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Newsweek
01-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Newsweek
Pro Wrestling Notes: Rob Van Dam Injury, Ex-WWE Star Debuts in TNA, More
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. WrestleMania 41 has come and gone, and the wrestling world continues to turn, with exciting events happening with wrestlers at all levels. More Pro Wrestling: Hulk Hogan Officially Reveals New Wrestling Promotion 'Bigger' Than WWE, UFC Here is all the latest news you need to know about WWE, AEW, and all of professional wrestling. Rob Van Dam, WWE Raw Superstar and six time Intercontinental Champion at the premiere of 'See No Evil.' Rob Van Dam, WWE Raw Superstar and six time Intercontinental Champion at the premiere of 'See No Evil.' John Sciulli/WireImage for LIONSGATE WWE Legend Rob Van Dam Severely Injured In Latest Match Rob Van Dam remains one of the most popular wrestlers in the history of the sport, taking home the WWE Championship, the ECW World Heavyweight Championship, the TNA World Championship, the ECW Television Championship, and the Intercontinental Championship six times. Unfortunately, in a recent match, the WWE Hall of Famer suffered severe injuries while wrestling for Major League Wrestling (MLW), and it has significantly impacted his schedule. To read the full story, click here. Released WWE Superstar Signs With TNA Wrestling Fans were disheartened in November 2024 when multiple beloved WWE Superstars were released from the company, including former NXT Women's Champion Indie Hartwell. Now, these same fans are ecstatic to see that Hartwell has signed with TNA, partially because of her pro wrestling career continuing, and partially because TNA is now working closely with WWE, meaning she could find her way back to the promotion. To read the full story, click here. Liv Morgan Is Stepping Away From WWE Liv Morgan arguably had the best year of her career in 2024. Not only was she and "Dirty" Dominik Mysterio part of an epic feud with Rhea Ripley, she held the Women's World Championship for an impressive 226 days. Now, the talented superstar has announced that she will be stepping away from WWE in order to take part in an exciting new project. To read the full story, click here. Bryan Danielson Finally Reveals Why He Left WWE For AEW The pro wrestling world was delighted when modern pro wrestling legend Bryan Danielson left WWE for AEW. Not only was he able to regain his love for the sport, but he also had one of the most exciting world title reigns in recent memory. Now, Danielson has revealed the true reason he left WWE, noting that another beloved wrestling figure inspired him to make the change. To read the full story, click here. Here are some other stories about WWE, AEW, and professional wrestling you need to know: WWE Superstar Retires From Pro Wrestling Former WWE Superstar Is Returning To NXT Seth Rollins Paid Absurd Amount Of Money For Extravagant WWE Outfit For more news about WWE, AEW, and all of professional wrestling, head on over to Newsweek Sports.
Al Manar
21-04-2025
- Politics
- Al Manar
The Phantom of the Embassy: How Lebanon's Resistance Outmaneuvered an Empire
April 18, 1983, the walls of the US embassy erected as a hive for dozens of CIA agents and their collaborators operating on Lebanese soil on in accordance and association with the Israeli enemy are reduced to rubble, burying those inside. This would be the first of many messages sent by the burgeoning Lebanese Islamic Resistance Movement that would later become Hezbollah to the US empire and its allies. These attacks, including a massive organized bombing against the US marine base in the Beirut International Airport eventually lead to a complete withdrawal of US presence in the then war-torn Lebanese state. A US presence that just like any other, sought nothing more than to exploit chaos in its own favor, to consolidate power and broker alliances for itself within the upper and lower echelons of the country. It is tradition for US marines to celebrate the fallen of every campaign the US army has undergone. According to retired Marine Colonel Chuck Dallachie the Marine Corps celebrates everything. Everything, that is, except for Beirut. 'Because it was a mistake,' said Dallachie, who served there in 1983. 