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Four people were killed in a helicopter crash on Saturday in Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, including three Colombian tourists from the same family.Brazilian authorities reported that the helicopter went down in Tijuca National Park, a mountainside forest with very dense vegetation.Firefighters confirmed finding the charred bodies of the pilot and three women on a difficult-to-access mountain slope.Rio de Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Cavaliere said on X platform that he has asked Brazil’s National Civil Aviation Agency to immediately step up monitoring to ensure the safety of helicopter flights.In June, two helicopters collided over Rio and left six people dead.Helicopter rides are a popular attraction for tourists who want to see the city’s famed sights and the natural splendor of the seaside metropolis. Source link
What happened in Makkah on Friday was more than the signing of a defence agreement. It could mark the emergence of a new strategic equation in the Middle East, with Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and Pakistan signalling a stronger determination to shape their own security architecture. At Al-Safa Palace, following Tawaf around the Kaaba, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif signed a pact carrying a clear message: an attack on one partner would be treated as a threat to all. Formally, the agreement is a defence pact. Strategically, however, it could signal a significant shift in the region’s balance of power.The timing is particularly important. Saudi Arabia’s confidence in Washington as its ultimate security guarantor has increasingly been tested. Since February, Iran has targeted Saudi Arabia with missiles and through allied groups, including the Houthis in Yemen and militias in Iraq. Attacks on oil facilities and disruption around the Strait of Hormuz, through which around 20% of the world’s oil passes, have further intensified concerns over Gulf security. Against this backdrop, Riyadh has increasingly looked beyond its traditional security arrangements. Pakistan brings decades of military co-operation with Saudi Arabia and, crucially, is the only Muslim-majority nuclear-armed state. Turkiye, meanwhile, possesses the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato)’s second-largest military and has emerged as an important defence partner for Riyadh. The agreement therefore carries three important strategic messages. First is deterrence. By bringing Islamabad and Ankara closer to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia is signalling that any future attack could have consequences extending well beyond its borders. Second is strategic autonomy. The pact demonstrates that Saudi Arabia is increasingly prepared to strengthen its own defence capabilities and diversify its security partnerships rather than relying exclusively on Washington. Third is symbolism. The decision to sign the agreement in Makkah gives it a significance that extends beyond conventional military co-operation, linking the alliance to the protection of Islam’s holiest sites and reinforcing its political and religious symbolism.The development could have repercussions well beyond the three signatories. A stronger Saudi-Turkish-Pakistani alignment may push Iran to deepen its strategic and military ties with China and Russia. Beijing and Moscow, in turn, could justify a greater role in the Gulf to preserve regional balance and prevent any single power from controlling vital energy routes. The result could be increased military co-operation, advanced weapons transfers, satellite capabilities and naval exercises, gradually turning the Gulf into a new arena of global strategic competition between competing power blocs. From the perspective of Henry Kissinger’s realpolitik, such a development would represent a delicate challenge for Washington. His emphasis on balance-of-power politics suggests that the United States would have an interest in neither fully embracing nor directly confronting the emerging alliance, but rather in using it as leverage for diplomacy while preventing its military dimension from escalating into a wider confrontation. Ultimately, the Makkah Agreement may not resolve the Gulf’s longstanding security dilemma. Instead, it could transform it, from a predominantly regional confrontation between Iran and Saudi Arabia into a broader strategic contest involving the US and its allies on one side, and China, Russia and Iran on the other. What appears today to be a defence agreement could therefore become an early indicator of a new strategic order taking shape in the Gulf. Source link
* Meloni weighs risky paths to stay in control* New vote law or even early elections now in play* Weak economy and Iran war add to political pressure Giorgia Meloni’s defeat in a justice reform referendum has thrust the Italian leader into the toughest phase of her premiership, with her authority weakened, her reform programme in tatters and no easy way to regain the initiative.The prime minister’s right-wing coalition suffered a resounding loss in the March 22-23 vote, puncturing the aura of political invincibility she has cultivated since taking office in 2022.As the result came in, Meloni made clear she had no plans to resign, but none of her options looks attractive, political analysts say.Governing as if nothing has changed risks leaving her a lame-duck prime minister, with the anaemic economy under growing strain and her closeness to US President Donald Trump seen by pollsters as an increasing liability.Alternatively, she could seek to reshape the electoral law to try to boost her chances of winning the next general election, due in 2027, but would open herself to charges of upending the rules to suit her political interests.A third option could be to gamble on forcing an early ballot this spring before the full impact of the Iran war hits Italy’s already fragile economy, hoping to catch the fragmented centre-left opposition unprepared. “It’s