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Israeli warplanes carried out an airstrike Friday on a Syrian army site in Daraa province, southern Syria.Local sources reported that an office belonging to the 40th Division of the Ministry of Defense in the Izraa area of ​​northern Daraa countryside was targeted by an Israeli airstrike. Initial reports indicate that the attack resulted in no casualties, and damage was limited to material losses at the targeted site. Israeli warplanes routinely attack targets inside Syrian territory and violate its sovereignty with ground incursions, in clear violation of the 1974 Disengagement Agreement. Source link
FIFA President Gianni Infantino has confirmed that the 2026 FIFA World Cup, to be hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico, will take place on schedule and with the participation of all national teams.Speaking during today’s online meeting of the FIFA Council, Infantino said, “FIFA is looking forward to all teams participating in the 2026 World Cup to compete in a spirit of fair play and mutual respect.” “We have a schedule, and we want the World Cup to go ahead as planned.” Infantino noted that FIFA cannot resolve geopolitical disputes, but is committed to using the power of football, stressing that the World Cup is about building bridges and promoting peace. Source link
Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah speaks to manager Arne Slot after being substituted during the UEFA Champions League last 16 clash against Galatasaray at Anfield. (Reuters) Arne Slot believes Liverpool fired a warning shot to Paris Saint-Germain of what they are capable of in a 4-0 thrashing of Galatasaray on Wednesday which set up a Champions League quarter-final against the holders. PSG edged past Slot’s side on penalties on their way to winning the competition for the first time in the last 16 last season. Liverpool were riding high at the top of the Premier League when the sides last met, but have endured a much more difficult second season under Slot. The Reds sit fifth in the English top flight and had to come from behind against Galatasaray after losing the first leg 1-0 in Istanbul. However, there was little doubt over the outcome once Dominik Szoboszlai levelled the tie on 25 minutes at Anfield on Wednesday. Hugo Ekitike, Ryan Gravenberch and Mohamed Salah struck in the second half, while Salah also missed a penalty as Liverpool responded in style from being booed off after Sunday’s 1-1 draw against struggling Tottenham. “They haven’t dropped their standards. It was hardly possible for them to improve, but they’ve been very impressive till now,” said Slot on facing the French champions. But I think after tonight they will not look forward to playing against us too.” Liverpool won 1-0 at the Parc des Princes last season, completely against the run of play. But the roles were reversed as PSG triumphed 1-0 at Anfield despite a much-improved Liverpool display in the second leg. “We were completely outplayed away from home. I think we played a great game here at Anfield and in the end we lost on penalties,” added Slot. Slot’s decision to rest a number of key players from the start against Spurs at the weekend paid off. Salah was one of those to return to the starting line-up and netted his 50th Champions League goal after the disappointment of missing from the spot and a series of other huge chances. “I think it says a lot about his mentality. He missed a penalty just before half-time and that was, of course, a difficult moment because after 45 minutes being 1-0 up was ridiculous if you looked at the run of play,” said Slot. “Then to come out second half and perform like that. A great assist to Hugo and the goal he scored was a trademark of him.” Related…
Harry Kane scored twice as Bayern won 4-1 against Atalanta on Wednesday. (Reuters) Harry Kane said Bayern Munich had nothing to fear in taking on Real Madrid after setting up a quarter-final clash with the European giants by beating Atalanta on Wednesday. Kane, who sat on the bench in the first leg, scored twice as Bayern won 4-1 on Wednesday, wrapping up a 10-2 aggregate victory to book a date with the 15-time European Cup winners. “We don’t fear anyone,” the England captain said of the Real match-up. “We know it’ll be tough, but with the confidence from this game and the season so far, we just need to keep doing what we’re doing.” Kane’s brace brought his career total to 50 goals in 66 Champions League games. This season, he has 47 goals in 39 games in all competitions — more than he has ever scored for a club in a single season. Nine points clear in the Bundesliga with eight games to play, Bayern have lost just two of 41 games in all competitions this season. In his first season in Germany, Kane lost over two legs in the semi-finals against Real, who beat Bayern’s rivals Borussia Dortmund in the final at Wembley. Kane, who wore the captain’s armband at Bayern for the first time in the Champions League, suggested his side had learned from the defeat and knew how to take on Real. “Whenever you play Real Madrid in the Champions League, you have to expect a tough opposition, you have to be ready for a fight,” Kane said. “You have to be ready to try and play in a certain way, and we’ll be ready for that.” Bayern have not beaten the Spanish giants since the semi-finals of the 2011-12 competition. “Both clubs are giant,” Bayern manager Vincent Kompany said. “Who’s the best right now isn’t important — the history of both clubs is huge It’ll be very special. Honestly speaking, with Madrid, when the level goes higher, then they get better. That’s why I’m expecting an absolute top game. It’ll be good for the fans – the neutral fans as well – but at the end we want to win.” Related Story Source link
