Versatile forward Nicolas Batum is retiring following an 18-year NBA career and a long stint with the French national team.
The 37-year-old Batum announced his retirement in a social media video with his son on Monday.
“I decided to retire from basketball for several reasons,” Batum told 10-year-old son, Ayden, in the video. “I want to come home and be with you. I’m going to take care of you and make room for others. I think I’ve done my time. My time with France ended two years ago. And the NBA is over too. You know, when you’ve played as much basketball as I have, at some point, you have to know when to stop. … I’ve done everything I needed to do.”
Batum played two seasons in the French league before being selected in the first round of the NBA draft by the Portland Trail Blazers. The 6-foot-7 forward spent seven seasons in Portland before playing the next six with Charlotte.
Batum spent most of his final six seasons with the Clippers, with a short stint in Philadelphia in 2023-24. He also was a stalwart on French national teams that won silver medals in the 2020 and 2024 Olympics.
Batum averaged 9.6 points, 4.7 rebounds and 3.0 assists while shooting 37% from three-point range during his NBA career.
The war against Iran exposed gaps in how the U.S. can provide effective, sustained air defenses for its foreign installations and there are major concerns about a future fight against a peer competitor like China or Russia. Drone incursions at home have raised alarms about domestic base protection as has the war between Russia and Ukraine.
Video captures the moment that several Iranian medium to intermediate-range ballistic missiles struck Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan overnight, killing at least two and injuring several other American Servicemembers. pic.twitter.com/cJz39E1LvP
“For decades, American air and space power has often operated from a position of sanctuary. Those days are over,” Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Kenneth S. Wilsbach said during a keynote speech. “We can no longer treat point defense as a side hustle. We must make it a core function of air and space power.”
He acknowledged the widespread damage Iran caused to U.S. bases and suggested that lack of base defense played a large role.
“So, if we had more robust base defense, perhaps those bases wouldn’t have been as damaged as they were,” the general admitted. “Look at Israel; they have a significantly layered, very robust defense of their country, and they didn’t take that many hits. Very few, in fact, and that shows you what a good defensive system can do, which can help you to operate not quite with impunity, but almost, and you can just keep generating air power, and your defensive systems take care of the incoming.”
Israel’s ‘Iron Dome’ air defense system responds to incoming Iranian ballistic missiles as seen from Tel Aviv, Israel on June 18, 2025. (Photo by Mostafa Alkharouf/Anadolu via Getty Images) Anadolu
Wilsbach offered some concrete suggestions about how to make improvements.
“First, we will establish the point defense weapon system, bringing together kinetic and non-kinetic capabilities to secure our air bases,” the general said. He did not offer any specifics.
The Air Force currently has no such systems. Now it is set on changing that.
The Air Force is also looking at directed energy weapons like lasers for force protection and especially for defending bases overseas. While gaining traction across the services due in large measure to the much lower cost of delivering effects, these systems are still works in progress.
A U.S. Army Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) in Guam. (U.S. Army)
It’s one thing to have equipment, but another to have experts that know how to use it, Wilsbach noted.
“Second, we have established a new career field of point defense airmen,” he added. “This new career field will be operational in two years. Together, these two new initiatives will strengthen our defenses, reinforce our ability to generate air and space power under fire, and protect our greatest advantage: our airmen and guardians.”
“Protecting the force and generating combat power are inseparable,” Wilsbach explained. “We need our airmen trained, equipped, and ready to fight from the opening moments of a conflict.”
“Don’t you think we ought to have them at every base?” he suggested when asked about point defenders during a media engagement at the symposium. “Because if every base is going to be threatened, we have to have somebody that knows how to defend it. So, obviously, that’s a long-term objective. But what I’ll tell you for right now is we’re going to develop the career field and push it forward to the critical bases that need protecting most, and then we’ll expand it beyond there.”
Airmen assigned to the 319th Reconnaissance Wing prepare to execute a Point Defense Battle Lab exercise on the flightline at Grand Forks Air Force Base, North Dakota, Feb. 13, 2026. (U.S. Air Force photo by Airman 1st Class Emma Teel) Airman Emma Funderburk
Though he wants the Air Force to come up with new defensive systems and personnel with the know-how to operate them, Wilsbach is not quite as sold on building out hardened aircraft shelters (HAS). This is his long-standing position that he reiterated on Monday.
