Keyword – Football
Trefwoorden – Australia, World Cup 2026, World Cup, Turkey, Football, Australia sport, Sport
Title – World Cup 2026: Socceroos open campaign with win against Turkey – in pictures | Australia | The Guardian
Author – https://www.theguardian.com/profile/guardian-sport
Link – World Cup 2026: Socceroos open campaign with win against Turkey – in pictures | Australia | The Guardian
Publish date – 2026-06-14T07:01:13.000Z
Category – Sport
URL – https://www.theguardian.com/football/gallery/2026/jun/14/world-cup-australia-socceroos-turkey-in-pictures

Keyword – Australia news
Trefwoorden – Australia news, Pakistan, Western Australia
Title – Australian girl killed in Pakistan after reportedly being shot by police | Australia news | The Guardian
Author – Australian Associated Press
Link – Australian girl killed in Pakistan after reportedly being shot by police | Australia news | The Guardian
Publish date – 2026-06-14T03:39:19.000Z
Category – News
URL – https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2026/jun/14/australian-girl-killed-pakistan-punjab-province-reportedly-shot-dead-by-police-ntwnfb

A nine-year-old Australian girl has been killed and two of her family members injured after reportedly being shot by police in Pakistan .

The family were visiting a relative in Chakwal, in Punjab province, when they were robbed while in their rental car on Wednesday night local time, Pakistani English-language news outlet Dawn reported .

Two robbers on a motorcycle, including one with a pistol, fled when they were spotted by an officer, and the rental car also drove off.

“As the cops saw the vehicle being driven away immediately, they took it as belonging to the robbers and opened indiscriminate fire on the car,” a police official told local media.

The family, from the Perth suburb of Kewdale, was taken to hospital, where the girl was pronounced dead.

Her father and older brother were seriously injured, while her mother was unharmed.

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed it was providing consular assistance to the family of an Australian who was killed and to two Australians who were injured.

“We send our deepest condolences to the family at this difficult time,” a department spokesperson said in a statement.

The Pakistani Association of Western Australia general secretary, Asim Chaudhry, said the incident had affected the local community.

“This news is very shocking, especially the death of the nine-year-old,” he told Nine News.

“They just came from the pilgrimage [to Mecca].”

Keyword – Politics
Trefwoorden – Wes Streeting, Keir Starmer, Online abuse, Social media, Elon Musk, Politics, Society, Technology, Belfast, Far right, UK news, Northern Ireland, Southampton, England, Digital media, Media
Title – Make platforms that promote violent content pay towards riot costs, Streeting says | Wes Streeting | The Guardian
Author – https://www.theguardian.com/profile/peterwalker
Link – Make platforms that promote violent content pay towards riot costs, Streeting says | Wes Streeting | The Guardian
Publish date – 2026-06-14T06:00:36.000Z
Category – News
URL – https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/jun/14/make-platforms-that-promote-violent-content-pay-towards-riot-costs-streeting-says

Wes Streeting has called for Keir Starmer to take urgent action against X and other online platforms that have helped whip up social tensions, suggesting they should be forced to contribute to rebuilding costs after the riots in Belfast.

The intervention by the former health secretary, who is seen as a likely challenger to Keir Starmer in any leadership contest, comes after Downing Street said any response would be left to Ofcom, the media regulator, meaning no action is likely for at least two months.

Condemning what he termed “the forces of darkness online and offline”, Streeting said this was an insufficient response to a mass of posts on X – including from the platform’s trillionaire owner, Elon Musk – calling for an angry response to a knife attack in Belfast.

It follows a similar pattern of incitement before disorder in Southampton in response to the case of Henry Nowak, who was handcuffed by police as he lay dying after his murderer falsely accused the teenage student of racist abuse.

As well as calls from far-right agitators, such as Tommy Robinson, for people to protest, X carried large numbers of posts incorrectly naming two people as being among the Hampshire police officers involved in Nowak’s arrest, with some showing addresses and messages such as: “Wanted: dead or alive.”

In a statement to the Guardian, Streeting said: “We’re long past the time for threats. We have to act. Incitement to violence is a crime in the offline world so it must be prosecuted as a crime in the online world.

“If platforms are knowingly promoting this dangerous content, bosses should face criminal action and the companies should be made to pay the costs of cleaning up and rebuilding Belfast , along with the thugs on the ground.

“We’ve been far too timid in the face of broligarchs attempting to reshape our society and inspire hatred – we should be standing up to the forces of darkness online and offline, and we still can.”

