Support justice-driven, accurate and transparent news — make a quick donation to Truthout today! A far right pro-Israel group that has spent years harassing pro-Palestine advocates in the U.S. is slated to end operations in New York state after an investigation by state Attorney General Letitia James found that the group has carried out a “campaign of violence, harassment, and intimidation.” The office said its investigation “uncovered evidence of Betar's widespread persecution of Muslim, Arab, Palestinian, and Jewish New Yorkers, driven by broad hostility and animus toward several protected groups,” including those exercising their rights to protest. “New York will not tolerate organizations that use fear, violence, and intimidation to silence free expression or target people because of who they are,” said James in a statement. Indeed, pro-Palestine protesters in New York have faced relentless targeting by Betar, which has organized violent counterprotests; claimed to have sent the Trump administration a list of pro-Palestine students to deport; and repeatedly incited and celebrated violence against protesters and Palestinians facing genocide in Gaza. James's office raised incidents where Betar members referred to keffiyehs as “rape rags” and its X account said that the number of babies killed in Gaza was “not enough,” declaring, “we demand blood in Gaza.” At the same time, Betar has repeatedly claimed victimhood, once saying that a “pogrom” occurred after the group encouraged members to “wear masks and bring pitbulls” to violently counterprotest a pro-Palestine Brooklyn demonstration last winter, predictably prompting the pro-Palestine activists to fight back. At a 2025 vigil for Hind Rajab, a 6-year-old killed by Israeli forces in Gaza, Betar members showed up and chanted “we're with ICE,” telling attendees, “show us your faces so we could get you deported,” The Intercept reported. The Department of Homeland Security has reportedly probed activists named by Betar, as well as thousands of others who have been listed on pro-Israel doxxing website Canary Mission. “We applaud Attorney General James for holding this racist, pro-Israel militant group accountable for its alleged harassment of New Yorkers opposed to Israel's human rights abuses,” said Afaf Nasher, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations's New York branch. “The shutdown of Betar's campaign of harassment in New York is a historic and positive step toward protecting New Yorkers who have faced intimidation simply for advocating for Palestinian human rights.” …We ask that you take just a second to read this message. We are up against a far-reaching, wide-scale attack on press freedom coming from the Trump administration. We can only resist Trump's agenda by cultivating a strong base of support. The right-wing mediasphere is funded comfortably by billionaire owners and venture capitalist philanthropists. We need your help to sustain the fight against authoritarianism in 2026. Sharon Zhang is a news writer at Truthout covering politics, climate and labor. Before coming to Truthout, Sharon had written stories for Pacific Standard, The New Republic, and more. Get the news you want, delivered to your inbox every day.

Former Gaza residents who fled to Egypt in 2023 and 2024 anxiously await news on whether they can return home. Please support our boldly independent journalism with a donation of any size. Some were forced to leave to receive medical treatment or continue their education after the Israeli war destroyed most schools and hospitals in the Strip, while others left in search of safety. Most of those families thought that their stay in Egypt wouldn't last for too long; however, the war lasted for two years, and during that period, the future of returning to Gaza remained unknown for those families. He agreed only to open the Rafah crossing in one direction — allowing Gaza residents toleave the Strip while preventing those stranded in Egypt from entering Gaza. Egypt rejected this proposal, considering it a clear violation of the ceasefire plan brokered by Donald Trump. The second group consists of families who believe returning to Gaza is impossible given the scale of destruction affecting homes, infrastructure, schools, and hospitals, as well as the lack of basic necessities such as water, cooking gas, and electricity. “We never imagined the situation in Gaza would escalate to the point where our survival would depend on leaving, but eventually, it did,” she said. We were fleeing genocide into the unknown, carrying both fear for the uncertain future and guilt for those we left behind. There isn't a day that passes without thinking about the life I once had, longingfor places and people I will never see again. Gaza was the only place I ever felt at home,” she added. Younis expressed a strong desire to return to Gaza, but the main obstacle is that her family no longer has a home. “Reopening