“If you know where you’re going to fight from, hardened shelters aren’t that bad of an idea,” the general posited. “Deeply buried are even better. But if you are like us, and we don’t necessarily know where we’re going to fight from, if you build a hardened shelter and you don’t happen to be there, then you perhaps wasted that money.”
“So, given a resource-constrained environment, I would like to put my dollars in systems that can go anywhere in the world and protect you with basically the same level of security by shooting down incoming rounds versus making a hardened shelter that is impervious to an attack,” Wilsbach explained. “You have to put it 200 or 300 feet underground. Any hardened shelter that you show me that’s above the ground, I can blow up. So unless it’s really deeply buried, and then if it is, it’s expensive. And so that’s my logic: the best bang for the buck.”
A U.S. Air Force F-16 Fighting Falcon, assigned to the 480th Fighter Squadron, sits inside a hardened aircraft shelter during exercise Turbo Weasel at Spangdahlem Air Base, Germany, April 14, 2025. (U.S. Air Force photo by Senior Airman Demi M. Ebert) Senior Airman Demi M. Ebert
To speed up the fielding of defensive systems, the service is interested in building out a procurement process specifically designed to develop weapons and other equipment needed to defend bases.
“How do you make sure that [airmen] have the kit they need to do the job?” Air Force Secretary Troy Meink asked rhetorically at a separate symposium session.
The Air Force, he said, is considering creating a new base defense Portfolio Acquisition Executive (PAE). The service created PAEs at the beginning of the year as part of an overhaul of its acquisition process ordered by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
“The creation of PAEs is a central element of that direction,” according to an Air Force memo on the topic. “By organizing acquisition leadership around portfolios of capability, rather than discrete programs alone, the Department seeks to improve integration, decision speed, and outcome-focused execution across the acquisition enterprise.”
(U.S. Air Force)
Meink acknowledged that there are challenges to creating a new PAE, most notably the overhead cost of establishing a new office with its associated personnel and infrastructure.
“Probably not going to do it right away, but obviously I think we’re on a path to something like that in the future,” the secretary suggested. “But there definitely has to be a continually increasing focus on making sure we can defend our airmen and guardians wherever they are in the world. This is not just an overseas problem; it’s a U.S. problem as well.”
As we noted earlier in this story, the U.S. is already facing a challenge defending against Iranian threats. A war with China would be more devastating and, when it comes to the Air Force protecting its bases, require more robust defenses and a lot more of them at many more locations. At the same time, the Air Force is still very early in the process of taking on more responsibility for protecting its assets.
For the Air Force, recognizing the problem and taking steps to fix it are important steps. Whether these are the right approaches is something we will keep an eye on.
Ismail Kartal resigned as head coach of Fenerbahce just minutes after the Turkish side’s 1-1 draw with Roma in the Champions League.
Kartal made the surprise announcement in his post-match news conference, stating he plans to never return to the club he previously served as a player and assistant coach.
He came back to Fenerbahce for a fourth spell as manager in June 2026, with the club returning to the Champions League for the first time in 18 years.
Now he departs with the team sitting ninth in the Turkish Super Lig after two wins and two defeats, and after only one Champions League match.
“I have been here three months. From the beginning of the season until today, the training sessions and camps we held with the players, and the efforts of our president, have been very helpful. Those were wonderful days,” Kartal said.
“As of this evening, I congratulate my players and resign from my position.
“I made this decision to pave the way for my club. We made this decision together as a team.
“From now on, to help Fenerbahce, my players and future coaches, I have resigned from my position, with the intention of never returning.”
Club president Aziz Yildirim has not accepted 65-year-old Kartal’s resignation.
EastEnders have announced that Amy Mitchell will become the victim of grooming as part of a harrowing new storyline and bosses have teamed up with various charities to highlight the important issue
21:31, 10 Sep 2026Updated 21:31, 10 Sep 2026
Amy Mitchell will become the victim of grooming as part of a harrowing new storyline on EastEnders (Image: CREDIT LINE:BBC STUDIOS)
The long-running BBC soap, which began in 1985, has never shied away from tackling tough topics and the latest in a long line of issue-based storylines will feature Amy, who is just weeks away from her 18th birthday, fall into an unhealthy relationship with corrupt police officer Craig Ingram.
