am thankful that he has regained his name.”
In Jeju dialect, he said: “Grandfather, you’ve come home. Rest easy now.”
The Jeju 4.3 Peace Foundation identified the remains in a statement, stating Kim Sa-rim, of Iho Village, Jeju City, was 25 when he was captured by government suppression forces in February 1949 while living as a refugee on Mt. Halla, after which his family only received rumors that he had been transferred to a prison.
Yang Dal-hyo, a 26-year-old farmer in Doryeon Village, went missing in June 1948. His family learned he was detained at the Jeju Distillery detention camp. After they were able to visit him once, they lost contact with Yang Dal-hyo.
Kang Du-nam, of Yeongdon Village, 24, was last heard of around October 1948 while he was living as a refugee on Mt. Halla, and then imprisoned at Daejeon Prison around July 1949.
Im Tae-hoon, 20, of Sogil Village, was detained by police in December 1948 and was imprisoned in Mokpo before being transferred to Daegu Prison and then executed at the cobalt mine.
Song Du-seon, 29, of Donghong Village, was arrested by police in the spring of 1949 and imprisoned at Daegu Prison in July of that year.
Song Tae-woo, 17, of Ora Village, was detained by suppression forces while living as a refugee on Mt. Halla in November 1948. After that, there were only accounts of him having been thrown into the sea or killed at the airport.
Kang In-gyeong, 46, of Sangmyeong Village, was detained by police in June 1950 with the outbreak of the Korean War. It was believed that he was killed at an ammunition depot in southern Moseulpo, though he was among those excavated from Jeju International Airport.
The identification process involves matching DNA from the excavated bones with that taken from blood samples of Jeju residents. The foundation has told UPI that some 2,600 people have donated blood samples.
Not only blood samples from direct descendants but from collateral relatives can be used to identify remains, the Jeju 4.3 Peace Foundation said, as it encourages more people to participate in the program.
It said the blood samples from nephews were “decisive” in identifying victims Kim Sa-rim and Im Tae-hoon, as were blood samples from grandsons in identifying the other five victims.
“Jeju Province will continue to exert its utmost efforts to find even a single remaining victim and return them safely to the embrace of their families,” Gov. Oh said.
With the seven recently identified remains, a total of 154 Jeju victims have been identified from the 426 excavated sets of remains, including 147 within Jeju and seven on the mainland.
A new blood sampling drive is being held from Monday through Nov. 30 at Halla Hospital in Jeju City and Yeollin Hospital in Seogwipo City.
“I met my father yesterday for the first time in 79 years,” Yang Gye-chun, the son of the late Yang Dal-hyo said, according to a statement from the Jeju government.
The remains were cremated at Sejong Eunhasu Park on the mainland, before being returned to Jeju.
“I’ve lived without knowing where or how he died, and how glad I am to finally see his face today,” Yang said. “Now that he has come all the way back to his hometown of Jeju, I hope we may meet my mother in heaven and rest peacefully.”
Weekly insights and analysis on the latest developments in military technology, strategy, and foreign policy.
Video has emerged that is said to show a Russian-made Mi-28NE Havoc attack helicopter flying over the Iranian capital Tehran. Last week, pictures had also appeared online that looked to show at least one Mi-28NE in Iran. The arrival of Havocs in Iran might also point to the delivery of weapons and other materiel from Russia, or plans to do so soon, amid a new spike in geopolitical friction between the Middle Eastern country and the United States.
TWZ has not been able to independently confirm where and when the footage in question, seen in the social media post above, was taken. However, the pictures that began circulating online last week look to have taken at a hangar belonging to Iran’s Pars Aerospace Services Company (PASC). Situated at Mehrabad International Airport in Tehran, PASC is tied to Iran’s powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and is subject to sanctions in the United States and other Western countries.
One of the pictures that began circulating online last week said to show an Mi-28 in Iran. via X
🇷🇺🇮🇷 It is believed that Iran has received the first batch of Mil Mi-28NE attack helicopters ordered in Russia.
Photos of a Mil Mi-28 helicopter in digital desert camo stationed in a hangar have emerged on social media.
