Trump Unexpectedly Swaps New Air Force One Jet For Old In Sudden Trip To British Base
President Donald Trump has left Turkey on an older VC-25A Air Force One jet. The U.S. Air Force’s new VC-25B Bridge aircraft had brought Trump to that country yesterday for the NATO Summit, but left without him on board earlier today. Trump had earlier confirmed that he would head from Turkey to RAF Mildenhall in the United Kingdom on the VC-25A rather than the Bridge aircraft “for old time’s sake.” The Bridge aircraft, a modified, Qatari-gifted Boeing 747-8i, flew to Mildenhall first. This is all highly unusual and has prompted questions about whether other factors, specifically changes in operational security, may be at play.
The VC-25A had followed the Bridge aircraft to the Turkish capital, Ankara, yesterday, as a backup. The change in planes follows a new round of U.S. strikes on Iran yesterday, which Trump reportedly ordered directly from the summit. Questions also continue to be raised about the full suite of communications, defensive, and other capabilities on the Bridge aircraft.
“To honor our brave men and women of the Military, we are sending the brand new, and truly spectacular, Air Force One [the VC-25B Bridge aircraft] to Mildenhall Air Force Base, in the United Kingdom, to give them a chance to tour the Aircraft – Everybody is so excited, and we thought that they should be the first,” Trump wrote earlier today on his Truth Social site. “For old time’s sake, we’ll be taking the former Air Force One, from Turkey to Mildenhall, a short trip that is totally worth doing in order to give our Great Military Heroes a chance to appreciate our beautiful new addition to the Air Force Fleet!”
While Trump referred to the VC-25As as “former” Air Force One aircraft in his Truth Social post, the Air Force has expressly confirmed to TWZ that they are set to remain in service and in the rotation despite the delivery of the Bridge jet. It’s also worth remembering that any Air Force aircraft that carries the President will use the Air Force One callsign.
RAF Mildenhall is a major hub for U.S. air operations and was heavily utilized to support strikes on Iran earlier this year. The President has also hinted that the Bridge aircraft may make stops elsewhere in Europe before returning home.
“It’s flying to Europe to one of the big bases, two or three of the big bases, where we can show it to the people,” Trump also said at a press conference at the NATO summit today in response to a question about his travel plans. “We’ll be going home by normal methods.”
“We are boarding the old, big plane. No eyes on POTUS / no under wing gaggle.” Politico‘s Megan Messerly, a member of the press pool accompanying Trump, also shared before the VC-25A left Ankara. “We have been advised to keep our window shades in the press cabin closed. See you on the other side.”
As noted, President Trump traveled to the NATO summit aboard the VC-25B Bridge aircraft and with one of the Air Force’s two existing VC-25As in tow. This was the first time Trump had used the Bridge jet for an overseas trip. The President flew on the aircraft for the first time ever last week for a visit to North Dakota for events marking the 250th anniversary of the United States. A VC-25A was also used as a backup for that trip.
As also mentioned, U.S. forces launched new strikes on Iran yesterday. “President Trump approved and ordered the Iran strikes from the NATO summit” after meeting “with senior U.S. officials in Ankara, including Joint Chiefs Chairman Dan Caine, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio,” according to a report from The New York Times, citing an unnamed U.S. official.
The latest U.S. strikes were in response to a new round of Iranian attacks on commercial ships in and around the Strait of Hormuz. Earlier today, Trump raised the prospect of further action against Iran tonight. This, in turn, has prompted new concerns about the possibility of the resumption of a large-scale conflict between the two countries, as you can read more about in TWZ‘s separate reporting here.
A key requirement for aircraft serving in the Air Force One role is ensuring the President remains securely in contact with top U.S. military leaders, as well as other senior officials, to be able to respond immediately to any serious contingency. This would be particularly important now, given the fluidity of the situation in the Middle East and the prospect of further military action against Iran in the very near term. Key planning efforts and other meetings are likely to be underway.
The decision to strike Iran yesterday and the possibility of doing so again today may well have also had impacts on the overall force protection posture around Trump. The regime in Tehran has threatened Trump directly on multiple occasions in the past.
As an aside here, pictures now circulating on social media also show tractor-trailer trucks and tarps apparently being used to at least try to block the view of Mildenhall from a spot outside of the base’s perimeter where plane spotters regularly gather. Spotters have still been able to catch glimpses of the Bridge aircraft.
TWZ, as well as others, have consistently raised serious questions about the adequacy of modifications done to the ex-Qatari 747-8i to prepare it for its new role. L3Harris led the conversion work and delivered the Bridge aircraft to the Air Force within the space of just 10 months.
Defensive countermeasures, in particular, take time and careful work to integrate onto any airframe, let alone a newer type for which there might not be pre-existing procedures. Rigorous testing has to be done after integration to ensure those systems work as intended and do not conflict with other features, physically or in the radiofrequency spectrum. To date, there have been no visible signs of any of the obvious defensive systems installed on the VC-25As present on the VC-25B Bridge aircraft.
U.S. officials and L3Harris have repeatedly downplayed any operational security or other concerns surrounding the newest addition to the Air Force’s executive transport fleet, but questions remain. This has been just one aspect of the criticism and controversy surrounding the jet. The very circumstances surrounding its gifting to the U.S. government were highly irregular, and the justification for needing it at all remains a subject of debate.
Just yesterday, Breaking Defense reported that a group of 13 Democratic Senators, led by Connecticut’s Chris Murphy, had sent a letter to Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink and L3Harris CEO Chris Kubasik asking for more information to address their ongoing concerns. The legislators contend that the Trump administration has been stonewalling their request so far, according to that story.
For its part, Boeing has been working for years now to transform a pair of other 747-8is into fully-equipped VC-25B Air Force One jets. That program has been mired in delays and cost growth, and the first of these two jets is not expected to be delivered until 2029. The Air Force also now has an additional ex-Lufthansa 747-8i that it is using as a trainer for aircrew and ground personnel assigned to support the expanded VC-25 fleet. Another former Lufthansa 747 will be cannibalized for spare parts.
If nothing else, Trump has now flown overseas on the new VC-25B Bridge aircraft, but his trip today underscores that the older VC-25As are very much still available if needed.
Update: 7:02 PM ET –
The VC-25A carrying President Donald Trump has arrived at RAF Mildenhall.
“We just landed and met up with our new Air Force One, which was sent earlier to RAF Mildenhall, so we could show the wonderful Servicemembers, as per the entire Base’s request. They were very excited, picture enclosed,” Trump wrote in another post on Truth Social, which was also shared on other official White House social media accounts. “It was on our way back to the States from Turkey, with virtually no deviation of flightpath.”
One of the U.S. Air Force’s C-32A executive transport aircraft was also spotted arriving at RAF Mildenhall ahead of the VC-25A. The C-32A was later seen being moved from where it had been parked on the apron to make way for Air Force One.
Special thanks to local aviation photographer Andrew McKelvey for sharing his pictures of the VC-25B Bridge aircraft arriving at Mildenhall.
Contact the author: joe@twz.com
Bonnie Tyler’s most iconic hits, from Total Eclipse Of The Heart to Holding Out For A Hero
BONNIE Tyler fans have some incredible songs to remember her by after the sad news of her passing in Portugal on Wednesday night.
On Thursday it was confirmed that the singer had died aged 75, weeks after undergoing emergency surgery and being put in an induced coma.
The star was put into a coma back in April at Faro Hospital, later suffered complications, but woke up from the coma in June.
Her heartbroken family shared a statement that she had passed away from an illness last night.
Bonnie, who was born in Gaynor Hopkins in Mumbles, South Wales, shot to fame in the 70s and has had an amazing singing career.
Over the years, according to Official Charts, Bonnie has had one UK No.1, five UK top 10s, seven UK top 40s, and 12 UK top 75s.
Her single Total Eclipse Of The Heart, which was released in 1983, peaked at No.1 and was there for a total of two weeks.
Meanwhile the 1984 tune, Holding Out For A Hero, peaked at number 96 in the charts.
It’s A Heartache, which was released in 1977, got to number 4 and was in the charts for 12 weeks.
And the 1976 tune Lost In France hit number nine and was there for a total of 10 weeks.
Married Men, which was released in 1979, peaked at 35 and was in the charts for 42 days.
The 1983 song Fasted The The Speed Of Night was in the charts for 35 days and managed to get to number 47.
And Have You Ever Seen The Rain?, released in 1983, hit number 47 and was in the charts for three weeks.
She’s also had a number of other chart-topping songs including A Rockin’ Good Way, Getting So Excited, Holding Out For A Hero, and Believe In Me.
Over the years she also released over 15 studio albums.
Her album, Faster Than The Speed Of Light, peaked at No.1 in 1983 and was there for one week.
It stayed in the charts for an amazing 45 weeks.
The Greatest Hits peaked at number 18 in 1986 and was in the charts for 21 weeks.
Her other albums include The World Starts Tonight (1977), Natural Force (1978), Diamond Cut (1979), Goodbye to the Island (1981), Secret Dreams and Forbidden Fire (1986).
Some of her others are Hide Your Heart (1988),Bitterblue (1991), Angel Heart (1992), Silhouette in Red (1993), Free Spirit (1995), All in One Voice (1998), Heart Strings (2003), Simply Believe (2004), Wings (2005), Rocks and Honey (2013) and Between the Earth and the Stars (2019).
And most recently, The Best Is Yet to Come, which was released five years ago.
It comes after a statement published on the singer’s website today (9 July 2026) confirmed the legendary singer passed away last night following an illness.
It read: “Bonnie’s family and team are heartbroken to announce that Bonnie unexpectedly passed away last night in hospital in Portugal as a result of the illness that she was being treated for.
“We will issue a further statement shortly but for now ask for privacy to deal with this tragedy.”
In April, she began to feel intense abdominal pain shortly after arriving in Portugal, where she has a second home, following tests in London.
It was announced in May that Bonnie had been rushed to hospital with a serious tear in her bowel and had to have emergency surgery.
