Massive search continues for two missing US soldiers in Morocco

Former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani is hospitalized in "critical but stable condition," his spokesman said Sunday, without disclosing what ails the 81-year-old former politician.

"Mayor Giuliani is a fighter who has faced every challenge in his life with unwavering strength, and he's fighting with that same level of strength as we speak," spokesman Ted Goodman said in an X post.

Goodman did not say where Giuliani was receiving care or how long he had been there, but he asked "that you join us in prayer for America's Mayor Rudy Giuliani."

The New York Times reported that Giuliani was hospitalized in Florida.

Giuliani earned the moniker of "America's mayor" for leading New York City through the aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center buildings in Manhattan. 

Earlier in his career, he gained fame as the fearless Mafia-busting prosecutor whose aggressive use of racketeering laws brought down New York's organized crime families. 

But Giuliani experienced a stunning fall from grace in recent years, including in 2023 when a federal jury ordered him to pay $148 million to two election workers after defaming them by falsely tying them to alleged fraud in the 2020 presidential election.

Giuliani, a Republican, became a fierce defender of President Donald Trump, joining his personal legal team in Trump's first White House term.

He came under scrutiny by the Manhattan US attorney's office in 2019 over his activities connected with investigations about Ukraine and apparent efforts to dig up dirt on Trump's Democratic rival Joe Biden. 

Giuliani was also part of the effort to reverse his client's clear election loss to Biden in 2020. But one by one, the post-election court challenges were withdrawn or dismissed as groundless.

He has since been disbarred in New York and Washington.

Giuliani was facing criminal charges in Arizona related to the 2020 election and other legal issues when Trump issued him a sweeping pardon last November.

On Sunday Trump hailed Giuliani as a "true warrior" and New York's best-ever mayor.

"What a tragedy that he was treated so badly by the Radical Left Lunatics, Democrats ALL — AND HE WAS RIGHT ABOUT EVERYTHING!" Trump added. 

"They cheated on the Elections, fabricated hundreds of stories, did anything possible to destroy our Nation, and now, look at Rudy. So sad!" 

mlm/sla

European leaders and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney gather in Armenia Monday as they seek to navigate a fraught geopolitical environment under an unpredictable White House.

US President Donald Trump will loom large over the meeting of the European Political Community (EPC). It takes place in Yerevan, a crossroads between Russia and the Middle East -- the two main issues on the agenda. 

"Leaders from across the continent, with Canada as a guest, will discuss how to cooperate to strengthen security and collective resilience," European Council President Antonio Costa wrote on social media as he arrived in the Armenian capital Sunday.

The Iran war, which has rattled the global economy by sending energy prices soaring, has deepened a rift in transatlantic ties.

Following a spat between Trump and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who had criticised Washington's handling of the conflict, the United States announced it would withdraw 5,000 US troops from Germany.

That has added to the doubts surrounding the US commitment to defend its European allies as Russian President Vladimir Putin's war in Ukraine grinds into a fifth year.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky and NATO chief Mark Rutte will be present in Yerevan, while Merz will be represented by France's Emmanuel Macron.

They will be joined by Canada's Carney -- the first-ever non-European leader to join the EPC talks, in a sign of the ever-closer ties between Ottawa and Europe ushered in by Trump. 

The summit "in a nutshell, will be an opportunity to emphasise that Europe's security is a 360-degree challenge", said a senior EU official.

Like Europe, Canada's economy has been hurt by Trump's tariffs -- but Carney has remained defiant, emerging as something of a figurehead for countries looking to stand up to the Republican president. 

In a stirring speech earlier this year, he urged middle powers to join forces in the face of a new global reality defined by great power competition and a "fading" rules‑based order. 

"The EPC was initially perceived as an anti-Putin club," said Sebastien Maillard, a special adviser at the Jacques Delors Institute, a think tank.

"With the invitation to Canada, this initiative -- which was initially driven by geography -- is now taking on an anti-Trump slant."

