Trump on Iran: ‘I will make my decision whether or not to go within two weeks'

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Scottish Sun

38 minutes ago

• Scottish Sun

Ex-Celtic star on ‘weird' White House meeting with Donald Trump as he talked Iran and trans athletes

He replied to one of the President's questions but was called 'too nice' AWKWARD MOMENT Ex-Celtic star on 'weird' White House meeting with Donald Trump as he talked Iran and trans athletes Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) YOU'VE surely seen it by now - the cringe worthy, awkward and frankly strange video of Donald Trump meeting the stars of Juventus at the White House. In amongst the players - who looked a mixture of nervous, stunned or disgusted - was a former Celtic star who has now opened up on the "weird" Oval Office encounter. Sign up for the Celtic newsletter Sign up 1 Donald Trump hosted the Juventus squad at the Oval Office The Serie A giants were granted the opportunity to visit the President in Washington DC. But it descended into a bit of a farce as the squad were forced to listen to Mr Trump talk about the serious escalation in relations with Iran in front of them, as well as being asked for their opinions on trans athletes in sport. Mr Trump said at one point: "Could a woman make your team, fellas? "Tell me." After a few strange and anxious looks, the only one to offer a reply was former Celtic winger Timo Weah. He said "Yeah" before the president disregarded his response and replied "you're being nice." Mr Trump then turned to some senior Juve officials and asked: "What do you think, you think a woman could make the team? "General managers, what do you think?" One responded by saying: "We have a very good women's team." Mr Trump said: "You do have? Celtic transfer special - Nygren in and Kyogo to return "But they should be playing with women. "It's one of those things right. "They're very diplomatic." The President then asked where the two American players in the squad were - Weah and Weston McKennie - before shaking their hands and calling them "the best players on the field." Speaking after the bizarre incident, Weah, who played for Celtic on loan in the 2018-19 season, said: "It was weird. I was caught by surprise, honestly, when he started talking politics, with Iran and everything. "I was kind of like, I just want to play football... "They just told us that we have to go, and I had no choice but to go. "So I guess it was a cool experience, obviously being in the White House as a first time, it's always wonderful. "But I'm not one for the politics, so it wasn't that exciting." Keep up to date with ALL the latest news and transfers at the Scottish Sun football page

Telegraph

39 minutes ago

• Telegraph

Come on Whoopi, the US may not be fun but you're hardly in danger of being flogged

Whoopsi Goldberg. When will she learn that acting and activism are two very different skill sets? I'm not sure we want more of the former from her but we want absolutely none of the latter. Her latest toweringly stupid prime-time pronouncement is that for black people, living in the US is as bad as living in Iran. Appearing on The View, a topical panel show, Oscar winner Goldberg was enraged when her co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin stated, perfectly reasonably, that 'it's very different to live in the United States in 2025 than it is to live in Iran'. 'Not if you're black,' snapped Goldberg, who then proceeded to shout the other woman down, wildly claiming time and again that the prevailing culture in the democratic US is in lockstep with the systematic oppression imposed by the Iranian theocracy. We know you're a lefty. We know you hate Trump. But really? 'Let's just remember, too, the Iranians literally throw gay people off of buildings. They don't adhere to basic human rights,' pointed out Griffin, an Arab-American. This cut no ice with Goldberg, who by now had clambered onto her bandwagon and refused to concede a single point as it would represent an unthinkable climbdown. 'Let's not do that,' she countered crossly, 'because if we start with that, we have been known in this country to tie gay folks to the car.' Her false equivalence was as ugly as it was ignorant. Call me a bigot, but conflating state-sanctioned execution with illegal acts of murderous criminality is mortifying, stupid and dangerous. In a new report presented to the Geneva-based Human Rights Council on Wednesday, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said that Iran was executing people at 'an alarming rate'. At least 975 people received capital punishment in 2024, an increase on the estimated 834 in 2023 and the highest rate of executions since 2015. Flogging, torture and amputation are accepted forms of punishment in a country where the security forces act with impunity and women are 'disappeared' for refusing to wear the 'correct' veil. But Goldberg, who is worth an estimated £45 million, appeared to have no intention of listening – or allowing the audience to hear – any point of view other than her own. Even when Griffin pointed to the actress's clothing and argued that in Iran she wouldn't be allowed to walk around with her hair and legs showing, Goldberg predictably dragged the debate – such as it was – back to her specialist subject of race relations in the US. A worthy topic – but this was a programme focusing on Iran. 'Nobody wants to diminish the very real problems we have in our country,' responded Griffin carefully (to her credit, she didn't just reach over and turn off Goldberg's mic). 'But there are places far darker than our country.' She's right. But Goldberg wasn't interested. Her empathy doesn't appear to extend beyond her home turf. Or beyond colour. In 2022, she was suspended from the selfsame show for 'wrong and hurtful comments' after she asserted the annihilation of six million Jews in the Holocaust wasn't about race because 'these are two white groups of people'. Wow. You'd think Goldberg might have learnt something – anything. But no. She inhabits a myopic world of privilege in which her opinions are the only opinions – and if you're not with her, you are against her. The sorry truth is that now Hollywood no longer comes calling, she's plying her trade as a TV loudmouth. She doesn't need the money, but she clearly craves the attention – a deluded egotistical actress clinging to the excruciating belief that she's still the star of the show.