But complications from the operation meant doctors had to place the singer in an induced coma.
Portuguese media claimed Bonnie went into cardiac arrest when doctors first tried to bring her out of her induced coma several weeks ago.
She was due to perform at the Sunshine Festival in Worcester this summer, along with a number of European dates.
Bonnie had also been booked to perform at Cardiff’s Utilita Arena on December 17.
The singer who was married to property developer Robert Sullivan since 1973.
She competed at the Eurovision Song Contest for UK in 2013 and finished the competition in 19th place with her song Believe In Me.
Column: Trump decries ‘communism’ while his government takes ownership of companies
As a student years ago, I dove deep into the history of the Red-hunting McCarthy era and became familiar with the actor who emerged second only to Wisconsin Sen. Joe McCarthy as the villain of that insidious time: his shameless, conniving young lawyer, Roy Cohn. Never would I have imagined that a future president would count Cohn as a mentor and role model.
Then came Donald Trump.
Now, in Cohn-inflected McCarthyesque style, President Trump is channeling his tutor yet again, baselessly labeling his political enemies — all Democrats — as communists as he looks ahead to the fall’s midterm elections. Once more Trump shows that his catchphrase “Make America great again” means regressing, this time to Trump’s formative 1950s and the McCarthy era that sadly helped define it.
In recent speeches, including on the Fourth of July, Trump’s utterances of “communist” or “communism” reached double digits each time. (As that implies, the president didn’t set aside his divisive rhetoric even for the nation’s 250th birthday.)
“Our warriors did not fight communism on battlefields across the world only to have that menace rear its ugly head right back here in America,” Trump said late on the Fourth on the National Mall.
Trump couples his commie-baiting with a dash of his trademark xenophobia. “There is now a resurgence of the communist menace in our land, including by newcomers to our country who embrace ideas totally opposed to our way of life and our great success,” he said at Mount Rushmore a day earlier. (He’s got it backward, of course: Immigrants come here for the American way of life and promise of success.)
Here’s the irony: Trump’s actions in his second term make him look more like the commie. He’s projecting again.
Now that Trump is exploiting a few victories lately by left-wing democratic socialists in Democratic primaries to paint the entire party as communists, it’s time to review the record — his record.
A hallmark of communism is government ownership of companies and control of the economy, at the expense of private property and free markets. In just over a year, Trump has used billions of taxpayers’ dollars to buy shares for the government in a growing list of private companies — U.S. Steel, Intel, Westinghouse and more — citing national security. The companies don’t always welcome their new stakeholder; at a minimum, they rightly fear it for the demands the government could make about prices and production.
“It’s what Putin did,” the estranged Republicans at the Lincoln Project posted online Monday. “Trump is the closest we’ve ever come to communism.”
“What began as a populist revolt against so-called elites has become a program of state ownership, price fixing and top-down industrial control,” free-market economist Veronique de Rugy wrote in The Times last October of Trump’s actions. “The power to ‘partner’ with business is the power to control it.”
Comrade Trump’s first big government grab, and a model for those to come, was in June last year, when he wrested a permanent “golden share” in U.S. Steel in return for approving its sale to Japan’s Nippon Steel. The company’s charter was revised to give the U.S. president extraordinary veto power over nearly a dozen corporate activities, including closing or relocating plants, supply-chain decisions, even pricing.
“We have a golden share, which I control,” Trump told reporters at the time, in words I never thought I’d hear from a president of the party once associated with free markets.
Just last week, Trump boasted to CNBC how he’d extracted a 10% stake in beleaguered chip giant Intel last August, after first demanding that its chief executive resign. “Intel came in. They had a problem. I said, ‘I can solve your problem, but I want 10% of the company.’ … Somebody said that’s not very American. I said, ‘No, I think it is very American, actually.’ And I’ve done that with other deals.”
And so he has.
The Pentagon is now the largest stockholder in struggling MP Materials, a large rare-earth mine in California, and guarantees a 10-year price floor for its output that stunned competitors. The administration has since taken shares in other rare-earth companies. The Commerce Department took an option for an 8% stake in Westinghouse, to spur construction of nuclear reactors, and has the right to 20% if the government decides the company should go public. The government takes a 15% cut of Nvidia’s and Advanced Micro Devices’ AI chip sales to China.
As much as anything he does, Trump’s direct intervention in private enterprise invites the question “What if Biden/Harris/Obama did that?” The answer, of course: Trump and Republicans would cry “Communist!”
Trump’s actions are the sort Americans generally have only seen during economic emergencies or major wars, and then rarely. I covered the frenzied and ultimately successful response to the near-collapse of the global financial system and the U.S. auto, insurance and housing industries. Behind the scenes in the Obama White House (and George W. Bush’s at the outset) was constant, angst-filled debate about any actions smacking of government takeovers and a determination that interventions be temporary, unlike Trump’s schemes. (For all the still-lingering unpopularity of the banking bailout, the Treasury — the taxpayers — got all the money back and then some, and exited the business.)
Trump’s economic big-footing isn’t the only way in which he resembles the commies Americans know best, and whom he so admires: Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, Kim Jung Un. There are also the images of himself everywhere, monuments planned, drearily long and self-adulating speeches and interference in the nation’s cultural, educational and legal spheres and — worst of all — in elections.
At Rushmore, Trump closed with a demand that Congress pass his so-called SAVE America Act to restrict voting. “We do that and we’re not going to lose an election for 100 years,” he said, speaking of course about Republicans.
One-party rule through central government election finagling? Now that’s a communist.
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California soccer fans sue StubHub after it fails to deliver expensive World Cup tickets
StubHub is getting a red card from some World Cup fans
Two World Cup customers are suing the New York-based ticket-selling company, alleging “false and misleading” advertising that left them without tickets or a refund for the World Cup games they paid to attend.
In federal court in New York last week, two Californians — Julia Reeker Moghal and Reuben Renteria — sued StubHub seeking monetary damages and a ban on the company selling World Cup tickets. The lawsuit aims to become a class action and comes after weeks of fierce criticism and complaints from customers regarding the company’s practices.
Throughout the World Cup, videos have emerged on Instagram and TikTok of StubHub customers describing their nightmare experiences with the ticket-selling platform.
Some said they had purchased tickets to World Cup games as early as November of last year, booked flights and hotels and arranged travel plans, then StubHub notified them days to weeks before the match of a refund for their tickets, which they never requested.
There were similar complaints about last-minute cancellations from people who bought Coachella tickets on StubHub.
In the lawsuit, Moghal said she had purchased three tickets for nearly $2,000 for the June 18 match between Switzerland and Bosnia-Herzegovina at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, which were then canceled by StubHub. Moghal said she was contacted by StubHub and told her tickets would remain canceled, then was later told the tickets would be available one hour before the game.
When the match began, Moghal said she was at SoFi Stadium, but the tickets never came.
Renteria said he paid around $2,300 for the June 18 Mexico versus South Korea match in Guadalajara, Mexico, but they were canceled
“Devoted soccer fans have traveled from around the world to attend World Cup matches — and they reasonably relied on StubHub to provide the tickets they paid for as well as on StubHub’s warranty,” Blake Hunter Yagman, the attorney representing the two, said in a statement. “Instead of rewarding their business, StubHub sold them World Cup tickets that they either could not provide or on speculation, only to be stranded, in many cases, at the stadium gates without any recourse.”
According to StubHub’s website, its Fan Protect Guarantee states the platform will deliver valid tickets or refund in the event of a ticket issue, and that it will “go out of our way to find replacement tickets” of a comparable value. The lawsuit alleges the replacement tickets many fans were given by StubHub were worse than their original tickets.
FIFA, the World Cup organizer, states in its terms and conditions that the FIFA Marketplace, its own ticket-selling platform, is the only authorized platform for World Cup tickets, and that only tickets purchased through it are guaranteed by FIFA to be valid.
Despite the risk of purchasing through a third-party platform such as StubHub, many fans opted to do so to avoid the 30% FIFA resale tax, believing that the Fan Protect Guarantee would safeguard their order.
Since World Cup tickets began selling on FIFA Marketplace last September, fans have expressed disappointment in the expensive price tag. FIFA utilized a dynamic pricing system for the sale, and as sales phases progressed leading up to the games, the cost of tickets increased tremendously. In March, the extreme cost of tickets prompted 69 members of Congress to write a letter to FIFA urging them to lower their prices.
Tickets for the upcoming Friday match between Spain and Belgium in Los Angeles are selling on StubHub for over $1,300.
StubHub said in various statements to the news and in legal proceedings that ticket cancellations were a result of transfer problems and issues with FIFA’s ticketing infrastructure.
StubHub did not respond to requests for comment.
A FIFA spokesperson responded to this accusation in a statement, saying, “FIFA has no visibility over, or control of, secondary market ticket transactions carried out on third-party platforms. The transactions facilitated on these platforms occur entirely independently of FIFA’s official ticketing platform. With reference to the reliability of the services available to fans on FIFA’s official ticket platform, FIFA rejects any suggestion that the functional issues being experienced by users of third-party platforms with respect to FIFA World Cup 2026 tickets are the result of FIFA’s ticketing infrastructure.”
UN probe finds mass killings, gang rapes by Sudan’s RSF amount to genocide | Sudan war News
A UN Fact-Finding Mission found that the paramilitary’s systematic campaign of violence in Darfur amounted to genocide.
Published On 9 Jul 2026
Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) committed genocide in the western city of el-Fasher, carrying out mass killings, gang rapes and deliberate starvation as part of an intentional policy, a United Nations investigation has found.
The UN Fact-Finding Mission for Sudan released its findings on Wednesday, concluding that the RSF’s systematic campaign of violence against civilians during and after its siege of the capital of North Darfur state amounted to genocide, building on a February report that had already identified hallmarks of the crime.
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The mission’s chairman warned that the findings have urgent lessons for el-Obeid, another major city now ringed by RSF forces, where the UN human rights chief has warned a “catastrophe” is unfolding.
In Wednesday’s report, survivors in el-Fasher described being raped in rooms where bodies of recently killed civilians, including their own family members, were still lying on the ground.
The report found that the RSF and its allies committed the war crime of starvation by imposing a prolonged siege on the city, impeding relief supplies and shelling food production systems.
The RSF has denied such abuses in more than three years of war with the Sudanese military, saying the accounts have been manufactured by its enemies and making counteraccusations against them.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk warned last week that a “catastrophe” was unfolding around el-Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan state in south-central Sudan, and his office had documented patterns of summary executions, abductions, torture and sexual violence in the surrounding region.
For much of Sudan’s civil war, international attention has centred on Khartoum and the Darfur region.
In recent weeks, however, attention has increasingly shifted to el-Obeid as fighting has intensified across the Kordofan region in central Sudan.
Members of the UN Human Rights Council on Monday condemned the violence and set up an urgent inquiry into reported abuses there.
The United Kingdom and other states have warned of a risk of large-scale atrocities as the RSF have massed forces around el-Obeid, now home to about half a million people, including more than 83,000 internally displaced people.
The fact-finding mission had already concluded in its February report that mass killings of non-Arab communities when the RSF captured el-Fasher bore hallmarks of genocide.
Its new report said it found additional evidence that the widespread and systematic pattern of conduct of the RSF, including large-scale killings, mass rapes and deliberate starvation, was part of an intended policy.
“The patterns we documented in el-Fasher – including encirclement, attacks on civilian infrastructure, restrictions on humanitarian access and widespread abuses against civilians – serve as a stark warning,” said Mohamed Chande Othman, the mission’s chairman.
“The international community must heed these lessons and act to prevent further catastrophe,” he added.
New hovercraft route linking to sun-drenched UK island takes off
A new hovercraft route is being trialed this summer – and has already proved popular with travellers.
A number of extra dates have been added for crossings this summer, meaning even more passengers can make their way to a sun-drenched UK island from just £12.
A brand new hovercraft route has been introduced connecting Hampshire to the Isle of Wight.
In just 15 minutes, travellers can journey from Lee-on-the-Solent to Ryde, soaring across the waters at speeds of 46mph and hovering 1.5m above the Solent.
Run by Hovertravel – the world’s oldest and longest-running hovercraft operator – the new route to the Isle of Wight is currently being trialled over the summer.
The crossings take place on the travel operator’s two-craft fleet: the Island Flyer and the Solent Flyer.
For those looking to book onto the high-speed crossing, an adult return ticket (16+) will set you back £24.
Seniors (60+) can snap up a crossing for £18.00 and children’s tickets (aged between 5-15 years) will cost £12.
Infants aged between 0 and 4 ride free on the hovercraft.
Crossings were originally planned for June 28, August 22 and September 5, but a number of extra dates have now been added thanks to the popularity of the new service.
Travellers can now book onto crossings on July 23, August 7 and August 21.
Departures take place twice a day, at both 10am and 3.25pm.
Return routes back from Ryde leave the island at 9.30am and 2.30pm.
Dates had also been extended to today, July 9, but at the time of publishing this article, The Sun found that the journeys could no longer be booked.
Hovertravel was established in 1965 and still provides the fastest way to cross the Solent, between Southsea in Portsmouth and Ryde.
US, Iran launch more attacks as mediators urge warring sides to uphold MoU | Drone Strikes News
The United States and Iran have traded attacks for a second day, straining their fragile ceasefire further after US President Donald Trump said the truce was “over”.
The US military said late on Wednesday that the attacks were aimed at Iran’s “ability to threaten the freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz”.
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The US struck approximately 90 military targets, including missile and drone storage as well as logistics sites along Iran’s coastline, said the Central Command (CENTCOM), which oversees US military operations in the Middle East.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump called the US attacks “retribution for yesterday’s bombing of ships by Iran. If it happens again, it will get much worse!”
The latest attacks come a day after the US said it hit more than 80 targets in Iran in response to Iranian attacks on commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said on Thursday it carried out attacks on “key infrastructure and facilities” at bases used by the US military in Arifjan and Ali Al Salem in Kuwait, and Juffair and Sheikh Isa in Bahrain in response to the latest US bombardment.
The Iranian army later said its forces targeted a Patriot missile system in Kuwait, a satellite antenna in Qatar and US military fuel depots in Bahrain.
Kuwait’s Ministry of Defence said it was intercepting missiles and drones, while Qatar issued an “elevated security threat” alert.
The renewed fighting threatens to undermine a memorandum of understanding (MoU) the two sides agreed last month to extend an April ceasefire and gradually reopen the Strait of Hormuz to shipping.
The attacks come a day after Trump said the ceasefire with Iran was “over” and criticised the Iranian leadership. However, he left the door open to more talks and suggested that any strikes would end quickly.
Speaking to reporters on board Air Force One as he travelled back to the US after attending the NATO summit in Turkiye, Trump said the Iranian side had “called a little while ago” and that they wanted “to make a deal so badly”.
US attacks across Iran
US strikes hit a railway bridge in Iran’s northeast, according to several official media, and the news agency IRNA reported strikes on a military base in coastal Bushehr, which hosts the nation’s only civilian nuclear power plant.
The Iranian railway (IRIR) said the train service on the Tehran-Mashhad line had been temporarily suspended as a result.
It said technical teams were on site to repair the damaged section so that the rail service could resume as soon as possible, adding that buses had been arranged to transport affected passengers.
Warplanes hovered over Iran’s Kish Island, and explosions rocked the port cities of Bandar Abbas, Konarak and Chabahar, part of which lost electricity, IRNA reported.
At least three people were killed in an attack on the outskirts of Ahvaz, capital of the southwestern province of Khuzestan, IRNA reported, citing the deputy governor of the region.
At least one firefighter was killed in an attack on an airport facility in Iranshahr, IRNA reported.
Iran’s Health Ministry said at least 14 people were killed and 78 others injured over the past two days.
Calls for diplomacy
In mid-June, the US and Iran signed an MoU to extend their ceasefire. It also led to the lifting of the US naval blockade of Iran and the gradual reopening of the Strait of Hormuz.
The MoU came following mediation by Pakistan and Qatar, which served as a launch point for 60 days of talks on more intractable issues, including the future of Iran’s nuclear programme, the administration of the Strait of Hormuz and access to billions of dollars in frozen Iranian funds.
Since US-Israeli strikes triggered war in February, Tehran has effectively blocked the strait, threatening to hit vessels that deviate from its authorised route.
Reporting from Tehran, Al Jazeera’s Resul Serdar Atas said the US and Iran are “stuck in an equation – almost a deadlock” over the Strait of Hormuz.
“For the Americans, they say that Iran will not have control over the Strait of Hormuz. For the Iranians, control of the strait is indispensable.”
He said Iran sees control over the strait as the “ultimate deterrent, and if it gives that up, then it loses its negotiating position” with the US.
The US hopes that by targeting infrastructure that affects Iran’s ability to control the strait, including maritime traffic control centres, it will be forced to “return to the MoU”, Scott Uehlinger, a former senior CIA officer, told Al Jazeera.
United Nations chief Antonio Guterres called “on all parties to exercise maximum restraint”, as did Pakistan.
Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani told Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in a phone call on Thursday that Iran and the US should commit to diplomacy.
Sheikh Mohammed, who is also the foreign minister, said Washington and Tehran should implement the MoU to end the war.
Iran said the two officials had spoken over the phone and “underscored the importance of using diplomatic means to resolve regional issues”.
Iconic 90s pop band cancel entire UK tour after tragic death of bassist
A POPULAR 90s band have cancelled their entire UK tour following the tragic death of one of their band members.
Sixpence None the Richer were due to head out on the road later this year but the concerts have now been pulled following the death of bassist Justin Cary last month.
They confirmed online that they had decided to take some time out to “grieve” following the saddening news and and as such would not continue with their current touring plans.
The band said in a post online: “We are completely heartbroken over the tragic and untimely loss of our bandmate, brother-in-arms, and friend for 30 years, Justin Cary.
“The past three years had been full of international tours, recording new music, and an even further deepening of the joy of making music together.
“We were looking forward to connecting with new and old fans around the world this summer and fall, but for now we need time to be still and grieve.
“With heavy hearts, we are canceling all remaining tour dates for 2026.”
Heartbroken by the loss, the band added: “Hundreds of pictures. Thousands of memories, 30 years worth. Thank you, Justin.
“There’ll never be another you, sir. No one could pack a suitcase better or make us laugh harder.
“We don’t know what is ahead, we never do, really. But for now, we must grieve our brother.
“Prayers are welcome for us all, especially his beautiful wife, Linda. We love you all so much and will see you again.”
They had been due to perform dates across the UK in late September and beginning of October of this year.
The performer died at the age of 50 after suffering a stroke on the 18th of June.
The Kiss Me musician had been receiving treatment at Albany Medical Center in New York.
He underwent two surgeries following the stroke and was placed in intensive care.
Sixpence None The Richer got its start in 1992.
Justin joined the lineup five years later, the same year the band dropped its self-titled album, home to the breakout single Kiss Me.
The smash-hit song climbed all the way to No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100.
Kiss Me landed a Grammy nomination for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals in 2000.
Woodbridge High senior wins gold medal in speed climbing
When it comes to fear of heights, Maddi Haferling was born with the opposite gene — loving heights.
The Woodbridge High senior started climbing a door at home at age 4 trying to reach a pull-up bar. By 10, she was signed up for a climbing academy. At 17, she won a gold medal in speed climbing last week at the USU19 National Championship in Salt Lake City.
On Thursday, she leaves for Arco, Italy, to compete at the Youth World Championships.
“It’s pretty cool,” she said.
At 5 feet tall, her challenge is climbing a standardized 15-meter wall course and finishing with the fastest time going against an opponent climbing an identical course. She’s attached to a safety rope in case there’s a fall.
Maddi Haferling of Woodbridge won a gold medal in speed climbing.
(Haferling family)
Being a climber, I have a lot of strength that oust don’t have,” Haferling said. “I can do 25 pull-ups that can impress you.”
So what happens if a Woodbridge football player challenges her to a pull-up contest?
“I think they know they’d lose,” she said.
She trains five days a week, three hours a day at a Santa Ana climbing facility lifting weights and practicing speed climbing techniques with other team members.
“It’s nice I can push myself in a sport and commit to something,” she said. “Being on a team is amazing.”
Lee says will seek ‘phased’ denuclearization of Korea, calls for help from Mongolia as trusted partner
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung (C) arrives in Ulaanbaatar on a three-day state visit to Mongolia on Thursday. Photo by Yonhap
South Korea seeks phased denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula as it also seeks to normalize ties with North Korea, President Lee Jae Myung has said ahead of his state visit to Mongolia, which he called a “trusted partner” in such efforts.
In an interview with Mongolia’s state-run Montsame news agency released Thursday, the South Korean president highlighted Mongolia’s potential role in bridging the divided Koreas.
“I hope that Mongolia … will contribute even more to peace and stability, not only on the Korean Peninsula but across Northeast Asia as a whole.” the president said. “I believe that the power to create peace comes not from military force, but from mutual trust and dialogue.”
“Mongolia has maintained balanced relations not only with China and Russia, but with other key countries of the region … I believe this diplomatic capacity of Mongolia is more important now than at any time before,” he added.
Mongolia has traditionally maintained a close relationship with North Korea, having established diplomatic ties with Pyongyang only after the then Soviet Union. Lee arrived here earlier in the day, becoming the first South Korean president in 15 years to pay a state visit to Mongolia.
“Our government seeks to end the era of hostility and confrontation between South and North Korea, and to build a new era of peaceful coexistence and shared growth on the Korean Peninsula,” Lee said in the interview.
“To realize this vision, we plan to comprehensively pursue the expansion and normalization of inter-Korean relations, along with a phased approach to denuclearization.”
Lee emphasized the “significant role” Mongolia can play based on “the trust it has accumulated in the region.”
He also expressed his hope to elevate South Korea-Mongolia relations to a forward-looking “strategic partnership” that will usher in a “new golden era” of bilateral cooperation.
The South Korean president was scheduled to hold a summit with his Mongolian counterpart, Ukhnaa Khurelsukh, later in the day, followed by a joint business forum aimed at exploring opportunities for bilateral cooperation.
“Through this visit, I hope to elevate Mongolia-Korea relations to a future-oriented ‘strategic partnership,’ and I hope this will be a step toward opening a ‘New Golden Era’ of Mongolia-Korea relations together,” Lee was quoted as saying.
“I believe the Golden Era of Mongolia-Korea relations that our two countries will build together will open a new chapter filled with pride for the peoples of both nations,” he added.
Lee cited trade, supply chains, healthcare and food security as challenges the two countries need to tackle together, expressing hope that his ongoing visit could produce tangible results on those pressing issues.
The South Korean president, in particular, described critical minerals as “strategic assets” that underpin industry, technology and national security, adding that “building safe and reliable supply chains has become a vital challenge for every country.”
“From this perspective, Mongolia, with its abundant mineral wealth and development potential, and Korea, with its strengths in mining exploration, technological development and industrial innovation, can become vital supply chain partners for each other,” he said.
Seoul also aims to boost the number of visitors between the two countries to 500,000 per year by 2030, when the countries will mark the 40th anniversary of establishing their diplomatic ties, the president noted.
Copyright (c) Yonhap News Agency prohibits its content from being redistributed or reprinted without consent, and forbids the content from being learned and used by artificial intelligence systems.
In maps and charts: South Sudan’s 15 years of independence | Interactive News
South Sudan became the world’s newest country in July 2011 after nearly 99 percent of voters chose independence from Sudan.
Fifteen years later, most of the major promises that came with independence remain unfulfilled.
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South Sudan remains one of the world’s most fragile states.
Oil finances nearly 90 percent of the government’s revenue, but the country remains wracked by deep inequality and violence: 82 percent of the population lives below the poverty line, and political jostling between rival groups has left the young nation in a perpetual state of conflict.
Elections have never been held since independence, millions remain displaced, and the country’s economy depends on pipelines running through Sudan, the very nation it fought to leave.
‘A failed promise’
Jok Madut Jok, 57, a professor and director of graduate studies at Syracuse University, is from Warrap, South Sudan, and still has family in both rural and urban parts of the country.
Jok says he recalls the joy of the time when South Sudan broke away to establish a new beginning. It was a moment of hope. Today, though, he feels as though he has been denied all that was promised at the time.
“South Sudan at the moment is a failed promise,” he says. “South Sudanese who had lived under brutal regimes in Sudan and had been excluded from money and development programmes, and were victims of security operations in the southern part, had hung their hopes on independence.”
Jok says people are now looking towards possibilities of political transitions to hold their government accountable.
Who controls what in South Sudan?
The country is technically governed by a transitional unity government created under the 2018 peace agreement.
But that peace remains fragile.
Violence continues across Jonglei, Upper Nile, Unity and Equatoria states with clashes involving government forces, opposition fighters and other armed groups.
Elections scheduled several times since independence have again been delayed, with the latest vote planned for late 2026.
Main political and armed groups:
Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM)
The ruling party which led the independence movement.
Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-in-Opposition (SPLM-IO)
Led by Riek Machar, it is part of the unity government. It still maintains armed forces in parts of the country.
South Sudan People’s Defence Forces (SSPDF)
The national army, formerly known as the SPLA, it is loyal to President Salva Kiir.
White Army
A loose network of armed youth, mainly from the Nuer ethnic group.
National Salvation Front (NAS)
It remains active, mainly in Equatoria province. The NAS never fully joined the peace agreement.
Who runs the government?
Salva Kiir – President since independence.
- Leader of the governing SPLM.
- Supported largely by influential sections of the Dinka, South Sudan’s largest ethnic community.
Riek Machar – Vice President.
- Leader of SPLM-IO.
- Historically backed by many Nuer supporters.
- His rivalry with Kiir triggered the 2013 civil war after political tensions exploded inside the ruling party.
Independence delivered, violence continued
Between 2011 and 2026, according to data compiled by the United States-headquartered Armed Conflict Location and Event Data (ACLED), there were 13,256 attacks in South Sudan, which means 883 attacks per year on average – or more than two a day.
The majority of the attacks have been led by:
- Various communal and clan-based armed groups. These constituted 6,168, or just over 46 percent, of all attacks.
- The armed forces and police, who were responsible for 3,278 attacks.
- Unidentified armed groups, behind 2,276 attacks.
- Sudan’s People’s Liberation Movement-in-Opposition, responsible for 900 attacks.
- National Salvation Front, behind 269 attacksForeign actors, behind 154 attacks.
- Others, responsible for the remaining 184 attacks.
Jan Pospisil, 52, a researcher at the Austria-based Peace and Conflict Evidence Platform, recently conducted a survey of more than 22,000 respondents in South Sudan.
Of them, 98 percent said they were proud of being South Sudanese. At the same time, more than 52 percent of respondents said in 2023 that they didn’t feel safe speaking up politically, and in 2025, the results were approximately the same.
Hunger persists after 15 years of violence
Hunger is worsening across South Sudan, where an estimated 7.8 million people are facing crisis levels of food insecurity between April and July 2026, about 280,000 more than projected last year, according to the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification.
Of those, about 73,000 people are living in catastrophic conditions, facing starvation, extreme food shortages and a heightened risk of death.
Another 2.5 million are in emergency conditions, while 5.3 million more are struggling to meet daily food needs without exhausting what little they have left.
The nutrition crisis is worsening alongside this.
An estimated 2.2 million children under five now require treatment for acute malnutrition, an increase of about 90,000 cases since the previous assessment.
Another 1.2 million pregnant and breastfeeding women also need urgent nutritional support.
The crisis is being fuelled by conflict, displacement and repeated shocks that have destroyed livelihoods, disrupted markets and cut communities off from aid.
“My family is living in rural areas, some in the cities but have no access to quality healthcare, no clean drinking water, no road infrastructure,” Jok says. “Even if they were to farm and raise cattle, and create their own livelihoods, they usually are cut off from markets and from basic services that are the responsibility of the state, especially a state that extracts public resources from underneath the people.”
“It’s a feeling that people are totally excluded from the gains of independence,” he added. “It verges on criminal neglect.”
Economic inequality
Pospisil says despite the riches of the 150,000 barrels of oil that are extracted, sold and mainly exported every day, broader economic gains are not a reality for most of the public.
In most rankings, South Sudan languishes as the poorest nation in the world.
South Sudan mainly exports crude to China, but also has Chinese and Indian companies invested alongside state-held organisations that own blocks in the oil fields.
Maya Jama stuns in tight leather dress as she swaps the Love Island villa for US TV shows
MAYA Jama sent her fans wild in a tight leather dress as she swapped the Love Island villa for America.
The popular presenter, 31, is currently over in the States and has been sharing her trip to New York, where she is appearing on US TV shows.
Love Island host Maya is known for her sexy looks, and her latest one in the Big Apple didn’t disappoint.
Taking to her latest Instagram Stories, the stunning star showed off her tight leather dress in a mirror selfie video.
The racy outfit clung to her tiny figure, and she completed the daring look with knee high boots.
In the next clip, Maya told fans that she felt she looked “very Matrix”.
In the final slide, the excited star could be heard singing Alicia Keys’ song, New York, in the back of a car, as she headed into Times Square.
The newly single star, who recently split from Ruben Dias, 29, is in New York to appear on US chat shows.
Yesterday, Maya was on Good Morning America for her first ever television interview stateside.
Once again, she pulled out all the stops in a leather mini-skirt and top co-ord, paired with high heels.
Maya used the TV appearance to reveal why she has been seen much less in the Majorcan villa during the current series of the ITV2 show.
It came after fans noticed the host had been in the ITV2 villa much less this series, so the GMA hosts quizzed her on it.
Explaining her absence, she said: “It’s not up to me, it’s up to the producers that you need to speak to!