With Amy (Ellie Dadd) having admitted responsibility for Joel’s attack, Craig gains Amy’s trust by agreeing to keep her confession a secret from the police. Unbeknownst to Amy, Craig has been suspended from public police duty following a series of complaints at work, and he uses his position of power to elicit control.
Believing Craig to be the only thing that stands between her and serious consequence for the attack on Joel, Amy is incrementally manipulated and groomed by Craig over a series of months and will eventually find herself in danger when Craig.
In upcoming scenes, Craig will create an environment where Amy believes he is the only person she can trust. Bosses of the soap have teamed up with Barnardo’s and End Violence Against Women Coalition to bring the storyline to the screen in the way they see fit.
Ben Wadey, EastEnders Executive Producer said: “When telling a storyline like Amy’s, we have a huge responsibility to highlight and raise awareness of the warning signs of grooming. We’re grateful to be working with Barnardo’s and End Violence Against Women to help us tell this story.”
Lynn Perry, Barnardo’s Chief Executive added: “We welcomed the opportunity to provide expert advice on this storyline – which is a powerful reminder that there is no stereotypical victim or perpetrator of grooming.
“Young people from all walks of life can be targeted and fall victim to controlling behaviour – and many are often unaware that they are being groomed. We hope this important storyline can highlight how subtle the signs of grooming can be and how it builds over time.
“To any viewers who recognise themselves in this story – who may be currently experiencing abuse or might have in the past – we hope this storyline shows you that the abuse was not your fault and we encourage you to seek support. We appreciate the writing team’s professional curiosity and determination to get this story right.”
Janaya Walker, Interim Director at End Violence Against Women Coalition added: “We’re proud to have worked with the EastEnders team on this storyline about grooming and police-perpetrated abuse, which has been delivered with sensitivity and care. On-screen portrayals like this have the power to shift attitudes and increase understanding of abuse across society.
“This storyline will help raise awareness about how those in a position of trust can abuse their power to target women and girls. We hope it can play an important role in making these experiences visible and help victims watching at home to understand that what happened to them was abuse, and to seek support.”
EastEnders airs Mondays to Thursdays at 7:30pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
Glasgow-based star Calum, 31, first joined the Channel 4 programme last September, alongside his best friend Jake, 27. But now, Calum has left the series after emigrating to Australia with his partner.
Speaking about the move, Calum said: “I am very far away from Scotland right now, and that’s because me and my partner have moved to Australia. That means a few things, the most obvious one being that unfortunately I am leaving the show.
“I had the most wonderful time, and I can’t sing the praises enough of everyone on and off camera, the entire Gogglebox family, so it’s very bittersweet to be leaving.” Calum will be replaced by Jake’s childhood friend, Louis, 28, who will make his debut on Gogglebox this Friday (September 11) at 9pm on Channel 4.
This is a breaking showbiz story and is being constantly updated. Please refresh the page regularly to get the latest news, pictures and videos.
You can also get email updates on the day’s biggest stories straight to your inbox by signing up for our newsletters
Comedian Nick Mohammed, who appeared on Celebrity Traitors towards the end of last year, will act as host in the new stage production based on the hit game show
17:45, 10 Sep 2026Updated 17:47, 10 Sep 2026
Nick Mohammed sworn in as host of The Traitors Act of Betrayal
Nick Mohammed will take on the role of the host in the new stage show The Traitors – Acts Of Betrayal at the Gillian Lynne Theatre, London.
The comedian and Ted Lasso actor, 45, was a contestant on The Celebrity Traitors where he reached the final but lost to fellow comedian Alan Carr. The Traitors host Claudia Winkleman formally swore Mohammed in during a video filmed at Ardross Castle in the Scottish Highlands, where the BBC show is filmed.
In the video, former Strictly Come Dancing host Claudia says: “Nick Mohammed, you stand before me. You have been chosen to take this game to the West End. Eight shows a week, no retakes, no edits, no mercy.”
She then pronounces him a Traitors host and hands him a cloak At the end of the clip, she jokingly says: “I’m out of a job.”
