European lawmakers agreed on Wednesday to freeze the EU-US trade deal struck last summer, Euronews has learned, ratcheting up pressure on transatlantic relations after US President Donald Trump threatened fresh tariffs on several European countries who reject his insistence that the US should take over Greenland.

The agreement was reached last year after weeks of trade tensions triggered by the aggressive tariff policy Trump rolled out following his return to power. While a political agreement was reached in the summer, the deal still required formal implementation by the European Parliament.

Lead MEPs handling the file met on Wednesday afternoon and decided to suspend the process, officially postponing a vote that had been scheduled for next week in the Parliament’s Committee on International Trade.

Tensions intensified after Trump said on social media he would impose a 10% tariff from February on Denmark, Sweden, Norway, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Finland and the United Kingdom until “a deal is reached for the complete and total purchase of Greenland”. The rate would rise to 25% by June should no agreement be reached.

MEPs view the threat as a breach of the EU-US deal, which already imposes 15% US tariffs on EU goods while committing the bloc to cut its own tariffs on US industrial imports to 0%.

Lawmakers had been preparing amendments to the deal in the coming days, with many already describing it as unbalanced in the US’s favour.

On Saturday, Bernd Lange, the German MEP who chairs the Parliament’s trade committee, said work on the agreement should be suspended – a position adopted the same day by leaders of the Parliament’s main political groups, the EPP, S&D and Renew.

EU leaders will meet on Thursday night to prepare the bloc’s response to Trump’s threats, which many see as a form of blackmail.

This is a developing story.

The gesture has been praised by the official supporters’ club (OSC) as there were limited calls from fans to be refunded.

Kevin Parker, representative of Manchester City’s OSC, said: “City fans will travel to the ends of the earth to support our team, and last night was no different in the arctic circle.

“Bodo is not an easy place to get to, and the sub zero temperatures made it a challenging evening on a number of levels for our fans.

“The City support has an incredible connection with the players on a matchday, and this gesture is yet another reminder of that relationship – it means a lot to us.

“We know that the players are disappointed with the defeat to Bodo, but with our next game at home on Saturday there’s a chance to get back to winning ways and our fans will be in full voice.”

City suffered one of the biggest upsets in Champions League history in being stunned by Glimt and now require victory in their final group-phase game against Galatasaray to ensure a top-eight finish.

Haaland called the result “embarrassing” and apologised to the travelling fans by telling TNT Sports: “Bodo played some incredible football and it was deserved.

“I don’t know what to say. What I can say is sorry.”

A woman has slammed a man for his ‘entitled’ behaviour on their flight – and it has prompted people to share their own stories about sitting next to rude passengers

A woman has criticised an “entitled” fellow passenger for their behaviour on a flight, although some people have dismissed it as a “non-issue”. She detailed her experience on a Delta flight where she had managed to bag an emergency exit seat with extra legroom.

However, another passenger seemed keen on encroaching into her additional space. Posting a photo on Reddit, she wrote: “The audacity. This is my poor (wo)man’s first class…”

The image depicted a man extending his legs into her footwell, compelling her to keep her legs folded and preventing her from enjoying the extra room. While some users felt there was ample space for both passengers, others condemned the man for “manspreading” without considering its effect on her.

One user remarked: “Is that the 27F seat? That’s the one I chose because I heard it’s the best seat, and now I’m worried I’ll have the same issue.”

Another user added: “This is such bizarre behaviour.

“If there were a seat there, he wouldn’t be stretching his leg and foot underneath it… or maybe he would. He probably would – who am I kidding.”

A third user shared their own experience: “My dad always gets this seat on Southwest (he’s six foot six inches), and the other day when we flew together, he had to tell the lady in front that the space was actually for his backpack, not her second carry-on that she refused to put overhead.

“He just said, ‘Excuse me, that’s my spot to put my bag,’ but she gave him such a nasty look.”

Another user said: “At least he still has socks and shoes on.

“My wife had to go full wife mode to stop us from getting kicked off a plane when some random stranger’s bare foot slid up and touched my arm while I was in a window seat.

“I just turned around and said, ‘No, no, no, no.’.”

Another savvy traveller offered some advice: “This is when I put my backpack at the edge of my floor space.

“He can’t put his foot in your space, and even though you lose some room, you can stretch your legs over your bag and take back the space. This has worked many times.”

Revealing her solution to the problem, the woman added: “I pulled my backpack up into the space to use as a leg rest so he had to move. Passive, but it worked – for now.”

Booking a trip abroad isn’t always cheap, but there are three savvy ways that could help you save up to £1,000 off your next holiday – and it’s just by making a few simple changes

Amid the gloomy British weather and sights set on the year ahead, many of us are turning our attention to booking our 2026 getaway. Happily, there are some savvy saving hacks worth noting that could help you save £1,000s on your next holiday, and it’s just by making three small changes.

Once transport, accommodation and spending money are taking into account, things add up. Luckily for us, TUI has outlined some vital saving hacks that help us save extra cash, whether that’s a European city break or a sun-soaked beach getaway.

To reveal the cheapest ways to book a holiday, First Choice, part of the TUI Group, analysed two years of booking data. From this, they discovered that making a booking with slightly unconventional travel details, as they called it ‘Wonky holidays’, makes a holiday considerably cheaper.

One of the major changes was to adjust the number of nights when staying abroad. Instead of defaulting to a 7 or 14-night stay, they recommend booking a 6, 8, 13 or 15-night stay.

First Choice found that travellers booking an odd-length stay, such as 5 or 11 nights, paid up to 13 per cent less per night than those choosing a standard duration. They also found that flying on a Tuesday or Thursday, rather than a Saturday, saved holidaymakers around £70 per person.

The travel group also suggests flying from the cheapest airport available, rather than the closest one. While it’s easier to head to our nearest airport, First Choice found that swapping departure or arrival airports revealed major savings, and in some cases more than £1,000 per passenger.

The findings, compiled in partnership with money-saving expert Jordan Cox, revealed that making these small, unconventional adjustments, such as staying an odd number of nights, flying midweek, or choosing an alternative airport, can help travellers save up to £1,100 per person.

For example, First Choice found that a 7-night stay at the four-star Constantinou Athena Beach Hotel in Paphos, Cyprus, with return flights from London Heathrow on Saturday, 25 July 2026, would cost someone £1,500 per person. However, swapping the flights to London Luton and departing a week before on Tuesday, 14 July, would get the exact same holiday for just £947 – a saving of £553 per person.

They also added that booking a getaway during the quieter months, like January, March, early April, or mid-September, was typically 16 per cent cheaper than peak summer travel. In addition, when booking off-peak times, First Choice said travellers can take advantage of extra deals that are typically available.

Money-saving expert, Jordan, said: “People work hard all year for their holiday, but too often they end up paying a premium simply by following the crowd. The First Choice research shows that being flexible, whether that’s travelling midweek, choosing a different airport, or avoiding the standard seven- or 14-night stay, can unlock significant savings, sometimes even enough to take two trips for the price of one.

“Even small differences in price add up, especially for families, and that extra money can make a real difference once you’re away. A little research and a willingness to embrace slightly ‘wonky’ choices can go a long way.”

Kevin Nelson, the managing director of First Choice, said: “People want incredible holidays, and confidence they’re getting great value. That’s why we created Wonky Holidays: to make it easier to find flexible trips that deliver better value without compromising on experience.”

Do you have a travel story to share? Email webtravel@reachplc.com

IT’S almost time for the kids’ first break of the year and there are lots of theme parks and holiday resorts with special events for February half-term.

There’s entertainment for the whole family from becoming a pirate to wrestling and pop concerts – here’s the full list to add to your diary.

Alton Towers

Alton Towers in Stoke-on-Trent is going to sea this half-term as it undergoes a Pirate Takeover.

The pirates of Mutiny Bay are once again taking command of Alton Towers.

Entertainment includes Captain Finn’s Training Camp, The Pirates of Mutiny Bay: The Hunt for the Crown of T’Hulu, Pieces of Eight: Interactive Treasure Hunt and Sharkbait Reef by SEA LIFE.

Park day tickets are available from £18pp.

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If you fancy a short-break over February half-term, these start from just £64pp.

Booking a Pirate Takeover short break includes a one-day theme park entry, pirate-themed hotel entertainment, one-day waterpark entry, 9 holes of extraordinary Golf, buffet breakfast and free parking.

Butlin’s

Across the three Butlin’s resorts, Skegness, Minehead and Bognor Regis is a plethora of half-term entertainment.

Headlining February breaks will be Maximum Pro Wrestling which is new for 2026.

