Anna Hazare appeals to govt over Sonam Wangchuk’s hunger strike: ‘Should not test his limits’
Hazare’s comment came after the Delhi Police shifted Wangchuk from the protest site to a hospital — a move slammed by his supporters. Wangchuk had been protesting at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar against Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the NEET-UG paper leak scandal.
Kentucky governor says he received 2 calls from agencies indicating McConnell had ‘passed’
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear said this week that he received two calls from agencies suggesting Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., died while he was in the hospital. In an interview with Katie Couric uploaded to YouTube on Thursday, Beshear, a Democrat, did not specify which agencies allegedly called him with the news or when the calls were made. “In fact, I’d gotten two calls from different agencies, not state agencies, suggesting he’d passed,” said Beshear, who has served as governor since December 2019. Fox News Digital reached out to Beshear and McConnell’s offices for comment. GOP SENATORS SPLIT AS TUBERVILLE DEMANDS MCCONNELL ANSWERS After nearly a month of being hospitalized, McConnell’s office released a lengthy statement on July 12 saying he was being treated for a fall he suffered in June. A picture of him in a hospital bed alongside his wife was also released. Prior to the announcement, there was speculation about what had happened to McConnell, given that his office did not reveal why he was in the hospital for weeks. Emergency dispatch audio from June 14, the day McConnell was hospitalized, revealed he was “unconscious” and may have suffered a heart attack. ‘THIS IS NOT NORMAL’: AOC UNLOADS ON MCCONNELL’S PROLONGED ABSENCE “My doctors have confirmed that I didn’t break any bones or suffer a concussion,” McConnell said in the statement last weekend. “I didn’t have a heart attack or a stroke. I don’t have any tumors or hemorrhages.” Two days before the longtime GOP leader shared more about his condition, Beshear posted on social media demanding that McConnell be more transparent. “I publicly and privately urged the last administration to address the public’s concerns with the former president’s health,” Beshear wrote, seemingly a reference to former President Joe Biden. “I’m calling on Sen. McConnell to do the same and provide voters an update on his own health.” Beshear ended the post by urging McConnell to “end the crazy speculation” and “just tell us what’s going on.” On July 8, Beshear also wrote a letter to the 84-year-old lawmaker requesting that he “fully update Kentuckians regarding the current status of your health.” McConnell’s doctor said he “developed pneumonia” early in his hospitalization but “responded rapidly to antibiotic treatment.” McConnell said he intends to return to the Senate, but his office has given no timeline on when he’ll be able to do so.
Rep Ralph Norman enters South Carolina Senate race despite Trump’s endorsement of Darline Graham
Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., will run for Senate in South Carolina following the death of Sen. Lindsey Graham, he revealed Saturday. “I’m here to announce that I will be a candidate for the Senate, I’ll be throwing my hat into the ring, and day one, Kayleigh, I will be laser-focused on passing President Trump’s America First” Norman said during an appearance on “Saturday In America with Kayleigh McEnany.” Norman then championed Trump’s SAVE America Act and said he would focus on eliminating the filibuster, saying Republicans need to “nuke” the procedure. Norman made the announcement just days after President Donald Trump publicly endorsed Darline Graham, Lindsey Graham’s sister who was appointed to finish the remainder of his term, to run for the seat fully when her term is up in January. CONSERVATIVES UNITE AROUND SAVE AMERICA ACT AFTER TRUMP DECLASSIFIES ‘SHOCKING’ ELECTION INTEL DARLINE GRAHAM IS CONSIDERING RUNNING FOR A FULL SENATE TERM, A REPORT SAID, AS MEMORIAL SERVICES HAVE BEEN ANNOUNCED FOR HER LATE BROTHER LINDSEY GRAHAM. “I hope Darline does this, in that there would be nobody better to honor the legacy of her beloved brother, Lindsey,” Trump said in a Truth Social post, also writing “Run Darline Run.” Norman acknowledged Trump’s endorsement Saturday, telling McEnany he asked for Trump’s blessing. “He decided to go with Darline, who’s a nice person, and he decided to go with her and I respect that, but that doesn’t deter my plans. I’m in this to win,” he said. Norman will be running in the Aug. 11 special GOP primary election, revealing that he is in the process of filing the paperwork. Though not backed by Trump, Norman has received support from GOP Senators Mike Lee, R-Utah, and Rick Scott, R-Fla., both of whom endorsed him. The pair, like Norman, are both vocal opponents of the filibuster. Norman will be entering a competitive primary, as at least two other candidates have declared their intentions to run with further challengers expected to enter the race. Businessman Mark Lynch, who ran against Lindsey Graham in the recent June primary, has announced his candidacy, as did attorney Duke Buckner. And though Rep. Russell Fry, R-S.C., hasn’t publicly announced an intention to run, state lawmakers are already eyeing his seat in the House should he decide to enter the fray, according to reporting from News From The States. Fox News Digital contacted Reps. Norman, Mace and Fry, along with Sen. Darline Graham for further comment.