Chinese and Macau flags flutter at the Golden Lotus Square in Macau, China. (Reuters/File Photo) Lawmakers in Macau, a city under Chinese rule, unanimously approved a bill Thursday that allows court proceedings to be held behind closed doors when deemed necessary to protect national security interests. The city enacted its first national security law in 2009 and tightened it with amendments in 2023. Last July, leading democrat Au Kam San was arrested for alleged collusion with foreign forces to endanger national security, the first known arrest under that law.The new legislation stipulates that judges must refer cases to the city’s Committee for Safeguarding National Security if they believe national security may be at risk during a public hearing.The committee has the ultimate authority to decide whether the matter pertains to national security and order that hearings be held behind closed doors. Its decisions are final, not subject to appeal or judicial review.The law will take effect a day after its publication in Macau’s official gazette.The Macau government said the approval had demonstrated the successful implementation of the principle of “patriots governing Macau”.Unlike in Hong Kong, which saw big social movements challenge Chinese Communist Party rule in 2014 and 2019, the democratic opposition in the former Portuguese colony has always existed on the fringes amid tight Chinese control.After Au’s arrest last year, rights groups have called for his unconditional release and urged authorities not to suppress peaceful criticism. Source link
Inter Miami’s Lionel Messi celebrates after scoring during the CONCACAF Champions Cup round of 16 match against SC in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. (AFP) Argentine superstar Lionel Messi bagged the 900th goal of his glittering career on Wednesday but could not prevent Inter Miami from crashing out of the CONCACAF Champions Cup on away goals after a 1-1 draw with Nashville. Messi, 38, scored his milestone goal after just seven minutes to put Miami 1-0 up in the second leg of their last-16 clash in the regional club competition. But Nashville’s Cristian Espinoza lashed in a 74th-minute equalizer to make it 1-1 on aggregate, and after holding Miami at bay for the remainder of the game, the visitors from Tennessee advanced to the quarter-finals on the away goals rule. Miami’s exit was a bittersweet ending to what had promised to be a night of celebration after Messi’s early opener in what was the club’s final game at their Chase Stadium home in Fort Lauderdale. Messi’s strike took the Argentine’s tally to 81 goals for the MLS champions following his move to Florida in 2023. The eight-time Ballon D’Or winner previously scored 672 goals for Spanish giants Barcelona, 32 for France’s Paris Saint-Germain, and a further 115 international goals for Argentina. Goal number 900 came some 21 years after Messi’s first goal in senior football, when he scored for Barcelona in a 2-0 win over Albacete in 2005 as a fresh-faced 17-year-old. Messi, widely regarded as the greatest player in football history, still has some way to go before he catches his great rival Cristiano Ronaldo, the 41-year-old Portuguese superstar who is on 965 career goals. Speaking ahead of Messi’s 900th goal, Miami manager and former Argentina and Barcelona team-mate Javier Mascherano described the star’s goals total as “insane.” “I’ve been lucky enough to see most, or many, of the goals he’s scored, much closer than you all, and that’s a privilege,” Mascherano said. “The number we’re talking about (900) is insane, and that’s why Leo is a one of a kind.” Wednesday’s match carried added significance for Inter Miami, marking a farewell to the team’s Chase Stadium. The venue has served as Inter Miami’s home since the club entered Major League Soccer in 2020. The team will move into a new purpose-built 26,700-seat facility next month. Messi is strongly expected to play in his sixth World Cup later this year, when Argentina defend their title in the 48-team tournament being staged in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The Argentine star has already extended his Inter Miami contract through to the end of the 2028 season. Messi’s prolific goalscoring has been a hallmark of his career. His 672 goals for Barcelona came in just 778 games — an average of 0.86 per game — helping the Catalan club win 35 trophies before departure to Paris Saint-Germain in 2021. In France, he scored 32 goals in 75 matches, winning three trophies including two league titles. In Miami, his 81 goals have come in just 96 appearances, helping the team win the 2023 Leagues Cup and the 2025 MLS Cup. His 115 international goals have come in 196 matches, including two in the 2022 World Cup final victory over France. Messi’s goals tally leaves him second only to Ronaldo according to most recognised statistical records. Brazilian legend Pele is often said to have scored more than 1,000 goals but those numbers have been the subject to debate. Most statisticians put Pele’s total for Brazil, Santos and New York Cosmos at 762. Related Story…