There will be celebrity hosts including Peter Andre and Jeff Brazier, with meet and greets,

There’s also The Masked Singer Live on Stage as well as shows like Jack and the Beanstalk, the new Peppa’s Pig-Nic Party and the Theatre of Rock.

February half-term breaks start from £134pp.

Drayton Manor

Drayton Manor is back for half-term breaks and is entering the world of K-pop.

From February 14 to 23, 2026, the park will have live performances, interactive dance workshops, fancy dress competitions and colourful pop-up experiences.

At the end of the day will be a K-Pop concert along with a huge water show on the lake.

Day tickets start from £22.90, or buy a K-Pop Concert Only Ticket for £19.90.

Also open during half-term is the Jolly Buccaneer, Bounty Pirate Ship, Carousel, the 25 rides in Thomas Land and Drayton Manor’s 15-acre zoo.

Legoland

While Legoland isn’t necessarily having a ‘takeover’ this February half-term, it is bringing back Brick Days.

Along with it’s other 30 rides and attractions, guests can take part in exclusive brick building challenges, interactive workshops, and character Meet & Greets.

Day tickets for half-term Brick Days start from £32pp.

An overnight stay which includes one-day park entry and breakfast starts from £117pp.

Parkdean Resorts

Feb Fest is coming to Parkdean Resorts in time for half-term.

Expect a packed itinerary of exciting free indoor and outdoor activities, meet-and-greets with the kids’ favourite characters and live music.

There will be Paw Patrol-inspired activities, Milkshake! mornings, glow parties, famous faces with Reality Rocks and arts and crafts.

February half-term breaks start from £149pp.

For more family fun, check out the first look at the UK’s new Bluey rollercoaster – the first-of-its-kind in the world.

And check out England’s little-known theme park to get two new rides this year in massive multi-million pound expansion.

A BEAUTIFUL house sitting on an English lake has been named the best holiday rental to stay at this year.

Holiday rental franchise, Pass the Keys, has announced the winners of its Property of the Year 2026 Awards – and this holiday home has nabbed top spot.

The property on the website is called ‘stunning 5-bedroom lake house with a hot tub and views‘ has been named ‘Overall Property of the Year 2026’.

In their feedback, judges praised the pretty house for its “total wow factor” and described it as “a luxury leisure stay.”

The house is in the Cotswolds sitting on Minety Lake, with has five bedrooms, five bathrooms – sleeping up to 12 guests.

On the ground floor is an opening kitchen, living and dining space, as well as a private hot tub and access to the shared swimming pool.

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GO SEA IT

£9.50 holiday spot with shipwrecks, seals offshore & horseshoe-shaped waterfalls

There’s also a cosy snug ideal for children to play in, or stream their favourite shows on the TV.

The living area has a plush orange sofa with squishy chairs and a wood burner.

Open the glass doors to step out onto the private deck with a hot tub, BBQ and jetty for paddleboarding or even a swim.

Thanks to its south facing position, each room and the deck outside is flooded with natural light.

Up on the first floor is one of the two super-king bedrooms which has an en-suite shower room and its own balcony overlooking the lake.

The first floor has another two king-size rooms, one with an en-suite and the other with access to the family bathroom.

If you’re booking a stay, make sure you get first pick of the bedrooms and head up to the second floor.

Described as the ‘jewel of the house’ the master bedroom has an enormous gable-end window with incredible lake views.

On the top floor is a children’s bedroom with a bunk bed that sleeps four, and a small double bed – not to mention it’s filled with toys.

You can pack everything but the kitchen sink as each room has built-in wardrobes too for multiple outfit changes.

There’s plenty of exploring to do as the house sits on the Lower Mill Estate, which is surrounded by a nature reserve that has even more lakes and rivers.

It has private woodlands too, which are ideal for walking, running and cycling if you’re after an activity holiday.

The estate also has amenities that anyone staying in the house can use too, including the two heated pools, a spa, steam room, sauna, gym, restaurant, and soft play.

If you fancy heading somewhere livelier, the market town of Cirencester is a 15-minute car drive away.

The town is often nicknamed the ‘Capital of the Cotswolds’ and has a huge market place as well as lots of independent shops.

Meanwhile, the Malt and Anchor was named one of the best fish and chip shops in the UK.

The holiday home is available to rent from £582 per night.

As the property sleeps 12 people this works out as £48.50 per person per night.

For more staycations, here are six deals across the UK from Cotswolds cottages to lakefront lodges.

And here’s the UK’s best holiday homes revealed – from a private island with a casino to a stunning cottage right on the beach.

SDF chief Mazloum Abdi urged US-led coalition to ‘bear responsibilities’ for securing facilities coming under gov’t control.

Syrian government forces have entered the vast Al-Hol camp housing thousands linked to ISIL (ISIS) after Kurdish forces who had been controlling the facility for years withdrew.

Armoured vehicles carrying troops moved into the camp, located in the desert region of Hasakeh province, on Wednesday. The peaceful transfer of control suggests that the four-day ceasefire between the government and the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), announced the previous day, appears to be running smoothly.

The transfer of control of the camp, which houses some 24,000 people – mostly women and children linked to ISIL – came after two weeks of fighting between the army and the SDF that was brought to a halt by Tuesday’s truce.

The fighting has seen the SDF, which played a major role in defeating ISIL in alliance with a United States-led international coalition, lose swathes of north and east Syria.

The Kurdish forces had controlled the territories during the chaos of Syria’s civil war, which ended in December 2024 with the fall of former President Bashar al-Assad’s regime.

The government of President Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus, which toppled al-Assad and is now replacing the SDF as the US’s key partner in the battle against ISIL, wants the Kurdish fighters to integrate into the Syrian state. That process may now get under way should the ceasefire hold.

Tom Barrack, the US envoy to Syria, said in a statement on Tuesday that the SDF’s role as the primary anti-ISIL force had “largely expired” and that the government in Damascus is “both willing and positioned to take over security responsibilities”.

Earlier this week, President al-Sharaa and SDF chief Mazloum Abdi had agreed that the Syrian state would take over responsibility for ISIL prisoners.

Abdi on Tuesday urged the US-led coalition to “bear its responsibilities in protecting facilities” holding ISIL members.

Largest ISIL camp

Al-Hol is the largest camp for people with links to ISIL, which was defeated in Syria in 2019.

The camp was established by Kurdish forces after they took control of swathes of Syria, with coalition backing.

Those held at al-Hol include about 14,500 Syrians and nearly 3,000 Iraqis.

Some 6,500 others, many of them loyal ISIL supporters who came from around the world to join the armed group, are separately held in a high-security section of the camp.

The SDF remains in control of the vast majority of more than a dozen prisons where some 9,000 members of ISIL have been held for years, according to The Associated Press.

The largest facility, holding about 4,500 ISIL-linked detainees, is the Gweiran Prison, located in the city of Hasakeh, which is still under full control of the SDF.

On Tuesday, the Syrian Interior Ministry said 120 ISIL members escaped from the Shaddadi prison in Hasakeh province.

The army accused the SDF of releasing ISIL detainees from the facility, while the Kurds said they lost control of the facility after an attack by Damascus.

Since then, many of the detainees who fled were captured by government troops who took control of the jail, state media reported.

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The Chase star Mark Labbett rushed to defend host Bradley Walsh after furious ITV viewers slammed a controversial ruling.

The Chase‘s Mark Labbett has defended host Bradley Walsh after a viewer branded a decision during the show “disgraceful”.

The quizzer, dubbed The Beast, features on the popular ITV programme alongside fellow Chasers Shaun Wallace, Anne Hegerty, Paul Sinha, Jenny Ryan and Darragh Ennis.

During yesterday’s repeat episode, Mark faced off against student Marsha and retired supply manager Ian, who had progressed to the final chase.

The pair were battling for a £45,000 prize pot, having answered 18 questions correctly. Under the show’s rules, the contestants can push Mark back by correctly answering questions he gets wrong.

During the round, both the Chaser and contestants were posed the question: “In the Bible, King David saw which beautiful woman bathing?”, reports the Express.

The Beast responded: “Jezebel,” which was incorrect.

Ian hesitated: “I can’t think of anything,” whilst Marsha interjected with “Helen”, as Ian simultaneously offered: “Bathsheba”.

Bradley explained: “Bathsheba is correct, however, Marsha without nomination looked at me and called the answer first, which was Helen.

“I have to accept the first answer and have to tell you that is wrong, we remain eight to catch.”

One viewer was left fuming, taking to X to complain: “Disgraceful making rules up on the spot. Brad.”

Another furious viewer wrote: “cheating b******s on #thechase. Both gave answers at the same time. So it should have been clarified which answer was to be taken. If Marsha hadnt been nominated as Walsh claimed, her answer should have been ignored.”