Ousted Squad Dem stumps with radical activist who defended Hamas, promoted political violence
Former Rep. Cori Bush, D-Mo., is campaigning to return to Congress alongside a self-described Maoist activist and political organizer whose online videos and social media rhetoric has included urging leftists not to disavow Hamas or Hezbollah, has included calls to “unmake” America, applauded burning the American flag and endorsed political violence. The activist, Christopher Winston, has built an online presence across numerous platforms under the pseudonym “BlackRedGuard,” posting and appearing in videos about “Maoist organizing in DSA,” attacking leftists who say they do not support “Hezbollah/Hamas” and using rhetoric that appeared to condone political violence. In one video reviewed by Fox News Digital, Winston asked, “What’s wrong with throwing molotovs at a police station?” Bush, an ousted Squad Democrat mounting a comeback bid in Missouri’s 1st Congressional District, appeared in a recent social media post standing right beside Winston as he participated in supporting her campaign. SOCIALISTS LAUNCH RADICAL PLATFORM TO ABOLISH THE US SENATE IN BID TO FUNDAMENTALLY TRANSFORM AMERICA Fox News Digital asked Bush’s campaign whether Winston has any formal or informal role with the campaign, whether Bush knows him personally and whether he was invited to the event, but the campaign did not answer those questions, instead sending a link to a Fox News article about Joy Behar, co-host of “The View,” defending democratic socialism, noting it “should clear up any questions you have about DSA.” “If you say sh– like ‘I don’t support Hezbollah/Hamas’ and call yourself a leftist you lame. All power to all the resistance. Peace through the sword,” Winston, a St. Louis-area activist working with the DSA said in his social media post shaming those on the left who condemn Hamas and Hezbollah. Other posts from Winston called to “unmake” America and said the American flag “should always be desecrated.” “Do not fix America. Unmake it,” a June 2025 post from Winston’s X account said. “I applaud the burning of the American flag. That flag is a symbol of the slavery and genocide which built America. It should always be desecrated in that way,” a separate 2024 post from Winston said. Meanwhile, during a 2024 video posted on YouTube titled “Debating Commie Gobbledegook (Ft. Black Red Guard),” Winston is asked why, as a Maoist, he chooses to be a part of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA). “Well, it’s obvious why I’m a Maoist in the DSA. There’s a lot of naive young white people to brainwash,” he said. POWERFUL LGBTQ+ GROUP’S ENDORSEMENTS COULD TANK VULNERABLE DEMS OVER RADICAL YOUTH TRANS AGENDA Fox News Digital reached out to Winston and the DSA for comment on Winston’s remarks and affiliation with the group, but did not hear back. At another point during the same video, Winston questions “what’s wrong with throwing Molotov cocktails at a police station?” When his co-host tried to check him, replying that doing such would be “an easy way to get your whole organization, like, kind of destroyed,” Winston shot back: “That’s why we want the masses to do it.” He later argued that if the goal is a “socialist” or “communist” revolution, “people are not going to pick up a gun and fight” for something they do not understand, adding that activists must “teach people what communism is.” A Fox News Digital review of Winston’s X account found several social media posts praising Bush, including a 2023 post where he said, “Yeah, I’m a Maoist ultra with dreams of riding into power on a tank like Fidel and Che but in the meantime Cori Bush is the best congressperson right now and we need to back her.” “Cori Bush is the best of STL, and DSA,” Winston said in May at a Bush campaign event. “Cori Bush is running for Congress again. STL-DSA voted to endorse her overwhelmingly. Help beat the AIPAC money that stole her seat here,” Winston said last year. Winston’s appearance alongside Bush is not the first time her political orbit has drawn scrutiny over hard-left activists and anti-Israel figures. Her comeback bid has already faced questions over campaign spending and alliances that critics say show the same activist network is helping power her effort to return to Washington. CORI BUSH RIPPED FOR ‘JAW-DROPPING’ HYPOCRISY ON KEY ISSUE AMID COMEBACK HOUSE BID Earlier this year, Fox News Digital reported that Bush’s comeback campaign paid more than $20,000 to “Unbought Power,” a consulting firm publicly linked to far-left activist Rasha Mubarak, whose ties to Rep. Rashida Tlaib’s political operation had already drawn scrutiny. Mubarak has close ties to the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), “which was an unindicted co-conspirator in the 2009 Holy Land Foundation terror-financing trial,” according to the Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy, and has publicly called to “abolish the police,” backed