clear that what’s at stake is the end of the legislature. Even the date of the next election is uncertain,” said Nicola Lupo, director of the Centre for Parliamentary Studies at Rome’s Luiss University.OPPOSITION BLOC REMAINS FRAGMENTEDFor all the damage, the referendum did not amount to a blanket rejection of Meloni, with 37% of those who voted “No” telling Youtrend pollsters she should remain in office. “This wasn’t an opposition victory so much as a victory for the judiciary,” said Massimiliano Panarari, a political analyst at the University of Modena and Reggio Emilia.The centre-left opposition hailed Monday’s result as evidence the political cycle was turning its way, but its two main components, the Democratic Party and 5-Star Movement, remain deeply divided over key issues, including foreign policy. These splits could tempt Meloni to resign shortly and force a snap election, Luiss’ Lupo said, adding that the government had pushed for a swift referendum in March to have the eventual option of holding a pre-summer vote.”Meloni knows the next budget won’t allow for generous spending, so she might say it would be better to go to elections now and not give the opposition time to organise,” he said. While none of her allies are openly suggesting this, some of her partners — including Maurizio Lupi, head of the small “Us Moderates” party — are urging a change to the electoral law to introduce a system based solely on proportional representation.Latest polls show the conservative bloc, including Meloni’s Brothers of Italy party, the League and Forza Italia, in the lead, but vulnerable to defeat in a future ballot because of the way seats are distributed under the current system. Studies have suggested a pure PR system could give the ruling coalition a comfortable majority.Although government parties presented a draft bill on this last month, some of Meloni’s allies urged caution after the referendum, saying voters would not approve. “It would be stupid,” Stefano Candiani, a League lawmaker in the lower chamber, told Reuters. “There are so many problems facing Italians, including the Iran war and (high) cost of living, that anyone who wants to tie up parliament with this electoral law is crazy.”TRUMP TIES, WEAK ECONOMY DRAG ON MELONIPollsters confirmed an unexpectedly high turnout in the justice referendum was driven by voters motivated by broader political and economic concerns rather than the technical details of the complex judicial reform. “In the last 10 days, the number of people saying they would vote grew by 10 percentage points. We had never seen such a surge,” said pollster Antonio Noto.The referendum’s timing proved challenging for Meloni, with the US-Israeli war on Iran turning a spotlight on her friendship with Trump and costing her votes, analysts said. “Even if she has tried to put a bit of distance between herself and him in recent days, the shift hasn’t been very noticeable,” said political analyst Panarari.Meloni risks treading water for the next 12 months, with her reform agenda in shreds and little time left to enact meaningful change. “From this day forward, she is a lame duck,” said centrist leader Matteo Renzi, who quit as prime minister in 2016 after losing a referendum on his own constitutional reform agenda.He told La7 news channel that opposition parties would draw strength from Monday’s result, saying the Meloni-backed “Yes” camp had until recently enjoyed a big lead. “If beating Meloni in the referendum wasn’t easy, it will be far easier to beat her on issues like inflation, fuel taxes, the cost of living, and public safety in major cities,” he said. 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France’s Kylian Mbappe shoots past Brazil’s goalkeeper Ederson during a friendly match at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts,…
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres announced yesterday the formation of a special task force focused on developing and proposing technical mechanisms designed to address humanitarian needs related to the Strait of Hormuz and facilitate trade in fertilisers and related raw materials. During a press conference, UN Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric explained that the formation of this task force comes amid the ongoing conflict in the Middle East and serious concerns that disruptions to maritime trade through the Strait of Hormuz could have severe repercussions for humanitarian needs and agricultural production globally. He emphasised that, given the evolving conflict in the Middle East and the risks of escalation, any disruptions to maritime trade through the Strait of Hormuz threaten to have cascading consequences affecting humanitarian needs and agricultural production in the coming months. He stressed Guterres’ commitment to doing everything possible to reach a comprehensive and lasting settlement to this conflict, adding that “immediate action is essential to mitigate these consequences.” Source link
Al Wakrah have announced the appointment of Chile’s Jose Luis Sierra as head coach, succeeding Spaniard Vicente Moreno, who recently departed to take charge of Al Rayyan. The club did not disclose the duration of Sierra‘s deal. The 57-year-old began his coaching career in 2010 with Chilean side Union Espanola, where he remained until 2015 before moving to Colo-Colo for a one-season spell. Sierra then embarked on his first experience in the Gulf region, taking charge of Saudi club Al Ittihad from 2016 to 2018, guiding them to both the Crown Prince Cup and King Cup titles. He later coached UAE side Al Ahli’s youth team for one season before returning to Al Ittihad for another stint. The Chilean tactician subsequently managed Palestino during the 2020-2021 season. Most recently, Sierra coached Saudi club Al Ta’ee in the 2021-2022 season before leading compatriot side Al Wahda from 2022 to 2025. Al Wakrah currently sit eighth in the Qatar Stars League standings with 23 points from 19 matches this season. Source link
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