South Africa storm back to crush Australia by an innings in the second Test and level the series 1-1 with one to play.
Published On 22 Oct 202622 Oct 2026
South Africa bowled out Australia for 295 to win by an innings and 31 runs in the last session of the second Test at St George’s Park in Gqeberha on Thursday to level the three-match series, winning a race against looming bad weather.
The hosts’ pace trio of Wiaan Mulder, Kagiso Rabada and Marco Jansen took the last four wickets required as Australia’s resistance crumbled after a century from Travis Head and a doggedly defiant Test high 40 by nightwatchman Scott Boland.
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Mulder, who earlier dismissed Head, then bowled Boland and castled Australia captain Pat Cummins to forge a breakthrough, with Rabada dismissing Mitchell Starc and Jansen finishing off the innings with Josh Hazlewood caught in the slips.
A result in the Test seemed far-fetched when most of the first two days’ play was washed out and South Africa, who were 110-6 when the sun came out on the morning of the third day, looked in early trouble as Australia aimed to capitalise on their success in the first Test.
But a brilliant 179 runs from skipper Temba Bavuma led a fightback that saw South Africa declare on 425-9 and then turn the Test on its head by bowling Australia out for 99 and putting them in to bat again.
Head and Boland had resumed on 156-4 in the second innings after rain returned and wiped out the morning session and Head, who was 87 overnight, went on to score 121 before chopping onto his stumps a rising delivery from Mulder.
It was Head’s 13th Test century but only his second outside Australia, and his departure offered the home bowlers hope again after almost 90 minutes of frustrating attack without success at the start of the day’s action.
“We were scrambling a bit, not sure about the weather and Australia made us work hard for those last six wickets,” said Bavuma.
Steve Smith, who battled with a neck problem in the first innings on Wednesday, made three as he came in at number seven.
The former captain was tempted into pulling a delivery from Rabada, bowling with the second new ball, but only got a top edge to Matthew Breetzke, who juggled it at mid-wicket before holding the catch.
Boland, who batted for 166 balls as he put a high price on his wicket, went soon after tea, when he was bowled through the gate. Then Cummins (4) played down the wrong line and was also clean bowled in Mulder’s next over.
When Rabada came back for a fresh spell as dark clouds loomed ominously overhead, he immediately bowled Starc (11), leaving one wicket to get, which Jansen snagged as Hazlewood showed no sign of sticking around and nicked behind the first ball.
Alex Carey, who lasted only two balls in Australia’s first innings, was 37 not out, with Rabada taking 4-77 on his return after a lengthy injury layoff, and Mulder 3-64.
“I thought we showed some good fight, but it wasn’t quite enough. We were a long way from our best,” said Cummins.
The last Test at Newlands in Cape Town starts on Tuesday.
The Metcalfe sisters played for Wales together for the first time when lock Branwen came off the bench for her first cap against Canada at the 2025 World Cup.
They started the uncapped fixture against the Baa-Baas but join forces in the XV for the first time at Test level against Japan.
Branwen, 20, starts her sixth successive Test and has a new second-row partner in fellow bright prospect Aiono.
Nel, 21, returns on the wing rather than full-back for her first cap since the World Cup after a knee injury that forced her to sit out the Six Nations.
“She was a shining light at the World Cup, which was tough for us,” said Lynn.
“Every time that she gets the ball, something will happen. She has got fitter, stronger and faster, and she’s excited to go out there on Saturday.”
Wales are 11th in World Rugby’s rankings, a spot above Japan.
Last month the Sakura Fifteen lost 55-21 to Italy and were beaten twice by Ireland, 31-24 in the WXV Global Series and 43-19 in an extra Test.
“Japan ran Ireland close in the first Test and they are very efficient in what they do, very regimented,” said Lynn, who opts for six forwards on his bench.
“They’ve got a very good maul and we are not going to be taking them lightly at all.”
The U.S. military has successfully demonstrated a new lower-cost receiver that could form part of a future over-the-horizon (OTH) radar. The testing also raises the question of whether the High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP) research site in Alaska, which the U.S. Air Force transferred away more than a decade ago, could be repurposed for operational use in this role. A new radar of this kind would help the United States plug critical gaps in surveillance coverage over the ever-more strategic Arctic region. Canada is notably already pursuing a multi-billion-dollar OTH radar project in cooperation with Australia for this exact purpose.
