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Manchester City celebrated Pep Guardiola’s 1,000th game in management with a statement 3-0 win over Liverpool to close to within four points of Premier League leaders Arsenal.

Erling Haaland shrugged off missing an early penalty on Sunday to head in his 99th Premier League goal before Nico Gonzalez’s deflected effort and a wonder strike from Jeremy Doku confirmed City’s status as Arsenal’s major title rivals.

Liverpool have now lost four of their last five league games to leave the defending champions down in eighth, eight points off the top.

Arsenal’s 10-game winning run came to an end in a 2-2 draw at Sunderland on Saturday and Guardiola’s men took full advantage in the battle of the two sides that have dominated English football’s Premier League over the past decade.

Even if decisions went against Arne Slot’s men, this was another display of how far they have fallen since cruising to a 2-0 win at the Etihad in February.

The Reds showed signs of a revival in beating Aston Villa and Real Madrid in the past eight days, but had no answer to the slickness of a rejuvenated City, who have won 11 of their last 14 games in all competitions.

Conor Bradley shut down the threat of Madrid’s Vinicius Junior on Tuesday, but was given a torrid time by the pace and trickery of Doku down City’s left.

Early in the first half, Doku made the most of Ibrahima Konate’s clearance off Bradley to round Giorgi Mamardashvili before his trailing leg was clipped by the Georgian goalkeeper.

Referee Chris Kavanagh was initially unmoved, but pointed to the spot after a VAR review.

Haaland has struck 28 times already this season for club and country, but has yet to score for City from the penalty spot in 2025-26.

Mamardashvili redeemed himself by getting down low to his left to turn the Norwegian’s penalty to safety to briefly lift the mood among the Liverpool players and travelling support.

City remained in control of the game, though, as Rayan Cherki’s effort was deflected wide before Mamardashvili turned Doku’s strike after another mazy run into the side netting.

Haaland has only failed to score in two of his 18 appearances this season, and duly delivered with a looping header to meet Matheus Nunes’s wicked delivery at 29 minutes.

Liverpool thought they were level nine minutes later, when van Dijk’s header from a corner arrowed into the far corner.

However, Andrew Robertson ducked out of the way of his captain’s effort and was deemed to have interfered with Gianluigi Donnarumma from an offside position.

Instead of going in all square, City rubbed salt in the wounds of Liverpool’s perceived injustice.

The visitors were slow to get out from a corner, and Gonzalez had time to take aim before his shot deflected off van Dijk to wrong-foot Mamardashvili.

Liverpool only had themselves to blame for not getting back in the game early in the second period as Cody Gakpo blazed over with the goal gaping at the end of a fine move involving Mohamed Salah and Bradley.

But Doku fittingly rounded off arguably his best performance in three seasons at City to seal a statement victory.

The Belgian jinked inside the leaden-footed Konate before curling into the top corner from outside the box.

Salah summed up Liverpool’s day and season so far when he dinked wide a glorious chance 10 minutes from time.

Despite the visitors’ need for goals, Slot left 125-million-pound ($165m) striker Alexander Isak on the bench for the entire match due to his lack of match fitness.

The decision to tear up the squad that coasted to the title with a near 450-million-pound ($692m) spend in the transfer window looks more misguided by the game as Liverpool find themselves in a battle just to make the top four rather than the title race.

After the game, Doku told Sky Sports that he was very happy with the team’s performance.

“It is always good for the confidence [to dominate a match], but I have great players around me. That gives me the feeling that I have to do more in every game and every day I want to improve,” he said.

Van Dijk said Liverpool struggled to recover from a difficult first half.

“Our pressing just wasn’t good enough; it should have been better. We need to find more consistency. Losing hurts, always, but 3-0 especially,” he said.

“There were some good moments in the game, but you play Man City at home, who can make it very difficult. The focus should be on reflecting on this when we come back and then fight again.”

Earlier on Sunday, Aston Villa thrashed Bournemouth 4-0 to move into seventh place in the Premier League. But Newcastle United’s poor domestic form continued as they slumped to defeat at Brentford.

Nottingham Forest ended a winless Premier League run stretching back to the first weekend of the season as they came from behind to beat Leeds United 3-1 at the City Ground.

Crystal Palace and Brighton and Hove Albion shared the spoils in a dour 0-0 draw at Selhurst Park.

Nov. 9 (UPI) — Britain, France and Germany have announced that they will deploy anti-drone teams to Belgium after a wave of recent unidentified drone incursions.

Last week, authorities suspended flights at airports in Brussels and Liège after unidentified drones were spotted in their airspace, as well as over a military air base. Previous drone incursions were spotted over other NATO countries.

The British Defense Ministry said Sunday that it had agreed to deploy a specialist counter-drone unit from the Royal Air Force Regiment, following France and Germany.

“Working with NATO allies, we stand ready to counter hybrid threats and keep skies safe,” the British Defense Ministry said.

Belgium’s Defense Minister Theo Francken thanked Britain for the decision in a post to social media.

“The deployment of a U.K. anti-drone team in Belgium strengthens our collective security and showcases our unity in countering hybrid threats,” he said. The message mirrored those he sent Friday after Germany and France made similar announcements.

Britain’s top general Richard Knighton told the BBC on Sunday that Francken had asked for the assistance last week and that personnel and equipment were already on their way to Belgium.

While the origin of the drones has not been verified, NATO nations believe Moscow may have ordered the drone incursions, Knighton said.