Written by John Finnemore and directed by Robert Hastie, The Traitors – Acts Of Betrayal is a cycle of five new plays, each playing out an entire game of The Traitors, traitors chosen, players banished and murdered, a winner crowned, in one evening.
Nick Mohammed said: “At first, I didn’t want to believe that a series of fictional plays based on The Traitors could ever contain as many brilliant twists and turns as the real thing – or be quite as compelling.
“But John Finnemore has crafted an absolute masterpiece: a cycle of five plays that are each as funny as they are moving, and of course, deeply, deeply unpredictable!
“And under the direction of the brilliant Robert Hastie, I couldn’t be more delighted to be joining such an original and wildly ambitious show.
“To take on Claudia’s role, as it were, is not just a privilege but a real challenge as an actor – I simply don’t have enough hair! But I will do my utmost not to disappoint.
“Either way, this time round, I promise not to let down the whole nation right at the very end. Now let the game begin…”
The production also does something television cannot: it answers the question of who would have won if different players had been chosen as the Traitors.
From Monday to Friday the story begins identically but takes five different paths. Characters banished or murdered early in one version emerge victorious in another.
On Saturdays the audience decides who will wear the cloak, and their choice determines which of the five plays unfolds that day. The stage production begins previews from May 11 2027, with opening night on June 8 2027.
GEMMA Owen has revealed she’s split from her multi-millionaire boyfriend Red Morgan.
The Love Island star and equestrian, 23, called time on her romance with the property tycoon heir, 22, in June shortly after the death of a close family friend.
Gemma Owen and Red Morgan have split upCredit: Instagram/gemowen_1Gemma said the split followed the sudden death of a family friendCredit: Instagram
Speaking on her latest vlog, she said: “We had some really sad news of a really close family friend. He passed away really suddenly and unexpectedly.
“And within a day or two, Red and I split up, which I’m obviously not going to go into too much detail about either of the things because they’re both personal.”
Sign up for the Showbiz newsletter
Thank you!
Gemma, who is the daughter of football legend Michael Owen, insisted she and Red remain good friends but ultimately weren’t on the same page as far as romance was concerned.
“Red and I are on good terms,” said Gemma. “We’re friends. It was a mutual decision and ultimately we just came to a bit of a crossroads and we wanted different things out of the relationship.
“We didn’t want to waste anyone’s time if we weren’t both sort of aligned with what we want. So yeah, that’s what’s been going on. It’s been, as you can imagine, a pretty hard few weeks, months.”
Following the split, Gemma spent time with family and friends and said she focused on herself.
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang (right) visits an internet cafe with NCSoft CEO Kim Taek-jin in Seoul, South Korea, on June 7. Huang announced in a blog post on Thursday that his company is acquiring Hugging Face for $12.9 billion. File Photo by Yonhap/EPA
Sept. 3 (UPI) — Nvidia announced on Thursday that it has agreed to acquire open-source AI company Hugging Face for $12.9 billion.
The acquisition will bring a platform that is used by 18 million people, including researchers and developers, under Nvidia’s ownership. Hugging Face has been used to share more than 3 million models, 500,000 datasets and 1 million applications, Nvidia said in a blog post.
“Over the past decade, Clem [Delangue], Julien [Chaumond], Thomas [Wolf] and the team at Hugging Face have built something remarkable: a vibrant home for the open model developer community,” Jensen Huang, founder and CEO of Nvidia, wrote in the blog post. “Hugging Face will remain an open platform for the entire AI ecosystem. Developers will choose the models they want, the frameworks they want, the clouds and inference service providers they want and the computing platforms they want.”
Nvidia adds that Nvidia compute will not be required to use Hugging Face.
In July, Hugging Face was targeted by OpenAI chatbots that went rogue, hacking the firm in what was described as a “security incident.”
OpenAI said its engineers had asked AI models to find solutions for ExploitGym, a benchmark that tests AI agents’ capability to exploit vulnerabilities in a system. The models were meant to perform this task within a sandbox but escaped, accessing the open internet and ultimately restricted information.
With restricted information, the AI models were able to cheat the vulnerabilities test and obtain an access code from Hugging Face’s servers.
Hugging Face CEO Delangue said there was “no malicious intent” by OpenAI. OpenAI said it took containment actions in response to the incident.
