Archive October 25, 2025

Ivory Coast votes in key election that may extend longtime leader’s rule

By in News, World News
Alassane Ouattara, the incumbent leader, is the overwhelming favorite to win the Ivory Coast’s presidential election.

On Saturday, between 8 am and 6 pm (GMT) on a field of five candidates, nearly nine million Ivorians will cast their ballots.

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However, oppositional power brokers are not contesting the post. Both former Credit Suisse CEO Tidjane Thiam and former President Laurent Gbagbo are prohibited from standing in court for both having criminal convictions and obtaining French citizenship.

The 83-year-old candidate’s inclusion, according to critics, gave Ouattara, a significant advantage and essentially opened the door for his fourth term.

None of his four rivals are affiliated with an established party, and neither do the Rally of Houphouetistes for Democracy and Peace (RHDP) ruling party.

Former first lady Simone Ehivet Gbagbo, 76, is attempting to woo backers from her ex-husband’s supporters while agriculturalman and former trade minister Jean-Louis Billon, 60, is hoping to do so.

Gbagbo and Ahoua Don Mello, a civil engineer and pan-African with Russian sympathies, have a say in the left-wing vote. One of the first two women to run for president in 2015, the Group of Political Partners for Peace, represents a centrist coalition.

As the first voters began to line up early on Saturday at the Ivory Coast’s economic capital Abidjan, the atmosphere appeared calm.

Konate Adama told Al Jazeera, “This vote means a lot to us. We must elect a winner of these elections. It will bring about tranquility, wisdom, and peace.

As the opposition continues to call for a boycott, voter turnout will be a big factor. In a nation of 33 million people, with a median age of 18, there are almost 8.7 million people who are over the age of 18.

A candidate must receive the overwhelming majority of the votes in order to win. If no one succeeds in the first round, a second round will follow.

Fourth term of a contentious controversy

Early next week is when the results will be announced, and experts anticipate Ouattara to surpass the more than 50% required to win the first round.

Since 2011, when the nation has begun reasserting itself as a West African economic powerhouse, the octogenarian has seized control of the world’s top cocoa producer.

Presidents can serve a maximum of two terms, per the constitution. His limit was reset, according to Ouattara, thanks to a significant constitutional change that was implemented in 2016.

His critics have been enraged by the decision. Opposition and civil society organizations also object to the intimidation and repression of Ouattara’s critics.

Around 44, 000 security personnel were stationed throughout the nation to halt protests, particularly in opposition strongholds in the south and west. In the area where Yamoussoukro is known as the political capital, there was a nighttime curfew on Friday and Saturday.

Authorities urged people to stay away from “chaos” and potential repression following the 2020 presidential election. Official figures indicate that 85 people died before that, whereas the opposition reported more than 200.

Ivorians have been enraged by Ouattara’s anticipated fourth term’s opposition parties. An Independent Electoral Commission building was torched on Monday.

The judiciary has sentenced a number of people to three years in prison for disturbing the peace, and the government has responded by banning demonstrations.

Will millions of low-income Americans lose food stamps during shutdown?

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Millions of low-income Americans could lose access to a monthly benefit that pays for food if the US government shutdown continues.

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), also known as food stamps, provides money for about 42 million people. In a letter from October 10 to October 10, the Department of Agriculture warned that the program would run out of money if benefits were to be paid for in November.

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Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins repeated a false healthcare talking point on X on October 16th, saying that Democrats put their political agenda before food security for American families. Shameful .

The Affordable Care Act (ACA) enhanced subsidies for uninsured Americans can be extended as part of the approval process for the government shutdown, but Republicans and Democrats disagree on whether or not to do so before negotiating whether or not to do so.

State-run SNAP is a federal program. A participant’s monthly benefit is typically $ 190, or $ 356, per household, on average. Beneficiaries may use the benefits to purchase bread, bread, meat, dairy products, fruits, vegetables, and other foods. The majority of SNAP households are impoverished.

Several times about the shutdown and the Republican tax and spending law that Trump signed in July have been accurately stated by legislators and users of social media. A closer look is available here:

Food stamps will no longer be available on November 1 according to social media posts.

Food stamps are going away as of November 1 according to numerous social media posts.

One Instagram post read, “Let that sink in – just in time for the month of giving thanks.”

Millions of people might be affected by that. Because the month of November is when people receive their benefits, which may not be the case for all of them, it could also occur for some of them throughout November.

According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a liberal think tank, the Trump administration could use SNAP’s contingency fund to pay for nearly two-thirds of a full month’s benefits, or it could transfer other Agriculture Department funds. The administration has announced that it has found funding to continue its low-income families’ Women, Infants, and Children program.

SNAP “shall continue operations during a lapse in appropriations, subject to the availability of funding,” according to an Agriculture Department funding lapse plan.

States were advised to delay taking steps that would result in people receiving their November benefits by an Agriculture Department letter. According to federal regulations, benefits reductions must be made so that higher-income recipients experience lower benefits than lower-income recipients.

We emailed administration officials for more information, but they didn’t respond to our inquiries.

In addition, many state officials, including those in Illinois, New York, North Carolina, Texas, and Wisconsin, warned that if the shutdown continues, November could bring with it benefits. Benefits won’t be issued if the shutdown continues into November, according to a Florida Department of Children and Families spokesman.

Governor Gavin Newsom announced on Wednesday that he will send $80 million in state funds to the National Guard and California Volunteers, a state agency.

In a letter to Rollins on Wednesday, Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers stated, “Empty cupboards and stomachs are not abstract outcomes.” They represent the dysfunctional behavior in Washington’s very real and near future. You can prevent these consequences as well as today.

In addition, other Trump administration initiatives have hurt local food banks. The administration earlier this year, according to a report from ProPublica on October 3, cut $500 million in deliveries through the Emergency Food Assistance Program, which distributes food to state distribution agencies.

What have some influential lawmakers said about this, and how accurate are their claims?

We are not cutting SNAP, they say.

– US Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson on the May 25 television program Face the Nation.

This is untrue.

Johnson addressed the House as a Republican-backed bill that included many of Trump’s policy priorities at the time.

Based on the bill’s changes to work requirements and limitations on states’ ability to waive the work requirements in areas with high unemployment, the nonpartisan number-crunching arm of Congress, the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) estimated in May that 3.2 million fewer people per month on average would receive SNAP benefits over the next nine years.

According to a more recent CBO analysis from August, the changes would affect 2.4 million people’s SNAP participation.

According to SNAP, “almost 25 percent of every $1 spent goes to farmers and ranchers.”

– Wisconsin representative Francesca Hong poses for a June 12 X position.

This is accurate.

Hong claimed in the a&nbsp, series of X posts that the legislation would not only harm families receiving food aid.

According to a chart released this year by the Economic Research Service of the Agriculture Department, farm businesses will make 24.3% of every dollar spent on home food in 2023, including at grocery stores and supermarkets.

“On SNAP, 20 percent of households with veterans rely,”

– Hakeem Jeffries, the head of the House Democratic, speaking at a press conference on May 8.

Most of the time, this is false.

Veterans who receive SNAP benefits are 80% of them, according to a study conducted on April 2. A share of the state’s stock was higher than 14%. Rates ranged from 4.9% to 6.6% according to studies that used data from a few years earlier.

Two Australia players ‘touched inappropriately’ at Women’s World Cup

By in News, Sports News
Images courtesy of Getty
Wynne, Flynne

Visakhapatnam journalist for BBC Sport

Cricket Australia claims that two Australian cricketers were “apprehended and touched inappropriately” while they were in India for the Women’s Cricket World Cup.

The players were walking to a cafe in Indore when the incident occurred on Thursday morning, shortly after Australia had defeated England.

A motorcyclist approached and touched inappropriately two Australian women’s team members while they were walking to a cafe in Indore, according to a statement from Cricket Australia.

“The incident was reported to the police, who are currently handling it,” according to team security.

