Iran’s foreign minister labelled the EU’s claimed commitment to “universal human rights” hypocritical after the bloc labelled the IRGC a terrorist organisation while continuing to shield Israel from accountability for its genocidal war on Gaza.
Ospreys legend Shane Williams says he and his former team-mates will do everything they can to save their old team.
Ospreys’ owners – Y11 Sport and Media – have been named as the preferred bidder by the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) to take over domestic rivals Cardiff, who went into administration in April 2025.
Should the deal go through in the next month, Ospreys and Cardiff will continue for now as separate sides, but be owned by one organisation.
Former Wales wing Williams, along with ex-Ospreys players Alun Wyn Jones, Gavin Henson, Ian Gough and Ryan Jones, have signed a document calling for the Ospreys to remain as a top-tier team.
“We will do whatever it takes to hopefully mean the Ospreys will continue to exist,” Williams told the Scrum V The Warm Up podcast and TV programme.
“We are going to do whatever we can to make sure we get heard and hopefully make a change.”
The Ospreys could continue, but as a semi-professional outfit, beyond the summer of 2027.
Williams says the uncertainty was unsettling with current Ospreys head coach Mark Jones saying the squad had heard nothing from Y11.
“Is there a conclusion, do we know what is happening?” said Williams, who is head of rugby at a west Wales school that plays in Welsh rugby’s schools and colleges premier league.
“The last few weeks have been quite upsetting for someone who has been affiliated with the Ospreys from the start, so I can’t imagine what the current guys are going through.
“It’s difficult and feels very personal for me. I have the boys who I teach coming up to me asking is there a chance the Ospreys will be gone because they can’t believe it.
“I am trying to explain and give the positives of it, but there aren’t any positives.”
Williams described how the past-player movement came about.
“We got together on a Whatsapp group and started speaking about what we can do as coaches and ex-players,” said Williams.
“For me and a lot of the other boys, we started the Ospreys, we were part of that identity.
“When you play rugby with players, even though when you finish and you go on different paths in life, you still stay close… you are always going to have that special bond.”
Williams hopes the players’ intervention has not come too late.
“We felt a bit obsolete, redundant in the fact we have not done much for the Ospreys of late,” said Williams.
“We needed to get our act together and prove how much the Ospreys means to us, the community and the current players and coaches.
“Mark Jones [Ospreys head coach] sent me a voice message in the week.
Huw Evans Picture AgencyWilliams was part of the first Ospreys squad in 2003 and outlined the region’s credentials with four league titles and their ability to continually produce Wales internationals.
“We are the most successful region,” said Williams.
“You look at the players who have come through, some of the best in the world.
“We have had three players who are nominees for world player of the year at different levels.
“We have had players involved with league titles, Grand Slams and British and Irish Lions tour.”
Williams says he has seen the effect of teams disappearing after the change to regional rugby when nine clubs became five sides 23 years ago.
“I remember being at Neath in 2003 and being told the regions were coming in,” said Williams.
“I thought that means a lot of my mates are going to be without work and staff were going to lose their jobs.
“That was the case. I remember feeling bad for those people who did not have contracts. So it is such a difficult time.”
A former Illinois sheriff’s deputy has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for fatally shooting a 36-year-old woman who called police to her home for help.
The 2024 killing of Sonya Massey sparked widespread protests amid a wider reckoning over police conduct towards Black residents in the United States.
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Sean Grayson, 31, was convicted in October of second-degree murder for the fatal shooting. On Thursday, he received the maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
During sentencing, Grayson apologised, saying he wished he could bring Massey back. His lawyer had asked for a sentence of six years.
“I made a lot of mistakes that night. There were points when I should’ve acted, and I didn’t. I froze,” he said during the hearing. “I made terrible decisions that night. I’m sorry.”
Massey, who suffered from mental health issues, had called police to her home in the Illinois state capital, Springfield, saying she was afraid of a prowler outside.
Body camera footage of her exchange with police showed that Massey appeared confused, repeating, “Please, God.”
