Feb. 19 (UPI) — More than 1,000 Kenyans and other Africans have been deployed by Russia to fight in Ukraine after being recruited by “rogue” agencies that some accuse of human trafficking, a Kenyan intelligence report indicates.

Kenya’s National Intelligence Service on Wednesday reported the number of Kenyans deployed by the Russian military rose from more than 200 in November to more than 1,000 now.

The report indicates at least 89 of those deployed in Russia were serving on the front lines. At least one has died and others have returned to Kenya with injuries or mental trauma.

Kimani Ichung’wah, majority leader of the Kenyan Parliament, blamed a network of corrupt state officials whom he accused of cooperating with human traffickers to provide the Russian military with Kenyans to fight in Ukraine.

Staff at the Russian Embassy in Nairobi and the Kenyan Embassy in Moscow also helped Russia to recruit Kenyans, the Kenyan lawmaker said.

The Russian Embassy denied the allegation and said it never has issued visas to Kenyans to travel to Russia to participate in military operations.

Ichung’wah said many of those fighting for Russia are civilians and former police officers and military personnel ranging in age from their mid-20s to 50 and seeking overseas job opportunities, The Guardian reported.

Russia allegedly is paying them a monthly salary of about $2,700 plus housing and offering bonuses and Russian citizenship for their service.

Kenya is not the only African nation that has citizens allegedly fighting for Russia.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha in November alleged more than 1,400 Africans from 36 countries were deployed by the Russian military to fight in Ukraine.

Many of those soldiers are being held as prisoners of war in Ukraine, Sybiha said.

Russia invaded Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, and has resisted peace overtures despite participating in ongoing peace talks.

The Palestinian prisoners in Israel’s Shatta Prison are medically neglected and enduring unprecedented maltreatment, the Palestinian Commission of Detainees’ and Ex-Detainees’ Affairs said on Thursday.

The Commission described the conditions of the Palestinian prisoners in Shatta as “horrifying,” reported the Palestinian Information Centre. “They are exposed constantly to brutal beatings and pepper spray attacks, and served raw and unsalted food.”

According to the Commission’s lawyer who visited the prisoners in Shatta recently, they are medically neglected and not provided with any treatment. The lawyer specifically mentioned Waleed Musallam, who suffers from severe psoriasis, and Fadi Raddad, who has been suffering from sharp pains in his back and right shoulder since Israeli jailers assaulted him.

The detainees appealed to rights groups to intervene with the Israel Prison Service to allow them to practice their religious rituals during the holy month of Ramadan without restrictions, to improve the quality of food, and to provide them with copies of the Holy Qur’an and clocks.

READ: Hundreds of Palestinians, including children and women, released from Israeli jails

It began with Beethoven.

Bright yellow T-shirts reading, in raspberry type, “¡Bienvenido Gustavo!” marked Gustavo Dudamel’s first concert as music director of the Los Angeles Philharmonic the first Saturday afternoon of October 2009 at the Hollywood Bowl. Eighteen thousand tickets were distributed free for a performance of Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, an Angeleno “Ode to Joy” broadcast worldwide. The exultant young Venezuelan conductor’s message was: There is no North, South or Central America. We are one.

We are now in “Gracias Gustavo” season, and times, we are daily reminded, they are a-changin’. But what remains consistent is that Dudamel begins again, in the first month of his six-month homestretch as L.A. Phil music director, by dwelling on the composer he says has meant the most to him since his earliest days as a kid conductor in Caracas. His first major recording boasted startlingly propulsive performances of Beethoven’s Fifth and Seventh Symphonies, with the uproarious Simón Bolívar Youth Orchestra of Venezuela, recorded 20 years ago this month. In August, Dudamel will end his L.A. Phil tenure as he began it, with Beethoven’s Ninth at the Bowl.

Through these two decades, thick and COVID-lockdown thin, Beethoven has been Dudamel’s composer of uplift. This weekend he confronts, for the first time, Beethoven’s daunting mystical and mystifying “Missa Solemnis.” In following weeks, he will pair Beethoven symphonies with two of the most arresting and original of the dozens of new works he has premiered in Los Angeles — Gabriela Ortiz’ Glitter Revolution ballet score, “Revolución Diamantina,” and the first part of Thomas Adès “Dante” ballet.

To begin the Beethoven month at Walt Disney Concert Hall, however, Dudamel turned to another Beethoven work that has long obsessed him, the rarely heard complete incidental to Goethe’s tragedy, “Egmont,” which has the ever-relevant theme that matters most to Dudamel — the profound joy that arises from victory over injustice. For this, he had the assistance of actress Cate Blanchett and playwright Jeremy O. Harris.

Here, too, Beethoven serves as a musical, spiritual and political touchstone. “Egmont” comes in the middle of Beethoven’s career, his heroic period. The historic Egmont was a Flemish general, a hero to his people in the Netherlands who attempts to serve the 16th ^{century Spanish emperor, Philip II, and rife for Goethe’s romanticizing. A remarkable polymath, Goethe himself served as an advisor to Weimar’s Grand Duke, brilliantly balancing political compromises with literature’s highest spiritual callings. He admired the spirit of liberty, for instance, yet opposed the French Revolution and supported Napoleon, believing that ensuing populist disorder would then, as it turned out, require autocracy.}

Goethe’s Egmont must learn to love before he can act to defend his people against Philip. The hero goes to his death at the point of self-realization that only in sacrifice may he ascend to and become a symbol for glory.

In the play, which begins as historic epic and becomes, for Goethe, increasing personal and interior, Egmont gains perspective on the complexities of his place in politics by contemplating nature and being. Among Goethe’s many passions were scientific study. He immersed himself in the natural world and befriended the pioneering German environmentalist, Alexander von Humboldt.

It could, thus, have been hardly coincidence that Dudamel opened the program with the premiere of “Humboldt’s Nature” by Venezuelan composer Ricardo Lorenz. The five-part, 25-minute symphonic poem for a large orchestra rife with percussion follows Humboldt’s account of his journey to Venezuela in 1799.

Symphonic glitter sets the stage of New Andalusia. Guacharo birds shriek. Latin rhythms take us to coastal regions. Sandy percussion accompanies a journey up the Orinoco River. Throughout, Lorenz’s orchestra, imaginatively colored, reflects vast nature. But the score ends with the shock of humanity, as Humboldt encounters enslaved Cubans.

The one thing Goethe lacked was a sophisticated ear for music (and possibly sound). But Humbolt’s account could practically be the starting place for Beethoven’s “Egmont,” begun a decade after the Venezuelan encounter. In the popular overture, elicitation of tumult concludes, with startling exhilaration, in the kind of grand Beethovenian triumph that never fails to excite. The incidental music, though, offers needed theatrical context. That includes two songs for Egmont’s love, Klärchen, four entr’actes, a melodrama for Egmont as he approaches his execution and, powerfully as only Beethoven can, a battle cry.

Goethe has never lost relevance. Matthew Bell’s new biography, “Goethe’: A Life in Ideas,” has given Germany’s Shakespeare new attention. One of the greatest plays of our time, Tom Stoppard’s “Arcadia,” confronts Goethe’s “Elective Affinities” with our own elective affinities. One of the greatest operas of our time, John Adams’ “Doctor Atomic,” contemplates the creation of nuclear weapons as the functioning of a latter-day Faust, Goethe’s most lasting creation.

“Egmont,” too, readily speaks to us and it has been on Dudamel’s agenda for years. While performances of the complete play with the incidental music are rare, a half-hour concert version, also rare but less so, proves effective. Dudamel did it with the Berlin Philharmonic in June, a performance of which can be viewed on the orchestra’s Digital Concert Hall. The narrator is a young Austrian actor, Felix Kammerer, who is riveting (as he is in Guillermo del Toro’s “Frankenstein”). He adds a slight introduction revealing Egmont’s indecisiveness, but otherwise sticks to Goethe.

Cate Blanchett narrates Beethoven’s incidental music to “Egmont” with Gustavo Dudamel conducting the Los Angeles Philharmonic at Walt Disney Concert Hall.

(Elizabeth Asher / Los Angeles Philharmonic)

Harris, who is the author of “Slave Play,” has other elective affinities. He has created a new, effusively angry text for Blanchett. It begins as a dirge. Battalions are gathered on the banks of Portland, Ore.; Bethlehem; Charlotte, N.C.; Tehran; Minneapolis; Brussels. The Egmont Harris references is the historical one, not Goethe’s. The text become a bald call for action.

Much of it was lost to the audience, since reverberant amplification gave heroic heft to Blanchett’s voice at the cost of intelligibility. But her intensity, whether seated on the lip of the stage, where she begins, or standing in the organ loft where she winds up at the end, spoke for itself.

Beethoven’s music improves Goethe, extracting its humanity and frailty, and Dudamel’s performance probed its profound inevitability of good triumphing over evil. Soprano Elena Villalón added lithe touch to Klärchen’s songs, sung in their original German.

But Beethoven can do little for Harris’ and Blanchett‘s agitprop. Theirs is the necessity of the moment to act rather than indulge an Egmont who has to feel before he can respond. Although Blanchett was the joyless conductor in the film “Tár,” her curious little dance in the organ loft at the moment of musical triumph may have meant recovered joy or simply that the world, in which we are no longer one, has gone crazy.

Equally peculiar was a performance of Schumann’s Piano Concerto that served as transition from “Humboldt” to “Egmont.” One of the concerto highlights of Dudamel’s music directorship in L.A. is a performance, eight years ago, of the concerto’s mood-shifting eloquence, for which he and Mitsuko Uchida were in wondrous accord.