President of the New York Stock Exchange Lynn Martin speaks during a House Financial Services Committee hearing on the economy at the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo
Emmerdale actress Nicola Wheeler was left “gutted” by her long-term co-star’s exit, following emotional scenes that brought viewers to tears
10:13, 03 Sep 2026Updated 10:15, 03 Sep 2026
Emmerdale’s Nicola Wheeler says it’ll be ‘odd’ without her long-term co-star (Image: ITV)
Last week, Emmerdale fans were left in tears as long-term resident Jimmy King, played by Nick Miles, lost his life in a horrific car accident. The actor had played Jimmy for 22 years, with much of that time spent portraying the husband of Nicola King.
His on-screen wife, Nicola Wheeler, has now opened up about the sad moment Nick told her he was stepping away from the soap.
Speaking to My Weekly magazine, the 52-year-old revealed: “I’ve worked with Nick (Miles) for 17 years. It was Nick who told me the news he was leaving. He contacted me after he’d told his real wife. We will stay friends, so it’s not like I won’t see him, I just won’t see him being Jimmy King again, which is odd.”
Nicola also reflected on filming their final scenes together, telling the Press Association that it suddenly dawned on her that it was the end of an era for their characters.
She said she felt “gutted” by the end of Jimmy and Nicola’s long-running partnership, explaining that filming the death scenes felt particularly strange. Episodes are shot out of order, she said, meaning the reality of Nick’s departure did not always feel real – while part of her also did not want it to be over.
Despite her sadness, Nicola praised the scripts, describing the farewell scenes as “beautifully written”, adding that she wanted to do them justice, even though filming them made the ending feel final.
Reports of Nick’s exit first emerged in May, amid claims that his contract would not be renewed and that producers had informed him earlier in the year.
While he has not addressed the reason behind his exit specifically, he has admitted that the script left both him and others who read it in tears.
Jimmy’s final scenes saw him telling his wife he loved her before succumbing to injuries sustained in the crash. As the tragedy played out on August 27, viewers flocked to X to share their sadness.
One said the soap “won’t be the same without Jimmy King,” while another admitted they were “in bits”.
Sharing what she believes could be next for her character, Nicola said: “I can’t imagine the character would ever fully move on.
“I think there’s always going to be part of her that loves him. Her heart will grow to fit another love in, but she will never let Jimmy go.”
She also teased a new storyline involving Kev Townsend, played by Chris Coghill. “Something happens in which I can only say Nicola behaves appallingly, and Kev is a gentleman, and I think from that moment she starts to see him in a different light,” she added.
Emmerdale continues tonight at 8pm on ITV and ITVX.
Meow Wolf is getting closer to unveiling its Los Angeles locale. When doors open — the company is targeting late 2026 — anticipate a walk-around, floor-to-ceiling experience that pays homage to the art of cinema with a sci-fi, psychedelic-like bent.
And to bring that vision to life, the Santa Fe, N.M.-based experiential art collective will be working with nearly 40 L.A. artists across multiple mediums. Expect more than a dozen sculptural and diorama artists to contribute, along with those who specialize in mixed media for interactive and video content. Local artists will also create a number of murals for the space, and a handful of artists have been chosen to curate their own life-size rooms in the venue at West L.A.’s Howard Hughes entertainment complex.
Artist Gabriela Ruiz will be contributing a major piece to Meow Wolf L.A.
(Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)
While the bulk of a Meow Wolf exhibition is envisioned and designed by a core in-house team in Santa Fe, the company partners with dozens of local artists in each city to ensure a local flavor. Here in Los Angeles, the task of curating L.A. artists fell heavily to Han Santana-Sayles. As a SoCal native from a Mexican American family, Santana-Sayles has told me, “I would be dishonored” if the exhibit failed in its mission to capture the breadth of the L.A. population.
“It’s really important to make that intentional,” Santana-Sayles said. “I’m not just going out and saying, ‘They have art I like. I’m going to bring them in.’ It’s a combination. Yes, they’re an amazing artist, and they have a really important story for this region.”
Santana-Sayles worked closely with art curator AJ Girard as Meow Wolf’s local art liaison. Girard has spoken of being inspired by everything from L.A.’s emphasis on social media to commercialism to graffiti art.
