Clashes have broken out between protesters and riot police after an antigovernment rally in the Serbian capital, Belgrade.

Large crowds of demonstrators poured into central Belgrade on Saturday, many carrying banners and wearing T-shirts emblazoned with the “Students win” motto of the youth movement that organised the gathering.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has sought to rein in mass demonstrations that have challenged his hardline rule in the Balkan country. The size of Saturday’s turnout suggested that dissent remains strong more than a year after protests first began with demonstrators demanding accountability for a train station tragedy in northern Serbia in November 2024 that killed 16 people.

Anticorruption protests forced then-Prime Minister Milos Vucevic to resign in January 2025 before the authorities moved to clamp down on the movement. Many in Serbia blamed the concrete canopy collapse at the station on alleged corruption-fuelled negligence during renovation work carried out with Chinese companies.

On Saturday, Serbia’s state railway company cancelled all trains to and from Belgrade in what appeared to be an effort to prevent at least some people from travelling to the capital from other parts of the country.

In a video posted on Instagram on Saturday, the president said protesters “have shown their violent nature and that they cannot stand political opponents”. Vucic, who was en route to China for a state visit, added: “The state is functioning and will continue to work in line with the law.”

Students on Saturday demanded early elections and the rule of law, accusing the government of crime and corruption. They said they now plan to challenge Vucic in this year’s elections, which they hope will unseat his right-wing populist government. Vucic said on Thursday that the parliamentary elections could be held between September and November.

Clashes were first reported near a park camp of Vucic loyalists outside the Serbian presidency building. The camp was set up before another large antigovernment rally last March as a human shield against protesters. Folk music blared from a fenced-off area surrounded by rows of riot police in full gear.

The Serbian president has come under international scrutiny for his hardline tactics against demonstrators over the past year, including arbitrary arrests and the use of excessive force. The Council of Europe’s commissioner for human rights, Michael O’Flaherty, criticised Serbia’s government in a report after he visited the country last week and said he “will monitor the situation closely”.

O’Flaherty also cited “reports of police protecting unidentified and often masked attackers of journalists and protesters”. He said the overall human rights situation has deteriorated since his previous visit in April 2025.

Serbia is seeking to join the European Union while cultivating close ties with Russia and China. Democratic backsliding under Vucic could cost the country about 1.5 billion euros ($1.8bn) in EU funding, the bloc’s top enlargement official warned last month.

HE’S responsible for teaching Michael Jackson the famous moonwalk and choreographed some of the pop superstar’s biggest hits.

Now Shalamar icon Jeffrey Daniel, 71, has spoken in defence of Jackson’s box office smashing biopic, Michael, which has come under fire for omitting controversial elements of the singer’s life – including multiple allegations of child abuse.

Giving his view on the film, which has grossed over $700m worldwide, he says: “At the end of the day, they’re a family and it’s about their family and it’s up to them to do. The public likes to hear controversy. The public likes dirt.

“They want to delve into that negativity. But when you look at Michael’s life and when you look back at it, the negativity was something that was fabricated. There are things that were just engineered to stand against him.”

Speaking from a friend’s home in LA ahead of Shalamar’s 50th anniversary UK tour, he continues: “There’s no way in the world you’re going to be totally vindicated on all charges and acquitted and still looked at as if you’re guilty? Then what was the point of even going to court?

“What was the point of even standing in front of a jury to come to a conclusion that you’re absolutely, unequivocally not guilty if the public is still going to keep running with the narrative of what you were supposed to have done? That doesn’t make sense to me.”

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The film’s critics have called it a glorified promo for MJ’s glittering career, void of the challenging and concerning allegations he faced over the course of his life.

However, Colman Domingo, who plays Michael’s dad Joe Jackson, told the Today Show that it was the film’s timeline that dictated the events. It focuses on Michael’s life from the 60s through to 1988, some five years before the first allegations were made.

With the film teasing a part two, the darker side of Jackson’s life could still be revisited.

Filmmakers were also reportedly forced to do expensive re-shoots, having originally intended to include Jordan Chandler’s 1993 accusations when he was 13 years old.

They were unaware that part of Chandler’s $23m settlement in 1994 forbade anyone from dramatising the account.

Further accusations came much later, with Gavin Arzio’s allegations that he had been molested by Jackson as a child leading to seven charges brought against the star. However, in 2005 he was found not guilty on all counts.

In 2019, 10 years after Jackson’s death, the documnentary Leaving Neverland raised more uncomfortable questions.

The two alleged victims who were the focus of it, Wade Robson and James Safechuck, have joined forces to seek $400m (£298m) in damages from the Jackson estate in a civil trial set to take place later this year.

But Jeffrey has a different outlook and cites an online conspiracy theory that claims Jackson used his Neverland Ranch to shield child victims of paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein as evidence of his innocence and insists MJ was trying to save “youngsters”.

Despite all of the allegations, Jeffrey maintains his late friend is still a great role model.

He continues: “You know what’s really inspiring? I’m seeing kids five years old, six and 10 years old imitating Michael.

“They weren’t alive even when he passed away. And they still love him. His legacy is living on.

“He’s the most successful post-mortem artist in history. He’s making more money in his grave than a lot of artists that are out there working their butts off right now. That is a testament to a miracle.

“I mean, because I work with him and I know him, I’m not trying to be biased.”

The biopic is very much a family affair, endorsed by the Jackson estate and with the King of Pop’s nephew Jaafar, 29, cast in the titular role.

However, MJ’s siblings Rebbie, Randy, and Janet don’t feature in the project and none has addressed their absence publicly, though La Toya Jackson said her sister “kindly declined” to be involved.

Jeffrey says the portrayal of the young Michael is so uncanny that it’s like seeing him revived from the dead.

“My God, you have to tip your hat to Jaafar,” says Jeffrey.

“That boy played the hell out of Michael. I couldn’t imagine anyone else. It’s like that guy who played Freddie Mercury [Rami Malek]. It’s like he was born to play that role. And deservingly enough, he won an Oscar for it.

“I see a lot of Michael Jackson impersonators, and they’re pretty good. But they either do too much or they only encapsulate just one dimension of Michael’s performance. Jaafar captured it in its totality.

“He was subtle when it was time to be subtle. He was dynamic when it was time to be dynamic. His mannerisms, the way he spoke, I got emotional.

“I mean, there’s about three times during the film I almost went to tears because I just got emotional because of the scenes that I had something to do with. And I was there when that happened. And I was a part of that when it was happening.

“And then it reminded me of being with Michael and the person he was. It was like seeing a relative come back to life or something. Because I was very close with him.”

Jeffrey’s working relationship with Michael began in 1980, two years prior to the Shalamar founder’s legendary performance on Top of the Pops.

Unknown to the public at the time, Jeffrey had taught the groundbreaking move to MJ after the Thriller star was mesmerised by it while watching an episode of American music show, Soul Train in 1979.

Jackson spent three years practising what was then referred to as a backslide before debuting his version in 1983 during a Motown 25 TV special.

Meanwhile, Shalamar had been scheduled to perform I Can Make You Feel Good on ToTP in 1982 but it was canned at the last minute when the song dropped down the singles chart.

Undeterred, they returned weeks later with a point to prove after Night to Remember became a hit.

Jeffrey’s backslide caused such a stir, bosses scrambled to get the group back for another performance.

Not long after, MJ took the backslide to new heights and remains synonymous with the move.

“I worked with him for over 20 years,” says Jeffrey. “And so, to see this come to life like that again, it was just amazing. I can imagine how his family must have felt.

“Jackie Jackson and Jermaine and Marlon were saying how they were feeling watching this come to life in front of them on screen. And by their own relatives as well, so it’s amazing.”

Jackson’s not the only megastar Jeffrey worked closely with.

He also found a fan in Sir Paul McCartney too, with the Beatle actively seeking him out on a visit to London in the 80s.

Their fortuitous meeting came when McCartney’s crew, who were filming musical drama Give My Regards to Broad Street, spotted Jeffrey taking a walk by the canal in Maida Vale and told him Macca was keen to work with him. The two music men had a brief introduction and Daniel would later return to the UK to work with him on the project properly.

On their second meeting, McCartney hopped out of a car after filming a scene with actress Tracey Ullman and proceeded to lead Jeffrey around the set by the hand, before they sat down for lunch with his late wife Linda.

He said: “I mean, oh my God. Come on, this is legendary greatness. You know, it was an amazing experience.”

Fast forward to the present day and Shalamar are gearing up to bring their energetic set to the UK next month.

Slick and well-honed after five decades, the group know what the audience wants and are more than happy to give it to them.

“The good thing about it is that we have so many hits to choose from and that’s a good thing,” says Jeffrey. “But we’re always trying to adjust it to make sure that we keep the shows interesting and that they appeal to the audience that’s there.”

The live music market is more competitive than ever. Already this year a string of big acts have been forced to cancel tours due to sluggish ticket sales.

When it comes to putting bums on seats, many of whom weren’t alive when Shalamar burst into the charts, Jeffrey says: “We have a catalogue of evergreen, feel-good music. And I think because when times get hard and we go through things, people need a respite.

“I think Shalamar’s music is kind of the antidote to that because it can help you get away when they’re in the audience. They’re up on their feet dancing. They’re singing along.

“I think we’re the last of the high performance bands in the 80s where the choreography, the costume, the interaction, it’s all there, you know.

“Not to toot our own horn, but I think we put on a good show together, you know. And it’s very entertaining. And the people love what we’re doing. And we love the people.”

WOULD you believe me if I told you that you could bag yourself a break for £1 just by doing your regular grocery shopping at Sainsbury’s or by filling up with petrol at BP – no strings attached?

You may roll your eyes at the term ‘loyalty scheme’, but you’re going to want to hear me out on this one, as Avios will make your Boots Advantage Card seem utterly pathetic.

And I’m sorry to have to tell you this, but what you think you know about Avios or air miles is completely wrong. You won’t need to hop on a single flight to earn points here.

In fact, I’m so confident about this scheme that if you follow my advice below for one year and don’t end up with enough points for a free flight or holiday, I’ll eat my hat (…that I bought with my points).

So, pay close attention. Here’s everything you need to know.

What actually is Avios?

It is essentially a rewards currency, some may call it an air-mile points scheme, although it’s so much more than that. 

Avios is linked to the IAG (International Airlines Group) loyalty scheme, meaning you can earn and (most importantly) spend with British Airways, Iberia, Aer Lingus, Vueling and LEVEL, as well as partner airlines Qatar Airways, Finnair, and Loganair.

It’s a very common mistake, however, to think that you can only earn Avios on direct spend with these airlines, by booking flights, for example. 

IAG Loyalty allows you to collect a generous number of points on over 2,000 brands, including major names like Deliveroo, Domino’s Pizza and Just Eat – and that’s only if you want a takeaway.

Clothing retail brands include River Island, H&M and Sports Direct, while department stores include Debenhams, John Lewis and Marks and Spencer, and wellness brands include Superdrug, Boots and Holland & Barrett.

You can earn points (Avios) on every penny you spend with these brands.