Additional deputy commissioner of police (crime) in Indore, Rajesh Dandotiya, told BBC News Hindi: “The accused followed the women players for some distance and continued to make offensive remarks.”

Then he moved his motorcycle too far, making inappropriate physical contact. CCTV footage showed the accused’s identification and arrest.

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    • August 16
    BBC Sport microphone and phone

Brisbane Test ‘realistic’ for Cummins return – Lyon

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Images courtesy of Getty
Sam Drury

journalist for BBC Sport
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Pat Cummins, captain of Australia’s first Ashes opener in Perth, will struggle with fitness, according to Australia spinner Nathan Lyon, who he believes could “realistically” make a second Test appearance in Brisbane.

Cummins, 32, is recovering from a back injury that had threatened to omit him from the highly anticipated series against England.

The fast bowler will play a “major part” in the five-match contest, according to Australia’s chair of selectors George Bailey, but Lyon believes the first Test, which will begin on November 21st, will be too soon.

If I’m being honest, it might be difficult to live through it, he said to ABC Sport.

“But in all fairness, I believe Brisbane [or] Adelaide might still have a big goal going.”

    • Earlier, 4 days ago
    • seven days ago
    • two days ago

After scans revealed a lumbar bone stress injury in his back, Cummins was ruled out of Australia’s limited-overs series against India and New Zealand last month.

He has a history of back issues, with flareups in 2012, 2013, and 2015-16 that caused him to miss three summers in Australia.

“I personally believe that at some point, he’ll be a part of the series,” Lyon continued.

He is exerting every effort. You’re really proud of him for that because he’s a teammate, a captain, and he’s really leading the way by acting like an example. He is working his backwards.

The Ashes: Australia v. England

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    • August 16
    BBC Sport microphone and phone

Gambling Scandal Shows Dangers Of NBA’s Embrace Of Betting

By in News, sport-news

The arrest of an NBA coach and player in two extensive federal investigations highlights the potential cost of working with the gambling industry. US sports leagues jumped in to capitalize on the multi-billion dollar boom of legalized betting.

Former Detroit Pistons star Chauncey Billups, an NBA Hall of Famer, was detained for his alleged involvement in fabricated illegal poker games, which the prosecution claims were connected to Mafia crime families.

In both cases, former NBA player and assistant coach Damon Jones and Miami Heat guard Terry Rozier were accused of manipulating his play for the benefit of bettors.

The scope of the fraud was described as “mind-boggling,” according to FBI director Kash Patel, who described the criminal enterprise as “a criminal enterprise that encompasses both the NBA and La Cosa Nostra.” ”

It’s not necessarily surprising, though, for those who have witnessed how US leagues have grown more closely connected to the explosive sports betting industry.

Any of us can access a gambling app anywhere we are in seconds thanks to mobile and smartphone gambling, according to Dr. Professor of psychology and head of Vancouver’s University of British Columbia’s Center for Gambling Research.

I study the psychology of gambling harm and the psychology of sports gambling,  how betting on a game might increase the excitement or the type of  fandom  of sports

In this most recent story about the NBA arrest, it ;s; we primarily think about that in terms of the fan. sort of brings  a focus on the athletes

“They’re  working in a world where there are so many gambling and opportunity opportunities that they are unable to resist.

The teams work with gambling, according to the statement. firms,  Players can be sponsored by the major leagues because they are all partnered.

The players and coaches are quite a bit exposed here, and that includes the way that gambling information is woven into sports broadcast, both in terms of the commentary and the odds updates. ”

Professional leagues took care to distance themselves from the lucrative operations of illegal bookmakers and offshore betting organizations up until 2018 and sports wagering was prohibited in most US states.

However, the US Supreme Court overturned a 1992 federal law that effectively outlawed sports betting in most states seven years ago.

In a 2014 New York Times opinion piece, NBA commissioner Adam Silver argued that sports betting should be pushed into the open so that it could be properly monitored and regulated. ”

It should come as no surprise that Silver and other league officials are attempting to seize control of the pie.