“I think this series has just had so much drama that they didn’t need me to intervene, it’s been so entertaining, so wild – as usual.”
It comes after Maya responded to fans asking where she had been, as one joked she was on a “zero hour contract”.
She said on Instagram: “Jokes aside it’s not up to me how often I enter the villa.
“I wasn’t even on a break, I love it over there.”
During her US TV appearance, Maya was also quizzed on Celebrity Traitors, which she filmed recently.
Although she couldn’t give too much away ahead, she said: “This is the first time I’ve ever been a contestant and not a host. And I can’t say much, because it’s Traitors – you’re not allowed to say anything.
“But I’m excited! We’ll see how I act. It’s the biggest, one of the biggest shows in the UK, and in America also.
“It’s so much fun, whether you’re a traitor or a faithful, what an experience to get to do that. So, yeah, fingers crossed it goes well.”
North Korea calls Seoul-Tokyo military cooperation ‘self-destruction’
North Korea on Thursday condemned growing military cooperation between South Korea and Japan. In this June 28 photo, Japanese Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi and South Korean Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-Back inspect honor guards at the Defense Ministry in Seoul. File Pool Photo by Kim Hong-ji/EPA
July 9 (UPI) — North Korea on Thursday condemned expanding military cooperation between South Korea and Japan as a “foolish act courting self-destruction.”
The criticism came in a commentary by Kang Chol Su, section chief at North Korea’s Institute of Enemy State Studies, carried by the state-run Korean Central News Agency.
“The military nexus between Japan, a war criminal state dashing toward a military giant, and the ROK has recently got more undisguised, further endangering the security situation in the Korean peninsula,” Kang said, using the official acronym for South Korea.
He cited examples including a South Korean air force squadron refueling at a Japanese military base earlier this year, as well as a joint search-and-rescue drill held last month and recent defense ministerial talks between Seoul and Tokyo.
According to Kang, the deepening security ties are aimed at concluding a military logistics agreement that would facilitate the exchange of supplies and services between the two militaries, potentially including ammunition.
“What should not be overlooked is that the security cooperation between Japan and the ROK is directed to concluding the ‘logistic support agreement’ which provides each other with munitions including ammunition in contingency,” Kang said.
Japan has long sought such an agreement with South Korea, but Seoul has proceeded cautiously because of domestic sensitivities stemming from Japan’s 1910-45 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula.
North Korea has repeatedly criticized the administration of Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, a hawkish conservative who took office in February, over efforts to strengthen Japan’s military and expand its regional security role.
In February, North Korean newspaper Rodong Sinmun described Japan as a “war criminal nation” and warned that Tokyo’s expanding military partnerships amounted to the formation of a “de facto military alliance” with NATO members and regional countries.
Last week, Pyongyang condemned the Resolute Dragon exercise between Japan’s Ground Self-Defense Force and the U.S. Marines as a rehearsal for war, accusing Tokyo of using the drills to strengthen its offensive military capabilities.
Kang said Japan’s growing security collaboration with South Korea and the United States was part of a broader effort to build a “triangular cooperation system” around North Korea’s nuclear issue, which he claimed was intended to militarily contain neighboring countries.
“The reality goes to prove once again that the DPRK’s continuous development of nuclear force and thorough exercise of its position as a nuclear weapons state are the only way to actively cope with the acute and unpredictably changing international situation,” Kang said, using the official acronym for North Korea.
The commentary followed a trilateral meeting Tuesday among the top diplomats of the United States, South Korea and Japan on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Ankara, Turkey, where they reaffirmed their commitment to the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
Mike Trout homers in return, Jo Adell homers twice and Angels rout the Rangers
ARLINGTON, Tex. — Mike Trout hit a two-run homer in his return from the injured list, Jo Adell had two home runs and drove in a career-high five runs and the Angels beat the Texas Rangers 13-1 on Wednesday night.
Trout, who missed 17 games due to a strained right hamstring, hit a 438-foot shot that gave the Angels an 11-0 lead in the eighth. Trout has 48 homers against the Rangers, the most by any player since the franchise moved to Texas in 1972 and the second-most ever against the club. Reggie Jackson hit 54 home runs against the Washington Senators/Texas Rangers.
Adell hit a two-run shot in the fourth inning and a three-run homer in the fifth that made it 7-0.
Vaughn Grissom went 4 for 5 with a double and four RBIs, and Zach Neto was 3 for 4 with two doubles and three runs. Denzer Guzman and Jose Siri each had two hits.
Angels starter Walbert Ureña threw 90 pitches and walked five in four scoreless innings before he was replaced by Samy Natera Jr. (1-0) to begin the fifth. Natera, a rookie left-hander, had five strikeouts in two perfect innings for his first career win.
Neto doubled to lead off the game, and scored when Grissom singled off MacKenzie Gore (5-8).
Pinch-hitter Kyle Higashioka hit a leadoff homer in the ninth for the Rangers.
Higashioka pitched the ninth — his second career appearance on the mound — and gave up two runs. The 36-year-old catcher also gave up two runs in a 12-2 loss to Minnesota on June 16.
Gore gave up seven runs and nine hits with seven strikeouts in five innings.
Flooding from Tropical Storm Maysak kills 39 in southern China | Floods News
About 130,000 people have been evacuated from the Guangxi region while thousands of rescuers have been deployed.
Published On 9 Jul 2026
Flooding from Tropical Storm Maysak has killed 39 people in southern China, most of them after a dam breach inundated the city of Nanning.
Ding Wei, the city’s vice mayor, announced the toll at a news briefing on Thursday, up sharply from a previous count of six, after record rainfall breached reservoirs and sent torrents of water through towns and cities in the Guangxi region.
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The dam breach in Nanning killed 26 people, Ding said.
About 130,000 people have been evacuated from the region, and drones and thousands of boats have been used in a huge relief and rescue operation to reach people trapped by the waters.
Heavy rain battered southern Guangxi for days, with cumulative rainfall of 10-40cm (4-16in) in some areas and more than 90cm (35in) in hard-hit areas, the national meteorological centre said.
More than 8,000 people and about 5,700 boats have been deployed in the rescue operation, with rescuers battling strong currents and debris to reach victims.
Ding said the floodwaters are receding, but more rain is expected in certain areas in the next two days.
Crews have been deployed to clear mud and debris and disinfect several towns in hard-hit Hengzhou city, which is east of Nanning and under its jurisdiction.
Road repairs are ongoing, and electricity has been restored to more than 60,000 homes, Ding said.
Animals escape after flooding hits zoo
At least 100 animals, including alpacas, miniature pigs and zebras, escaped Guangxi province’s Guigang Zoo after the flooding damaged their enclosures.
The zoo appealed to the public Wednesday for help in finding its escaped animals.
The missing creatures include “two North American raccoons, four porcupines and thirty peacocks”, according to a statement posted by a local district’s Culture, Sports and Tourism Bureau.
The zoo said some of the escapees “may be frightened and potentially aggressive”.
“If you spot any of the animals, please keep a safe distance,” the statement said.
“Do not attempt to catch, approach or tease them, as this could be dangerous,” the zoo warned.
Inside Spice Girls rift that’s left group more divided than EVER
IT HAS been 30 years since the Spice Girls dropped their debut single Wannabe and kickstarted one of the most remarkable pop juggernauts of all time.
But while they once defined girl power for a generation, Geri Halliwell-Horner, Mel B, Victoria Beckham, Emma Bunton and Melanie C are now more divided than ever before – with their long-hoped-for reunion concert a distant dream.
With the bandmates at each other’s throats, this week’s anniversary celebrations have amounted to little more than a few posts on Instagram and a show from Emma Bunton on Heart Radio – despite promoters initially planning a tour for the group to mark the occasion.
And the reunion pleasantries didn’t last long, after Mel B appeared to have blocked Geri Horner on Instagram.
The pair clashed in 2022, after Mel B claimed Geri lied about her age, with the pair unfollowing each other on social media.
And now fans have claimed Scary Spice has blocked her former bandmate, after Geri was unable to properly tag her in a post marking the anniversary of their 1996 breakthrough track.
Geri shared a photograph of the band, also made up of Victoria Beckham, Mel C and Emma Bunton, with the caption: “30 years of Wannabe…Thank you to my beautiful Spice sisters.”
All of Geri’s tags for her bandmates registered, apart from Mel B’s – which happens when a user has been blocked.
The Sun can also reveal that dates were looked at for a global jaunt for 2026, although the plans never got off the ground.
And now it is looking increasingly likely that we may never see the Spice Girls on stage together again.
To make matters worse, Mel C confirmed this week that the group’s relationship with their former manager Simon Fuller is over, which puts paid to the ambitious plans he had for their legacy.
We revealed last April that Geri had flown to Miami to meet with Simon about exciting ideas for the group, in the hope he could persuade the reluctant star to return to the fold.
The following month it was revealed that he was shopping around the idea of a Spice Girls digital avatar show, much like ABBA Voyage, which could take place in London or Las Vegas.
However, that is now believed to have been put on ice as divisions over the direction of their legacy deepen.
And a Netflix drama about the group, which was to be scripted by Bad Boys writer Jack Rooke, has also been shelved.
The most reluctant to return has long been Victoria, having declined the opportunity to take part in their sold out, 13-date stadium tour in 2019.
They last performed as a five-piece at the 2012 Olympics Closing Ceremony.
Geri has said she is only prepared for a reunion if it includes all five girls. And now it is Ginger Spice who, like Posh, is reluctant for anything else.
She has retreated from public life and is said to be anxious at the prospect of returning to the stage. That isn’t helped by her strained relationship with Mel B, who has also washed her hands of future plans.
Mel, whose 50th birthday party last year was only attended by Emma and Mel C, said of a reunion tour: “I can tell you it’s not happening. If it does, it’ll be a shock to me, let’s put it that way.
“You can’t be nagging everyone to go on tour if they don’t want to. I laid that to rest when I turned 50.”
And on previously-discussed plans for a documentary, she pointedly added: “I think we’ve all been asked and were all thinking about it at some point.
