Gov. Jerry Brown appoints Superior Court judges
Gov. Jerry Brown on Tuesday appointed 13 judges to Superior Court seats, including four posts in Los Angeles County. All but one of the appointees are Democrats.
Brown filled the Los Angeles County Superior Court vacancies with Julie Fox Blackshaw, deputy counsel to Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa; H. Jay Ford, currently a commissioner in the county court; Gregorio Roman, a deputy public defender; and private-practice lawyer Douglas Stern of Rancho Palos Verdes.
Blackshaw was a federal court special master from 2002 to 2010, and before that served as legal counsel for a Los Angeles police review commission. She takes the seat being vacated by the retirement of Judge Joan Comparet-Cassani.
In a 1992 story in The Times, Blackshaw was credited with winning the then-largest criminal fine ever levied in a defense contracting fraud case, while working part-time as an assistant U.S. attorney and taking care of her infant daughter.
Brown also named Tracie L. Brown, Harry M. Dorfman and Rochelle C. East to judgeships in the San Francisco County Superior Court, and Erin Alexander and Lisa Rogan to judgeships in the San Bernardino County Superior Court.
He appointed Patricia Guerrero and Michael Popkins to the San Diego County Superior Court.
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Fury vs Joshua: Dana White credits Eddie Hearn for Fury vs Joshua being in UK
Dana White has credited Eddie Hearn for making sure the long-awaited fight between Tyson Fury and Antony Joshua will be held in the UK but insisted he was “bored” of their ongoing feud.
The heavyweight bout will take place at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff – despite efforts to host it New York’s Madison Square Garden – on a bill that starts on 11 December, though they are not expected to fight until the early hours of 12 December.
White and Saudi Arabian organisers wanted the bout in the United States, but Joshua and his promoter Hearn refused to budge on their contractual right to have it in the UK.
“You’ve got to give credit to Eddie for really grinding that and making sure that it happened in the UK,” UFC president and Zuffa Boxing chief White told Steve Bunce on the 5 Live Boxing with Bunce podcast.
However, there had been doubts over the contest because of a dispute over the role of White in the promotion of the event.
The fight, which will be shown on Netflix, has been presented as a collaboration between Saudi boxing powerbroker Turki Alalshikh’s The Ring and White.
Hearn has been publicly feuding with White since the launch of Zuffa Boxing earlier this year and said his involvement in the fight “ain’t happening”.
But, Fury and Joshua held a news conference on 30 September, to ease concerns over their fight.
Dual quakes devastate southern Panama | Earthquakes
Panama’s president has declared a major disaster after two earthquakes and dozens of aftershocks struck the country’s south. The magnitude 7.5 and 6.6 earthquakes shook Panama’s Herrera province on Friday, destroying buildings, and disrupting power supplies.
Published On 10 Oct 2026
Saturday 10 October Ancestors’ Day in Cambodia
Pchum Ben, also known as Ancestors’ Day or ‘Hungry Ghosts Festival’, is a 15-day Cambodian religious festival, which culminates in celebrations on the 15th day of the tenth month in the Khmer calendar, marking the end of the Buddhist lent.
Phcum Ben starts on the first day of the waning moon in the month of Putrobut until the 15th day before the new moon. Each of the the first fourteen days of the festival is called a day of Kan Ban. The 15th and last day is called ‘Pchum Ben’ and is the start of a two day public holiday.
In Khmer, the language of Cambodia, Pchum means ‘to gather together’ and Ben means ‘a ball of food’. Pchum Ben, also called ‘Brochum Ben’ is the most important festival in the Khmer religious calendar. The day is a time for Cambodians to pay their respects to their ancestors of up to seven generations.
The Pchum Ben festival dates back to the Angkorian period when the people of the area followed animism (the belief that natural objects, natural phenomena, and the universe itself possess souls.). Eventually animism was replaced by Buddhism as the prominent religion in the region, however Buddhism and animism both emphasised respect for ancestors, so the ancient customs of Pchum Ben continued and flourished under the newer religion.
It is said that on the first day of Pchum Ben, the gates of hell are opened and the devil releases all the ghosts, some of who are ancestors of the people.
Israeli drone attack wounds six in Lebanon near Syria border | Israel attacks Lebanon News
Five Syrians and one Lebanese wounded in latest Israeli attack, officials say.
Published On 10 Oct 2026
An Israeli drone attack has wounded six people in Lebanon’s Hermel district, close to the Syrian border, according to the Lebanese health ministry.
The ministry said on Friday that the six wounded included five Syrian nationals, two of them women, and one Lebanese.
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Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency (NNA) reported that the drone attack targeted a car.
It added the area has largely been spared such attacks since an Israel-Hezbollah ceasefire was agreed in June.
Israel’s military claimed it struck “a Syrian terrorist” who “operated under the direction of the Iranian regime”, alleging that the man “planned and advanced attacks” against Israeli forces in Syria’s southern territory.
Since the ouster of longtime Syrian ruler Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, Israel has carried out hundreds of strikes against Syria. It has sent troops into a UN-patrolled buffer zone that had separated Israeli and Syrian forces in the Golan since 1974, and has carried out repeated incursions deeper into Syrian territory, sometimes seizing residents.
Israel has also continued to attack Lebanon since a ceasefire with Hezbollah was agreed in June.
It has vowed to keep troops in so-called security zones along its border in both Syria and Lebanon.
Syria’s President Ahmed al-Sharaa told the UN General Assembly last month: “We reject Israeli attempts to impose a fait accompli. We reject their aggressions, which undermine peace and security.”
He said Israel had carried out “500 air strikes, more than 1,200 incursions and 300 detentions” in Syria.
He also called for Israeli withdrawal from Syrian territory and for the international community to commit to a 1974 agreement that created a UN-supervised separation zone between Israeli and Syrian forces.
Wladimir Klitschko granted temporary guardianship of Hayden Panettiere estate
Hayden Panettiere‘s former fiancé, Wladimir Klitschko, was granted temporary guardianship of her estate on Friday, following the actor’s sudden death in August.
Klitschko appeared in virtual court on Thursday alongside their 11-year-old daughter Kaya, according to People.
Kaya is the sole heir of the estate of the “Heroes” star, who on Aug. 16 was found unresponsive in a Greenville, S.C., residence. The Greenville County Coroner’s Office ruled the death an accidental overdose involving several drugs, including fentanyl.
Klitschko filed a petition in a Los Angeles County court on Sept. 24, requesting that he be allowed to act as Kaya’s representative. The Ukrainian boxer and Olympic gold medalist has had full custody of their daughter since 2018.
The filing cites items that were seized from her home in a federal investigation with no assurance that they will be returned, as well as unauthorized people who gained access to her Los Angeles residence.