“Now that was just cruel! Rematch needs to happen,” someone else wrote, while another said: “Absolutely robbed.”

One viewer said: “Very very harsh – Brad should have asked the spokesperson to answer – ref Bathsheba … very unlucky.”

Another called it “gutting”, and several said the players were “robbed” after the “brutal” round.

Another added: “Brad should have taken Ian’s answer as he was the nominated player to give their answers to push backs. Or at least asked them which answer they wanted to offer.”

Another person defended Bradley’s comment, writing: “Marsha piped up with “Helen” when Brad asked for the final answer, fractionally quicker than Ian with “Bathsheba”. That’s why the answer wasn’t allowed. How I see it.”

Another claimed: “Technically, Marsha wasn’t the spokesperson so her Helen answer should have been overlooked.”

Mark later rushed to the defence of Bradley, saying it had never been his decision.

He wrote on X: “I can guarantee that the adjudicator made that call rather than Brad.”

For the latest showbiz, TV, movie and streaming news, go to the new **Everything Gossip** website

Mark has previously addressed the gameshow being “fixed”, remarking: “We do have people say, ‘They give you the answers though, right?’

“I always point out that we’re all international quizzers, I mean, Anne is a two-time work ladies champion.

“They think you can’t be that good and the answer is we are.”

The Chase airs weekdays at 5pm on ITV1 and ITVX.

California has a problem. It’s not homelessness, a lack of housing or the state’s increasing unaffordability, all of which have been documented at length.

It’s truth decay.

If you believe that information is the taproot of knowledge and expanding personal vistas is key to learning, there’s a case to be made that the great Golden State — quietly, with scant notice — is growing more impoverished by the day.

In the last quarter of a century, a third of California newsrooms have closed.

Nearly 7 in 10 journalists have lost their jobs.

The relentlessly cruel economics of the news business, driven in good part by the voracious profiteering of monoliths such as Google and Facebook, has devastated the industry — including the newsroom that employs your friendly columnist — drastically shrinking its output and leaving California, like the rest of the country, vastly worse off.

There’s an information vacuum and that space is filling up with garbage.

Increasingly, the daily diet of “news” that the media serves up is being sourced from partisans, propagandists and self-interested promoters who falsely style themselves as prophets of the unvarnished truth.

(If you genuinely can’t differentiate between news and commentary, such as this, or between those making an honest attempt to present a fair, all-things-considered account of events versus someone shaving, eliding and shoehorning facts to fit a predetermined narrative, here’s a suggestion: Save time, skip the rest of this column and turn to the sports or comics pages.)

Not long ago, California took a baby step toward addressing this rampant decay.

Now, even that tiny effort is tottering.

In August 2024, the state and Google reached a deal to invest $175 million over five years in local journalism. It was a compromise of sorts, and a lopsided one at that. Lawmakers were pushing a measure, similar to those enacted in Australia and Canada, that would have forced tech giants to pay online publishers for the ransacking, er, use, of their journalistic content.

They can well afford it.

In just one year — 2018 — Google made $4.7 billion from the work of news outlets, according to the News Media Alliance, a trade organization. The company’s share of its agreement with California — $55 million — is barely a speck on its balance sheet; revenue for Alphabet, Google’s parent company, topped $102 billion in its most recent quarterly earnings report.

Google spent $11 million lobbying to kill the journalism-support legislation, but eventually agreed to kick in at least something. Facebook took an oppositional stance — greed and amorality apparently being endemic to its corporate culture — and threatened to remove news posts from its social media platforms if California forced the company to cough up for the news it used.

Gov. Gavin Newsom hailed the deal with Google, modest though it was, with characteristic grandiosity.

“This agreement represents a major breakthrough in ensuring the survival of newsrooms and bolstering local journalism across California,” he said. “The deal not only provides funding to support hundreds of new journalists but helps rebuild a robust and dynamic California press corps for years to come, reinforcing the vital role of journalism in our democracy.”

The reality, however, has turned out quite differently.

In May 2025, Newsom slashed the state’s first-year commitment to the newsroom-subsidy program from $30 million to $10 million, citing budget constraints. (In the same budget year, California vastly expanded its film and TV tax credit, showing where the governor’s priorities lay.) Google then said it would match the state’s $10-million investment and no more.

But even that $20 million has yet to reach newsrooms. And going forward, the prospects for boosting California’s stretched-thin newsrooms look exceedingly dim.

In his most recent budget proposal, released this month, Newsom proposed precisely zero dollars for the so-called Newsroom Transformation Fund. Which means Google is on the hook for precisely zero dollars — though any contribution at all is subject to the company’s goodwill.

“The deal was never etched in paper and signed by any party — it was a handshake agreement in principle,” Erin Ivie, a spokesperson for Assemblymember Buffy Wicks, told CalMatters. (The Oakland Democrat was a key participant in negotiations with Google.)

“There was never any penalty or consequence built into the agreement,” Ivie said, “as the arrangement is voluntary, not coercive.”

Steve Glazer, a former Democratic state senator from Orinda, authored legislation that would have imposed an “extraction” fee on the major tech platforms, raising about $500 million a year that California news outlets could have used to hire local journalists. It passed the Senate in June 2024 on a two-thirds vote but was torpedoed as part of the compromise that resulted in the deal with Google.

Glazer, who left the Legislature in December 2024, has continued his fight to sustain local journalism, serving as a senior advisor to the group Rebuild Local News, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that seeks to do what its name suggests.

“A functioning democracy has independent news as [a foundation] for oversight and accountability,” Glazer said, noting the erasure of two-thirds of professional journalists in California in the last 25 years. “The ability of the public to get information, discern the facts and have reasoned opinions about who’s in charge and doing what is in serious jeopardy without a robust local news community.”

Forcing social media platforms to pay for the news and information they pilfer and monetize seems a quite modest and reasonable step. Not just to provide news publishers the equivalent of a fair and honest wage, but also to bolster our wobbling democracy by fostering an engaged and knowledgeable electorate.

It’s not too much to ask of lawmakers: Make California robustly informed again.

France striker Jean-Philippe Mateta has told Crystal Palace he wants to leave amid interest from other Premier League and European clubs.

Mateta has 18 months remaining on his current deal at Selhurst Park and as things stand he will not be signing an extension.

Italian giants Juventus have tried to sign the striker this month but have so far failed to reach Palace’s valuation, which is believed to be around £40m.

Aston Villa, who have been keen on Mateta for some time, have also shown interest in a move this month.

Speaking last week, Palace manager Oliver Glasner admitted the club are listening to offers for Mateta.

“There will be a price that Crystal Palace [accept], with 18 months left on his contract. We’d do the deal, if JP wants. If nobody pays that price, then he will stay,” said the Austrian.

Palace, who won the FA Cup in May, sold star midfielder Eberechi Eze to Arsenal in the summer and have lost captain Marc Guehi this January, after he joined Manchester City in a £20m deal.

Glasner, who announced last week that he will leave the club at the end of the season, launched a scathing attack on the Palace hierarchy following Saturday’s loss to Sunderland – claiming the team had been ‘abandoned’ by the club’s recruitment strategy.

Palace were knocked out of the FA Cup at non-league Macclesfield in one of the tournament’s greatest shocks earlier this month.

Hague-based agency for fighting international and organised crime says it has dealt ‘massive blow’ to narco traffickers.

European police have smashed a major network manufacturing synthetic drugs in illegal labs across several countries.

Polish prosecutors announced on Wednesday that investigators had seized more than 9.3 tonnes of narcotics and arrested more than 100 suspects in an operation targeting ⁠a criminal network centred in the Central European country and spanning the European Union.

The operation dismantled 24 industrial-scale labs and seized about 1,000 tonnes of chemicals, imported legally from China and India, used to make street drugs such as MDMA, amphetamine and meth, according to news agency AFP.

Andy Kraag, head of Europol’s European Serious Organised Crime Centre, which coordinated police actions across borders, said the operation had dealt a “massive blow to organised crime groups involved in drug trafficking”.

“I’ve been in this business for a while. This is by far the largest-ever operation we did against synthetic drug production and distribution,” he said.

The yearlong operation involved police from Belgium, the Czech Republic, Germany, the Netherlands, Poland and Spain. Among those arrested were two suspected ringleaders, both from Poland, Kraag said.

Laboratories and drug production lines were located in Belgium, the Czech Republic, Germany, the Netherlands and Poland, which served as the logistical hub.

The majority of those arrested were from Poland, but Belgian and Dutch nationals are also thought to have been involved.

Suspicions were raised in 2024 when Polish police noticed a network importing vast quantities of chemicals from China and India.

Investigators discovered they were being repackaged, mislabelled and redistributed across the EU to the labs.

Kraag said the operation was part of a “supply-chain strategy” to choke off the synthetic drug industry at its source.

“These criminal groups, they don’t have their supply any more,” he said.

A U.S. Navy P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol jet executed a rare presidential Combat Air Patrol (CAP) flight on Monday. It took place while President Donald Trump was attending the College Football Playoff National Championship (CFP) at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens. The aircraft provided “incident awareness assessment (IAA) support” for the United States Secret Service (USSS) during the presidential CAP, U.S. Northern Command (NORTHCOM) told The War Zone.

“IAA involves the use of Department of War (DoW) assets to provide situational awareness in support of domestic operations,” NORTHCOM stated. “IAA has been successfully utilized in the past for similar high-profile events, such as disaster response operations and large-scale public gatherings, where DoW assets provided critical situational awareness to support civilian authorities. A P-8 aircraft was identified as available to assist with this mission.”

Using a P-8 for presidential CAPSs “doesn’t happen very often,” a NORTHCOM spokesman added, however, he could not immediately provide greater details about the frequency.

@aircraftspots first posted about the peculiar flight, which was later highlighted by another open source plane tracker, @TheIntelFrog. The militarized 737 derivative, callsign JULIET ECHO 191, was launched from its home at Naval Air Station Jacksonville at 4:51 PM Eastern and began doing orbits at nearly 18,000 feet starting roughly 30 miles north of the stadium and extending over the Atlantic Ocean.

Around 7:14 PM, the jet then flew tighter orbits at about 3,700 feet around 1.5 miles west of the stadium before flying a wider pattern at the same altitude, a few miles south, that lasted until about 8 PM, according to ADS-B data. It then flew additional loops at altitudes ranging from 15,000 feet to 18,000 feet east, southeast and northeast of the stadium before returning to base just after 10 PM.

The lower-altitude passes coincided with Trump’s arrival in the area, but did not appear to follow the motorcade route. According to the White House, Marine 1 landed at North Perry Airport at 7:03 PM Eastern. Trump’s motorcade traveled south and arrived at the stadium at 7:08 PM.

The president and his family attended the game, which the Indiana Hoosiers won over the Miami Hurricanes by a 27-21 score. Trump left at 10:47 PM.

The P-8 can provide overwatch capabilities fitting into the requirements of an IAA. According to the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD): “IAA is similar to DOD’s definition of Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance (ISR). However, ISR is conducted outside the United States over foreign territory or within the United States during Homeland Defense events, while IAA is conducted within the United States in support of DSCA [Defense Support of Civil Authorities] operations. The change in title is necessary to make it clear that DOD does not collect Intelligence on US persons. IAA operations focus on providing timely and usable information to all levels of command and to local, State, Civil, and Federal leaders in order to save lives, reduce human suffering and protect property.”

There are three IAA mission sets, including Broad Area Coverage (BAC), Damage Assessment (DA), and Situational Awareness (SA). 

“Similar to ISR in the HD mission, IAA capabilities include Electro-Optical (EO), Infra-red (IR), Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), Multi-spectral/Hyper-spectral (MSI/HSI), and Full Motion Video (FMV),” NORAD notes. 

While the P-8 is largely known for its anti-submarine, anti-surface warfare, and sea control roles, its suite of sensors makes it very well suited for an IAA operation over land as well.

The P-8 is equipped with a very powerful Wescam MX-20HD electro-optical turret capable of capturing high definition moving video of targets on the earth’s surface. This combined with the P-8’s extensive communications system, as well as its fast response times due to its jet speed while still being able to loiter relatively low and slow, would be reason enough to use it for a mission like this. In addition, its onboard radar and electronic surveillance measures (ESM) suite could also come into play, to a lesser degree. A handful of P-8s can also carry the slab-like Advanced Airborne Sensor (AAS) that is attached to the lower forward fuselage of the aircraft. This is an incredibly capable and secretive radar capable of taking very high definition synthetic aperture radar maps and detecting moving objects down below in complex littoral areas. It likely has other functions that are not disclosed, possibly including spotting low-flying aircraft. You can read all about this system here. Other modular surveillance payloads remain undisclosed, but an advanced communications intelligence system has been spotted bolted below the aircraft’s chin. Because of its size, the P-8 can also serve as an impromptu command and control platform, taking on specialist crewmen, if need be.

For a good sense of what it is like to fly the P-8 on real-world missions, we covered that in this past feature of ours.

Suffice it to say, P-8s are extremely capable, multi-role aircraft. And that is why they are so heavily tasked around the globe.

While P-8s likely help monitor maritime movements near where the president may be staying in some circumstances, flying a presidential CAP over land is unusual for a Poseidon. DHS has many aircraft that are equipped with similar imaging capabilities and are far more efficient than the P-8. It isn’t clear if these aircraft were simply unavailable or if some of the P-8’s unique capabilities were needed for this specific mission.

There is a wide range of threats, from drones to bad actors on the ground, that exist at such a high-profile affair as the College Football National Championship. This is all magnified when the president is in attendance, with many more contingencies being needed to be set in place, including route clearing for the motorcade and general overwatch of the facility and the area surrounding it. Security concerns may have been further heightened in the wake of threats Iranian officials made against Trump for his calling for anti-government protests there to continue while still mulling military action against the regime. The regime in Tehran has a long history of making direct threats against Trump, including implying they could use drones to assassinate him.

We may see Poseidons called upon for more presidential CAPs in the future. In the past, P-3C Orion patrol planes were sometimes used for these missions, the NORTHCOM spokesman told us, but the Navy stopped flying them last year.

The CAP flight can be added to the already relatively huge and still expanding number of mission sets the P-8 can be called upon to execute at any given time.

Update 7:35 AM Eastern Jan. 21-

Aircraft spotter Nick Strader, who uses the X handle @indyspotter, shared a photo he took of the Poseidon at about 5:22 PM Monday as the aircraft was heading south toward the Miami area. The jet was flying over Withem Field in Stuart, Florida, at the time.

Contact the author: howard@thewarzone.com

South Korean K-drama Can This Love Be Translated? starring Kim Seon-ho has earned an 8.1 IMDb rating with fans calling it a “masterpiece” and a series you can “finish in one sitting”.

The South Korean rom-com Can This Love Be Translated?, written by Hong Jung-eun and Hong Mi-ran, stars Kim as Ho-jin, an interpreter who crosses paths with budding actress Mu-hee (Go) during a trip to Japan. Despite being new to the industry, Mu-hee swiftly lands a significant role and reunites with Ho-jin, who serves as her interpreter during an interview.

Their lives intertwine again when she participates in a reality show, hinting at a potential deeper bond.

At the heart of this Netflix original K-drama is a show within a show, where Mu-hee chases Japanese actor Hiro Kurosawa (Sota Fukushi) across the globe on a reality dating series named Romantic Trip. Ho-jin aids them in overcoming the language barrier, but Mu-hee’s insecurities and past trauma trigger a mental health crisis, with Ho-jin fervently dedicated to supporting her.

Featuring Sota Fukushi and Choi Woo-sung in secondary roles, the series is currently available for streaming in the UK on Netflix, with all 12 episodes having been released on the platform in mid-January (January 16), reports the Express.

While professional critics have yet to extensively review this series, Can This Love Be Translated? has received acclaim from viewers, boasting an impressive average user rating of 8.1 out of 10 based on 65 reviews on IMDb.

Awarding it a perfect 10 out of 10, one viewer declared the series “an absolute masterpiece” and “hands down” the “best romance of 2026”. Elaborating on their thoughts, they confessed: “I honestly don’t even know where to begin because I am still sitting here, staring at a blank screen, trying to process the emotional rollercoaster I just went through.”

They urged, “If you are looking for a sign to watch this, this is it. Do not hesitate. This isn’t just a drama; it is an experience, and it has completely ruined me for any other romance series in 2026.”

Another viewer described the programme as “a masterclass in romantic chemistry and emotional depth”, explaining: “‘Can This Love Be Translated?’ moves beyond the typical tropes to ask profound questions about communication and intimacy. I was particularly impressed by how the show handles mental health and past scars without losing its lighthearted charm.”

They concluded: “It’s sophisticated, heartwarming, and internationally resonant. Netflix has found a true gem here.”

Branding it “outstanding”, a third viewer praised: “Lead actors did a great job, this is not your typical romcom giddy type of series, you have to be open-minded to really appreciate the premise of the story, the subtle delivery of funny lines, and of course, the most awaited romance was perfect. Loved it. I finished it in one sitting. The cinematography was superb.”