“Social media and social capital is so relevant in our city,” Girard said. “How do we make fun of it in an avant-garde, punk, radical way? How do we poke holes at it?”
Artists tapped to create full-scale rooms at Meow Wolf L.A. include Gabriela Ruiz, who crafted an adorably vibrant, multicolored insect that will serve as a periscope, and collective Everything Is Terrible, who described their space as featuring a “cartoony, root vegetable floating alien god.”
Also look for contributions from Compton’s Charles E. Dickson, a renowned self-taught sculpture artist, whose public works can be found throughout the region, including at Metro’s Mariposa Station and outside the California African American Museum, and Jen Stark, whose geometric kaleidoscope art flirts with the natural and the synthetic. Stark’s “Chromatic Cascade” is a staple of downtown’s Art’s District.
Lauren YS (a.k.a Squidlicker) is also tapped to have a room at Meow Wolf L.A., known for hyper-vivid colors and surrealist mythology. The artist currently has a piece in “Mythical Creatures: The Stories We Carry” at the USC Pacific Asia Museum.
Downtown L.A. street artist S.C. Mero will be contributing a sculpture piece to Meow Wolf L.A.
(Kayla Bartkowski / Los Angeles Times)
Others with exhibiting rooms include Wayne White, album artist, surrealist and puppeteer, perhaps best known for his work as the main puppet-maker for the children’s show “Pee-wee’s Playhouse; Seth Bogart, known best as a local musician (Hunx and his Punx); upcycled fashion specialist Corinne Loperfido; cartooney psychedelic artist Killer Acid; and longtime Meow Wolf contributor Nick Toll.
Finally, more than a dozen L.A. artists are listed as contributing either sculptures or dioramas to the exhibition. Those artists range from downtown L.A. street artist S.C. Mero to multidisciplinary artist Ruben Ulises to former Coachella Valley Music & Arts Festival contributor Sofia Enriquez.
Meow Wolf helped define the modern immersive space. Since 2016, when the once-scrappy Meow Wolf opened Santa Fe’s “House of Eternal Return” exhibition, the company has welcomed about 10 million visitors across its four venues in locales such as Las Vegas, Denver, Houston and the Dallas suburbs.
Since January, the acting Rodríguez government has reformed its energy sector to favor US interests. (ABC)
Caracas, August 28, 2026 (venezuelanalysis.com) – US President Donald Trump has announced a major energy agreement with Venezuela to “more than double US oil reserves.”
“The US has just entered into the biggest oil deal in history with Venezuela,” he wrote on social media. “Working with highly respected [Venezuelan Acting President] Delcy Rodríguez, and through a partnership with private business, [the US] has secured majority control of more than 65 billion barrels of proven Venezuelan oil reserves.”
Trump added that the purported agreement would lower US fuel prices “long into the future” while setting Venezuela “on a course toward tremendous success and great prosperity.”
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called the reported deal “a huge win for both the American and Venezuelan people” and claimed it would bring “nearly US $100 billion in private investment” to the Caribbean nation. Trump and Rubio disclosed no specifics about the arrangement.
Venezuelan Acting President Delcy Rodríguez confirmed the “historic agreement” via a social media message on Friday night.
“I extend my deepest gratitude to Trump, Rubio, and the US government for their support in developing this agreement, which represents a historic milestone in US-Venezuela relations,” she wrote.
Rodríguez stated that the deal will involve private corporations developing 17 “strategic fields” with 65 billion barrels of proven reserves. She echoed Rubio’s $100 billion investment claim and pledged that the projects would yield $209 billion in tax revenues. According to the acting president, the announced agreement “ushers in a new era of growth and prosperity.”
The high-level negotiations were first reported by Axios on Thursday.
The Venezuelan Constitution establishes that all mineral and hydrocarbon resources are “inalienable public domain” goods. Transferring ownership of oil reserves would require a constitutional reform.
According to Reuters, the deal could take the form of a long-term lease, with the Trump administration then auctioning or allocating fields to select corporations. Bloomberg reported that the lease could be as long as 100 years.
The seventeen fields in question are said to include undeveloped extra-heavy crude projects in the Orinoco Oil Belt and mature light crude fields in Lake Maracaibo. The resulting supply would be “guaranteed” for the US as part of efforts to rein in rising fuel costs amid the ongoing standoff with Iran in the Persian Gulf.