“Without an immediate appointment for these purposes, there is a high probability that property belonging to Hayden’s Estate may be lost, damaged or dissipated before a duly appointed personal representative can be in place to protect it,” the filing stated.
According to the petition, Panettiere and Klitschko hired security before her death to protect her home because an unnamed person gained access inside. Her ex-fiancé feared that the same person would continue to “misappropriate” items belonging to the actor’s estate.
A day before their Oct. 8 court date, Klitschko submitted a supplemental claim to the earlier petition where he believed someone from outside of Panettiere’s family was selling some of her possessions, including jewelry, to a pawn shop, per ABC News.
In addition to seeking guardianship, Klitschko also asked the courts to grant him the ability to “request and authorize law enforcement investigation into the recovery of Hayden’s property believed to have been misappropriated.”
Panettiere and Klitschko had an on-and-off relationship between 2009 and 2018 and were briefly engaged in 2013. In 2014, the “Nashville” and “Ice Princess” star welcomed their daughter, but relinquished full custody to Klitschko in 2018 due to her struggles with postpartum depression and substance abuse.
“It was the hardest thing I could do,” she said during a 2022 appearance on “Red Table Talk.” “But the best thing for my daughter was to make sure she was OK, take care of myself and make sure I could be a good mom to her. And sometimes that means letting go.”
Klitschko has always spoken highly of Panettiere, lamenting his loss on Instagram, where he shared a picture of the two with Kaya (with an orange dot covering her face) on Aug. 18. In his post, he stated that the family was going through “profound shock and grief.” He also acknowledged his ex-fiancé’s experience navigating demands of the entertainment industry.
“Nothing will erase the times we shared or the place she had in our lives,” he wrote in the Instagram caption. “To our daughter Kaya, I will always speak of her mother with respect and make sure she remembers the person she was.”
The next hearing is scheduled for Dec. 7, when permanent guardianship of the estate will be decided; however Kaya does not need to be present.
Times staff writer Alexandra Del Rosario contributed to this report.
Voters OK Limits on Mobile-Home Rents
Santa Paula voters approved Measure P, an initiative that bars rent increases when a mobile home is sold and was opposed by owners of the city’s six mobile-home parks.
In supporting Measure P’s vacancy controls, voters Tuesday rejected a well-funded campaign by opponents, who said the city would raise taxes to defend the measure in court.
Measure P’s well-organized backers from the city’s 1,500 park residents were forced to scramble late in the campaign after opponents raised more than $47,000 in their attempt to defeat the measure.
In a newspaper-like mailer sent to voters, Measure P’s critics contended that the ballot initiative would also result in shabby parks because of restrictions on the type of repairs that could be charged to park residents.
But supporters increased their efforts after the opposition’s critical mailer and telephone campaigning raised doubts among voters, said Helen Currier, who headed the ballot measure drive.
Rather than rely on the person-to-person campaign that they had planned, supporters placed ads in the local newspaper and on Spanish-language radio stations to combat the high-profile opposition, Currier said.
Others said the park owners had miscalculated by hiring a campaign manager from outside the area.
“They used Los Angeles tactics in a Midwestern-type town,” City Administrator Arnold Dowdy said.
Manchester City whistleblower Rui Pinto to remain under witness protection
The Portuguese computer hacker who released documents which helped trigger the Premier League investigation into Manchester City will remain in witness protection after authorities in the country suspended the decision to end it.
Football Leaks founder Rui Pinto had been scheduled to leave the protection programme on Saturday, a ruling he previously said had put him in a “life-threatening situation”.
Pinto, 37, disclosed a tranche of confidential football documents, including emails and financial records relating to the English Premier League side.
In 2018, he shared documents with German magazine Der Spiegel, which used them for investigations into City’s finances and alleged breaches of financial fair play rules.
City were recently found guilty of all charges relating to breaches of the Premier League’s financial regulations between the 2009-10 and 2017-18 seasons. They have appealed against the decision.
Pinto became part of Portugal’s witness protection programme in 2020 after agreeing to co-operate with authorities and provide information obtained through the Football Leaks operation.
However, in a statement on Friday,, external Portugal’s Ministry of Justice said a decision to remove Pinto from witness protection had been reversed for the time being, with the body responsible for it – the special security programmes commission – having not adequately “notified” Pinto of grounds for its termination or given him the opportunity to challenge the decision.
Pinto will now be given 10 days to assess a risk assessment conducted by the special security programmes commission that indicates a low threat to his safety.
He posted on X, external thanking Portugal’s Minister of Justice, Rita Alarcao Judice and saying the commission’s initial decision had clearly violated the law and amounted to a “manifest abuse of power”.
Pinto has described himself as a whistleblower, but was convicted in Portugal of offences including illegal access to data and attempted extortion and given a four-year suspended sentence.
He wore a bulletproof vest during his first trial in 2020, which was also subject to heightened security measures.
Earlier this year, he was acquitted of 241 counts of illegally accessing email accounts belonging to a number of sports bodies in Portugal, including Benfica.
Intercommunal clashes kill 71 people in South Sudan | Conflict News
Government security forces regain control of Rumbek town after outsiders attempted to take control of the area.
Published On 10 Oct 2026
Intercommunal clashes have killed 71 people in South Sudan’s town of Rumbek, in Lakes State, the caretaker government said in a statement.
“According to initial security reports, approximately 71 people were reportedly killed,” including four soldiers, the South Sudanese interim Ministry of Information said in a statement on Friday. The exact number of fatalities has yet to be verified.
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According to AFP, witnesses said a group of people from outside Rumbek tried to take control of the town and briefly succeeded. The attackers withdrew when police and military reinforcements arrived. Two witnesses said the fighting moved outside the city limits.
The government statement said, “Rumbek town is currently under the control of Government security forces, and efforts are ongoing to restore normalcy”.
The caretaker government strongly condemned the violence and urged all communities to “exercise maximum restraint and refrain from acts of retaliation that could further escalate tensions”.
Interim government
On September 22, South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir dissolved the transitional government, three months before the country’s first election since its independence in 2011. Kiir appointed a caretaker administration as the country prepares for its first-ever national elections.
His decree ended a power-sharing arrangement set up under a 2018 peace deal that halted a five-year civil war in which about 400,000 people were killed.
Intercommunal conflict has continued across South Sudan, resulting in multiple deadly clashes.
On September 17, 26 people were killed, and 82 were injured during days of fighting in a disputed region on the border between South Sudan and Sudan.
In early March, intercommunal violence left at least 169 people dead after dozens of armed men attacked a town.
Africa Cup of Nations may stay as a biennial event, says CAF chief Motsepe | Africa Cup of Nations
CAF had declared the Africa Cup of Nations would be held every four years, but may reverse that decision.
