Two for the Road
A veteran filmmaker recalls the moments when he glimpsed Sinatra the man, not the image.
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The Sports Report: Shohei Ohtani out of the lineup as Dodgers beat Mariners
Ohtani is out, but Dodgers win
From Maddie Lee: In the latest twist in Shohei Ohtani’s battle with left knee discomfort, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts held him out of the lineup during a 6-2 win over the Seattle Mariners on Thursday.
Ohtani reported soreness Wednesday night in his left knee, which he treated over the All-Star break with a lubricating orthovisc injection and rest. So the Dodgers’ training staff recommended a day off.
“I expected him to play,” Roberts said before Thursday’s win. “I appreciate him saying that there’s some soreness to then allow me to make a decision of what is in his best interest, and that’s what we’re doing.”
Roberts said he’s “very confident” that Ohtani will be in the lineup Friday when the Dodgers open a three-game series against the Boston Red Sox.
But the Dodgers previously believed only pitching aggravated the injury. Ohtani hasn’t pitched in a game since July 3, and he hasn’t thrown off a mound in a little over a week. He’s been running through weighted plyo ball drills to keep his arm in shape without putting pressure on his knee.
The development raises questions about how to best manage Ohtani’s workload for the rest of the season.
Stay focused, Puka Nacua
From Mirjam Swanson: Do you think the Rams have a tracker at their headquarters for how many days it’s been since Puka Nacua’s last embarrassing incident?
They might. Because we all remember how frequently the self-inflicted damages were occurring during that bizarre and jarring stretch starting late last year.
We had the biting incident and alleged antisemitic comments on New Year’s Eve. Before that, we had the Rams’ star receiver making antisemitic gestures on a livestream with a couple of controversial streamers.
We also had him publicly calling out NFL officials on a stream and in a social media post sent from the locker room, and getting fined $25,000 by the league for that. We had his weird post on X — a laughing emoji and “sam darnold” — after the Seattle Seahawks’ quarterback led his team to the Super Bowl LX championship on Feb. 9, when Nacua also was recorded stumbling and dancing in a San Francisco street after the game.
We had this all within just a couple of months. So we had to replace the image we previously had of Nacua as a jolly, smiling football star with a new one: a picture of teeth marks on a woman’s skin.
Ick.
Tuli Tuipulotu wants his money
From Joaquin Ruiz: Tuli Tuipulotu wants to get paid.
Although Chargers coach Jim Harbaugh expected everyone to be full-go for training camp, the fourth-year edge rusher is holding in amid contract negotiations.
Tuipulotu, who was a full participant in minicamp, did individual work off to the side during Wednesday’s practice and was in general workout attire rather than in a helmet, jersey and football pants like his teammates. On Thursday, Tuipulotu suited up normally and participated in drills alongside fellow defensive linemen but didn’t participate in team sessions.
A hold in is one way players can exercise leverage during contract negotiations. Hold-in players fulfill basic requirements outlined in the collective bargaining agreement — such as attending meetings and doing individual work — to avoid mandatory fines from teams for not reporting to training camp.
“We keep it rolling in practice,” Chargers defensive coordinator Chris O’Leary said. “You know, you get into a game, and you spend a little bit more time game planning and figuring out how to fill that void. … So we haven’t felt it as much. Obviously, we miss [Tuipulotu] out there. We miss how vocal he is and plays that he makes. But for us, we’re just keeping it rolling with the guys we got out there.”
Billy Ray Smith Jr. dies
From Steve Henson: Billy Ray Smith Jr. became embedded in the San Diego sports community as an exceptional linebacker who lived up to his billing as a first-round draft pick and played all of his 126 NFL games with the Chargers from 1983 to 1992, long before the franchise moved to Los Angeles.
Despite being Texas-raised and Arkansas-educated, Smith Jr. became synonymous with San Diego by spending the rest of his life in the sunny SoCal city as a sportscaster, radio host and big-hearted, larger-than-life personality.
Smith Jr. died Wednesday at age 64, his family saying in a statement that he “faced his long journey with dementia caused by CTE with unmatched bravery, dignity, and strength.”
“It is with profound sadness that we share the loss of our beloved Billy Ray Smith Jr., who passed away peacefully surrounded by family,” the statement said. “Billy Ray brought so much joy, light, and laughter to the world as a devoted father, husband, son, and loyal friend.”
Chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) is a progressive brain disease characterized by mood disturbances and cognitive decline. It is linked to repeated head impacts and traumatic brain injuries, and has been found posthumously in numerous athletes in contact sports.
This day in sports history
1932 — France beats the U.S. 3-2 for its sixth consecutive Davis Cup championship.
1934 — Britain, led by Fred Perry and Bunny Austin, defeats the U.S. 4-1 at Wimbledon to win the Davis Cup title.
1942 — Jockey Bill Turnbull wins seven of nine races at Rockingham Park in Salem, N.H.
1973 — Julius Erving, the American Basketball Association’s leading scorer, is traded by the cash-strapped Virginia Squires to the New York Nets for forward George Carter and cash.
1983 — Jan Stephenson beats JoAnne Carner and Patty Sheehan by one stroke to win the U.S. Women’s Open.
1993 — Mike Aulby becomes the third player in PBA history to win a tournament by rolling a 300 game in the title game. Aulby beats David Ozio 300-279 in the Wichita Open.
1994 — Sergei Bubka sets a world pole vault record for the 35th time in his career at a meet in Sestriere, Italy. Bubka soars 20 feet, 1¾ inches, adding a half-inch to his mark set in Tokyo in 1992.
2000 — Dorothy Delasin becomes the LPGA’s youngest winner in 25 years by beating Pat Hurst on the second extra hole to win the Giant Eagle LPGA Classic. The 19-year-old Delasin is the youngest winner on the tour since Amy Alcott took the Orange Blossom Classic at age 19 in 1975.
2005 — Grant Hackett becomes the first swimmer to win four straight world titles in the same event, capturing another 1,500-meter freestyle. The Aussie stretches out his own record for world championship medals to 17.
2007 — All-Star Kevin Garnett is traded from the Minnesota Timberwolves to Boston for five players and two draft picks. The Celtics obtain the former MVP and 10-time All-Star from Minnesota for forwards Al Jefferson, Ryan Gomes and Gerald Green, guard Sebastian Telfair and center Theo Ratliff and two first-round draft picks.
2011 — Yani Tseng wins the Women’s British Open for the second straight year, beating Brittany Lang by four strokes and becoming the youngest woman to capture a fifth major title. The 22-year-old top-ranked Taiwanese shot a 3-under 69 to finish at 16-under 272.
2012 — Michael Phelps breaks the Olympic medals record with his 19th, helping the U.S. romp to a 4×200-meter freestyle relay victory at the London Games. With 19 medals spanning three Olympics, Phelps moves one ahead of Soviet gymnast Larisa Latynina, who got her haul in 1956, 1960 and 1964.
2012 — The team of Gabrielle Douglas, McKayla Maroney, Alexandra Raisman, Kyla Ross and Jordyn Wieber lives up to all the hype, winning the first U.S. Olympic title in women’s gymnastics since 1996.
2021 — Katie Ledecky wins the women’s 800m gold in Tokyo. This is the third consecutive Olympics she has won the race.
Compiled by the Associated Press
This day in baseball history
1930 — Lou Gehrig drove in eight runs with a grand slam and two doubles, and the New York Yankees outlasted the Boston Red Sox 14-13.
1932 — Cleveland’s Municipal Stadium opened and Lefty Grove and the Philadelphia A’s beat the Indians 1-0 before 76,979 fans.
1934 — The St. Louis Cardinals defeated the Cincinnati Reds 8-6 in 18 innings at Cincinnati as Dizzy Dean and Tony Freitas both went the distance.
