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US sanctions elected Hezbollah MPs and Lebanese security officials

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Hezbollah says the sanctions will have ‘absolutely no effect’ on its strategy amid ongoing Israeli attacks on Lebanon.

The United States has imposed sanctions on nine people it accuses of enabling Hezbollah to “undermine Lebanon’s sovereignty”, the latest US effort to destroy the group’s financial networks around the world.

In a statement on Thursday, the US Department of the Treasury said the individuals were designated “for obstructing the peace process in Lebanon and impeding the disarmament” of Hezbollah. The US Department of State said those sanctioned include members of Lebanon’s parliament, an Iranian diplomat and security officials in Lebanon’s governmental institutions who “abused” their roles.

“What this is saying is that if you’re in politics, business, or the security services – and you have been aiding Hezbollah and undermining the sovereignty of the Lebanese government – to think twice; there will be real consequences,” State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott said in an interview with Al Jazeera.

The nine include four Hezbollah members, including Mohamed Abdel-Mottaleb Fanich, a leader in Hezbollah’s executive council; Nizammeddine Fadlallah, one of the group’s elected members of the Lebanese parliament, and longtime officials Ibrahim al-Moussawi and Hussein Al-Hajj Hassan, according to the US Treasury.

Also on the list was Iranian ambassador-designate to Lebanon, Mohammad Reza Sheibani, and two security officials with the Hezbollah-allied Amal Movement, Ahmad Asaad Baalbaki and Ali Ahmad Safawi.

Finally, two security officials – a branch chief with the Lebanese Armed Forces, Samir Hamadi, and Khattar Nasser Eldin, a top official with the General Directorate for General Security –  faced sanctions for allegedly sharing “important intelligence” with Hezbollah over the past year, the Treasury said.

US officials are also offering a reward of up to $10m for information leading to the “disruption of the financial mechanisms” of the group.

In response, Hezbollah said in a statement that the sanctions were an “attempt to intimidate the free Lebanese people” and would have “absolutely no practical effect on our strategic choices”.

“These sanctions serve as a badge of honour for those targeted by them, and as further confirmation of the validity of our chosen path,” the group added.

The latest round of sanctions comes as Israel continues to pummel Lebanon with shelling and air raids, despite a so-called ceasefire that was recently extended for 45 days.

Israeli air raids targeted multiple towns across southern Lebanon on Thursday, killing one person travelling via motorcycle in the Tyre district. Israeli shelling was reported in the towns of Baraachit and Kfar Dounine, while a separate drone attack hit the town of Yaroun.

Also in the Tyre district, an entire family was laid to rest following an Israeli air strike on the town of Deir Qanoun en-Nahr that killed at least 14 people on Tuesday.

Hezbollah, for its part, said it carried out a series of attacks targeting Israeli forces across southern parts of the country, including near Deir Siryan and Qouzah.

Lebanon’s Ministry of Public Health says Israeli attacks have killed at least 3,089 people and wounded at least 9,397 since March 2, when Israel resumed its war on the country.

At the same time, the US has been brokering peace talks between Israel and the Lebanese government.

Political negotiations are expected to resume on June 2 and 3, while security-focused talks are scheduled for May 29 at the Pentagon between Israeli and Lebanese military representatives.

Al Jazeera’s Manuel Rapalo, reporting from Washington, DC, said the sanctions are “part of a step-up” by the White House “to crack down on individuals they say are standing in the way of the disarmament of Hezbollah – that being one of the sticking points in the talks”.

Pigott told Al Jazeera that US officials were “focused on creating the space for those good-faith conversations between the government of Lebanon and Israel”.

“What we’ve seen from Hezbollah is a direct effort to derail those conversations,” he added.

Hezbollah has repeatedly rejected the talks, which have spurred mixed feelings across Lebanon.

The group claimed the sanctions announcement intended to “intimidate our official security institutions” ahead of the next round of negotiations.

