Mumbai, India — For most of a warm and breezy Sunday afternoon in Mumbai, the Wankhede Stadium felt closer to Kathmandu than India’s southern metropolis as thousands of Nepalese fans sang, danced and dared to dream while their cricket team took on the mighty England in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026.

A sea of red and blue replica shirts heaved in every nook and corner of the iconic 33,000-capacity venue, with supporters turning the famed Indian stadium into their adopted home.

A banner, saying “Feel the Thrill” stretched across stands and captured the mood perfectly as chants, drums and Nepali tunes echoed throughout the ground.

From children arriving with flags painted on their faces to elderly supporters proudly wearing the traditional Dhaka topi – a traditional Nepalese hat – fans of all ages turned up for what felt like a cricketing festival drenched in Nepali culture.

A sea of red and blue engulfed the Wankhede Stadium as Nepalese fans took over on Sunday [Pankaj Nangia/Getty Images]

‘We almost won’

On the pitch, Nepal’s players delivered one of their most memorable performances in recent years, with the match ending in heartbreak as the team’s spirited chase fell agonisingly short on the final ball.

With the odds stacked heavily against them, Nepal walked out to face two-time champions England fully aware of the vast gulf in experience and pedigree compared to their opponents.

They hoped, though, that their hunger, intensity and fearless approach to the game could keep them firmly in the contest.

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Chasing a challenging target of 185, the Rhinos proved why they are one of the most promising teams in associate cricket, as Lokesh Bam’s late heroics, coupled with Rohit Paudel and Dipendra Singh Airee’s onslaughts, pushed the contest to the last ball.

“We almost won but couldn’t go through because the players lack experience,” Nepal fan Subodh Dhakal, who travelled from Kathmandu, told Al Jazeera. “Experience will come with time, but the team played well.”

Dhakal, a doctor and passionate Nepal supporter, planned a quick two-day trip to attend the match with his wife, after watching the Nepal Premier League – the domestic league whose growth has been central to the nation’s progress in the sport.

Like Dhakal, Satyam Pokhrel also made his way to Mumbai from the Nepalese capital. Joined by a group of friends, Pokhrel revealed his plans to stay for the remaining three Nepal games, all of which are scheduled at the same venue.

“Nepal had a really good chance [to win], but were unlucky,” he said. “The match was very close; I’m proud of the team. They showed great energy and are capable of winning the upcoming games.”

Sunday’s heroics against England were not the first time Nepal troubled stronger opponents. Five months before the World Cup, they beat the West Indies 2-1 in a three-match series — their first bilateral series victory over a full member of the International Cricket Council (ICC) — while in 2024 they came within a run of upsetting South Africa at the T20 World Cup.

Nepal’s debut at the tournament, in 2014, led to a famous win over a highly-rated Afghanistan team.

Nepal fans gather outside Wankhede Stadium around Marine Drive in Mumbai [Manasi Pathak/Al Jazeera]

‘Don’t count us out’

For many in the stands, being part of the atmosphere required journeys just as memorable as the match itself.

Bhuvan Rawal travelled from Tikapur in far-western Nepal, spending three days on the road to reach Mumbai by bus.

“I wasn’t bothered by the time or money taken to come here. Watching Nepal play at a World Cup is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me,” said the 26-year-old.

“I’ve come with around 200 to 300 supporters from Nepal. We were aware of the match schedule since last year and were excited to be at Wankhede Stadium… Mumbai is our second home now!”

Rawal, who played cricket in his younger years and works as a gym trainer, believes lowly-ranked teams such as Nepal aren’t just here to make up the numbers at the expanded 20-team T20 World Cup.

“We may be a small country, but Nepal is very beautiful and can play wonderful cricket. I understand there’s a difference between full ICC members and associate teams, but don’t count us out.

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“No team is too small to challenge the giants,” he said.

Bhuvan Rawal was among the thousands of Nepalese fans who undertook a long journey to Mumbai from their homeland [Manasi Pathak/Al Jazeera]

Inside Story

How has Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza shaped the Middle East?

Al Jazeera Forum discusses the regional impact of Israel’s genocidal war against the Palestinian people in Gaza.

Published On 8 Feb 20268 Feb 2026

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By Zaid Sabah and News Agencies

Iranian human rights activist and 2023 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi has been sentenced to more than seven years in prison, according to her lawyers and a group that supports her.

Mohammadi, 53, was on ⁠a week-long hunger strike that ended on Sunday, the Narges Foundation said in a statement. It said Mohammadi told her lawyer, Mostafa Nili, in a phone call on Sunday from prison that she had received her sentence on Saturday.

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“She has been sentenced to six years in prison for gathering and collusion to commit crimes,” Nili told the AFP news agency.

She was also handed a one-and-a-half-year prison sentence for propaganda activities and is to be exiled for two years to the city of Khosf in the eastern province of South Khorasan, the lawyer added.

She also received a two-year ban on leaving the country, according to the report.

Nili said the verdict was not final and could be appealed, expressing hope that the activist could be temporarily “released on bail to receive treatment,” due to her health issues.