1954 — Joe Adcock hit four home runs and a double to lead the Milwaukee Braves to a 15-7 victory over the Brooklyn Dodgers at Ebbets Field. Adcock’s 18 total bases set a major league record at the time. Adcock homered in the second inning off Don Newcombe, doubled in the third and homered in the fifth off Erv Palica. He connected off Pete Wojey in the seventh and off Johnny Podres in the ninth. Adcock saw only seven pitches and his double off the left-center field fence just missed going out by inches.
1961 — The All-Star Game ended in a 1-1 tie at Fenway Park because of heavy rain.
1981 — The second baseball strike ended after 42 days.
1990 — Nolan Ryan, 43, won his 300th game, reaching the milestone in his second try, as the Texas Rangers beat the Milwaukee Brewers 11-3.
2002 — Mike Mussina became the second pitcher in major league history to give up six doubles in one inning, during the New York Yankees’ 17-6 loss to Texas. Hall of Famer Lefty Grove allowed that many with Boston in 1934 against Washington.
2003 — John Smoltz broke his own record as the fastest pitcher to record 40 saves by pitching a scoreless ninth in Atlanta’s 7-4 win over Houston. Last year, he got his 40th save on Aug. 8, en route to breaking the NL record with 55.
2007 — The New York Yankees tied a franchise record by hitting eight home runs, including two by Hideki Matsui, in a 16-3 rout of the Chicago White Sox. New York last hit eight homers in a game in a doubleheader opener at the Philadelphia Athletics on June 28, 1939.
2010 — Carlos Gonzalez hit a game-ending home run to complete the cycle, and Colorado rallied to a 6-5 win after blowing a three-run lead in the eighth inning to the Chicago Cubs.
2011 — Ricky Nolasco scattered 12 hits, Emilio Bonifacio homered and Florida handed the Atlanta Braves the 10,000th loss in franchise history. With the 3-1 loss, the Braves become the second big league team with 10,000 losses. The Phillies reached that mark in 2007.
2015 — New York’s Mark Teixeira homered from both sides of the plate in a game for the record 14th time, hitting his 10th grand slam and a two-run homer that led the Yankees past the Chicago White Sox 13-6.
2021 — Seby Zavala becomes the first player in MLB history to record his first three home runs in the same game.
Compiled by the Associated Press
Until next time…
That concludes today’s newsletter. If you have any feedback, ideas for improvement or things you’d like to see, email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com. To get this newsletter in your inbox, click here.
Spain sends in military to Ceuta amid influx of illegal migrants
Spain announced Friday that it was deploying troops to Ceuta, a tiny Spanish territory on the coast of North Africa, to deal with an influx of tens of thousands of migrants who entered from Morocco illegally, overwhelming border security by their sheer numbers. File photo by Jalal Morchidi/EPA
July 31 (UPI) — Spain said Friday that it was deploying troops to Ceuta, an autonomous Spanish principality on the coast of North Africa, to deal with an influx of tens of thousands of migrants who illegally crossed from Morocco.
Authorities requested assistance from Madrid after the security situation descended into chaos on Thursday with border integrity completely overwhelmed and at least 15 people drowned after attempting to swim to Ceuta.
“The armed forces will reinforce the Civil Guard in the exercise of its powers and any others that may be necessary to maintain security in the city of Ceuta,” said Spain’s Interior Ministry.
It added that it was coordinating with Morocco to address the flow of migrants and that both governments were committed to coming up with and implementing measures for the swift return “of all people who have entered illegally.“
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez was due to hold emergency talks with officials in Ceuta on Friday.
In a post on X, he reassured Ceuta President Juan Jesus Vivas that his administration was deploying all necessary resources and partnering with Moroccan and international authorities to “restore normalcy as soon as possible.”
Separated from the Spanish mainland by the Gibraltar Strait, just 10 miles wide, Ceuta is a key staging post in the journeys of migrants trying to reach Europe, with the influx apparently triggered by a recent Spanish Supreme Court ruling that people intercepted en route to Ceuta cannot be returned to Morocco.
The interior ministry blamed organized human traffickers using the decision to “encourage the flow of undocumented migrants.”
Implications for the other European countries, due to so-called Schengen free travel area that, once on the soil of any member nation, allows people to move around the continent passport-free, prompted France to tighten its border with Spain.
“In response to the situation observed in the Ceuta enclave, I gave instructions as of last night to immediately strengthen the controls at the Spanish border. Furthermore, I am activating the Rapid Intervention Border Force for in-depth checks,” Interior Minister Laurent Nunez announced on X on Friday morning.
Drone Strike On Egyptian Port On Mediterranean Stokes Concerns Iran Conflict Will Widen (Updated)
Egyptian officials have now confirmed that the port facility of Damietta was hit by a drone strike yesterday, the first public acknowledgment that the country has come under fire during this conflict. Though Cairo did not say who launched the attack, it raises the specter of another part of the region being brought into fighting that is largely centered on the flow of energy supplies.
The attack came as the Houthis began to consider imposing tolls on shipping through the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, where they have already established a blockade on Saudi shipping and attacked its vessels and energy infrastructure. Meanwhile, Iran continues to lob missiles and drones across the region as tit-for-tat strikes have resumed after a short pause.
“Following the successful containment of the fire, the relevant authorities conducted initial investigations into the incident, which indicated that a drone was responsible,” the Egyptian cabinet said in a statement on Thursday, according to state-funded Middle East News Agency. The cabinet added that “no party has claimed responsibility for the attack.”
“The competent authorities are continuing their investigations to determine the full circumstances surrounding the incident and to take the necessary measures to safeguard Egypt’s interests and national security,” the official government outlet added.
As we reported yesterday, the Ambrey maritime security firm said two vessels were struck by drones at Damietta. One of the ships was a U.S.-owned and operated, Marshall Islands-flagged liquefied natural gas (LNG) floating storage facility and the other was a Greek-owned and operated, Bermuda-flagged LNG tanker, Ambrey stated.
A maritime security specialist told us that the U.S.-owned and operated, Marshall Islands-flagged floating gas storage facility was the Energos Winter while the other ship was the Gaslog Salem.
While there has been no official claim or attribution, U.S. President Donald Trump hinted that it was an Iranian attack.
Asked during a press conference whether Iran was behind the drone attack on the Egyptian port, Trump said “it’s a little more of the same, but it’s going to be straightening out, it’s going to be straightening out. But in the meantime, we are going to be hitting them very hard, because it is our turn to hit ’em. They know it’s coming, they are asking us not to do it.”
The New York Times later reported that two Iranians, who asked not to be named to discuss security matters, “said the explosion was a drone attack designed to show that global shipping and energy supplies could be more deeply disrupted if Iran chose to escalate. The individuals did not say whether Iran or an Iran-allied militia in the region had launched the attack, or from where.”
The Iranians are not the only ones targeting energy facilities in the region. Several of their proxies have as well. It is part of a larger effort to impose cost on the U.S. and its allies.
The Saudis claim their oil infrastructure has been attacked by Iranian-backed militias in Iraq in addition to actions by the Houthis in Yemen. That in part prompted a joint U.S.-Saudi strike on militia targets across that country. It was the first publicly confirmed instance where U.S. and Saudi forces worked in concert.
The Iranian-backed Houthis, who, as we noted above, are striking Saudi oil infrastructure, on Thursday denied involvement in this incident.
“There is no truth to the rumors about Yemen targeting a ship in the port of Damietta in the Arab Republic of Egypt,” the group stated on Telegram. “The Yemeni position is clear, declared, and explicit, and it only targets the Saudi regime for its unjust blockade and ongoing aggression against the Yemeni people.”
U.S. Central Command, which oversees American military operations in the Middle East, deferred questions about the incident to Egypt.
