Author: Steven Sahiounie

Rice: England midfielder out of training with illness just three days before World Cup quarter-final with France.England take on France in the World Cup quarter-final in Qatar on Saturday; Declan Rice missed training on Wednesday due to illness, just three days before the match; Callum Wilson is yet to return to training after picking up a minor strain.England midfielder Declan Rice was absent from training on Wednesday due to illness, just three days before the Three Lions’ World Cup quarter-final with France.The midfielder has started every game for Gareth Southgate’s side in the tournament so far but was absent from…

pRecord, a Portuguese publication, reported that Ronaldo told head coach Fernando Santos he might leave Qatar after finding out he would be benched for the World Cup last-16 encounter against Switzerland, before calming down and realising his departure could negatively impact the teamThe Portuguese FA has denied a report that claimed Cristiano Ronaldo threatened to leave the World Cup in a conversation with head coach Fernando Santos.Record, a Portuguese publication, reported that Ronaldo told his coach he might leave Qatar after finding out he would be benched for the last-16 encounter against Switzerland – which Portugal won 6-1 – before…

Police promise crackdown on football fans flying banned Papua flagIn West Papua, police in the city of Sorong have banned the use of what they called “Papuan separatist attributes”, such as the Morning Star flag, in convoys celebrating the football World Cup.Sorong Police chief Iwan Manurung emphasised to all World Cup fans in the area not to carry or fly the Morning Star flag which is banned by Indonesia as a form of euphoria.Tabloid Jubi reports him saying such actions would be processed in accordance with the law.”We warn you never to bring the Morning Star flag in World Cup convoys.…

Since Musk took over Twitter, some prominent users have said they would leave the service, including talk show host Whoopi Goldberg, producer Shonda Rhimes and singer Sara Bareilles. Other users have expressed interest in migrating to other services. It’s unclear what Twitter’s user numbers are now since Musk has taken the company private, but he has said use is at a high.“Record numbers of users are logging in to see if Twitter is dead, ironically making it more alive than ever!” he tweeted last month.Musk didn’t respond to requests for comment, and Meta declined to comment.After Musk bought Twitter, one…

Apple announces iCloud encryption in latest security revampApple will soon roll out a slew of security features and add-ups to ensure that users lock down photos and notes stored on their iCloud service and require a security key when logging in from a new device, the company said on Wednesday. The Cupertino-based tech giant will soon allow users to choose to further enhance the security of the data backed up to their iCloud using end-to-end encryption. This means that no one else but the user will be able to access that information.The upcoming security features are aimed to secure the iCloud…

Chief Business Officer Raghu Reddy, who helped Xiaomi to the top of India’s smartphone and smart-television markets, resigned to “pursue different growth opportunities externally.” One of Xiaomi Corp’s top executives in India is leaving the smartphone maker just as it faces intensifying regulatory scrutiny and competitive pressure in the country. Chief Business Officer Raghu Reddy, who helped the Chinese company to the top of India’s smartphone and smart-television markets, resigned to “pursue different growth opportunities externally,” Xiaomi India said in an email on Wednesday. “It has been a privilege to have Raghu as an integral part of the Xiaomi India…

The ban on flying over the world’s biggest country is weighing heavily on the industry, the airline association saysWestern airlines should resume flights over Russia, because the skies over Europe are becoming increasingly crowded, the head of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) said on Tuesday.“We should be looking to reopen Russian airspace to have it accessible to all airlines to transit through the traditional Siberian overflights, so that Europe can access Asia in the most efficient way possible,” Willie Walsh told a press briefing in Geneva.“If you look at the closure of Ukrainian airspace, Russian airspace and other parts…

Work on a key section is reportedly finishedA crucial section of the East Route natural gas pipeline between Russia and China has been completed, Xinhua News agency reported on Wednesday, citing construction company PipeChina.The section will allow gas to be transported from Russia to China’s eastern economic powerhouse Shanghai, according to the report.The 5,111 km cross-border pipeline reportedly enters China via the border city of Heihe in northeastern Heilongjiang Province, and runs through nine provincial regions, supplying natural gas to areas along the route, including Beijing, Shanghai, and Tianjin.It is part of the East Route project, which connects with the…

Crude prices gave up gains for the year falling below $80 a barrel for the first time since January The price of oil has continued to decline, settling below $80 on Wednesday for the first time since early January. Economists attribute the fall to uncertainty over demand amid a global economic slowdown.As of 14:40 GMT on Wednesday, benchmark Brent was trading at $79.86 per barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was at around $74.56.According to experts, cited by OilPrice, sanctions imposed by the West on Russian oil had little impact on prices, unlike the global economic slowdown triggered…

Shipments rose to more than $700 million in October, a trade report showsUS imports from Russia more than doubled in October despite Washington’s economic sanctions on Moscow, the US Census Bureau said in a report released on Tuesday.September shipments amounted to a mere $332.1 million, whereas the US imported $732 million worth of goods in October, according to the report.Shipments were still way down from October 2021, when the US imported $2.4 billion worth of goods from Russia. Last year, the US was Russia’s fifth largest trading partner in terms of overall trade turnover.Following the launch of Russia’s military operation in Ukraine…