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With favourites out MLS playoffs promise more upsetsBiden says he was ‘stupid’ not to put his name on pandemic relief checks like Trump did

Former U.S. Rep. Anthony Weiner has filed to run for a seat on the New York City Council, launching a potential political comeback after his once-promising career was destroyed by sexting scandals and later a criminal conviction for having illicit online contact with a child. Campaign finance records list a campaign committee that was set up on Friday for Weiner called Weiner 25, in addition to listing him as a candidate for a council seat in lower Manhattan. Javascript is required for you to be able to read premium content. Please enable it in your browser settings.

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REVIEW: Rotterdam's Palazzo Ristorante provides excellent Italian food in huge portionsThis screenshot from Donald Trump Truth Social account shows an image of President-elect Donald Trump and first lady Jill Biden attending the ceremony in Notre Dame Cathedral as France’s iconic cathedral is formally reopening its doors for the first time since a devastating fire nearly destroyed the 861-year-old landmark in 2019, Dec .7, 2024 in Paris. Trump’s recent summit with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and visit to Paris for the reopening of the Notre Dame Cathedral were not just exercises in negotiating trade policy and diplomacy. For Trump, they’ve also become fodder for trolling. (Truth Social via AP) This screenshot from Donald Trump’s Truth Social account shows am image of President-elect Donald Trump standing beside a Canadian flag. Trump’s recent summit with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and visit to Paris for the reopening of the Notre Dame Cathedral were not just exercises in negotiating trade policy and diplomacy. For Trump, they’ve also become fodder for trolling. (Truth Social via AP) This screenshot from Donald Trump Truth Social account shows an image of President-elect Donald Trump and first lady Jill Biden attending the ceremony in Notre Dame Cathedral as France’s iconic cathedral is formally reopening its doors for the first time since a devastating fire nearly destroyed the 861-year-old landmark in 2019, Dec .7, 2024 in Paris. Trump’s recent summit with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and visit to Paris for the reopening of the Notre Dame Cathedral were not just exercises in negotiating trade policy and diplomacy. For Trump, they’ve also become fodder for trolling. ( Truth Social via AP) This screenshot from Donald Trump Truth Social account shows an image of President-elect Donald Trump and first lady Jill Biden attending the ceremony in Notre Dame Cathedral as France’s iconic cathedral is formally reopening its doors for the first time since a devastating fire nearly destroyed the 861-year-old landmark in 2019, Dec .7, 2024 in Paris. Trump’s recent summit with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and visit to Paris for the reopening of the Notre Dame Cathedral were not just exercises in negotiating trade policy and diplomacy. For Trump, they’ve also become fodder for trolling. (Truth Social via AP) Now that’s he’s preparing to return to the Oval Office, Trump is back at it, and his trolling is attracting more attention — and eyerolls.

Syrian opposition fighters have reached the suburbs of the capital, Damascus, and government forces are withdrawing from the strategic city of Homs as the rebels' surprising offensive picks up speed and President Bashar Assad's whereabouts are unknown. Homs is an important intersection between Damascus and Syria’s coastal provinces that are the Syrian leader’s base of support. In Damascus, residents described a city on edge, with security forces on the streets and many shops running out of staple foods. The rapidly developing events have shaken the region. Lebanon said it was closing all its land border crossings with Syria except for one that links Beirut with Damascus. Jordan closed a border crossing with Syria, too. Eight key countries gathered with the U.N. special envoy on Syria on the sidelines of the Doha Summit for two hours of discussions Saturday night, and more will follow. The U.N. envoy seeks urgent talks in Geneva to ensure an “orderly political transition.” Here's the Latest: Two officials with Iran-backed Iraqi militias in Syria say the militias are monitoring the situation and have not made a decision to enter in support of Iran’s ally, Syrian President Bashar Assad. One of the officials said Iranian militias had withdrawn to Iraq from their positions in Syria. “All the militias are waiting to see what Bashar Assad will do in Damascus. If he resists and does not allow Damascus to fall, it is possible that the Iraqi factions will intervene for the purpose of support,” he said. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the matter. -- Qassim Abdul-Zahra in Baghdad Multi-country discussions on Syria have ended on the sidelines of the Doha Summit. Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein says the countries will issue a statement, and there will be follow-up talks “taking into consideration the practical and real situation on the ground.” He said the talks, which lasted over two hours Saturday evening, focused on how to stop the fighting. Eight key countries including Saudi Arabia, Russia, Egypt, Turkey and Iran gathered with the U.N. special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen. When asked where Syrian President Bashar Assad is, Iraq's foreign minister replied, “I don’t know.” He declined to speculate on whether Assad would be overthrown. Opposition fighters have reached the Damascus suburbs. BEIRUT — Lebanon’s Health Ministry says two Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon on Saturday killed six people and wounded five others. The ministry said an airstrike on the village of Beit Leif killed five people and wounded five, while a drone strike on the village of Deir Serian killed one person. Israel’s military said it was looking into the report. Despite a ceasefire that went into effect on Nov. 27 to end the 14-month fighting between Israel and Lebanon-based Hezbollah militants that had escalated into all-out war, violations of the truce have continued. The director of Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza says the facility came under heavy Israeli bombardment again on Saturday and three medical staff were killed. Dr. Hussam Abu Safia in a statement posted by Gaza’s Health Ministry said the hospital was hit by over 100 projectiles and bombs, and electricity was cut off. He said the surgery department and neonatal unit were hit, and he pleaded for “immediate coordination for repair operations.” Kamal Adwan is one of the last remaining hospitals in northern Gaza. Israeli forces are pressing an offensive that has almost completely sealed off the area from humanitarian aid for two months. Israel’s military said it wasn’t aware of any attack Saturday. The hospital director on Friday said Israeli strikes had killed at least 29 people including four medical staff. Israeli Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi says the military is monitoring the Syrian border to make sure that “local factions do not direct actions towards us,” adding that Israel is not intervening in the events in Syria. Israel’s military has said it is reinforcing its deployment along the border with Syria. Halevi said if “confusion” arises and actions are directed toward Israel by “local factions” taking control of parts of Syria, Israel has a strong “offensive response.” The United Nations humanitarian coordinator in Syria says the U.N. is relocating non-critical staff outside the country. Adam Abdelmoula in a statement Saturday called it a precautionary measure to protect U.N. teams. “Let me emphasize—this is not an evacuation and our dedication to supporting the people of Syria remains unwavering,” Abdelmoula said. The statement did not say how many U.N. staffers were leaving Syria as opposition fighters reached the suburbs of Syria’s capital, Damascus. The statement said the fighting in Syria has displaced over 370,000 people as the humanitarian situation deteriorates, “with many seeking refuge in the northeast and others trapped in frontline areas, unable to escape.” Foreign ministers and senior diplomats from eight key countries including Saudi Arabia, Russia, Egypt, Turkey and Iran have gathered on the sidelines of the Doha Summit along with the U.N. special envoy for Syria, Geir Pedersen, to discuss the situation in Syria. The talks continued late Saturday and no details were immediately available. Qatar, Jordan and Iraq also were part of the discussions as opposition fighters closed in on the Syrian capital, Damascus. BAGHDAD — An Iraqi government spokesperson says about 2,000 Syrian army soldiers have crossed into Iraq seeking refuge as opposition forces advance in Syria. Bassem al-Awadi said the soldiers’ equipment and weapons were registered and taken into custody by the Iraqi army. “We dealt with them according to the principle of good neighborliness and humanity,” he said Saturday. Al-Awadi also said Iraqi officials are concerned about the security of the al-Hol camp and other facilities in northeast Syria where suspected Islamic State group members and their families are detained. The facilities are guarded by U.S.