Wanted

THE Wanted star Nathan Sykes has taken a swipe at bandmate Max George amidst bitter feud. 

Nathan, 32, tied the knot with his girlfriend of six years Charlotte Burke earlier this month and broke his silence as to why his former pal was not in attendance.

Feud rumours have recently reignited inside the huge UK boyband following a wedding snub. 

Nathan opted for an intimate celebration inviting just 61 of their closest friends and family, among them was The Wanted star Jay McGuinness.

But, Max was noticeably absent from Nathan’s wedding alongside Siva Kaneswaran – Max and Kiva now have their own boyband The Wanted 2.0 together.

Following the wedding Nathan opened up about why Max and Siva weren’t in attendance, speaking to OK! he said: “We haven’t touched base recently, so I’m not sure they would have known the wedding date. 

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“With them being out in America at the time, we’ve not had the chance to [catch up], but I’m sure we will soon.”

He added: “We had a room full of people we’re comfortable with, so it was a really safe space and allowed us to relax.”

The band was first formed in 2009 by Max, Nathan, Jay, Siva and the late Tom Parker.

The group had massive hits between 2009 before it was disbanded in 2014, with plans to bring the boys back together.

But now it seems The Wanted aren’t reuniting, and Max and Nathan might not be talking at all.

Recently, fans on Reddit noticed that the pair unfollowed each other on Instagram, cutting off social media communication.

One wrote: “Not to sound parasocial or anything, but for some context, I have been a fan of The Wanted since 2012.

They added: “Couldn’t help but notice Max and Nathan unfollowed each other?

“I wonder if there’s any beef between them lol.”

Another fan replied to the Reddit thread, saying: “I’ve always suspected Max and Nathan had a falling out before they broke up the first time.”

A third said: “It’s a real shame because teenage me loved Nathan and Max’s interactions.

“I remember when Nathan used to comment on Max’s ig posts around 2 years ago.

“They haven’t followed each other in a very long time.

ON Christmas Eve, 1956, a 15-year-old boy heads due south on a five-hour Greyhound Bus journey from his home in Hibbing, Minnesota.

Arriving in the state capital, Saint Paul, he meets up with two summer camp friends and they go to a shop on Fort Road called Terlinde Music.

Styling themselves as The Jokers, the fledgling trio record a rowdy, rudimentary 36-second rendition of R&B party hit Let The Good Times Roll and a handful of other covers.

The boy, with his chubby cheeks and hint of a rock and roller’s quiff, leads the way on vocals and piano.

Already enthralled by popular sounds of the day from Elvis Presley to Little Richard and the rest, he is now in proud possession of a DIY acetate — his first precious recording.

His name is Robert Allen Zimmerman, Bobby to his family and friends.

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DULCIE PEARCE

Bob Dylan’s story is brought to life in star-studded A Complete Unknown

Less than seven years later, on October 26, 1963, as Bob Dylan, he takes to the stage in the manner of his folk hero Woody Guthrie, now adopting an altogether more lean and hungry look.

Acoustic guitar and harmonica are his only props as he holds an audience at New York City’s prestigious Carnegie Hall in the palms of his hands.

He performs his rallying cries that resonate to this day — Blowin’ In The Wind, The Times They Are A-Changin’, A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall.

He calls out the perpetrators of race-motivated killings with The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll and Only A Pawn In Their Game.

He dwells on matters of the heart by singing Don’t Think Twice, It’s All Right and Boots Of Spanish Leather.

His 1956 schoolboy shindig and the Carnegie Hall concert, presented in full for the first time, bookend the latest instalment in Dylan’s endlessly captivating Bootleg Series.

Titled Through The Open Window, it showcases an artist in a hurry as he sets out on his epic career.

“I did everything fast,” he wrote in his memoir, Chronicles Vol.1, about his rapid transformation. “Thought fast, ate fast, talked fast and walked fast. I even sang my songs fast.”

But, as he continued: “I needed to slow my mind down if I was going to be a composer with anything to say.”

Among the myriad ways he achieved his stated aim, and then some, was by heading to the quiet surroundings of New York Public Library and avidly scouring newspapers on microfilm from the mid-1800s such as the Chicago Tribune and Memphis Daily Eagle, “intrigued by the language and the rhetoric of the times”.

He’d fallen under the spell of country music’s first superstar Hank Williams — “the sound of his voice went through me like an electric rod”.

Dylan affirmed that without hearing the “raw intensity” of songs by German anti-fascist poet-playwright Kurt Weill, most notably Pirate Jenny, he might not have written songs like The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll.

Then there was Mississippi Delta bluesman Robert Johnson, who Dylan likened to “the scorched earth”. “There’s nothing clownish about him or his lyrics,” he said. “I wanted to be like that, too.”

‘Did everything fast’

We’ll hear more later about the man considered to be his primary early influence, Woody Guthrie, the “Dust Bowl Balladeer” who wielded a guitar emblazoned with the slogan “This machine kills fascists”.

And about leading Greenwich Village folkie Dave Van Ronk, known as the “Mayor Of MacDougal Street”, who had Dylan’s back from the moment he first saw him sing.

On two occasions in recent years, I’ve had the privilege of talking to Joan Baez, the unofficial “Queen” to Dylan’s “King” of the American folk scene in the early Sixties.

She championed him as he made his way, frequently bringing him on stage, their duets on his compositions like With God On Our Side revealing rare chemistry.

They also became lovers as Bob’s relationship with Suze Rotolo, the girl on the cover of the Freewheelin’ album, crumbled.

“He was a phenomenon,” Baez told me in typically forthright fashion. “I guess somebody said, ‘There’s this guy you gotta hear, he’s writing these incredible songs.’

“And he was. His talent was so constant that I was in awe.”

A leading figure in the civil rights movement, who marched with Martin Luther King, Baez added: “It was a piece of good luck that his music came along when it did. The songs said the things I wanted to say.”

But she finished that reflection by saying, tellingly: “And then he moved on.”

For Dylan, now 84, has forever been a restless soul, “moving on” to numerous incarnations — rock star, country singer, Born Again evangelist, Sinatra-style crooner, old-time bluesman, you name it.

In the closing paragraph of Chronicles, he admitted: “The folk music scene had been like a paradise that I had to leave, like Adam had to leave the garden.”

But it is that initial whirlwind period, 1956 to 1963, centred on bohemian Greenwich Village and the coffee shops where young performers got their breaks which forms Volume 18 of the Bootleg Series.

Through The Open Window is available in various formats including an eight-CD, 139-track version, and has been painstakingly pieced together by co-producers Sean Wilentz and Steve Berkowitz.

And it is from Wilentz, professor of American history at Princeton University and author of the liner notes accompanying this labour of love, that I have gleaned illuminating insights.

I can’t think of too many modern artists of his stature, if any, who developed that rapidly

Sean Wilentz

He begins with the arc of Dylan’s development, first as a performer, then as a songwriter, during his early years.

Wilentz says: “He came to Greenwich Village in 1961 with infinite ambition and mediocre skills. By the end of that year, he had learned how to enter a song, make it his own, and put it over, brilliantly.

“By the end of 1962, he had written songs that became immortal, above all Blowin’ In The Wind and A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall.

“By the time of the Carnegie Hall concert in 1963, the capstone to Through The Open Window, his songwriting had reached the level we can recognise, that would eventually lead to the Nobel Prize.

“And his performance style, for the thousands in that hall, was mesmeric. I can’t think of too many modern artists of his stature, if any, who developed that rapidly.”

One of the show’s striking aspects is the lively, often comical, between-song banter. (Yes, Dylan did talk effusively to his audiences back then. Not so much these days.)

In order to assemble Through The Open Window, Wilentz and Berkowitz had “more than 100 hours of material to draw on, maybe two or even three hundred”.

Their chief aim was to find a way to best illuminate “Bob Dylan’s development, mainly in Greenwich Village, as a performer and songwriter”.

But, adds Wilentz: “Several factors came into play — historical significance, rarity, immediacy and, of course, quality of performance.

‘Good taste in R&B’

“We hope, above all, that the collection succeeds at capturing the many overlapping levels — personal, artistic, political and more.”

Though noting Dylan’s inspirations, Woody, Elvis and the rest, Wilentz draws my attention to “a bit of free verse” written by Bob in 1962 called My Life In A Stolen Moment, which suggests nothing was off limits.

“Open up yer eyes an’ ears an’ yer influenced/an’ there’s nothing you can do about it.”

This is our cue to take a deep dive into the mix of unheard home recordings, coffeehouse and nightclub shows as well as studio outtakes from Dylan’s first three albums for Columbia Records — his self-titled debut, The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan and The Times They Are A-Changin’.