Mohammadi had on February 2 begun a hunger strike to protest the conditions of her imprisonment and the inability to make phone calls to lawyers and family.

“Narges Mohammadi ended her hunger strike today on its 6th day, while reports indicate her physical condition is deeply alarming,” the foundation said.

Mohammadi told Nili she was transferred to the hospital just three days ago “due to her deteriorating health”, it added.

“However, she was returned to the Ministry of Intelligence’s security detention centre in Mashhad before completing her treatment,” the foundation said.

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“Her continued detention is life threatening and a violation of human rights laws.”

Mohammadi is the second Iranian woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize after Shirin Ebadi won the award in 2003 for her efforts to promote democracy and human rights.

A prominent writer and journalist, Mohammadi serves as deputy director of the Defenders of Human Rights Center (DHRC), an organisation long dedicated to defending political prisoners and promoting broader human rights reforms in Iran. Beyond her advocacy for gender equality, she campaigns vigorously against the death penalty and corruption.

Her 20-year fight for women’s rights made her a symbol of freedom, the Nobel Committee said in 2023.

Mohammadi was arrested on December 12 after denouncing the suspicious death of lawyer Khosrow Alikordi.

Prosecutor Hasan Hematifar told reporters then that Mohammadi made provocative remarks at Alikordi’s memorial ceremony in the northeastern city of ‌Mashhad and encouraged those present “to chant norm-breaking slogans” and “disturb the peace”.

By News Agencies

Venezuelan opposition politician Juan Pablo Guanipa has been freed from jail, his family said in a statement.

Guanipa’s release on Sunday is the latest high-profile liberation by the government in Caracas, which is under pressure from the United States to free political prisoners.

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Rights group Foro Penal says it has verified 383 liberations of political prisoners since the government announced a new series of releases on January 8.

“Ten months in hiding and almost nine months detained here,” Guanipa said after being released.

“There’s a lot to talk about regarding the present and future of Venezuela, always with the truth front and centre.”

Guanipa, a well-known politician in Venezuela and a close ally of Nobel Peace Prize winner and opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, was arrested in May 2025 after months in hiding for allegedly leading a “terrorist” plot. His family and political movement have strenuously denied the allegations.

Earlier this month, Guanipa’s family said they had also been able to see him in person for the first time in months, and that he was in good physical health.

Machado celebrated Guanipa’s release in a statement on X, calling for all political prisoners to be released.

Exiled Venezuelan opposition figurehead Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia also demanded “the immediate release” of all political prisoners.

“These releases are not synonymous with full and complete freedom,” he posted on X.

“As long as legal proceedings remain open and restrictive measures, threats or surveillance remain, the persecution continues,” he added.

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Venezuela’s opposition and human rights groups have said for years that the country’s government uses detentions to stamp out dissent.

The government has, however, denied holding political prisoners and says those jailed have committed crimes.

The country’s interim President Delcy Rodriguez has also announced a proposed “amnesty law” for hundreds of prisoners in the country, and said the infamous Helicoide detention centre in Caracas, which rights groups have long denounced as the site of prisoner abuse, will be converted into a centre for sport and social services in the capital.

The legislation, which would grant immediate clemency to people jailed for participating in political protests or critiquing public figures, return assets of those detained and cancel Interpol and other international measures previously issued by the government – passed in an initial vote at the National Assembly this week. It will, however, need to be approved a second time to become law.

Rodriguez, who took office after the US abducted and deposed Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro last month, has been releasing the political prisoners and complying with US demands on oil deals.

By Al Jazeera Staff and News Agencies

At least six people have been killed and seven others were wounded when two adjoining buildings collapsed in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli, the head of ⁠the municipal council said.

Abdel Hamid Karimeh, speaking at a press conference in Tripoli on Sunday, did not say how many people might still be ‌trapped under debris in the northern city’s Bab al-Tabbaneh neighbourhood.

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Search-and-rescue operations were under way, with civil defence teams, supported by the Lebanese Red Cross and emergency and relief agencies, leading efforts.

Residents of the neighbourhoood also took part in rescue efforts, rushing to help remove debris and create openings in the collapsed building.

Rescue workers and residents search for survivors in the rubble of a building that collapsed in the northern city of Tripoli, Lebanon, Sunday, February 8, 2026 [AP]

Members of the Internal Security Forces and Tripoli municipal police have evacuated residential buildings adjacent to the collapsed building, fearing their collapse, amid a heavy deployment of army personnel, Lebanon’s state-run National News Agency reported. It said eight injured people had been rescued.

Lebanese President Joseph Aoun ordered all emergency services to be on high alert to assist in rescue operations and to provide shelter for the residents of the neighboring buildings, according to the NNA report.

Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said in a statement that the government is fully prepared to provide housing allowances for all residents of buildings that need to be evacuated.

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“Given the magnitude of this humanitarian catastrophe, the result of years of accumulated neglect, and out of respect for the lives of the victims, I urge all those involved in politics, in Tripoli and elsewhere, to refrain from exploiting this horrific disaster for cheap and short-sighted political gains,” he said.

