BBC 2025-03-18 00:08:53


‘Everything is finished’: Ukrainian troops relive retreat from Kursk

Jonathan Beale & Anastasiia Levchenko

BBC News
Reporting fromUkraine

Ukrainian soldiers fighting in Russia’s Kursk region have described scenes “like a horror movie” as they retreated from the front lines.

The BBC has received extensive accounts from Ukrainian troops, who recount a “catastrophic” withdrawal in the face of heavy fire, and columns of military equipment destroyed and constant attacks from swarms of Russian drones.

The soldiers, who spoke over social media, were given aliases to protect their identity. Some gave accounts of a “collapse” as Ukraine lost Sudzha, the largest town it held.

Ukrainian restrictions on travel to the front have meant it is not possible to get a full picture of the situation. But this is how five Ukrainian soldiers described to us what had happened.

Volodymyr: ‘Drones around the clock’

On 9 March, “Volodymyr” sent a Telegram post to the BBC saying he was still in Sudzha, where there was “panic and collapse of the front”.

Ukrainian troops “are trying to leave – columns of troops and equipment. Some of them are burned by Russian drones on the road. It is impossible to leave during the day.”

Movement of men, logistics and equipment had been reliant on one major route between Sudzha and Ukraine’s Sumy region.

Volodymyr said it was possible to travel on that road relatively safely a month ago. By 9 March it was “all under the fire control of the enemy – drones around the clock. In one minute you can see two to three drones. That’s a lot,” he said.

“We have all the logistics here on one Sudzha-Sumy highway. And everyone knew that the [Russians] would try to cut it. But this again came as a surprise to our command.”

At the time of writing, just before Russia retook Sudzha, Volodymyr said Ukrainian forces were being pressed from three sides.

Maksym: Vehicle wrecks litter the roads

By 11 March, Ukrainian forces were battling to prevent the road being cut, according to Telegram messages from “Maksym”.

“A few days ago, we received an order to leave the defence lines in an organised retreat,” he said, adding that Russia had amassed a significant force to retake the town, “including large numbers of North Korean soldiers”.

Military experts estimate Russia had amassed a force of up to 70,000 troops to retake Kursk – including about 12,000 North Koreans.

Russia had also sent its best drone units to the front and was using kamikaze and first-person-view (FPV) variants to “take fire control of the main logistics routes”.

They included drones linked to operators by fibre-optic wires – which are impossible to jam with electronic counter-measures.

Maksym said as a result “the enemy managed to destroy dozens of units of equipment”, and that wrecks had “created congestion on supply routes”.

Anton: The catastrophe of retreat

The situation on that day, 11 March, was described as “catastrophic” by “Anton”.

The third soldier spoken to by the BBC was serving in the headquarters for the Kursk front.

He too highlighted the damage caused by Russian FPV drones. “We used to have an advantage in drones, now we do not,” he said. He added that Russia had an advantage with more accurate air strikes and a greater number of troops.

Anton said supply routes had been cut. “Logistics no longer work – organised deliveries of weapons, ammunition, food and water are no longer possible.”

Anton said he managed to leave Sudzha by foot, at night – “We almost died several times. Drones are in the sky all the time.”

The soldier predicted Ukraine’s entire foothold in Kursk would be lost but that “from a military point of view, the Kursk direction has exhausted itself. There is no point in keeping it any more”.

Western officials estimate that Ukraine’s Kursk offensive involved about 12,000 troops. They were some of their best-trained soldiers, equipped with Western-supplied weapons including tanks and armoured vehicles.

Russian bloggers published videos showing some of that equipment being destroyed or captured. On 13 March, Russia said the situation in Kursk was “fully under our control” and that Ukraine had “abandoned” much of its material.

BBC Verify: What does Putin video tell us about the battle for Kursk?

Dmytro: Inches from death

In social media posts on 11-12 March, a fourth solider, “Dmytro” likened the retreat from the front to “a scene from a horror movie”.

“The roads are littered with hundreds of destroyed cars, armoured vehicles and ATVs (All Terrain Vehicles). There are a lot of wounded and dead.”

Vehicles were often hunted by multiple drones, he said.

He described his own narrow escape when the car he was travelling in got bogged down. He and his fellow soldiers were trying to push the vehicle free when they were targeted by another FPV drone.

It missed the vehicle, but injured one of his comrades. He said they had to hide in a forest for two hours before they were rescued.

Dmytro said many Ukrainians retreated on foot with “guys walking 15km to 20km”. The situation, he said, had turned from “difficult and critical to catastrophic”.

In a message on 14 March, Dmytro added: “Everything is finished in the Kursk region… the operation was not successful.”

He estimated that thousands of Ukrainian soldiers had died since the first crossing into Russia in August.

Artem: ‘We fought like lions’

A fifth soldier sounded less gloomy about the situation. On 13 March, “Artem” sent a Telegram message from a military hospital, where he was being treated for shrapnel wounds suffered in a drone attack.

Artem said he had been fighting further west – near the village of Loknya, where Ukrainian forces were putting up a stiff resistance and “fighting like lions”.

He believed the operation had achieved some success.

“It’s important that so far the Armed Forces of Ukraine have created this buffer zone, thanks to which the Russians cannot enter Sumy,” he said.

What now for Ukraine’s offensive?

Ukraine’s top general, Oleksandr Syrskyi, insists that Ukrainian forces have pulled back to “more favourable positions”, remain in Kursk, and would do so “for as long as it is expedient and necessary”.

He said Russia had suffered more than 50,000 losses during the operation – including those killed, injured or captured.

However, the situation now is very different to last August. Military analysts estimate two-thirds of the 1,000 sq km gained at the outset have since been lost.

Any hopes that Ukraine would be able to trade Kursk territory for some of its own have significantly diminished.

Last week, President Volodymyr Zelensky said he believed the Kursk operation had “accomplished its task” by forcing Russia to pull troops from the east and relieve pressure on Pokrovsk.

But it is not yet clear at what cost.

Hong Kong property tycoon Lee Shau-kee dies aged 97

Kathryn Armstrong

BBC News

Hong Kong property tycoon Lee Shau-kee, who was once the richest man in Asia, has died at the age of 97.

The announcement was made by his property firm Henderson Land Development, of which he was chairman for more than 40 years.

The company said in a statement that Lee had died “in the company of his family” but did not specify a cause.

He was one of the city’s richest men. In February, Forbes put his net worth at just under $30bn (£23bn).

Lee was born in China’s southern Guangdong Province and moved to Hong Kong as a young man, where he began his business career in gold and foreign currency exchange before switching to real estate.

He established Sun Hung Kai Properties (SHKP) – one of the city’s largest property developers – in 1958, alongside two other founders.

Lee – who was nicknamed “Uncle Four” as he was the fourth eldest of his siblings – then struck out on his own in 1976 and founded Henderson Land Development, which his two sons took over following his retirement in 2019.

In 1996, he was named the richest man in Asia and the world’s fourth wealthiest person.

He was also a philanthropist and made significant contributions to education centres and to programmes aimed at job development. In 2007, he was awarded Hong Kong’s highest honour – the Grand Bauhinia Medal – in recognition for his contributions to society.

“Dr Lee was an outstanding business leader and entrepreneur who had made significant contributions to Hong Kong’s economic development, as well as the city’s prosperity and stability,” the city’s Chief Executive John Lee said in a statement.

More from Hong Kong

British tourist missing after Thailand boat fire

Catherine Evans

BBC News
Jonathan Head

BBC South East Asia Correspondent

A British tourist has been reported missing in Thailand after a boat caught fire and sank off the coast of the island of Koh Tao.

The Surat Thani Provincial Public Relations Office said 26-year-old Alexandra Clarke from Lambeth, south London, was on board when the fire occurred in the ship’s engine room after 09:00 ITC (02:00 GMT) on Sunday.

Koh Tao Police said it believed fuel in the boat’s tank had overflowed when it was refilled during the journey, and set alight when the boat was started again.

A spokesperson for the Foreign Office said: “We are supporting the family of a British woman who is missing in Thailand and are in contact with local authorities.”

The provincial office’s Facebook post said: “After receiving the report (of the fire), the Surat Thani Provincial Marine Office coordinated with private boats and volunteers to quickly help evacuate tourists and crew to another boat safely.”

It added: “One tourist is missing, a female named Alexandra Clarke, a British national.

“The authorities therefore organised a search team for the missing person.”

Thai navy divers spent the day searching the wreckage of the boat and the surrounding seas but found no trace of the missing woman, who police said was thought to have been in the boat’s toilet when the fire broke out.

The cause of the blaze is under investigation but according to police, it broke out when an engine used to compress air into a fuel tank ran out during a trip to a popular dive spot in the Gulf of Thailand.

Col Sarayuth Buriwachira from Koh Tao Police said the tourists and diving instructors had been taken to the Southwest Pinnacle at about 07:30.

He said that at about 10:00 “an employee on the ship whose duty was to fill the air tank took extra gasoline to fill the engine tank above the amount until the gasoline overflowed and spilled”.

“When he started the engine, a spark occurred, causing the engine to catch fire and spread, causing the entire ship to burn and eventually sink into the sea.”

The fire spread quickly, he added, engulfing the engine room and forcing the divers, instructors and crew to jump into the sea.

He confirmed the search for Ms Clarke would resume on Tuesday morning.

The Thai government has frequently promised to improve maritime safety, in particular after 46 Chinese tourists died seven years ago when their boat capsized near Phuket, yet there have been several fatal accidents since then.

Last year more than 100 passengers had to leap into the sea from a ferry heading to Koh Tao after it was consumed by a fire.

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Trade turmoil forecast to slash growth in Canada and Mexico

Faarea Masud

Business reporter, BBC News

US President Donald Trump’s escalating trade tariffs will hit world growth and raise inflation, the OECD has predicted in its latest forecast.

Canada and Mexico are forecast to see the biggest impact as they have had the harshest tariffs imposed on them, but US growth is also expected to be hit.

The OECD has more than halved its growth outlook for Canada for this year and next, while it expects Mexico to be pushed into a recession.

Trump has imposed 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports. The US has also imposed 25% tariffs on other imports from Mexico and Canada – with some exemptions – and a 20% levy on Chinese goods.

In response, Canada and the EU have both announced retaliatory tariffs.

The Paris-based OECD said the higher trade barriers and “increased geopolitical and policy uncertainty” were hitting investment and household spending.

In the OECD’s latest forecast:

  • Canada’s economy is predicted to grow by just 0.7% this year and in 2026, compared with the previous forecast of 2% for both years
  • Mexico is now forecast to contract by 1.3% this year and shrink a further 0.6% next year, instead of growing by 1.2% and 1.6% as previously expected
  • Growth in the US has also been downgraded, with growth of 2.2% expected this year and 1.6% in 2025, down from previous forecasts of 2.4% and 2.1%
  • Despite the US imposing tariffs on China, the OECD has increased its growth forecast for the country slightly to 4.8%.

The OECD said the developing trade war was set to push up inflation, which will mean interest rates are likely to remain higher for longer.

“Significant risks remain,” it warned. “Further fragmentation of the global economy is a key concern.

“Higher and broader increases in trade barriers would hit growth around the world and add to inflation”.

The OECD said that for the world economy, growth would slow from 3.2% in 2024 to 3.1% in 2025, largely as a result of the trade tensions.

It also said it expected inflation – the rate of price increases – to continue to slow, though not as much as previously anticipated.

The organisation is predicting inflation of 3.8% this year across 20 of the world’s largest economies, compared with the 3.5% it had previously forecast.

Last week, Elon Musk’s electric car firm Tesla warned that it, and other US exporters, could be harmed by the trade battle.

In a letter to the US trade representative, the firm said US exporters were “exposed to disproportionate impacts” if other countries retaliated to Trump’s tariffs.

The OECD cut its growth forecast for the UK’s economy to 1.4% in 2025, from its previous forecast of 1.7%, and to 1.2% in 2026, down from 1.3%.

However, the forecast is more optimistic than the Bank of England, which earlier this month cut its UK growth forecast for 2025 to 0.75%.

Kate drinks Guinness at St Patrick’s Day event

Vicky Wong

BBC News
Sean Coughlan

Royal correspondent@seanjcoughlan
Watch: The princess marked St Patrick’s Day in London after missing out on the visit last year

The Princess of Wales sipped half a pint of Guinness as she celebrated St Patrick’s Day with the Irish Guards.

Catherine, dressed in a bottle-green and percher hat, presented the traditional sprigs of shamrock to officers, guardsmen and mascot Seamus, the Irish wolfhound, at the regiment’s annual parade at Wellington Barracks.

She then joined soldiers for a drink and was thanked for putting money behind the bar, replying “that’s the least I can do”.

The princess, who has been colonel of the regiment since 2023, missed the celebrations last year after being diagnosed with cancer.

Prior to the parade, Catherine awarded medals for long service and good conduct to soldiers who recently returned from deployment in Iraq.

She then took the salute as colonel during a traditional march-past.

After the ceremony, she spent time in the junior ranks’ dining hall, where senior guardsman proposed a toast in her honour.

Drinking half a pint of Guinness, she chatted with soldiers about their experiences on deployment.

Guardsman Barry Loughlin, who led the toast, said afterwards: “She wanted to know how things were going with the blokes in general.

“She was really nice and really warm. I was kind of flustered.

“You could tell she had a genuine interest in us.”

Catherine then went to the sergeants’ mess where she met with relatives of soldiers serving overseas, including those involved in training Ukrainian troops.

The event dates back to the first regimental St Patrick’s Day in 1901.

White House denies defying judge’s order over deportations to El Salvador

James FitzGerald

BBC News
Video shows alleged gang members deported by US in El Salvador mega-jail

The White House has denied an accusation from rights groups that it flouted due process by defying a judge’s order while carrying out deportations at the weekend.

A group of 238 alleged Venezuelan gang members, plus 23 alleged members of the international MS-13 gang, were sent from the US to a prison in El Salvador. Some were removed from the country under a law not used since World War Two.

The move came despite a temporary block issued by a judge. The White House said the judge’s order itself was not lawful and was issued after the group was deported.

Neither the US government nor El Salvador has identified the detainees, or provided details of their alleged criminality or gang membership.

Announcing the move on Saturday, Trump accused Tren de Aragua (TdA) of “perpetrating, attempting, and threatening an invasion or predatory incursion against the territory of the United States”.

He invoked the Alien Enemies Act – a piece of legislation that dates to 1798, which was designed to allow non-citizens to be deported in times of war or invasion. Campaigners have questioned Trump’s justification.

The act was used to process 137 of the total of 261 people who were deported, a senior administration official told CBS News, the BBC’s US partner.

The basis on which the other deportees were removed from the US remains unclear, and details of the group as a whole have not been disclosed.

Several relatives of men believed to be among the group told the New York Times that their loved ones did not have gang ties.

The order to halt the deportations came from US District Judge James Boasberg on Saturday evening, who demanded a 14-day pause pending further legal arguments.

After lawyers told him that planes with deportees had already taken off, the judge reportedly gave a verbal order for the flights to turn back, although that directive did not form part of his written ruling.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt denied the court ruling had been broken. “The administration did not ‘refuse to comply’ with a court order,” she said.

“The order, which had no lawful basis, was issued after terrorist TdA [Tren de Aragua] aliens had already been removed from US territory.”

The justice department echoed Leavitt, saying the deportees had already left before the judge’s ruling – which it has appealed against.

The case raises constitutional questions since, under the US system of checks and balances, government agencies are expected to comply with a federal judge’s ruling.

  • US deports hundreds of Venezuelans despite court order
  • What is Tren de Aragua, the Venezuelan gang targeted by Trump?

Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele confirmed the arrival of deportees. “Oopsie… Too late,” he said of the judge’s order, writing on social media. His team also published footage of some of the men inside one of its mega-jails.

Rights groups accused Trump of using a 227-year-old law to circumvent due process.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) questioned Trump’s use of a sweeping wartime authority which allows fast-track deportations. “I think we’re in very dangerous territory here in the United States with the invocation of this law,” said Lee Gelernt from the organisation.

The Alien Enemies Act only allowed deportations when the US was in a declared war with that foreign government, or was being invaded, Mr Gelernt said. “A gang is not invading,” he told BBC News.

The act was last used during World War Two to intern Japanese-American civilians.

Making matters worse was the fact “the administration is saying nobody can review what they’re doing”, Mr Gelernt added.

Meanwhile, Amnesty International USA said the deportations were “yet another example of the Trump administration’s racist targeting” of Venezuelans “based on sweeping claims of gang affiliation”.

Watch: Attorney says ‘no question’ that US deportations violate law

Venezuela itself criticised Trump, saying he “unjustly criminalises Venezuelan migration”.

The latest deportations under Trump’s second term are part of the president’s long-running campaign against illegal immigration.

The US president has also moved to strengthen ties with El Salvador.

The two gangs targeted with the weekend deportations were declared “foreign terrorist organisations” by Trump after returning to the White House in January.

India watches warily as Bangladesh-Pakistan ties thaw

Anbarasan Ethirajan

South Asia Regional Editor

The dramatic political developments in Bangladesh that led to prime minister Sheikh Hasina being ousted last year have thrown up many surprises – including Dhaka’s growing closeness with one-time foe Pakistan.

Last month, after decades of troubled relations, the two countries began directly trading for the first time, with Dhaka importing 50,000 tonnes of rice from Pakistan. Direct flights and military contacts have also been revived, visa procedures have been simplified, and there are reports of co-operation on security matters.

The countries – separated by the landmass of India – have deep, painful historical ties. The animosity between them goes back to 1971, when Bangladesh – then known as East Pakistan – launched a struggle to gain independence from Islamabad. India supported the Bengali rebels during the nine-month war which led to the formation of Bangladesh.

While the scars from that period run deep, Dhaka had cordial relations with Islamabad between 2001 and 2006, when a coalition of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and the Jamaat-e-Islami governed the country.

This changed during Hasina’s 15-year rule from 2009 – when she was strongly backed by Delhi and maintained a distance from Pakistan. But after she fled to India following mass protests against her government, ties seem to be thawing.

“For the past 15 years, the Pakistan-Bangladesh relationship was on a slightly difficult trajectory,” says Humayun Kabir, a former senior Bangladeshi diplomat, adding that the relationship seems to now be returning to that of “two normal neighbours”.

The developments are being watched closely, particularly in India, which has a long history of hostile relations with Pakistan.

Relations between Dhaka and Delhi have been frosty since Hasina’s exit. India has not reacted to Bangladesh’s demands to extradite her to face charges of crimes against humanity, money laundering and corruption. Hasina denies the accusations against her.

Some experts think the reviving of relations between Dhaka and Islamabad is a strategic move.

“Pakistan and Bangladesh have a tactical relationship at the moment. Together, they want to represent a pushback against the dominance of India,” says Ayesha Siddiqa, a Pakistani academic who is a senior fellow at King’s College in London.