-backed Kurdish forces. Al-Awadi said there is “high security coordination” between Iraqi officials and those forces to “prevent the prisoners from escaping.” Syria's army says it is fortifying its positions in the suburbs of Damascus and in the country’s south, as opposition fighters close in on the capital. The army statement on Saturday also asserted that Syria is being subjected to a “terrorist” and propaganda campaign aiming to destabilize and spread chaos. The statement also said the military is continuing with operations in areas including the central provinces of Hama and Homs, and that it has killed and wounded hundreds of opposition fighters. At least two people were wounded in a car-ramming attack in the West Bank on Saturday, according to the Israeli army and rescue services. The army said the attack took place in the area of the Fawwar refugee camp, near the city of Hebron. It said a soldier was severely wounded, and security forces were looking for the attacker. Israel’s Magen David Adom rescue service said another man in his 40s suffered light injuries from shrapnel. The West Bank has seen a surge in violence since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attack out of Gaza sparked the war there. Israel has intensified its military raids in the West Bank, targeting what it says are militants planning attacks, and there has also been a rise in Palestinian attacks on Israelis. The Israeli military says it is helping United Nations forces to head off an attack on a U.N. position in Syria close to the Israeli border. The army said in a statement Saturday that an attack was carried out by “armed individuals” on a U.N. post near the Syrian town of Hader and it was “assisting U.N. forces in repelling the attack.” On Friday, Israel’s military said it would reinforce its forces in the Golan Heights and near the border with Syria, where civil war has reignited between the government and opposition fighters. Hamas has released a video showing Israeli hostage Matan Zangauker making an emotional plea for his release and describing the conditions he and other hostages face in Gaza after being seized in the Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel. His mother, Einav, has become a symbol of the fight to bring back the hostages and is an outspoken critic of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government. Matan Zangauker, speaking under duress, appealed to the public to protest in front of Netanyahu’s home and “not let him sleep even for a minute.” Zangauker also referred to 420 days of being held by Hamas militants. “We want to return before we go crazy. Isolation is killing us, and the darkness here is frightening,” he said, describing having little food and medicine and “undrinkable” water. President-elect Donald Trump has made his first extensive comments on dramatic advances by opposition fighters in Syria, saying the besieged President Bashar Assad didn’t deserve U.S. support to stay in power. “THIS IS NOT OUR FIGHT,” Trump posted on the Truth Social platform on Saturday. Syrian opposition activists and regional officials have been watching closely for any indication from both the Biden administration and the incoming Trump administration of how the U.S. would handle the sudden advances against Syria’s Russian- and Iranian-allied leader. Trump condemned the overall U.S. handling of the 13-year civil war in Syria, but spoke favorably of the routing of Assad and Russian forces. ISTANBUL — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Saturday that there was “now a new reality in Syria” following the rapid advance of rebel forces. Speaking in Gaziantep, a city less than 30 miles (48 kilometers) from the Syrian border, Erdogan said that “increasing attacks on civilians” in Syria’s northwest Idlib province “triggered the latest events like the straw that broke the camel’s back.” It was not possible for Turkey to ignore developments in a country with which it shares a lengthy border and it would not allow any threats to its national security, he added in a televised speech. “Our wish is for our neighbor Syria to attain the peace and tranquility it has been longing for for 13 years,” he told a rally of supporters. “We want to see a Syria where different identities live side by side in peace. We hope to see such a Syria in the very near future.” Erdogan claimed President Bashar Assad had erred in rebuffing Turkey’s previous efforts to establish relations, saying Damascus “could not appreciate the value of the hand Turkey extended.” Ankara has supported anti-Assad rebel groups since the early months of the conflict and hosts 3 million refugees dislodged by the fighting. While Turkey lists HTS, the group leading the latest offensive, as a terrorist organization, the Turkey-backed Syrian National Army has worked alongside it. BEIRUT — A resident of the Syrian capital of Damascus says the city is very tense as troops and members of security agencies are deployed on main streets and intersections. The resident told The Associated Press that many shops are closed and those that are open have run out of main commodities such as sugar. He added that if food products are available, some shops are selling them for a price three times higher than usual. “The situation is very strange. We are not used to that,” the resident said on condition of anonymity, fearing retributions. “People are worried whether there will be a battle (in Damascus) or not.” — Bassem Mroue in Beirut DOHA, Qatar — Russia’s foreign minister says he has met his Turkish and Iranian counterparts in Doha and that all three countries were calling for an “immediate end to hostile activities” in Syria. Russia and Iran are the chief supporters of Syria’s government, while Turkey backs opposition fighters trying to remove President Bashar Assad from power. Speaking at the annual Doha Forum, Sergey Lavrov said Russia continues to help the Syrian army confront insurgents, military via airstrikes. Asked whether Assad’s rule is threatened by the fast-moving rebel offensive, he said, “We are not in the business of guessing what’s gong to happen.” He blamed the United States and the West for the events in Syria and said, “We are very sorry for the Syrian people who became a subject of another geopolitical experiment. “We are doing everything we can not to make terrorists prevail, even if they say they are not terrorists,” Lavrov said, referring to the de facto leader of the Syrian insurgents, Abu Mohammed al-Golani, who says he has cut links with al-Qaida. His group, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, is listed as a terrorist organization by the U.S. and United Nations. He said Russia, Iran and Turkey want the full implementation of a U.N. resolution, which endorsed a road map to peace in Syria. Resolution 2254 was adopted unanimously in December 2015. The measure called for a Syrian-led political process, starting with the establishment of a transitional governing body, followed by the drafting of a new constitution and ending with U.N.