Witnesses recount Israeli troops opening fire on crowd at Gaza aid hub
At least 31 people were killed and scores were wounded on Sunday as they were on their way to receive food in the Gaza Strip, according to health officials and multiple witnesses. (AP Production by Wafaa Shurafa)
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New York Times
26 minutes ago
- New York Times
Bruno Fernandes on rejecting Al Hilal to stay at Manchester United: ‘I want to stay at the highest level'
Bruno Fernandes says he is 'happy' with his decision to stay at Manchester United following a lucrative offer to leave the club from Saudi Arabia. The Athletic reported on Friday that, Fernandes, 30, was giving serious consideration to an approach from Saudi Pro League side Al Hilal. Fernandes' agent had flown to Saudi Arabia for negotiations and according to sources with knowledge of the situation, speaking on the condition of anonymity, the proposal was for four years on €25million a year net, equivalent to triple his current salary, while Al Hilal were said to be prepared to pay United £80m. Advertisement However, Fernandes has opted to remain at Old Trafford after talks with head coach Ruben Amorim and his family. 'There was that possibility, the president of Al Hilal called me a month ago to ask,' he said at a press conference while on international duty with Portugal. 'There was a waiting period on my part to think about what the future would hold. I would be open to it, if Manchester United felt it was my time. I spoke with Mister Ruben Amorim, who really tried to talk me out of it. I spoke with the club, which wasn't willing to sell, only if I truly wanted to leave. We never talked about money; that was all handled by my agent, not me. 'I spoke with my family to understand if that was what I wanted for my future. It was actually my wife who asked me — I never said yes or no. She put my professional priorities ahead of everything else. 'It would have been an easy move. I had Ruben Neves and Joao Cancelo there, two people I have a great friendship with. But I want to stay at the highest level, play in big competitions, because I still feel capable. I want to keep being happy, I'm still very passionate about this sport, and I'm happy with my decision.' Amorim said after United's 3-1 victory over Hong Kong in Friday's post-season friendly that he did not believe that Fernandes would be departing the club. 'I don't think so,' he said when asked about the possibility of his captain leaving. '(Fernandes) is seeing us changing some actions to change all the things and I think he wants to stay. He is saying no to a lot of things. But he shows that he wants to win. He is really hungry. He is really good. He needs to be in the best league in the world.' Fernandes finished the 2024-25 campaign as United's top scorer with 19 goals in 53 appearances across all competitions. The midfielder was instrumental in United's run to the Europa League final, scoring seven goals in the competition, including two in the dramatic quarter-final victory over Lyon. Speaking after the Europa League final defeat to Tottenham Hotspur, Fernandes said he intended to stay at United but understood if the club wanted to 'cash in' on him. 'I've always said I will be here until the club says to me that it's time to go,' he said. 'I'm eager to do more, to be able to bring the club to great days. Advertisement 'In the day that the club thinks that I'm too much or it's time to part ways, football is like this, you never know it. 'If the club thinks it's time to part ways because they want to do some cash-in, football sometimes is like this.' Fernandes' United contract runs until 2027 with the option of a further 12 months after signing an extension last August. The Athletic reported in May 2024 United had met Fernandes to discuss his future, and it was underlined that the INEOS-led regime intended to continue building around the Portugal international. He had been seeking clarity on United's direction and whether their ambition matched his. United experienced another disappointing campaign and finished the season with their lowest points haul and lowest position of the Premier League era. Defeat in the Europa League final also ensured United missed out on Champions League qualification, contributing to United's increasingly difficult financial position. Fernandes was signed from Sporting CP in January 2020 and has won the FA Cup and League Cup during his five and a half years in Manchester. He has made 290 appearances for the club, scoring 98 goals and providing 86 assists. Amorim's feeling that Fernandes wanted to stay has proved to be accurate, even though United's captain was giving Al Hilal's offer serious thought. After further talks with Fernandes' agent in Riyadh, the Saudi Arabian club were, according to sources, willing to up their salary offer to €35m per year net, effectively £565,000 per week after tax. Having started out by suggesting a bid of £80million would be made to United, the figure projected rose to £100m. United, it must be said, received no direct