Of the first track, that primitive take on Let The Good Times Roll, Wilentz says: “Dylan and the other two were obviously enthusiastic, and they had good taste in doo-wop and R&B.

“But if you listen closely, you can hear Dylan, on piano, calling things to order and pushing things along, the catalyst, the guy we know from other accounts who was willing to take more risks onstage.”

I ask Wilentz what he considers the most significant previously unreleased discoveries and he replies: “Most obviously Liverpool Gal from 1963, as it’s a song even the most obsessive Dylan aficionados have known existed but had never heard.

“He only recorded it once, at a friend’s party, and it’s stayed locked away on that tape until now.

Dylan was producing so much strong material that some of it was inevitably laid aside

Sean Wilentz

“While not Dylan at his peak, it’s a fine song. It’s significant lyrically, not least as testimony to his stay in London at the end of 1962 and the start of 1963. That stay had a profound effect on his songwriting, and one gets a glimpse of it here.”

Also included is near mythical Dylan song The Ballad Of The Gliding Swan, which he performed as “Bobby” in BBC drama Madhouse On Castle Street during his trip to Britain.

The only copy of the play set in a boarding house was junked by the Beeb in 1968 but this 63-second audio fragment survives.

Of even earlier recordings, Wilentz says: “I’m drawn to Ramblin’ Round.

“Although known (in his own words) as a Woody Guthrie jukebox, Dylan has never released a recording of himself performing a Guthrie song.

“Here he is, in an outtake from his first studio album, handling a Guthrie classic, and with a depth of feeling that shows why his earliest admirers found him so compelling.”

Wilentz considers other treasures: “There’s an entire 20-minute live set from Gerdes Folk City from April, 1962, concluding with Dylan’s first public performance of Blowin’ In The Wind.

“Then there are two tracks of singular historic importance, the first known recordings, both in informal settings, of two masterpieces, The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll and The Times They Are A-Changin’.”

If these versions shed fresh light on classics, let’s not forget the great Dylan songs that didn’t make it on to his albums, so great was the speed he was moving.

Does Wilentz find it staggering that songs like Let Me Die In My Footsteps and Lay Down Your Weary Tune were discarded?

“Yes and no,” he answers. “Yes, because these are powerful songs that were left largely unknown for years.

“No, because Dylan was producing so much strong material that some of it was inevitably laid aside.

‘Literary genius’

“Sometimes intervening factors kicked in. Take the four songs that, for business and censorship reasons, got cut from Freewheelin’ and replaced with four others.

“The album was actually better in its altered form, including songs like Girl From The North Country.

“But that’s how Let Me Die In My Footsteps was lost, along with a lesser-known song I love that we’re happy to include, Gamblin’ Willie’s Dead Man’s Hand, as well as an amazing performance of Rocks And Gravel.”

So, we’ve heard about songs but who were the key figures surrounding Dylan during his formative years?

Wilentz says: “Among the folk singers, Van Ronk most of all, and Mike Seeger, about whom he writes with a kind of awe in Chronicles.

“There was the crowd around Woody Guthrie, including Pete Seeger (‘Mike Seeger’s older brother,’ he calls him at one point) and Ramblin’ Jack Elliott.”

He singles out producer John Hammond, “for signing him to Columbia Records and affirming his talent.

“But most important of all there was Suze Rotolo, who was a whole lot more, to Dylan and the rest of the world, than the girl on the cover of The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan.”

Finally, I ask Wilentz why the singer felt uncomfortable at being labelled king of the folk movement, “the voice of a generation” if you like.

“People misread Dylan from all sides,” he argues. “Never a protest singer in the mould of Guthrie or Seeger, even though he worshipped Guthrie and admired the left-wing old guard by the time he turned up.

“But Dylan wasn’t one of them, though he sympathised, in a humane way, with victims of injustice.”

Dylan’s work springs from a matrix that is emotional, filtered through his literary genius

Sean Wilentz

Wilentz believes the recent biopic A Complete Unknown, with Timothee Chalamet making a decent fist of portraying the young Dylan, “is a little misleading”.

He says: “It wasn’t Dylan’s ‘going electric’ that pissed off the old guard and their younger equivalent as much as his moving beyond left-wing political pieties.

“Hence the song My Back Pages, from 1964: ‘Ah but I was so much older then/I’m younger than that now.’”

Wilentz concludes: “Dylan’s work springs from a matrix that is emotional, filtered through his literary genius.

“It was impossible for someone like him, living through those two years (1962-63), not to respond to the politics in an artistic way.

“How, if you were Bob Dylan, could you not respond to the civil rights struggle, the killing of Medgar Evers (Only A Pawn In Their Game) or Hattie Carroll, as well as the spectre of nuclear annihilation?

“Dylan had a lot to say, but he was never going to be the voice of anyone but himself.”

Maybe he’d already explained himself on Don’t Think Twice, It’s Alright:

“When your rooster crows at the break of dawn

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Look out your window and I’ll be gone.”

BOB DYLAN

Through The Open Window
The Bootleg Series Vol.18

★★★★★

Oct. 18 (UPI) — Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff has apologized for backing President Donald Trump possibly sending the National Guard to San Francisco, where the tech company is based.

Benioff had complained about crime problems outside the company’s annual Dreamforce conference in downtown San Francisco from Tuesday through Thursday, which drew about 45,000 attendees.

“We don’t have enough cops, so if they can be cops, I’m all for it,” Benioff told The New York Times on Tuesday, noting he had the pay for several hundred off-duty law enforcement to help patrol the Moscone Center.

On Friday, he changed his stance.

“Having listened closely to my fellow San Franciscans and our local officials, and after the largest and safest Dreamforce in our history, I do not believe the National Guard is needed to address safety in San Francisco,” Benioff wrote in a post on X in a post on X.

“My earlier comment came from an abundance of caution around the event, and I sincerely apologize for the concern it caused. It’s my firm belief that our city makes the most progress when we all work together in a spirit of partnership. I remain deeply grateful to Mayor [Daniel] Lurie, SFPD, and all our partners, and am fully committed to a safer, stronger San Francisco.”

The Trump administration already has deployed the National Guard to Portland, Ore.; Memphis, Tenn., and Chicago in a crackdown on illegal immigration and crime. Lower courts blocked the deployments of the troops.

On Tuesday, Trump told in the Oval Office that “we have great support in San Francisco” for sending troops to the city, apparently a reference to Benioff. He urged FBI Director Kash Patel to make San Francisco “next” for deployment.

Benioff’s suggestion was condemned by politicians, including California Gov. Gavin Newsom, investors and those associated with the company.

Newsom, who was mayor of San Francisco, is a friend of Benioff and appeared at last year’s company convention.

More than 180 Salesforce workers, alumni and community members wrote an open letter on Friday that was published online. They said his comments have “revealed a troubling hypocrisy.”

“Salesforce was built on empowering communities — not deploying the National Guard into them,” they wrote. “Last week, that’s exactly what you endorsed.’

The letter added: “Walking back your words doesn’t undo the damage.”

Startup investor Ron Conway resigned from the board of the Salesforce Foundation on Thursday. Conway told Benioff in an email that their “values were no longer aligned,” according to the New York Times.

Conway donated around $500,000 to at least two funds tied to Kamala Harris’ unsuccessful 2024 presidential election campaign.

Benioff has donated to both political parties but has supported Harris, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton for president. He attended a state dinner by King Charles for Trump at Windsor Castle in England on Sept. 15.

His family and Salesforce have given more than $1 billion to Bay Area causes, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

Benioff, who acquired Time magazine in 2018, has a net worth of $8.8 billion, ranking 381st in the world, according to Forbes.

Laurene Powell Jobs, a pre-eminent philanthropist, criticized Benioff for his remarks.

“When wealth becomes a substitute for participation, giving is reduced to performance art — proof of virtue, a way to appear magnanimous while still demanding ownership,” she wrote in the Wall Street Journal. “That’s the quiet corruption corroding modern philanthropy: the ability to give as a license to impose one’s will. It’s a kind of moral laundering, where so-called benevolence masks self-interest.”

Conservatives have rallied behind the Salesforce CEO.

Venture capitalist David Sacks, who is now Trump’s artificial intelligence and crypto czar, wrote on X : “Dear Marc @Benioff, if the Democrats don’t want you, we would be happy for you to join our team. “Cancel culture is over, and we are the inclusive party.”

Benioff has previously complained about crime in the city. In 2023, he threatened to relocate Dreamforce to Las Vegas over concerns about drug use, crime and homelessness.

