Canada finance minister resigns as PM Trudeau grapples with new Trump term
Canada’s Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland has resigned in a blow to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who is facing declining approval ratings and opposition from within his own party, as well as the prospect of a trade war with the United States. In her resignation letter, which was posted on X on Monday, Freeland revealed that Trudeau had informed her last week that he no longer wanted her to serve in the role and would instead offer her another cabinet position. “Upon reflection, I have concluded that the only honest and viable path is for me to resign from the cabinet,” Freeland wrote. “For the past number of weeks, you and I have found ourselves at odds about the best path forward for Canada,” she continued. Trudeau did not immediately respond to the resignation, which comes just days after he met with Canada’s provincial leaders to outline his plans to respond to threats of a trade war with US President-elect Donald Trump, who takes office on January 20. Trump has vowed to impose 25 percent tariffs on goods from Canada and Mexico if the neighbouring countries do not stop what he called an “invasion” of undocumented migrants and drugs. Advertisement The Trudeau government has reportedly been developing plans to invest in increased border security and monitoring in response, but has faced mounting pressure to take a harder line on Trump. The government was set to further present details of the border plan to the Parliament of Canada on Monday, in an economic update that was to be delivered by Freeland. A former journalist, Freeland also served as deputy prime minister since 2019. In her resignation letter, she said she disagreed with how the government was approaching policy towards its southern neighbour. “Our country today faces a grave challenge,” she said, describing Trump’s threat as “aggressive economic nationalism”. “We need to take that threat extremely seriously,” she continued. “That means keeping our fiscal powder dry today, so we have the reserves we may need for a coming tariff war. That means eschewing costly political gimmicks, which we can ill afford and which make Canadians doubt that we recognise the gravity of the moment.” In another blow to Trudeau, Housing Minister Sean Fraser also announced on Monday that he would not seek re-election. Looming elections The updates come as Trudeau’s Liberal Party has been preparing for elections which must be held before the end of October next year. Trudeau has said he plans to stay at the party’s helm. Because Liberals do not hold an outright majority, if the allied New Democratic Party were to pull its support, this would trigger a new election at any time. Advertisement Meanwhile, Trump’s victory has driven home concerns that Canada could be subject to global anti-incumbency trends that could see the Conservative Party, led by populist Pierre Poilievre, take power for the first time since 2015. After nearly a decade in power, Trudeau in September saw his approval rating dip to just 33 percent. He has continued to face criticism over high consumer and housing costs, the legacy of his government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, and most recently, his handling of Trump. The US president-elect and his allies have further helped to colour public perception with their regular ridiculing of Trudeau. Most recently, Trump referred to the prime minister as the “governor” of a “great state”. That came shortly after Trudeau, who had visited Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, the US last month in an effort to mend ties, said that Canada would “respond to unfair tariffs in a number of ways”. Trudeau’s government had previously enacted retaliatory tariffs after Trump imposed tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminium during his first term. The tariffs were eventually lifted by both countries. Adblock test (Why?)
Israeli strike kills Palestinian grandfather Khaled Nabhan
NewsFeed An Israeli strike killed Khaled Nabhan, a Palestinian grandfather known for his emotional goodbye to his 3-year-old granddaughter who was killed in an Israeli attack in November of 2023. Published On 16 Dec 202416 Dec 2024 Adblock test (Why?)