Francken said Saturday that “quite a few people on social media” seemed to be annoyed that eyes were turning to Russia after the drone incursions.

“But evidently, Russia is a plausible suspect. The other European countries that experienced this all stand firmly behind Ukraine. Coincidence? Could be. But could also not be,” he said.

“Russia certainly has the capabilities to organize such operations. And for just as long, Russian hacker collectives have been waging a hardcore cyberwar against our networks.”

And so, Francken said, looking toward Russia “isn’t abnormal” and Moscow’s possible involvement can’t be ruled out.

“Yet quite a few people feel called to do exactly that. This would be ‘impossible’ work of Russia, they pontificate,” he said. “What do they base this on? And all those others claiming the drone flights are staged, or don’t exist at all, and are deliberately exaggerated to sow panic?”

Nov. 9 (UPI) — President Donald Trump on Sunday rejoiced in the abrupt resignations of the BBC’s director-general Tim Davie and news head Deborah Turness after allegations that one of its program’s misleadingly edited a he made on Jan. 6, 2021.

“The top people in the BBC, including Tim Davie, the boss, are all quitting/fired, because they were caught ‘doctoring’ my very good (perfect!) speech of Jan. 6. Thank you to The Telegraph for exposing these corrupt ‘journalists,'” Trump said on his Truth Social platform.

Davie and Turness are reported to have resigned by the BBC and there has not been evidence to suggest that they were fired.

“These are very dishonest people who tried to step on the scales of a presidential election,” Trump said. “On top of everything else, they are from a foreign country, one that many consider our number one ally. What a terrible thing for democracy!”

BBC News published a statement from Davie after his resignation, in which he said he would be working with the public broadcaster’s board to “allow for an orderly transition” to a successor over the coming months.

“Like all public organizations, the BBC is not perfect, and we must always be open, transparent and accountable. While not being the only reason, the current debate around BBC News has understandably contributed to my decision,” Davie said in his statement.

“Overall, the BBC is delivering well, but there have been some mistakes made and as director-general I have to take ultimate responsibility.”

Samir Shah, the chairman of the BBC, called the dual resignations a “sad day” for the broadcaster and thanked Davie and Turness for their “unwavering service and commitment.”

The controversy stems from a report by the British newspaper The Telegraph, which leaked an internal BBC memo in which a former external ethics adviser allegedly suggested that a BBC Panorama documentary cut together parts of Trump’s speech to make it appear as if he explicitly directed the riot at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.

Fighters affiliated with al-Qaeda have blocked fuel deliveries to Mali’s capital for two months, bringing the city of Bamako to a standstill.

They’ve sealed off the highways that tankers use to transport fuel from neighbouring Senegal and the Ivory Coast. This has put pressure on the landlocked Sahel country and its military government.

The scale of the blockade, and its impact, show just how much influence the armed group wields. So, are al-Qaeda-linked fighters trying to take power in Mali? And what does that mean for the battle against armed groups in the Sahel region?

Presenter: Nick Clark

Guests:

Moussa Kondo – Executive director of the Sahel Institute

Oluwole Ojewale – Coordinator for West and Central Africa at the Institute for Security Studies

Nicolas Normand – France’s former ambassador to Mali, Senegal and the Republic of the Congo/Congo-Brazzaville

Nov. 9 (UPI) — U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned Sunday that Thanksgiving air travel would slow considerably.

Amid the continued federal government shutdown and upcoming travel season, he also said that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth offered military reserves of air traffic controllers to help mitigate the shutdown-linked staffing shortage.

As of early Sunday morning, more than 1,100 flights had been canceled, which follows more than 1,500 that were cancelled and 6,4000 that were delayed, ABC reported.

The Federal Aviation Administration has ordered airlines to cut flights by 10% by Nov. 14 to mitigate air safety concerns amid the shortage of air traffic controllers.

Duffy said in an interview with “Fox News Sunday” that Hegseth texted him Saturday with the offer, but that he did not know if the air traffic controllers could be deployed.

“But he’ll step in and try to provide some relief in the skies,” Duffy said. “We’re trying to minimize the pain for the American people.”

Duffy said that he anticipated “very few” air traffic controllers showing up for work over the holiday, choosing to be with their families as they continue to work unpaid.

The federal government shutdown that began on Oct. 1 has entered its sixth week, becoming the longest in U.S. history, as lawmakers in Washington remain at an impasse over funding for the new fiscal year.

The stalemate is over expiring healthcare tax credits from the Affordable Care Act. Democrats want to extend these subsidies before reopening the government, while Republicans refuse to discuss policy until a funding bill passes.

The funding lapse has led to the furlough of hundreds of thousands of federal employees and is forcing many others, including military personnel and air traffic controllers, to work without pay. But many air traffic controllers have chosen not to appear for work.

Disruptions have deepened nationwide, including slowdowns at airports, closures of national parks and cultural institutions and growing uncertainty over food assistance programs for millions of Americans.

“I think we have to be honest about where this is going,” Duffy said. “It doesn’t get better, it gets worse until these air traffic controllers are going to be paid.”

Nov. 9 (UPI) — The Trump administration has ordered states to stop distributing benefits to 42 million food insecure Americans, including critical nutrition and aid to the Women, Infants and Children program.

The move follows an order last week by two federal judges that ordered the administration to provide the benefits that hungry children rely on.

A memo from the U.S.D.A. Food and Nutrition Service directs states to “immediately undo any steps taken to issue” full payments to recipients of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program

The Administration has called on states to issue partial payments, about 65% of a typical monthly SNAP benefit, to recipients.

The memo threatens states with total cuts in federal funding they need to pay SNAP administrative costs if they don’t heed the warning.

As of Sunday morning, officials in many states said they were unsure how the USDA order will affect their aid, the fate of which has been uncertain as courts and the Trump administration volley back and forth over the amount to be distributed, if any.

Washington funds SNAP, but the federal government and states share the administrative costs of distributing the benefits to recipients.

Friday night, Supreme Court Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson blocked a Rhode Island judge’s order that, earlier in the week, directed the Trump administration to issue full SNAP benefits for the month of November.

The Trump administration said Friday that it was working to distribute the aid, and it appealed to the Supreme Court to block the Rhode Island judge’s order.

The SNAP program provides aid to more than 42 million Americans, including elderly people, children and low-income families.

It has been at the center of the historically long government shutdown, as recipients have been unsure, often on a day-to-day basis, whether they are going to receive the funds they need to buy food they need to survive.

Body identified as Israeli soldier Hadar Goldin with the remains of four other deceased captives still in Gaza.

Israel has received the body of a soldier held in Gaza for more than a decade after he was killed in an ambush by Hamas fighters in 2014 during the last major ground assault on the Palestinian enclave.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said on Sunday the remains were handed over to Israeli forces in Gaza by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) after Hamas transferred the body to the aid organisation.

Formal identification of Lieutenant Hadar Goldin, 23, was confirmed by Israeli forensics teams.

At the start of a weekly cabinet meeting, Netanyahu said holding the body for so long has caused “great agony for his family, which will now be able to give him a Jewish burial”.

“Lieutenant Hadar Goldin fell in heroic combat during Operation Protective Edge,” Israel’s leader said.

The Qassam Brigades, Hamas’s military wing, said the body was retrieved on Saturday from a tunnel in the Yebna refugee camp in Rafah in southern Gaza.

Goldin was killed on August 1, 2014, two hours after a ceasefire took effect and ended that year’s war between Israel and Hamas. He was part of an Israeli unit tasked with locating and destroying Hamas tunnels.

Another Israeli soldier, Oron Shaul, was also killed in the six-week war, and his body was returned earlier this year.

There are now four deceased abductees remaining in Gaza to be returned under the terms of a ceasefire that began last month. Hamas has so far released 20 living captives and 24 bodies.

For each body returned, Israel has been releasing the remains of 15 Palestinians. Ahmed Dheir, director of forensic medicine at the Nasser Medical Complex in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, said 300 bodies have now been returned and 89 identified.

Israeli attacks continue

Israel has also released nearly 2,000 living Palestinian prisoners since the October 10 truce began. Palestinian authorities said more than 10,000 people still remain in Israeli detention.

Gaza’s Ministry of Health said 241 Palestinians have been killed and 619 wounded since the ceasefire began and 528 bodies have been recovered from under rubble and at attack sites.

Despite the truce, Israel’s military continues to carry out attacks across the Gaza Strip. On Sunday, one man was killed in the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza, and two died in separate assaults in the north and south, the Health Ministry said.

In the occupied West Bank, Israeli forces killed a Palestinian man in the Far’a refugee camp near Tubas while Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian farmers in several areas, according to local reports.

According to Israeli authorities, Palestinian armed groups captured 251 people during Hamas’s attacks on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, and killed at least 1,139 people.

Israel began its war in Gaza on the same day. It has killed at least 68,875 Palestinians and wounded 170,679, according to the Health Ministry.

The United Kingdom’s government is considering an amendment to immigration rules modelled on Denmark’s controversial policy amid pressure from the far-right groups, who have attacked the Labour government over the rising number of refugees and migrants crossing into the country.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood last month dispatched officials to study the workings of the Danish immigration and asylum system, widely considered the toughest in Europe. The officials are reportedly looking to review the British immigration rules on family reunion and limit refugees to a temporary stay.

The Labour government led by Prime Minister Keir Starmer has been under immense pressure amid growing public opposition to immigration and the surge in the popularity of the far-right Reform UK, which has centred its campaign around the issue of immigration.

So, what’s in Denmark’s immigration laws, and why is the centre-left Labour government adopting laws on asylum and border controls championed by the right wing?

What are Denmark’s immigration laws?

Over the last two decades in Europe, Denmark has led the way in implementing increasingly restrictive policies in its immigration and asylum system, with top leaders aiming for “zero asylum seekers” arriving in the country.

First, Denmark has made family reunions tougher, keeping the bar of conditions comparatively higher than it is in allied countries. Those who live in estates designated as “parallel societies”, where more than 50 percent of residents are from so-called “non-Western” backgrounds, are barred from being granted family reunion. This has been decried by rights groups as racist for refugees’ ethnic profiling.

In Denmark, a refugee with residency rights must meet several criteria for their partner to join them in the country. Both must be age 24 or older, the partner in Denmark must not have claimed benefits for three years, and both partners need to pass a Danish language test.

Permanent residency is possible only after eight years under very strict criteria, including full-time employment.

Christian Albrekt Larsen, a professor in the Political Science department of Aalborg University in Denmark, told Al Jazeera that successive Danish governments’ restrictive policies on “immigration and integration have turned [it] into a consensus position – meaning the ‘need’ for radical anti-immigration parties has been reduced”.