This time, the soloist was the stellar emerging pianist Yunchan Lim, who keeps to himself, either lost in dreamy reverie or, like a jumpy teenager, in ferocious attack mode. Having little choice, Dudamel let Lim be. Like Egmont, Lim’s glory may one day arrive when he can express purpose for his actions.

An interesting debate about the past two months centers on the extent to which Delcy Rodríguez is finding her new seat comfortable. There are areas where she feels like a smooth operator (or a yes-woman for Rubio and Trump) and levers she can’t yet pull without finding resistance from her old comrades.

One can sense she isn’t too bothered driving Trump’s energy agenda. As Maduro’s economic vice president and oil minister, the last few years saw Delcy spend serious amounts of energy lobbying for sanctions relief, engaging with consecutive US governments, and maneuvering to bring in new players to the oil industry. Experts still cast doubt on her  ability to reinvigorate an economy and energy sector that still requires an institutional revamp much broader than a single piece of legislation. 

The issue is not the written rules themselves, but that the chefs in Washington DC are currently rebuilding the restaurant with the same cooks who, no matter how new the pots and pans, will sooner or later revert to the habits that made the kitchen a pigsty to begin with.

Sure, steps are being taken to move on the economic trajectory the US has imposed. In the first 50 days of the so-called “new political moment,” we have a new energy law, a US Treasury account holding Venezuela’s oil revenues, and dollar auctions for private banks at a free exchange rate. Last week, Trump’s Energy Secretary Chris Wright visited the country. In front of him, Chevron boasted of its crown jewels. The US followed up with further sanctions relief, albeit limited and subject to specific authorizations.

In the opposite end, the country still lacks clarity over political trajectory. The puzzle of democratization has hundreds of missing pieces. It’s not just a matter of whether elections will be held and results enforced, with the opposition choosing its candidate, with competitors sitting down to discuss the day after the vote, etc. Every question about freedoms and human rights has come attached to the ifs, buts and maybes of a regime that can’t even agree on the degree of control it gives up or whether politicians will be allowed to behave like politicians. The Guanipa incident suggests the answer is still no. So does the fact that Miguelangel Suárez, the Universidad Central student leader, was chased and spied on hours after last week’s Youth Day protest.

It’s still early, but in the sphere of political liberalization, the mantra from Jorge and Delcy Rodríguez seems to be: raise expectations and fall short.

Big headlines, slow progress

As noted by Camila González in our latest post, the Rodríguez siblings are trying to convey the idea that they’re true political reformers rather than the alleged traitors of the revolución that foreign newspapers obsessed with after January 3. Their messages are simple: we know how bad things are, though we can’t always admit it, we will empty the country’s prisons, we’d like to overhaul the courts.

Delcy’s speech at the Supreme Tribunal on January 30^th is a prime example. Not only did she order the creation of an amnesty statute covering chavismo’s lifespan and the shutdown of El Helicoide. She invoked a “great national consultation” for a new justice system (which likely points at behind-the-scenes discussion the ruling elite and the military are having) before naming some of the issues that make the system so dysfunctional: lacking access to justice, procedural delays, and corruption across the country’s tribunals and prosecutors’ offices. Jorge, more adept at improvising to manipulate different audiences, later said that guys like him need to both “forgive and ask for forgiveness” before describing political prisoners as necessary, “due to the realities, circumstances and the concrete situation of a society.” Three weeks after his remarks, 444 political prisoners have been released. Six hundred are still behind bars.

In theory, the amnesty law should also entail the release of the so-called historic, Chávez-era political prisoners.

These performances seem to align with the tendencies of the biggest external stakeholder in the process, Donald Trump, who has publicly praised Delcy Rodríguez and releases as a powerful humanitarian gesture. But in Venezuelan cliques, the implementation and discourses around these initiatives (brought about under a careful management to shield domestic stakeholders from further pressures) underscore the internal resistance and tensions playing inside chavismo.

The amnesty law, a key landmark of any political transition, would open the door to the return of political figures that includes many of chavismo’s longtime enemies, and perhaps more crucially, confrontation with the consequences of years of having imprisoned military officers subjected to the worst kind of punishments under the high command’s oversight. Foro Penal reports that 185 FANB personnel are still imprisoned. Venezuelan journalist Hernán Lugo Galicia affirms that most of them are National Guards and Army officers, and that only a handful have been released since the process began on January 8.

An amnesty in handcuffs

In theory, this policy should also entail the release of the so-called historic, Chávez-era political prisoners: public officials convicted in trials riddled with irregularities. This group includes Héctor Rovaín, Erasmo Bolívar, and Luis Molina—former officers of the now-defunct Caracas Metropolitan Police accused of shooting demonstrators and supplying weapons to coup participants during the massive anti-Chávez protest of April 11, 2002 (the narrative chavismo used to shield armed colectivos and party leaders from legal responsibility). It also includes Otoniel, Juan Bautista, and Rolando Guevara, three police agents convicted for the murder of Danilo Anderson, the prosecutor investigating the planning of the 2002 coup.

These cases are deeply symbolic for the regime: the conviction of the Metropolitan Police officers helped cast blame on a handful of supposedly putschist cops while insulating the Chávez government from responsibility for the violent deaths. The Guevara case, meanwhile, appears designed to silence the controversy and corruption that surfaced during investigations into the events of 2002.

Releasing the históricos (who go back to a time where Delcy and Jorge Rodríguez were not in politics) would be an admission that chavismo engaged in political persecution early on, tearing down the myth of one of its martyrs in Anderson and the Policías Metropolitanos as the sole rotten apples of 2002. Releasing FANB members, many in terrible shape because of mistreatment and prolonged isolation, would of course add another layer of pressure to a military high command embarrassed by the American incursion that killed dozens of subordinates and captured the commander-in-chief, not to mention the array of testimonies and revelations that a decision like that could start to induce. Interior Minister Cabello is well aware of that, and sounds resolute in his opposition to the release of those accused of plotting or rebelling in arms.

The amnesty bill is now stuck. Chavista lawmakers don’t yet agree on the contents of Article 7, which commands dissidents charged with relevant crimes, many of which went in hiding or fled the country, to turn themselves in in order to become amnesty beneficiaries.

Reality suggests that supposed moderates still fall short, unable to break from the dominant logic of  fear and control.

“They said they didn’t do anything. Not lobbying for sanctions, not cheering at the (US) intervention. The amnesty is about acknowledging mistakes,” Iris Varela recently said in a pro-chavista podcast. “If you want both an amnesty and to return to the country, then come over here, prove you were under persecution, and get the amnesty.”

Varela is one of the lawmakers in charge of the amnesty project, but she is known as a radical chavista for more than 20 years. After her intervention in the National Assembly last week, Jorge Rodriguez decided to adjourn the discussion arguing that the minority bloc led by Henrique Capriles had requested further amendments.

Therein lies another distinction in the official choreography surrounding the amnesty saga. Even if all chavista voices ultimately recycle the same talking points about sovereignty, malign NGOs, and chavismo as the guarantor of peace, their performances differ in tone and posture. While figures such as Diosdado Cabello and Iris Varela maintain an unyielding stance toward traditional opponents, more civilian-facing chavista actors are attempting to stage a process in which civil society groups ostensibly have a say in shaping the amnesty bill.

Representatives from leading human rights organizations such as Provea and Foro Penal attended a meeting with the parliamentary Domestic Policy Committee, shortly after Professors Guillermo Aveledo (Universidad Metropolitana) and Juan Carlos Apitz (Universidad Central de Venezuela) were allowed to criticize and question the extent to which reforms are actually in motion, while in the same room as Jorge Rodríguez and Nicolás Maduro Guerra.

These meetings may well be cosmetic, and are unlikely to determine the final legal outcome, but they appear designed to position certain chavista officials within a “moderate” camp: figures supposedly willing to build bridges with the opposition and entertain uncomfortable truths, even if their broader script remains unchanged.

Reality suggests that supposed moderates still fall short, unable to break from the dominant logic of  fear and control. After what appeared to be a staged embrace with relatives of political prisoners, the promise by Jorge Rodríguez to release all detainees held at the PNB jail in Boleíta, eastern Caracas, is yet to materialize. Meanwhile, Jorge Arreaza, who heads the Internal Policy Committee, recently offered little beyond justifying Guanipa’s re-arrest as relatives of victims and journalists pressed him for answers about the release process.

Scenes like these—Rodríguez, however calculated the gesture, appearing outside a political prison, and Arreaza being publicly challenged and scrutinized in the streets—would have been inconceivable just a year ago. They are a novelty in the politics of late-stage chavismo. But novelty is not reform. Such gestures are unlikely to persuade a skeptical public that a genuine shift is underway. Again, emphasis appears to rest more on optics than on tangible results.

Perfume and polish for the security sector

The Interior Ministry is still in Cabello’s hands, with top cops and allies running the main security agencies: Douglas Rico at CICPC, his cousin Alexis Rodriguez Cabello at SEBIN, and his old pal Gustavo González López now commanding both Delcy’s security ring and the fearsome DGCIM (his predecessor was fired after the US captured Maduro and Cilia Flores). Colonel Alexander Granko, who became the face of state violence in the 2020s, remains DGCIM’s special ops star, but has kept a low profile in recent weeks.

Having said that, recent moves suggest that Delcy Rodríguez retains an interest in the structure and functions of a security apparatus she does not fully control—and is willing to upgrade and trim it where possible. On February 9, the government officially dissolved the Strategic Center for Security and Protection of the Homeland (CESSPA), the intelligence body tasked with monitoring “foreign and domestic enemy activity” by centralizing data from all state security organs. Its shutdown came with the elimination of six social missions dating back to the Chávez and Maduro periods.

