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Arteta defends Arsenal’s Covid postponement request
AFP
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has defended the club’s decision to apply for Sunday’s match with Tottenham to be postponed — a request that was granted by the Premier League but proved controversial.
The Gunners, who will host Liverpool in the second leg of the League Cup semi-final on Thursday, asked for last weekend’s game to be rescheduled with a number of players unavailable due to a mixture of international duty, injuries, suspension and coronavirus cases.
“We didn’t have the players necessary to put a squad out to compete in a Premier League match, that is 100 percent,” Arteta said at his pre-match press conference on Wednesday.
“This is a no-win situation. When we play the first three games of the season when other games were off, we were killed and called naive. Now we postpone a match for all the right reasons, believe me, and we get these reactions?”
Spurs reacted angrily to the decision to call off the north London derby.
“It’s the first time in my life — and I’ve had a bit of experience in football — to see postponed games because of injuries,” said Tottenham boss Antonio Conte.
But Arteta hit back, saying: “We have been very consistent. We played (Nottingham) Forest (in the FA Cup) when we had 10 players out.
“It got to a point where we could not put a squad out, that is why we didn’t play. As simple as that.”
The Arsenal v Liverpool match at the Emirates Stadium should have been the first leg of the League Cup semi-final two weeks ago, before a coronavirus outbreak within the Liverpool camp led to its postponement.
Arsenal held Liverpool to a goalless draw in the first leg last week despite playing more than an hour with 10 men after the dismissal of Granit Xhaka.
In his own press conference, Liverpool assistant manager Pep Lijnders said he had no complaints over recent Covid postponements both in the Premier League and the League Cup.
The Dutchman said it was impossible for anyone outside a club to know the full picture.
“It’s really difficult to judge from outside,” said Lijnders, who himself tested positive earlier this month during an outbreak at Liverpool.
“We saw this with our own situation.
“I fully respect the submissions because I trust 100 percent the medical departments of each Premier League club. I think this is the most important thing, full trust in these decisions.”
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Trump renews criticism of Pope Leo XIV amid tensions over Iran
The President of the United States, Donald Trump, renewed his criticism of Pope Leo XIV on Tuesday night, urging that “someone tell him” that Iran has “killed at least 42,000 innocent protesters” and insisting that it is “unacceptable” for the country to possess nuclear weapons.
“Can someone please inform Pope Leo that Iran has killed at least 42,000 completely unarmed, innocent protesters over the past two months, and that it is absolutely unacceptable for Iran to have a nuclear bomb?” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social.
The statement comes amid an escalating public dispute between Trump and the pontiff over the conflict in Iran and the broader Middle East. The US president concluded his message with the phrase “AMERICA IS BACK.”
Pope Leo XIV, who was born in the United States, has repeatedly spoken out—both directly and indirectly—against Washington’s stance toward Tehran, while calling for peace in the region.
On Monday, Trump openly criticized the pope, describing him as “weak” and “terrible on foreign policy.”
Speaking aboard a flight to Algeria, the first stop of his trip to Africa, the pontiff said he was “not afraid” of the Trump administration and would continue to raise his voice against the ongoing conflict.
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Tehran engulfed in toxic cloud after strikes on fuel facilities
Tehran woke up under a sky that shifted from gray to black following strikes on fuel infrastructure, as the city has become engulfed in a toxic cloud that is turning daily life into a public health and environmental emergency.
Residents warn that what is falling from the sky is no longer just rain, but a mixture of oil and pollutants. Attacks on fuel depots have triggered prolonged fires, releasing thick plumes of smoke that continue to spread across the العاصمة.
For several days, facilities have remained ablaze, while a dark layer has settled over streets, homes, and even water reserves. Authorities have urged the population—more than nine million people—to remain indoors, especially vulnerable groups.
The extreme toxicity is linked to mazut, a dense petroleum byproduct with high sulfur content still used in Iran due to industrial limitations and sanctions. When burned, it releases hazardous particles that, when combined with moisture, result in contaminated rainfall.
The situation is worsened by Tehran’s geography. Surrounded by mountains, the city is affected by a temperature inversion phenomenon that traps pollutants near the ground, preventing their dispersion and creating a stagnant layer of toxic air over the population.
Residents have reported symptoms such as eye and skin irritation, headaches, and respiratory difficulties. Emergency agencies have also warned of potential chemical burns caused by acid rain.
Long-term concerns are mounting, as prolonged exposure to fine particles and heavy metals could lead to serious health conditions, including lung damage and cancer.
Contamination is also spreading to water sources and agricultural land, threatening the food supply in a country already facing water scarcity.
At a regional level, the environmental impact is expanding, with oil spills reported in the Persian Gulf, affecting marine ecosystems and fishing communities.
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FBI Most Wanted Fugitive Arrested in Mexico and Deported to U.S.
Authorities in Mexico announced Thursday that Samuel Ramírez Jr., a U.S. citizen accused of murdering two women and listed among the FBI’s Ten Most Wanted Fugitives, was arrested in the northern state of Sinaloa.
Ramírez Jr., 33, was detained Tuesday in Culiacán just 1 hour and 13 minutes after being added to the Federal Bureau of Investigation Ten Most Wanted list, the agency said in a statement.
The suspect, who was born in California, has already been deported to the U.S. state of Washington, where he faces charges related to the fatal shooting of two women at a bar in Federal Way in May 2023.
A court issued an arrest warrant for Ramírez in November last year, and the FBI initially offered a $25,000 reward for information leading to his capture, later increasing the amount to up to $1 million.
“To protect individuals’ privacy and ensure continued cooperation from the public, the FBI does not confirm the identity of those who provide information,” the agency said in its statement.
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