The Online Safety Act requires social media companies to remove any posts that break the law, for example by inciting violence, with Ofcom enforcing this. X has agreed with the media watchdog that it will send a quarterly report setting out its compliance on this, but the first of these is not due for at least two months.

Ministers also plan to amend the Online Safety Act to require social media firms to act more quickly to remove inflammatory content during riots or other crises. However, this has to be laid before parliament for 40 days, so will not take effect until mid-July at the earliest.

In contrast, after X was flooded with sexualised images of women and children generated by its Grok AI tool, Starmer threatened the platform with being blocked in the UK if it did not take urgent action to tackle the problem, prompting X to stop the tool being used via the Grok account and in Grok in X.

Asked why similar action was not being taken over posts inciting violence in Belfast or Southampton , Downing Street has pointed to existing action being taken by Ofcom for breaches of the Online Safety Act, with some platforms having been fined.

A No 10 spokesperson said: “We condemn anyone who has attempted to stoke division or incite violence, and those breaking the law should face the consequences, whether it’s offline or online.

“We will not tolerate platforms being used to spread harm, abuse or division. Platforms have clear responsibilities in law to remove any illegal content, and Ofcom have our full backing in using their enforcement powers to hold them to account.”

Keyword – US news
Trefwoorden – Trump administration, Donald Trump, US news, US politics
Title – Trump news at a glance: president claims Iran ‘no longer want a nuclear weapon’ amid peace deal hopes | Trump administration | The Guardian
Author – Guardian staff
Link – Trump news at a glance: president claims Iran ‘no longer want a nuclear weapon’ amid peace deal hopes | Trump administration | The Guardian
Publish date – 2026-06-14T00:23:46.000Z
Category – News
URL – https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/jun/14/trump-news-at-a-glance-president-claims-iran-no-longer-want-a-nuclear-weapon-amid-peace-deal-hopes

Donald Trump says a deal with Iran to end the war would be signed on Sunday, and that the strait of Hormuz would be “open to all” immediately after.

Iran had offered a different timeline earlier in the day, but nonetheless signalled an agreement was in the offing, as both the warring parties and their mediators expressed increasing optimism that weeks of halting negotiations were drawing to a close.

“The Deal is scheduled to get signed tomorrow, and immediately after it is signed, the Hormuz Strait is OPEN TO ALL,” Trump said on his Truth Social platform. Since an 8 April truce paused the worst of the fighting, Trump has repeatedly insisted a deal was near only for the wrangling to drag on.

The Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson, Esmaeil Baqaei, had said earlier on Saturday that the date of the signing was yet to be determined, but “it will not be tomorrow”. However, he added: “The possibility of this happening in the coming days cannot be ruled out.”

Trump says Iran peace deal could be signed by Sunday, with strait of Hormuz to open shortly after

Trump has claimed that the deal would prevent Tehran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, as well as reopen the strait of Hormuz to international shipping. In a Truth Social post , Trump said that Iran “no longer want a Nuclear Weapon, nor will they have one, either through purchase, development, or any other form of procurement”.

Read the full story

Workers remove Trump’s name from Kennedy Center after court rulings

Trump’s name has been removed from the facade of the Kennedy Center in Washington DC, hours after a judge rejected an emergency appeal to block the removal of the president’s name.

Read the full story

Marjorie Taylor Greene criticizes Trump’s UFC event at White House

Marjorie Taylor Greene has criticized Trump’s plan to hold a UFC fight on the White House lawn, as the president prepares to host seven fights on Sunday. The former rightwing Republican congresswoman, a once fierce defender of Trump who turned on him towards the end of her time in office, told NewsNation the location is inappropriate for the mixed martial arts event.

Read the full story

Trump as Don Corleone: ‘Every time he does somebody a favour … he expects a quid pro quo’

Barbara McQuade’s book is a piercing exposé of how Trump is eroding democracy by turning the US into a mafia state.

Read the full story

Seven fights on the South Lawn: Trump prepares for UFC birthday spectacle at White House

The show goes on for Trump’s 80th birthday event – featuring a 92ft ‘Claw’, thousands of seats and a fighting cage – despite ominous weather forecasts.

Read the full story

Gee, whiz: elephant relieves itself on floor of Texas Republican convention

An African elephant weighing roughly 4 tons that was brought to the Texas Republican party’s annual convention to excite attenders ended up drawing widespread attention for the wrong reasons after she urinated on the convention floor and became the focus of animal welfare concerns.

Read the full story

What else happened today:

Zohran Mamdani is on an endorsement blitz – what does it say about his plan for the left?