Salesforce has attempted to get on the good side of the Trump administration as the company seeks regulatory approval for its proposed $8 billion acquisition of Informatica, an AI-powered cloud data management company.

Salesforce a few weeks ago announced a new line of business, Missionforce, for more revenue from defense, intelligence and aerospace agencies.

The New York Times also reported that Salesforce has offered its services to increase Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s capabilities.

Salesforce is a cloud-based software company founded in 1999 by Benioff, a former Oracle executive.

The company has a market capitalization of $238 billion with $38 billion in revenue in 2025 and 76,453 employees. The public company is a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

A former Strictly Come Dancing professional has revealed they wanted to return to the BBC One show after leaving in 2012 and being a part of the show for seven series.

Former Strictly Come Dancing professional Vincent Simone has revealed he wanted to return to the BBC One show but “it didn’t work out”. The dancer joined the show in 2006 for the fourth series and did seven series before leaving it behind in 2012.

Now he’s opened up about his exit as he said: “The year I left Strictly Come Dancing, there were going to be big changes.

“Bruce Forsyth was leaving, and the show was moving from Shepherd’s Bush where we were there for seven years, and we were moving to Elstree Studios, which was a big change. It got to a point where I got to the final, and although I didn’t win, I was fully satisfied with how I’d done in the show.”

However, Vincent only intended on taking a short break from the show but he got to busy doing his other work that it didn’t end up materialising.

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He continued to Daily Star: “Ideally, what I wanted was to take a year or two out of the show, and then to come back, but we all know that’s rare.

“If I could’ve had that chance to leave Strictly for a few years and then come back, that would’ve been ideal. I would’ve gone back, but those years after Strictly, I was fully committed to West End shows and my own shows.

“Then I went onto I’m A Celebrity, which I wouldn’t have been able to do if I was on Strictly. My career in touring and performing has made me feel very blessed.”

During his first series, Vincent was partnered with EastEnders actress Louisa Lytton and the pair made it all the way to the final four and were eliminated two weeks before the final.

The following year, the dancer was paired with actress Stephanie Beacham with the two being eliminated on week two but in 2008 he made a triumphant return when he came second with S Club 7 singer Rachel Stevens.

His next partner was EastEnders actress Natalie Cassidy, who he came fifth with, followed by his partnership with Felicity Kendal resulting in them being voted off in week seven.

In 2011, it was disappointment all around as he and Conservative party politician Edwina Currie were the first pair to be eliminated from the competition.

In Vincent’s final year, the performer and his partner, Tracy Beaker star Dani Harmer got eliminated a week before the final, ending their run in fourth place.

After quitting the show, he and dance partner Flavia Cacace continued to perform with stage shows and live tours.

In 2013, he took part on the thirteenth series of I’m A Celebrity, arriving as a late entrant to camp with actress Annabel Giles.

He finished in tenth place, being the third celebrity to leave in a double elimination with Matthew Wright.

The current series of the BBC One show is airing at the moment, with celebrities including Vicky Pattison, Alex Kingston, Amber Davies and Chris Robshaw attempting to lift the glitterball trophy.

The Apprentice star Thomas Skinner and his partner Amy Dowden became the first pair to leave the competition after landing in the bottom two with Chris and Nadiya Bychkova.

In his exit interview with Tess Daly, he said: “Thank you, Amy – sorry that we haven’t done too good, ’cause you’re a different class.

“I’ve never danced before and my stay was short, but Amy’s amazing. It’s been great fun and I’ve enjoyed it. I can’t really dance that well but I’ve had fun!”

Strictly Come Dancing continues tonight at 6:05pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.

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AN EX-girlfriend of the Manchester synagogue attacker was forced to watch Isis terror videos, she has claimed.

Jihad Al-Shamie, 35, unleashed terror outside Manchester’s Heaton Park synagogue on Thursday, leaving two dead and three more in hospital.

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The seven-minute knife rampage took place on the holiest day of the Jewish calendar – Yom Kippur – with the killer then shot dead by cops.

A former partner has now claimed she was groomed by Al-Shamie and forced into a “controlling relationship”.

The pair, who met on a Muslim dating app, were in a relationship for four months before she left him over his extremist views, and moved from the UK.

She claimed Al-Shamie told her he wanted to join Isis and also pressured her to become “dedicated to the cause”.

She said: “He used to sit there and make me watch videos – like extreme videos – that I had no interest in.

“I am Muslim and of course I love to learn more. But this stuff was things that I have been raised to not agree with.

“He used to always say I was taught the wrong way and I wasn’t taught right. He was basically just trying to groom me into what he thought.”

Meanwhile, as reported by The Mail on Sunday, it has been revealed one of the women arrested by cops over the synagogue attack was an NHS Mental health peer support worker.

The 46-year-old is a white British woman, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, and neighbours claimed she had recently converted to Islam.

“I was doing such a course, and she told me she was a peer support worker herself,” said one local.

“She said she travelled to Manchester for her shifts at a hospital.”

Al-Shamie is also believed to have been married to a British Pakistani woman in Manchester.

It is understood they share a two-year-old child, but are no longer in a relationship.

A former friend of Al-Shamie also revealed he was teenage drop-out who smoked weed and was obsessed with violent video game Street Fighter.

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The friend told The Sun on Sunday that killer Al-Shamie would smoke around 2g of strong skunk a day when he was a teen and frequently felt the wrath of his parents.

And he said he spent hours in his bedroom playing the computer game using the name “Jiji”.

His obsession led to Al-Shamie dropping out of Liverpool John Moores University a year into his English, media and cultural studies degree course in 2011.

The former pal said: “He was a bit of a rebellious wild child. He got into a lot of trouble with his parents. He used to smoke cannabis from an early age.

“He would spend a lot of time practising Street Fighter, like obsessively practising this computer game. He was very good at it, to the point where he competed a couple of times in competitions.”

The source added: “It was probably why he dropped out of uni.

“He was spending too much time smoking weed, working out and playing video games.”

He added: “His personality type, he would latch on to one thing and get buried deep into it. The only thing I can think of is that he’s done that but with radical religion.”

Al-Shamie, whose name is said to translate as “struggle of the Syrian” became “reclusive” after dropping out of education and started to practice Islam around 2018.

Neighbours said he would spend his time lifting weights in his garage or wander around in his pyjamas and flip flops.

The pal, who lost touch with him, said: “I heard he became a bit reclusive and appeared to be very into his faith, which surprised me as he was never that kind of guy.

“There were some concerns about his mental health. I don’t know if he ever got professional help.”

He said he was worried Al-Shamie would go down a “rabbit hole”, adding: “He had an addictive personality. My suspicion is that he ended up self-radicalising.”

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Al-Shamie moved to the UK from Syria with his family when he was a young child and was granted British citizenship in 2006.

His father Faraj is a trauma doctor who later divorced his mother Formoz and moved to France.

This comes as four people arrested in connection with the synagogue terror attack will remain in custody for extra questioning.

Adrian Daulby, 53, and Melvin Cravitz, 66, were killed in the rampage before Al-Shamie was shot dead by armed cops.

Six people have now been arrested on terror charges following the chaos.

Cops confirmed they have been granted custody extensions to hold four people detained in connection with the attack on the Crumpsall synagogue for a longer amount of time.

Two men, aged 30 and 32, as well as a 61-year-old woman arrested in Farnworth will remain in custody for “up to a further five days”.

The force added how an 18-year-old woman and a 43-year-old man, also arrested in Farnworth, remain in custody for questioning.

Greater Manchester Police said: “We have been granted warrants of further detention for four individuals currently in custody.

“This means they can remain in custody for up to a further five days.

“Everyone in custody has been arrested on suspicion of commission, preparation and instigation of acts of terrorism.”

Everyone in custody has been arrested on suspicion of commission, preparation and instigation of acts of terrorism.

Al-Shamie first drove into worshippers at the Heaton Park synagogue at 9.30am on Thursday morning.

He also stabbed terrified members of the public while wearing a fake “bomb vest” – killing Melvin Cravitz, 66, and Adrian Daulby, 53.

Four others were injured in the horror.

Counter-terrorism officers have since revealed the attacker was likely influenced by “extreme Islamist ideology”.

A statement from Greater Manchester Police read: “We believe Al-Shamie may have been influenced by extreme Islamist ideology.

“Establishing the full circumstances of the attack is likely to take some time.  

“We have now arrested three further people, one man and two women, aged between 18 and mid-40s.

“This brings the number of people in custody arrested on suspicion of commission, preparation and instigation of acts of terrorism to six.”

Al-Shamie was not known counter-terrorism agencies but had previous convictions.