'The Marine Corps does not celebrate mistakes.' US President Ronald Reagan denounced the 'vicious terrorist bombing' as a 'cowardly act,' saying, 'This criminal act on a diplomatic establishment will not deter us from our goals of peace in the region', as if peace was ever a goal of any current or former US administration. But let's not look at the past, the present-day embassy we have in our own country today is proof enough that there is never only diplomacy hidden behind the doors of any US embassy. We've discussed fairly in previous pieces how large and expansive the US embassy in Lebanon is, resembling nothing more than a military base. Instead, let's talk about the real reason the embassy of 1983 was a target of the most brilliant strategic minds in Hezbollah. Robert Baer, a former CIA case officer who worked across West Asia, has been unequivocal about the true function of U.S. embassies. In his memoir See No Evil, Baer revealed that 'every American embassy is a nest of spies', with CIA operatives operating under diplomatic cover to recruit assets, gather intelligence, and influence local politics. He explained that the station chief—often the second-most powerful figure in an embassy—runs covert operations while diplomats provide a façade of legitimacy. Baer, who served in Lebanon during the civil war, noted that the 1983 embassy was no exception, functioning as a command center for monitoring Lebanese factions, arming proxies, and coordinating with Israel. His admissions confirm what resistance groups long understood: US embassies are not neutral diplomatic missions but forward bases for imperial subversion. Robert Baer's own assignments in Lebanon laid bare the CIA's manipulative role in the country's turmoil. During his tenure in the 1980s, Baer was tasked with cultivating intelligence networks, bribing warlords, and tracking Palestinian and resistance movements—all under the guise of diplomatic work. In his memoir See No Evil, he admitted that the CIA's chief concern was not stability, but ensuring Lebanon remained a battleground where US and Israeli interests could dominate. His missions included arming right-wing militias, sabotaging Syrian influence, and gathering targeting data—activities that blurred the line between espionage and warfare. Baer's revelations underscore a critical truth: the 1983 embassy bombing did not target 'innocent diplomats,' but a nerve center of covert operations that had long been meddling in Lebanon's bloodshed. In an article by Eugene Matos and Adrian Zienkiewicz for the Diplomat Magazine: 'Diplomacy and its legal protection, practices and communication cables, diplomatic bags, have partially, if in theory alone, institutionalized aspects of espionage'. They go on to mention several examples, including in the very beginning of the article, of international CIA agents being completely pardoned of any criminal charges for capital crimes such as murder, espionage, and for what the US calls 'enhanced interrogation', but for the layman it is simply called 'torture'. The article goes on to discuss the multiple aspects of 'Diplomatic Espionage', giving details as to how embassies all over the world, especially US embassies, exploit the hospitalities of their host countries to monitor everything there is to monitor within the country. So, considering the 5000 US embassy staff members operating on Lebanese soil and the history so well put by Baer, should we really have any doubts as to what they're truly here for? We must not forget that Baer's authority on this subject and its details is highlighted by his ultimately failed manhunt of our great leader and strategist Hajj Imad Moghniyeh, one of the singular minds of the resistance who was jointly responsible for all three bombing operations mentioned herein. Robert Baer's hunt for Hajj Imad—monikered by his rivals as the elusive 'phantom operative'—exposed the CIA's obsession with dismantling Lebanon's resistance. In See No Evil, Baer recounts how Hajj Imad, a master of evasion, outmaneuvered the CIA at every turn, using disguises, encrypted communications, and a network of safe houses to vanish into Beirut's streets. The agency, desperate for revenge after the 1983 attacks, tracked Moghniyeh for over a decade, even plotting kidnappings and assassinations, all of which failed. Baer admitted that Hajj Imad's ability to operate undetected proved the CIA's blindness to the resistance's discipline and tradecraft, a humiliating lesson in asymmetrical warfare. Most importantly, his account confirms what the 1983 bombing first signaled: 'No amount of US espionage could crush a movement rooted in its people's will'. To conclude, the mountains of evidence linking US embassies to global espionage may be worth looking at for a truthful look into the realities of US diplomacy, but it's enough to simply listen to how representatives, such as the David Star-Studded Deputy Morgan Ortagus, carry themselves these days, for they may have realized that their tried and tested diplomatic veneers now require too much effort to maintain. Instead, they've seemed to relegate themselves to what Donald Trump thinks diplomacy is all about: Insulting respected community leaders, politicians, and generals through vain social media posts akin to teenagers.
Yahoo
24-02-2025
- Yahoo
What is cuckooing and how can you tell if your neighbour is a victim?