There have been other developments apart from starting direct trade.

Muhammad Yunus, head of the interim Bangladesh government, met Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at multilateral forums several times in recent months.

And then there is a growing military relationship.

A high-level Bangladeshi military delegation made a rare visit to Pakistan in January and held talks with influential army chief General Asim Munir. The Bangladeshi navy also participated in a multinational maritime exercise organised by Pakistan off the Karachi coast in February. .

Veena Sikri, who was India’s high commissioner to Bangladesh between 2003 and 2006, describes the growing closeness between Dhaka and Islamabad as a “déjà vu” moment.

During her tenure in Dhaka, she said, India repeatedly raised the issue of “Indian insurgents getting trained inside Bangladesh with the support of the ISI [Pakistan’s intelligence agency] and a section of the Bangladeshi military”.

“We even provided evidence to Bangladeshi authorities,” she said.

Authorities in Pakistan and Bangladesh denied these allegations at the time.

The long, porous border between India and Bangladesh makes it relatively easy for armed insurgent groups from India’s north-eastern states to cross over from Bangladesh. But, after Hasina’s Awami League came to power in 2009, it cracked down on these groups and dismantled their bases.

So the revival of military ties between Bangladesh and Pakistan is “a major security concern for India”, says Ms Sikri.

“It’s not just the military relationship. The Pakistani establishment is also reviving ties with Bangladeshi Islamist parties like the Jamaat-e-Islami, which supported Islamabad during Bangladesh’s independence war,” she adds.

The Yunus administration’s press office has flatly rejected Indian media reports that senior ISI officials have visited Dhaka. It has also described reports that claim Pakistani operatives were working to reopen a camp of an Indian insurgent group in Bangladesh as “baseless”.

Pakistan’s military did not respond to BBC questions on India’s concerns over the future role of the ISI in Bangladesh.

Analysts say Bangladeshi politicians are aware that, given the close economic and linguistic ties, Dhaka cannot afford to take an anti-India stance.

And despite apprehensions in Delhi, Bangladeshi diplomats argue that ties with Pakistan cannot be normalised unless issues related to the 1971 war are resolved.

During the war, hundreds of thousands of Bengalis were killed and tens of thousands of women were raped. The war ended with more than 90,000 Pakistani security and civilian personnel surrendering to the joint command of Indian and Bangladeshi forces in what is seen as a humiliating chapter in Islamabad.

Bangladesh has demanded a formal apology from Pakistan for the atrocities committed during the war but Islamabad has shown no inclination to do so.

“Pakistan needs to own the crimes that had taken place during the independence war,” said Mr Kabir, the former Bangladeshi diplomat. “We had also raised the issue of the division of pre-1971 assets between the two nations in several bilateral meetings with Pakistan.”

Even former Pakistani military officers like Ikram Sehgal accept that “the main stumbling block in bilateral ties is the requirement of the Bangladeshis that Pakistanis should apologise for what happened in 1971”.

However, the retired Pakistan army major insists that Bangladesh should also address the issue of attacks by Bengalis on Urdu speakers during the struggle for independence.

“I was a witness to the atrocities that took place against the Urdu-speaking Bihari people [in East Pakistan],” Mr Sehgal, who now lives in Karachi, told the BBC.

While history casts a shadow over ties between Dhaka and Islamabad, economists point out the two countries can first focus on improving bilateral trade, which currently stands at less than $700m (£540m), mostly in favour of Pakistan.

“Pakistan’s more than 250 million population is a solid market for Bangladesh in the medium to long term,” says Sabrin Beg, an associate professor of economics at the University of Delaware.

Currently, there are constraints including high tariffs on both sides and businesses and exporters face visa and travel obstacles, she points out. However, Ms Beg says “improved bilateral political and trade relations will ease these constraints”.

Some of these issues may be discussed during Pakistani foreign minister Ishaq Dar’s visit to Dhaka in April. By the end of the year Bangladesh is expected to hold general elections and a new government may have a different set of foreign policy priorities.

But, whatever happens, the stakes are high for Delhi, which strongly feels that a stable and friendly Bangladesh is necessary to maintain peace and stability in its north-eastern states.

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Taiwan revokes visa of pro-Beijing Chinese influencer

Koh Ewe

BBC News

A Chinese influencer living in Taiwan must leave the island within days or be deported, Taiwanese authorities said, after she posted videos supporting the idea of China taking the island by force.

The rare move comes at a time of heightened cross-strait tensions and increasing suspicions of Chinese influence operations on the democratic island.

Taiwan’s National Immigration Agency (NIA), which revoked the influencer’s visa, said that her “behaviour advocates the elimination of Taiwan’s sovereignty and is not tolerated in Taiwanese society”.

The influencer, identified by authorities with her surname Liu, had relocated from mainland China to Taiwan on a dependent visa after marrying a Taiwanese man.

Liu has until 24 March to leave Taiwan before she is forcibly deported, local media reported.

She would not be able to apply for another dependent visa for five years, according to an NIA statement on Saturday.

It is extremely rare for the authorities to expel Chinese spouses of Taiwanese citizens.

Liu, better known on social media as Yaya in Taiwan, regularly posts pro-Beijing commentary videos with her young daughter.

In the videos, Liu refers to the island as “Taiwan province” and echoes China’s state narrative that Taiwan is “an inseparable part of China”.

China claims the self-governed Taiwan as part of its territory, and has not ruled out the use of force over it. Taiwan, however, sees itself as distinct from China.

“The complete unification of the motherland is a necessity, regardless of what the Taiwanese people want,” Liu said in one video on Douyin, the Chinese equivalent of TikTok, where she has 480,000 followers.

“Peaceful unification is much harder than unification by force,” she added. “It depends on what choices the Taiwanese people make.”

As criticism against her videos mounted, Liu posted on Douyin in February that she “would never back down”.

She later said that she was “trying to promote the good on both sides” through her videos and “eliminate the chasm between people”.

“I’m just analysing objectively and sharing my own views,” she said. “Those pushing for Taiwan independence … are the ones causing real harm to Taiwanese society.”

Her remarks have sparked condemnation from Taiwan’s leaders, with interior minister Liu Shyh-fang saying that freedom of speech was “not an excuse” to call for the invasion of Taiwan.

Liu is among 360,000 mainland Chinese spouses living in Taiwan, whose activities have been increasingly scrutinised amid heightening cross-strait tensions.

In a slate of measures announced last week to curb Chinese influence and infiltration on the island, Taiwanese president Lai Ching-te called for tighter control of cross-strait exchanges, which he said were seen by China as a way to “create internal divisions” in Taiwan.

Fresh US strikes in Yemen with 53 now dead, Houthis say

George Wright

BBC News
Watch: US begins Yemen strikes

Yemen’s Houthi rebels say there have been fresh US strikes against them, with the number of dead rising to 53, including five children.

Targets in the Al Jaouf and Hudaydah areas were hit early on Monday, according to the rebel group, while the US Central Command said its forces had continued operations.

The US launched what it called a “decisive and powerful” wave of air strikes on Houthi targets on Saturday as part of efforts to stop Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea.

Washington says some key Houthi figures are among the dead, but the group has not confirmed this.

Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi said his militants would target US ships in the Red Sea as long as the US continued its attacks on Yemen.

Updating an earlier death toll, Houthi health ministry spokesperson Anis al-Asbahi posted on X that 53 people had been killed including “five children and two women”, and that 98 people had been wounded.

One father of two, who gave his name as Ahmed, told the AFP news agency: “I’ve been living in Sanaa for 10 years, hearing shelling throughout the war. By God, I’ve never experienced anything like this before.”

US National Security Advisor Michael Waltz told ABC News that Saturday’s strikes “targeted multiple Houthi leaders and took them out”.

He told Fox News: “We just hit them with overwhelming force and put Iran on notice that enough is enough.”

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth vowed an “unrelenting” missile campaign until the Houthi attacks stop.

“I want to be very clear, this campaign is about freedom of navigation and restoring deterrence,” Hegseth said in a televised Fox Business interview.

The Houthis said it would continue to target Red Sea shipping until Israel lifted its blockade of Gaza, and that its forces would respond to the strikes.

The Iranian-backed rebel group, which considers Israel its enemy, controls Sanaa and the north-west of Yemen, but it is not the country’s internationally recognised government.

The Houthis have said they are acting in support of the Palestinians in the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, and have claimed – often falsely – that they are targeting ships only linked to Israel, the US or the UK.

Since November 2023, the Houthis have targeted dozens of merchant vessels with missiles, drones and small boat attacks in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden. They have sunk two vessels, seized a third, and killed four crew members.

Announcing Saturday’s strikes, Trump said “we will use overwhelming lethal force until we have achieved our objective”.

“Funded by Iran, the Houthi thugs have fired missiles at US aircraft, and targeted our Troops and Allies,” Trump said on social media, adding that their “piracy, violence, and terrorism” had cost “billions” and put lives at risk.

Addressing the Houthis directly, Trump wrote that if they did not stop, “HELL WILL RAIN DOWN UPON YOU LIKE NOTHING YOU HAVE EVER SEEN BEFORE”.

But the Houthis have been unwavering in their response, saying the aggression would not diminish their support for Palestinians.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the US government had “no authority, or business, dictating Iranian foreign policy”.

“End support for Israeli genocide and terrorism,” he posted on X on Sunday. “Stop killing of Yemeni people.”

The Houthis have claimed responsibility, without offering evidence, for two attacks on the US aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman and several American warships in the Red Sea, calling it retaliation for US strikes.

But a US official told Reuters news agency that US warplanes shot down 11 Houthi drones on Sunday, none of which came close to the Truman. The US is yet to respond to the second claim of such a strike.

UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres on Sunday called for “utmost restraint and a cessation of all military activities” in Yemen.

Saakashvili handed further four years in jail

James Gregory

BBC News

A court in Georgia has handed a further prison sentence to the jailed former president, Mikheil Saakashvili.

Saakashvili was sentenced on Monday to four-and-a-half years behind bars for illegally crossing the border when returning to the country from exile in 2021, his lawyer said.

He is already serving concurrent terms for embezzlement and abuse of power while in office, bringing his total sentence to more than 12 years.

Saakashvili has always denied wrongdoing and called his latest sentence “illegal” and “unjust”. Rights groups say his imprisonment is politically motivated.

Saakashvili opposes the governing Georgian Dream party, which favours closer ties with Russia. As president, he sought to forge closer relations with Western governments.

In a video posted on X on Monday from the hospital where he is being held, Saakashvili said: “No matter what, I will fight to the end.”

The former president was sentenced last week to nine years behind bars for embezzlement, running alongside the jail term he had already been serving. In 2018, he was tried in absentia and sentenced in two separate trials.

Saakashvili was arrested in 2021 after making a surprise return to Georgia ahead of the country’s local elections by smuggling himself into the country on a ferry from Ukraine.

He called for mass anti-government demonstrations, but was quickly arrested by Georgian authorities.

The 57-year-old had led Georgia over two terms between 2004 and 2013. Since leaving the country, he had for the most part lived in Ukraine.

He was granted Ukrainian citizenship in 2015, renouncing his Georgian citizenship when he became governor of Ukraine’s Odesa region.

His citizenship was revoked in 2017 before being restored again by President Volodymyr Zelensky in 2019.

“This [sentence] is basically sending a message… to President Zelensky, for them to scare him to show what happens when you don’t surrender your country… I did not surrender Georgia,” Saakashvili said in his video address while wearing a black shirt with the words “I’m Ukrainian” emblazoned on it.

Zelensky, who appointed Saakashvili to oversee reforms in Ukraine, has demanded his transfer to Kyiv.

He has previously accused Russia of “killing” Saakashvili “at the hands of the Georgian authorities”.

The European Union has repeatedly called for Saakashvili’s immediate release from prison, expressing concern over his deteriorating health.

The Council of Europe rights watchdog has branded him a “political prisoner,” while Amnesty International has called his treatment an “apparent political revenge”.

Rwanda severs ties with Belgium over ‘neo-colonial delusions’

Wedaeli Chibelushi

BBC News

Rwanda has cut diplomatic ties with Belgium, saying it has been “consistently undermined” by the European nation during the ongoing conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Brussels has been leading calls for European nations to sanction Rwanda over its support for the M23, a rebel group at the centre of DR Congo’s crisis.

The authorities in Kigali, Rwanda’s capital, have given Belgian diplomats 48 hours to leave the country.

Belgium, which is the former colonial power, has said it will respond to these measures and labelled Rwanda’s decision “disproportionate”.

Despite assertions from the UN and US, Rwanda has denied backing the M23.

In its statement on Monday, Kigali accused Brussels of attempting to “sustain its neo-colonial delusions”.

“Belgium has clearly taken sides in a regional conflict and continues to systematically mobilise against Rwanda in different forums, using lies and manipulation to secure an unjustified hostile opinion of Rwanda, in an attempt to destabilise both Rwanda and the region,” the statement said.

Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot responded to Rwanda’s measures on social media, saying: “This is disproportionate and shows that when we disagree with Rwanda they prefer not to engage in dialogue.”

  • The evidence that shows Rwanda is backing rebels in DR Congo
  • What’s the fighting in DR Congo all about?

Prevot said Rwandan diplomats in Belgium will be declared “persona non grata”.

This declaration can lead to the removal of diplomatic status and often results in the expulsion or the withdrawal of recognition of envoys.

Before Kigali cut ties with Brussels, Rwandan President Paul Kagame vowed that his country would “stand up” to Belgium.

“We would ask [Belgium]: ‘Who are you by the way? Who put you in charge of us?’ Rwandans believe in God, but did God really put these people in charge of Rwanda?” Kagame asked in an address on Sunday.

Since the beginning of the year, around 7,000 people have been killed in fighting between the M23 and DR Congo’s armed forces in the east of the country, the Congolese authorities have said.

More than 850,000 people have been forced to flee their homes since the conflict increased in intensity in January, the UN children’s agency, Unicef, said.

The M23 has taken control of two key cities – Goma and Bukavu – in the past two months.

On Monday, the EU sanctioned three of Rwanda’s military commanders, citing connections to the M23.

The sanctions, which include the freezing of assets, were also applied to the head of Rwanda’s state mining agency. The EU has accused the agency of exploiting DR Congo’s conflict in order to extract valuable resources from the mineral-rich east.

Britain and Germany have also taken measures against Rwanda – over the past month both countries cut some of their aid to Kigali.

And in February, the UN Security Council demanded that the M23 end hostilities and that Rwanda should pull its troops out of DR Congo.

Rwanda’s diplomatic spat with Belgium comes a day before the Congolese government and M23 rebels are set to meet for peace talks.

The talks, due to be held in the Angolan capital, Luanda, overturn the government’s long-standing policy of not negotiating with the M23.

However, since the M23 began capturing larges swathes of territory, Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi has been under pressure to meet with the rebels, news agency Reuters reports.

You may also be interested in:

  • US star John Legend defends playing Rwanda concert during war
  • Who’s pulling the strings in the DR Congo crisis?

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Creativity or cultural invasion? A fashion show sparks a row in Kashmir

Cherylann Mollan

BBC News, Mumbai

A fashion show held last week in a picturesque, snow-clad town in Indian-administered Kashmir has sparked a major controversy that is still simmering.

The show, by the well-known fashion brand Shivan & Narresh, was held last Friday at a ski resort in Gulmarg to display their skiwear collection. The label is the first big, non-local brand to hold a fashion show in Kashmir, a scenic Himalayan region which has seen decades of violence.

But it soon sparked outrage among locals, politicians and religious leaders in Muslim-majority Kashmir after fashion publisher Elle India posted a video on social media which showed some models wearing underwear or bikinis. Locals were also angry over another video – shared by online magazine Lifestyle Asia – of a party held after the show, which showed people drinking alcohol outdoors.

Many took offence with the show being held in the holy month of Ramadan – a time of fasting and prayer for Muslims – and accused the designers of “mocking their faith” and “disregarding local culture and sentiments”. Some clerics called the show “obscene” and said it was like “soft porn”.

Some others explained that the outrage had arisen not only from religious conservatism, but also from a fear of cultural imposition from “outsiders”. Kashmir has witnessed decades of armed separatist insurgency against Indian rule since the late 1980s.

The backlash prompted Elle India and Lifestyle Asia to delete their videos. Shivan Bhatiya and Narresh Kukreja, the designers behind the label, also apologised, saying that their “sole intention was to celebrate creativity” and that they didn’t intend to offend religious sentiments.

Kashmir – known as the land of saints and Sufism (Islamic mysticism) – has a rich tradition of spirituality which influences many aspects of peoples’ lives. The traditional attire is modest, with locals – both men and women – often wearing the pheran, a long, loose cloak.

The row also moved off social media and a discussion about the show and the after-party caused a ruckus in the Jammu and Kashmir assembly.

The opposition criticised the government, accusing it of giving permission for the event despite being aware of local sensitivities. Meanwhile, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah distanced his government from the event, saying it had been organised by private entities, and asking local authorities to investigate the matter and submit a report.

“If law has been violated, strict action will be taken,” he said in the assembly on Monday. The police have not yet given details about who organised the event and what laws, if any, have been violated.

The fashion brand did not respond to the BBC’s questions about the show, including about permissions it obtained.

It’s not surprising that scenic Gulmarg – one of India’s few skiing destinations and a favourite with tourists – was the choice of venue for a show highlighting a skiwear collection.

Fashion journalist Shefalee Vasudev says it’s not uncommon for designers to want to hold fashion shows in exquisite locations.

In fact, international designers like Alexander McQueen and Karl Lagerfeld are remembered as much for their creative, theatrical fashion shows as they are for their iconic designs.

But experimentation brings with it the risk of controversy and so, it’s important to be mindful of the political and cultural sensitivities of a place, Ms Vasudev told the BBC.

And this holds especially true in a place like Kashmir, which has witnessed wars and decades of armed conflict.

  • Article 370: What happened with Kashmir and why it matters
  • ‘Don’t beat us, just shoot us’: Kashmiris allege violent army crackdown

Both India and Pakistan claim Kashmir in full but control it only in parts. Since India’s partition and the creation of Pakistan in 1947, the nuclear-armed neighbours have fought two wars over the territory.

Thousands of people have been killed since the late 1980s, when a separatist insurgency broke out against Indian rule. Though the separatist movement has lost steam over the years, many locals continue to view the administration in Delhi with distrust.

These sentiments have deepened since 2019 when the federal government, led by the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, stripped the region of its autonomy.

So some locals told the BBC that they were not surprised by the reactions to the show.

“Everything in Kashmir is political; people see things through a political prism,” says Mir, a professor at a local university (he asked for his surname to be withheld to protect his identity). He adds that people are sceptical about big corporate events like the fashion show and – even if they are organised by private players – they believe that the government is trying to dilute their culture.