I won’t name every brand right now, but you can find the list here on the Avios website – chances are if it’s a well known name, it’ll be on there.

Do I need to spend big to earn big?

I was sceptical too, but rest assured you won’t have to pain-stakingly collect points for 10 years to reap the benefits.

A few months ago I gained 2,500 Avios simply by renewing my car insurance with Compare the Market – another brand on IAG Loyalty’s books.

I’ll explain what the number of points equates to below, but, in rough terms, that’s about a quarter of the points you’d need to pay for a one-way flight to Amsterdam.

If you’re serious about it, you can earn mega points quickly and easily (more on that below too).

What can I buy with Avios?

The most popular way to spend Avios is on “reward” flights with the IAG and Oneworld airlines. The big players will tell you that this gets you the most for your money, but you can also redeem your points against holiday packages (flights and hotel), as well as hotels, car hire and cases of wine.

There’s also the Avios shop which sells everything from perfumes and lotions to Apple products and coffee machines; plus you can convert Avios to Nectar points and spend in Sainsbury’s, Argos or Habitat; or feast at Pizza Express.

That’s why Avios is nothing like your Boots card – you’re not tied to one product or brand.

How many points will I earn?

It varies from retailer to retailer with many brands offering special deals throughout the year – keep your eyes peeled at Christmas time and in January.

But to give you some perspective, last month I earned 1,790 Avios, just through my regular, everyday shopping: I get 19 points for my train to work (booked through Uber), I earned 136 points for buying some protein powder and 14 points for some new socks from ASOS.

No, I’m not a big spender. I’m a frugal 33-year-old that’s currently living with her parents, in the process of buying her first home, meaning my key expenses are my commute to work, petrol for my car and the odd meal out with pals.

I – properly – started my Avios journey almost exactly two years ago and I now have 99,420 Avios.

Just shy of enough to fly me to the furthest-away destination possible, Sydney, Australia, and all the way back again.

But that is by following a few simple rules carved out at the end of this piece.

How many points do I need for a holiday or flight?

If you’re just looking for flights then 10,000 points can get you a one-way ticket to short haul destinations like Paris, Copenhagen or Munich, while 27,500 can get you to the far-flung cities of Chicago, Dubai and Toronto.

Sydney is of course the priciest spot, costing a minimum of 55,000 Avios each way.

The above figures are all based on travelling in an economy seat at off-peak times, although you can splash your points on premium economy flights and even business class, or use points to upgrade if you’ve already booked your flight.

Head for Points has a useful table on which destinations your points will get you to.

There is one thing you need to know, though.

You may have noticed that my opening sentence to this piece read: “bag a break for £1”. That is because you will have to pay a flat-fee, essentially a nominal charge that covers taxes, carrier charges and a fixed Avios amount.

For short-haul flights like Paris, this is just £1, but for destinations like Chicago this is £60 and this price increases if you decide to fly in an upper cabin or further afield. 

Points work differently on holidays and products, however, and you can pay partly in points and partly in cash – the split is entirely up to you. If, for example, I were to buy a fancy Dyson hairdryer worth £400, I could pay £200 in cash and the rest can be paid with 33,670 Avios.

How do I actually earn Avios points then?

This requires several minutes of faffing to set yourself up and link your cards and accounts, but once you’re done that’s everything sorted for good. 

Sign up for free to Avios here, or if you are already a member of the free British Airways Club you can sign in that way – or you can sign in via Iberia Club or Aer Club if you’d prefer. 

Those who like to shop on their phones should download the Avios app.

What comes next is the MOST important step. In general, every time you do any online shopping, you should check if you can earn points at that retailer by clicking on the ‘collect’ button on the Avios site or on the app.

Then select that retailer and the ‘shop now’ button. This will register your visit and then you can shop as normal and earn those points.

Sophie’s personal hacks

If you use Uber, link your account to your Avios account (Avios has a guide on this); if you buy your petrol at BP, link your Avios account to your BPme account; and if you shop at Sainsbury’s, link your Nectar account to your Avios account… you get the drift by now. 

If you have the ability to do so, get yourself a British Airways American Express credit card.

You don’t necessarily need one to earn Avios but simply using the Amex for the majority of your spending is the easiest way to accumulate points. Just remember to pay it off in full at the end of the month.

I have just two rules for earning big: Always(!) check if you can earn Avios before making any purchase (literally, any purchase) and only buy what you were going to in the first place – no willy-nilly spending, please.

Of course there are other airline loyalty schemes, I just don’t know enough about those yet.

Watch this space though…

Homicides in Los Angeles are down to levels not seen since the 1960s. Neighborhoods once awash in gang violence now sometimes go weeks, even months, without a shooting. And the follow-home robberies and street takeovers that captured the public’s attention in recent years have largely subsided.

By many measures, the city is safer than it has been in generations — and yet voters following L.A.’s hotly contested mayoral race might think the opposite.

The challengers to Mayor Karen Bass have zeroed in on homelessness and public drug use to argue she hasn’t delivered on public safety, while also criticizing how the Police Department has operated and been funded during her tenure.

Mike Bonin, a former L.A. City Council member, said the fact that Spencer Pratt — the former reality TV star who has been attacking Bass from the right — has gained so much traction in the race is proof of how Bass and other candidates to the left have failed to change “prevailing narratives that the city is unsafe.”

Mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt hosts a campaign block party on 10th Avenue in Los Angeles on May 20, 2026.

(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

Pratt has been particularly active on social media, where he has shared artificial-intelligence videos created by fans depicting him as various superheroes coming to the rescue of a city that, under Democratic rule, has turned into a dystopian hellscape.

In a March 26 post on Substack, Pratt railed against the thousands of drug-related calls that emergency officials respond to every month. He has said that if elected mayor, he would order the police and fire chiefs and the county health director to “treat every encampment as a grave-disability zone.”

“No new laws needed,” he wrote. “No endless task forces.”

Flanking Bass on the left is Nithya Raman, a progressive City Council member who was once the mayor’s political ally.

Raman has argued that Bass has thrown too much money at the LAPD, with raises for police officers coming at the expense of other basic services such as park maintenance and street paving. Raman said the LAPD pay increases have “bankrupted” the city, depriving other services of much-needed funding. In campaign ads, Raman has cast herself as a more sensible alternative to Bass. Raman has said she would work to reduce traffic deaths and prioritize safety on the city’s buses and trains.

When she first ran for office in 2020, Raman called for defunding the police, saying the Los Angeles Police Department should be a “much smaller, specialized armed force.” Since then, however, she has voted for some budgets that increased spending on law enforcement.

In response to questions from The Times, Raman said she would work to find ways to overhaul public safety.

“I’ll propose budgets that expand unarmed response, work with LAPD to improve 911 response to more quickly answer calls for help that don’t require armed officers, and will appoint leadership at the Police Commission who will actively partner with the City Council to work on reform,” she said.

Representatives for Pratt and Bass didn’t respond to requests for interviews with the candidates.

Bonin said Bass — who supported various police reform measures while Congress — has shocked some of her supporters with how “aggressively pro-police she has been.”

When she ran for mayor in 2022, Bass vowed to retool the recruitment and hiring process in order to restore LAPD staffing to 9,500 officers. That hasn’t happened. The number of sworn officers recently fell below 8,600, despite Bass striking a deal with the police union to offer higher starting salaries and new retention bonuses.

Mayor Karen Bass takes part in a candidate forum on May 5, 2026, in Sherman Oaks.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

On Thursday, the City Council approved a $15-billion budget for the upcoming fiscal year, which included funds to hire 510 new officers — just enough to offset turnover and maintain current staffing levels.

Raman has said the LAPD should not shrink any further because there aren’t enough officers to respond to 911 calls “in a timely fashion.”

Samantha Stevens, a Los Angeles political consultant and former legislative staffer, said people seem willing to back Pratt because he acknowledges that their sense of safety has been shaken — even if he has offered few concrete details about how to tackle crime beyond cracking down on homelessness.

Pratt’s critics say that his plan relies on funneling homeless people into a shelter system that doesn’t have the capacity to handle them all. Others have noted that the aggressive tactics he has proposed would probably face legal challenges.

L.A. City Councilmember Nithya Raman, who is running for mayor, makes a campaign stop at the site of a home burned in the Palisades fire.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

“He’s kind of a case study in somebody who has a lot of opinions but has no idea of how the city is run,” Stevens said.

Fernando Guerra, a political science professor at Loyola Marymount University, said Pratt seems to have tapped into a deep well of discontent among Angelenos who believe that crime and homeless have spiraled out of control. The challenge for Bass, he added, is that although the numbers suggest that crime has decreased, many people associate the sight of encampments spilling onto public sidewalks as “a breakdown” that indicates the city is becoming less safe.

“You want to go back to the days of Daryl Gates, you’ve got Pratt,” he said, referencing the former LAPD chief whose controversial police sweeps in the late 1980s yielded thousands of arrests while alienating large segments of South L.A.

“If you want more of the same from the past 20 years, you’ve got Bass,” Guerra added. “And if you want something new, then you’ve got Raman, but she has to explain what exactly she wants to do.”

Although Pratt and Raman appear to be the strongest challengers to Bass, several long-shot candidates have also made public safety a key issue in their campaigns. Some have gone after Bass for her support of LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell. Hired by Bass in 2024, McDonnell has touted the impressive drop in crime under his leadership, but also faced criticism over an uptick in shootings by police and aggressive crowd control tactics during protests against the Trump administration’s immigration policies.

Police Chief Jim McDonnell attends a news conference at LAPD headquarters on May 21, 2026.

(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

Rae Huang, a minister and housing rights advocate, said if elected mayor she would immediately replace McDonnell with someone who has the “ability to really reimagine what public safety really looks like.”

“I’m the only one with the guts to say that out loud,” Huang told The Times during a recent campaign stop at a bookstore in the West Adams neighborhood.

In social media posts and interviews, Huang has frequently referred to the LAPD as “one of the biggest legal gangs in the world,” and said she would work on diverting money from the police budget to scale up programs that have shown promise in sending unarmed specialists to deal with emergencies that involve people experiencing mental health crises.

The city is already running two such pilot programs, but under Bass they have remained underfunded, Huang said. Last week, the City Council signed off on expanding one of the programs.

Huang said she would also invest more heavily in addressing the city’s lack of affordable housing, which she said is an underlying cause of crime and homelessness.

The Los Angeles Police Protective League has poured hundreds of thousands of dollars into attack ads against Huang and Raman.

Adam Miller, a tech entrepreneur, has tried to strike a balance in his mayoral campaign, advocating for changes while acknowledging that many people still feel unsafe despite the historic drop in violent crime.

He criticized a recent vote by the L.A. City Council to limit so-called pretextual stops, in which officers pull people over for minor traffic infractions in order to investigate more serious offenses. The stops have been blamed for enabling racial discrimination.

Miller said that “constraining the Police Department is the opposite of what we should be doing.” He called for “leveraging” AI and modernizing the department’s archaic computer systems, which he said could allow the LAPD to catch up to other agencies that have embraced new technology.

Miller told The Times that he recently went on a ride-along with officers from the Rampart Division, which he said was eye-opening.