Explainer: ICE, borders and DHS: what’s in Trump’s $70bn immigration crackdown bill?

‘Open season’ on ABC as FCC moves up public comment process for renewals.

Catching up? Here’s what happened on 12 June 2026 .

Keyword – World news
Trefwoorden – LGBTQ+ rights, Pride, Essex, Reform UK, World news, UK news, Politics, Transgender, Society, Local politics, Leicestershire, Libraries, Local government, Books
Title – ‘Straight out of Trumpland’: LGBTQ+ members fight for Pride after Essex library ban | LGBTQ+ rights | The Guardian
Author – https://www.theguardian.com/profile/geneva-abdul,https://www.theguardian.com/profile/aamna-mohdin
Link – ‘Straight out of Trumpland’: LGBTQ+ members fight for Pride after Essex library ban | LGBTQ+ rights | The Guardian
Publish date – 2026-06-14T12:00:42.000Z
Category – News
URL – https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jun/14/lgbtq-pride-rochford-essex-council-library-ban-reform-uk

B efore Reform gained control of Essex county council in the May elections, Chris Taylor and members of the Rochford LGBTQ+ community already felt they were witnessing a growing tide of political rhetoric around identity.

But they were still shocked when the county’s new leadership moved to ban Pride events in 74 libraries, scaling back events of “any particular groups or themes”, a decision they said was “straight out of Trumpland”.

“It communicates the fact that we’re not welcome,” said Taylor, who recently launched a petition against the “Orwellian” ban on pride events in Essex libraries .

Reform councils across England, from Essex and Durham to Leicestershire and Kent, have imposed bans on flying the pride flag and holding pride events in public spaces, as well as, in some cases, defunding pride events previously sponsored by local authorities.

Essex county council said libraries were “safe spaces for everybody” and LGBTQ+ books and displays would continue, but added the promotion of library events aimed at specific groups was under review.

Reform councils have stopped flying Pride flags outside civic centres and county halls and restricted council flagpoles exclusively to union, national, county or armed forces flags at council buildings under its control.

Since learning of Essex council’s proposed changes to its libraries, Taylor, 38, has contacted Reform councillors with concerns but has yet to receive a response. With Essex Pride approaching, one LGBTQ+ resident told Taylor they had wanted to attend the library with their child, but expressed safety concerns.

“There does seem to be a bit a resurgence of anti-acceptance toward the community in the area,” added Taylor. “It’s a bit alarming.”

In Sunderland and Gateshead, Reform-led councils have withdrawn funding for Pride events and ended the practice of flying Pride flags on council buildings, while South Tyneside council has restricted the flag’s display at South Shields town hall to a single day at the start of Pride month.

Drew Dalton, an outreach manager at Out North East, which runs Pride events across Sunderland, Gateshead and South Tyneside and recently opened One Centre, the north-east’s first LGBT community centre in Gateshead, said the organisation had been preparing for Reform victories for months.

He said Sunderland and Gateshead’s decisions to stop flying Pride flags, alongside funding cuts, had left the organisation feeling it had lost “money”, “visibility” and “a great number of allies” in council chambers.

Dalton said: “We’ve spent a long time building up relationships and we lost them overnight in the local elections.”

The group has been forced to move events away from council-owned land and venues in anticipation of further restriction, Dalton said. “We had to future-proof everything we were doing,” he said. “It’s become that type of era where you have to watch your step.”

He said concerns within the LGBTQ+ community extended beyond council policy. Promotional signs had been repeatedly torn down for a smaller Pride event supported by the organisation, while people attending the One Centre hub had expressed anxiety about the wider climate.

“I don’t want to paint us as all scared,” he said. “There’s also a lot of righteous anger about what’s going on. And there’s the beginnings, which is wonderful to see, of people starting to pull together.”

Dalton said the political climate was reshaping Pride events. “We’ll probably look back at the latter half of the 2010s as a period when Pride became much more of a party. This year we’re not even having concerts. We’re having a rally in Sunderland. That tells you how the dynamic has shifted.”

Gateshead council, defending the changes, said it would only fly the union flag and St George’s Cross from council buildings but would continue to support civic, cultural and community events.

Wakefield council said it had adopted a more consistent approach focused on civic, national and military service flags, while Kent county council said it did not fly “cause-specific or community campaign flags” on its buildings.

Warwickshire Pride said they had “severely” felt the impact of the Reform administration since the party had won local elections in 2025. “From not permitting the Pride flag to fly, to announcing that Warwickshire Pride should not receive council funding, and this week saying [they] want LGBTQ+ books and information banned from Warwickshire’s libraries and schools, we are seeing hate towards our charity rise as a direct result,” said the charity’s chair, Daniel Browne.

