Davante Adams will be catching passes from Aaron Rodgers once again.
Multiple media outlets have reported that the New York Jets are acquiring Adams from the Las Vegas Raiders in exchange for a conditional third-round pick. That pick could be elevated to a second-round selection based on Adams’ individual performance during the rest of the American football season, according to ESPN and The Athletic.
The NFL Network reported the Jets have agreed to take on the rest of Adams’s salary in order to complete the deal. He’s in the middle of the third season on a five-year, $140m contract signed in 2022.
The reported trade comes hours after the Jets finished their third straight game, a 23-20 victory over the Buffalo Bills.
Rodgers played eight seasons in Green Bay with Adams, who recently requested a trade from the Raiders. The Rodgers-to-Adams combination was responsible for 622 receptions, 7,590 yards and 69 touchdowns.
New York is hoping the two can recreate their magic.
Adams, 31, has 18 catches for 209 yards and a touchdown in three games this season. He is nursing a nagging hamstring injury that caused him to sit out the last three weeks.
A six-time Pro Bowl selection, Adams has 890 catches for 10,990 yards and 96 touchdowns in 153 career games with the Packers and Raiders.
Rodgers, 40, has thrown for 1,387 yards with nine touchdowns and five interceptions in six games this season.
Aaron Rodgers (left) and Davante Adams (right) played together for eight seasons at the Green Bay Packers, from 2013 until 2021 [Wesley Hitt/Getty Images]
In an escalation of the ongoing diplomatic row between India and Canada over what the latter describes as a “campaign of violence” against Sikh separatists on Canadian soil, Ottawa expelled Indian high commissioner Sanjay Kumar Verma, alongside five other Indian diplomats on Monday.
It is the latest development in a dispute initially triggered by the murder of a Sikh separatist leader, Hardeep Singh Nijjar, in Canada in June 2023.
In a tit-for-tat move, India’s foreign ministry said New Delhi would expel six Canadian diplomats – including the acting high commissioner – and gave them until Saturday to leave the country.
But diplomatic tensions between India and Canada started before Nijjar’s killing. Here is a timeline of events leading up to the latest developments.
February 2018: Controversy over Trudeau’s India dinner
During a visit to India, Trudeau attended a formal dinner hosted by the Canadian High Commissioner in New Delhi. Canadian media said the purpose of Trudeau’s visit was to smooth diplomatic and trade relations with India after brewing tensions over what India perceived as support for Sikh separatism – namely, the Khalistan movement – in the Canadian diaspora.
Khalistan is the name of the proposed state envisioned by some Sikhs in a movement that emerged in India in the 1970s and early 1980s. While the original movement mostly died away, it has seen some resurgence among diasporic Sikh communities in Europe and North America, especially Canada, where 771,790 Sikhs live as of the 2021 census. Canada has the largest Sikh population outside of India’s Punjab.
The controversy over Trudeau’s dinner with the Canadian High Commissioner centred around Jaspal Singh Atwal, a Canadian-Indian former member of a Sikh separatist group called the International Sikh Youth Federation. The group is listed on Canada’s Public Safety Website as a “terrorist” organisation. Atwal, who was also invited to the dinner, had been convicted in Canada for being involved in a 1986 assassination attempt of the cabinet minister for India’s Punjab state.
Two days before the dinner in 2018, Atwal also attended another event linked to Trudeau’s visit and was photographed alongside the Canadian PM’s then-wife, Sophie Trudeau. This caused upset in India leading Trudeau to rescind the invitation to Atwal. He told Indian media that Atwal should not have been invited in the first place.
Atwal issued an apology at a news conference, saying: “I do not advocate for an independent Sikh nation. I, like the vast majority of Sikhs who once advocated for this cause, have reconciled with the nation of India.”
Protesters outside India’s consulate, after Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau raised the prospect of New Delhi’s involvement in the murder of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in British Columbia, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada on September 25, 2023 [Carlos Osorio/Reuters]
In late 2020, hundreds of thousands of farmers in India marched to New Delhi to protest new agricultural laws which they said would damage their livelihoods. Police used tear gas and water canons to disperse the protesters.
Trudeau expressed his concern about the situation at an online event to mark the 551st birth anniversary of Guru Nanak, the founder of Sikhism.
The Canadian PM said that his country would “always be there to defend the rights of peaceful protest”.