Jeepney drivers and activists display placards during a protest in support of a jeepney drivers’ strike in Manila Thursday. (AFP) The ripple effects of the war in the Middle East are hitting home hard for Philippine jeepney driver Toni Prado, whose daily earnings have been gutted by soaring fuel prices. He was one of thousands of jeepney drivers who took to the streets across the country on Thursday to protest a more than doubling of local diesel prices after global oil prices surged because of the U.S.-Israel war on Iran.”We are losing our income. What we earn just goes to paying for diesel,” said Prado.”Before I could earn at least 1,000 pesos ($16.65) for three trips, now I only take home 200 pesos,” said the father of four. “How can I support my children? How can I send my daughter to school? How do I pay for electricity, water, and food?”The Philippines relies heavily on Middle Eastern oil, and the surge in fuel prices is threatening to stoke inflation in the consumption-driven economy. Like many of its Southeast Asian neighbours, Manila has taken steps such as shortening the work week and providing fuel subsidies to counter the impact of rising costs. This week, Congress granted the president emergency powers to suspend or reduce fuel taxes.Mody Floranda, who heads the transport group leading the national strike, said those measures were not enough, and called for the repeal of a law that stripped the government of its authority to control fuel prices.Drivers said the pain of surging diesel prices was compounded by the suspension of a fare hike that could have provided some relief.Jeepneys, which were originally created from abandoned U.S. military jeeps after World War Two, are a vital mode of public transport across the Philippines.Reggie Manlapit, who has been a jeepney driver for two decades, said he needs to work longer hours but still gets less pay.”Because of what’s happening, we work longer hours and we’re lucky if we can take home 200 pesos,” he said. Related Story Source link
Barcelona players celebrate after a 7-2 thrashing of Newcastle in the UEFA Champions League round of 16 second leg at Camp Nou in Barcelona. (Reuters) Four teams out of six eliminated, with a total of 28 goals conceded over the two legs – it has been a chastening week for most of England’s representatives in the Champions League knockout phase. Only Arsenal, the Premier League leaders, and Liverpool – the English team with the richest history in Europe – reached the quarter-finals. Manchester City, Chelsea, Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur were sent packing. But does this really merit calling into question the standard of the Premier League? England’s top flight is easily the richest in Europe, with domestic and international broadcasting rights revenues dwarfing the rest. A report last month by UEFA showed television revenue for English top-flight clubs increased by 1.5bn euros ($1.77bn) from 2014-2024 – the combined figure for the rest of Europe was almost the same. Fifteen of the 30 richest clubs in analysts Deloitte’s latest Football Money League are English. However, three of the four English teams eliminated in the last 16 this week lost to clubs with larger revenues. The exception was Tottenham, but they are having a dreadful season and so losing 7-5 on aggregate to Atletico Madrid was no surprise. City, champions in 2023, lost 5-1 on aggregate to Real Madrid, the record 15-time European Cup winners and the only club with revenue over one billion euros in Deloitte’s latest table. Chelsea were crushed 8-2 on aggregate by reigning champions Paris Saint-Germain, while Newcastle lost 8-3 overall against Barcelona. There have only been three occasions since 1955 in which an English team has conceded at least eight goals on aggregate in a European tie, two of them this week. England’s strength in depth is unrivalled, and shown by the presence of an unprecedented six sides in the last 16. But this level is also the territory of a small band of giant continental clubs perhaps not subject to the same levels of competitiveness in their domestic leagues. The four clubs with the highest revenue in Europe last year were Real, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and PSG – they generate more money than anyone in England, and enjoy huge financial advantages over domestic rivals. Nineteen of the last 21 Spanish titles have been won by Madrid or Barcelona. Over the same period the duo have won a combined 10 Champions Leagues. Qatar-owned PSG have won 11 of the last 13 French championships and won their first Champions League last year after one final appearance and two semi-finals in the preceding five seasons. Bayern, who hammered Atalanta 10-2 on aggregate this week, are set for a 13th Bundesliga title in 14 years. They are also now almost always in the Champions League quarter-finals, and next face Real in a mouthwatering tie. For all the Premier League’s pulling power, few match-ups have the same appeal as that impending confrontation. “Both clubs are giant,” said Bayern coach Vincent Kompany. Bayern have been helped by a strategy of signing a big Premier League name in each of the last three seasons: Harry Kane, Michael Olise and Luis Diaz. Kane’s status as England’s leading player is maybe threatened only by Jude