The U.S. military put out a press release yesterday regarding the testing of the newly developed receiver array, which occurred between September 7 and September 11. This was the culmination of a series of “Arctic air domain awareness” experiments conducted cooperatively by U.S. and Canadian authorities over the past three years.
An aerial view of the HAARP site in Alaska, taken on September 7, 2026. USAF
The final round of experimentation last month “examined whether an existing high-frequency transmitter [HAARP], paired with a newly developed, low-cost [16-element high-frequency] receiver array, could detect aircraft beyond the coverage of current long-range radar sites,” according to the release. “The effort focused on improving awareness across a region where vast distances, harsh weather and limited infrastructure present challenges for air surveillance.”
“Researchers used the University of Alaska Fairbanks’ High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program [HAARP] facility and a receiver array in Cold Bay developed by MITRE to collect data on participating aircraft over the Gulf of Alaska and Bering Sea,” the release added. “MITRE also supported the effort throughout the three-year experiment series and designed and executed the field experiment in partnership with government, scientific, and operational participants.”
A view of the MITRE-developed array in Cold Bay, Alaska, which was part of the testing in September. USAF
The remote HAARP site was built in the 1990s as part of a joint U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy effort. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) was also involved. The central component of the 33-acre facility is an array of 180 crossed-dipole antennas, which can transmit up to 3.6 megawatts of radio frequency energy, according to the Air Force.
In 2014, the U.S. Air Force announced that it would shutter the HAARP site and dismantle it. However, the following year, the decision was instead made to transfer it to the University of Alaska Fairbanks, which has continued to operate it as a civilian research facility.
“During an experimental air domain awareness initiative, HAARP served as a high-power illuminator, transmitting signals toward the ionosphere to support the detection of airborne targets over Alaska’s maritime approaches,” according to the captions of several pictures that accompanied the release yesterday. “The experiment evaluated bistatic over-the-horizon detection methods to explore potential improvements in long-range surveillance and air domain awareness across Alaska’s maritime approaches.”
Another view of crossed-dipole antennas at the HAARP site. USAF
The most common types of OTH radars are so-called ‘skywave’ or ‘backscatter’ designs. They usually consist of two large and geographically separated arrays of antennas. The ‘illuminator’ array pumps out signals that are bounced off the ionosphere, the ionized layer of Earth’s upper atmosphere, at a specific angle so that they return to the ‘receiver’ array. Objects of interest (in the air and/or on the surface depending on the specific configuration) are detected in the process. AsTWZ has previously written:
“Commonly, radars are limited by line of sight due to the curvature of the Earth in relation to the altitude they are operating at. OTHRs overcome this critical limitation, but with some major drawbacks.”
…
“While they offer much lower fidelity than many of their line-of-sight counterparts in most cases, they make up for it in huge range, hundreds of miles to thousands of miles (1,500 miles is common, for instance, for powerful military sky wave/backscatter OTHR systems) and a large coverage area. The sky wave type of OTHRs achieve this by bouncing their radio waves off the ionosphere to a coverage area where they hit targets and return the same way to the receiving station. The angle at which the radio waves hit the ionosphere dictates the range, and that angle is limited to a specific envelope or the waves won’t properly bounce back toward Earth. As such, placing the radar in the right place in relation to the targeted surveillance area or areas, to begin with, is key.”
In the testing last month, Air Force E-3 Sentry Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) radar planes, HC-130J Combat King II rescue aircraft, and KC-135 aerial refueling tankers “served as cooperative targets, providing known positions against which researchers could compare the experimental data,” according to the official release. “The team successfully completed testing, meeting or exceeding its test execution objectives. Initial results show the system was successfully able to achieve full skywave (beyond line of sight) detections of aircraft and correlation to truth flights. Thorough data analysis is ongoing.”
An Alaska-based E-3 Sentry receives fuel from a KC-135 tanker during an exercise in 2022. USAFAn HC-130J Combat King II seen landing at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska in August. USAF/Alejandro Pena
The release also says that the tests “explored how existing infrastructure and emerging technology could complement current surveillance capabilities.” This raises the possibility that the HAARP site, specifically, might be utilized as part of a new OTH radar. Whether or not this is actually under consideration is still unclear, and TWZ has reached out for more information.