Palestinian journalist, Gaza Civil Defence workers killed in Israeli strike
An Israeli air strike has killed Palestinian journalist Ahmed Al-Louh and five Palestinian Civil Defence workers in central Gaza’s Nuseirat camp. Al-Louh, who worked as a cameraman for Al Jazeera alongside other media outlets, was killed on Sunday in the strike on the Civil Defence post in the central Gaza camp, according to medics and local journalists. The attack occurred as Israeli military strikes across the Gaza Strip killed at least 28 Palestinians on Sunday, medics said. Allouh is the third journalist killed in Gaza in the last 24 hours. Al Jazeera Arabic reported that Al-louh was working while killed, wearing a press vest and helmet. He was taken to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Gaza’s city of Deir el-Balah. Al Jazeera Media Network condemned Al-Louh’s killing, and called on human rights and media organisations “to condemn the Israeli Occupation’s systematic killing of journalists in cold blood, the evasion of responsibilities under international humanitarian law, and to bring the perpetrators of this heinous crime to justice”. Advertisement “We urge relevant international legal institutions to take practical and urgent measures to hold the Israeli authorities and all those who are responsible accountable for their heinous crimes and to adopt mechanisms to put an end to the targeting and killing of journalists,” the network added. Al-Louh had been covering Israel’s war on Gaza when it first began in October 2023, embedded with the Gaza Strip’s Palestinian Civil Defence teams, Al Jazeera’s Hind Khoudary said. “It’s another heartbreaking day for Palestinians, Civil Defence teams, journalists. We [have been] wondering, how many times are we going to continue reporting on the killing[s] of our colleagues and beloved ones?” Khoudary said, reporting from Deir el-Balah. Gaza’s media office said the head of the civil emergency service in Nuseirat, Nedal Abu Hjayyer, was also killed in Sunday’s attack. “The civil emergency headquarters in Nuseirat camp was hit during the crews’ presence. They work around the clock to serve the people,” said Zaki Emadeldeen from the civil emergency service to reporters at the hospital. “The civil emergency service is a humanitarian service and not political. They work in war and peace times for the service of the people,” he said, adding that the place was hit directly by an Israeli air strike. The Israeli military said they were looking into the attack. Several other Palestinian journalists were killed this past week, with 195 killed in Gaza since Israel’s war began, Khoudary said. Advertisement Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud said earlier on Sunday that Palestinian journalist Mohammed Jabr al-Qrinawi was killed along with his wife and children in an Israeli air attack that targeted their home in Bureij refugee camp, in central Gaza, late on Saturday. Earlier on Saturday, Al Mashhad Media said its journalist Mohammed Balousha was killed in an Israeli attack in Gaza. Several Al Jazeera journalists have been killed since the start of Israel’s war on Gaza, including Ismail al-Ghoul, Rami al-Rifi, Samer Abudaqa and Hamza Dahdouh. Also on Sunday, an air strike hit people protecting aid trucks west of Gaza City. Medics said several were killed or wounded but exact figures were unavailable as of yet. Residents also said at least 11 people were killed in three separate Israeli air strikes in Gaza City. Nine were killed in the towns of Beit Lahiya, Beit Hanoon and Jabalia camp when clusters of houses were bombed or set ablaze, and two were killed by drone fire in Rafah. Earlier on Sunday, at least 15 Palestinians were killed after Israeli forces stormed Khalil Oweida School in Beit Hanoon, sources told Al Jazeera. Several other Israeli attacks earlier on Sunday killed Palestinians near Kamal Adwan Hospital in northern Gaza; and in Shujayea, in Khan Younis. According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, at least 44,976 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since October 7, 2023. Adblock test (Why?)
Israel approves plan to surge settler population in occupied Golan Heights
Move comes days after rebel groups toppled Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad, weeks before Donald Trump becomes US president again. Israel’s government has approved a plan to increase the number of settlers in the illegally occupied Golan Heights, days after seizing more Syrian territory following the toppling of Syria’s longtime leader Bashar al-Assad. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the government had “unanimously approved” the “demographic development” of the occupied territory, which would seek to double the Israeli population there. The new plan is only for the portion of the Golan Heights that Israel has occupied since 1967. In 1981, Israel’s Knesset moved to impose Israeli law over the territory, in an effective annexation. The plan does not relate to the portion of Syrian land seized by Israel in the wake of al-Assad’s toppling a week ago. The seized area, which had been demilitarised as part of an agreement reached after the 1973 war, also includes Mount Hermon overlooking the Syrian capital Damascus. In a statement, Netanyahu praised the plan, which provides more than 40 million shekels ($11m) to increase the settler population. Advertisement There are about 31,000 Israeli settlers spread across dozens of illegal settlements in the Golan Heights already. They live alongside minority groups, including the Druze, who predominantly identify as Syrian. “Strengthening the Golan is strengthening the State of Israel, and it is especially important at this time,” Netanyahu said. “We will continue to hold onto it, cause it to blossom, and settle in it.” Reporting from Amman, Jordan, Al Jazeera’s Nour Odeh said the approval comes at what Israel views as an “opportune moment”. While Israeli occupation of the Golan Heights is illegal under international law, during his first term in office, from 2017 to 2021, US President-elect Donald Trump made the United States the first country in the world to officially recognise Israeli sovereignty over the area. Trump is set to retake office again on January 20 after winning the US presidential election in November. “Netanyahu is using this moment to announce more settlement activity in order to entrench that occupation and make it permanent,” Odeh said. “Much like he’s doing in the occupied West Bank: land grab, settlements, permanent occupation.” Meanwhile, Netanyahu’s office said he had discussed the situation in Syria during a phone call with Trump on Saturday. He also discussed efforts to reach a ceasefire agreement in Gaza. Despite Israel launching hundreds of strikes on Syrian sites since opposition groups led by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) overthrew al-Assad and moved to create a transitional government, Netanyahu said: “We have no interest in conflict with Syria.” Advertisement He said the attacks were to “thwart the potential threats from Syria and to prevent the takeover of terrorist elements near our border”. On Sunday, Saudi Arabia was among the first to condemn Israel’s new plan to increase the number of settlers, while accusing Israeli leaders of seeking to sabotage Syria’s fledgling transition. Adblock test (Why?)
Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger agree to grace period in ECOWAS withdrawal
The Economic Community of West African States hopes to use this time to convince the three nations to stay in the bloc. Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger will have a six-month grace period following their exit from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), scheduled for January 29, a year after the countries announced their intentions to leave. The decision, reached at a summit of West Africa’s main political and economic group this weekend in the Nigerian capital Abuja, was seen as a last-ditch effort to dissuade the three countries from leaving, a move the bloc has thus far been unable to halt. Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger reaffirmed that their decision to leave is “irreversible”. The three countries, located in the insurgency-torn central Sahel region, have formed their own group called the Alliance of Sahel States (AES). The new effective departure date has now been extended to July 29, although January 29 will still be the official withdrawal date. The bloc hopes to use the six-month transition period to convince the countries to return. On Saturday, the three nations stated that their territories would remain visa-free for all ECOWAS citizens post-exit. This move has alleviated concerns that their departure could threaten free trade and movement for the 400 million people living across the region. Advertisement Among those who attended the summit was Senegal’s President Bassirou Diomaye Faye, who has served as a mediator between the 15-member bloc and the three countries set to leave. The Senegalese president, who was appointed to lead negotiations in July, said he was “making progress” in talks with the three countries and added that there was no reason for them not to maintain relations amid ongoing security concerns in the region, where al-Qaeda and ISIL (ISIS) have gained ground. The withdrawal of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger from ECOWAS would mark the culmination of a tumultuous period for the Sahel, where a series of coups since 2020 has brought military authorities to power. The new governments have fostered closer ties with Russia at the expense of their former colonial ruler, France, and other one-time allies from the region and beyond. Adblock test (Why?)
What to know about Syria’s new caretaker government
After toppling the regime of Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) leader and commander-in-chief of the new administration, Ahmed al-Sharaa, has appointed Mohammed al-Bashir to lead a caretaker government until March 1. The move aims to stabilise the country by providing basic services to civilians and preventing a power struggle between armed groups over state resources and ministries, experts told Al Jazeera. “[A caretaker government is needed] to ensure the state keeps functioning and that people have electricity, water sewage and the internet,” said Thomas Pierret, an expert on Syria for the Institute for Research and Study of the Arab and Muslim World. However, the caretaker government – and HTS – could lose credibility if it refuses to share power after three months, experts have warned. Here’s what we know about the caretaker government and its head: Who is Mohammed al-Bashir? The head of the caretaker government is a technocrat who headed the Syrian Salvation Government (SSG) in Idlib, a province in northwest Syria. Advertisement After the Syrian uprising erupted in March 2011, Idlib became an opposition stronghold. By 2017, HTS consolidated control and created the SSG out of civilian technocrats. “Mohammed al-Bashir … has done a reasonably good job in Idlib,” said Robin Yassin-Kassab, an expert on Syria and the co-author of Burning Country: Syrians in Revolution and in War. “I understand that it makes sense to scale [the Salvation Government] up to the whole of Syria, for now,” he added. Al-Bashir’s background in electrical engineering, project management and administrative planning suggests he has the professional know-how to maintain basic services in the country, analysts said. He first emerged as a minister in the HTS-backed Salvation government in 2021, according to the caretaker government’s official website For two years, he served as the head of development and humanitarian affairs, according to Assaad Al Achi, executive director of Baytna, a non-governmental organisation that supported local civil society groups in Syria throughout the war. “He was definitely interested in humanitarian work because that’s where the money was,” Al Achi said, referencing the SSG’s policy of taxing aid organisations. On January 13, 2024, the Shura Council in Idlib elected al-Bashir as prime minister of the SSG. Who are the other ministers? Al-Bashir has told Al Jazeera Arabic that, for the time being, the ministers from the SSG would take over the national ministerial portfolios. The current ministerial lineup is: Advertisement Minister of Interior Mohammed Abdul Rahman Minister of Economy and Resources Basel Abdul Aziz Minister of Information Muhammad Yaqoub al-Omar Minister of Justice Shadi Muhammad al-Waisi Minister of Agriculture and Irrigation Mohamed Taha al-Ahmad Minister of Health Mazen Dukhan Minister of Development Fadi al-Qassem Minister of Local Administration