Published On 9 Oct 2026
The Confederation of African Football (CAF) is reappraising its decision to hold the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) every four years, CAF president Patrice Motsepe declared on Friday, while insisting his organisation did not take orders from FIFA or UEFA.
Motsepe, who last December announced the biennial AFCON would switch to a four-year cycle from 2028, said on Friday that it was “nonsense, absolute rubbish” that CAF was being dictated to by either the world or European governing body.
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The decision at the time, bringing the competition to a schedule that aligned with FIFA’s international calendar, rankled many at the 2025 AFCON in Morocco, with some saying it was made with European wishes at heart to the detriment of African interests.
Motsepe, a South African billionaire who is also a vice-president of FIFA, appeared stung by the criticism.
“My No. 1 job, my No. 1 duty is to protect, promote, and advance the interests of Africa,” he said. “And there are times when I have to stand firm and say, ‘Listen, we’re going to fight on this issue.’ And there are times when I have to say, ‘No.’
“The AFCON — because this is one of the issues we’re talking about — we took a decision as Africa because there were lots of issues, but I can guarantee you we have discussed it over the last few days to say we are looking at everything, including having the AFCON coming back every two years,” Motsepe said. “We’re very clear.”
He was speaking at the final day of CAF’s three-day strategy conference in Cape Verde. On Thursday, he reiterated the 54-member body’s “unanimous” support for FIFA’s under-fire president Gianni Infantino, and Infantino reminded his potential election voters of investments FIFA has made for African football since gaining the job 10 years ago.
Motsepe reaffirmed the 2027 Africa Cup will go ahead as planned in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda next year, despite recent media reports from France saying construction projects were not going to schedule and some CAF members were pushing to have the tournament moved.
“You have to believe in Africa. There will be problems, there will be failures, fine, but we will be there. That’s what Mandela taught us,” Motsepe said.
Gogglebox’s Jenny leaves Lee speechless with divorce quip on Channel 4 show
Fan-favourite Gogglebox stars Jenny and Lee have been a staple on the Channel 4 show for 12 years, having joined the show back in 2014.
The Gogglebox star was in hysterics over Jenny’s marriage remark.
Channel 4 viewers tuned in to watch the nation’s favourite armchair critics give their thoughts and reactions on the latest TV shows of the week. However, in between giving their verdicts on the programmes of the week, Gogglebox favourites Jenny and Lee spoke briefly about marriage.
It comes ahead of the stars settling in to watch the latest HBO drama, War, which follows a very public divorce of two well-known figures. Lee asked Jenny: “Would you ever get divorced?”
After a brief pause, she replied: “Don’t know. No, I’d just wait.” Lee burst out laughing at her quick remark about divorce.
Jenny often speaks about her husband, Ray, on the programme, although he’s opted to stay out of the limelight. However, he did make a very brief cameo recently when he phoned Jenny and viewers got to hear his voice.
Last year, Lee shared a throwback image of Jenny on her wedding day to Ray as he celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary. He captioned the post: “Wishing my sidekick Jenny and Ray a happy 50th golden wedding anniversary, who gets the medal.”
It wasn’t long before people commented on the post, with many praising Ray’s ‘epic’ sideburns. One person said, “Ray should get a medal for those sideburns alone. Epic.”
Someone else added, “Jeez, those sideburns have a life of their own.” While another said: “Bl**dy hell, look at those side burns. You could ski down them.”
Although Ray was offered to join Jenny on the Channel 4 show when she was first scouted at Beverley Races Ladies’ Day in 2014, he declined, prompting her best friend Lee to take his place on the couch.
The pair have been friends since 1994 when Lee met Jenny at the pub when she was a landlady. Speaking to Ireland’s Big Issue magazine, Jenny commented: “Lee was a customer at my pub, The Crown Inn in Paull. He became a regular in 1994 and used to come in pretty much every night with his partner and we were friends from the off. We’ve been best friends ever since.”
Lee added: “I wish I’ve never gone in the pub – it cost me a fortune. When I first met her she had a perm and I can remember thinking, ‘She needs a haircut’. We were firm friends immediately. I don’t think we’ve ever had an argument. We’re too placid to argue. She makes me laugh too much for me to ever fall out with her.”
Gogglebox is available to watch Friday’s on Channel 4 from 9pm.
ICE officers shot a man in New York because they believed they were in danger, official says
WASHINGTON — Federal immigration officers opened fire on a Dominican man in New York because he drove his car into officers’ vehicles and they believed their lives were in danger, a senior Immigration and Customs Enforcement official said Friday.
The 28-year-old man, whom New York City police identified as Oscar Belgal, was shot “superficially” in the neck as ICE officers attempted to arrest him, said Marcos Charles, head of ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations. Authorities have not released details of Belgal’s condition.
Officers used their vehicles to block the man as he attempted to drive away, but he accelerated toward them, Charles said during a news conference with U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin in Washington. The Department of Homeland Security said the news conference was about the “dangerous consequences of sanctuary city policies.”
“Our officers, using their training and believing that their life and the life of the partners and the general public were in danger, used their training and fired weapons,” Charles said.
Belgal had his 5-year-old son in the car with him when the shooting happened, officials said.
Mullin said ICE agents didn’t know the child was in the car, but that Belgal “was aware” and chose to put the boy at risk by trying to evade officers.
ICE previously tried to detain Belgal, Charles says
Belgal was associated with a robbery crew that used mopeds and weapons, and was convicted of grand larceny last year and sentenced to five years of probation, Charles said, adding that he evaded officers in September when ICE tried to arrest him for deportation.
The Legal Aid Society, which was representing Belgal in an ongoing drug case, called Friday for a “full and transparent” investigation of the shooting, the officers involved to be held accountable and an end to “ICE’s escalating presence in New York City.”
Federal agents walk near the scene where a man was shot by an ICE officer during an operation in the Bronx borough of New York on Oct. 8, according to local media and police.
(Charly Triballeau / AFP via Getty Images)
Belgal has pleaded not guilty to narcotics-sale charges in the drug case. The Legal Aid Society did not comment further.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, both Democrats, said late Thursday that they had pressed Mullin and Republican President Trump to release Belgal, but to no avail. They also urged the administration to immediately release ICE officers’ body camera footage of the shooting and to halt immigration enforcement operations in the city.
Mullin said Belgal was being held in a “highly secured” detention facility outside New York City but declined to say where.
Attorneys representing Belgal filed an emergency petition Thursday night calling for his release. A hearing is scheduled for Friday afternoon.
He also confirmed ICE officers were wearing body cameras that were activated, but didn’t say when any of that footage would be released. Under agency policy, bodycam video can be released within 72 hours if “determined that it is in the best interests of the agency.”
On Friday, New York City police released footage from its officers as they arrived at the scene following the shooting. The department previously said its officers were not involved in the arrest and not at the scene when the shooting happened.