Arshid Ahmad, a researcher, uses stronger words to express public angst. “The government is trying to dilute the spirit of resistance in Kashmiris,” he says.

This isn’t the first time an event held by non-locals has triggered a controversy in Kashmir. In 2013, separatists and human rights activists in the region protested against a show by renowned conductor Zubin Mehta. They said it was an attempt by the government to show the world that all was well in Kashmir when people were “suffering and dying”.

Some of the recent apprehensions around culture and identity can also be tied to the increase in tourists to Kashmir from other states in India. The federal government has often connected this boom in tourism to the abrogation of Article 370, which stripped the region of its autonomy.

Nousheen Fatima, 34, says because of government messaging, people outside Kashmir now see the region as being safer and “more assimilated with India”. But she alleges that many tourists do not respect the region’s culture.

Last year, a video showing tourists drinking alcohol during a boat ride on the famous Dal Lake in Srinagar evoked outrage from political and religious leaders, who called the behaviour “un-Islamic and unethical”.

In February, locals put up posters in Srinagar, asking tourists to “respect local culture and traditions” and “avoid alcohol and use of drugs”, but these were later pulled down by the police.

In an editorial for The Voice of Fashion magazine, Ms Vasudev argues that the outrage needs to be examined from a critical lens. She asks if it would have been all right for the show to have been held in another Indian city instead of Kashmir, where Muslims would also be observing Ramadan. And whether it would have been acceptable to hold the show in Kashmir if it featured only outfits perceived as modest.

She also points out that Kashmir is home to the “world’s finest wool yarn; some of the finest handspun, handwoven pashmina creations and its artisans”.

“What Kashmir creates and stands for cannot be replicated anywhere. Shouldn’t a fashion show at Gulmarg then, with innovative garments made with 100% wool, be seen as regenerating interest in untried ways?” she asks.

What is the 1798 law that Trump used to deport migrants?

Sofia Ferreira Santos

BBC News

More than 200 Venezuelans, who the White House alleges are gang members, have been deported from the US to a notorious mega-jail in El Salvador.

Out of the 261 people deported, 137 were removed under the Alien Enemies Act, a senior administration official told CBS News, the BBC’s US partner.

This broad, centuries-old law was invoked by President Donald Trump. He accused Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua (TdA) of “perpetrating, attempting, and threatening an invasion or predatory incursion” on US territory.

The move has been criticised by rights groups, and came despite a temporary block issued by a judge. The White House said the judge’s order itself was not lawful and was issued after the group was deported.

  • White House denies defying judge’s order over deportations
  • What is Tren de Aragua, the Venezuelan gang targeted by Trump?

What is the act?

The Alien Enemies Act grants the president of the United States sweeping powers to order the detention and deportation of natives or citizens of an “enemy” nation without following the usual processes.

It was passed as part of a series of laws in 1798 when the US believed it would enter a war with France.

The act states that “whenever there shall be a declared war […] or any invasion or predatory incursion shall be perpetrated, attempted, or threatened” against the US, all “subjects of the hostile nation or government” could be “apprehended, restrained, secured and removed, as alien enemies”.

When else has it been used?

The act has only been previously used three times – all during times of conflict involving the US.

It was last invoked in World War Two, when people of Japanese descent – reportedly numbering about 120,000 – were imprisoned without trial. Thousands were sent to internment camps.

People of German and Italian ancestry were also interned during that time.

Before that, the act was used during the War of 1812 and World War One.

What’s Trump said – and what’s been the reaction?

Though this is the first time the act has been used by Trump, it is not the first time he has mentioned it.

At his inaugural address in January, he said he would invoke the act to “eliminate the presence of all foreign gangs and criminal networks bringing devastating crime to US soil”.

In his proclamation on Saturday, Trump invoked the wording of the act by accusing TdA of threatening an “invasion” against the US. He declared its members “liable to be apprehended, restrained, secured, and removed as alien enemies”.

Trump’s decision has been criticised by rights groups. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) sued to stop the removals on the grounds that the US was not at war.

Speaking to BBC News on Sunday, Lee Gelernt, a lawyer with the ACLU, said: “There’s no question in our mind that the law is being violated.”

Watch: Attorney says ‘no question’ that US deportations violate law

A federal judge attempted to stop the use of the law to carry out the deportations, but the White House said this had had “no lawful basis”, and that the removals had already taken place.

Reacting to a news article covering the judge’s order, El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele wrote on social media: “Oopsie… Too late.”

Venezuela criticised Trump’s use of the act, saying it “unjustly criminalises Venezuelan migration” and “evokes the darkest episodes in the history of humanity, from slavery to the horror of the Nazi concentration camps”.

Katherine Yon Ebright, counsel at the Brennan Center for Justice, said in a statement that Trump’s use of the Alien Enemies Act was illegal.

“The only reason to invoke such a power is to try to enable sweeping detentions and deportations of Venezuelans based on their ancestry, not on any gang activity that could be proved in immigration proceedings”, she added.

Small electric cars were said to be the future – but SUVs now rule the road

Navin Singh Khadka

Environment Correspondent, BBC World Service

Across the globe more and more Sports Utility Vehicles (SUVs) are being spotted on – and off – the roads.

This is despite predictions from the United Nations of an inevitable pivot towards smaller and more environmentally friendly vehicles because of the urgency of the climate crisis and the rising cost of living.

That pivot has not materialised: globally, 54% of the cars sold in 2024 were SUVs, including petrol, diesel, hybrids and electric makes. This is an increase of three percentage points from 2023 and five percentage points from the year before, according to GlobalData.

Of the SUVs which are now on the road – both new and older models – 95% are burning fossil fuels, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).

Manufacturers, however, say their new fleets of such cars are increasingly becoming electric, and that not all SUVs now being sold cause an increase in emissions.

SUVs are hard to miss. They are heavy and larger with spacious interiors, higher ground clearance and a high driving position with a better view of the road, although smaller versions are also on the market.

Environmental campaigners such as Greenpeace see SUVs as one of the villains of the climate crisis and argue that their manufacturing consumes significant resources given their size.

Experts also say they require larger batteries to power their electric versions, which then further increases the demand for critical minerals, putting even more pressure on the planet.

Momentum was thought to be with smaller, energy-efficient electric vehicles. But the sales of standard-sized electric vehicles (EVs) has actually decreased in major markets such as Japan and Germany, and their sales growth has slowed in India.

And in Europe, sales of SUVs have outpaced those of EVs despite indications more than half a decade ago of an opposite trend. In Europe in 2018, 3.27 million small hatchbacks – both those powered by fossil fuels and those by electricity – were sold while 2.13 million were sold in 2024, according to GlobalData.

Its sales forecast manager Sammy Chan said: “This is partly because of the SUV alternatives being offered in smaller [sizes] whose sales in Europe have now grown to nearly to 2.5 million in 2024 from 1.5 million in 2018.”

China saw the largest sales of nearly 11.6 million SUVs in 2024 followed by the US, India and Germany, according to GlobalData.

What is driving this SUV growth?

Industry experts say people’s purchasing power has been improving in many fast-emerging economies, making SUVs the likelier choice of car.

“Manufacturers respond to consumer demand and, increasingly, drivers are attracted to dual purpose vehicles given their practicality, comfort and good view of the road,” said Mike Hawes who is the chief executive of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

Automobile industry analysts also say that manufacturers are attracted to high profit margins from SUVs: they can make more money from SUVs even though they make fewer vehicles.

“It is the industry that has driven the demand through huge marketing and advertising campaigns in recent years,” said Dudley Curtis, the communications manager at the European Transport Safety Council.

“SUVs offered the industry a simple way of charging more for a vehicle that does the same thing [as others],” he said.

Are SUVs an issue?

Because of the robust growth in SUVs sales, the IEA says oil consumption of these vehicles has increased by 600,000 barrels per day globally between 2022 and 2023, accounting for more than a quarter of the total annual rise in global oil demand.

“If ranked among countries, the global fleet of SUVs would be the world’s fifth largest emitter of CO2, exceeding the emissions of Japan and various other major economies,” said Apostolous Petropolous, an energy modeller with the IEA.

The agency says that even when compared to medium-sized cars that run on petrol and diesel, SUVs burn 20% more of such fuels as they weigh up to 300 kg more on average.

In fact, road transport is responsible for more than 12% of global carbon emissions which is the main driver of global warming. Scientists say all sectors must rapidly decarbonise if we are to avoid a climate catastrophe.

But industry representatives say in response that not all SUVs now being sold cause an increase in emissions.

“Around two in five of these [new] vehicle models are zero emission as their body type lends itself well to electrification with longer battery range that can reassure consumers concerned about charging accessibility,” said Hawes, from the SMMT.

“This has led to the average CO2 emissions of new dual purpose cars more than halving since 2000, helping the segment lead the decarbonisation of UK road mobility.”

Although the vast majority of new SUVs still burn fossil fuels, IEA officials have said that over 20% of SUVs sold in 2023 were fully electric, up from 2% in 2018.

As for hybrids that can run on both electricity and fossil fuels, a study in Europe by the International Council on Clean Transportation in 2022 found only around 30% of the total distance driven by plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (all types including SUVs) was in electric mode on average.

Similar results were found in other major economies such as the US and China.

Overall, the back-gear towards SUVs, some experts say, has caused a significant setback in the decarbonisation of the transport sector.

“The trend toward heavier and less efficient vehicles such as SUVs (in countries where it is happening) has largely nullified the improvements in energy consumption and emissions achieved elsewhere in the world’s passenger car fleet,” said the IEA.

The UK Parliament’s climate change committee had a similar finding in its 2024 report on decarbonisation in the country.

The Sidemen’s reality show, and Selena Gomez’s ‘love story’ album: What to stream this week

Noor Nanji

Culture reporter@NoorNanji

This week, social media stars The Sidemen are bringing their reality TV show, called Inside, to Netflix.

But that’s not all the week has in store.

Selena Gomez‘s joint album with her fiancé Benny Blanco is coming out, Snow White is – finally – being released in cinemas, and gamers are getting set for Assassin’s Creed Shadows.

Read on for this week’s biggest releases…

The Sidemen take their reality show to Netflix

Last year, British YouTube superstars the Sidemen launched their own reality show, locking 10 influencers in a house for a week to battle for a prize worth up to £1m.

The first episode of Inside attracted 14 million views on YouTube, with fans tuning in to see contestants compete in a series of challenges.

The second season is out on Monday, but this time, it will be on Netflix instead of YouTube. The streaming giant will also make a US version.

The Sidemen – a seven-strong group that includes content creators, musicians and boxer KSI – said they wanted to “shake up the game” of reality TV.

“We all grew up watching reality TV and are big fans of the drama and jeopardy that come with it,” they said.

“Combining that with a prize fund and the challenges that our fans know us for, we knew people would be hooked.”

Selena and Benny’s ‘love story’

Selena Gomez and Benny Blanco have had a busy few months.

The pair announced their engagement in December, and now, they are releasing a joint album, I Said I Love You First, which comes out on Friday.

It marks Gomez’s return to music after starring in operatic musical Emilia Perez, which scored her two Golden Globe nominations.

We already got a taste of what’s in store with their new single, Sunset Blvd. The lyrics are sultry and full of innuendo, with Gomez singing about “holding you naked” in central Los Angeles.

So it might not surprise you that the album is designed to celebrate “the pair’s love story”.

“It chronicles their entire story – before they met, falling in love and looking to what the future holds,” according to a press release.

I’m just intrigued to find out who actually said I love you first.

Disney’s Snow White is here… finally

Once upon a time, Disney set out to remake the classic film, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

So far, so good, but this fairy tale has been beset by challenges.

Early on, Latina star Rachel Zegler faced abuse online by people who disagreed with her casting in the role of a character deemed to have skin “as white as snow”.

The film continued to stir controversy after Zegler indicated she found the original version scary – and suggested the prince was a “stalker”.

The reboot was criticised by Game of Thrones actor Peter Dinklage, who has a form of dwarfism called achondroplasia, for being “backward”. Disney said it was going to “avoid reinforcing stereotypes from the original animated film” (note dwarfs have been dropped from the title).

The live-action adaptation – which also stars Gal Gadot – was originally scheduled for release in 2024, but was delayed a year amid the Hollywood actors’ strikes.

A pared-down premiere was held last Wednesday, and the film finally lands in UK cinemas on Friday.

Get ready for Assassin’s Creed Shadows

Since 2007 the Assassin’s Creed series has allowed players to hack, slash and sneak their way through a range of historical settings.

And the latest instalment, Shadows, creeping on to PS5, Xbox and PC from Thursday, grants fans’ long-held wish for an adventure set in feudal Japan.

It mixes the stealth gameplay of the recent Assassin’s Creed Mirage with the combat-focused approach of mega-hit Valhalla and throws ninjas into the mix. A sure-fire hit, right?

But it’s being seen by many as a make-or-break title for French publisher Ubisoft, one of the biggest gaming companies in the world.

After a lacklustre 2024, there’s a lot of hope that the twice-delayed Shadows will replicate the sales of previous games in the Assassin’s Creed series.

Early previews have been positive, but in today’s unpredictable video games market you can’t count your shurikens until they’ve knocked out a sentry in a perfect takedown, preferably millions of times.

Other highlights this week…

  • Sunrise on the Reaping, the new book in The Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins, is out on Tuesday
  • Leaving Neverland 2: Surviving Michael Jackson premieres on Channel 4 on Tuesday
  • BFI Flare: London LGBTQIA+ Film Festival starts on Wednesday
  • Spring: The Story of a Season, by Michael Morpurgo, is out on Thursday
  • Last One Laughing UK is released on Amazon Prime on Thursday
  • Greentea Peng‘s new album, Tell Dem It’s Sunny, drops on Friday
  • Will Smith‘s album, Based On A True Story, is out on Friday
  • Japanese Breakfast‘s album, For Melancholy Brunettes (And Sad Women), also drops on Friday
  • Flow, an animated film, will be released in UK cinemas on Friday
  • The Alto Knights, starring Robert De Niro, is also out in UK cinemas on Friday
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When Jack Draper had to retire injured from his Australian Open match against Carlos Alcaraz in January, some people asked the same old questions.

Was the Briton’s body built for success at the top of a physically demanding sport? Could he get over the line mentally in career-defining moments?

Eight weeks later, Draper has answered any lingering critics.

On Sunday, he won the biggest title of his career at Indian Wells. He has also cracked the world’s top 10 for the first time.

This is how the 23-year-old has done it.

What’s changed since Melbourne?

Draper was coping with a hip problem at the Australian Open and required a regular intake of painkillers to play.

He came through three gruelling successive five-setters to reach the fourth round – showing he had already improved his durability – but it eventually took its toll against Alcaraz.

Afterwards, Draper admitted he may need to manage what he described as hip tendonitis throughout the rest of his career.

More difficult choices had to be made.

The British number one skipped the Davis Cup tie against Japan and also pulled out of a tournament in Rotterdam in early February.

He returned later that month, finishing runner-up at the Qatar Open before heading to Indian Wells.

Ultimately, the “sensible” decision to retire against Alcaraz – and manage his workload since – has paid off.

Having greater belief in his body allowed the left-hander’s technical and tactical talents to flourish in the Californian desert.

Consistent serving – a mixture of dangerous, swinging deliveries out wide and flatter, pacy serves – laid the platform.

His forehand switched from punchy to loaded with spin, keeping opponents guessing, while sharp footwork allowed him to stay in rallies longer.

Coach James Trotman, who has worked with Draper since he was a teenager, has been a driving force in his success.

“Jack has a way of playing that we should be looking to execute first and foremost,” he told the ATP website., external

“A big part of [our] journey is to try and impose his weapons and take the racquet out of his opponent’s hand.”

How ‘Team Murray’ is making vital contribution

Former world number one Andy Murray might be in Novak Djokovic’s coaching box nowadays, but the long-time flagbearer of British tennis continues to have an influence on Draper.

Two core pillars of the recently-retired Scot’s team – physiotherapist Shane Annun and fitness coach Matt Little – are now part of Draper’s inner circle.

Just two years ago, Draper was lamenting being known as “the guy who got injured all the time”.

Building his fitness in the gym has allowed him to compete more regularly on the tour – instrumental in his rise up the rankings.

“Being away from home, waking up early on a daily basis – it’s like groundhog day,” Draper told BBC tennis correspondent Russell Fuller.

“Putting in hours and hours on the court, in the gym, in the ice bath at the end of the day when I don’t want to.

“It’s like a normal job. Some days you really enjoy it and other times you don’t want to get out of bed.

“But you do it anyway and do it to the best of your ability because you know it is going to pay off on the big stage.”

Off the court, Draper has spent nights in Indian Wells playing Monopoly Deal – a shorter version of the classic board game – and refuelling with healthy takeaways.

“As much as I enjoy playing, being around my team and doing the right thing, it’s one thing saying you’ll do the hard work and another to do it when you’re tired and really don’t want to,” Draper added.

“That is what feels good when you’re playing well on court.”

Is this the springboard to Slam success?

Draper’s rise over the past year has been solid and steady.

His first trophy came on the Stuttgart grass in June last year, followed by an ATP 500 hard-court title in Vienna in October.

His run to the US Open semi-finals captured the attention of the wider British public, although his nerves were illustrated by vomiting on court in a defeat by eventual champion Jannik Sinner.

Draper began seeing a “breathing coach” to help solve the issue, and he pointed to the way he came through the third set against Alcaraz as an example of his improved composure.

“I had a few doubts before the Indian Wells final wondering if would feel the same things – but I didn’t,” he said.

“I was really strong and focused on my breathing and things I could control. That’s what I was really proud of.”

The next step from Masters champion is a logical one – becoming a Grand Slam champion.

Winning Indian Wells is no guarantee of future major success but as Dominic Thiem, Naomi Osaka and Bianca Andreescu have shown, coming through a 96-player field of the very best opponents is a strong indicator.

Hard courts have been Draper’s most successful surface, but the next two majors are on the French Open clay-courts and Wimbledon grass.

So far he has struggled on clay, but his improved footwork should help, while the increasingly dangerous serve and groundstrokes are suited to grass-court success.

“I still feel I have a lot to prove on the clay,” Draper added.

“I didn’t get it going last year, but I don’t see why I can’t be pushing the best players on that surface.

“As for grass, I feel my game has improved massively since last year.”

‘I’m a little angry’: Canadian firms boycott US products

Sam Gruet

Business reporter
Reporting fromToronto

Made in Canada.

Three words that are now a common presence on Canadian shelves, after Donald Trump’s tariffs sparked a trade war with the US’s northern neighbour.

In Canada the economic measures against it have been met with a wave of patriotism, with some consumers and businesses boycotting American products.