Regardless of who attacked Damietta, expanding the conflict to Egypt’s Mediterranean ports marks a significant potential escalation. The region’s two main sea arteries for energy shipments are already being choked off. The Iranians have largely closed down the Strait of Hormuz and there is an ongoing U.S. blockade on Iranian ports. The Houthis, as previously noted, have halted Saudi transits through the BAM, which has had a cascading effect on other nations not wanting to risk attack.
As the Iranian threats to the Strait of Hormuz increased, the kingdom diverted millions of barrels of oil per day through pipelines to its Yanbu port on the Red Sea in an effort to minimize the energy shortages due to the hostilities in the Persian Gulf.
That workaround served its purpose until the Houthi blockade, at which point Saudi Arabia began boosting shipments through the Suez Canal. Exports via that route “rose 106% for the week of the embargo announcement to 1.06 million barrels per day, up from the week starting July 13, according to Kpler data,” The National News recently noted.
The port of Damietta, where yesterday’s attack took place, is 33 miles west of Port Said, which is at the northern entrance to the Suez Canal. Closure of the canal, or even a significant drop in traffic through it, would add to the pressures on the global economy already reeling from what is taking place in the Strait of Hormuz and the BAM.
In a post on X, the Windward maritime intelligence firm called the attack on Damietta “a third front, separate from the Gulf and Red Sea.”
“The strike is assessed as separate from the Houthi Saudi-blockade campaign. Iranian state television had named Damietta as a retaliation target two days earlier, citing Ukraine’s strike on an Iranian vessel in the Caspian Sea, pointing toward an Iranian-directed operation rather than a Houthi one,” Windward explained in a related analysis.
Operation Aspides, the European-led task force created to provide security to shipping in the Red Sea region, told us it is monitoring reports that the Houthis are considering placing a toll on transits through the BAM, similar to what Iran has tried to impose in the Strait of Hormuz.
“At this moment, there has been no official statement from the Houthis confirming such a measure,” a spokesman told us Thursday morning. “We continue to monitor developments closely and are going to implement our mandate within our means and capabilities.”
On Thursday, Aspides posted an image of one of its member warships, the Italian frigate Bergamini, escorting merchant vessels in the Red Sea region.
Meanwhile, Iran is continuing to lash out across the region.
Kuwaiti officials said one person was killed in an Iranian barrage today.
“The sinful Iranian aggression targeted a building belonging to one of the Chinese companies in the north of the country, resulting in the death of one worker and causing serious material damage to the building,” the Kuwait Defense Ministry (MoD) stated on X. “The Armed Forces affirm that they will continue carrying out their tasks and duties with high efficiency, and taking all necessary measures to protect national sovereignty and preserve its security and stability, in coordination with the competent authorities, in a way that safeguards the safety of citizens and residents.”
The Jordanian military said it foiled an Iranian attempt to target the kingdom with five missiles. There were no casualties, officials said.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed missiles made it through and that three F-35 Joint Strike Fighters were destroyed and three more damaged at Muwaffaq Salti Air Base (MSAB) in Jordan. The IRGC said it was in response to deaths caused by yesterday’s attacks by CENTCOM. However, the IRGC frequently fabricates claims or greatly exaggerates them and we cannot independently confirm this one.
As we have pointed out in the past, the base has been frequently targeted by Iranian missiles and drones. Three U.S. Army soldiers were killed in a strike there on July 17.
We reached out to CENTCOM for comment, which a short while later put out a statement on X denying the IRGC claim.
Regardless of the claims, the constant Iranian bombardment is beginning to stir unrest in Jordan, where public dissent is banned.
“Hundreds of Jordanian political, legal and other figures signed an open letter last week calling for the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Jordan,” The New York Times reported. “People who signed the letter said they were driven by a sense of national responsibility and concern that the troop presence endangered Jordanian sovereignty.”
“We maintain that their presence exposes Jordan to security, political, and economic risks that serve no national interest and increases the likelihood of our country being dragged into a regional conflict to which it is not a party,” the letter said.
As this conflict drags on, CENTCOM commander Adm. Brad Cooper, “has prepared an option for a punishing air campaign against Iran that could take up to two weeks,” The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.
“Now, as Trump moves to strike back after Iran’s surprise missile attack Tuesday, the president will decide how far to go,” the newspaper noted. “He could greenlight Cooper’s option of 10 to 14 days of intensive airstrikes intended to cripple Iran’s missile capability despite warnings that the U.S. is running low on air-defensive munitions. Or, he could opt for a more limited military strike in the hopes diplomacy could be pursued.”
Iran, working to rearm as the fighting continues, is expected to receive “a first shipment out of up to 400 Chinese-made shoulder-fired air-defense missile launchers,” Reuters reported, citing three sources familiar with the deal.
“The purchase, valued at $60-70 million, is one of Tehran’s largest-known efforts to strengthen its short-range air defenses since the outbreak of its war with the U.S. and Israel, which exposed gaps in Iran’s ability to protect military sites and strategic infrastructure,” the outlet noted.
That’s it for now. We’ll update this when there is more information to share.
UPDATE: 4:58 PM EDT –
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi addressed the drone strike on Damietta. In a post on X, he hinted at Israeli involvement but did not explicitly deny that Iran carried it out.
“Egypt is considered a friend and important partner in the region, and its security constitutes an utmost priority for us,” Araghchi stated. “We must all remain vigilant toward Israeli schemes and ‘false flag’ operations that aim to undermine regional peace. The threat is clear, shared, and fears Muslim solidarity.”
Contact the author: howard@twz.com
Who is Stassi Schroeder? Reality star’s life including Meghan Markle feud
The reality TV regular has landed her own show which arrives on Disney Plus in a matter of days
Stassi is back with a new reality show releasing soon to Disney+(Image: Stassi Schroeder/Instagram)
Fans of the Real Housewives and Vanderpump Rules have a new must-see show for their watch lists.
House of Stassi premiered in the US this week with its UK release now just days away. The eight-episode series will be available to stream on Disney Plus from August 12.
It documents former Vanderpump Rules star, Stassi Schroeder, as she returns to the spotlight after her sacking from the show back in 2020. While she previously dipped her toe back in to reality TV with spin-off Vanderpump Villa, her own series will take fans deeper into her life and inner circle.
As per the Disney Plus synopsis: “House of Stassi follows reality TV icon Stassi Schroeder as she steps into her next act. In this meta-docuseries, Stassi navigates her long-awaited return to television – this time with the people she loves most by her side.
“As her ambition pulls her back into the spotlight, those around her level up. But as cameras roll and truths surface, her closest relationships are put to the test.”
Why is Stassi Schroeder famous?
She got her big break on the long-running reality series, Vanderpump Rules. A spin-off of the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, the show began in 2013 and follows fan favourite housewife Lisa Vanderpump and the lives of the staff working across her restaurants and bars.
Stassi was on the show from the very start as a worker at Lisa’s West Hollywood restaurant, SUR. Her outspoken nature made her a standout personality across the eight seasons she featured in. She has also launched a successful podcast and has written three best-selling books.
Stassi Schroeder controversy explained
Back in 2020, Bravo confirmed it had fired Stassi and her co-star Kristen Doute from Vanderpump Rules. It came after a past incident from 2018 resurfaced in which the pair had called the police on black TV personality, Faith Stowers, for a crime she did not commit, claiming she resembled a suspect.
Stassi later issued a statement addressing the “racially insensitive comments”, writing: “I did not recognise the serious ramifications that could have transpired because of my actions. What I did to Faith was wrong. I apologise and I do not expect forgiveness.”
She added: “I am going to continue to look closer at myself and my actions – to take the time to listen, to learn, and to take accountability for my privilege.”
Meanwhile Kristen did the same, saying: “Although, my actions were not racially driven, I am now completely aware of how my privilege blinded me from the reality of law enforcement’s treatment of the black community, and how dangerous my actions would have been to her,” adding that she would “do better.”