-supervised elections. Lavrov also downplayed reports that Moscow had withdrawn ships from Russia’s base in Syrian city of Tartus, saying that the vessels had left to take part in naval exercises in the Mediterranean. DOHA, Qatar — The U.S. envoy who brokered the ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah says the deal has created a new opportunity for Lebanon to reshape itself. Amos Hochstein told the Doha Forum that the weakness of Hezbollah after nearly 14 months of fighting along, along with blows to its Syrian and Iranian allies, give the Lebanese military and government a chance to reassert itself. “Now is the moment with this ceasefire to rebuild Lebanon again for a much more prosperous future and stronger state institutions,” Hochstein told The Associated Press on the sidelines of the conference. He said Lebanon needs “to do its part” by rebuilding its economy, choosing a president after years of delays and strengthening its central government to attract investors. “And the international community has a requirement and a responsibility to support Lebanon after this devastating conflict and after years of Hezbollah control,” he said. Hochstein told the conference that the turning point in ceasefire efforts was Hezbollah dropping its pledge to keep fighting as long as the war in Gaza continues. He said the change in position was the result of the heavy losses inflicted on Hezbollah, and Lebanese public opinion in favor of delinking the two conflicts. He said key tests for the ceasefire will be whether Israel carries out its promised phased withdrawal from southern Lebanon over the coming two months and whether the Lebanese army is able to move into those areas. BEIRUT — Insurgents and a war monitor say opposition fighters are taking over military posts evacuated by Syrian government forces in the country’s south, bringing them closer to the capital, Damascus. An insurgent official known as Maj. Hassan Abdul-Ghani posted on the Telegram messaging app that opposition fighters are now in the town of Sanamein, about 20 kilometers (12 miles) from the southern outskirts of Damascus, President Bashar Assad’s seat of power. Rami Abdurrahman, who heads the Britain-based opposition Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said insurgents have entered the town of Artouz, which is about 10 kilometers (6 miles) southwest of Damascus. Opposition fighters have captured wide parts of Syria, including several provincial capitals, since they began their offensive on Nov. 27. BEIRUT — Lebanon’s government has approved a plan to deploy more troops along the border with Israel, part of the ceasefire deal that ended the Israel-Hezbollah war. In a rare Cabinet meeting outside of Beirut, held Saturday at a military base in the southern port city of Tyre, the government also approved a draft law to reconstruct buildings destroyed during the Israel-Hezbollah war that broke out in October 2023 and ended with a U.S.-brokered ceasefire last week. Information Minister Ziad Makary told reporters after the meeting that the committee whose job is to monitor the ceasefire that went into effect on Nov. 27 will hold its first meeting on Monday. The committee is made up of military officials from the U.S., France, Israel and Lebanon as well as the U.N. peacekeeping force deployed along the border. As part of the ceasefire deal, during the first 60 days Israeli troops will have to withdraw from Lebanon, while Hezbollah will have to pull its heavy weapons away from the border area to north of the Litani river. The Lebanese army said this week it will begin recruiting more soldiers, apparently to deploy them along the border with Israel. BEIRUT — The Syrian army withdrew from much of southern Syria on Saturday, leaving more areas of the country, including two provincial capitals, under the control of opposition fighters, the military and an opposition war monitor said. The redeployment away from the provinces of Daraa and Sweida came as Syria’s military sent large numbers of reinforcements to defend the key central city of Homs, Syria’s third largest, as insurgents approached its outskirts. The rapid advances by insurgents are a stunning reversal of fortunes for Syria’s President Bashar Assad , who appears to be largely on his own, with erstwhile allies preoccupied with other conflicts. His chief international backer, Russia, is busy with its war in Ukraine, and Lebanon’s powerful Hezbollah, which at one point sent thousands of fighters to shore up his forces, has been weakened by a yearlong conflict with Israel. Iran, meanwhile, has seen its proxies across the region degraded by Israeli regular airstrikes. JERUSALEM — Israeli security forces killed a Palestinian man after he attacked them at a border crossing in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on Saturday morning, police said. The man shot firecrackers at security forces at the checkpoint and threatened them with a knife, the police statement said. The man wore a t-shirt emblazoned with a symbol of the Islamic State militant group, according to an Associated Press reporter Israeli fire has killed at least 700 Palestinians in the West Bank since the Israel-Hamas war began last year, Palestinian health officials said. In that time, Palestinian militants have launched a number of attacks on soldiers at checkpoints and within Israel. DOHA, Qatar — The prime minister of Qatar says he has seen new momentum in Gaza ceasefire efforts since the U.S. presidential election, with the incoming Trump administration seeking an end to the conflict before it takes office. Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, a key mediator in the ceasefire efforts, declined to give specifics of the negotiations but told an international conference in Doha that the gaps between the sides are not large. Qatar, which has served as a mediator throughout the 14-month war, suspended its efforts last month in frustration over the lack of progress. But Sheikh Mohammed said his government has re-engaged in recent days after determining a new willingness by both parties to reach a deal. ’We have sensed after the election that the momentum is coming back,” he told the Doha Forum on Saturday. He said has been in touch with both the outgoing Biden administration and the incoming Trump administration and found that while there are some differences in approach, both are committed to the same goal of ending the war. ’We have seen a lot of encouragement from the incoming administration in order to achieve a deal, even before the president comes to the office,” Sheikh Mohammed said. He declined to discuss details, saying he wanted to “protect the process,” but expressed hope for a deal “as soon as possible.” ’If you look at the gaps and the disagreements, they are not something substantial that really affects the agreement,” he said. CAIRO — At least 29 people were killed, including four medical staff, when Israeli strikes pummeled the area around one of the last remaining hospitals in northern Gaza, Palestinian officials said. The situation in and around the Kamal Adwan hospital is “catastrophic,” according to Dr. Hussam Abu Safia, the director of the hospital. The dead included five children and five women, according to the hospital casualty list, which was obtained by The Associated Press. Friday’s strikes also wounded 55 people including six children and the five women, according to the hospital. Kamal Adwan Hospital in Beit Lahiya is one of the few hospitals still partially operating in the Gaza’s northernmost province , where Israeli forces are pressing an offensive that has almost completely sealed off the area from humanitarian aid for two months. Israel’s military denied that its forces had struck the hospital or operated inside it. The army said that in the past few weeks, “coordinated efforts with international organizations have been underway in order to transfer patients, companions, and medical staff to other hospitals.” An Indonesian medical team which had been assisting in Kamal Adwan for the past week was forced to evacuate on foot after the area was surrounded by Israeli soldiers, according to a statement from the team. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the medical team’s expulsion. Dr. Rik Peeperkorn, the World Health Organization representative in the Palestinian territories, said an Israeli tank approached the hospital at around 4 a.m. Friday. Although no official Israeli evacuation order was issued, “people started to climb the wall to escape, and this panic attracted IDF (Israeli) fire,” he said. He spoke by video from Gaza to journalists in Geneva. Kamal Adwan Hospital has been struck multiple times over the past two months since Israel launched a fierce military operation in northern Gaza against Hamas militants. In October, Israeli forces raided the hospital, saying that militants were sheltering inside and arrested a number of people, including some staff. Hospital officials denied the claim. MANAMA, Bahrain — Saudi Arabia’s foreign minister has reiterated the kingdom’s call for an end to the war in the Gaza Strip. Prince Faisal bin Farhan described Israel as acting with “impunity and is getting away without punishment” in its war on Hamas there. The prince said that any permanent solution requires a two-state solution, with the Palestinians having east Jerusalem as their capital. After the speech, Prince Turki al-Faisal, a prominent royal in the kingdom who led Saudi intelligence for more than two decades and served as ambassador to the U.S. and Britain, took the stage. He harshly criticized Israel’s conduct in the wars. “Israel has become an apartheid, colonial and genocidal state,” Prince Turki said. “It is about time for the world to address that issue and take the necessary steps to bring those who are thus charged by the International Criminal Court to justice.” Israeli officials could not be immediately reached for comment on Prince Turki’s remarks. The Saudis spoke at the International Institute for Security Studies’ Manama Dialogue in Bahrain.Lisa Simpson once said during an episode of “The Simpsons:” What could be more exciting than the savage ballet that is pro football? On Monday night, the entire Simpsons universe gets to experience it in a way not many could have imagined. The prime-time matchup between the Cincinnati Bengals and Dallas Cowboys will also take place at Springfield’s Atoms Stadium as part of “The Simpsons Funday Football” alternate broadcast. The altcast will be streamed on ESPN+, Disney+, and NFL+ (on mobile devices). ESPN and ABC have the main broadcast, while ESPN2 will carry the final “ManningCast” of the regular season. The replay will be available on Disney+ for 30 days. Globally, more than 145 countries will have access to either live or on replay. “We’re such huge football fans, and the Simpsons audience and the football audience, I feel, are like the same audience of just American families and football. And the Simpsons are so much a part of the DNA of the American family and culture that for us to, like, mush them together in this crazy video game, it’s so fun,” said Matt Selman, executive producer of “The Simpsons.” While the game is the focal point, the alternate broadcast, in some ways, will resemble a three-hour episode of “The Simpsons.” It starts with Homer eating too many hot dogs and having a dream while watching football. Homer joins the Cowboys in the dream while Bart teams up with the Bengals. Lisa and Marge will be sideline reporters. “That’s the beginning of the story, and the story continues through the entire game until Homer wakes up from his dream at the end of the game. It is like a complete story, and the NFL game will happen in between. It’s just going to be an amazing presentation with tons of surprises,” said Michael “Spike” Szykowny, ESPN’s VP of edit and animation. This is the second year ESPN has done an alternate broadcast for an NFL game. It used the characters from “Toy Story” for last year’s Sunday morning game from London between the Atlanta Falcons and Jacksonville Jaguars. “The Simpsons” has featured many sports-themed episodes during its 35 seasons. Even though “Homer at the Bat” remains the consensus favorite sports episode for many Simpsons fans, there have been football ones such as “Bart Star” and “Lisa The Greek.” There also was a Super Bowl-themed one after Fox’s broadcast of Super Bowl 33 between Denver and Atlanta in 1999. Even though “The Simpsons” remains a staple on Fox’s prime-time schedule, it is part of the Disney family after their acquisition of 20th Century Fox in 2019. All 35 seasons are on Disney+. The show’s creators have worked with ESPN and the NFL to make sure the look and sound is definitely Simpsonsesque. The theme song is a mash-up of “The Simpsons” opening and “Monday Night Football’s” iconic “Heavy Action.” There have also been pre-recorded skits and bits to use during the broadcast featuring Simpson’s legendary voices Hank Azaria, Nancy Cartwright, Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, and Yeardley Smith. The telecast will be entirely animated, with the players’ movements in sync with what is happening in real-time on the field. That is done through player-tracking data enabled by the NFL’s Next Gen Stats system and Sony’s Beyond Sports Technology. While Next Gen Stats tracks where players are on the field with a tracking chip in the shoulder pads, there is skeletal data tracking and limb tracking data — which uses 29 points per player — to get closer to the player’s movements. The other data tracking will allow Beyond Sports and Disney to add special characters to the game. For example, there might be a play where Lisa catches the ball and goes 30 yards instead of Cincinnati’s Tee Higgins. “Lisa is much smaller than the rest of the players. So, in real life, the ball would go over her head, but now, with data processing, we can take the ball and make it go exactly into her hands. So for the viewer, it still looks believable, and it all makes sense,” said Beyond Sports co-founder Nicolaas Westerhof. The other major challenge is making “The Simpsons” two-dimensional cartoon characters into 3-D simulations. Szykowny and his team worked to make that a reality over the past couple of months. “That’s a big leap of faith for them to say, hey, we trust you to make our characters 3-D and work with it. Our ESPN creative studio team has done a wonderful job,” Szykowny said. Lisa, Krusty, Nelson, Milhouse and Ralph will be with Bart and the Bengals; while Carl, Barney, Lenny and Moe join up with with Homer and the Cowboys. The broadcast will also feature ESPN personalities Stephen A. Smith, Peyton Manning and Eli Manning. ESPN’s Drew Carter, Mina Kimes and Dan Orlovsky will call the game from Bristol, Connecticut, and also be animated. They will wear Meta Quest Pro headsets to experience the game from Springfield using VR technology. For Kimes, being part of the broadcast and being an animated Simpsons character is a dream come true. She is a massive fan of the show and has a framed photo of Lisa Simpson — who she said is a personal hero and icon — as part of her backdrop when she makes appearances on ESPN NFL shows from her home in Los Angeles. “I didn’t have any input, and I didn’t see anything beforehand, so I wasn’t sure if it would look like me, but it kind of does, which is very funny,” said Kimes, who drew Simpsons characters when she was a kid. “To see the actual staff turn me into one was a dream.” Even though the Bengals (4-8) and Cowboys (5-7) have struggled this season, Selman thinks both teams have personalities that appeal to “The Simpsons” universe. “We were just so lucky also that the Cowboys are sort of like a Homer Simpson-type team, American team, and Mike McCarthy might be a Homer-type guy, one might imagine,” he said. ”And then you have Joe Burrow on the other side who is a cool young, spiky-haired, blonde bad boy -- he’s like Bart. And that fits our character archetypes so perfectly. “If Homer is mad at Bart and has a hot dog dream while watching ’Monday Night Football’, and then it’s basically McCarthy versus Burrow, Homer versus Bart, and that’s the simple father versus son strangling — Homer strangling Bart dynamic that has been part of the show for 35 years. I don’t know if that would have worked as well if it was like Titans versus Jacksonville. We would have found something. We would have made it work.” AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Confident Thais eye win in openerRep. Susan Wild (D-PA), the top