Month: June 2025

Twenty-five years ago, on a warm summer night in Los Angeles, Broadway stars Patti LuPone and Audra McDonald closed a show at the Hollywood Bowl with back-to-back encores of “Get Happy”/ “Happy Days Are Here Again.”

Today, those happy days appear to be over for the two Tony Award winners.

In a May 26 interview with the New Yorker, LuPone ignited a firestorm when she referred to McDonald as “not a friend” and refused to comment on McDonald’s celebrated performance in “Gypsy.” (McDonald is nominated for a 2025 Tony Award in the category best actress in a leading role in a musical — its her 11th nomination.) LuPone also referred to Tony winner Kecia Lewis, who, like McDonald, is Black, as a “bitch.”

Speaking with Gayle King in a “CBS Mornings” clip, McDonald sounded surprised by LuPone’s comments. “If there’s a rift between us, I don’t know what it is,” she said. “That’s something that you’d have to ask Patti about. I haven’t seen her in about 11 years, just because I’ve been busy, just with life and stuff. I don’t know what rift she’s talking about. You’d have to ask her.” (A full interview is set to air this week, according to a “CBS Mornings” Instagram post.)

Broadway star Audra McDonald arrives on the red carpet at the 30th Screen Actors Guild Awards in Los Angeles in 2024.

(Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)

Following public backlash, however, LuPone did something she rarely does. The outspoken diva apologized.

But that was not without some stage direction.

In an open letter from her colleagues in the theater community dated May 30, more than 500 actors, including Tony-winning actors Wendell Pierce, James Monroe Iglehart and Maleah Joi Moon, called LuPone’s language “racialized disrespect,” “bullying” and “harassment.” They asked the American Theatre Wing and Broadway League to discourage those who disparage fellow artists, including LuPone, from attending industry events “including the Tony Awards, fundraisers, and public programs.” (The 2025 Tony Awards are scheduled for June 8 in New York, and will air on CBS and stream on Paramount+.)

On Saturday, LuPone responded to the criticism in a statement on her Instagram account: “I am deeply sorry for the words I used during The New Yorker interview, particularly about Kecia Lewis, which were demeaning and disrespectful. I regret my flippant and emotional responses during this interview, which were inappropriate, and I am devastated that my behavior has offended others …” She went on to write that she hopes to speak to McDonald and Lewis in person.

LuPone is well-versed in calling people out herself, particularly audience members who text during her theater performances. Last year, she even complained about noise from the Alicia Keys musical “Hell’s Kitchen” when she was performing in “The Roommate” with Mia Farrow next door.

After LuPone asked the theater owner to fix the sound because she found it to be too loud, Lewis took offense and posted a video on Instagram, describing LuPone’s actions as “bullying,” “racially microaggressive” and “rude and rooted in privilege.” She also noted that “calling a Black show loud dismisses it.”

Last year, Lewis won a Grammy for best musical theater album and a Tony in the category best performance by an actress in a featured role in a musical for “Hell’s Kitchen.”

Although flippant, LuPone’s words only serve to hurt everyone during a turbulent time for the arts in America, the open letter from the theater community said. “Our industry is under threat. The arts are being defunded, theater programs are disappearing, and artists are being pushed to the margins. We need each other now more than ever. We need community. We need leadership. And we need accountability.”

Humbled, LuPone agreed.

“I wholeheartedly agree with everything that was written in the open letter shared yesterday,” she wrote. “From middle school drama clubs to professional stages, theatre has always been about lifting each other up and welcoming those who feel they don’t belong anywhere else. I made a mistake, and I take full responsibility for it, and I am committed to making this right. Our entire theater community deserves better.”

California’s most loyal Democrats got a good look this weekend at the wide field of gubernatorial candidates jockeying to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom at the state Democratic Party’s annual convention in Anaheim, with a few chiding former vice president and potential rival Kamala Harris.

The Democrats running for governor in 2026 hurried among caucus meetings, floor speeches and after-parties, telling their personal stories and talking up their bona fides for tackling some of California’s most entrenched problems, including housing affordability and the rising cost of living.

All the hand-shaking and selfies were done in the absence of Harris, who would be the most prominent candidate in the race, and who has not said whether she’ll run for governor in 2026 or seek the White House again in 2028.

State Supt. of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond walks on stage to address California Democrats.

(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)

The most visible candidates at the convention were former state Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins, former U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra, businessman Stephen J. Cloobeck, Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis and former state Controller Betty Yee, with former Rep. Katie Porter, state Supt. of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa taking less prominent roles.

With the primary still a year away, the gubernatorial race is still in limbo. Two prominent Republicans are also in the race: Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco and former Fox News commentator Steve Hilton.

Many Democratic activists, donors and elected officials said they were waiting to make up their minds until Harris makes up hers, because her entry into the governor’s race could push some candidates off the ballot or into other statewide races.

“People are kind of waiting to see what she’s going to do,” said Matt Savage, a delegate from San Jose, as attendees ate chia seed pudding and breakfast burritos at a breakfast hosted by Yee. “She needs to decide soon.”

Yee told the crowd: “Regardless of who gets in the race, we’re staying in.”

Businessman and gubernatorial candidate Stephen Cloobeck talks to his canvassers Friday after speaking at the Democratic Party’s labor caucus meeting in Anaheim.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Surrounded by canvassers who chanted his name as he talked, Cloobeck, a political newcomer, scolded Harris for not coming to the gathering of Democrats after her loss to President Trump in the November presidential election.

“If she decides to get in this race, shame on her for not showing up for the most important people in the party, which is the people who are here today,” Cloobeck said. “And if she doesn’t have the IQ to show up, she’s tone deaf once again.”

In a three-minute recorded video, Harris told Democrats that with Republicans working to cut taxes for the rich and dismantle efforts to fight climate change, “things are probably going to get worse before they get better.”

“But that is not reason to throw up our hands,” Harris said. “It’s a reason to roll up our sleeves.”

Polling shows that if Harris were to run for governor, she would have a major advantage: A November survey from the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies, co-sponsored by The Times, found that about 72% of Democrats would be very likely or somewhat likely to consider voting for her.

Cloobeck said his campaign had spent “probably a couple hundred thousand dollars” on the canvassers, who wore royal blue shirts emblazoned with his name and distributed glossy invitations to a comedy night with “Roastmaster General” comedian Jeff Ross. One canvasser said he was paid $25 an hour and found the job on Craigslist.

At the party’s LGBTQ caucus meeting, Atkins, the only well-known gay candidate in the race, told the cheering crowd that she dreamed of making California work for others the way it had worked for her. Atkins, 62, was raised in southwest Virginia by a coal miner and a garment worker and moved to San Diego in her 20s.

“California has given me every opportunity,” Atkins said. “I want that promise to be true for everyone.”

Gubernatorial candidate and former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa speaks to the Latino caucus at the state Democratic Party convention on Saturday.

(Carlin Stiehl / Los Angeles Times)

At the Latino caucus, Villaraigosa said that the Democratic Party needs to focus on the affordability crisis facing working-class Californians, many of whom are Latinos, by tackling high gas prices, home prices, utility costs and other day-to-day cost of living challenges.

Villaraigosa, 72, has been out of elected office for more than a decade. He last ran for for governor in 2018, placing a distant third in the primary behind Newsom and Republican businessman John Cox. He noted that he also lost the 2001 mayor’s race before winning in 2005.

“Sometimes it takes two times,” Villaraigosa said to the caucus. “We’re ready, we’re not invisible. We’re going to stand up for working people and our communities.”

Thurmond told the crowd during the party’s general session on Friday afternoon that education is “the centerpiece of our democracy.” It brought his grandparents to the U.S. and saved his life after his mother died when he was 6, he said.

“We must continue to be the resistance against Donald Trump’s misguided policies,” he said. “We will ensure that every student in this state has access to good quality education. And while we’re at it, we will not allow for ICE to be on any of our school campuses.”

Four candidates made brief appearances before the party’s powerful organized labor caucus, trying to make the case that they would be the best choice for the state’s more than 2.4 million union members.

In a 45-second speech, Cloobeck told the union members that he used union labor in his hotel development projects and promised that if he were elected, he would support workers getting “full pay, full wages” if they went on strike.

Yee said she’d “protect and advance your precious pension funds.” She took a passing shot at Newsom’s now-infamous dinner at the French Laundry in Napa Valley during the COVID-19 pandemic. Newsom attended a lobbyist’s birthday party at the upscale restaurant after he had pleaded with Californians to stay home and avoid multifamily gatherings.

“I’m not about gimmicks,” Yee said. “I’m the least flashy person. Hell, I’ve not even stepped foot in the French Laundry — but I can tell you, I grew up in a Chinese laundry.”

Kounalakis told the party’s labor meeting that her father immigrated to the U.S. at age 14 and worked his way through college as a waiter at the governor’s mansion before building a successful development company in Sacramento.

Her vision of California’s future, she said, is massive investment in water infrastructure, clean energy infrastructure, roadway infrastructure and housing: “We’re going to build the future of this state, and we’re going to do it with union labor.”

Former U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary and gubernatorial candidate Xavier Becerra speaks to the state Democratic Party’s labor caucus on Friday.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

At the party’s senior caucus meeting, Becerra told Democrats that he was raised by working-class, immigrant parents who bought their own home in Sacramento, then questioned whether a couple without college degrees could do the same today.