According to estimates from the American Gaming Association (AGA), which promotes the industry and monitors the economic impact of commercial gaming, commercial sports betting revenue has reached $ 10 billion as of August 2025. 9% more than the previous year’s same time last year.

However, according to the NBA, the indictments that were made public on Thursday stifled what ought to have been a celebratory season-opening week in the wake of a new, 11-year, $77 billion media rights agreement.

Billups and Rozier’s arrests shocked players in the league, but they also quickly changed their tune about the issue of the bust-driven online bets.

The way fans interact with each other has changed thanks to the prevalence of “prop” bets, which allow bettors to wager on in-game factors like how many points or assists a player will receive or even details like whether he’ll make his first three-point attempt.

Regardless of the game’s quality

When we step on the court, our players experience it a lot, according to Chicago Bulls center Nikola Vucevic.

Get a win before you used to hear ‘Vuc,” Now it reads, “Hey, my parlay is 10 rebounds. ’

It really pisses me off because it disrespects the game, I think. ”

Jaylen Brown, the star player for the Boston Celtics, demanded more from the NBA to assist players in navigating the new environment.

When people have money involved, he said, it causes a negative conversation between the game and the players.

Stephen Curry, the star of the Golden State Warriors, stated on Thursday that he was reassured that the game’s integrity would remain intact. ”

However, teammate Al Horford argued that more must be done to “protect the players and be better.” ”

Gaza returnee places family tent over unexploded Israeli bomb

By in News, World News
A Palestinian man who was forced to take a temporary shelter in his Gaza neighborhood discovered an unexploded Israeli-armed vehicle among the rubble where he had to take shelter.

More than 435, 000 people have retreated to northern areas from displacement camps further south, including the southern city of Khan Younis, following the ceasefire that began on October 10.

Numerous people have discovered abandoned homes and neighborhoods that were once residential, tangled with metal, and even with dangerous weapons.

Ayman Qadourah has resorted to pitching his family tent over a powerful military machine known as an “explosive robot” that carried powerful bombs that flatten entire blocks while large portions of Gaza are still being occupied by Israel’s army.

Israeli deployment of remotely controlled explosive robots in Gaza’s urban areas resulted in extensive infrastructure damage.

A month ago, Qadourah returned to his Khan Younis home. He claimed that his neighbor’s home contained yet another explosive-laden device. Two more missiles struck the back of his home, causing a crater three meters deep between them.

He claimed that such unexploded devices pose a serious risk. “For instance, if any flammable liquid comes close to it, the flames will be massive, sky high.”

Qadourah worries that if one of the explosives detonates, the entire neighborhood could be destroyed. He frequently sands the machines to lessen the risk.

Over 100 explosive-laden robots exploded in Gaza over the course of the final three weeks of August, according to a report from Gaza’s government media office in early September.

More than 42, 000 buildings were damaged in the Khan Younis governorate, according to a satellite analysis from the UN Satellite Center (UNOSAT), with the city itself being the second-most populous city in the Gaza Strip, with at least 19 000 structures being damaged.

More than 227, 000 housing units have been destroyed across the Gaza Strip, according to UN estimates, leaving hundreds of thousands of people without where to go or live.

The threat from explosives across Gaza is described as “incredibly high,” according to Luke David Irving, the UN’s lead mine action officer in the occupied Palestinian territory. His agency has located at least 560 of these devices in locations it has been able to reach, though the exact size is unknown.

According to UN reports, 328 people have died or been injured by unexploded weapons since October 2023, despite the fact that it is believed that the death toll is higher.

Children of Qadourah are now dressed in the same outfits he dug up the rubble. The clothing has resulted in severe skin infections, including rashes and abscesses.

“Despite everything, we are made to live here because there aren’t any other options,” he said. He claimed that there is no where to go right now. He continued, citing the crowded conditions at the al-Mawasi camp in the south, “There isn’t an inch of space left.”

Palestinians who have remained in the south “will not budge until a permanent solution is found,” Qadourah continued.