It is not known when the alleged rape took place but the attacker was under investigation by Greater Manchester Police at the time.

GMP confirmed to The Sun Online al-Shamie was arrested but had been released pending investigation.

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BBC

‘We’re now seeing campaigns where the model doesn’t even exist’

Alamy

Seraphinne Vallora

‘I’ve always split my private life and my business life’

Getty Images

Pirating, as evidenced by centuries of stories and one of the greatest theme park rides, has long fascinated. Seafaring and sword fighting imply adventure. Dice games? Bluffing and strategy. And if you’re really lucky, maybe you’ll find a mermaid.

Audience members seen during a production of “Pirates Wanted,” an interactive production from Last Call Theatre.

(Gabriella Angotti-Jones/The Los Angeles Times)

Last Call Theatre, a local interactive-focused performance group, has found a way to give us a taste of buccaneering — without the pesky consequences of being captured by the Royal Navy or succumbing to a rum-induced liver disease.

For one more weekend in Long Beach, theatergoers can live out a mini marauding fantasy on an actual ship at “Pirates Wanted,” a limited-run revival of the troupe’s 2024 show. It’s theater, but it’s also a choose-your-own-adventure-style game, one with branching narratives, multiple endings and even life lessons.

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The show is set on board the American Pride tall ship docked at Long Beach’s Pine Avenue Pier, a 130-foot schooner that today is primarily used as an education-focused vessel. Stand still and feel the lean and long boat gently rock on the waves. But you’ll rarely be stationary on the wood-heavy craft. With a cast of 14 and an audience capacity of 55, “Pirates Wanted” explores the full top deck of the ship, which is accessible via a small portable stairway.

The setup: As audience members, we are to be trained as pirates in 17th century England, with much of the cast performing in exaggerated accents. The drama: Our captain’s previous ship was marooned under suspicious circumstances. To complicate matters, a long-lost sibling, also a pirate with his own troubling history, is here to judge the crew’s seaworthiness. The show begins with a speech from Capt. Souvanna (Bonnie-Lynn Montaño), who sternly demands a vocal “aye” from the audience as the ground rules are laid out. Follow them, Souvanna warns, or risk being thrown into the harbor.

Captain Souvanna (Bonnie-Lynn Montaño) and Captain Draken (Shelby Ryan Lee) share a moment during immersive theater production “Pirates Wanted.”

In moments, we are free to wander and link up with various crew members for our pirating lessons. The so-called “treasures of the seas” aren’t going to be pillaged without our help, and I soon find myself improvising sea shanties and engaging in a game of liar’s dice. I stumble over relearning how to construct a knot — important, I am told, in case I’m tossed overboard and need to quickly lasso myself to a raft — but have better luck mimicking a figure 8 with my sword. We have tasks to complete — or games to play, rather — which are ultimately an excuse for conversation.

Ask a roaming bard about the previous ship’s fate and a host of stories start to unravel and reveal themselves — love affairs, hidden secrets, lost maps and the requisite discontentment among the ship’s keep. What would a pirate narrative be without talk, for instance, of mutiny?

Oats Weetle (Mads Durbin) climbs a mast during a dramatic scene in “Pirates Wanted.”

“Pirates Wanted” is heavily active, and one won’t discover all of the show’s narrative paths. Wander, for instance, to a compartment at the ship’s bow, and you may hear conspiratorial whispers. Hang in the aft, and there might be talk of a siren on board. I saw others with treasure maps, and only caught murmurs of the romantic soap operas unfolding among the crew. Love letters were lost and recovered, and at one point I was pulled aside, a pirate whispering to me to ask if there was an illicit affair on board between a member of the crew and the British Navy.

Audience members take in “Pirates Wanted.”

Like all of Last Call’s shows, there are multiple ways to watch — or play. One can opt to be a relatively passive observer trying to overhear conversations and uncover the various storylines. But it’s advised to lean in, to hop from character to character armed with questions and the willingness to go on assigned quests. Here, the latter rely heavily on gossip. Early on I was tasked, for instance, with asking the various pirates about their feelings over losing their last ship, only I was told not to use the word “feel” in my line of questioning (after all, one must trick a pirate into vulnerability).

Throughout, “Pirates Wanted” explores how to navigate complicated family drama and romantic relationships when value systems — you know, looting and pillaging versus not — don’t align. There are metaphors if you go looking for them, specifically on having to live much of one’s life in the closet, but “Pirates Wanted” places a heavy emphasis on silliness too.

Last Call over the last three years has established itself as one of the more prolific companies on the city’s immersive theater scene, regularly hosting two or three shows per year. The troupe has already announced a winter time traveling production, “The Butterfly Effect,” set to debut Nov. 8 at Stella Coffee near Beverly Hills. “Pirates Wanted” last year became one of Last Call’s best reviewed productions.

Throughout “Pirates Wanted” audience members will be tasked with quests, sometimes seeking hidden items.

“It definitely was our most critically and financially successful show we put on,” says Ashley Busenlener, Last Call’s executive director. “Who doesn’t like pirates on an actual ship?”

“Pirates Wanted” leans campy, a vision of the lifestyle more informed by Disneyland’s Pirates of the Caribbean than any historical fiction. It also tackles subject matter not often seen in pirate tales, such as feelings of being misunderstood and the struggle to be one’s true self.

“One of the things that I often notice about pirate media is a lot of the time you see pirates and the majority of time they are white men,” Busenlener says. “That’s not who I think I pirates are. We were very intentional … in creating a cast that we felt represented what piracy should be.”

In turn, many of the actors are female, queer and hail from diverse backgrounds. The goal, says Busenlener, was to show that anyone can be a pirate.

“Pirates are the people who were outside of society,” Busenlener says. “They were breaking rules and laws and taking power into their own hands. That’s something we wanted to reflect.”

There are multiple story tracks in one “Pirates Wanted.” In one, captain Souvanna (Bonnie-Lynn Montaño) may face a mutiny.

And it’s represented in one of the show’s most affecting narrative branches, one in which a half-mermaid spent their life presenting only as human out of fear. It’s intimate drama laced with mysticism, an adult theme ultimately handled with a hint of levity for this family-friendly show.

It also gets to the heart of Last Call’s ambitious with “Pirates Wanted.” Come for the swashbuckling — and the chance to learn some sword-fighting moves — but stay for the emotional adventure. Just don’t be surprised if you leave the pier suddenly talking in a fake British accent.

Tall ship the American Pride in Long Beach, home for one more weekend to immersive theater show “Pirates Wanted.”

Hong Kong’s Security Bureau announces measures over activists’ alleged role in unofficial parliament overseas.

Hong Kong authorities have cancelled the passports of 12 activists based overseas in their latest crackdown on activities that they claim pose threats to national security.

Hong Kong’s Security Bureau announced the measures on Monday after a local court issued arrest warrants last month for the 12 activists and seven other pro-democracy campaigners over their alleged roles in establishing an unofficial parliament overseas.

The bureau said it had also banned individuals from providing financial support or leasing property to 16 of the “absconders,” and entering into joint ventures or partnerships with them.

The wanted activists include Chongyi Feng, an Australian citizen and professor at the University of Technology Sydney, and Sasha Gong, a United States citizen and journalist who previously worked for Voice of America.

Hong Kong authorities allege that the 19 activists’ participation in the “Hong Kong Parliament” advocacy group constitutes subversion under the Chinese-ruled city’s sweeping national security law.

A Hong Kong government spokesperson said the activists had continued to “blatantly engage in activities that endanger national security” while hiding in countries including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia.

The Hong Kong parliament condemned last month’s announcement of arrest warrants and bounties for the campaigners as a “blatant abuse of legal instruments to pursue political persecution”.

“These actions represent a clear escalation of Beijing’s transnational repression, extending its coercive reach beyond China’s borders and infringing upon the sovereignty of democratic nations, including the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Australia, and members of the European Union,” the group said.

Once known for its spirited political opposition and media, Hong Kong has radically curtailed the space for dissent since the introduction of a sweeping Beijing-decreed national security law in 2020 in response to violent anti-government protests.

Opposition parties have been effectively eliminated from the city’s legislature, and public commemorations of sensitive events, such as the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, essentially outlawed.

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee said last month that 332 individuals had been arrested for national offences since 2020.

Mainland Chinese and Hong Kong officials have defended the law, and additional national security legislation introduced in 2024, as necessary to restore stability to the city after the turmoil caused by the mass protests.

New docuseries shows what really goes on behind the scenes at WWE

I was a childhood fan of WWE and Netflix have just added the series I always wanted to watch.