Noting that “there is not one single Danish ‘model’”, but that the evolution has been a process of adjustments since 1998, Larsen said, “In general, Denmark’s ‘effectiveness’ lies in being seen as less attractive than its close neighbours, [including] Germany, Sweden, and Norway.”

Copenhagen is more likely to give asylum to those who have been targeted by a foreign regime, while those fleeing conflicts are increasingly limited in remaining in the country temporarily.

However, Denmark decides which country is safe on its own. For example, in 2022, the Danish government did not renew permits for more than 1,200 refugees from Syria because it judged Damascus to be safe for refugees to return to.

In 2021, Denmark also passed laws allowing it to process asylum seekers outside of Europe, like negotiating with Rwanda, though putting this into practice has been controversial and challenging.

Denmark has reduced the number of successful asylum claims to a 40-year low, except in 2020, amid the coronavirus pandemic’s travel restrictions.

How do these differ from the UK’s current immigration laws?

The UK allows individuals to claim asylum if they prove they are unsafe in their home countries. Refugee status is granted if an individual is at risk of persecution under the United Nations’ 1951 Refugee Convention. Refugees are usually granted five years of leave to remain, with the option to apply for permanent settlement afterward.

Most migrants and refugees can apply for indefinite leave to remain (ILR) after five years, followed by eligibility for citizenship one year later. Requirements include English proficiency and passing the “Life in the UK” test.

The UK system currently does not impose an age limit beyond 18, but requires a minimum annual income of 29,000 British pounds ($38,161), and is subject to a rise pending a review, for sponsoring partners.

Asylum seekers are excluded from mainstream welfare and receive a meagre weekly allowance. However, once granted protection, they access the same benefits as British nationals.

The UK under the previous Conservative government passed controversial legislation to enable deportation to Rwanda, but the policy has not yet been implemented due to ongoing legal challenges.

Before September this year, the UK Home Office allowed spouses, partners, and dependents under 18 to come to the UK without fulfilling the income and English-language tests that apply to other migrants. That is currently suspended, pending the drafting of new rules.

Why is the Labour government changing the UK’s immigration laws?

Facing heat from the opposition over the rising arrivals of migrants and refugees by boats, Prime Minister Starmer in May proposed a draft paper on immigration, calling it a move towards a “controlled, selective and fair” system.

As part of the proposal, the standard waiting time for migrants and refugees for permanent settlement would be doubled to 10 years, and English language requirements would be tightened.

The Labour Party, which advocated for a more open migration model, has been on the back foot over the issue of immigration.

From January through July of this year, more than 25,000 people crossed the English Channel into the UK.

The opposition has seized on this issue.

Nigel Farage, the leader of the Reform UK party, has accused Labour of being soft on immigration. Farage has pledged to scrap indefinite leave to remain – a proposal Starmer has dubbed as “racist” and “immoral”.

Successive British governments have tried unsuccessfully to reduce net migration, which is the number of people coming to the UK, minus the number leaving. Net migration climbed to a record 906,000 in June 2023. It stood at 728,000 last year.

Starmer’s administration has framed the new immigration rules as a “clean break” from a system they see as overreliant on low-paid overseas labour.

A survey released by Ipsos last month revealed that immigration continues to be seen as the biggest issue facing the country, with 51 percent of Britons mentioning it as a concern. That is more than the economy (35 percent) or healthcare (26 percent).

However, at the same time, a YouGov poll found only 26 percent of people said immigration and asylum was one of the three most important issues facing their community.

Concern about immigration is a “manufactured panic”, a report published by the Best for Britain campaign group noted.

The group’s director of policy and research, Tom Brufatto, said that “the data clearly demonstrates that media exposure and political discourse are fanning the flames of anti-immigration sentiment in the UK, causing the government to lose support both to its right and left flank simultaneously.”

Is there opposition to the change within the Labour Party?

The left-leaning leaders of the Labour Party have condemned the “far-right”, “racist” approach of the British government’s moves to adapt the Danish model.

Labour MPs urged Home Secretary Mahmood to dial down her plans for a Danish-style overhaul of the immigration and asylum system.

Nadia Whittome, Labour MP for Nottingham East, told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme that she thinks that “this is a dead end – morally, politically and electorally”.

“I think these are policies of the far right,” she said. “I don’t think anyone wants to see a Labour government flirting with them.”

Whittome argued that it would be a “dangerous path” to take and that some of the Danish policies, especially those around “parallel societies”, were “undeniably racist”.

Clive Lewis, the MP for Norwich South, said: “Denmark’s Social Democrats have gone down what I would call a hardcore approach to immigration.

“They’ve adopted many of the talking points of what we would call the far right,” Lewis said. “Labour does need to win back some Reform-leaning voters, but you can’t do that at the cost of losing progressive votes.”

Meanwhile, members of Parliament from the traditional “Red Wall” constituencies, where the Reform UK party has a support base, are receptive to Mahmood’s plans.

The fissures grew more apparent after Lucy Powell, who won the Labour deputy leadership contest last month, challenged Starmer to soften his stance on immigration.

“Division and hate are on the rise,” Powell said last month. “Discontent and disillusionment are widespread. We have this one big chance to show that progressive mainstream politics really can change people’s lives for the better.”