Rhyl Journal

an hour ago

• Rhyl Journal

Israel and Iran launch new strikes as new diplomatic effort takes shape

2 This article is brought to you by our exclusive subscriber partnership with our sister title USA Today, and has been written by our American colleagues. It does not necessarily reflect the view of The Herald. Israel and Iran have exchanged strikes a week into their war as Donald Trump considered US military involvement and new diplomatic efforts appeared to be under US president has been weighing whether to attack Iran by striking its well-defended Fordo uranium enrichment facility, which is buried under a mountain and widely considered to be out of reach of all but America's 'bunker-buster' said he will decide within two weeks whether the US military will be directly involved in the war given the 'substantial chance' for renewed negotiations over Tehran's nuclear foreign minister Abbas Araghchi appeared to be heading to Geneva for meetings with the European Union's top diplomat and counterparts from the UK, France and in an interview aired on Friday he said that 'in the current situation, as the Zionist regime's attacks continue, we are not seeking negotiations with anyone'.'I believe that as a result of this resistance (by Iran), we will gradually see countries distancing themselves from the aggression carried out by the regime, and calls for ending this war have already begun, and they will only grow stronger,' he said, adding that Tehran considers 'the Americans to be companions and collaborators of the Zionist regime'.Britain's Foreign Secretary David Lammy said he met US secretary of state Marco Rubio and envoy Steve Witkoff at the White House to discuss the potential for a deal to cool the said it conducted air strikes into Friday morning in Iran with more than 60 aircraft hitting what it said were industrial sites to manufacture also said it hit the headquarters of Iran's Organisation of Defensive Innovation and Research, known by its acronym in Farsi, SPND. The US has linked the agency to alleged Iranian research and testing tied to the possible development of nuclear explosive foreign minister Abbas Araghchi (Hassan Ammar/AP)Israeli air strikes reached into the city of Rasht on the Caspian Sea early on Friday, Iranian media Israeli military had warned the public to flee the area around Rasht's Industrial City, but with Iran's internet shut off to the outside world, it is unclear how many people could see the Israel, paramedic service Magen David Adom said missiles struck a residential area in southern Israel, causing damage to buildings, including one six-storey building. Crews provided medical treatment to five people with minor injuries, it comes a day after at least 80 patients and medical workers were wounded in a strike on the Soroka Medical Centre in the southern Israeli city of defence minister threatened Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei after the Iranian missile crashed into the hospital. Israel's military 'has been instructed and knows that in order to achieve all of its goals, this man absolutely should not continue to exist', said defence minister Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he trusted that Mr Trump would 'do what's best for America'. Speaking from the rubble and shattered glass around the hospital, he added: 'I can tell you that they're already helping a lot.'Smokes rises from the Soroka hospital complex (Leo Correa/AP)The war between Israel and Iran erupted on June 13 with Israeli air strikes targeting nuclear and military sites, senior generals and nuclear scientists. At least 657 people, including 263 civilians, have been killed in Iran and more than 2,000 wounded, according to a Washington-based Iranian human rights has retaliated by firing 450 missiles and 1,000 drones at Israel, according to Israeli army estimates. Most have been shot down by Israel's air defences, but at least 24 people have been killed and hundreds has long maintained its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes, but it is the only non-nuclear-weapon state to enrich uranium up to 60%, a short technical step away from weapons-grade levels of 90%.Israel is widely believed to be the only Middle Eastern country with a nuclear weapons programme but has never acknowledged Israeli air campaign has targeted Iran's enrichment site at Natanz, centrifuge workshops around Tehran, a nuclear site in Isfahan and what the army assesses to be most of Iran's ballistic missile launchers. The destruction of those launchers has contributed to the steady decline in Iranian attacks since the start of the conflict.