Others with operations in the US face a choice – ride out the uncertainty or bring their enterprise back home.

“Right now, I’m a little angry. I don’t want to invest in American companies,” says Joanna Goodman, owner of Au Lit Fine Linens, a Toronto-based bedding and nightwear company.

“It’s about having your eggs in one basket. And right now, that basket is very reckless and very precarious,” she continues.

On a tour around one of her firm’s two stores, housed in a giant warehouse, Ms Goodman highlights elegantly made-up beds, mannequins in silk pyjamas, and shelves full of sweet-smelling candles – most of it made in Canada.

But one fifth of the stock currently comes from the US. Ms Goodman is quick to point out, “you see how big the store is, so even 20% is a lot”.

“I have a lot of inventory here of American brands that I’ve had relationships with for 20 years. I’m not going to throw it away,” she says. “The question is, will I reorder?”

To show Au Lit Fine Linens’ commitment to Canadian manufacturers, its stores now highlight everything that is Canadian made. This is mirrored on its website, which has a “shop all made in Canada” section, and says “made right here at home”.

From Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, to the Ukraine war, global events in recent years have given rise to a more recent phenomenon – reshoring.

Bringing business operations back to home shores, it is the reversal of offshoring.

Business leader and recently-appointed new member of Canada’s Senate, Sandra Pupatello, says that reshoring is “really obvious” to support.

Pupatello, who had previously been Ontario’s Minister of Economic Development and Trade, points to the Covid-19 pandemic, when rules of trade “went right out the window”.

She specifically cites the example of US mask manufacturer 3M coming under pressure from the White House in 2020 to halt exports to Canada and Latin America.

In that moment Pupatello thought: “We’ve got to be prepared for the worst”.

Shortly after, she established Reshoring Canada, a non-partisan group advocating for a more resilient supply chain in Canada.

Pupatello tells the BBC: “If the going gets tough, Canada is on its own. And if we know that’s the case, let us plan for it.”

A Canadian government report from last year found that there had “not been signs of either large-scale or any notable increased reshoring by businesses”, but things could now be changing.

Ray Brougham has been trying to make inroads into the Canadian car manufacturing sector since establishing his company Rainhouse Manufacturing Canada in 2001. Based in British Columbia, it manufactures parts for a number of industries.

The North American car industry’s integrated supply chains can see parts crossing the borders between the US, Mexico, and Canada multiple times before a vehicle is finally assembled.

US President Donald Trump said he would temporarily spare US carmakers from a new 25% import tax imposed on Canada and Mexico, just a day after the tariffs came into effect in March.

But in the shadow of a trade war, Mr Brougham says he has had “good communications” with a large Canadian auto parts company for the first time ever. “All of a sudden they are interested in working closer with other Canadian companies.”

For Mr Brougham and others, the benefits of reshoring are clear. From giving a leg up to small companies that have struggled to compete with manufacturers overseas, to ensuring fair wages, and the environmental benefits of importing and exporting fewer goods.

Others, including Graham Markham, director of a food sector supplier, believe it’s about adding value to products Canada already produces.

His Canadian firm New Protein International is currently constructing Canada’s first soy protein manufacturing plant in southwest Ontario, just miles from the US border.

Canada is the world’s fourth-largest exporter of the crop, but most of it is processed overseas.

“We don’t process those value-added ingredients into more valuable ingredients here at home,” says Mr Markham.

From critical minerals and uranium to lumber and soybeans, he argues that this is the moment to change.

“Canada has long been a successful supplier of raw materials to the world. The opportunity now is to stop exporting the job creation and innovation that comes from processing those materials domestically.”

So, could manufacturing start coming back to Canada? Economist Randall Bartlett says it is too early to tell.

“There’s a lot more smoke than there is fire when it comes to actual reorganisation of supply chains and moving them domestically,” says Mr Bartlett, senior director of Canadian economics at Quebec-based Desjardins.

“I think there has been some movement toward reshoring, but I think there’s a lot more narrative around it than there is actual re-establishing of manufacturing capacity.”

There are major hurdles too.

The highly-integrated auto industry, for example, would take years to untangle. Reshoring it would require “many tens of hundreds of billions of dollars in both private and public sector investment to make happen”, according to Mr Bartlett.

Then there’s the reality of global trade.

“Some countries are better at producing some things than other countries are,” Mr Bartlett says, suggesting that rather than a full reshoring push, diversifying Canada’s trade partners might be more practical.

He says that Canada should focus on “those industries where we have a comparative advantage”, which he says include renewable energy and processing steel and aluminium. Those two metals have now been hit with a 25% tariff if they are exported to the US.

Back at Au Lit Fine Linens in Toronto, Joanna Goodman steps into a vast stockroom, filled with the sound of carboard boxes being packed.

“We’re shipping orders to the US that came in pre-tariffs,” she explains, before pausing. “We did get an order the day of the tariffs starting, and it was a very decent-sized order.”

She says that she doesn’t know whether the US buyer understands that tariffs will now apply. “He has to ask Mr Trump [why]”.

As for what comes next? “These tariffs could be gone any day. Let’s see how it all unfolds, then we’ll start making decisions,” says Ms Goodman.

Like many Canadian businesses, she’s waiting for the dust to settle before deciding where to buy, where to sell, and what Made in Canada really means for the future.

The ‘giant mega-shed’ that has left neighbours in tears

George King

BBC News, Suffolk
Reporting fromFelixstowe Road, Nacton
Watch the giant warehouse from above

Villagers say a “gigantic mega-shed” built near their homes has blocked their view and left them feeling like they are in a prison camp. What is life like for them, and what can they do about it?

Work on the warehouse at Nacton, near Ipswich, began last year.

The size of six full-size football pitches, it is about 147m (482ft) wide, more than 300m (984ft) long and, at 21m (69ft) tall, towers over nearby gardens.

East Suffolk Council approved final plans for the structure at Equation Properties’ Orwell Logistics Park in late 2021.

The authority says the decision was properly made, but neighbours argue it was “fundamentally wrong”.

They have branded it a “monstrosity” and some say it has reduced them to tears.

“It’s a gigantic mega-shed and, essentially, it is the wrong development, in the wrong location, and that was clear to anyone with common sense,” says Adrian Day, 66.

He says developers rejected a request to put up cherry-pickers that would have given councillors a better idea of its potential size and impact.

“I think local planning is all done just to give local people the illusion that their opinion counts, because what they’ve done is inconsiderate and disrespectful,” he says.

The structure, still under construction, sits parallel to a railway line and about 40-50m (130-165ft) from the back gardens of some homes in Felixstowe Road, which, despite their Nacton postal addresses, are actually within the parish of Foxhall.

The warehouse, adjacent to the A14, was advertised as having 424 car parking spaces, and 120 bays for lorries.

It is not yet known what will be stored in the building.

Once complete, it will be one of three warehouses there, but neighbours say planners could never truly have envisaged just how big it would be.

“We used to have views behind us of trees and fields, but now every time you look out the windows of your house, it looks like a stormy day – it’s horrible,” says Alan Thomas, 61.

“And we barely get any sun, but nothing we have ever said to the council has been taken note of. It’s completely ridiculous and absolutely crazy.”

The original outline planning application, which included since-axed plans for a fourth warehouse, received 29 letters of objection and an objection from Foxhall Parish Council, but was approved in 2018.

“When I applied for an extension, they turned me down multiple times on lots of things, and now they have just gone ahead and let them build this monstrosity,” adds Mr Thomas.

In an online brochure for the development, Equation Properties said tenants would benefit from 24/7 access.

“So that means we’re going to see lights and hear lorries and cars and clanking about,” says Jenny Upson, 74, a Felixstowe Road resident for 17 years.

She says the building is an “abomination” and adds: “We were semi-rural but now we are at the edge of an industrial estate.

“We’re having to try to live with it but it’s difficult. It’s horrendous.”

During the building of the warehouse, residents could not open their doors due to the amount of dust being generated, they say.

One resident, who did not wish to be named, said the vibrations killed the bees in his hives.

Jim Snell, 74, a resident for 22 years, says sounds from trains reverberate off the warehouse and disturb the peace.

“It has been absolutely horrendous for all of us and there has been scant regard given for anything we’ve said,” he says.

Like his neighbours, he is unhappy about the lack of a graduated colour scheme, meaning the building struggles to blend in.

“When we first moved in, everything was geared to looking down the garden, but now all you see is this battleship-grey band along the top of a warehouse,” he says.

Dave Ward, 72, says: “It looks like there is a thunderstorm all the time and we never see a sunset anymore because it goes down behind the building.

“We all complained, way before it even started being built, but there’s always a reason why you’re wrong and they’re right. At the end of the day, it’s all about money.

“We bought our home eight years ago as our last property, but I think we will end up moving now. You don’t buy a south-facing property just to look at a wall.”

Some residents say the building is taking an emotional toll and affecting their mental health.

Sheila Snell, 69, says she has “shed quite a few tears”.

“I’m absolutely devastated because all I see is what is like a prison wall at the end of my garden, so it is like being in a prison camp,” she says.

“It’s like living in a grey day, every day. Who is going to want to buy something that looks on to a huge steel wall?”

She fears the value of her home might be affected, but according to Rightmove, the average sale price of a house in Felixstowe Road over the last year was £650,000 – 20% higher than the previous year.

So what, if anything can be done?

Amy Richardson, a partner in the planning law team at Ashtons Legal, says residents’ only possible form of redress could be a “token gesture” of compensation, for which an ombudsman could lobby on their behalf.

“The difficulty is a homeowner can’t protect a view, [even] when planning applications are submitted in close proximity to dwellings and it’s going to have an impact,” she says.

In this case, she says, it appears the council did consider the impact on residents but made a planning judgement that it would not cause sufficient harm.

“Unfortunately, on this one, there is no magic wand that can be waved to help the homeowners out in any way,” she says.

While she acknowledges a possible effect on house prices, she believes their value will stabilise as the warehouse “settles into its environment”.

“New people who come in will not know any different and some people won’t care [about the warehouse]. But this one, yes; it’s not very pleasant,” she says.

Last year the decision to grant planning permission for a huge warehouse next to homes in Corby, Northamptonshire, was ruled to have not complied with the law.

Earlier, in 2021, a review into how a warehouse was allowed to be built in Milton Keynes found planning conditions were missed due to “human error”.

East Suffolk Council, however, is confident it followed the correct procedure here.

“Members of the planning committee, many of whom have strong local knowledge, visited the site and neighbouring properties on two occasions,” a spokesperson says.

“They considered the representations received and heard directly from neighbours in the planning committee meetings.

“The planning decision was made in accordance with the development plan and planning legislation.

“The impact of any development on private property values is not a material planning consideration which affects decision making.

“If it was felt that there had been procedural errors in this planning decision, there was an option to request a judicial review within six weeks of the decision date.

“No judicial review was requested.”

Despite this, the BBC understands many residents have lodged formal complaints with the authority, and some are seeking compensation.

“This application was fully and properly assessed in its impact on neighbours, and we do not believe there was any fault in the decision-making process,” the spokesperson adds.

“All complainants have been provided with information summarising the decision-making process and the considerations applied.”

Labour MP for Suffolk Coastal, Jenny Riddell-Carpenter, says she recently met residents and had also been in contact with the warehouse’s developers.

She says she wanted “to make sure that the concerns that the residents have are heard and understood”.

Equation Properties was contacted for comment.

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Cannes award-winning actress Dequenne dies at 43

Ian Youngs

Culture reporter

Award-winning Belgian actress Émilie Dequenne has died from cancer at the age of 43.

Dequenne shot to fame when she won the best actress award at the Cannes Film Festival at the age of 18 for the film Rosetta in 1999.

She won another Cannes award for À Perdre la Raison (Our Children) in 2012, and received a Cesar, one of France’s top film honours, for Les Choses Qu’on Dit, les Choses Qu’on Fait (The Things We Say, the Things We Do) in 2021.

She mainly acted in French-language films but also appeared as police officer Laurence Relaud in 2014 BBC TV drama The Missing.

Rosetta, a poignant tale about a teenager’s struggle to overcome a life of misery, was Dequenne’s first screen role.

She had been unemployed after losing her job in a food factory when she was picked for the role.

“The first day she filmed in front of a real camera, she managed to bring the whole team together,” Luc Dardenne, who directed it with his brother Jean-Pierre, said in a tribute to broadcaster RTBF.

“It got better and better as the shoot progressed… She was magnificent and the film owes a lot to her.”

In The Missing, she played Laurence Relaud, which starred James Nesbitt as the father of a boy who disappears during a family holiday.

Her other films included 2009’s La fille du RER (The Girl on the Train), 2014’s Pas Son Genre (Not My Type) and 2022 Cannes nominee Close.

Others paying tribute included French Minister of Culture Rachida Dati, who wrote: “Francophone cinema has lost, too soon, a talented actress who still had so much to offer.”

Dequenne revealed in October 2023 that she was suffering from adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC), a cancer of the adrenal gland.

In one of her last Instagram posts, for World Cancer Day in February, she wrote: “What a tough fight! And we don’t choose…”

Pope seen for the first time since going to hospital

Adam Goldsmith & Seher Asaf

BBC News

The Vatican has released the first image of Pope Francis since he was admitted to hospital a month ago.

The photo shows the pontiff sitting in a wheelchair in front of an altar at a chapel in Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, where he has been recovering from pneumonia.

Earlier on Sunday, in his written Angelus message, the Pope said he faced a “period of trial” as he thanked well-wishers for their prayers, and prayed for peace in “countries wounded by war”.

It marked the fifth Sunday in a row that the Pope was not present in person for his weekly blessing. The Vatican said earlier this week that an X-ray had confirmed “improvements” in his condition, but that he still needed hospital treatment.

“The Holy Father still requires hospital medical therapy, motor and respiratory physiotherapy,” it said in a statement on Saturday, adding that they were “showing further, gradual improvements”.

Pope Francis, 88, has not been seen in public since his admission to hospital on 14 February – and until Sunday, no photographs had been released.

“I join with so many brothers and sisters who are sick: fragile, at this time, like me,” the Pope said in his latest statement, released earlier in the day.

“Let us continue to pray for peace, especially in the countries wounded by war: tormented Ukraine, Palestine, Israel, Lebanon, Myanmar, Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.”

Since his arrival in Rome’s Gemelli Hospital, the Pope has been treated for double pneumonia and other infections.

He has also suffered several respiratory crises, which has raised concerns about his survival.

Earlier on this month, an audio recording of Pope Francis speaking in his native Spanish was played in St Peter’s Square in Vatican City.

His voice was breathless as he thanked the Catholic faithful for their prayers.

Listen: Pope Francis shares voice message from hospital

Francis, born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, is the first Pope from the Americas.

He contracted pleurisy as a young man and had a partial lung removal, which has left him particularly vulnerable to pneumonia.

As a result of his long road to recovery, there has been speculation that Pope Francis could choose to follow his predecessor Benedict XVI in resigning the papacy.

But friends and biographers close to the Pope have insisted that he has no plans to step down. And, despite his fragile health, the pontiff has continued his work from hospital.

This year is a Catholic Holy Year, with 32 million pilgrims expected to travel to Rome.

Forever 21 files for bankruptcy in the US

João da Silva

Business reporter, BBC News

Forever 21 could be a step closer to shutting down operations in the US after the brand’s operating company filed for bankruptcy protection.

The firm said in a statement that its stores and website in the US will remain open as it “begins its process of winding down”.

Forever 21 was once a favourite of young women around the world, but it has struggled to attract customers to its shops because of rising prices and the growing popularity of online shopping.

The company filed for bankruptcy protection for the first time in 2019, but a group of investors ended up buying it through a joint venture.

“We have been unable to find a sustainable path forward, given competition from foreign fast-fashion companies… as well as rising costs, economic challenges impacting our core customers,” Brad Sell, the company’s chief financial officer said in a statement.

The firm said it would conduct liquidation sales at its stores and that some or all of its assets would be sold in a court-supervised process.

“In the event of a successful sale, the Company may pivot away from a full wind-down of operations,” the firm’s statement said.

Chapter 11 protection postpones a US company’s obligations to its creditors, giving it time to reorganise its debts or sell parts of the business.

Forever 21’s shops and e-commerce platforms outside of the US are operated by other licence-holders and will not be affected by the bankruptcy protection filing.

The fast-fashion retailer was founded in Los Angeles in 1984 by South Korean immigrants.

Its inexpensive, trendy clothes and accessories became increasingly popular with young people over the next few decades and the brand became a competitor of fast-fashion giants such as Zara and H&M.

At its peak in 2016, there were 800 Forever 21 shops around the world, 500 of which were located in the US.

India and New Zealand relaunch free trade talks after a decade

Neyaz Farooquee

BBC News, Delhi

India and New Zealand have restarted free trade talks a decade after negotiations fell apart, as Prime Minister Christopher Luxon began his five-day tour of Delhi where he held bilateral talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The two sides have agreed to begin the first round of negotiations next month.

The announcement is a “major breakthrough” in the economic relationship between the two countries, Luxon said.

“India holds significant potential for New Zealand and will play a pivotal role in doubling New Zealand’s exports by value over the next 10 years,” Luxon said.

Bilateral trade between the two countries is valued at under $2bn (£1.55bn) currently.

Luxon is a keynote speaker at an ongoing geopolitical conference in Delhi, which will also be attended by the US Director of National Intelligence, Tulsi Gabbard.

Besides trade, New Zealand said it was deepening its engagement with India across areas such as defence, security, sports and environment, adding that economic ties with Delhi were a “key priority”.

The two leaders signed a defence cooperation pact for enhanced maritime security and said they would be exploring greater collaboration in the digital payments sector.

On 16 March, representatives of the Five Eyes – an intelligence-sharing alliance comprising New Zealand along with Australia, Canada, the UK and the US – attended a conference of intelligence and security chiefs hosted by India’s National Security Adviser Ajit Doval in Delhi.

Proximity to New Zealand is crucial to Delhi’s interests, as India aims to counter China in the Indian Ocean region.

Luxon is reportedly being accompanied by one of the largest delegations a prime minister has ever travelled with, underscoring the importance of the visit.

Trade negotiations between the two countries had initially begun in 2010 but stalled after several rounds over issues such as market access.

New Zealand has sought greater access to India’s dairy market, which India has traditionally protected to support its farmers.

After years of scepticism over free trade, India has recently become more open to negotiating bilateral deals with other countries.

The announcement to restart trade talks with New Zealand comes close on the heels of Delhi relaunching free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations with the European Union and the United Kingdom.

Last year, Delhi signed a $100bn free trade agreement with the European Free Trade Association – a group of four European countries that are not members of the European Union – after almost 16 years of negotiations.

India and Australia also signed a major trade cooperation deal two years ago.