Today, NORAD relies heavily on a network of ground-based radars called the North Warning System (NWS) to provide aerial surveillance coverage in the High North. The radars that make up the NWS are also all pointed northward, and none of them provide the kind of wide-area long-range coverage that an OTH design would offer.
A map showing NWS radar sites in Canada and their coverage arcs. Nasittuq Corporation
The NWS reflects a long-standing focus on monitoring for aerial threats heading across the North Pole toward North America, especially possible nuclear strikes from Russia (and the Soviet Union before it). However, new avenues for geostrategic competition in the Arctic with Russia, as well as China, over natural resources, from oil and natural gas to fish and other sealife, as well as trade routes have emerged in recent years amid receding ice and other impacts of global climate change. This, in turn, has only prompted growing demand for surveillance coverage.
“We need a layered sensing grid, from [the] seafloor to the space layer. And we have no choice. It has to be layered and deep, a defense in depth, from a sensing point of view,” Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) Maj. Gen. Chris McKenna, head of 1 Canadian Air Division and the Canadian NORAD Region, also said during a panel discussion at the Air & Space Forces Association’s (AFA) annual Warfare Symposium in 2025, at which TWZ was in attendance. “And I will say I suffer from an insufficiency of ISR [intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance] in the Arctic on a daily basis. And I am fighting for information.”
McKenna was responding at the time to a direct question about gaps in so-called “domain awareness” in and around the Arctic and how to address them.
“I think there’s an importance here of not just air domain, but also space domain, and having a sufficiency of ISR in the Arctic to actually build you the [domain awareness] picture,” he added. “I haven’t really touched on over-the-horizon radar, but I certainly can get into it. I think that’s a really important capability given the austerity of the Arctic and the need for it to cue other things.”
For its part, Canada is now building its own new Arctic Over The Horizon Radar (A-OTHR), at an estimated cost of more than $4 billion. In an announcement last year that caught many off guard, the Canadian government announced that it would be leveraging technology originally developed for Australia’s Jindalee Operational Radar Network (JORN) to support this development. It is also important to note here that relations between Canadian authorities and the Trump administration have been and continue to be heavily strained over a variety of issues, which has prompted broad concerns about future defense and security cooperation.
An element of Australia’s Jindalee Operational Radar Network (JORN). Australian Department of Defense
Back in the United States, OTH radar plans are also now tied in with the broader Golden Dome air and missile defense initiative. Golden Dome is seeking to establish new layers of defense around the U.S. homeland against a wide array of threat types, and puts major emphasis on new space-based sensor and interceptor capabilities. Expanded defensive architectures within the Earth’s atmosphere are also part of this plan.
“Adversaries are developing and building advanced nuclear and conventional delivery capabilities,” U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Joseph Jarrard, Vice Commander of the U.S. element of NORAD and Deputy Commander of U.S. Northern Command (NORTHCOM), warned at the annual Space & Missile Defense (SMD) Symposium in August. This includes “cruise, hypersonic, and ballistic missiles, as well as fractional orbital bombardment systems, or FOBS, to threaten not only Alaska and Hawaii, but the entire continent of the United States.”
Chinese hypersonic and other developments, in particular, enable new modes of attack that “can approach North America from the south, rather than the traditional northerly vector for which our legacy early warning radars were designed,” Jarrard continued. “The Chinese have also been building a conventionally-armed ICBM [intercontinental ballistic missile] equipped with hypersonic glide vehicles that can range [sic] targets throughout Alaska, providing Chinese leaders strike options against our homeland below the nuclear threshold.”
“Russia’s advanced missiles, like the nuclear-armed Avangard hypersonic glide vehicle, are designed to circumvent the ground-based radars used by NORAD and NORTHCOM to detect and characterize an inbound threat, and challenge the ability to provide threat warning and attack assessment,” he added.
New OTH radars positioned in Alaska and elsewhere in the Pacific will not be able to address all of these threat developments alone. At the same time, the recent testing leveraging the HAARP site is another step toward meeting demands for sorely needed expanded long-range radar coverage in the Arctic.
