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Straits Times
9 hours ago
- Politics
- Straits Times
Spanish police enter ruling party HQ in corruption probe
Members of the media stand outside the headquarters of the Socialist Party, as Spanish police carry out a search inside as part of a graft case involving senior party members, in Madrid, Spain, June 20, 2025. REUTERS/Albert Gea Law enforcement members of Central Operative Unit (UCO) leave with bags, outside the Socialist Party headquarters, during a search as part of a graft case involving senior party members, in Madrid, Spain, June 20, 2025. REUTERS/Albert Gea Members of the media surround a car, after law enforcement members of Central Operative Unit (UCO) got into the car, outside the Socialist Party headquarters, during a search as part of a graft case involving senior party members, in Madrid, Spain, June 20, 2025. REUTERS/Albert Gea A general view of the Socialist Party headquarters, as Spanish police carry out a search inside as part of a graft case involving senior party members, in Madrid, Spain, June 20, 2025. REUTERS/Albert Gea MADRID - Spanish police entered the headquarters of the ruling Socialist Party on Friday to copy the emails of ex-senior party official Santos Cerdan, whose resignation amid a widening graft probe last week triggered a severe political crisis. Judge Leopoldo Puente, who is investigating allegations against Cerdan and former Transport Minister Jose Luis Abalos, had ordered that the party let the plainclothes officers access its premises, although the Guardia Civil police and government officials said the move did not amount to a raid or searches. Government spokesperson Pilar Alegria and Transport Minister Oscar Puente also confirmed a similar visit to the ministry's roads department. The resignation of Cerdan, a close ally of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, on June 12, and subsequent revelations of potential misconduct, have destabilised the minority governing coalition. Sanchez has apologised publicly but rejected the opposition's calls for his resignation. In a tense grilling in parliament on Wednesday, he declined to say whether his name could crop up in the investigation. The Cerdan case is the latest and most severe of a series of scandals that has left Sanchez having to fend off calls from opponents for snap elections. Cerdan resigned from his seat in parliament and his post in the Socialist Party after a police report was sent to the judge. The report, seen by Reuters, provided transcripts of recordings of Cerdan, Abalos and the latter's former assistant Koldo Garcia discussing alleged kickbacks. Cerdan "appeared to be the person in charge of taking those alleged payments," the police wrote in the report. He has publicly denied any wrongdoing. The judge also asked the police to pore over bank accounts held by Cerdan, companies which allegedly paid bribes and five entrepreneurs. Around 500 bank accounts will be analysed, according to the writ. He also ordered state-owned railway infrastructure operator Adif and the transport ministry's roads department to hand over files over public works that were questioned in a preliminary police report. Abalos and Garcia will testify before the judge next week, while Cerdan will appear on June 30. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
The Star
12-06-2025
- The Star
Google Cloud, Spotify down for tens of thousands of users, Downdetector shows
FILE PHOTO: People walk next to the Google Cloud logo, during the 2025 Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona, Spain, March 4, 2025. REUTERS/Albert Gea/File Photo (Reuters) -Alphabet's Google Cloud and music streaming platform Spotify were down for tens of thousands of users on Thursday, according to outage tracking website There were more than 13,000 incidents of people reporting issues with Google Cloud and more than 27,000 reports on Spotify around 2:26 p.m ET, according to Downdetector, which tracks outages by collating status reports from a number of sources. Google and Spotify did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Downdetector's numbers are based on user-submitted reports. The actual number of affected users may vary. (Reporting by Harshita Mary Varghese in Bengaluru; Editing by Sahal Muhammed)
Straits Times
12-06-2025
- Sport
- Straits Times
Four-week break among recommended player safeguards as part of new soccer study
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - World Cup - European Qualifiers - Group K - Andorra v England - RCDE Stadium, Cornella de Llobregat, Spain - June 7, 2025 England's Jude Bellingham shakes hands with the Andorra players before the match Action Images via Reuters/Albert Gea/File Photo REUTERS Four-week break among recommended player safeguards as part of new soccer study MANCHESTER, England - A four-week off-season break should be mandatory for professional soccer players, with two of those weeks to be a blackout period with no communication with club or national team, according to a new study. Seventy medical and performance experts agreed on 12 safeguards as part of the study released on Thursday by global players' union FIFPRO to protect players from calendar congestion and excessive workload. The safeguards include a minimum four-week retraining period after an off-season break before a return to competition. "Decoding the human body, performance, and sport-related injuries will be a lifelong scientific exercise for all of us," said Darren Burgess, chair of FIFPRO's High-Performance Advisory Network. "However, the results of this study show that there are certain minimum standards such as adequate rest between matches, and proper off-season breaks, that are common sense, aligned with scientific evidence and, above all, required by global occupational health and safety standards." The study's release comes days before the expanded FIFA Club World Cup kicks off in the United States amid player welfare concerns after an exhausting European season. FIFPRO are calling for the immediate implementation of the safeguards which also include a minimum four-week retraining period after a close-season break before a return to competition, and travel fatigue management which would mean rest periods after long-haul flights. Players should also have a mandatory one-day off per week during the season and there should be a one-week mid-season break with no club or national team travel, training or media commitments. FIFPRO are also calling for specific workload safeguards for academy players under the age of 18. More than 75% agreement was required amongst participants to establish each recommendation. While some safeguards exist under the collective bargaining agreements of some countries, international football lacks standardized regulations, FIFPRO said. The study's Delphi methodological approach was an electronic survey conducted from February to March 2025, involving experts working in the performance or medical team in men's professional football. Seventy-three percent of the experts are employed by football clubs, with 27% working for national teams. "If we can all agree that health comes first, then we should take steps to implement these safeguards," said FIFPRO's Medical Director Vincent Gouttebarge. In October, FIFPRO, the European leagues' group and Spain's LaLiga filed a joint complaint to European Union antitrust regulators, accusing soccer's global governing body FIFA of "abuse," concerned about the impact of the expanding football calendar on player wellbeing. REUTERS Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.
The Star
06-06-2025
- Sport
- The Star
Soccer-Barcelona's Raphinha named LaLiga Player of the Season
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - LaLiga - FC Barcelona v Real Madrid - Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys, Barcelona, Spain - May 11, 2025 FC Barcelona's Raphinha celebrates scoring their fourth goal REUTERS/Albert Gea/File Photo (Reuters) -Barcelona winger Raphinha was named LaLiga Player of the Season on Friday, after the Brazilian played a major role in his side winning the domestic treble, with club teammate Lamine Yamal named Best Under-23 player. Raphinha contributed 34 goals and 25 assists in 57 club games across all competitions, with Barca winning the league title, Copa del Rey and the Spanish Super Cup. The 28-year-old signed for Barcelona in 2022 from Leeds United and recently signed a contract extension keeping him at the Spanish club until 2028. Raphinha scored a late goal to put Barcelona ahead in the Champions League semi-final second leg against Inter Milan, only for the Italians to level in stoppage time and net an extra-time winner. That was Raphinha's 13th goal in 14 games of this season's competition. Yamal, still only 17, confirmed his status as one of the world's top talents after last season's breakthrough campaign, with the winger netting nine league goals along with five in the Champions League. (Reporting by Trevor StynesEditing by Christian Radnedge)
The Star
01-06-2025
- Automotive
- The Star
Motor racing-Piastri wins in Spain to stretch his F1 lead
Formula One F1 - Spanish Grand Prix - Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain - June 1, 2025 McLaren's Oscar Piastri passes the chequered flag to win the Spanish Grand Prix REUTERS/Albert Gea/Pool