“But it has to be done in the right way, and it has to be honest – and not everybody wants to be honest.”
In October, Geri, Mel C and Emma attended Victoria’s Netflix series launch, and in January, they were all at Emma’s 50th party, although Mel B was absent from both.
Geri and Mel B were once extremely close, but Ginger Spice said it was “hurtful” when Mel claimed in 2019, weeks before their reunion tour, that they had once had a sexual relationship.
Speaking on The Louis Theroux Podcast this week, Mel C admitted the pair’s friendship was often volatile and impacted the group – as it still seems to be doing, 30 years later.
She explained: “Like any group of people there’s a dynamic, and what was difficult for us was that Melanie [B] and Geri were really great mates, but if they had a fallout, it would affect everybody.
“I think because they were both so outspoken and, myself, Emma, and Victoria, I don’t know, we didn’t have as much airtime as the other two girls.
“I don’t mean that in a thingy [public] sense. I mean, like, just in the room. So that would cause issues sometimes.
“If it wasn’t for Geri and Melanie being the way that they are, we wouldn’t have been as successful as we were.”
While Victoria, Geri and Mel B look increasingly reticent, it is Sport Spice Mel C who has become the most loose-lipped of them all – taking over from Scary Spice.
In 2022, Emma said of Mel B: “If we want anything to be kept a secret we don’t tell her.”
But in the last year, it has been Mel C raising fans’ hopes, only for them to be dashed.
She gave several interviews where she teased a tour could happen, and said that exciting plans were in motion for their 30th anniversary.
Even this week, on the prospect of marking it, she teased: “We want to. Everything’s in discussion. But it’s a really positive time for us.”
She then conceded: “There’s nothing in the works, so it’s obviously not going to be anything in time for the anniversary. But we are discussing lots of great opportunities.”
She also claimed the group have won back the rights to their 1997 movie Spice World and that they are in talks to get it on streaming services.
However, sources close to the group insisted no talks are currently taking place.
So while fans may be streaming their hits, buying re-released vinyl or forking out for new merch from their online shop, the dream of seeing all five back together again is something of a pipe dream.
In 2024, Victoria said of their 30th anniversary: “It would be lovely for us to do something to celebrate [the 30th anniversary] – a dinner or a lunch – and reminisce. But yes, it will not be any more than that.”
Judging by the state of relations right now, even that would be a surprise.
Sparks end losing streak with win over Caitlin Clark and the Fever
For the first time in more than two weeks, the Sparks won a game.
Nneka Ogwumike scored 24 points with eight rebounds, Rae Burrell added 22 points and Dearica Hamby had 21 in what felt like a near must-win game against Indiana on Wednesday night to snap a three-game losing streak, 106-92.
“I think people were tired of how we were losing,” Ogwumike said. “Not just losing, but how we were losing, and we knew that there was more that we could give. … I think we all individually held ourselves accountable to be able to do more, to pour more into what we got going on. I took it upon myself to try my best to like, you know, play harder in possessions.”
The Fever committed 17 turnovers, which the Sparks (9-11) converted into 22 points, and All-Star Caitlin Clark scored her second-fewest points this season with just nine in limited minutes while returning from injury. Kelsey Mitchell scored 29 points for the Fever, but the Sparks seemed to have an offensive answer each time.
Indiana (12-9) was without star center Aliyah Boston (lower right leg), who Fever coach Stephanie White said would play in the second game of a back-to-back set Thursday in Phoenix. Clark, in and out of the lineup because of a back injury all season, never got going and was an abysmal minus-16.
Coming off an 18-point loss to Seattle at home on Monday, Ogwumike said that injured All-Star guard Kelsey Plum gave the team an inspired speech Tuesday.
“Everyone had a little bit of feedback that she gave, both encouragement and also points of improvement for each person, and I think it was received,” Ogwumike said. “It was received in a way that not only did we want to change how we, you know, approach today, but also to familiarize ourselves with sustaining the way that this feels moving forward.”
“KP lit a fire under our ass,” Burrell added.
All five Sparks starters scored in double digits, and the 106 points were the most the franchise has scored in a home game.
Caitlin Clark of the Indiana Fever talks with teammates during the second quarter.
(Katelyn Mulcahy / Getty Images)
“I’m happy we won, obviously, but I’m more happy with how we played,” coach Lynne Roberts said. “The response that we showed from just laying an egg on Monday to coming back and, you know, we talked about playing more connected, having a little more smarts out there, defensively emptying the tank, getting out and running and playing with pace.”
The Sparks rode a 16-2 run midway through the second quarter to lead by as many as eight before the half.
They didn’t slow down going into the third frame, opening with 18 points in the first five minutes to take a 13-point lead. Burrell and Kiana Williams hit consecutive threes late in the third after the Fever cut the lead to eight points, and it was never close again.
Plum (lower left leg) and center Cameron Brink (left ankle) remained out of the lineup, and the Sparks extended their bench to give significant minutes to Alissa Pili, Jihyun Park and Williams.
Pili, signed to a developmental deal this week, scored four points with five rebounds in her first WNBA action since last September because of a right ankle injury.
Wednesday’s win also snapped a three-game losing streak to the Fever dating to last season.
The Sparks will complete their three-game homestand against Chicago (7-14) on Friday.
“We wanted to play harder,” Ogwumike said. “We wanted to own each possession and to compete at every level for the full 40 minutes of play. It’s really that simple. I think when you put your heart into playing that hard, the schemes, the plays, the execution, it comes to fruition. And tonight, it felt good. It felt good emptying the tank.”
Lord’s Cricket Ground set for first-ever women’s Test as England host India | Cricket News
England host India in a women’s Test at the iconic Lord’s Cricket Ground – the first of such a kind at the venue.
Published On 9 Jul 2026
Lord’s will finally host a women’s Test, 142 years since staging its first such men’s match, when England face India in a four-day game at the “Home of Cricket” starting on Friday.
“It just boggles my mind that it is just the first (women’s) Test match here at Lord’s,” said India coach Amol Muzumdar.
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“It is a great occasion, and we are looking forward to it.”
The match takes place just more than 50 years since the first women’s match of any kind at the renowned London venue, with England beating Australia by eight wickets in a one-day international on August 4, 1976.
England’s captain at Lord’s that day was the late Rachael Heyhoe Flint, a pioneering figure in a women’s game where players were still wearing skirts rather than white or coloured trousers, as they do now.
Heyhoe Flint, who died in 2017, now has a gate named after her at Lord’s.
But in 1976, Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), the owners of Lord’s, were still decades away from admitting women as members, with the thought of females walking directly through the Long Room of the pavilion before taking the field a distant dream.
England’s No 5 that day, Megan Lear, compared the experience to the moon landing, telling The Guardian: “On that day in 1976, to walk on to the hallowed turf at Lord’s, it was like one small step for us women cricketers, but one giant leap towards the future of women’s cricket.”
It is a sign of how things have changed from those amateur days that a Test between two professional sides will also be England’s second fixture at Lord’s in less than a week, following Sunday’s defeat by Australia in the women’s T20 World Cup final – a match that attracted a capacity crowd.
Nine of England’s World Cup squad are included for the Test, including captain Nat Sciver-Brunt, who is “hoping to play” despite a nagging calf injury.
‘History in the making’
“We’ve always known this has been on the calendar,” said England coach Charlotte Edwards.
“A lot of our players have been doing Test match prep throughout the T20s, so we’re really looking forward to it,” added Edwards, England’s captain when they won the 2009 Women’s T20 World Cup final at Lord’s.
“It’s a historic Test match for us as a group and for the Indian team, and we can’t wait to play in front of a lot of people again over the next four days.”
Teenage England spinner Tilly Corteen-Colman is well aware of the importance of the occasion.
“I remember speaking to Lottie (Edwards) about when she used to play here and they weren’t allowed in the Long Room,” said the 18-year-old.
“The first women’s Test at Lord’s is history in the making, so to be involved would be incredible. It would mean the absolute world.”
As well as a breakthrough, the game will also mark England batter Tammy Beaumont’s farewell to international cricket.
Beaumont has made 260 appearances for England since her debut 17 years ago, and she was the first English woman to score a double century in a Test – 208 against Australia at Trent Bridge in 2023.
“When I fell in love with playing cricket as a young girl, I barely knew that playing cricket for England was an option,” said Beaumont.
The 35-year-old, who will continue to play domestic cricket, added: “Our first ever women’s Test at Lord’s feels like the perfect occasion to sign off on a career that I could never have dreamt would be as special as it has been.”
France vs Morocco: World Cup quarterfinal – prediction, start time, lineups | World Cup 2026 News
Three wins to go. How can your team reach the final and win the World Cup 2026? Click here to find out.
Who: France vs Morocco
What: FIFA World Cup 2026 – Quarterfinals
Where: Boston Stadium, Foxborough, Massachusetts, the United States
When: Thursday, July 9, at 4pm (20:00 GMT)
How to follow: We will have all the build-up on Al Jazeera Sport from 17:00 GMT before our live text commentary stream.
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The 2026 World Cup rolls into the quarterfinal stage, kicking off with a blockbuster battle between title favourites France and African champions Morocco.
France, two-time world champions and the 2022 edition’s runners-up, have been the most well-balanced team in the football tournament in North America, scoring a whopping 14 goals while leaking only two en route to a perfect five wins out of five.
Spearheaded by Golden Boot leader Kylian Mbappe, and boasting a tantalising trio of Ousmane Dembele, Michael Olise and Bradley Barcola, France have arguably the most lethal and enviable attacking unit in the tournament.
But the next challenge in their bid for a third world title is far from easy.
The French are up against Ismael Saibari and Brahim Diaz’s Morocco, who stunned the Netherlands in the knockouts and will be eager to take down another European giant.
The Atlas Lions, no longer challengers but contenders, are looking to reach back-to-back semifinals for the first time in history.
Al Jazeera tells you everything about France vs Morocco:
How did France and Morocco reach the quarterfinals?