and Services Mohamed Abdel Rahman Muslim Minister of Endowments Hussam Haj Hussein Minister of Education Nazir al-Qadri Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research Abdel Moneim Abdel Hafez Is there going to be a transition? Despite al-Bashir’s prominent role, Al Achi does not believe the caretaker prime minister has ambitions to consolidate power over Syria. “What worries me is if [this caretaker government] extends [its term] for more than three months, but if it just for three months … then that’s alright,” he said. Experts are concerned that HTS will try to rule all of Syria with an iron fist. According to a report by the Syrian Network for Human Rights, HTS subjected critics and opponents to enforced disappearances and tortured people to death. Al Jazeera asked the HTS media office to respond to these allegations, but they had not commented by the time of publication. Setting up to succeed The caretaker government and HTS could ease concerns of a power grab by proposing a roadmap detailing when negotiations with other stakeholders would begin ahead of forming a broader coalition, Yassin-Kassab told Al Jazeera. Advertisement He added that a plan should aim to implement UN Security Council Resolution 2254, which calls for a transitional period of 18 months, during which an inclusive coalition will draft a constitution and prepare for elections under United Nations supervision. “[HTS] need to say this is the beginning of a process that will involve every aspect of society and all political leaderships,” said Yassin-Kassab. “That would reassure Syrians and the international community and give the new government much more legitimacy.” Who’s going to pay for the transition? Syria’s economy is in tatters – the World Bank ranks its gross domestic product (GDP) at 129 out of 196 states. HTS managed to raise revenue during its rule in Idlib by taxing residents, as well as goods and relief passing through from the Turkish border. However, it is unclear whether the group has enough finances to bolster the economy and supply basic provisions in the short to medium term. Experts believe HTS can be incentivised to share power by linking sanction relief to political reforms. Syria is on the United States list of “countries that sponsor terrorism” and, on top of that, HTS is considered a “foreign terrorist organisation” by the European Union, Turkiye and the US. The EU and US have also sanctioned much of the Syrian economy, including the energy sector and the trading of goods related to technology or electricity provision, according to Human Rights Watch (HRW). It’s imperative that HTS shares power with other stakeholders and civil society in order to convince Syrians and the international community that the group has changed, argues Yassin-Kassab. Advertisement “[I]t remains to be seen if this is the beginning of a power grab by HTS and HTS-aligned civilian bodies,” he told Al Jazeera. “I certainly hope not.” Adblock test (Why?)
Syrians return to the homes they fled, only to find them levelled
Damascus, Syria – Nizar al-Madani, 34, stood with tears in his eyes as he looked around Qaboun. After seven years of displacement, he returned on Tuesday to his neighbourhood in Syria’s capital, Damascus, only to find it levelled. “We’d heard that the regime demolished the neighbourhood, but seeing it with my own eyes was utterly shocking,” he said. When al-Madani and his family were displaced from Qaboun in 2017, many of the neighbourhood’s buildings were damaged. “But today, there is no trace of these buildings… The regime has obliterated the neighbourhood’s features.” He was not the only one who came out to Qaboun to see what was left after the regime of Bashar al-Assad fell. Several residents of Qaboun who had also fled for their lives are walking around, trying to figure out where their houses could have been. Revenge and destruction The al-Assad regime would deliberately destroy areas that rose against him after regaining control, employing various laws to legitimise that. Chief among these was Law No. 10 of 2018, which authorised the establishment of new urban zones in war-damaged areas and gave Syrian refugees only 30 days to prove ownership of their property. Failure to do so would result in the property being confiscated. Advertisement Many people were too afraid to come back to Syria or to their neighbourhoods, fearing that they would be arrested and charged with opposing al-Assad. Nadeedah Hannawi, 50, told Al Jazeera that her family was unable to prove ownership of their home, having fled to the north where there was no regime-controlled bureaucracy, and because they did not have their ownership documents with them. “The fallen al-Assad regime didn’t just displace us; it sought to steal the homes we had built with our life savings,” said Hannawi. “Identifying where my home and my husband’s shop used to be was no easy task,” she added. “Even the cemetery holding the graves of our loved ones has been destroyed. “The most important thing today is that the criminal Bashar al-Assad has fled, his regime has fallen, and our land has been returned to us. Together, we will rebuild it,” Hannawi said. Mahmoud Jahbar, 53, echoed her sentiments. “Al-Assad’s regime destroyed our homes and memories, but we’re hopeful that we’ll rebuild so our children have a place to call home.” Adblock test (Why?)