Browne had requested the Pride and Trans flag fly at the county council on behalf of Warwickshire Pride, but was not surprised when the requests were declined. However, when the county council’s chair changed from Reform to Conservative, it was decided the flag would be raised this month.

Reform’s actions have affected the communities they serve, Browne said. The charity’s services include coffee mornings, LGBTQ+ counselling, youth groups and social events, where attenders have said as a direct result of the changes they have experienced increased anxiety, self-harming behaviours and hate incidents.

Browne said: “We’re stretched, under attack ourselves, and that’s difficult to navigate, but we remain here for Warwickshire’s LGBTQ+ population and will continue to push back against attempts to erase us or discriminate against us.”

Keyword – News
Trefwoorden – Jamaica, Caribbean, Americas, World news, Access to green space, Environment
Title – Jamaican beach access campaigners go to court to fight privatisation of coast | Jamaica | The Guardian
Author – https://www.theguardian.com/profile/natricia-duncan,https://www.theguardian.com/profile/anthony-lugg
Link – Jamaican beach access campaigners go to court to fight privatisation of coast | Jamaica | The Guardian
Publish date – 2026-06-14T11:00:43.000Z
Category – SpecialReportAlt
URL – https://www.theguardian.com/news/2026/jun/14/jamaica-beach-access-court-fight-privatisation-coast

Campaigners in Jamaica are heading to court next week to try to prevent the government from cutting off access to more of their beaches.

They argue that ceding their shorelines to big hotel chains enriches private investors and benefits tourists and outsiders while depriving Jamaicans who depend on the sea for their livelihoods, leisure and health.

The legal battle is being led by the Jamaica Beach Birthright Environmental Movement (Jabbem), created in 2020 after community members clashed with police in violent protests over the closure of Mammee Bay, in the popular tourist parish of St Ann.

Five court cases will begin later this month to try to prevent the privatisation of Mammee Bay and Little Dunn’s River in St Ann, the Blue Lagoon in the north-eastern coastal parish of Portland, Bob Marley beach in St Andrew, and Flankers/Providence beach in the tourism capital of Montego Bay.

Jabbem’s founder, Devon Taylor, described the cases as a fight for survival. “The sea is the only source of wild food in Jamaica. And when you cut us off from the sea by denying us access, you are actually setting us up to starve,” he said.

Roseroy Gay, 64, who has fished the waters of the Blue Lagoon since 1979, said fishing zone changes and beach closures had resulted in him needing support from children and other family members abroad.

Other livelihoods are also at risk. Clive “Up Up” Ivy, who sells painted woodcarvings and bead necklaces in Little Dunn’s River, said the uncertainty and closures of the beach were having a marked impact on his ability to earn a living.

Jabbem and other community groups hope the cases will end the 1956 Beach Control Act , which gave the state ownership of the island’s foreshore and seabed, meaning anyone wanting to use or develop a beach needed government permission.

The campaigners say the law, which dates back to when Jamaica was a British colony, props up a multibillion-dollar all-inclusive tourism industry that funnels profits out of the country or into the hands of an elite minority.

Taylor said the system perpetuated landlessness and inequity. “The prime minister has the power, through his cabinet, to address these issues. It’s a political unwillingness and it does not start with this prime minister, because the Beach Control Act has been in place since 1956 and Jamaica has had successive governments who did not attempt to repeal it,” he said.

Matthew Samuda, the minister of environment and climate change, said that while the “idea of access needs to be explored”, the government had to consider how it could convert Jamaica’s natural assets into “economic benefit that helps you, me, every single citizen, the poorest among us, the richest among us”.

He said between 112,000 and 116,000 Jamaicans were employed in the tourism sector, and an estimated 300,000 to 350,000 – more than 10% of the population – benefited through connected industries such as farming, transportation, craft vending and electrical engineering.

“Recent approvals for new developments … especially where public land was involved in the development, have insisted that developers carve out corridors to the sea,” Samuda said. “Jamaica has the commitment of its government to ensure that its natural assets also benefit its citizens.”

In March the prime minister, Andrew Holness, proposed a beach access and management policy , which promises to modernise the legislation and increase access . But campaigners say the policy still allows unacceptable restrictions.

Taylor said: “What that policy is trying to say is that Jamaicans will not have fundamental rights. They will have only qualified rights. And that qualified right will be set by a licence that a developer will have for the beach.”

