ROME (BN24) — Giacomo Tortu, brother of Olympic gold medalist Filippo Tortu, has been suspended for three years by Italy’s athletics governing body for spying on sprint star and two-time Olympic champion Marcell Jacobs.
The Italian Athletics Federation (FIDAL) announced Thursday that Giacomo Tortu had received two separate suspensions totaling 36 months, stemming from an attempt to access Jacobs’s private information via a private investigation agency. According to Italian media, the goal was to uncover potential evidence of doping by Jacobs.
Tortu, a former athlete and now president of the Milan Raptors athletics club, was initially given a 30-month suspension for violating principles enshrined in the federation’s code of conduct. FIDAL cited breaches of loyalty, integrity, fairness in sport, and respect for federal regulations.
An additional six-month ban was imposed for acting with the intention of committing or concealing another offense, or for attempting to obtain personal or competitive advantage.
FIDAL emphasized that Filippo Tortu — a key member of Italy’s historic 4×100-meter relay team that won Olympic gold at the Tokyo Games in 2021 — was not involved in the incident and had no knowledge of his brother’s actions.
Jacobs made headlines at the Tokyo Olympics by winning the men’s 100-meter final in 9.80 seconds, a stunning victory that marked Italy’s first-ever title in the event. Just days later, he teamed up with Filippo Tortu and teammates to secure gold in the relay, narrowly edging Great Britain.
Jacobs has since remained a central figure in European sprinting, winning 100-meter titles at the European Championships in both 2022 and 2024. Despite battling injuries, he reached the final at the 2024 Paris Olympics, placing fifth, and finished fourth with the relay team.
At the 2023 World Championships, Jacobs and Filippo Tortu claimed silver in the 4×100-meter relay. However, his recent form dipped, with Jacobs failing to progress past the semifinals at the 2025 World Championships held in Tokyo.
The scandal surrounding Giacomo Tortu underscores the pressure and scrutiny surrounding elite athletes in the wake of Olympic success. Neither Jacobs nor his representatives have publicly commented on the attempted data breach.
Indian police have arrested the 75-year-old owner of a pharmaceutical company after a toxic cough syrup produced by his firm was linked to the deaths of 17 children in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
G. Ranganathan, the owner of Sresan Pharmaceutical Manufacturer, was taken into custody early Thursday from his apartment in the Kodambakkam neighborhood of Chennai. His arrest follows the deaths of multiple children in Chhindwara district, Madhya Pradesh, who had consumed Coldrif, a locally distributed cough syrup brand manufactured by his company.
A seven-member team from Madhya Pradesh Police, led by Deputy Superintendent of Police Jitendra Jaat, carried out the arrest within the Ashok Nagar police station limits. Officers said Ranganathan was taken into custody at around 12:30 a.m. and later transported to Kancheepuram district, where his company operates.
The case has prompted a wider investigation into the production and distribution of substandard medicines. Health authorities in Madhya Pradesh and other states ordered the immediate suspension of sales and distribution of Coldrif syrup after it was allegedly found to contain a poisonous chemical.
Laboratory tests from the Government Analyst at the Drug Testing Laboratory in Chennai confirmed that the Coldrif syrup contained 48.6 percent by volume of diethylene glycol, a toxic industrial solvent. The report declared the product “Not of Standard Quality,” stating it was “found to be adulterated” and contained a substance that could render the syrup injurious to health.
Authorities are investigating how the contamination occurred and whether safety protocols were bypassed during the manufacturing process. The arrest marks a significant development in a growing pharmaceutical safety scandal that has raised alarm across multiple Indian states.
The Nobel Prize in Literature will be announced Thursday, adding a new name to a distinguished list of past winners that includes literary giants Ernest Hemingway, Toni Morrison and Kazuo Ishiguro. The recipient will join a tradition that has honored authors from around the world for more than a century.