the Rafah border must be accompanied by the entry of construction materials so families inside and outside Gaza can rebuild their homes and gradually restore their lives,” she said. Emad Hamouda, 41, told me on the phone that he and his family evacuated to Egypt in February 2024 so he could secure medical treatment for his mother, who suffers from several illnesses, including diabetes and severe eye infections, and so his eldest son could continue his high school education. “Staying in Gaza meant my mother's health would continue to deteriorate because medical treatment and medicines were inaccessible, and it would destroy my son's dream of finishing high school successfully and enrolling in the faculty of dentistry,” he said. Hamouda continued, “I have never felt like a stranger in Egypt. In addition, many well-known shop owners from Gaza have reopened their businesses in Egypt, including falafel, shawarma, ice cream, and Arabic dessert shops. This has made me feel as though I am still living in Gaza before the war.” “Reopening the Rafah border must be accompanied by the entry of construction materials so families inside and outside Gaza can rebuild their homes.” “If I return to Gaza,” he explained, “I will be forced to live in a tent that offers no protection from the summer heat or the winter cold, and I would struggle daily to secure even the most basic necessities. Returning back is entirely impossible for me at this stage.” “I pay $800 a month in rent and about $300 for food and other basic necessities, in addition to my children's school expenses, which amount to nearly $2,000 per year,” he said. Al-Kateeb added that his home in the Tel al-Hawa neighborhood is still standing, and that both he and his wife have jobs in Gaza they cannot abandon. I hold on to the hope that together we can rebuild Gaza and make it more beautiful than before,” he concluded. …We ask that you take just a second to read this message. We are up against a far-reaching, wide-scale attack on press freedom coming from the Trump administration. Since his inauguration last year, we've seen frightening censorship, a right-wing takeover of the news industry, and worsening financial conditions for progressive nonprofits across the board. We can only resist Trump's agenda by cultivating a strong base of support. The right-wing mediasphere is funded comfortably by billionaire owners and venture capitalist philanthropists. We need your help to sustain the fight against authoritarianism in 2026. This article is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0), and you are free to share and republish under the following terms: Shahad Ali is an English literature student and writer from Gaza. Get the news you want, delivered to your inbox every day. Truthout will continue to publish fearlessly independent news with your support.

Editor's note: This story has been updated to clarify that Belarus is reportedly included on the list, while Ukraine is not. The United States has suspended immigrant visa processing for citizens of 75 countries, including Russia, Fox News reported on Jan. 14, citing a U.S. State Department memo. According to the outlet, the list also includes Belarus, Somalia, Afghanistan, Brazil, Iran, Iraq, Egypt, Nigeria, Thailand, and Yemen, among others. A State Department spokesperson confirmed to the Kyiv Independent that immigrant visa processing is being paused for 75 countries but declined to specify which countries are affected or confirm Russia's inclusion. The suspension is set to take effect on Jan. 21 and will remain in place indefinitely while the State Department conducts a review of visa processing procedures, Fox News reported. State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said in a statement that the move is tied to a broader review of immigration policies. The decision follows a broader tightening of U.S. immigration policy under President Donald Trump. The State Department said a day earlier that more than 100,000 visas had been revoked in 2025, including about 8,000 student visas. The suspension is set to take effect on Jan. 21 and will remain in place indefinitely while the State Department conducts a review of visa processing procedures, Fox News reported. Local authorities reported on Jan. 14 that air defenses were active in the capital due to yet another Russian drone attack. The Kyiv Independent's Martin Fornusek speaks with Kurt Volker, former U.S. special representative for Ukraine negotiations and former U.S. ambassador to NATO, about U.S. foreign policy, NATO's future, and the war in Ukraine. The rare report on numbers comes as Ukraine faces a critical manpower shortage. After the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) charged several lawmakers from President Volodymyr Zelensky's party in December, Tymoshenko initiated discussions on regularly offering bribes to some members of parliament in exchange for votes, the NABU alleged.