Although Celtic conceded four, the scoreline did not flatter Benfica. The Portuguese side created chances aplenty in both halves and hit the woodwork twice in addition to their four goals.
Celtic’s lack of depth in defence was exposed once again in the absence of the injured Cameron Carter-Vickers as Gianluca Prestianni and Duran tormented the visitors’ back four.
However, it is in forward areas where O’Neill perhaps has his biggest headache.
Club record signing Kasper Hogh was hooked at half-time and has now failed to score in 10 of his first 11 outings since joining from Bodo/Glimt in the summer.
Duran shifted inside for the second half and posed far more of a threat than his Danish team-mate.
“If I’m a creative midfield player and I’ve got Duran and Hogh to pick from, I’m taking Duran every day of the week,” former Celtic midfielder Scott Allan said.
“He looks to get off the side of defenders, if you put a ball in the area, he’s more likely to be alive to it.
“Hogh just isn’t firing on all cylinders. I can take that if he’s doing the other side of the game a lot better than he is.
“You can see why Martin O’Neill made the substitution at half-time and there’s no doubt Celtic looked much better going forward.”
O’Neill admitted he sees Duran as being better through the middle, when asked about his Colombian talisman post-match, but given Hogh’s price tag he might not be inclined to pull him out of the firing line just yet.
“[Duran] has played wide at his previous clubs,” O’Neill said. “But I personally feel his best position is through the middle.
“It’s now a matter of us trying to fit him in and I think we can do that. It’s a real battle for places now.”
Nairobi, Kenya – Kenya’s response to an imported Ebola case has demonstrated its ability to mobilise a national response in the capital.
But a suspected case in the northeastern county of Wajir has raised a critical question: whether the country’s preparedness measures can protect communities far from major hospitals, laboratories and transport hubs.
The suspected case in Wajir tested negative, according to county officials, easing fears of wider transmission. Yet the incident highlighted the importance of local health facilities being able to recognise suspected infections, isolate patients safely and communicate reliable information to residents.
For communities near Kenya’s borders, preparedness requires more than screening travellers at airports and official crossings.
It also depends on trained health workers, appropriate protective equipment, functioning isolation facilities and clear referral procedures. Residents must know where to seek care and how to respond when health authorities raise the alarm.
Wajir’s readiness under scrutiny
Garad Saney Mohamed, communications director for Wajir county, told Al Jazeera that the county had established an isolation centre in Wajir town and formed a rapid response team to strengthen its preparedness.
He said the county was also using radio campaigns, community health promoters, school health programmes and posters to raise awareness about Ebola. A preparedness plan and budget had been put in place, he added.
However, the county did not provide details on the isolation centre’s capacity, the number of health workers trained specifically in Ebola response or the budget allocated to these efforts. Without that information, it is difficult to assess whether the county has the personnel and resources needed to manage suspected infections safely or respond to a wider outbreak.
The suspected case involved a 20-year-old man who had travelled from the Democratic Republic of the Congo through Uganda before reaching his home in Wajir on September 20. He was assessed at Habaswein Subcounty Hospital in Wajir South after presenting with a severe febrile illness.
His sample tested negative for Ebola, according to county officials. He was to remain under observation while receiving medical care.
The case prompted precautionary action, but it does not establish whether Wajir’s wider preparedness systems would be sufficient during an outbreak. That would depend on factors including the availability of protective equipment, staff trained in infection prevention and control, safe sample transport and reliable links between local facilities and designated testing laboratories.
Wajir’s proximity to Somalia, which lies 110km (70 miles) to the east, and the movement of people and goods across the border make surveillance and public communication particularly important. Screening at formal entry points remains essential, but it cannot replace the ability of local health facilities and community health workers to recognise warning signs and guide people towards appropriate care.
National screening, local challenges
Kenya’s national response intensified after an Ebola case was linked to a Kenyan travelling from the Democratic Republic of the Congo through Uganda. The patient arrived in Nairobi on October 3, was diagnosed with Bundibugyo virus of the disease and died on October 5, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Kenya notified the WHO on October 6.