— Status-6 (War & Military News) (@Archer83Able) January 28, 2026
Geo-Location of the warehouse where the recently delivered to Iran Mil-28 helicopter photo is taken. Pars Aerospace Services Company in Tehran. 35.69899, 51.29459 pic.twitter.com/VV7ruGVPWj
In addition, on January 3, Iranian journalist Mohamad Taheri wrote “Inshallah you have a good military service,” according to a machine translation of a Persian-language post on X, which included a stock picture of an Mi-28 wearing a two-tone desert camouflage scheme. Taheri has been associated with Iran’s quasi-official Tasnim News Agency. Tasnim was among the first to report on a possible Iranian acquisition of Havocs, as well as Su-35 Flanker fighters and Yak-130 jet trainers, all the way back in 2023. The Yak-130s appeared in Iran that same year. There had been talk of a batch of Su-35s originally built for Egypt, but that were never delivered, being sent instead to the Iranians. However, at least some of those jets appeared instead in Algeria last year.
The two-seat Mi-28 traces back to before the fall of the Soviet Union, with the original variant making its first flight in the 1980s. The project was shelved in the 1990s and then subsequently revived. The first version to enter actual operational service was the Mi-28N in the late 2000s. Russia subsequently introduced an NE export version, different subvariants of which have been delivered to foreign customers in the past. A further upgraded NM variant for the Russian military was also developed in the 2010s, but has been slow to enter operational service. You can read more about the Mi-28 family in this past TWZ feature.
An example of the latest Mi-2NM variant. Russian Ministry of DefenseMi-28NEs in Iraqi service. The nose of an Mi-24 Hind gunship is also seen at right. Iraqi Army
Mi-28s are armed with a 30mm automatic cannon in a turret under the nose and can carry various munitions, including anti-tank guided missiles and unguided rockets, on four pylons, two on each of a pair of stub wings on either side of the fuselage. The default sensor suite on the Mi-28N includes a mast radar and a turreted infrared video camera under the nose.
The exact configuration of any Mi-28s for Iran, and how many the country may have ordered in total, is unclear. The recently emerged video is too low quality to see any fine details, though it does appear to be fitted with a mast-mounted radar that has been lacking on certain other export versions of the Havoc. The still pictures show a partially disassembled helicopter, which also makes it very difficult to assess the overall configuration. The images do not offer a clear view of the nose, either, where various sensors, as well as the turreted main gun, are located.
Russian Helicopters, the main helicopter conglomerate in Russia today, also notably unveiled a further improved NE variation in 2018 that was said to incorporate lessons learned from the conflict in Syria. This included a directional infrared countermeasure system to provided add defense against incoming heat-seeking missiles, as well as other survivability improvements. It had new engine air filters, a particularly desirable feature for operations in desert environments, and a digital camouflage scheme, as well. The Mi-28 seen in the pictures that emerged last week looks to have the air filters, though they are covered by tarps, and has a digital paint job.
An image reportedly depicting an Mi-28NE attack helicopter recently delivered from Russia to Iran, featuring digital desert camouflage and lacking specialized screen-exhaust devices (SEDs), also known as infrared signature suppressors. https://t.co/e6AZK0g7OWpic.twitter.com/Etc5eo4RPo
New Mi-28s in any configuration would be a notable addition to the Iranian arsenal. The main attack helicopter in service in Iran today is the AH-1J International Cobra, which the country first acquired during the reign of the Shah. The Islamic Republic has made some upgrades to its AH-1 fleet since the 1970s, with the resulting helicopters variously referred to as Toufans or Panha 2091s. However, at their core, these are American-made helicopters that are increasingly difficult for the current regime in Tehran to sustain. The Havoc is more survivable overall and can carry a greater weapons load, as well.
IR Iran unveils Toufan 2 helicopter (upgraded Cobra)
If Iran’s Mi-28s feature the infrared sensor turret and the mast-mounted radar, the helicopters could offer an even greater boost in capability, even at night or in poor weather. That, in turn, could be valuable for responding to any kind of foreign ground incursion in the future, or to internal threats to the regime. At the same time, when an Iranian Havoc fleet might reach a level of real operational capability, and how well the country is able to sustain the helicopters going forward, remains to be seen. Moscow’s own demands in relation to the war in Ukraine have created additional challenges for foreign operators of Russian-made helicopters and other materiel.