Senior politicians close to the opposition leader—Guanipa, Perkins Rocha, and Freddy Superlano—remain under house arrest. The amnesty law, scheduled for discussion tonight, would be entirely incompatible with that fact.

Earlier, flanked by senior chavista leaders and military generals, Rodríguez announced the creation of a new intelligence body: the National Office for Defense and Cybersecurity, conceived as a hub “where Venezuela’s scientists and technology experts should come together to defend our cyberspace.” She appointed Gabriela Jiménez to lead it, a biologist who previously served as Science and Technology Minister and was part of chavismo’s delegation during the Mexico negotiations. In August 2024, Jiménez had already alleged that the National Electoral Council (CNE) and dozens of Venezuelan institutions were the target of cyberattacks in the context of the July 28 presidential vote.

Delcy may have already taken a step toward the state goal of reforming the judicial system. This month, the National Assembly approved an amendment to the statute governing the CICPC, emphasizing clearer chains of command and defining officers’ roles in criminal investigations. In a country where the scientific police (whether the CICPC or its predecessor, the Policía Técnica Judicial) has long exercised outsized influence over the justice system, the reform does sound interesting. It doesn’t undo Chávez-era decrees that subordinate judges and prosecutors to intelligence bodies rather than positioning them as institutional checks. Whether this marks the beginning of deeper changes with chavismo in power also remains to be seen.

Information remains scarce and, now more than ever, the country’s future is being discussed behind closed doors, with few listening in—such as yesterday’s meeting between Southern Command chief Francis Donovan and Delcy Rodríguez, Cabello, and Vladimir Padrino López. Our latest Political Risk Report indicates that María Corina Machado’s return to Venezuela featured prominently in conversations between Secretary Wright and Delcy last week. That development would not only deepen tensions within chavismo, but also test the resilience of the supposed transition now being pursued.

Senior politicians close to the opposition leader—Guanipa, Perkins Rocha, and Freddy Superlano—remain under house arrest. The amnesty law, scheduled for discussion tonight, would be entirely incompatible with that fact. We will soon see how far the so-called moderate lawmakers are willing (or able) to push it.

SheGulls, representing fans of WSL club Brighton & Hove Albion, had suggested seeding “elite level teams” would only widen the gulf in quality across the game.

“The sporting merit in our game is slowly being eroded in favour of ‘super matches’ between elite level teams,” the fan group wrote on X.

“The rich will only get richer and teams up and down the pyramid will fade into obscurity with the knowledge that without tens of millions of pounds, they won’t even sniff the big time.”

Fulham Women Supporters’ Club, whose side play in the fourth tier, labelled it a “ridiculous idea” and added: “[It] goes against all the principles of the FA Cup. I’d like to see WSL teams actually come in a round early.”

“And there goes the magic of the FA Cup! Subway Cup [League Cup] is a farce, now this?” added Everton Women’s Official Supporters Club.

“All about the money. Didn’t take long to ruin the women’s game too did it…”

The Women’s FA Cup currently follows the same format as the men’s competition, with a draw following each round.

There is a preliminary round and three qualifying rounds featuring teams from tiers four to seven of the pyramid, with Women’s National League teams entering in the first-round proper, WSL2 teams in the third round and sides from the top division a round later.

The proposals came to light less than a fortnight after a major revamp of the Women’s League Cup was announced, with the competition set to get a new name and follow the format of the Champions League from the group stage next season.

“Another gateway to the occupation of Palestine.” Many Palestinians in Gaza reacted to the inaugural meeting of Donald Trump’s so-called “Board of Peace” with deep scepticism, seeing it as a way to further Israel’s illegal occupation of the territory.

Donald Trump announces pledges to a Gaza reconstruction fund during the first meeting of his Board of Peace.

Donald Trump has told the first meeting of his Board of Peace that nine member nations have pledged $7bn to a reconstruction fund for the Gaza Strip, with five countries agreeing to deploy troops to an international stabilisation force for the Palestinian territory.

Addressing the board in a meeting in Washington, DC, on Thursday, the United States president said the US will make a contribution of $10bn to the Board of Peace, although he didn’t specify what the money will be used for.

Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, the United Arab Emirates, Morocco, Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan and Kuwait have raised an initial down payment for Gaza reconstruction, Trump said.

“Every dollar spent is an investment in stability and the hope of a new and harmonious [region],” said Trump. He added, “The Board of Peace is showing how a better future can be built right here in this room.”

The funds pledged, while significant, represent a fraction of the estimated $70bn needed to rebuild the Palestinian territory that has been decimated after more than two years of Israel’s genocidal war.

Proposed stabilisation force

Meanwhile, Indonesia, Morocco, Kazakhstan, Kosovo and Albania have pledged to send troops for the Gaza stabilisation force, part of Trump’s 20-point plan to end Israel’s war on Gaza. Egypt and Jordan have committed to training police officers.

Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto announced his country would contribute up to 8,000 troops to the proposed force “to make this peace work”.

The force, led by a US general with an Indonesian deputy, will start in the Israeli-controlled city of Rafah and train a new police force, eventually aiming to prepare 12,000 police and have 20,000 troops.

While the disarmament of Hamas was a part of Trump’s 20-point plan for Gaza, the group has been reluctant to hand over weaponry as Israel continues to carry out daily attacks on Gaza.

Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem said any international force must “monitor the ceasefire and prevent the [Israeli] occupation from continuing its aggression.” Disarmament could be discussed, he said, without directly committing to it.

Trump first proposed the board last September as part of his plan to end the war. But since the October “ceasefire”, Trump’s vision for the board has morphed, and he wants it to have an even more ambitious remit to tackle other conflicts worldwide.

The board has faced criticism for including Israeli representatives but not Palestinians.

Reporting from Gaza City, Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud said that Palestinians want to see concrete solutions rather than pledges.

“Past experiences with conferences, with regard to reconstruction, with regard to the peace process, all ended up with large needs for funding that were delayed or [plans] that were not implemented,” he said.

“Palestinians don’t want to see this again; they don’t want to see the Board of Peace as another international body that falls into the category of crisis management rather than finding a tangible solution to this longstanding problem, the Palestinian problem,” Mahmoud noted.

More than 40 countries and the European Union confirmed they were sending officials to Thursday’s meeting. Germany, Italy, Norway, Switzerland and the United Kingdom are among more than a dozen countries that have not joined the board, but are taking part as observers.

★★★★★ Man on the Run, a documentary directed by Academy Award winner Morgan Neville, chronicles Paul McCartney’s post-Beatles solo career with previously unseen footage

Sir Paul McCartney gave director Morgan Neville a blank piece of paper and told him ‘no notes’ after watching documentary Man on the Run for the first time.

Ahead of it being unleashed to fans next week, The Beatles legend has found a few more words to describe the two-hour film calling it ‘madcap’, ’embarrassing’ at times and often ‘overwhelming’ to watch, “But I come out of it thinking, ‘Yeah I’m OK,” says Paul at a very special screening.

The room of family, friends and rock royalty certainly agree. Paul Weller, Noel Gallagher and Sharon Osbourne are among those turning out to the film’s UK debut on a rainy night in Soho. Actor Paul Mescal, who is playing the mop-topped musician at the peak of Beatles-mania in a brand new four part film release, is also in attendance at the Ham Yard hotel.

While Mescal could be seen to be doing his homework, this brand new documentary from Academy Award winner Neville focuses on Paul’s life as he navigates the demise of the Fab Four and the ascension of Wings in its wake.

So what do you do when you quit the biggest band the world has ever seen? If you’re Paul McCartney you start another one.

Paul admits his boundless enthusiasm has led him into trouble at times, but turning a group of musicians practising at a remote farmhouse into a credible 70s rock band makes a gripping plotline for this joyous documentary showcasing a fascinating upheaval in his life, alongside a great love of his life.

Much of the never before seen clips that tell Paul’s story in intimate and raw detail are are thanks to his late wife Linda.

‘Next to a presidential library, Paul McCartney has the best personal archives,’ Neville was told of his subject before they set to work. “It also helped that Paul married a photographer because Linda takes pictures of everything and there are so many home movies too,” the grateful filmmaker says at a Q+A following the screening. “I thought I lost it all,” Paul says. “You know this was the 60s and 70s, you’d have a lot of break ins, you didn’t really bother locking your door too much. Fans would come in and nick a load of stuff. It was how it was. I kind of automatically just thought it’s all gone, but the kids at my office were fantastic. They looked in every little storage unit and every little drawer and they found it all and logged it. There’s amazing stuff there.”

For Paul, the most special memories he sees on screen are the moments of him and late wife Linda together.

“Seeing me and Linda interacting is very special because you know she’s not here anymore. It’s me and Linda, the kids. The music. Me and John. These memories it’s like a life flashing in front of you. There are so many cool things. All the stuff with the kids and Linda is lovely to see. Obviously it’s emotional because she looks so beautiful. She’s so cool.”

Daughter Stella who is in the theatre gives an approving cheer from her seat. “So that comes over,” notes Paul. “You know and the kids aren’t little anymore and they have kids of their own now.”

Paul married New York photographer Linda in March 1969, in a quiet civil ceremony at Marylebone Register Office in London with Ringo Starr among a select group of guests. Less than a year later, after a decade together the four Beatles went their separate ways – which for Paul was straight to a remote 183 acre farm on the Kintyre Peninsula in Scotland.

Talking on camera, a now 83-year-old Paul says all he wanted to do after the Beatles finished was ‘grow up’. Months into setting up his young family into chaotic country living, the call to create music couldn’t be ignored even from his rural retreat.