Last week India’s trade minister Piyush Goyal had “cautioned” an Indian exports organisation “to come out of their protectionist mindset” as the country tried to negotiate trade agreements.

For Delhi, these trade talks have assumed renewed significance on the back of US President Donald Trump’s decision to impose tit-for-tat tariffs on imported goods from countries, including India. These are due to come into effect on 2 April.

Taiwan revokes visa of pro-Beijing Chinese influencer

Koh Ewe

BBC News

A Chinese influencer living in Taiwan must leave the island within days or be deported, Taiwanese authorities said, after she posted videos supporting the idea of China taking the island by force.

The rare move comes at a time of heightened cross-strait tensions and increasing suspicions of Chinese influence operations on the democratic island.

Taiwan’s National Immigration Agency (NIA), which revoked the influencer’s visa, said that her “behaviour advocates the elimination of Taiwan’s sovereignty and is not tolerated in Taiwanese society”.

The influencer, identified by authorities with her surname Liu, had relocated from mainland China to Taiwan on a dependent visa after marrying a Taiwanese man.

Liu has until 24 March to leave Taiwan before she is forcibly deported, local media reported.

She would not be able to apply for another dependent visa for five years, according to an NIA statement on Saturday.

It is extremely rare for the authorities to expel Chinese spouses of Taiwanese citizens.

Liu, better known on social media as Yaya in Taiwan, regularly posts pro-Beijing commentary videos with her young daughter.

In the videos, Liu refers to the island as “Taiwan province” and echoes China’s state narrative that Taiwan is “an inseparable part of China”.

China claims the self-governed Taiwan as part of its territory, and has not ruled out the use of force over it. Taiwan, however, sees itself as distinct from China.

“The complete unification of the motherland is a necessity, regardless of what the Taiwanese people want,” Liu said in one video on Douyin, the Chinese equivalent of TikTok, where she has 480,000 followers.

“Peaceful unification is much harder than unification by force,” she added. “It depends on what choices the Taiwanese people make.”

As criticism against her videos mounted, Liu posted on Douyin in February that she “would never back down”.

She later said that she was “trying to promote the good on both sides” through her videos and “eliminate the chasm between people”.

“I’m just analysing objectively and sharing my own views,” she said. “Those pushing for Taiwan independence … are the ones causing real harm to Taiwanese society.”

Her remarks have sparked condemnation from Taiwan’s leaders, with interior minister Liu Shyh-fang saying that freedom of speech was “not an excuse” to call for the invasion of Taiwan.

Liu is among 360,000 mainland Chinese spouses living in Taiwan, whose activities have been increasingly scrutinised amid heightening cross-strait tensions.

In a slate of measures announced last week to curb Chinese influence and infiltration on the island, Taiwanese president Lai Ching-te called for tighter control of cross-strait exchanges, which he said were seen by China as a way to “create internal divisions” in Taiwan.

‘Everything is finished’: Ukrainian troops relive retreat from Kursk

Jonathan Beale & Anastasiia Levchenko

BBC News
Reporting fromUkraine

Ukrainian soldiers fighting in Russia’s Kursk region have described scenes “like a horror movie” as they retreated from the front lines.

The BBC has received extensive accounts from Ukrainian troops, who recount a “catastrophic” withdrawal in the face of heavy fire, and columns of military equipment destroyed and constant attacks from swarms of Russian drones.

The soldiers, who spoke over social media, were given aliases to protect their identity. Some gave accounts of a “collapse” as Ukraine lost Sudzha, the largest town it held.

Ukrainian restrictions on travel to the front have meant it is not possible to get a full picture of the situation. But this is how five Ukrainian soldiers described to us what had happened.

Volodymyr: ‘Drones around the clock’

On 9 March, “Volodymyr” sent a Telegram post to the BBC saying he was still in Sudzha, where there was “panic and collapse of the front”.

Ukrainian troops “are trying to leave – columns of troops and equipment. Some of them are burned by Russian drones on the road. It is impossible to leave during the day.”

Movement of men, logistics and equipment had been reliant on one major route between Sudzha and Ukraine’s Sumy region.

Volodymyr said it was possible to travel on that road relatively safely a month ago. By 9 March it was “all under the fire control of the enemy – drones around the clock. In one minute you can see two to three drones. That’s a lot,” he said.

“We have all the logistics here on one Sudzha-Sumy highway. And everyone knew that the [Russians] would try to cut it. But this again came as a surprise to our command.”

At the time of writing, just before Russia retook Sudzha, Volodymyr said Ukrainian forces were being pressed from three sides.

Maksym: Vehicle wrecks litter the roads

By 11 March, Ukrainian forces were battling to prevent the road being cut, according to Telegram messages from “Maksym”.

“A few days ago, we received an order to leave the defence lines in an organised retreat,” he said, adding that Russia had amassed a significant force to retake the town, “including large numbers of North Korean soldiers”.

Military experts estimate Russia had amassed a force of up to 70,000 troops to retake Kursk – including about 12,000 North Koreans.

Russia had also sent its best drone units to the front and was using kamikaze and first-person-view (FPV) variants to “take fire control of the main logistics routes”.

They included drones linked to operators by fibre-optic wires – which are impossible to jam with electronic counter-measures.

Maksym said as a result “the enemy managed to destroy dozens of units of equipment”, and that wrecks had “created congestion on supply routes”.

Anton: The catastrophe of retreat

The situation on that day, 11 March, was described as “catastrophic” by “Anton”.

The third soldier spoken to by the BBC was serving in the headquarters for the Kursk front.

He too highlighted the damage caused by Russian FPV drones. “We used to have an advantage in drones, now we do not,” he said. He added that Russia had an advantage with more accurate air strikes and a greater number of troops.

Anton said supply routes had been cut. “Logistics no longer work – organised deliveries of weapons, ammunition, food and water are no longer possible.”

Anton said he managed to leave Sudzha by foot, at night – “We almost died several times. Drones are in the sky all the time.”

The soldier predicted Ukraine’s entire foothold in Kursk would be lost but that “from a military point of view, the Kursk direction has exhausted itself. There is no point in keeping it any more”.

Western officials estimate that Ukraine’s Kursk offensive involved about 12,000 troops. They were some of their best-trained soldiers, equipped with Western-supplied weapons including tanks and armoured vehicles.

Russian bloggers published videos showing some of that equipment being destroyed or captured. On 13 March, Russia said the situation in Kursk was “fully under our control” and that Ukraine had “abandoned” much of its material.

BBC Verify: What does Putin video tell us about the battle for Kursk?

Dmytro: Inches from death

In social media posts on 11-12 March, a fourth solider, “Dmytro” likened the retreat from the front to “a scene from a horror movie”.

“The roads are littered with hundreds of destroyed cars, armoured vehicles and ATVs (All Terrain Vehicles). There are a lot of wounded and dead.”

Vehicles were often hunted by multiple drones, he said.

He described his own narrow escape when the car he was travelling in got bogged down. He and his fellow soldiers were trying to push the vehicle free when they were targeted by another FPV drone.

It missed the vehicle, but injured one of his comrades. He said they had to hide in a forest for two hours before they were rescued.

Dmytro said many Ukrainians retreated on foot with “guys walking 15km to 20km”. The situation, he said, had turned from “difficult and critical to catastrophic”.

In a message on 14 March, Dmytro added: “Everything is finished in the Kursk region… the operation was not successful.”

He estimated that thousands of Ukrainian soldiers had died since the first crossing into Russia in August.

Artem: ‘We fought like lions’

A fifth soldier sounded less gloomy about the situation. On 13 March, “Artem” sent a Telegram message from a military hospital, where he was being treated for shrapnel wounds suffered in a drone attack.

Artem said he had been fighting further west – near the village of Loknya, where Ukrainian forces were putting up a stiff resistance and “fighting like lions”.

He believed the operation had achieved some success.

“It’s important that so far the Armed Forces of Ukraine have created this buffer zone, thanks to which the Russians cannot enter Sumy,” he said.

What now for Ukraine’s offensive?

Ukraine’s top general, Oleksandr Syrskyi, insists that Ukrainian forces have pulled back to “more favourable positions”, remain in Kursk, and would do so “for as long as it is expedient and necessary”.

He said Russia had suffered more than 50,000 losses during the operation – including those killed, injured or captured.

However, the situation now is very different to last August. Military analysts estimate two-thirds of the 1,000 sq km gained at the outset have since been lost.

Any hopes that Ukraine would be able to trade Kursk territory for some of its own have significantly diminished.

Last week, President Volodymyr Zelensky said he believed the Kursk operation had “accomplished its task” by forcing Russia to pull troops from the east and relieve pressure on Pokrovsk.

But it is not yet clear at what cost.

Canada’s Carney makes statement by choosing Europe, not US, for first foreign trip

Lyse Doucet

Chief international correspondent

Two European politicians, dressed symbolically in red and white, sent a message last week to Canada on social media declaring “we’ve got your back”.

Also signalling support was King Charles, who planted a red maple tree on the grounds of Buckingham Palace and wore his Canadian medals during a high-profile visit to a naval warship.

Canada’s new Prime Minister Mark Carney has arrived in Paris before heading to London on Monday – a day after his 60th birthday – for his first foreign visit hoping to achieve more than symbolic encouragement. He wants solid support from allies.

Not only is Canada being targeted, like Europe, by a raft of swingeing US tariffs, but Donald Trump is making it clear he wants to take over his northern neighbour.

Watch: Key moments on Mark Carney’s journey from banker to Canada’s PM

“We appreciate all the symbolic gestures but we need more public backing,” a Canadian official told me in a voice which underlined the nervous disbelief shared by most Canadians – Trump is not joking when he calls Canada the United States’s “51st state”.

The official messaging from Ottawa about Carney’s trip underlines his priorities – finance and fortifying security – a natural fit for the economist who headed the central banks in both Canada and the UK. A statement from his office said his visit is meant “to strengthen two of our closest and longest-standing economic and security partnerships”.

His itinerary is full of great symbolism too.

Carney revealed it on Friday during his first speech as prime minister when he hearkened back – with a shiny polish – to the origins of this former colony. He hailed “the wonder of a country built on the bedrock of three peoples: indigenous, French and British”.

So there’s a third destination on this whistle-stop tour – Iqaluit, the capital of Canada’s northernmost territory of Nunavut and homeland of its Inuit people. That stop, the statement emphasised, was to “reaffirm Canada’s Arctic security and sovereignty”.

Spectacular Arctic and northern terrain makes up 40% of the land mass of the world’s second largest country. Protecting it is a critical Canadian concern in the midst of intensifying rivalry among world powers in the Arctic region, which has drawn in the US, Russia, China and more; it’s the cold war of all cold wars.

And there’s a personal twist. Carney was born in the small town of Fort Smith in the Northwest Territories, which lies next to Nunavut.

His schedule underlines that he also needs to be a quick study in a new skill – retail politics. A federal election, which has to be held by October, is expected to be called very soon. Carney needs to prove that he can engage with voters, in English and French, as naturally as he does with bankers and finance bosses.

And he needs a proper political mandate. He secured a whopping 86% of the vote when his Liberal Party chose to replace Justin Trudeau, who stepped down as prime minister amid growing calls to resign from his own party after a decade at the top.

But Carney doesn’t have a seat in parliament; he still doesn’t have the vote of Canadians.

His Liberal party has just experienced a dramatic reversal, a “Trump bump” as well as a Trudeau one. The party which seemed certain to lose, and lose badly, is now tied with its main Conservative rivals in the polls.

Looking like a world leader, and understanding the world of tariffs and trade, is a good look when you are running for high office in the dark shadow of an external threat.

“I think part of the purpose of Mark Carney’s trip to Europe is to show that he can talk internationally to other like-minded powers at this very important moment,” reflects the eminent Canadian historian Margaret MacMillan.

Back home, voters will decide if that is what counts.

Carney is certain to talk Trump tactics, in private, with France’s President Emmanuel Macron and Britain’s Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer. They’ve both taken great pains to flatter the US president in public, and press their case behind closed doors.

Many will be watching to see how Trump addresses Mark Carney – he recently referred to Canada’s former prime minister as “Governor Trudeau”.

  • Watch: Trump and Macron’s history of intense handshakes

Canada’s new top talker has been talking tough.

A week ago, when Carney won his party’s leadership contest, he invoked Canada’s national sport, ice hockey, which has long been locked in rivalry with US teams. “Canadians are always ready when someone else drops the gloves,” Carney declared to rousing applause.

“Make no mistake, Canada will win.”

But everyone knows this is no game. Carney described this escalating trade war as “the greatest crisis of our lifetime”. More than 80% of Canada’s exports cross the border to the US.

And while there have been a few reports of Canadians flying the US flag, a recent poll by the Angus Reid Institute underlined that a thumping 91% of Canadians reject becoming the 51st state.

  • Canada says too little, too late as Trump flip-flops on tariffs

On Friday, in Ottawa’s icy cold weather, Carney struck a warmer tone, highlighting how he and Trump share a background in business, including real estate.

“The president is a successful businessperson and dealmaker. We are his largest client in so many industries,” he remarked. “Clients expect respect and working together in a proper commercial way.”

Carney says he “looks forward” to speaking with President Trump. But the fact it will be a call, not a visit, is a measure of this moment. Traditionally, the first foreign visit of a Canadian leader is to the US – its closest neighbour and most trusted partner.

On Monday, Carney is expected to sit down with King Charles, Canada’s head of state. The British monarch recently expressed his “deepest affection” for Canada, and is said to have already penned a private letter to the new prime minister.

In his non-political role, showing love in public may be the limits of the King’s power. But even that sends a message to the American president.

Sir Keir has described Canada as “an ally, and a very important ally too”. But last week, the head of Britain’s Liberal Democrats Ed Davey called on him to show more public support for Canada to oppose the “shocking attacks” on its sovereignty.

This may be a week of that old adage in diplomacy and politics – “to do something and be seen to be doing it”.

Trade turmoil forecast to slash growth in Canada and Mexico

Faarea Masud

Business reporter, BBC News

US President Donald Trump’s escalating trade tariffs will hit world growth and raise inflation, the OECD has predicted in its latest forecast.

Canada and Mexico are forecast to see the biggest impact as they have had the harshest tariffs imposed on them, but US growth is also expected to be hit.

The OECD has more than halved its growth outlook for Canada for this year and next, while it expects Mexico to be pushed into a recession.

Trump has imposed 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports. The US has also imposed 25% tariffs on other imports from Mexico and Canada – with some exemptions – and a 20% levy on Chinese goods.

In response, Canada and the EU have both announced retaliatory tariffs.

The Paris-based OECD said the higher trade barriers and “increased geopolitical and policy uncertainty” were hitting investment and household spending.

In the OECD’s latest forecast:

  • Canada’s economy is predicted to grow by just 0.7% this year and in 2026, compared with the previous forecast of 2% for both years
  • Mexico is now forecast to contract by 1.3% this year and shrink a further 0.6% next year, instead of growing by 1.2% and 1.6% as previously expected
  • Growth in the US has also been downgraded, with growth of 2.2% expected this year and 1.6% in 2025, down from previous forecasts of 2.4% and 2.1%
  • Despite the US imposing tariffs on China, the OECD has increased its growth forecast for the country slightly to 4.8%.

The OECD said the developing trade war was set to push up inflation, which will mean interest rates are likely to remain higher for longer.

“Significant risks remain,” it warned. “Further fragmentation of the global economy is a key concern.

“Higher and broader increases in trade barriers would hit growth around the world and add to inflation”.

The OECD said that for the world economy, growth would slow from 3.2% in 2024 to 3.1% in 2025, largely as a result of the trade tensions.

It also said it expected inflation – the rate of price increases – to continue to slow, though not as much as previously anticipated.

The organisation is predicting inflation of 3.8% this year across 20 of the world’s largest economies, compared with the 3.5% it had previously forecast.

Last week, Elon Musk’s electric car firm Tesla warned that it, and other US exporters, could be harmed by the trade battle.

In a letter to the US trade representative, the firm said US exporters were “exposed to disproportionate impacts” if other countries retaliated to Trump’s tariffs.

The OECD cut its growth forecast for the UK’s economy to 1.4% in 2025, from its previous forecast of 1.7%, and to 1.2% in 2026, down from 1.3%.

However, the forecast is more optimistic than the Bank of England, which earlier this month cut its UK growth forecast for 2025 to 0.75%.

India watches warily as Bangladesh-Pakistan ties thaw

Anbarasan Ethirajan

South Asia Regional Editor

The dramatic political developments in Bangladesh that led to prime minister Sheikh Hasina being ousted last year have thrown up many surprises – including Dhaka’s growing closeness with one-time foe Pakistan.

Last month, after decades of troubled relations, the two countries began directly trading for the first time, with Dhaka importing 50,000 tonnes of rice from Pakistan. Direct flights and military contacts have also been revived, visa procedures have been simplified, and there are reports of co-operation on security matters.

The countries – separated by the landmass of India – have deep, painful historical ties. The animosity between them goes back to 1971, when Bangladesh – then known as East Pakistan – launched a struggle to gain independence from Islamabad. India supported the Bengali rebels during the nine-month war which led to the formation of Bangladesh.

While the scars from that period run deep, Dhaka had cordial relations with Islamabad between 2001 and 2006, when a coalition of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) and the Jamaat-e-Islami governed the country.

This changed during Hasina’s 15-year rule from 2009 – when she was strongly backed by Delhi and maintained a distance from Pakistan. But after she fled to India following mass protests against her government, ties seem to be thawing.

“For the past 15 years, the Pakistan-Bangladesh relationship was on a slightly difficult trajectory,” says Humayun Kabir, a former senior Bangladeshi diplomat, adding that the relationship seems to now be returning to that of “two normal neighbours”.

The developments are being watched closely, particularly in India, which has a long history of hostile relations with Pakistan.

Relations between Dhaka and Delhi have been frosty since Hasina’s exit. India has not reacted to Bangladesh’s demands to extradite her to face charges of crimes against humanity, money laundering and corruption. Hasina denies the accusations against her.

Some experts think the reviving of relations between Dhaka and Islamabad is a strategic move.

“Pakistan and Bangladesh have a tactical relationship at the moment. Together, they want to represent a pushback against the dominance of India,” says Ayesha Siddiqa, a Pakistani academic who is a senior fellow at King’s College in London.

There have been other developments apart from starting direct trade.

Muhammad Yunus, head of the interim Bangladesh government, met Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at multilateral forums several times in recent months.

And then there is a growing military relationship.

A high-level Bangladeshi military delegation made a rare visit to Pakistan in January and held talks with influential army chief General Asim Munir. The Bangladeshi navy also participated in a multinational maritime exercise organised by Pakistan off the Karachi coast in February. .

Veena Sikri, who was India’s high commissioner to Bangladesh between 2003 and 2006, describes the growing closeness between Dhaka and Islamabad as a “déjà vu” moment.