The video shows a city officer responding to a chaotic scene where Belgal — sitting on the ground with his hands behind his back and head drooping to one side — was surrounded by several officials. The video shows officers lifting Belgal and placing him in a black SUV. Police said he was taken to a hospital.
“Yo put pressure. Put pressure,” an officer can be heard saying as the SUV reverses down the block.
New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Belgal was pulling into a parking space when a federal officer in plainclothes approached with his gun drawn, followed by another federal officer who also wasn’t in uniform. Belgal started to pull the car forward, and at least one of the officers fired seven rounds, hitting the man below his left ear.
Protesters and local officials decried the shooting as an example of the dangers of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani arrives to speak to the media about the ICE shooting in the Bronx borough of New York on Oct. 8. Mamdani said he would ask President Trump to remove federal immigration agents from the city as tensions flared over the latest shooting involving ICE.
(Charly Triballeau / AFP via Getty Images)
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin takes questions from reporters during a news conference at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement headquarters on Friday in Washington, DC. Mullin, joined by ICE officials, addressed Thursday’s shooting of a man in New York City by a federal immigration agent as he spoke out against sanctuary city policies.
(Kevin Dietsch / Getty Images)
“There is no justification for what we have seen today,” Mamdani said late Thursday at the scene of the shooting.
Federal officers who surrounded the vehicle wore construction vests and masks, making it difficult to identify them as immigration officers, he said.
Mullin criticizes NYC’s immigration policies
Mullin devoted much of Friday’s news conference to criticizing Mamdani and New York City’s limits on cooperation with ICE. The Democrat, who took office in January, has restricted local cooperation with immigration enforcement operations and repeatedly called for the abolition of ICE.
“Sanctuary politicians, they create an environment for criminal activity to thrive, not for the American citizens to be safe,” Mullin said.
Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin takes questions from reporters during a news conference at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement headquarters on Friday in Washington, DC. Mullin, joined by ICE officials, addressed Thursday’s shooting of a man in New York City by a federal immigration agent as he spoke out against sanctuary city policies.
(Kevin Dietsch / Getty Images)
ICE has asked local officials in New York to hold onto more than 14,000 people for federal officers to collect and place in immigration detention, he said.
“Silence. Absolute silence is what we have gotten back,” the secretary said. “Why would they release these individuals back onto the streets?”
“We’re enforcing our nation’s laws. We’re not picking and choosing,” Mullin continued. “Why is that controversial? We should all want law and order on our streets.”
ICE has justified other shootings with perceived threats to officers
During Trump’s second term, Homeland Security has often accused suspects of attempting to ram officers with vehicles or otherwise pose a threat and using that as justification for opening fire. But evidence from other shootings involving immigration enforcement officers has sometimes called into question that rationale.
In the Jan. 7 shooting death of Renee Good in Minneapolis, Homeland Security officials initially claimed an ICE officer opened fire in self-defense after Good attempted to run him over with her vehicle. Videos filmed from multiple angles challenged the administration’s narrative.
On July 10, ICE officers fatally shot Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston as the Mexican national was driving his construction crew to a job site. DHS maintained Salgado Araujo rammed an ICE vehicle, but the three men inside his vehicle disputed the narrative.
Last year in a Chicago suburb, immigration officers fatally shot Silverio Villegas González after they say the Mexican national drove at them and dragged one with his car, causing “serious injuries.” But body camera videos from local police showed the agent who shot Villegas González walking around afterward and dismissing his own injuries as “nothing major.”
Santana and Marcelo write for the Associated Press. Marcelo reported from New York. AP reporters Anthony Izaguirre and Jennifer Peltz in New York City and Ryan Foley in Iowa City, Iowa, contributed to this report.
Frustrated Angel City fans are excited but wary amid playoff push
Melanie Marx bought Angel City season tickets before the team was a team. It had no players, no coach and no uniform. It was more a concept than a reality and Marx bought in.
“I’ve always had pride for this team.” she said. “This was the first team from the NWSL that I’ve been able to say that I’m a supporter for.”
Yet supporting Angel City, she says, has been as exhausting as it has been exciting. Once the most valuable women’s professional sports team in history, Angel City has had one winning season and made just one playoff appearance in its first four seasons.
Attendance declined more than 22%, high-profile players such as Alyssa Thompson, Christen Press, Ali Riley and Madison Hammond have either been transferred away, retired or been allowed to leave and the team hasn’t re-signed popular captain Sarah Gorden for next season. At the same time, it has gone through five coaches and three general managers/sporting directors in less than five years.
Angel City defender Gisele Thompson celebrates with teammates after scoring a goal.
(Lindsey Wasson / Associated Press)
That’s not exactly what Marx signed up for.
“I’m upset as a fan, of course, and I’m upset as a season-ticket holder,” she said. “But I’m also upset as a fan of these players and someone who’s been invested in this league of almost 10 years.”
“What keeps myself and others coming back week to week is because of the players themselves,” she added. “Because the results on the pitch haven’t always matched the ambitions of the supporters.”
During the past three months, that support has finally been rewarded. Following Sunday’s draw with first-place Gotham FC, the reigning NWSL champion, Angel City (12-8-7) heads into the league’s two-week international break riding a seven-game unbeaten streak and is in sixth place in the 16-team table, in position for another playoff berth.
The team has lost just twice in 16 games under interim coach Leif Gunnar Smerud. Its 12 victories with three games to play is already a franchise record for a single season, as are its 45 goals. After posting a substantial negative goal differential in its first four seasons, Angel City’s plus-16 mark this year in best in the league.
And in the current international break, the team had a record nine players called up to various national teams. It’s one of the most dramatic turnarounds in NWSL history, one that may have saved at least a portion of the team’s most loyal fan base.
“My renewal for next year just recently came up and I was on a bit of knife’s edge deciding whether I want to go ahead,” said Michael Jaeger, an attorney who has had multiple Angel City season tickets in section 133 since the first season. “There have been consistent problems throughout.
“I really want the team to succeed. Given the recent successes, I did go ahead and re-up for next year because I’m feeling optimistic.”
Optimistic but not necessarily confident.
“I am not feeling like ‘OK, this is what I’ve been waiting for. The team’s really turned a corner,’” Jaeger said. “That to me would be success on the field, plus a decision about Sarah Gorden, plus [a] permanent head coach who we know is at least going to have one or more seasons to have things play out.
“So I don’t think we’re there yet. I like the current trend but because not a lot has necessarily changed about the front office, I’m not ready to say ‘OK, we’re fully on the right track.’”
Angel City has only itself to blame for that lack of trust. When the team launched with a massive ownership group that included Hollywood A-listers, former U.S. women’s national team stars and sports luminaries including Serena Williams and Billie Jean King, it promised to ignite a revolution in women’s sports.