First came debut album McCartney, followed up months later by 1971’s Ram as he formed a double act with Linda.

“What am I doing singing with Paul McCartney?” Linda asks in the early home footage, admitting she can’t sing and could play only one note on the keyboard. “It’s a start,” Paul replies.

Ram was released just as Paul launched legal action to dissolve the Beatles’ partnership. It was poorly received. Undeterred, Paul set about forming a larger group this time recruiting Denny Laine, a friend from his time in 60s rock group the Moody Blues to join him and Linda. The trio took on more members, naming themselves Wings as they recorded experimental new material and set off to play in the type of tiny venues that had become a distant memory for superstar Paul.

“We’d show up at universities, not bother to book hotels, just take the kids and dogs in a van and for some reason we thought that was a great idea,” says Paul.

But at the start the enthusiasm was not reciprocated. The band were initially received as a ‘dud’ from fans and critics, with even Paul’s collaborator Lennon mocking his music.

After an early mauling from the industry who had once revered him, it was a slow road to success before Wings’ live shows developed into must-see tours and they produced some of the biggest selling singles and albums of the decade, including number one hit Mull Of Kintyre, Jet, Silly Love Songs and Live And Let Die, the theme to the 1973 James Bond film of the same title.

Paul said Linda’s responses to his boundless energy continues to inspire him today. “Anything crazy I would say, ‘Should I do that? Could I do that?’ And she’d say ‘Yeah, it’s allowed!’ It’s a great philosophy to have.”

The film is not just a family portrait, but also an insight into Paul’s complicated relationship with Lennon. Paul admits he felt he was punished most for the demise of the band and even bought into the blame himself.

“I thought that’s the kind of bastard I am, it leaves you in this kind of no man’s land, but the truth, John had come in one day and said he was leaving The Beatles, he said, ‘it’s kind of exciting, it’s like telling someone you want a divorce’.”

The film also sees Paul reflect on John’s ‘diss track’ about him following their break-up, How Do You Sleep?, which featured on 1971’s Imagine album with the Plastic Ono Band.

“The only thing you did was Yesterday (one of the song’s lyrics), was apparently (former Beatles manager) Allen Klein’s suggestion, but (at) the back of my mind I was thinking, ‘but all I ever did was Yesterday, Let It Be, The Long And Winding Road, Eleanor Rigby, Lady Madonna, f*** you, John,” says Paul. “How do I sleep at night? Well, actually, quite well, but you’ve got to remember, I’d known John since he was a teenager, and that’s kind of what I loved about John. He’s a crazy son of a bitch, he’s a lovely, lovely, crazy guy.”

Paul says one of his ‘greatest blessings’ is that he got to reconcile with John before his death in December 1980. Their children recall the last meeting of the two families in John’s New York City apartment, as ‘one big reunion’.

Stella and sister Mary also recall hearing the fateful moment Paul got the call that his best friend was gone. Stella says she heard a wave of commotion before seeing her dad rush out of their home and out onto the farm alone. The famous ‘Drag, isn’t it?’ clip of Paul reacting publicly to John’s death is shown in the film with Sean Ono Lennon defending the response as coming from a place of pure shock and grief, far from the Paul he recognised.

Reflecting on the period of life captured in the archive film, photo and audio recordings, Paul says: “It’s a heck of a story. It would be nice if people took away the fact that in my craziness and my enthusiasm, we stuck with it and we made it work. There’s something brave about that. It didn’t have to work out, you know, but it did.”

Giving their verdict immediately after the London premiere are two men who know exactly what it’s like to launch a solo career in the shadow of an iconic British band. Noel Gallagher and Paul Weller spoke to the Mirror following the screening. Weller hailed the movie as ‘fantastic.’ “It’s great to see that period of time ,the early 70s again, on screen like that.” Lifelong Beatles fan Gallagher called the project ‘amazing’ as the theatre lights came up.

Sharon Osbourne, who also posed for photos with Paul ahead of the screening, said she could see a movie of late husband Ozzy’s life being depicted on screen one day and was moved to tears by the film at several points. “It was incredible… very emotional. Especially the family moments with Linda. It was beautiful.”

*Paul McCartney Man On The Run airs on Prime Video on February 27*

With its own onsite pub and nine acres of land, Weetwood Hall Hotel is a proper Northern retreat.

Even though parts date back to the Tudor period, all mod-cons are taken care of – so here’s everything you need to know.

Where is Weetwood Hall Hotel?

Weetwood Hall Hotel is just five miles from Leeds city centre and on a direct bus route to all the main attractions.  

The hotel’s large car park, free for residence, lends itself to road trip adventures.

If you’re in town for one of the many sporting events Leeds plays host to, Weetwood is well placed being 2 miles from Headingley Stadium and 6 miles from Elland Road.

What is the hotel like?

This four-star hotel gives you a proper Yorkshire welcome, and the friendly staff are on hand for all your needs.

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It is built around a gorgeous 17th-century Jacobean manor house, set in nine acres of peaceful woodlands with its own traditional pub.

Parts date back to 1540, so it has real history – but it’s been thoughtfully updated into a modern hotel with quirky style.

It’s a nice balance of historic charm and modern convenience.

What are the rooms like?

You’ve got solid options. Signature rooms are comfortable and well-appointed, or upgrade to one of the king rooms, which really deliver on atmosphere with four-poster beds and period features.

Fast WiFi, proper amenities, and comfortable beds make for a good night’s sleep. 

Standard rooms cost from £31.05pp based on two sharing. See weetwood.co.uk.

What is there to do?

Weetwood’s Stables Pub has real character – it’s housed in the original horse stables and makes for atmospheric evening drinks.

It’s a cosy drinking hole serving traditional English beers and Yorkshire gin, plus there are big screens for watching sports.

For sunny days, there’s also outdoor seating in a lovely large courtyard. 

Once you’ve unpacked, why not take a ride on the little yellow water taxi (£3 per person per trip) to the free Royal Armouries Museum where Henry VIII’s and an elephant’s armour is on display.

Harewood House, one of the Treasure Houses of England, is an 18 minute drive away.

What is there to eat and drink?

The breakfast was delightful, with hot and cold options plus a very popular pancake station.

Convive Restaurant handles dinner with classic British dishes and cocktails, while afternoon tea costs £32.50 per person. 

At the onsite Stables pub, sample some of the many varieties of Yorkshire gin that are on offer.

Is the hotel family friendly?

For a family getaway, book one of the Weetwood’s family rooms with space for up to 4 people.

Make sure to ring ahead to organise a travel cot for the little ones.

Furry friends are welcome for a service charge of £25 per stay.

Is there access for guests with disabilities?

Fully accessible rooms are available and equipped with an adjustable electric bed, wet room and orthopaedic raised seating.

A long-awaited set of reports on how to build a fire-resilient Pacific Palisades, commissioned by Los Angeles city officials for $5 million, found that much of the hilly enclave remains out of compliance with standards for evacuating during a disaster.

The reports, by the city and the global infrastructure firm AECOM, also recommended that the city complete significant brush clearance work, bolster its water system and move electrical wires underground.

All of the recommendations are frequent asks from Palisades residents. Many have already been discussed at length by independent experts. They will inform the city’s “Long-Term Recovery Plan” for rebuilding infrastructure and improving wildfire resilience after the Palisades fire killed 12 people and destroyed thousands of homes in January 2025.

The reports outlined nearly a billion dollars in infrastructure projects through 2033, including more than $650 million for electrical undergrounding and $150 million for water system repairs.

“Full recovery is a long-term, multi-year effort that requires sustained coordination — and it must continue to be community-led,” Mayor Karen Bass wrote in a Tuesday newsletter to Palisades residents that included links to the reports. “This past year has been unimaginable for the Palisades community, but I remain committed to supporting you through every step of the recovery.”

She noted that the Long-Term Recovery Plan would be finalized “in the months ahead.”

A month after the fire, Bass selected Illinois-based Hagerty Consulting to work on fire recovery under a yearlong contract for up to $10 million.

However, in June, Bass announced that AECOM would develop a recovery plan for the city. Hagerty, which had struggled to explain its role at community meetings, ultimately focused on debris removal logistics and finished its work in December, billing the city $3.5 million.

In December, the city authorized payments of $5 million for AECOM’s first set of reports — which were originally due in mid-November — and an additional $3 million to the company for long-term recovery planning.

Palisades residents say they are frustrated at the price tag and feel that the effort has been chaotic and lacked urgency. Some have questioned whether the reports would contain an honest assessment of the situation, given that AECOM is not working independently of the city.

The three AECOM reports consist of recommendations for improving the Palisades’ fire resiliency, a plan for rebuilding public infrastructure destroyed in the fire and how to coordinate traffic and other logistics as the area becomes a construction zone.

The resiliency report found that “almost all” local streets within the Palisades are narrower than permitted by the city fire code — particularly in the Alphabet Streets, Rustic Canyon and Castellammare areas. A “majority” of long dead-end streets did not fulfill the sections of the fire code ensuring that fire engines have enough space to turn around, the report said.

A lawsuit filed in December alleged that the city has routinely failed to comply with similar state regulations when it approved new construction in the city’s “very high fire hazard” areas.

These codes “directly impact the ability to fight fires and for civilians to safely evacuate,” said Jaime Hall, an attorney representing the plaintiffs, who are a group of resident associations in the Santa Monica Mountains and a fire safety advocacy organization. “They’re not just regulations on a piece of paper.”

The resiliency report also found that residents experienced “evacuation warning fatigue” from routine false alarms, making them hesitant to evacuate.