Jabbem’s director of community engagement, Damion Coombs, echoed his concerns. “We are still talking about ‘qualified rights’, meaning somebody can decide if you come in – and maybe charge a fee. What we are fighting for is free, legal, unfettered, forever rights,” he said.

Campaigners have also raised concerns about another law, the National Reconstruction and Resilience Authority (Narra) Act, passed in March this year to fast-track rebuilding after Hurricane Melissa. They argue this will weaken the 1882 Prescription Act , which protects the legal right to land or pathways that have been continuously used as a public access route for at least 20 years.

“The Narra Act is going to interfere with the last remaining tool that we use to fight for beaches in Jamaica, which is the Prescription Act,” Taylor said. “And it’s doing so because it will interrupt the continuous use of beaches, restrict access to information under a secrecy clause and concentrate power in the office of the prime minister.”

He said the act removed crucial checks and balances that ensured transparency and accountability, making the prime minister “a supreme leader”.

Omar Newell, the shadow environment minister, had similar concerns. “Narra concentrates a ridiculous amount of power in the hands of one minister, the prime minister,” he said. He also questioned whether the act was designed to consider long-term environmental impacts.

Samuda defended the act, insisting that it facilitated the “large-scale, urgent procurement … required to build in resilience before the next storm”. He said: “There’s no weakening of oversight. You still have to come to the parliament. You still require the necessary permits. What it does is it guarantees a timely response to delivery of projects.”

Keyword – Sport
Trefwoorden – NBA finals, New York Knicks, San Antonio Spurs, Basketball, NBA, US sports, Sport
Title – Knicks beat Spurs to win their first NBA title since 1973 as brilliant Brunson shines again | NBA finals | The Guardian
Author – https://www.theguardian.com/profile/tom-dart
Link – Knicks beat Spurs to win their first NBA title since 1973 as brilliant Brunson shines again | NBA finals | The Guardian
Publish date – 2026-06-14T03:43:54.000Z
Category – Sport
URL – https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/jun/13/new-york-knicks-win-nba-title-san-antonio-spurs

Good things come to those who wait for a long, long time. The New York Knicks clinched their first NBA championship in 53 years with another thrilling late comeback win over the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday.

Three days after grabbing a 3-1 NBA finals series lead by completing the largest comeback in finals history at Madison Square Garden, the Knicks sealed the deal on the road with another epic display of resilience and recovery, stunning the Spurs at Frost Bank Center.

As the Spurs blew a 16-point lead and wilted under pressure, missing a swath of makable shots, and with their young superstar Victor Wembanyama faltering when it mattered most, the Knicks’ Jalen Brunson hauled his fitful side to glory with a commanding performance, putting up 45 points in a 94-90 victory.

“I don’t know what I’m feeling,” Brunson, fighting back tears, said after the game. He was later names the NBA finals MVP. “I’m just like, I’m in awe. I don’t know. Whenever someone counted us out, we found a way to come back and do something about it.”

The Knicks had moved to the brink of the championship on Wednesday when they shredded the Spurs’ 29-point cushion thanks to an astonishing second-half surge crowned by a feathery game-winning tip-in from OG Anunoby with 1.2 seconds left. That 107-106 win tilted the balance of the series firmly in their favour, but San Antonio began resolutely in front of their own fans on Saturday only to let a big advantage slip again.

“There aren’t really words you can put into what these guys have done, the character that they have, the fight they have, the grit they have, the never-say-die attitude,” team president Leon Rose said. “It’s incredible. Incredible, the run they’ve been on.”

This series deserved its stellar ratings, including the biggest television audience for a Game 4 since 1998, with stars shining on the court and on the sidelines – a bevy of famous names made the trip to Texas for Saturday’s game, including Prince Harry. It has been compelling and confounding – close battles that at times looked anything but, with Mike Brown’s Knicks escapologists hauling themselves out of deep holes. Mitch Johnson’s Spurs, meanwhile, have been at fault for failing to raise the escape rope out of reach.

“Everybody knows we’re gonna do it,” Wembanyama told reporters on Friday. Expectant fans who thronged bars and watch parties in New York disagreed, but the skyscraping star backed his words with deeds, at least in the opening stages. Yet as the night wore on he appeared to tire, not for the first time in these finals. He had five blocks less than five minutes into the second quarter of a contest with echoes of the earlier match-ups: a fast Spurs start followed by a slowdown.

The Cleveland Cavaliers, who beat the Golden State Warriors in 2016 , remain the only team to have recovered from a 3-1 deficit in the finals. San Antonio’s problems had seemed fixable: game-management issues stemming from inexperience and fatigue, rather than inferior ability.