A fourth admirer of the programme shared their thoughts: “This series made me feel everything. A quiet, emotional love story about misunderstandings, unspoken feelings, and the courage it takes to truly understand someone.”

They continued: “The chemistry is soft but powerful, the pacing is slow in the best way, and every glance says more than words ever could. Not just a romance – it’s a reminder that love itself is a language.”

In the months after the Palisades fire, the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation raked in millions of dollars in charitable donations to pay for training and equipment for firefighters, as LAFD leaders publicly complained about not having enough money to keep the city safe.

But some of the funds were quietly spent on something that had little to do with firefighting: a celebrity public relations firm to help LAFD leaders shape their messaging after a disaster in which their missteps figured prominently, The Times has learned.

Neither the LAFD nor the foundation would say how much the charity paid the Lede Company, whose clients include Reese Witherspoon and Charlize Theron, and what exactly the firm did for the department. A Lede representative declined to comment, saying the company does not discuss client matters.

“The LAFD Foundation provided communications support by hiring the Lede Company as part of its mission to provide resources to the LAFD,” Liz Lin, president of the foundation, said in an email. “The Foundation was not involved in the services provided by the Lede Company. Specific details regarding the Department’s use of the Lede Company should be addressed by the LAFD.”

The revelation comes as the LAFD is under heightened scrutiny for altering its after-action report to downplay the city’s failures in preparing for and responding to the fire, which killed 12 people and destroyed thousands of homes. The LAFD declined to answer questions about the work of the PR firm, including whether any changes to the report were made at its direction, vaguely citing federal court proceedings.

Federal prosecutors have charged a former Palisades resident with starting a Jan. 1 fire that reignited into the Palisades fire six days later.

“Any further responses will be evaluated following the conclusion of the federal case and in accordance with legal guidance at that time. Thank you for your understanding that no additional responses will be provided until all related court proceedings have been fully resolved,” the LAFD said in an unsigned email.

The after-action report was meant to spell out mistakes, which included not fully pre-deploying engines to the Palisades amid forecasts of dangerously high winds, and to suggest measures to avoid repeating them. But before the report was even completed, LAFD officials worried about how it would be received, privately forming a “crisis management workgroup” to “create our own narrative” about the fire and its aftermath.

Fire Chief Jaime Moore said he met with Lede in mid-November, on his first or second day at the helm, and thanked them for their work, but that he does not know what precisely they did for the department, which was led by interim Fire Chief Ronnie Villanueva when the report came out on Oct. 8.

“I’m assuming they had something to do with the after-action report, because they’re a PR firm,” Moore said in an interview last week. “I would think a PR firm was going to give advice to the fire chief, because at the time, they didn’t have a director of public information. So my assumption would be they were using a PR firm as the PR director.”

The author of the report, LAFD Battalion Chief Kenneth Cook, declined to endorse the public version because of changes that altered his findings and made the report “highly unprofessional and inconsistent with our established standards.”

While Moore admitted that the report was watered down and said he would not allow similar edits to future after-action reports, he said he did not see a benefit in determining who made the changes to the Palisades report.

“I gotta wonder, what is it gonna matter to me? Because I can see what the original report says. I can see what we put out to the public. I can see where the original report and the public report aim to fix the same thing,” he said. “They aim to correct where we could have been better. And it identifies … the steps that are going to be necessary to make those corrective actions.”

Mayor Karen Bass’ office did not respond to questions about whether she met with Lede, what direction its publicists gave city officials and what role the company had in preparing or editing the after-action report.

On its website, Lede boasts of representing “some of the biggest names and brands in entertainment, fashion, beauty & wellness, … advocacy, media, nonprofit and related industries.” In addition to Witherspoon and Theron, its client page includes photos of actors Kerry Washington and Rami Malek and singers Rihanna and Pharrell Williams. The firm represents brands such as Isabel Marant, Clinique and Hennessy Cognac and includes a strategic corporate communications division.

In the wake of the fire, Rick Caruso, the businessman and one-time L.A. mayoral candidate, committed $5 million to the Fire Department Foundation, in annual increments of $1 million.

One of Caruso’s executives sits on the board of the foundation, which bills itself as “the official nonprofit arm of the LAFD” and lists net assets of $12.3 million on its tax return for fiscal 2023-24, the most recent available. According to its website, it “provides vital equipment and funds programs that help the LAFD save lives and build resilient communities.“

Caruso told The Times on Tuesday that the foundation should disclose the amount and specific purpose of its spending on Lede, and that he will ask for an audit to ensure that none of his initial $1-million donation went to the company.

“The donation that our family made to the foundation is specifically intended for and limited to the protection and service of the city of Los Angeles,” said Caruso, who built popular malls like the Grove and the Americana at Brand. “I don’t want the money we donated going to a PR firm.”

Caruso, who has been fiercely critical of Bass and the city during the fire and its aftermath, added that he will withhold future payments to the foundation if an audit is not performed.

“Transparency is critical,” he said. “It’s part of the fiduciary responsibility of the foundation to the taxpayers and the city of Los Angeles to be completely transparent.”

Austin Beutner, a former Los Angeles Unified school superintendent who is running for mayor, said the failure by Bass, the LAFD and the foundation to explain the Lede Company’s role is “an unconscionable lack of transparency.”

“People died. Tens of thousands of people lost their homes, along with tens of thousands of people who lost their jobs. We owe them the truth,” said Beutner, whose home was severely damaged in the fire and who has called for an independent investigation into the city’s preparations for and response to the fire.

Laurie Styron, executive director and chief executive of CharityWatch, a Chicago-based watchdog of nonprofit organizations, said the foundation “should be excited about” disclosing specifically how it is spending donor money, including on the PR company.

“The fact that they’re being cagey about it is eyebrow-raising,” she said.

In a brief interview this month, Bass told The Times that she did not work with the Fire Department on changes to the after-action report, nor did the agency consult her about any changes.

“That’s a technical report. I’m not a firefighter,” she said.

A spokesperson previously said that Bass’ office did not demand changes to the drafts and only asked the LAFD to confirm the accuracy of items such as how the weather and the department’s budget factored into the disaster.

“The report was written and edited by the Fire Department,” the spokesperson, Clara Karger, said in an email in December. “We did not red-line, review every page or review every draft of the report.”

LAFD Assistant Chief Kairi Brown wrote in a July email to eight others, including Villanueva, that the goal of the internal crisis management team “is to collaboratively manage communications for any critical public relations issue that may arise. The immediate and most pressing crisis is the Palisades After Action Report.”

“With significant interest from media, politicians, and the community, it is crucial that we present a unified response to anticipated questions and concerns,” Brown wrote. “By doing so, we can ensure our messaging is clear and consistent, allowing us to create our own narrative rather than reactive responses.”

Cook emailed his final draft to Villanueva a few weeks later. Over the next two months, the report went through a series of edits — behind closed doors and without Cook’s involvement.

Cook’s version highlighted the failure to require firefighters to stay for an additional shift and to fully pre-deploy in the Palisades as a major mistake, noting that it was an attempt to be “fiscally responsible” that went against the department’s policy and procedures.

The department’s final report stated that the pre-deployment measures for the Palisades and other fire-prone locations went “above and beyond” the LAFD’s standard practice. The Times analyzed seven drafts of the report obtained through a records request and disclosed the significant deletions and revisions.

The report only briefly mentioned the Jan. 1 Lachman fire, which the LAFD failed to fully extinguish. The Times found that a battalion chief ordered firefighters to roll up their hoses and leave the burn area despite complaints by crews that the ground was still smoldering.

After the Times report, Bass directed Moore to commission an independent investigation into the LAFD’s handling of the earlier fire.

Moore said he has opened an internal investigation into the Lachman fire through the LAFD’s Professional Standards Division, which probes complaints against department members. He said he requested the Fire Safety Research Institute, which is reviewing last January’s wildfires at the request of Gov. Gavin Newsom, to include the Lachman fire as part of its analysis, and the institute agreed.

Pringle is a former Times staff writer.

At 6 feet 3 and 250 pounds, with arms thicker than a Shohei Ohtani wooden bat, Abraham Datte is someone on the campus of Monroe Highthat you want to stay close to.

He’s been the heavyweight wrestling champion in the City Section for two years. He’s the deputy chief in the school’s Fire Academy Magnet and is studying to be a paramedic, which means one day he could be saving your life.

“He’s a physical specimen,” wrestling coach Jean-Antoine Ramirez said. “When you see him, that’s the guy I want pulling me out of a car, my house or at the top of a tree.”