The Swedish Academy’s Nobel committee has awarded the literature prize 117 times to 121 laureates since its inception. Last year’s award went to South Korean author Han Kang, honored for a body of work that the committee said “confronts historical traumas and exposes the fragility of human life.”
This year’s literature prize is the fourth Nobel to be revealed in 2025, following announcements in medicine, physics and chemistry earlier in the week. The Nobel Peace Prize winner will be named Friday. U.S. President Donald Trump is considered a long shot for the award despite his recent remarks at the United Nations claiming “everyone says that I should get the Nobel Peace Prize.”
The Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences will be the final award of the season, set to be announced on Monday.
Nobel Prizes are traditionally awarded on Dec. 10 — the anniversary of Alfred Nobel’s death in 1896. Nobel, a Swedish industrialist and the inventor of dynamite, created the prizes to recognize groundbreaking contributions in various fields.
Each Nobel Prize carries a cash award of 11 million Swedish kronor (nearly $1.2 million), along with an 18-carat gold medal and a diploma presented during the formal ceremonies in Stockholm and Oslo.
ANTANANARIVO, Madagascar (BN24) — Youth-led protesters in Madagascar on Wednesday rejected an offer of national dialogue from President Andry Rajoelina, denouncing the government’s approach as violent and insincere. The protesters, who have been demonstrating for over two weeks, announced plans for a nationwide strike, escalating a political confrontation that has already claimed dozens of lives and exposed deep-rooted public anger over corruption, poverty, and state repression.
In a statement posted to their official Facebook page, organisers of the movement described the president’s invitation to hold talks with religious leaders, students, and youth representatives as “a mockery of dialogue.” The statement accused the Rajoelina administration of using brutal force to silence dissent and violating the rights of young people who have taken to the streets demanding change.
“We refuse the president’s invitation to talks,” the protest leaders declared. “We will not engage in dialogue with a regime that represses, assaults, and humiliates its youth in the streets.”
The rejection came shortly after the expiration of a 48-hour ultimatum issued by protesters, during which they demanded urgent action from the government. Having received no satisfactory response, organisers have now called for a general strike, urging workers, students, and civil society groups across the country to mobilise.
The Union of Junior Doctors in Madagascar joined the protest movement on Wednesday, condemning what it called a “violent and disproportionate” police response to student-led demonstrations the day before. Medical personnel criticised the state’s handling of the protests and expressed solidarity with demonstrators, further widening the scope of opposition to the government.
Since protests erupted on September 25, the situation has rapidly deteriorated. According to figures released by the United Nations last week, at least 22 people have been killed and over 100 injured in clashes between security forces and demonstrators. The violence has drawn concern from international observers, though the government has defended its actions as necessary to maintain public order.
Initially ignited by widespread frustration over chronic shortages of water and electricity, the protests have evolved into a broader movement targeting the root causes of economic hardship and systemic corruption. Many protesters — most of them from Generation Z — now demand the resignation of President Rajoelina, accusing his administration of enriching a political elite while ignoring the worsening conditions faced by ordinary Malagasy citizens.
President Rajoelina, who returned to power in 2019 after previously leading the country from 2009 to 2014, has made several attempts in recent weeks to ease the growing unrest. In a dramatic political move, he dismissed his entire cabinet and appointed a new prime minister with a military background. However, critics see these steps as cosmetic and insufficient to address the demands of a population losing faith in traditional political institutions.
Despite mounting pressure from the streets, the president has not indicated any intention to step down. His office maintains that the offer of dialogue remains open and has urged protesters to come to the table to avoid further violence and instability.
But protesters remain defiant. Many say they will continue demonstrating until there is meaningful political change and accountability for the deaths and injuries suffered during the crackdown.
With the announcement of a nationwide strike and expanding support from professional groups, Madagascar now faces the prospect of prolonged disruption. The movement, fueled by youthful energy and a refusal to back down in the face of repression, has become the most serious challenge to Rajoelina’s leadership since his return to power.