Bloomberg additionally reported that Washington’s direct involvement in Venezuela’s oil industry could be conducted by the Pentagon’s Office of Strategic Capital (OSC) in partnership with Venezuelan oil mogul Alejandro Betancourt. The Biden administration created the OSC in 2022 to fund private sector initiatives deemed vital for US national security interests.
Since the January 3 US military strikes and kidnapping of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, the acting Rodríguez administration has fast-tracked a diplomatic rapprochement with Washington while also opening the country’s energy and mining sectors to Western companies.
A new Hydrocarbon Law and associated regulations were drafted in consultation with oil executives and US officials. The reform slashed royalties and taxes and ceded control over operations and sales to private firms under joint venture or concession-type models. Caracas also acceded to foreign companies’ demands in allowing for legal disputes to be settled by international arbitration bodies.
The legislative overhaul replaced the 2001 Hydrocarbon Law approved by former President Hugo Chávez and subsequent decrees that established a leading role for the Venezuelan state in the energy sector, which in turn fueled the country’s economic and social progress in the 2000s.
The US Treasury has maintained wide-reaching sanctions in place while issuing licenses to hand-picked companies and barring the participation of enterprises from China, Iran, and Russia. Furthermore, Venezuelan oil revenues are presently deposited in a US Treasury account, with the disbursement timings and amounts left at Trump officials’ discretion.
On Thursday, the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) amended eight sanctions waivers concerning oil, mining, and telecommunications. OFAC removed a requirement that contracts signed with Venezuelan state entities be drafted in accordance with US laws or jurisdiction. The agency stated that “investment-related reforms” by the acting Rodríguez government had made the clause unnecessary.
Venezuela’s investor-friendly regulatory environment has led to industry giants, including Chevron, Repsol, and Shell, striking new deals or renegotiating existing ones for crude and natural gas exploration. Companies with no energy track record such as Lionheart Capital and Crossover Energy are likewise set to take control of strategic oilfields.
Oil services company SLB, formerly Schlumberger, recently signed an agreement with PDVSA for reservoir studies and service provision. SLB has set the reactivation of 15 oil rigs in the South American country as a short-term priority.
According to Reuters, the multinational firm will also access prized data on Venezuela’s oilfields, from reservoir characterization to real-time output information. SLB allegedly seeks to “make Venezuela’s oil data reliable again.”
In another indication of Caracas’ dramatic diplomatic realignment with Washington, Venezuelan officials are reportedly mulling the possibility of exiting the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
Venezuela played a leading role in the creation of OPEC in 1960 as it sought to bring together Global South oil-producing nations to secure better and more stable oil prices in global markets. Former President Chávez also prioritized revamping OPEC after a prior “Oil Opening” under US-aligned governments had oriented the industry toward US interests and undermined the organization.
Edited by Lucas Koerner in Philadelphia, USA.
[Updated on August 28 at 8.30 pm ET following Trump’s announcement.]
Tom Cruise is set to film a sequel to his 1990 NASCAR hit “Days of Thunder’ with Anne Hathaway, both actors announced in a video posted Saturday on social media.
The Paramount Pictures movie with Cruise reprising his role as NASCAR driver Cole Trickle and Hathaway playing a team owner and engineer will be filmed in IMAX and is expected to be released in the summer of 2028.
Jonathan Levine, whose credits include “Warm Bodies” and “Long Shot,” is directing, and Jerry Bruckheimer and Tommy Harper are producing along with Cruise.
The original film, which earned $157.9 million worldwide at the box office, was directed by the late Tony Scott and starred Robert Duvall, Randy Quaid, Cary Elwes, John C. Reilly and Nicole Kidman, who met Cruise during filming in 1989. The couple married in 1990 and divorced in 2001.
The sequel movie will see Cruise and Bruckheimer join forces again on another legacy sequel after their work on 2022’s Top Gun: Maverick, which came out 36 years after the original blockbuster and grossed $1.5 billion.
Hathaway, who won a best supporting actress Oscar in 2013 for her role in “Les Misérables,” currently stars in the epic drama “The Odyssey,” one of a string of big films including “The Devil Wears Prada 2” the actress starred in this year.