Moving to diversify away from its southern neighbour, Ottawa has joined the EU's defence financing scheme -- the first non-European country to do so -- and sought to increase cooperation on trade.

"Canada has a way of looking at the world and looking at ways to solve the challenges we have currently that Europe shares to a great extent," said the EU official, speaking on condition of anonymity.

- 'Reorientation' - 

A biannual political forum, the EPC was established on the initiative of French President Emmanuel Macron in 2022 in response to the invasion of Ukraine. 

It brings together the members of the European Union and, this time, 21 other countries, from Albania to Britain.

EPC summits do not normally produce concrete decisions but offer the opportunity for leaders to exchange in groups and bilaterally. Most leaders arrived in the Armenian capital for an informal dinner on Sunday.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez was expected to join the meeting on Monday, Madrid said, after a technical problem with his plane forced him to make an emergency landing in Turkey and spend the night in Ankara. 

The Yerevan gathering is the first of its kind in the Caucasus and comes as Armenia fosters closer ties with Europe while seeking to cautiously loosen itself from Russia's grasp.

It will be followed Tuesday by an EU-Armenia summit with the bloc's chief officials Costa and European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, who described it as a "major milestone" in the country's rapprochement with Europe.

Relations between Yerevan and its traditional ally Moscow have become strained in recent years, in part because Russian peacekeepers failed to intervene during military conflicts with neighbouring Azerbaijan.

Under Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Armenia has formally pursued a strategy of what he calls "diversification", in which the landlocked country pursues ties with both Russia and the West.

Costa says the bloc looks forward to "deepening this relationship" with the country of three million, which signed a comprehensive partnership agreement with the EU in 2017 and last year declared its intention to apply for membership.

In April the EU established a mission to help the former Soviet nation tackle foreign interference, with Russia suspected of a disinformation push ahead of June elections.

Putin has declared himself "completely calm" about Armenia's overtures to Europe -- while also warning that belonging to both the EU and the Russian-led Eurasian Economic Union was "simply impossible".

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In Iraq's holy city of Najaf, the majestic shrine of Imam Ali stands quiet, its vast courtyards no longer echoing with the multilingual whispers of pilgrims from before the Middle East war.

The absence of tourists leaves nearby shopkeepers and hotel owners with little to do, their days dragging on as they hope for the crowds to return and revive their businesses. 

"Iranians used to keep us busy, whether the jeweller, the fabric merchant or the taxi driver. Now there are none," said jewellery shop owner Abdel Rahim Harmoush.

"It used to be hard even to step into the market because of foreigners... Even street vendors drew huge crowds of visitors," the 71-year-old added. 

Millions of Shia Muslims from around the world typically flock to Najaf and fellow holy city Karbala every year. 

But the regional war ignited in late February by US-Israeli strikes on Iran has stemmed the usual influx of pilgrims from the Islamic republic, Lebanon, the Gulf states, India, Afghanistan and elsewhere.

Iraq was drawn into the conflict from the onset, with strikes targeting US interests and Tehran-backed armed groups in the country.

People in the holy cities "live on religious tourism", said Harmoush, who for 38 years has worked in the old market near Najaf's golden-domed mausoleum.

The shrine is the ornate burial place of Ali -- the Prophet Mohammed's son-in-law, the fourth Islamic caliph and the first Shia Imam.

Harmoush warned of economic ruin were the crisis to persist: shop owners unable to pay rent and taxes, cab drivers left without passengers and labourers struggling to find work.

- Hotels closed -

Hotel owner Abu Ali, 52, was forced to lay off five employees, leaving just one to tend to nearly 70 empty rooms.

"How can I pay salaries if there is no work?" he said.

Saeb Abu Ghneim, head of the hotel association in Najaf, told AFP that 80 percent of the city's 250 hotels had closed, with more than 2,000 employees laid off or on unpaid leave.

He added that most of Najaf's religious tourism relies on Iranians, followed by Lebanese visitors -- also trapped at home by war -- and other nationalities. 

The sector, which already weathered the closure of mosques and shrines in the pandemic, is a rare type of tourism in a country reeling from decades of conflicts.