The patient had fallen ill while living in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and travelled by road to Kampala before flying to Nairobi. Laboratory tests at the National Virology Reference Laboratory and the Kenya Medical Research Institute confirmed the infection, according to the Ministry of Health.
On October 14, Kenya confirmed a second case of Bundibugyo virus disease involving a 39-year-old man who was a close family member of the first patient. He was already in quarantine and under daily monitoring when he developed symptoms, including fever, fatigue and joint pains, on October 13.
Laboratory tests confirmed the infection, and he was transferred to a designated treatment centre for supportive care. The Ministry of Health said the two cases were linked and there was no evidence of transmission in the wider community.
Authorities subsequently intensified surveillance at points of entry, contact tracing and public communication. The negative test result in Wajir underscored the importance of investigating suspected infections promptly and using laboratory testing to establish whether the virus is present.
As of October 6, Kenya had screened 652,584 travellers, tested 267 samples and trained 4,971 healthcare workers in Ebola prevention and management, according to the Ministry of Health.
Wajir’s health facilities are on the front line of detecting and responding to suspected infectious disease cases [File: Hafsa Sheikh/Al Jazeera]
By October 12, the WHO reported that more than 665,000 travellers had been screened and 127 contacts had been listed, with 94 in quarantine. Five laboratories had been designated to test for the disease, and nearly 5,000 health workers had received training.
These figures demonstrate the scale of the national response. But the number of travellers screened or health workers trained does not, on its own, establish how effectively those resources are distributed or whether individual counties can manage suspected infections.
For Wajir, the key questions concern the readiness of local facilities, the availability of trained personnel and protective equipment, and the speed with which samples can be transported for testing. The county has outlined the measures it has taken, but the available information does not provide a complete picture of its operational capacity.
Preparedness means more than the numbers
Health workers need to recognise suspected cases, follow infection-prevention protocols, collect and transport samples safely, and refer patients without exposing others. Facilities must also have appropriate protective equipment and clear procedures for managing suspected infections.
The WHO reported that Kenya’s national preparedness score rose from 66 percent in May to 82 percent in July. The assessment covered measures including surveillance, laboratory testing, isolation and treatment facilities, and trained response teams.
The improvement suggests that preparedness measures had advanced before the imported case was confirmed. However, a national score cannot establish whether every county has the equipment, staffing and referral arrangements needed to respond effectively. Assessments of local capacity are essential to identifying gaps that national figures may not reveal.
The Kenya Red Cross has also supported preparedness and public awareness efforts. Dr Paul Olale, a representative of the organisation, told Al Jazeera about a preparedness assessment. However, the basis of the separate figure attributed to the organisation was not established in the information available for this report, making it difficult to determine what it measured or whether it identified county-level weaknesses.
The organisation has highlighted the need to counter misinformation. During an outbreak, rumours can leave people uncertain about symptoms, how the virus spreads and whether they should seek medical attention.
For residents, information needs to be practical. People should know where to seek care, how to report a suspected illness and what to do while awaiting medical advice. Communication must also address stigma and reassure people that reporting a suspected illness can help protect their families and communities.
Community health promoters, local radio stations, schools and trusted community leaders can help deliver information in languages and formats residents understand. But awareness campaigns are most effective when they are consistent and backed by health services capable of responding promptly to concerns.
Wajir’s experience illustrates why Kenya’s Ebola preparedness must be measured not only by national screening figures and training totals, but also by the ability of individual counties to respond safely when a suspected case emerges.
An isolation centre, a rapid response team and public awareness campaigns are important components of an effective response. Their existence alone, however, does not establish whether facilities have adequate equipment, staff can follow established protocols or residents can access reliable information when they need it.
Questions remain over how prepared remote communities such as Wajir county are to respond to a potential Ebola outbreak [File: Hafsa Sheikh/Al Jazeera]
Kenya has demonstrated its ability to mobilise a national response, expand screening and undertake laboratory testing. The challenge is ensuring that these measures translate into effective protection beyond major transport hubs, including in remote communities where access to healthcare and timely information may be more difficult.
Dr Mary Muthoni, Kenya’s principal secretary for public health and professional standards, underscored the importance of protecting frontline staff in remarks delivered on behalf of Health Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale, according to a WHO statement released on October 12.
