Full-strength PSG raring to go against Bayern in Champions League semifinal

PARIS (AP) — Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique joked that picking his team against Bayern Munich will be like a “lottery” because he finally has a full-strength squad to choose from.

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That means midfielder Vitinha could start against the six-time champion in the first leg of their Champions League semifinal in Paris on Wednesday. He missed the last two Ligue 1 games with a right heel injury sustained during a2-1 loss to Lyon.

“It'll be a lottery. Everyone’s ready,” Luis Enrique said Tuesday at a pregame news conference. “But be warned, we'll need all the players who are apt to play, and on that point I think we’re more than ready.”

With so many players pushing for places, rather thanrecovering from injurylike earlier in the season, Luis Enrique was faced with a new task.

“It’s all about calming everyone down,” he said.

Midfield battle

Vitinha's presence alongside João Neves and the returning Fabián Ruiz is crucial in a contest pitting arguably the two best midfields in the competition.

Bayern boasts physicality, tactical assuredness and slick passing with Joshua Kimmich, Aleksandar Pavlovic and Leon Goretzka, allied to the goals and assists of right wing Michael Olise and the prolific scoring of burly striker Harry Kane. On the left wing is Luis Díaz, who scored both goals when Bayern won 2-1 in Paris in the league stage in November.

Holding midfield is key to stopping Bayern dictating the game like it did in the quarterfinalsagainst Real Madrid, and against PSG last time they met.

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Vitinha has been in sterling form and is on course for his best season in terms of goals, with seven so far, having scored nine for PSG two seasons ago. He was third in the men's Ballon d'Or vote last year.

Defense is the key

PSG is appearing in its third straight semifinal and faces a Bayern side which has not lost in any competition since Jan. 24 and scored 19 goals in the past five games.

“With two teams who attack so well the key will be defense,” Luis Enrique said. “Defensive statistics also matter, and these are the two best teams in Europe in that respect as well. In terms of consistency, Bayern are slightly ahead of us.”

PSG was sloppy at the back against Bayern in November, and a frustratedLuis Enrique criticized his playersafter that game.

But when PSG failed to qualify in the top eight teams and directly reach the last 16, Luis Enrique boldly predicted his team would come good later in the competition.

In an upbeat mood, he reminded journalists of that.

“There is no team better than us,” he said. “When we didn’t qualify in the top eight teams in the group stage I said I couldn’t see a team better than us.” ___

AP soccer:https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

byAlpha World

in

April 28, 2026

Full-strength PSG raring to go against Bayern in Champions League semifinal

PARIS (AP) — Paris Saint-Germain coach Luis Enrique joked that picking his team against Bayern Munich will be like a “lottery” because ...

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North Korea sharply increased executions during Covid-19 lockdown, rights group says

North Koreadramatically ramped up the number of executions it carried out after shutting its borders due to theCovid-19pandemic, a South Korea-based civic group said.

Seoul-based Transnational Justice Working Group said it has evidence of 60 execution cases, out of which 148 people were punished with death between 2020 and 2024, up from 41 executions over the previous five years.

The executions rose amid a decline in international pressure onPyongyang, it said, confirming the regime’s “brutal governance”.

“After frequent executions in the early years ofKim Jong Un’s rule, the regime became more restrained amid discussions on referring Kim Jong Un to the International Criminal Court, but executions surged again after the Covid-19 border closure and the decline in international pressure,” the group said.

It also mapped 46 sites used by the North Korean regime for carrying out these executions. Of these 10 sites were in capital Pyongyang near the office of Mr Kim, it said.

“The 116.7 per cent surge in executions within North Korea – carried out underthe cover of Covid-19 lockdowns– reconfirmed Kim Jong Un’s brutal governance,” said Minjong Ryu, lead researcher of the report.

The reclusive kingdom reopened slowly only in 2023, and allowed its citizens abroad to return. There is no official confirmation of the impact of the Covid outbreak in North Korea.

Officials in North Korea are yet to issue remarks on the report.

Before the pandemic closure, the group said, murder was cited as the most frequent reason for an execution.

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The group said it interviewed880 North Korean defectorsliving in South Korea and used satellite images to map the execution sites but added that the data should not be considered as definitive.

The largest portion of executions were those carried out for breaching restrictions on foreign culture and religion, includingwatching South Korean dramasand movies.

“The executions for homicide (intentional and negligent), which were the most common before the border closure, decreased by 44.4 per cent, capital offences related to South Korean culture including K-dramas, films, and K-pop, as well as religious and superstitious practices, increased by 250 per cent after the border closure,” the report said.

The number of executions against political crimes surged to 28 from four in the corresponding period as Mr Kim continued to crack down on dissent during the pandemic lockdowns.

“The number of condemned persons for political offences, including violations of Kim Jong-un’s directives and expressions of dissent, grew by 600 per cent,” it said.

These executions linked to cultural violations were also reported from inland areas of the country and not just from the bordering regions with China, suggesting that the K-pop content has spread throughout the country, said Hubert Lee, the group’s executive director.

He added that the anticipated succession of Kim's daughter could also lead to an increase in executions.

"The number of executions may surge when the time ⁠for Ju Ae to succeed is imminent, toremove the inner circleof her father and appoint ‌her people," he said.

The North Korean regime has seen human life as disposable and now dumped its nationals to the war in Ukraine, the official said.

“As a result of delaying decisive international measures against the North Korean regime for its entrenched disregard for human life, Kim Jong Un has sent thousands-if not tens of thousands-of young people to die as expendable in Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, destroying security and peace in Europe,” he said.

byAlpha World

in

April 28, 2026

North Korea sharply increased executions during Covid-19 lockdown, rights group says

North Koreadramatically ramped up the number of executions it carried out after shutting its borders due to theCovid-19pandemic, a Sout...

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Jeffrey Epstein housed victims of abuse in network of London flats – even after 2015 Met Police report

Jeffrey Epstein reportedly housed several women he allegedly abused in a number of flats across London, despite theMet Policereceiving a report of sex trafficking in 2015.

ABBCinvestigation found Epstein had rented four flats in Kensington and Chelsea, with six of the women housed in them since coming forward as victims of the convicted paedophile.

Some of these women had been coerced into recruiting others, and were regularly transported to Paris by the Eurostar to visit him, including 10 times during the final six months of his life.

Several of the women had been brought to the UK from Russia and eastern Europe, even afterVirginia Giuffrereported Epstein to the Metropolitan Police in 2015.

In early 2020, a second woman had reported the abuse to the Met, but it is unclear if this complaint was acted on.

The Met said it followed “reasonable lines of inquiry” at the time, and had interviewed Ms Giuffre on multiple occasions after she made her report.

Tessa Gregory, a human rights lawyer with Leigh Day, said that she was “staggered” that no UK police investigation had ever been launched into Epstein’s activities.

“Where there are credible allegations of human trafficking, the UK state, even if no victims come forward, has a positive legal obligation to conduct a prompt, effective and independent investigation,” she said.

The BBC was able to track down the locations of the flats through examining Epstein’s 10,000-page credit card bill, as well as following a shipment of gifts and examining the exterior of a flat that led to a tenancy agreement.

Despite being located in one of London’s most affluent neighbourhoods, the flats could be crowded with women sleeping on sofas.

Upon being confronted with the living conditions, Epstein responded angrily and swore at one woman, telling her she had “disgusting behaviour” and was a “brat who has yet to accept responsibility”.

Documents seen by the BBC show that women were coerced into recruiting other young girls, with one sending Epstein pictures of “cute” models for his approval.

The disgraced financier also paid for at least five women to study in London, with payments for course fees at English language colleges.

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Between 2011 and 2019, he purchased at least 53 tickets to transport women between England and France on the Eurostar, sometimes taking advantage of reduced youth fares for under-25-year-olds.

One woman was transported just 16 days before his arrest, which led to his death in prison in 2019 in a suspected suicide.

The investigation also uncovered more than 120 private and commercial flights linked to Epstein arriving and departing from the UK, some of which had victims on board.

In their attempts to track down former UK-based employees who had worked for Epstein, the BBC visited the home of a former member of his household staff who answered the door buzzer but ignored their requests to talk.

She had remained in close contact with the financier, sending him affectionate emails, which included “I always think of you. All my love always” in 2016.

A man suspected of being his driver also blocked BBC journalists on WhatsApp.