He touted his experience fighting GOP efforts to cut Social Security Disability Insurance as a member of Congress and work lowering drug costs as President Biden’s health chief.

“We’re going to fight for you,” Becerra said.

At the women’s caucus, Porter, who left Congress in January after losing a run for Senate, said she was concerned that Trump’s budget cuts and policies will have a disproportionate impact on mothers, children and the LGBTQ+ community.

“That s— is not happening on my watch,” Porter said.

Former U.S. Rep. Katie Porter, a candidate for California governor, waits to address the women’s caucus at the California Democratic Party convention Friday.

(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Ann McKeown, 66, president of the Acton-Agua Dulce Democratic Club in Los Angeles County’s High Desert, said she had wanted Harris to be the president “so badly,” but Porter is her top choice for governor.

“Kamala is nicer than Katie Porter,” McKeown said, “and we don’t need nice right now.”

Delegate Jane Baulch-Enloe of Contra Costa County and her daughter spread the contents of their bag of Democratic Party swag across a table, taking stock of the flyers and campaign memorabilia, including a Becerra for Governor button, a clear plastic coin purse from Yee and a blue Thurmond bookmark that read, “Ban fascism, not books.”

Baulch-Enloe, who teaches middle school English and history, said she originally thought she’d support Thurmond because he understands education.

“But now that there’s so many people in the race, I’m not sure,” Baulch-Enloe said.

CIF BOYS VOLLEYBALL STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS

At Fresno City College

SATURDAY’S RESULTS

DIVISION I

Mira Costa d. Archbishop Mitty, 25-14, 25-16, 25-21

DIVISION II

Santa Ana Mater Dei d. Buchanan, 17-25, 25-23, 25-19, 25-20

DIVISION III

Sage Hill d. International, 25-19, 25-16, 25-23

DIVISION IV

Chula Vista Mater Dei d. Livingston, 25-18, 25-19, 20-25, 25-16

Day before his government’s publication of a defence strategy review, PM Keir Starmer says he will ‘restore Britain’s war-fighting readiness’.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer has warned the United Kingdom must be prepared to confront and defeat hostile states with modern military capabilities, as his government unveils a 1.5-billion-pound (about $2bn) plan to build at least six new weapons and explosives factories.

“We are being directly threatened by states with advanced military forces, so we must be ready to fight and win,” Starmer wrote in The Sun newspaper on Sunday. “We will restore Britain’s war-fighting readiness as the central purpose of our armed forces.”

The announcement came in advance of a Strategic Defence Review (SDR), which Starmer is set to publish on Monday. The review will assess threats facing the UK amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war and pressure from United States President Donald Trump for NATO allies to bolster their defences.

European nations have rushed to strengthen their armed forces in recent months, following Trump’s comments that Europe must shoulder more responsibility for its security.

Defence Secretary John Healey, speaking to the BBC network, said the planned investment signals a clear warning to Moscow and would also help revive the UK’s sluggish economy.

“We are in a world that is changing now … and it is a world of growing threats,” Healey told the BBC on Sunday. “It’s growing Russian aggression. It’s those daily cyberattacks, it’s new nuclear risks, and it’s increasing tension in other parts of the world as well.”

The UK’s Ministry of Defence confirmed the funds would support the domestic production of up to 7,000 long-range missiles. With this package, its total munitions spending will reach approximately 6 billion pounds (nearly $8bn) during the current parliamentary term.

Meanwhile, The Sunday Times reported that the government is eyeing US-built jets capable of launching tactical nuclear weapons, although the UK’s Defence Ministry has yet to comment.

The forthcoming SDR, ordered after the Labour Party’s election win in July 2024, will outline emerging threats and the military capabilities required to address them. Starmer has pledged to raise defence spending to 2.5 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) by 2027, with an eventual aim of reaching 3 percent.

The arms initiative follows earlier government pledges to invest 1 billion pounds ($1.3bn) in artificial intelligence technology for battlefield decision-making and an additional 1.5 billion pounds (about $2bn) to improve housing conditions for armed forces personnel.

Last week, a prominent Saudi Sheikh, Mohammed Al-Issa, visited the Auschwitz concentration camp in Poland to commemorate the 75th anniversary of its liberation, which signalled the end of the Nazi Holocaust. Although dozens of Muslim scholars have visited the site, where about one million Jews were killed during World War Two, according to the Auschwitz Memorial Centre’s press office, Al-Issa is the most senior Muslim religious leader to do so.

Visiting Auschwitz is not a problem for a Muslim; Islam orders Muslims to reject unjustified killing of any human being, no matter what their faith is. Al-Issa is a senior ally of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman (MBS), who apparently cares little for the sanctity of human life, though, and the visit to Auschwitz has very definite political connotations beyond any Islamic context.

By sending Al-Issa to the camp, Bin Salman wanted to show his support for Israel, which exploits the Holocaust for geopolitical colonial purposes. “The Israeli government decided that it alone was permitted to mark the 75th anniversary of the Allied liberation of Auschwitz [in modern day Poland] in 1945,” wrote journalist Richard Silverstein recently when he commented on the gathering of world leaders in Jerusalem for Benjamin Netanyahu’s Holocaust event.

READ: Next up, a Saudi embassy in Jerusalem 

Bin Salman uses Al Issa for such purposes, as if to demonstrate his own Zionist credentials. For example, the head of the Makkah-based Muslim World League is leading rapprochement efforts with Evangelical Christians who are, in the US at least, firm Zionists in their backing for the state of Israel. Al-Issa has called for a Muslim-Christian-Jewish interfaith delegation to travel to Jerusalem in what would, in effect, be a Zionist troika.

Zionism is not a religion, and there are many non-Jewish Zionists who desire or support the establishment of a Jewish state in occupied Palestine. The definition of Zionism does not mention the religion of its supporters, and Israeli writer Sheri Oz, is just one author who insists that non-Jews can be Zionists.

Mohammad Bin Salman and Netanyahu – Cartoon [Tasnimnews.com/Wikipedia]

We should not be shocked, therefore, to see a Zionist Muslim leader in these trying times. It is reasonable to say that Bin Salman’s grandfather and father were Zionists, as close friends of Zionist leaders. Logic suggests that Bin Salman comes from a Zionist dynasty.

This has been evident from his close relationship with Zionists and positive approaches to the Israeli occupation and establishment of a Jewish state in Palestine, calling it “[the Jews’] ancestral homeland”. This means that he has no issue with the ethnic cleansing of almost 800,000 Palestinians in 1948, during which thousands were killed and their homes demolished in order to establish the Zionist state of Israel.

“The ‘Jewish state’ claim is how Zionism has tried to mask its intrinsic Apartheid, under the veil of a supposed ‘self-determination of the Jewish people’,” wrote Israeli blogger Jonathan Ofir in Mondoweiss in 2018, “and for the Palestinians it has meant their dispossession.”

As the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, Crown Prince Bin Salman has imprisoned dozens of Palestinians, including representatives of Hamas. In doing so he is serving Israel’s interests. Moreover, he has blamed the Palestinians for not making peace with the occupation state. Bin Salman “excoriated the Palestinians for missing key opportunities,” wrote Danial Benjamin in Moment magazine. He pointed out that the prince’s father, King Salman, has played the role of counterweight by saying that Saudi Arabia “permanently stands by Palestine and its people’s right to an independent state with occupied East Jerusalem as its capital.”

UN expert: Saudi crown prince behind hack on Amazon CEO 

Israeli journalist Barak Ravid of Israel’s Channel 13 News reported Bin Salman as saying: “In the last several decades the Palestinian leadership has missed one opportunity after the other and rejected all the peace proposals it was given. It is about time the Palestinians take the proposals and agree to come to the negotiations table or shut up and stop complaining.” This is reminiscent of the words of the late Israeli Foreign Minister Abba Eban, one of the Zionist founders of Israel, that the Palestinians “never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity.”

Bin Salman’s Zionism is also very clear in his bold support for US President Donald Trump’s deal of the century, which achieves Zionist goals in Palestine at the expense of Palestinian rights. He participated in the Bahrain conference, the forum where the economic side of the US deal was announced, where he gave “cover to several other Arab countries to attend the event and infuriated the Palestinians.”

US President Donald Trump looks over at Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammad bin Salman al-Saud as they line up for the family photo during the opening day of Argentina G20 Leaders’ Summit 2018 at Costa Salguero on 30 November 2018 in Buenos Aires, Argentina [Daniel Jayo/Getty Images]

While discussing the issue of the current Saudi support for Israeli policies and practices in Palestine with a credible Palestinian official last week, he told me that the Palestinians had contacted the Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro to ask him not to relocate his country’s embassy to Jerusalem. “The Saudis have been putting pressure on us in order to relocate our embassy to Jerusalem,” replied the Brazilian leader. What more evidence of Mohammad Bin Salman’s Zionism do we need?

The founder of Friends of Zion Museum is American Evangelical Christian Mike Evans. He said, after visiting a number of the Gulf States, that, “The leaders [there] are more pro-Israel than a lot of Jews.” This was a specific reference to Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince, and his counterpart in the UAE, Mohammed Bin Zayed.