“At the highest level I think Angelenos don’t feel safe anymore,” he said. “They don’t feel safe in their neighborhoods, but more recently they don’t feel safe even in their own homes.”

Statistically speaking, the city might be safer than it’s been in decades, he said — but that doesn’t necessarily matter to voters.

“I don’t think it’s just perception,” he said. “I think it’s reality that crime has spread.”

If Tribe does realise his ambition and become the first Glamorgan player since Simon Jones in 2005 to play for England, it will have come off the back of a willingness to pack his bags and head for wherever there were opportunities to play and improve.

He had never played a game outside of Jersey until he left the island to study in Cardiff when he was 18, but joined Glamorgan on a rookie contract in 2023 before signing an improved deal last year.

Since then, his travels have taken Tribe to the National Cricket League in Texas, a stint in Adelaide playing Grade cricket, then onto a Nepalese T20 competition, before he was picked up by Paarl Royals to play in the South African T20 tournament last winter – as well as getting a deal to play grade cricket in Australia.

His stint with Paarl Royals in particular is bearing fruit, with Tribe having been able to tweak his technique ahead of this tour in South Africa.

“I have made a couple of technical changes and they have served me well here,” he said.

“I am now more side on and added a little trigger in there and made sure I have added a few other shots.

“So if the lads are missing slightly short on the off-side I can still punch that, and I’m trying to narrow the margin for error on the bowler’s side.

“My movement is a bit more precise and accurate as well.

“It has given me the ability to know what their bowlers do with the ball.

“It has definitely helped me against their skilful bowlers and has given me a clue on what they do.

“The reason we have this type of cricket where we play against the second team of other countries is that it is going to be a better standard that what we potentially face in the County Championship.

“In the Championship you talk about slightly slower bowling whereas on this wicket it has had more pace and bounce. It is different challenges.

“I like the idea we get the opportunity to play in these because if you are then exposed to Test cricket then it will be faster.”

Whether Tribe is on the fast track to an England cap remains to be seen, but the already much-travelled young player continues to do all he can to make his dream a reality.

Known for its crystal-clear waters and white sandy beaches, Cape Verde is set to steal the spotlight for very different reasons this summer.

The archipelago of 10 islands in the Atlantic Ocean is making its football World Cup debut in North America, arriving at the global showpiece as one of 10 African representatives.

Cape Verde’s fairy-tale qualification coincided with the its 50th anniversary of independence from Portugal, and the ‘Blue Sharks’ have the chance to give their fans even more to celebrate as they go toe-to-toe with the best teams in the world.

Here’s everything you need to know about Cape Verde in Al Jazeera’s World Cup minnows series.

How did Cape Verde qualify for the 2026 World Cup?

Cape Verde – or Cabo Verde as they are known in Portuguese – qualified directly after an excellent performance in the first round of CAF qualifying.

They topped a difficult group, alongside Cameroon and Angola, winning eight of their 10 games to punch their first historic ticket to a World Cup.

A 100% record in five home games, and not conceding a goal was pivotal to their progress.

On the final day of qualifiers, Cape Verde started two points ahead of Cameroon, whose eight previous World Cup final appearances are the most by any African country. But at the full-time whistle, Cape Verde finished Group D on 23 points, four ahead of Cameroon, who ultimately crashed out in the second round.

With around 600,000 inhabitants and only 4,000 square kilometres of land, Cape Verde is the third-smallest country to qualify for the World Cup after Curacao, which is also making its debut this year, and Iceland, which competed in 2018.

Has Cape Verde played in a major tournament?

Yes. Cape Verde have played at four Africa Cup of Nations, the continent’s showpiece footballing event. Their best result was reaching the quarter-finals in their inaugural campaign in 2013 and at their last appearance in 2023.

They also came close to qualifying for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, but were ultimately eliminated in the last match of the group phase.

What is Cape Verde’s FIFA ranking?

Cape Verde is ranked 69th, the second-lowest-ranked team among the 10 African representatives at the World Cup this year.

Who will Cape Verde face at the 2026 World Cup?

Cape Verde are in Group H with Spain, the 2010 champions and frontrunners for the 2026 title, former champions Uruguay and Saudi Arabia, who handed Argentina a shock defeat in the 2022 World Cup. All their group matches will be played in the US.

• June 15: Spain vs Cape Verde – Atlanta Stadium
• June 21: Uruguay vs Cape Verde – Miami Stadium
• June 26: Cape Verde vs Saudi Arabia – Houston Stadium

Who is Cape Verde’s head coach?

Bubista – whose full name is Pedro Leitao Brito – is a former Cape Verde international, who has been in charge of the national team for six-and-a-half years.

He played 21 times for his country in the early 2000s and enjoyed the limelight as captain before transitioning into coaching two years after his retirement. Twice serving as assistant manager, Bubista was named the Cape Verde head coach in early 2020.

Under his guidance, Cape Verde played at back-to-back AFCONs, reaching the knockouts both times, before pulling off the unthinkable by qualifying for the 2026 World Cup. The achievement also earned him the accolade of the CAF Coach of the Year 2025.

Bubista – whose nickname is derived from the Creole name of his birthplace, Boa Vista – has instilled an identity in the team that makes them hard to beat.

Who are Cape Verde’s key players?

Forward Dailon Livramento was Cape Verde’s highest scorer during qualification with four goals, while defender Diney, midfielder Jamiro Monteiro, and winger Willy Semedo bagged two apiece.

Captain Ryan Mendes, goalkeeper Vozinha and defender Roberto Lopes – also part of the team that fought for 2022 World Cup qualification – are the other key players.

Cape Verde has spread the national team net wide with starters based in several countries, including Portugal, the Netherlands, and the US.

How is Cape Verde preparing for the World Cup?

Cape Verde faced Chile and Finland in friendlies in New Zealand in March, as part of the FIFA Series, the sponsored biennial tournaments for mainly lower-ranked and lesser-financed nations.

They lost 4-2 to Chile but won 4-2 on penalties against Finland after being tied at 1-1.

What can we expect from Cape Verde?

While Cape Verde may be considered minnows at the World Cup, writing them off would be a mistake. The ‘Blue Sharks’ have built a reputation as potential giant-killers, and their impressive run through the African qualifiers only adds to their intrigue.

The spirit can be best described in coach Bubista’s words: “We’re a small country, but it’s only small on the map… a small country with a big heart”.

You can follow the action on Al Jazeera’s dedicated FIFA World Cup 2026 page with all the latest news, match build-up and live text commentary, and keep up to date with group standings and real-time match results and schedules.

The crisis caused by the US-Israel war on Iran has affected the member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) at different levels.

Oman has barely felt any shock as its ports and terminals continue operating as usual. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have been able to reroute some oil exports through terminals in Yanbu and Fujairah, respectively, to bypass the Strait of Hormuz. Kuwait, Bahrain and Qatar, on the other hand, have been practically cut off from the global market and are facing the prospect of economic contraction.

Under these circumstances, the GCC states more than ever need to demonstrate unity and address the crisis through collective action. The issue of solidarity is not about showing benevolence to neighbours. It is about setting up mechanisms now that can diminish the consequences and value of any future threat of closure. It is about the survival of the whole idea of GCC unity and the leverage it has on the global scene.

Collective action, common interest

Even if some sort of agreement is reached between the warring sides today, the GCC will continue to suffer under the shadow of the nearly three-month closure. States face the risk of losing clients due to the risk of not fulfilling their obligations or being perceived as a risky supplier. Only a joint effort can stop a free fall.

So far, self-interested approaches are winning over collective action. For instance, the UAE’s exit from OPEC was largely driven by the perception of the Emirati leadership that the Strait of Hormuz crisis was an opportunity to grab greater oil market share.

If this trend of unilateral crisis response continues, it would have grave economic consequences for the whole GCC and threaten its existence. With no burden-sharing mechanism, Gulf countries would end up competing against each other in a zero-sum game. This would reduce the influence the GCC has as a regional bloc and diminish its ability to sway energy markets.

Up until now, there have been some demonstrations of solidarity in rhetoric. During the GCC consultative meeting in Jeddah on April 28, Gulf leaders attempted to show unity and discuss possible ways out of the crisis. The meeting led to discussions about what the GCC states could do in practical terms, yet there are still no signs that these discussions have moved beyond the expert level.

Nevertheless, there are practical steps the GCC can take now that could help address the present crisis and ensure stability in the face of future risks. One of them could be the introduction of swap arrangements.

Swap as an instrument of solidarity

There are three relevant swap mechanisms that the GCC could consider: physical, contractual and quality swap deals. Physical and contractual swap deals allow one party to deliver an equivalent commodity to fulfil a contract on behalf of another.

A quality swap, on the other hand, exchanges one grade or product for another to align the feedstock needs of refineries or optimise transport costs.

Thus, instead of Kuwaiti, Qatari or Bahraini cargo physically passing through the Strait of Hormuz, a buyer can receive an acceptable substitute at Yanbu, Fujairah, Duqm, Ras Markaz, Sohar, Qalhat, Singapore, India, Korea, Japan or Europe, while the parties involved settle the accounts through future delivery, cash compensation, product exchange, or a retained-volume fee.

The swap does not require the trapped commodity to move immediately. It requires a transparent title, valuation and reconciliation, so that a substitute commodity can be delivered to the end user.

The strongest swap deals, therefore, resemble clearing systems. They are most reliable when they are established before the crisis, but they can also be assembled during a crisis if the parties already have pre-existing experience of trading, a trusted customer base or alternative physical infrastructure to be utilised.

In fact, the swap deals are not something completely unfamiliar to the GCC member states. In 2013, when Egypt failed to fulfil its contractual gas obligations, Qatar agreed to export its own liquefied natural gas (LNG) directly to the customers that Egypt otherwise could not serve while it channelled its gas for domestic needs.

In 2021, the UAE’s Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC) won a tender to swap 84,000 tonnes of Iraqi fuel oil for 30,000 tonnes of Grade B fuel oil and 33,000 tonnes of gas oil to supply to Lebanon. In 2024, the state-owned Oman LNG conducted about two swap tenders per month, with Atlantic cargoes originating from the United States delivered to Spain, while the company delivered its LNG to clients in Asia.

All of these examples show that Gulf countries and their national energy companies have the required expertise to carry out intra-GCC swaps.

The most practical way to implement such deals now would be to establish an energy swap facility through a coordinated clearing mechanism among national oil companies, major regional refiners, selected traders, insurers, banks and key Asian and European buyers.

Its function would be to match blocked obligations with delivery alternatives and to reconcile the value later.

Insurance for the future

The implementation of any swap arrangement would require substantive effort to operationalise, not to mention a high level of political will, trust and mutual determination. Moreover, at present, there are physical limitations before any arrangement, as the GCC infrastructure does not have the capacity to reroute export volumes that pass through the Strait of Hormuz completely.

In the immediate term, swap arrangements imply that one group of countries – Saudi Arabia, Oman and the UAE – would sacrifice a bit of income and market share to the advantage of the others, namely Qatar, Bahrain and Kuwait, by allocating part of their current export, storage or transport capacities. But in the longer term, all would benefit.

The critical call is on Saudi Arabia, which has the largest options to bypass Hormuz and provide the largest pool of deliverable crude. Its command of customer credibility, global familiarity with Saudi oil grades, Red Sea export infrastructure and Aramco’s trading capacity make it the main pillar of any future swap system.

Complementing its role as market regulator within OPEC/OPEC+ with the leadership within the GCC, Riyadh can help stabilise the market by covering priority cargoes for strategic buyers.

The UAE can also play a major role by utilising its export capacity through Fujairah, and so can Oman, which has crude storage capacity at Ras Markaz, refining capacity at Duqm, LNG experience and ports that can receive and dispatch cargoes without having to cross the Strait of Hormuz.

If such swap deals are implemented, they can strengthen the GCC unity and help the members avoid internal economic rivalry in the future. More importantly, they can encourage the launch of a larger regional infrastructure drive that would lessen dependence on the Strait of Hormuz and diminish its value as a geopolitical tool to be used against the Gulf.

If there are a well-functioning swap mechanism and infrastructure in place that can be used whenever a threat of closure is made, then clients would feel more confident in continuing their relationships with all Gulf suppliers. In the longer term, this could serve as the GCC’s insurance against any new turbulence in the region.

The views expressed in this article are the authors’ own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance.

Alan Titchmarsh’s comments came to light as he described a typical Saturday, which might include a shopping trip using something a BBC star has reportedly said they don’t like

Alan Titchmarsh has taken a swipe at a BBC Radio 2 star who “lives in London” over alleged comments about a vehicle he owns. Alan’s remarks came as he described a typical Saturday with his wife, Alison, following the couple’s recent move to a new home in Surrey after “living in Hampshire around farmland for 40 years”.

By 7am, the Ground Force legend is brewing up a cuppa for Alison and is “up and at ’em”, tackling a crossword to keep his mind sharp before heading outside to check his beloved garden.

Come 11am, the pair might venture out for a spot of shopping, and for that, it appears they rely on their trusty four-by-fours. However, Alan claims one BBC star is far from impressed by the vehicles.

The radio host in question apparently “slags them off”, yet Alan and Alison need them, particularly when navigating their local potholes — pointing out that the host is based in the capital.

He told The Telegraph: “Ali and I might head out and do a bit of [homeware] shopping. We’ve lived in Hampshire around farmland for 40 years, so both of us have four-by-fours. It’s all right when Jeremy Vine slags them off, but he lives in London.

“Out here, we need them! If you saw our potholes! When the two of us are driving, we’re almost always locked in conversation but I play music when I’m alone – either Classic FM, Radio 3 or Radio 4.

“The car picks up my iPhone music and I often listen to the score for the latest series of All Creatures Great and Small by Alexandra Harwood. It’s lovely.”

Keen cyclist Jeremy previously documented drivers breaking traffic laws and shared these on social media in an effort to spotlight the dangers faced by cyclists.

However, he abandoned this practice after suffering online “trolling”. He revealed on X: “I’m stopping my cycling videos. The trolling just got too bad. They have had well over 100 million views, but in the end the anger they generate has genuinely upset me.”

Indeed, it reportedly got so bad that he received death threats for posting videos of drivers, with some cruelly dubbing him “England’s biggest ***hole”.

He said: “Some of the biggest videos were actually about the smallest incidents, like someone turning left in front of me.

“People are happy to discuss it and I actually think that we’d all be safer if we all understood each other. People are going to drive 4x4s in Kensington and whatnot, but they need to have a bit of care for me on a bicycle.

“You might be in total control when you pass close by, but the person on a bicycle doesn’t know that. I just hope I was part of a dialogue about it.”

I CAN’T help but feel like a young Lord Alan Sugar as I negotiate a handmade mug down to half price in one of the most beautiful market streets.

In May sunshine, the glorious blue sky pops off the glistening white walls of the stunning coastal town of Sidi Bou Said in northern Tunisia.

All the buildings are decked out in white and blue, providing a gorgeous visual as the perfect sky kisses the crystal clear, calm Mediterranean sea.

My guide, an affable local named Madhi, tells me the striking colour scheme also helps combat the effects of the incredible heat, which can reach well over 40C in summer, by reflecting away the sun.

Sidi Bou Said is reminiscent of Santorini and symbolic of the blend of cultures that modern-day Tunisia infuses.

It is an Arabic country but there are French and Roman influences too, due to the country’s colonial past.

WAIL OF A TIME

I drove Irish Route 66 with deserted golden beaches and pirate-like islands

TEMPTED?

Tiny ‘Bali of Europe’ town with stunning beaches, €3 cocktails and £20 flights

Madhi tells me there is a liberal view among many Tunisians as he points out that if one sister decides to wear an Islamic veil, and the other opts for no veil and multiple tattoos, both can expect to be treated respectfully.

Just down the street from Sidi Bou Said, and via Tunisia’s presidential palace no less, are the remarkably well preserved ancient ruins of Carthage.

I marvel at the fact this site isn’t more heaving with visitors, given its historical significance.

Around 2,000 years ago, this was one of the most important sites in the Roman Empire, following a bloody battle between the Romans and the Carthaginians.

Now it offers a brilliant insight into Tunisia’s past, just a 20-minute drive from the country’s capital Tunis.

Rather than stay there, however, we have booked in at the plush five-star Les Orangers Garden Villas and Bungalows, an hour’s drive south in the popular coastal town of Hammamet.

With Enfidha Airport (served by several EasyJet flights from the UK every day including a new route from Newcastle) just 30 minutes away, Hammamet offers an intriguing alternative for tourists.

And our stay at the all-inclusive Les Orangers didn’t disappoint.

The entrance is lined with palm trees and we are greeted by friendly staff bearing mocktails and dates.

Once through reception, we walk out into an enormous courtyard full of plants, seating areas and more palm trees.

There is a gym, two outdoor pools and an indoor one as well as a spa featuring sauna and traditional Tunisian-style hammam with massages available to book.

The hotel has an international buffet restaurant and three a la carte restaurants offering Italian, Tunisian and Asian specialities.

There is also a rooftop tapas bar, beachfront snack bar and an Italian-style deli bar so you’re never short of spots to refuel — plus four bars, including one by the beach.

My spacious modern room, which has a view of the sea so good I can even enjoy it from the shower, came complete with air conditioning and mini bar.

I’ve never felt sand so soft as I walk to my lounger on their private beach.

The sea itself is beautifully clear and the perfect temperature; offering a pleasant shock to the system before settling down and feeling really quite warm.

As I lay back to soak up the sun I can hear German, Italian and French accents but only a few British ones.

I can’t help but feel that we might be missing a trick not flocking here in even greater numbers.

Those that do will enjoy the country’s remarkable food.

For a true taste of authentic Tunisian cuisine we head 15 minutes inland to Douar Laroussi, a family-run farm and restaurant.

Each door has a woman’s name written above it, which Madhi informs us is to stress that the woman is the true boss of each household.

Our host, and his charming aunt Jdidia, greet us warmly as they prepare to show us how their food is made.

Here Jdidia works her magic, and even gets us to join in.

She moulds tabouna bread into shape with her hands before baking it in an outdoor oven.

Next is the couscous, which she masterfully crafts from just semolina and water.

For our starter we mix olive oil made on site with mouth-watering local harissa and our homemade bread, which took barely ten minutes.

After tucking into my divine vegetable couscous I just had to buy some of their olive oil and harissa, I absolutely had to take some back to the UK to share.

In Hammamet itself are two Medinas; the old and the new.

The old, part of a second century fortress looking out over the sea, gives me an opportunity to test my bartering skills again as local Tarek engraves my name into a plate in Arabic.

I don’t quite manage to haggle down to half price this time but I’m happy with my unique souvenir, not to mention this wonderful trip as a whole.

Los Angeles voters will cast ballots in eight City Council district elections next week, including for two open seats where incumbents are leaving because of term limits.

The contests for the seats being vacated by Councilmembers Bob Blumenfield and Curren Price have drawn large fields of candidates, but the biggest spending has been in the Westside’s District 11, where incumbent Traci Park is facing challenger Faizah Malik, a public interest attorney and one of four council candidates backed by the local chapter of Democratic Socialists of America.

Park has raised $1.3 million, according to the latest campaign finance reports filed Friday, while challenger Faizah Malik reported about $520,000 in contributions. In addition, more than $3 million has been spent in the race by so-called independent expenditure committees that spend money to elect or defeat candidates but which are barred from coordinating their activities with the campaigns.

The district includes Venice, Mar Vista, Brentwood and Pacific Palisades, which was devastated by wildfire in January 2025.

Malik said Friday she is confident heading into the primary election, saying most of her donations are under $100 each, and that she hasn’t taken money from corporations.

Los Angeles City Council candidate Faizah Malik attends a canvassing event March 15 in Westchester.

(Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)

“This is what it means to be a grassroots candidate, and it is just more evidence that the people of CD11 believe in our vision for a Westside that is affordable for everyday people,” Malik said.

A Park campaign aide said Park’s haul is indicative of the councilmember’s record of getting results.

“But no one is taking anything for granted,” the aide said in a statement. “We’re working until the final vote is cast because this election will determine whether the Westside keeps moving forward or gets pulled backward into the same failed ideological politics Angelenos are exhausted by.”

Los Angeles City Councilmember Traci Park, center, with members of United Firefighters of Los Angeles City on May 12.

(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

Park has emphasized her advocacy for fire recovery efforts, including pushing for permit fee waivers for residents wanting to rebuild. Malik has said Park has been too focused on single-family homeowners and said she would focus more energy on renters.

They have contrasting views on policing: Malik said she opposes expanding the size of the Los Angeles Police Department and instead supports shifting more resources to the city’s unarmed crisis response program. Park said the Police Department should have about 10,000 sworn officers, up from about 8,700 currently. She voted in favor of a 2023 LAPD contract that gave raises to officers and increased salaries to new hires.

They stand in contrast of each other on the Venice Dell housing development project, which would turn a city lot into 120 housing units for low-income and homeless people. Park opposed the completion and instead wants to turn it into a “mobility hub” and move the housing project to an adjacent lot. Malik, who represented the developer that filed a suit against the city claiming Park and others sought to kill the project, said the project was a motivating factor for her campaign.

District 9

Six candidates are vying to replace Councilman Curren Price, who hit the 12-year limit, in District 9. The district includes the Convention Center, USC and communities along the Harbor Freeway.

The candidates vary on key issues, including policing and housing. Estuardo Mazariegos, co-director of the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment Los Angeles, is backed by the Democratic Socialists of America. He has called for reducing the LAPD budget and redirecting funds to other city departments.

Two other candidates — Jorge Hernandez Rosas, an educator, and Jose Ugarte, who previously worked for Price — said they support hiring more police officers. Another hopeful, Elmer Roldan, executive director of Communities in Schools of Los Angeles, said he believes in keeping the LAPD at its current size.

Ugarte, Roldan, Rosas and Martha Sánchez, a therapist, all support enforcing Municipal Code 41.18, which bars homeless encampments near schools and daycare centers. Mazariegos and Jorge Nuño, an entrepreneur, say the code doesn’t solve homelessness and instead just moves people around.