“No health worker in this country should be asked to attend to a suspected Ebola case without the right protective equipment.”
Men’s Lions tours, featuring players from England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland, have taken place since 1888.
The women will travel to New Zealand for a five-match tour that features Tests in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch.
Yapp’s side will hope for a send-off in front of a bumper Cardiff crowd.
“It will be a tremendous rugby match and occasion,” said Carol Isherwood, chair of the Lions women’s committee.
“It’s a chance to grow the game and leave a legacy so that we are able to continue with the Lions team by setting the foundations and give everybody the chance to see the women’s game at its very best.”
A crowd of 21,186 set a record for a Wales women’s home game in any sport when watching the Six Nations defeat by England at Principality Stadium in 2025.
“I’ve been there for some England men’s games and the noise is fabulous. It’ll be great if it is a sea of red for the Lions and not just Wales,” said Isherwood, who captained Great Britain in 1986.
“We’ve got a fantastic tour in line, and we’re starting off with a brilliant occasion in Cardiff.
“We looked at some different options and going abroad, like the men have previously, but the Welsh Rugby Union said that they felt they could do a great job here.
“We have the fantastic stadium, the support for rugby, tradition of the women’s game having some important moments in Wales and the fact that we can get thousands under that roof to see the Lions women play.
“The visibility allows girls across England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales to dream of pulling on that red shirt one day.”
It will be the second time that the Lions have faced France after the men won a friendly in Paris in 1989.
Muslim governments backed the genocide case against Myanmar. They must now show that their commitment to the Rohingya goes beyond words.
Executive Director of The Burma Human Rights Network (BHRN).
Published On 12 Oct 202612 Oct 2026
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The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has made Muslim solidarity central to how it presents itself. Nine years ago, Myanmar’s military massacred Rohingya civilians and drove hundreds of thousands from their homes. The persecution has not ended: the Rohingya remain stateless, face continuing violence and risk death while fleeing by sea. Throughout those years, the OIC has held summits and passed resolutions. Yet it has failed to protect them.
When I founded the Burma Human Rights Network 14 years ago, I believed that if we gathered evidence carefully and put it before institutions with the power to act, they would act. We have gathered testimony from survivors of massacres. We have documented the systematic destruction of Rohingya villages, the denial of their citizenship and the deliberate starvation of a people. Yet despite all this documentation, the situation facing the Rohingya has mostly grown worse. The International Court of Justice is expected to rule later this year on whether Myanmar’s actions constituted genocide.
I have sometimes asked myself whether a ruling could help stop the atrocities. The Rohingya survivors who gave evidence in The Hague relived the worst moments of their lives before international judges because they trusted that their testimony would matter. Many of them are still in Bangladesh, still in limbo, dependent on food assistance worth as little as $7 per person per month. One in every seven Rohingya who attempted sea crossings last year was reported dead or missing. They are unprotected, and governments that could do more have not done so.
People often ask me why we continue. I have never had a satisfying answer. What I know is that without a record of these atrocities, it becomes easier to deny they happened. I continue because, after hearing these accounts and seeing the evidence, I do not know how to walk away from it.
We have published evidence that governments did not want to confront, and we have called the atrocities what they are: genocide. If the court finds that Myanmar committed genocide, it would be the first time in the International Court of Justice’s 80-year history that a state has been held responsible for the crime.
I now address the OIC foreign ministers who will gather in Baghdad on October 17. The OIC backed this case, and your governments supported the effort to hold Myanmar accountable for its treatment of the Rohingya. Many Rohingya, along with many of us who work with them, took those commitments seriously. When the ruling arrives, I expect statements welcoming it and renewed promises of accountability. But another communiqué will not protect anyone. OIC governments should refuse to forcibly return Rohingya to Myanmar, protect Rohingya who reach their territory, sustain support for refugees in Bangladesh and agree on diplomatic and economic measures against those responsible for their persecution. These are choices your governments can make.
The way Rohingya are treated across the region is hard to reconcile with those commitments. Some governments that speak about the Rohingya in international meetings do not offer the same protection to those who arrive at their borders. A government cannot demand accountability from Myanmar and at the same time send people back into danger.