“All versions of Zionism lead to the same reactionary end of unbridled expansionism and continued settler colonial genocide of [the] Palestinian people,” Israeli-American writer and photographer Yoav Litvin wrote for Al Jazeera. We may well see an Israeli Embassy opened in Riyadh in the near future, and a Saudi Embassy in Tel Aviv or, more likely, Jerusalem. Is Mohammad Bin Salman a Zionist? There’s no doubt about it.

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.

Antiques Roadshow expert John Benjamin was on hand to deliver a valuation on a pair of drop earrings and a sapphire ring

On Sunday’s Antiques Roadshow, expert John Benjamin gave two hopeful guests some disappointing news at the stunning Wollaton Hall in Nottingham.

The episode featured locals bringing in their treasures, with a pair of guests presenting family Art Deco jewellery for valuation. At first glance inside an old tin, John discovered exquisite platinum drop earrings and a sapphire ring.

One of the guests related the tale of his mother receiving the jewels from a friend, who was acquainted with a man with connections to France.

John, upon closer inspection, found a significant alteration: “Someone who has owned these in their history has taken them to a jeweller and said: ‘I’m not sure if I like the fittings!’

“So what they’ve done is they’ve removed the original fittings from the back and they’ve soldered on these long gold sort of posts with nine carat gold screw fittings at the end”, reports Edinburgh Live.

While examining the ring, John revealed a surprising fact about its authenticity, revealing: “Here’s an interesting point, in the 1920s, when that was made, synthetic rubies and sapphires were beginning to appear on the market.”

He delivered the blow when he declared: “The sapphires on the shoulders in the ring are actually synthetic. They’re not real. So, there we are.”

During the valuation, he revealed: “Here’s the bad news, those drops, today, if they were having the original fittings on them. I think would be worth between £4,000 and £5,000.

“But because the fittings have been changed, I think we’ve got to now drop that price to probably £2,500 to £3,000 simply because of a clumsy conversion.”

Regarding the sapphire ring, he estimated: “The ring about £1500.”

This led to one of the guests quipping: “How much is the box worth?” which prompted John to respond with a chuckle: “Priceless, absolutely priceless the box!”

In another segment, art expert Rupert Maas appraised a monochrome painting of Princess Daisy of Pless, an icon of Edwardian high society.

The owner explained how her father had found the artwork in a Watford junk shop for a mere £13.50.

Rupert encouraged her to keep it on display, especially after revealing its surprising value of £2,000 to £3,000.

The owner was shocked, saying: “Really? Gosh! I was thinking you were going to say a couple of hundred,” to which Rupert acknowledged it wasn’t a huge sum but definitely a significant increase from what was paid.

Antiques Roadshow continues on Sundays at 7pm on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.

Barcelona want to sign Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey, Liverpool are ready to submit a bid for Bournemouth defender Milos Kerkez, while Everton eye Brighton’s Matt O’Riley.

Barcelona have opened talks with Arsenal and Ghana midfielder Thomas Partey, 31, over a free transfer when his contract expires in June. (Sun), external

Liverpool are preparing to make a formal bid for Bournemouth’s Hungary left-back Milos Kerkez, 21, who has already agreed to the move and is valued by the Cherries at more than £40m. (GiveMeSport), external

Liverpool have failed with two offers for Bayer Leverkusen’s German playmaker Florian Wirtz, 22, and may have to offer England Under-21 pair Harvey Elliott, 22, and Jarell Quansah, 22, in part-exchange. (Kicker via Mirror), external

Ipswich and England Under-21 striker Liam Delap, 22, has completed the first part of his medical over a £30m move to Chelsea. (Fabrizio Romano), external

Everton are interested in Brighton midfielder Matt O’Riley, 24, but are unsure if the Seagulls will sell the Denmark international (Sky Sports), external

Former Napoli, Chelsea and Juventus boss Maurizio Sarri, 66, is close to returning for a second spell as Lazio head coach. (Fabrizio Romano), external

Bayer Leverkusen have agreed a fee worth 10m euros (£8.43m) to sign 31-year-old Netherlands goalkeeper Mark Flekken from Brentford. (Sky Germany), external

Brentford have agreed an initial £12.5m deal, rising to £18m, with Liverpool for Republic of Ireland goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher, 26, to replace Flekken. (Sky Sports), external

Inter Milan manager Simone Inzaghi, 49, will make a decision by Wednesday at the latest on whether to accept an offer to become Al-Hilal boss in time to lead the Saudi Pro League side at this month’s Fifa Club World Cup. (Rudy Galetti), external

Barcelona sporting director Deco said they are not looking for a new striker after links with Sporting’s Sweden forward Viktor Gyokeres, 26, who is also being tracked by both Arsenal and Manchester United. (A Bola via Mirror), external

Germany goalkeeper Marc-Andre Ter Stegen, 33, says he is “not worried” about his position at Barcelona, who have been linked with Espanyol’s Spain stopper Joan Garcia, 24. (Forbes), external

May 31 (UPI) — President Trump plans to meet with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz next week in Washington, D.C..

Merz, who was elected May 6 in a parliamentary election, is scheduled to visit with Trump on Thursday in the White House, German government spokesperson Stefan Kornelius said in a news release Saturday.

Merz, a member of the center-right Christian Democratic Union, replaced Olaf Scholz, who served since 2021 with the Social Democratic Party. Merz was first elected to the Bundestag in 1994 and was leader of the opposition since February 2022.

He will travel to the U.S. capital one day ahead, according to broadcaster n-tv.

They will focus on bilateral relations, the Russia-Ukraine war, the Middle East and trade policy, which includes tariffs, according to Kornelius.

A White House official confirmed the meeting to The Hill.

Like Trump, Merz wants a cease-fire in the war between Ukraine and Russia that began in February 2022.

Merz met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Berlin on Wednesday.

The chancellor said that Germany will increase financial support for Ukraine as part of a more than $5.5 billion agreement. That includes sending over more military equipment and increasing weapons manufacturing in Kyiv.

Members of the Trump administration have criticized Germany’s designation of the far-right Alternative fur Deutschland party as an “extremist” political entity.

“We have largely stayed out of the American election campaign in recent years, and that includes me personally,” Merz said in an interview with Axel Springer Global Reporters Network, which is part of Politico, that was published on May 7.

Last Wednesday, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul traveled to Washington and met with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Trump spoke on the phone with Merz during his visit on May 10 with French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to meet with Zelensky in Kyiv.

Macron, Starmer and Zelensky have already met with Trump in the White House.

Other foreign leaders who met with Trump since he took office again on Jan. 20 include Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, Jordan’s King Abdullah II bin al-Hussein, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Irish Prime Minister Micheel Martin, Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.

Many heads of state, including Trump, went to the funeral for Francis on April 26 in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican. Merz wasn’t one of them.

Kano governor declares day of mourning after athletes representing the state at a national sports event are killed.

A bus crash in Nigeria’s northern state of Kano has killed 22 athletes returning home from a national sports event, according to the local governor.

The bus, which was reportedly carrying more than 30 passengers, plunged off the Chiromawa Bridge on the Kano-Zaria expressway on Saturday, Kano Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf told The Associated Press news agency.

The exact cause of the accident was not known, but the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) said it “might have occurred as a result of fatigue and excessive speed” after a long overnight trip.

The survivors of the crash were taken to a local hospital for treatment.

Yusuf said the athletes, who were accompanied by their coaches and sporting officials, were representing Kano State at the Nigerian National Sports Festival, held about 1,000km (620 miles) to the south in Ogun State.

He declared Monday a day of mourning for the state. His deputy, Aminu Gwarzo, said the families of the victims would receive 1 million naira (about $630) and food supplies as support.

The National Association of Nigerian Students released a statement, Nigerian daily The Guardian reported, saying the “heartbreaking” incident had “cast a shadow of grief over the entire nation, particularly the youth and sports communities”.

Road accidents are common in Africa’s most populous country, in part due to poor road conditions and lax enforcement of traffic laws.

In March, at least six people died near the capital, Abuja, after a trailer crashed into parked vehicles and burst into flames.

Last year, Nigeria recorded 9,570 road accidents that resulted in 5,421 deaths, according to FRSC data.

The Nigerian National Sports Festival brings together athletes from the country’s 35 states every two years.

Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu recently said the games, which include sports ranging from wheelchair basketball to traditional West African wrestling, represent “the unity, strength and resilience that define us as a nation”.

Arsenal make major mistake already

Mikel Arteta has been warned Arsenal have already made their first transfer mistake of the summer.

An ex-EFL striker has blasted the Gunners for missing out on Liam Delap, who is joining London rivals Chelsea for £30m.

Adebayo Akinfenwa told talkSPORT: “I don’t understand how Arsenal didn’t snap him up

“I don’t understand how, when you need a striker and you’re looking at the transfer market, £30m is chump change in today’s market.

“So when you’ve got somebody who, you’re talking about potential, they’re talking about being a Harry Kane replacement for England, about a proper No.9.

“As soon as Ipswich got relegated, they should have been in there. I think it’s a no-brainer.

“I think he’s going to do well. I really do. I remember speaking to him when he was on loan at Stoke from Man City, and even back then.