Brazil’s Lula released from hospital after brain bleed surgery
Doctors say leftist leader has been cleared to work while recovering at home after being rushed to hospital last week. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has been released from hospital following an emergency surgery to treat bleeding in his brain. The 79-year-old Brazilian leader delivered brief remarks upon his release on Sunday, days after he was rushed to the Syrian-Lebanese Hospital in Sao Paulo after experiencing headaches. “I’m here alive, well, with the urge to work. And I’ll tell you something I used to say during the campaign. I’m 79 years old, I have the energy of a 30-year-old and the enthusiasm of a 20-year-old to build this country,” Lula said. Doctors have said Lula would continue to recover from his home in Sao Paulo. He will be able to walk and hold meetings, but has been advised against international travel for the time being. The medical team said the leftist leader should be able to travel domestically, including to the capital Brasilia, following further assessment. A handout picture released by the Brazilian vice presidency shows President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva walking with his neurosurgeon in the Syrian-Lebanese Hospital in Sao Paulo, Brazil [AFP] Lula underwent two surgeries while at the hospital, both aimed at blocking blood flow in parts of his brain to prevent haemorrhaging. His personal doctor had described the procedures as “routine” and “minimally invasive”, requiring only sedation as opposed to anaesthesia. Advertisement His neurologist, Rogerio Tuma, reported last week that Lula’s examination results were “normal”. Lula, who was sworn in as president in early 2023, had suffered trauma to the back of his head after falling in his home in October. At the time he received several stitches. He had curtailed travel following the fall. ‘Disrespect of democracy’ Speaking on Sunday, the president also offered his first response to the arrest of General Walter Braga Netto, in connection with investigations into an alleged coup plot. Braga Netto, who was a defence minister in right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro’s government as well as the former leader’s running mate in the 2022 election, was arrested on Saturday after he was formally accused last month with 35 others – including Bolsonaro himself – of allegedly plotting a coup to keep the former president in power following his 2022 re-election loss. “It is not possible for us to accept disrespect for democracy, disrespect for the constitution,” Lula said. “And it is not possible for us to accept that in a generous country like Brazil, we have people of high military rank plotting the death of a president, his vice president and a presiding judge of the Supreme Electoral Court,” said Lula. Prosecutors have not yet filed formal charges against Braga Netto, although authorities have said his arrest was related to allegations that he was obstructing the collection of evidence. Adblock test (Why?)
ICJ weighs legal responsibility for climate change, ‘future of our planet’
Historic hearings at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague have drawn to a close after more than 100 countries and international organisations presented arguments over two weeks on who should bear legal responsibility for the worsening climate crisis. Spearheading the effort was Vanuatu which, alongside other Pacific island nations, says the climate crisis poses a threat to its very existence. “It is with a profound sense of urgency and responsibility that I stand before you today,” Ralph Regenvanu, Vanuatu’s special envoy for climate change and environment, said as he opened the hearings on December 2. “The outcome of these proceedings will reverberate across generations, determining the fate of nations like mine and the future of our planet,” he said. In the two weeks that followed, dozens of countries made similar entreaties, while a handful of major fossil fuel-producing countries argued polluters should not be held responsible. Sebastien Duyck, a senior lawyer with the Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL), which monitored the hearings, said the countries arguing against legal liability were in the minority. Advertisement “Major polluters, including the United States, United Kingdom, Russia, China, Germany, Saudi Arabia, Canada, Australia, Norway, and Kuwait, found themselves isolated in their attempts to play the legal system to serve their self-interests and insulate themselves from accountability,” Duyck said in a statement. “It is time to break this cycle of harm and impunity,” he added. The ICJ’s 15 judges from around the world must now consider two questions: what are countries obliged to do under international law to protect the climate and environment from human-caused greenhouse gas emissions? And what are the legal consequences for governments when their acts, or lack of action, have significantly harmed the climate and environment? Activists protest outside the International Court of Justice, in The Hague, Netherlands, during the hearings which started on December 2, 2024 [Peter Dejong/AP Photo] Among countries that provided