Bangladesh hosts 1.2 million Rohingya and has faced years of pressure to send them back. The OIC must also challenge abuses against the Rohingya by governments outside its membership. In 2025, according to testimony documented by Amnesty International, Indian authorities forced at least 40 Rohingya from a naval vessel into the Andaman Sea, leaving them to swim towards Myanmar. If the OIC says nothing when governments expose Rohingya to that kind of danger, those governments have little reason to change course.
To the Rohingya community organisations that kept working, the journalists who reported despite restrictions on access, those who helped survivors bring their testimony to international forums, and the advocates who stayed with this issue when official attention moved elsewhere, I can only say this: you did work that governments with armies and treasuries should never have left to you. The evidence you preserved is now part of the record.
The 57 governments meeting in Baghdad have repeatedly pledged solidarity with the Rohingya and supported efforts to hold Myanmar accountable for genocide. But solidarity means little if it does not translate into action. A judgment from The Hague will not protect the Rohingya by itself. What those governments do after it will show whether their support for this case has consequences beyond the courtroom.
The views expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera’s editorial stance.
Smith moves to 223 career catches, a record for fielders, as Australia bowl out South Africa for 284 in reply to 390.
Published On 12 Oct 202612 Oct 2026
Steve Smith has broken the Test record for the most career catches by a fielder as Australia have played themselves into a strong position on the third day of the first Test against hosts South Africa.
Smith held four catches on Sunday, taking his total to 223, as South Africa were bowled out for 284 in reply to Australia’s first innings of 390 at Kingsmead Stadium in Durban.
Nic Maddinson (17 not out) and Travis Head (10 not out) added 33 runs off just 5.4 overs to stretch Australia’s overall lead to 139 before bad light ended play for the third day in a row.
Maddinson, who laboured to a 33-ball duck in the first innings, hit two fours off Marco Jansen in the first over of the second innings and added a six off Wiaan Mulder before play was called off.
Australia’s bowlers applied relentless pressure on an easy-paced pitch and a succession of South African batsmen contributed to their own dismissals by playing poor shots.
Six Protea batters reached 30, but David Bedingham’s 49 was the top score.
Australian captain Pat Cummins took three for 54, and Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Nathan Lyon claimed two wickets each as Australia’s long-serving bowling quartet combined with customary efficiency.
Smith special in the slips
Smith started the day on 219 catches, one behind Joe Root of England.
He equalled the record when he caught Temba Bavuma. Smith, playing in his 126th Test, broke the record when he lunged to his left from second slip to hold a sharp edge from Bedingham off Cummins.
Smith was in the action again with a spectacular catch to dismiss Verreynne, again anticipating well at slip as the South African wicketkeeper made good contact with a reverse sweep that Smith held in an outstretched right hand.
His fourth catch was from an edge to slip by last man Anrich Nortje off the bowling of Beau Webster.
Smith’s career haul of 223 catches exceeds the total of all but 11 specialist wicketkeepers.
England are set to add the first name to Stephen Fleming’s backroom team, with Eric Simons joining as Test bowling coach.
Former South Africa head coach Simons is a long-time ally of Fleming, having worked alongside him in the Indian Premier League (IPL) with Chennai Super Kings.
Simons’ new role will be confirmed on Monday, when England announce the latest round of central contracts.
New Zealander Fleming is assembling a backroom team for his first series in charge, against South Africa in December.
The shake-up in the staff comes as England once again split head-coaching responsibilities across formats. Fleming is in charge of the Test side and Brendon McCullum leads the white-ball teams.
When McCullum was Test coach, England used a number of fast-bowling consultants, including James Anderson, David Saker and Tim Southee.
Saker will be part of the England staff for the one-day tri-series in Pakistan this month, alongside long-term McCullum assistant Jeetan Patel, Mike Yardy and Carl Hopkinson.
Southee and fielding coach Sarah Taylor, who have been with England throughout the home summer, might rejoin the team later in the winter.
Kevin Pietersen has been appointed as a batting consultant to the white-ball teams in the run-up to the 50-over World Cup in southern Africa.
Former England batter Pietersen will not be on the tour of Pakistan, but is due to join the squad for the white-ball tour of Australia and then in South Africa for the three one-day internationals in the country of his birth in January.