Additionally, many intersections in the Palisades could serve as bottlenecks during evacuations, leading to significant delays, the resiliency report said, basing the conclusion on a traffic pattern analysis. A Times investigation found that the city had not conducted a similar analysis to help comply with state law.

Requirements to clear vegetation around homes, including the state’s upcoming Zone Zero regulations, are not enough to meaningfully reduce wildfire risk in the Palisades, with its steep topography and dense vegetation, the resiliency report found. The city should work with land managers — including the state and county — on measures such as cutting gaps in vegetation for firefighter access, maintaining defensible space around community infrastructure and restoring native vegetation, the report said.

The public infrastructure report listed $150 million for “wet” infrastructure repairs, which included replacing aging and leaky water main pipelines.

The resiliency report outlined further potential improvements to provide more water for firefighting, such as building larger pipelines and additional tanks to move and store more drinking water; improving connections between local water systems; and tapping stormwater, treated wastewater or even seawater from the Pacific.

During the Palisades fire, hillside tanks ran out of water. Many fire hydrants, particularly in higher-elevation areas, lost pressure and ran dry. The resiliency report said that installing pressure monitoring systems could “ensure water availability and prevent dry hydrants by streaming live data to fire crews,” and that remote-controlled valves could also help maintain water pressure during a fire.

The city’s Department of Water and Power is already considering options for improving the Santa Ynez Reservoir, which was empty and awaiting repairs of its floating cover when the Palisades fire erupted.

The city has also committed to placing power lines underground in the Palisades where feasible.

The infrastructure report laid out six undergrounding projects that would cost the city $664 million, after nearly 57% of all electric service points — from power distribution poles to transmission lines — were completely destroyed in the fire.

Alina Muller repeats history from Sochi in 2014, scoring an overtime winner as Switzerland beat Sweden 2-1 to claim bronze in the women’s ice hockey at the 2026 Winter Olympics.

Muller scored the winner 12 years ago as a 15-year-old against the same opponents in a 4-3 victory to win the bronze medal.

WATCH MORE: Winter Olympics Video

Available to UK users only.

Feb. 19 (UPI) — The Commission of Fine Arts has unanimously approved plans for President Donald Trump‘s almost 90,000-square-foot White House ballroom plans, the first hurdle in starting the building project.

The commission, whose members were all appointed by Trump, including his executive assistant, Chamberlain Harris, 26. The original architect of the ballroom recused himself from the vote. Trump fired all the previous members in October.

But now, the project must win approval from the National Capital Planning Commission, which could vote on March 5.

“This is a facility that is desperately needed for over 150 years, and it’s beautiful,” The Washington Post reported Commission Chair Rodney Mims Cook Jr. said.

But the CFA’s secretary said comments have been negative.

“In two decades of casework here, I’ve never seen as much public engagement on this. We’ve literally gotten, in the past week or so, more than 2,000 various messages,” said Thomas Luebke, CFA secretary, CBS News reported. “The vast, vast majority is negative, in general.”

Trump initially said the construction would cost $200 million and would be funded by private donations. He later said the project could cost twice that amount, but donors would pay for it. Officials from the National Trust for Historic Preservation challenged the construction in federal court and sought an injunction to stop the build. The judge refused the injunction but ordered the administration to undergo a review process.

The Capital Planning Commission is led by Will Scharf, a White House staff secretary appointed by Trump. Two other White House officials — James Blair and Stuart Levenbach — are also on the commission.

Luebke read a summary of the comments to commissioners, CBS reported. He cited demolition without permits or oversight, a scale that will “dwarf the White House,” lack of transparency in funding and contracts and a “fundamental miscarriage of democratic principles.”

“The ballroom seems to shout power,” one commenter wrote, Luebke said.

Harris responded, “This is sort of like the greatest country in the world. It’s the greatest house in the world and we want it to be the greatest ballroom in the world.”

The public comments, Luebke said, were “overwhelmingly in opposition — over 99%.”

Private adversary air company Top Aces has now begun flying its F-16 Vipers, the only ones currently in the hands of a private operator, with the ubiquitous military data link capability known as Link-16. The addition of Link-16 completes a vision started years ago for an adversary aircraft that truly represents the current 4th-generation-plus fighter threat. Equipped with Top Aces’ open architecture Advanced Aggressor Mission System (AAMS), these aircraft can now replicate the high-end threats that U.S. military pilots may soon face in the Pacific and elsewhere.

Top Aces began receiving its F-16s, which are early block ex-Israeli Air Force F-16A/B Netz variants, in 2021 and subsequently began upgrading them with a host of new capabilities. The AAMS is the core of that upgrade package and includes an active electronically scanned array (AESA) radar, an infrared-search-and-track (IRST) pod, the Thales Visionix Gen III Scorpion helmet-mounted display system, and, with a recent provisional approval to operate Link-16, now has a fully integrated datalink. AAMS permits the rapid integration of new sensors and functions that a customer wishes to use to improve the threat representations to their fleet pilots, such as IRST and advanced jamming pods like the ALQ-188.

The War Zone was on hand as the newly integrated aircraft (N854TA) performed adversary missions with other Top Aces F-16s during a large force exercise known as Sentry South 26.1. The private aggressor support firm actually led the entire ‘red air’ operation for the exercise, which is a unique arrangement that puts immense trust on an entity that exists outside of the Department of War.

Sentry South 26.1 and the Air Dominance Center (ADC), which acts as a hub for the exercise, were created to help Air National Guard (ANG) pilots have the best fighter training available. Located in Savannah, Georgia, at the southern end of the Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport, the ADC’s footprint is small, but its training impact is huge for both ANG pilots and their active-duty counterparts. The exercise was developed by fighter pilots to provide 5th-generation fighter integration through a focused, tailored, cost-effective approach. The airspace they have, just 30 miles off the coast, runs 200 miles north to south and 120 miles east to west. That box is among the best military flying areas anywhere in the country, and it’s ideally suited for fighter training. 

This iteration of Sentry South involved over 75 aircraft from the Air Force, Navy, and Marines. It was a mix of both 4th and 5th-generation fighters. Over 700 sorties were flown over the two-week exercise, focusing on both offensive and defensive counter-air missions. For many of the pilots, it was their capstone exercise for their initial training on the F-22. It is a multi-day, high-intensity scenario designed to test trainees or validate operational concepts in simulated, contested environments. Its goal is to validate the combat readiness of student pilots while improving their tactical decision making.

Matthew ‘Bang’ Belle is the adversary air program manager for Top Aces. He is in charge of all Top Aces operations in the United States, as well as for any foreign partners trained here on U.S. soil. He has been with the company for about 18 months after retiring from the USAF, where he flew the F-16 as an aggressor, accumulating over 2,000 hours during his career. 

Belle told The War Zone, “We got some great reviews from all of the forces that participated in Sentry South 26.1. They really enjoyed having us take over the red air lead and run the mission commander spot from the aggressor side. It was the culmination of everything we have been doing to the aircraft over the last few years. The exercise is all about challenging blue air’s thinking in the air-to-air domain. It is meant to complicate things that they do not see at their home station.”

“The vision when we first started was that we were going to be the legacy bearers from the aggressors. Russ ‘Puck’ Quinn (former Top Aces president) saw a niche that needed to be filled. He knew there were a bunch of 3rd-generation fighters throughout the market and believed there was a place for 4th-generation fighters. So he made that happen, and so we got this 1978 jet (early block F-16A/B), and we saw that we could provide the Air Force and allies a good representation of what our adversaries are doing right now. It’s not just a jet with wings and a cool motor that makes it go really fast and really high. These current 4th-generation fighters are fully integrated, so they have near-5th-generation avionics but in a 4th-generation body. Puck saw that is where we needed to go.”

The AAMS and the AESA radar, along with the Scorpion helmet and Link-16, have really upped the game in terms of quality adversary support in a crowded adversary air services provider (ADAIR) market. The Scorpion helmet allows the pilot to avoid turning the aircraft’s nose towards the enemy aircraft to target it when employing certain weapons and sensors. This is especially true when employing simulated heat-seeking missile shots. The helmet also displays basic flight and navigational data and can also project objects from the aircraft’s new Link 16 datalink system out into the visual space all around the aircraft. In other words, if a friendly is 30 miles away at 10 o’clock high, it can shoot that in augmented reality to the pilot.

Top Aces is also using the Air Force’s AN/ALQ-188 jamming pod. The AN/ALQ-188 is a common sight at U.S. air combat exercises and can simulate certain types of hostile electronic countermeasures systems. Top Aces F-16s have controls inside their aircraft that allow the pilots to scale the electronic attack to whatever the blue air wants, whether it be just a nuisance or a full scale ‘melt your face off’ EW attack. Top Aces is also the only ADAIR company that is authorized to refuel from USAF KC-135 tankers, which helps them stay in the fight longer and provides more presentations for blue forces.

Belle states, “The key that has unlocked everything in the past month was that our engineering section here at Top Aces and our chief test pilot were able to get a provisional approval (from the Federal Aviation Administration) to operate Link-16 on our AAMS aircraft. That was the missing key we now have that ties it all together, so we can present this integrated solution that we think closely resembles a 4th-gen-plus adversary aircraft. It’s a real game-changer. The fact that I can be well outside of normal influence ranges on blue air, have them on my scope with Link-16, where they don’t know that I have that situational awareness (SA), and then transition that SA to the IRST pod, and they still don’t know they are being targeted. So they are making decisions like they are not targeted and not vulnerable. As they get closer, I have all of my weapon solutions cued up and ready to shoot with the AESA radar. Link-16 enables all of that to happen.”

