UK News
Pupils found with weapons after searches at Cardiff schools
“If there is reasonable suspicion that a young person may be carrying a weapon, schools have the legal power to carry out a search, which is done discreetly, proportionately and with clear explanations provided to the young person and parents or carers are informed following any search,” said a spokesperson.
Two other children and a woman were already out of the house before emergency services arrived.
Source link
UK News
FA Cup semi-final buildup, plus crunch games at both ends of the Premier League – matchday live | Football
Key events
Speaking of Arsenal and the Women’s Champions League, Suzanne Wrack spoke to Olivia Smith recently about her football journey and playing in her first major European semi-final.
The FA Cup semi-final is not the only major football semi-final happening today. The Women’s Champions League semi-finals also kick off this weekend, starting with Bayern Munich v Barcelona this evening.
Arsenal then host Lyon at the Emirates Stadium tomorrow.
Fancy a bit of reminiscing on this Saturday morning, Southampton fans? Give this a read…
It’ll be really interesting to see what team Pep Guardiola names today. Will he go full strength? Or will he significantly rotate with the Premier League title race in mind?
1. I wouldn’t mind a Leeds-Saints Final. That’ll be great for neutrals and non Chelsea or City fans.
2. We hope Pep rotates. I loved the team that beat Newcastle away in the FA Cup,it was fool of fresh legs and hunger. Nico and Reijnders at the centre of it plus a rejuvenated Ake at the back with Marmoush hunting for the goals.
Not only do we have lots of Premier League action today, we also have the first FA Cup semi-final to look forward to.
Manchester City take on Southampton at Wembley at 5:15pm BST for a place in the final.
Will the underdogs prevail?
Dave Estherby has emailed in about Tottenham:
“I think Spurs could be bang in trouble today. Wolves have shown this season that as well as being fairly abject for most of it, they’re perfectly capable of playing very good, even great football when the mood strikes them.
“Tottenham probably looked at this fixture not long ago and thought, well that’s 3 points, no problem.
“Wolves are probably thinking, well if we’re going down we’re taking you with us.
“Can see Spurs getting a hiding, which with a current -11 goal difference, could be fatal.
“West Ham won’t beat Everton though…”
In a boost for Arsenal, Bukayo Saka is set to return today following a month-long absence with injury.
Mikel Arteta said: “We have given him some time because there was a moment that he was struggling to sustain the performances because he wasn’t comfortable at all. We’ve done that so he had the right treatment, the right space. He has some time as well for himself and it’s the most important part of the season and it’s part of us.
“I think it was a good moment for him as well to reflect on that, to have some peace because we’ve been constantly asking and demanding him, and it was a moment to say: ‘OK, now when you feel ready let us know and we’ll go for it.’”
The Arsenal manager added: “He was in great spirits today, you can see the sun is shining and now he’s back with the team, because he had a different energy. He’s had a tough period, we certainly missed him and he’s back with us now.
“Bukayo is a player when it comes to those moments, we expect him to produce those moments to win it for us. We need him in the squad. We have him now. Hopefully we can use him in the right way.”
If you get the chance to read this at some point today, please do. It’s a brilliant summary from Jonathan Liew of the panic going through north London right now – on both ends of the spectrum.
At the other end of the table, Arsenal host Newcastle as they look to leapfrog Manchester City and move back to first in the Premier League. The Gunners slipped to second earlier this week after City clinched a 1-0 win over Burnley.
They need a win today to keep some control in the title race.
Krishnamoorthy has messaged in to say:
“The phrase ‘throw them to the wolves’ never appeared more apt than today, even if these Wolves are neither scary nor capable. But since when did Tottenham need an enemy to capitulate?”
It does feel like West Ham have the more challenging game compared to Spurs this afternoon…
But this is the Premier League – anything can happen!
Today is when my WHU drop back into the bottom 3 and stay there. Brady has gone,hopefully soon followed by Sullivan. Next season in the Championship we can at least begin the process of becoming a football club again.
Today’s Premier League fixtures
Speaking of West Ham and Tottenham, both teams are in action at 3pm BST this afternoon. The Hammers host Everton and former boss David Moyes, while Spurs travel to face Wolves.
It could be a huge day in the race for survival.
So, my question to you today… Who will be the final team to get relegated?
Wolves and Burnley are already down, and following last night’s match it now looks like it’s between West Ham and Tottenham. What do we think?
Here’s how that result left the Premier League table…
Nottingham Forest completely stunned Sunderland last night with a huge 5-0 win at the Stadium of Light which should keep them safe in the Premier League. Goals from Chris Wood, Morgan Gibbs-White, Igor Jesus, Elliot Anderson and an own-goal from Trai Hume fired Forest to a much-needed victory, putting space between them, West Ham and Tottenham in the relegation battle.
Hello, good morning and welcome to another Matchday live! We have plenty to look forward to this afternoon, from Premier League fixtures to Championship and EFL match-ups. We also have a WSL game to preview as well as a Women’s Champions League semi-final and an FA Cup semi-final.
In the Prem, Fulham host Aston Villa at lunchtime. Everton then travel to face West Ham at the London Stadium, already-relegated Wolves take on Tottenham and Liverpool face Crystal Palace. And in the late fixture, Arsenal will be looking to return to the top of the table with a win over Newcastle.
But before we look ahead to those fixtures, let’s recap what happened at the Stadium of Light last night…
Preamble
Emillia will be here shortly to tee up a huge day of action from the FA Cup, Premier League, Football League, National League, Scottish Premiership and Europe.