JAKARTA, Indonesia (BN24) — The World Bank has sounded the alarm over the growing prevalence of informal and low-productivity jobs across East Asia and the Pacific, cautioning that the shift away from stable employment could erode the region’s economic resilience and threaten long-term development.
The warning came during the release of the October 2025 East Asia and Pacific Economic Update, led by Aaditya Mattoo, the World Bank’s Chief Economist for the region. At the centre of the briefing was a stark message: millions of workers are increasingly employed in insecure, low-wage positions, many within the informal service and gig economy sectors, with few social protections and limited prospects for upward mobility.
“Many people are leaving low-productivity farming, not for high-productivity industries, but for low-productivity service jobs,” Mattoo said during the October 8 press event. This trend, he warned, risks reversing decades of economic progress and expanding inequality across the region.
The report noted a major shift in employment patterns over the past decade, particularly in countries like Indonesia, where the informal labour sector has continued to expand despite the country’s economic recovery from the pandemic. Traditionally, economic development in the region has been supported by migration from low-productivity agriculture to higher-productivity sectors like manufacturing. But the latest data suggests that this structural transformation is stagnating.
In Indonesia, data from the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) illustrates the extent of the challenge. As of February 2025, 86.56 million Indonesians, 59.4% of the total labour force, were working in informal jobs, while formal employment stood at 59.19 million or 40.6%. This marks a rise of 0.23 percentage points in informal employment compared to the same period in 2024, mirroring a simultaneous decline in formal job numbers.
The World Bank’s report highlights that this rising informality undermines productivity, wage growth, and job security, leaving millions of workers without adequate health coverage, retirement plans, or legal protections. Mattoo emphasised that without structural reforms, the situation may deteriorate further: “A large share of people in this region work in informal or low-productivity jobs. The population at risk of falling into poverty now exceeds the size of the middle class in most countries.”
In Indonesia, economists and labour experts have raised concerns about persistent structural weaknesses in the labour market, including limited access to quality employment, over-reliance on low-skill service jobs, weak industrial diversification, and insufficient safety nets. Analysts say the growing number of informal workers is both a symptom and a driver of deeper inequality and stagnating wage growth.
The World Bank urged governments across East Asia to prioritise job creation in high-productivity sectors, invest in workforce training programs, and strengthen formal employment systems to counteract the rise of precarious work. Failing to do so, it warned, could put the region’s growing middle class at risk of sliding back into poverty, eroding the gains of the last two decades.
As East Asian economies look to maintain momentum in an increasingly uncertain global environment, the quality of employment, not just its quantity, is becoming a defining issue for policymakers, businesses, and communities alike.
ILORIN, Kwara State (BN24)— Operatives of the Kwara State Fire Service on Wednesday recovered the lifeless body of a man, believed to be mentally unstable, from the Asa River near Emir’s Road in Ilorin, the state capital, officials confirmed.
The incident occurred around 11:06 a.m., sparking panic among residents and passersby who gathered at the riverbank to witness the scene as the body floated in the water. The victim’s identity could not be immediately confirmed, though witnesses suggested he was mentally challenged.
In an official statement, the Head of Media and Publicity for the Kwara State Fire Service, PFO Hassan Hakeem Adekunle, said the cause of the drowning remained unknown. “The recovered body was later handed over to the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Environment, for further necessary action,” he said.
Prince Falade John Olumuyiwa, Director of the Kwara State Fire Service, described the event as unfortunate and expressed sympathy to the family of the deceased and the public. He cautioned residents to avoid risky activities near rivers, streams, and other water bodies, especially during the rainy season when water levels rise.
“The Kwara State Fire Service remains committed to prompt emergency responses to protect lives and property throughout the state,” Olumuyiwa added.
Meanwhile, a separate tragic discovery was made in Jigawa State, where the body of a 15-year-old boy was recovered from a pond in Gabari village, Garki Local Government Area.