Democrat on the House Ethics Committee, admitted to the panel that she violated her sworn oath and leaked details of the investigation into former Rep. Matt Gaetz to the press, The Hill reported Monday. Leaks about the Gaetz investigation and the threat of its full release played a significant role in derailing Gaetz’s nomination by Donald Trump for attorney general. The report from The Hill’s Mychael Schnell raises new questions about the motivations of the notoriously bipartisan committee, which restarted its investigations into Gaetz after a probe from Joe Biden’s Department of Justice ended without charges and continued even after the nominee resigned from the House and was no longer under the committee’s purview. Chairman Michael Guest (R-MS) even signaled the Ethics Committee was likely to ignore Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-LA) recommendation to withhold releasing its report, before Gaetz ultimately announced he would withdraw his nomination after obstinate senators concerned about the report’s contents refused to back him. The Hill reports that Wild: ...was absent from the panel’s meeting last week after being traced as the source of leaks to the press regarding the investigation into former Rep. Matt Gaetz , sources told The Hill. It remains unclear if Wild voluntarily skipped the Thursday gathering or was asked not to attend, what information she leaked and to whom, and how the panel tracked her back as being the leaker. Two sources said Wild ultimately acknowledged to the panel that she had leaked information. Wild had expressed her anger after Guest told media following a November 20 meeting that the committee had not agreed to release the report. Wild took to the media to call that statement “inaccurate.” Guest “betrayed the process by disclosing our deliberations within moments after walking out of the committee,” Wild said in justifying her own reasoning for going to the press. Wild herself had previously told reporters that the Gaetz report should be released. The committee is known for its intense secrecy and rarely issues an official statement to the press except when required by statute or House rules to provide notice of its actions. Wild’s Chief of Staff, Jed Ober, disputed The Hill’s sources, claiming her frustration over the handling of the yet-to-be-released report was the reason for her attendance issues. “Rep. Wild was frustrated by the manner in which the report was handled and didn’t feel it was fruitful to participate in any further meetings on its ‘potential’ release,” Ober told The Hill. “Characterizing it as anything more is inaccurate. There will be no further statement.” He declined to comment when asked if Wild, who lost her reelection bid in November to Republican Ryan Mackenzie, would attend future meetings regarding the Gaetz report. Reports of Wild’s leaking, as well as the rare public dispute between committee leaders and the unusual timeline of the reinvigorated investigation of Gaetz, cast a shadow on the committee’s investigation and motivations. The leaks, wherever they came from, also raise questions about the committee’s operations. The Hill reports: Various pieces of information about the years-long probe into Gaetz have leaked in recent months, including logistics about meetings, votes taken during those gatherings, and the panel’s plan to vote on releasing the report days after he announced his resignation. Any leaks from members and staff are a violation of the committee’s rules: Individuals on the panel take an oath swearing they will not disclose unauthorized information. Members of the committee and their staffs must take an oath which reads : I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will not disclose, to any person or entity outside the Committee on Ethics, any information received in the course of my service with the Committee, except as authorized by the Committee or in accordance with its rules. The usually sleepy committee has awoken to make plenty of headlines this Congress. Most notably, Republicans on the committee have been criticized for partnering with Democrats to punish Republicans while letting Democrats off the hook. As Breitbart reported : In 2023, the committee broke decades of precedent by releasing its investigation into Republican Rep. George Santos (R-NY) despite the congressman not yet having his day in court for his alleged crimes. The report led to Santos’s expulsion from Congress after prior attempts had failed. When the House last expelled a member, Rep. Jim Traficant (D-OH) in 2002, it did so only after Traficant was found guilty in court. The Ethics Committee then did not even begin an investigation until Traficant’s court case had concluded. The loss of Santos’s reliable conservative vote cost Republicans. Most notably, the House embarrassingly failed by a single vote to impeach Department of Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. Meanwhile, this Congress, the Republican-chaired committee chose not to take action against Democrat Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-NY), despite the congressman pleading guilty after pulling a fire alarm in a House office building that disrupted a House vote — allegedly to prevent House Republicans from passing a spending bill while Senate Democrats readied a package of their own, a potential felony. Committee membership is split evenly between Republicans and Democrats; therefore the math dictates at least one Republican – possibly more – voted to release its report on George Santos, while no Democrats voted to take action against Bowman – already a convicted felon for his actions. The committee is traditionally composed of establishment Republicans. As Breitbart News reported : The Ethics Committee — which, lacking a legislative jurisdiction, provides its members no capability to extract campaign funds from the donor class — is not highly sought after by members of Congress and is generally seen as a chore. Its members usually serve by request of their party’s respective leader and are usually appointed for their loyalty to leadership — often in exchange for other favors quietly bestowed by leadership. Speaker Johnson, who became Speaker after the current members were seated on the committee, responded to a question from Axios’s Juliegrace Brufke Tuesday regarding Wild’s alleged leaking of the report, saying he had not yet spoken to Guest but that “there ought to be repercussions.” “We can’t set that as a precedent,” he said of the leaks. “It’s dangerous.” Gaetz has long denied the allegations against him, arguing the committee only restarted its investigation due to his leading the ouster of Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) – to whom all members of the committee, including Guest, owe their spot on the committee . Also serving are Reps. David Joyce (R-OH), John Rutherford (R-FL), Andrew Garbarino (R-NY), and Michelle Fischbach (R-MN). Gaetz has repeatedly called ou t Guest for his successful stock trading practices and for his acknowledged failure to disclose to the very Ethics Committee he leads a family stock (as well as his voting record), arguing the Ethics Committee should take up reforms to stock trading by members of Congress. As Attorney General, Gaetz would have oversees federal investigations into members of Congress for insider trading or other corruption — including Guest. Democrats are not done demanding the release of the report into Gaetz, who remains a Trump ally and recently announced he would host a primetime program on One America News. Last week, Democrats forced a vote on the floor to release the vote, although Republicans successfully used a procedural method to prevent its release. But Guest himself told reporters the committee is not yet finished meeting for the year. And regardless of whether Wild attends, the committee’s Republicans have a clear recent history of taking action against the conservative Gaetz and Santos. We may not have seen the last of the ongoing Gaetz report saga, but if voters concerned with accountable government had their way, it’s the investigators themselves who would fall under the microscope. Bradley Jaye is a Capitol Hill Correspondent for Breitbart News. Follow him on X/Twitter at @BradleyAJaye .