“His whole demeanour, his aura, he was self-assured, confident, good stature.”

Opener scores 107 off 46 as Pakistan chase 197 with seven wickets in hand and 16 balls to spare for 3-0 series win.

A nerveless century from Mohammad Haris has led Pakistan’s chase of 197 runs to win the third T20 international cricket match against Bangladesh and complete a 3-0 series win in Lahore.

Having won the first two matches after choosing to bowl first, Pakistan asked the visitors to bat first in the third match on Sunday at Gaddafi Stadium in Pakistan’s eastern metropolis.

Given a tricky target of 197, Pakistan lost Sahibzada Farhan – their highest scorer in the second T20I – in the first over to Mehidy Hasan Miraz.

While the Pakistan of old may have crumbled under the pressure of losing a quick wicket, the new-look side under young captain Salman Agha and freshly-appointed coach Mike Hesson kept up their scoring rate.

Saim Ayub and Haris formed a 92-run partnership as they took on the Bangladeshi bowling attack to maintain a high scoring rate and keep the target within sight.

Ayub was dismissed in the 10th over by Tanzim Hasan Sakib after scoring 45 runs off 29 balls, but by then, Haris had taken on the role of the main hitter and kept the big shots coming.

The wicketkeeper-batter hit seven sixes and eight fours in his 46-ball 107, which kept Bangladesh out of contention for most of Pakistan’s innings.

He was all smiles as he accepted the Player of the Match award and said that despite not performing well for Pakistan in the recent past, he kept working hard.

“I tried to learn from my mistakes and didn’t want to waste this opportunity that I got to play in this series,” he said.

Haris added that he batted with the simple plan of “see ball, play ball” and didn’t want to play any unnecessary shots.

Earlier, Bangladesh’s innings had got off to a swift start when Parvez Hossain Emon and Tanzid Hasan overpowered Pakistan’s opening bowlers Ayub and Faheem Ashraf.

They set up an opening stand of 110, but the Bangladeshi batting lineup derailed soon after Tanzid’s departure in the 11th over.

Despite starts from captain Litton Das (22 runs) and Towhid Hridoy (25 runs), the Tigers were unable to maintain the scoring rate set by the openers.

A total of 196-6 in 20 overs ensured the home team faced some pressure when they came out to bat, but Pakistan’s array of attacking batters disregarded scoreboard pressure and took their team home with 16 balls to spare.

Pakistan captain Salman, who was on the pitch with Haris when the winning runs were scored, said he was delighted with his team’s consistency.

“We want to test ourselves where things become difficult, and we wanted to chase to put the boys under pressure,” Salman explained after the match.

The 3-0 series sweep was Pakistan’s first since 2021.

IN 2015, 12 twentysomething singles walked into a Majorcan villa for the very first time – and ­viewers fell head over heels for Love Island.

The premise was simple: couple up and don’t get dumped, to win £50,000.

Ten years on, psychologist Dr Louise Goddard-Crawley says: “Love Island rewired the way we think about love, attraction and even language. It normalised enhanced beauty.”

With the 12th series kicking off next Monday, here we look at how the show shaped the nation.

SKIMPIER SWIMWEAR

10

THE Islanders’ clothes — or lack of — made us reassess our own poolside wardrobes.

Thongs stole the show in 2018, with contestants including Laura Anderson and Georgia Steel wearing the painful-looking cheese-string variety.

Sales of thong bikinis subsequently soared as the nation got on board.

But a family-friendly pool in Lincolnshire banned customers from wearing “thongs or see-through” garments, dubbing it the “Love Island effect”.

In 2019, Molly-Mae Hague and Yewande Biala helped spark an underboob revolution, while 2022 contestant, Antigoni Buxton, inspired us to turn swimwear tops on their head, with searches for “upside-down bikini” rising by 203 per cent.

Sun Fashion Editor Clemmie Fieldsend says: “At the start of each series I’m hit with a barrage of emails from retailers reading, ‘Get the Love Island look’ as they all quickly roll out the on-trend swimwear for that year.”

MAKE-UP RITUALS

10

AS well as putting their love lives under the spotlight, the Islanders revealed their beauty hacks.

In 2018, Dani Dyer brushed her false eyelashes with a spoolie and blasted them with a hairdryer to give them a fluffy look.

The following summer, Molly-Mae sparked the top-knot trend after she gave a tutorial on how to achieve her trademark hairdo, while in the show’s Beach Hut.

And last year, Ella Thomas changed the way we cleanse our faces when she blew on a cotton pad soaked in micellar water — causing the liquid to foam.

A TikTok video on the tip has 13.8million views.

THE LOVE ISLE LOOK

10

BOOB jobs, fillers, Botox — you name it, a Love Island contestant has had it.

Every summer, fans take to Google to see what islanders looked like before their tweakments, with bombshell Megan Barton-Hanson’s transformation one of the most talked about.

The “Love Island Effect” has been blamed for a boom in the number of women — many of them young or even teenagers — seeking cosmetic procedures.

One plastic surgeon said that requests for dermal fillers increased twelve-fold after last year’s series. Demand for other tweakments at High Street salons is up 31 per cent in five years.

However, many former contestants such as Molly-Mae and Shaughna Phillips have had their filler dissolved.

And series two’s Malin Andersson, has given up Botox.

TOXIC ISLANDERS

10

THE show has made headlines over the years for demonstrating the problematic and toxic behaviour of both men and women.

In 2019, domestic abuse charity Women’s Aid accused Adam Collard of “gaslighting” Rosie Williams by denying he was flirting with Zara McDermott, who he later ended up with.

Similarly, in 2022 the charity was “forced” to speak to ITV after being tagged by viewers in social media posts criticising Luca Bish for his “misogynistic and controlling behaviour” towards screen partner Gemma Owen.

Contestants have also faced bullying claims.

Earlier this year, media watchdog Ofcom received thousands of complaints about All Stars contestant Elma Pazar’s “alleged bullying” of co-star Ekin-Su Culculoglu during an argument.

However, the pair were soon shown working through their fall-out before making up.

THE LINGO

10

REMEMBER the time when “muggy” referred to the ­weather and “my type on paper” was just a font?

The show’s catchphrases have left a lasting impression on the English language.

“The ick”, made popular by Olivia Attwood, was added to the Cambridge Dictionary in 2024, defined as “a sudden feeling of dislike or loss of attraction towards someone or something”.

Linguist and interpreter Ana Clarke says the show’s own lingo has even helped British men drop the stiff upper lip and better express ­emotions.

She said: “Now we see younger males talking about their feelings. They talk about ‘my type on paper’, ‘being mugged off’, ‘keeping their options open’.

“They often talk about relationships and use the word ‘journey’.”

Other terms popularised by the show include “pied” (to be dumped); “it is what it is” (that’s the situation); “putting all my eggs in their basket” (focusing on one person); and “melt” (liking someone so much that you don’t mind embarrassing yourself to prove it).

MENTAL HEALTH

10

SADLY, Love Island has been hit by a number of tragedies, which highlighted how reality TV shows that thrive on ­conflict and emotions can harm the mental health of contestants.

After the suicides of former Islanders Sophie Gradon (series two) and Mike ­Thalassitis (series three) and presenter Caroline Flack within a period of 20 months, ITV was thrown into turmoil.

Bosses introduced new duty-of-care protocols including pre-show psych-ological and medical assessments, training on social media impacts and ongoing support both during and after the programme aired.

Following Caroline’s shock death early 2020, Love Island and its sponsor JustEat replaced advertising with messages from charity Samaritans.

PR expert Nick Ede said: “ITV understood that they do have a duty of care. They put in place stringent guidelines to really support each of the contestants.

“After Caroline, it was important for them to support their viewers as well.”

A STAR IS BORN

10

A BEVVY of beauties have found fame on the show — becoming some of the our most talked about and successful celebs.

Even the losers have walked away winners thanks to lucrative brand deals or showbiz gigs.

Nick Ede says: “They are kind of relatable. Millions feel they could be with them or be on Love Island.” Season five runner-up Molly-Mae has been the most successful influencer.

She has made an estimated £6million from deals with Pretty Little Thing, L’Oreal and Beauty Works.

She now has a daughter with her Love Island boyfriend boxer Tommy Fury, her own clothing line and a docuseries with Amazon Prime Video.

Ovie Soko, Dani Dyer and Kem Cetinay also raked it in from brand deals.

Alex and Olivia Bowen have a son and are worth almost £10million, mainly due to ­sponsored Instagram deals. Maura ­Higgins has fashion and beauty deals and hosts a US Love Island spin-off.

Olivia Attwood makes document-aries and a podcast.

Amber Davies is a West End star.

FASHION FOOTPRINT

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CUT-OUT dresses and co-ords and, for men, spray-on jeans were all popularised on the show.

The early seasons’ contestants were dressed by sponsors including fast-fashion retailers I Saw It First and Missguided, but it soon sparked a backlash.

In 2022, the show made headlines by announcing it would now dress the Islanders in pre-owned outfits from eBay, to promote more sustainable shopping habits.

PR expert Nick Ede said it was a savvy move by ITV to appeal to eco-conscious Gen Z.

“It opened them up to a whole new generation,” says Nick. “We know younger audiences are more conscious when it comes to clothing.”