The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) confirmed the incident in a statement issued in Dutse, the state capital. ASC Badaruddeen Tijjani, spokesperson for the Jigawa State Command, reported that the deceased, Sunusi Abubakar, was found lifeless in a pond locally known as Mahayin gidan Toro, about 1.5 kilometres north of Gabari village. The body was discovered around 9:00 a.m. on October 1.
Authorities in both states are investigating the circumstances surrounding the deaths as communities mourn the loss.
Washington (BN24) — Hamas and Israel have reached a ceasefire deal as President Donald Trump announced that the “first phase” of his Gaza peace plan has been signed, marking what he called “a great day for the world.” The agreement, brokered in Egypt, includes a hostages-for-ceasefire exchange and Israeli troop withdrawal to agreed positions.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio whispers to President Donald Trump, who is holding the note Rubio handed to him, during a roundtable meeting on antifa in the State Dining Room at the White House, Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Speaking to Reuters on Wednesday, Trump said the deal represented “a fantastic day” with “the whole world” coming together. He praised the breakthrough in a post on Truth Social, saying that both Hamas and Israel had signed off on the first phase of the peace plan. He declared that all hostages would be released soon and that Israeli forces would begin withdrawing, calling the agreement “a GREAT Day for the Arab and Muslim World, Israel, all surrounding Nations, and the United States of America.” He also thanked mediators from Qatar, Egypt and Turkey for helping to secure what he described as a “historic and unprecedented event.”
Hamas confirmed in a statement that it had agreed to end the war in Gaza, allow the entry of humanitarian aid and engage in a prisoner exchange. The statement said the agreement was reached after “responsible and serious negotiations” in Sharm el-Sheikh over Trump’s proposal and called on Trump and other guarantor states to ensure Israel fully implements the deal’s terms.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged the deal in a post on X, calling it “a great day for Israel” and saying he would convene the government to approve the agreement and bring hostages home. He expressed gratitude to Trump and his team “for their mobilization for this sacred mission of releasing our hostages.”
U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres welcomed the ceasefire, pledging U.N. support for its full implementation, scaling up humanitarian relief and advancing reconstruction in Gaza. “The stakes have never been higher,” he said.
Trump told reporters at the White House that he may travel to the Middle East at the end of the week, likely to Egypt where the talks were held. “I may go there sometime toward the end of the week, maybe on Sunday,” he said. Secretary of State Marco Rubio passed Trump a note during a press gathering, informing him that negotiations were close to conclusion.
Hamas expressed optimism as negotiations progressed, submitting a list of Palestinian prisoners to be released in exchange for Israeli hostages. The release of those held in Gaza and nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners forms a crucial part of Trump’s 20-point peace proposal. Egyptian President Abdel Fatah El-Sisi called the messages from negotiators “very encouraging.”
Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and senior adviser Jared Kushner joined Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed Abdulrahman Al Thani at the talks on their third day. The negotiations came as Israel and Palestinians marked the second anniversary of the Oct. 7 attacks, which killed 1,200 people and led to more than 67,000 deaths in Gaza during Israel’s subsequent military campaign.
A high-level Hamas official confirmed to NBC News that negotiations were ongoing Wednesday. A meeting on Gaza’s future is set for Thursday in Paris with representatives from several European and Middle Eastern countries invited. The United States was not listed among the attendees.
Israel’s far-right security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir urged Netanyahu to pursue “complete victory” over Hamas in Gaza and posted videos from Jerusalem’s Temple Mount, underscoring internal political tensions even as the ceasefire was reached.
Israel’s military has continued its operations in Gaza during the talks, drawing global criticism over the humanitarian toll. Families across Israel held somber gatherings Tuesday to mark the Nova music festival attack anniversary, while Palestinians reflected on two years of devastation.
As humanitarian groups push for sustained aid deliveries, Trump described the moment as a “possibility that we could have peace in the Middle East,” signaling that the deal could lay the groundwork for broader regional negotiations.
LOS ANGELES (BN24) — Federal authorities arrested a 29-year-old Florida man in connection with the Palisades Fire that devastated Los Angeles in January, killing 12 people and destroying nearly 6,900 structures across more than 23,000 acres.