Luigi Mangione, the hero? The disturbing reaction to health care CEO’s killing

The suspect in the killing of UnitedHealthcare’s chief executive struggled with deputies and shouted on Tuesday while arriving for a court appearance in Pennsylvania, a day after he was arrested at a McDonald’s and charged with murder. Luigi Nicholas Mangione, 26, emerged from a patrol car, spun toward reporters and shouted something partly unintelligible, yelling “insult to the intelligence of the American people” while deputies pushed him inside. Mangione is contesting his extradition back to New York. He was denied bail at the brief hearing. He has 14 days to challenge the bail decision. Prosecutors, meanwhile, have a month to seek a governor’s warrant out of New York. Mangione, wearing an orange jumpsuit, mostly stared straight ahead during the hearing, occasionally consulting papers, rocking in his chair, or looking back at the gallery. At one point, he began to speak to respond to the court discussion, but was told to be quiet by his lawyer. Thomas Dickey, his defence lawyer, questioned whether the second-degree murder charge filed in New York might be eligible for bail under Pennsylvania law, but prosecutors raised concerns about both public safety and Mangione being a potential flight risk, and the judge denied it. Prosecutors on Tuesday were beginning to take steps to take Mangione back to New York to face a murder charge while new details emerged about his life and how he was captured. The Ivy League graduate from a prominent Maryland family was charged with murder hours after he was arrested in the killing of Brian Thompson, 50, who led the United States’ largest medical insurance company. Mr Dickey had declined to comment before the hearing at the Blair County Courthouse in Hollidaysburg. Mangione is being held without bail in Pennsylvania on charges of possession of an unlicensed firearm, forgery and providing false identification to police. Manhattan prosecutors have charged him with five counts, including murder, criminal possession of a weapon and criminal possession of a forged instrument. Mangione was likely motivated by his anger with what he called “parasitic” health insurance companies and a disdain for corporate greed, a law enforcement bulletin obtained by The Associated Press said. He wrote that the US has the most expensive health care system in the world and that profits of major corporations continue to rise while “our life expectancy” does not, according to the bulletin, based on a review of his hand-written notes and social media posts. Mangione called “Unabomber” Ted Kaczynski a “political revolutionary” and may have found inspiration from the man who carried out a series of bombings while railing against modern society and technology, according to the police bulletin. Mangione was arrested in Altoona, Pennsylvania — about 230 miles (370km) west of New York City — after a McDonald’s customer recognised him and notified an employee, authorities said. Officers found him sitting at a back table, wearing a blue medical mask and looking at a laptop, according to a Pennsylvania police criminal complaint. He initially gave them a fake ID, but when an officer asked Mangione whether he had been to New York recently, he “became quiet and started to shake”, the complaint says. When he pulled his mask down at officers’ request, “we knew that was our guy,” Officer Tyler Frye said. Images of Mangione released on Tuesday by Pennsylvania State Police showed him pulling down his mask in the corner of the McDonald’s while holding what appeared to be hash browns and wearing a winter jacket and beanie. In another photo from a holding cell, he stood unsmiling with rumpled hair. New York Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Mangione was carrying a gun like the one used to kill Mr Thompson and the same fake ID the gunman had used to check into a New York hostel, along with a passport and other fraudulent IDs. NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said Mangione also had a three-page, handwritten document that shows “some ill will toward corporate America”. A law enforcement official who was not authorised to discuss the investigation publicly and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity said the document included a line in which Mangione claimed to have acted alone. “To the Feds, I’ll keep this short, because I do respect what you do for our country. To save you a lengthy investigation, I state plainly that I wasn’t working with anyone,” the document said, according to the official. It also had a line that said: “I do apologise for any strife or traumas but it had to be done. Frankly, these parasites simply had it coming.” Pennsylvania prosecutor Peter Weeks said in court that Mangione was found with a passport and 10,000 dollars (£7,839) in cash, 2,000 dollars of it in foreign currency. Mangione disputed the amount. Mr Thompson was killed on Wednesday as he walked alone to a Manhattan hotel for an investor conference. Police quickly came to see the shooting as a targeted attack by a gunman who appeared to wait for Mr Thompson, came up behind him and fired a 9mm pistol. Investigators have said “delay,” “deny” and “depose” were written on ammunition found near Mr Thompson’s body. The words mimic “delay, deny, defend,” a phrase used to criticise the insurance industry. From surveillance video, New York investigators determined the gunman quickly fled fled the city, likely by bus. A grandson of a wealthy, self-made real estate developer and philanthropist, Mangione is a cousin of a current Maryland state legislator. After his elite Baltimore prep school, he went on to earn undergraduate and graduate degrees in computer science in 2020 from the University of Pennsylvania, a spokesperson said. “Our family is shocked and devastated by Luigi’s arrest,” Mangione’s family said in a statement posted on social media late Monday by his cousin, Nino Mangione. “We offer our prayers to the family of Brian Thompson and we ask people to pray for all involved.” From January to June 2022, Luigi Mangione lived at Surfbreak, a “co-living” space at the edge of Waikiki in Honolulu. Like other residents of the shared penthouse catering to remote workers, Mangione underwent a background check, said Josiah Ryan, a spokesperson for owner and founder RJ Martin. “Luigi was just widely considered to be a great guy. There were no complaints,” Mr Ryan said. “There was no sign that might point to these alleged crimes they’re saying he committed.” At Surfbreak, Mr Martin learned Mangione had severe back pain from childhood that interfered with many aspects of his life, from surfing to romance, Ryan said. “He went surfing with RJ once but it didn’t work out because of his back,” Mr Ryan said, but noted that Mangione and Mr Martin often went together to a rock-climbing gym. Mangione left Surfbreak to get surgery on the mainland, Mr Ryan said, then later returned to Honolulu and rented an apartment. Mr Martin stopped hearing from Mangione six months to a year ago.

Opposition fighters are at Damascus’ gates. Who are they and what now?Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg’s job is supposed to be keeping New Yorkers safe. Unfortunately, he’d rather take it easy on criminals and illegal migrants and save his harshest prosecutions for Good Samaritans and politicians with whom he disagrees. He’s refused to prosecute fare-beating, resisting arrest, and more in his tenure and opted to avoid pre-trial detention at almost every juncture. As a result, repeat offenders have been let loose to re-offend again and again, leading to the highest rates of felony crimes in New York City in decades. While the bad guys get a pass, Bragg went after people like Jose Alba, who defended himself after coming under attack in a bodega where he worked; Daniel Penny, a Marine veteran, just proven innocent, who intervened when a deranged, career criminal posed a violent threat to his fellow straphangers; and, of course, President Donald J. Trump, who Bragg pursued relentlessly for years with inflated charges that federal prosecutors in President Biden’s own Department of Justice, his predecessor Cy Vance, and leading legal scholars found flimsy at best. What did Bragg achieve? Stoking racial and political tensions in New York City. What did he not achieve? Making us all safer. Gov. Hochul has been in charge of New York State for the entire duration of Alvin Bragg’s tenure, watching mainly in silence as he has made a joke of our justice system and undercut the public’s trust in his office and the rule of law. As governor, she has the sole authority to remove Alvin Bragg from office. On the heels of Donald Trump’s show trial and Daniel Penny’s acquittal — not to mention the legitimate fear New Yorkers and tourists have when they walk the streets or ride the subways in the greatest city in the world — it has become clear beyond a shadow of a doubt that Alvin Bragg can no longer serve as District Attorney. Gov. Hochul should remove him from office immediately — Alvin Bragg is a failure and has abused his office. Anything less than firing him shows how unserious Gov. Hochul is about tackling crime in New York City and upholding the public’s trust in our justice system. Rep. Mike Lawler (R) represents New York’s 17th District.