While it was still referred to as a federation, I grew up as the wrestling company entered its Attitude Era. I was all about the rivalry between The Rock and Stone Cold Steve Austin, Dudley Boyz smashing tables and Triple H’s feuds and that Hell in a Cell match.

However, it lost it’s hook in me. Getting older means understanding the soap opera nature of WWE but for some reason or another I lost interest and couldn’t enjoy it in the same way. I did however, still wonder just how the sauce was made. How did they do it?

It’s a common question to ask just how much of it is real. Now, a new docuseries now streaming on Netflix, WWE Unreal, finally gives me the behind the scenes glimpse I’ve craved. It’s almost enough to reignite the passion for the greatest in sports entertainment.

For the first time ever with Unreal, fans are invited to step into the WWE writer’s room and in areas outside the ring that dictates what goes on with your favourite Superstars. According to the synopsis, the drama can be just as intense offstage as it is under the spotlight.

The five-part series shows how WWE made the transition from traditional broadcasting, to its Netflix debut, leading up to this year’s Wrestlemania event.

When Netflix released the Mr McMahon documentary, it didn’t feel like we were being given the full picture of how the company is run. It felt like there were some corners the cameras were still not allowed to focus on. Although it really attempted to hammer home that it was a family business run by people who apparently cared most about the fans.

That last point seems more poignant than ever with Unreal. From Head of Content Paul Levesque, AKA Triple H, AKA Hunter to ‘face of the company’ Cody Rhodes, a soon to be retired John Cena and team of match producers, all who are experienced former wrestlers. Each one of them speak with so much passion about what they do.

Many of the current performers have wrestling in the blood. From Ric Flair’s daughter to Rikishi’s sons they all have no problem showing what being part of the industry means to them.

It’s tough to dismiss their jobs as just faking it. They are all aware they are putting on a show. They just want it to be one of the best shows you’ve ever seen.

This time around, unlike Mr McMahon, Unreal even allows some warts to show. That includes when their Superstars suffer severe injuries but are promised their comeback will be all the sweeter. There’s a debrief when a move goes wrong and plenty of bitter rivals hugging backstage.

There’s even a tense moment when two performers go off script and allow their verbal altercation to get a bit too personal. A message is quickly sent to their locker rooms that it will not be expected and they must keep their professionalism.

WWE Unreal plays a big risk in showing just how much shown during Raw, Smackdown and its pay-per-view events is manufactured. Yet it still dares viewers, in particular, the lapsed fans like myself, to dive right back in.

WWE Unreal is streaming on Netflix.

We’re nearing the home stretch for kiddie summer movies, moms and dads. Stay hydrated and nourished, because your multiplex chaperone duties aren’t truly over until early August or so, when the fare turns distinctively adult-themed before going full prestige in the child-unfriendly zone of fall awards season.

But with the messy, strained “Smurfs” on offer this weekend, a tired parent may want to bail early and find a last-minute sleepaway camp to shove the little ones off to instead, because this latest big-screen version of the cute-culture behemoth may test your tolerance for all things wee and cerulean. As legacy management goes, it’s more trial than celebration.

Even if you grew up with Belgian artist Peyo’s utopian woodland humanoids (rendered with Hanna-Barbera efficiency for cheap ’80s television), nostalgia isn’t on offer here — just the usual running tap of attention-driven wackiness, creating a fast-growing puddle of gags, colors, songs (including pop icon Rihanna’s contributions) and believe-in-yourself platitudes that feel random, not earned. As deployed by “Shrek” franchise veteran Chris Miller (“Puss in Boots”), animation is less a storied artistic method with which to enchant, so much as a whiz-bang weapon of mass distraction, scalable and noisy.

The Smurfs themselves have come in for something of an origin makeover. No longer simple, communal mushroom-village inhabitants with happy lives centered on personality quirks and avoiding a mean wizard, in this telling (written by Pam Brady) they hail from a line of ancient, cosmic guardians of goodness, a background that feels beholden to the superhero mindset overriding so much popcorn gruel these days. Conversely, the baddies, wizard brothers Gargamel and new antagonist Razamel (both amusingly snarled into existence by voice actor JP Karliak, channeling Harvey Korman), belong to — what else? — an Evil Alliance set on world domination.

Everything about the story, from opening to closing dance party, feels like it was made up on an especially unimaginative playdate by bored kids who’d rather be watching TV. A Smurf called No Name (James Corden) wants to be known for something, like his trait-defined pals Hefty, Vanity, Grouchy, Baker and Clumsy. Close friend Smurfette (Rihanna), the village’s confident, outgoing badass, tries to buck him up, but he sings a boring who-am-I lament anyway.

Papa Smurf (John Goodman) is kidnapped through a portal, the first of many. There’s a missing magical book given the name Jaunty (Amy Sedaris). The Smurf rescue party goes to a disco in Paris. Then the Australian Outback. Outer space too. Natasha Lyonne voices the leader of an underground species of what look like scratchy couch pillows. Razamel hates Gargamel. Papa has a red-bearded brother, Ken (Nick Offerman tiringly doing Nick Offerman), and we learn later, a long-lost sibling named Ron (Kurt Russell). All these brothers, yet I still wouldn’t say family dynamics are a going emotional concern.

Sometimes everyone floats in the air. Mostly, it’ll be your mind. But turn away for one second, and the characters will have likely gone to another dimension. Because, of course, multiverses are really popular now too. Like the kind in which no voice cast member was likely in the same city as any other when they phoned in their lines.

At least the animators looked like they stayed busy. At one point, when dimension-palooza hurtles our tiny blue posse into different animation modes — claymation, pencil drawings, 8-bit video graphics — there’s a whiff of the delightful, meta-zany chaos of classic cartoons. But for the most part, “Smurfs” hews to the textbook silliness of CGI-generated action and attitude humor, only this time so needlessly zigging and zagging it barely has time to convincingly sell its ultimate message of strength in togetherness. An incoherent movie is hardly the vessel for that kind of lesson. When it ends, though, it’ll definitely feel like an example of kindness.

With more hot weather on the horizon I’ve finally taken the plunge and bought this snazzy Shark fan that’s heavily discounted for Amazon Prime Day

I’ve had my eye on this Shark fan for a while. It’s become one of those products, you know the ones where you look at something once then it feels like it’s constantly popping up on your social media feed tempting you forevermore.

The Shark FlexBreeze TableMate has been on sale at £99.99 for a while, which has really caught my attention. But now even more has been shaved off the price as Amazon launches its Prime Day Deals, knocking another £10 off and leaving it at a super enticing £89.99 – 40% off the £149.99 RRP.

It’s such a good deal that I’ve finally bitten the bullet and ordered it. Amazon’s price is currently even cheaper than direct from Shark where the fan will set you back £99.99. It’s significantly more expensive at Currys where it’s priced at £149.99.

Read more: ‘Biggest ever’ teeth whitening sale beats Amazon Prime Day with 50% off

Read more: ‘I sleep with this fan on every night and it’s incredible in a heatwave’

I’m one of those people who’s always too hot at the best of times. Where others are reaching for the thermostat I’m normally just right, and, as such, I love a good fan, especially over summer.

I already have two fans that I rate very highly. One is the Challenge White Pedestal and Desk Fan (£70 at Argos), that’s super impressive when you turn it up. So much so I’ve used it in some capacity almost every night since I’ve bought it.

Shark FlexBreeze TableMate Cordless Fan

£149.99

£89.99

Amazon

Buy Now on Amazon

Shark’s popular FlexBreeze fan has £60 off

The fan is a bit cheaper than some of the more premium options but still really packs a punch when you need cooling down. If you have a bit more budget to spend, I also have the Midea SmartAir Cool and Purify Bladeless Fan. Sold for £199.99 at both High Street TV and £199 at Amazon, (you can read the full review here).

It has all manner of fancy features and High Street TV says it’s a fan that “does it all” and it’s hard to disagree. But what those two don’t have is a battery function. I spend a lot of my spare time doing DIY or playing with my son (not at the same time!) as such, I’m often sweltering outdoors in the recent heatwave temperatures, but can’t be bothered going to the effort of setting up an extension lead and plugging in one of the fans.

That’s where the Shark FlexBreeze TableMate is going to be excellent. Its portability means it can simply be unplugged and run off the battery, making it ideal for those looking for a cooling breeze on the go. Shark says the fan can run for up to 24 hours on the battery, though that’s on the lowest speed setting.

When ramped up the fan covers “up to 20 meters”, while it’s UV and rain resistant, making it suitable for use outdoors. Other features include five fan speeds, 180 degrees of side-to-side oscillation, and a 55° tilt to keep the air circulating at the desired angle.