Lebanon’s infrastructure has suffered from decades of neglect, economic collapse, corruption, and damage caused by conflicts with Israel. Key issues include chronic electricity shortages, an unreliable water supply with contamination risks, and crumbling roads and buildings.

By Al Jazeera Staff and News Agencies

Erling Haaland’s penalty in second-half stoppage time kept Manchester City’s Premier League title challenge alive with a chaotic 2-1 win away at Liverpool.

Haaland’s spot kick sealed a comeback victory for Pep Guardiola’s team in an explosive football game at Anfield on Sunday and brought the gap on first-place Arsenal back to six points.

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City’s title prospects looked in dire shape when Dominik Szoboszlai crashed a stunning long-range free kick in off the post in the 74th minute.

And even when Bernardo Silva equalised 10 minutes later, second-place City was still looking at ending the match eight points adrift of the leader.

But Haaland sent the away fans wild by firing into the bottom corner from the spot in the 93rd after Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson brought down Matheus Nunes in the box.

Then City substitute Rayan Cherki scored from the halfway line – only for VAR to overrule it and send off Szoboszlai for a foul on Haaland in the process of the ball crossing the line.

These two clubs have combined to win the last eight titles in English football’s Premier League. But both showed the flaws that have opened the door for Arsenal to potentially end their long wait to be crowned champions once again.

Haaland has scored just once from open play in his last 13 games, and an uncharacteristic lack of confidence from the Norwegian showed with the best chance of the first half inside the opening two minutes.

Silva’s clever pass split the Liverpool defence, but Haaland’s shot lacked conviction under pressure from Milos Kerkez, and Alisson Becker was able to save low to his left.

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Haaland hooked another effort straight at Alisson among 10 first-half City attempts without a breakthrough.

Second-half slumps have been a consistent feature of City’s season, and the visitors again faded in the second period until a late flurry saved their title challenge.

Hugo Ekitike should have opened the scoring when he completely miscued his header just before the hour mark after a lightning-fast Liverpool break.

Marc Guehi was fortunate to escape with just a yellow card when he dragged down Mo Salah just outside the box.

But it was City who were left fuming at the award of the free kick that led to the opener when Ryan Gravenberch went down under minimal contact.

Szoboszlai scored the only goal with an outrageous free kick when Arsenal visited Anfield in August and produced another stunning strike that clipped the inside of the post before finding the net.

However, the Hungarian went from hero to villain when City levelled six minutes from time.

Szoboszlai played Silva onside as he slid in to volley home Haaland’s header for City’s first second-half goal in the Premier League this year.

Alisson then wiped out Matheus Nunes to concede a penalty and Haaland kept his cool from the spot to put City in front.

Pep Guardiola’s men still needed a stunning save from Gianluigi Donnarumma to tip behind Alexis Mac Allister’s deflected shot.

With Alisson remaining forward from the resulting corner, the Liverpool goal was open when Cherki took aim from the halfway line to roll the ball into an empty net.

However, Haaland and Szoboszlai’s grappling as the ball trickled towards the goal saw the strike ruled out, with a free kick awarded to City instead, and the Liverpool player given his marching orders.

Silva, who was named player of the match, told Sky Sports that it was a vital win for City.

“I feel the whole team knew before the game if we lost it then the title race was probably over. We felt like we needed to win,” he said.

“The hope is there, and we are going to fight until the end. We need to keep doing our job that we haven’t lately.”

Liverpool boss Arne Slot said he was disappointed not to come away with a result and claimed that several key decisions had gone against his side.

“You cannot compare this game with three or four months ago. We have improved so much – but we need to improve the results,” he told Sky.

“So many times this year we haven’t got what I think we deserve, and this is another time.”

Palace end dire run at Brighton

Earlier on Sunday, Crystal Palace ended a 12-game winless run in all competitions by beating rival Brighton 1-0.

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Ismaila Sarr scored the only goal of the match at the Amex Stadium to move Palace nine points clear of the relegation zone and leapfrog Brighton into 13th place.

“It was an unbelievable atmosphere and what a way to start my Palace career, a win in a derby,” said Palace’s record signing Jorgen Strand Larsen, who joined from Wolves on deadline day. “It was really important to win, as there has been a run without wins before I joined.

“This is the most intense game I have ever played, so I’m tired now, but it is worth it.”

Sarr’s winner came after running through in the 61st minute and firing past goalkeeper Bart Verburggen. It was his second goal in as many games and his 10th of the season.

The governing party of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi secured a two-thirds supermajority in a key parliamentary election Sunday, Japanese media reported citing preliminary results, earning a landslide victory thanks to her popularity.

Ms. Takaichi, in a televised interview with public television network NHK following her sweeping victory, said she is now ready to pursue policies that would make Japan strong and prosperous.

NHK, citing results of vote counts, said Ms. Takaichi’s Liberal Democratic Party, or LDP, alone secured 316 seats by early Monday, comfortably surpassing a 261-seat absolute majority in the 465-member lower house, the more powerful of Japan's two-chamber parliament. That marks a record since the party's foundation in 1955 and surpasses the previous record of 300 seats won in 1986 by late Prime Minister Yasuhiro Nakasone.