 “It also allows us to fly red air tactics with the F-35. It is just like we are one of them. We are replicating 5th and 4th gen packages. It gives blue air not just reps in the gym for blocking and tackling, it affects training outcomes completely and that is what we are really excited about. Link-16 ties it all together.”

What the pilot sees on his center pedestal display showing the Link 16 data is also totally customizable, which is critical for achieving highly-tailored training goals. For instance, the system can easily filter out information that would give the red air team too big of advantage or that would not accurately reflect the capabilities of an enemy. This scalability based on the training objectives makes it far more than just a datalink system for the red air force, it can dramatically boost the fidelity of the threat being presented.

Chris ‘Bluce’ Wee is Top Aces chief test pilot and flew several missions with the upgraded jet during Sentry South 26.1. Wee was a former test pilot in the USAF and was in charge of a host of modernization projects for both the F-16 and all variants of the F-15, including the F-15EX.

Wee told The War Zone, “I’ve been doing modernization and development, making fighters better for the better part of the past 12 or 13 years, and so it was really cool to jump in at Top Aces and look at what we’ve got and look at where we wanted to be and find things that we can improve on. A couple of things that I jumped into right away was really the optimization of our systems together. The idea that we could take old Israeli airplanes and make them high-end aggressors was really fascinating to me.” 

“I first learned of Top Aces sometime in 2022. I was out at Black Flag at the 442 (422nd Test and Evaluation Squadron), the OT test organization out there at Nellis, when I came around the corner and saw some old pilots I knew from my aggressor days. I had no idea what they were doing, but when I got talking to them, I was amazed. There is nothing as maneuverable as this airplane (the F-16A, the agility of which you can read about here), and then you stack on top of that modern equipment, it’s amazing. There are limitations; no company in the world is, from a regulatory standpoint or even a monetary standpoint, able to go out there and buy an APG-83 or APG-82 (AESA radar) or any frontline fighter radar or some of, you know, ‘exquisite’ technologies that are protected by classified information. The fact that we’re doing that to the best of our ability was really intriguing to me.”

Wee was able to jump into the chief test pilot position and immediately review the systems and begin providing recommendations to improve integration. 

Wee added, “We were able to tweak some things here in the software and really go out and develop that to the point where you know it’s really optimized. You get in this airplane and you know the between the helmet, the Link-16, the AESA radar, the IRST, you just have all these tools available to you to do this really important mission that is training the next generation of fighter pilots that are going to be out there, you know, protecting the nation for the rest of my life, at least, which is [a] pretty neat thing to be a part of.”

During Sentry South 26.1, Wee flew four missions in the updated AAMS jet, accumulating over 10 hours, and conducted several aerial refuelings from KC-135s.

Speaking about the new Link-16 capability, Wee explained:

“Datalink, from a very basic standpoint, is when you can look at the picture in your jet and immediately see what everyone’s doing and where they are; you don’t have to be looking outside necessarily to do that. In fact, I would really prefer my wingman to be like miles away from me because we’re probably not gonna hit each other if he’s miles away from me, and I don’t have to worry about him as much. I can just look at my screen, and I know where my wingman is, and what he’s doing. I can see that he’s targeting something because I can see data being passed between our airplanes, which is really helpful to know, not only within our own airplanes but also with the joint force airplanes. We were flying with Marines, F-35s, and guard F-16s. Being able to see where people are and what they’re doing and if they’re doing what I’ve told them to do, just by looking at the link, is a huge capability.”

Top Aces flew twice a day for four days during the exercise. During the first and last day, they focused on defensive-counter-air missions. Blue air students were tasked with defending the target area during a 90-minute vulnerability period (vul), and so they wanted to maximize the number of red forces across the ‘lane,’ so they could challenge their ability to defend a geographical area. 

Wee explained, “As red air, we were trying to get in and protect the strikers. We were using the T-38 as strikers and were trying to help them get into the target area. If we could get to the target band, that would drive the debrief focus points on why the blue forces did not properly protect the lane for the period of time required. Were they allocating their radars to the right spot, and were they looking with the right modes on their radars? We were operating as MiG-1 (lead aggressor) for all sorties, which was really cool for us because we were able to lead the red package in all eight vuls we supported. We were able to manage our forces to align with the blue forces’ learning objectives. We worked very closely with the mission commanders as to what kind of threat they wanted and when they wanted to see it.”

On Wednesday and Thursday, the roles reversed to offensive counter air (OCA), and blue forces were trying to fight their way into the target band and hit targets on land and then fight their way out. Wee led a red force presentation that fought the blue air on the way in, then regenerated from pretend airfields to fight the blue forces on the way out of the target area. 

Lt. Col. Joseph ‘Stone’ Walz, who flew F-16s and F-35s and is now part of the Georgia Air National Guard, is the exercise director for Sentry South. Speaking about the value of having aircraft like Top Aces F-16s in his exercise, he told us, “I had the opportunity to bring in Top Aces to Sentry South 26.1. They normally support the 33rd Fighter Wing at Eglin. I like to build something that represents what pilots would expect if they were to go out and fly an operational plan. It’s about honing and shaping our pilots into the most combat-ready force we could be if we had to go to war. How Top Aces factors into that is if we get real aircraft and actual fighter jets that can prosecute errors and punish errors in the training environment, and now when my pilots have those errors, they get shot and can now go into the debrief and learn those lessons in a training environment so they don’t make the same mistakes in war. We can do that with other aircraft, but every aircraft I bring here, if I have to put them as red air, that is one less person who can fly blue air. Red air is a tax we all have to pay, but having these guys gets us more training, and you never know the lesson that someone will learn that will save their life someday.”

Being asked to lead red air forces as ‘MiG-1’ during Sentry South 26.1, Top Aces is proving that experience matters, which is their motto. 

Belle explained, “We are mostly all former aggressor pilots who have done the really big exercises at Nellis and in Alaska. We have handled 100 aircraft LFEs (large force exercises) and know how to build scenarios that really stress blue air’s weak points. We know where their change-outs are going to be, so we are a thinking adversary that brings in all the other red air like the F-35s and F-22s and puts it all together and says what would the Chinese do? We replicate that. We put the 4th and 5th-gen packages together, led by an experienced aggressor who knows how to exploit weaknesses. I can tell you from being on the blue side that when your bulletproof game plan is completely exploited and torn apart, you leave humbled, knowing you have to up your game. We are not there just to win, we are there to teach. We are there to have you leave the debrief with an outcome that says, I have to go back to the drawing board because what I thought works against my normal red air at Langley or Eglin didn’t work today. Why not?”

Top Aces has recently done much more software development to optimize what’s presented to the pilot and how the pilot interacts with the radar, the link, and the IRST pod, along with the helmet. It is all about placing information in the right place to make the pilot safer and more effective. Looking at human factors optimization, Top Aces is looking to make an even more threatening aggressor.

The IRST system that Top Aces flew during Sentry South 26.1 consists of a Northrop Grumman OpenPod, a modular, open-architecture design, equipped with Leonardo’s SkyWard, a long-wave IRST sensor. It is a scannable IRST pod, which means it has the ability to identify multiple contacts inside of a very large search area. 

Wee explained, “IRST is difficult for everyone. It is very susceptible to the conditions of the day whether it be humidity or clouds. We have some longer-range goals to improve our IRST system and achieve more accurate tracks through exquisite means. Right now, we only have one pod but we are actively seeking more. You can imagine having azimuth and elevation from one pod is pretty good, but having azimuth and elevation from more than one pod makes the solutions get better, especially if you leverage Link-16 and are able to pass some of that data between airplanes (triangulating range). These are all things we want to do to better replicate the threat.”

Another major training capability that Top Aces Link-16-enabled aircraft are now providing is called Constructive Wingman. This gives the upgraded aircraft the ability to lay out synthetic tracks of non-existent aircraft. 

Belle explained, “When the blue air looks at us, no longer do they see just one contact. They may now see two or three contacts and that is just complicating the training and driving better outcomes for their learning. The pilot pushes a few buttons to place an aircraft on my right at two miles and one on my left at two miles. I have a series of 10 commands that I can give it. I can tell it to go 50 miles from blue air and then reform behind me at 20 miles. Or better yet, I am going to turn around as the live fighter and these two contacts will continue going so blue air now thinks he has a bigger problem. But really, he/she is concentrating on synthetic tracks.”

This capability will help new F-35 student pilots as they will now see a more complicated tactical picture during their training. Currently, Top Aces provides aggressor training through the Air Force’s Combat Air Force Contracted Air Support (CAFCAS) program to F-35 pilots going through Formal Training Units (FTUs) at both Eglin Air Force Base in Florida and at Luke AFB in Arizona. The basic course lasts eight months and provides pilots with the training to accomplish a variety of missions.

The last few months have been extremely busy for Top Aces. Last summer, they went to Nellis AFB to participate in a large-force exercise at the end of weapons school, called Weapons School Integration (WSINT). WSINT is a series of complex, large-force employment missions that serve as the capstone portion of Weapons School classes. With their ability to air refuel, they participated in three- to four- hour missions. They also participated in Sentry North at Volk Field before flying to Mountain Home AFB to support training for the Dutch F-35As and the resident F-15E Strike Eagles.

We will be sure to keep you updated as Top Aces continues to add new capabilities to its unique AAMS F-16s.

Contact the editor: Tyler@twz.com

KERRY Katona’s boyfriend Paolo Margaglione left Dubai just hours after he was punched by Katie Price’s husband Lee Andrews.

The Sun revealed today that Paolo was struck by Lee during his joint holiday with Kerry and her long-time pal Katie.