During her tenure in Dhaka, she said, India repeatedly raised the issue of “Indian insurgents getting trained inside Bangladesh with the support of the ISI [Pakistan’s intelligence agency] and a section of the Bangladeshi military”.

“We even provided evidence to Bangladeshi authorities,” she said.

Authorities in Pakistan and Bangladesh denied these allegations at the time.

The long, porous border between India and Bangladesh makes it relatively easy for armed insurgent groups from India’s north-eastern states to cross over from Bangladesh. But, after Hasina’s Awami League came to power in 2009, it cracked down on these groups and dismantled their bases.

So the revival of military ties between Bangladesh and Pakistan is “a major security concern for India”, says Ms Sikri.

“It’s not just the military relationship. The Pakistani establishment is also reviving ties with Bangladeshi Islamist parties like the Jamaat-e-Islami, which supported Islamabad during Bangladesh’s independence war,” she adds.

The Yunus administration’s press office has flatly rejected Indian media reports that senior ISI officials have visited Dhaka. It has also described reports that claim Pakistani operatives were working to reopen a camp of an Indian insurgent group in Bangladesh as “baseless”.

Pakistan’s military did not respond to BBC questions on India’s concerns over the future role of the ISI in Bangladesh.

Analysts say Bangladeshi politicians are aware that, given the close economic and linguistic ties, Dhaka cannot afford to take an anti-India stance.

And despite apprehensions in Delhi, Bangladeshi diplomats argue that ties with Pakistan cannot be normalised unless issues related to the 1971 war are resolved.

During the war, hundreds of thousands of Bengalis were killed and tens of thousands of women were raped. The war ended with more than 90,000 Pakistani security and civilian personnel surrendering to the joint command of Indian and Bangladeshi forces in what is seen as a humiliating chapter in Islamabad.

Bangladesh has demanded a formal apology from Pakistan for the atrocities committed during the war but Islamabad has shown no inclination to do so.

“Pakistan needs to own the crimes that had taken place during the independence war,” said Mr Kabir, the former Bangladeshi diplomat. “We had also raised the issue of the division of pre-1971 assets between the two nations in several bilateral meetings with Pakistan.”

Even former Pakistani military officers like Ikram Sehgal accept that “the main stumbling block in bilateral ties is the requirement of the Bangladeshis that Pakistanis should apologise for what happened in 1971”.

However, the retired Pakistan army major insists that Bangladesh should also address the issue of attacks by Bengalis on Urdu speakers during the struggle for independence.

“I was a witness to the atrocities that took place against the Urdu-speaking Bihari people [in East Pakistan],” Mr Sehgal, who now lives in Karachi, told the BBC.

While history casts a shadow over ties between Dhaka and Islamabad, economists point out the two countries can first focus on improving bilateral trade, which currently stands at less than $700m (£540m), mostly in favour of Pakistan.

“Pakistan’s more than 250 million population is a solid market for Bangladesh in the medium to long term,” says Sabrin Beg, an associate professor of economics at the University of Delaware.

Currently, there are constraints including high tariffs on both sides and businesses and exporters face visa and travel obstacles, she points out. However, Ms Beg says “improved bilateral political and trade relations will ease these constraints”.

Some of these issues may be discussed during Pakistani foreign minister Ishaq Dar’s visit to Dhaka in April. By the end of the year Bangladesh is expected to hold general elections and a new government may have a different set of foreign policy priorities.

But, whatever happens, the stakes are high for Delhi, which strongly feels that a stable and friendly Bangladesh is necessary to maintain peace and stability in its north-eastern states.

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Hong Kong property tycoon Lee Shau-kee dies aged 97

Kathryn Armstrong

BBC News

Hong Kong property tycoon Lee Shau-kee, who was once the richest man in Asia, has died at the age of 97.

The announcement was made by his property firm Henderson Land Development, of which he was chairman for more than 40 years.

The company said in a statement that Lee had died “in the company of his family” but did not specify a cause.

He was one of the city’s richest men. In February, Forbes put his net worth at just under $30bn (£23bn).

Lee was born in China’s southern Guangdong Province and moved to Hong Kong as a young man, where he began his business career in gold and foreign currency exchange before switching to real estate.

He established Sun Hung Kai Properties (SHKP) – one of the city’s largest property developers – in 1958, alongside two other founders.

Lee – who was nicknamed “Uncle Four” as he was the fourth eldest of his siblings – then struck out on his own in 1976 and founded Henderson Land Development, which his two sons took over following his retirement in 2019.

In 1996, he was named the richest man in Asia and the world’s fourth wealthiest person.

He was also a philanthropist and made significant contributions to education centres and to programmes aimed at job development. In 2007, he was awarded Hong Kong’s highest honour – the Grand Bauhinia Medal – in recognition for his contributions to society.

“Dr Lee was an outstanding business leader and entrepreneur who had made significant contributions to Hong Kong’s economic development, as well as the city’s prosperity and stability,” the city’s Chief Executive John Lee said in a statement.

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White House denies defying judge’s order over deportations to El Salvador

James FitzGerald

BBC News
Video shows alleged gang members deported by US in El Salvador mega-jail

The White House has denied an accusation from rights groups that it flouted due process by defying a judge’s order while carrying out deportations at the weekend.

A group of 238 alleged Venezuelan gang members, plus 23 alleged members of the international MS-13 gang, were sent from the US to a prison in El Salvador. Some were removed from the country under a law not used since World War Two.

The move came despite a temporary block issued by a judge. The White House said the judge’s order itself was not lawful and was issued after the group was deported.

Neither the US government nor El Salvador has identified the detainees, or provided details of their alleged criminality or gang membership.

Announcing the move on Saturday, Trump accused Tren de Aragua (TdA) of “perpetrating, attempting, and threatening an invasion or predatory incursion against the territory of the United States”.

He invoked the Alien Enemies Act – a piece of legislation that dates to 1798, which was designed to allow non-citizens to be deported in times of war or invasion. Campaigners have questioned Trump’s justification.

The act was used to process 137 of the total of 261 people who were deported, a senior administration official told CBS News, the BBC’s US partner.

The basis on which the other deportees were removed from the US remains unclear, and details of the group as a whole have not been disclosed.

Several relatives of men believed to be among the group told the New York Times that their loved ones did not have gang ties.

The order to halt the deportations came from US District Judge James Boasberg on Saturday evening, who demanded a 14-day pause pending further legal arguments.

After lawyers told him that planes with deportees had already taken off, the judge reportedly gave a verbal order for the flights to turn back, although that directive did not form part of his written ruling.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt denied the court ruling had been broken. “The administration did not ‘refuse to comply’ with a court order,” she said.

“The order, which had no lawful basis, was issued after terrorist TdA [Tren de Aragua] aliens had already been removed from US territory.”

The justice department echoed Leavitt, saying the deportees had already left before the judge’s ruling – which it has appealed against.

The case raises constitutional questions since, under the US system of checks and balances, government agencies are expected to comply with a federal judge’s ruling.

  • US deports hundreds of Venezuelans despite court order
  • What is Tren de Aragua, the Venezuelan gang targeted by Trump?

Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele confirmed the arrival of deportees. “Oopsie… Too late,” he said of the judge’s order, writing on social media. His team also published footage of some of the men inside one of its mega-jails.

Rights groups accused Trump of using a 227-year-old law to circumvent due process.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) questioned Trump’s use of a sweeping wartime authority which allows fast-track deportations. “I think we’re in very dangerous territory here in the United States with the invocation of this law,” said Lee Gelernt from the organisation.

The Alien Enemies Act only allowed deportations when the US was in a declared war with that foreign government, or was being invaded, Mr Gelernt said. “A gang is not invading,” he told BBC News.

The act was last used during World War Two to intern Japanese-American civilians.

Making matters worse was the fact “the administration is saying nobody can review what they’re doing”, Mr Gelernt added.

Meanwhile, Amnesty International USA said the deportations were “yet another example of the Trump administration’s racist targeting” of Venezuelans “based on sweeping claims of gang affiliation”.

Watch: Attorney says ‘no question’ that US deportations violate law

Venezuela itself criticised Trump, saying he “unjustly criminalises Venezuelan migration”.

The latest deportations under Trump’s second term are part of the president’s long-running campaign against illegal immigration.

The US president has also moved to strengthen ties with El Salvador.

The two gangs targeted with the weekend deportations were declared “foreign terrorist organisations” by Trump after returning to the White House in January.

Cannes award-winning actress Dequenne dies at 43

Ian Youngs

Culture reporter

Award-winning Belgian actress Émilie Dequenne has died from cancer at the age of 43.

Dequenne shot to fame when she won the best actress award at the Cannes Film Festival at the age of 18 for the film Rosetta in 1999.

She won another Cannes award for À Perdre la Raison (Our Children) in 2012, and received a Cesar, one of France’s top film honours, for Les Choses Qu’on Dit, les Choses Qu’on Fait (The Things We Say, the Things We Do) in 2021.

She mainly acted in French-language films but also appeared as police officer Laurence Relaud in 2014 BBC TV drama The Missing.

Rosetta, a poignant tale about a teenager’s struggle to overcome a life of misery, was Dequenne’s first screen role.

She had been unemployed after losing her job in a food factory when she was picked for the role.

“The first day she filmed in front of a real camera, she managed to bring the whole team together,” Luc Dardenne, who directed it with his brother Jean-Pierre, said in a tribute to broadcaster RTBF.

“It got better and better as the shoot progressed… She was magnificent and the film owes a lot to her.”

In The Missing, she played Laurence Relaud, which starred James Nesbitt as the father of a boy who disappears during a family holiday.

Her other films included 2009’s La fille du RER (The Girl on the Train), 2014’s Pas Son Genre (Not My Type) and 2022 Cannes nominee Close.

Others paying tribute included French Minister of Culture Rachida Dati, who wrote: “Francophone cinema has lost, too soon, a talented actress who still had so much to offer.”

Dequenne revealed in October 2023 that she was suffering from adrenocortical carcinoma (ACC), a cancer of the adrenal gland.

In one of her last Instagram posts, for World Cancer Day in February, she wrote: “What a tough fight! And we don’t choose…”

British tourist missing after Thailand boat fire

Catherine Evans

BBC News
Jonathan Head

BBC South East Asia Correspondent

A British tourist has been reported missing in Thailand after a boat caught fire and sank off the coast of the island of Koh Tao.

The Surat Thani Provincial Public Relations Office said 26-year-old Alexandra Clarke from Lambeth, south London, was on board when the fire occurred in the ship’s engine room after 09:00 ITC (02:00 GMT) on Sunday.

Koh Tao Police said it believed fuel in the boat’s tank had overflowed when it was refilled during the journey, and set alight when the boat was started again.

A spokesperson for the Foreign Office said: “We are supporting the family of a British woman who is missing in Thailand and are in contact with local authorities.”

The provincial office’s Facebook post said: “After receiving the report (of the fire), the Surat Thani Provincial Marine Office coordinated with private boats and volunteers to quickly help evacuate tourists and crew to another boat safely.”

It added: “One tourist is missing, a female named Alexandra Clarke, a British national.

“The authorities therefore organised a search team for the missing person.”

Thai navy divers spent the day searching the wreckage of the boat and the surrounding seas but found no trace of the missing woman, who police said was thought to have been in the boat’s toilet when the fire broke out.

The cause of the blaze is under investigation but according to police, it broke out when an engine used to compress air into a fuel tank ran out during a trip to a popular dive spot in the Gulf of Thailand.

Col Sarayuth Buriwachira from Koh Tao Police said the tourists and diving instructors had been taken to the Southwest Pinnacle at about 07:30.

He said that at about 10:00 “an employee on the ship whose duty was to fill the air tank took extra gasoline to fill the engine tank above the amount until the gasoline overflowed and spilled”.

“When he started the engine, a spark occurred, causing the engine to catch fire and spread, causing the entire ship to burn and eventually sink into the sea.”

The fire spread quickly, he added, engulfing the engine room and forcing the divers, instructors and crew to jump into the sea.

He confirmed the search for Ms Clarke would resume on Tuesday morning.

The Thai government has frequently promised to improve maritime safety, in particular after 46 Chinese tourists died seven years ago when their boat capsized near Phuket, yet there have been several fatal accidents since then.

Last year more than 100 passengers had to leap into the sea from a ferry heading to Koh Tao after it was consumed by a fire.

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The ‘giant mega-shed’ that has left neighbours in tears

George King

BBC News, Suffolk
Reporting fromFelixstowe Road, Nacton
Watch the giant warehouse from above

Villagers say a “gigantic mega-shed” built near their homes has blocked their view and left them feeling like they are in a prison camp. What is life like for them, and what can they do about it?

Work on the warehouse at Nacton, near Ipswich, began last year.

The size of six full-size football pitches, it is about 147m (482ft) wide, more than 300m (984ft) long and, at 21m (69ft) tall, towers over nearby gardens.

East Suffolk Council approved final plans for the structure at Equation Properties’ Orwell Logistics Park in late 2021.

The authority says the decision was properly made, but neighbours argue it was “fundamentally wrong”.

They have branded it a “monstrosity” and some say it has reduced them to tears.

“It’s a gigantic mega-shed and, essentially, it is the wrong development, in the wrong location, and that was clear to anyone with common sense,” says Adrian Day, 66.

He says developers rejected a request to put up cherry-pickers that would have given councillors a better idea of its potential size and impact.

“I think local planning is all done just to give local people the illusion that their opinion counts, because what they’ve done is inconsiderate and disrespectful,” he says.

The structure, still under construction, sits parallel to a railway line and about 40-50m (130-165ft) from the back gardens of some homes in Felixstowe Road, which, despite their Nacton postal addresses, are actually within the parish of Foxhall.

The warehouse, adjacent to the A14, was advertised as having 424 car parking spaces, and 120 bays for lorries.

It is not yet known what will be stored in the building.

Once complete, it will be one of three warehouses there, but neighbours say planners could never truly have envisaged just how big it would be.

“We used to have views behind us of trees and fields, but now every time you look out the windows of your house, it looks like a stormy day – it’s horrible,” says Alan Thomas, 61.

“And we barely get any sun, but nothing we have ever said to the council has been taken note of. It’s completely ridiculous and absolutely crazy.”

The original outline planning application, which included since-axed plans for a fourth warehouse, received 29 letters of objection and an objection from Foxhall Parish Council, but was approved in 2018.

“When I applied for an extension, they turned me down multiple times on lots of things, and now they have just gone ahead and let them build this monstrosity,” adds Mr Thomas.

In an online brochure for the development, Equation Properties said tenants would benefit from 24/7 access.

“So that means we’re going to see lights and hear lorries and cars and clanking about,” says Jenny Upson, 74, a Felixstowe Road resident for 17 years.

She says the building is an “abomination” and adds: “We were semi-rural but now we are at the edge of an industrial estate.

“We’re having to try to live with it but it’s difficult. It’s horrendous.”

During the building of the warehouse, residents could not open their doors due to the amount of dust being generated, they say.

One resident, who did not wish to be named, said the vibrations killed the bees in his hives.

Jim Snell, 74, a resident for 22 years, says sounds from trains reverberate off the warehouse and disturb the peace.

“It has been absolutely horrendous for all of us and there has been scant regard given for anything we’ve said,” he says.

Like his neighbours, he is unhappy about the lack of a graduated colour scheme, meaning the building struggles to blend in.

“When we first moved in, everything was geared to looking down the garden, but now all you see is this battleship-grey band along the top of a warehouse,” he says.

Dave Ward, 72, says: “It looks like there is a thunderstorm all the time and we never see a sunset anymore because it goes down behind the building.

“We all complained, way before it even started being built, but there’s always a reason why you’re wrong and they’re right. At the end of the day, it’s all about money.

“We bought our home eight years ago as our last property, but I think we will end up moving now. You don’t buy a south-facing property just to look at a wall.”

Some residents say the building is taking an emotional toll and affecting their mental health.

Sheila Snell, 69, says she has “shed quite a few tears”.

“I’m absolutely devastated because all I see is what is like a prison wall at the end of my garden, so it is like being in a prison camp,” she says.

“It’s like living in a grey day, every day. Who is going to want to buy something that looks on to a huge steel wall?”

She fears the value of her home might be affected, but according to Rightmove, the average sale price of a house in Felixstowe Road over the last year was £650,000 – 20% higher than the previous year.

So what, if anything can be done?

Amy Richardson, a partner in the planning law team at Ashtons Legal, says residents’ only possible form of redress could be a “token gesture” of compensation, for which an ombudsman could lobby on their behalf.

“The difficulty is a homeowner can’t protect a view, [even] when planning applications are submitted in close proximity to dwellings and it’s going to have an impact,” she says.

In this case, she says, it appears the council did consider the impact on residents but made a planning judgement that it would not cause sufficient harm.

“Unfortunately, on this one, there is no magic wand that can be waved to help the homeowners out in any way,” she says.

While she acknowledges a possible effect on house prices, she believes their value will stabilise as the warehouse “settles into its environment”.

“New people who come in will not know any different and some people won’t care [about the warehouse]. But this one, yes; it’s not very pleasant,” she says.

Last year the decision to grant planning permission for a huge warehouse next to homes in Corby, Northamptonshire, was ruled to have not complied with the law.

Earlier, in 2021, a review into how a warehouse was allowed to be built in Milton Keynes found planning conditions were missed due to “human error”.

East Suffolk Council, however, is confident it followed the correct procedure here.

“Members of the planning committee, many of whom have strong local knowledge, visited the site and neighbouring properties on two occasions,” a spokesperson says.

“They considered the representations received and heard directly from neighbours in the planning committee meetings.

“The planning decision was made in accordance with the development plan and planning legislation.

“The impact of any development on private property values is not a material planning consideration which affects decision making.

“If it was felt that there had been procedural errors in this planning decision, there was an option to request a judicial review within six weeks of the decision date.

“No judicial review was requested.”

Despite this, the BBC understands many residents have lodged formal complaints with the authority, and some are seeking compensation.

“This application was fully and properly assessed in its impact on neighbours, and we do not believe there was any fault in the decision-making process,” the spokesperson adds.

“All complainants have been provided with information summarising the decision-making process and the considerations applied.”

Labour MP for Suffolk Coastal, Jenny Riddell-Carpenter, says she recently met residents and had also been in contact with the warehouse’s developers.

She says she wanted “to make sure that the concerns that the residents have are heard and understood”.

Equation Properties was contacted for comment.

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Trump moves to close down Voice of America

Thomas Mackintosh & Merlyn Thomas

BBC News

US President Donald Trump has signed an order to strip back federally funded news organisation Voice of America, accusing it of being “anti-Trump” and “radical”.

A White House statement said the order would “ensure taxpayers are no longer on the hook for radical propaganda”, and included quotes from politicians and right-wing media criticising the broadcaster.