Jonathan Rinderknecht faces a federal charge of destruction of property by means of fire, according to a federal complaint filed today. Rinderknecht was working as an Uber driver and living in Pacific Palisades, a wealthy coastal suburb, when the catastrophic blaze erupted January 7.
Prosecutors allege Rinderknecht dropped off a passenger on New Year’s Eve before walking up Skull Rock, a popular hiking trail in the Santa Monica Mountains. He attempted to phone a friend and watched a French rap video on YouTube featuring a person lighting objects on fire, according to the complaint.
Rinderknecht then set a fire using an open flame and dialed 911 to report it, but had no phone service to complete the call, prosecutors said. A fire was reported shortly after midnight on New Year’s Day that burned eight acres near the Skull Rock trailhead in the Palisades Highlands.
The flames, designated the Lachman fire, had been contained according to city fire department alerts. However, investigators suspect the Palisades Fire was a “holdover” fire, meaning it erupted from remnants of the earlier blaze.
“Unbeknownst to anyone, the fire continued to smoulder and burn underground, within the root structure of dense vegetation,” the complaint stated regarding the Lachman fire. The embers were subsequently whipped up by a growing windstorm that fueled the massive Palisades Fire days later.
Rinderknecht allegedly lied to police during an interview, claiming he was near the bottom of the trail when the fire started. He had also used ChatGPT to create at least nine artificially generated images of a “burning city,” according to Bill Essayli, acting U.S. attorney for Southern California, who disclosed this information in a post on X.
The discovery of the AI-generated images of urban fires raises questions about Rinderknecht’s state of mind and potential premeditation. Prosecutors have not yet revealed whether they believe the initial fire was intentionally set or accidental.
Officials continue to list the cause of the Palisades Fire as “under investigation,” reflecting the complexity of determining whether the holdover fire theory definitively links Rinderknecht’s alleged actions on New Year’s Eve to the catastrophic January blaze.
Rinderknecht is scheduled to appear in court this afternoon local time for his initial appearance on the federal charge. If convicted of destruction of property by means of fire, he could face significant prison time under federal sentencing guidelines.
The Palisades Fire ranks among the most destructive wildfires in Los Angeles history, devastating the affluent Pacific Palisades neighborhood where property values typically exceed several million dollars. The blaze forced thousands of evacuations and required mobilization of firefighting resources from across California.
The 12 fatalities included residents who were unable to evacuate in time as the fire spread rapidly through steep terrain and densely populated residential areas. The nearly 6,900 destroyed structures encompassed homes, businesses and other buildings, causing billions of dollars in damages.
Federal involvement in the case reflects the severity of the alleged crime and its devastating consequences. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives typically investigates significant arson cases, particularly those involving federal property or crossing state lines.
The holdover fire theory, if proven, would establish a direct causal link between the New Year’s Eve fire Rinderknecht allegedly started and the subsequent Palisades Fire. Holdover fires can smolder underground for days or weeks before emerging under favorable conditions.
The windstorm that struck Los Angeles in early January created ideal conditions for dormant embers to reignite and spread rapidly. Santa Ana winds, common in Southern California during winter months, can transform small fires into major conflagrations within hours.
Rinderknecht’s employment as an Uber driver and residence in Pacific Palisades suggests he was familiar with the area where he allegedly set the initial fire. His local knowledge may factor into prosecutors’ assessment of intent and potential culpability.
The ChatGPT-generated images of burning cities, while disturbing, may not necessarily prove criminal intent without additional context about when they were created and Rinderknecht’s purpose for generating them. Defense attorneys may argue the images reflect curiosity or creative expression rather than planning.
The case will likely hinge on forensic evidence linking the Lachman fire to the Palisades Fire, as well as witness testimony and physical evidence placing Rinderknecht at the scene. Fire investigators can often trace fire origins through burn patterns and vegetation analysis.