As noted, the appearance of Mi-28s in Iran could also reflect larger deliveries of weapons and other materiel from Russia, or the potential for that to occur in the near future. In January, online flight tracking data showed at least five flights by Il-76 airlifters from Russia to Iran, which could have been carrying Havocs or other cargo. Those aircraft could also have been bringing cargo back to Russia from Iran, or carrying payloads both ways. Ties between Moscow and Tehran have grown, in general, in recent years, as Russia has found itself increasingly isolated globally over the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. There has been much talk of Iran receiving exchanges in kind for its support to the Russian war effort.
Flight-tracking data from Flightradar24 shows at least five Russian Il-76 cargo aircraft flying to Tehran in the past 48 hours, pointing to a spike in undeclared Russian deliveries to Iran. pic.twitter.com/jLP8bz45iA
The Mi-28 imagery has come amid the backdrop of a new surge in geopolitical friction with the United States. Just today, American authorities announced that an F-35 Joint Strike Fighter flying from the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln in the Arabian Sea shot down an Iranian drone that had “aggressively approached” the ship. U.S. officials also accused the IRGC of harassing a U.S.-flagged merchant vessel transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
Speaking earlier on Fox News, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirms the shoot down of an Iranian drone that was “acting aggressively” towards the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) today over the Arabian Sea, though states that President Trump remains committed to… pic.twitter.com/sVPzPjZIy8
When it comes to Mi-28s for Iran, evidence is growing that at least one of the helicopters has now been delivered, and more details may now continue to emerge.
The harrowing trial of Lucy Letby is explored in a new Netflix documentary, titled, The Investigation of Lucy Letby, which includes rare updates from her life in prison
Defiant Lucy Letby has insisted she will ‘not give up’ defending her innocence(Image: PA)
A letter sent by killer nurse Lucy Letby reveals a grave account of her life behind bars. The child murderer said ‘there are no words’ to convey her current ‘situation’ in a handwritten letter as she vowed to never give up on defending her ‘innocence’.
The new comments come via a letter to a friend shared as part of a chilling new Netflixdocumentary about her court case and ongoing appeals. Letby gives details of her prison conditions for the first time and speaks about how much she misses her pets, after she is seen on screen stroking a cat goodbye during her home arrests by police.
The friend, who has been anonymised in the programme, was given the onscreen name of Maisie. And in a letter she reads out, Letby said: “Maisie, there are no words to describe my situation, but knowing that I have your friendship regardless, is so important and special to me.”
She continues: “I have my own room and toilet. I’m able to shower each day and go outside for a walk. Getting outside is so important, even though it’s bit chilly. I miss Tigger and Smudge so much, it’s heartbreaking that they cannot understand why I’m no longer there. They must think I’m a terrible mummy.
“Mum and Dad are taking good care of them, though, and are, no doubt, spoiling them.” Poignantly, Letby added: “I’m trying to do all that I can to remain strong and positive. I’m determined to get through this. I will not give up.”
After sharing the note aloud, Letby’s friend Maisie then begins to cry on screen. She says that she no longer knows what to say to her friend who has been dubbed ‘The Angel of Death.’ “Up until the trial and verdict I would write to Lucy and she would write back. Now I don’t know what to say.”
Later in the film she says she still believes her friend even though there are some small doubts in her mind about her innocence.
Maisie said: “There’s always doubt, because as much as you know someone, you never know the whole of someone like they can still have things that you don’t know about them, but unless I saw actual evidence, I can’t believe it. I know that people think that I support a baby murderer, but she’s my friend and currently, in general, forever.”
Letby, 36, from Hereford, is serving 15 whole-life orders after she was convicted of murdering seven infants and attempting to murder seven others, with two attempts on one of her victims, between June 2015 and June 2016.
She continues to plead her innocence and has a legal team working on a way to challenge her sentence.
In The Investigation Of Lucy Letby on Netflix viewers will see for the first time when she was first arrested in 2018, as police approached her whilst she was still in bed. She looks stunned as she is led away in a dressing gown after being told: “I’m arresting you on suspicion of murder and attempted murder.”