The Spurs held double-digit leads in all five games and raced into an 18-8 advantage in the first quarter on Saturday, aided by repeated New York turnovers but mainly powered by a furious intensity that left the visitors gasping for breath and searching for a way past a resolute defense. It was 23-13 at the end of the first quarter, with the Knicks a mere 4 for 22 on field goal attempts.

The advantage swelled to 16 points midway through the second quarter before a momentum shift. Though Karl-Anthony Towns was making more fouls than points – and would ultimately foul out – a scorching scoring streak from Brunson saw the lead sliced to seven. Then De’Aaron Fox – he of the costly “dumbass play” in Game 4 – was whistled for doing something that certainly wasn’t smart: a flagrant foul for a shove on Josh Hart in what turned into a five-point possession for New York.

At half-time the Spurs held only a five-point lead, which looked ominously modest for them given their dominance on the night amid New York’s scoring woes and in the wider context of their tendency to fade late.

Though New York received scant offensive help from their bench the third quarter was initially tight, with the teams trading baskets and the temperature rising. Brown and Brunson were livid that a landing-zone flagrant foul was not called against Wembanyama after Brunson notched a three-pointer then fell awkwardly on his ankle under contact. It could have been a crucial moment in the series: with three flagrant points already against him before the game, Wembanyama was one more infraction away from an automatic one-game suspension.

With nine successive points from the impressive 20-year-old rookie Dylan Harper, who scored 25 points on the night, San Antonio built a 15-point advantage deep into the third quarter, but the Knicks promptly pegged them back and were only seven points behind as the game entered its final period.

As Wembanyama struggled to command the court, Brunson almost single-handedly kept the Knicks close and the mood grew tense in the stands, with memories fresh of the Spurs’ nightmarish collapse in the previous game. For good reason: Brunson’s brilliance tied the game inside the last five minutes, scoring his 40th point with a lay-up that was the visitors’ 10th point a row, then giving his team the lead.

They held on to it as San Antonio grew desperate and ragged, and duly claimed their third title, and their first since 1973, proving that what matters most is not how you start – it’s how you finish.

Keyword – Football
Trefwoorden – World Cup 2026, Mohamed Salah, Egypt football team, World Cup, Football, Sport
Title – Mohamed Salah has eyes of a nation on him as Egypt look to end 92-year wait | World Cup 2026 | The Guardian
Author – https://www.theguardian.com/profile/yara-el-shaboury
Link – Mohamed Salah has eyes of a nation on him as Egypt look to end 92-year wait | World Cup 2026 | The Guardian
Publish date – 2026-06-14T13:17:55.000Z
Category – Sport
URL – https://www.theguardian.com/football/2026/jun/14/mohamed-salah-has-eyes-of-a-nation-on-him-as-egypt-look-to-end-92-year-wait

L ast week Orange, one of Egypt’s leading mobile network operators, released a series of humorous adverts starring Egypt’s Ahmed Fatouh, Rami Rabia and Hossam Abdelmaguid, where the trio’s optimism is met with scepticism as partners and family members struggle to take them seriously. Their crime? Daring to suggest Egypt might finally progress beyond the group stage of a World Cup.

If there is one thing Egyptians do particularly well, it is self-deprecation. Perhaps that comes from history. Despite winning the Africa Cup of Nations seven times, Egypt are still waiting for their first World Cup victory. The Pharaohs will kick off their fourth appearance at the tournament against Belgium on Monday knowing they failed to win any of their seven matches so far. That is the contradiction at the heart of Egyptian football. No African nation has won more continental titles, yet Egypt remain one of the continent’s World Cup underachievers. While other African nations aim to replicate Morocco’s 2022 semi-final success, many Egyptians would happily settle for something far more modest: a single group stage victory.

Qualification for the World Cup was remarkably straightforward by Egyptian standards. The Pharaohs topped their qualifying group unbeaten and – like many African nations – they benefited greatly from Fifa’s 48-team tournament expansion; the country’s golden generation of the 2000s never managed to reach the World Cup despite dominating the continent. This time, Mohamed Salah was Egypt’s main man during qualifying, scoring nine, assisting three goals and playing virtually every minute of the campaign.

However, the Egypt captain arrives at this World Cup in very different circumstances to the player at the 2018 edition. In Russia, Salah was still establishing himself after coming off a sensational first season at Liverpool; he had yet to build the trophy-laden résumé that would make him one of the greatest Premier League players. Egyptians adored him for ending the country’s 28-year World Cup exile with a dramatic stoppage-time penalty, while the wider football world was still unsure whether his 2017-18 form was just a flash in the pan.