defund-the-police efforts and repeatedly accused Israel of “ethnic cleansing” and “apartheid.” “Mubarak has also been a speaker at events held by the U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights (USCPR), an organization that promoted the BDS movement,” the Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy noted in a report. “Previously, in September 2023, she served as the press contact for the Arizona-based non-profit Alliance for Global Justice (AFGJ), which was investigated for ties to Samidoun, an anti-Israel advocacy group banned in Germany, Canada, and Israel and classified as a terrorist entity in the United States for financing the PFLP.” HIGH EARNERS FLEE NYC AMID TAXES, RADICAL POLICIES In her prior campaigns for Congress, Bush also received help from radical anti-Israel activists. During her 2024 re-election bid, Linda Sarsour and Marc Lamont Hill headlined a virtual “Jews for Cori” fundraiser, according to Jewish Insider, which described Sarsour and Hill as “controversial far-left activists with histories of antisemitism.” Sarsour has been accused of praising a convicted terrorist and has compared Zionism to white supremacy, while likening Zionists to neo-Nazis. She had to walk back remarks after stating Israel “is built on the idea that Jews are supreme to everyone else,” and lost her seat on the board of the Women’s
Kolkata sings for Messi as World Cup fever takes hold
Fans in Kolkata wearing the number 10 jersey of Argentina’s Lionel Messi together with graffiti on the wall celebrate their idol and the World Cup, June 18, 2026 [Bikas Das/AP] Fans in Kolkata wearing the number 10 jersey of Argentina’s Lionel Messi together with graffiti on the wall celebrate their idol and the World Cup, June 18, 2026 [Bikas Das/AP] Published On 18 Jul 2026 At 5.45am on Saturday, July 4, about 300 football fans gathered under a drab grey sky in Amartya Sen Udyan, a small park in Kolkata, West Bengal. They craned their necks towards a big screen showing the World Cup match between the defending champions, Argentina, and plucky underdogs, Cape Verde. Giant loudspeakers gave the scene the feel of a political rally or rock concert. The walls and railings of the enclosure were decked out with blue-and-white flags, plastic footballs and life-size cutouts of the Argentina players. For every cutout of Mac Allister, Martinez or Romero, there was a Messi. This unofficial home of the Kolkata Argentina Football Fan Club, the largest of the many fan clubs in the city devoted to Argentina, reaches a peak of passion for the South Americans — as does the entire city for football — once every four years during the World Cup. Rain had been falling all night, leaving the ground a sodden mess. But the dawn light brought into stark relief the crowd of blue and white believers, gathered not for mass but for Messi. They’d been there since 3:30am, when the match began. Now the game had gone into extra time – something few had expected. It felt like a moment to reflect, not so much on football, as on fans. There was a sense of jeopardy in the air, but also the thrill of an exciting spectacle being prolonged, of solidarity in anxiety and hope. Suddenly, the ball broke to Argentine defender Lisandro Martinez, who lashed a left-footed shot into the roof of the net. The local fans erupted — even as they filmed themselves punching the air, screaming and high-fiving. That self-consciousness, folded into spontaneity, distinguishes the millennial football fan in Kolkata: immersed in reels, podcasts and vlogs, unlike the older generation of scrapbooks, posters and dog-eared sports magazines. Slowly, the one-word chant began to circulate and rise to a crescendo. It was a name echoing everywhere around the world that night. The Bengalis pronounced it in their own way, elongating the first syllable: “MAY-SI! MAY-SI! MAY-SI!” Lionel Messi leaves a trail of defeated Austrian players after scoring a goal [Courtesy of Debjoy Biswas for Al Jazeera] Lionel Messi leaves a trail of defeated Austrian players after scoring a goal [Courtesy of Debjoy Biswas for Al Jazeera] The footballing saint MAY-SI. Messi, who recently turned 39, was playing in a tournament with other great players of a similar age: the Croatian midfield master Luka Modric and the German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer, both 40, and most prominently, Messi’s great rival, the 41-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo, who for most of his career had matched Messi feat for feat. There were other major talents at the World Cup in the prime of their careers: French forward Kylian Mbappé, Norway’s Erling Haaland and England’s Harry Kane. Also magnificent emerging talents: Spain’s Lamine Yamal, France’s Michael Olise and Morocco’s Ayyoub Bouaddi. But to the footballing hive mind of Kolkata, Messi in 2026 is in a league of his own. At an age when most greats have gone off the boil, he is, for them, better than ever: a Zen master of