VOA, still primarily a radio service, was set up during World War Two to counter Nazi propaganda. It says it currently reaches hundreds of millions of people globally each week.

Mike Abramowitz, VOA’s director, said he and virtually his entire staff of 1,300 people had been put on paid leave.

Abramowitz said that the order left VOA unable to carry out its “vital mission… especially critical today, when America’s adversaries, like Iran, China, and Russia, are sinking billions of dollars into creating false narratives to discredit the United States”.

The National Press Club, a leading representative group for US journalists, said the order “undermines America’s long-standing commitment to a free and independent press”.

It added: “If an entire newsroom can be sidelined overnight, what does that say about the state of press freedom?

“An entire institution is being dismantled piece by piece. This isn’t just a staffing decision – it’s a fundamental shift that endangers the future of independent journalism at VOA.”

The president’s order targets VOA’s parent company US Agency for Global Media (USAGM), which also funds non-profit entities such as Radio Free Europe and Radio Free Asia, which were originally set up to counter communism.

It tells managers to “reduce performance… to the minimum presence and function required by law”.

CBS, the BBC’s US news partner, said that VOA employees were notified in an email by Crystal Thomas, the USAGM human resources director.

A source told CBS that all freelance workers and international contractors were told there was now no money to pay them.

Emails obtained by CBS notified the bosses of Radio Free Asia and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty that their federal grants had been terminated.

VOA and other stations under USAGM say they serve more than 400 million listeners. They are broadly equivalent to the BBC World Service, which is part-funded by the British government.

The Czech Republic’s Foreign Minister, Jan Lipavský, said he hoped the European Union could help keep Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty running in Prague.

He said he would ask European foreign ministers at a meeting on Monday to find ways to at least partially maintain the broadcaster’s operations.

Elon Musk, the billionaire and top adviser to Trump who has been overseeing sweeping cuts to the US government, has used his social media platform X to call for VOA to be shut down.

The US president also cut funding to several other federal agencies – including those responsible for preventing homelessness, and funding museums and libraries.

Trump was highly critical of VOA in his first term. He has recently appointed staunch loyalist Kari Lake to be a special adviser for the USAGM.

The president regularly states that mainstream media outlets are biased against him. He called CNN and MSNBC “corrupt” during a speech at the justice department.

Voice of America launched in 1942 with a mandate to combat Nazi and Japanese propaganda. Its first broadcast – made on a transmitter loaned to the US by the BBC – stated a modest purpose.

Gerald Ford, a former president, signed VOA’s public charter in 1976 to safeguard its editorial independence.

By 1994, the Broadcast Board of Governors, with oversight over non-military broadcasting, was established.

In 2013, a shift in legislation allowed VOA and affiliates to begin broadcasting in the US.

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Rory McIlroy claimed his second Players Championship title with a comfortable victory over JJ Spaun in a three-hole play-off at Sawgrass.

It is the Northern Irishman’s second PGA Tour win of the season – and 28th of his career – and comes in the most prestigious event outside of the annual four majors.

“I am unbelievably proud and happy to win my second Players,” said the world number two.

“It’s the third time I’ve won on St Patrick’s Day. It’s been a good-luck charm for me.”

McIlroy, a four-time major winner, dominated the play-off from the opening tee shot on the par-five 16th, booming his drive down the centre of the fairway, while Spaun, who has just one PGA Tour win, could only find the rough.

The American world number 57 chopped his second into a greenside bunker and took three from there to register a par, while McIlroy, who hit his second into the centre of the green, two-putted for a birdie.

McIlroy then found the green with his tee shot on the iconic par-three 17th ‘island hole’, but Spaun dunked his ball in the water to effectively end his hopes.

He took a triple-bogey six and although McIlroy three-putted to drop a shot, his lead was three going down the last.

Both players scrambled their way down the 18th following wayward drives out to the right that left them blocked by trees.

But McIlroy’s advantage was so great he could tap in for a bogey to win the play-off on one over par. Spaun, who was at four over, picked up his ball without finishing the hole having taken four shots.

“I feel really bad for JJ,” added McIlroy, who becomes the first European event to win the event more than once. “He hit a great shot on the 17th but it just went straight through the wind.”

Spaun said “it looked like it was floating and we didn’t see it land” of his tee shot on the short hole.

However, despite saying it was “hard not to feel discouraged” he would have “totally taken” getting into a play-off for the title at the start of the week.

‘Scheffler has been inspiring’

McIlroy will now turn his attentions to next month’s Masters as he continues his quest to complete the Grand Slam by winning the only major to elude him.

It is the first time he has won two PGA Tour events before heading to Augusta National and says he has been inspired by world number one Scottie Scheffler.

The American won an incredible nine titles in 2024, including the Masters and becoming the first player to win successive Players.

“Scottie has been on an unbelievable run and inspired all of us to try to be better,” said the 35-year-old McIlroy.

“I need to be better if I want to compete with him. I’ve knuckled down – I’ve worked hard. It’s nice to tie him with this [second Players title], and Tiger [Woods] and the five others that have won this multiple times.”

McIlroy reiterated that he went home on Sunday night thinking he should have been taking the trophy and $4.5m prize money with him, but said despite “not a great night’s sleep” he “reset and made the swings I needed to”.

In fact, both players had opportunities to wrap up the title on a storm-affected Sunday in Florida.

McIlroy started the final round with a four-shot deficit to leader Spaun but had turned that into a one-shot lead after 11 holes by the time the hooter sounded to curtail play because of the threat of lightning.

When play resumed four hours later, McIlroy birdied the 12th to open a three-shot lead on the field. But a bogey on 14 checked his progress and he missed birdie chances on the 15th and 16th holes as he played the last four holes in level par.

Spaun birdied the 16th to draw level and had a 30-foot putt to win the title on the last but his ball stopped inches from the hole.

With a three-hole play-off required to decide the winner, there was not enough light left to finish the tournament, so they returned for Monday’s dramatic shootout.

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Michail Antonio does not know how he crashed his car into the tree. All he knows is that he did.

“The police came and when they found me I was in between the two seats. I wasn’t actually in the driver’s seat,” he recalls.

“They said it looked like I was trying to climb out of the window, but because my leg was so badly broken the pain probably stopped me from being able to get out.”

The first pictures of his crumpled Ferrari, which struck a tree in Epping Forest on a stormy Saturday in early December, were shared on social media and left people questioning whether Antonio was still alive.

The incident left West Ham’s record Premier League goalscorer in hospital for more than three weeks with a broken leg – and facing a gruelling journey back to fitness.

Today, Antonio insists he will play again at the highest level, and feels he has been given “another chance at life” after he was “close to dying”.

The 34-year-old sat down for an exclusive interview with BBC One’s Morning Live presenter Helen Skelton to reflect on his “horrendous accident”.

What happened on the day of the crash?

Saturday, 7 December had started out as a typical morning for Antonio, with West Ham training for a televised league match against Wolves two days later.

He remembers the weather “was windy, wet and horrific” on a day when the Met Office had issued warnings for Storm Darragh.

Antonio had felt “lazy” when his partner asked him to retrieve some bags from their other car before he set off, so instead he took his Ferrari – which he says he had doubts about.

“The back of the car kept swinging out on me, so I didn’t feel safe,” he says. “I had had it for three weeks and I was already thinking about giving it back.”

It was a decision that changed everything, but when asked what he remembers about the crash itself – which occurred on his way home – his answer is “nothing”.

“It’s weird, because the whole way through this, I have been told that I was awake and was speaking to everybody – the police, the people, and the person who found me,” he says.

“My leg was completely shattered and they got me out and put a splint on it by the side of the car.

“Everyone believed I got an air ambulance out, but the helicopter couldn’t get off the ground because of the storm, so I was driven to the hospital.”

Three weeks ago, Antonio went to see the remains of his car at the scrapyard.

“It gave me a weird feeling in my stomach. It just made me realise how close I was to dying. I had seen the pictures but it was 10 times worse in person. The car was an absolute mess. It was difficult for me.”

How bad is Antonio’s injury?

The first memory Antonio has following the crash is a brief one on the Sunday when he was being spoken to by a scared friend – his long-time agent Mike Appiason.

By Monday, he was able to send a supportive message to his team-mates before their win over Wolves.

“I shattered my femur bone in four different places,” he says. “I had one single keyhole surgery. They put a pole in my thigh with four bolts, so screws and bolts to knit it back together.

“My first surgeon said he didn’t want me to put any weight on my leg for three months, which is around about now, and you can see that I am walking.

“We got a second specialist who said I needed to start putting weight on it, increasing from 10% up to 100% within three weeks.

“But I kept my crutches for a further two weeks. Overall, they say it will be between six to 12 months before my leg starts healing properly.”

Antonio was also keen to set the record straight over talk on social media that he had either been drinking or taken drugs.

He explains: “I was travelling back from training and, anyway, I’ve never taken drugs in my life. I’ve said I like a drink. But in this situation, there were no drugs, there was no drink. That’s been ruled out and confirmed by the police.”

Antonio has spoken about how therapy helped him cope with the death of his father and break-up of his previous marriage, which meant he struggled to celebrate West Ham’s Conference League win in 2023.

When asked how he would have reacted to the crash had he not previously had therapy, he says: “I wouldn’t have processed it at all, or what I would have done would be to push it down and been angry or aggressive.

“Since the crash, I’ve been more emotional than I have ever been in my life, but I feel like it’s better. Therapy is one of the best things that’s happened to me in my life.”

Will Antonio play football again?

The next big question – can you be the Antonio of before? “Yes, 100%. I will play again,” he replies.

But there was one moment where he doubted it. Two weeks ago, his physiotherapists asked if he had career-ending injury insurance. “I didn’t sleep a wink that night,” he says, with a smile and shake of his head.

Antonio’s road to recovery will be a relentless journey requiring countless hours in the gym, with running the next step in his pursuit of fitness.

“That’s what I am focused on and why I am working six days a week. I’ve always been positive from this situation. It’s a horrendous accident, and it’s a massive injury,” he says.

“It’s the biggest injury I’ve ever had in my career. But the fact that I’m already two to three months ahead of where I should be, I know that I’ll play again, and I know that once I’m playing the game I’ll get the sharpness back.

“I was one of the quickest at West Ham. So my body wasn’t the body of a 34-year-old before I had the accident anyway. I can still be sharp and still do the business.

“People have always doubted me. My mental strength is something that I’ve always believed in and this is just another setback, and it is not going to stop me.”

‘I almost wasn’t there for my children’

When Antonio went to see his destroyed Ferrari at the scrapyard, the fear of not seeing his six children grow up left him with a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach.

“The most difficult part is that I almost wasn’t there for my children,” Antonio says. “It’s just made me happy, positive about life, because I’ve got another chance at life.

“During this, we kept it away from the kids. My eldest saw it, and he struggled with it. He’s 13, and obviously people were showing photos of the car.

“So he came down and saw me in the hospital. But the younger ones, they never really knew how bad the situation was. We kind of avoided letting them get on the internet.”

The one major concession Antonio has made is he will not be driving any fast cars for a little while.

“I’ve always been a fan and friend of sports cars and old classics, but I can’t lie to you, sports cars are not my friends,” he says.

“So right now, I have a Mercedes people carrier and my brother is my driver. For now, anyway, I’m staying far away from sports cars.”

But Antonio added that he did overcome his first drive since the crash last week. “I don’t remember the trauma so I have no nerves.

“The only problem I have with it right now is every time I get behind the wheel, I worry that even if something small happens, it will be like ‘ah, Michail’s been in a crash again’, and that kind of negativity gets in my mind and gives me a bit of nerves.”

‘The love feels good’

At the time of the crash, Julen Lopetegui was Antonio’s manager at West Ham but the Spaniard was sacked and has been replaced by Graham Potter.

Being so badly injured while having a new boss appointed at the club concerned Antonio initially.

“That was horrendous for me,” he adds. “I’m not gonna lie, it was one of the hardest things for me, the fact a new manager came in and I wasn’t there to show what I can do, with my contract up at the end of the season.

“It was difficult for me at the time, but the only thing I can focus on is me and making sure I am right.

“One thing I have had to realise is that it doesn’t matter and I can’t rush myself and put myself out there when I am not right because it would make things worse.

“If I rush myself then that will be the reason I didn’t get a contract. As long as I make sure I am right then I know I will have done everything I can.”

West Ham have funded Antonio’s rehabilitation, including a trip to Dubai that involved physio, rest, recovery and meditation.

The club have helped to organise charity initiatives to raise funds for the emergency services involved in rescuing him from the wreckage, including when the entire team warmed up in Antonio shirts before auctioning them off.

Further support came from team-mate Jarrod Bowen who held up Antonio’s shirt when scoring against Wolves at the London Stadium.

And Antonio received a warm reception when he walked on to the pitch at the recent home game against Newcastle while he was off crutches.

“The love feels good,” he continues. “When I got into football, I did it as a hobby and didn’t support any clubs.

“Now I am definitely a West Ham fan. What the club did for me, the support they gave me on and off the field, the hospitals and the specialists, was unbelievable. I thank the club, the fans, the emergency services, the people around me.”

And on being stopped in the street by fans eager to know if he will return, he adds: “I like that people care enough to come and ask me the question, so I don’t mind repeating it 1,000 times. The goal is to be back scoring goals.”

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The tears flowed and the joy was unconfined as Newcastle United finally exorcised the ghosts of 56 years of failure on a Wembley stage that has haunted them most.

When referee John Brooks sounded the final whistle to confirm their 2-1 Carabao Cup win over Liverpool, a giant black-and-white wave of celebration swept around the stadium that had delivered nine successive defeats since Newcastle won the 1955 FA Cup.

Finally, they had ended the long wait. It was 56 years since a major trophy landed on Tyneside in the shape of the long-defunct Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, the ensuing years an era when the club has become a punchline and punchbag for other fans to feast on.

Now – after a fully deserved victory engineered by a manager in Eddie Howe who has transformed the club in a time of riches under Saudi Arabian owners – the curse has been cast aside.

Wembley was barely big enough to contain the noise and emotion that fuelled a magnificent performance, some fans in tears even before the end, many covering their eyes unable to watch as the clock stretched towards 100 minutes and the glorious release of victory.

The black-and-white backdrop Newcastle’s followers provided delivered a wall of sound as their celebrations were played out to the north-east anthem “Blaydon Races”.

Dan Burn and Alexander Isak scored either side of half-time to give Newcastle the control they deserved, but when Federico Chiesa replied four minutes into added time to give Liverpool unlikely, undeserved hope, those painful memories of past years were revisited for a few moments.

The tension was unbearable at the Newcastle end, but Howe’s team managed those final seconds as skilfully as they had everything else, and Liverpool were unable to respond.

Howe and his players have secured their place in Tyneside history. The Carabao Cup may not be top of trophy priorities elsewhere, but this is a triumph that will mean everything for a giant of a club and fanbase.

And the manager may find himself given a statue of St James’ Park, near those of Sir Bobby Robson and Alan Shearer, with the latter living through every Wembley moment with the rest of the Toon Army.

Howe is the first English manager to win either the FA Cup or League Cup since Harry Redknapp won the FA Cup with Portsmouth in 2008. He is also the first English manager to win this trophy since Steve McClaren at Middlesbrough in 2004.

Newcastle looked to have learned every lesson from their loss to Manchester United in this final two years ago. This time they were ready. This time they rose to the occasion.

The Toon Army was also ready. The simple message of “Get Into Them” emblazoned on a flag unfurled before kick-off was carried out to the letter.

And it was all accompanied by the endless, deafening sound of a support who have craved this day.

Newcastle stories were scattered all over Wembley along with the ticker tape of celebration.

Burn completed the finest few days of his career when he followed up his first England call-up at 32 with a thunderous header from Kieran Trippier’s corner to open the scoring in first-half stoppage time.

He took advantage of Liverpool’s inexplicable ploy of marking him with a player in Alexis Mac Allister, who is not far off a foot smaller than him – something that carried on in the second half.

As the theme from the film Local Hero – a permanent part of the soundtrack at St James’ Park – rang out at Wembley amid joyous scenes, it could have been in honour of Blyth-born Burn, the boyhood fan whose name will be etched in Newcastle folklore forever.

Isak was touted as Newcastle’s potential match-winner before the game. And so it proved as he reacted swiftly and to deadly effect to sweep home Jacob Murphy’s knockdown.

And then there was Joelinton. The Brazilian was the best player on the pitch, running powerfully and tearing into tackles throughout, usually followed by clenched fists in the direction of Newcastle’s support.

Howe, however, must take most of the credit for another super piece of management and strategy.

He succeeded Steve Bruce in November 2021 with Newcastle 19th in the Premier League, five points from safety after 11 matches.

Howe guided Newcastle into the Champions League last season but this is the crowning glory. There have been 31 managers of at least one game for Newcastle since their last trophy success.

The 47-year-old has crossed the barrier that had proved insurmountable for so many.

The fierce defensive discipline of Howe’s side saw Liverpool dangerman Mohamed Salah reduced to a peripheral figure.

He failed to record a shot or create a chance for Liverpool in a game he started for only the third time, after a League Cup tie against Arsenal when he played for 61 minutes, and the first leg of the Champions League last-16 game with Paris St-Germain, when he was substituted with four minutes left.

Newcastle could, and should, have added more as they simply over-powered a Liverpool team who looked like they were running in quicksand, this loss compounding the midweek Champions League exit against PSG on penalties.

Howe, the leader and hero of this triumph, who is usually ice cool, admitted even he had been sucked into what this occasion meant – not just to a football club but to a city.

He said: “I am very, very emotional and have been all day, which is very unlike me. We knew what was at stake for all of our fans. We wanted to do them proud and win the trophy.

“I am so, so pleased with the result and performance. We deserved to win but it was tough when Liverpool scored. I was thinking about extra time. We always make it difficult for ourselves. It was never going to be 2-0.”

Howe added: “We were well aware of history. We wanted to do the club proud. We wanted to score. We wanted to perform, we wanted to win. We are breaking new ground. I thought we were magnificent.”

Even Howe admitted surprise at Burn the goalscorer, adding: “We worked consistently for two weeks on set-plays just for this game and if you’d seen us in practice you would have said we had no chance.

“We couldn’t believe Dan Burn scored. He hasn’t been training like that.”

This was not simply a victory for a football club and its fanbase. It was a victory for a city that has waited 56 years to enjoy such an occasion.

And the long-overdue party will make its way all the way from Tyneside to Wembley after a day that will live in Geordie memories forever.

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France overpowered Scotland to lift this year’s Six Nations, with England hammering Wales in Cardiff to finish second and Ireland overcoming Italy in Rome on an entertaining Super Saturday.

Here’s our round-up of the big talking points from the final round of fixtures in the 2025 championship.