India’s Ministry of External Affairs issued an angry response, saying: “We have seen some ill-informed comments by Canadian leaders relating to farmers in India. Such comments are unwarranted, especially when pertaining to the internal affairs of a democratic country.”
June 2023: The killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar
Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, 45, was shot dead in Canada outside a Sikh temple on June 18. The temple was located in Surrey, a Vancouver city with a large population of Sikhs.
In 2020, he was assigned “terrorist” status by the Indian government. At the time of his death, Nijjar had been planning an unofficial referendum in India for an independent Sikh state.
Nijjar’s killing in June 2023 came after a build-up of tensions earlier that month. On June 8, India’s foreign minister, S Jaishankar, criticised Canada for allowing a parade float in Brampton, Ontario, depicting the 1984 assassination of former PM Indira Gandhi, who was killed by two of her Sikh bodyguards after she allowed the storming of a Sikh temple.
September 2023: Trade negotiations paused, G20 tensions
Canada unexpectedly paused trade negotiations with India on September 1. An explicit reason was not stated, but an unnamed Canadian official told Reuters news agency that the pause was “to take stock of where we are”. However the official did not elaborate on what this was in relation to.
On September 9 and 10, the G20 conference held in New Delhi further highlighted tensions between the two countries. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi held bilateral meetings with many world leaders, but snubbed Trudeau.
On September 15, a spokesperson for Canadian Trade Minister Mary Ng said Canada had postponed a trade mission to India, which had been scheduled for October but gave no particular reason.
On September 19, Ottawa expelled an Indian diplomat and India retaliated by expelling a Canadian diplomat. The expulsion came at the same time as Ottawa’s announcement that it was “actively pursuing credible allegations” linking Indian government agents to Nijjar’s murder.
India’s foreign ministry said in a statement the expulsion of the Canadian diplomat was over “growing concern at the interference of Canadian diplomats in our internal matters and their involvement in anti-India activities”.
India also suspended its visa operations in Canada on September 21, citing unspecified security threats. These visa restrictions were lifted in late October.
October 2023: Canada pulls 41 diplomats out of India
On October 19, Canada recalled 41 of its diplomats from India after the Indian government said it would revoke their diplomatic immunity and security protection for their relatives.
India’s foreign affairs ministry said: “The state of our bilateral relations, the much higher number of Canadian diplomats in India, and their continued interference in our internal affairs warrant a parity in mutual diplomatic presence in New Delhi and Ottawa.”
Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly decried India’s threat to revoke diplomatic immunity as a violation of international law. However, she said Canada would continue to engage with India.
May 2024: Three men are arrested and charged with Nijjar’s death
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) said on May 3 that three men had been arrested in an ongoing investigation into Nijjar’s killing.
The Indian nationals, Kamalpreet Singh, 22; Karanpreet Singh, 28; and Karan Brar, 22, were arrested in Edmonton, Alberta, and charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder.
On May 11, Indian national Amandeep Singh, 22, was charged the same. He was already in custody of Canadian police for unrelated firearms charges. Canadian media reported he was in Canada on a temporary visa.
Canadian media reported that the case is ongoing and had been adjourned for the fifth time on October 1, 2024 while the Canadian government works to disclose case-related documents to the defence.
“This investigation does not end here. We are aware that others may have played a role in this homicide, and we remain dedicated to finding and arresting each one of these individuals,” RCMP Superintendent Mandeep Mooker told reporters.
October 2024: Canada expels six Indian diplomats
Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs Melanie Joly said: “The RCMP gathered ample, clear and concrete evidence which identified six individuals as persons of interest in the Nijjar case,” in a statement on Monday.
At a news conference in Ottawa on Monday, Trudeau said evidence showed that Indian government agents had engaged in activities that “threaten public safety in Canada”, including “clandestine information-gathering techniques, coercive behaviour targeting South Asian Canadians, and involvement in over a dozen threatening and violent acts, including murder”.
He added that the details the RCMP is able to share at the moment are “extremely limited”, but the evidence brought forth by the RCMP “cannot be ignored”.
India rejected the accusations, deeming them “absurd” and in turn ordering the expulsion of Canada’s acting high commissioner and five other diplomats by Saturday.
A statement from the Indian foreign ministry on Monday said: “This latest step follows interactions that have again witnessed assertions without any facts. This leaves little doubt that on the pretext of an investigation, there is a deliberate strategy of smearing India for political gains.”
Students in the eastern Pakistani city of Lahore have continued their protests after reports of a rape on a college campus.