footballing space and time. Strangely, despite being a candidate for the greatest player of all time, Messi can feel like an underdog against great teams such as France and Spain. Argentina’s team has plenty of stars. But it was Messi who scored all six goals that took them through the group stage. And when his team ran into rough weather – that night against Cape Verde, again the following week in the Round of 16 game against Egypt, against Switzerland in the quarterfinal, and again against England in the semifinal – for those praying he would find a way through – he did. Argentina’s rousing comeback against Egypt was darkened by the perceived injustice of a few borderline calls going against the plucky Egyptians, which has taken some of the sheen off Messi in the Arabic-speaking world. But at the home of the Argentina Football Fan Club, Messi’s magnificent equaliser in the 83rd minute of that match was celebrated wildly. His spontaneous, contagious tears were even more moving. Kolkata fans wanted to savour him until the end of the tournament — especially as it is likely to be Messi’s last World Cup. “It’s one thing to watch Messi play on TV and another to see him from 10 metres away,” said Kolkata native and lifelong Argentina fan Debjoy Biswas. The sports photographer had just returned from Argentina’s group stage matches in North America. “On TV, you see his on-the-ball movement and his goal celebrations, but live, you get to see what he does off the ball too: his anticipation, his awareness of space. It’s the closest I’ve come to footballing heaven.” Biswas shared his favourite Messi picture he took in the United States. It caught him with his back to the camera as he wheeled away towards the delirious crowd after scoring a goal, leaving a trail of defeated Austrian players and splayed limbs in his wake – a beautiful juxtaposition of football and fandom. “At first, my husband saw himself as a great fan of Messi,” said Sapna Patra, wife of tea-shop owner and Kolkata Argentina football buff Shib Sankar Patra. “But since being chosen by the state government to meet Messi when he visited Kolkata last year, he thinks of him as his own brother.” A glazed expression came over her husband’s eyes as she spoke, as he replayed the moment when he — himself a club footballer in his youth — met the messiah. “Messi put
Palestine football fans honour Egyptian coach Hossam Hassan
NewsFeed During a match, fans of Palestinian club Shabab Al-Khaleel raised a banner thanking Egypt coach Hossam Hassan for his support for the Palestinian cause. Hassan raised the Palestinian flag after Egypt’s national team defeated Australia in the World Cup round of 16. Published On 18 Jul 2026 Adblock test (Why?)
World Cup final weekend: France vs England prediction, schedule, news
Only two games remain at the FIFA World Cup, with France and England battling for third place before Sunday’s final. France and England meet in the third-place playoff, while attention is also turning to Argentina against Spain, where Lionel Messi and Lamine Yamal are set for a generational showdown. Recommended Stories list of 4 items list 1 of 4Messi reflects on pressure and competition ahead of World Cup final list 2 of 4World Cup: Deschamps set for bittersweet end to France job as Zidane waits list 3 of 4From Messi vs Yamal to half-time show: All to know before final list 4 of 4World Cup game for the heartbroken: France, England in third-place playoff end of list Here is what to know: What’s the schedule for the third-place game? France vs England, on Saturday, July 17 (21:00 GMT), Miami Stadium, Miami, Florida. What are the predictions? France and England have met three times at the FIFA World Cup. England won the first two encounters, beating France 2-0 in the 1966 group stage and 3-1 in the 1982 first group phase. France claimed the most recent meeting, defeating England 2-1 in the quarterfinals of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. According to the Opta supercomputer, France are favourites to win the third-place playoff. After running 25,000 pre-match simulations, the model gave Les Bleus a 50.7 percent chance of winning in 90 minutes. England were assigned a 25.6 percent chance of victory, while 23.7 percent of the simulations ended in a draw after regulation. What do we know about the final? Spain and Argentina will face off in the final on Sunday, July 19, at New York-New Jersey Stadium in East Rutherford, with kickoff scheduled for 19:00 GMT. Spain are chasing a second World Cup crown, while defending champions Argentina are looking to secure a fourth title. Their most recent meeting came in a 2018 international friendly in Madrid, where Spain recorded a 6-1 victory. US President Donald Trump is expected to attend the final and present the World Cup trophy to the winners. The winners will also receive something new alongside the trophy and gold medals. For the first time, FIFA will award championship rings, a tradition borrowed