“It is incumbent upon the Lebanese authorities to defend their constitutional, security, and military institutions,” it added.

Still, in a statement on Thursday, Lebanon’s army confirmed its “military delegation that will participate in the negotiations at the Pentagon” and is “committed to national principles and the army’s doctrine”.

📰 மூல செய்தி (Source): https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/5/21/us-sanctions-elected-hezbollah-mps-and-lebanese-security-officials?traffic_source=rss

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Hundreds protest Ireland’s ‘George Floyd moment’

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Hundreds protest Ireland’s ‘George Floyd moment’ after death of Congolese man

Hundreds have protested outside the store where a Congolese man in Dublin died after he was restrained by security guards, with video showing one guard kneeling on his neck or head. Protesters say this is Ireland’s ‘George Floyd moment’.

📰 மூல செய்தி (Source): https://www.aljazeera.com/video/newsfeed/2026/5/22/hundreds-protest-irelands-george-floyd?traffic_source=rss

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Man Utd appoint Michael Carrick as permanent manager

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Carrick steps up from role as interim coach to replace Ruben Amorim on a permanent basis as Manchester United manager.

Michael Carrick never chased the ⁠spotlight as a player, and he has ⁠not suddenly sought it out as a manager.

In a season when Manchester United needed clarity, calm and conviction, it is Carrick – understated, deeply respected and quietly authoritative – who has come to embody all three.

What has followed since his January appointment as interim manager has been more than a managerial bounce, it has ⁠been a transformation. United’s hierarchy took note, awarding him the permanent manager job on Friday.

When Carrick stepped into the role after Ruben Amorim’s sacking, United were drifting, their campaign defined as much by uncertainty as by underachievement.

Within months, they were reborn, climbing to the brink of a third-place Premier League finish and sealing a return to the Champions League with games to spare.

Results ⁠alone tell only part of the story, though they are striking enough. Carrick has won 11 of his 16 league matches in charge, losing only twice, and his team accumulated more league points than any other side during that spell.

United beat Manchester City, Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea, rediscovering a competitive edge that had been sorely absent.

“We had two tough fixtures when Michael came in [against Arsenal and City] and I think everyone was probably looking at them thinking ‘Oh no’,” said United centre back Harry Maguire.

“We managed to get six points and from then on everyone has believed in it and ‌we’ve got confidence.”

For a side who finished 15th the season before, the turnaround has felt dramatic rather than incremental.

Yet those inside Old Trafford point to something deeper. Carrick has not only improved performances, he has reset the environment.

Dressing-room morale stabilised and a sense of purpose returned to a squad that had begun to look fractured.

Kobbie Mainoo, a finalist for the Premier League’s Young Player of the Season award, praised Carrick for “all the confidence he gives all the players. You want to follow him and fight for him and die for him on the pitch.”

Amorim had a blind spot where the young midfielder was concerned, but Mainoo’s performances these past few months have been one of the clearest signs of United’s revival under Carrick.

He restored Mainoo to a central role and instilled in him the trust to play with freedom and authority, a shift reflected in his poise and creativity in big moments, including key contributions in wins that secured Champions League qualification.

Mainoo was named to Thomas Tuchel’s England World Cup squad on Friday.

Players have ⁠spoken of clarity, communication, and of a manager who connects rather than commands.

Maguire, a central figure in the revival, summed up Carrick’s demeanour simply.

“He has been excellent with players, communicates really well,” he said.

Bruno Fernandes, who won the FWA Men’s Footballer of the Year award, has also praised Carrick.

“I’ve always said that Carrick could be a great manager,” Fernandes said recently. “When, as a player, you can see and think about the game like him, you can ⁠also do it from the bench.

“Of course, it’s different, but when you have that calmness, that intelligence, you tell yourself there’s potential. He’s done a fantastic job since he arrived.”

That ability to connect is rooted in Carrick’s personality. He is not a grand or demonstrative figure, but rather ⁠one who influences through calmness, intelligence and empathy.

