8 h. ago Trump once condemned Qatar. How things have changed | Mohamad Bazzi

The country’s charm offensive and global mediator role – as well as a $400m plane – reveal a complicated relationshipOn his tour of the Middle East last week, Donald Trump was treated like royalty by the leaders of the wealthiest countries in the Arab world. The US president was feted in gilded ballrooms, his motorcade was flanked by dozens of men riding white Arabian horses and he was awarded an elaborate gold medal necklace. The leaders of Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates went out of their way to show Trump that they respect him more than his predecessor, Joe Biden.While Trump frequently praised Saudi and UAE leaders during his first term, he was highly critical of Qatar, a small emirate that is rich in natural gas but usually overshadowed by its two larger and more powerful neighbors. In June 2017, Trump said Qatar “has historically been a funder of terrorism at a very high level” and he supported a blockade against the country, led by Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Qa...

Politics

8 h. ago Cristiano Ronaldo 'receives major offer' to quit Saudi football and play at Club World Cup

Cristiano Ronaldo's third season at Al-Nassr has once again seen the Portuguese legend without a league title in Saudi Arabia as a move away from the Middle East could be on the cards

Politics

35 h. ago ‘I’m from Glasgow – the swearing came naturally!’ The full uncensored history of The Thick of It

It was the political satire that gave us omnishambles, pet asbos and the terrifying Malcolm Tucker. Two decades on, creator Armando Iannucci and stars including Peter Capaldi and Rebecca Front lift the lid on its chaotic creationTwenty years ago this month we were plunged straight into the middle of an omnishambles. It was a moment in time when petrified politicians lurched from crisis to crisis, scrambling desperately to control the narrative as their endless gaffes derailed even the vaguest attempts to change this country for the better. But am I talking about the tail-end of the Blair years or the televisual tour-de-force that was Armando Iannucci’s The Thick of It?It could be either. It could even be right now – such was the show’s prescient genius. This was a satire that didn’t just mimic the government’s calamities but seemed somehow to foresee them. Over its seven-year run, The Thick of It came up with farcical policies that the government went on to adopt (pet asbos, anyone?...

Politics

61 h. ago Sadio Mane’s huge earnings, admission about lifestyle, child and life with teenage wife

Sadio Mane is best remembered for his form with Liverpool, but the Senegal captain has also found himself in the headlines since his exit from Anfield

Events

3 d. ago Gianni Infantino under pressure to release details of Gulf trip with Donald Trump

Fifa president accompanied US president in Middle EastHuman Rights Watch wants ‘meaningful accountability’Gianni Infantino should account for his trip alongside Donald Trump to the Gulf this week and “detail precisely what it achieved for football and human rights”, according to a leading critic of Fifa’s governance.Human Rights Watch says that Infantino’s trip, in which he accompanied the US president to Qatar and Saudi Arabia and missed a series of key meeting at Fifa’s annual congress, was indicative of the lack of “meaningful accountability” at the top of football’s global authority. Continue reading...

Politics

3 d. ago Full truth about Trump's 'stumbles' and THOSE health rumors revealed by insiders, after viral 'sleepy' video

When Donald Trump sat down on stage at a special welcome ceremony in his honor in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, he leaned back into his plush gold chair and shut his eyes seeming to briefly nod off.

Politics

3 d. ago Truth behind Trump 'dementia' claims as he falls asleep on camera after bruise reappears

Video of the 78-year-old president shows him appearing to doze off in Saudi Arabia, sparking fears his drowsiness is due to a physical and mental decline due to his age

Politics

3 d. ago Full troubling truth about Trump's 'stumbles' and THOSE dementia rumors revealed by insiders, after viral 'sleepy' video

When Donald Trump sat down on stage at a special welcome ceremony in his honor in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, he leaned back into his plush gold chair and shut his eyes seeming to briefly nod off.

Politics

3 d. ago Gianni Infantino sparks fury among FIFA members as they WALK OUT of key meeting after he turned up three hours late following visit with Donald Trump

Infantino had joined Trump on the US president's trip to Qatar and Saudi Arabia this week, which he prioritised over the annual gathering of FIFA's membership in Paraguay.