A flagship bill aiming to restore public confidence in the police and to give them the powers they need to crack down on crime is set to be introduced to Parliament on Tuesday. The Crime and Policing Bill would see a broad range of reforms put in place, including restrictions on online knife sales, harsher penalties for shoplifters and a new specific offence for child exploitation. The legislation would also bring in a separate offence for an exploitative practice known as "cuckooing", with a maximum penalty of five years in prison for those found guilty. Cuckooing has become a key element of many county lines drug gangs' operations, with a number of local authorities warning that the practice has risen substantially in recent years. Here, Yahoo News explains how it works, how to spot it, and what you can do if you think someone is a victim of it. Criminals running county lines gangs often set up shop in a rural area or a small town for a short time by taking over a vulnerable person's home. The term is named after the cuckoo's practice of taking over other birds' nests to raise its own young. Gangs who take over a home could use it as a base for drug dealing, cooking drugs, human trafficking, sex work, or as a place to store weapons or other illegal items. Often victims of cuckooing are drug users, people with learning disabilities, or people who suffer from mental and physical health problems. Other common targets can include elderly people, people who are socially isolated, financially vulnerable people, sex workers or undocumented migrants, according to Hope for Justice. However, the anti-trafficking charity says this list is by no means exhaustive and that "anyone has the potential to be a victim of cuckooing". News: Cuckooing to be made a criminal offence. What is it? Learning-disabled people can be at risk from criminals who exploit them. Our short film See No Evil made with Cass Productions raises awareness through drama and real police insight. See comments for full video link. — Blue Apple Theatre (@BlueApplePlays) February 22, 2025 Explaining how it starts, Hope for Justice says the victim is often "befriended, charmed or manipulated into allowing the perpetrator into their home", at which point the offender will "start to exert control through force, coercion, deception or other forms of manipulation". A common tactic is through exchange where the perpetrator may offer drugs or money to gain access to the property, which puts the victim into a form of debt bondage in which they are forced to repay the gang, while often the "benefits" they receive will decrease. The so-called 'boyfriend method', "Romeo method' or 'loverboy method' can also be used by a perpetrator, who offers a relationship with the victim and then goes on to exert control over them. It is difficult to get an exact figure on the scale of cuckooing across the country, as it is not yet a specific criminal offence, although the practice could still be included in police officers' crime notes. However, a number of councils have reported that the predatory practice is on the rise significantly in their areas. Figures reported by LocalGov showed there had been a 300% rise in cuckooing across London between 2018 and 2022. In November 2023, Sussex Police said that in 2018, it was dealing with around two cases per month on average where gangs had taken over a vulnerable person's home, ITV News reported. At the beginning of 2023, that number had risen to 20, marking a tenfold increase. There are some tell-tale signs you can look out for if you think cuckooing might be going on in your area, as outlined by Hope for Justice. These include a significant number of people entering and leaving the property throughout the day; an increase of bikes or cars parked outside the property; cars arriving at the property for short periods of time and anti-social behaviour, including increased noise and littering. Damage to the property (either internally or externally) could also be a sign of exploitation, as well as the homeowner or tenant appearing anxious, isolated or on edge. Did you know that victims of cuckooing are often forced to leave their homes? This leaves them homeless, and allows criminal gangs to sell drugs in their absence. Learn how to spot the signs of cuckooing and speak up, 100% anonymously, to our charity: — Crimestoppers (@CrimestoppersUK) December 14, 2024 If residents are showing signs of a poor emotional wellbeing; or of physical assault such as bruises, scars or cuts, this could indicate that they are being cuckooed. Programme Challenger, a partnership working with Greater Manchester Police to tackle organised crime, also says that if the person you're concerned about suddenly has lots of new designer clothes, lots of money, or more than one mobile phone, it could be that they are being exploited by a criminal gang. If you think you have spotted someone being cuckooed or if you are concerned about a drug related crime, you can call the police on 101, or 999 if it's an emergency. You can also speak to Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111 or via the charity's website. You can also contact the Modern Slavery and Exploitation Helpline on 08000 121 700 or fill out an online form. "Make a note of your concerns, times, dates, what has happened and identity or names of people coming in and out," Oxford City Council advises. "If there is lots of noise, download the Noise App to record it safely." The local authority adds: "It is important you are safe, so do not approach any of the people you believe may be cuckooing your neighbour or take photographs." Dawn raid at property as part of investigation into drug dealing and 'cuckooing' (The Bolton News) New laws to protect children exploited by gangs in England and Wales 'will save lives' (The Guardian) Criminals caught with 'signal jammers' used in car thefts to face five years in prison (The Independent)