France topped Group I with a perfect record of nine points, winning against Norway, Senegal and Iraq. They thrashed Sweden 3-0 in the round of 32 before beating a stubborn Paraguay side 1-0 in the last-16.
Morocco came second in Group C with seven points, securing victories over Scotland and Haiti, and a draw with Brazil. They began their knockout campaign with a thrilling 3-2 penalty shootout win over the Netherlands in the last-32 before smashing Canada 3-0 in the round of 16.
Morocco: Not simply challengers, but serious title contenders
Four years ago in Qatar – when Morocco stunned Spain and Portugal to become the first African and Arab nation to reach the World Cup semifinals – they earned the reputation of challengers.
But since then, the Atlas Lions have roared their way to the top, not just at the continental level but on the world stage.
As winners of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) and buoyed by a 34-match unbeaten streak, FIFA world number six-ranked Morocco head into Thursday’s clash not just to pull off an upset, but to continue their promising bid for a maiden world title.
“We’re no longer a surprise today, and that’s a great source of pride,” said Morocco coach Mohamed Ouahbi, who took over four months ago.
“I think this is only the beginning, and I hope we’ll keep producing this kind of run for many years.”
World-class winger Brahim Diaz has been one of Morocco’s heroes at the World Cup, thanks to his four assists, while striker Ismael Saibari leads the goal-scoring charts with three. Soufiane Rahimi and Azzedine Ounahi have also contributed, with two goals apiece.
Saibari, who scored in each of the three group games and struck the winning penalty against the Dutch, has been ruled out of the quarterfinal, dealing a huge blow to Morocco.
The 25-year-old, one of the standout players of the tournament, came off early in the first half in the last game with a hamstring injury and has not recovered in time to face France.
France finding different ways to win
Mbappe’s seven goals in five games have strengthened France’s bid for the 2026 title, while also keeping him in pole position to become the first player to win the Golden Boot more than once.
But for all their swashbuckling swagger, Les Blues had to scrap their way past a rugged Paraguay side with very little protection from the match officials.
The game was far from pretty, but France got the job done, demonstrating that Didier Deschamps’s side possesses both the steely determination and extraordinary talent to become world champions.
“I think that playing a match like that at this stage of the tournament was fruitful for us, because it gives answers about what the players are capable of in the face of that kind of adversity,” France’s assistant coach Guy Stephan told reporters on Monday.
“It was a day when it would have been easy to lose control, and nobody lost control. So that is still proof of maturity, even if they are young players.”
Stephan knows Morocco will pose a far different challenge from Paraguay, describing the North Africans as a “well-organised, well-structured team” who are equally impressive in transition.
“They also have individual strengths, whether on the right side or the left side … It’s undeniably a quality team,” he said.
France vs Morocco prediction
The Opta supercomputer gives France a 61.7 percent likelihood of winning in regulation time, while Morocco’s chances of winning are 16.2 percent.
The model estimates a 22.1 percent probability of the game going to extra time.
France vs Morocco: How to watch, match schedule
- France: beIN SPORTS 1 (10pm, Central European Summer Time)
- Morocco: beIN SPORTS (9pm, Western European Summer Time)
- United States: Peacock, Fox, Fox One, Telemundo App, Telemundo Network (4pm, Eastern Daylight Time)
- United Kingdom: BBC One, BBC iPlayer (9pm, British Summer Time)
To check the TV listings for your country, head to FIFA’s TV listing schedule here.
Who will the winner face in the semifinals?
The winner of the France vs Morocco match will play Spain or Belgium in the semifinals in Dallas, Texas in the US on July 14.
France vs Morocco: Head-to-head
The last time Morocco met France was when the Atlas Lions made their maiden World Cup semifinal appearance. It dates back to December 2022, and Morocco suffered a 2-0 defeat.
Overall, they have met six times, with France winning four matches while two ended in a draw.
France vs Morocco: Team news
Morocco forward Saibari is out with a hamstring injury and could be replaced with Rahimi in the lineup.
France midfielder Aurelien Tchouameni is doubtful due to an adductor injury he sustained before the round of 16.
Three France players – Olise, Barcola and Manu Kone – were booked in the last game and risk receiving a ban should they pick up another yellow card against Morocco.
France’s predicted lineup
(4-2-3-1): Maignan (goalkeeper); Kounde, Upamecano, Saliba, Digne; Kone, Rabiot; Dembele, Olise, Barcola; Mbappe
Morocco’s predicted lineup
(4-2-3-1): Bounou (goalkeeper); Hakimi, Diop, Riad, Mazraoui; El Aynaoui, Bouaddi; Diaz, Ounahi, El Khannouss; Rahimi
Little House on the Prairie cast now – from fathering 9 kids to India pilgrimage
Netflix has released its highly anticipated reboot of Little House on the Prairie – and fans of the original series have been left wondering what happened to the beloved cast
Netflix has brought out a Little House on the Prairie reboot(Image: GETTY)
It’s one of the most beloved TV shows of the 1970s – and now it’s getting a modern makeover. Netflix has finally released its highly anticipated reboot of Little House on the Prairie today (July 9), with fans eager to see whether it can live up to the original.
Based on the iconic books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, the new series promises to retell the family’s story for a new generation while staying true to its roots. Netflix’s official synopsis reads: “Part hopeful family drama, part epic survival tale, and part origin story of the American West, this fresh adaptation of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s iconic semi-autobiographical Little House books offers a kaleidoscopic view of the struggles and triumphs of those who shaped the frontier.”
Set in 1869, the reboot followed the Ingalls family as they left their cabin in Wisconsin’s Big Woods and headed to Kansas in search of a better life.
Along the way, they built new friendships, overcame hardships and worked to create a home in the town of Independence.
While the new cast steps into some of TV’s most iconic roles, many viewers have been left wondering what happened to the original stars who made the 1970s series such a success.
Here’s what became of the Little House on the Prairie cast:
Michael Landon (Charles Ingalls)
While Little House on the Prairie was based on the books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, Michael Landon quickly became the driving force behind the hit TV series.
As well as starring as Charles ‘Pa’ Ingalls, the devoted husband, father and hardworking farmer, Landon also worked behind the scenes as a producer, writer and director, helping shape the show throughout its nine-season run.
However, fans were surprised when he stepped away as a main cast member ahead of the final season, despite continuing to work behind the scenes.
Before finding fame, Landon shot to stardom as Little Joe Cartwright in Bonanza after landing the role at just 22 years old.
His acting career had started a few years earlier with I Was a Teenage Werewolf and several guest appearances on TV.
After Little House came to an end, Landon went on to star in the popular TV series Highway to Heaven. He was also due to write, direct and star in a new CBS drama called Us, but sadly never got the chance.
In 1991, Landon died from pancreatic cancer at the age of 57, before the show’s two-hour pilot had aired.
Away from acting, Landon was married three times. His third wife was Little House makeup artist Cindy Clerico, who he met on set.
He was also a father to nine children, including filmmaker Christopher Landon and Jennifer Landon, who is best known for playing Teeter in Yellowstone.
Karen Grassle (Caroline Ingalls)
Karen Grassle became a household name playing Caroline ‘Ma’ Ingalls, the loving matriarch of the Ingalls family and Charles’ devoted wife.
While Little House on the Prairie remains by far her best-known role, Grassle was already an experienced theatre actress before landing the part and returned to the stage after the series ended.
She later stepped away from mainstream Hollywood, moving out of Los Angeles to focus on theatre work around the US.
Although she appeared in a handful of films over the years, including Wyatt Earp alongside Kevin Costner, as well as Lasso and Not to Forget, she largely stayed out of the spotlight after Little House ended.
Away from acting, Grassle has been married three times and is mum to two children – a son and a daughter.
In 2021, she released her memoir, Bright Lights, Prairie Dust: Reflections on Life, Loss, and Love from Little House’s Ma, which revealed she and Michael Landon had a difficult working relationship during parts of the show’s run.
However, she has since said the pair reconciled before his death in 1991.
Melissa Gilbert (Laura Ingalls Wilder)
Melissa Gilbert was just 10 years old when she was cast as Laura Ingalls Wilder, the adventurous, animal-loving daughter at the heart of Little House on the Prairie.
She remained on the show until it ended nine years later, by which point she was 19. Her performance made her one of the series’ biggest breakout stars, earning her a Golden Globe Awards nomination in 1981.
While starring in Little House, Gilbert also built an impressive career away from the show. She appeared in TV adaptations of The Diary of Anne Frank and Splendor in the Grass, while her portrayal of Helen Keller in The Miracle Worker earned her an Primetime Emmy Awards nomination.
After Little House came to an end, Gilbert remained a familiar face on television for decades, starring in numerous TV films and series. She also served as president of the Screen Actors Guild from 2001 to 2005 and even launched an unsuccessful bid for Congress in 2016.
She later returned to her Little House roots by taking on the role of Ma Ingalls in the touring production of Little House on the Prairie, The Musical, before appearing on Dancing with the Stars.
More recently, Gilbert made headlines in 2025 after responding to comments from Megyn Kelly about Netflix’s upcoming Little House reboot, after Kelly said she hoped the streaming giant wouldn’t “wokeify” the beloved series.
Gilbert replied: “Ummm… watch the original again,” arguing the show had always tackled difficult subjects including racism, addiction, misogyny and domestic abuse.
Away from acting, Gilbert has two sons – one with her first husband, Bo Brinkman, and another with her second husband, Bruce Boxleitner.
She has been married to Timothy Busfield since 2013 and is also stepmother to his five children.
Melissa Sue Anderson (Mary Ingalls Kendall)
Melissa Sue Anderson played Mary Ingalls, Laura’s intelligent older sister whose life changed forever after losing her sight following a bout of scarlet fever.
The emotional storyline earned Anderson an Primetime Emmy Awards nomination and remains one of the most memorable moments from the series.
Mary endured some of the show’s toughest storylines, including blindness, being held hostage, suffering a miscarriage and tragically losing her baby in a fire.