Los Angeles has experienced increasingly severe wildfire seasons in recent years, with climate change contributing to drier conditions and longer fire seasons. The Palisades Fire occurred during a period of critically low humidity and elevated fire danger across Southern California.
WASHINGTON (BN24) — President Donald Trump declared Wednesday that Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson should be jailed for opposing his deployment of National Guard troops to Chicago, escalating his pattern of threatening prosecution against political opponents who challenge his authority.
Trump’s demand that the two Democratic officials face imprisonment came as Texas National Guard troops positioned themselves outside Chicago despite a lawsuit by the state and city attempting to block their deployment. The troops’ specific mission remains unclear, though the Trump administration has undertaken aggressive immigration enforcement operations in the nation’s third-largest city.
“Chicago Mayor should be in jail for failing to protect Ice Officers!” Trump wrote on Truth Social. “Governor Pritzker also!” The post represented the latest example of Trump’s increasingly brazen calls for opponents to be prosecuted or incarcerated.
The president, contrary to crime statistics, has repeatedly claimed that major cities run by Democrats are overwhelmed with lawlessness. His comments came the same day former FBI Director James Comey pleaded not guilty in a criminal case highlighting the Justice Department’s efforts to target Trump adversaries.
White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson, reached for comment, said that “JB Pritzker and Brandon Johnson have blood on their hands” and accused them of standing “idly by while innocent Americans fall victim to violent crime time and time again.”
Jackson argued that “instead of taking action to stop the crime, these Trump-Deranged buffoons would rather allow the violence to continue and attack the President for wanting to help make their city safe again.” The statement did not address questions about what specific crimes Trump believes the officials committed or whether the White House planned to have federal agents arrest them.
During a White House event Wednesday afternoon, Trump doubled down when asked if he had called on the Justice Department to pursue charges against Pritzker and Johnson. “I’ve seen the law. And when you have a group of people where the police call off the safety for ICE officials, I’ve understood that, and I’ve read it today in numerous journals, that that’s illegal,” Trump claimed.
The Chicago Police Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Trump’s allegations.
Pritzker responded defiantly to Trump’s Truth Social post, writing on X that “I will not back down.” He characterized Trump’s threat as part of a descent toward authoritarianism. “Trump is now calling for the arrest of elected representatives checking his power,” Pritzker wrote. “What else is left on the path to full-blown authoritarianism?”
The Illinois governor later told reporters that Trump is “a coward” who “likes to pretend to be a tough guy.” Pritzker issued a direct challenge to the president, stating “Come and get me.”
Johnson responded by noting the racial dimension of Trump’s threat. “This is not the first time Trump has tried to have a Black man unjustly arrested,” the Chicago mayor said, adding “I’m not going anywhere.”
Illinois filed suit Monday attempting to prevent the White House from deploying federalized troops to Chicago. A judge scheduled a hearing for Thursday but declined to sign a temporary restraining order that would have blocked the deployment while the case proceeds through court.
Trump’s threats against Johnson and Pritzker emerged as protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations have spread across the country amid the Trump administration’s intensified efforts to detain and deport migrants.
The White House has argued that deploying the National Guard is necessary to “protect federal assets and personnel” and prevent “attacks on law enforcement.” Trump initially deployed National Guard forces to Los Angeles over California Governor Gavin Newsom’s objections after protests erupted following immigration raids.
The president subsequently ordered National Guard troops to Washington streets, characterizing the deployment as crime-fighting measures. The administration has also attempted to send federalized National Guard troops from California to Portland, Oregon, though a judge granted a temporary restraining order blocking that deployment.
A Pentagon spokesperson indicated Portland troops would have worked to “support U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and other federal personnel performing official duties, including the enforcement of federal law, and to protect federal property.”
Johnson signed an executive order Monday blocking immigration agents from using city property during Chicago operations. “We will not tolerate ICE agents violating our residents’ constitutional rights nor will we allow the federal government to disregard our local authority,” Johnson stated in announcing the ICE Free Zone executive order.