To start you off, here is all the the latest team news for the first two of those competitions …
… and 10 things you need to look out for this weekend. Enjoy!
UK News
Middle East crisis live: Witkoff and Kushner headed to Pakistan for Iran negotiations | US-Israel war on Iran
Key events
While US envoys head to Islamabad in the hope of renewing peace talks with Iran, Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza began voting Saturday in municipal elections in a first vote since the Gaza war, marked by a narrow political field and widespread disillusionment.
Nearly 1.5 million people are registered to vote in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, as well as 70,000 people in Gaza’s Deir el-Balah area, according to the Ramallah-based Central Elections Commission.
Most electoral lists are aligned with President Mahmud Abbas’s secular-nationalist Fatah party or running as independents. There are no lists affiliated with Fatah’s archrival, Hamas, which controls nearly half of the Gaza Strip.
A US-Kuwaiti journalist who was detained in Kuwait for online posts related to the Iran war has been released and has left the Gulf nation, after being acquitted of “spreading false information”.
A US state department official said on Friday that Ahmed Shihab-Eldin, 41, had left Kuwait.
Last week, the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists said Shihab-Eldin had not been seen in public since 2 March, after being detained by Kuwaiti authorities during a crackdown by Gulf nations on people filming or posting footage from the conflict that started when the US and Israel attacked Iran at the end of February.
Shihab-Eldin had been visiting family in Kuwait and was arrested on 3 March, according to CPJ. The media watchdog said he was charged with spreading false information, harming national security and misusing his mobile phone.
A Kuwaiti court acquitted him on all charges, CPJ said on Thursday, citing a statement from lawyers for Shihab-Eldin’s sisters.
The US said on Friday it had imposed sanctions on an independent “teapot” refinery in China for buying billions of dollars’ worth of Iranian oil, as Washington and Tehran head into another round of peace talks this weekend.
The Treasury Department targeted Hengli Petrochemical (Dalian) Refinery, which it said is one of Iran’s largest customers of crude oil and petroleum products. The department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control said it also imposed sanctions on about 40 shipping companies and vessels that operate as part of Iran’s shadow fleet.
China has said it opposes “illegal” unilateral sanctions. On Friday, its embassy in Washington said normal trade should not be harmed and called on Washington to stop “abusing” sanctions to target Chinese companies.
Opening summary
Hello and welcome to our live coverage of events in the Middle East, with Steve Witkoff and president Trump’s son-in-law headed to Pakistan in a bid to kickstart a new round of peace negotiations with Iran amid a fragile ceasefire, though the prospect of direct talks remained uncertain.
The White House said emissaries Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would engage in an “in-person conversation” with Iranian representatives, but Iranian state media said that direct negotiations were not on the cards.
Here is a quick recap of the latest:
-
Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi arrived in Islamabad late Friday. Earlier on social media, he wrote that he was travelling to Pakistan on a trip focused on “bilateral matters and regional developments.” He didn’t specify who he would meet.
-
Shortly after Araghchi touched down, the country’s government made it clear there would be no direct negotiations with American government representatives during this visit. Foreign ministry spokesperson Esmael Baqaei said on X that, “No meeting is planned to take place between Iran and the US”.
-
Instead, Baqaei said Pakistani officials would convey messages between the delegations. Baqaei thanked the Pakistani government for its “ongoing mediation + good offices for ending American imposed war of aggression.”
-
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt had said in an interview on Fox News that Witkoff and Kushner would meet with Araghchi. “We’re hopeful that it will be a productive conversation and hopefully move the ball forward to a deal,” Leavitt said. She said vice-president JD Vance would not travel but that he remains “deeply involved,” and would be willing to go to Pakistan “if we feel it’s a necessary use of his time.”
-
The talks planned for Saturday come as much of the world is on edge over a war that has snarled crucial energy exports through the strait of Hormuz, clouded the global economic picture and left thousands dead across the Middle East.
-
The international community continues to denounce the humanitarian crises stemming from the conflict. European Council president António Costa said on Friday that the immediate opening of the strait of Hormuz without restrictions is “vital” for the world. Also, a World Food Programme representative today said that 45 million people will face food insecurity and malnutrition if the strait of Hormuz continues to be blocked.
-
Pakistan has been trying to get US and Iranian officials back to the table after Trump this week announced an indefinite extension of the ceasefire with Iran, honouring Islamabad’s request for more time for diplomatic outreach.
-
That hasn’t lowered tensions in the strait, a strategic waterway through which a fifth of the world’s oil and natural gas is shipped during peacetime. Iran has kept its stranglehold on traffic through the strait, attacking three ships earlier this week, while the US is maintaining a blockade on Iranian ports and Trump has ordered the military to “shoot and kill” small boats that could be placing mines.
-
Crime & Safety5 days agoBicester man denies sexually assaulting two young girls
-
Oxford News4 weeks agoOxfordshire village fear for welfare incident update issued
-
Oxford News4 weeks agoDrug driving arrest carried out in Oxfordshire market town
-
UK News5 days agoStarmer says it ‘beggars belief’ he wasn’t told about Mandelson vetting failure as he faces Commons – UK politics live | Politics
-
Crime & Safety2 weeks agoLorry overturns on Oxfordshire A43 roundabout with driver trapped
-
Business & Technology4 weeks agoFirst Indie Oxford Day kicks off with great success
-
Oxford News6 days agoBanbury cake company with 400 year history shut down
-
UK News3 days agoTV tonight: Shetland meets CSI in a new drama about a disgraced cop | Television