Need someone to crash through a door, Datte will do it. Need someone to carry one of those heavy engine company water hoses, Datte can do that. Challenge him to produce a good time in an obstacle course, no problem.

It was freshman year he discovered wrestling was his sport. He entered Monroe as a 13-year-old and went out for football but couldn’t play varsity until he turned 14. He played in one game. Then the coach informed players, “If you want to get better, you have to join wrestling or start lifting.”

“I tried out for wrestling and loved it,” Datte said. “Coaches were great, the weight classes were two and three deep. There were a lot of motivational figures around me.”

By sophomore year, he was a City champion. He remembers the crowd being loud and clapping after he pinned his opponent.

“I was feeling more relief than excited. It was, ‘I finally did it,’” he said.

He walks 15 minutes from his home in Northridge, then takes a 20-minute bus ride to Monroe in North Hills. He’s been doing it since freshman year. The Fire Academy was his motivation.

“As an eighth grader, I was eavesdropping when my mom was talking to a friend and I heard something about medical insurance and how expensive it is,” he said.

He asked his mother, a P.E. teacher at Chatsworth, “Will it be expensive for me?”

“Yes, find a job that gives you good benefits,” she replied.

Datte: “Being a kid, I came across firefighting. How fast can I get into this?”

He looked up schools on the web that offered classes and came across Monroe.

After 3 1/2 years, he has risen to No. 2 in command for his class in charge of physical workouts and equipment. Students get hands-on training and learn about the body and how to use firefighting equipment.

As far as wrestling, Datte’s goal is to win a state title. He’s ranked No. 7 in the state.

“I love the competitive aspect of it,” he said. “I love if I wrestle and lose, there was no one to blame but myself. I prioritize performance over victory. If I perform my best, that was still a positive performance.”

As for lessons learned from wrestling, Datte said, “Always put yourself in a coachable position. When I was young, I thought I knew everything, which I didn’t.”

So far he hasn’t had to use his firefighting knowledge, like CPR.

“Expert, no. Knowledgable, yes.”

He’ll be ready in the ring and at the door ready to make an impact.

Casey from Chorley, Lancashire moved to another country that has been named the world’s most affordable place five years in a row, with rent from £150, meals costing £1-4 and taxis just £3

As everyday essentials and household bills continue to climb amid Britain’s ongoing cost of living crisis, it’s tempting to fantasise about building a life somewhere more affordable. One British woman, Casey, turned that fantasy into reality by swapping Chorley, Lancashire, for a significantly cheaper life in Vietnam.

Vietnam has been crowned the world’s most budget-friendly destination for five consecutive years, based on InterNations’ Expat Insider 2025 survey. Meanwhile, Forbes reports that a staggering 86 per cent of expatriates residing in Vietnam commend the nation’s affordability and cost of living – and Casey is one of them.

“Did you know that you can live in Vietnam for as little as £300 per month?” she revealed in a TikTok video filmed while living in Da Nang, a bustling coastal metropolis renowned for its stunning sandy shores, breathtaking views, and famous attractions, including limestone caverns and Buddhist sanctuaries.

Casey relocated to Vietnam in 2025, revealing she’d allowed herself just 24 hours to secure accommodation, yet still managed to snag a luxurious flat with swimming pool facilities for £490 monthly for herself and her partner. She continued: “I’ve been getting loads of comments that you can stay here for literally £150 per month.”

“It’s literal paradise here,” she said while showcasing the stunning views from her new apartment. In a Facebook update, Casey advised: “Do not look on Airbnb, use Facebook Marketplace because you’ll get it for literally half the price.”

Although she chose a marginally pricier flat, which Casey attributed largely to their pressing timeframe, she noted that sharing the rent with her partner Taylor means they each pay £245 monthly, equivalent to £61.25 weekly. Beyond housing costs, she’s also informed her followers that dining out at restaurants proves equally budget-friendly.

“Food is obviously super affordable – if you eat the western food it’s £4 per meal, but if you eat Vietnamese food it’s £1 per meal,” she detailed, before lauding the taxi service which arrives ‘instantaneously’ and typically costs approximately £3 per journey. “

So on average, I spend around £21 per week on taxi,” Casey shared.

Regarding entertainment options, including excursions or playing pickleball and badminton, the British expat revealed she allocates roughly £25-30, whilst also setting aside another £20 for treats like massages.

For more fundamental expenses, Casey mentioned she also maintains travel insurance, costing her £60 monthly, which breaks down to about £15 weekly. As for income generation, Casey operates through her social media channels and makes a living from her content.

Folks were left scratching their heads at the sums Casey claimed to be spending weekly, with many expressing that it made them consider a similar move. “Another great video! So so excited to get myself back to this stunning country,” one individual remarked.

A different viewer shared: “I was planning on moving to Thailand permanently but after researching Vietnam especially Da Nang I’m now heading there.”

“I need to move to Vietnam. It’s so beautiful and the fooood! !” another person exclaimed.

If you’ve always wanted to visit the Maldives, but are lacking the time and budget, Ryanair will be offering inexpensive flights to a European alternative where you can enjoy beaches that are just as beautiful

Budget airline Ryanair has launched a number of new routes to a city that is becoming increasingly popular with Brits, in part thanks to its proximity to beaches often compared to the Maldives.

Ryanair will offer 20 new routes to Tirana, bumping its number of routes into the city to 43 overall. From spring, passengers will be able to visit this Albanian city from Liverpool, Birmingham, and Dublin, with flights taking just over three hours. The new routes are in addition to Ryanair’s existing UK services from London-Stansted and Manchester, and seasonal flights from Edinburgh.

Flights are available to book from Liverpool and Dublin on dates from March 30, and departing Birmingham on dates from March 29. Fares can be found for as little as £23 one-way in May, and with 26C highs during this month, its likely to become a popular destination for sunseekers on a budget in the spring.

If you’re looking for a beach holiday, then you have lots of options once you land in Tirana. Ksamil in the south of the country is one of the most popular beach areas, and you can get a direct bus to the resort from the airport which takes just under four hours. Ksamil is a village that sits between a lagoon and the Ionian Sea, with Corfu just across the water. With its white sand beaches and turquoise seas, plus tiny islands that can be explored by boat, it has drawn comparisons to the Maldives.

For the full Maldives-style experience, book a day at Pema E Thatë, a private beach club where you can hire cabanas. Some beach huts come with overwater nets, where you can sit and relax, watching the gentle waves of the ocean below. You can order a beer from around 250 Lek (around £2.25) to sip while you enjoy the views.

Durrës is about half an hour from Tirana, and is a port city that sits on a long area of sandy coastline. Durrës Beach has a palm tree lined promenade and clear blue waters, yet it’s only minutes from the historic city centre.

There’s also the smaller Plazhi i Currilave right next to the port. While there’s not much space on the sand, you can hire a lounger and umbrella to secure your spot, and there are bars and restaurants right on the beach that create a lively atmosphere.

Durrës is also famous for its Roman amphitheatre, and parts of this 2nd-century structure are still standing including the stone steps. One of the city’s most iconic sights is the 5th-century Venetian Tower of Durrës, a medieval fortification where you can enjoy spectacular coastal views from its old guard towers.

It’s also worth visiting the Muzeu Arkeologjik, a local archeological museum full of items that date back thousands of years that have been discovered just under the city streets.

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Tirana itself is also a fascinating city break destination, bringing together a blend of styles from Ottoman to Soviet in one colourful city. Skanderbeg Square is a great starting spot to explore. You’ll find buildings such as the 17th century Et’hem Bey Mosque sitting alongside the Soviet-style Opera House, and the National History Museum which is adorned with a huge mural depicting people fighting for the country’s freedom.

You can also visit the unique Bunk’Art 2 – a museum set inside a Communist-era nuclear bunker. Climb down the steep steps and you’ll enter an immersive world where you can learn about the fascinating history of Albania and what life was like during its decades as a secretive Communist state.

Many visitors to the city also recommend a trip to Tirana Castle. While only a few ruins remain of the medieval castle, the spot has been turned into a unique attraction with food stalls and places to buy handicrafts, so you can pick up some souvenirs and try Albanian cuisine.

Have a story you want to share? Email us at webtravel@reachplc.com

WITH the launch of series four pulling in a massive 7.5million Brits, it’s fair to say Traitors-mania is in full swing across the UK.

Sweeping success breeds superfans – and they can now live the show out for themselves in a new experience in a UK seaside town.

James and Lindsey Gordon, from Whitstable, are also Traitors fans who have taken their obsession to the next level – by converting their family home into a traitorous lair.

Called House of Deceit, it’s a fully immersive nod to the nation’s newfound love of game shows that play on psychological competition and high-stakes deception.