The Metropolitan Police reiterated in 2016, 2019, 2021, 2022 and 2025 that it believed “other international authorities were best placed” to investigate Epstein, and despite interviewing Ms Giuffre three times, officers found that “no allegation of criminal conduct was made against any UK-based individual”.

Scotland Yard said it was “fully engaged” alongside other forces in the National Police Chiefs’ Council group established following the release of the Epstein files.

Kevin Hyland, a former senior detective with the Met Police who was the UK’s first independent anti-slavery commissioner, said that there had been missed opportunities to investigate the serial offender.

“People are outraged that somebody came forward and said, ‘I was trafficked by this man,’ and yet he was just allowed to carry on. Who in the police made that decision?” he said.

Other British authorities had passed on details of Epstein’s activities to the FBI, including the National Crime Agency, which sent financial intelligence showing payments to a Coutts bank for the rent of a Chelsea flat where he housed victims.

Lisa Phillips, an Epstein survivor, toldBBC Newsnightlast week that “a lot of women came forward in the UK whether through their attorney, or through the Metropolitan Police, or their local police station” and is calling for a public inquiry because “we can find out what went wrong and how to prevent it in the future”.

The Metropolitan Police has been contacted byThe Independentfor comment.

byAlpha World

in

April 27, 2026

Jeffrey Epstein housed victims of abuse in network of London flats – even after 2015 Met Police report

Jeffrey Epstein reportedly housed several women he allegedly abused in a number of flats across London, despite theMet Policereceiving ...

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Why Trump, MAGA and Fetterman say correspondents’ dinner shooting seals the deal for $400M White House ballroom

The president of the United States, his MAGA allies, and even a Senate Democrat pressed the case for his $400 million White House ballroom construction in the hoursafter a shooting at the annual White House Correspondents’ Dinnerleft nearly the entire Cabinet and DC press corpsducking for coverminutes into the event.

For months, the construction of President Donald Trump’s desired White House ballroom has made headlines and even seemed to consume the president’s attention during unrelated events, where Trump will often go on diatribes about the construction process or building plans. A federal judge halted the project earlier this month, while allowing construction of a secure bunker on the White House complex to continued.

Trump had the residence’s iconic East Wing demolished without warning to make room for the structure.

ButSaturday evening’s chaosadded a new twinge of urgency to the president’s statements and elicited a wave of new calls for the event space’s construction on the White House’s grounds from supporters of the president, many of whom had previously ignored or shied away from defending what Democrats call a grift-filled vanity project.

“Whathappened last nightis exactly the reason that our great Military, Secret Service, Law Enforcement and, for different reasons, every President for the last 150 years, have been DEMANDING that a large, safe, and secure Ballroom be built ON THE GROUNDS OF THE WHITE HOUSE,” Trump wrote early Sunday morning in a Truth Social post.

“This event would never have happened with the Militarily Top Secret Ballroom currently under construction at the White House. It cannot be built fast enough! While beautiful, it has every highest level security feature there is plus, there are no rooms sitting on top for unsecured people to pour in, and is inside the gates of the most secure building in the World, The White House,” Trump continued.

His remarks joined a chorus of other Republicans online who wrote and spoke favorably about the project after the shooting, including Florida Rep. Randy Fine, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry, Judicial Watch’s Tom Fitton, “Libs of TikTok” influencer Chaya Raichik, commentator Jack Posobiec and more.

“I don’t want to hear one more f***ing criticism of Trump’s new ballroom at the White House,” wrote Meghan McCain, a conservative former co-host ofThe Viewand an occasional critic of Trump’s.

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The most surprising support for the project, however, came from a Democratic senator. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania was one of a number of members of Congress who attended Saturday evening’s dinner and was seen being escorted out after the shooting and the president’s own departure.

On Sunday, Fetterman, who has been criticized by fellow Democrats for his support of Trump’s war in Iran, wrote that Democrats should “drop the [Trump Derangement Syndrome]” and join Republicans in supporting the construction of the ballroom at the White House for security reasons.

“That venue wasn’t built to accommodate an event with the line of succession for the U.S. government. After witnessing last night, drop the TDS and build the White House ballroom for events exactly like these,” wrote the senator on X.