Religious tourism also constitutes a significant source of revenue for Iraq's non-oil economy.

Before the war, 28-year-old Moustafa al-Haboubi could barely manage the crowds queuing to exchange foreign currency for Iraqi dinars.

He now spends the long hours idly scrolling through his phone or chatting with neighbours.

"We barely receive one or two customers," he said. "There are no pilgrims now, Iranian or otherwise."

Even after a fragile ceasefire took effect on April 8 and Iraq's airspace reopened, little has changed.

Some pilgrims trickle through during the week, while on weekends the area grows somewhat livelier as Iraqis visit the sacred sites.

- 'Catastrophe' -

The situation is no different in Karbala, which is around 80 kilometres (50 miles) north of Najaf and home to the shrines of the revered grandsons of Prophet Mohammed, Imam Hussein and his brother Abbas. 

The main corridor linking the two golden shrines and the surrounding alleyways were once alive with the murmurs of tourists walking to prayers. 

Today, the visitors are almost exclusively Iraqi.

"The situation is dangerous... a catastrophe," said Israa al-Nasrawi, head of Karbala's tourism committee.

She warned that the war had devastated the city's economy, slashing tourist numbers by around 95 percent and forcing hundreds of hotels to close.

The city's many pilgrim tour companies sit idle.

Akram Radi, who has worked in the sector for 16 years, said his company once helped up to 1,000 visitors a month but is now operating at only 10 percent of capacity.

"I might have to close and look for another job," he said.

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An Israeli court on Sunday extended for two days the detention of two foreign activists from a Gaza-bound flotilla, who were brought to Israel for questioning, a rights group representing them said.

The flotilla of more than 50 vessels had set sail from France, Spain and Italy to break Israel's blockade of Gaza and bring supplies to the devastated Palestinian territory.

They were intercepted by Israeli forces in international waters off Greece early on Thursday, with Israel saying it had removed some 175 activists -- two of whom were taken to Israel for questioning.

Spanish national Saif Abu Keshek and Brazilian Thiago Avila appeared before a court in the southern city of Ashkelon on Sunday.

AFP footage showed the pair being escorted into the courtroom, with Avila walking with his hands behind his back and Abu Keshek's feet in shackles.

"The court extended their detention by two days," Miriam Azem, international advocacy coordinator at the rights group Adalah, told AFP.

Adalah said the state attorney had presented a list of suspected offences committed by the pair, including "assisting the enemy during wartime" and "membership in and providing services to a terrorist organisation".

But Adalah's lawyers challenged the state's jurisdiction, arguing against the "unlawful abduction" of the two activists in international waters.

Its lawyers told the court Avila and Abu Keshek had testified to "severe physical abuse amounting to torture, including being beaten and held in isolation and blindfolded for days at sea".

- Call for swift release -

Israel's foreign ministry rejected claims that the men were subjected to physical violence.

"Contrary to the false and baseless claims prepared in advance, at no point were Saif Abu Keshek and Thiago Ávila subjected to torture," ministry spokesman Oren Marmorstein told AFP.

"Following violent physical obstruction by Saif Abu Keshek and Thiago Ávila against Israeli staff members, staff were compelled to act in order to stop these actions. All measures taken were in accordance with the law," he said.

No formal charges were filed against the two, Adalah said.

"We argued that ... they were part of a humanitarian mission that aimed to provide humanitarian aid to the civilians in Gaza, and not to any other organisation, whether terrorist or not," lawyer Hadeel Abu Salih told journalists after the court hearing.

"We deny all the accusations that were presented... and demand these two men be released immediately," she said.

Spain's government has called for Abu Keshek's "immediate release", the foreign ministry said in a statement to AFP, indicating the Spanish consul had accompanied Abu Keshek to the hearing.

Adalah's lawyers had met the activists at Ashkelon's Shikma Prison on Saturday. 

They said Avila recounted being "subjected to extreme brutality" by Israeli forces when the vessels were seized, saying he was "dragged face-down across the floor and beaten so severely that he passed out twice".