The experience? A two-night, fully hosted stay where guests take over the large coastal house for secrets, strategy and suspicion.

Lindsey told The Sun: “When we moved to Whitstable, we thought we wanted a semi-detached suburban newbuild to accommodate our growing family.

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“But the estate agent kept driving us past an imposing 1930s house that happened to be up for sale.

“I couldn’t take my eyes off it; it was so grand.”

The former care home had been closed for years – but it was too tempting for the couple who ended up buying the house.

She continued: “Since we began restoring it, we’ve uncovered original fireplaces, beautiful tiles and wooden floors.

“With nine en-suite bedrooms and lots of social space, it feels as though the house has been waiting to welcome new guests all this time.”

She said she even learned more about the house along the way, adding: “It was first built for the local doctor and his surgery before it became a care home, so by all accounts was full of mischievous, eccentric characters.

“It still has a sense of mischief – there are bumps in the night and we’ve heard giggles and laughter come from empty rooms.

“We can’t explain it, but the house is so big and eerie, it’s hard not to wonder if some of the residents ever truly left.”

Buying a big house and doing it up is one thing, but adapting your family home into a real-life murder and deception game is quite another.

For James and Lindsey, it transpires this pretty unusual path unfolded for them naturally, through a series of events that led to a bit of an epiphany.

“Last year, I was looking after my mum who had some health issues,” James explained.

“We became addicted to Celebrity Traitors and made sure we watched every episode together.

“We really bonded over the treachery and backstabbing, which became our special time together.”

It was this combination of connection with his mum through sneakiness and scheming, then finding out that their sprawling coastal home was potentially haunted that caused the penny to drop for James.

“We all love to watch villains on TV,” he said.

“You can trace this way back to Nasty Nick in the first Big Brother. And who didn’t get a kick out of watching Alan Carr embrace his evil side in Celebrity Traitors?

“One day it just clicked – just like the TV shows, we could give people permission to be wicked for a weekend, but in real life; our spooky house has the kind of atmosphere you can’t fake and you don’t need cameras when the guests are the show.”

Riding the wave of the country’s love of deception games, House of Deceit taps into this same appetite, but with an exciting format that will naturally chop and change with each different set of guests.

A fully designed world, led by the suitably sinister ‘Lady of the
House’, bedrooms, gardens and communal spaces all play a role.,

And with challenges, twists and revelations all woven into the stay, it promises to be as tense and theatrical as it is surprising and funny.

“Being stuck together in a creepy, creaking house is the basis for all great murder mysteries,” said James.

“Once you’re in the game, you can’t simply leave, which makes this
a very real experience – it’s actually immersive, rather than just claiming to be.

“Our guests will arrive good-natured and polite towards each other, but we’ll put them to the test and those masks will slip.

“When you discover that your kind aunty Rita has been bumping off
her family members while lying to their faces all weekend, will you ever be able to look at her the same way again?”

House of Deceit has been designed for birthdays, celebrations, team-building, and private get-togethers, with preview dates currently available at a reduced rate before the full launch in March.

The experience is suitable for up to 15 guests, who can all stay in the house.

For the two nights it costs a total of £2,495, making it around £166.34 per person for two nights (so £83.17 per person, per night).

And included in this price is your stay, the hosted game, use of the hot tub, three meals a day prepared by local chefs and a decent amount of wine.

If you want to test out being a Traitor yourself, there is also The Traitors immersive experience in London.

Plus, there’s a Traitors-style Scottish hotel owned by major sports star.

The man who killed Japan’s former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during a campaign event in 2022 has been sentenced to life in prison. Al Jazeera’s Patrick Fok explains why the court ruling has divided public opinion.

The period between 2025 and 2026 witnessed a significant increase in the level and scope of intelligence, military, and security cooperation between the Egyptian General Intelligence Directorate and the Chinese Ministry of State Security “MSS” (which acts as China’s intelligence agency). This development raised considerable concern within Israeli security and intelligence circles (Mossad). This concern stemmed particularly from the shift in the level and scope of Egyptian-Chinese cooperation from an economic framework to an intelligence and technological partnership aimed at bolstering Egyptian sovereignty and diminishing Israel’s qualitative edge in the fields of espionage and aerial surveillance. This cooperation encompassed areas such as electronic warfare and surveillance systems, including the provision of advanced Chinese radars to Egypt, granting it a high capacity for detecting aerial threats independently of systems technically linked to the United States or Israel.

  On the other hand, the Chinese Ministry of State Security (Chinese intelligence) closely monitored Egyptian moves and the pressure exerted by the head of Egyptian intelligence, Major General/ Hassan Rashad, on the Israeli Mossad during the Gaza peace negotiations in October 2015. Chinese intelligence devised a strategy of “pressure against the Mossad” aimed at curbing the Mossad’s ambitions in the region and ensuring the stability of Egypt’s borders amidst regional tensions. This strategy also aimed to safeguard China’s interests and its Belt and Road Initiative. The Egyptian General Intelligence Directorate collaborated with its Chinese counterpart, the Ministry of State Security, to protect vital waterways and straits, including the (Suez Canal, the Gulf of Aden, the Bab El-Mandeb Strait, and the Strait of Hormuz), thereby limiting Israeli and American actions that could harm China’s interests in Egypt and the region.

  In September 2025, Chinese intelligence, military, and security reports indicated that the Egyptian General Intelligence Directorate had successfully uncovered and thwarted a Mossad “secret plan” to carry out an airstrike to assassinate Hamas leaders in the Qatari capital, Doha. Egypt (with the knowledge of the Chinese Ministry of State Security) informed the Qatari side of the operation just 25 minutes before its execution, thus disrupting it and triggering extensive internal investigations within the Israeli Mossad to understand how the Israeli intelligence plan was leaked to Cairo and the Egyptian General Intelligence Directorate with the assistance of Chinese intelligence agencies. This success demonstrated Cairo and its General Intelligence Directorate’s superiority over the Israeli Mossad, thanks to China’s provision of a massive fleet of advanced Chinese satellites to monitor all Israeli movements around the clock and limit Israel’s influence.

  Here, cooperation between Egyptian General Intelligence and the Chinese side in confronting Israel takes on a largely undeclared strategic character, but it has recently emerged through several security and technical channels that have raised concerns in Israeli circles. This cooperation takes the form of technical and intelligence cooperation (aerial surveillance). The Egyptian Ministry of Defense has signed several memoranda of understanding with Chinese state-owned companies, such as (Norinco), to enhance Egyptian-Chinese cooperation in sensitive defense industries. Egypt has also acquired Chinese air defense systems, raising Israeli questions about how advanced Chinese technology is being transferred to Cairo to undermine Israel’s qualitative military edge, which is currently dominated by advanced American technology. This highlights the growing Egyptian-Chinese military rapprochement, aimed at “diversifying Egypt’s arms sources”  and maintaining the independence of Egyptian security decision-making. Israel and Washington are monitoring this development cautiously, as it could diminish Western influence in the region. In May 2025, several Israeli media reports accused Egypt of coordinating with China to use advanced Chinese early warning aircraft, known as the (KJ-500) aircraft, to penetrate Israeli air defenses.

  Which has proven effective in testing or penetrating Israeli air defenses. Israeli reports also claimed that Egypt exploited the “Civilization Eagle” joint air exercises with China in April-May 2025 to secretly monitor the deployment of Israeli forces using advanced Chinese surveillance technology. Israeli researchers and military personnel from the (Israeli Institute for National Security Studies) alleged that Egypt used the joint air exercises with China to secretly monitor the deployment of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). They considered this an unprecedented “intelligence provocation” by Cairo with the support of Beijing.

 Here, Chinese intelligence agencies, specifically the Ministry of State Security (MSS), play a significant role in intelligence cooperation with Egypt regarding the Palestinian issue. This is achieved through Chinese assessments of all Israeli and American actions in this regard. Intelligence reports indicate that the MSS is evaluating the “high-risk maneuvers” conducted by Egyptian intelligence with Mossad, reflecting a deep Chinese interest in Egypt’s approach to managing the conflict with Israel.

 Furthermore, Chinese state agencies and their intelligence apparatus are working to support the Egyptian position in the face of Mossad’s stalling tactics. This support is manifested through Chinese intelligence and diplomatic coordination with Egypt to promote a two-state solution and reject the forced displacement of Palestinians, which Israel views as an attempt to undermine its influence and politically isolate it. The Chinese Ministry of State Security (MSS) has also shown increasing interest in the outcomes of the ceasefire negotiations in Gaza, which involved the heads of intelligence agencies from Egypt, Qatar, and the United States.