How do immigration laws vary across Europe?

European countries differ widely in how they manage immigration. Some are major destinations for large absolute numbers of migrants and refugees, while others have adopted restrictive legal measures or strong integration policies.

In 2023, the largest absolute numbers of immigrants entering European Union countries were recorded in Germany and Spain, over 1.2 million each, followed by Italy and France, according to the EU’s latest Migration and Asylum report.

These four countries together accounted for more than half of all non-EU immigration to the EU.

EU member states operate within EU migration and asylum rules, and Schengen zone rules where applicable, and are bound by international obligations such as the UN Refugee Convention. But individual states apply national legislation that interprets those obligations, and in recent years, public sentiment has turned against immigration amid a cost-of-living crisis.

YouGov polling conducted in Britain, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Sweden found that respondents believe immigration over the past decade has been too high. In Britain, 70 percent of those surveyed said that immigration rates have been too high, according to the survey released in February.

On the other hand, countries like Hungary, Poland, and Austria, in addition to Denmark, have formed immigration policies focused on building border fences and restrictive family reunification rules, alongside expedited deportations and limits on access to social benefits.

Austrian and German ministers have referenced the Danish model as a source of inspiration for their own domestic policies.

Several EU states have also tried a version of externalising asylum processes, including Italy with Albania, Denmark with Rwanda, Greece with Turkiye, Spain with Morocco, and Malta with Libya and Tunisia.

Rights groups have criticised the EU for immigration policies that focus on border control and for policies to transfer refugees to third countries.

Nov. 9 (UPI) — China’s Commerce Ministry announced Sunday that it would suspend a ban on the export of some rare earth metals to the United States as trade tensions ease.

The affected metals include gallium and germanium, which are used to make advanced semiconductors for computing, as well as antimony, which is used to make explosives, and super-hard metals such as tungsten, which is used in armor-piercing ammunition. The fifth metal covered by the suspension of the ban is graphite.

China’s Commerce Ministry had announced the export ban in December 2024 ahead of the second administration of President Donald Trump, “in order to safeguard national security and interests and fulfill international obligations such as non-proliferation.”

It said in a statement Sunday that the ban on the five metals would be suspended until Nov. 27, 2026.

The move comes after Trump met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea last month ahead of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit.

The suspension is part of a broader economic deal struck during that meeting, which both governments described as a step toward stabilizing bilateral trade relations after several years of heightened tensions.

According to a White House fact sheet, China agreed to effectively eliminate its export controls on rare earth elements and other critical minerals, while issuing “general licenses” that allow shipments of gallium, germanium, antimony, tungsten and graphite to continue flowing to U.S. manufacturers and their suppliers.

The White House said the agreement would help ensure American companies have reliable access to essential materials used in advanced technologies, while Beijing would benefit from renewed purchases of agricultural goods and other exports.

The deal also included Chinese commitments to halt the export of fentanyl precursors, ease restrictions on U.S. semiconductor firms, and expand purchases of U.S. farm products.

China’s statement on Sunday did not reference the broader trade framework or the general licenses described by the White House. Instead, it said only that the suspension of the 2024 export ban would last for one year — marking a discrepancy in American and Chinese framing of the deal.

China controls the vast majority of the world’s supply of each of the five rare earth metals, and analysts have warned that prolonged export restrictions could disrupt global manufacturing tied to them.

As United States lawmakers fail to agree on a deal to end the government shutdown, around 750,000 federal employees have been furloughed, millions of Americans go without food assistance, and air travel is disrupted across the country.

The shutdown began on October 1, after opposing sides in the US Senate failed to agree on spending priorities, with Republicans rejecting a push by Democrats to protect healthcare and other social programmes.

Since then, both sides have failed to agree on 14 separate funding measures, delaying payment to hundreds of thousands of federal staff.

After 40 days, senators from both parties are working this weekend to try to end what has become the longest government shutdown in US history. But talks on Saturday showed little sign of breaking the impasse and securing long-term funding for key programmes.

On Friday, Democratic Senate leader Chuck Schumer offered Republicans a narrower version of an earlier Democratic proposal – a temporary extension of healthcare subsidies. Republicans rejected the offer, prolonging the record-breaking shutdown.

So what do we know about the shutdown, and how it has impacted Americans?

Flights disrupted

The shutdown has created major disruptions for the aviation industry, with staffing shortages among unpaid air traffic controllers.

More than 1,530 flights were cancelled across the US on Saturday, while thousands more were delayed as authorities ordered airports to reduce air traffic.

According to the flight tracking website FlightAware, Saturday’s cancellations marked an increase from 1,025 the previous day. The trend looks set to continue, with at least 1,000 cancellations logged for Sunday.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said staffing shortages were affecting 42 control towers and other facilities, leading to delays in at least a dozen major cities – including Atlanta, Newark, San Francisco, New York and Chicago.

The travel chaos could prove politically costly for lawmakers if disruptions persist, especially ahead of the holiday season. Reduced air traffic will also hit deliveries and shipping, since many commercial flights carry cargo alongside passengers.

The CEO of Elevate Aviation Group, Greg Raiff, recently warned that the economic impact would ripple outward. “This shutdown is going to affect everything from business travel to tourism,” he told the Associated Press.

“It’s going to hurt local tax revenues and city budgets – there’s a cascading effect from all this.”

Threat to food assistance

In recent weeks, US President Donald Trump has said he will only restore food aid once the government shutdown ends.