oral statements during the hearings was the State of Palestine, which joined other developing nations in calling for international law to “take centre stage in protecting humanity from the dangerous path of human-made destruction resulting from climate change”. The Palestinian statement also offered insights into the ways that Israel’s illegal occupation is both causing climate change and hurting Palestinians’ ability to respond to it. “There can be no doubt that the ongoing illegal Israeli belligerent occupation of Palestine and its discriminatory policies have clear negative climate effects,” Ammar Hijazi, the State of Palestine’s ambassador to the Netherlands, said on Monday. Advertisement East Timor, also known as Timor-Leste, testified in support of Vanuatu’s case. “The climate crisis that we face today is the result of the historical and ongoing actions of industrialised nations, which have reaped the benefits of rapid economic growth, powered by colonial exploitation and carbon-intensive industries and practices,” Elizabeth Exposto, chief of staff to Timor-Leste’s prime minister, said on Thursday. “These nations, representing only a fraction of the global population, are overwhelmingly responsible for the climate crisis,” she added, “and yet, the impacts of climate change do not respect borders.” The hearings come after 132 countries at the United Nations General Assembly voted in March 2023 to support Vanuatu’s push for an opinion from the ICJ on the legal obligations nations are under to protect current and future generations from climate change. The turn to courts to spur action on climate change also reflects a growing degree of dissatisfaction among some governments at the lack of progress in UN climate negotiations, where decisions are based on consensus. The most recent COP29 summit in Baku, Azerbaijan, concluded with rich countries pledging to contribute $300bn a year by 2035 to help poorer nations combat the effects of climate change. But the Climate Action Network International, a network of 1,900 civil society groups in more than 130 countries, described the deal as a “joke”, when compared with the costs developing countries are facing as climate change worsens. Advertisement As Regenvanu noted in his statement for Vanuatu, “it is unconscionable that the COP failed to reach any agreement on cutting emissions”. “There is an urgent need for a collective response to climate change grounded not in political convenience but in international law.” WATCH LIVE: Vanuatu and the Melanesian Spearhead Group (jointly), South Africa, Albania and Germany openthe public hearings in the advisory proceedings on Obligations of States in respect of Climate Changehttps://t.co/qGazks5diA — CIJ_ICJ (@CIJ_ICJ) December 2, 2024 Adblock test (Why?)
Pachuca shock Al Ahly to face Real Madrid in FIFA Intercontinental final
Mexico’s Pachuca defeated Egyptian side Al Ahly on penalties to set up Intercontinental Cup final with Spanish giants Real Madrid in Qatar. Mexican side Pachuca beat Egypt’s Al Ahly on penalties at Stadium 974 in Doha on Saturday to claim the Challenger Cup and seal their place in FIFA’s Intercontinental Cup final. Pachuca will now face Spanish giants Real Madrid, who enter the tournament in the final as European champions, in Wednesday’s showpiece in Qatar. The South American side beat the African outfit 6-5 on penalties following a goalless semi-final, in which Al Ahly edged the possession and tested the keeper five times to Pachuca’s three. Four spot kicks were missed by the sides, including the opening penalty by Pachuca’s Salomon Rondon, before the decisive moment saw right-back Khaled Abdel Fattah hit the bar with his effort. Pachuca’s players rush to celebrate their penalty shootout victory [Hussein Sayed/AP] “It was difficult, very complicated, especially because of the marathon game we played today,” said Pachuca coach Guillermo Almada. “We’ll try to get the players back on their feet and go into the game (final) with all the motivation in the world.” Advertisement Wednesday’s final against Madrid will be played at Lusail Stadium, which hosted the World Cup final between Argentina and France two years ago. A crowd of 38,841 were in attendance at Stadium 974 on Saturday, which was built for the 2022 FIFA World Cup with that number of shipping containers to be a “beacon of sustainability” as part of Qatar’s pledge to deliver the first carbon-neutral tournament. CF Pachuca’s Salomon Rondon receives the trophy from FIFA President Gianni Infantino [Hussein Sayed/AP] Pachuca of Mexico had romped to an upset against Brazilian side Botafogo with a 3-0 win in the last round – the Derby of the Americas – thanks to second-half strikes from Pachuca’s Oussama Idrissi, Nelson Deossa and Rondon. Botafogo had only just completed the domestic double in Brazil. The win for Pachuca continues a remarkable year that has already seen them lift the Concacaf Champions Cup after a 3-0 win in the final against MLS side Columbus Crew in early June. Pachuca coach Guillermo Almada holds the Derby of the Americas and Challenger Cup trophies, which have been secured en route to the Intercontinental Cup final [Ibraheem Al Omari/Reuters] Adblock test (Why?)