A smiling Ms. Takaichi placed a big red ribbon above each winner’s name on a signboard at the LDP's headquarters, as accompanying party executives applauded.

Despite the lack of a majority in the other chamber, the upper house, the huge jump from the preelection share in the superior lower house would allow Ms. Takaichi to make progress on a right-wing agenda that aims to boost Japan’s economy and military capabilities as tensions grow with China and she tries to nurture ties with the United States.

Ms. Takaichi said that she would firmly push forward her policy goals while trying to gain support from the opposition.

“I will be flexible,” she said.

Ms. Takaichi is hugely popular, but the governing LDP, which has ruled Japan for most of the last seven decades, has struggled with funding and religious scandals in recent years. She called Sunday’s early election only after three months in office, hoping to turn that around while her popularity is high.

Popular leader

The ultraconservative Ms. Takaichi, who took office as Japan’s first female leader in October, pledged to “work, work, work,” and her style, which is seen as both playful and tough, has resonated with younger fans who say they weren't previously interested in politics.

The opposition, despite the formation of a new centrist alliance and a rising far-right, was too splintered to be a real challenger. The new opposition alliance of LDP’s former coalition partner, Buddhist-backed dovish Komeito, and the liberal-leaning Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, is projected to sink to half of their combined preelection share of 167 seats.

Ms. Takaichi was betting with this election that her LDP party, together with its new partner, the Japan Innovation Party, would secure a majority.

Akihito Iwatake, an office worker, said he welcomed the big win by the LDP because he felt the party went too liberal in the past few years. “With Takaichi shifting things more toward the conservative side, I think that brought this positive result,” he said.

Ms. Takaichi's policies

The prime minister wants to push forward a significant shift to the right in Japan’s security, immigration, and other policies. The LDP's right-wing partner, JIP leader Hirofumi Yoshimura, has said his party will serve as an “accelerator” for this push.

Japan has recently seen far-right populists gain ground, such as the anti-globalist and surging nationalist party Sanseito. Exit polls projected a big gain for Sanseito.

The first major task for Ms. Takaichi when the lower house reconvenes in mid-February is to work on a budget bill, delayed by the election, to fund economic measures that address rising costs and sluggish wages.

Ms. Takaichi has pledged to revise security and defense policies by December to bolster Japan’s offensive military capabilities, lifting a ban on weapons exports and moving further away from the country’s postwar pacifist principles.

She has been pushing for tougher policies on foreigners, anti-espionage, and other measures that resonate with a far-right audience, but ones that experts say could undermine civil rights.

Ms. Takaichi also wants to increase defense spending in response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s pressure for Japan to loosen its purse strings.

She now has time to work on these policies, without an election until 2028.

Divisive policies

Though Ms. Takaichi said that she's seeking to win support for policies seen as divisive in Japan, she largely avoided discussing ways to fund soaring military spending, how to fix diplomatic tension with China, and other issues.

In her campaign speeches, Ms. Takaichi enthusiastically talked about the need for proactive government spending to fund “crisis management investment and growth,” such as measures to strengthen economic security, technology, and other industries. Ms. Takaichi also seeks to push tougher measures on immigration, including stricter requirements for foreign property owners and a cap on foreign residents.

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Sunday's election “underscores a problematic trend in Japanese politics in which political survival takes priority over substantive policy outcomes,” said Masato Kamikubo, a Ritsumeikan University politics professor. “Whenever the government attempts necessary but unpopular reforms ... the next election looms.”

Impact of snow

Sunday’s vote coincided with fresh snowfall across the country, including in Tokyo. Record snowfall in northern Japan over the past few weeks blocked roads and was blamed for dozens of deaths nationwide.

This story was reported by The Associated Press. 

By News Agencies

Ethiopia’s ‌foreign minister has accused neighbouring Eritrea of military aggression and of supporting armed groups inside Ethiopian territory, amid growing tensions between the neighbours.

The two longstanding foes had waged war against each other between 1998 and 2000, but signed a peace deal in 2018 and became allies during Ethiopia’s two-year war against regional authorities in the northern Tigray region.

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But Eritrea was not a party to the 2022 agreement that ended the Tigray conflict, and relations between the two nations have plunged into acrimony since then.

In recent months, Addis Ababa has accused Eritrea of supporting rebel fighters on Ethiopian soil – allegations Asmara denies.

In a letter dated Saturday, February 7, Ethiopian Foreign Minister Gedion Timothewos told his Eritrean counterpart Osman Saleh Mohammed that Eritrean forces had occupied Ethiopian territory along parts of their shared border for an extended period.

He also accused Eritrea of providing material support to armed groups operating inside Ethiopia.

“The incursion[s] of Eritrean troops further into Ethiopian territory … are not just provocations but acts of outright aggression,” his letter said.

Timothewos demanded that Asmara “withdraw its troops from Ethiopian territory and cease all forms of collaboration with rebel groups”.

He also said that Ethiopia remained open to dialogue if Eritrea respected its territorial integrity. He said Addis Ababa was willing to engage in good-faith negotiations on all matters of mutual interest, including maritime affairs and access to the Red Sea through the Eritrean port of Assab.

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There was no immediate comment from Eritrea on the letter.

Eritrea, which gained independence in 1993 after decades of armed conflict with Ethiopia, has however, bristled at repeated public declarations by Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed that his landlocked country has a right to sea access. Many in Eritrea, which lies on the Red Sea, view his comments as an implicit threat of military action.

By Al Jazeera Staff and News Agencies

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has condemned anti-Olympics protesters as “enemies of Italy and Italians” after violence on the fringes of rallies in Milan and the alleged sabotage of train infrastructure.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) also joined the criticism on Sunday, condemning violence linked to the protests in Milan on Saturday, stating such behaviour has no place at the Games.

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The incidents ⁠happened on the first full day of competition in the Winter Games that Milan is hosting along with the Alpine town of Cortina d’Ampezzo.

Meloni praised thousands of Italians who are working to keep the Games running smoothly, many of whom are volunteers.

“Then there are those who are enemies of Italy and Italians. The protesters demonstrate ‘against the Olympics,’ causing these images to end up on televisions around the world. After others cut the railway cables to prevent the trains from leaving,” the prime minister wrote in a statement on Facebook on Sunday.

The Italian Transport Ministry said that an investigation into suspected “terrorism” had been launched after the railway sabotage near the city of Bologna on Saturday and that those responsible would face a multimillion-euro damages claim.

Thousands of people took to the streets in Milan on Saturday to protest against the Olympics’ environmental and social consequences, including concerns over excessive public spending and ecological damage.

The march, which began peacefully, turned tense when some protesters set off smoke bombs and firecrackers near Olympic venues. Milan police responded with tear gas and water cannons to disperse the crowds, leading to clashes in areas close to the Olympic Village and a nearby highway.

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International Olympic Committee spokesperson Mark Adams told reporters on Sunday that peaceful protest is legitimate, but “we draw a line at violence”, which “has no place at the Olympic Games”.

Separately, protesters have also rallied against Israel’s participation in the games and against US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, which has deployed agents to provide security to the US delegation at the Games.

During Friday’s opening ceremony, Israel’s small delegation marched into Milan’s San Siro Stadium to a smattering of “boos” from the crowds. The four Israeli athletes, waving their national flag and smiling, saw the jeers quickly drowned out by the loud music and overall festive atmosphere.

United States Vice President JD Vance and his wife, Second Lady Usha Vance, received a similar hostile reception when they appeared on the stadium’s big screen.

By News Agencies

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s chief of staff has quit over the appointment of Peter Mandelson as ambassador to the United States after files revealed the extent of Mandelson’s relationship with the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

“After careful reflection, I have decided to resign from the government. The decision to appoint Peter Mandelson was wrong. He has damaged our party, our country and trust in politics itself,” Starmer’s top aide Morgan McSweeney said in a statement on Sunday.

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“I advised the Prime Minister to make that appointment and I take full responsibility for that advice,” he added.

Labour members of parliament had called for McSweeney’s resignation after new evidence about Mandelson’s relationship with Epstein was revealed in the latest tranche of documents and photos from the investigation into the American financier were released by the US Department of Justice. The lawmakers blamed McSweeney for the appointment of Mandelson and the damage caused by the publication of the crude exchanges between him and Epstein.

McSweeney, 48, who was a protege and friend of Mandelson, was accused by some Labour lawmakers and his political opponents of failing to ensure that there were proper background checks when the ambassador was appointed.

In a statement on Sunday, Starmer said it had been “an honour” to work with McSweeney, who had held the role of chief of staff since October 2024.

Mandelson’s payout

Mandelson was sacked by Starmer in September over his friendship with Epstein and last week also quit the Labour Party and House of Lords, the upper chamber of the UK Parliament. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office said it is reviewing an exit payment made to him after he was fired.

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Mandelson, a pivotal figure in British politics and the Labour Party for decades, received an estimated payout of between 38,750 pounds and 55,000 pounds ($52,000 to $74,000) after only seven months in the job, according to a report in the Sunday Times newspaper.

Documents released on January 30 by the US Justice Department appeared to show that Mandelson had also allegedly leaked confidential UK government information to Epstein when he was a British minister, including during the 2008 financial crisis.

The Foreign Office said in a statement that it has launched a review into Mandelson’s severance payment “in light of further information that has now been revealed and the ongoing police investigation”.

Mandelson’s lawyers have said he “regrets, and will regret until his dying day, that he believed Epstein’s lies about his criminality”.

“Lord Mandelson did not discover the truth about Epstein until after his death in 2019,” said a spokesperson for the law firm Mishcon de Reya, which represents Mandelson.

“He is profoundly sorry that powerless and vulnerable women and girls were not given the protection they deserved,” the law firm added.

Starmer’s political future in peril?

The departure of McSweeney has thrown the future direction of the government into doubt, less than two years after the Labour Party won one of the largest parliamentary majorities in modern British history.