“SNAP BENEFITS, which increased by Billions and Billions of Dollars (MANY FOLD!) during Crooked Joe Biden’s disastrous term … will be given only when the Radical Left Democrats open up government,” he wrote earlier this week on Truth Social.

The US Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), or food stamps, provides low-income Americans with roughly $8bn a month in grocery assistance. The average individual benefit is about $190 per month, while a household receives around $356.

Health insurance standoff

Democrats blame the shutdown on Republicans’ refusal to renew expiring healthcare subsidies under the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Talks stalled again on Saturday after Trump declared he would not compromise on the issue.

Democrats are pushing for a one-year extension of the ACA subsidies, which mainly help people without employer or government health coverage buy insurance. But with a 53–47 majority in the Senate, Republicans can block the proposal.

Trump intervened on Saturday via Truth Social, calling on Republican senators to redirect federal funds used for health insurance subsidies toward direct payments for individuals.

“I am recommending to Senate Republicans that the Hundreds of Billions of Dollars currently being sent to money sucking Insurance Companies … BE SENT DIRECTLY TO THE PEOPLE SO THAT THEY CAN PURCHASE THEIR OWN, MUCH BETTER, HEALTHCARE, and have money left over,” he said.

Roughly 24 million Americans currently benefit from the ACA subsidies. Analysts warn that premiums could double by 2026 if Congress allows them to expire.

Has this happened before?

This is not the first time Washington has faced such a standoff. The graphic below shows every US funding gap and government shutdown since 1976, including how long each lasted and under which administration it occurred.

The current federal budget process dates back to 1976. Since its creation, the government has experienced 20 funding gaps, leading to 10 shutdowns.

Prior to the 1980s, such funding lapses rarely caused shutdowns. Most federal agencies continued operating, expecting Congress to soon approve new funding.

That changed in 1980, when Attorney General Benjamin Civiletti issued legal opinions clarifying that, under federal law, agencies cannot spend money without congressional authorisation. Only essential functions (like air traffic control) were permitted to continue.

From 1982 onward, this interpretation has meant that funding gaps have more frequently triggered full or partial government shutdowns, lasting until Congress reaches a resolution.

What happens next?

No breakthrough was announced after the US Senate convened for a rare Saturday session. The chamber is now expected to reconvene at 1:30pm local time on Sunday.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters that the chamber will continue meeting until the government reopens. “There’s still only one path out – it’s a clean funding extension,” he said.

Some 1.3 million service members are now at risk of missing a paycheque, and that might put pressure on both sides to agree on a deal. Earlier this month, staff were paid after $8bn from military research and development funds were made available at the intervention of Trump.

But questions remain about whether the administration will resort to a similar procedure if the shutdown is prolonged. Senator Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire told reporters on Friday that Democrats “need another path forward”.

Shaheen and several moderate Democrats are floating a proposal that would temporarily fund certain departments – such as veterans’ services and food aid – while keeping the rest of the government open until December or early next year.

It’s understood that Shaheen’s plan would include a promise of a future vote on healthcare subsidies, but not a guaranteed extension. It remains unclear whether enough Democrats would support that compromise. 

Thune, meanwhile, is reportedly considering a bipartisan version of the proposal. On Friday, he said he thinks the offer is an indication that Democrats are “feeling the heat … I guess you could characterise that as progress”.

Looking ahead, it remains unclear what Republicans might offer regarding healthcare.

For now, Democrats face a stark choice: keep pressing for a firm deal to renew healthcare subsidies and prolong the shutdown – or vote to reopen the government and trust Republicans’ assurances of a future healthcare vote, with no certainty of success.

Follow the build-up, analysis and live text commentary of the match as City host rivals Liverpool at the Etihad Stadium.

Nov. 8 (UPI) — A federal judge issued a permanent injunction that prevents the deployment of the National Guard in Portland, Ore., saying Donald Trump “exceeded the President’s authority.”

U.S. District Judge Karin Immergut, in a 106-page decision Friday, wrote in all caps: “THIS PERMANENT INJUNCTION ORDER IS IN FULL FORCE AND EFFECT.”

She issued a temporary restraining order on Oct. 4 blocking the deployment of the Oregon National Guard to assist Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. One day later a second order blocked deployment of National Guard troops from other states to Portland streets.

“The evidence demonstrates that these deployments, which were objected to by Oregon’s governor and not requested by the federal officials in charge of protection of the ICE building, exceeded the president’s authority,” the judge, who was appointed by Trump during his first term, wrote.

Immergut, who made the decision after the three-day trial, said the troops were not needed to quell protests against Trump’s immigration policies.

“This Court arrives at the necessary conclusion that there was neither ‘a rebellion or danger of a rebellion’ nor was the President ‘unable with the regular forces to execute the laws of the United States’ in Oregon when he ordered the federalization and deployment of the National Guard,” Immergut wrote.

She said a stay of federalization of Oregon troops will last 14 days that “preserves the status quo in which National Guard members have been federalized but not deployed.”

Starting in early June, there were daily demonstrations outside ICE’s building in Portland. They have been small and peaceful and dispersed when federal agents in riot gear came to the scene, The New York Times reported.

Sometimes federal officers used tear gas, rubber bullets and pepper spray balls.

Immergut said she expects the decision to be appealed with the White House not responding to a request for comment Friday night.