Abu Keshek was also "hand-tied and blindfolded ... and forced to lie face-down on the floor from the moment of his seizure" until reaching Israel, it said.

- Accused of Hamas ties -

Israel's foreign ministry said the pair were affiliated with the Popular Conference for Palestinians Abroad (PCPA) -- a group accused by Washington of "clandestinely acting on behalf of" Palestinian militant group Hamas.

It said Abu Keshek was a leading PCPA member, and that Avila was also linked to the group and "suspected of illegal activity".

The Global Sumud Flotilla's first Mediterranean voyage to Gaza last year drew worldwide attention, before being intercepted by Israeli forces off the coasts of Egypt and Gaza.

Avila was one of the organisers of that flotilla, which was also intercepted by Israeli forces, with crew members -- including Swedish activist Greta Thunberg -- arrested and expelled.

Israel controls all entry points into Gaza, which has been under an Israeli blockade since 2007.

Throughout the Gaza war, there have been shortages of critical supplies in the Palestinian territory, with Israel at times cutting off aid entirely.

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Two US soldiers that disappeared while on a training deployment in southern Morocco were last seen near seaside cliffs and may have fallen into the ocean, a US defense official confirmed to AFP.

A massive land, air and sea search was launched by US, Moroccan and allied forces in Cap Draa Training Area after the service members went missing late Saturday, both militaries said.

The search remained underway as of shortly before 2000 GMT on Sunday, the US official told AFP.

"I can confirm this incident is not related to terrorism but appears to be an accident," the official said. "Initial reports indicate the two soldiers may have fallen into the ocean."

The Wall Street Journal reported that officials believe the missing pair went on a hike after training had concluded. AFP has not been able to independently confirm this.

CBS News reported that one of its journalists heard helicopters "throughout the night" and into Sunday after a "base-wide head-count" failed to account for the two soldiers.

Morocco's armed forces confirmed they were part of the search in a post on Facebook.

The US defense official said that several helicopters, vessels, drones, mountaineers and divers were involved in the search.

The troops were taking part in an annual joint military training exercise called African Lion, which brings together US, allied African, and NATO militaries for drills in northern and west Africa.

The US military describes the training as "Africa Command's largest premier, joint, annual exercise," bringing together "more than 10,000 participants from more than 20 nations, including contingents from NATO." It is hosted by Morocco, Ghana, Senegal and Tunisia.

In 2012, two US Marines were killed and two more were injured in an aircraft crash in the same area during that year's African Lion exercise.

pnb/mlm

Manchester United beat Liverpool 3-2 to seal a return to the Champions League next season, while Tottenham climbed out of the Premier League relegation zone with a 2-1 win at Aston Villa on Sunday.

Kobbie Mainoo's late winner edged a thrilling encounter at Old Trafford in United's favour after Liverpool had battled back from 2-0 down.

Before the match, legendary former United boss Alex Ferguson was taken to hospital as a precaution after falling ill.

The Red Devils raced out the blocks to score twice inside the first 15 minutes.

Matheus Cunha's deflected strike from the edge of the box beat third-choice Liverpool goalkeeper Freddie Woodman before Benjamin Sesko bundled in from close range.

United could have been even further in front by half-time against an out-of-sorts Liverpool lacking the injured trio of Mohamed Salah, Hugo Ekitike and Alexander Isak.

But the visitors were gifted a route back into the game by United mistakes.

Dominik Szoboszlai pounced on Amad Diallo's wayward pass to run from inside his own half and cut the arrears two minutes into the second half.

Szoboszlai then teed up Cody Gakpo to equalise after a stray pass from United goalkeeper Senne Lammens.

In the week he signed a new five-year contract, Mainoo was ultimately the hero when he coolly slotted in from outside the box 13 minutes from time.

Victory and the guarantee of Champions League football after a two-year absence further strengthens Michael Carrick's case to remain in charge of United next season.

"I love doing what I'm doing and it's a great position for me to be in," said Carrick.