ONE SIZE FITS ALL

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YOU can’t deny there is a ­stereotypical Love Island look.

While the show has included contestants such as Tasha Ghouri, who is deaf and wears a cochlear implant, raising awareness around her disability, it has been criticised for ­failing to include any plus-size contestants.

Dating coach Eimear Draper says: “TV shows such as Love Island are putting a huge amount of pressure on beauty standards. For those who already ­struggle with self- esteem, this is concerning.”

Eimear, founder of Kindling Dating, adds: “All the women look the same with their ­bikinis, tanned skin and long, flowing hair.

“The Love Island guys likeChris Hughes are all hunks. They are buff. They, too, are tanned and tattooed.”

Young blokes have been warned by the group UK Anti-Doping not to resort to performance-enhancing drugs to achieve “ripped” physiques,

Periodically, Love Island has also been accused of tokenism, with often only one or two black contestants each series. Last year, Mimii Ngulube and Josh Oyinsan became the first black couple to be crowned winners.

LET’S TALK ABOUT SEX

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IN the early days, the show was a bit of a bonkfest.

Ofcom received complaints about one couple getting busy in front of their rival housemates in series two.

And Miss Great Britain Zara Holland was stripped of her pageant title after getting it on with Alex Bowen.

Series three winners Kem Cetinay and Amber Davies were also at it like rabbits.

In 2018, producers decided to stop showing sex scenes. Nowadays, you might just get a glimpse of a headboard banging or happy feet under the sheets.

But experts reckon the show has, in some ways, sexually empowered women.

Therapist Sergio Rebelo says: “Many women on the show are unafraid to talk about their bodies and sexuality. This can encourage others to discuss their own sexuality.”

Case in point: Maura ­Higgins talking about which of the men gave her “fanny flutters”.

Then there’s ex-stripper Megan Barton-Hanson, who was on Love Island in 2018 and later paired up with Ann ­Summers to launch her own range of sex toys.

WASHINGTON — As Republicans gather this week in Houston, we hear much talk of conservatives and conservatism. Is George Bush a true conservative? Will conservatives support the President, or stay home? Is the movement intellectually exhausted? Who will emerge to lead conservatives in 1996?

But these discussions all overlook one significant point: The Republicans are not really a conservative party. Indeed, we might say of American conservatism, as Mohandas K. Gandhi said of Western civilization–”It would be a good idea.”

True conservatism is a philosophy committed to conserving– conserving families, communities and nation in the face of change. Committed to preserving fundamental values, such as accountability, civic duty and the rule of law. And committed to a strong government to realize these ends. What passes for conservatism in America today bears only a passing resemblance to this true conservatism. It worships at the twin altars of free enterprise and weak government–two decidedly unconservative notions.

Real conservatism values security and stability over the unfettered free market. In Germany, for example, it was the conservative Otto von Bismark–not socialists–who developed social insurance and built the world’s first welfare state. Today conservatives throughout the world–but not here–endorse government-provided national health care, because they recognize public needs are not always met by the private sector. And they see a role for government in encouraging national economic development.

A true conservative movement would not ignore the decay of our great cities, or see the disorder of the Los Angeles riots only as a political opportunity. Nor would they pay homage to “free trade” while the nation’s manufacturing base withered. Nor would a conservative President veto pro-family legislation requiring companies to provide leave to new mothers, in deference to business prerogatives.

Traditional conservatives champion community and nation over the individual. They esteem public service, and promote civic obligation. They reject the “invisible hand” argument, that everyone’s pursuit of individual self-interest will magically yield the best public outcome, believing instead in deliberately cultivating virtue. Authentic conservatives do not assail 55 m.p.h. speed limits and seat-belt laws as encroaching totalitarianism.

Finally, a genuine conservatism values the future over the present. It is a movement of elites to be sure, but of elites who feel that their privilege entails special obligations. The old word for this was “stewardship”–the obligation to care for the nation’s human and natural resources, and to look out for future generations’ interests.

Such conservatives would not open up public lands for private commercial exploitation, or undermine environmental regulations for short-term economic growth. They would not cut funding for childrens’ vaccinations, knowing that the cost of treating illness is far greater. And a conservative political party would never preside over a quadrupling of the national debt.

In America, then, what we call conservatism is really classical liberalism: a love of the market, and hatred of government. Adam Smith, after all, was a liberal, not a conservative. As the economist Gunnar Myrdal once noted: “America is conservative . . . but the principles conserved are liberal.”

American conservatives have often celebrated the country’s historically “exceptional” character: the acceptance of capitalism and the absence of any significant socialist movement. Curiously, though, they often miss their half of the story: the absence of a real Tory conservatism. What Louis Hartz called America’s “liberal consensus” excluded both of the great communitarian traditions–ain’t nobody here but us liberals.

True conservatism’s weakness as a political tradition in America is thus an old story. When values confront the market here, the market usually wins. In recent years, though, conservative social values seem to have been eclipsed. Many of today’s conservatives are really libertarians–proponents of a radical individualism that has little in common with conservatism. Consider some very non-conservative messages that conservatives have delivered in the past two weeks.

Conservative GOP leaders called on the President to propose massive new tax cuts as the centerpiece for a possible second term. Fiscal responsibility, apparently, is no longer part of conservative doctrine–if it gets in the way of a nice capital gains tax cut.

The Wall Street Journal assailed Maryland for introducing a new 75-hour community-service requirement for high school students. What about teaching values in school? Or putting nation before self?

When it comes to good conservative values, today’s conservatives talk the talk, but they don’t walk the walk. Look at Dan Quayle, the elected official who supposedly most speaks to real conservatives. Every day, the vice president is out there talking about traditional values, and slaying liberal dragons like Murphy Brown. His agenda: tax dollars for parochial schools, banning abortion, allowing school prayer. This is the 1980 Moral Majority program. Yet, after 12 years in power, the Republican Party has delivered nothing to social conservatives–the closest thing we have in this country to authentic conservatives. Republicans’ business allies, on the other hand, have reaped tremendous gains in such areas as taxation, regulation and labor relations. There are many social-issue conservatives in the GOP, but when it comes to governing, they are clearly the junior partners.

These social issues are trotted out every four years, but it’s just a ritual, like hanging Christmas lights on the front porch. The rest of the time, they sit in the Republican basement. For them, it’s simply a matter of electoral opportunism–a way to attract working-class voters whose economic interests drew them to the Democrats. Now Barry M. Goldwater, the grand old man of American conservatism, has called on the party to abandon its anti-abortion commitment. The political calculus has changed, and so must the platform. Individual liberty is the important point now. It would appear that the ban on abortion was only in there to win votes in the first place–if it doesn’t do that, what’s the point?

The future seems to lie with the libertarians. We should expect more Republicans like Gov. Pete Wilson, who prides himself on savaging the social safety net. Personal freedom is the message: free to have an abortion, also free to go hungry.

However, this does not bode well for conservatives’ long-term electoral fortunes. Economic liberalism is a weak political force in countries with conservative and social-democratic alternatives. Historically, lower-class voters have been mobilized by appeals to class solidarity on the one hand, or religion and nationalism on the other. Liberalism is the credo of the upper middle class.

The historical failure of American elites to embrace authentic conservatism is a loss for the nation. Even liberals–in the American sense–should regret this void. In fact, they should be most concerned. Conservatives would resist the relentless privatization of our social and economic life, and help rein in the nation’s free-market excesses. If real conservatives had been in charge in the 1980s, we might have been spared the orgy of speculation, takeover and deregulation that so weakened our economy.

The free market, after all, is a powerful force for change. It creates and destroys communities, sunders families and undermines traditional values. People desire protection from it for sound conservative reasons–they want security and stability. A genuine conservatism would provide a kind of social ballast for a nation constantly buffeted by change.

America is too liberal for its own good. Our brand of conservatism is too American for its own good. Maybe it’s time to let conservatives be conservatives.

UCLA’s Ian May came out of the bullpen and induced Kien Vu to ground into a double play in the fourth to cut short a potential big inning and the Bruins never looked back during an 11-5 victory over Arizona State at the Los Angeles Regional.

The top-seeded Bruins (43-16) advance to the regional final at Jackie Robinson Stadium.

May entered the game in the fourth inning and protected UCLA’s lead, giving up three runs in five innings.

“His line doesn’t completely tell you the story with his two earned runs at the end of the game, but I don’t think we’d be where we were tonight without Ian,” UCLA coach John Savage said.

May said he was pleased with the result.

“It felt pretty good tonight, just happy to get the team a win,” he said.

AJ Salgado scored the opening run for UCLA, followed by Payton Brennan to make it 2-0. Cleanup hitter Roman Martin then broke the game open with a grand slam in the second, driving in Mulivai Levu, Roch Cholowsky, and Dean West to extend UCLA’s commanding lead to 7-0.

Arizona State scored a run in the bottom of the second and again in the fourth to cut into the deficit, but UCLA’s offense kept the pressure on. The Sun Devils added two more runs in the ninth but could not close the gap.

The Bruins will face the winner of the Arizona State-UC Irvine game at 7 p.m. Sunday for a spot in the super regionals.