Pritzker has emerged as a prominent Trump administration critic as Illinois faces presidential scrutiny. Trump has characterized Chicago as a “war zone,” claims Pritzker disputed Sunday during a CNN “State of the Union” interview, saying “they’re just making this up.”
“Then what do they do? They fire tear gas and smoke grenades, and they make it look like it’s a war zone,” Pritzker said, apparently referencing federal agents. “And they, you know, get people on the ground are, frankly, incited to want to do something about it, appropriately.”
Pritzker recently suggested Trump should be removed from office through the 25th Amendment process. “There is something genuinely wrong with this man, and the 25th Amendment ought to be invoked,” he said.
During a Tuesday event, Pritzker joked about potential arrest when asked about the possibility. “I’m asking any of you to come visit me in the gulag in El Salvador,” he said, referencing the prison where the Trump administration has deported some immigrants.
House Speaker Mike Johnson declined to endorse Trump’s call for imprisoning the Illinois officials when questioned by NBC News. “Should they be in prison? Should the mayor of Chicago and the governor of Illinois be in prison?” Johnson responded. “I’m not the attorney general. I’m the speaker of the House, and I’m trying to manage the chaos here. I’m not following the day-to-day on that.”
Trump has repeatedly threatened legal action against political opponents, including former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James. Last month, he urged Attorney General Pam Bondi not to “delay any longer,” demanding “JUSTICE MUST BE SERVED, NOW!!!”
Comey was indicted days later and pleaded not guilty at his Wednesday arraignment, illustrating the Justice Department’s willingness to pursue cases against Trump adversaries despite questions about prosecutorial independence.
LISBON, Portugal (BN24) — Cristiano Ronaldo has officially become the first active footballer to achieve billionaire status, with Bloomberg listing the global sports icon’s net worth at $1.4 billion in its Billionaires Index for the first time this week.
The valuation reflects the 40-year-old Portuguese forward’s expansive career earnings, strategic investments, and high-value endorsement deals. Currently playing for Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League, Ronaldo’s tax-free contract in Saudi Arabia has significantly contributed to his soaring wealth. Bloomberg attributes his financial rise to lucrative brand partnerships with global giants such as Nike and Armani, alongside his entrepreneurial ventures and long-standing commercial appeal.
The financial milestone comes in the same year Ronaldo signed a two-year contract extension with Al-Nassr, reportedly worth over $400 million. The deal ensures his presence in the Saudi league until after his 42nd birthday, reinforcing his position as the world’s highest-paid footballer, according to reports from BBC Sport and ESPN.
Despite mounting speculation about his retirement, Ronaldo made it clear he has no intention of stepping away from the game just yet. Speaking to Portugal’s Canal 11, he addressed the personal and public pressure to hang up his boots. “People, especially my family, say: ‘It’s time for you to stop. You’ve done everything. Why do you want to score a thousand goals?” he said. “But I don’t think so. I think I’m still producing good things, I’m helping my club and the national team, and why not keep going?”
Holding the all-time international goal record with 141 goals in 223 appearances, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner emphasised that his passion for football remains undiminished. “I know I don’t have many more years, but the few I have, I try to enjoy to the fullest,” Ronaldo said.
His legacy was further recognised on Tuesday when he received the Prestige Award at the Portugal Football Globes. Dismissing any notion that the accolade signals the twilight of his playing days, Ronaldo described it as a tribute to his enduring ambition and contribution to the sport. “It’s not an end-of-career award,” he said. “I see it as recognition of years of effort, dedication and ambition. I like winning, helping the younger generations, and they also help me maintain my level and continue competing. That’s what excites me: competing with the younger ones. I still have a passion for this.”
As Bloomberg confirms his status among the world’s elite earners, Ronaldo not only solidifies his place among football’s greatest legends but also as one of its most astute businessmen, bridging the worlds of sport and global enterprise with unprecedented success.