"It feels pretty natural if I'm totally honest."

Liverpool finished 14 places and 42 points ahead of United last season.

Arne Slot's men now trail their old rivals by six points and still have work to do in the final three games to secure a top-five finish themselves.

- Emery eases Spurs fears -

Liverpool remain in fourth after a much-changed Villa offered Tottenham a lifeline in the battle for survival.

Spurs had not won for 118 days in the Premier League until last weekend's scrappy 1-0 victory at already-relegated Wolves.

But they are now back in the driving seat to avoid relegation as West Ham drop into the bottom three with three games remaining.

"I'm pleased with this performance from my players. I know how much they have suffered this season," said Spurs boss Roberto De Zerbi.

"My job is to help them and show what they are capable of."

Villa boss Unai Emery made seven changes with one eye on overturning his side's 1-0 deficit in their Europa League semi-final against Nottingham Forest on Thursday.

Tottenham took full advantage as Conor Gallagher fired in his first goal since joining from Atletico Madrid in January.

Richarlison then headed in Mathys Tel's teasing cross to double Tottenham's lead on 25 minutes.

De Zerbi's men were rarely troubled by an under-par Villa, even after Emery summoned Ollie Watkins from the bench.

Emi Buendia pulled a goal back in the dying seconds but Spurs held out to move one point ahead of West Ham.

Villa should still secure Champions League qualification, but Bournemouth closed the gap on the top five to six points with a 3-0 win over Crystal Palace.

Jefferson Lerma's own goal, Eli Junior Kroupi's penalty and Rayan's late strike extended the Cherries' unbeaten run to 15 games.

kca/dmc/pb

Top players including world number ones Jannik Sinner and Aryna Sabalenka kept up the pressure on the Grand Slam tournaments with a letter to Roland Garros on Monday expressing "deep disappointment" over the French major's 2026 prize money. 

Last year almost all the leading players signed two letters to the four Grand Slam bosses demanding an increase in prize money, payments into a player welfare fund to improve retirement and maternity benefits, as well as involvement in decisions that affected them.

The letters set a target of a 22-percent share in tournament revenue, which would bring the majors in line with the nine combined 1000-level events run by the ATP men's tour and the women's WTA tour.

On Monday, players said in a statement that an announcement by Roland Garros on April 16 of a 9.5 percent prize money rise was not good enough.

It said that last year the French Open generated 395 million euros ($463 mn), a 14-percent increase.

However the total purse went up by just 5.4 percent, reducing player share of revenue to 14.3 percent.

It estimated that this year's revenues would pass 400mn euros, leaving the player cut still below 15 percent.

The letter also complained that Roland Garros was ignoring the other issues raised by players.

"The announcement does nothing to address the structural issues that players have consistently and reasonably raised over the past year," it said.

"There has been no engagement on player welfare and no progress towards establishing a formal mechanism for player consultation within Grand Slam decision making."

While the tours did not release the names of the players who had signed the letters last year, copies of the first, in March, showed that 10 of the 11 top-ranked women had signed.

Sinner, Novak Djokovic, Alexander Zverev and Carlos Alcaraz were among the men who signed -- although Djokovic reportedly did not sign the second letter in the summer. 

The Serbian has not signed the latest letter either, a spokesperson for the players told AFP.

"For sure it would be great if the Grand Slams wanted to talk to us, because that's how it's supposed to be and I don't really get why there's no more open conversation," Iga Swiatek said at the WTA Finals in November.

Meanwhile, also last March, the breakaway Professional Tennis Players Association (PTPA) which Djokovic founded in 2021 and then quit in January of this year, launched a barrage of lawsuits against almost every other tennis organisation. 

In its suit against the US Open organisers, the PTPA pointed out that "in 2024, the US Open made $12.8 million from selling a single speciality cocktail, which was more than it paid to both singles champions combined".

The novelty cocktail, the Honey Deuce, sold for $23 during last year's tournament.

pb/gj/bsp 

Minnesota star Anthony Edwards has been listed as "questionable" for the Timberwolves' NBA second-round series opener against the San Antonio Spurs on Monday with a left knee injury.