“The ‘precise standard’ to demarcate the line past which conditions would satisfy the statutory standard to deploy the military in the streets of American cities is ultimately a question for a higher court to decide,” she wrote.

During the trial, federal lawyers said they intended to appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in San Francisco.

On Sept. 27, Trump wrote on Truth Social that he planned to use “full force” to protect “war-ravaged Portland.”

The next day, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth asked Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek to activate 200 members of the Oregon National Guard to protect federal property. Kotek refused and Trump federalized the troops.

Under Title 10 of the U.S. Code, a president may use the National Guard on U.S. soil in only three situations: a foreign invasion; a rebellion or threat of a rebellion; or laws of the nation cannot be enforced with existing resources.

The Trump administration argued the last two conditions were met. The judge disagreed.

“Oregon National Guard members have been away from their jobs and families for 38 days,” Kotek, a Democrat, said after the ruling on the lawsuit by the state and city. ” The California National Guard has been here for just over one month. Based on this ruling, I am renewing my call to the Trump Administration to send all troops home now.”

California Attorney General Rob Bonta called the decision involving his state’s troops “a win for the rule of law, for the constitutional values that govern our democracy, and for the American people.”

Trump has sought to send troops into Democrat-run cities. Another judge has blocked troops from Chicago after a lawsuit and that decision has been appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Troops have been sent to the District of Columbia, Los Angeles and Memphis, Tenn., to assist ICE and/or reduce crime.

New York City Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani attended Friday prayers at a mosque in Puerto Rico, where he was welcomed with cheers and shared a message inspired by Malcolm X about equality and justice.

Nov. 9 (UPI) — On this date in history:

In 1872, a fire which began in the basement of a warehouse in downtown Boston raged for 12 hours, consuming 65 acres and leaving 776 buildings in ruins. The Great Boston Fire killed at least 30 people.

In 1906, Theodore Roosevelt traveled to Panama to observe the progress being made on the construction of the canal. He was the first sitting president of the United States to embark on an official trip outside the country. The canal opened in 1914 under operation by the U.S. War Department.

In 1918, Germany’s Kaiser Wilhelm II abdicated as World War I drew to a close.

In 1938, mobs of Germans attacked Jewish businesses and homes throughout Germany in what became known as Kristallnacht, or Crystal Night.

In 1953, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Major League Baseball isn’t within the scope of federal antitrust laws.

File Photo by Brian Kersey/UPI

In 1965, a massive power failure left more than 30 million people in the dark in the northeastern United States and eastern Canada.

In 1985, Gary Kasparov, 22, became the youngest world chess champion, ending the 10-year reign of Anatoly Karpov in Moscow.

In 1989, East Germany announced free passage for its citizens through border checkpoints. The announcement rendered the Berlin Wall, the most reviled symbol of the Cold War, virtually irrelevant 28 years after its construction.

In 1995, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat visited Israel for the first time to offer personal condolences to the wife of slain Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin.

In 2008, three men were executed by firing squad for 2002 bombings in Bali that killed 202 people, mostly tourists.

File Photo by Brian Richards/UPI

In 2011, a burgeoning child sexual-abuse scandal at Penn State University involving former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky claimed its legendary football coach when the school’s board of trustees fired Joe Paterno.

In 2012, CIA Director David Petraeus resigned, citing an extramarital affair.

In 2015, the World Anti-Doping Agency recommended that Russia be banned from international sporting events due to systematic doping by athletes. Of the 389 athletes submitted for competition in the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, 111 were prohibited in stringent doping tests required of all Russian athletes.

In 2021, Arlington National Cemetery opened the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier Plaza to the public for the first time in nearly 100 years.

In 2023, the Screen Actors Guilt and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists reached a deal with the Alliance of Motion Picture Television Producers, ending a 118-day strike that brought Hollywood to a halt.

In 2024, Beyoncé earned 11 nominations for the 67th annual Grammy Awards, making her the most nominated artist in Grammy history, with a lifetime total of 99 nods. As of 2025, she has won 35 of the awards.

File Photo by Christine Chew/UPI

Authorities say rescue operations are under way to locate survivors on a boat that sunk, with two others missing.

One body has been found and dozens of others are missing after a boat carrying about 90 undocumented migrants sank near the Thailand-Malaysia border, officials said.

The Malaysian maritime authority on Sunday said at least 10 survivors were found, while the status of two other boats carrying a similar number of people remains unknown.

The incident is believed to have happened near Tarutao Island, just north of the popular Malaysian resort island of Langkawi.

“A boat carrying 90 people is believed to have capsized” three days ago, local police chief Adzli Abu Shah told reporters, adding that rescue operations were under way to locate the survivors.

Among the survivors found in the waters were three Myanmar nationals, two Rohingya refugees, and a Bangladeshi man, while the body was that of a Rohingya woman, state media agency Bernama reported, quoting Abu Shah.

The Malaysia-bound people initially boarded a large vessel, but, as they neared the border, they were instructed to transfer onto three smaller boats, each carrying about 100 people, to avoid detection by the authorities, the police chief was quoted as saying.

Dangerous crossings

Malaysia is home to millions of migrants and refugees from other parts of Asia – many of them undocumented, working in industries including construction and agriculture.

Members of the mainly Muslim Rohingya minority periodically flee predominantly Buddhist Myanmar, where they are seen as foreign interlopers from South Asia, denied citizenship, and subjected to abuse. Nearly a million Rohingya refugees live in cramped camps across southern Bangladesh.