Now, at 34, there is little left for Salah to prove. He won every major honour available at Liverpool and whether Egypt exit in the group stage or make the round of 32, few non-Egyptians will fundamentally alter their assessment of his career.

In Egypt, however, the stakes are different. If Salah manages to guide the nation to an elusive World Cup win, his international legacy in his country will soar. Salah remains the undisputed focal point of the national side and delivering an inaugural win – and perhaps even guiding Egypt into the knockout rounds – would surpass the feats of every Egyptian player who came before him. Salah is also closing in on Hossam Hassan’s record as Egypt’s all-time leading scorer, needing just two more goals to draw level despite having played 61 fewer matches than the man now patrolling the touchline.

“We have great players – I am very happy with my squad – but, of course, we depend on Salah in big moments,” said Hassan. “He scores goals, he creates chances. We need him to be at his best and he will be. I am confident he can guide us to victories.”

For the second World Cup running, Salah arrives carrying an injury. In 2018, it was the shoulder injury from the Champions League final that impeded him throughout the tournament. This time it is a hamstring problem that disrupted the closing weeks of his Liverpool career. It is frustrating for Egypt that Salah has maintained such a remarkable record of fitness throughout his club career only to arrive hampered at the World Cup again.

Encouragingly though, the situation appears less serious than eight years ago, when Salah was spotted before Egypt’s decisive match against Russia needing the help of three teammates to put on his shirt during a training session. When asked about his fitness after Egypt arrived in the United States, Salah sidestepped the question, simply saying: “We need to focus on our camp and just train hard and we will see. We want to make the people proud and we will do our best. It is a tough group. Everyone has a chance so we will give it our best and we will see. Hopefully we can go far.”

There is a reason Egyptians approach World Cups with equal parts hope and humour. History has taught them to expect disappointment. But history has never given them a player quite like Salah. The irony is Egypt’s captain arrives at what may be the most important World Cup of his career with the least left to prove. Long before Salah, Egypt were the first African nation to play at a World Cup in 1934. The self-deprecating jokes, the adverts and the gallows humour are all part of the national character, but even the best punchlines wear thin. And most Egyptians would agree that after 92 years, one World Cup win would do just fine.

Keyword – Politics
Trefwoorden – Wes Streeting, Immigration and asylum, Labour party leadership, Labour, Oil, Gas, Energy bills, Politics, UK news, Science, Business
Title – Wes Streeting plans to increase high-skilled immigration if he becomes PM | Wes Streeting | The Guardian
Author – https://www.theguardian.com/profile/markbrown
Link – Wes Streeting plans to increase high-skilled immigration if he becomes PM | Wes Streeting | The Guardian
Publish date – 2026-06-14T11:42:26.000Z
Category – News
URL – https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2026/jun/14/wes-streeting-high-skilled-immigration-labour-leadership-tax-revenue-north-sea-oil-gas

Wes Streeting’s pitch to be the next Labour leader will include a plan to increase high-skilled immigration to the UK, arguing that Donald Trump is telling scientists and AI experts they are not welcome in the US.

In a speech this coming week, the former health secretary will also say that tax revenues from new North Sea oil and gasfields should be used to cut energy bills.

Streeting is preparing to challenge Andy Burnham and others in a leadership race to replace Keir Starmer as prime minister.

Streeting will announce a plan to loosen immigration restrictions in order to “attract the best and the brightest minds from around the world” to Britain.

His aides said as leader he would introduce a global talent programme with a target of recruiting 20,000 world-leading scientists, AI experts and engineers over the next three years. The programme would be housed in No 10 and have a budget of £250m.

Streeting said the Trump administration was hostile towards global science and Britain should take advantage.

“We should open our door to the best and the brightest,” he said. “Trump is saying to world-leading scientists, engineers, AI experts – you’re not welcome here. I would tell them: we’ll welcome you with open arms.

“Voters who want lower levels of migration aren’t opposed to inviting tomorrow’s Nobel prize winners to make their discoveries here in Britain.”

Streeting’s second policy proposal centres around the controversial prospect of new North Sea oil and gasfields being given the green light by the government.

The energy secretary, Ed Miliband, has come under huge pressure from the oil industry and opposition parties to allow production at the Jackdaw and Rosebank fields.

Streeting will say that tax receipts from the two new fields should be hypothecated and used to fund initiatives that cut energy bills and emissions.