Angel City FC fans chant during a match against the San Diego Wave at BMO Stadium on May 9.
(Luiza Moraes / Getty Images)
“We’re not just building a soccer club. We want to build an organization that has impact,” said Julie Uhrman, one of its team’s three founding owners.
And while Angel City has done real, meaningful work in the community, providing millions of meals to the hungry, funneling millions of dollars into community programs and taking a courageous stand against ICE raids across Southern California, as a soccer team it hasn’t delivered on its promises.
The loyal fans blame the front office, which has waived nearly six dozens players and five managers, including interim coaches, through its revolving doors since the first season. Mark Parsons, who won six trophies as manager with the Portland Thorns, was hired 20 months ago to stabilize things but his highly touted global search for a coach ended with Alexander Straus spending just a year with the club — going 7-15-5 in parts of two seasons — while Parsons unsettled the roster by making more than 40 transactions.
“There’s just a lack of trust in the front office frankly,” said Nadia Johnson, who attended games every season but didn’t buy season tickets until this year. “We’re still doing these chaotic things, which is really frustrating as a fan.”
And the chaos may not be ending anytime soon. Despite his success, Smerud has not publicly been guaranteed anything beyond this season; officially, the team is still searching for a new manager.
Gorden, the captain and anchor of the defense, is out of contract at the end of the season as is veteran Claire Emslie. Meanwhile Sydney Leroux, 36, who has played one minute the past two seasons as she deals with mental health issues, is signed through 2027.
At the same time, Parsons has built the league’s youngest roster around players whose performances are bigger than their names. Goalkeeper Angelina Anderson, 25, is third in the league with nine clean sheets and 12 wins. Brazilian Maiara Niehues, 22, already has a franchise-record nine goals while Evelyn Shores, 21, has tied the single-season record with seven assists and defender Gisele Thompson, Alyssa’s sister, leads all outfield players with 2,420 minutes.
“I am excited about how diverse our team is and really how they’ve grown,” season ticket-holder Johnson said. “It’s playoff crunch time and so it’s always exciting, especially when your team is in it. So I’m excited to see where they go.”
But after four seasons of mediocrity and worse, however, she’s learned to keep her fingers crossed.
“I’m not confident if we get a rough patch next year what decisions will be made in terms of trying to repair that,” she said. “So yeah, that’s where I’m at.”
Mexico investigates video said to show cartel members fighting for Ukraine | Crime
Mexico is investigating a viral video said to show mercenaries chanting drug cartel slogans in Ukraine. President Claudia Sheinbaum announced the inquiry. Mexico previously warned Kyiv cartel members were joining its International Legion to gain drone warfare experience.
Published On 9 Oct 2026
US judge rules Trump administration’s use of voter data unlawful | US Midterm Elections 2026 News
A federal judge ruled against the Justice Department’s use of voter data to cross-reference an immigration database.
Published On 9 Oct 2026
A United States judge has ruled that the Justice Department unlawfully sought state voter rolls to cross-check against a federal immigration database and identify voters it considered ineligible.
US District Judge Sparkle Sooknanan’s decision on Friday marks another setback for President Donald Trump’s efforts to expand federal oversight of elections ahead of the midterms, as Republicans seek to retain control of Congress.
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In a 78-page ruling siding with watchdog group Common Cause, Sooknanan said the administration had understated the risk of wrongly removing eligible citizens from voter rolls because of inaccuracies in the Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements (SAVE) database.
“The challenged policy represents the federal government’s attempt to decide who gets to vote,” Sooknanan wrote, adding that Congress had left that authority to the states.
The Justice Department said it was reviewing the ruling.
Ming Cheung, a senior staff attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union’s Voting Rights Project, said the ruling made clear that the administration could not use the federal government to disrupt elections or put voters’ rights at risk.
“The Trump administration has repeatedly taken extreme measures to interfere with how elections are run, undermine confidence in the results, and create confusion,” Cheung said in a statement.
Last year, Trump directed the department to crack down on voting by ineligible people, despite research showing voter fraud is rare. The department subsequently demanded unredacted voter rolls from nearly all 50 states, including sensitive personal information.
Eighteen states, mostly Republican-led, complied. The department cross-checked their data against SAVE and flagged people identified as noncitizens for potential removal from voter rolls.
Sooknanan said the database could contain outdated citizenship records, potentially misidentifying naturalised US citizens.
The department has also sued 30 states and Washington, DC, over their refusal to provide voter data. Twenty-six cases have been dismissed.
In a separate case in June, Sooknanan blocked the expanded use of the SAVE database for voter roll checks, an order the US Supreme Court temporarily paused last month.
Federal law bars systematic voter roll purges in the 90 days before a federal election, which could limit the ruling’s practical effect before the November 3 vote.
Dan Osborne shares emotional post about ‘getting away’ and ‘finding peace’ 7 months after split from Jacqueline Jossa
DAN Osborne has shared a vulnerable post about ‘finding peace’ seven months on from splitting with his wife Jacqueline Jossa.
The TOWIE star and his EastEnders actress lady called time on their romance back in March after being together for 13 years.
Taking to Instagram to reflect, Dan penned an emotional statement in the caption of a simple black and white selfie.
The caption began: “Sometimes you just need to get away from everything. Take time to think, reflect & reset.
“Not everyone will understand the way you deal with things, the decisions you make or what you need to find your peace. And that’s okay. You don’t need everyone to understand your journey or agree with how you choose to walk it.”
Dan then encouraged his followers to continue to pursue happiness, and grow along the way through all the lessons life throws at them.
He continued: “Do what makes you happy, what helps your mind, what gives you peace and what helps you grow. Never feel guilty for taking time for yourself.
“Life is about learning, reflecting, making mistakes, growing through them and constantly working towards becoming a better version of yourself.
The reality TV star signed the post off by sharing a revelation: “Sometimes the biggest growth happens when you step away from the noise and learn to be at peace with yourself.”
The post comes less than two weeks after Dan sparked concern sharing how he’s been struggling with a ‘war in his head’.
Dan further captioned the post by writing: “Can’t wait for the day I wake up with this feeling,” and added a worried laughing emoji and prayer hands.
Jac and Dan met at an awards ceremony in 2013 and tied the knot at a Cheshire manor house in 2017.
They are parents to daughters, Ella, 11, and Mia, eight, and Dan also has an 11-year-old son with his ex, Megan Tomlin.
The Sun then recently revealed that Dan was moving on with fitness model Etila Santiago, 33, after he made a secret trip to Miami to visit her after a holiday romance in May.
The Sun On Sunday revealed that Dan grew close to the Brazilian bikini model after bonding with her over fitness and their mutual support of Arsenal — and vowed to see her again soon.
