Messi nets hat trick as Argentina steamroll Bolivia

      Messi nets hat trick as Argentina steamroll         Bolivia

How Messi made more history for Argentina

Check out Lionel Messi's latest show for Argentina in their 6-0 thrashing of Bolivia in World Cup qualifying.

Lionel Messi scored a hat trick

 and had a hand in two more goals as Argentina crushed Bolivia 6-0 in South American qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup on Tuesday in front of raucous fans at the Monumental de Nuñez Stadium.

It marked the first time in Messi's international career that he had multiple goals and assists in a single game, and the hat trick was his 10th for Argentina -- tying Cristiano Ronaldo's mark for hat tricks with Portugal.

Making only his second international appearance since recovering from an injury sustained at the Copa América in July, Messi capitalised on a mistake by defender Marcelo Suarez to open the scoring in the 19th minute.

"We enjoyed this, we are happy to be here playing in Argentina," said Messi, who once again refused to say whether he will play in the next World Cup in 2026. "This could be one of the last [matches in front of the Argentinian crowd

 

Harris courts black and Latino votes as polls suggest Trump gains

With just weeks to go until the US presidential election, Kamala Harris is ramping up efforts to court black and Latino voters. Despite holding a clear lead among both groups, some Democrats have warned she needs to do more to energise these voters to turn out for her in November.

That's in part due to recent polling which suggests Harris’s Republican rival Donald Trump is having success in winning over black and Latino voters, a continuation of gains he made in 2016 and 2020.

One New York Times and Siena poll indicated Harris had 78% support among black voters, compared to around 90% support for Democrats in recent elections, with men accounting for most of this drop-off.

This could prove crucial in a race that looks set to be decided by razor-thin margins. And even if this polling is off, in key battleground states modest gains among black or Latino voters could ultimately sway result.

In Arizona, for example, nearly one in four voters on 5 November is expected to be Latino, along with almost 20% in nearby Nevada. In another key state, Georgia, black voters constitute about 30% of the total. These are a significant amount of votes in seriously important states.

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UN says it will not withdraw peacekeepers from Lebanon

 UN says it will not withdraw peacekeepers from Lebanon

       The United Nations says its peacekeepers in southern Lebanon will stay in their positions, despite repeated demands by Israel that they should move out of the way of its forces there.

The head of UN peacekeeping operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix told journalists in New York that the decision to keep the Unifil force in place had the full backing of both the UN Security Council and the member states contributing troops to the force.

On Sunday Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu bluntly warned the UN to move from its bases in southern Lebanon, which he said were providing a human shield to Hezbollah fighters.

But the UN is standing firm.

Its head of peacekeeping said it was essential that the blue helmets stay in place, to carry out the mandate they were given by the UN Security Council and to assist the civilian population.

Israel argues that the UN has failed to stop Hezbollah from building tunnels and positioning weapons like rockets and missiles near the border, in violation of the agreement which ended the last war there 18 years ago.

The UN says its mission is to support the parties to the conflict, not to enforce the agreement.

It has accused Israel of deliberately targeting its bases, with five peacekeepers injured in the past week, an accusation rejected by Netanyahu.

In another statement last night he said Israel would do its utmost to prevent such incidents, but that UN peacekeepers needed to get out of harm’s way.

Can Virat Kohli find his mojo against New Zealand ?

He was at his imperious self at the nets on Monday.

 

Virat Kohli bristled towards the practice nets. He scanned the skies to feel the sun, ran his fingers through the trimmed grass, greeted the groundsmen, shook hands with the curator and eyed the net bowlers haggling to bowl first at him. The setting was familiar: Chinnaswamy Stadium is perhaps more home than a home away from home, his association with Royal Challengers Bangalore turning 18 next year.

The lack of hundreds would be tossing uneasily somewhere in the innards of his mind—the drought-ending hundred in Ahmedabad did not stir a hurricane but rather a breeze, a mean of 49 runs in 12 innings. He is riding a curious phase where he has not been as emphatic as he had been in his 2014-2019 pomp, a four-year span wherein he was the emperor of all he surveyed, but has not been as miserable as he had been from mid-2019 to early 2023 slump. He has been hitting the in-between frequency. Some of his contemporaries have been catching a second-wind in their careers, Joe Root for one. Australia have announced that Steve Smith experiment to open won’t be attempted against India, and he too would be inching to regain form.

After get-the-eye-in defensive blocks in the nets, he swapped his violin for a bass guitar. He drilled Akash Deep down the ground so powerful that it broke the flaky leg of a plastic chair. The remaining pack were hurriedly dragged away.Read More:

     

World’s top climate scientists expect global heating to blast past 1.5C target

 World’s top climate scientists expect global heating to blast past 1.5C target:

                

Report: Hundreds of the world’s leading climate scientists expect global temperatures to rise to at least 2.5C (4.5F) above preindustrial levels this century, blasting past internationally agreed targets and causing catastrophic consequences for humanity and the planet, an exclusive Guardian survey has revealed.

Almost 80% of the respondents, all from the authoritative Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), foresee at least 2.5C of global heating, while almost half anticipate at least 3C (5.4F). Only 6% thought the internationally agreed 1.5C (2.7F) limit would be met.

Many of the scientists envisage a “semi-dystopian” future, with famines, conflicts and mass migration, driven by heatwaves, wildfires, floods and storms of an intensity and frequency far beyond those that have already struck.

Numerous experts said they had been left feeling hopeless, infuriated and scared by the failure of governments to act despite the clear scientific evidence provided.

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Dad told police he killed Sara Sharif

 

Dad told police he killed Sara Sharif, court hears

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Stuff Report:The father of 10-year-old Sara Sharif called police from Pakistan and admitted he killed her at their Surrey home, a court heard.

Urfan Sharif made the confession in an eight minute-call about an hour after his family’s flight had landed in Islamabad on 10 August last year, before Sara's body was found.

Mr Urfan, 42, Sara's stepmother Beinash Batool, 30, and her uncle Faisal Malik, 29, have denied murdering the girl.

On Monday at the Old Bailey, jurors were told Mr Sharif's case was that his wife, Ms Batool, was responsible for Sara's death and his confession on the phone call and also in a note was false to protect her. more:

 

‘Gracious and chivalrous gentleman’: Ratan Tata’s Colaba neighbours remember his kindness, share fond memories

    Ratan Tata, renowned industrialist and chairman emeritus of Tata Sons, passed away on Wednesday at Mumbai’s Breach Candy Hospital at the age of 86, leaving the country in mourning. News of his death prompted an outpouring of tributes on social media from celebrities and political figures alike, all sharing heartfelt memories of their encounters with him. Know Details: