Reeves eyes uni fees ‘raid’ and business Budget warning
F-47 Program’s Accelerated Pace Made Possible By NGAD X-Plane Efforts
With the first example of Boeing’s F-47 sixth-generation stealth fighter for the U.S. Air Force now in production, a company official has highlighted how its prototyping effort allowed the program to move forward at a rapid pace. Winning the Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) program was “humbling,” said Steve Parker, president and CEO of Boeing Defense, Space and Security. He added that the fact that the F-47 is now in production is a testament to “the maturity of our design and pedigree coming off the prototype.”
Parker was speaking at a pre-show media roundtable ahead of the 2025 Dubai Airshow in the United Arab Emirates that TWZ attended.
Parker described the NGAD award as “transformational” for Boeing and added that it’s “tracking well.”
In March, President Donald Trump personally announced that Boeing had been selected as the winner of the competition for the crewed fighter component of the Air Force’s broader NGAD initiative. The NGAD effort also includes the development of new Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) drones, as well as advanced jet engines, weapons, electronic warfare suites, sensors, networking ecosystems, battle management capabilities, and more.
While the Air Force has said that it aims to have the F-47 make its first flight sometime in 2028, Parker was unwilling to talk more about this.
“I won’t even touch the first flight day the Air Force has put the date out there; I’m just going to stay away from all of that,” Parker said. “It’s all about execution, and that’s what is getting all of my attention. We’re in a good spot.”
The Air Force has said it plans to acquire at least 185 F-47s, which would be in line with the original vision of the aircraft as a successor to the F-22 Raptor, although that figure might change going forward. There has also been discussion of multiple versions to be built in incremental developmental cycles.
Parker underscored the importance of Boeing’s secretive Phantom Works, the company’s leading-edge design house that is modeled roughly on Lockheed’s legendary Skunk Works, in moving the F-47 program forward.
“I put Phantom Works together as its own division last year, and so that’s playing out really, really well,” Parker explained.
The fact that the first aircraft is in production “is really kind of remarkable when you think about this award was only provided in March of this year,” Parker said.
Especially interesting was Parker’s reference to the “maturity” of the design, pointing to extensive testing not only in the digital realm but also involving a flying prototype.
We know that multiple secretive flying demonstrators helped pave the way for the F-47.
When Boeing secured the NGAD crewed fighter contract earlier this year, Air Force Chief of Staff David Allvin released a statement saying that, “For the past five years, the X-planes for this aircraft have been quietly laying the foundation for the F-47 — flying hundreds of hours, testing cutting-edge concepts, and proving that we can push the envelope of technology with confidence.”
Back in 2023, unconfirmed reports emerged that at least three NGAD demonstrators were in existence. Certainly, there were separate examples from Boeing and Lockheed Martin. At least one demonstrator was flying as early as 2019, and another joined the NGAD program in 2022.
Details of these aircraft remain practically non-existent, but the Boeing prototype (or possibly prototypes) clearly played a key role in getting the F-47 program off to a rapid start.
The few details that we do know include those that have been provided by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), which stated that both Boeing’s and Lockheed Martin’s X-planes flew “several hundred hours each” during the NGAD evaluation.
Meanwhile, Former Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall went on the record to also stress that the demonstrators were entirely experimental demonstrator aircraft and not reflective of a production prototype for a “tactical design.”
Speaking in Dubai, Boeing’s Parker also put forward the case for the F-47 program being an exemplar for Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s “arsenal of freedom,” his plan to totally overhaul the way the U.S. military buys weapons, with speed being at its core.
“Here you have an example with the F-47 where Boeing is building highly classified facilities in the billions of dollars of our own investment, before we actually won the contract: That is the very different definition of what the Secretary is asking for.”
Boeing previously made major investments to expand its operations in St. Louis, Missouri, to prepare for sixth-generation fighter production. This might include new fighters for the Air Force and Navy.
Parker also touched upon Boeing’s prospects for the Navy’s F/A-XX next-generation carrier-based fighter competition. A rendering that the company recently released of its F/A-XX proposal has a number of similarities with previous renderings of the F-47, as you can read more about here.
Of the FA-XX, Parker said: “Still no decision has been made yet, but we are ready to go if it comes.”
As for those F-47 renderings, only two official ones have been released, and Air Force officials have said they do not necessarily fully reflect what the aircraft looks like in real life, for operational security purposes.
Otherwise, we know the F-47 is planned to have a combat radius in excess of 1,000 nautical miles and be able to reach speeds above Mach 2. Of course, it will also be very stealthy, with so-called next-generation all-aspect ‘broadband’ low-observability, including a significantly reduced infrared signature as well as a low radar cross-section. The new jet will also serve as a central node in controlling drones at the forward edges of combat.
While the pace of the program seems to be impressive, the pressure is certainly on to move faster as the USAF faces looming tactical airpower combat mass deficit and especially the startling pace of China’s own next generation tactical aircraft programs.
We will have to wait for further details, as well as firm confirmation of what the F-47 actually looks like. However, that wait shouldn’t be too long, with the Air Force anticipating a first flight before the end of 2028, and with Boeing officials confident that the program is moving forward at a pace.
Contact the author: [email protected]
Monday 24 November Day of National Sovereignty in Argentina
The holiday commemorates the Battle of Vuelta de Obligado which took place on November 20th 1845 when the Argentine Confederation fought against an Anglo-French navy in the Battle of Vuelta de Obligado, during the Anglo-French blockade of the Río de la Plata.
The Argentine Confederation lost the battle, but there is a saying ‘lose the battle but win the war’ and this was true in this case. Despite the victory, the British and French suffered such heavy losses that the battle brought them to negotiate a treaty with Juan Manuel de Rosas, the Governor of Buenos Aires.
The battle was seen as a key event as it had been triggered by Argentine efforts to protect regional industries from colonial powers in the region by raising trading tariffs and efforts by de Rosas to get Uruguay and Paraguay to join the confederation antagonised the French and British and led to the battle.
November 20th has been nationally observed as the Day of National Sovereignty since 1974, but the fourth Monday only became a national holiday in 2010.
India’s High-Stakes Gambit in Myanmar: A Risky Strategic Move
Ahead of flawed elections according to informed sources, New Delhi is engaged in high-level negotiations with the Myanmar military regime to establish new security measures, including cooperation of security firm. This measure aims to protect the security of Sittwe Port and ensure the rapid advancement of the Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Project and the Trilateral Highway. These discussions could pave the way for further collaboration between India and the junta, providing India with a strategic foothold in the region to counter China’s long-standing influence.
India’s strategic ambitions in Myanmar currently focus on critical mineral resources and regional connectivity. Although India publicly supports the military’s election plans, the reality is that it has no choice but to engage with resistance organizations, as all of its strategic projects fall within territories controlled by these groups. Restricted by China’s rare earth policies, India has been actively seeking alternatives.
According to a Reuters report, India may agree to collaborate with the United States to extract rare earth minerals from Kachin State for processing before exporting them to the U.S. It is reported that India has already made contact with the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) to explore and collect rare earth samples from the region and discuss the feasibility of establishing transport routes. In Dawki, Meghalaya, trucks line up beside a clear river, waiting for customs clearance. Hundreds of kilometers to the east, workers are laying tracks and pouring concrete for roads that may one day connect to Myanmar and beyond.
If India’s northeast is to become a true gateway to the Bay of Bengal and Southeast Asia, India and the U.S. must jointly develop a practical framework—an interconnected network integrating roads, railways, waterways, and fiber optics—to link “Act East” initiatives with the broader Indo-Pacific. Complex Challenges For India, the primary and most formidable challenge is to complete and remove bottlenecks from key cross-border transit corridors: the India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway (from Moreh to Mae Sot via Myanmar) and the Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Project, which connects Mizoram to the sea at Sittwe, then continues inland via river and road.
However, progress on these ambitious Indian strategic projects in Myanmar has been slow. The Modi government has shown signs of impatience, beginning limited engagement with ethnic armed organizations. Although the KIA controls key rare earth deposits in Kachin State, the region’s rugged terrain and underdeveloped infrastructure pose immense logistical challenges.
Myanmar expert Bertil Lintner has remarked that attempting to extract Myanmar’s rare earths under China’s watch, given the difficult topography and poor logistics, seems “completely insane.” The India-Myanmar-Thailand Trilateral Highway, proposed as early as 2002, has progressed sluggishly. To date, only 70% of the highway has been completed. While the Indian and Thai sections were finished in 2023, progress reports on the Myanmar portion remain consistently delayed.
However, local sources reveal that Indian contractors have already begun construction in parts of Sagaing Region, operating under the protection of resistance forces and with tacit approval from the military. As for the Kaladan Project, Mizoram Chief Minister Lalduhawma stated on Wednesday that the Kaladan Multi-Modal Transit Transport Project (KMMTTP) is expected to be completed by 2027. The project will link southern Mizoram through Myanmar to the Bay of Bengal. He added that the Indian central government is taking steps to extend the railway line to Hmawngbuchhuah in Lawngtlai district, Mizoram’s southernmost point on the border with Myanmar.
The Key Factor: The Upcoming Election According to the military’s Global New Light of Myanmar, India will send teams to monitor the war-ravaged Myanmar election scheduled for December. With parties opposing the military excluded or boycotting the poll, Western governments and human rights organizations view the election as an attempt by the military to consolidate control by paving the way for proxy rule.
India’s current push to secure its interests in Myanmar through security firms not only aims to advance U.S.-Myanmar relations and secure junta support to propel project implementation but also to gain a first-mover advantage and avoid post-election disruptions. It also serves to divert attention from India’s new arrangements in Myanmar amid the election focus. Should India cooperate with a U.S.-linked security firm, it would undoubtedly enhance its resilience to Myanmar’s conflict risks, further solidify the U.S.-India alliance, and boost coordinated efforts to address China’s challenges. However, this approach also carries the risk of provoking domestic backlash within Myanmar.
Slovenia referendum rejects assisted dying law for terminally ill adults | Health News
Slovenia’s parliament had approved a law in July, allowing assisted dying after a 2024 referendum supported it.
Published On 23 Nov 2025
Slovenians have rejected in a referendum a law that allowed terminally ill adults to end their lives, after critics mounted a campaign against the legislation.
About 53 percent of 1.7 million eligible voters voted against the law that proposed legalising assisted dying, according to preliminary results released by the election authorities on Sunday.
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The results mean the law’s implementation will be suspended for at least one year. Slovenia’s parliament had approved the law in July, allowing assisted dying after a 2024 referendum supported it.
But the new vote was called after a civil group, backed by the Catholic Church and the conservative parliamentary opposition, gathered more than the 40,000 signatures required for a repeat.
Ales Primc, head of Voice for the Children and the Family, the NGO that organised the no vote campaign, reacted to the results, saying “solidarity and justice” had won.
“We are witnessing a miracle. The culture of life has defeated the cult of death,” Primc said after the vote.
Under the disputed law, terminally ill patients would have had the right to aid in dying if their suffering was unbearable and all treatment options had been exhausted.
It would also have allowed for assisted dying if treatment offers had no reasonable prospect of recovery or improvement in the patient’s condition, but not to end unbearable suffering from mental illness.
Prime Minister Robert Golob had urged citizens to back the law “so that each of us can decide for ourselves how and with what dignity we will end our lives”.
But the Catholic Church has said allowing assisted dying “contradicts the foundations of the Gospel, natural law and human dignity”.
In June 2024, 55 percent had backed the law.
Turnout at Sunday’s referendum was 40.9 percent – just enough for the no vote to meet the threshold.
Several European countries, including Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands and Switzerland, allow terminally ill people to receive medical help to end their lives. However, it remains a crime in others, even in cases of severe suffering.
In May, France’s lower house of parliament approved a right-to-die bill in a first reading. The British parliament is debating similar legislation.
Cameroon opposition leader flees to Gambia for ‘safety’ after disputed vote | Elections News
The Gambia hosts Issa Tchiroma Bakary after Paul Biya, Cameroon’s leader for 43 years, wins yet another election.
Published On 23 Nov 2025
Cameroon’s opposition leader Issa Tchiroma Bakary has fled to The Gambia “for the purpose of ensuring his safety” in the wake of the recent presidential election that returned longtime ruler Paul Biya to power amid deadly protests.
The Gambian government confirmed in a statement on Sunday that it was hosting Tchiroma “temporarily” in the country on “humanitarian grounds” while pursuing a “peaceful and diplomatic resolution” to post-electoral tensions in Cameroon.
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The statement, posted on the Facebook page of the office of Gambian President Adama Barrow, said The Gambia was working with regional partners like Nigeria to “support a peaceful and negotiated outcome” following October’s disputed election.
Official election results showed 92-year-old Biya, the world’s oldest head of state, secured his eighth term in office with 53.7 percent of the vote, against 35.2 percent for Tchiroma, a former government minister leading the Cameroon National Salvation Front.
But Tchiroma, who claimed vote tampering, stated he was the election’s real winner. “This is not democracy, it is electoral theft, a constitutional coup as blatant as it is shameful,” he said at the time.
The opposition leader repeatedly urged supporters to protest against the official election outcome, urging them to stage “dead city” operations by closing shops and halting other public activities.
The Cameroonian government has confirmed that at least five people were killed during the protests, although the opposition and civil society groups claim the figures are much higher.
The government has said it plans to initiate legal proceedings against Tchiroma for his “repeated calls for insurrection.”
Biya came to power in 1982 following the resignation of Cameroon’s first president and has ruled since, following a 2008 constitutional amendment that abolished term limits.
He has ruled the country with an iron fist, repressing all political opposition.
Was South Africa’s G20 summit a success, despite a US boycott? | Business and Economy
The hosts hailed the gathering, but others warned about the G20’s future.
Africa’s first-ever Group of 20 (G20) summit – and the first boycotted by a prominent member – has wrapped up.
Host South Africa hailed it as a success, as a declaration was agreed covering a wide range of issues.
But what’s next for the G20?
Presenter: Imran Khan
Guests:
Thembisa Fakude – Director of Africa Asia Dialogues (Afrasid) in Johannesburg
Richard Weitz – Senior non-resident associate fellow at the NATO Defense College in Washington, DC
Omar Ashour – Professor of strategic studies and international security at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies
Published On 23 Nov 2025
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander denies Budget leaks damaged economy
Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander has denied leaks ahead of the Budget have damaged the economy, following criticism the speculation has “caused paralysis among businesses and consumers”.
Recent months have been dominated by media reports about which taxes could increase, with multiple potential measures floated by the government.
Former Bank of England chief economist Andy Haldane told the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg programme this was “the single biggest reason why [economic] growth has flatlined”.
In response, Alexander said there was always speculation in the run-up to Budgets but the chancellor had been clear about her priorities.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves is widely expected to increase taxes in her Budget on Wednesday to help fill a multibillion-pound gap in her spending plans.
Ministers had given strong indications the government was planning to increase income tax rates.
Anonymous briefings to the media from government sources had also suggested Reeves was considering the move – which would have been a clear breach of Labour’s election promise not to raise “the basic, higher or additional rates of income tax”.
However, last week government sources said Reeves had decided against this after better-than-expected economic forecasts.
Governments sometimes choose to leak aspects of their Budget plans to the media, either to test public reaction or prepare the ground for measures so they do not come as a shock to financial markets or voters.
Haldane branded the months of speculation about potential Budget measures a “fiscal fandango”.
“That’s been costly for the economy,” he told the programme.
“It’s caused paralysis among businesses and consumers.”
He said the Budget process was “too lengthy, too leaky, with real costs”.
Haldane acknowledged this “pantomime” had also happened under previous governments, adding that the “budgetary process has been degraded over many years”.
Challenged over whether the leaks had damaged the economy, Alexander told the programme: “People always speculate in advance of a Budget and we have always said ‘wait until the Budget’.”
Defending the government’s approach, she said the Budget process had taken place “on shifting sands”, with a downgrade to productivity forecasts and “a very challenging global economic environment”.
The Conservatives have called for an investigation into pre-Budget leaks, saying they have “real world consequences including for financial markets”.
In a letter to the Treasury’s most senior civil servant, shadow chancellor Mel Stride said: “Either ministers have approved the widespread briefing of confidential information surrounding the Budget, or serious unauthorised leaks have occurred within your department.”
The chancellor is expected to set out a range of smaller tax rises in her Budget, after backing away from increasing income tax rates.
However, the government has not ruled out extending the freeze on income tax thresholds – the level people start paying tax or have to pay higher rates.
The freeze means any pay rise would see people paying more tax, with more people dragged into a higher tax band, or having to pay tax on their income for the first time.
Reeves has also said there will be a focus on cutting the cost-of-living, with the government announcing that rail fares in England will be frozen next year for the first time in decades.
Other priorities set out by the chancellor include reducing NHS waiting lists and the national debt.
Meanwhile, she is also expected to scrap the two-child benefit cap, a limit that means parents can only claim universal credit or tax credits for their first two children.
There has been pressure from Labour MPs to remove the cap, which was introduced under the Conservatives – a move that could cost more than £3bn, according to estimates by the Institute for Fiscal Studies think tank.
While she refused to confirm the cap would be scrapped, Alexander said tackling child poverty was “in the DNA of the Labour Party”.
“One of the defining elements of this government for me is about what we can do to ensure that children’s chances in life aren’t determined by the size of their parents’ bank balance,” she added.
The Conservatives have argued against removing the cap, with Stride telling the BBC it was “a matter of fairness” that parents who are on benefits should have to make the same choices about whether they can afford a bigger family as those who are not.
The shadow chancellor told Kuenssberg: “The big choice at this Budget now is does the chancellor have the backbone to control government spending, particularly in the area of welfare where some of those costs are spiralling out of control, take those tough choices and therefore not have to start putting up taxes again in areas that are going to damage the economy.”
However, Green Party leader Zack Polanski said scrapping the cap would be a “victory” and it was “outrageous that it’s taken the Labour government so long to do it”.
He called for the government to “tax the rich”, rather than hit “people out of work or working people who are working really hard while their wages aren’t going up”.
John McDonnell, the former Labour Shadow Chancellor, said he hoped Reeves would announce a “redistributive Budget”.
“That does mean that the heaviest weight should fall on the broadest shoulders,” he told The Westminster Hour on BBC Radio 4.
“That means tax rises for the wealthiest and for the corporations, and for those who are making massive profits at the moment.”
Asked about divisions within Labour, McDonnell said: “What people want is, they want a sense of direction.”
He said Labour has a “massive majority”.
“We can do what we want in terms of getting stuff through Parliament,” he said.
“Yet we seem to be hindered by a lack of direction and some elements of competence as well.”
T-7 Red Hawk Jet Trainer Offer To United Kingdom Includes Local Assembly
Boeing, Saab, and BAE Systems have teamed up to offer the T-7A Red Hawk advanced jet trainer to the United Kingdom’s Royal Air Force. With a plan to build the jets in the United Kingdom, the partnership aims to deliver a successor to the Royal Air Force’s current fleet of BAE Systems Hawks from 2030. Saab was already deeply involved with the T-7A as an original partner to Boeing.
The three companies announced today that they had signed a letter of intent to work together on the British requirement for a new advanced jet trainer. The proposal puts the T-7A — developed for the U.S. Air Force — at the center of a training system that will employ synthetic training alongside live flying.
Synthetic work is an increasingly important part of flying training, with the latest training systems offering a blend of live, virtual, and constructive (LVC) elements. This approach reduces costs while allowing students to practice tactics and capabilities that would otherwise be impossible using an exclusively live environment, as you can read more about here.
The proposal is pitching the training system to prepare pilots for fourth-, fifth-, and sixth-generation fighters — the Royal Air Force’s Typhoon, F-35, and forthcoming Tempest, respectively.
“The strong partnership between Boeing and Saab developed the T-7 to be the world’s best solution for future pilot training,” said Lars Tossman, head of Saab’s Aeronautics Business Area. “By working with BAE Systems, Saab believes the U.K. can gain a worthy successor to the Hawk that is the right choice for pilots for decades to come.”
If selected for the Royal Air Force requirement, the T-7As will undergo final assembly in the United Kingdom, in an effort led by BAE Systems. This would ensure the company remains involved in the production of jet trainers in the future, after the Hawk production line ended in 2020.
If chosen as the Royal Air Force’s next jet trainer, the T-7A would replace the Hawk T2, which is due to be retired by 2040. It would almost certainly also be the frontrunner to replace the service’s aging Hawk T1s, which continue to serve with the Red Arrows aerobatic display team, and are set to do so until withdrawn around 2030.
The partnership is also looking to use the same approach to “support future international pilot training opportunities,” which could help the T-7A secure export orders that have so far proven elusive.
“Our new collaboration with Boeing and Saab will enable us to present a compelling offer to the U.K. Royal Air Force and our global customers, leveraging the latest tech innovation in training systems and a world-class jet trainer aircraft,” said Simon Barnes, the group managing director of BAE Systems’ Air sector. “We’re committed to ensuring this solution offers the best overall outcome for the nation to support the U.K.’s combat air readiness and deliver economic benefit.”
The requirement for a new advanced jet trainer was set out in the U.K.’s 2025 Strategic Defense Review.
This document stated that the Hawk T1 and Hawk T2 “should be replaced with a cost-effective fast jet trainer. The current flying training arrangements for fast jets must be urgently revised to optimize capacity, building in maximum use of contractors and provision for training overseas students.”
U.K. military flying training is undertaken in three phases. Phase one involves initial recruitment and selection and basic military training, and is carried out within individual service commands. Phase two is known as the Military Flying Training System (MFTS), part of which is overseen by a private contractor, Ascent Flight Training Management. This phase takes pilots from introductory instruction and progresses them into specialized streams, including fast jet and rotary.
Finally, phase three involves pilots training on specific frontline aircraft such as Typhoon or F-35 within an Operational Conversion Unit (OCU).
As part of phase two, the Royal Air Force operates 28 Hawk T2 jets that train both its own and Royal Navy fast-jet pilots at RAF Valley in Wales, before they progress to an OCU.
While the ‘second-generation’ Hawk T2 only entered service in 2009, the Hawk T1, now used exclusively by the Red Arrows, is much older, having first entered service in 1976.
Other contenders to replace the Royal Air Force Hawk include the TF-50, a version of the Korea Aerospace Industries T-50 offered by Lockheed Martin. At the Defense and Security Equipment International (DSEI) exhibition held in London in September of this year, Lockheed Martin displayed a model of the TF-50 in Red Arrows colors.
Competition is also likely to be provided by the Leonardo M-346 and the Turkish Aerospace Hürjet. At one point, BAE Systems had been seen as a possible partner for Leonardo in the British advanced jet trainer bid.
Meanwhile, British aerospace startup Aeralis is offering a clean-sheet modular jet trainer, which it plans to build in Scotland. While Aeralis has yet to win any orders for its products, it has been provided with funding from the Royal Air Force’s Rapid Capabilities Office. The service’s Chief of the Air Staff has also said in the past that the company’s approach was something the RAF was “very interested in.”
That the Hawk T2 needs replacement has been clear for some time now, with the relatively young fleet already suffering from well-documented availability issues, which have had an adverse effect on the training pipeline.
In 2022, a fault was reported within the Hawk T2’s Adour powerplant, reducing the planned design life of each engine from 4,000 to 1,700 hours, leading to an average of just eight serviceable aircraft being made available each day throughout fiscal years 2022 and 2023.
In 2023, the entire Hawk T2 fleet was temporarily grounded after an engine-related incident on the runway.
Among others, these issues have resulted in a need to train British pilots overseas to make up the shortfall, at a considerable cost. This has included buying training slots in Italy, Qatar, and with the Euro-NATO Joint Jet Pilot Training Program (ENJJPT) in the United States.
Meanwhile, an update on the T-7A’s progress was provided by Steve Parker, president and CEO of Boeing Defense, Space and Security, at a pre-show media roundtable ahead of the 2025 Dubai Airshow in the United Arab Emirates that TWZ attended.
Parker identified “really good performance this year” for the T-7A, which should see the first operational example delivered to the U.S. Air Force at Randolph Air Force Base, Texas, next month. Parker added: “We’ve got the first ground-based training simulators already stationed at the base and operational, and the program is doing well in its flight test; we are really seeing some good progress there.”
“We’re about 78 percent through test points at Edwards Air Force Base, so making good progress,” including having started high-angle-of-attack testing, Parker added. “The feedback from the United States Air Force has been great, both the testers as well as folks who’ve flown it from the Air Force […] We think it’s going to be a game-changer. Once we get it into the air with our main user, it’s going to sell itself.”
However, full entry into service is now not expected until 2027, a delay of over four years. Earlier this year, we reported on information that emerged about serious and potentially dangerous deficiencies with the emergency ejection system on the T-7A. This followed environmental testing of the aircraft, which also exposed new problems. More generally, the U.S. Air Force has been working with Boeing to fix or otherwise mitigate a host of issues with the T-7A, which, as well as delays, prompted a shakeup of the overall plans for the program. You can read more about what has been disclosed in the past about T-7A testing in this previous TWZ feature.
When asked about export prospects for the T-7A, Bernd Peters, vice president of business development and strategy for Boeing Defense, Space and Security, confirmed that the current focus is on delivering the 351 jets on order for the U.S. Air Force. However, he noted that “customers around the world are watching and seeing the program and the potential that it has, particularly when you think about the [Middle East] region.”
Peters said that Boeing is “definitely having conversations” with potential T-7A customers in the Middle East and identified what he said was “significant potential” for the trainer with “just about any operator that flies an F-15, an F-16, or an F-35 around the world.”
“We do think that there is a significant opportunity, particularly as we begin to ramp up deliveries to the United States Air Force and some of those other nations begin to think through how they want to recapitalize their trainer fleet and close the gap on pilot shortage,” Peters added.
Other export prospects could lie in a light fighter development of the T-7A, something that we have discussed in detail in the past. Previously, the U.S. Air Force looked at the possibility of an ‘F-7’ light fighter variant or derivative of the Red Hawk as one option to supplant at least a portion of its F-16C/D fleet. Some kind of missionized or light combat aircraft version of the T-7A could fare better when offered for export.
While details of the partnership between Boeing, Saab, and BAE Systems were not provided at the pre-show media roundtable, Peters also said that Europe was earmarked for T-7A sales, especially in the 2030 to 2035 timeframe. “Europe is one where I view that there’s a significant opportunity for us to be able to address not just existing Hawk fleets, but other fleets that might be out there,” Peters said.
As to the question of whether Boeing’s manufacturing capacity will be able to cover aircraft for both the U.S. Air Force and potential export customers, Parker struck an optimistic note.
Pointing to the company’s full-size determinant assembly (FSDA) approach, which reduces build time by moving drilling to the component fabrication process, making it more controlled and efficient, Parker said it would be possible to “scale up to very large volumes” for the T-7A.
“We’re going to go well above, potentially 100 aircraft a year, and we’ll be able to scale that up further if we need to go there,” Parker said. “Right now, we’ve got good capacity that will satisfy the United States Air Force, as well as other customers, right through into the early 2030s without having to put any more capital sort of into the system for that.”
A version of the T-7 is also in the running for the U.S. Navy’s Undergraduate Jet Training System (UJTS) competition, which seeks to replace the aging T-45 Goshawk — a type that was also developed from the BAE Systems Hawk.
Of course, should the United Kingdom choose the T-7A to replace its Hawks, the prospect of an additional final assembly line would allow production to be ramped up even further, to help fulfill more export orders.
For now, however, the U.K. government hasn’t allocated funds for its new advanced jet trainer, but with the Red Arrows’ Hawks requiring a successor by 2030, time for a decision is fast running out.
Contact the author: [email protected]
Trump Policy Shift Throws 200,000 Ukrainians into Legal Limbo
Kateryna Golizdra has been dealing with uncertainty about her legal status in the United States for six months. She hopes to endure another six months as she waits for the Trump administration to make decisions regarding a humanitarian program that allowed around 260,000 Ukrainians, displaced by the war, to live and work in the U. S. When her legal status expired in May, Golizdra became at risk of deportation, lost her job as a manager at the Ritz-Carlton that paid over $50,000, and lost her health insurance for a liver condition. She can no longer send financial support to her mother who lives in Germany.
As of March 31, nearly 200,000 Ukrainians faced similar risks due to processing delays in renewing their legal status caused by the Trump administration. The humanitarian program, which started in April 2022, was meant to offer short-term refuge to Ukrainians but is only a small part of the larger refugee crisis, with 5.9 million Ukrainian refugees globally. Golizdra is left unsure of when, or if, her legal status will be renewed, which creates a sense of ongoing anxiety about her future.
During interviews with various Ukrainian individuals affected by the temporary loss of their work permits, many shared stories of struggling financially. They reported dipping into their savings, seeking community assistance, and going into debt while they wait for updates. Some are afraid of being arrested by immigration authorities, prompting them to stay indoors or even leave the U. S. for safer locations in Canada, Europe, or South America. Returning to Ukraine is not an option for Golizdra, as her home was destroyed during the conflict.
The Trump administration halted processing applications for the humanitarian program in January, citing security concerns stemming from a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. While the program was not completely canceled, and a federal judge ordered officials to resume processing, only a tiny fraction of renewal applications have been processed since then. Additionally, a new spending package increased fees for humanitarian applications, adding to the burdens faced by these displaced individuals.
U. S. Representative Mike Quigley noted that his office has received numerous requests for help from Ukrainians in similar situations, with fears of deportation looming large for those whose applications are incomplete. Anne Smith, from the Ukraine Immigration Task Force, reported an uptick in calls from families worrying about detained relatives. This has led to chaotic interactions, with some being arrested while working or out in public.
Some Ukrainians have decided to leave the U. S. to avoid the risk of detention. Yevhenii Padafa, a software engineer, sought to renew his status but faced delays that left him without legal standing. Worrying about future complications, he tried to “self deport” using a government app that promised assistance for those voluntarily leaving the country. However, he encountered obstacles that made it difficult to relocate to a safer country. Instead, he ended up traveling to Argentina, which offers a humanitarian program, despite feeling financially strained upon arrival. He expressed the grim reality of preferring to be homeless in a foreign country rather than return to Ukraine, which is fraught with danger.
With information from Reuters
Venezuela: A not-so-covert CIA disaster in the making | Politics
On Saturday, the Reuters news agency published an exclusive report claiming that the United States is “poised to launch a new phase of Venezuela-related operations in the coming days”. The report cited four US officials who spoke on condition of anonymity. Two of the officials said covert operations would likely be the first step in this “new action” against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
This was less than shocking news given that more than a month ago, US President Donald Trump himself announced that he had authorised the CIA to conduct covert operations in Venezuela – a rather unique approach since one does not normally broadcast actions that are supposed to be, um, secret.
Anyway, it’s no secret that the US has been overseeing a massive military build-up in the region with about 15,000 US troops currently stationed there under the guise of fighting “narcoterrorism”. Since early September, Trump has also presided over wanton extrajudicial executions in the Caribbean Sea, repeatedly ordering the bombing of what he claims are drug-trafficking boats.
In addition to violating both international and US law, the strikes have produced little to show for themselves beyond terrorising local fishermen.
To be sure, the US has never met a “war on drugs” it didn’t love, given the convenient opportunities the whole drug-war narrative offers for wreaking havoc worldwide, militarising the Western Hemisphere, criminalising poor Americans and all sorts of other good stuff.
Never mind that US financial institutions have for decades reaped profits from the international drug trade – or that “The CIA Drug Connection Is as Old as the Agency,” as an article on The New York Times website puts it.
It should come as no surprise by now that the president who campaigned on keeping the US out of wars and then promptly bombed Iran has now found another conflict in which to embroil the country. And as is par for the course in US imperial belligerence, the rationale for aggression against Venezuela doesn’t hold water.
For example, the Trump administration has strived to pin the blame for the fentanyl crisis in the US on Maduro. But there’s a slight problem – which is that Venezuela doesn’t even produce the synthetic opioid in question.
As NBC News and other hardly radical outlets have pointed out, Venezuelan drug cartels are focused on exporting cocaine to Europe, not fentanyl to the US.
Nevertheless, on November 13, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth – pardon, US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, as per administrative rebranding – took to X to assure his audience that the massive US military build-up off the Venezuelan coast is a mission that “defends our Homeland, removes narco-terrorists from our Hemisphere, and secures our Homeland from the drugs that are killing our people”.
This is the same administration, of course, that was just threatening to starve impoverished Americans by withholding essential food assistance, which suggests that the wellbeing of “our people” isn’t really of utmost concern.
Consider also the fact that Trump slashed federal funding for gun violence prevention programmes in a country where mass shootings have become a way of life. Obviously, massacres in elementary schools are “killing our people” in a way that has nothing whatsoever to do with Venezuela.
But it’s so much more fun to blame Maduro for everything, right?
Poverty itself is a major killer in America – as is the domestic pharmaceutical industry (speaking of opioids). However, none of these full-blown crises has merited a remotely gung-ho response from the valiant defenders of the Homeland.
Like his predecessor Hugo Chavez, Maduro has long been a thorn in the side of US empire – hence the current campaign to discredit him as a “narcoterrorist” and thereby set the stage for regime change. He also happens to be a pet target of Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is seen as the main architect of Washington’s war plans in Venezuela. Potentially eyeing a presidential bid in three years, Rubio is seeking to curry favour with his Florida constituency, which includes fanatically right-wing members of the Venezuelan and Cuban diasporas.
According to the Reuters report on impending “Venezuela-related operations”, two of the US officials consulted told the news agency that “the options under consideration included attempting to overthrow Maduro”. If the plans succeeds, Rubio would join the lengthy roster of US politicians who have propagated deadly havoc abroad in the interest of political gains at home.
Meanwhile, The Washington Post reported on Saturday that the White House had “proposed an idea for US military planes to drop leaflets over Caracas in a psychological operation” to pressure Maduro.
Sounds like a page – or a leaflet – out of the old Israeli military playbook.
And as the Trump administration barrels on with its not-so-covert plans for Venezuela, such hemispheric recklessness will secure neither the US homeland nor anyone else’s.
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial policy.
Manchester United vs Everton: Premier League – team news, start and lineups | Football News
Who: Manchester United vs Everton
What: English Premier League
Where: Old Trafford, Manchester
When: Monday at 8pm (20:00 GMT)
How to follow: We’ll have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 5pm (17:00 GMT) in advance of our live text commentary stream.
Manchester United host Everton and are looking to extend a five-game unbeaten run under Ruben Amorim although they have drawn their past two against Nottingham Forest and Spurs.
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A win could see them move into the top four with Bryan Mbeumo’s scoring streak a key factor in their recent resurgence.
But Everton are just three points below Man United in a congested table, and David Moyes will be extra motivated to get a result at his former club.
Happyish anniversary for Amorim
Monday’s fixture at Old Trafford marks a year to the day since Amorim’s first match in charge.
Amorim’s reign as United manager started with a 1-1 draw away to Ipswich, and since then, the Portuguese boss has experienced plenty of lows in charge of the English football giants, including finishing 15th in the table and failing to qualify for Europe.
But recent results have been encouraging, and Amorim said consistency is key.
“Right away, I knew we would struggle in some things, but the feeling was it is the best league in the world, maybe the best club,” he said.
“[Now] I think we are showing [consistency], but the important thing is that it doesn’t matter what we did in the recent games,” he said. “We cannot forget we suffered a lot in those games and play every game like it is the last one.
“[We are] more dominant, playing better football, and more competitive in every way.”
Cunha credits United resurgence for Brazil call-ups
Man United forward Matheus Cunha has credited the club’s resurgence under Amorim with helping him cement a spot in Carlo Ancelotti’s Brazil squad before next year’s World Cup in North America.
Cunha, 26, has seamlessly adapted to playing in Amorim’s system as a hybrid attacking midfielder and forward, a trait he believes has strengthened his case for World Cup inclusion.
“Knowing that the manager [Amorim] trusts me to play in multiple positions is important,” Cunha said.
“Manchester United is a club that should always be at the top,” he said. “I’m grateful to be playing in a side that’s delivering and competing well. To earn a spot in the national team, you have to consistently show your worth at club level.”
Moyes says Everton in midst of a rebuild
Everton received a significant boost after appointing Moyes as manager for the second time in January with his side steadily rising up the table.
Speaking before the game against Man United, Moyes said his team were continuing to work towards finding “solid ground” but it would take time.
“We’ve said many times about us trying to get on solid ground again. We’ve done that with the new owners, new stadium and staying up last year. So we have to try and make sure that we go steady,” he said.
“If anybody thought that we were going to completely switch everything around, then they’re completely off their head.”
Moyes continued: “I used to always look at the real managers from eras before me who I look up to now – Bobby Robson, Brian Clough, Don Revie – all those ones who’d been given long periods at their clubs, and if you look at the success, it tended to work better that way.”
What happened in Man United’s last EPL match?
Matthijs de Ligt equalised in the sixth minute of a dramatic period of stoppage time to earn Manchester United a 2-2 draw at Tottenham Hotspur in the Premier League on November 8.
Tottenham had looked like they would claim all three points when Richarlison glanced in a header in the first minute of added time, completing a Spurs comeback from a goal down.
There was still time for de Ligt to find space at the back post at a corner to direct a header goalwards and over the line before Tottenham goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario clawed the ball away.
Trailing after Mbeumo’s 32nd-minute header, Tottenham dominated the second half and grabbed an equaliser in the 84th through substitute Mathys Tel’s shot that deflected in off de Ligt.
What happened in Everton’s last EPL match?
Everton defeated Fulham 2-0 at home on November 8 just before FIFA’s international window, ending a three-match EPL winless streak going back to October 5.
Idrissa Gueye gave Everton the lead in the first half, and Michael Keane made it 2-0 in the second as Moyes’s side also had a number of goals chalked off for offside in what was a dominant victory.
Head-to-head: Last six matches
United are unbeaten against Everton in their last six fixtures with four wins and two draws.
The teams last played in a preseason friendly two weeks before the start of the 2025-2026 English Premier League season:
- Manchester United 2-2 Everton (August 4)
- Everton 2-2 Manchester United (February 2)
- Manchester United 4-0 Everton (December 1)
- Manchester United 2-0 Everton (March 9, 2024)
- Everton 0-3 Manchester United (November 26, 2023)
- Manchester United 2-0 Everton (April 8, 2023)
Form guide: last five Premier League matches
Manchester United: W-W-W-D-D (most recent result last)
Everton: W-L-L-D-W
United’s team news
Benjamin Sesko will be out of action “for a few weeks” after hurting his knee before the international break, Amorim said on Friday.
The forward, who joined United from RB Leipzig for 74 million pounds ($97m) in August, was injured during the 2-2 draw at Tottenham and missed Slovenia’s World Cup qualifiers.
United will also be without Harry Maguire against Everton after the defender picked up an injury in the Spurs draw.
Midfielder Kobbie Mainoo could be available to face Everton, and Lisandro Martinez is getting closer to a return after being involved in the Argentina camp over the break.
Meanwhile, Cunha missed a Christmas lights switch-on event in Altrincham after organisers revealed the forward suffered “an accident in training” on Saturday, raising doubts over his availability on Monday.
United’s predicted starting lineup
Lammens; Yoro, de Ligt, Shaw; Mazraoui, Casemiro, Fernandes, Dorgu; Mbeumo, Diallo; Zirkzee
Everton’s team news
Moyes said on Friday that central midfielder Merlin Rohl has had an operation to treat a hernia and is not expected to return for a few weeks.
Everton are also missing Nathan Patterson and Jarrad Branthwaite due to groin and hamstring injuries, respectively.
Otherwise, Moyes appears to have a fully fit squad to choose from.
Everton’s predicted starting lineup
Pickford; O’Brien, Keane, Tarkowski, Mykolenko; Garner, Gueye; Ndiaye, Dewsbury-Hall, Grealish; Barry
Slovenia referendum: Where is assisted dying legal? | Health News
Slovenia is voting on whether to legalise assisted dying for some terminally ill adults after other European countries have made the change.
The parliament of the small European Union nation passed a euthanasia bill in July, but a citizens initiative, led by right-wing politician Ales Primc, forced the referendum on Sunday.
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The law will be rejected if at least 20 percent of participating voters oppose the bill. Slovenia has an electorate of 1.69 million people.
Supporters of the bill said it will alleviate unnecessary pain. Those against said society should care for the sick, not help them die.
Several European countries – including Austria, Belgium, the Netherlands and Switzerland – already allow terminally ill people to receive medical help to end their lives.
What are the Slovenes proposing?
Under the disputed law, which was set to take effect this year, lucid but terminally ill patients would have had the right to die if their suffering had become unbearable and all other treatment options had been exhausted.
The legislation is similar to the assisted dying bill passed by the United Kingdom Parliament in June. Britain’s bill allows assisted suicide for terminally ill adults with less than six months to live, the approvals of two doctors, judicial oversight and self-administration of the medication.
Slovenia’s law would require the approval of two doctors but also cooling-off periods and self-administration of the medication.
About 54 percent of citizens back the legalisation of assisted dying, almost 31 percent oppose it and 15 percent are undecided, according to a poll published this week by the Dnevnik daily based on 700 responses. In June 2024, 55 percent backed the law.
What are supporters saying?
Prime Minister Robert Golob urged citizens to back the law “so that each of us can decide for ourselves how and with what dignity we will end our lives”.
Marijan Janzekovic, an 86-year-old who lives in the town of Sveti Tomaz near the capital, Ljubljana, also supports the bill.
His wife, Alenka Curin-Janzekovic, was in pain from diabetes-related illnesses before she ended her life at a suicide clinic in Switzerland in 2023.
“She was in a wheelchair … and in pain so bad my heart hurt just by watching her,” he told the Reuters news agency.
What do opponents think?
The main political group opposing the law, called Voice for the Children and the Family, has accused the government of using the law to “poison” ill and elderly people.
Opponents said the law is inhumane and violates Slovenia’s Constitution, which declares human life inviolable.
Elsewhere, Slovenian Catholic Archbishop Stanislav Zore said the state should focus on palliative care instead.
“Let’s care for the sick and dying but not offer them suicide,” he said. The Catholic Church is opposed to euthanasia.
What other countries practise assisted dying?
Assisted dying is already permitted in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, several states in the United States, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Austria, Germany, Portugal, Spain and Switzerland.
In Australia, New Zealand, Canada and several US states, assisted dying laws are generally framed around medical aid. These jurisdictions typically require that patients be terminally ill, mentally competent and assessed by two independent doctors.
In many of these countries, the patient must self-administer lethal medication rather than have a doctor provide it directly. These regimes prioritise patient autonomy and strict procedural safeguards, such as waiting periods.
In the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Spain and Portugal, the approach to assisted dying is permissive. Active euthanasia or doctor-administered treatment is legal under defined conditions of unbearable suffering, even if the patient is not terminally ill.
In Germany, Austria and Switzerland, only assisted suicide is legally tolerated as opposed to active euthanasia. Switzerland is an outlier insofar as there is no dedicated regulatory regime for euthanasia, meaning nonresidents may access the service via organisations.
Which other countries are currently debating assisted dying laws?
In May, France’s National Assembly approved a “right-to-die” bill. The legislation would allow adults over 18 who are citizens or residents and suffer from incurable illnesses and “intolerable” physical or psychological suffering to request lethal medication.
Under the bill, a medical team must assess the patient’s condition before a mandatory reflection period before the prescription of a lethal substance. If the patient is physically unable to self-administer, a doctor or nurse may assist.
The proposal excludes people with severe psychiatric conditions or neurodegenerative disorders like advanced Alzheimer’s disease. The bill now has to go to the Senate and must return to the National Assembly for a second reading before it could become law.
Elsewhere, Britain’s lower house voted to legalise assisted dying in June. The House of Commons narrowly voted in favour of the Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill, marking a major step towards legalising assisted dying in England and Wales.
The bill would allow mentally competent adults with a prognosis of less than six months to live to request medical help to end their lives, subject to assessments by two doctors and a panel including a psychiatrist, a lawyer and a social worker.
The legislation is not yet law. It must still get through the House of Lords, where it will be further scrutinised and may be amended. If it does become law, the timeline for implementation may not be until 2029.
The Ashes: England fans should be better than “abuse” directed at Steve Smith, says Darren Lehmann
During a Test against South Africa, Smith admitted Australia’s “leadership group” devised a plan to tamper with the ball.
Former opener David Warner taught batter Cameron Bancroft how to use sandpaper to rough up the ball, and Bancroft was then caught doing so by TV cameras during play. Both men were also banned along with Smith.
Smith made his comeback after the ball-tampering episode in the 2019 Ashes Test at Edgbaston and has been booed repeatedly since.
England fans also base taunts on his tearful news conference in 2018.
“We did the wrong thing, accept it and move on,” Lehmann said.
“You try to move on the best you can. You get reminded every day and that is part and parcel.
“Steve Smith can hold his head high with how he handles everything.
“The Barmy Army should be better than that. Most of them are and are very supportive of what goes on in the game.”
The Intersection Between Healthcare and Loyalty to Terror Groups in Nigeria
When Mariam* first started thinking of deserting Boko Haram’s settlement at Sambisa Forest, where she had been living for a decade, she was not entirely sure that it was the best idea. She still believed in the cause, for starters. But there was the matter of her body starting to fail her.
Her husband had just died of HIV/AIDS, and she had unfortunately contracted the disease from him before he passed. Although the doctor in the forest tried to provide her with medication, it was not consistent. In addition, she had kids she feared infecting. Then, she started to hear that access to antiretroviral drugs was free in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital in northeastern Nigeria. So, she began to tinker with the idea, for the first time, of leaving the group behind.
The group was all she had known for the past decade. She had even been prepared, at some point, to give her life for the cause by volunteering for a suicide bombing. She had been approved for it and had begun to undergo training and preparations when she realised she was pregnant. Her husband, previously supportive of what they collectively thought of as her noble martyrdom, then decided she could not blow herself up while carrying their child. She was heavily disappointed. That’s how far she was willing to go for the Boko Haram cause.
And so to leave it all behind seemed impossible.
She had joined when the group first declared war on the Nigerian state over a decade ago, leaving state-controlled territories for the Sambisa Forest. They sought to establish what they believed to be an Islamic state, declaring formal education, democracy, and elections forbidden. Their campaign has killed over 35,000 people violently, displaced over two million others, and caused over 25,000 others to go missing. Mariam had been attending their sermons right from the early, non-violent days.
Eventually, after nearly a decade, she left with her children in 2017. Since coming back to Maiduguri, she has had uninterrupted access to free medications for her condition, reducing her viral load and making her no longer infectious. And so, even though she considered the economic prospects and living conditions in Maiduguri to be worse than in Sambisa, she stayed because she could remain alive.
She keeps the truth of her condition from her children and everyone she knows.
Earlier this year, however, the United States President Donald Trump announced the suspension of USAID, which was primarily responsible for the accessibility of antiretroviral drugs for people like Mariam. Without the USAID subsidy, the drugs are estimated to be unaffordably expensive for low-income earners like Mariam.
Word started to go around that the availability of the drugs would falter. When Mariam ran out of her six-month stash of medications, she returned to the Borno State Specialist Hospital to get a refill, as she has done for years now. There, she met a surprise that scared her.
“They only gave me one small can of pills, not the usual two. They seemed to have changed the ratio. They didn’t say why, only that they had changed the ratio. The bottle will only last me three months,” she recounted.
It worried her. When she got home from the hospital, she poured the pills into a thin white plastic bag and hid it, as usual. That way, it is inconspicuous, and anyone who knew the kind of bottles the drugs came in would not be able to recognise hers. This is so that she would avoid stigma.
“Nobody knows I have HIV to date. Even my children. And they are HIV-free. I had them tested at the hospital. Even the eldest among them doesn’t know.”
Around the same time, NGO-run health facilities were also starting to shut down in many rural communities in Borno. For example, in Konduga, a primary healthcare centre run by Family Health International (FHI360) was shut down. The facility had been receiving hundreds of patients daily until its abrupt suspension, leaving many in need and others unemployed.
For Mariam, this has made her begin to consider going back to the terror group, especially after she lost everything during the tragic Maiduguri floods last year. She and her children barely escaped with their lives. The flood had swept through Maiduguri and neighbouring areas, affecting over one million people in total. Her daughter had initially been swept away until a neighbour dove into the waves and rescued her.
“It was a young man who came to help. I was at the verge of diving into the water myself when he came and said not to worry, that he would get her back, and he did. We could not salvage anything else from the flood. We were displaced to the Bakassi IDP camp.”
When Mariam ran out of the three-month stash and went back to the hospital for a refill, she was only handed a one-month stash this time. The two times she has gone back for more refills after she had exhausted each, she only received one month’s stash, further scaring her.
Though she is no longer as committed to the Boko Haram ideology as she used to be, the realisation that she and her children’s lives are not safe has made her seriously reconsider the prospect of returning
A medical doctor working in Borno State, who pleaded anonymity, confirmed that the drugs had become difficult to access after the USAID suspension. “Patients who showed up at the hospitals were being told that the drugs were not available,” the doctor told HumAngle. “But if you knew your way around and gave some pharmacists some money, they would then give you the drugs, but keep in mind that the drugs are meant to be free. The situation has mildly improved.”
The availability of healthcare among terror groups is traceable to many sources. They are notorious for abducting healthcare workers and forcing them to work for them. But they also took medical training very seriously during the early days when the group first started to tactically come together over a decade ago, according to a former member of the group.
Now, as many people are coming back to state-controlled territories, the rewards for recidivism have reportedly become higher, as the groups struggle to maintain their followers. Mariam hears these whispers from many of her associates.
“In addition to the drugs they were giving me in Sambisa, they would also give me a litre of honey and some black seed,” she said, adding that the honey and black seed were to help build her immune system.
In northwestern Nigeria, children who escaped or were rescued from terror groups have reported similar experiences. Some boys told HumAngle in an investigation that they joined the groups for things like food and healthcare. They said these were some of the incentives that made staying easy, and why they were not so keen on returning to state-controlled territories.
“I collected the last batch exactly a week ago today,” Mariam said of her access to the drugs. “The flow has never stopped. They always give me on schedule; it is just that I now only get one-month refills.”
“The life over there is way better,” she said of Sambisa. “If I were there, I would have received a lot of support, especially with my husband dead. Here, who will help me? Everyone is focused on themselves. There is peace of mind there.”
When asked how there could be peace of mind there, with the threat of military bombardment ever present, she said the military would not harm women and children, and so she still would have been safe. “They will only ‘rescue’ us and bring us back to Borno… Even recently, I said to myself that life over there would be better for me. There were so many things weighing down on me at that time. It was even before the flood.”
On whether her children’s lives would be better in Maiduguri, she said it would only be so if her children had access to formal education here, which they don’t. Now, they spend all their time either at home with her or roaming the streets.
When we first spoke in June 2023, she had told me that her children were opposed to the Nigerian army and would throw rocks at them on the road, chanting war songs. When I asked her if things had improved now, she said yes.
“They don’t do that anymore,” she laughed. “They have forgotten. They don’t even want to hear anything related to Boko Haram anymore.”
If she could make an appeal for help to the government, it would be for three things. “Healthcare, school for my children, and a means of livelihood.”
This work was produced as a result of a grant provided by the Wits Centre for Journalism’s African Investigative Journalism Conference.
*Mariam is a pseudonym used to protect her anonymity.
Teen wearing Middle Eastern neck scarf really putting society in its place
A TEENAGER has forced society to reflect on its shortcomings and hypocrisies by wearing a keffiyeh neck scarf.
Joshua, not his real name, 17, has issued a damning indictment on the state of the world by stepping out in a patterned neck scarf with tassels that clearly singles him out as a free-thinking radical.
He said: “People usually wear this kind of scarf in the desert, yet here I am rocking it in Plymouth. Take that, societal expectations.
“I could have wrapped a normal scarf around my neck and done a better job of protecting myself from the cold. But then how would everyone know I’ve skim-read The Communist Manifesto Wikipedia page?
“By wearing this scarf I’m showing everyone I’m a Che Guevara-esque revolutionary. Although instead of overthrowing a dictator with guerilla warfare, I’m off to get the bus and browse the £1 DVDs in CEX. Assuming mum gives me a tenner.
“If enough people see me I reckon this sick capitalist system should come crashing down by dinnertime. Which works for me because I’m broke and can’t be bothered to get a job.”
Passer-by Jack Browne said: “I was a normal, functioning member of society until I saw Josh’s scarf. Now I’m off to petrol bomb a bank.”
Russia Insists Su-75 Checkmate Fighter Will Fly Next Year
Russian officials claim that a prototype of the Sukhoi Su-75 Checkmate fighter could be in flight testing by early next year. Development of the single-engine aircraft, which first broke cover four years ago, is otherwise said to be ongoing with a heavy emphasis on potential export sales. There also continues to at least be plans, which currently look to be aspirational, for further variations on the design, including an uncrewed derivative.
Russia’s United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) officially unveiled a Su-75, also known as the Light Tactical Aircraft (LTA), or LTS in Russian, at the 2021 Dubai Airshow. A full-scale mockup of the jet was shown at that event. Later that year, UAC said that work on an actual flying prototype was underway.
We’re “still working on development of this aircraft,” Sergey Chemezov, head of Russia’s state-run defense conglomerate Rostec, told TWZ and other outlets at this year’s Dubai Airshow on Tuesday, according to a translator. “We need some time to get the real prototype for the test flights.”
“Basically, we are almost at the stage of the testing flights, and in the near future, we will be launching it into production,” Chemezov added, again per the translator.
“I think this is the beginning of 2026,” Sergey Bogdan, Sukhoi’s chief test pilot, also said about the expected timeframe for the start of Su-75 flight testing in a separate interview with Russia’s state-run Channel One television station on Tuesday. “The aircraft is already on the shop floor, it is already being finalized, and there are already certain time plans. Therefore, with God’s help, it should take place soon enough.”
Specifications for the Su-75 that UAC has provided at this year’s Dubai Airshow say the design, at least in its present form, has a maximum takeoff weight of some 57,320 pounds (26,000 kilograms). The jet is said to be able to carry up to 16,314 pounds (7,400 kilograms) worth of air-to-air and/or air-to-ground munitions on an array of underwing hardpoints, as well as one inside three internal bays. UAC has stated the aircraft’s top speed to be between Mach 1.8 and Mach 2 with an engine in the 32,000 to 36,000-pound-thrust-class (14,500 to 16,500 kilogram-force). Size-wise, the design, as it was shown in 2021, is approximately 57 feet long and has a wingspan of 39 feet.
As TWZ has noted in the past, despite its LTA moniker, the Su-75 is really more of a middle-weight design. As a comparison, Lockheed Martin’s single-engine F-35A is 51 feet long and has a wingspan of 35 feet, and has a stated maximum takeoff weight in the “70,000 pound class.” As another reference point, Russia’s twin-engine Su-57 Felon, a heavyweight fighter design, measures 66 feet in length with a 46-foot wingspan, and has a stated maximum takeoff weight of 74,957 pounds.
Based on models and renderings that UAC has shown, the Su-75’s design has evolved since 2021. This includes the enlargement of the rear edges of both wings, with flaperons that now stretch all the way down both sides of the tail, and the extension of the wing roots at the nose end of the jet. The shaping of the wing tips, as well as parts of the nose and tail ends of the jet, has also changed. The cockpit canopy now has sawtooth edges at the front and back, as well.
There have also been changes observed to what is easily one of the Su-75’s most striking visual features, its highly angular air intake that wraps around the underside of the nose section. The mock-up that was unveiled in 2021 had a divider in the middle of the intake, which has since disappeared in renders and models of the design. The underside of the intake has also gotten flatter. It still has a diverterless supersonic inlet (DSI) style of design, the benefits of which you can read about in more detail here. Lockheed pioneered DSI technology in the 1990s, with this becoming a key aspect of the F-35’s design. It has now appeared in various forms on a number of other crewed and uncrewed aircraft, especially ones developed in China.
Overall, like the Su-57, the Su-75’s design does look to have some low-observable characteristics, but appears to be mostly focused on reducing the radar signature from the frontal hemisphere, rather than any kind of all-aspect stealth. UAC claims that Checkmate will be effective in areas “protected by air defense systems” and “in a complex jamming environment” thanks to its sensor suite, including an active electronically scanned array radar and an infrared search and track (IRST) system, and other features.
As noted, since the Su-75 was first unveiled, UAC has talked about plans for an entire family of designs based on the single-seat LTA configuration. Models of a two-seat crewed version, as well as the aforementioned uncrewed derivative, have been shown over the years.
There is notably a more refined model of the uncrewed Checkmate design on display at this year’s Dubai Airshow. It shows an overall configuration in line with the revisions to the single-seat design.
The Checkmate drone model also notably features what looks to be an electro-optical targeting system (EOTS) underneath its fuselage that sits inside a windowed enclosure broadly akin to the ones seen on the U.S. F-35 and Chinese J-20, as well as other designs globally. There is what appears to be another electro-optical and/or infrared sensor system with a more fixed forward field of view on the underside of the fuselage, as well. A sensor aperture is also present on top of the nose. These latter two systems look to be part of a distributed aperture system (DAS) type arrangement that could also have a more capable IRST capability. Advanced combat drones have a particular need for an array of sensors around the aircraft to provide general situational awareness, especially if they are designed for more independent autonomous operations, as well as to help spot and track targets in the air and down below.
All of this being said, much about the Checkmate effort, especially plans for follow-on variations, crewed and uncrewed, currently look to be highly aspirational.
“Generally, it takes about 10 to 15 years to create the proper aircraft,” Rostec’s Chemezov said in Dubai on Tuesday about ongoing work on the Su-75, according to the translator. “You can have a baby born in nine months, but the aircraft will take a little longer than that.”
Chemezov’s remarks here are, broadly speaking, true. As a point of comparison, the first flight of a pre-production Su-57 prototype occurred in 2010 and it took another decade or so for serial production of that design to officially kick off. At the same time, this then points to UAC reaching a high level of maturity with the baseline Su-75 design, let alone putting it into large-scale production, sometime well into the next decade, at the earliest.
When it comes to the prospective first flight of the Su-75, it should be noted that, to date, there has been no imagery or other hard evidence of a real prototype under construction or any initial testing. This is in marked contrast to how images and other details highlighting progress on other advanced Russian aircraft developments, like the S-70 Okhotnik-B uncrewed combat air vehicle (UCAV), have emerged in the past.
The pressures of the ongoing war in Ukraine make it impossible not to question whether Russia is really willing to dedicate the resources necessary for a new fighter project. Though Rostec’s Chemezov was quick to downplay any concerns in Dubai earlier this week, there are also real questions about Russia’s current ability to produce combat aircraft, crewed or uncrewed, in general, after years of Western sanctions. The Russian defense industry chief also acknowledged the additional demands that conflict has placed on Russia’s defense industry to meet the immediate needs of the country’s armed forces. Deliveries of production Su-57s to the Russian Air Force have been notably sluggish, with the Russian Air Force having received around 18 of the jets between 2022 and 2024. The service has a standing order for 76 of those aircraft, and it is unclear when it might be fulfilled in full.
Earlier this year, authorities in Belarus, a very close Russian ally, announced that they were exploring a joint partnership on the continued development of the Su-75. This could help at least defray the costs of the Checkmate program.
Since 2021, UAC has also been very heavily pitching the Su-75 as a more advanced, but also lower-cost fighter option, especially for smaller air arms in the Middle East, Asia, Latin America, and Africa. In the ensuing years, there have been reports of interest from a host of countries, including India, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Iran, Algeria, and Vietnam. To date, however, there have been no confirmed orders.
It is worth noting here that reports earlier said Algeria had become the first export customer for the larger Su-57. UAC also said just this week that it had delivered the first two export Su-57s to an unnamed foreign customer. No visual evidence of Su-57s entering service outside Russia on any level has yet to emerge.
Competition, in general, in the international fighter market only looks set to grow, as well. China has been making particularly pronounced inroads in this space globally, and export variants or derivatives of its J-35 stealth fighter could be on the horizon. The Su-75, which again has yet to even fly, faces additional challenges posed by the fact that any nation that buys Russian weapon systems runs real risks of triggering secondary sanctions, especially from the United States.
Altogether, it very much remains to be seen when a prototype Su-75 might take to the skies for the first time, as well as when, or if, any of the broader ambitions for the Checkmate program, including the drone derivative, become a reality.
Jamie Hunter contributed to this story.
Special thanks to Michael Jerdev, who you can follow on X under the handle @MuxelAero, for sharing additional imagery from the 2025 Dubai Airshow.
Contact the author: [email protected]
How Taiwan Just Redrew East Asia’s Battle Lines
In November 2025 a public disagreement between Beijing and Tokyo over Taiwan exposed how the island’s fate now reaches far beyond Taipei, shaping trade, military planning and regional alliances across East Asia and further beyond.
The Taiwan question has recently re-emerged as a tension point between China and Japan. This raises broader questions about East Asian security. Beijing affirms its “One China policy”, treating Taiwan as a breakaway province to be “reunified” by force if necessary and reacts sharply to any foreign involvement. Avoiding rhetoric that might provoke its eastern neighbor until now, the consensus in Tokyo is shifting as many senior Japanese officials say a Chinese assault on Taiwan that threatens Japan’s survival could justify a military response. None of this is new, but the tone is.
China’s Firm Position on Taipei
Beijing’s stance remains absolute: it is Chinese territory, and any formal push or support from foreign actors for its independence is intolerable. Officials frame reunification as inevitable and non-negotiable, part of what state discourse calls the “national rejuvenation” of China. In recent months this posture has been accompanied by more visible coercion: maritime patrols in the South China Sea, large-scale exercises around the island and targeted economic measures against partners perceived to have crossed this line.
Any country that appears to undercut China’s claim through military cooperation with Taipei, public statements of support, or strengthened security ties risks a Chinese response. From Beijing’s point of view, fully controlling the region would extend China’s reach beyond its coast by securing sea lanes and projection space for the People’s Liberation Army. Politically, it would close a chapter Beijing sees as a Cold War remnant after a century of perceived humiliation.
Japan’s Stakes in Taiwan
Tokyo’s formal policy remains rooted in the One China framework as it does not recognise Taiwan as a sovereign state and officially supports a peaceful cross-Strait resolution. Security considerations and proximity to Taiwan have forced Japanese leaders into increasing their attention to the island in recent years. Hard-line conservative Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s public remarks this month, that a Chinese assault on Taiwan which threatens Japanese survival could trigger a full military response, marked a break with decades of deliberate ambiguity.
It is likely that pending targets have been moved forward and planning for collective self-defence has become more explicit, while defence cooperation with partners particularly the United States under U.S. President Donald Trump has grown more visible. Taipei sits near Japan’s western islands; Yonaguni, the closest island of the Okinawa prefecture is roughly 100 km from Taiwan’s eastern coast and the sea lanes that run here carry a large share of Japan’s energy imports. The presence of substantial U.S. forces in Japan ties Tokyo’s security to Washington’s responses, making it politically and militarily difficult for Tokyo to ignore developments in the Strait.
Reactions, Responses and Confrontation
Responding with strong diplomatic protests and a suite of retaliatory measures to Prime Minister Takaichi’s parliamentary remarks on November 7, Chinese commerce authorities re-imposed bans on Japanese seafood and warned consumers against Japanese products urging its citizens to avoid travel to Japan. Diplomatically, China demanded a retraction and summoned Japan’s ambassador in Beijing to issue a formal protest. This was widely seen as an unusually public move given the recent history of cautious diplomacy in the area.
Japan has issued strong protests over the consul’s remarks and dispatched a senior envoy to Beijing to calm the situation but the talks produced little immediate de-escalation. Japanese fighters were set on high alert after a surveillance drone was detected between Taiwan and Yonaguni, underlining how geographically close this theatre is to Japanese territory. Such moves are not isolated acts but are part of a larger pattern meant to act as a “show of strength” while stopping short of starting a full-scale war.
Why This Small Island is Significant to Both Countries
For Beijing, the island is a core territorial claim bolstered by narratives about sovereignty and historical rectification. Losing the island, or allowing it to consolidate international backing as a separate political entity, would be depicted by Chinese leaders as an unacceptable erosion of national integrity. Its location is also a matter of strategy: full control over the island would make it harder for outside powers to operate in China’s seas.
For Tokyo, the calculus is concrete and immediate. Taiwan’s proximity means that military operations in the straits could quickly affect Japanese airspace and waters. Japanese industry is also deeply integrated with Taiwanese firms notably in fields such as semiconductors and electronics, so instability would hit the stock markets and raise costs for manufacturers.
Possible Future Scenarios and Regional Impact
The stand-off could begin a prolonged period of low-level confrontation. Both Beijing and Tokyo could double down: China sustaining pressure through patrols and economic sanctions, Japan strengthening its military capabilities and aligning more tightly with the United States and other western partners.
This doesn’t mean that there is no time for pragmatic de-escalation from both sides. Recognising the mutual costs of prolonged hostility, Tokyo could clarify that its statements were contextual and not a call to aggressive action, while Beijing could temper sanctions once its political point has been made. Diplomacy behind closed doors might restore exchanges and trade, though the underlying policy differences between the two countries would remain unresolved. Therefore, such an outcome would buy more time but not resolve the underlying causes of these issues.
A third way would be one where a deeper realignment could take place. Japan might accelerate defence modernisation and legal reforms to make collective defence more actionable. On its part, China could respond by heavily investing and intensifying military presence in its south or seeking closer security ties with partners that counterbalance U.S. influence.
In the worst case, simple miscalculations could lead to direct clashes for example between Chinese forces operating near Taiwan and Japanese ships or aircraft which could rapidly draw in the United States given treaty commitments and strategic interests.
While full-scale war remains unlikely for now, we can never be 100% sure as the simple probability increases more and more with these incidents that have developed recently.
Implications for the Rest of The World
No matter if the situation escalates further or not, the United States will undoubtebly remain a central factor to any such issue. Washington’s alliance with Tokyo and its historically ambiguous but substantial support for Taipei mean that any serious incident will have trans-Pacific repercussions.
Neighbouring states like South Korea, ASEAN members, Australia, India, etc. would be forced into a difficult diplomatic calculation, by balancing economic ties with Beijing against security concerns and relations with Washington and Tokyo. Economically, prolonged instability would disrupt semiconductor production, shipping routes and regional investment, with global consequences.
Most analysts agree that this issue has shifted from a regional diplomatic concern to a great security risk for the larger world. In the near term, careful diplomacy from both sides may limit the damage, but the issues at hand suggest this will most likely be a long term gap in East Asian security. How both sides manage politics and deterrence will determine whether the next phase is a steady containment or a dangerous step toward direct military confrontation.
With information from Reuters.
Houthi court sentences 17 to death accused of spying for Israel, West | Israel-Palestine conflict News
Houthi authorities in Yemen want to publicly execute the convicted individuals, and also sentenced two others to prison.
Published On 23 Nov 2025
Houthi judges working with prosecutors in Yemen have sentenced 17 people to death by firing squad over alleged espionage on behalf of Israel and its western allies.
The Specialized Criminal Court in the capital Sanaa handed down the sentences on Saturday morning in the cases of “espionage cells within a spy network affiliated with American, Israeli, and Saudi intelligence”, Houthi-run media said.
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The court sentenced the 17 men to execution “to be carried out in a public place as a deterrent”, Saba and other outlets said, also publishing a list of names.
A woman and a man were sentenced to 10 years in prison, while another man was acquitted of all charges, bringing the total number of people put on trial in this case to 20.
Houthi-run media said state prosecutors had charged the defendants, who can theoretically appeal the sentences, with “espionage for foreign countries hostile to Yemen” in 2024 and 2025, which also included the United Kingdom.
Israel’s Mossad spying agency reportedly “directed” intelligence officers who were in contact with the accused Yemeni citizens, whose work allegedly “led to the targeting of several military, security, and civilian sites and resulting in the killing of dozens and the destruction of extensive infrastructure”.
The United States and the UK conducted dozens of deadly joint air strikes across Yemen after the start of Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza in October 2023, as the Houthis launched attacks on Israel and international maritime transit through the Red Sea in a stated attempt to support Palestinians under fire.
The Houthis have stopped their attacks since last month’s Gaza ceasefire deal.
Israel has also unleashed huge air attacks on Yemen and its infrastructure, repeatedly hitting fuel tanks, power stations and a critical port city where desperately needed humanitarian aid flows through, killing political leaders and dozens of civilians.
In August, the Houthis confirmed that an Israeli air raid killed the prime minister of their government in Sanaa.
Ahmed al-Rahawi was killed with “several” other ministers, the Houthis said in a statement at the time.
Houthi authorities, who control Sanaa and parts of Yemen to the north after an armed takeover more than a decade ago, made no mention of any links with the United Nations or other international agencies in the cases announced Saturday.
But they have, over the past year, increasingly raided UN and NGO offices, detaining dozens of mostly local but also international staff and confiscating equipment.
Amid condemnation and calls for the release of staff by the UN and international stakeholders, the Houthis have framed the efforts as necessary to stave off Israeli operations.
Paul Pogba returns from doping ban for Monaco debut in Ligue 1 | Football News
Ex-Juventus and France star midfielder made his return to football, suiting up for Monaco in first game in more than two years after drug ban.
Published On 23 Nov 2025
Paul Pogba described his emotional Monaco debut as a moment of relief and gratitude on Saturday, after the French midfielder returned to the pitch for the first time in more than two years following a doping ban.
The former Juventus and Manchester United player, who joined the Ligue 1 side on a free transfer in June, had not played a competitive match since September 2023.
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Pogba received a four-year ban in February 2024 after testing positive for the banned substance DHEA, which boosts testosterone levels. The suspension was cut to 18 months after an appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
The 32-year-old, who was nearing a return last month before suffering a right ankle injury, came on in the 85th minute of Monaco’s 4-1 defeat by Rennes at Roazhon Park and was met with a standing ovation.
“Seeing the crowd rise and applaud, I never imagined that would happen,” Pogba told reporters. “I’m relieved to be playing football again, the thing I love most in the world.
“But there’s still work to do to get back to full fitness and be able to play 90 minutes… If I don’t perform well at Monaco, I can forget about the French national team.
“I believe in myself and in my qualities, and since I knew I had done nothing wrong and it was not my fault, I never lost hope.”
Pogba, who has made 91 appearances for France, played a starring role in his nation’s 2018 FIFA World Cup victory. Knee and hamstring injuries, as well as knee surgery, prevented him from playing for France at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
