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Coach Herve Renard Sunday said Saudi Arabia are expecting a feisty clash against Jordan in the semi-final of the FIFA Arab Cup today.Renard, who coached Saudi Arabia at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, Sunday also said his players won’t adopt half measures against the 2023 AFC Asian Cup finalists.“After reaching this stage of a tournament, all matches are usually difficult and tough, and require the best effort from every player. And certainly all of my players are aware of this andthey are ready for Jordan,” Renard said Sunday at a press conference.“I have confidence in the players’ ability to perform at their best and win so we can reach the final,” Renard said ahead of the match scheduled to take place at Al Bayt Stadium in Al Khor.“Our preparations have been good for this match. We will be playing to win so we can play the final,” the popular Frenchman added.The Saudi coach added: “Our goal is to to get the win in order to please the Saudi fans who have come to Qatar in large numbers to support the team. We will spare no effort to raise the flag of Saudi football here.”Renard, 57, said that he has ‘a good relationship’ with Jordan’s coach Jamal Sellami.“I know he is focused on working with his own team just like any other coach. I have worked with him for a long time,” he said.Morocco coach Sellami Sunday said: “Our preparations are good, we gave some players a rest and Sunday will be the final preparation.”The coach added: “We will face a strong and a title favourite team. They have no absences while we have a key player missing out. For the first time, we will play without Yazan al-Naimat and Musa al-Taamari together. We will have to defend smart in the match.”Sellami continued: “We know the strength of the Saudi national team. We will have to be at our best.”The Jordan coach admitted Saudi Arabia will be a tough opponent and that his side won’t be thinking of the final just yet.Sellami told reporters Sunday: “My focus is on the next match. We will face a solid team in defence, attack and midfield. They have some of the best players in Asia. They also have Mohammed Kanno, who has returned to his best form.“The most important thing now is to face Saudi Arabia, and then consider the final.“I have a good relationship with Herve Renard and there’s mutual respect also. He deserves respect and is worthy of it.” Related Story Source link
The 11th Global Forum of the UN Alliance of Civilizations opened in Riyadh on Sunday with a blunt message for a world riven by distrust: dialogue…
This picture taken last week shows buildings engulfed in dense smog due to severe air pollution in Islamabad. – AFP Truck driver Muhammad Afzal was not expecting to be stopped by police, let alone fined, as he drove into Islamabad this week because of the thick diesel fumes emanating from his exhaust pipe.”This is unfair,” he said after being told to pay 1,000 rupees ($3.60), with the threat of having his truck impounded if he did not “fix” the problem.”I was coming from Lahore after getting my vehicle repaired. They pressed the accelerator to make it release smoke. It’s an injustice,” he told AFP.Checkpoints set up this month are part of a crackdown by authorities to combat the city’s soaring smog levels, with winter months the worst due to atmospheric inversions that trap pollutants at ground level.”We have already warned the owners of stern action, and we will stop their entry into the city if they don’t comply with the orders,” said Dr Zaigham Abbas of Pakistan’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as he surveyed the checkpoint at the southeast edge of the capital.For Waleed Ahmed, a technician inspecting the vehicles at the site, “just like a human being, a vehicle has a life cycle. Those that cross it release smoke that is dangerous to human health”.While not yet at the extreme winter levels of Lahore or the megacity Karachi, where heavy industry and brick kilns spew tons of pollutants each year, Islamabad is steadily closing the gap.So far in December it has already registered seven “very unhealthy” days for PM2.5 particulates of more than 150 microgrammes per cubic metre, according to the Swiss-based monitoring firm IQAir.Intraday PM2.5 levels in Islamabad often exceed those in Karachi and Lahore, and in 2024 the city’s average PM2.5 reading for the year was 52.3 microgrammes – surpassing the 46.2 for Lahore.Those annual readings are far beyond the safe level of five microgrammes recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO).Built from scratch as Pakistan’s capital in the 1960s, the city was envisioned as an urban model for the rapidly growing nation, with wide avenues and ample green spaces abutting the Himalayan foothills.However, the expansive layout discourages walking and public transport remains limited, meaning cars – mostly older models – are essential for residents to get around.”The capital region is choked overwhelmingly by its transport sector,” which produces 53 percent of its toxic PM2.5 particles, the Pakistan Air Quality Initiative, a research group, said in a recent report.”The haze over Islamabad… is not the smoke of industry, but the exhaust of a million private journeys – a self-inflicted crisis,” it said.Announcing the crackdown on December 7, EPA chief Nazia Zaib Ali said over 300 fines were issued at checkpoints in the first week, with 80 vehicles impounded.”We cannot allow non-compliant vehicles at any cost to poison the city’s air and endanger public health,” she said in a statement.The city has also begun setting up stations where drivers can have their emissions inspected, with those passing receiving a green sticker on their windshield.”We were worried for Lahore, but now it’s Islamabad. And that’s all because of vehicles emitting pollution,” said Iftikhar Sarwar, 51, as he had his car checked on a busy road near an Islamabad park. “I never needed medicine before but now I get allergies if I don’t take a tablet in the morning. The same is happening with my family.”Other residents say they worry the government’s measures will not be enough to counter the worsening winter smog.”This is not the Islamabad I came to 20 years ago,” said Sulaman Ijaz, an anthropologist. “I feel uneasy when I think about what I will say if my daughter asks for clean air – that is her basic right.” Source link
