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Martín Zubimendi has claimed his future remains open despite strong links to Arsenal, and admits new Real Madrid boss Xabi Alonso is his “idol.”Arsenal have been working on a deal for the Real Sociedad and Spain midfielder for a number of months and sources have told ESPN that a deal is close, pending a medical.Zubimendi, however, has insisted he doesn’t know how the summer transfer window will play out. Arsenal, Madrid and Liverpool — who the 26-year-old turned down last summer — are all options, while a stay at Sociedad is also on the table.”Of course there are options, but…

As Lee Jae-myung assumes South Korea’s presidency after a decisive electoral victory, the left-leaning leader inherits not just a nation beset by economic distress and political fatigue but a region tilting precariously toward geostrategic recalibration. North Korea, often the most volatile player in this theater, has reason to quietly celebrate.For Pyongyang, the return of a progressive president in the Blue House is the best possible outcome short of Korean reunification on its own terms. Under conservative administrations—especially the now-impeached Yoon Suk Yeol—the North faced a hardline security posture, expanded joint military drills between the US and South Korea, and the…

The Egyptian news website Mada Masr recently reported that Saudi Arabia was pushing to establish a US military base on the islands of Tiran and Sanafir, reigniting one of the most dangerous files in Egypt’s abandonment of its sovereignty.  While the Egyptian regime issued unofficial denials via its media mouthpieces, the government has not formally responded. This crisis reopens a wound that never fully healed: for the first time in modern Egyptian history, its president in 2017 openly ceded part of the country’s territory, even claiming it was never Egyptian, while persecuting and jailing anyone who dared to oppose the…

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — Before Erin Patterson’s in-laws and their relatives arrived at her home for lunch, she bought pricey ingredients, consulted friends about recipes and sent her children out to a movie.Then, the Australian woman served them a dish containing poisonous death cap mushrooms — a meal that was fatal for three of her four guests.Whether that was Patterson’s plan is at the heart of a triple murder trial that has gripped Australia for nearly six weeks. Prosecutors in the Supreme Court case in the state of Victoria say the accused lured her guests to lunch with a…

BERLIN (AP) — Germany’s new government on Wednesday launched a package of tax breaks and eventual tax cuts for companies, moving to encourage investment as it tries to give new momentum to an economy that has shrunk for the past two years and is expected to stagnate this year.Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s Cabinet approved the so-called growth booster program, which must still be passed by lawmakers. Its central component is a hefty tax write-off on investments in machinery and other equipment over the next three years, followed by a gradual reduction of the corporate tax rate from 15% to 10% between…

BANGKOK (AP) — A hungry wild elephant caused havoc in a grocery store in Thailand on Monday when he strolled in from a nearby national park and helped himself to food on the shelves.Videos of the incident showed the huge male elephant, known as Plai Biang Lek, briefly stopping in front of the shop, located next to a main road near the Khao Yai National Park in northeastern Thailand, before ducking his whole body inside.The elephant stopped in front of the shop’s counter, calmly snatching and chomping snacks, and did not flinch as the national park workers tried to shoo…

PARIS (AP) — Europe and the United States are meeting in Paris to negotiate a settlement of a tense tariff spat with global economic ramifications between two global economic powerhouses.The European Union’s top trade negotiator, Maroš Šefčovič, met Wednesday with his American counterpart, U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, on the sidelines of a meeting of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.“We’re advancing in the right direction at pace,” Šefčovič said at a news conference. He said ongoing technical meetings between EU and U.S. negotiators in Washington would be soon followed by a video conference between himself and Greer to…

HANOI, Vietnam (AP) — Vietnam abolished its long-standing two-child limit on Tuesday to try and reverse declining birth rates and ease the pressures of an aging population.The National Assembly passed amendments scrapping rules that limit families to having one or two children, state media Vietnam News Agency reported on Wednesday. The rules were usually stricter for Communist Party members, who could miss out on promotions or bonuses if they had a third child.Vietnamese families are having fewer children than ever before. The birth rate in 2021 was 2.11 children per woman, just over the replacement rate required for a population…

CNN  —  An elephant never forgets – where the snacks are stored. A large wild elephant caught shopkeepers off guard at a convenience store in Thailand on Monday, when it lumbered into the shop in search of food. The hungry mammal can be seen on CCTV footage entering the store and helping itself to snacks. “Business was a bit slow that day. Around 2 p.m., the elephant just walked right up. I came out and tried to shoo it away. I told it not to come closer,” shop owner Khamploi Kakaew told CNN. “I told it, ‘Go away, go on,’…

CNN  —  Meghan, Duchess of Sussex has shared rare photos of her daughter, Lilibet, to mark the princess’ fourth birthday. In one black-and-white picture, posted on Instagram on Wednesday, Meghan can be seen cuddling Lilibet, whose face is partially visible behind her mother’s hand and arm. “Happy birthday to our beautiful girl! Four years ago today she came into our lives – and each day is brighter and better because of it. Thanks to all of those sending love and celebrating her special day,” wrote Meghan in the caption. A second photo in the post shows Meghan cradling Lilibet, whose…