Police also set out in the documentary how they found evidence and used it to successfully prosecute Letby. She has failed twice in appeal.
The film may also show a more human side to Letby as she is also shown stroking her pet cat and in a police cell.
Mark McDonald who took over as Letby’s barrister in September 2024, also explains in the film why he thinks she should be freed. He was approached by Letby’s parents to help her and is now fighting to try to get her a retrial.
He tells the documentary: “We have to remember, no one saw her do anything wrong. There’s no CCTV. There was no motive.
“This was a unit in crisis. Nurses were crying at the end of this shift because of the stress, because of them being overworked, because of having so many babies on the unit and not having the staff or the resources to run it.”
* The Investigation Of Lucy Letby will be released globally on Netflix on February 4.
Feb. 3 (UPI) — Sen. Mitch McConnell was hospitalized Monday night after experiencing what his spokesperson said were “flu-like symptoms” over the weekend.
The 83-year-old Republican of Kentucky checked himself into a local hospital out of “an abundance of caution,” his spokesperson, David Popp, told Axios in a statement on Tuesday.
“His prognosis is positive and he is grateful for the excellent care he is receiving,” Popp said. “He is in regular contact with his staff and looks forward to returning to Senate business.”
Popp issued the statement after McConnell missed Senate votes on Monday and Tuesday.
The longtime Republican leader, a polio survivor who turns 84 later this month, announced nearly a year ago that he would not seek re-election in 2026 and would retire at the end of his term.
The health of McConnell has raised concerns about his future in the Senate following a series of falls and hospitalizations over the last few years.
Prior to announcing his retirement, McConnell froze twice during press conferences, leading to concerns about him suffering from possible medical issues. He has not frozen in such a public manner since, but Politico reported that he is often seen needing assistance moving about the Capitol.
Thousands of people marched through Venezuela’s capital, Caracas, demanding the release of President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, exactly one month since US forces abducted the couple in a bloody nighttime raid.
“Venezuela needs Nicolas!” the crowd chanted in Tuesday’s demonstration, titled “Gran Marcha” (The Great March).
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Thousands carried signs in support of the abducted president, and many wore shirts calling for the couple’s return from detention in a US prison.
“The empire kidnapped them. We want them back,” declared one banner carried by marchers.
Nicolas Maduro Guerra, the detained president’s son and a member of Venezuela’s National Assembly, addressed the crowds from a stage, stating that the US military’s abduction of his father on January 3 “will remain marked like a scar on our face, forever”.
“Our homeland’s soil was desecrated by a foreign army”, Maduro Guerra said of the night US forces abducted his father.
The march, called by the government and involving many public sector workers, stretched for several hundred metres, accompanied by trucks blaring music.
A demonstrator holds a placard during a rally to demand the US releases abducted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, in Caracas, Venezuela [Maxwell Briceno/Reuters]
Local media outlet Venezuela News said the march was part of a “global day of action” to demand the couple’s release. Protesters showed their solidarity around the world, demonstrating under banners with slogans like “Bring them back” and “Hands off Venezuela”.
The international event united voices “from diverse ideological trends”, who agreed “that the detention of President Maduro and Cilia Flores represents a flagrant violation of international law and a dangerous precedent for the sovereignty of nations”, the news outlet said.
“We feel confused, sad, angry. There are a lot of emotions,” said Jose Perdomo, a 58-year-old municipal employee, who marched in Caracas.
Rodriguez has been walking a thin line since taking over as acting president, trying to appease Maduro’s supporters in government and accommodating the demands being placed on Caracas by US President Donald Trump.
Trump has said he is willing to work with Rodriguez, as long as Caracas falls in line with his demands, particularly on the US taking control of Venezuela’s vast oil reserves.
Striking a conciliatory tone with Washington, and promising reform and reconciliation at home, Rodriguez has already freed hundreds of political prisoners and opened Venezuela’s nationalised hydrocarbons sector to private investment.
Earlier on Tuesday, hundreds of university students and relatives of political prisoners also marched in the capital, calling for the quick approval of an amnesty law promised by Rodriguez that would free prisoners from the country’s jails.
Legislation on the amnesty has not yet come before parliament.