Inside her home, Grayson noticed a boiling pot of water and asked Sheriff’s Deputy Dawson Farley to move it. Instead, Massey went to the stove and picked up the pot, appearing to tease Grayson for moving away from “the hot, steaming water”.
She then said: “I rebuke you in the name of Jesus.”
Grayson drew his firearm. Massey set the pot down and ducked behind a counter. When she appeared to pick up the pot again, Grayson opened fire, hitting Massey three times in the face.
During the trial, Massey’s parents and two children said their lives had been forever changed.
“Today, I’m afraid to call the police in fear that I might end up like Sonya,” her mother Donna Massey said during the hearing.
Massey’s daughter Summer told reporters on Thursday that “20 years is not enough”.
Grayson was initially charged with three counts of first-degree murder, which could have led to a life sentence. However, the jury convicted him of the lesser charge of second-degree murder, arguing that evidence shows that Grayson honestly thought he was in danger.
Massey’s killing sparked a US Justice Department inquiry, after which the Sangamon County agreed to implement more de-escalation training for law enforcement and collect more use-of-force data.
The controversy also prompted the sheriff who hired Grayson to retire.
First T20, Dubai International Stadium
Ireland 178-6 (20 overs): R Adair 39, Tucker 38; H Ali 2-31
Italy 121 (19.5 overs): Waseem 40; Humphreys 3-26, Delany 3-26
Ireland won by 57 runs
Ireland began their three-match Twenty20 international series against the United Arab Emirates with a 57-run win over the hosts in Dubai.
It was a return to winning ways for Ireland, who lost the final match of a 2-1 series win against Italy on Monday as they continue their preparations for their opening T20 World Cup match against Sri Lanka in Colombo on 8 February.
Winning the toss, Ireland opted to bat first and immediately went on the offensive but lost captain Paul Stirling for eight in the first over after he had hit two fours.
His opening partner Ross Adair fared better with 39 before being bowled by Muhammad Arfan and while Harry Tector was out for four, Adair’s partnership with Lorcan Tucker proved fruitful with the wicketkeeper making 38 – which included two sixes – before being removed by Haider Ali.
Ireland remained steady with Ben Calitz (26 not out) and Curtis Campher (25) continuing to grow their tally, and while Gareth Delany managed just eight when falling to Junaid Siddique, 22 not out from George Dockrell helped Ireland to 178-6 at the end of their 20 overs.
The hosts began their chase brightly with captain Muhammad Waseem and Aryansh Sharma building a solid partnership before Delany made the first breakthrough when removing wicketkeeper Sharma for 23.
Sohaib Khan was next to go, while the fall of Waseem for 40 prompted the hosts’ challenge to begin to fall apart.
Delany and Matthew Humphreys took three wickets apiece and Barry McCarthy two, removing Arfan with the hosts all out for 121.
Cricket IrelandMeanwhile, Richard Holdsworth has announced he is to step down as director of cricket with Cricket Ireland.
Holdsworth first arrived at Cricket Ireland in 2011, spending 13 years as high performance director before taking up the director of cricket role two years ago.
During his tenure, Holdsworth played a key role in building and professionalising Ireland’s elite cricket systems, including overseeing the development and implementation of central player contracts across men’s and women’s programmes.
He was also central in the transition from associate member to a full member of the International Cricket Council in 2017 with Ireland’s men achieving Test status in the same year, while supporting the reintroduction of the domestic men’s inter-provincial series and women’s super series.
“I’m incredibly proud of what we have achieved together working with a team of outstanding staff,” Holdsworth said.
“From our collective efforts to professionalise structures and support players at the highest level, to seeing Ireland compete with distinction on the global stage — it has been a privilege to be part of this journey.
Humanitarian crisis worsens in Yemen as power struggles intensify and aid gaps grow.
Yemen’s conflict is entering yet another volatile chapter, not towards peace, but into a sharper power struggle. Former partners Saudi Arabia and the UAE are drifting apart, local factions are recalculating, and control of the south and east hangs in the balance, while the Houthis hold firm in the north. As alliances fracture and air power looms, millions of civilians remain hungry and displaced. What future is being decided over their heads?
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This episode was produced by Marcos Bartolomé, Melanie Marich with Phillip Lanos, Spencer Cline, Sarí el-Khalili, Tuleen Barakat, Maya Hamadeh, and our guest host, Kevin Hirten. It was edited by Tamara Khandaker and Alexandra Locke.
Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad al-Melhemm. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer. Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera’s head of audio.
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The first Aston Martin to be designed under the leadership of eminent designer Adrian Newey has appeared in pre-season testing.
The car’s debut had been delayed – although the team have not explained why – but Aston Martin managed to get the AMR26 out for the final hour of running at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on Thursday.
Lance Stroll managed only four slow laps before stopping on track, with Aston Martin saying the move was “precautionary”.
However, the car’s design has already caught attention.
Running in an all-black camouflage livery, its nose, side pods and engine cover were clearly different from those that had appeared on most cars so far.
The test is being held in private and no independent media are permitted.
But from the few photographs Aston Martin have published, the nose appears wider than the norm on cars designed to the new 2026 rules – with a shape perhaps reminiscent of a duck’s bill.
The side pods are very thin and heavily undercut, the front suspension mounting points are very high on the chassis and the engine cover is heavily cut away.
The car only arrived in Spain on Wednesday and the team spent most of the day preparing it.
Stroll said: “It was a long day for all the mechanics and everyone in the team pushing flat out to get the car ready.
“We got a few laps in at the end of the day and it was feeling good. We have to learn the car and understand its strengths and weaknesses.”
Lead driver Fernando Alonso is due in the car on Friday – the fifth and final day of this week’s testing.
Newey’s cars have won 14 drivers’ championships and 12 constructors’ titles since 1991 across the Williams, McLaren and Red Bull teams.
He joined Aston Martin in March last year and has been working on the new 2026 car ever since.
Mercedes, Ferrari, McLaren, Racing Bulls and Cadillac also ran on Thursday.
Lewis Hamilton had a spin in the Ferrari out of Turn 10, but he and team-mate Charles Leclerc managed 170 laps between them.
Seven-time champion Hamilton said: “Nice to get out in the dry. It was great to be able to understand the tyres… [and get] a bit of an understanding as to where the car is at.
“I did 85 laps in the morning, which is amazing. Last year we had a worse start to testing so considering this is a new set of rules it is better than in the past.
“Still continuing to get as much mileage and knowledge on this engine and the car on the aero side.”
At McLaren, Oscar Piastri managed 48 laps before his day was curtailed by a fuel-system problem.
Technical director performance Mark Temple said: “The car is very complex so we decided to bring it back and strip it down to understand where it was coming from.”
Mercedes again impressed, with George Russell and Kimi Antonelli setting the two fastest times and completing 168 laps between them on what was their last day of testing.
Teams are only allowed to run on three of the five days and Mercedes have reached their allocation.
Russell said: “A very positive test and we had a lot of mileage on the car, which was the main focus of the test.
“The car is feeling nice to drive, no major issues, no porpoising – which is pretty good news for all of us, it will save us a few years on the back. All in all a decent few days.”
Russell’s reference to porpoising concerns an aerodynamic phenomenon that blighted the cars from 2022-25. When airflow under the car is disrupted a high-speed bouncing can be set in motion.
The new cars have a different design philosophy so will not be affected by it.
“The car has been working well, but it is not about how well it works, it is about how quick it goes around the track and we don’t really have an indication of that at the moment,” he added.
“We are in a reasonably good place and I am sure things are going to change between now and the Bahrain test and I’m sure people are going to be bringing upgrades to the car.”
Red Bull are hoping to be back out on Friday. They were unable to run on Thursday because they were waiting for spare parts.
Lap times cannot be considered representative of performance at what has been dubbed a “shakedown” test, as teams do not reveal what programmes they are running and fuel load, engine modes and tyre compounds all make major differences to lap times.