Ugarte has raised the most in contributions of any candidate and has been endorsed by the Los Angeles County Democratic Party in the nonpartisan race.

District 3

Three candidates are competing for an open seat in District 3, where Councilmember Bob Blumenfield has termed out of office. The district encompasses Woodland Hills, Canoga Park, Reseda, Winnetka and Tarzana.

The candidates are Tim Gaspar, who founded an insurance company, Barri Worth Girvan, district director for Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath, and Christopher Robert “C.R.” Celona, a tech entrepreneur.

The three candidates are similarly positioned on public safety, backing Mayor Karen Bass’ long-term goal to increase the LAPD ranks to at least 9,500 officers. All three also support enforcing Municipal Code section 41.18.

Gaspar and Worth Girvan have both scored key endorsements. Gaspar is backed by Blumenfield, billionaire developer Rick Caruso and Councilmembers Monica Rodriguez, Tim McOsker and John Lee and billionaire developer Rick Caruso. Worth Girvan has endorsements from a long list of state Democratic lawmakers, the county Democratic Party, the Sierra Club and labor unions.

Gaspar leads in campaign contributions, followed by Worth Girvan. Celona, who has promised to resuscitate the city’s entertainment industry by fast-tracking film permits and cutting red tape, trails far behind.

District 1

Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez faces four challengers in District 1, which stretches from Highland Park on the northeast to University Park on the southwest. She is backed by the local Democratic Socialists of America, and her challengers claim the district has suffered under under her leadership, pointing to MacArthur Park as emblematic of the homelessness and drug addiction crisis plaguing the city.

Hernandez counters with a list of accomplishments, including helping secure a $6.3-million state grant to house homeless individuals near the Arroyo Seco riverbed and advocating for a citywide network of unarmed crisis response teams.

She faces challenges from Maria Lou Calanche, a former Los Angeles police commissioner and founder of the nonprofit Legacy LA; Nelson Grande, an executive consultant and former president of Avenida Entertainment Group; Raul Claros, founder of California Rising; and Sylvia Robledo, a small-business owner and former council aide.

Hernandez’s campaign has also faced an onslaught of accusations of “dark money” spending. A group called Neighbors First has sent mail pieces critical of Hernandez and other leftist City Council candidates.

District 5

Incumbent Katy Yaroslavsky faces two challengers for her District 5 seat, both of whom oppose her stance on housing and public safety spending. The district includes some of the city’s wealthiest neighborhoods, including Bel-Air, Westwood, Cheviot Hills and Hancock Park.

Challengers Henry Mantel, a tenants’ rights lawyer, and Morgan Oyler, an accountant, say Yaroslavsky hasn’t done enough to increase the district’s housing supply. Yaroslavsky, who holds a wide lead in fundraising, has said she supports increasing housing density near transit centers but cautioned against building more than the city can sustain.

District 13

Councilmember Hugo Soto-Martínez, who is also backed by the Democratic Socialists of America’s L.A. chapter, faces three challengers in District 13, which includes Atwater Village, Glassell Park, Elysian Valley, Echo Park, Silver Lake and East Hollywood.

The list of challengers includes Colter Carlisle, vice president of the East Hollywood Neighborhood Council, Dylan Kendall, who runs Grow Hollywood, and Rich Sarian, vice president of strategic initiatives for downtown’s South Park Social District.

While Soto-Martínez supports expanding the city’s unarmed personnel program, Carlisle and Kendall would like to expand the police force. Sarian has said he supports the unarmed personnel program and wants to examine the LAPD’s current size and resources.

District 15

Incumbent Tim McOsker is facing off against community organizer Jordan River in District 15, which covers Harbor City, Harbor Gateway, San Pedro, Watts and Wilmington. McOsker has decades of experience in the political world, having worked in the mayor’s office, and the city attorney’s office before joining the City Council in 2022. Rivers, who is unemployed, is a member of the Green Party.

District 7

Monica Rodriguez is running unopposed for the District 7 seat in the northeast San Fernando Valley.

Times staff writers David Zahniser, Noah Goldberg and Sandra McDonald contributed to this report.

LAS VEGAS — Kelsey Plum scored a season-high 38 points, Erica Wheeler hit the go-ahead three-pointer late in the fourth quarter, and the Sparks defeated the Las Vegas Aces 101-95 on Saturday night.

A three-pointer by Wheeler capped an 8-0 run for the Sparks in the first minute of the fourth quarter that gave the Sparks a 80-73 lead. The Aces battled back and tied it at 90 on a jumper in the lane by Chelsea Gray and again at 94 on two free throws by A’ja Wilson.

Wheeler then took a pass from Plum and hit a 27-foot three-pointer with 1:15 remaining, giving the Sparks a 97-94 lead. The Aces missed a couple of three-pointers and a free throw on their final possessions while Dearica Hamby and Plum sealed the win with two free throws each.

Hamby and Cameron Brink each scored 16, Ariel Atkins had 11, and Rae Burrell added 10 for the Sparks (3-3). Wheeler had 10 points, seven rebounds and six assists, and Plum had nine assists.

Wilson scored 24 points and grabbed 15 rebounds for the Aces (4-2). Carter scored 23 points off the bench. NaLyssa Smith added 22 points, Gray 12 and Jewell Loyd 10.

A three-pointer by Smith gave the Aces a 57-48 lead early in the third quarter but Plum rallied the Sparks with five points and three assists as the Sparks surged ahead 60-57. Neither team led by more than three points the rest of the quarter and Las Vegas took a 73-72 lead to the final period.

Las Vegas, the reigning WNBA champions, saw a four-game winning streak end. The Aces had won 20 of their last 21 regular-season games after finishing the 2025 regular season on a 16-game winning streak.

Up next

Aces: at Dallas on Thursday.

Sparks: at Washington on Friday.

Fans arrested in Morocco in the aftermath of the AFCON 2025 final returned on a humanitarian pardon by Moroccan king.

A group of Senegalese football supporters jailed following their country’s chaotic, violence-plagued Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) final in Morocco in January have returned home after being pardoned by the Moroccan king.

King Mohammed VI granted the fans a pardon “on humanitarian grounds” on the occasion of the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, Morocco’s royal court said on Saturday.

Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye welcomed the jubilant supporters on their arrival at the airport outside Dakar on Sunday.

“We’re very happy to have them back on Senegalese soil,” Faye, who donned a tracksuit for the occasion, told journalists.

He thanked Moroccan authorities for the pardon but, in what Morocco will likely perceive as a new dig, hailed the national team as “two-time African champions”, even though the January final is the subject of an ongoing dispute before the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Switzerland.

Senegal won the tumultuous continental final against Morocco in Rabat on January 18, but the match was later awarded on appeal to the hosts.

With the match tied at 0-0, after a penalty awarded to Morocco in stoppage time of the second half – just after a Senegal goal was disallowed – Senegalese fans tried to storm the pitch and hurled projectiles.

The Senegalese team left the pitch in protest against the penalty decision, halting play for nearly 20 minutes.

When they returned, they gleefully watched Morocco miss their penalty and went on to score a 94th-minute winner.

In February, Moroccan courts sentenced 18 Senegalese supporters held in Morocco since the final to prison terms ranging from three months to a year for hooliganism.

Three were released from jail in mid-April after completing their three-month sentences.

Following that release, another 15 Senegalese fans remained imprisoned after receiving sentences ranging from six months to one year.

The royal pardon applied to those 15.

Mending ties

The episode has strained relations between Morocco and Senegal, countries with a history of friendly ties.

But Morocco’s royal court said that in view “of the age-old fraternal ties” between the two countries “and on the occasion of the advent of Eid al-Adha”, which will be celebrated in the country on Wednesday, the king had “granted, on humanitarian grounds, his royal pardon to the Senegalese supporters”.

The Senegalese president had earlier welcomed the decision in a post on X.

“Our compatriots … are free. They will soon be reunited with their loved ones,” Faye wrote.

He thanked King Mohammed VI for the decision “imbued with clemency and humanity”.

According to the Moroccan public prosecutor’s office, the charges against the 18 football supporters were based mainly on footage from cameras at Rabat’s Moulay Abdellah Stadium, and on medical certificates for injured law enforcement officers and stewards.

Material damage from the violence was estimated at more than 370,000 euros (about $430,000).

At the end of January, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) imposed disciplinary sanctions on both national federations for unsporting conduct and violations of the principles of fair play.

After the CAF decided on March 17 to award the title to Morocco by administrative ruling, Senegal appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

The two countries have a history of cooperation in sectors including tourism and energy, and share strong religious ties.

Senegalese make up the largest foreign community living in Morocco.

U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM) is in the early stages of the search for a replacement for the C-146 Wolfhound cargo plane. The C-146s are unassuming twin-engine turboprop aircraft with civilian-style paint schemes that provide important logistical, medical evacuation, and other support, particularly to far-flung U.S. special operations forces. However, they are also based on a long-out-of-production design that was never in widespread use anywhere, and that makes them increasingly difficult and costly to sustain.

Col. Justin Bronder, head of SOCOM’s Program Executive Office for Fixed Wing (PEO-FW), spoke to TWZ and other outlets about the C-146 replacement plans at a roundtable on the sidelines of the annual SOF Week conference yesterday. The Wolfhounds are part of what SOCOM refers to as its Non-Standard Aviation (NSAv) fleets.

There are some 20 Wolfhounds in service today, which are operated by Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC). The C-146, which AFSOC began flying in the early 2010s, is a militarized version of the Dornier Do-328, something we will come back to later on. The Air Force also has another Do-328, nicknamed Cougar, that has been used to conduct research and development and test and evaluation activities in support of SOCOM.

“So we have had a highly successful Non-Standard Aviation program, again that really developed under the crucible of where those operations that the Command [SOCOM] was in many parts leading in the really peak days in the War on Terror,” Col. Bronder explained. “So those aircraft, again, battle-proven C-146 Wolfhound aircraft, [were] set up at various TSOCs [theater special operations commands], providing the direct support.”

However, “those aircraft were fairly constricted by their short range, [and] by being a unique aircraft. There wasn’t a large global backbone to sustain them,” he continued. “So it was a successful model, but maybe not a very cost-effective one.”

The Air Force’s official C-146 fact sheet says the aircraft can fly up to 1,500 nautical miles while carrying 2,000 pounds of cargo. The Wolfhound does offer the flexibility to operate from shorter runways and semi-prepared airstrips, as well as roads.

“We’re looking for ways to recapitalize that fleet with something that’s more cost-effective, leverages a commercial kind of sustainment enterprise better, and then it again provides maybe a more capable aircraft to cover down on larger areas faster,” Col. Bronder added. “So those are the types of requirement spaces we’re working through as we plan out what the next phase of NSAv looks like.”

The Do-328 was first developed in the 1980s as a commuter airliner. A jet-engined 328JET derivative followed in the 1990s. Both variations only saw relatively limited sales. Just 217 examples were reportedly built, inclusive of both turboprop and jet-powered versions, during the production run in the 1990s. Only a fraction of those aircraft are still flying. Several attempts have been made to revive production of modernized versions of the design, but so far without success. Last year, Deutsche Aircraft unveiled the first prototype of its new D328eco, but, at the time of writing, it has yet to fly.