The death toll from the Israeli occupation’s offensive on the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7, 2023, has risen to 70,663 people killed and 171,139 wounded.In a statement on Sunday, the Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza said that hospitals across the enclave received nine bodies and 45 wounded people over the past 24 hours. Of the fatalities, four were recovered from the rubble and five were newly killed.The ministry said the number of people killed and wounded since the ceasefire agreement on Oct. 11 has reached 391 killed and 1,063 wounded.It added that civil defense crews and residents have recovered 632 bodies over the past two months since the war halted. Those victims were killed in Israeli airstrikes on residential buildings.The ministry said thousands of victims are still believed to be buried under millions of tons of rubble. Source link
Settlers on Sunday stormed the courtyards of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque in the occupied city of Jerusalem, under the protection of the Israeli occupation police.The Palestinian news agency WAFA reported that dozens of settlers stormed Al-Aqsa Mosque in groups, carried out provocative tours in its courtyards, and performed Talmudic rituals, protected by the occupation forces.These incursions come as part of the occupation’s efforts to erase the Islamic and historical identity of Jerusalem and to implement its plans for the temporal and spatial division of the blessed Al-Aqsa Mosque. (QNA) Source link
Twelve people were killed and others were wounded in a shooting east of Sydney, Australia.Australian police said Sunday that two officers were among the injured in the attack at Bondi Beach, one of Australia’s most famous seaside destinations. Authorities said one of the attackers was among the dead, while another was critically wounded.Two suspects were arrested following the incident, police added, urging residents to avoid the area, comply with instructions and not cross the security cordon around the site.Videos circulating online showed crowds scattering at Bondi Beach and a nearby park as gunfire and police sirens rang out. Source link
Under the patronage of Egypt’s Ministries of Youth and Sports and Environment, the second edition of the Regional Sustainable Development Forum (RSD) recently concluded in Cairo. Organized by Aspire Community Transformation, affiliated with Aspire Consulting International, and hosted at Heliopolis University for Sustainable Development, the forum served as a regional platform that highlighted transformative initiatives contributing to sustainable development across the Middle East and North Africa. This year’s edition placed special emphasis on the regional recognition of the Generation Amazing Foundation’s pioneering work in sport for development. During a special ceremony on the sidelines of the forum, a number of institutions and leaders were recognized for their impactful contributions to sustainable development. Among them, Generation Amazing Foundation (Qatar) received the Excellence in Sports Award in recognition of its longstanding contributions to social transformation through sport. The forum’s recognition underscored the continued relevance and regional impact of the FIFA World Cup Qatar’s legacy and positioned Generation Amazing Foundation as a model for scalable, community-centered development.Nasser al-Khori, Executive Director of Generation Amazing Foundation, expressed gratitude for the honor, stating: “We were deeply proud to receive this award, which reaffirmed the enduring legacy of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 and the power of sport to bring meaningful change to communities. This recognition at a regional platform strengthened our commitment to expand our programmes, deepen our partnerships, and ensure that young people across the region continued to benefit from safe, inclusive, and transformative sport-for-development opportunities.” Celebrating organizations that transform communities through innovative approaches, the award recognizes GA’s long-standing efforts to advance sustainable development through sport, and its achievement in positively impacting more than 1mn beneficiaries across 75 countries since its inception. GA’s sport-for-development methodology uses football and other sports as powerful tools to build essential life skills – communication, leadership, teamwork, compassion -while advancing inclusion, gender equality, and environmental sustainability. The Foundation’s work is aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals and Qatar’s National Vision 2030, and continues to serve as a benchmark for legacy-driven social impact initiatives across the region. Source link
The new commemoration highlights the shared linguistic and cultural heritage of Turkic-speaking peoples and reinforces UNESCO’s wider commitment to multilingualism and cultural diversity.A historic dateThe choice…
At least two people were killed and eight others were seriously injured in a shooting incident on the campus of Brown University in Rhode Island, in the northeastern United States.The university said in a statement that the shooter had not been apprehended and that the shelter-in-place order remained in effect.CNN reported that authorities are still searching for a suspect, according to police and university officials.At a press conference held tonight, Providence Police Deputy Chief Tim O’Hara said officials do not know what type of firearm was used.The university administration confirmed that it is working to provide psychological support to students and staff affected by the incident, calling on everyone to be cautious and follow the security instructions issued by the local authorities.Authorities have not yet determined the exact number of injured, while the injured are receiving treatment in nearby hospitals.The authorities expressed their deep regret for the incident, stressing that they will continue to investigate the circumstances of the shooting and determine the reasons that led to it. Related Story Source link
Artificial Intelligence is no longer a future scenario. It is already reshaping how work is performed, how organisations are structured, and which skills are in demand.…