Of the buyers who’ve delved in to date, the fan has averaged 4.5 stars out of 5. One of the delighted reviewers said: “This is by far the best fan I have ever had! We have a heatwave right now and I normally can’t sleep, but not this year! Slept all the way through and didn’t hear the fan yet I was cool all night. Only wish I’d found this sooner.”

One of the few less positive reviews highlighted a potential issue: “When using this fan as a plug in it’s brilliant and I’m very happy with it in every way, but when using it on battery which is fully charged and on 2nd lowest setting the battery doesn’t last long.”

Despite this another buyer was very happy: “I did consider another leading brand but decided on Shark. This for me has been a really good choice. This fan is fairly expensive but the build quality is plain to see and it works really well.

“It is so versatile being able to run on mains and battery I can take it anywhere, it even has a remote control. I would recommend this fan to anyone even my friends.”

Katz says Israel has ‘green light’ from US to attack Iran again if Tehran makes ‘progress’ with its nuclear programme.

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz has said that his country wanted to kill Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during the recent 12-day war between the two sides that ended this week with a ceasefire.

Katz said on Thursday that Israel would not have needed permission from the United States to kill Khamenei, appearing to refute previous media reports that Washington vetoed the assassination.

“We wanted to eliminate Khamenei, but there was no operational opportunity,” said Katz in an interview with Israel’s Channel 13.

Katz claimed that Khamenei knew an attempt on his life was on the cards, and went “underground to very great depths”, breaking off contact with commanders who replaced Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps leaders assassinated in the first wave of Israeli strikes.

Khamenei released video messages during the war, and there is no evidence to confirm that he was cut off from his generals.

Killing Khamenei would have been a major escalation in the conflict. Besides being the de facto head of state in Iran, the supreme leader is a top spiritual authority for millions of Shia Muslims across the world.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump had both suggested at various times that the war could spark regime change, the latter posting on social media last Sunday that the conflict could “MAKE IRAN GREAT AGAIN”.

Katz’s comments came amid conflicting reports on the extent of destruction wrought on Iran’s nuclear capability, primarily as a result of the US bombing of sites at Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan. Khamenei said on Thursday that the US had “exaggerated” the impact of strikes.

The Israeli defence minister said that his country has a “green light” from Trump to launch another attack on Iran if it were deemed to be making “progress” with its nuclear programme.

“I do not see a situation where Iran will restore the nuclear facilities after the attack,” he said.

For his part, Netanyahu said on Thursday that the outcome of the war presented a “window of opportunity” for further formal diplomatic agreements with Arab states.

The conflict ended with a US-brokered ceasefire after Iran responded to the US strikes with a missile attack on Qatar’s Al Udeid Air Base, which houses US troops.

“We have fought with determination against Iran and achieved a great victory. This victory opens the path to dramatically enlarge the peace accords,” Netanyahu said in a video address, in an apparent reference to the Abraham Accords, which established official ties between Israel and several Arab countries in 2020.

Iran also declared victory after the war, saying that it thwarted the Israeli objectives – namely ending Tehran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programmes – and managed to force Netanyahu to end the assault with the missile strikes that left widespread destruction in Israel.

Lucy Hylton, 39, says the hotel she stayed in was ‘filthy’ and had broken furniture, and that they resorted to eating out half the time they were there

A Manchester family have been left devastated after their £12,000 luxury getaway to Jamaica turned into an ordeal they describe as a ‘nightmare’. Lucy Hylton, 39, recounted the horrendous conditions at the five-star resort where the buffet was ‘filthy’, with broken furniture – forcing them to dine out for half of their stay.

Upon arrival, they found dirty rooms, one of which had such a bad odour that it was nearly impossible to breathe in. With a young child in tow, the Hyltons were further troubled by relentless fire alarms throughout their stay.

Lucy and her husband, Zata Hylton, 30, splurged £6,000 on a two-week all-inclusive vacation at Royalton Negril, Jamaica, to introduce their four-month-old son Leo to his Jamaican relatives.

Joining them, Lucy’s parents Sheila Hoy, 69, and Graham Hoy, 68, also invested £6,000 hoping to delight in their grandson’s first overseas experience, reports the Manchester Evening News.

The five-star resort promises to give guests a “luxurious experience, mouth-watering gourmet meals and superior, friendly service at every turn”. But Lucy said: “It was a nightmare from check in.

“Our room was dirty,” she continued. “Mum and Dad’s room was horrendous. It stunk so bad you could barely breathe, the shower door was broken, the couch was broken, and the TV was broken.”

The buffet’s condition, with its unkempt floor and damaged fixtures, stunned her further. “The floor was dirty. It was unbelievable” she added.

Lucy recounted the holiday nightmare, detailing the appalling state of their accommodation: “The grills were thick with grime, and the microwaves looked like they’d never been cleaned.”

Despite opting for an all-inclusive package costing £6,000 each, the family chose to dine out: “We would never usually eat out because it was all-inclusive, and we paid £6,000 each, but we were scared to eat from the buffet, so we ate out seven times.”

She also described a distressing incident involving her son Leo: “On the second to last night, the fire alarm was going off at 11pm.. “We thought they might be testing it, even though it was a weird time. The fire alarm in the room next door was going off constantly.

“Our fire alarm was going off every ten minutes from 1 am to 5 am. They came and removed the bit that makes the noise, which is dangerous.”, she added.

The situation escalated, affecting the entire family: “Leo was screaming so he had to wear ear defenders, and we sat on the balcony until 5am. Some issues are small, but together they’re a problem. Because we were stressed, Zatar and I were arguing.”

Her parents were also affected by the ordeal: “My mum and dad were desperate to go home from day three.”

The trip was meant to be special, as they had saved for a year to introduce Leo to his relatives.

Their booking was made through TUI, who informed them two months before the trip that the hotel was downgraded from their platinum collection, yet assured that the expected five-star facilities remained unchanged.

Following their complaint, the family’s rooms were cleaned, and they were offered an alternative room. They were also offered complimentary beach cabanas with waiter service and a discount voucher as goodwill gestures.

The couple has been battling for a refund from TUI for the cost of their hotel stay but claim the travel company has refused to budge.

Lucy expressed her frustration, saying: “They said there’s nothing they can do. Their response is disgusting, but I’m not shocked by it. It was our first family holiday, and we were so looking forward to it, but it was horrible.

“I felt terrible for my mum and dad, and I felt responsible because I’d recommended it. My husband is so upset because I’ve got a stale taste in my mouth for Jamaica, and that’s his home country and my son’s heritage.

“He had high expectations of introducing Leo to his family.”

“I’ll never use TUI again, “she added. “TUI is the only company that flies from Manchester to Jamaica.”

This trip marked Lucy’s fourth visit to the hotel, which she claims has deteriorated since her last stay in 2021.

She complained: “I’ve always said Jamaica is the best Caribbean island, the people are friendly, it’s authentic and there’s loads to do, but this has put me off.”

TUI declined to comment when approached by Manchester Evening News.

Jose Adolfo Macias, alias ‘Fito’, is due to be extradited to the US on drug trafficking and weapons smuggling charges.

The fugitive leader of Ecuador’s Los Choneros gang has been recaptured after nearly 18 months on the run, according to President Daniel Noboa.

Jose Adolfo Macias, also known as “Fito”, escaped from Guayaquil prison in January 2024, where he was serving a 34-year sentence for drug trafficking and murder.

Following his capture, Macias will now be extradited to the US, where he was indicted by a federal court for charges related to drug trafficking and firearms smuggling, Noboa said on the X social media platform on Wednesday.

Noboa had previously offered $1m for assistance in Macias’s capture and dispatched thousands of police officers and members of the armed forces to find him.

“My recognition to our police and military who participated in this operation. More will fall, we will reclaim the country. No truce,” Noboa said on X.

Para los que se opusieron y dudaron de la necesidad de las leyes de Solidaridad e Inteligencia: gracias a esas leyes, Fito fue capturado hoy y está en manos del Bloque de Seguridad.

Mi reconocimiento a nuestros policías y militares que participaron en esta operación. Caerán más,…

— Daniel Noboa Azin (@DanielNoboaOk) June 25, 2025

Macias reportedly escaped ahead of his transfer to a maximum-security prison, but authorities have yet to explain how he succeeded.

The successful escape “triggered widespread riots, bombings, kidnappings, the assassination of a prominent prosecutor, and an armed attack on a TV network during a live broadcast”, according to the United States government, leading Noboa to declare a 60-day state of emergency across Ecuador.

The Ecuadorian president also designated 22 gangs, including Los Choneros, as “terrorist groups”.