Meghan Markle feud
Stassi claimed on her podcast in 2025 that she was “furious” at Meghan Markle and was boycotting her Netflix show With Love, Meghan. It came after she was allegedly refused freebies from Meghan’s As Ever brand, despite Stassi publicly supporting her in the past.
“The way she moves through social media, I think that she’s stuck in 2017, and she just thinks I’m a lowly reality person,” Stassi told her podcast listeners. “That’s what I think, and I am furious, and this is the last straw. I’m not watching her show anymore.”
Noticing that a PR package had been sent to another podcast host who had been critical of Meghan in the past only added fuel to the fire, and Stassi vowed: “I’m going to unfollow her right now. Literally, I’m unfollowing her. Done!”
Meghan has never commented on the supposed PR package snub nor the remarks made by Stassi.
House of Stassi arrives on Disney+ from August 12.
The banality of evil in the Border Patrol’s secret anti-immigrant slur
Javier Ramirez was handcuffed in the back of an unmarked car, bruised and confused, when immigration agents used a word he had never heard before.
It was June 2025, and they were bragging about the raids in the Los Angeles area that swept up hundreds of immigrants — and a few U.S. citizens, like Ramirez. The unfamiliar word caught Ramirez’s ear.
Tonk.
“I wondered what that meant — I thought it was some code,” the 33-year-old tow truck driver told me over a Zoom call this week. “But I didn’t make a big fuss about it then.”
Masked men had thrown him to the ground outside a tow yard in Montebello, for reasons they wouldn’t divulge. He ended up in the car with a man detained in another roundup, headed for the Metropolitan Detention Center in downtown Los Angeles.
The color disappeared from Ramirez’s face when I explained what “tonk” means.
For at least half a century, Border Patrol workers have used the onomatopoeic word, referring to the sound of someone getting hit, as slang for undocumented immigrants. Body camera footage and text chains from last summer’s immigration raids, released this week in a court filing, captures agents throwing around anti-immigrant insults like “wet” and “tonk” with the same ease that the rest of us say “and” or “the.”
The most egregious example, I told Ramirez, was directed at him and his friend, fellow U.S. citizen Brian Gavidia.
A video shows an agent shouting, “One tonk f— got away, dude!” as colleagues manhandle the pair. The same agent, who spoke with a Chicano accent, later sped off in a vehicle while asking in Spanglish, “¿Alguien arresto un tonk, güey?” — Did someone arrest a tonk, man?
“Oh, wow, OK, that’s really bad,” Ramirez finally said, laughing bitterly while gathering his thoughts. “It’s kind of hurtful. They’re just assuming who I am.”
Ramirez asked his attorney, Luis Castillo, if the agents who accosted him “had violence on their mind when they used that word.”
“You’re getting a double whammy,” the longtime civil rights lawyer replied. “They’re hitting you twice, physically and psychologically.”
No, Luis: they’re hitting us all.
Brian Gavidia stands in a parking lot next to East Los Angeles College in Monterey Park in 2025 a day after he and his friend were roughed up by immigration agents outside a tow yard in Montebello. The two are suing the federal government for violating their civil rights.
(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)
If you’re still doubting that racist violence fuels President Trump’s deportation deluge, just consider what Gavidia and Ramirez have been through.
La migra roughed them up even as they screamed that they had documents to prove their U.S. citizenship. They took Gavidia’s Real ID and never returned it. Ramirez was detained for five days and charged with trying to assault a federal officer and interfere with their work — a case that went nowhere because he did no such things.
The American Civil Liberties Union and Public Counsel, along with other groups and private attorneys, included the body cam footage in a court filing asking a federal judge to bar immigration agents from making stops based on racial profiling.
Gavidia is part of that lawsuit, while Ramirez has sued separately. Now, the two men are more certain than ever that the Trump administration’s deportation strategy isn’t about getting the worst of the worst.
To la migra, all Latinos are tonks.
“I never even heard the word, but once [lawyers] told me the explanation of what it meant, I was disgusted instantly,” said Gavidia, 30, who fixes up and sells cars. “They already knew what they were coming to do. We told them we were Americans. It didn’t matter. We were brown, and that was enough.”
“I saw [the tonk video] 300 times,” Gavidia added, “and it’s giving me more trauma.”
“Tonk” has been a dirty little secret of the Border Patrol for decades — workplace lingo showing that the banality of evil that’s la migra on its best days has transformed into something far uglier under Trump.
The slur is so vile — predicated on violence by law enforcement, unlike ethnic jabs that insult food or culture — that it has never crossed over into mainstream English. “Tonk” in its anti-immigrant meaning doesn’t appear in the Merriam-Webster dictionary or even the Dictionary of American Regional English, the premier academic collection of American slang.
And that’s exactly how the Border Patrol likes it.
The earliest use of “tonk” to demean immigrants that I’ve been able to find is in a 1976 book by Paul Schuster Taylor, an early pioneer of Mexican American studies best known for documenting the plight of Dust Bowl refugees along with his wife, photographer Dorothea Lange.
Taylor quoted a Border Patrol inspector referring to Mexicans as “tonks” but offered no definition. In a 1978 hearing, Immigration and Naturalization Service Commissioner Leonel Castillo said the slur was “sort of like the new term” for “wets.”
Castillo — no relation to Luis — nevertheless defended his agents’ use of anti-immigrant words.
“I think it’s the way — the tone in which you use it, and then how you treat people,” he said, maintaining that the verbiage was ingrained in the “very fine gentlemen” who worked under him.
“It’s very hard to change them,” he said. “But they’re not necessarily bad people.”
A year later, an anonymous Border Patrol agent writing for the white supremacist publication Instauration debunked Castillo’s apologia. He claimed that “tonk” derived from the thudding noise when agents smashed a flashlight on an immigrant’s head.
“The Anglos of the Border Patrol are not as intimidated by federal guidelines as people might think,” the agent wrote. “We have our own methods of interrogation in the desert.”
San Diego State English professor William Nericcio has spent his career studying anti-Mexican hate. He grew up around Laredo, Texas, in the 1970s and 1980s with “guys and their dads who worked in Border Patrol because it was a good job.”
Yet he hadn’t heard of “tonk,” either.
Immigration agents detain two men at a car wash in Montebello, Calif., in 2025.
(Gregory Bull / Associated Press)
“A drum roll of anti-Mexican violence turns into a soundtrack — wetback, beaner, spic and now, tonk,” Nericcio responded when I asked why the slur has stuck for so long among immigration agents. “Of all these anti-Mexican terms, this is the only one that directly connects to an act of violence. It’s a thing of pride when you say it — ‘Hey boss, I got a tonk today! Where’s my bonus?’ It’s glory days for them.”
The casual use of “tonk” by la migra eventually became a PR embarrassment even for the Trump administration. In 2019, during Trump’s first term, a Customs and Border Protection spokesperson told an Arizona public radio station that the slur “is now considered a derogatory term and CBP does not condone its use.”
This time around, a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson told my Times colleagues that “agents are focused on protecting the American people — not entertaining performative outrage.”
CBP didn’t respond to my multiple requests for comment about whether its internal guidelines continue to discourage “tonk” and whether agents face any discipline for using it.
If you’re not disgusted by this devolution in protocol, I’m not sure what can possibly disgust you.
ACLU lawyer Mayra Joachin said the body cam footage is “clear evidence that these stops were always about individuals’ appearance of being Latino working class” and is proof of the “culture of racism underlying” the Trump administration’s deportation strategy.
How are Gavidia and Ramirez feeling now, after being called a racist slur they hadn’t even known existed and that doesn’t even technically apply to them?
“If you’re a U.S. citizen, you can’t be free in the U.S.,” Ramirez said. What happened to him “can happen to anyone, it can happen to their kids and family, and when it happens to their family, that’s when they’re going to see the truth of what’s happening.”