With the exception of a lone example operated by the Botswana Defence Force, the U.S. Air Force is the only military user of the Do-328. All of the Air Force’s examples were acquired second-hand. The C-146s supplanted an even smaller fleet of Bombardier Q-200s, a version of the De Havilland Canada DHC-8, or Dash 8, which AFSOC had begun flying in the NSAv role in the late 2000s.

Since the early 2010s, the C-146s have been criss-crossing the globe, providing discreet support to U.S. operations forces, sometimes right at the tactical edge. As one known example, Wolfhounds were heavily involved in supporting the opening phase of the French intervention in the northwest African country of Mali in 2013. C-146s continue to be used to move special operations forces and cargo, as well as to help evacuate injured personnel and perform other light utility-type missions worldwide. They have even sometimes been employed as VIP transports in more far-flung locales.

The C-146 fleet has also received various upgrades over the years. This includes unspecified modifications that have enabled the aircraft “to land at more austere, semi-prepared runways,” which “resulted in an approximately ten-fold increase in the number of available runways worldwide,” according to a declassified annual Air Force report published in 2015, which this author previously obtained via the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).

As Bronder made clear yesterday, SOCOM and AFSOC are still very early in the process of laying out the requirements for a successor to the C-146. Any desire for boosts in range, performance, payload, and other capabilities will need to be balanced against the need for any future NSAv aircraft to be able to operate from the same kinds of remote and austere locations as the Wolfhound does today.

SOCOM is certainly looking to move quickly on securing a replacement for the C-146. It is asking for $55 million to buy the first three of these new NSAv aircraft in its Fiscal Year 2027 budget.

“The current C-146A fleet will be divested of on a schedule that maintains this critical TSOC capability, as transition to the new aircraft occurs,” the budget documents also note.

In the meantime, the Wolfhound fleet will continue providing important, if not often overlooked, support to American special operations forces around the world.

Contact the author: joe@twz.com

Love Your Weekend host Alan Titchmarsh questioned Jeremy Vine after the presenter opened up about an embarrassing celebrity encounter.

Jeremy Vine has shared a cringe-worthy story about meeting one of pop music’s biggest stars under rather unfortunate circumstances.

Love Your Weekend With Alan Titchmarsh returned to ITV this morning, with the much-loved presenter heading to The Big Cat Sanctuary in Kent for this week’s episode.

Alan Titchmarsh, 77, was joined by BBC presenter and journalist Jeremy, Michael Flatley and Kate Fleetwood, while dog-in-training Titch also made a welcome reappearance.

The veteran host kicked off the programme by quizzing his celebrity guests about their greatest “pinch me moments”.

Jeremy then launched into a rather risqué anecdote about a particularly memorable bathroom visit during his time at BBC Radio 2, prompting Alan to step in with a cautionary word.

“Behind Radio 2 reception there was a loo…” he began, as Alan interjected: “I think you’re going to take this slightly downmarket…”

“I wont!” Jeremy insisted as Alan questioned: “Is this really necessary?”

Jeremy then explained: “I’ve got to tell this story; I’ve got to unload because I haven’t really told it before.”

Alan then cheekily warned Jeremy that the phrase ‘I’ve really got to unload’ hardly inspired great confidence given the direction the tale was heading, reports the Express.

Undeterred, Jeremy continued: “So behind Radio 2 reception there is a single cubicle toilet and it was always locked because the receptionist said we don’t want anyone going in there for obvious reasons.

“And one day I was bursting and I could see the door unlocked, so I say, ‘Do you mind if I go in?’ and I lock the door and I’m in a seated position…

“You’re on the verge of oversharing!” Alan exclaimed, as Jeremy continued: “I don’t understand what’s going on outside the door because I’ve got no idea.

“But Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees has said to reception, ‘I need to use the loo urgently.’

“And reception looks round and the door is locked because it always is because they lock the door to stop people using it,” he clarified.

“So they gave him the master key and I’m sitting in the loo in a seriously private moment and [the door] suddenly opens and Barry Gibb walks in!

“This is the guy who wrote Islands in the Stream!” Jeremy added, as the studio erupted into laughter.

“He walks in a completely continuous movement and I think he made the noise ‘ha?!'” the presenter said, imitating a similar sound to what the Bee Gees sing in their famous track, Stayin’ Alive.

“I’ve only met him once and that was it,” Jeremy concluded, as Alan swiftly steered the conversation elsewhere.

For her standout moment, Kate recounted the occasion she encountered legendary Hollywood actor Dustin Hoffman following a theatrical performance.

She recalled being completely starstruck having previously watched him in classics such as Tootsie and The Graduate, while younger cast members recognised him from the animated blockbuster Kung Fu Panda.

Meanwhile, Michael disclosed he had recently had an audience with Pope Leo XIV, describing it as amongst the greatest days of his life.

Love Your Weekend With Alan Titchmarsh airs every Sunday at 9.30am on ITV1 and ITVX.

HIGH SCHOOL BOYS VOLLEYBALL

SOCAL REGIONAL FINALS

SATURDAY

DIVISION I

#1 Mira Costa d. #2 Loyola, 14-25, 25-20, 25-23, 19-25, 15-5

DIVISION II

#2 Orange Lutheran d. #1 Francis Parker, 25-21, 25-19, 25-15

DIVISION III

#1 Central East d. #6 Mission Bay, 3-2

DIVISION IV

#1 El Cajon Christian d. #2 Point Loma, 25-19, 23-25, 27-25, 25-17

Note: State Championships May 30 at Fresno City College.

BEIRUT, Lebanon, May 22 (UPI) — Lebanon’s agriculture sector emerged as another victim of Israel’s widespread attacks across southern Lebanon, damaging vast areas of farmland, displacing the majority of the region’s farmers and threatening the country’s food security, economic resilience and cultural identity.

The sector, which is key to Lebanon’s economy and plays a vital role in sustaining rural communities and preserving cultural traditions, had not yet recovered from the impacts of the 2023-2024 war between Hezbollah and Israel when it was again hit by resumed hostilities in March.

The fresh escalation severely disrupted farming activities, with an estimated 22.5% of agricultural areas (56,264 hectares) damaged, including farms and greenhouses, and nearly 80% of farmers (more than 6,593) displaced and unable to access their land due to Israeli military activities, according to an updated report released by the Lebanese Ministry of Agriculture on May 5.

The report indicated that the most affected crops in the south are bananas (95%), citrus trees (97%), olives (91%) and small-scale farming, which accounts for 80% of Lebanon’s total agricultural area.

Moreover, more than 1.8 million heads of livestock (cows, goats, sheep and poultry), 29,121 beehives, and 2,030 tons of fish have been lost.

Nizar Hani, the minister of agriculture, said the sector suffered its biggest losses compared with previous wars, adding that agricultural losses have doubled since the March 2 escalation to about $1.5 billion, out of an estimated total war damage that exceeds $20 billion.

Hani said Israel is establishing a buffer zone in southern Lebanon “empty of any life, where no one can pass through, hide or live,” through destruction of entire villages, properties, orchards and olive trees.

He said southern Lebanon produces 70% of the country’s citrus fruits and 90% of its bananas, supplying the local market and exporting to neighboring countries such as Syria, Jordan and Iraq.

And he told UPI that the heavy agricultural losses, inflation, and resulting job losses had a direct impact on food security, with 24% of people living in Lebanon — including Syrian displaced persons, Palestinian refugees and others — requiring immediate assistance.

According to an analysis by the Agriculture Ministry, in collaboration with the U.N.’s Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Food Programme, 1.24 million people were expected to face food insecurity between April and August 2026, marking a significant increase from the November 2025-March 2026 period, when an estimated 874,000 people experienced acute food insecurity.

Nora Ourabah Haddad, the Food and Agriculture Organization representative in Lebanon, warned that damage to irrigation systems, productive infrastructure, livestock systems and agricultural supply chains is further weakening local production capacity.

Haddad referred to substantial declines in the production of milk, meat, eggs and honey after 1,600 farms were affected and more than 1.8 million animals killed during the war.

She said the scale of the damage is “extremely serious” and extends far beyond the affected agricultural land that included some of the country’s most productive farming areas.

“What is at stake today is Lebanon’s capacity to sustain local food production, protect rural livelihoods and preserve the resilience of its agrifood systems at a time when the country is already heavily dependent on food imports and facing severe economic pressures,” she told UPI in an interview.

Haddad said food prices rose by 8.4% in the first quarter of 2026, while transport costs increased by 21%, adding that higher fuel and logistics costs expected to continue to drive up prices.

This time, farmers fear prolonged displacement after being forced to leave their land and homes under Israeli evacuation orders in early March — as many were preparing for the planting season.

Hussein Salameh, head of an agriculture cooperative in the Bint Jbeil-Marjeyoun area, recalled how they fled without having time to take any belongings, move their cows away or release them.

Salameh, an inhabitant of the village of Aitaroun, said the displaced farmers mostly feel “frustrated and abandoned” after exhausting their savings on working their land and repairing their damaged homes when they first returned after the Nov. 27, 2024, cease-fire.

He noted that Hezbollah did not provide them then with any financial assistance, saying it no longer had the funds to do so.

Unlike other displaced employees or skilled workers who could still find work in their areas of refuge, they have lost their only source of livelihood away from their land, he said.

“This is a big tragedy. … Farmers have only their land to live on and survive,” he told UPI.

The fear is that when farmers remain separated from their land, livestock and livelihoods for extended periods, many gradually lose the ability to sustain themselves and may eventually abandon agriculture altogether, Haddad warned.

Helping farmers protect what remains of their livelihoods by providing emergency agricultural support and restoring the country’s agricultural capacity before losses become “irreversible” were emerging priorities for the Food and Agriculture Organization, she said.

However, soil contamination presents another major concern after Lebanon and international rights groups accused Israel of unlawfully using white phosphorus and the herbicide glyphosate during its attacks on southern Lebanon, destroying crops and damaging beehives and livestock.

“This is an international environmental crime,” Hani said, adding that Israel “sprayed everything with glyphosate.”

The destruction and uprooting of old olive trees — some of which have been cultivated and preserved across generations, and in some cases for centuries — was equally painful.

“It is the loss of a living heritage … olive trees are deeply connected to family history, local traditions, food culture and rural economies,” Haddad said, adding that their destruction carries not only economic consequences, but also profound social and cultural impacts on farming communities.

Restoration is possible, but it requires time as newly planted trees require many years before becoming fully productive.

“Some of these ancient olive trees may also contain unique genetic heritage that has adapted to local environmental conditions over centuries, making parts of this loss potentially irreversible from a biodiversity perspective,” Haddad said.

Even if hostilities were to stop today, recovery in southern Lebanon’s agriculture sector would not be immediate and would require extensive international funding and support.

Farmers would also need time to recover from the “deep psychological impact” of being uprooted from their land, after their “cultural and environmental values” were destroyed, according to Hani.