Tuesday’s demonstrations, including staging an antiharassment rally, came a day after protests were held on two campuses of the college, which has since been shut down by the provincial government. At least 28 students were injured in clashes with police on Monday.
Protests erupted in Lahore after reports spread online that a student was raped by a security guard at a Punjab College for Women campus.
The incident was first shared on social media over the weekend. Varying accounts state that the rape took place on Thursday or Friday evening in a campus basement.
According to the college, the victim has not been identified because no one has come forward to lodge a formal complaint, adding that no incident has been reported to the police and false information has spread online.
On Monday, police also initially dismissed the online reports as “false” but later said a guard had been accused of a rape, was in custody and an investigation was under way.
On Tuesday, police again called on people with “any information regarding the alleged rape” in Lahore to immediately inform authorities.
A student was raped at PGC, and these people are protesting to get justice for her, but instead this government being led by a “woman” is using force against them. Guess protesting against rape is a crime too now. pic.twitter.com/0zYmAoUx81
Also on Tuesday, the director of the Punjab Group of Colleges, said CCTV footage was checked and there was no record of the incident.
“We ourselves went to several police stations, but no case was reported,” Agha Tahir Ijaz was quoted as saying by the Dawn newspaper. He added that CCTV footage were shared with the police.
The Progressive Students Collective, the group that called Tuesday’s protest, demanded the formation of a committee that includes independent human rights organisations, student representatives and judges.
In addition to an investigation into the reported rape, they have also demanded the committee investigate the violence that broke out during Monday’s rallies and harassment at Lahore Women’s College.
Students pledged they would continue to protest until safety was brought to college campuses.
Detected irregular migration into the European Union fell by 42 percent to 166,000 in the first nine months of 2024 compared to the same period last year.
The statistics suggesting a reduced flow in migration, released by the EU border agency Frontex on Tuesday, comes as the EU and several member states adopt harsher immigration stances amid pressure from the extreme right, which made significant headway in EU elections in the summer.
The EU experienced a significant decline in asylum seeker crossings on two major migration routes—the Central Mediterranean and the Western Balkans—in January-September, according to Frontex.
The agency said nearly 17,000 individuals entered the EU through the Western Balkans, a 79 percent decrease year-on-year. Around 47,700 crossed the bloc’s border via the Central Mediterranean route, representing a 64 percent drop.
Rescuers recover a body after a migrant boat broke apart in rough seas at a beach near Cutro, southern Italy [File: Giuseppe Pipita/AP photo]
In contrast, border crossings via the Western African route doubled, with over 30,600 entries recorded in the year’s first nine months.
The sharpest increase was recorded at the EU’s eastern land borders, particularly in Poland, where nearly 13,200 crossings were detected, representing a 192 percent rise.
Populist policy
The drop in irregular migration comes as populist and nationalist political parties have gained ground across much of Europe, as demonstrated by their strong showings in EU elections over the summer.
That is pushing many EU states to implement harsher policies.
On Tuesday, a group of 16 migrants boarded an Italian navy ship for Albania. It was the first such trip under Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s controversial scheme to base migrants outside the EU while their asylum claims are processed.
Meloni’s right-wing government has also inked a deal with Tunisia, granting it aid in exchange for greater efforts to stop Italy-bound refugees who leave the North African country to cross the Mediterranean.
Also on Tuesday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced plans to tighten legislation to boost the removal of those who fail to secure the right to stay in the EU.
“The EU’s migration policy can only be sustainable if those who do not have the right to stay in the EU are effectively returned,” von der Leyen wrote in a letter sent to EU leaders.
“However, only around 20 percent of third country nationals ordered to leave have actually returned,” she stated.
The new law is to define obligations of returnees and streamline the return process, she wrote.
Poland and its Central European neighbour, the Czech Republic, called last week for EU restrictions that are tougher than those in the bloc’s new pact on migration and asylum, which is due to come into force in 2026.
The rules, adopted in May, aim to share the responsibility for hosting asylum seekers across the 27 EU countries and to speed up the deportation of people deemed ineligible to stay.
The far-right governments of Hungary and the Netherlands have asked Brussels for an exemption from migration obligations.
India and Canada have kicked out one another’s diplomats after a row over who is responsible for the killing of a Sikh activist reignited. Here’s what we know.
Deir el-Balah, Gaza, Palestine – Amani Madi still can’t believe she and her family survived the bombing that hit Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in the middle of the night.