communication on these numbers and there was some scepticism within Old Trafford that such mega money would come to fruition. Nevertheless, the prospect of a huge injection of cash for a 30-year-old prompted some internal discussion. Had Fernandes chosen to push for a move, there could have been valid arguments made for accepting an enormous bid and reinvesting it in multiple players. Advertisement The importance of Fernandes to the team cannot be understated, however. His goals and assists in all competitions this season effectively turned eight defeats into wins. He scored 19 goals in 57 games, the most of any player in the squad by eight, with Alejandro Garnacho and Amad next on 11. Then there is the Fernandes impact that cannot be measured by statistics, the soft skills he exhibits around the team hotel or training ground, bringing teammates onside, making fans feel welcome, encouraging staff members. That quality is invaluable, and losing that would have chipped away at United's heart. Plus, there would be no guarantee United would bring in the right replacements. Fernandes staying does throw up an interesting conundrum on positions in Amorim's system. Matheus Cunha is earmarked for the left No. 10, while Bryan Mbeumo is a fit on the right side should United manage to agree a fee with Brentford. Fernandes has played deeper recently, and rotation is a gift United have been deprived of for much of the last two seasons, but given the absence of European football there will not be as many games to keep players satisfied. It is perhaps telling how Amorim selected Amad as right wing-back for both matches on tour. There is an ironic consequence of Fernandes' call. Al Hilal are said to now be determined to push through their other marquee target Victor Osimhen, who has been discussed at United. They are able to offer a higher salary than previously due to extra cash reallocated from Fernandes, meaning United face an even bigger uphill task should they choose to pursue a deal. ()
Yahoo
28 minutes ago
- Yahoo
South Korea's new leader Lee has lived a turbulent life. Now, big challenges await him
SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Lee Jae-myung was a child laborer with an arm deformity. He attempted suicide. He later made his way through university and became a highly divisive politician who survived a stabbing attack and struggles with numerous criminal charges. His turbulent life climaxed on Wednesday, as Lee, 60, the candidate of the main liberal Democratic Party, was confirmed as South Korea's new president to succeed his conservative archrival Yoon Suk Yeol, who was ousted over his stunning imposition of martial law. There are both hopes and fears about Lee's win. Supporters think he's an able leader who can get things done and fix the country's deep-rooted economic inequality and corruption. But critics say Lee will likely oppress political opponents and intensify a domestic division. Here's a look at Lee, whose single, five-year presidency begins on Wednesday: Childhood poverty After graduating from an elementary school, Lee had to work at various factories in Seongnam, a city near Seoul, because his family couldn't afford his secondary education. At a factory manufacturing baseball gloves, he had his left forearm crushed by a press machine, getting a permanent arm disability. Lee said he suffered beating at his factories and hated encountering a girl who was a neighbor when he helped his garbage collector father's work at a traditional market. Despaired, Lee tried to kill himself twice, both unsuccessfully. He later got back on his feet and entered Seoul's Chung-Ang University with a full scholarship, before he became a human rights lawyer. 'Hopes and ordeals always come together. The roles of ordeals are not getting people to surrender, but testing how serious and desperate their hopes are,' Lee said in a memoir published in 2017. Liberal firebrand Lee later entered politics and became Seongnam mayor and governor of Gyeonggi province. Once a political outsider, Lee rose to prominence in 2016 after he made a series of fiery street speeches criticizing then conservative President Park Geun-hye, who was later removed from office over a corruption scandal. 'Let's seize her with our hands and consign her to history," Lee said during one rally in December 2016. Many of his comments have since sharply polarized South Koreans. Lee vilified South Korea's conservative establishment as greedy 'fake conservatives." He slammed a U.S. missile defense system in South Korea as a source of tensions and likened strengthening U.S.-Japan ties to a 1905 Washington-Tokyo agreement that he said helped Japan colonize the Korean Peninsula later. Lee's proposal of giving a universal basic income to all citizens have invited accusations that he's a populist. In 2022, he lost the hotly contested presidential election to Yoon. In 2024, Lee was attacked by a man who told investigators that he wanted to kill Lee to prevent him from becoming president. Foreign policy challenges Recently, Lee has made few contentious or radical comments on foreign policy and security issues, and rather has promised to pursue pragmatic diplomacy. He's repeatedly described South Korea's alliance with the U.S. as the foundation of the country's foreign policy and stressed the need to maintain a trilateral Seoul-Washington-Tokyo security partnership. 