The US Department of the Treasury separately sanctioned both Macias and Los Choneros in February 2024 for drug trafficking and instigating violence across Ecuador.

Ecuador was once one of Latin America’s most peaceful countries, but its proximity to Peru and Colombia – the world’s top producers of cocaine – has made it a prime target for criminal groups exporting drugs abroad.

Competition between rival local gangs, backed by foreign criminal syndicates from Mexico to as far as Albania, has led to an explosion in violence across the country.

While embarking on her dreamy Grecian holiday, Anna May couldn’t have been more excited. But then, she woke up with a pain she has since likened to ‘full-blown labour’

As she jetted off to Greece, Anna May was eagerly looking forward to a week of fun and sunshine with her family, little knowing that she was about to embark on a true holiday from hell.

The family checked into a gorgeous villa near the stunning city of Chania, complete with their own private pool. But their little slice of paradise quickly turned into a nightmare following a horror health scare.

For the first few days, the mum-of-two threw herself into holiday activities, enjoying plenty of dining out and making special memories with her husband and their two sons. A keen swimmer, she even made sure to swim 50 laps of the pool.

Before getting on the plane, Anna, from Wiltshire, had no inkling that anything was wrong whatsoever. The now 49-year-old had noticed she was struggling to lose weight around her stomach, despite leading an active lifestyle, but put this down to being a symptom of perimenopause.

Then, a couple of days into what should have been a dream trip, Anna woke up one morning in “the most horrific pain (she’d) ever experienced.” Anna told the Mirror: “It was like full-blown labour. With no warning. So literally went from like zero to 100 in terms of pain.”

READ MORE: Travellers ditch beach holidays for stunning ‘cooler’ locations

Being in that amount of agony was terrifying enough, but being in a foreign country made things even more “scary”. With Anna barely able to stand, it was clear that urgent treatment was needed, and so her panicked husband and sons contacted emergency services, while she managed to get to a bed on the ground floor of the villa.

The ambulance arrived, and Anna was “whizzed” through the mountains to the hospital, where the family were, of course, faced with “quite an extreme language barrier”. By this point, Anna was “howling” and “wailing” in pain, but was thankfully well cared for by the medical team, who she remembers as being “incredibly kind and amazing”.

At first, it was believed that Anna was suffering from appendicitis, a condition whereby a patient experiences painful swelling and infection in their appendix, an organ which forms part of your bowel. But then, scans showed something unexpected – a “huge cyst” on one of Anna’s ovaries.

As per information given on the NHS website, an ovarian cyst refers to a fluid-filled sac that develops on a woman’s ovary. A common occurrence, these usually don’t cause any symptoms, and will go away within a few months without any treatment needed.

In Anna’s case, however, the situation was much more serious. Surgery is sometimes required for larger cysts that exceed 10cm, particularly if these are causing discomforting symptoms.

As Anna explained, she had “no clue” that the cyst had been there. Medics began preparing her for surgery to have the cyst removed, but being in a country where she didn’t speak the language naturally presented hurdles.

Anna recalled: “Before going into surgery. I had to sign a consent form, and they said to me, ‘We’re so sorry, Anna, but it’s in Greek. So you just have to trust us.’ I was like, I am in so much pain that you know what, I’ve just signed it. I’ve just got to be sorted because this is so horrific.”

After waking up from surgery, there were, unfortunately, further shocks in store. Anna shared: “The next thing I knew, I woke up and they said, ‘Sorry, when we removed the cyst, we also had to remove an ovary as well.'”

Looking back on her initial thoughts at this moment, Anna reflected: “I was just blown away, really. It almost felt like a bit of a dream, because I was like, ‘I can just cannot believe this is happening, you know. Two days ago, I was lying on the beach, now I’m lying in a hospital bed in a foreign country with no ovary.’ And I was obviously in absolute agony, you know it’s major abdominal surgery.”

By this point, Anna was “desperate to get home” and longed for her own bed. However, there was still a way to go, and doctors kept her in the hospital for a few days before allowing her to leave.

As they’d been due to fly home, the family also had to sort out extending their flights, with the hospital telling Anna that there was “no way” she was fit for travel after undergoing emergency surgery.

Thankfully, Anna says everybody she dealt with during this rebooking process was “phenomenal”, during what was otherwise a “very horrific experience”.

Anna considered: “Actually, I almost looked back on it with quite a lot of fondness because everybody was so kind and I was so well looked after, even down to the staff at the airport being incredible.

“You know, they met me with a wheelchair and they put me on the plane and then they met me in England with a wheelchair, and so you know they were I was very, very well looked after.

“It was just a very, very scary experience, and I think if it had happened and kind of been planned, it still would have been big and scary, but you know, to have been in a country and be completely unexpected was kind of another level, really.”

Once back in the UK, Anna had to take six weeks off from work to recover, and this time gave her the time she needed to reevaluate her career and make some significant changes.

Despite the pain she endured, three years on and Anna is “grateful” for the perspective her nightmare ordeal brought.

Before her surgery, Anna had worked part-time in admin for a company where she says she was made to feel as though she wasn’t “very capable”, despite having run her own businesses for years.

Opening up about the bullying she says she and others experienced at the company, Anna said: “Everybody in the office felt like they were being undermined all the time, and it was really sad actually.

“There were some incredible people working there who all just felt very undervalued, undermined, and very patronised all the time. And I just got to the point that I thought, ‘I’m just not prepared to put up with that anymore. You know, I know I’m capable, and I don’t deserve to be treated like that.’ And actually, nobody deserves to be treated like that.”

A strong believer that everything happens for a reason, Anna used her time away from the office to take stock and ultimately decided to hand in her notice and begin a new path. But not before letting her old boss know exactly what she thought of them.

Nowadays, Anna works as a mindset and manifestation coach and runs an academy, “helping people shift their mindset”. Many of those she works with are those in midlife who are struggling with “feeling stuck” or having low self-worth.

For Anna, helping her clients “shift their perspective on life” has proven deeply rewarding. She noted: “I think my story is a good example of that to be a positive spin on everything and take the goodness out of situations and use it to drive you forward rather than keeping you held back.”

Although she now looks back on her personal Greek saga as an important turning point in her life, she and her family have yet to return to what she describes as a “beautiful” yet “bittersweet” place.

Anna explained: “At the moment, (my sons) aren’t that keen on returning. I think for them it was really hard, obviously, to see their mum in so much pain. It was really frightening for them, and obviously, we’re going away on a beautiful family holiday, and they end up spending their holiday in the ward, checking that I’m okay.

“We will return, we definitely will, but I think it almost needed a few years for us all to kind of get over the experience and connect with the happy memories of it rather than the traumatic event.”

Do you have a story to share? Email me at [email protected]

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A number of travel company bosses have reported dealing with clients who have made the decision to go elsewhere, following major overtourism protests last weekend

Some holidaymakers are dodging destinations in Spain due to concerns about overtourism protests.

Off the back of a string of high-profile, coordinated marches and actions across Spain, Portugal, and Italy at the weekend, potential visitors have decided to go elsewhere.

A number of travel company bosses have reported dealing with clients who have made the decision to go elsewhere.

Jet2holidays chief executive Steve Heapy told Travel Weekly: “Media coverage has ramped up over the past 24 hours and it simply enforces the perception that holidaymakers are not welcome. It worries people, simple as that.”

Ryan Lambton, a Hays Travel personal travel consultant, said: “I’ve had a few customers message [to say they] are now reluctant to book.”

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Karl Douglas, co-owner of Beverley Travel, added: “We’ve had people saying, ‘We don’t want to go somewhere we’re not wanted.’ People will choose somewhere they’re going to be made welcome.”

Sandra Mutter, director at Andara Travel, said bookings to Dubai and Jordan were strong, but the protests in Spain, and Majorca in particular, seem to have had an “impact.”

Caroline Thorne, head of travel at East of England Co-op Travel, told the publication that overtourism protests were a bigger talking point with customers than the escalating conflict in the Middle East.

Last year, the UK was the main country of origin for international tourism in Spain in 2024. In 2024, more than 18 million British travelers headed south for a trip to Spain. Meanwhile, France ranked in second place that year, accounting for around 13 million foreign visitors to Spanish territory.

Following a sharp dip during the coronavirus pandemic, visitor numbers to Spain bounced back, hitting a record high of around 84 million in 2024.

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Tourism operators in Spain have been keeping a close eye on booking numbers since overtourism protests erupted at a significant scale in 2023. Despite some minor dips in hotel figures in some destinations, demand for travel to the sun-drenched country does not seem to have been badly impacted.