With polls showing Starmer is already hugely unpopular with voters, some in his own party are openly questioning his judgement and future, and it remains to be seen whether McSweeney’s exit will be enough to silence his critics.

Cabinet minister Pat McFadden earlier insisted Starmer should remain in office despite his “terrible mistake” in appointing Mandelson.

The close Starmer ally told broadcasters the party should stick with the prime minister.

“He [Starmer] should be realistic and accept that this has been a terrible story, that this appointment was a terrible mistake,” McFadden, the work and pensions secretary, told BBC television.

He said the real blame lay “squarely with Peter Mandelson”, who put himself forward for the job despite knowing the extent of his relationship with Epstein.

But according to a report by the Sunday Telegraph, Starmer’s deputy, David Lammy, has become the first cabinet minister to appear to distance himself from Starmer.

The deputy prime minister had not been in favour of appointing Mandelson due to his known links to Epstein, the report quoted friends of Lammy as saying.

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From Lindsey Vonn’s very first inklings that, just maybe, she might attempt this unlikeliest of comebacks, it was always for this moment.

She wanted to stand atop the Olympia delle Tofane downhill – her favorite piste in the world – and feel that rush one more time. The speed, beckoning. The reckless tilt of the slope. The chatter of her skis beneath her. The gold, waiting.

For 13 seconds, the world held its breath with her, hoping.

Why We Wrote This

Most people can’t imagine what it feels like to speed down a mountain at 85 mph, but many can relate to overcoming adversity. Lindsey Vonn, one of the greatest speed skiers of all time, showed Olympic determination in her unlikely comeback.

The crash that engulfed her at the first treacherous turn will be devastating to more than the body that has been through so much throughout her career. “I hope I can close this chapter better than I did in ’19,” when she first retired, she said during a media event in October.

Instead, the closing image of this chapter will be of her hanging like a teardrop in front of the impassive wall of the Dolomites, a helicopter airlifting her to safety.

Vonn could have turned back many times. She might never have attempted such an audacious return with the goal of skiing in the Olympics at 41. She might have admitted defeat when she injured her knee last week. She could have backed off coming into that first turn.

But then she would not have been Lindsey Vonn, and the world would never have seen the greatest speed skier of all time.

In those few seconds in Cortina on Sunday, Vonn gave the world what she always did: absolutely everything. And never in a remarkable career that included an Olympic gold, 84 World Cup wins, and numerous injury airlifts was the heart or the cost of that consuming fire more apparent.

That is not a medal or a fairytale ending but, in a way, something more. It was a wrenching portrait of sacrifice and passion broadcast as the world was watching, a reminder of why the Olympics so often kindle

“A lot of people can’t relate to ski racing,” she added at the October media event. “But they can relate to adversity.”

Every woman who put skis to snow Sunday in Cortina would understand that. Breezy Johnson, most of all. It was here, four years ago, that Johnson crashed so violently that she had to pull out of the 2022 Winter Olympics weeks later. Today, on that same slope, the American was the fastest down the mountain.

It was a run that underlined the thin blade between glory and madness. Both Johnson and her closest competitor, German Emma Aicher, pushed their runs to the brink of disaster, demanding time from a slope stubbornly unwilling to yield. It got a bit “squirrelly” off some of the jumps, Johnson said after the race with a downhiller’s understatement. She goes home with gold.

But she said her heart went out to her teammate. “I know how sometimes, because you love this course so much, when you crash on it and it hurts you like that, it hurts so much worse.”

Just over a week ago, the last chapter of Vonn’s story here looked to be so different. This was to be her moment to set things right.

She had retired in 2019, not because the flame had grown dim, but rather because the body had grown weary.

With time, however, as her injuries mended and she began to feel better, she found, somewhat to her own surprise, that the fire was not dimming. Her body was feeling as good as it ever had, and the Olympics were coming – in Cortina.

“The whole time I was contemplating my comeback, Cortina was always there, my goal,” she said in October. “I don’t think I would have tried this comeback if the Olympics had been anywhere else. Cortina always keeps bringing me back, and it’s calling me back one more time.”

What happened next defied belief.

She returned this season at age 41 – and utterly dominated. Before her fall in Switzerland on Jan. 30, Vonn had won two of the five downhill races and never finished lower than third. She was leading the World Cup downhill standings by 144 points.

This wasn’t a comeback, it was something unlike anything the sport had ever seen. Had she medaled here, she would have been the oldest alpine skier ever to medal – by six years. It looked not only possible, but likely.

Then came the crash just over a week ago. Should Vonn have raced here? Many will question her decision. But the head of the International Ski Federation, Johan Eliasch, gave perhaps the most fitting answer.

“Well then, they don’t know Lindsey. That’s all I can say.”

Here in Cortina, Vonn has been adamant. “I will try, as long as I have the ability to. I will not go home regretting not trying. I will do everything in my power to be in that starting gate.”

To most people, this might have seemed reckless. But it was Lindsey.

“I’ve never been afraid. I’ve always been the adventurer. I’ve always been the kid that climbs the tree,” she said this week.