President Donald Trump, facing a red line of his own making in Iran, increasingly believes he must take decisive action against the regime amid a violent and deadly crackdown on protesters, according to officials familiar with the matter. Top Trump administration officials met Tuesday to further refine a set of options for the president. In recent days, the president's national security team has been split on whether to move forward with a kinetic strike, a source familiar with the discussions said. US officials insisted any such military move would not include boots on the ground and said the administration does not want protracted military involvement in Iran. As they deliberate and weigh options, officials have worked to assess the various risks involved with each, including the possibility of an air strike mission going awry or prompting an outsized Iranian response. Officials also hope to avoid any broad destabilization in the region should Iran's regime collapse. Trump has repeatedly been threatening military action against the Iranian government for using deadly force against protesters, and he now feels obligated to follow through, according to officials. “Part of it is that he has now set a red line, and he feels he needs to do something,” a source familiar with the talks told CNN, adding that the president is almost certainly going to act. The question that remains, they added, is what type of action he ultimately lands on. Recent US intelligence reports indicate Iran is preparing options to target American bases in the Middle East, including those in Iraq and Syria, if Trump carries out military strikes, according to a US official and another source familiar with the matter. Trump shrugged off concerns about retaliation on Tuesday, telling reporters: “Iran said that the last time I blew them up with the nuclear capability, which they don't have any longer … They better behave.” Still, some personnel at the United States' largest military base in the Middle East have been urged to leave, a US official told CNN on Wednesday, as Trump weighs action. Now, as Trump again mulls potential strikes on Iran, the base — which is home to around 10,000 American troops — could become a target once again. Trump said late Tuesday afternoon, ahead of meeting with his national security officials, he had a good idea of what action he might take. We have to make a decision, but I can't be, obviously, I can't be telling you,” he told reporters upon his return from Michigan, where he toured a Ford factory and addressed the Detroit Economic Club. Trump has been receiving updated lists of options for action in Iran since last week. Officials insisted that key principals in meetings on Iran, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President JD Vance, have been careful not to pressure Trump into making a certain decision. They instead have finalized a series of potential options, as well as the pros and cons of each, for the president to consider. Trump also continues to mull other options that stop short of firing a missile into Iran, like a cyberattack or new sanctions. Starlink is now providing free internet access to users in Iran, according to a tech expert in touch with Iranian Starlink users. “Iran is on my mind, when I see the kind of death that is happening over there,” Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews as he was preparing to go to the meeting at the White House. Cabinet-level national security officials were seen arriving as the sessions, known as a “principals” meeting of the National Security Council, got underway Tuesday afternoon. The officials included Vance, Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine and Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. In recent days, the president had suggested there may be a diplomatic opening with Tehran. But he abruptly reversed course Tuesday morning, saying he was calling off any meetings with regime figures until the crackdown on protests ends. Some of Trump's advisers had warned that conciliatory messages from Iran's foreign minister received by Trump's foreign envoy Steve Witkoff were simply an attempt to stave off an attack. Inside the national security meetings in recent days, several officials have argued that diplomacy is a futile exercise when it comes to Iran, the officials said. Throughout his first six months in office, Trump tried unsuccessfully to negotiate a new nuclear deal with Iran before eventually ordering US military strikes on its nuclear facilities over the summer. Meanwhile, three US-allied Gulf Arab nations — Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman — have launched behind-the-scenes diplomatic efforts to prevent US military action on Iran, concerned it could have wide-ranging consequences for the Middle East, a regional official with knowledge of the matter told CNN. In a message on Truth Social Tuesday morning, Trump encouraged protesters to keep up the demonstrations, and said, “Help is on the way.” He ended by writing “MIGA” — Make Iran Great Again. Asked later what his message was for Iran's leaders, Trump said he wanted them to “show humanity.”