Many of these refugees attempt maritime crossings to relatively affluent regional countries such as Malaysia and Thailand, facilitated by human trafficking syndicates. But the trips often turn hazardous, leading to frequent capsizing.

In one of the worst incidents in December 2021, more than 20 people drowned in several capsizing incidents off the Malaysian coastline.

Nov. 8 (UPI) — Federal officials on Saturday canceled more than 800 flights at airports across the United States as the federal government shutdown entered its record-long 39th day on Saturday.

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford jointly announced a temporary 10% reduction in flights at 40 high-traffic airports.

They said the reduction in flights is necessary to ensure safety and ease the strain on air traffic controllers, who are working without pay.

“My department has many responsibilities, but our number one job is safety,” Duffy said.

“It’s safe to fly today, and it will continue to be safe to fly next week because of the proactive actions we are taking.”

More than 1,700 flights have been canceled through Sunday — and more than 800 were cancelled on Saturday alone — as commercial airlines reduced their respective flights by 4% at the nation’s busiest airports, according to CNN.

Washington’s Reagan National Airport is affected the most by the flight reductions, with 151 flights canceled among 869 initially scheduled there for a reduction of 17.4%, The New York Times reported.

Louisville, Ky., has an 8% reduction with 12 canceled among 150 flights, followed by Cincinnati, 7.2% and 18 canceled flights among 250 scheduled.

Houston Hobby has 20 of 336 flights canceled for a 6% reduction, followed by Indianapolis, with 17 of 297 flights canceled for a 5.7% reduction, to round out the five most impacted airports.

The flight reductions come after many air traffic controllers and other essential airport staff have called in sick due to increased stress, to work other jobs and to care for their children, among other reasons.

They have missed one paycheck and will again next week if the federal government is not funded and reopened by then, according to CNBC.

The reduced staffing levels are putting more pressure on commercial air operations, especially at the nation’s busiest airports.

“We are seeing signs of stress in the system, so we are proactively reducing the number of flights to make sure the American people continue to fly safely,” Bedford said.

“The FAA will continue to closely monitor operations, and we will not hesitate to take further action to make sure air travel remains safe.”

Hamas says the retrieved body is that of Israeli soldier Hadar Goldin, who was reported killed in 2014.

Nov. 8 (UPI) — No military-sponsored events, including flyovers, will take place at this week’s Veterans Day “Salute to Service” NFL games, because they have fallen victim to the federal government shutdown.

But there will be a veteran commemoration planned Sunday in Northern Virginia as will be President Donald Trump on hand for the game between the Washington Commanders and the Detroit Lions.

Veterans Day is Tuesday, and unlike previous years, there will not be honor guards and military service members unveiling American flags, in addition to the lack of a flyover, at the 13 NFL games on Sunday and Monday.

Before the shutdown, there was a flyover at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wis., on September 11 between the Packers and the Commanders as F-35 Lightning II jets from the Wisconsin Air National Guard’s 115th Fighter Wing flew over the stadium.

The campaign with the NFL began in 2011, according to Fox News.

The Pentagon’s press office said service members and Defense Department personnel are “prohibited from participating in official outreach activities.”

Those events are paid from the Pentagon’s annual budget, Fox News reported.

“Service members are permitted to wear military uniforms at Veterans Day events, in a personal capacity, as long as it follows their service-specific guidelines, and no official endorsement or involvement is implied by the Department,” the Pentagon said in a statement to The Washington Post on Thursday.

A guidance document by the Post said there will be no “jet and jump demonstration teams, bands and ceremonial unit appearances, port visits, service weeks and nonprofit and corporate leader outreach.”

In 2015, a flyover was estimated to cost $80,000 by then-Pentagon Press Secretary Navy Rear Adm. John Kirby.

“There is a minimal expense involved with the flyover,” he said during a Defense Department briefing on Jan. 30, 2015, noting aircraft fly from nearby bases with maintenance personnel at the site.

“It’s not an exorbitant cost, and I would, you know, obviously remind you that you know, we stand to gain the benefit. And there’s an exposure benefit from having the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds fly over, a well-known, famous team, and that certainly helps us in terms of keeping our exposure out there for the American people,” he said.

Last year when Joe Biden was president, there were about a dozen flyover events at NFL games throughout November.

“While Salute to Service comes to life on-field each November — as it will again this year, starting this weekend — our long-standing efforts to support the military community continue throughout the year,” said Anna Isaacson, the NFL’s senior vice president of social responsibility said in a statement to the Post.

Trump will fly from Palm Beach County on Sunday to attend the game against the Detroit Lions at Northwest Field in Landover, Md.

He is expected to join owner Josh Harris in his suite for the game, as well as a halftime ceremony. Kickoff is scheduled for 4:25 p.m. EST.

“We are honored to welcome President Trump to the game as we celebrate those who have served and continue to serve our country. The entire Commanders organization is proud to participate in the NFL’s league-wide Salute to Service initiative, recognizing the dedication and sacrifice of our nation’s veterans, active-duty service members, and their families this Sunday,” the Commanders said in a statement.

Trump said he has opposed calling the team the Commanders after they changed their name from the Redskins, and often refers to them as the “Washington Whatevers.”

The last time Trump was at a football game was Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans, when the Philadelphia Eagles defeated the Kansas City Chiefs.