Morocco was confirmed in 2023 as a co-host alongside Spain and Portugal, a decision that animal rights groups say has coincided with an alleged campaign to cull stray dogs in several cities. Activists argue the effort is intended to make urban areas and tourist hotspots appear cleaner and safer ahead of the 2030 tournament, as the country seeks to attract international visitors, fans and media attention.
I think it's ludicrous to be perfectly honest, he told Guardian Australia, describing the works as an anti-fascist statement and noting the shut down had caused the cancellation of an interstate band's performance.
The United States is preparing to pull back the nearly 1,000 troops from its military that remain in Syria, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing three US officials. Al Jazeera was not immediately able to independently verify the report on Wednesday. list of 3 itemsend of list Last week, the US military confirmed it was withdrawing from the al-Tanf base, located in southern Syria near borders with Iraq and Jordan.
Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was given the red carpet treatment on arrival in New Delhi on Wednesday, as he heads to the AI Impact Summit 2026. Lula is traveling with more than a dozen ministers and a large business delegation including CEOs of leading Brazilian companies, as he seeks to intensify trade ties with the world's most populous country.
South Africa beat the United Arab Emirates by six wickets in New Delhi, chasing down a victory target of 123 with 40 balls to spare, to finish the group stage of cricket's Twenty20 World Cup unbeaten. South Africa opted to field first on Wednesday and restricted the UAE to 122-6, with veteran pace bowlers Corbin Bosch returning 3-12 from four overs and Anrich Nortje taking 2-28.
The U.S. and Iran have had off-and-on talks about striking a nuclear deal for months. Successive U.S. administrations have vowed to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon. Former President Obama struck a deal in 2015 aimed at doing just that, but Trump abandoned it during his first term in favor of a "maximum pressure" approach. Former President Biden was unable to negotiate a new agreement. Trump returned to office also wanting a deal.
Ultimately, we were able to reach broad agreement on a set of guiding principles, based on which we will move forward and begin working on the text of a potential agreement, Araghchi told state television after Tuesday's talks. Good progress has been made compared to the previous round in Oman earlier this month, he said, adding: We now have a clear path ahead, which I think is positive.
The US military added another warship to its large Middle East buildup in recent days, and a second carrier strike group is on its way, bringing additional fighter jets and missiles toward the region. The large-scale deployment of American forces to the Middle East has escalated significantly this month as the Trump administration pressures Iran to strike a deal that would limit its nuclear and military capabilities.
When armed officers from Pakistan's Crime Control Department raided Zubaida Bibi's home in Bahawalpur city in southern Punjab province last November, they took everything: mobile phones, cash, gold jewellery and her daughter's wedding dowry. They also took her sons. Within 24 hours, five members of her family were dead, killed in separate police encounters across different districts of Pakistan's Punjab the province that alone is home to more than half of the country's population.
Sometimes the settlers make comments to me about the Oscar, but I don't know if it has made things worse. What I do know is that, when they come to my house, the message they send is: We don't care that you have an Oscar.' Two weeks ago, one of them came to my home and told me: If you want to live in peace, leave. If not, I'll come at night and destroy you and your family.'
Rumors of an exhibition boxing match between Mike Tyson and Floyd Mayweather have been floating around for a while now. Boxing reporter Mike Coppinger recently confirmed that the matchup has been scheduled for April 25 in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Breaking the news on @InsideRingShow with details on the Mike Tyson- Floyd Mayweather exhibition in the Democratic Republic of Congo on April 25. pic.twitter.com/pbAPoRFm71 - Mike Coppinger (@MikeCoppinger) February 16, 2026
Thank you, Marx Arriaga, for bringing social critique into the classroom to build a dignified future for our children, reads one of the 11 signs hanging outside the office that the former director of Educational Materials finally vacated on Tuesday, after four days barricaded inside. Arriaga received and signed the document notifying him of his removal from the post, then walked out of Mexico's Public Education Secretariat (SEP) in southern Mexico City and headed toward the Coyoacan station on Metro Line 3.
The 34-year-old finished his speech by heiling white Australia and Thomas Sewell, the leader of Australia's most prominent neo-Nazi group, the now-disbanded National Socialist Network. He also called for the release of the jailed neo-Nazi Joel Davis. He intended to incite hatred amongst the crowd he was addressing, Freund said. He intended to incite hatred against the Jewish community and Jews in general.
Two years ago the Kremlin could not have been more frigid about the Paris Olympics. In fact, the few Russians who competed as authorised neutral athletes, after they were vetted to check they did not explicitly support the war in Ukraine, were criticised. Irina Viner, Russia's rhythmic gymnastics president, even went as far as to call those who went traitors, and suggested that only homeless athletes competed without their flag and anthem.
One of Auston Matthews and William Nylander/Oliver Ekman-Larsson will be headed home early as Team USA and Team Sweden get set to face off in the quarter finals following Sweden's 5-1 victory over Latvia in the play-off round on Tuesday. It will mark the first clash between the Toronto Maple Leafs teammates of the tournament. It's somewhat shocking to see two teams like this in the quarter finals, given that an argument easily could have been made for both of those teams to finish among the top four seeds, but it goes to show how important goal differential is in a tournament like this.
On December 23, 1972, Managua, the capital of Nicaragua, was struck by a 6.3-magnitude earthquake. In a matter of minutes, its urban core, which for decades had functioned as a compact political and economic center, abruptly collapsed. In the reconstruction process that followed, the authorities sought not simply to rebuild but to reorganize. Their objective was to decentralize the city and prevent future paralysis by dispersing functions across multiple zones.