In the open space where the attack on displaced people’s tents took place early on Monday, the smell of smoke prevails, and burned cans and food are scattered on the ground among charred blankets and clothes.
People wander back and forth. Most of them used to live in the tents, and they are trying to find anything left behind by the blaze that destroyed their flimsy homes.
Bodies on fire as they ran
The attack tore through the makeshift camp set up by displaced people in the hospital’s courtyard, killing at least four people and injuring at least 40.
Madi shows her son Ahmed’s wound where shrapnel entered his body, but doctors were not able to remove it because Gaza’s medical facilities have been decimated by Israeli attacks [Abdelhakim Abu Riash/Al Jazeera]
“It was 1:10am when a massive explosion shook everything,” Madi, a 37-year-old mother of six, recalls as she sits in the remains of her burned tent.
“I looked out and saw flames devouring the tents next to ours,” Madi says. “My husband and I carried the kids and ran towards the emergency building.
“At the entrance, I saw my five-year-old son, who was screaming, was bleeding. I took him to the doctors to discover that he had shrapnel in his stomach.”
The doctors were able to bandage Ahmed up but had to leave the shrapnel where it had hit him, explaining to Madi that it would require delicate surgery to remove, a surgery that is not possible given the badly damaged Gaza medical sector.
The destruction caused when Israel bombed a displaced people’s camp in the courtyard of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir el-Balah, Gaza [Abdelhakim Abu Riash/Al Jazeera]
Many Palestinians displaced multiple times end up at schools and hospitals, setting up tents again and again, using whatever materials they can find, clustering close together due to a lack of space.
Israel’s bombs spread fire through the crowded tents within minutes as Civil Defence workers struggled to put it out with what limited capabilities they had.
“People – women, men and children – were running away from the spreading fire, screaming,” Madi says. “Some of them were still burning, their bodies on fire as they ran. Terrifying, horrific, … unbelievable.
“Where are we supposed to go? It’s nearly winter. Is there no one to stop this holocaust against us?”
Jamalat Wadi sits among the destruction left by Israel’s bombing of a displacement camp in the courtyard of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital on October 14, 2024 [Abdelhakim Abu Riash/Al Jazeera]
Madi’s tent was next to Jamalat Wadi’s tent, which was practically at the centre of the bombing.
Wadi, 43, says: “It was a miracle we survived, me and my seven daughters.”
“I woke them up, screaming, as our flaming tent was falling on our heads.
“My neighbour, her son and her husband were burned to death. No one could save them,” she says, crying bitterly.
Like many others, Wadi has been forced to flee numerous times, starting in Shujayea, then to Rafah, Nuseirat and Khan Younis before seeking refuge at Al-Aqsa Hospital.
“Now we’re in the streets again, but I won’t stay here after this. There’s nowhere safe.
“Hospitals and schools are at the forefront of Israeli targeting. What have we done to deserve this?”
Madi walks with her children through the destruction caused by the bombing [Abdelhakim Abu Riash/Al Jazeera]
‘A leg fell to the ground’
Maha Al-Sarsak, 17, lives in a tent adjacent to the ones that burned. Her family’s tent was not affected, but she witnessed the first moments of the explosion and fire.
Al-Sarsak walks through the carnage left behind by the bombing, crying.
She has been displaced at Al-Aqsa with her family for nine months.
After the hospital grounds were targeted numerous times, she says, she stopped sleeping at night for fear of another Israeli bombing.
“I was awake. What I feared happened … for the seventh time. I heard the strike from the direction of the tents opposite us. I screamed for my mother and my [eight] siblings, and we ran out towards the hospital building.”
Maha speaks to Al Jazeera about the attack [Abdelhakim Abu Riash/Al Jazeera]
“I saw our neighbour Umm Shaaban [Alaa Al-Dalu, 37] completely burned and her body charred along with her son [Shaaban, 20].
“When they were moving the victims from there, I saw a leg fall to the ground,” Al-Sarsak adds as she cries.
“They said the south is safe, but there is no safety. People were burned alive, and we spent a very terrifying night. Every time the hospital is targeted, we’re terrified,” Al-Sarsak says.
“But last night was the most terrifying. The fire ate the tents and people’s bodies in moments. Oh, God, have mercy.”
Displaced people scrabble through the charred remains of their tent homes to see what they can recover [Abdelhakim Abu Riash/Al Jazeera]