In her most recent New! Magazine column, Kerry revealed that Paolo had to leave their Dubai getaway ‘urgently’ after just a day in the country.

Despite the star describing it as a “work emergency”, The Sun’s revelation about Paolo and Lee’s bust up means that the former left just hours later.

Kerry wrote in her column: “Paolo and I travelled to Dubai for a romantic getaway for our first Valentine’s Day, where we had a mega-quick 20-minute catch up with Katie Price and her husband Lee.

“But unfortunately, during the trip, Paolo had to go back to the UK for a work emergency.

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“I got to spend literally 14 hours with him before he had to leave, which meant I was left alone in Dubai, which we were both gutted about.“

Earlier today, we told how during Paolo’s 14 hours in Dubai, he crossed wires with Lee.

An onlooker said: “Lee was having some cross words with Katie. He was acting in what appeared to be an aggressive manner.

“Paolo then appeared and stepped in. Lee seemed to be very angry and was shouting at him.

“It all got very heated and Lee threw some punches and one of them landed Paolo square on the head.”

The incident happened in a public part of the hotel where Kerry and Paolo had been staying, with Kerry thought to not have been present at the time of the altercation.

Katie and Kerry have been friends for over two decades, with the pair even heading on tour together earlier this year.

An onlooker added: “It was crazy to see this play out. The situation seemed to be pretty heated but then it erupted very quickly. It all happened so fast.

“Paolo looked very shocked by what had happened and walked away. Katie didn’t look in a great way either, she seemed shocked.”

The Sun understands the relationship between Katie and Kerry has been strained since the incident.

Kerry has been with Paolo since meeting on Celebs Go Dating last summer, with the pair smitten ever since.

While Kerry married Lee – who claims to be a ‘millionaire’ businessman – in a whirlwind week last month, just days after they first met.

WASHINGTON — In another era, the scene would have been unremarkable. But in President Trump’s Washington, it’s become increasingly rare.

Sitting side by side on stage were Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, a Republican, and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, a Democrat. They traded jokes and compliments instead of insults and accusations, a brief interlude of cordiality in a cacophony of conflict.

Stitt and Moore are the leaders of the National Governors Association, one of a vanishing few bipartisan institutions left in American politics. But it may be hard for the organization, which is holding its annual conference this week, to maintain its reputation as a refuge from polarization.

Trump has broken with custom by declining to invite all governors to the traditional White House meeting and dinner. He has called Stitt, the NGA’s chair, a “RINO,” short for Republican in name only, and continued to feud with Moore, the group’s vice chair, by blaming him for a sewage spill involving a federally regulated pipeline.

The break with tradition reflects Trump’s broader approach to his second term. He has taken a confrontational stance toward some states, withholding federal funds or deploying troops over the objections of local officials.

With the Republican-controlled Congress unwilling to limit Trump’s ambitions, several governors have increasingly cast themselves as a counterweight to the White House.

“Presidents aren’t supposed to do this stuff,” Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said about the expansion of executive power in recent administrations. “Congress needs to get their act together. And stop performing for TikTok and actually start doing stuff. That’s the flaw we’re dealing with right now.”

Cox, a Republican, said “it is up to the states to hold the line.”

Moore echoed that sentiment in an interview with The Associated Press.

“People are paying attention to how governors are moving, because I think governors have a unique way to move in this moment that other people just don’t,” he said.

Still, governors struck an optimistic tone in panels and interviews Wednesday. Stitt said the conference is “bigger than one dinner at the White House.” Moore predicted “this is going to be a very productive three days for the governors.”

“Here’s a Republican and Democrat governor from different states that literally agree on probably 80% of the things. And the things we disagree on we can have honest conversations on,” Stitt said while sitting beside Moore.

Tensions over the guest list for White House events underscored the uncertainty surrounding the week. During the back-and-forth, Trump feuded with Stitt and said Moore and Colorado Gov. Jared Polis were not invited because they “are not worthy of being there.”

Whether the bipartisan tone struck Wednesday evening can endure through the week — and beyond — remains an open question.

“We can have disagreements. In business, I always want people around me arguing with me and pushing me because that’s where the best ideas come from,” said Stitt. “We need to all have these exchange of ideas.”

Cappelletti and Sloan write for the Associated Press.

MILAN — Jordan Stolz’s run for the speedskating triple crown came up short in the 1,500 meters Thursday, with the American settling for silver behind China’s Ning Zhongyan at the Milan-Cortina Games.

Ning set an Olympic record, blazing the oval at Milano Speed Skating Stadium in 1 minute and 41.98 seconds. Stolz, who won gold in the 500 and 1,000 meters to become the first U.S. man to win in both distances in the same Olympic Games since 1980, had the fastest finishing kick of the top eight skaters, but reached for the line 0.77 of a second behind Ning at 1:42.75.

Stolz was the top-ranked racer in the 1,500-meter distance and raced in the final pair. Watching the speedskating superstar, Ning clasped his hands in prayer during the final race. When the final time flashed across the screen, his coach held Ning’s hands in the air. He began to sob. The 26-year-old earned his first Olympic gold medal after earning bronze in the 1,000 and the team pursuit.

Hoping to win four gold medals in Milan, Stolz still has an opportunity to add a third in the mass start on Saturday.

Feb. 19 (UPI) — A massive blackout left nearly five million people without electricity in Paraguay amid a heat wave that pushed temperatures above 108 degrees Fahrenheit across large parts of the country and as high as 116 degrees Fahrenheit in some areas, according to local meteorological reports.

The outage affected 90% of customers of the National Electricity Administration, or ANDE, the state-run company that supplies nearly the entire population of 6.4 million people.

The interruption on Wednesday also disrupted drinking water services in urban areas due to reliance on electric pumping systems. Nearly 24 hours after the blackout, service had not been fully restored.

The lack of power also impacted health centers and hospitals in cities across the country’s interior. In those cases, emergency infrastructure and generators failed, and doctors and nurses were forced to perform surgical procedures, including a cesarean section, using the light from their cell phones.

Following the blackout, ANDE attributed the interruption to transmission lines going out of service within the system that connects to the Itaipú hydroelectric plant. The company later denied any malfunction at its facilities and said generation operated normally.

Paraguay is one of the world’s largest producers of hydroelectric power thanks to dams such as Itaipú and Yacyretá, which generate surpluses that are even exported to neighboring countries.

In January, Itaipú covered more than 80% of national electricity demand. However, the transmission and distribution system faces scrutiny over recurring failures and a lack of investment.

Specialists argue that the problem does not lie in energy generation but in the limitations of the transmission and distribution system.

“If we continue growing at the current pace, the system will not withstand it,” engineer Guillermo Krauch of the Paraguayan Institute of Electrical Sector Professionals told UPI.

The blackout comes as President Santiago Peña and Foreign Minister Rubén Ramírez Lezcano are scheduled to hold meetings in the United States with executives from the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation to analyze potential investment projects related to data centers and artificial intelligence developments in Paraguay.

The government of President Santiago Peña approved special electricity tariffs for large consumers, including data centers, cloud computing, artificial intelligence and high-energy industrial projects.

The Ministry of Industry and Commerce seeks to position Paraguay as a regional technology hub supported by its renewable energy, abundant water resources and comparative cost advantages.

However, technical organizations warn that the accelerated expansion of high-consumption industries could worsen service deterioration if transmission infrastructure is not strengthened.

Víctor Giménez, special projects adviser at the Yacyretá dam, said Paraguay lived for decades under a “false sense of energy security.”

“That time is over. Companies now arrive with the intention to invest, but they leave once they understand there is no guarantee of electricity supply for the next five years,” he said.

Peña is currently in Washington to participate in the Board of Peace and hold meetings with business leaders interested in installing data centers in Paraguay.

The heat wave has lasted several days, and Paraguay ranked among the locations with the highest temperatures recorded globally this week.

We’re in something like award season no man’s land right now: the whirlwind of the Oscar nominees luncheon is behind us, but most of the major precursors have yet to be handed out. Which leaves less for the pundits to chew on, perhaps, though it also means there’s finally some spare time to catch up on your reading.

I’m Matt Brennan, editor in chief of The Envelope. Let me be of some assistance.

Cover story: ‘Sentimental Value’

(Christina House / For The Times)

After an entire award season’s worth of conversations about one of the top contenders, it’s rare to hear a new one this late in the game. But when I ran in “Sentimental Value” director Joachim Trier last week, he happily shared his point of view on an anecdote his editor, Olivier Bugge Coutté, recently shared with The Envelope about killing one of Trier’s darlings. “He was right,” Trier admitted with a half-rueful smile, after describing the elaborate aerial shot over a theater audience with which he originally intended to open the film.

Such candor is also a mark of contributor Bob Strauss’ interview with Trier and star Stellan Skarsgård about making the year’s most-nominated international feature, from their discussion of the stroke that permanently altered the actor’s process to bon mots about the film’s depiction of Netflix, demanding directors and more. I was most tickled by Skarsgård’s, um, unvarnished description of the small screen: “The narrative form of television is based on you not watching,” he tells Strauss. “It explains everything through dialogue so you can make pancakes at the same time.”

Digital cover: Kate Hudson

(Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

When contributor Amy Amatangelo sent me her pitch for a story on “Song Sung Blue,” it swiftly answered the question I want every pitch to answer: Why are you the right person to write this story?

“I am a lifelong Neil Diamond fan,” she wrote. “My dad loved him. I saw him in concert as a child. My dad and I danced to ‘Beautiful Noise’ at my wedding.”