Across holiday hotspots, campaigners fed up with rising house prices, low wages, and crowded public squares targeted tourists with water pistols and chanted for change. The protests last weekend were part of a coordinated action laid on by groups across several countries, who are united in their dislike of the current tourism model and who are now demanding change.

Major protests hit the streets of several key Spanish holiday areas this weekend, with campaigners using water pistols against unsuspecting tourists in Barcelona and on the Spanish island of Majorca on Sunday.

If you are planning a holiday somewhere sunny this summer, it’s helpful to know where the protests are taking place and who the protesters are angry at. Check out our guide to the four major disruption hotspots.

The image of Donald Trump shaking hands with Ahmad al-Sharaa, Syria’s current leader, in Riyadh is one that, until recently, would have seemed unimaginable. Al-Sharaa, once on the U.S. most-wanted list with a $10 million bounty for information leading to his capture, now stood alongside Trump to discuss Syria’s future. This meeting, along with Trump’s decision to lift sanctions on Syria, raises a fundamental question: Is America’s war on terror a principled, genuine fight—or a tool serving Washington’s shifting political interests?

A Puzzling Encounter
Trump’s meeting with Ahmad al-Sharaa during his highly publicized Middle East tour sparked regional and global astonishment. Al-Sharaa, formerly known as Abu Mohammad al-Julani, was the leader of Jabhat al-Nusra, a group the U.S. designated as a terrorist organization in 2013, offering $10 million for information on him. Following the meeting, Trump announced plans to normalize relations with Syria’s new government and lift sanctions, calling it an opportunity for a “fresh start” for the war-torn nation. This shift stands in stark contrast to the 2013 U.S. stance, when Jabhat al-Nusra was a prime target in the global war on terror.

The White House defended this move as pragmatic, citing al-Sharaa’s role in toppling Bashar al-Assad and his apparent moderation as the leader of Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a rebranding intended to distance the group from its al-Qaeda past. Yet the image of Trump shaking hands with a former most-wanted figure—especially in light of past U.S. actions—was deeply unsettling.

The Soleimani Paradox: A Tale of Selective Justice
To understand the implications of Trump’s meeting with al-Sharaa, we must revisit the 2020 assassination of Qassem Soleimani, commander of Iran’s Quds Force. Soleimani played a central role in fighting ISIS, particularly in Iraq and Syria, where his forces aided local militias in retaking territory. Despite this alignment with U.S. priorities, the Trump administration ordered his assassination via drone strike in Baghdad, justifying it by citing his support for groups like Hezbollah and alleged threats to U.S. interests.

The contrast is stark: Soleimani, who battled ISIS and extremist groups, was killed; al-Sharaa, once the head of an al-Qaeda affiliate, is now a diplomatic partner. This contradiction suggests that U.S. counterterrorism policy is less about eliminating extremism and more about advancing strategic interests. Soleimani’s death disrupted Iran’s regional influence—a long-standing U.S. objective—while al-Sharaa’s new role aligns with Washington’s aim to stabilize post-Assad Syria without direct military involvement.

A History of Convenient Alliances
Trump’s meeting with al-Sharaa is not an anomaly but part of a broader pattern in U.S. foreign policy. During the Cold War, the U.S. supported Afghan mujahideen against the Soviets—some of whom, like Osama bin Laden, later formed al-Qaeda. In the 1980s, Washington backed Saddam Hussein in his war against Iran, despite his clear record of atrocities, because Iraq served as a counterweight to Tehran.

In 2025, Trump’s Middle East strategy mirrors this tradition. His visit to Saudi Arabia—where he signed a $142 billion arms deal and emphasized confronting Iran—underscored a focus on strengthening allies like Saudi Arabia and Israel while selectively engaging former foes like al-Sharaa. The lifting of sanctions and talk of normalization signal a pragmatic shift, prioritizing stability and economic opportunity over old terrorist designations. This realpolitik approach aligns with Trump’s deal-making rhetoric, such as his readiness to negotiate with Iran—if it abandoned its nuclear ambitions and support for “terrorism”—even while threatening “maximum pressure.”

The Mask Slips from the War on Terror
America’s war on terror, launched after 9/11, has long been portrayed as a moral struggle against extremism. But the meeting with al-Sharaa exposes its instrumental nature. By engaging with a former terrorist leader, the U.S. reveals that its “terrorist” labels are often temporary, shifting when political or economic interests arise. Trump’s handshake with al-Sharaa sends a message to regional players: the U.S. is willing to overlook past crimes for strategic gain—a signal that may encourage other groups to pursue legitimacy through cosmetic political changes.

By contrast, the assassination of Soleimani shows the other side of that coin. His killing wasn’t just about counterterrorism—it was a strategic blow to Iran, a regional rival. Soleimani’s forces played a key role in defeating ISIS in Iraq, yet the terrorist label overshadowed his contributions to a shared objective.

A Policy of Expedience
The photo of Donald Trump shaking hands with Ahmad al-Sharaa is more than just a diplomatic snapshot—it’s a window into the dual nature of America’s counterterrorism policy. When a former al-Qaeda commander is embraced as a partner, but a general who fought ISIS is eliminated by U.S. drones, the message is clear: terrorism is a label used for convenience, not conviction. It reveals a truth the West rarely admits—principles become negotiable when interests are at stake.

As the Middle East enters a new chapter, the world watches and wonders: Is America’s war on extremism truly about security—or just another move in a geopolitical chess game for regional and global dominance?

A warrant has been issued for the arrest of former NFL superstar Antonio Brown stemming from an altercation outside a celebrity kickboxing event last month in Miami.

Brown is charged with the first-degree felony of attempted second-degree murder with a firearm. A judge from the 11th Judicial Circuit in Miami-Dade County signed the warrant Wednesday.

The warrant, which has been viewed by The Times, states that once Brown is arrested, he will be held on a $10,000 bond before being released and under house arrest before a trial.

Just before midnight on May 16, the warrant states, Miami police were dispatched to a location on NE 67th St. in the Little Haiti neighborhood in response to a report of gunshots being fired in the area.

Brown had already been detained by off-duty Florida Highway Patrol officers serving as security for the amateur boxing event held in the area. One of those officers stated that “several patrons from the event identified Mr. Brown as the shooter and informed him that Mr. Brown was armed,” the warrant states.

After being patted down and deemed to be unarmed at that point, Brown was released “due to the absence of identified victims at the time.”

A Miami police review of surveillance camera footage revealed that an altercation between Brown and another man took place before the shooting. The footage showed Brown striking the man with a closed fist, and a fight that involved additional individuals ensued, the warrant states.

Security broke up the fight, according to the warrant, but Brown “appears to retrieve a black firearm from the right hip area” of one of the security staff members and ran with the gun out of the parking area in the direction that the man he was fighting with had gone.

The warrant states that “cell phone video obtained from social media” shows Brown advancing toward the other man with the gun in hand and captures “two shots which occur as Mr. Brown is within several feet” of the other man, who can be seen “ducking after the first shot is heard.”

In a May 21 interview with a police detective, the alleged victim identified Brown in the surveillance video and said they had known each other since 2022, the warrant states. He also indicated he possibly had been grazed in the neck by one of the bullets, was in fear for his life during the incident and went to a hospital afterward to treat his injuries.

Brown appeared to address the alleged incident in a May 17 post on X.

“I was jumped by multiple individuals who tried to steal my jewelry and cause physical harm to me,” Brown wrote. “Contrary to some video circulating, Police temporarily detained me until they received my side of the story and then released me. I WENT HOME THAT NIGHT AND WAS NOT ARRESTED. I will be talking to my legal council and attorneys on pressing charges on the individuals that jumped me.”

Brown posted on X several times on Friday, with none of those posts mentioning the arrest warrant. One seemed to indicate he’s not in the U.S. at the moment — it features a video of a grinning Brown riding a bike with the hashtag #lovefromthemiddleeast.

A seven-time Pro Bowl receiver, Brown played nine of his 12 NFL seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers and won a Super Bowl with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers following the 2020 season. He made a bizarre, shirtless exit from the field during a regular-season game Jan. 2, 2022, and has not played since.

He has a history of legal troubles. In 2019, Brown was sued by a former trainer who said he sexually assaulted her multiple times. Brown denied the allegations. The lawsuit was settled out of court in 2021.

In 2020, Brown pleaded no contest to burglary and battery charges connected to an altercation with a moving company. He was ordered to serve two years of probation and 100 hours of community service, attend an anger management program and undergo psychological and psychiatric evaluation.

Brown was suspended for eight games in 2020 for multiple violations of the NFL’s personal conduct policy.

Also, in October 2023, the former star wide receiver was arrested for failing to pay child support.