This is the stuff of Winter Olympians. Fear is for those who stay in the ski lodge. But what truly took Vonn back into the start gate – in the face of such enormous challenges – seems to be a yearning she could not quite let go.

“Life without ski racing is pretty boring, to be honest,” Vonn told the BBC in 2024. “It’s been five years [since retirement], and I’ve realized that there’s nothing that’s going to fill the hole of ski racing. I’m never going to go 85 miles an hour again.”

In 2024, as part of a promotion for Red Bull, she was able to ski the most feared downhill in the world – the Streif course in Kitzbühel, Austria, a race only open to men. “I was so happy,” she told the BBC. “It made me so happy to my core. And then I got done with it and was like, ‘OK, I’m back to not doing this anymore,’ and it was one of the worst things for me, because I got a sprinkle of what I used to have – and I don’t have that anymore.”

For three months, Vonn had a sprinkle – a glorious sprinkle that sent the sport into supernova. And then after her fall last week, the call of Cortina was stronger than fear of the injury.

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On arriving, she reflected: “It’s an amazing feeling, and one I know I will never have again, because I’ve been retired, and I know I’m lucky that I even get this chance one more time. And every time I stand in the starting gate, I realize I’m lucky to be able to do something I love so much, and I don’t take that for granted.”

Vonn has long said that her favorite word is “grit.” Today, the world will be in no doubt of what that looks like.

Leqaa Kordia, a 33-year-old Palestinian woman detained in the United States by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency since March, has been rushed to a hospital after a medical episode, according to media reports.

Kordia is being held in Texas after being detained as part of US President Donald Trump’s crackdown on pro-Palestine protests on college campuses across the country.

Her legal team said she was targeted for her protest against Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza near Columbia University in New York in 2024, but the federal government said she was arrested for allegedly overstaying her student visa.

Since her hospitalisation on Friday, Kordia’s legal team and family said they have not been able to speak with her and do not know her whereabouts.

Here is everything we know about Kordia and why she continues to remain in detention:

Who is Kordia?

Kordia grew up in the occupied West Bank city of Ramallah before coming to the US in 2016. She arrived on a visitor’s visa, staying with her mother, a US citizen, in Paterson, New Jersey, home to one of the largest Arab communities in the country.

She later transitioned from a tourist visa to a student visa, according to her habeas corpus petition.

After her mother applied for Kordia to remain in the US as the relative of a citizen, her green card application was approved in 2021. However, she received incorrect advice from a teacher that led to her student visa expiring in 2022, according to her lawyers.

Before her arrest, Kordia worked as a server at a Middle Eastern restaurant on Palestine Way in New Jersey and helped to care for her autistic half-brother.

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Kordia was moved to protest against Israel’s war due to personal loss. Since the start of the war in October 2023, Kordia said, more than 200 of her relatives have been killed.

Israel has killed more than 71,000 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded more than 170,000 in a war that human rights groups, a United Nations commission and a growing number of scholars said amounts to genocide. Since a “ceasefire” began in October, Israel has killed more than 500 Palestinians and continues to impose curbs on the entry of aid into Gaza.

If deported, Kordia would be handed over to the Israeli government.

Pro-Palestinian protesters take over Butler Library on the campus of Columbia University on May 7, 2025 [Ryan Murphy/Reuters]

Why was Kordia arrested?

She was first arrested in April 2024 during a protest outside the gates of Columbia University, but the case was soon dropped.

On March 13, 2025, Kordia showed up at the ICE headquarters in Newark, New Jersey, for what she believed to be routine immigration questions. She was detained there, “thrown into an unmarked van and sent 1,500 miles [more than 2,400km] away”, Kordia wrote in the USA Today newspaper last month.

Kordia was neither a student at Columbia University nor a part of political circles.

“Though I was not a student, I felt compelled to participate. After all, Israel, with the backing of the United States, has laid waste to Gaza, forcibly displacing my family, killing nearly 200 of my relatives,” she wrote in USA Today.

Today, Kordia is the only person who remains in detention from the Columbia campus demonstrations. She has been held at Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado, Texas.

A leader of the protests, Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian student with Algerian citizenship and a US green card, and others have been released. Khalil, however, is still in a legal battle to remain in the US with his American wife and child. Last month, an appeals court panel dismissed a lawsuit Khalil filed challenging his detention and deportation order. The judges concluded that the federal court that ordered Khalil’s release last year lacked jurisdiction over the matter.

Lawyers for Leqaa Kordia, second from right, say she’s been targeted by US immigration enforcement because she participated in pro-Palestinian protests [File: Craig Ruttle/AP Photo]

What are the charges against Kordia?

The US government has called Kordia’s money transfers to relatives in the Middle East evidence of possible ties to “terrorists”.

Kordia’s lawyers have continuously argued for her release, saying she was targeted by federal officials for her participation in pro-Palestinian protests.

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The federal government has maintained that the case against Kordia is of overstaying a student visa.