Gavidia, who voted for Trump in 2024, said that immigration agents think they “are above the Constitution and law.”
“That’s sad and disgusting,” he said. “If we don’t stop this and fight this now, it’s going to get worse and worse.”
Commonwealth Games 2026: Melanie Woods wins gold in restaged race
Scotland’s Melanie Woods has won the Commonwealth Games women’s 1500m T54 for the second time in under 40 hours after streaking to victory in the restaged final – however England’s Ellis Kottas could not replicate her silver medal.
Woods set a new Games record to triumph in Glasgow on Wednesday evening, but it emerged on Thursday morning that Para-athletics authorities had decided the race should be held again following appeals surrounding a first-lap crash.
However, the Scot kept her composure in her home city to replicate her initial success, break the record again, and reclaim the gold that was already hers – in mind if not around her neck.
Kottas, though, finished fourth, having said she was “low-key traumatised” when the race result was overturned.
Woods led from the start in her home city, although Noemi Alphonse of Mauritius and Australia’s Eliza Ault-Connell kept her honest over the first couple of laps.
The latter had fallen away by the final 200m, though, and the Scot held off the Mauritian as she was roared by down the home straight by the crowd.
“It was in my mind ‘what have I got left?’ and you do question what you’ve got in your arms,” Woods said.
“But I just needed to be confident I could stay out in front and it was nice coming down the home straight and not seeing her wheel moving in front of me.”
Woods – who has used a wheelchair since being hit by a car while riding her bike in 2018 – will also compete in the 400m later on Friday morning.
The heats of that will start a little more than 90 minutes after the replayed final.
AFC backs UEFA and CONCACAF who plan boycott over FIFA World Cup proposals | Football News
FIFA face global mutiny as Asian Football Confederation stand with Europe and North America after their boycott threats.
Published On 31 Jul 2026
The Asian Football Confederation has said it “stands in solidarity” with regional bodies UEFA and CONCACAF in opposing plans to sell a stake in the World Cup to private investors but stopped short of threatening to boycott events run by FIFA, global football’s governing body.
The confederation in a statement on Friday expressed “deep concern” over the proposed establishment of a $20bn commercial subsidiary, FIFA Forward Enterprise (FFE), to run the World Cup and FIFA’s other events.
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“The fact that the situation has reached the point where the real possibility of a FIFA World Cup boycott has entered public discourse should concern everyone who cares about the future of our game,” the statement said.
“Football should never have been placed in such a position.”
UEFA, European football’s governing body, voted unanimously on Thursday to boycott all FIFA events unless the plans were dropped. CONCACAF, the regional federation for North America, Central America and the Caribbean, has also rejected FIFA’s proposal.
On Thursday, AFC President Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa had said the way the proposal had been made was “totally unacceptable”, in a letter to member associations.
The AFC said “the proposed FFE cannot realistically achieve the necessary broad consensus and unity required to move forward.
“The FIFA World Cup is the pinnacle of global football and derives its strength from the participation of all confederations and the world’s leading football nations.”
The AFC also made a thinly veiled attack on the governing body’s president, Gianni Infantino, saying the plan “has exposed fundamental weaknesses in FIFA’s consultation and decision-making processes that must now be addressed”.
Even after FIFA issued a new statement on Friday, saying each national association “should be allowed to review the proposal and have a say in shaping their own future”, the AFC said “central concerns surrounding governance, institutional process and meaningful consultation remain unanswered”.
It said the furore must become a catalyst for institutional reform at FIFA, and that “meaningful democracy is not measured solely by the opportunity to vote.
“It begins with transparent governance, timely consultation, informed deliberation and genuine participation throughout the decision-making process.”
About 49,000 migrants enter Spanish territory of Ceuta, officials say
Ceuta, on Morocco’s northern coast, is separated from mainland Spain by the Strait of Gibraltar and has long been a focal point for migrants attempting to reach Europe.
Local officials had appealed to Madrid for help after a recent rise in attempted crossings, but there were chaotic scenes on Thursday as border controls apparently broke down.
The astonishing estimation by Spanish officials suggests the number of migrants who entered into Ceuta in the last day or so could be more than half of the population of the city – which sits at around 83,600, according to the latest local figures.
Spain later deployed its armed forces to bolster security in Ceuta and at its sister city of Melilla, where between 300 to 400 crossings were also reported overnight.
Coveted by Morocco, both cities have long been a flashpoint in diplomatic relations with Spain. Madrid asserts that both territories are integral parts of Spain and have the same status as the semi-autonomous regions on its mainland.
They form the European Union’s only land borders with Africa.
Kelvin and Liz Fletcher open up on ‘most challenging year’ and move away from farm
Kelvin and his wife, Liz, both had different plans for their future on Fletcher’s Family Farm
Kelvin and Liz Fletcher have had a challenging year(Image: ITV)
Kelvin and Liz Fletcher opened up about their “most challenging year” on their farm.
During a repeat episode of Fletcher’s Family Farm, Kelvin left his wife, Liz, in shock after he sold their goats without telling her.
However, after overcoming the shock of saying goodbye to their beloved goats, Kelvin and Liz reflected on the farm’s future and where they see themselves.
As the couple gathered around a campfire with their children, Liz shared, “I think this has been our hardest year, our most challenging, but I feel like we’ve learned the most this year on our own, and I feel like we’ve come on so far in the last 12 months.”
Kelvin asked, “Would you consider yourself a farmer now?”
He added, “I think this year I feel confident to say, yeah, we’ve got a farm, we’ve got a family farm, and this is what we do. We started with just a few sheep, and now we’ve got a flock of sheep, loads of pigs, cows, feral kids.”
“The kids are the biggest animals on the farm,” Liz laughed as Kelvin continued, “It’s safe to say we’re certainly on our way to becoming farmers.”
Liz went on to ask her husband whether he was “happy with this life,” to which he said, ” Yes. I’m committed that this is the right thing for us.
“We’re absolutely on the right path. There’s no question that we just got to absolutely embrace it and be in the moment, be present.”
“Cheers to that,” Liz said before Kelvin shared his dreams of moving away from their Cheshire Farm.
He stated, “I would like a ranch in America one day.”
“I mean, I’d like to be in the Bahamas, but one step at a time,” Liz told Kelvin.
This isn’t the first time Kelvin and Liz have spoken about moving to America; during an appearance on James Martin’s Saturday Morning, one thing stopped them from pursuing their dream.
The ITV chef pointed out, “You were originally going to go to America. This was a life-changing thing you decided, and you got the visas and everything, didn’t you?”
“As two actors, we thought, you know, Kelvin had been in Emmerdale for 20 years, and we kind of wanted to try something different, and as two actors, we thought, ‘Well, why not? Let’s go to Hollywood and LA and see what happens’,” Liz explained.
“And we only had two children at the time, but unfortunately, Covid stopped that, and they actually stopped the visas. We never got the visas completed because they said, ‘There’ll be a pause on this for at least two years’.
Fletcher’s Family Farm is available to watch on ITVX.
How to have the best Sunday in L.A., according to Salish and Jordan Matter
If you are over the age of, say, 14, you might not be familiar with daughter-father duo Salish and Jordan Matter. But if you are a parent of a Gen Alpha kid, it can feel like you hear about nothing but Salish and Jordan Matter. Their YouTube videos — a high-octane mix of zany challenges, games and hijinks — are admittedly hard to resist, which may be why they rake in millions of views as soon as they blast into the social media universe.
In Sunday Funday, L.A. people give us a play-by-play of their ideal Sunday around town. Find ideas and inspiration on where to go, what to eat and how to enjoy life on the weekends.