As a player, he was the midfield metronome, dictating tempo without drama. As ⁠a coach, those traits now define his touchline presence.

And his authority comes from within. Few understand United’s identity better. A five-time Premier League champion during his playing career at Old Trafford, the 44-year-old knows both the expectations and the pressures of the role.

That knowledge has informed his decisions. He reverted to a traditional back four after Amorim preferred three at the back, and was harshly criticised for his refusal to be flexible.

He has also restored key players such ‌as Fernandes to their more natural positions. Amorim played the Portugal international in a deeper role as one of two central midfielders, while Carrick has pushed him into an advanced position.

Fernandes has flourished again at the heart of the side in a season where he tied the league’s record for assists in a season with one game remaining.

The noise that once surrounded the club ‌has ‌also quietened, replaced by a sense of excellence rarely experienced in recent years.

That is perhaps Carrick’s most significant achievement. He has not promised revolution, but he has delivered stability – and in doing so laid the foundation for something more sustainable.

For Carrick, the journey carries a certain symmetry.

A player who spent more than a decade orchestrating United’s midfield has been handed the baton to guide their future.

📰 மூல செய்தி (Source): https://www.aljazeera.com/sports/2026/5/22/man-utd-appoint-michael-carrick-as-permanent-manager?traffic_source=rss

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Gang violence kills at least 25 in Honduras

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The attacks by gunmen come as the government continues a drive to crack down on organised crime.

Gunmen have killed at least 25 people, including six police officers, in attacks across Honduras.

The attacks marked Thursday as one of the most violent days the country has seen in recent years. They came despite ongoing efforts by the government to rein in organised crime and violence.

Nineteen people were killed as gunmen raided a palm plantation in the municipality of Trujillo in the north of the country.

A leader of one rural group told the AFP news agency that those killed were employees of an armed group controlling a plantation.

However, local media indicated that armed suspects had fired indiscriminately on labourers. They reported that the oldest victim was 61.

Photos showed bodies, some wearing thick rubber boots for work, strewn on the ground outside.

Meanwhile, in the west near the Guatemalan border, six police officers were killed in another shooting in the municipality of Omoa.

Police report that the officers had travelled to the area as part of an operation to quash gang activity. However, they were ambushed.

After the two attacks, the National Police issued a statement, saying it “will proceed immediately with a direct intervention in the affected areas”.

“The state will act firmly to capture those responsible, protect vulnerable communities and guarantee comprehensive justice for all affected victims,” it added.

Honduras is struggling to crack down on gang violence. Until January, many parts of the country were under a state of emergency launched in 2022.

That emergency decree ended, however, with the inauguration of right-wing President Nasry “Tito” Asfura, a close ally of United States President Donald Trump, who has prioritised a hardline approach to security in Latin America.

The attacks will, therefore, raise concerns over security, but also civil liberties.

Laws passed earlier this week will allow authorities to designate gangs and drug cartels as terrorist groups. A new anti-organised crime unit has also been created.

The Trujillo shooting occurred near the Aguan River Valley, where armed groups, involved in narcotrafficking and palm oil extraction, have been fighting over land for decades.

Trujillo police chief Carlos Rojas told local media that the groups occupy and illegally exploit several large African palm plantations, using money from the crops to obtain weapons.

Local farmer groups, however, accuse transnational agribusiness corporations of sponsoring the criminal groups to carry out land occupations and prevent residents from reclaiming disputed lands.

According to Reuters, more than 150 people in the area have been killed or disappeared, with environmental and land rights activists a particular target.

Honduras is one of the most dangerous countries in the world for such activists. Earlier this month, police arrested several individuals, including a mayor, for plotting the assassination of a prominent environmental campaigner in 2024.

📰 மூல செய்தி (Source): https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/5/22/gang-violence-kills-at-least-25-in-honduras?traffic_source=rss

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