'When it comes to what Lee said in the past, we don't know whether he made such comments only to appeal to his supporters or whether they showed his true nature,' said Shin Yul, a politics professor at Seoul's Myonggi University. The major issues that Lee will immediately face is U.S. President Donald Trump's trade war and other 'America First' policies, and North Korea's advancing nuclear program. They are both vital issues for South Korea, but many experts say there isn't much diplomatic room for South Korea to maneuver in to produce major changes in its favor in both matters. Paik Wooyeal, a professor at Seoul's Yonsei University, said that Trump is 'too overwhelming and dominant,' so that whoever is in South Korean leadership, the country's dealings with the U.S. won't be much different. He said that foreign policy advisers for Lee would also know that North Korea won't voluntarily give up its nuclear weapons. Legal woods Lee comes to office under the shadow of his own legal troubles. He stands accused in five trials over corruption and other charges, and at one point, some of his legal battles threatened his bid for presidency. Lee celebrated in March when the Seoul High Court overturned a suspended prison sentence against him for violating the election law during the 2022 race. But he fumed in May when the Supreme Court quashed that ruling and sent the case back to the high court, citing a strong likelihood of his guilt. Hearings at the high court were eventually postponed until after the election. Had his conviction been finalized, Lee would have been barred from running for president. Other trials center around his roles in dubious development projects and illegal money transfers to North Korea, and his alleged misuse of official funds and persuading of a witness to commit perjury. Lee's five trials will likely stop as South Korea's constitution prevents a sitting president from being charged with most crimes. But his rivals will take issue with it, because the constitution doesn't clearly state whether a president can be convicted for crimes in which indictments came before taking up office. Lee's Democratic Party, which holds a majority in the National Assembly, has been pushing to revise the criminal procedure law to suspend ongoing criminal trials involving a sitting president until the end of their term. Conservatives have harshly lambasted the move. National split During the presidential campaign, Lee vowed not to pursue a vendetta against conservatives. However, he has also called for a thorough investigation into Yoon and his inner circle over rebellion allegations. Lee's opponents worry he could use those investigations to clamp down on Yoon associates and prosecutors who he thinks orchestrated inquiries involving his criminal charges. Yoon's martial law stunt intensified a domestic divide. Declaring martial law, Yoon portrayed Lee's party as 'anti-state' forces influenced by North Korea and China. He has also endorsed baseless election fraud theories to discredit the liberals' legislative majority, prompting his angry supporters to pour onto the streets with 'Stop the Steal' signs. Anti-Yoon activists and citizens, for their part, also rallied for weeks to demand his immediate dismissal. With liberals remaining in control of the legislature, Lee faces a far more favorable environment to advance his policies. Conservatives have voiced concern that Lee and the Democratic Party will wield virtually unchecked power to pass legislation previously blocked by Yoon's administration, including bills aimed at strengthening protections for labor unionists against corporate lawsuits and shielding farmers from volatile rice prices. Hyung-jin Kim And Kim Tong-hyung, The Associated Press Sign in to access your portfolio
Wall Street Journal
29 minutes ago
- Wall Street Journal
Israel Can't Nix Iran's Nukes
Declaring that it is 'now or never' for Israel to take out Iran's nuclear program, Reuel Marc Gerecht and Ray Takeyh ignore a lesson of the Gaza war: You can't eliminate what you can't find ('Iran Takes Trump's Negotiators for a Ride,' op-ed, May 28). Consider, after months of fighting in the Palestinian enclave, that the massive Israeli effort has yet to uncover all the tunnels and other redoubts secluding Hamas fighters and Israeli hostages. Against the Middle East's geographic Jupiter, could the Israeli air force do a better job in finding and eliminating the totality of Iran's nuclear enterprise? Can it prevent rebuilding, mindful that Tehran reconstituted key elements despite Israel's repeated sabotage? Absent a proficient expeditionary ground force to find, search and destroy all suspect nuclear sites or the use of its nuclear arsenal, 'now or never' Israel doesn't have the capability. Bennett Ramberg