Sixteen-year-old Salish was in elementary school when she started appearing in her father’s YouTube videos and the channel is like a time capsule of her childhood — or, well, the most public, heavily produced version of it. There’s the day Salish turned her house into a waterpark (73 million views) or the night she had a secret sleepover in a mall (31 million views) or the time she survived 100 babysitters in 24 hours (61 million views). “A blessing and a curse for me is that we’ve documented it all,” says Jordan, whose background is in photography. “I have these beautiful videos of her when she was 10. I was just watching them 30 minutes ago and was like, oh wow, it feels like yesterday.”
Now their creator journey is taking a new turn. Salish and Jordan recently signed a deal with Netflix to develop, produce and star in original projects — it’s the largest such creator partnership for the streaming giant. Their show, “Salish & Jordan Matter,” reached Netflix’s Top 10 this month. Beyond the screen, the duo co-founded the popular teen skincare brand Sincerely Yours. (The launch of one glossy lip balm brought 2,000 fans to the Santa Monica Pier earlier this summer.)
It’s been a wild ride for the pair, but despite their snowballing fame, they swear they’re like any other dad and daughter who bicker, joke around and simply enjoy each other’s company.
“I think we’re pretty chill, right?” Jordan says.
“Yeah, we’re pretty chill,” Salish agrees.
Here they share what they’d do together on a Sunday Funday around their South Bay home, noting that a perfect day would involve the whole family, including mom Lauren Matter and Salish’s 20-year-old brother, Hudson Matter.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
10 a.m.: Wake up and debate the day’s options
Jordan: Salish, what time would you actually wake up?
Salish: Probably like 10.
Jordan: OK, so we’re sleeping in until 10. Then why don’t we go get breakfast? We’ll go to Ocean Diner in Hermosa Beach. We’ll both get huevos rancheros and fresh orange juice. And then I would love to go get coffee at Boy and the Bear in Redondo Beach.
Salish: Or Two Guns!
Jordan: No, I prefer Boy and the Bear.
Salish: Oh, I prefer Two Guns.
Jordan: Well, if we go to Two Guns, Salish would get the avocado toast.
Salish: No, the chai! It’s so good!
Jordan: OK, well, if Salish has an opinion, that’s what we’re doing. But later today, one thing I would love is a bike ride on the beach. Are you still down?
Salish: [High-pitched voice] Yeah.
Jordan: Did you hear that voice?! That tone is like, “Yeah, but not for much longer.”
Salish: [Laughs] No, I like doing bike rides with you! It’s just that I don’t know how much of a “biker” I am.
Jordan: You’re not one.
Salish: I’m not.
Jordan: But you have an electric bike! You just have to go like [makes e-bike revving motion] vvrrrrrruurr.
11:15 a.m.: Shopping and soup dumplings
Jordan: The next thing we’re going to do is …
Salish: Go to the mall! I like picking out new outfits for him because every day he just wears a black T-shirt.
Jordan: OK, and if we’re going to go to Del Amo mall, we’ll have lunch at …
Salish: Oh, Din Tai Fung.
Jordan: Which means we’ll have to put our name on the waiting list.
Salish: It’s like a two-hour wait.
Jordan: So we’ll put our name down right after breakfast. And then we’ll shop for clothes before our reservation.
Salish: I’ll go to Aritzia and probably Garage. And then you’ll go to Express and Levi’s. I go to PacSun a lot too but normally I don’t find anything there. I always wear sweats and hoodies — literally just sweats and hoodies.
Jordan: Also tank tops. Salish doesn’t like to repeat outfits on videos, so she does need at least one new outfit a week.
And I’ll just follow her around. I’ll be like, ‘Oh, that looks good.’ And she’ll be like, ‘No, it doesn’t.’ And I’ll be like, ‘No, it looks really good.’ And she’ll be like, ‘You’re just saying that.’ And then she’ll ask, ‘Which color?’ I’ll say the blue, and then she’ll get the pink. And I’m like, ‘I’m glad I could be helpful.’ So that’s how shopping with Salish goes. Then finally, there’s Din Tai Fung.
3 p.m.: An afternoon by the ocean
Jordan: Then we would leave the mall because I’m not gonna be there all day. We’re gonna go paddleboarding in Long Beach, in the Naples Canals area. We love anything with water, right? We love vacationing in Lake Tahoe, swimming and boating.
Then we would probably go for a bike ride along the Strand. I would vote for pulling over and having dinner. There’s a really good taco place right near the Hermosa Beach Pier called Palmilla Cocina Y Tequila.
Salish: [Winces slightly] I’m not gonna lie. I don’t really like tacos.
Jordan: Salish is an absolutely impossible eater. All she eats is Chipotle. She’s a vegetarian but she’s a picky vegetarian, so that combo makes it almost impossible for her to find food anywhere. But she’d get the black beans and rice and tortillas and cheese and mix it all together.
Salish: Yeah.
Jordan: See, I basically know everything about you.
Salish: And you would get the chicken!
Jordan: Yes.
Salish: I knew it. But you have to make sure it’s white meat.
Jordan: White meat chicken, mole, enchiladas — yum!
8 p.m.: Family hang time
Jordan: Now if there’s a good horror or suspense movie out, I might convince Salish to go. But that would be a tough sell. So maybe we’ll go back home. We just got a pool, so that’s exciting. And late nights in the pool has become a thing. We might play ping pong or a board game.
Salish: Then my brother and I would probably just chill and talk in one of our rooms. He doesn’t live here so we try to talk as much as we can while he’s home.
Jordan: Our family isn’t looking for big things to have fun — just time together. We just talk and hang out. With Salish, we talk about work but I’m also super interested in what her everyday life is like. You know, from the time she was young, I feel like I treated her like an adult in a way and we’ve always had real conversations. That’s made it easier as she’s grown up. It feels comfortable having these types of conversations.
Salish: Also, I’m a great kid, so like …
Jordan: Of course, of course. You are such a great kid. But you were a spitfire when you were little, I’ll say!
Salish: [Laughs]
Jordan: It’s a joy. It’s a joy to be with her every day.
AFC joins Uefa and Concacaf in opposing Fifa plan
Fifa president Gianni Infantino’s plan to sell stakes in competitions to private investors appears to be in jeopardy, with a third confederation expressing opposition.
In a statement published on Friday, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) said it “stands in solidarity” with its counterparts in Europe and North, Central America and the Caribbean.
The AFC added Infantino’s plan could not “realistically achieve the necessary broad consensus and unity required to move forward”.
“The Fifa World Cup is the pinnacle of global football and derives its strength from the participation of all Confederations and the world’s leading football nations,” it said.
“Any proposal that risks undermining the unity and universal character of the competition must be reconsidered.”
The AFC’s statement means Infantino’s plans are unlikely to be approved by Fifa members if put to a vote.
Infantino had indicated the proposals would need a straight majority to go through – meaning 106 of its 211 members to vote in favour for the proposal.
Uefa – the body that governs European football – has 55 votes. Concacaf, which oversees football in North, Central America and the Caribbean, has 35 and Asia has 46.
Asian football’s governing body accused Fifa of once again setting the “direction of travel” for a “significant initiative” before consulting stakeholders.
It said Fifa’s failure to consult its member associations on the proposals had “exposed fundamental weaknesses in Fifa’s consultation and decision-making processes that must now be addressed”.
The AFC also criticised Fifa for leaving “confederations, member associations and even Fifa’s own governing bodies, including the Fifa Council, feeling sidelined.
“The Fifa World Cup, and the game itself, belong to the entire global football family,” it added.
Their future must always be shaped collectively, through institutions that reflect the voices of all Confederations and member associations.
“The AFC calls upon Fifa to undertake an urgent review of its governance and decision-making framework to ensure that proposals of global significance are developed through proper consultation, meaningful engagement and appropriate oversight by Fifa’s statutory bodies.”