We hope Kimlan Soy Paste remains a daily staple in Taiwanese households, but beyond that, we aim to collaborate with more culinary brands and chefs to promote ‘Taiwanese Flavor Diplomacy,' bringing our local tastes onto the global stage.” For nearly a century, it has connected the daily dining habits of generations, serving as a microcosm of Taiwanese food culture. From humble home cooking to grand banquets, it is not only a key element in shaping flavor but also a symbol of the inclusiveness and innovative spirit of Taiwanese cuisine. It preserves tradition while seamlessly integrating with diverse ingredients and modern techniques to showcase the multifaceted charm of “Taiwanese flavor.” In this collaboration, Kimlan partnered with Chef Craig Yang—the third-generation descendant of a legendary Ban-toh (traditional banquet) family. Under Yang's expert interpretation, Kimlan Soy Paste is no longer just a condiment; it is the flavor cornerstone of his signature dish: Honey-Glazed Black Pork Ribs. This dish, which carries the chef's own family memories and Lunar New Year traditions, gains an even more profound symbolic connection to Taiwan through the inclusion of Kimlan Soy Paste. Its characteristic sweet finish and balanced salinity further elevate the dish's complexity. To allow more diners to experience the magic of Kimlan Soy Paste in classic Taiwanese cuisine, the reinterpreted Honey-Glazed Black Pork Ribs will be available for a limited time as part of a set menu at Tableau by Craig Yang from now through the end of March. We invite gourmands to experience this feast where a classic staple meets the “New Taiwanese Flavor.” The council is aware of incidents in which people who signed up through Chinese travel agencies for tours of Russia were told they could obtain Russian visas and fast-track border clearance, Chiu told reporters on the sidelines of an event in Taipei. Japanese footwear brand Onitsuka Tiger today issued a public apology and said it has suspended an employee amid allegations that the staff member discriminated against a Vietnamese customer at its Taipei 101 store. Posting on the social media platform Threads yesterday, a user said that an employee at the store said that “those shoes are very expensive” when her friend, who is a migrant worker from Vietnam, asked for assistance. The post had amassed nearly 26,000 likes and 916 comments as of this New measures aimed at making Taiwan more attractive to foreign professionals came into effect this month, the National Development Council said yesterday. In addition, foreign nationals who graduated from one of the world's top 200 universities within the past five years can also apply for a two-year open work permit. US President Donald Trump said "it's up to" Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) what China does on Taiwan, but that he would be "very unhappy" with a change in the "status quo," the New York Times said in an interview published yesterday.

Robin Kelly and other House Democrats move against homeland security secretary over ICE killing of Renee Good The Democratic representative Robin Kelly on Wednesday formally introduced articles of impeachment against Donald Trump's homeland security secretary, Kristi Noem, following the fatal shooting of a US citizen by an immigration agent in Minneapolis last week. “She needs to be held accountable for her actions”. The new push comes amid mounting national outrage over the death of 37-year-old Renee Nicole Good, killed at the wheel of her car on a residential street by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer during high-octane deployments of law enforcement in cities and towns across the country. While Noem and the Trump administration have characterized the incident as an act of “domestic terrorism” by a “professional agitator”, video evidence and local officials have sharply contested that narrative. The administration has responded by sending more federal agents, as tensions between officers and residents escalate. As ICE officers are facing a 1,300% increase in assaults against them, Rep. Kelly is more focused on showmanship and fundraising clicks than actually cleaning up her crime-ridden Chicago district,” said a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson. “We hope she would get serious about doing her job to protect American people, which is what this Department is doing under Secretary Noem.” Late last year, the representative Delia Ramirez, a fellow Illinois Democrat, moved to impeach Noem, amid an immigration crackdown in Chicago. They accuse the secretary of willfully obstructing congressional oversight by withholding appropriated funds and repeatedly blocking lawmakers from entering DHS facilities. It also charges Noem with self-dealing for “inappropriately” using taxpayer dollars to fund an ad campaign for ICE recruitment, and awarding the $200m recruitment contract to a firm run by the husband of the senior DHS official and chief spokesperson, Tricia McLaughlin. Despite rising fury among Democrats over the administration's increasingly violent enforcement tactics, the party is at odds over how to respond. Kelly, who is running in a competitive Democratic primary to replace retiring Senator Dick Durbin in Illinois, has positioned herself more aggressively on the issue than leadership. Noem, Jeffries added, was “completely and totally unqualified” and should be “run out of town as soon as possible” but he questioned whether impeachment was “the best way to accomplish that objective”.