“Her arrest had nothing to do with her radical activities,” the Department of Homeland Security said in April. “Kordia was arrested for immigration violations due to having overstayed her F-1 student visa, which had been terminated on January 26, 2022, for lack of attendance.”

Writing in USA Today last month, Kordia said she does not consider herself either a leader or an activist.

“I am a devout Muslim who is deeply committed to my faith and community. I’m a Palestinian woman who enjoys playing the oud, making pottery and hiking,” Kordia wrote. “Speaking out against what rights groups and experts have called a genocide is my moral duty and – I thought – a constitutionally protected right for all in this country. Except, it seems, when that speech defends Palestinian life.”

An immigration judge has called for Kordia’s release twice. However, it has been repeatedly blocked through a series of procedural and administrative moves.

“[The] Trump administration has exploited rarely used procedural loopholes to keep me confined, a practice now being challenged in federal district courts across the country, with many finding the practice unconstitutional,” Kordia wrote.

Demonstrators march after the arrest of Palestinian student protester Mahmoud Khalil at Columbia University on March 10, 2025 [Jeenah Moon/Reuters]

How has Kordia lived in ICE detention?

Since Kordia was moved to the ICE detention facility in Alvarado in March, she has been facing a range of issues, from sleeping on a bare mattress on the floor to being denied religious accommodations, including halal meals.

“Inside the ICE facility where I’m being held, conditions are filthy, overcrowded and inhumane,” Kordia wrote in her piece for USA Today. “For months, I slept in a plastic shell, known as a ‘boat,’ surrounded by cockroaches and only a thin blanket. Privacy does not exist here.”

Last year, when Kordia’s cousin Hamzah Abushaban visited her a week after her arrest, he told The Associated Press news agency in an interview that he was taken aback by the dark circles under her eyes and her state of confusion.

“One of the first things she asked me was why she was there,” Abushaban said. “She cried a lot. She looked like death.”

Rights groups and some Democratic Party leaders have called her a “political prisoner”, condemning the way her case has proceeded.

State Representative Salman Bhojani said the conditions at the detention facility were “suffocating”.

Kordia’s dorm, he said, had 60 mattresses crammed into a space designed for 20 women.

“She does not even have clothing that fully covers her body. Community organizations have tried to provide more appropriate clothing and have been turned away,” Bhojani said. “Male staff enter the dorm at any time, leaving her body exposed in violation of her religious obligations.”

Calling for her release, Amnesty International noted that ICE has “repeatedly violated” Kordia’s religious rights. “She has been served almost no halal meals, forcing her to eat food that doesn’t meet her dietary requirements and causing significant weight loss,” the human rights group said in a statement.

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“During Ramadan, staff refused to let her save food for when she could break her fast, forcing her either to go hungry or to break her fast early,” Amnesty said. “She has not been provided with clothing suitable for prayer or a clean prayer space.”

People participate in a protest organised by Columbia University students and professors against President Donald Trump’s immigration policies and demand that the school establish itself as a sanctuary campus [File: Amr Alfiky/Reuters]

Why was Kordia hospitalised?

On Friday, Abushaban said he heard about Kordia’s hospitalisation in the morning from a person formerly detained with his cousin.

Kordia had fallen, hit her head and suffered a seizure in a bathroom at the Prairieland Detention Center, he told The Dallas Morning News newspaper.

In a statement on Saturday, Kordia’s attorneys and family members demanded answers from the Department of Homeland Security and Prairieland Detention Center regarding her health and whereabouts.

“[Kordia] was reportedly hospitalised yesterday morning after fainting and having a seizure at the Prairieland Detention Center,” the statement said, adding: “Neither her legal team nor family have been provided answers about where she has been hospitalised, the specifics of her health status, and whether and how ICE will ensure her health upon discharge from the undisclosed, off-site hospital.”

“We have since learned that she is expected to spend another night there, but we still have not been able to speak with her directly or have any confirmation of what brought her to the hospital in the first place,” the statement said.

The family members told US media that they called all hospitals in the vicinity but could not locate Kordia.

Students protest outside Columbia University on the two-year anniversary of the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attacks on Israel and start of Israel’s war on Gaza [File: Ryan Murphy/Reuters]

What were the Columbia protests about?

In 2024, pro-Palestinian student encampments at Columbia University helped ignite a global movement against Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza.

The protest sites, however, were broken up after Columbia University allowed hundreds of New York City police officers on campus, leading to dozens of arrests.

The student protesters demanded an end to Israel’s war in Gaza and the university’s divestment from companies linked to the Israeli military.

Columbia University imposed severe punishments, including expulsion and revocation of academic degrees, on dozens of students who participated in the protests. University President Nemat “Minouche” Shafik, who was criticised for the handling of the student protests, stepped down.

The protests also put Columbia at odds with the Trump administration, whose officials alleged anti-Semitism on campus. Campaigners said the campus crackdown violated US free speech rights.

Trump also cancelled millions of dollars in federal funding for the university, accusing it of failing to protect Jewish students. Later, Columbia settled and agreed to pay $200m to the government over three years. In exchange, the Trump administration agreed to return parts of the $400m in grants it froze or terminated.