In the NewsLONDON, United Kingdom, December 11 – Fifa’s confirmation of Saudi Arabia’s hosting of the men’s 2034 World Cup – despite the country facing years of scrutiny over its human rights and environmental record – will be one of the most controversial steps that football’s governing body has ever taken. Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp Yet while many critics will be dismayed at the prospect, few should be surprised given the influence that the kingdom’s unprecedented investment in sport has secured. So is the tournament being used to help transform Saudi Arabia’s reputation, or can it be a catalyst for social reform? And what does this tell us about Fifa and football more widely? Here, BBC Sport looks at the key questions. Why is this a coronation, not a contest? Official confirmation of a Saudi World Cup will come at a ‘virtual’ meeting of Fifa’s Congress on Wednesday afternoon. But this has seemed like a formality for more than a year. In October 2023, it emerged the Saudi bid would be unopposed after Australia – the only other potential candidate – decided not to enter the running, hinting that it was futile to do so after being given less than a month by Fifa to mount a challenge. Fifa has defended a fast-tracked process that many argue was lacking in transparency and accountability. But critics believe it effectively paved the way for the Saudis, by decreeing that the 2030 World Cup would be staged across three continents (Spain, Portugal and Morocco are co-hosts, with the first three matches in South America). That meant that under its rotation policy, only bids from Asia and Oceania were considered for 2034. It is worth noting that Saudi Arabia and Fifa, under president Gianni Infantino, have developed a close relationship. The country hosted Fifa’s 2023 Club World Cup, and the governing body has a lucrative sponsorship deal with Saudi state-owned oil giant Aramco. There has also been widespread speculation that Saudi’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) could make a major investment in streaming giant DAZN which has agreed to broadcast the inaugural edition of Infantino’s pet project – an expanded Club World Cup next summer. The sense of inevitability surrounding Saudi’s bid was only reinforced last month with the late-night publication of Fifa’s evaluation report, authored by Infantino’s deputy, Secretary General Mattias Grafstrom. It awarded the bid an average score of 4.2 out of 5 , the highest ever. No media conference was held in order to explain such a glowing assessment, nor the fact that the bid was deemed ‘medium risk’ for human rights and ‘low-risk’ for environmental protection, sparking outrage from campaigners. Furthermore, with ratification expected to be confirmed by acclamation at the Congress, rather than a traditional vote, the only way any dissenting national associations can express their opposition is to abstain from the round of applause. While the precise protocol remains unclear, there are suggestions that associations are to be asked to simultaneously show their support for both the unopposed Spain, Portugal and Morocco 2030 bid and the Saudi 2034 bid (rather than having two separate acclamations). Fifa meanwhile can argue that anointing hosts via uncontested bids is preferable to the past, when long races between various countries could be vulnerable to vote-swapping and attempted corruption, and that as a global body they have a duty to take their flagship event to new territories. What have other countries said? Norway’s football federation has said it will abstain from the acclamation, arguing the bidding process “undermines Fifa’s own reforms for good governance” and “challenges trust in Fifa”. It added that Fifa’s guidelines for due diligence had not been followed, “increasing the risk of human rights violations”. Most federations outside of western Europe will endorse the Saudi bid. Germany’s DFB said it “took the criticism of the applicant country seriously...[but] our goal is to work together with Fifa to improve the situation in the coming years”. The FA is yet to declare what position it will take , although BBC Sport has been told some senior officials, while aware of human rights concerns, are wary of accusations of hypocrisy if it fails to support Saudi Arabia but then wants England to participate. Most scrutiny has come from outside the sport. In March, the Guardian said it had found evidence of high numbers of unexplained deaths of Bangladeshi migrant workers in Saudi Arabia. The country defended its regulations and standards, but Fifa came under pressure to secure binding commitments for reforms, external before awarding the World Cup. In October, an independent report conducted by the Saudi arm of a major law firm – which was submitted to Fifa as part of its bid inspection – was condemned by human rights groups for ignoring the alleged abuse of migrant workers. Last month Amnesty urged Fifa to halt the bidding process, external “to avoid worsening an already dire situation”, warning that “fans will face discrimination, residents will be forcibly evicted, migrant workers will face exploitation, and many will die” if a Saudi tournament went ahead. There has been some opposition to Saudi’s growing influence within football. In October for instance, more than 100 professional women’s footballers signed an open letter urging Fifa to drop Aramco as a sponsor, calling it a “punch in the stomach”. But others fear that many players are reluctant to speak out in case it jeopardises a lucrative move to the Saudi Pro League, and also that it is difficult for footballers to take a stand when governments are prepared to do business with Saudi Arabia. This week for instance, the UK prime minister, Keir Starmer, visited the kingdom in a bid to strengthen economic ties. What will a Saudi World Cup look like? “Extraordinary”, according to the Saudi Football Federation. Its bid proposes 15 stadiums, (including three that are under construction, and eight where work is yet to start), across five host cities, including one (the futuristic development of Neom) that is yet to be built. Fifa’s evaluation report hails “a range of impressive stadiums which, when built or refurbished, could offer state-of-the-art infrastructure”. It is also almost certain to be held in winter. But there could be one major difference with neighbouring Qatar’s tournament, which took place in November-December, 2022. Noting that summer temperatures “can exceed 40C”, Fifa has said there is an “elevated risk in terms of event timing” for Saudi 2034, and referenced having to navigate “climatic conditions” and “religious events”, leading to speculation the event may be held from the start of January to avoid a clash with Ramadan. Premier League and other top European leagues would oppose a winter World Cup according to the PA news agency. What does this say about Saudi sporting influence? For many, ratification of a Saudi World Cup would be the ultimate expression of the power the country now wields across sports, and the opportunity, disruption and controversy that have accompanied it. The kingdom has invested billions of pounds staging events since 2021, when the country’s de-facto ruler the Crown Prince made it a key part of his ‘Vision 2030’ strategy to modernise and diversify the economy. The kingdom has since hosted Formula 1, football’s Spanish and Italian cup finals, the Club World Cup, and top-level boxing, golf, horse-racing and tennis. The country’s Public Investment Fund has also launched the breakaway LIV golf series, taken control of four Saudi Pro League clubs and purchased Newcastle United. Meanwhile a recent report by Danish organisation Play the Game has revealed that Saudi Arabia has signed more than 900 sponsorship deals, external and made dozens of formalised agreements with football federations as it extends its influence across the sports landscape. But staging a World Cup will take Saudi’s sporting revolution to an entirely different level, and perhaps even pave the way for an Olympic bid in the future. Is this just sportswashing? Many critics see this as the biggest act of sportswashing in Fifa’s history with the World Cup being used to help improve the image of a country that has faced years of criticism over subjects such as: While campaigners acknowledge that there have been important reforms in recent years, for example over women’s rights, they also point out there has been continued repression. Saudi Arabia executed the third highest number of prisoners in the world in 2023, and three hundred people have already been put to death this year, a record tally based on official figures. This year Manahel al-Otaibi was sentenced to 11 years in prison after she used social media to call for an end to rules stating that women needed the permission of a male relative to marry or travel. Campaign group Reprieve said: “This is one of the world’s most brutal authoritarian regimes spending vast sums of money to create a false image, to distract from worsening repression and state violence. “Some of those executed or currently facing a death sentence are protesters or have done nothing more serious than be caught with small amounts of cannabis. “Fans planning to travel to Saudi Arabia in 2034 should be aware that this is a country where exercising freedoms we take for granted in democratic societies can get you killed.” The Saudi authorities