To Salameh, Israel was not just targeting Hezbollah but carrying out what he described as “collective punishment” against everyone living in the south, including those opposed to the Iran-backed group.

“Would such collective punishment ensure security for Israel? Would that bring peace?” he asked.

Russia pounded Ukraine’s capital overnight on Saturday with drones and ballistic missiles, including a powerful hypersonic Oreshnik missile, killing at least four people and damaging residential buildings. Footage shows people sheltering underground, while firefighters work above.

After 10 days of crazed moviegoing at the Cannes Film Festival, Times film critic Amy Nicholson and Times film editor Joshua Rothkopf are all but spent. They leave with 10 recommendations (listed below in alphabetical order), including several titles you’ll be hearing about during awards season, but also, admittedly, more reservations than usual.

Amy Nicholson: There are worse ways to spend your life than watching four movies a day in the south of France. For a week and half, we ran in and out of the dark theaters, blinking at the shock of the sun and bickering about what we just saw with the highest concentration of film lovers anywhere — most of us jacked up on espresso or rosé. Yet, we’re flying home miffed that the movies themselves were mediocre. Cannes is meant to launch ambitious, prickly works by grandmasters and next-generation talents. This year, the programming looked like a party with an impressive invite list — Nicolas Winding Refn, Asghar Farhadi, Hirokazu Kore-eda — but upon arrival, all the guests felt like old acquaintances tapped out of anything interesting to say.

I’m being harsh. Cannes had good movies, too. But I needed this year’s Cannes to be great. Audiences trickling back into theaters deserve to see something fantastic. Instead, too many filmmakers took the crowd’s attention span for granted; even the strongest films in competition could delete a half-hour of dead air. Fittingly, the majority of my favorites came from Cannes’ kookier programming sections, Directors’ Fortnight and Un Certain Regard — and I suspect many of yours did, too, oui?

Joshua Rothkopf: I did find a handful of films from the main competition that impressed me, but point taken: Nobody is served if we can’t admit that this year’s edition was weaker than others. We could blame screenwriting or pacing (though paradoxically I was impressed by both the longest and the shortest movies in competition). Maybe it’s an overall lack of boldness. When a restored version of Ken Russell’s salacious 55-year-old “The Devils” eclipses virtually everything else shown at the festival, a certain timidity is hard to deny. There were too many “nice” films: perfectly respectable but not what I want Cannes to be.

Fortunately, we saw enough to sharpen up a list of favorites. Here’s what stirred us.

‘All of a Sudden’

I’m not convinced that the utopian vision of end-of-life care presented in Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s drama has a fighting chance in America, but we deserve the opportunity to grapple with its compassionate turns and have that discussion. The director of “Drive My Car” continues his process-centric exploration of workplace relationships in this quietly revelatory movie, one with a centerpiece conversation that merits comparison to the long walks of Richard Linklater’s “Before” movies. Virginie Efira and Tao Okamoto let a day’s stroll linger into profundity, the twilight dimming and human connection brewing in all its possibilities. Is it too late for them? It doesn’t need to be. — Joshua Rothkopf

‘The Beloved’

Esteban (Javier Bardem), a renowned bad boy Spanish filmmaker, returns to his homeland from New York to shoot a period picture in the desert. Off-screen, he’s gifted one of the four leading roles to his estranged daughter (Victoria Luengo), an aspiring actor who hasn’t seen her father in 13 years. Esteban failed as Emilia’s dad. Can he succeed as her director, especially when her big break packs this much pressure? Not likely, especially as Emilia has inherited his disastrous boozing habits. “The Beloved’s” actual director, Rodrigo Sorogoyen, unleashes his leads to become a tag team of destruction, each blaming the other for what’s going wrong on set. They’re both mired in clashing narratives of their relationship. Sorogoyen shows us the truth, as well as the visible frustrations of the film-within-a-film’s cast and crew that risk shutting down this too-passionate passion project. — Amy Nicholson

‘Bitter Christmas’

(Iglesias Mas / Sony Pictures Classics)

Pedro Almodóvar’s self-flagellating film about his artistic process has a Charlie Kaufman-lite structure that I’d rather let audiences discover on their own. In brief: Almodovar’s avatar, a filmmaker named Raúl (Leonardo Sbaraglia), gets dragged over the artistic coals by the dramatic female characters he’s been writing for decades, one of whom dares him to simply coast on his legacy. Too many veteran filmmakers in his year’s Cannes competition seem to have accepted that bargain, so when Raúl got to the end of a new script and decided it wasn’t up to his standards, I nearly shouted “Bravo!” Navel-gazing cinema about the creative process isn’t usually my bag, but Almodóvar doesn’t take his own misery that seriously, even inserting a manic pixie dream hunk, a male stripper-slash-firefighter played by Patrick Criado, for a little bump and grind. — Amy Nicholson

‘Clarissa’

It’s been 101 years since Virginia Woolf first published “Mrs Dalloway,” a novel about persnickety party hostess Clarissa Dalloway colliding with her former lovers, one male and one female. The plot seems simple, but every glare and sigh tells a whole story about modernization, capitulation, cynicism and violence. Twin brothers Arie and Chuko Esiri have transplanted the tale to present-day Nigeria and stacked the cast with Sophie Okonedo, Ayo Edebiri, Nikki Amuka-Bird, David Oyelowo and the staggeringly talented India Amarteifio as the diva in her captivating youth before she married a tedious oilman and started bullying the help. “Clarissa” makes several smart adjustments, swapping in a traumatized Boko Haram soldier for a shell-shocked veteran of the Great War, and cocking an eyebrow at the shiny new yoga studios and coffee shops littering Lagos’ once-lush waterfront. Better still, it’s sexy as heck — the flashbacks are one swimsuit party after another. — Amy Nicholson

‘Club Kid’

The one-sentence pitch of Jordan Firstman’s debut dramedy — a gay nightclub promoter sobers up when he discovers he has a 10-year-old boy — sounded as fun as snorting a line of aspartame. I stand corrected. “Club Kid” is a blast: a spicy, surprising and irreverent comedy that rarely peddles the audience anything artificially sweet. Firstman stars as Peter, a debauched millennial aging out of a New York scene that never cared about him as a person in the first place. His business partner Sophie (Cara Delevingne) is a horror; his selfish squatter-roommate Nicky (Eldar Isgandarov) is even worse and so hilarious I’d watch a spin-off sequel just about him. Peter’s shock son Arlo (Reggie Absolom) has a casual charm that pickpockets your heart, but it’s the script’s sour quips that will have you urging people to get past the treacly set-up and go see “Club Kid” themselves. — Amy Nicholson

‘The Diary of a Chambermaid’

Art punk Radu Jude’s latest satire is about a Romanian immigrant with a burlesque double life. By day, Gianina (Ana Dumitrașcu, fantastic) is the live-in housemaid of a daft Parisian family; by night, she’s an actress in a turn-of-the-20th century slapstick farce about a housemaid whose master suckles her patent leather boots. In neither world can she openly say what she thinks (although in her native tongue, she curses her employers and their young son plenty). Fast, crisp and snide, “The Diary of a Chambermaid” gives equal weight to the monotony and the absurdity of Gianina’s grind. And Jude isn’t above including a mocking slow-motion shot of a spoiled French boy totally whiffing a soccer kick. — Amy Nicholson

‘Fatherland’

The tension at the heart of Paweł Pawlikowski’s period piece, set in a ravaged, fallen Germany after the end of World War II, is one that goes unresolved. All that’s left are defensive denials, evasions of Nazi collaboration and the faint hope that something higher has survived. I could watch this kind of guilt-ridden post-apocalyptic movie for hours; instead, this lasts a scant 82 minutes. The conclusion, a wordless moment between father and daughter set to the strains of Bach played on a broken pipe organ, was the most devastating passage of the entire festival. “Fatherland” shows off Pawlikowski’s exquisite way with black-and-white evocations of European tragedy, but he’s never summed them up as poetically. — Joshua Rothkopf

‘Fjord’

People at the festival called this one complex; I found myself disagreeing. It’s actually a fairly straightforward story about a religious but mostly level-headed family flung into conflict with an overly sensitive branch of child protection services — and maybe with the whole of agnostic Norwegian progressivism. As reactionary as that sounds, I was totally rapt. Partly that’s due to a beautifully plotted courtroom scenario and the immersive performances of Sebastian Stan and Renate Reinsve, reuniting after “A Different Man,” as parents increasingly out of their depths. But mainly, I credit Romanian director Cristian Mungiu, who knows a good story when he sees one, crystallizing its potency with every camera choice. — Joshua Rothkopf

‘Minotaur’

The ice-chilled return of Russian filmmaker Andrey Zvyagintsev (after a multiyear battle with long COVID) is worth the wait: a condensation of everything he does well into something so purely distilled, it should come with a proof warning. The movie kicks off as a casual portrait of the vacant nouveau riche lifestyles of the mini-oligarchs: fancy dinners, divorces, bathroom gossip. Then it becomes an erotic thriller (it’s based on Claude Chabrol’s 1969 “The Unfaithful Wife,” as was Diane Lane’s “Unfaithful”). But the best comes last, as the situation gets fixed in broad daylight with breathtaking brutality. The war in Ukraine? Someone else’s problem. “Minotaur” takes on the whole of Putin’s dissociative society and puts its winners above the blackened clouds, looking down at the rest of us. — Joshua Rothkopf

‘Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma’

I am growing to love Jane Schoenbrun’s exfoliation of ’80s horror obsessions, especially for the movie’s nonjudgmental embrace: Let these movies be free in all their “problematic” badness and let them work on you. The fact that “Teenage Sex” sometimes plays like a bottle episode of “Hacks” doesn’t hurt. Hannah Einbinder brings vulnerability to a project that needs her brand of self-excoriating fearlessness. Points, too, for not turning this into yet another celebration of some forgotten male director reclaimed as a genius. Rather, the opposite: It’s about an abused scream queen (Gillian Anderson, gamely campy), a liminal, wintry campground and the exhilaration of running in the woods in your pajamas. — Joshua Rothkopf

P&O Cruises passengers are urged to check the rules for their destination before packing certain medications

P&O Cruises passengers heading to specific destinations worldwide are being advised to pay special attention to the medications they bring. The cruise operator is a favoured option for countless Britons, carrying between 500,000 and 600,000 travellers annually.

P&O Cruises operates a fleet of seven vessels. This collection features both family-oriented choices and adult-only ships, spanning from massive floating resorts to more intimate, traditional boats. All the ships go to numerous nations, including Norway, the Caribbean, and the Canary Islands.

For those with bookings to Japan or voyages exploring the Arabian Gulf, it’s essential to verify what medications are permitted. These nations enforce stringent regulations, and particular medicines are prohibited for personal import and non-prescription use.

This includes codeine, which is frequently found in paracetamol tablets. On the P&O Cruises website, the operator outlines all the crucial information passengers require, reports the Liverpool Echo.

It states: “Please be aware that some prescriptions, over-the-counter drugs, complementary therapies and other medicines that are purchased in the UK may be illegal in the United Arab Emirates and are therefore banned in the country. Japan also has rules regarding such medication. Penalties can be severe if banned substances are found when entering these countries.”