Politics

3 d. ago Uefa accuses Gianni Infantino of putting ‘private political interests’ before game after Saudi trip with Donald Trump

Fifa president Gianni Infantino was delayed arriving at the body’s annual Congress after joining US President Trump on his tour of the Middle East

Politics

3 d. ago FA chair joins protest against Gianni Infantino’s late arrival to Fifa Congress after Saudi trip with Donald Trump

Fifa president Gianni Infantino was delayed arriving at the annual meeting after joining US President Trump on his tour of the Middle East

Politics

4 d. ago Delegates walk out of Fifa congress after Infantino arrives late from Trump trip

FA chair among those to walk out of annual meetingInfantino arrived late after Donald Trump tripRepresentatives from several European Fifa member associations walked out of the governing body’s annual congress in Paraguay in protest of president Gianni Infantino’s late arrival to the proceedings on Thursday. Infantino had been in the Middle East this week along with Donald Trump visiting leaders from Saudi Arabia and Qatar, and arrived in Paraguay hours late for a scheduled 10.30am start time to his organization’s annual meeting.The departing members included eight European members of the Fifa Council – the main decision-making body that sets the agenda for the wider congress. Uefa’s representatives on the Council to have walked out include Uefa president Alexander Čeferin and Football Association chair Debbie Hewitt. Other delegates to have left proceedings in protest include Norway Football Federation president Lise Klaveness, who called Infantino’s late arrival “disappointing” an...

Politics

4 d. ago Gianni Infantino delays start of Fifa Congress by arriving late from Donald Trump tour

Infantino joined Trump on his state visits to Saudi Arabia and Qatar this week

Politics

4 d. ago Fifa in breach of own human rights rule by holding World Cup in Saudi Arabia, say lawyers

The 2034 World Cup will be hosted by Saudi Arabia despite their poor human rights record

Politics

4 d. ago Fifa breaching own human rights rules over Saudi Arabian World Cup, lawyers say

Fifa ‘under an obligation’ to see ‘human rights are upheld’Group including ex-Fifa adviser makes official complaintA group of leading lawyers has submitted an official complaint to Fifa, alleging the governing body has failed to follow its own human rights rules in relation to the 2034 World Cup in Saudi Arabia. The 30-page complaint has been filed via Fifa’s official grievance mechanism and calls for immediate action in five areas.The complaint has been authored by Fifa’s former anti-corruption adviser Mark Pieth, the Swiss lawyer Stefan Wehrenberg and the British barrister Rodney Dixon, who submitted a report to Fifa a year ago warning of the risks of awarding the tournament to the Gulf state. Continue reading...

Politics

4 d. ago Fifa breaching own human rights rules over Saudi Arabia World Cup, lawyers say

Fifa ‘under an obligation’ to see ‘human rights are upheld’Group including ex-Fifa adviser makes official complaintA group of leading lawyers has submitted an official complaint to Fifa, alleging the governing body has failed to follow its own human rights rules in relation to the 2034 World Cup in Saudi Arabia. The 30-page complaint has been filed via Fifa’s official grievance mechanism and calls for immediate action in five areas.The complaint has been authored by Fifa’s former anti-corruption adviser Mark Pieth, the Swiss lawyer Stefan Wehrenberg and the British barrister Rodney Dixon, who submitted a report to Fifa a year ago warning of the risks of awarding the tournament to the Gulf state. Continue reading...

Politics

4 d. ago Trump’s Middle East trip formalizes his rebuke of the Republican Party’s ‘neocons’

Republican president blasted ‘interventionalists’ on both sides of the American political spectrum during Riyadh speech

Politics

5 d. ago Trump meets Syria’s ‘attractive, tough’ president after lifting US sanctions

US president meets Ahmed al-Sharaa in Saudi Arabia as lifting of sanctions is met with jubilation in DamascusUS politics live – latest updatesDonald Trump has met Syria’s president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, in Saudi Arabia, telling the former jihadist he had an “extraordinary opportunity”, and said Washington is exploring normalising ties with Damascus, a day after an announcement that all US sanctions on Syria would be lifted.The US president met Sharaa, a former militant who fought against US forces in Iraq and had a $10m US bounty on his head until December 2024, alongside the Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, for about half an hour before a conference of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) as part of his four-day visit to the Middle East. Continue reading...

Politics

5 d. ago Ben Jennings on Trump’s $145bn arms deal with Saudi Arabia – cartoon

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Economics

5 d. ago US and Qatar sign defense and aviation deal as Trump says of emir: ‘we just like each other’ – live

US president says $200bn Boeing order is ‘largest order of jets’ in its history and is full of praise for Qatar’s leader and country’s marble palacesThe meeting between Donald Trump and Syria’s president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, in Saudi Arabia was the culmination of months of diplomacy by the Syrians, as well as their Turkish and Saudi allies, who believed face time with Trump would help end Syria’s international isolation, writes William Christou.Damascus had prepared a pitch to Trump that included access to Syrian oil, reassurances of Israel’s security and a proposal to build a Trump tower in Damascus. Continue reading...

Politics