“Businesses and households are held back by high energy costs,” he said. “The tax receipts from new North Sea oil and gasfields should be funnelled into cheaper energy: insulation, heat pumps, and electrification to cut bills and emissions.

“Opponents of the North Sea [drilling] say it sets the wrong example to the world. But the worst example we can set is that net zero can only be delivered on the backs of the poor and working people’s jobs. This is the route to Nigel Farage walking into Downing Street and destroying our renewables industry.”

Those who are against allowing new production argue it will imperil international emissions targets , undermine the UK’s climate leadership and encourage developing countries to exploit their own fossil fuel reserves.

On Thursday, Burham will stand in the Makerfield byelection and bookmakers are offering odds of 1/7 on him winning . The mayor of Greater Manchester intends to put public control of water and energy at the heart of his agenda should he become prime minister.

Keyword – Sport
Trefwoorden – Women’s T20 World Cup 2026, Ireland women’s cricket team, Women’s T20 World Cup, Women’s cricket, Sport, Cricket
Title – Bryce powers Scotland to maiden Women’s T20 World Cup win against Ireland | Women's T20 World Cup 2026 | The Guardian
Author – https://www.theguardian.com/profile/raf-nicholson
Link – Bryce powers Scotland to maiden Women’s T20 World Cup win against Ireland | Women's T20 World Cup 2026 | The Guardian
Publish date – 2026-06-13T14:14:00.000Z
Category – Sport
URL – https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2026/jun/13/scotland-ireland-womens-world-t20-cup-match-report

Scotland recorded a historic maiden World Cup win on Saturday, beating Ireland by 40 runs. The Scotland captain, Kathryn Bryce, struck a powerful 60 from 39 balls and followed it with a brilliant one-handed caught-and-bowled to see off Alana Dalzell in the first over of Ireland’s chase.

It was also an emotional occasion for Kirstie Gordon, who switched allegiance to her native Scotland this year after playing a handful of internationals for England in 2018-19. Gordon had been in tears before play as Flower of Scotland rang out around the ground, but she was all smiles three hours later after returning figures of three for 16.

The 28-year-old came within a whisker of a World Cup hat-trick – turning a ball just past the bat of Orla Prendergast – but by then she had already drained the last hope from Ireland’s run chase with a three-wicket over, bowling Rebecca Stokell and Alice Tector and holding on to a sharp return catch from Leah Paul.

The off-spinner Katherine Fraser chimed in with three wickets including the key one of Gaby Lewis, stumped for 11, while Prendergast was run out for 33 as Ireland were dismissed for 121 in 19.1 overs.

Fraser said the team’s reaction was “a lot of joy”. “Being able to sing the anthem with so many Scottish supporters there was really special,” she said. “All of us were pretty emotional.

“We’ve spent so much of our careers not being professional cricketers. People training after work, having to take unpaid leave to play for Scotland. That has been difficult. This is the result of a lot of hard work paying off.”

Bryce and Lewis had talked up this match as a “massive rivalry” last weekend. A few years ago these two teams would have been an even match: until 2024, Scotland had never featured in a World Cup, while this is Ireland’s fifth.

But with Scottish players (including Bryce, Gordon and Fraser) now able to play in England as domestic professionals, and Irish ones locked out of that option by virtue of Ireland being a full member of the International Cricket Council (ICC), this contest at times had a feeling of amateurs against pros. Scotland ran harder, fielded better and looked like a well-drilled unit.

Scotland’s 162 for five was founded on a 106-run partnership between the Bryce sisters, who played to their strengths: Kathryn powerful down the ground, while Sarah cut beautifully, although the pair also hammered a six apiece over wide long-on.

Ireland won the toss and chose to bowl first, but conditions proved tricky for fielding. It was so windy that the World Cup 2026 carpet had to be nailed into the outfield to stop it blowing into the Bridgewater canal, while the ICC unfurled comically miniature versions of the saltire and the tricolour during the anthems to prevent the flag-bearers being swept off their feet.

Big hits from Darcey Carter, Fraser, Kathryn Bryce and Lister swirled past the hands of fielders in the deep. Carter and Fraser fell relatively cheaply – Tector finally held on to a catch at deep midwicket, while Carter was bowled by Aimee Maguire’s yorker – but Bryce made Ireland pay for their errors.

Prendergast said the loss – their 18th successive defeat in World Cups – was “absolutely gutting”. “This is a game we’ve looked at for a long time now and Scotland are a team that we know we can beat,” she said. “We’re a way better side than we showed.”