Bellingham, who was joined last year at Real by Trent Alexander-Arnold, lured from Liverpool. PSG boast Ballon d’Or winner Ousmane Dembele, and in Khvicha Kvaratskhelia they have a player who has terrorised English defences over the last year. “In the Premier League, we don’t have Dembele, (Desire) Doue, (Bradley) Barcola and Kvaratskhelia,” said Chelsea boss Liam Rosenior. “They’re an outstanding team.” They are also youthful like Barcelona, who are once more leaning heavily on their academy, La Masia – their average age against Newcastle was barely 25, and in 18-year-old Lamine Yamal they have the emerging global footballing superstar. “La Masia did a fantastic job there,” purred Barca coach Hansi Flick. Those clubs may be best equipped to dominate in Europe, while Liverpool and Arsenal fly the flag for England which has provided only three of the last 13 continental champions. But the Premier League will be there en masse again next year – i t is on course to have five qualifying spots via the league and may again have a sixth if Aston Villa or Nottingham Forest win the Europa League. …
The European Union has condemned Iranian attacks on energy facilities in Qatar, warning that such actions risk plunging the region into further chaos.Speaking on the sidelines of a European Council meeting in Brussels, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas said the attacks exacerbate ongoing military conflicts in the region. “We need to exit this war, not escalate it further,” she stated.Kallas noted that she has been in contact with Iranian officials regarding the situation and stressed that the EU is working closely with the United Nations to secure safe maritime corridors, as oil, gas, and fertiliser exports through the Strait of Hormuz have been disrupted due to insecurity.She also emphasised that Europe is coordinating with partners to seek a resolution between the conflicting parties and bring an end to the ongoing hostilities in the region. Related Story Source link
Senegal and Morocco players clash during the Africa Cup of Nations final in Rabat on January 18, 2026. (AFP) The Senegalese Football Federation announced Thursday it has instructed its lawyers to lodge an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) after the national team were stripped of its Africa Cup of Nations title.The Confederation of African Football (CAF) reversed Senegal’s win Tuesday, awarding the title to Morocco two months after the final. “Senegal will remain standing and will legitimately defend this victory on the field which we acquired on the field with the talent of our players”, the federation’s president Abdoulaye Fall told a press conference. “We have given our lawyers a mandate to pursue this procedure at the level of the Court of Arbitration for Sport”, he added.The contintent’s showpiece football final, in Rabat on January 18, descended into chaos when several Senegalese players walked off the pitch in protest after the hosts were awarded a penalty late in second-half stoppage time. Senegal’s players were coaxed back onto the pitch by captain Sadio Mane, but Morocco missed the penalty. Pape Gueye went on to score the goal in extra time that gave Senegal a 1-0 victory.CAF said that having studied an appeal by Morocco, “the Senegal national team is declared to have forfeited the match” and the result was “officially recorded as 3-0” in favour of Morocco. Asked what would happen to the trophy in the meantime, Fall told reporters the team would “comply with the statutory and regulatory provisions of CAF”.The revocation of the win elicited a strong response from fans in Senegal, where authorities called for an “independent international investigation” into corruption. In a resolution issued by the federation’s executive committee and read at the press conference, the federation said it would “use all possible legal, institutional and jurisdictional means to assert its rights and restore sporting fairness”.Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye appeared in his office in front of the Africa Cup of Nations trophy in a social media post Wednesday, expressing his “outrage” at CAF’s decision. The Moroccan Football Federation (FRMF), meanwhile has said the decision “upholds the rules and ensures the stability necessary for the smooth running of international competitions.”New Morocco coach praises ‘well-deserved’ Cup of Nations decisionMeanwhile, Morocco’s new head coach Mohamed Ouahbi congratulated his country on CAF’s “well-deserved” decision to strip Senegal of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations title in favour of his new side.”First of all, I would like to congratulate all Moroccans, the staff, the players and the federation on the good news we got two days ago, which is well-deserved,” said Ouahbi during the presentation of his first squad list for Morocco’s next two friendly matches against Ecuador and Paraguay.This decision “pleases everyone”, added the 49-year-old who replaced Walid Regragui earlier this month, partly because of the former manager’s failure to win the Africa Cup of Nations. “But it’s important to focus on the present and the future. My goal is to make the team competitive for the World Cup.”Morocco, under Regragui, reached the semi-finals of the 2022 World Cup and will line up in Group C at this year’s edition alongside Brazil, Scotland and Haiti. Related Story Source link