Carmel-by-the-Sea got addresses for the first time ever. Voter confusion ensued
The late-September postcard from the Monterey County elections office — with all-caps text saying “ACTION REQUIRED — rattled the denizens of quaint Carmel-by-the-Sea.
The notice said all residents needed to update their voter registration. It was sent days before ballots were mailed for the Nov. 3 election.
Carmel-by-the-Sea just got numbered street addresses for the first time in its 110-year history. After decades of debate — and months of nitpicking a draft map released earlier this year — every house, business and government building was assigned its final number in September.
Indeed, each resident will eventually have to update their street address on their voter registration. But not before the upcoming midterm election, which has already been fraught by nationwide confusion and concern over President Trump’s attempt to restrict mail voting that was blocked last month by the Supreme Court.
“We’re at our wit’s end,” Carmel-by-the-Sea Mayor Dale Byrne said of the city’s attempts to clear up confusion wrought by the county mailer, which led some people to think their registration had automatically been canceled. “The city continues to send out notifications to all our residents that you don’t need to re-register right away, that you can still vote.”
After collecting his mail, Hans Lehmann, 91, walks past a bank of post office boxes at the post office in downtown Carmel-By-The-Sea on January 12, 2024.
(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
Monterey County Registrar Gina Martinez said in an email Thursday that the county began mailing ballots Oct. 1, including to Carmel-by-the-Sea, where there is no at-home delivery and locals pick up their mail — and ballots — from the downtown post office.
Voter registration records are based on a person’s physical residential address, which determines the districts where they can vote. The records can include separate mailing addresses, including post office boxes, where they receive ballots.
The county asked Carmel-by-the-Sea residents to update just their physical addresses.
“They can return their ballot without updating their information,” Martinez said. “If the voter prefers to vote in person and they haven’t yet updated their address, we will assist them with completing an address update form at the polling place.”
Since its founding in 1916, the 1-square-mile town has used directional descriptors — City Hall is on the east side of Monte Verde Street between Ocean and 7th avenues — instead of building numbers. And residents have given their homes whimsical nicknames such as Sea Urchin, Surf Song and A Whistle Away.
The address issue has long been contentious in the woodsy town of 3,200 people on the Monterey Peninsula, where residents once threatened to secede from California if they were forced to number their homes. They argued that the lack of addresses — along with other quirks, such as no streetlights or sidewalks in residential areas, which requires many to walk at night with flashlights — added to the vaunted “village character.”
But complaints about missed packages and mail-order medications, as well as trouble setting up banking accounts and utilities, persisted. And in the aging community — where the median age of 69 is nearly double that of the state — fears have grown that emergency responders may be unable to find people in the midst of a crisis.
The California Fire Code also requires buildings to have and display addresses, meaning the community has long been out of legal compliance.
New addresses, at long last
Last month, residents received city-issued postcards with final assigned building numbers.
While some opposed to street addresses fearing they would lead to at-home delivery and trigger the closure of the post office — where, locals say, serendipitous run-ins with neighbors are an essential part of the small-town charm — that won’t be the case. Residents will retain their post office box numbers and continue picking up parcels downtown.
Locals must now display address numbers visible from the street, at least 4 inches tall and 0.5 inches wide, and in a color that contrasts with their background. Residents who live in the wildland-urban interface, which is more prone to fire, have to post reflective numbers that can be seen in the dark.
“This is probably the most divisive thing in the city’s history,” Byrne said, adding that the rollout has included extensive community outreach and has, for the most part, gone smoothly.
While there are still some holdouts who worry the numbers are chipping away at traditions, the mayor said that “when you’re supporting a tourist economy, which we are, it’s almost punishment to people coming here to do that to them, when they can’t find anything, especially when there’s no parking.”
“‘Old’ is not a strategy,” Byrne said, “and public safety should take precedence over thinking it’s cute to not have addresses.”
In July, Byrne was visiting a friend’s house when the man turned pale and passed out at the table. When Byrne called 911, he spoke to multiple dispatchers, struggling to confirm the home’s location without an address (His friend was fine, just severely dehydrated).
Traditionally, residents locate homes and buildings by giving directional descriptors, such as being on the “west side of San Antonio Street, 3 houses south of 12th Avenue.” When Byrne spoke to the dispatchers, they told him they were accustomed to finding that house by using another cross street and a different direction of travel as a reference.
Due to the lack of addresses in Carmel-By-The-Sea residents post creative names to identify their homes in the seaside town, on January 12, 2024.
(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
“I’m the mayor, and I know how this works, and I was confused,” said Byrne, who again had to call 911 to urgently describe his location a few months later when his wife broke her arm in the middle of the night.
“They got there within two-and-a-half minutes. But imagine if I were a 92-year-old woman and had dementia and my husband did this. I might not be able to describe where I am,” he said, adding that Carmel-by-the-Sea recently outsourced its ambulance service to the Monterey Fire Department and cannot guarantee every dispatcher is familiar with the quirky local addressing system.
Voter confusion
Brandon Swanson, the acting city administrator, said of the addressing process that “for this big of an institutional change, it’s going pretty smoothly.”
That is, he said, until the county sent its mailer saying voters had to re-register. The notice didn’t include a deadline for updating physical address information, and some local news outlets initially reported it had to be done before the election.
Swanson said the city has been scrambling to reassure voters. It has been sending out digital communications and created a detailed frequently asked questions website about registration that says: “Did you receive a postcard from the Monterey County Elections Office? You are still registered to vote.”
“We’re not happy right now with the county,” Mayor Byrne said.
Martinez, the registrar of voters, said in an email that “overall, voters indicated the information provided is clear and straightforward.” Asked when they need to update their information, she said they are being encouraged to do so “as soon as possible.”
Hans Lehmann, who is 94 and lives in a 1929 redwood cottage nicknamed Pine Gates, said he was surprised by the “giant postcard” from the county and worried he wouldn’t get his ballot in the mail. He tried calling the elections office the day he got the mailer, but it was a weekend and it was closed.
He’s been slightly confused but mostly amused by all the messages.
“We got a card saying, ‘You have to re-register!’ then City Hall said, ‘The mail ballot is fine. Forget all that other stuff!’” he said, laughing.
Lehmann, a longtime mail voter who says he is carefully reading up on the proposed statewide billionaire tax, was relieved to get his ballot at the post office, as always.
Lehmann’s house once was a downtown restaurant called Ella’s Southern Kitchen. In 1941, the whole house was put on rollers, pushed up a steep hill and plopped onto a foundation of beach sand. He recently made a trip to Ace Hardware to mark it with its new designation: a big, fluorescent No. 80.
A man sweeps the sidewalk along San Carlos Street, between 5th & 6th Streets, in downtown Carmel-By-The-Sea on January 10, 2024.
(Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)
“Are the addresses popular? Who knows. Ask someone who voted one way, and they’ll change your mind; ask someone who voted the other way, and they’ll change your mind again,” said Lehmann, who loves the convenience of shopping on Amazon.
As long as his electrician and plumber can find the place, he figured, he’s in good shape.
Karyl Hall, an 81-year-old preservationist who grew up in Carmel-by-the-Sea, has long fought addresses, saying they’re part of the push for convenience and modernity that is destroying the artsy soul of the community, where, she said, too many historic cottages are being plowed down and replaced by sleek, boxy new homes.
The addresses, she said, are “representative of the total degradation of all our historic places and maintaining something special versus Everywhere, USA.”
She was baffled by the notice from the elections office. She said she filled out a form with her information, then heard by word of mouth that the county’s message was “a mistake,” and then saw city messaging saying that residents didn’t have to do anything before the November election.
“It’s confusing,” said Hall, who always votes by mail. “We’re dealing with the bureaucracy of not knowing quite how all this should be handled.”
Hall lives in a house called Jollyhase, German for “Jolly Rabbit.” She said she often shops for her 6-pound Pomeranian, Bubbles, at Chewy.com and has never missed a package, even sans address.
She said this week: “I’m one of the rebels that is not going to put a number on her house.”
UCLA urges defense to staying calm during showdown with Oregon
When No. 21 UCLA football faces off against No. 13 Oregon on Saturday afternoon at Autzen Stadium, defensive coordinator Colin Hitschler wants the Bruins to toe the line between playing with emotion and playing emotional.
“Big-time environments tend to bring a little extra out of your guys, and when you do a little bit extra, you tend to do too much,” Hitschler said. “Football is a hard game, but you can’t make it harder than it already is. Sometimes when you press, you tend to give up big mistakes. In the Purdue game, looking back, we definitely pressed a little bit too hard and got a little emotional. … Got to play with emotions, but we can’t play emotional. We’re in a good spot of growing and understanding that. But this is a new atmosphere, a new environment.”
Aside from the national rankings, the long history between these former Pac-12 rivals and both teams’ chances to contend for the College Football Playoff, the memory of Oregon knocking James Madison out of the Dukes’ first playoff appearance last December remains fresh for many of their players and assistants who followed coach Bob Chesney to the Bruins.
And the 51 points and 514 total yards the Ducks garnered against Hitschler’s defense left a chip on his shoulder.
UCLA safety Malik Hartford trips Purdue receiver Asaad Waseem at the Rose Bowl on Sept. 19.
(Ronaldo Bolaños/Los Angeles Times)
“We’re going to continue to be aggressive and continue to find a way to create opportunities for our offense to get the ball in a positive field position,” Hitschler said. “But we got to be on top of our game because they will make you pay no matter who it is at quarterback. They are going to make you pay for your mistakes, and they’re going to find a way to create the explosives they always have, and we got to limit them.”
Although Oregon quarterback Dante Moore — who tallied 313 passing yards and five total touchdowns against Hitschler‘s defense in the playoff — was ruled out for Saturday because of a head injury suffered against USC on Sep. 26, the Ducks’ Dylan Raiola is not a typical backup.
He threw for 4,819 yards and 31 touchdowns in two years as Nebraska’s starter, then went 11 for 11 with three touchdown passes in his Ducks debut before stepping up with 289 yards and two touchdown passes after replacing Moore in a 41-27 win over USC at the Coliseum.
“When you watch him come in and complete that game and do what he did, there’s not a giant drop-off between the two of those guys. They’re both really, really good,” Chesney said. “Dylan obviously had a chance at the end of that USC game to really put himself in position to gain confidence in his teammates and teammates to gain confidence in him, and I thought he was on time. I thought he was accurate. He let those guys compete for footballs, and I’m sure there’s a lot of buy-in in that program right now in him.”
While Raiola is a proven passer, his impact is amplified by the weapons around him. In the backfield, Hitschler touted Dierre Hill Jr. and Jordon Davidson as the best running back duo in the country. While the Bruins have gone toe-to-toe with formidable tailbacks thus far, they have yet to face a one-two punch like Hill and Davidson, which could pose problems for an otherwise staunch run defense.
Raiola’s arsenal includes potent pass catchers, particularly the Ducks’ top two wideouts, Dakorien Moore and Evan Stewart, who have combined for 512 yards and seven touchdowns.
Chesney tabbed Stewart as a matchup “nightmare,” adding that Oregon is going to get him the ball in a multitude of ways by utilizing him in the slot and creating mismatches for Hitschler’s defense. Chesney also said that Dakorien Moore’s extreme speed allows him to take the top off the defense, and that the Ducks will not be afraid to take shots downfield, testing the Bruins’ secondary.
And if the Bruins let emotions get the best of them, like they did against Purdue — when quarterback Ryan Browne threw for 378 yards and two touchdowns — then it may be a long day for Hitschler’s secondary.
The Bruins’ biggest headache could be 6-foot-5 tight end Jamari Johnson, who caught seven passes for 159 yards against USC, particularly with all three of UCLA’s starting cornerbacks shorter than 6 feet.
“The tight end we faced last year, and he’s special. They do a really good job of getting into different personnel packages, and then if you go to a bigger group, they’re going to spread you out. They’re going to try to find a matchup with that tight end,” Chesney said. “He can catch everything in his general vicinity; he’s absolutely phenomenal.”
With an explosive Ducks offense set to perform in the friendly confines of Autzen Stadium, the Bruins trusting the playbook may be most important.
“Football is football no matter where we are,” fifth-year offensive lineman Hall Schmidt said. “We don’t have a magic potion for Oregon, but we definitely have ourselves, and we have the tools that we’re going to use.”
Trump confirms Fort Hood shooter’s execution will be by firing squad | Gun Violence
The Pentagon said the firing squad execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Malik Hasan will be public and livestreamed. Hasan, an Army psychiatrist, killed 13 people and wounded more than 30 others at the Texas base in 2009. The White House hasn’t confirmed the Pentagon’s comments.
Published On 9 Oct 2026
Drumcree: Secretary of state Sir Chris Bryant to ban the Drumcree parade
Northern Ireland Secretary Sir Chris Bryant has said he will ban the contentious Orange Order parade at Drumcree.
The dispute has led to a stand-off between Orangemen and nationalist residents of the Garvaghy Road in Portadown lasting almost two weeks.
Sir Chris said the chief constable advised him “it would not be possible to enable the procession to happen without a major intervention which would carry an unacceptable risk of serious injury, disorder and a wider contagion effect across Northern Ireland”.
His decision has been welcomed by Sinn Féin and the SDLP, but DUP leader Gavin Robinson said he now needs to “explain what his government intends to do to restore confidence in the rule of law”.