Audit finds failures in South Korea housing guarantor
Kim Ho-cheol, Chairman of the Board of Audit and Inspection, attends a press conference at the state auditor’s headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, 24 June 2026. Photo by YONHAP / EPA
July 30 (Asia Today) — South Korea’s state-run housing guarantor failed to properly investigate debtors and recover claims after paying about 15 trillion won, or $10.3 billion, under defaulted guarantees over the past five years, a government audit found Thursday.
The Housing and Urban Guarantee Corporation, commonly known as HUG, has yet to recover about 12 trillion won, or $8.2 billion, of that amount.
The Board of Audit and Inspection released the findings of its regular audit of the corporation, identifying problems in guarantee issuance, project financing reviews, debt collection and customer refunds.
HUG provides guarantees intended to protect tenants if landlords fail to return jeonse deposits.
Jeonse is a housing rental arrangement widely used in South Korea in which a tenant provides a large refundable deposit instead of paying, or in exchange for paying less, monthly rent.
Corporation undercharged guarantee fees
Auditors found that HUG undercharged a corporate rental business by about 2.77 billion won, or $1.9 million, when issuing guarantees covering 12,752 homes.
HUG’s rules required it to calculate the fee using the company’s credit rating on the date the guarantee was issued. Employees instead used an earlier, more favorable credit rating from the application date.
The audit board called for disciplinary action against the employees involved and instructed HUG to review ways of collecting the unpaid fees.
HUG has reported financial losses since 2022 as rental deposit guarantee defaults increased, including cases involving large-scale jeonse fraud.
Its operating loss grew from 242.9 billion won, or about $166 million, in 2022 to 2.19 trillion won, or about $1.5 billion, in 2024.
Weak reviews led to $261 million in PF guarantees
The audit also found deficiencies in HUG’s reviews of housing project financing guarantees.
Such guarantees rely largely on a developer’s projected income from future home sales, making an accurate assessment of expected cash flow essential.
Auditors found that HUG accepted financial data in which developers had arbitrarily delayed construction payments, improving the projects’ apparent debt-service capacity.
As a result, HUG approved a combined 382 billion won, or about $261 million, in guarantees for three projects that should have been rejected under its own standards.
HUG also incorrectly graded two other projects and collected about 1.64 billion won, or $1.1 million, less in guarantee fees than it should have.
Thousands of debtors were not investigated
The audit board also found major gaps in HUG’s efforts to identify assets belonging to debtors after paying claims on their behalf.
An examination of seven regional management centers found no record of an asset investigation for 2,915 of 9,003 debtors, or 32.3%.
The rate varied widely among regional offices. The Seoul Northern Center investigated the assets of only 21.6% of the debtors assigned to it, compared with 99.8% at the Seoul Western Center.
HUG’s headquarters failed to adequately monitor or address those differences, auditors said.
Tenants missed refunds
HUG also failed to refund fees to some tenants who had been enrolled in both a landlord rental deposit guarantee and a tenant jeonse deposit return guarantee.
The audit identified 1,699 cases involving about 173 million won, or approximately $118,000, in unreturned fees.
It also found 454 guarantee-default cases in which money owed to tenants had not been properly returned.
The audit board instructed HUG to analyze the causes of the problems and develop improvements in its core operations, including guarantee reviews, issuance procedures and debt recovery.
It also called for disciplinary or corrective action against employees responsible for improper decisions.
— Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI
© Asia Today. Unauthorized reproduction or redistribution prohibited.
Original Korean report: https://www.asiatoday.co.kr/kn/view.php?key=20260730010011338
Hamas agrees to phased disarmament in Gaza | Donald Trump News
Hamas has agreed to gradually disarm in Gaza as part of Donald Trump’s 20-point peace plan. The US president called the deal ‘historic’. Here’s what we know.
Published On 31 Jul 2026
Reality fans demand ‘a million more episodes’ as ‘perfection’ show lands
The new series follows a reality icon as she makes her long-awaited TV comeback
The series arrives in the UK in a matter of days(Image: Freeform/Hulu)
Reality TV fans have been binge-watching their way through a new series they’re calling ‘perfection’.
House of Stassi follows the life of Stassi Schroeder, a breakout star of long-running Real Housewives spin-off, Vanderpump Rules. However, she was sacked from the series back in 2020 alongside Kristen Doute following a ‘prank’ on a black co-star, with the new show marking her return to TV.
The pair had called the police on reality TV personality, Faith Stowers, for a crime that she didn’t commit. In a later apology, Stassi penned that she “did not recognise then the serious ramifications that could have transpired,” adding, “I do not expect forgiveness.”
The controversial reality star’s “next act” is the subject of the new series which premiered on Freeform this week before being made available on streaming service Hulu.
Its official synopsis reads: “House of Stassi follows reality TV icon Stassi Schroeder as she steps into her next act. In this meta-docuseries, Stassi navigates her long-awaited return to television – this time with the people she loves most by her side.
“As her ambition pulls her back into the spotlight, those around her level up. But as cameras roll and truths surface, her closest relationships are put to the test.”
All eight episodes are now available on US streaming platform Hulu, with the first reactions rolling in. However, viewers in the UK face a short wait before they can indulge in the series too. The episodes will be made available to UK-based reality fans on Disney+ from August 12.
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One fan of the show penned: “Binged the whole thing. The second half of the finale is exactly what reality TV should be (and used to be). The way they left it on a cliffhanger was the perfect set-up for Disney to order more episodes.”
They continued: “It makes for great television, my fear is this type of stuff is what permanently alters relationships so hopefully they realise what they really signed up for.”
“I’m on episode five and I can’t stop watching – it’s very entertaining,” said a second viewer, while a third remarked: “So obsessed with this show. Just finished the first three eps. It’s structured amazing. I love the narration and fourth wall breaks/lack of fourth wall. I need a million more episodes.”
House of Stassi is now streaming on Hulu in the USA. It premieres in the UK on August 12 on Disney+
Spanish airport to CLOSE for six days to repair runway with all flights cancelled
A SPANISH airport will close for nearly a week as part of a major renovation.
Almeria Airport in Spain is set to shut down for six days to upgrade its runway.
The closure is set to take place in February 2028, with all scheduled flights cancelled.
This is part of a longer 19-month €29million (£24.8million) project to upgrade the entire airport.
However, during this period there will be work at night between 10:45pm and 7:10am the following day.
Between these hours, flights will be impacted as well.
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Aena – Spain‘s airports operator – has already notified airlines that operate at the airport, including Ryanair, easyJet and Iberia.
The airlines will now have to reschedule flights or divert the routes to other airports.
Flights from Almeria Airport to the UK, including to Birmingham, London Southend, Liverpool, Manchester, Bristol and Leeds Bradford.
The revamp will mark the first work on the runway in 20 years.
Other parts of the project included improving the taxiways, as well as upgrading over 600 lights and replacing 34 directional signs.
The airport is around a 15-minute drive from Almeria city centre in the Andalusia region of Spain.
Each year, the airport handles up to 800,000 passengers.
Of which, Brits make up between 55 and 70 per cent of travellers.
Newport County name Fulham U21 coach Hayden Mullins as new manager
Newport were four points adrift of safety in the fourth tier when Fuchs was named as Dave Hughes’ successor in November last year.
The Austrian guided Newport to survival in League Two, but left the club on the eve of their return for pre-season ahead of the 2026-27 campaign.
The arrival of Mullins means it is the third successive summer that there has been a managerial change at Rodney Parade.
He is also the fourth permanent boss appointed by owner Huw Jenkins since his January 2024 takeover of the club, following Nelson Jardim, Hughes and Fuchs in the hot seat.
Former England Under-21 international Mullins – who also played for Reading, Birmingham City and Notts County – moved into coaching within Watford’s youth system in 2016.
Having managed the Hornets’ under-23s, he twice took temporary charge of Watford’s senior team, following the exits of Quique Sánchez Flores and Nigel Pearson from Vicarage Road.