Spanish singer, 82, had already been accused of sexually assaulting two female former employees The Spanish singer Julio Iglesias, who has been accused of sexually assaulting two female former employees, is also alleged to have ordered some women who worked for him to undergo tests for sexually transmitted diseases, local media have reported. Two women – a domestic worker and a physical therapist known by the pseudonyms Rebeca and Laura – allege they were subjected to sexual assaults while working at Iglesias's Caribbean mansions in the Dominican Republic and the Bahamas in 2021. They have filed a complaint against Iglesias at Spain's highest criminal court, the Audiencia Nacional, accusing him of sexual assault and human trafficking. On Wednesday, elDiario.es published testimony from Rebeca and another former worker, Carolina, in which they alleged being required to have medical tests to check for sexually transmitted diseases such as HIV and chlamydia. Carolina said: “I was tested for sexually transmitted diseases. They did ultrasounds and blood tests to see if we had any diseases. ElDiario.es also obtained medical documents apparently showing that five women employed at Iglesias's villa in the Dominican Republic in 2021 underwent gynaecological examinations. “He used me almost every night,” she said. “We were at the beach and he came up to me and touched my nipples,” she said, adding that a similar incident took place by the pool at the singer's villa in Punta Cana, a luxury resort in the Dominican Republic. The Guardian has approached his representatives for comment. “I think by taking legal action we're sending a message to all the victims of this person – Julio Iglesias – so that they can speak out and believe in justice,” she said. The allegations have led some leftwing politicians to call for Iglesias to be stripped of the honours bestowed on him by Madrid's city council and its regional government. “Women are being attacked and raped in Iran with the complicit silence of the far left,” she wrote in a message on X. On Wednesday morning, Yolanda Díaz, Spain's labour minister and a deputy prime minister, said the government was looking at withdrawing the Bellas Artes medal the culture ministry awarded Iglesias in 2010. Díaz denied that such a move would affect the singer's presumption of innocence, telling the Spanish TV programme La Hora de La 1 that there was a difference between “criminal responsibility” and “ethical responsibility”.

After the National Anti-Corruption Bureau (NABU) charged several lawmakers from President Volodymyr Zelensky's party in December, Tymoshenko initiated discussions on regularly offering bribes to some members of parliament in exchange for votes, the NABU alleged. "It was not about one-time agreements, but about a regular mechanism of cooperation that involved advance payments and was intended for a long-term period," the bureau added. "Members of parliament were supposed to receive instructions on how to vote, and in certain cases — on abstaining or not participating in the vote." Tymoshenko offered bribes to lawmakers from Zelensky's Servant of the People party, a law enforcement source told the Kyiv Independent. The NABU also published an alleged instruction sent by Tymoshenko to a lawmaker. Specifically, she instructed the member of parliament to vote for firing Vasyl Malyuk, head of the Security Service (SBU), Defense Minister Denys Shmyhal, and Digital Transformation Minister Mykhailo Fedorov, according to the NABU. "If we come to an agreement today, we'll record who is with you, and I'll be handing the money over to you as to a cash desk," she allegedly told a lawmaker. Can I then just send it to your phone via Signal?" Tymoshenko confirmed the searches in a Facebook post on Jan. 14 and argued that they "have nothing to do with law or legality." "They found nothing, so they just took my work phones, parliamentary documents, and personal savings, all of which are fully declared in my official statement of assets," Tymoshenko added. She also wrote that "it seems the elections are much closer than they appeared, and someone has decided to start clearing out the competition." The announcement comes two weeks after NABU said on Dec. 27 that it had unveiled a criminal group involving lawmakers who received cash in exchange for parliamentary votes. Tymoshenko, who served as prime minister of Ukraine in 2005 and again from 2007-2010, leads the Batkivshchyna party, which currently holds 25 seats in parliament. She took part