General Anil Chauhan, India’s chief of defence staff, has admitted that an unspecified number of fighter jets were shot down during its conflict with Pakistan last month.

The acknowledgement of aerial losses by the country’s highest ranking general comes weeks after the two South Asian neighbours were engaged in their heaviest fighting in decades, which involved fighter jets and cruise missiles.

Indian officials had previously refused to confirm or deny Pakistani claims of downing Indian jets. The conflict was triggered after gunmen killed 26 tourists in India-administered Kashmir’s Pahalgam town on April 22.

India’s first official admission of a loss of fighter jets came during Chauhan’s interviews on the sidelines of the Shangri-La Dialogue security forum in Singapore.

What was the conflict between India and Pakistan?

India carried out strikes on what it called “terror infrastructure” in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir on May 7 in retaliation for the Pahalgam attack. India blamed armed groups backed by Pakistan for the April 22 attack.

An armed group called The Resistance Front (TRF) claimed responsibility for the Pahalgam killings. India accused the TRF of being an offshoot of the Pakistan-based armed group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT). Pakistan denied involvement, condemning the Pahalgam attack and calling for a neutral investigation.

India claimed to have targeted at least six cities in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir on the first day of the conflict. Pakistan initially asserted that it had downed six Indian fighter jets in retaliation. But a senior Pakistan official told Al Jazeera five Indian aircraft were lost in the aerial battle.

India did not confirm or deny the Pakistani claims. “Losses are a part of combat,” Air Marshal AK Bharti, India’s director general of air operations, said at a news conference on May 11.

The Indian embassy in China called reports of the downing of jets “disinformation”.

After that, tit-for-tat cross-border attacks across the Line of Control (LoC), the de facto border between India- and Pakistan-administered Kashmir, rattled the region, renewing fears of a nuclear war.

On May 10, United States President Donald Trump announced that the two countries had reached a ceasefire, potentially averting a “nuclear disaster”. India and Pakistan have given competing claims on casualties in the fighting, but more than 70 people were killed on both sides.

Both India and Pakistan claim Kashmir in full but administer only parts of the Muslim-majority Himalayan territory.

Here is what Chauhan said in recent interviews with the Reuters news agency and Bloomberg TV:

On the downing of Indian fighter jets

Chauhan admitted that India suffered air losses on the first day of fighting without giving details.

In an interview with Reuters, he said: “What was important is why did these losses occur and what we’ll do after that.”

The Indian general said that after the losses, the Indian army “rectified tactics” and then went back on May 7, 8 and 10 “in large numbers to hit airbases deep inside Pakistan, penetrated all their air defences with impunity, carried out precision strikes”. He added that the Indian air force “flew all types of aircraft with all types of ordnances” on May 10.

Islamabad acknowledged that its airbases suffered some minimal losses but denied that it lost any planes.

When a Bloomberg reporter asked Chauhan about Pakistan’s claims that six Indian jets were downed, Chauhan responded that this information was incorrect.

He went on to say: “What is important is … not the jets being downed but why they were downed.” Some media outlets inferred that his statement appeared to imply that a number of jets were lost in the aerial battle.

The general did not provide details about the number of jets downed or specifics about what these rectified tactics were.

The Pakistani military said India did not fly its fighter jets in the conflict again after suffering the air losses.

On the risks of nuclear war

Media reports suggested that some attacks were near Pakistan’s nuclear sites but the nuclear infrastructure itself was not a target.

“Most of the strikes were delivered with pinpoint accuracy, some even to a metre [3.3ft] to whatever was our selected mean point of impact,” Chauhan said in the interview with Reuters.

Chauhan had previously provided assurances that India was not considering using nuclear weapons during the conflict. The chairman of Pakistan’s joint chiefs of staff, General Sahir Shamshad Mirza, has done the same for his country.

“I think there’s a lot of space before that nuclear threshold is crossed, a lot of signalling before that. I think nothing like that happened. There’s a lot of space for conventional operations which has been created, and this will be the new norm,” Chauhan said.

The Indian general added that on both sides, the most “rational people are in uniform” during conflict because they understand the consequences of “this kind of conflict”.

“I found both sides displaying a lot of rationality in their thoughts as well as actions. So why should we assume that in the nuclear domain there will be irrationality on someone else’s part?”

On Chinese role

The Indian chief of defence staff said that while Pakistan enjoys a close alliance with China, there was no sign that Beijing helped Islamabad during the conflict.

China sits on India’s northern and eastern borders and controls a barely inhabited northeastern zone in Kashmir called Aksai Chin.

“We didn’t find any unusual activity in the operational or tactical depth of our northern borders, and things were generally all right,” Chauhan said.

When Chauhan was asked whether China provided Pakistan with intelligence information such as satellite imagery, the Indian general responded by saying that such information is commercially available and Pakistan could have obtained it from China or other sources.

However, Chauhan said “almost 80 percent of the equipment” in Pakistan has been procured from China in the past few years.

From 2020 to 2025, China supplied 81 percent of Pakistan’s arms imports, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.

Chinese jets got a boost after media reports said Pakistan used Chinese-manufactured J-10C fighter jets in the air battle. The Chinese government did not officially confirm that the J-10C jets were used to down Indian jets, but China Central Television, a state broadcaster, posted on social media on May 17 that the jets achieved actual combat results for the first time.

What’s next

Chauhan said that while hostilities have ceased, India would “respond precisely and decisively should there be any further terror attacks emanating from Pakistan”. He added that this will be a new normal for India.

“So that has its own dynamics as far [as] the armed forces are concerned. It will require us to be prepared 24/7.”

The president of the main opposition Indian National Congress party said Chauhan’s admission warrants a review of India’s defence preparedness.

“There are some very important questions which need to be asked. These can only be asked if a Special Session of the Parliament is immediately convened,” Mallikarjun Kharge wrote in an X post on Saturday.

Referring to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, he added: “The Modi Govt has misled the nation. The fog of war is now clearing.”

“We salute [the Indian military’s] resolute courage and bravery,” Kharge said. “However, a comprehensive strategic review is the need of the hour.”

The Congress party has called the Pahalgam attack a “security and intelligence failure” and sought accountability, given that India-administered Kashmir is directly governed from New Delhi.

The 12-person crew, which includes climate activist Greta Thunberg, expects to take seven days to reach Gaza.

International nonprofit organisation Freedom Flotilla Coalition (FFC) says one of its vessels has left Sicily to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza, after a previous attempt failed due to a drone attack on a different ship in the Mediterranean.

The 12-person crew, which includes Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, Irish actor Liam Cunningham and Franco-Palestinian MEP Rima Hassan, set sail on the Madleen from the port of Catania on Sunday, carrying barrels of relief supplies that the group called “limited amounts, though symbolic”.

The voyage comes after another vessel operated by the group, the Conscience, was hit by two drones just outside Maltese territorial waters in early May. While FFC said Israel was to blame for the incident, it has not responded to requests for comment.

“We are doing this because no matter what odds we are against, we have to keep trying, because the moment we stop trying is when we lose our humanity,” Thunberg told reporters at a news conference before the departure. The Swedish climate activist had been due to board the Conscience.

She added that “no matter how dangerous this mission is, it is nowhere near as dangerous as the silence of the entire world in the face of the lives being genocised”.

🇵🇸 ⛵️ Avec @GretaThunberg nous appelons à la mobilisation citoyenne pour soutenir massivement le navire humanitaire de @GazaFFlotilla ! C’est le seul moyen de garantir notre sécurité. 🙏 pic.twitter.com/5DUJbkRdPZ

— Rima Hassan (@RimaHas) June 1, 2025

The activists expect to take seven days to reach their destination, if they are not stopped.

The FCC, launched in 2010, is a non-violent international movement supporting Palestinians, combining humanitarian aid with political protest against the blockade on Gaza.

It said the trip “is not charity. This is a non-violent, direct action to challenge Israel’s illegal siege and escalating war crimes”.

United Nations agencies and major aid groups say Israeli restrictions, the breakdown of law and order, and widespread looting make it extremely difficult to deliver aid to Gaza’s roughly two million inhabitants.

The situation in Gaza is at its worst since the war between Israel and Hamas began 19 months ago, the UN said on Friday, despite a resumption of limited aid deliveries in the Palestinian enclave.

Under growing global pressure, Israel ended an 11-week blockade on Gaza on May 19, allowing extremely limited UN-led operations to resume.

On Monday, a new avenue for aid distribution was also launched: the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, backed by the United States and Israel, but with the UN and international aid groups refusing to work with it, saying it is not neutral and has a distribution model that forces the displacement of Palestinians.

The FCC is the latest among a growing number of critics to accuse Israel of genocidal acts in its war in Gaza, allegations Israel vehemently denies.

“We are breaking the siege of Gaza by sea, but that’s part of a broader strategy of mobilisations that will also attempt to break the siege by land,” said activist Thiago Avila.

Avila also mentioned the upcoming Global March to Gaza – an international initiative also open to doctors, lawyers and members of the media – which is set to leave Egypt and reach the Rafah crossing in mid-June to stage a protest there, calling on Israel to stop the Gaza offensive and reopen the border.

Vanessa Agabo-Davalos has spent hours watching the dystopian drama “Squid Game” on Netflix. But nothing could prepare the 21-year-old college student for seeing one of the show’s actors walk the red carpet a few feet in front of her.