from North American sports. Thirty rings will be produced for the winning squad, while another 1,996 collector’s editions will be sold to fans. The rings will then be customised to reflect the identity of the winning team and individually fitted before being presented at a later date. One side will feature the World Cup trophy, while the other will carry details specific to the champions. Organisers are also monitoring air quality after smoke from Canadian wildfires triggered health advisories across parts of the New York metropolitan area. So far, there is no indication Sunday’s final will be affected. What other things are happening? Tuchel’s tactics trigger backlash England’s World Cup semifinal defeat to Argentina has triggered fierce criticism of Thomas Tuchel, with many accusing the German coach of repeating the mistakes that have haunted England for decades. After England squandered a 1-0 lead to lose 2-1, British media questioned Tuchel’s tactical decisions, particularly his defensive substitutions. Headlines described it as the “same old story”, while critics argued the coach “just shrank” in the biggest moment. Former England captain Gary Lineker also questioned whether Tuchel is the right man to lead the team, saying he was hired specifically to deliver a major trophy after years of near misses under Gareth Southgate. Like his predecessor, Tuchel has been accused of becoming too cautious after taking the lead, with many arguing his changes invited pressure and ultimately cost England a place in the World Cup final. From bathtub to World Cup final Nearly two decades ago, photographer Joan Monfort thought little of a charity photo shoot showing a 20-year-old Lionel Messi bathing a baby in a plastic tub. Years later, that baby was revealed to be Lamine Yamal, creating one of football’s most remarkable coincidences. The images, taken in 2007 for a charity calendar produced by Sport newspaper and UNICEF, have resurfaced ahead of Sunday’s World Cup final, where Messi’s Argentina will face Yamal’s Spain. In the photos, Messi gently washes the infant, whose family had been randomly selected through a raffle in the Catalan city of Mataro. Monfort, who captured the pictures while working on assignment, said the coincidence still amazes him. “I never believed things were destined to happen, but I’m starting to have my doubts,” he told The Associated Press. The story has become even more extraordinary given what followed. Messi went on to establish himself as one of the greatest players in football history before leaving Barcelona in 2021, while Yamal emerged as the club’s next superstar just two years later. Now, the pair meet on opposite sides in the World Cup final, completing a journey that began with a chance photo shoot nearly 20 years ago. Wildfire smoke disrupts World Cup final preparations Spain’s preparations for the World Cup final have been affected by hazardous air quality caused by smoke from Canadian wildfires, with players training outdoors in northern New Jersey on Thursday under hazy skies. Media were only allowed to watch the opening 15 minutes of the hour-long session, making it unclear how intense the workout was. Meanwhile, Argentina remained at its training base near Atlanta after Wednesday’s semifinal win over England, avoiding the worst of the smoke because of its more southerly location. The smoke, driven south from wildfires in northern Ontario, has prompted air quality warnings across parts of the US Midwest and Northeast. Health officials urged people to stay indoors or wear masks outdoors as pollution levels reached unhealthy to hazardous levels. Medical experts questioned the decision to hold outdoor training in such conditions. Dr Courtney Howard, an emergency physician and Global Climate and Health Alliance official, said elite athletes should avoid exercising outside when wildfire smoke reaches hazardous levels, recommending indoor, air-conditioned facilities instead. Adblock test (Why?)
Sonam Wangchuk’s wife rejects hospitalisation, says fast continues despite treatment
Wife of Sonam Wangchuk, who has been hospitalised, has alleged that the Delhi Police has forced his hospitalisation as it was not ordered by the Delhi High Court. She also said that his fasting will continue along with the July 20 march to Parliament
Bulldozers roll into Abhishek Banerjee’s Amtala office as demolition over alleged illegal construction begins
The district administration in South 24 Parganas in West Bengal started demolishing the allegedly illegally-constructed party office of Trinamool Congress general secretary and the party’s Lok Sabha member, Abhishek Banerjee, at Amtala.
Woman hurls ink at CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke, netizens call it ‘Kejriwal script 2.0’
The incident where a woman hurled ink at the Cockroach Janata Party founder Abhijeet Dipke went viral on social media, many netizens called it a political stunt and drew comparisons with Arvind Kejriwal.