The move comes on the 13th day of deadlock between residents and the local district lodge of the Orange Order.
The Parades Commission had ruled that the march, on Sunday 27 September, could go ahead with restrictions in place.
But the parade, from Drumcree Church into Portadown, did not happen due to a large protest on the Garvaghy Road.
Under legislation, a secretary of state can overturn a Parades Commission determination, especially following some form of input from the police.
Sir Chris had been coming under increasing pressure from Sinn Féin and the SDLP to stop the parade.
On Friday night, Sir Chris said: “The Parades Commission have advised me that while ultimately a matter for the courts to determine, the commission is of the view that, in light of this current assessment by the chief constable, the original determination does not now have enduring legal effect.
“Consequently, and in the interests of wider public interest and safety, I’ve come to the conclusion that the circumstances under which that decision was made have now changed considerably.
“As a result, the procession cannot go ahead as it was determined.”
Chief Constable Jon Boutcher had asked the secretary of state to review the Parades Commission determination allowing the Drumcree parade.
In a statement on Friday night, Boutcher said his “current assessment was that all available, lawful and proportionate options to facilitate completion of the procession had been exhausted”.
“Any remaining options would have required a substantial public order intervention,” he said.
He added: “Further to this, such an operation would in my view have had not only catastrophic long-term consequences for trust and confidence in policing, but for the Northern Ireland Executive and the peace process.”
Earlier, First Minister Michelle O’Neill confirmed she had received a letter from police investigating protests over the Drumcree parading dispute.
On Thursday, the police said they had begun issuing letters inviting people “reasonably suspected” of committing offences linked to the protests to interview.
‘Loved up’ Noel Gallagher, 59, enjoys champagne-fuelled date night with ‘special’ new girlfriend, 28
OASIS star Noel Gallagher asks his girlfriend to Stand By Me as they enjoy a Champagne-fuelled date.
The singer-songwriter, 59, and his 28-year-old events organiser squeeze Nina Johnson were on a double date in central London.
They were joined by his best pal James Cook and partner Lauren Brown at posh Italian restaurant Martino’s in Sloane Square.
Onlookers saw them sipping Champagne — with bottles of Dom Perignon at the swanky joint costing £380.
One diner said: “Noel and Nina looked really loved up.
“They were holding hands and being very affectionate as they sat down with James and Lauren.
“Noel and James ordered champagne and they enjoyed a few glasses before they ate.
“They spent about three hours at their table and were all laughing a lot. Noel looked pretty sweet on Nina. She’s definitely got something special about her.”
Noel, who wrote Oasis classic Champagne Supernova, got together with Nina following his split from Sally Mash earlier this year.
The double date was the second time Noel and Nina have been spotted this week.
On Sunday, they were seen in the stands at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in North London to watch the American football clash between the Indianapolis Colts and the Washington Commanders.
After spotting Noel in the stands, stadium bosses played Oasis hit Wonderwall through the speakers — with fans in the 62,000-capacity venue singing the lyrics to him.
Nina is expected to join Noel on Oasis’s sold-out tour next year.
Noel and his 53-year-old brother Liam will play 42 shows across the world — including a record breaking six shows at Knebworth.
Trump strikes deal with Putin for Russian diesel
WASHINGTON — President Trump said that he has struck a deal to obtain diesel from Russia, a stunning reversal of years of U.S. pressure on Moscow over its war with Ukraine and an attempt to address high fuel prices ahead of the U.S. midterm elections.
Trump said on social media on Friday that he struck the deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin in a phone call in which he was expected to discuss a suspected case of plague in Russia. Instead, Trump announced that Russia will immediately supply more than 300,000 tons of diesel, followed by an additional 500,000 tons in November and 1 million tons “immediately thereafter.” Russia will deliver another 3 million tons “within a short period of time” after that, he wrote.
Trump’s shocking announcement comes after he signed a sweeping Russia sanctions law last month that aimed at clamping down on Russia’s energy economy, among other areas, that fuel its war against Ukraine.
His move casts doubt on the likelihood of the White House imposing sanctions on Russia this month, given that a bipartisan law passed by Congress directs the administration to target the top importers of Russian oil and gas.
Trump, in his announcement, did not address the sanctions or Russia’s war but said, “Lower prices for Americans, especially our Great Farmers, Ranchers, and Truckers, is my Greatest Priority.”
The White House did not immediately respond to questions about who was paying for the diesel from Russia and when the fuel being supplied under the agreement would become available. It also did not clarify whether subsequent supplies of Russian diesel set to come next month would be supplied prior to Election Day on Nov. 3.
Gas prices globally have surged as the war in Iran upends the energy sector. The national average for a gallon of diesel in the U.S. was $6.23 on Friday, according to AAA, after hitting a record $6.52 on Sept. 22.
Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev reposted the Treasury Department’s announcement on X Friday and said that “Russia-US cooperation on diesel and energy will benefit the world.”
Rep. Don Beyer, the senior House Democrat on the Joint Economic Committee, called Trump’s announcement, “infuriating.”
“This is what we warned anyone who would listen: Trump isn’t the slightest bit trustworthy when it comes to Russia,” Beyer said in a statement on X. “Giving him expanded tariff powers in hopes he would use them to help Ukraine was a mistake. Now he’s lifting sanctions on Russian fossil fuels.”
The law Trump signed last month envisions sanctions on Russian officials, banks and a shadow fleet of tankers and bans all new U.S. investment in Russia and the handling of sovereign debt.
It also directed Trump to impose tariffs of up to 100% on the top five importers of Russian oil or natural gas, with an exception for countries that import less than 15% of Russia’s natural gas exports and have taken significant steps to reduce those imports.
The U.S. has not imported Russian oil or gas since 2022, when the Biden administration banned them because of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Shortly after Trump made the announcement, the Treasury Department said it was immediately issuing a temporary license allowing Russian diesel to be supplied to the global market.
This is the latest in several licenses the U.S. Treasury has issued regarding Russian fuel shipments since the start of the Iran war earlier this year. But it is the first such license to ease sanctions on diesel for a period lasting longer than the standard 30-day window since the start of the Ukraine war.
The new so-called general license means U.S. sanctions will not apply until April 2027 on deliveries of Russian diesel that has been loaded onto tankers as of Friday. The department extended similar easing of sanctions in March and April even though Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had ruled out such a move earlier in the year.
The extensions continue to underscore how the fallout from the Iran war has boosted Moscow’s ability to profit from its energy exports, which had been restrained by the U.S. and other allies since the invasion of Ukraine.
Price and Binkley write for the Associated Press. AP writer Will Weissert in Washington and Farnoush Amiri in New York contributed to this report.




