‘World-class’ back row helps England hammer Wales

Heading into the final round, England knew they almost certainly needed a big bonus-point win in Cardiff to have a shot at a first title since 2020.

Narrow victories over France and Scotland came through a more conservative gameplan, before Borthwick delivered on his promise that his side would play more aggressively in attack during the seven-try win over Italy.

England were even more ruthless in their final game in Cardiff, as they scored 10 tries to hammer Wales at the Principality Stadium

Picking three ‘fetchers’ in the back row helped lay the platform for England’s dominance, with both Curry brothers and Ben Earl bossing the breakdown.

“I think England have got the best back row in the championship,” former Scotland captain John Barclay told BBC’s Six Nations Rugby Special.

“Both Curry brothers and Earl were world class. It is not just the breakdown, but there is a physical raw edge to everything they are doing.

“It all makes your job so much easier, their back row were unbelievable.”

In this year’s Six Nations, England lead the way for turnovers won (36), slowing down their opponents’ ruck speed, and jackals won (21).

The depth in the back row is only growing after 20-year-old Northampton Saints flanker Henry Pollock scored two tries on his debut, 21-year-old Chandler Cunningham-South also dotted down twice against Wales, while number eight Tom Willis, 26, impressed on his three starts.

What information do we collect from this quiz?

Wales need ‘big changes’ to progress

Wales’ match in Italy in round two was their best shot of a victory this campaign but defeat ended Warren Gatland’s troubled reign and left interim head coach Matt Sherratt with a tough task to restore pride in his three games in charge.

Hope that they could end their dreadful run of defeats before the end of the championship grew after a much-improved performance against Ireland.

However, the campaign finished with Wales falling to a new low by conceding 68 points against England – the most in their Six Nations history.

A 17th Test defeat on the bounce was also a record for a tier-one nation in the professional era and condemned Wales to a second successive Wooden Spoon.

Former Wales captain Sam Warburton believes now is the time for “big changes” and suggests cutting one of the Welsh regions in the United Rugby Championship.

“No action is the worst action now,” he told Six Nations Rugby Special.

“Four regions do not work. Look at the impact – by accident – of losing three teams in the [English] Premiership. We need to concentrate our player pool into three teams.

“You can’t make a decision that pleases everyone but you have to try and make the best decision that genuinely has the best impact on Welsh rugby.

“I can’t see us winning another championship for five years, but if there is a five-year plan to buy into and get on board with then we will be on the right path.”

What information do we collect from this quiz?

Changing of the guard coming in Ireland

Ireland began this year’s Six Nations aiming for a record third successive title, and with games against England and France at home that goal seemed more than realistic.

Victory in their final match against Italy meant Simon Easterby’s side ended the campaign in third place with four wins out of five – the same as England and France – but the feeling in Rome differed from their rivals.

A crushing defeat in Dublin against champions France ended their Grand Slam bid, and even with a possible title on the line, Ireland’s championship petered out, with Italy pushing for a shock victory in the closing stages.

The campaign marked the end of the road for a trio of Test centurions as Peter O’Mahony, Cian Healy and Conor Murray all bowed out of the international arena.

Eight of Ireland’s starting XV against France were also aged 30 or older, and Warburton feels there is going to be a “good changing of the guard” over the next three to four years in Irish rugby.

“When they start to lose those players [in their mid-30s], you start to think there is maybe not as much coming through as they would have had five to 10 years ago,” he said.

“It is a bit alarming so they might want to hang on to those older players until some more players start to come through.”

Interim head coach Easterby will continue the transition this summer before Andy Farrell returns after British and Irish Lions duty this summer.

Power game wins France deserved title

France have been the great entertainers this championship, scoring a record 30 tries in five games to win their first title since 2022.

It was not all plain sailing in the first half against Scotland as a disallowed try prevented the visitors from leading at half-time.

However, a dominant second-half display saw France score three tries to get the win they needed, with wing Louis Bielle-Biarrey racing clear for a record eighth score of the championship.

“He is probably going to get player of the tournament,” Warburton said. “A real superstar, another one France have to lean on.”

Fabien Galthie again opted for a 7-1 bench split, which has proved a point of difference, as his side scored 1.2 more tries per game in the final 40 minutes.

They also gained more metres and line breaks on average in the second half of games.

“Their tries against Scotland were all caused from their power and physicality,” Warburton added.

“When France got into the Scotland 22, Scotland found it difficult to contain them. I have it as 23 points scored from maul and carry dominance which led on to tries.

“In international rugby, if you win the power game, you win the game.”

Scotland lack ‘bit of grunt up front’

Scotland finished fourth for the second year running – and have now finished outside the top three six times since Gregor Townsend took charge in 2018.

Full-back Blair Kinghorn topped this year’s championship stats for carries (86), line breaks (9) and offloads (13), while he was second for defenders beaten (25) – only behind team-mate Duhan van der Merwe (28).

Given the majority of Scotland’s backline are in contention to be heading on the Lions tour this summer, more was expected than just wins over Italy and Wales.

Dubbed as one of the most talented Scottish sides in the modern era, Barclay believes they lack punch in the forwards to support their talented backs, evident through France’s seven destructive replacement forwards.

“The sense of frustration is why this group of players are not kicking on,” Barclay said.

“I think there are generational backs in that team and the Lions selection will reflect that.

“They lack a little bit of grunt up front that France or England have. They are also lacking that ruthless edge.

“Whether it is lapses of concentration or lack of accuracy, it is holding them back.”

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The International Olympic Committee executive board has recommended that boxing be included at the 2028 Games in Los Angeles.

The sport was not part of the initial programme when it was announced in 2022, but last month World Boxing was given provisional recognition as the sport’s international governing body.

The recommendation will still need to be approved by the IOC at this week’s session in Greece, but outgoing IOC president Thomas Bach expects it to be given the green light.

“After the provisional recognition of World Boxing in February we were in a position to take this decision,” Bach said on Monday.

“This recommendation has to go to the session, but I am very confident they will approve it so that all the boxers of the world then have certainty they can participate in the Olympic Games in LA.”

The creation of a new global body was the biggest hurdle to the sport’s inclusion in the next Games.

The IOC has run boxing at the past two Olympics after the International Boxing Association (IBA) was suspended as the sport’s world governing body in 2019 over governance, finance, refereeing and ethical issues.

The Russian-led IBA was then stripped of its status in June 2023 over a failure to implement reforms.

The IOC was at loggerheads with the IBA during last year’s Olympics in Paris over the participation of two boxers, Algeria’s Imane Khelif and Taiwan’s Lin Yu-ting.

The IBA banned the fighters midway through the 2023 World Championships saying they had failed gender eligibility tests, but the IOC allowed them to compete and both won gold medals in their weight classes.

World Boxing was formed in April 2023 and now has 84 members across five continents, including Great Britain.

Last month the IOC said World Boxing met several key criteria for provisional recognition.

President of World Boxing, Boris van der Vorst, welcomed Monday’s announcement.

“This is a very significant and important decision for Olympic boxing and takes the sport one step closer to being restored to the Olympic programme,” he said.

“I have no doubt it will be very positively received by everyone connected with boxing, at every level throughout the world, who understands the critical importance to the future of the sport of boxing continuing to remain a part of the Olympic movement.

“On behalf of everyone at World Boxing I would like to thank the Executive Board of the IOC for the trust they have placed in our organisation and we hope for a positive outcome when the IOC Session meets this week.

“World Boxing understands that being part of the Olympic Games is a privilege and not a right and I assure the IOC that if boxing is restored to the programme for LA28, that World Boxing is completely committed to being a trustworthy and reliable partner that will adhere to and uphold the values of the Olympic Charter.”

The IOC has said only athletes whose national federations were members of World Boxing by the time of the start of the qualification events for the 2028 Olympics could take part in Los Angeles.

The dates for the qualifying period are yet to be confirmed.

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When Jack Draper had to retire injured from his Australian Open match against Carlos Alcaraz in January, some people asked the same old questions.

Was the Briton’s body built for success at the top of a physically demanding sport? Could he get over the line mentally in career-defining moments?

Eight weeks later, Draper has answered any lingering critics.

On Sunday, he won the biggest title of his career at Indian Wells. He has also cracked the world’s top 10 for the first time.

This is how the 23-year-old has done it.

What’s changed since Melbourne?

Draper was coping with a hip problem at the Australian Open and required a regular intake of painkillers to play.

He came through three gruelling successive five-setters to reach the fourth round – showing he had already improved his durability – but it eventually took its toll against Alcaraz.

Afterwards, Draper admitted he may need to manage what he described as hip tendonitis throughout the rest of his career.

More difficult choices had to be made.

The British number one skipped the Davis Cup tie against Japan and also pulled out of a tournament in Rotterdam in early February.

He returned later that month, finishing runner-up at the Qatar Open before heading to Indian Wells.

Ultimately, the “sensible” decision to retire against Alcaraz – and manage his workload since – has paid off.

Having greater belief in his body allowed the left-hander’s technical and tactical talents to flourish in the Californian desert.

Consistent serving – a mixture of dangerous, swinging deliveries out wide and flatter, pacy serves – laid the platform.

His forehand switched from punchy to loaded with spin, keeping opponents guessing, while sharp footwork allowed him to stay in rallies longer.

Coach James Trotman, who has worked with Draper since he was a teenager, has been a driving force in his success.

“Jack has a way of playing that we should be looking to execute first and foremost,” he told the ATP website., external

“A big part of [our] journey is to try and impose his weapons and take the racquet out of his opponent’s hand.”

How ‘Team Murray’ is making vital contribution

Former world number one Andy Murray might be in Novak Djokovic’s coaching box nowadays, but the long-time flagbearer of British tennis continues to have an influence on Draper.

Two core pillars of the recently-retired Scot’s team – physiotherapist Shane Annun and fitness coach Matt Little – are now part of Draper’s inner circle.

Just two years ago, Draper was lamenting being known as “the guy who got injured all the time”.

Building his fitness in the gym has allowed him to compete more regularly on the tour – instrumental in his rise up the rankings.

“Being away from home, waking up early on a daily basis – it’s like groundhog day,” Draper told BBC tennis correspondent Russell Fuller.

“Putting in hours and hours on the court, in the gym, in the ice bath at the end of the day when I don’t want to.

“It’s like a normal job. Some days you really enjoy it and other times you don’t want to get out of bed.

“But you do it anyway and do it to the best of your ability because you know it is going to pay off on the big stage.”

Off the court, Draper has spent nights in Indian Wells playing Monopoly Deal – a shorter version of the classic board game – and refuelling with healthy takeaways.

“As much as I enjoy playing, being around my team and doing the right thing, it’s one thing saying you’ll do the hard work and another to do it when you’re tired and really don’t want to,” Draper added.

“That is what feels good when you’re playing well on court.”

Is this the springboard to Slam success?

Draper’s rise over the past year has been solid and steady.

His first trophy came on the Stuttgart grass in June last year, followed by an ATP 500 hard-court title in Vienna in October.

His run to the US Open semi-finals captured the attention of the wider British public, although his nerves were illustrated by vomiting on court in a defeat by eventual champion Jannik Sinner.

Draper began seeing a “breathing coach” to help solve the issue, and he pointed to the way he came through the third set against Alcaraz as an example of his improved composure.

“I had a few doubts before the Indian Wells final wondering if would feel the same things – but I didn’t,” he said.

“I was really strong and focused on my breathing and things I could control. That’s what I was really proud of.”

The next step from Masters champion is a logical one – becoming a Grand Slam champion.

Winning Indian Wells is no guarantee of future major success but as Dominic Thiem, Naomi Osaka and Bianca Andreescu have shown, coming through a 96-player field of the very best opponents is a strong indicator.

Hard courts have been Draper’s most successful surface, but the next two majors are on the French Open clay-courts and Wimbledon grass.

So far he has struggled on clay, but his improved footwork should help, while the increasingly dangerous serve and groundstrokes are suited to grass-court success.

“I still feel I have a lot to prove on the clay,” Draper added.

“I didn’t get it going last year, but I don’t see why I can’t be pushing the best players on that surface.

“As for grass, I feel my game has improved massively since last year.”

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This year’s Six Nations featured more tries than any previous championship, with 101 scored across 15 matches.

Despite more sophisticated defences, replacements replenishing teams’ energy levels and a defence-friendly law change around players held up over the line, attacks keep finding a way to score.

  • LISTEN: Rugby Union Weekly: The Six Nations review with Warburton and Barclay

Here are six plays that defined the teams, the tactics and their players.

Ireland’s intricacies undo England

Ireland’s superpower, nurtured under Joe Schmidt and sharpened by Andy Farrell, has been the small details.

Intricate pre-plotted plays befuddle defences with a blizzard of runners, while they shift the ball with a cardsharp’s speed and dexterity.

The play that broke English resistance on the opening round was the perfect example.

Wing James Lowe tucked himself directly behind team-mate Tadhg Beirne as they waited for the ball to emerge from the breakdown.

As Jamieson Gibson-Park picked and went from the base, Lowe swerved out of his hiding spot and past a dizzied Chandler Cunningham-South.

Beirne continued his run to take the final pass and score.

The question is now whether those well-worn patterns and deep understanding is enough.

Against France in round four, their plans were shattered by relentless forward power, intelligent improvisation and warp speed out wide.

Interim head coach Simon Easterby may, understandably, still be finding his feet as he steps in for Farrell during the latter’s Lions secondment.

Maybe Leinster’s change in style under former South Africa head coach Jacques Nienaber has had an effect.

The ageing spine to their team certainly will, with changes necessary over the next few seasons.

Keeping some of their trademark cohesion, while bringing in new players and finding alternative ways to win, is a tall challenge for whoever is at the helm.

Smith comes up clutch to stop England rot

Six points adrift of France, with a little over a minute left on the Twickenham clock and with a rookie Fin Smith at fly-half, England desperately needed something.

Another defeat, after losing to Ireland on the opening day, would set them on course for a mid-table finish, extend their losing run against top-tier opposition to seven straight games and increase the pressure on coach Steve Borthwick.

They found something.

Wing Elliot Daly, having pondered a blindside dart off a rolling maul, arced round the back of England’s backline.

Ollie Lawrence and Tommy Freeman fixed France’s centre pairing of Yoram Moefana and Pierre-Louis Barassi.

Smith still had work to as the ball came to him, but did it perfectly, delaying his pass for a fraction of a second to commit the drifting Barassi and give Daly time to hit the hole flat and at full tilt.

It was an impeccable first-phase strike move, executed with sniper precision.

It flipped England’s fortunes, helped cement Smith’s place at 10 and potentially deprived France of a Grand Slam.

Dupont lends France another dimension

There were a couple of moments during the championship that reminded everyone of France scrum-half Antoine Dupont’s fallibility.

Against Wales, he booted prime ball straight into the Stade de France stands. Against England, he juggled and dropped a relatively simple pass, with the line at his mercy.

The knee ligament injury he suffered against Ireland, buckling under Beirne’s weight at the breakdown, reminded us of his mortality.

But there were plenty of glimpses of his greatness as well, the things that, for all deputy Maxime Lucu’s speed of pass and territorial kicking, were lost to France in his absence.

Dupont’s use of the kick-pass to circumvent a defence that has pinched in tight against France’s power gives them another dimension.

In France’s tournament opener, after their heavy brigade had bashed away at a stubborn Wales defence for 12 phases, Dupont picked up the ball and dawdled sideways and backwards off the back of the breakdown.

For most coaches, that is a cardinal sin. But it drew the Welsh defence forwards and when Dupont chipped to the far wing, Josh Adams was wrong-footed and unable to stop Theo Attissogbe gathering and scoring the first of 30 French tries in the tournament.

In Dupont’s absence, France were even deploying the tactic in defence, with Louis Bielle-Biarrey punting wide to opposite wing Damian Penaud during an audacious exit against Ireland.

No other team deployed the tactic as accurately.

Scotland collect points and style marks out wide

Scotland finished fourth in the final table, but if there were backline style marks to hand out they would have come top of the scorecards.

They carried the ball more and further than any other team by a distance and also threw the most passes., external

The absence of injured captain Sione Tuipulotu at centre might have forced them to play with more width than they had originally intended, but it made for some scintillating scores.

Perhaps the best illustration of what they can do from deep was their second try in their win over Wales.

From a breakdown on the left touchline, a narrow forward charge proved to be a decoy with Finn Russell instead throwing a long pass to Blair Kinghorn, giving up territory, but opening up opportunities.

While Darcy Graham’s dancing feet threaten on one wing, it was Duhan van der Merwe’s power that shrugged off Ellis Mee on the other, creating space for Huw Jones on the outside.

Support flooded through on the inside with Tom Jordan taking the pass and scoring.

Scotland lack the depth and heft up front of other nations, but their athleticism, creativity and understanding in open space can slice though any team.

Ramos’ instincts seize the day

Ireland may have finished third, but their meeting with France in round four was the headlining heavyweight contest on the Six Nations card.

There are many deep, structural reasons behind France’s victory – a successful youth development system that pulls in players from different areas and background, their powerhouse clubs falling into line behind the national team and coach Fabien Galthie’s adoption of forward-heavy replacements bench are among them.

But you also need gut feel; the instinct to read a situation and grab a moment, all in milliseconds.

As Ireland, 35-13 down, but a man up, pressed up to the France 5m line late on, full-back Thomas Ramos did just that.

Fly-half Sam Prendergast had men outside, a one or two-strong overlap, but Ramos didn’t drift to try and contain Ireland. The 29-year-old instead shot out of the line, shot out a single hand (risking a penalty and yellow in doing so) and the ball stuck.

He raced upfield on his interception, lobbing the ball to Damien Penaud to finish under the sticks.

Not a move you can practise or teach, but indicative of France’s licence to play what they see.

Itoje’s diplomacy puts him in Lions box-seat

It wasn’t run with pace, aggression or deception, but it was a move that England captain Maro Itoje made again and again during this year’s Six Nations: a slow, almost apologetic advance on the referee to query a call.

Against Ireland in Dublin, Ronan Kelleher went over for the hosts. But Itoje was off.

He had been held into the breakdown by Beirne and made the point clearly and diplomatically enough, to convince referee Ben O’Keeffe to wipe it from the scoreboard.

As Russell lined up a potentially match-winning conversion against England in the third round, Itoje was there again, making a point. The referee, whether influenced or not, instructed Russell to take his unsuccessful kick from a slightly tighter angle.

British and Irish Lions coach Farrell was in attendance at the Principality Stadium to watch Itoje again make another persuasive case as Wales full-back Blair Murray had a try chalked off with team-mate Tomos Williams being offside.

The 2017 Lions series decider in New Zealand pivoted on a similar incident – Ken Owens picking up the ball after a knock-on by fellow Welshman Liam Williams late in the third Test.

Is Itoje the captain the Lions of 2025 need to make their case?

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