So it was a no-brainer to set her up with this week’s digital cover star, nominated for playing one half of the film’s Neil Diamond tribute band. “Although she’s had a slew of successes in the interim,” Amatangelo writes of the 25 years since “Almost Famous,” “it can sometimes seem that we’ve underappreciated, and perhaps underestimated, Kate Hudson.”

‘Train Dreams’’ not-so-secret weapon

(Lauren Fleishman/For The Times)

Speaking of pitches, the most frequently suggested subject for coverage since the Oscar nominations (not-named-Chalamet-or-DiCaprio division) may be “Train Dreams” cinematographer Adolpho Veloso. Which already made the Brazilian’s wizardry one of the industry’s worst-kept secrets. Count contributor Emily Zemler’s profile among the final nails in the coffin.

“Capturing the enormous trees that would have existed in the early 20th century was a challenge,” she writes of the film, which spans the life of an itinerant logger in the Pacific Northwest. “The production went to protected parks, where they had to be cautious about not affecting the environment. ‘How do you shoot a movie where they’re supposed to be cutting those trees, but they cannot even get close to those trees?’ Veloso says. ‘It was almost like shooting stunts.’”

More stories from our Feb. 19 issue

Published on
19/02/2026 – 17:39 GMT+1

The European Commission’s push to embed a so-called European preference in public procurement is triggering heavy lobbying from EU capitals and foreign partners, Euronews has learned.

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The proposal, designed to counter Chinese and US competition, would see products made in Europe officially favoured in public contracts and support schemes. Critics have branded it protectionist, and several member states have sought to water down the definition of “made in Europe” to ensure access for like-minded countries.

According to EU officials, the Industrial Accelerator Act (IAA), which is set to define what made in Europe means, is likely to face another delay despite appearing on the Commission’s agenda for presentation on 26 February. The strategy was first delayed in November 2025.

A leaked draft of the IAA text seen by Euronews lists strategic sectors targeted for a European preference, including chemicals, automotive, AI and space. It also proposes EU-origin thresholds of 70% for EVs, 25% for aluminium and 30% for plastics used in windows and doors.

The draft has drawn intense pushback. Nordic and Baltic states warn that a strict made in Europe regime could deter investment and limit EU companies’ access to cutting-edge technologies from non-EU countries.

In a separate leak reported by Euronews last week, the Commission appeared to lean toward the German position: a European preference open to like-minded partners with reciprocal procurement commitments and those contributing to “the Union’s competitiveness, resilience and economic security objectives”.

Britain concerned about protectionism

The UK is among the partners wary of a protectionist turn, with British officials stressing that the EU and UK economies are highly intertwined.

“It’s not the moment to mess with what is already working,” one official told Euronews.

In particular, the EU remains the largest export market for British cars, while several European manufacturers produce vehicles in the UK, which in 2024 was the EU’s second-largest export destination after the US.

“Almost half of our trade is with the European Union. We trade almost as much with the EU as the whole of the rest of the world combined,” UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves said last week.

British sources also argue that London’s deep capital markets could help the EU secure investment to revive its industry – unless the bloc closes its market.

The Commission is weighing its next move, aiming to table a proposal ahead of March’s EU summit focused on competitiveness. But pressure is also mounting from within, with pushback from the Trade Directorate-General – traditionally a staunch defender of an open EU market.

Paris, a long-time champion of a made in Europe strategy, says the concept has gained sufficient traction in Brussels to become reality and that the debate has now shifted to its implementation.

EU industry chief Stéphane Séjourné, who is overseeing the file, said on Tuesday that the European preference “entails quite a change of Europe’s economic doctrine”.

“It is therefore no surprises that it takes time and efforts to get to a common and smart version,” he added.

ONE of Asia’s biggest airport projects is underway and it will make it so much easier to travel to one of the country’s most famous landmarks.

Travellers will be able to get to the beautiful Taj Mahal so much quicker – in half the time – once building work is completed.

Noida International Airport is being built near Jewar in India and once fully constructed, will be one of Asia’s biggest airports.

The first phase will include the building of one terminal and one runway -which will handle 12million passengers each year.

The long-term masterplan could see it expand to accommodate up to 120million passengers per year with multiple terminals and up to six runways.

This would make it rival Asia’s other biggest and busiest airports including Beijing Daxing and Dubai International Airport.

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Inside terminal one will be automated check-in kiosks, contactless boarding systems, spacious lounges and waiting zones.

The design of the airport is to make it easy for passengers to move about which it has done by separating the arrivals, departures and baggage areas.

There will be lots of seating too in zones between check-in, security and boarding.

The waiting areas will be air-conditioned, there will also be Wi-Fi, prayer rooms and child care areas.

As for its aesthetic, the terminal will be light and airy with a white and see-through roof that is wavy to mimic the flow of a river.

There’s a central courtyard where travellers can get some fresh air – it also has plenty of greenery and shaded areas.

Designs show escalators on the outside and inside, along with shops, restaurants and cafes.

The airport will sit in Jewar, which will make it easier for travellers heading to Agra where the Taj Mahal is.

The mausoleum that sits on the bank of the river Yamuna in Agra sees up to eight million visitors every year.

Until the airport is up and running, travellers have to fly into New Delhi before heading almost four hours south by car.

The location of Noida International Airport will cut that travel time in half – from Jewar it will take just over two hours.

As for when the new airport will open, there is no date yet although local reports suggest it could be as early as next year.

Both IndiGo and Akasa Air have confirmed they will operate at the airport, although these will be for mainly domestic destinations.

When it comes to Brits, international routes are yet to confirmed if they will be to the UK, with destinations mentioned including Zurich and Dubai.

Current UK-India routes are operated by British Airways and Virgin Atlantic.

The original target opening was two years ago in September 2024, however construction is still ongoing.

The airport covers around 5,000 hectares, making it one of the largest airport sites in India once fully built.

Currently, the largest in the country by land area is Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad which covers over 5,500 acres.

Here’s more on what will be the biggest airport in the world…

One airport in Saudi Arabia will become the biggest in the world once finished…

King Salman International Airport is set to surpass all other airports in size, including the current biggest airport in the world which is also in the country.

The 22sqm airport will feature six runways – up from two – parallel to each other and will be built around the existing King Khalid International Airport.

It will approximately be the same size as Manhattan in New York – or twice the size of the city of Bath, in the UK.

And now the airport has moved into its construction phase.

The airport will be designed by Foster + Partners, a UK firm which is behind London‘s famous Gherkin.

Inside, travellers will be able to explore 4.6sqm of shops.

A lot of features in the airport are set to include high tech, such as climate-controlled lighted.

Travellers will have plenty of seating, indoor and outdoor spaces with greenery and vast glass windows, ideal for a bit of plane spotting.

The airport was announced back in 2022 and is part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman‘s Saudi Vision 2030 – which is set to make Riyadh into a major hub for transport, trade and tourism.

It will eventually accommodate up to 120million passengers each year, which is then expected to rise to 185million by 2050.

And the number of aircraft takeoffs will rise from 211,000 per year to over one million.

For more on new airports, this new £7.8billion airport is set to be built in pretty European city after a 50-year delay.

And this new £25billion mega airport wanting to take on Heathrow and Dubai reveals latest opening update.

THE £100million plans to revamp Plymouth’s train station have been scrapped.

It was set to be a new ‘gateway’ for the city, completely transforming the current site – but these plans are now under review and unlikely to go ahead.

Back in 2018, designs were first drawn up to transform the Devonshire station with a huge outdoor plaza and a revamp of Plymouth‘s train terminal.

The project called Brunel Plaza, would have seen 100 new homes built, a new hotel and a multi-storey car park.

There would have been a large pedestrian area too and outdoor dining spaces with seating areas.

The former railway offices behind the station were earmarked to become part of the university campus.

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In the original plans this was even considered to have a top floor viewing room, and even a sky cafe, which was going to act as a “beacon” at night for the city.

It was being developed by AHR, which had been appointed by US-based engineering giant Tetra Tech to develop the Brunel Plaza design on behalf of Plymouth City Council.

Their initial document said the idea was to develop the public area outside Plymouth Station to create a mainly pedestrian area that will create a welcoming spot to those arriving in Plymouth.

At the time, it said the upgrade was needed because “the railway station and its surrounding environment currently acts as a poor gateway and arrival point into Plymouth”.

In 2024 the council said the plan faced years of delay, there were also questions about funding and certain planning consent had expired.

Part of the transformation did go ahead however, the former railway offices are now part of the University of Plymouth.

Called Intercity, the building was renovated and opened in 2023 as a place for trainee healthcare professionals.

Plymouth City Council has now said it will review the scheme and bring out a new business plan later this year.

It also said that it is looking at a package of ways to improve public transport for Plymouth.

The city was once dubbed one of the most ‘underrated’ places to visit in the UK.

In 2023, Time Out revealed the 14 destinations that should be on your list this year that aren’t the usual tourist spots.

Plymouth came in seventh place thanks to its art scene and rich history.

While the plans to renovate the train station for Plymouth have been paused, local media further added that a train station is being considered in Plympton.

The Plymouth suburb did once have a train station, but it closed to passengers in 1959 and to goods traffic until 1954.

Shortly afterwards it was demolished.

Some expressed they would like to see a station return – one local wrote on a Facebook post: “The station at Plympton is a must and it’s great that they are finally looking at bringing it back.”

A proposal to open a station at Plympton was first raised in 2018, but no official plans have been made or drawn up.

For more on train stations, here are seven new ones coming to the UK under £14billion plans.

And here’s the UK’s busiest train station with 100million passengers which has finally got the go ahead for controversial £1.2billion expansion.