She found herself starstruck in the presence of Kang Ae-sim, who portrays Geum-ja (Player 149) on the South Korean thriller. All the more so when they snapped a photo together.

“You forget everything. You forget how to talk — it’s just like ‘Wow, I saw you on TV,’” said Agabo-Davalos, who traveled an hour from the Inland Empire and can’t wait to see the final season this month. “I feel like it’s a dream come true for the ones that really enjoyed these shows.”

She was among the more than 9,500 Netflix fans who gathered Saturday at the Kia Forum in Inglewood for Netflix‘s Tudum live event, an hours-long extravaganza meant to hype up audiences for upcoming series, movies and returning franchises.

People traveled from all over the world to celebrate their love for shows including “Squid Game,” Addams Family series “Wednesday” and sci-fi show “Stranger Things.”

During Netflix’s variety-show like program onstage at the famed venue, the company showed off how its computer animated version of Tony Tony Chopper, a toddler-sized reindeer-boy character in the live action pirate series “One Piece,” would appear in the upcoming season.

Oscar-winning director Guillermo del Toro unveiled a new teaser trailer for his November Netflix movie, “Frankenstein,” starring Oscar Isaac and Mia Goth, who both appeared onstage with the filmmaker. Fans also saw the first six minutes of the first episode of Season 2 of “Wednesday,” which will be released in August.

The event, named after the sound that plays before a Netflix program begins (“tuh-dum”), was part of Netflix’s ongoing effort to harness the enthusiasm its viewers have for its most popular programs and inspire them to keep streaming.

“It is about celebrating fans and giving something back to them,” Netflix’s Chief Marketing Officer Marian Lee told The Times after the event. “Of course it is also about promoting … we have a huge slate coming up.”

Netflix hosted the first Tudum event in 2020 in São Paulo, which came from the company’s Brazil team, which had an idea for an event that rewarded the streamer’s fans of young adult shows. That later led to Tudum evolving into different formats including festivals and livestreams, events that were more like a fan convention.

In 2023, Netflix held Tudum again in São Paulo, drawing more than 35,000 attendees and more than 78 million views through Netflix’s social channels.

But Saturday’s festivities in Inglewood took Netflix brand promotion to a new level.

It was the first time Tudum was livestreamed directly on Netflix, rather than on YouTube or social media outlets. The event played like a roughly two-hour live variety show, featuring “ask me anything” segments, as well as performances from music artists including Lady Gaga, who appears in the next season of “Wednesday.”

Xavier Woods, left, and Kofi Kingston attend Netflix Tudum 2025: The Live Event at the Kia Forum on Saturday in Inglewood.

(Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for Netflix)

There was plenty of cross promotion of Netflix content during the show, as WWE wrestlers talked about why people should tune into their weekly live show on the platform, while also speaking about their love for “One Piece,” based on manga.

Tudum host Sofia Carson touted her upcoming Netflix movie, “My Oxford Year,” which also stars Corey Mylchreest, known for portraying King George III in Georgian era romance series “Queen Charlotte” from the “Bridgerton” universe. Sesame Street‘s Cookie Monster also made an appearance with actors Ben Affleck and Matt Damon, who star in the new Netflix movie “The RIP.”

“I don’t think another studio can pull this off in the way that we did,” Lee said. “Fandoms can be unique and distinct. They’re putting all those fans in a room together, WWE fans next to [mystery movie] ‘Knives Out’ fans next to Lady Gaga fans for ‘Wednesday.’ That’s an incredible achievement. That is something only Netflix can do.”

To some people, Tudum is a page borrowed from Walt Disney Co., which hosts the biennial D23 fan convention in Anaheim, pulling together disparate fandoms (Disney princesses, Marvel, Pixar, Star Wars) to converge in the same place. It raises the question: Does Netflix, a streaming service that produces shows from just about every genre for just about every kind of audience, have fans in the same way that Disney does?

Over the years, Netflix has expanded its live events and in-person experiences to keep viewers engaged. Those have included “Bridgerton” balls, Netflix-themed eateries and retail stores selling merch based on “Stranger Things” and other shows.

Lee declined to say how much Netflix spent on the event. Some fans bought tickets, ranging from $25 to $75, while others said they scored free tickets. Netflix said tickets sold out in about a week.

Netflix doesn’t have iconic animated characters like Mickey Mouse or storied franchises like “Star Wars” or Marvel. But Netflix’s strategy is to have something for everyone, and because of that, people are reluctant to quit it, industry observers say, even as economic anxieties run rampant.

“That is the competitive advantage of Netflix,” said Larry Vincent, a marketing professor at USC Marshall School of Business. “It really has become the big tent of streaming. They’ve invested pretty significantly to develop a stockpile of content.”

The streamer said last year it had more than 301 million subscribers globally. On Saturday, the attendees reflected that expansive audience.

Netflix Tudum 2025: The Live Event at the Kia Forum on Saturday in Inglewood.

(Adam Rose/Netflix)

Fans dressed up as their favorite characters from Netflix shows. People wore black dresses similar to Wednesday’s attire, straw hats in support of “One Piece” and green tracksuits like the ones players wear in the deadly “Squid Game.”

When Cookie Monster appeared behind a DJ booth on the “N” shaped red carpet to sing “‘C’ is for Cookie,” adults in “Squid Game” tracksuits joined in the chorus.

“It’s all-encompassing and global and passionate,” Tudum host Carson, known for starring in Netflix movies including “Carry-On” and “Purple Hearts,” said in an interview after the event ended. “It is truly extraordinary to feel the love from every single part of the world — it crosses languages, it crosses cultures.”

Shaheidi Jimenez, 21, came to the Netflix event as a fan of “Wednesday” and “Squid Game.” She hadn’t watched “Stranger Things,” but seeing the screaming fans for the show’s actors on the red carpet made her more curious about the sci-fi series.

“When I see the cast, it makes me want to watch it now,” Jimenez said. “I’m familiar with them more. It makes me want to watch the show and probably get into it.”

The United Nations nuclear watchdog has delivered its most damning allegations against Iran in nearly two decades.

It comes as the United States proposes a nuclear deal that it says is in Tehran’s best interests to accept.

But Tehran is accusing the West of political pressure and warns it will take “appropriate countermeasures” if European powers reimpose sanctions.

So is there still room for a deal?

Or will the US, United Kingdom, France and Germany declare Iran in violation of its nonproliferation obligations?

Presenter: James Bays

Guests:

Hassan Ahmadian – assistant professor at the University of Tehran

Ali Vaez – Iran project director at the International Crisis Group

Sahil Shah – independent security analyst specialising in nuclear disarmament and nonproliferation policy

WASHINGTON — Defense Secretary Dick Cheney on Monday fired Air Force Chief of Staff Michael J. Dugan, saying that the four-star general displayed “poor judgment at a very sensitive time” by revealing possible targets of air strikes in Iraq in the event of war.

President Bush and Gen. Colin L. Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, concurred in the dismissal, which came in a 10-minute meeting with Dugan in Cheney’s Pentagon office early Monday.

Dugan was fired for comments published in The Times and Washington Post on Sunday, in which he said that–if war comes–the U.S. military intends to conduct a massive air campaign against Iraq, specifically targeting Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, his family and his palace guard.

“Given the extreme delicacy and sensitivity of the current situation, it’s incumbent upon senior officials to be discreet and tactful in their public statements, and I found those qualities lacking” in Dugan’s remarks, Cheney said in a news conference Monday.

The defense secretary said Dugan’s comments put at risk the lives of the more than 150,000 U.S. troops in the region and jeopardized the five-week-old Persian Gulf operation by revealing classified details of U.S. war planning.

Cheney said he will nominate Gen. Merrill A. McPeak, currently commander of Pacific Air Forces, to be the next chief of staff.

As for Dugan, who had been in the post only since July, Cheney said: “He will be retired.”

The only other member of the Joint Chiefs to have been fired was Adm. Louis E. Denfeld, sacked in October, 1949, by President Harry S. Truman. Denfeld, ironically, had irritated the President and his fellow chiefs for raising questions about the value of air power in modern warfare.

Cheney cited a number of critical sins that Dugan committed in the interviews with three journalists conducted over several hours aboard his aircraft on a trip to Saudi Arabia last week.

“We never talk about future operations, such as the selection of specific targets for potential air strikes. We never talk about the targeting of specific individuals who are officials of other governments. Taking such action might be a violation of the standing presidential executive order” banning assassinations, Cheney said.

He also chastised Dugan for underestimating Iraqi military capabilities, for revealing classified information about the size and disposition of U.S. forces in Saudi Arabia and for demeaning the role of the other U.S. military services by citing air power as the “only option” available for defeating the 1-million-member Iraqi army.

Cheney also was disturbed with Dugan for “treating (U.S.) casualties cavalierly,” an aide said. He apparently was referring to a comment from a senior Dugan aide on the trip who called the expected loss of American lives in such a military operation a “manageable risk.”

Powell reportedly was furious when he saw the Post story on Sunday morning and called Cheney at home at 7 a.m. to point it out. Cheney then sought The Times’ version to see if Dugan’s remarks were accurately reported. The two articles were similar, and the quotations in common were exactly the same. Cheney was “very upset,” but did not make up his mind to fire Dugan until Sunday night, a knowledgeable defense official said.