Away from Little House, Anderson starred in Midnight Offerings and Happy Birthday to Me, while also appearing in TV favourites including Murder, She Wrote, The Equalizer and X-Men: The Animated Series.
In more recent years, the actress has largely stepped away from the spotlight, making only the occasional on-screen appearance.
She married TV writer and producer Michael Sloan in 1990 and the couple had two children before becoming Canadian citizens. Sloan sadly died in 2025.
Rachel Lindsay and Sidney Greenbush (Carrie Ingalls)
Identical twins Rachel Lindsay Greenbush and Sidney Greenbush shared the role of Carrie Ingalls, the youngest member of the Ingalls family until baby Grace arrived in season four.
The sisters were just three years old when they joined the show. Before landing their breakthrough role on Little House on the Prairie, the twins appeared in the TV film Sunshine.
After Little House came to an end, the pair stepped away from acting to focus on school and have largely stayed out of the spotlight ever since.
Away from Hollywood, Sidney married veterinarian and horse breeder William “Rocky” Foster in 2000 before he sadly died in 2009.
Rachel later reconnected with childhood friend Danny Sanchez – who she first met on the Little House set – and the pair married in 2014, more than 30 years later.
Dean Butler (Almanzo Wilder)
Dean Butler joined Little House in season six as Almanzo Wilder, the farmer who eventually won Laura Ingalls’ heart.
Butler landed his first major role in the 1978 adaptation of Forever by Judy Blume.
After Little House ended, he went on to star in The New Gidget, performed on Broadway in Into the Woods and later appeared in Buffy the Vampire Slayer as Buffy’s father, Hank Summers.
Away from acting, Butler has been married to actress Katherine Cannon since 2001. The couple first met while auditioning for Michael Landon’s TV series Father Murphy.
Katherine MacGregor (Harriet Oleson)
Katherine MacGregor became one of Little House’s most memorable stars thanks to her portrayal of Harriet Oleson, the shopkeeper who quickly became one of TV’s most love-to-hate villains.
Harriet was originally only meant to appear as a guest character, but proved so popular with viewers that she was promoted to a series regular.
Prior to Little House, MacGregor performed on and off Broadway and she appeared in a handful of TV movies and guest starred on All in the Family and the original Ironside.
She was a convert to Hinduism and very devoted to her faith. She was unable to appear in the Little House finale because she was on a pilgrimage to India at the time.
She died in 2018 at the age of 93.
Victor French (Isaiah Edwards)
Victor French played Isaiah Edwards, the ‘rugged mountain man’ and one of Charles Ingalls’ closest friends.
Although fiercely loyal and kind-hearted, the character also battled depression and alcoholism, giving viewers some of the show’s most emotional storylines.
After Little House ended, French reunited with Michael Landon to co-star in Highway to Heaven.
He enjoyed a long television career, with roles in popular series including Gunsmoke, Carter Country and Get Smart.
French also appeared on the big screen alongside Elvis Presley in Charro! and starred opposite John Wayne in Rio Lobo.
Away from Hollywood, French was married twice and had three children. He died from lung cancer in 1989 at the age of 54.
Richard Bull (Nels Oleson)
Richard Bull played Nels Oleson, the long-suffering husband of Harriet Oleson and the patient co-owner of Oleson’s Mercantile.
While the pair constantly clashed on screen, Bull and Katherine MacGregor were said to be close friends in real life.
Little House on the Prairie was one of Bull’s longest-running television roles, alongside his stint as Doc on Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea.
Across a career spanning more than four decades, Bull appeared in countless hit TV shows, including The Fugitive, The Andy Griffith Show, Bewitched, Mission: Impossible and Hill Street Blues.
He also appeared in films including The Thomas Crown Affair, The Andromeda Strain, High Plains Drifter and The Parallax View.
Away from acting, Bull was married to actress Barbara Collentine for more than 65 years, from 1948 until his death.
He died from pneumonia in 2014 at the age of 89.
Mookie Betts’ eighth-inning single gives Dodgers the win over the Rockies
Mookie Betts’ first hit this series against the Rockies couldn’t have come at a more opportune time. With the crack of the ball against his bat, Tommy Edman scored from third, giving the Dodgers the lead.
And as Betts reached first, he pointed to Freddie Freeman, whose single put Edman in scoring position. It had taken a team effort to overcome another middling start from Roki Sasaki, and Betts, who had little to show before his game-winning hit, took the chance to highlight the joint contribution in the Dodgers’ 4-3 rubber-match win over Colorado (38-56).
“It feels great,” Betts said of his nine-pitch battle. “Helping the boys win, that’s really all it is. We play the game to win, and coming through in a big moment is kind of what, when you’re a kid, playing in the backyard, getting that hit is what you always strive to do, and fortunately, I was able to do it.”
Given a three-run lead in the first inning, brought to the Dodgers by a wild pitch and Kyle Tucker’s two-run, line-drive single to left field, Sasaki seemed set up for success.
Still, he gave away the lead as quickly as it came. In the second inning, he left a fastball too far over the plate, and third baseman Kyle Karros drove the ball over the left-center wall. The slider he dealt two batters later to second baseman Edouard Julien also crossed the zone too far over the plate, and Julien rounded the bases with another homer. In the third, a sacrifice fly by Mickey Moniak evened the scored, 3-3.
Sasaki’s troubles this season have been hard to pin down since his last win on May 23, as Sasaki tries to claw back the triple-digit velocity that’s escaped him as of late.
Against the Rockies, his fastball topped out at 99.1 miles per hour before steadily dropping to 98. He had managed five strikeouts in his six innings when manager Dave Roberts replaced him with Jack Dreyer, though the three earned runs couldn’t be ignored.
But Roberts also acknowledged the possibility that the pitcher had been tipping his pitches, possibly since he was playing in Japan, and Sasaki has tried to address it after a three-inning, six-run start last week. Even if he had fully self-corrected, his control issues remain. In the third inning, he walked the tying runner, Brett Sullivan.
“I’ve been working on a lot of things like the tipping stuff,” Sasaki said through interpreter Kensuke Okubo. “Also, I need to make quality pitches.”
Sasaki regained some of his confidence in the fourth when he worked out of a two-base jam with two strikeouts and a flyball to right, something that didn’t go unnoticed by Roberts.
“You can see the demeanor walking off the mound, the confidence,” Roberts said. “For me, it was more of let him end on a high note, feeling good about his outing, and then go from there.”
The Dodgers’ problems were compounded by Alex Call wasting the team’s two challenges in his at-bat in the first inning when the team had already taken the lead. And maybe it would’ve been excusable if Call had driven in the runners on first and second, but instead he ended the inning on a strikeout, stranding both. Roberts called the situation an “outlier” and didn’t feel as though he needed to have a conversation with Call regarding the situation.
After the three-run first, the Dodgers (61-33) remained hitless until Max Muncy laced a double down the right-field line in the sixth, though to little avail. As the innings ticked forward, Colorado’s chances seemed to increase. The Rockies hold the best league batting average (.297) in the eighth and ninth innings (the Dodgers are fourth with .268). And the Dodgers relievers, within the same constraints, have a 3.83 ERA — not bad, but not in the top 10 either.
Third baseman Max Muncy can’t get his glove on a line-drive double by Kyle Karros in the fourth inning.
(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
So when Alex Vesia struggled against the Rockies in the eighth inning and Muncy suffered a throwing error, Colorado seemed in position to score with the bases loaded and one out. Vesia struck out TJ Rumfield and Edgardo Henriquez (4-0), his replacement, retired Karros on a fly ball to right.
After Betts’ single allowed the Dodgers to take the lead, Tanner Scott (13) shut down the Rockies with back-to-back strikeouts, avoiding the team’s eighth series loss of the season.
“Didn’t feel great,” Roberts said. “Fortunately, we won a series, but that’s not the kind of way you want to do it.”
Wider war threatens as Iran says it struck U.S. bases
July 9 (UPI) — Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said early Thursday that it has launched attacks targeting U.S. bases in Kuwait and Bahrain, hours after U.S. Central Command announced the completion of its attacks against Iran.
The tit-for-tat strikes follow President Donald Trump a day prior saying the cease-fire agreement between Washington and Tehran was all but over, and threatened the return to all-out war in the Middle East.
Fighting had simmered between the two sides following last month’s agreement to conditions that could lead to an end of the war, but the Strait of Hormuz has proved a sticking point. The Trump administration is demanding a return to freedom of navigation through the chokepoint; Iran is seeking to maintain control over the vita energy transit route.
As negotiations were stalling, three commercial vessels were struck while transiting the strait, resulting in the United States attacking Iran early Wednesday, kicking off the continuing retaliatory strikes as Iran appears unrelenting in its oversight of the Strait of Hormuz.
“America still hasn’t learned that bullying and breaking promises are no longer cost-free. Let me put it plainly: if you strike, you’ll get hit,” Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said in a social media statement early Thursday.
“Don’t flail around pointlessly, or you’ll sink ever deeper: the Strait of Hormuz will only open with ‘Iranian arrangements,’ not American threats.”
The IRGC said it had not only attacked but “smashed important infrastructure and facilities” at Arifjan and Ali Al Salem bases in Kuwait and Juffair and Sheikh Isa bases in Bahrain.
State-run Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting reported that Iran early Tuesday was attacking U.S. bases from Bushehr city, stating the United States had targeted those assets hours earlier.
The state broadcaster also claimed the U.S. 5th Fleet headquarters in Bahrain was also hit.
The extent of potential damage was not immediately clear, but both Kuwait and Bahrain confirmed incoming attacks.
The elite military unit in charge of protecting the Islamic regime warned that the United States that “should it repeat its aggression, our crushing responses will expand to other American bases in the region,” it said.
The attack came as the U.S. Central Command announced that it had completed strikes against Iran late Wednesday.
CENTCOM said late Wednesday that it had completed strikes against about 90 Iranian military targets, including air defense systems and coastal surveillance assets, were hit. The announced follower an earlier round of U.S. attacks overnight Tuesday that struck about 80 targets in Iran.