Otherstargeted the event itself for criticism, arguing that security was lax and unprepared for the numbers of people attending the event — which was similar to previous years’ gatherings in size.

Security for Saturday’s dinner was managed by the Secret Service and other law enforcement agencies, and guests were required to walk through a metal detector to reach the main area of the venue, locatd in the basement-level event spaces of the Washington Hilton. Sometimes mocked by attendees (in generally good faith), the Hilton has hosted the event for years.

Some claimed that they were not asked to show tickets to enter the event, thoughThe Independentwas asked repeatedly to show a ticket at several security checkpoints throughout the hotel and surrounding blocks of Washington, D.C.

Trump announced plans to construct the ballroom in July of 2025, telling reporters at the time that the structure would cost $200 million and would be funded entirely through private donations. Those costs ballooned to $400 million in the months that followed, and the president’s allies established a nonprofit, the Trust for the National Mall, to funnel donations to the project and allow some donors to retain public anonymity.

Trump has claimed the project is already fully funded, and demolition of the East Wing to prepare for its construction began in October.

The shooting Saturday evening may have the effect of jump-starting the project, as the court order halting progress was issued by a judge who ruled that the project did not qualify as a necessary measure to improve security at the White House, which allows the administration to go around the typical requirements to acquire funding and authorization from Congress.

byAlpha World

in

April 27, 2026

Why Trump, MAGA and Fetterman say correspondents’ dinner shooting seals the deal for $400M White House ballroom

The president of the United States, his MAGA allies, and even a Senate Democrat pressed the case for his $400 million White House ballr...

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Third US aircraft carrier arrives in Middle East as Washington and Tehran clash over Strait of Hormuz

A third US aircraft carrier arrived in the Middle East on Thursday as Washington and Tehran continue to vie forleverage over the Strait of Hormuz.

The USSGeorge HW Bush, escorted by a strike group of warships, reached US Central Command’s area of responsibility in the Indian Ocean in a renewed show of force as Americacontinues its blockade of Iranian ports and vessels.

The arrival of the 1,092ft supercarrier, along with thousands of personnel and dozens of fighter jets, bolsters a growing US military presence in the region asuncertainty surrounds the prospect of peace talks to end the conflictwith Iran, now approaching its ninth week.

The carrier was deployed to the region at the end of March, a week before the formal ceasefire was announced, to join the USSGerald R Fordand USSAbraham Lincoln.

It was unclear what the role of theBushwould be, with Trump now committed to an indefinite ceasefire extension until a long-term peace deal can be brokered with Iran.

Many US ships in the region are upholding a blockade on Iranian imports and exports, an issue Iran says is preventing it from sitting down for talks. Asked on Thursday how long he was willing to wait for a deal with Iran, Trump said: “Don't rush me.”

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He said Iran might have loaded up their weaponry “a little bit” during the two-week ceasefire, but added that the US military could knock that out in about one day.

“Their navy is gone. Their air force is gone, their anti-aircraft is gone ... maybe they loaded up a little bit during the two-week hiatus, but we’ll knock that out about one day, if they did,” Trump added.

Washington claims to have destroyed more than 150 Iranian naval vessels over the last two months. Iran’s military and paramilitary forces continue to use so-called “fast attack boats” – light, armed speedboats swarming targets – as part of a layered system of threats, alongside shore-based missiles, drones, mines and electronic interference to “create uncertainty and slow decision making”, according to Greek maritime security company Diapolous.

Iran was estimated to have hundreds, if not thousands, of these boats before the war, often hidden in coastal tunnels, naval bases or among civilian vessels, according to maritime security specialists.

Despite the continued Iranian blockade on shipping, Hapag-Lloyd, a German international shipping company, said on Friday thatone of its ships had crossed the Strait of Hormuz. A spokesperson said they did not have any information on the circumstances or timing.

Global stock markets faltered and oil prices were stuck above $100 a barrel on Friday, as fears of a renewed military escalation kept investors on edge heading into the weekend.

byAlpha World

in

April 27, 2026

Third US aircraft carrier arrives in Middle East as Washington and Tehran clash over Strait of Hormuz

A third US aircraft carrier arrived in the Middle East on Thursday as Washington and Tehran continue to vie forleverage over the Strait...

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