An aide to Cheney said the defense secretary believes Dugan’s comments “showed egregious judgment” and could not be tolerated. “He became the self-appointed spokesman for (Gen. H. Norman Schwarzkopf, who is directing the U.S. operation in Saudi Arabia) and the chiefs. He revealed classified information. He talked about operational plans that are fundamentally not his choice. He raised sensitive matters of diplomacy relating to other nations. He set a poor standard of military leadership, that a military commander would not take seriously the people we’re up against,” this official said.

“Based on all these things, the secretary just lost confidence in him,” the aide said.

Powell contacted Dugan in Florida and asked if he had been accurately quoted. Dugan assured him that he had been. Powell told him to report to Cheney’s office at 8 a.m. Monday but did not tell the Air Force chief that the decision had been made to dismiss him.

Dugan did not know when he entered Cheney’s Pentagon office that he was about to be fired, an Air Force official said.

In his news conference, Cheney did not dispute the truth of any of Dugan’s assertions, which included a statement that the Joint Chiefs have concluded that the United States would never have sufficient ground forces in Saudi Arabia to drive Iraqi troops out of Kuwait and would therefore be dependent on air power to sway any potential battle.

Dugan also revealed for the first time that the United States has deployed 420 combat aircraft to the Arabian Peninsula–nearly as much striking power as the fleet dedicated to defending Europe against the Soviet Union. Previous estimates of air power in the Persian Gulf region were about half that.

The Air Force chief also disclosed for the first time that the United States had recently purchased advanced Israeli cruise missiles and deployed them aboard B-52 bombers stationed within striking distance of Baghdad. In addition, he said that the Pentagon has consulted with Israeli intelligence agencies to determine the best targets in Iraq.

The most troubling matter, senior Pentagon officials said, was Dugan’s discussion of the possible targeting of Hussein, his family, his inner circle and even his mistress. Cheney suggested that such action “might” violate Executive Order 12333, issued in December, 1981, which specifically prohibits assassinations.

“I think it’s inappropriate . . . for U.S. officials to talk about targeting specific foreign individuals,” Cheney said in the news conference. “I think it is potentially a violation of the standing presidential Executive Order.”

However, the ban on assassinations was modified last year to allow for the killing of senior enemy military commanders as part of a “decapitation” strategy. Hussein is commander in chief of Iraqi military forces–as Bush is commander of all U.S. forces–and thus would be a legal target for military action, Pentagon officials said Monday.

But it clearly would violate U.S. law and policy to target Hussein’s wife, his children or his girlfriend, officials noted.

Cheney, pressed on a variety of Dugan’s assertions, said he could not confirm or deny them without violating the security considerations for which he dismissed Dugan.

The defense secretary also noted that Dugan is “not even in the chain of command,” which runs from Bush to Cheney to Powell to Schwarzkopf, commander of the U.S. Central Command, which covers the Middle East.

Under the current military structure, the members of the Joint Chiefs are advisers to the chairman and provide forces, equipment and support to theater commanders, known inside the Pentagon as the “war-fighting CINCs” or regional commanders in chief.

Cheney praised Dugan’s record of 32 years of Air Force service and said that he regretted firing him. “But under the circumstances, I felt it was necessary,” the secretary said. Dugan’s comments, Cheney noted, “did not in my mind reveal an adequate understanding of the situation and what is expected of him as chief of staff of the Air Force and as a member of the Joint Chiefs.”

The abrupt dismissal undoubtedly will reverberate throughout the Pentagon and the entire U.S. military, which has not enjoyed good relations with the press for two generations.

“You won’t be talking to any generals any time soon,” one senior Army officer told a reporter Monday.

Cheney denied that he was sending a message to military officers to avoid reporters. But he said that he expected his subordinates “to exercise discretion in what they say. . . . That sort of wide-ranging speculation about those matters that were discussed in the interviews that were granted by the general is what I felt was inappropriate.”

Air Force Secretary Donald B. Rice, who had recommended Dugan for the job and who concurred in Cheney’s decision to relieve him, said in a prepared statement: “I regret the circumstances that made it necessary for Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney to take this action. Gen. Dugan is a superb officer. His leadership and innovation will be missed by every man and woman in the Air Force.”

Dugan, 53, jumped over a number of senior Air Force officers when he was chosen for the chief of staff job earlier this year. He is a fighter and attack plane pilot with more than 4,500 flying hours and 300 combat missions in Vietnam.

A graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y., Dugan rose rapidly through the Air Force, serving chiefly in fighter squadron commands. His last post before becoming chief of staff in July was as commander of U.S. Air Forces in Europe.

His last Washington assignment was in 1988 and early 1989, when he served as deputy Air Force chief of staff for plans and operations.

Among his decorations are the Distinguished Service Medal, Silver Star, Legion of Merit with two oak leaf clusters, Purple Heart, Distinguished Flying Cross, Air Medal and the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm.

Dugan has six children, three of them Air Force officers. When the articles appeared Sunday, he was in Florida attending a ceremony for his son Michael’s graduation from F-16 pilot training school.

Sen. John S. McCain (R-Ariz.), a former Navy bomber pilot who was shot down and taken prisoner in Vietnam, said the American system of civilian control of the military dictated Cheney’s firing of Dugan. “I think that clearly Cheney has the authority, and indeed the responsibility, to discipline anyone who violated policy,” he said.

McCain said he was especially troubled by Dugan’s comment that in any bombing campaign “the cutting edge would be in downtown Baghdad. This wouldn’t be a Vietnam-style operation, nibbling around the edges. . . . The way to hurt you is at home, not out in the woods somewhere.”

McCain said he did not think the American public would accept that tactic, even if it were justifiable on purely military grounds.

“His comments are at best not cognizant of the sensitivity of those remarks and the reaction that would be fueled by them,” McCain said. “It’s too bad, because I’m sure the guy was highly qualified for the job. But it comes down to the fact that the civilian leaders have a right to choose whom they want.”

Sens. Sam Nunn (D-Ga.) and John W. Warner (R-Va.), chairman and ranking minority member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said in a joint statement that they believe Dugan’s firing to be justified.

“The recent public statements attributed to Gen. Dugan were inappropriate,” they said.

THOSE WHO WENT TOO FAR The following is a list of some U.S. military leaders who have been cashiered or disciplined for their comments. GEN. MICHAEL J. DUGAN, Air Force chief of staff

Fired on Sept. 17, 1990

By: Defense Secretary Dick Cheney

For: Publicly discussing possible targets of U.S. air strikes in Iraq if President Bush ordered use of military force against Saddam Hussein.

MAJ. GEN. JOHN K. SINGLAUB, U.S. chief of staff in South Korea

Fired May 21, 1977

By: President Jimmy Carter

For: Publicly opposing Carter’s plan to withdraw U.S. ground forces from Korea. He contended that the move would lead to war.

GEN. DOUGLAS MacARTHUR, Commander, U.S. , U.N. forces in Korean War

Fired on April 11, 1951

By: President Harry S. Truman

For: Making public his disagreement with Truman over methods to win the war, including his desire to bomb supply centers in Manchuria.

ADM. LOUIS E. DENFELD, Chief of naval operations

Fired in October, 1949

By: President Harry S. Truman

For: Speaking out on Capitol Hill against Navy budget cuts and questioning the value of air power.

GEN. WINFIELD SCOTT, General in chief, U.S. Army

Suspended for a year in 1810

By: Court-martial

For: Calling his superior officer, Gen. James Wilkinson, as great a traitor as Aaron Burr.

(Southland Edition) THOSE WHO WENT TOO FAR . . . OR NOT FAR ENOUGH

The following is a list of some U.S. military leaders who have been cashiered or disciplined for their actions or comments. ADM. HUSBAND E. KIMMEL Commander in chief, Pacific Fleet

Retired in 1942 after being accused of dereliction of duty

By: Naval board of inquiry

For: Poor state of readiness of naval forces; poor response to Japan attack on Pearl Harbor.

GEN. JOSEPH HOOKER Commander, Union Army

Relieved of command in April, 1863

By: President Abraham Lincoln

For: Indecisiveness at the battle of Chancellorsville which allowed Confederates to mount surprise attack.

GEN. AMBROSE E. BURNSIDE Commander, Army of the Potomac

Relieved of command in December, 1862.

By: President Lincoln

For: Ordering his forces on Dec. 13, 1862, to make suicidal assault on entrenched

Confederate positions in Fredericksburg, Va., and sustaining 12,600 casualties.

GEN. GEORGE B. McCLELLAN Commander, Union Army

Fired on Nov. 7, 1862

By: President Lincoln

For: Procrastination and failure to capitalize on military opportunities, including allowing Confederates to hold the line at the Battle of Antietam on Sept. 17.

BRIG. GEN. JOHN POPE Union Army

Fired on Sept. 5, 1862

By: President Abraham Lincoln

For: Leading Union forces to defeat at the Second Bull Run battle in August.

DUGAN WAS WARNED: Cheney aides told the general to steer clear of the press. A10

WHITE HOUSE CONCERN: Officials are said to feel the military was too candid. A12