insist their bid is designed to diversify the economy and boost tourism, act as a catalyst for modernisation and reform, and inspire a youthful population to be more active. Last year, the country’s sports minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Faisal, defended the country’s right to host the tournament, told me claims of sportswashing were “shallow.” He added: “We’ve hosted more than 85 global events and we’ve delivered on the highest level. We want to attract the world through sports... any country has room for improvement, no-one’s perfect. We acknowledge that and these events help us reform to a better future for everyone.” Women in Saudi Arabia were only allowed to enter sports stadia to watch matches in 2018, but since then a professional women’s football league and national women’s team has been created, with more than 70,000 girls now playing regularly. However, last year, Jake Daniels, the UK’s only openly gay active male professional footballer, told the BBC he “wouldn’t feel safe” at a Saudi World Cup. When I asked what he would say to female and gay fans worrying whether they would be safe to attend, Prince Abdulaziz said that “everyone is welcome” . Could Saudi 2034 lead to change? Many believe that while Qatar delivered a secure and memorable World Cup enjoyed by many fans, the years of controversy that overshadowed the tournament over human rights, discriminatory laws, and the major disruption to the football calendar caused by a first winter World Cup could now be repeated. Back in 2010, Qatar’s shock victory in the vote to decide the 2022 hosts took Fifa’s then-leadership by surprise. In contrast, Infantino appears to have been supportive of the idea of a Saudi World Cup. And with Fifa having brought in a human rights policy in 2017, there could be even more scrutiny on its decision – and any evidence that it leads to workers being adversely impacted. As with Qatar, the Saudi World Cup infrastructure will be largely built by migrant workers from South Asia, with more than 13 million foreigners living in the country, and the scale of construction required has inevitably led to concerns. Fifa’s own report has concluded that “a number of severe human rights impacts did ultimately occur in Qatar from 2010 through 2022 for a number of workers connected to the World Cup. This included: deaths, injuries and illnesses; wages not being paid for months on end; and significant debt... a credible argument can be made that Fifa contributed to some of the impacts”. The media scrutiny that accompanied the build-up to Qatar’s World Cup may have led to labour reforms that were brought in, although campaigners have raised concerns over implementation , and are furious that Fifa has not acted on the key recommendation of its own report and paid financial compensation to workers who were harmed. Last year, Prince Abdulaziz assured me there would be no repeat of Qatar’s issues with workers’ rights, saying: “We have 10 years to work on that, we already started in a lot of the venues, so we have a long time to do it in the right process.” However, in its Saudi evaluation report, external , Fifa references “areas where further legal reforms are needed and... effective enforcement, without which the risk of indecent working conditions could be elevated”. Fifa hails the Saudi government’s “commitment to respecting, protecting and fulfilling internationally recognised human rights in connection with the competition including in the areas of safety and security, labour rights, rights of children, gender equality and non-discrimination, as well as freedom of expression (including press freedom)”. But with regard to diversity and anti-discrimination, its report also “notes gaps and reservations in the implementation of relevant international standards”. Despite that, Fifa claimed “a good potential that the tournament could serve as a catalyst for some of the ongoing and future reforms and contribute to positive human rights outcomes”. Amnesty said the assessment was: “An astonishing whitewash of the country’s atrocious human rights record. Fundamental human rights reforms are urgently required in Saudi Arabia, or the 2034 World Cup will be inevitably tarnished by exploitation, discrimination and repression.” Campaign group Fair Square said Fifa had “plumbed new depths”. What about the environment? Campaigners have long accused the world’s biggest oil exporter of adding to climate change through its fossil-fuel industry, and of blocking climate action. But now they have also expressed major concerns about the impact of staging a 48-team tournament, pointing to the energy required for cooling systems, the desalination of water and carbon-intensive infrastructure projects. The Saudi government says it is diversifying away from fossil fuels and trying to reduce omissions, and has rejected criticism it is using sport to distract from its record on sustainability. Fifa’s World Cup evaluation report said “Whilst the extent of construction would have a material environmental impact, the bid provides a good foundation for delivering mitigation measures to address some of the environment-related challenges.” Fifa’s credibility in this area was badly undermined last year when a Swiss regulator ruled it had made false statements about the reduced environmental impact of Qatar 2022 having claimed it would be the first “fully carbon-neutral World Cup”. Furthermore, while Qatar constructed seven new stadiums, Saudi Arabia is building 11 and refurbishing a further four. A total of 64 matches were played in Qatar but Saudi 2034 would feature 104, so the environmental impact could be greater. What does this tell us about sport? A Saudi World Cup underlines the extraordinary shift in sporting power towards the Middle East. Up until relatively recently, the idea of tiny Qatar and neighbouring Saudi Arabia hosting World Cups within the space of just 12 years would have been inconceivable to many. But given these countries’ wealth, and sports bodies’ desire for financial growth and new markets, that will now happen. Saudi Arabia can point out that it will be far from the only controversial host of a sporting mega-event in recent years. In the past two decades, Russia has hosted both the World Cup and Olympics. China has hosted both the summer and Winter Olympics. Same-sex relationships are also illegal in 2030 World Cup co-hosts Morocco, as they are in Qatar. And environmental campaigners have expressed dismay at the staging of the 2030 World Cup across three continents. Amnesty has also recently expressed concern about human rights in 2026 World Cup hosts the United States., external Others however, fear that the applause Saudi’s bid receives on Wednesday will represent a devastating defeat for sport’s commitment to human rights and sustainability, and a low-point for those in charge of world football. The Saudi authorities and Fifa now have the next decade to try to convince the doubters the country can be a suitable host, and that the sport’s flagship event is not tainted.With currently on a break until 2025 following , the show’s official social media accounts have begun posting behind-the-scenes clips for fans to enjoy. One video posted this week features cast members Juliet Godwin, Matt Evans and James Stewart filming a scene together on the beach as if they have been surfing in the ocean. The clip gives fans a glimpse into what it’s like on set and how many people from production are involved, however, it also highlights a wild detail about how the soap is filmed. Many fans noticed that while the three actors are pretending it's a hot summer’s day at the beach, the camera operators and producers are all rugged up in multiple layers. A wide angle of the set shows that the crew are wearing hoodies, puffer jackets and vests, and one person even has a pair of gloves on. Meanwhile, a shirtless extra is being filmed walking in the background of the scene wearing only swim shorts. As some fans know, the show films approximately five to six months in advance which means the scene was likely shot in winter - making it particularly ironic that the fictional town is called Summer Bay. “That looks cold,” one person commented, followed by another who added, “That’s freezing”. “Looks like a winter’s day there!” a third remarked, while someone else remarked, “How many times have they tried to shoot these clips as Matt (Theo) looks worn out!”. Others also questioned the trio’s surfing abilities, writing: “Can any of them actually surf?” “As if you could surf in those waves not even a foot tall,” a different user hilariously pointed out. is and pick up right where it left off, with Justin discovering Cash at the scene of what appears to be a violent crime. Cash had woken up next to Tim, who may or may not be alive, with blood on his hands. Cash had originally gone to find his ex Eden, who was at a secluded resort with Tim and the rest of the band Lyrik, to warn her that Tim's ex-client Nerida was on the rampage and out for revenge. It was also announced in October that fan favourites and Patrick O'Connor will be in 2025. Channel Seven revealed that the couple will be filming in the Whitsunday region of North Queensland for a “top-secret” storyline that will play out sometime next year. The show often films 5-6 months in advance, so we could nearly estimate we'll see Ziggy and Dean back on our TVs around March or April.