in the Jan. 13 parliamentary session, voting on the government reshuffle that saw a number of top-ranking officials assume new roles. The latest reshuffle followed Ukraine's biggest corruption scandal, involving money laundering and embezzlement at Energoatom, the state-run nuclear power company. The scandal implicated several high-level politicians, including members of President Volodymyr Zelensky's inner circle. Tymoshenko is a veteran Ukrainian politician and leader of the opposition party Batkivschyna. Her long career in politics, involvement in Ukraine's major mass movements, and signature braid have made her an internationally recognized figure. She then served two terms as Ukraine's prime minister. Tymoshenko ran for president again in 2014, but lost to Petro Poroshenko. Tymoshenko was among the high-profile political rivals of Zelensky who took part in back-channel talks with members of the Trump administration, Politico reported in March 2025. Despite her opposition to Zelensky's party, Tymoshenko was also a vocal supporter of last year's controversial bill to dismantle Ukraine's independent anti-corruption groups — the same agencies now poised to charge her with trading bribes for votes. Zelensky signed the bill into law in July 2025, but was forced to backtrack after nationwide protests and international pressure. When parliament initially passed the bill, Tymoshenko praised the move, saying it was necessary to move Ukraine out of a "colonial" model of governance. "I want to ask the Verkhovna Rada today not to stop at this vote, but step by step to repeal all laws where international advisory councils and international supervisory councils were applied, because this deprives Ukraine of its sovereignty," she said in a parliamentary speech.

Canadian Natural filed the paperwork for federal Competition Bureau approval of a transaction with Tourmaline on Dec. 30, according to a recent notification published by the bureau. Last year, analysts estimated the portfolio could fetch up to $1.4-billion. Canadian Natural also owns gas wells and energy infrastructure in the area. Tourmaline's Peace River operations include 2,428 horizontal wells, 34 gas plants and 15,500 kilometres of pipelines. Opinion: Tourmaline's billion-dollar natural gas sale will show oil patch sentiment on political promises Tourmaline said it would not comment on the sale process of its Peace River assets before its first-quarter report, which is slated for March 4. Canadian Natural also declined to comment on the regulatory filing. Canadian Natural is the largest player in Alberta's oil sands, with a $95-billion market capitalization. It exports 33 per cent of its natural gas production and sells the remainder in domestic markets. In a recent investor presentation, the company said the combination of improvements in drilling technology, and its Alberta network of pipelines and other energy infrastructure, offers a “significant opportunity to grow its liquids-rich natural gas assets.” CEO Mike Rose and others continue to buy as Tourmaline Oil rallies Tourmaline, one of the country's largest natural gas producers, is selling the Peace River assets to raise money for expansion of its operations in northeastern British Columbia's Montney region. Tourmaline, which has a $17-billion market capitalization, is working on one of the largest expansion projects in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin, of which the Montney region is a part of, and aiming to increase total production to 850,000 barrels a day by early next decade. and northwestern Alberta, has helped Canadian natural gas production hit record highs over the past few years. In 2024, average daily production was 18.3 billion cubic feet a day. Study and track financial data on any traded entity: click to open the full quote page. Authors and topics you follow will be added to your personal news feed in Following.

ROSTOV-ON-DON, January 14. /TASS/. Russian forces have repelled an air attack on ten cities and districts in the country's southern region of Rostov, Governor Yury Slyusar said. "Last night, an enemy attack on ten cities and districts was repelled, which targeted the cities of Rostov-on-Don, Novocherkassk, and Volgodonsk, as well as the Bokovsky, Kasharsky, Millerovsky, Myasnikovsky, Milyutinsky, Kamensky, and Ust-Donetsky districts," he wrote on Telegram. Earlier, Slyusar said that airstrikes had damaged apartment buildings in Rostov-on-Don. Four civilians, including a four-year-old child, suffered injuries.

