Author: Daily Sabah With Reuters
Alex Marquez seized the MotoGP championship lead from his brother Marc by securing his first-ever race win at the Spanish Grand Prix on Sunday, after Marc crashed early and finished a distant 12th. After seven second-place finishes in sprints and races this season, Alex claimed a dream race win on home turf in front of over 100,000 fans, with the Spaniard imploring them to increase the volume even when he had a few corners left on the final lap. Fabio Quartararo finished second to give Yamaha their first podium since the 2023 Indonesian Grand Prix, while Ducati’s Francesco Bagnaia came…
Alex Marquez seized the MotoGP championship lead from his brother Marc by securing his first-ever race win at the Spanish Grand Prix on Sunday, after Marc crashed early and finished a distant 12th. After seven second-place finishes in sprints and races this season, Alex claimed a dream race win on home turf in front of over 100,000 fans, with the Spaniard imploring them to increase the volume even when he had a few corners left on the final lap. Fabio Quartararo finished second to give Yamaha their first podium since the 2023 Indonesian Grand Prix, while Ducati’s Francesco Bagnaia came…
Jules Kounde scored a last-gasp goal in extra time to seal Barcelona’s thrilling 3-2 victory over Real Madrid in a fiercely contested Copa del Rey final at Seville’s La Cartuja stadium on Saturday. Barca won a record-extending 32nd Spanish Cup title thanks to a stunning strike from the French defender, who slotted a low drive into the bottom corner from 25 yards in the 116th minute. The match ended on a sour note for Real Madrid as Antonio Rudiger and Lucas Vazquez, both on the bench after being substituted earlier, received red cards for dissent from the sidelines, with Jude…
Jules Kounde scored a last-gasp goal in extra time to seal Barcelona’s thrilling 3-2 victory over Real Madrid in a fiercely contested Copa del Rey final at Seville’s La Cartuja stadium on Saturday. Barca won a record-extending 32nd Spanish Cup title thanks to a stunning strike from the French defender, who slotted a low drive into the bottom corner from 25 yards in the 116th minute. The match ended on a sour note for Real Madrid as Antonio Rudiger and Lucas Vazquez, both on the bench after being substituted earlier, received red cards for dissent from the sidelines, with Jude…
Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said on Sunday Türkiye rejects any initiatives targeting Syria’s territorial integrity, as he addressed a joint press conference with Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani in Doha. Besides Sheikh Mohammed, Fidan also met Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani. At the news conference, Fidan said Türkiye does not accept any initiatives that undermine Syria’s sovereignty, adding that any initiative allowing the holding of weapons outside the central authority will not be accepted. He said Türkiye desires a Syria with a Constitution and administration that provides equal opportunities to all groups in the country…
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that American military and commercial ships should be allowed to travel through the Panama Canal and Suez Canal free of charge. “I’ve asked Secretary of State Marco Rubio to immediately take care of, and memorialize, this situation,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. The Panama Canal crosses the narrowest part of the isthmus between North and South America, allowing ships to move more quickly between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. It carries about 40% of U.S. container traffic each year. The U.S. completed construction of the canal in the early 20th…
Saudi Arabia and Qatar are to settle Syria’s outstanding arrears of around $15 million to the World Bank, both countries said in a joint statement, paving the way for the approval of millions of dollars in grants for reconstruction and to support the country’s paralysed public sector. Reuters was the first to report the news earlier this month. The plans would be the first known instance of Saudi Arabia providing financing for Syria since Islamist-led rebels toppled former leader Bashar al-Assad last year. It may also be a sign that crucial Gulf Arab support for Syria is beginning to materialize…
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Sunday that a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine needs to happen soon, adding that the Trump administration will spend the coming week trying to determine whether to continue as a mediator. “It needs to happen soon. We cannot continue to dedicate time and resources to this effort if it’s not going to come to fruition,” Rubio told NBC’s “Meet the Press” program. “This week is going to be a really important week in which we have to make a determination about whether this is an endeavor that we don’t want to…
Qatar’s prime minister said on Sunday that efforts to reach a new ceasefire in Gaza have made some progress but an agreement between Israel and Hamas to end the war remains elusive. “We have seen on Thursday a bit of progress compared to other meetings yet we need to find an answer for the ultimate question: how to end this war. That’s the key point of the entire negotiations,” said Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, who also serves as foreign minister. Mossad Director David Barnea traveled to Doha on Thursday to meet Sheikh Mohammed amid efforts to reach a…
The death toll from a powerful explosion at Iran’s biggest port of Bandar Abbas has risen to at least 28, with more than 700 people injured, state media reported on Sunday, as firefighters worked to fully extinguish the fire. Saturday’s blast took place in the Shahid Rajaee section of the port, Iran’s biggest container hub, shattering windows for several kilometres around, tearing metal strips off shipping containers and badly damaging goods inside, state media said. The incident occurred as Iran held a third round of nuclear talks with the United States in Oman. Chemicals at the port were suspected to…