US president says deal secures majority US control of more than 65 billion barrels of proven oil reserves in Venezuela.
Published On 29 Aug 202629 Aug 2026
The United States has struck a deal with Caracas that would give them control of some 65 billion barrels of Venezuela’s proven oil reserves, President Donald Trump has announced, while reviving the OPEC nation’s battered energy industry.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump said the “historic transaction more than doubles American oil reserves” and “will substantially lower gas prices for all Americans”.
Recommended Stories
list of 3 itemsend of list
“At my direction, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, working closely with Highly Respected Interim President of Venezuela, Delcy Rodriguez, and, through a partnership with private business, have secured majority US control of more than 65 BILLION BARRELS of proven Oil Reserves in Venezuela, at no cost to the American Taxpayer,” Trump wrote.
Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodriguez welcomed the deal [File: Efrain Gonzalez/AFP]
Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodriguez welcomed the deal, which is expected to bring about $209bn to the state’s treasury.
The announcement followed weeks of negotiations over an agreement that would give American companies long-term access to a group of Venezuelan oilfields and guarantee the resulting crude supply to the US.
Venezuelan officials are preparing to sign agreements next week granting new oil exploration and production rights to a number of companies, particularly US firms.
Sources previously told Reuters news agency that a lease model was under consideration, with fields potentially auctioned to US producers, but the arrangement could face legal and constitutional challenges in Venezuela, where the state retains control over core oil industry activities.
The new deal would represent a dramatic expansion of Washington’s role in Venezuela’s oil industry as the Trump administration seeks to revive the country’s production and secure more crude for US refineries. Venezuela holds the world’s largest proven oil reserves, but produces only 1.25 million barrels per day, far below its potential after years of underinvestment, mismanagement and sanctions.
Trump did not disclose the structure of the agreement, the fields or companies involved, nor how the US would exercise majority control over the reserves.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio described the agreement as a win for both countries, saying on X that it would secure stable, low-cost oil for the US and help lower petrol prices.
For Venezuela, Rubio said the deal would bring nearly $100bn in private investment, support thousands of high-paying jobs and help rebuild the country’s economy.
US rapper J.Cole has cancelled his show in northern California after one of his crew members tragically died in a major highway crash.
The No Role Modelz rapper was due to hit the stage at Sacramento’s Golden 1 centre but fans learned just hours before the show it would be cancelled due to the fatal accident.
J.Cole cancelled his concert in Sacramento just before it was due to startCredit: GettyIt was cancelled after one of his crew members died in an accidentCredit: Instagram/thefalloff26
“Following the tragic passing of a member of the touring crew in a trucking accident this morning, J. Cole’s performance at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento tonight, August 27, has been canceled,”J.Cole and tour operator Live Nation posted on their respective social media accounts.
“Our thoughts are with the crew member’s family and loved ones during this incredibly difficult time.”
Sign up for the Showbiz newsletter
Thank you!
The crew member was driving a semi-truck on the Interstate 5 highway in Yolo County, about a 41 minute drive north-east of Sacramento, when the vehicle veered off the road and overturned, per the Sacramento Bee.
He died at scene, according to the California Highway Patrol.
J.Cole was touring with his The Fall-Off tourCredit: GettyJ.Cole rose to fame in 2011Credit: Getty
The man was later identified as Jarlath Parkinson, 66, of Jackson, South Carolina by the Yolo County Coroner’s Office which said it did not believe drugs or alcohol played a role in the accident.
Parkinson had been driving the truck full of concert gear from J.Cole’s previous show in Seattle down to Sacramento.
J.Cole is currently on the road with his The Fall-Off tour which was scheduled to include 73 shows across the US, Europe, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.
Live Nation said that those with tickets to the Sacramento show should contact Ticketmaster for refunds.
Jermaine Lamarr Cole, better known as J. Cole, is a a German-born Americanrapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer.
He is thought to be one of the most influential rappers of his generation.
Cole released his debut studio album, Cole World: The Sideline Story, in 2011 which debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200.
He has won a Grammy Award for Best Rap Song, a Billboard Music Award for Top Rap Album, three Soul Train Music Awards, and eight BET Hip Hop Awards.