Marcus Trescothick took interim charge of the Test team for the series against Pakistan. His future in the England set-up has been the subject of speculation and is yet to be confirmed.
Simons, 64, played 23 one-day internationals for South Africa in 1994 and 1995.
He also worked with Fleming at the Joburg Super Kings in the SA20 and the Texas Super Kings in Major League Cricket.
Simons had two years in charge of the South Africa team between 2002 and 2004 and a spell as India’s bowling coach.
N-DUBZ rapper Dappy filmed himself driving in his car with his daughter, despite pals claiming he does not have a licence.
The star, 39 — real name Costadinos Contostavlos — has filmed himself behind the wheel of a Mercedes and posted a number of clips online.
Dappy filmed himself driving in his car with his daughter, despite pals claiming he does not have a licenceThe N-Dubz rapper filmed himself behind the wheel of a Mercedes and posted a number of clips online
In one video seen by The Sun, Dappy is driving and swearing at the camera with his 11-year-old with him in the passenger seat.
Insiders said the footage, posted on his Instagram account, had been passed to Herts Police.
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Drivers face six points and a £200 fine if they hold or use a phone while driving.
A source said: “Dappy won’t be getting points on his licence as he doesn’t have one. He never passed his test.
In one video, Dappy is driving and swearing at the camera with his 11-year-old with him in the passenger seatDappy became a household name after he and his cousins Tulisa and Faser formed hip-hop group N Dubz in 2000Credit: Rex
“He thinks he’s above the law and can do what he likes but driving without a license and filming himself is putting innocent members of the public at risk.
“He needs to be stopped if not for himself but for others.”
The Sun have contacted Dappy’s representatives for comment.
Dappy became a household name after he and his cousins Tulisa and Faser formed hip-hop group N Dubz in 2000.
‘Dappy won’t be getting points on his licence as he doesn’t have one. He never passed his test’, revealed an insider‘He needs to be stopped if not for himself but for others’, warned a source
They got their big break in 2008 with debut album Uncle B.
Since then they have landed four UK Top Ten singles and four UK Top Ten albums.
Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca claims players unfazed by financial breaches verdict ahead of Liverpool showdown.
Published On 8 Oct 20268 Oct 2026
Manchester City manager Enzo Maresca has brushed off the guilty verdict hanging over the club and says he and the players are fully focused on football matters.
City could face a severe points penalty and even expulsion from the Premier League after an independent commission found they used “sham” commercial contracts to inflate revenue and cut costs by over 900 million pounds ($1.2bn) between 2009 and 2018.
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City, who top the league with five wins in five games, return to action for the first time since the guilty verdict was revealed when they travel to Liverpool on Sunday.
The eight-time Premier League winners, who have appealed the decision, then play their first game in front of their own fans since the verdict, when they entertain back-to-back Champions League holders Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday.
“I am very calm, the club has been quite calm. We trust completely the club,” Maresca told City’s in-house media on Thursday.
“We understand the noise, but the focus for us is what we control and we control the football side.
“The feeling is fantastic, to be honest.”
Maresca, who was assistant to former manager Pep Guardiola during the 2022-2023 season, addressed the players for the first time since the verdict when they returned to training on Thursday following the international break.
When asked about the reaction of the squad – many of whom have been linked with a move away from City if the club’s appeal fails – Maresca said they were “excited” given their start to the season.
“The players are excited for the next two games, but especially they are excited because in this moment, we are top of the league, so the players they are just focused on that,” he said.
“They know that what we can control is the football side. They are not worried at all about different things. They know they are professionals.
“They know that the noise is there, but they don’t care too much about the noise.
“They are just focused on this moment, how we can beat Liverpool, how we can, together with the fans, try to win at Anfield.”
As part of City’s appeal against the decision they have continued to maintain their innocence, saying the independent commission’s opinion contains “clear material errors” and that they possess evidence supporting their position.
The commission also found the club guilty of charges relating to their failure to cooperate with the investigation.
Premier League holders Arsenal begin the weekend’s action in the top flight on Saturday when they entertain Leeds United with the chance to move level on points with City, who would then hold Sunday’s game in hand.