Denmark's bobsled and skeleton federation says Canada's team “broke the code of ethics” in an Olympic qualification dispute that has sparked tension in the international sliding community ahead of next month's Milano Cortina Winter Games. Bobsleigh Canada Skeleton said the athletes who were scratched from Sunday's race after competing in the first two in Lake Placid, were young and relatively new to the sport and had a rough week on that track. Canada's skeleton team denies accusations of Olympic sabotage by U.S. slider Tom Johansen, general manager of Denmark's skeleton team, said he won't let his “small nation be bullied by Canada's tactical maneuver”, saying Canada merely made the move to reduce the field and try and benefit one of its own sliders from being passed in overall rankings, and snagging a berth at the Games. Johansen said he and two others from competing federations contacted Canadian skeleton coach Joe Cecchini when they learned he would pull all but two Canadian women from Sunday's race. “I said to him, ‘Joe, don't go that road. Cecchini was not in Lake Placid, but in St. Moritz at the World Cup race where skeleton athletes from Canada's senior women's team, Hallie Clarke and Jane Channell, were competing and trying to secure their Olympic spots. The women's Olympic skeleton field will have just 25 competitors. How many can represent one nation will be decided by the rankings as of Jan. 18. “The glue that unites us includes two things, rules and integrity,” said Johansen. “You should not optimize just your own performance by harming others.” Five-time American Olympian Katie Uhlaender cried foul about Canada when she won the race in Lake Placid on Sunday, but received reduced Olympic qualifying points due to the smaller field, while racing on the lower circuit trying to get enough points to compete in another Games at age 41. 20 sits is lower than two other American women, accused Canada of torpedoing her chances. She also alleged that the scratched Canadian athletes were being stifled from speaking up. Three of the development team athletes – Grace Dafoe, Madeline Parra and Brielle Durham, told The Globe and Mail on Tuesday they are not being muzzled, and that they do feel very supported by the Canadian staff. They said coaches were “transparent” telling them that the reason four of the youngest, least experienced athletes were being pulled that day was for their own health and wellbeing as well as for the overall good of Canada's team. “I was like, ‘That is tough, and I don't get to race, but as a newer development athlete, I will take it and do anything for our senior athletes and the program,” said Parra, 18, one of the scratched athletes. Durham, 21 and in her first year, had crashed earlier in her previous race in Lake Placid and disliked the accusation that she was being suppressed from speaking or that her mental health was being ignored by the team. They also said it's not that unusual for the field to be reduced in size last minute due to injuries or mental wellbeing of athletes. For that reason, it's not a reliable circuit to secure Olympic qualifying points. They say Sunday's field, as initially registered was unusually large. Dafoe, who did race on Sunday, can recall races on the North American circuit that had some 10 entrants, mostly from USA, Canada, and then one or two extra singular nation athletes. The International Bobsleigh and Skeleton Federation said Monday its Integrity Unit will conduct an investigation into the dispute and would not comment further. Authors and topics you follow will be added to your personal news feed in Following.

This website uses cookies to collect information about your visit for purposes such as showing you personalized ads and content, and analyzing our website traffic. By clicking “Accept all,” you will allow the use of these cookies. NEW YORK (AP) — The BTS comeback is upon us. The K-pop septet has announced a 2026 – 2027 world tour, kicking off in South Korea in April and running through March 2027 with over 70 dates across Asia, North America, South America, Australia and Europe. They mark the group's first headline performances since their 2021–22 Permission to Dance on Stage tour. A presale will take place Jan. 22 and Jan. 23 for ARMY Membership holders who register on Weverse, an online fan platform owned by BTS management company HYBE. A general sale for all regions will follow on Jan. 24. The news arrives a few weeks after the entertainment company BigHit Music revealed that BTS will make their return to music on March 20, following a nearly four-year hiatus. That's because all seven members of BTS — RM, Jin, Jimin, V, Suga, Jung Kook and j-hope — had to complete South Korea's mandatory military service. Rapper Suga was the last group member to be released, from his duties as a social service agent, an alternative to serving in the military that he reportedly chose due to a shoulder injury. Our weekly ePaper presents the most noteworthy recent topics in an exciting, readable fomat.