 The Chinese Ministry of State Security is also supporting Egypt through numerous military deals and security communications, including arms sales to Cairo and the arrival of several Chinese fighter jets, known as the (J-10C) to Egypt in 2025. Several Israeli analysts and military officials considered this Chinese military deal with Egypt a “silent crossing” and a challenge to the US-backed Israeli air superiority in the region.

 The Israeli Mossad and its leadership in Tel Aviv described the Egyptian-Chinese air force exercises in Sinai from April to May 2025, known as “Eagles of Civilization,” given their proximity to the Israeli border, as clear strategic messages to Israel and deterrents regarding the diversification of Egypt’s power sources and its aerial and military surveillance capabilities against Israeli military deployments, with Chinese assistance. The joint Egyptian-Chinese “Eagles of Civilization” military exercises included realistic simulations of combat operations and the planning of air missions. Israeli analysts considered this a strategic shift that could affect the regional balance of deterrence in Egypt’s favor in its military confrontation with Israel.

 China adopts a strategic vision for the conflict and tensions between Egypt and the Mossad (or the Israeli side in general). This vision focuses on strengthening Egypt’s defense capabilities against Israeli pressure. A key feature of this vision is Chinese support for a strategic balance between Egypt and Israel in the face of Washington. Through deepening its military cooperation with Egypt, China aims to create a kind of “strategic deterrence” that reduces Israeli hegemony in the region. Israeli security circles have expressed growing concern over China’s provision of advanced military technologies to Egypt, such as air defense systems, electronic warfare equipment, and early warning aircraft, known as the (KJ-50).

  The Chinese Ministry of State Security (which acts as China’s intelligence agency) is also closely monitoring the outcomes of negotiations and the pressure exerted by US intelligence agencies, including Mossad, on Egypt regarding sensitive and complex issues for China, such as the management of the conflict in the Gaza Strip. China views Egypt as a pillar of stability and rejects the “law of the jungle” and the policies that Israel and the United States are attempting to impose on Cairo concerning the forced displacement of Palestinians. Furthermore, Chinese intelligence agencies, represented by the Ministry of State Security, have played a significant role in indirect cooperation to thwart Western and Israeli intelligence attempts aimed at destabilizing the Egyptian army or using terrorist political groups, such as the Muslim Brotherhood, to dismantle it.

  Here, China is working to thwart Israeli espionage attempts through Mossad and the “CIA” by countering all technological infiltrations of Cairo. This is being done through China’s promotion of replacing Israeli and American software and technologies with more secure Chinese alternatives in the region.

 To this end, the Chinese Ministry of State Security and all its relevant agencies are working in political alignment with Egypt against the escalation in the besieged Gaza Strip. China agrees with Egypt on the necessity of an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and rejects the forced displacement of Palestinians. China supports the Egyptian mediation role, believing that regional stability begins with a just solution to the Palestinian issue, one that is independent of imposed Israeli security solutions.

   Consequently, Israeli concerns have grown regarding Chinese influence in Egypt and the wider region, which they believe is detrimental to Israeli interests. Israeli security research centers and military leaders believe that China is using its close ties with regional states, including Egypt, to gather intelligence on Israeli technology and military capabilities, and then using this information to spy on Israel and on American interests, which are China’s rivals in the region. The intelligence crisis between Beijing and Tel Aviv reached its peak in September 2025 when Israeli Prime Minister “Benjamin Netanyahu” accused China of leading propaganda campaigns aimed at politically isolating Israel and weakening its international support.

The remains of the original Griffith Park Zoo are imbued with memories of the past. Forgotten animal pens, decaying cages and stony backdrops now sit in various states of abandonment.

It is, in other words, a prime location for a haunted narrative.

“Ghost in the Machine: The Old Zoo” is just that, a site-specific interactive experience in which specters come to life via our mobile phones. In the story, our devices become a gateway to another world — or, rather, a halfway point between our universe and the afterlife. We’ll see visions of a medium, hear fragmented remembrances and explore a trail while discovering a tale that feels like an intimate glimpse into a grief-stricken past. And we’ll learn a little bit of Griffith Park history along the way.

The augmented reality project is the vision of Koryn Wicks, a trained dancer and choreographer who has created her own immersive entertainment pieces while working in the broader theme park space. The project is being remounted this Friday and Sunday afternoons at Griffith Park to coincide with “Ghosts in the Machine” being named a finalist for an award with IndieCade, a once in-person independent game festival that now exists primarily online.

Koryn Wicks, designer of “Ghosts in the Machine: The Old Zoo.” Wicks is an independent immersive creator who works in the theme park space.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

John Houser, 43, from the San Gabriel Valley playing the augmented reality game “Ghosts in the Machine: The Old Zoo.”

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

“Ghosts in the Machine” exists as an app in a testing phase, hence the reason for the event-like approach to letting guests experience it. Wicks will be stationed outside the old zoo’s location for about two each hours each day, facilitating downloads and answering questions about the self-guided experience.

Once those who opt to play are set up with the game and near the old zoo, which opened in 1912 with a collection of only 15 animals and closed in 1966 to make way for the current animal park, they’ll receive a call. A medium, but “not like a celebrity medium,” has been trying to reach someone, anyone, and is at risk of losing her memory as she’s trapped between worlds. We’re asked to turn on our camera, and via augmented reality we see an alternate version of the landscape in front of us, one obscured by blue and green hues, and filled with static. The images feel fragile.

This medium, Phoebe, needs our help, and if we agree, the game begins. We’ll be directed to follow a map toward abnormalities around the old zoo. Things may get a little frightening. An apparition will appear before us. Yet Phoebe is telling us ghosts are not meant to be feared. A spirit, she says, is usually lost and confused.

“I wanted to do sort of a haunted location,” says Wicks, 36. “I’m a big nerd for horror stuff. I really like it. I really like the idea of ghosts. I read this book called ‘Ghostland’ and it looked at ghost stories throughout American history and the way they’re practiced and who gets cast as a ghost versus who gets haunted. So the first scripts I was writing were more meta, they were about ghosts in general. Then I gradually narrowed into an actual story with characters. That’s the dancer in me. I tend to think a little more abstractly.”

As the story was honed, it became one that focused more on familial bonds. Without spoiling the experience, which should be able to be completed in a little less than an hour, “Ghosts in the Machine” gradually transitions from a haunt to a tale that focuses on forgotten promises, lost loved ones and the lonely pings that can come from unresolved grief. “Ghosts in the Machine” begins with tension. It resolves as something more meloncholic, a game-like story built for contemplation.

John Houser, 43, left, and Parker Cela, 26, right hold up their phones to scan the staircase while playing the augmented reality game “Ghosts in the Machine” at Griffith Park.

(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)

And it’s staged in a location perfect for rumination. “Ghosts in the Machine” will take us up stairs, around pathways and into now-deserted zoo enclosures as we try to free a spirit from purgatory. There are some game-like mechanics as we’ll gather fragments of memories hidden throughout Griffith Park.

The park, the character of Phoebe tells us, is a “beacon for spiritual phenomenon.” Throughout, she’ll allude to stories of mistreated animals and the Griffith Park fire of 1933, heightening the sense that we are in the presence of unnatural occurrences. The space is dear to Wicks: it’s where her husband proposed, but “Ghosts in the Machine” pulls from more painful memories in her life.

“It had a lot to do with grief and memory,” Wicks says. “It can be so painful to engage with memory when we’re going through grief, and it can also be really complicated. Because there are good memories and there are also complicated memories. How do you hold space for both? That was something I was thinking of a lot at the time.”

The project was born during the worst days of the COVID-19 pandemic. Wicks, who had in the past staged numerous dance performances for small groups, initially envisioned a show in which audiences would use their smartphones to follow a dancer through an outdoor space. It gradually morphed into something more ghostly.

With a tiny team, a day job and the occasional teaching gig, Wicks has found that maintaining the app to the degree in which it can be properly released has not been feasible. For instance, for this weekend’s pop-ups, the map function had to be completely rebuilt. That’s another reason Wicks will be on site, aiming to help those who may be new to AR, or to troubleshoot on the various devices audience members may bring.

“I think we like to talk about technology as having a permanence to it, but there is no permanence to it,” Wicks says. “Very few people still have their cassettes. Records are still around, but technology phases out.”

Wicks is open to the idea of continuing to develop “Ghosts in the Machine,” and has looked into institutional or commercial support. But she confesses she hasn’t hit on a solution yet.

In the meantime Wicks, who hopes to stage a show later this year that intermixes dance with tarot themes, has created an experience that uses modern augmented reality technology and yet feels ephemeral. And that’s fitting, of course, for a ghost story.