Mullins joined Colchester United as an assistant in 2020 and – following a stint as interim boss – took permanent charge of the U’s in May 2021, but was sacked less than a year later.
He went on to have a brief stint in charge of the Turks and Caicos Islands national team in 2023 before joining Fulham as under-21 boss later that year.
In his first campaign in charge, Mullins led the young Cottagers to Premier League Cup glory with a 4-0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur Under-21s in the final.
4 bodies found, 6 climbers still missing after Broad Peak avalanche
July 31 (UPI) — Rescue crews searching for 10 missing mountaineers following an avalanche on Pakistan’s Broad Peak mountain found four bodies, officials said Friday.
The expedition was led by renowned mountaineer Nirmal Pruja and included American climber and wellness entrepreneur Mallory Geis.
Maj. Gen. Irfan Arshad Khan, president of the Alpine Club of Pakistan, said in a statement posted on Instagram on Friday that the bodies had been located.
“Search-and-rescue operations remain ongoing, and we urge the public to await verified updates before drawing conclusions,” the club said in a separate statement.
“The Alpine Club of Pakistan extends its continued thoughts to the climbers and their families during this difficult time.”
The club did not say whether the bodies had been recovered.
The avalanche occurred midday Thursday on Broad Peak, which at 26,401 feet is of the world’s 12th-highest mountain, in Pakistan’s Karakoram mountain range.
The Alpine Club of Pakistan said in a statement that one of its expeditions had gone missing. It was last in communication with the group before the avalanche occurred, it said.
The 10 expeditions members were identified as Purja, Geis, Sohail Sakhi of Pakistan, Wang Zhong of China, Nadhira Ahmed Abdullah Al Harthy of Oman and Nepalese mountaineers Pur Bahadur Gurung, Kili Pemba Sherpa, Nima Sherpa, Nawang Thindu Sherpa and Gyalu Sherpa.
Andy Burnham to give regional mayors share of income tax
Prime Minister Andy Burnham will give all mayors of city regions in England a share of income tax revenue for the first time, as part of his drive to transfer power from Westminster to local leaders.
Burnham will also allow mayors of English strategic authorities to keep some cash from business rates collected in their areas, and gain greater control over services such as housing, transport, skills.
The government has not yet decided the exact portion of taxes mayors will get, with more details to be announced when Chancellor John Healey delivers his first budget in the autumn.
The Conservatives said the plans lacked detail and could lead to areas with weaker economies losing out on funding.
But Burnham said the move would “make good” on his pledge to “bring power home” to “every postcode in the country”.
“Under our plans, more of the taxes raised in a community will stay in that community,” the prime minister added.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, First Secretary of State Louise Haigh said areas would not need mayors to benefit from investment.
She said: “We won’t be imposing mayors to areas that don’t want it but we will be creating strategic authorities in every area of England and they will be able to hold these powers and resources as well.
“They don’t need to have mayors in order to control them or in order to retain a share of their income tax and business rates.”
Strategic authorities bring together local councils to control regional issues such as transport and economic development, with decisions taken collectively by council leaders rather than a single elected mayor.
For example, the Lancashire strategic authority will take in Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council, Blackpool Council and Lancashire County Council, which form the Lancashire Combined County Authority area, despite the area not having a mayor.
Haigh added: “Vast swathes of England don’t have strategic authorities or mayors and today’s blueprint will set out that roadmap for every area of England to be covered by strategic authorities that will ultimately be able to retain a proportion of their income tax, business rates and set an overnight visitor levy should they wish, so they can generate revenue and really reinvest it in their local area.”
The power to raise and control tax revenues is highly centralised in the UK, making the country an outlier by international standards.
The share of national taxes collected at a local level in the UK is 5.8%, the lowest in the G7, according to the OECD, external, a global policy forum.
That share is far below that of other countries with large economies such as France (20.4%), Japan (36%), and the US (45.7%).
As it stands, mayors of strategic authorities in England receive most of their funding from central government grants.
During his time as Greater Manchester mayor, Burnham pushed for greater control over tax revenue, rather than having to rely on government grants.
The UK government had already been exploring whether a share of revenue from national taxes could be distributed to metro mayors, before Burnham became prime minister earlier this month.
But in a major speech on devolution in June, Burnham said he would “oversee the biggest rebalancing of power our country has ever seen” if he became prime minister.
Burnham has put devolution at the heart of his plan for government, arguing that metro mayors are best placed to boost economic growth across the country.
Emmerdale drops major summer spoilers – truth exposed, dramatic return and health scare
Emmerdale is preparing for a huge summer surrounding some of the soap’s biggest female characters including Charity, Sadie, Dawn, Sarah, Gabby and Serena
Emmerdale is all about strong women this summer
Emmerdale’s strong female characters will take centre stage this summer in a string of big storylines.
The ITV soap has promised a huge summer for some of the biggest characters, with explosive secrets being revealed, new alliances forming and devastating consequences.
For fan favourite Charity (Emma Atkins), there is much drama ahead as her lies catch up with her. With Charity desperate to protect her family, she falls deeper in the lies that the baby she carried belongs to her and Ross Barton.
With everything she holds dear at risk, a confession comes – and the secret she reveals threatens to shake the entire village to the core, with devastating scenes set to air for the wider Dingle family.
Sarah, played by Katie Hill, will struggle to cope when she gets pushed to the edge by devastating news. Her world could come crumbling down if she learns the truth about where her and Jacob’s daughter Leyla’s true parentage lies.
It is bad news for Dawn – played by Olivia Bromley – who finds herself caught in the crossfire of a terrifying feud. She seems happy with Joe Tate and her new family, but things take a turn for the worse.
As her wedding day approaches, she’s trapped and needs to make a huge choice. A present life as it is now, or the hope of finally having the future she wants for her and her family.
New arrival Serena (Casey Al-Shaqsy) has caused quite the star since she showed up as the newest member of the Sugden family. She faces more drama this summer, and needs to decide how much she will face to lose to protect her biggest secret.
Gabby – played by Rosie Bentham – has always been the centre of some big storylines in the Dales, but this summer, she is struggling to keep things under control. Her health will be devastatingly impacted by her struggles and her life is at risk.
She is faced with the biggest moral decision of her life when a terrible incident takes place. Will she destroy the lives of the people she cares about with her terrifying decision?
There’s also a huge return for Patsy Kensit’s character Sadie, who has quite the agenda when she waltzes back into the Dales. Armed with a big surprise, she has a secret to tell, and the village will be left reeling.
Emmerdale Producer, Laura Shaw, teased: “From explosive secrets that shatter lives to dangerous new allegiances that threaten to tear the village apart, this season promises to be one of our most intense yet. The village is set for a dramatic transformation, and we can’t wait for our audience to see the peril these characters face.”
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Franco Baresi: AC Milan and Italy great dies aged 66
Franco Baresi has died at the age of 66, with AC Milan saying their former captain’s “example and integrity will be forever etched into the club’s DNA”.
Baresi spent his entire 20-year playing career with the club from 1977 until he retired in 1997, winning six Serie A titles and three European Cups/Champions Leagues.
Regarded as one of the greatest defenders to play the game, Baresi captained Milan for 15 seasons, making 719 appearances and scoring 33 goals.
He was capped 81 times by Italy and was part of the squad which won the 1982 World Cup. He played in the 1994 final, which Italy lost to Brazil.
In 2020, Baresi became honorary vice-president of AC Milan, with the club retiring his number six shirt four years later.
Baresi had surgery in August 2025 to remove a lung nodule, and his last public appearance was at the San Siro Stadium for the Winter Olympics opening ceremony in February.
In a statement on X, AC Milan wrote: “Milan is in tears following the passing of Franco Baresi. His example and integrity will be forever etched into the club’s DNA, just as his iconic number 6 shirt is.”