It states: “Codeine, for example, is banned and no products containing codeine, which may include paracetamol, may be imported or sold in the United Arab Emirates. An import Certificate from the Japanese or UAE Authorities would be required in order to take such products into the countries, and this does not guarantee the products will be permitted.”

According to the NHS, codeine is a potent opioid painkiller and is often combined with paracetamol to treat moderate pain that standard paracetamol alone cannot alleviate. This combination is typically known as co-codamol.

Codeine is categorised as a narcotic. You’re prohibited from bringing it into Japan for personal use without obtaining strict prior authorisation. Codeine is also designated as a controlled substance in the UAE.

If you’re taking medication and have any uncertainty, contact the appropriate embassy before your arrival:

• United Arab Emirates London Embassy Medical Department: 020 7486 6281
• Japanese Embassy: 0207 465 6500
• You may also check for further information at www.fco.gov.uk.

P&O Cruises also advises that anyone travelling with medications and/or syringes should carry a prescription. It clarifies: “All medications should be kept in their labelled dispensing bottles or packages. If the medications are ‘controlled’ or injectable drugs, it is also advisable to carry a doctor’s letter.

“For the United Arab Emirates, it is essential to carry a prescription for any medication, as well as a medical report if you are travelling with syringes or other medical equipment. We strongly advise you to seek advice if any of the above affects you.”

Clara Adams expected to win the 400-meter dash Saturday in the Southern Section Masters Meet at Moorpark High. The Long Beach Wilson junior not only won, she broke the section record, circling the track in 51.98 seconds.

“To be honest, I did not expect a 51 today … that was my end goal and I got it before state,” said Adams, who topped the previous mark [set by Norco’s Shae Anderson in 2017] by one hundredth of a second. “It says a lot about my training and teammates who push me in practice every day. I’m ecstatic.”

Even better than breaking a section record is breaking a state record and Adams was smiling wider several hours later after she and teammates Brooke Blue, Brooklyn Fowler and Saniah Varnado did just that by clocking 3:33.83 in the 4×400 relay to obliterate the time of 3:35.49 set by Moore League rival Long Beach Poly in 2004. Rosary Academy was a distant second in 3:41.33.

“The 400 was our first race of the day, all of us ran it and we all qualified for state and that carries over to the rest of the day,” said Adams, who ran the third leg and widened the Bruins’ lead before handing the baton to Varnado for the anchor leg. “The state record is a bonus. We handled our business and now we have a week to prepare to go for the national record.”

Florida Montverde Academy owns the national record of 3:31.68, achieved at the 2024 New Balance Nationals Outdoor in Philadelphia, but Wilson’s foursome was content with the state record, at least for now.

“We already had a good lead when I got it but everyone was getting loud and I was pushing,” Varnado said. “I was thinking we could run in the high 3:30s. I’m proud of how well we did and hopefully we can do even bigger things at state.”

The CIF state track and field championships are next weekend (prelims Friday and finals Saturday) at Buchanan High in Clovis and as usual the Southern Section will be well-represented as numerous athletes met the qualifying standards.

After three-peating in the 1,600 and 800 one week before at the Southern Section finals, Corona Santiago senior Braelyn Combe won both events again Saturday, winning the 1,600 in 4:43.03, well off her 4:41.36 effort at the section finals but still more than two seconds faster than runner-up Reese Holley of JSerra. She won the 800 Saturday by about the same margin in 2:06.04.

Calabasas dominated at the section finals with four runners breaking the Division 3 record in the 100. They were back at it Saturday as last week’s champion Malia Rainey ran 11.33 to win the first heat. Devyn Sproles equaled Rainey’s 11.41 one week before to win the second heat and take second overall. Marley Scoggins (11.46) was third and Coyotes teammate Olivia Kirk (11.62) was fifth.

Tra’via Flournoy led off Rosary’s 4×100 relay, which won in 44.79 at the Masters Meet on Saturday in Moorpark.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

Rosary’s 4×100 relay established itself as the favorite at state finals with a 44.79, more than a second faster than runner-up Canyon Country Canyon. The Royals’ foursome of Tra’via Flournoy, Justine Wilson, Pfeiffer Lee and Maliyah Collins is hoping to top the state-record (44.23) it set at Arcadia in April when it heads north for the state meet.

“It wasn’t a [personal record] but it was faster than last week,” said sophomore Collins, who ran the anchor leg. “This was a tuneup. Our handoffs were clean and we got the baton around the track. That was our main focus.”

West Ranch junior Tamea Crear (23.50), Kirk (23.54) and Rosary’s Wilson (23.61) and Collins (23.69) took the top four spots in the 200 meters.

San Jacinto Valley Academy sophomore Kaaliyah Lacy clocked 13.44 to win the 100 hurdles, one hundredth off her state-leading time that earned her the Division 4 section title one week ago. Varnado won the 300 hurdles in 41.53.

Irvine senior and Duke commit Summer Wilson, a three-time Southern Section champion in the 3,200, ran a new-season best (10:14.45) and shaved nearly 10 seconds off her time in the Division 2 sectional race.

Irvine’s Summer Wilson wins the 3200 meters in 10:14.45 at the Masters Meet after placing third last year.

(Steve Galluzzo / For The Times)

After sweeping the all three jumps events at the Division 3 section finals, Jurupa Valley senior AB Hernandez did the same Saturday, winning the long jump in 20 feet, 0.75 inches, the triple jump in 40-7 and the high jump in 5-8.

Los Alamitos senior Cassidy Nguyen cleared 13-2 to win the pole vault while Aliso Niguel was first in the discus (165-10) and shot put (49-0) after winning the Division I section crown in both last week.

Woodbridge junior Aidan Antonio won the 3,200 boys race in 8:55.30 while Sterling White of Oaks Christian became the first freshman in state history to break nine minutes, finishing seventh in 8:59.26 to break the ninth-grade record of 9:01.1 set by Eric Hulst of Laguna Beach in 1973.

Riverside King’s Maximo Zavaleta (4:06.30) and Antonio (4:06.54) battled all the way to the finish line to claim the top two spots in the 1,600.

Having won the Division 3 boys title in 38.39 one week earlier, Servite’s 4×100 relay won Saturday’s race in 40.17, followed by Moorpark (40.60) and Loyola (40.83).

“I like the first leg and coming out of the blocks because I get to see my teammates win,” said Jace Wells, whose exchange to Jorden Wells was smooth. Kamil Pelovello and Benjamin Harris ran the last two legs. The foursome set the state record (39.70) at Arcadia.

Harris won the 100 in a wind-aided 10.17 (one hundredth faster than his time in the Division 3 section finals last week), then won the 200 in 20.80 (31 hundredths slower than his winning time a week ago).

“It’s what I expected — I’m proud of it,” Harris said of his 100 time. “I just wanted to execute, win my race and move on. There’s more work to be done.”

Loyola’s Ejam Yohannes beats Servite’s Jaelen Hunter by 11 hundredths of a second in the 400-meter dash.

(Steve Galluzzo / For the Times)

In the most exciting finish of the day, Loyola senior Ejam Yohannes edged Servite sophomore Jaelen Hunter by 11 hundredths of a second in 46.40 in the 400 meters, one week after Hunter ran 46.36 to set a section Division 3 record. Johannes cut three tenths off his Division I winning time last week.

Upland (3:18.54) won the boys 4×400 and Gardena Serra (3:18.88) was second. Crean Lutheran’s Noah Richardson cleared 15-6 to win the pole vault while Redondo Union’s Bo Ausmus won the discus with a throw of 185-7 and the shot put with a mark of 61-9.

Having won the Southern Section Division 3 high jump crown in a lifetime best and state-leading 7-01 seven days earlier, Sherman Oaks Notre Dame senior JJ Harel still had the best height Saturday at 6-10, tied with Nathaniel Baca but winning on fewer misses. Harel aims to repeat as state champion.

Moorpark’s Davis Benson was first in the long jump Saturday at 22-11.75 (he won the Division 3 section crown with a leap of 23-5 last week), followed by Dane Malloy (22-10.5) and Harel (22-9.25). Paloma Valley senior Arthur Stringer won the triple jump in 47-4.5.

Long Beach Poly’s Lynnox Newton won the 110 high hurdles in 13.69, Etiwanda’s Brandon Andrade (13.85) was second and Benson (13.94) third. Andrade (37.01) was second behind Palm Desert’s Kingston Penny (36.86) in the 300 hurdles.

Brunson scores 30 points as the Knicks beat the Cavs 121-108 to take a 3-0 lead in the Eastern Conference finals.

The New York Knicks are on the brink of their first NBA Finals since 1999 after a 121-108 victory at Cleveland stretched their playoff win streak to 10 games.

Jalen Brunson scored a game-high 30 points, OG Anunoby added 21 and Mikal Bridges contributed 22 on 11-of-15 shooting as New York pushed the Cavaliers to the edge of elimination on Saturday.

“I’m at a loss for words,” Brunson said. “I thought we fought, most importantly.”

The Knicks seized a commanding 3-0 lead in the best-of-seven Eastern Conference finals and could complete a sweep in game four on Monday in Cleveland.

No team in NBA history has recovered from a 3-0 deficit to win a playoff series.

“The series isn’t over,” Anunoby said. “Just keep our foot on their necks and just try to win the game.”

Brunson said the Knicks must continue to concentrate. “Just focus on one possession at a time.”

“The way we’ve been having that mindset these past couple [of] weeks, we have to continue it, if not actually better.”

The Knicks last reached the NBA Finals 27 years ago when they lost to San Antonio. They have not won the NBA championship since 1973.

New York’s Karl-Anthony Towns had 13 points, eight rebounds, seven assists and three steals while Josh Hart added 12 points, nine rebounds, five assists and four steals for a Knicks team that has not been beaten in a month.

Brunson said, “Our mindset hasn’t changed.

“We’re trying to get better every single day. We’re trying to learn from winning.

“There’s a lot of things we can get better at. There’s a lot of things we can control, a lot of mental errors that we need to clean up, but we’re always just looking for ways to try and get better.”

Evan Mobley led Cleveland with 24 points, while Donovan Mitchell added 23 and James Harden scored 19 points.

The Cavaliers, who squandered a 22-point lead to lose the series opener, never led as New York seized command early and dominated.

“I guess you could say momentum carried over [from game one],” Anunoby said.

“We try to play the right way every game, but maybe that momentum carried over a little bit.”

New York started the game 10-of-13 from the floor to seize a 29-19 lead only 8:29 into the contest, Towns delivering 11 points in the run on the way to a 37-27 lead after the first quarter.

Cleveland trimmed New York’s half-time edge to 60-54, but the Cavs committed six turnovers in the first six minutes of the third quarter.

The Knicks were ahead 91-82 entering the fourth quarter and stretched it to 110-93 in the closing minutes before completing their fifth triumph in a row.

“It’s just executing the game plan on both sides of the floor, playing the right way, moving the ball, then getting stops on defence,” Anunoby said of New York’s secret to success.