Edwards suffered a bone bruise when he hyperextended his left knee on an awkward landing in game four of the Timberwolves' first-round series against the Denver Nuggets, missing the next two games of Minnesota's triumph.

ESPN reported that Edwards went through a light workout this weekend and traveled with the team to San Antonio, citing unnamed sources in reporting there is "growing optimism" that Edwards could return to the lineup during the second round.

Edwards was already managing a nagging right knee problem that sidelined him late in the regular season.

A return this week would be a huge boost for the Timberwolves in their duel with Victor Wembanyama and the second-seeded Spurs.

Minnesota will be without Donte DiVincenzo for the rest of the playoffs after he suffered a ruptured right Achilles tendon in the same game in which Edwards was hurt.

They also listed guard Ayo Dosunmu -- who scored 43 points in the Timberwolves' game-three win over the Nuggets -- as questionable for Monday with a sore right calf.

bb/js

© Agence France-Presse

BOZEMAN, Mont. — Witness video and photos helped wardens investigate a Bozeman man who was later convicted in a Madison County hunting case, Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP) announced in a release.

Juan Garcia-Gomez pleaded guilty last month in Madison County Justice Court to misdemeanor counts of unlawful possession of a game animal, unlawful hunting from a public highway and failing to validate his general deer license.

According to the press release, the case came from a joint investigation involving FWP and the Madison County Sheriff’s Office stemming from a witness video near Jeffers in November that showed Garcia-Gomez in the roadway, leaning against his vehicle and shooting a mule deer buck on a nearby hillside. The release said he then loaded the animal into his vehicle and left.

The witness also found a spent shell casing in the road, took a photo of it and reported the case to FWP. Wardens then worked with the Madison County Sheriff’s Office to detain Garcia-Gomez and continue the investigation.

The agency said Garcia-Gomez paid $1,100 in fines and received a 24-month suspension of his hunting and fishing privileges. Montana is part of the Interstate Wildlife Violator Compact, which means a loss of privileges in one state applies in all 50 states.

The Detroit Pistons dominated the Orlando Magic 116-94 on Sunday to complete their NBA playoff series comeback and punch their ticket to the Eastern Conference semi-finals.

Cade Cunningham scored 32 points and handed out 12 assists and Tobias Harris added 30 points with nine rebounds as the Pistons, who trailed 3-1 in the best-of-seven series, wrapped up a 4-3 triumph.

The Pistons, who locked up the top seed in the East with the third-best record in the league, notched their first playoff series victory since 2008.

"It feels good, feels good that we handled our business and did what we set out to do," Cunningham told broadcaster ABC.

They'll next face either the fourth-seeded Cleveland Cavaliers or fifth-seeded Toronto Raptors.

The Cavs hosted game seven of their series later on Sunday.

Detroit had already fended off elimination with victories in games five and six against the Magic -- erasing a 24-point deficit on Friday to force Sunday's decider.

It's the second time the Pistons have rallied from 3-1 down to top the Magic, having accomplished the feat in the first round in 2003.

"They really pushed us to the limit," Cunningham said. "We've grown a lot because of this series, because of that team. So huge credit to them, and we're ready to get to the second round and continue business."

Paolo Banchero scored 38 points with nine rebounds and six assists for Orlando. But he got precious little scoring support and the Pistons took full advantage of 16 Magic turnovers that led to 19 Detroit points.

Banchero, who struggled offensively in game six, scored the Magic's first 11 points and Orlando emerged from a tight first quarter with a two-point lead.

The back-and-forth action continued early in the second, Detroit finally creating some separation behind a 17-point second-quarter outburst from Harris that helped the Pistons build a 60-49 lead at halftime.

Cunningham's floater, off a feed by Harris, pushed the Pistons' lead to 20 points early in the third quarter and they were in control the rest of the way.

The Magic cut a 25-point fourth-quarter deficit to 14 with 4:22 to play only for Detroit to pull away again.

bb/js