Spain’s football federation has ordered a five-game partial stadium ban at Valencia’s Mestalla Stadium following racist abuse suffered by Real Madrid star Vinícius Jr. during the teams’ La Liga match there on Sunday.

The Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) also announced a fine of €45,000 (around $48,489) for the incident and rescinded the red card shown to Vinícius Jr. on the basis that the referee and video assistant officials did not take into account the actions of two Valencia players, Hugo Duro and Giorgi Mamardashvili.

According to the match official’s report from Valencia’s 1-0 win over Madrid on Sunday, a fan had shouted “monkey, monkey” at Vinícius Jr. during the second half.

Video footage of the match from DAZN España also shows that the Real Madrid star was subjected to various other racist insults throughout the game.

“It is considered proven, as reflected by the referee’s official report, that there were racist chants against Real Madrid player Vinícius, during that match, altering the normal action in the game, and considered very serious infractions,” the statement, posted to the federation’s website on Tuesday, said.

Valencia has the right to appeal the decision, which was handed down by RFEF’s Competition Committee. The section of the stadium to be closed are the southern stands, known as the Mario Kempes seating area, according to the release.

Valencia released a statement on Tuesday saying that it expressed “its total disagreement and indignation at the unjust and disproportionate sanction” and that it will fight the decision.

The rescinding of the red card means that Vinícius will be available to play in Los Blancos’ match Wednesday at home against Rayo Vallecano. It is expected that the Santiago Bernabéu faithful will show him their support in the 20th minute – the star forward wears the No. 20 shirt – of the match.

Vinícius Jr’.s Brazilian compatriot Raphinha, who plays for Real Madrid’s bitter rival Barcelona, showed solidarity with his countryman during the league champion’s Tuesday night game against Real Valladolid.

After being substituted off the pitch, he revealed a message on an undershirt, reading, “Until the color of a man’s skin is of no more significance than the color of his eyes, there will be war” in Portuguese.

Vinícius has been subjected to racist abuse from the stands on numerous occasions during La Liga matches over the past two seasons, and seven people were arrested on Tuesday in relation to incidents of racist abuse directed at the Real Madrid star this season.

Spanish police said four young men had been detained for allegedly hanging an effigy of Vinícius off a bridge in Madrid in January, while three others were arrested on suspicion of being involved in the racist insults aimed at the Brazilian during Sunday’s match against Valencia.

Both incidents are being treated as hate crimes.

Brazil President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva came to Vinícius’ defense on Monday, saying that it’s “not possible that almost in the middle of the 21st century, we have racial prejudice gaining strength in several football stadiums in Europe.

“I think it is important that FIFA, the Spanish league, and leagues in other countries take real action because we cannot allow fascism and racism to dominate football stadiums,” he added.

Meanwhile, the lights at Rio de Janeiro’s iconic Christ the Redeemer statue were turned off to show solidarity with Vinícius on Monday.

The eye of Typhoon Mawar has passed just north of Guam, but the eyewall – the strongest part of the storm – is bringing strong winds and heavy rain to the US territory.

The Guam International Airport recorded sustained winds of 71 mph with a gust of 105 mph Wednesday evening. An extreme wind warning is in effect for the northern part of Guam until 10:45 p.m. local time (8:45 a.m. ET) for winds that can create tornado-like damage. In addition to the strongest winds, the northern third of Guam is also seeing the heaviest rainfall.

“Mawar is now moving away from Guam,” the National Weather Service in Guam said. The center of the storm was located 15 miles north-northeast of Guam and was moving northwest at a slow 8 mph, according to the latest tropical cyclone advisory.

Even though the storm did not directly hit the island, most of the island has lost power.

At about 5 p.m. local time (3 a.m. ET), the storm’s maximum sustained winds were 140 mph with gusts up to to 165 mph, the equivalent of a Category 4 Atlantic hurricane, according to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center.

“Treat these imminent extreme winds as if a tornado was approaching and move immediately to an interior room or shelter NOW!,” the weather service in Guam warned Wednesday evening.

Nearly all of Guam Power Authority’s circuits have been impacted by the storm and only about 1,000 of its 52,000 customers still had electricity, the authority said in a statement on Facebook at around 6 p.m. local time.

Guam Memorial Hospital is currently operating on power from a standby generator, it added.

“We are working hard to maintain the last remaining customers through the storm,” the power authority said. “Our GPA team is prepared to immediately begin restoration as soon as winds decrease to safe levels,” it said.

The weather service issued a typhoon warning for the island for Wednesday, and flash flood and coastal flood warnings until Thursday morning.

In anticipation of high storm surge and potentially catastrophic coastal flooding, Guam Gov. Lou Leon Guerrero issued an executive order on Tuesday mandating the evacuation of low-lying coastal areas.

“When sea levels rise, residents will have merely minutes to evacuate and respond. Thus, we must prepare now and anticipate the worst,” the governor’s office said in a release.

Mawar threatens “torrential rains that may result in landslides and flash flooding, catastrophic wind, and life-threatening storm surge,” the weather service said Wednesday morning.

If it makes landfall, Mawar could be the strongest storm to directly impact Guam – home to about 150,000 people, as well as several US military installations – since at least 1976, when Typhoon Pamela struck with sustained winds of 140 mph.

If Mawar’s sustained winds are higher than 140 mph, it would be the strongest since Super Typhoon Karen, widely regarded as the worst storm to ever hit the island, which struck in 1962 with sustained winds of 172 mph.

Though Guam sits in the West Pacific Ocean – an area prone to the world’s strongest tropical cyclones – it is extremely rare for the island to be struck directly by a storm of this strength. Only eight such storms have passed over it in the last 75 years, as hitting the approximately 30 mile-wide island amid the expansive Pacific Ocean is akin to threading a tiny needle.

Downpour could bring up to 20 inches of rain

Mawar’s slow forward pace – about 7 mph Wednesday night – would exacerbate the impacts of wind and bring greater amounts of rainfall to the island than a faster-moving storm.

Storm surge of up to 25 feet above normal high tide is possible, the weather service said. That would be life-threatening and pose significant risk to vulnerable coastal areas and will likely cause severe coastal erosion. The weather service warned that even large boats could be ripped from their moorings.

Storm surge deaths are historically the leading cause of hurricane-related fatalities within the United States, according to the weather service.

The storm could bring between 15 to 20 inches of rain with even higher local amounts possible, the weather service said. The downpour will likely trigger landslides, overflow rivers and streams and bring flooding to areas that don’t normally see such events.

President Joe Biden approved an emergency declaration for the island on Tuesday, and FEMA announced it has more than 50 emergency relief personnel and dozens of other federal partners ready to provide emergency assistance on the ground.

The storm is “one that will be remembered for decades,” said Landon Aydlett, the warning coordination meteorologist from the weather service in Guam.

Officials have warned the storm will bring devastating impacts to the island’s residents, infrastructure and landscape.

Extensive roof and structure damage is possible due to pummeling winds, especially for buildings that are not reinforced with concrete.

“Electricity and water may be unavailable for days and perhaps weeks after the storm passes” and “most trees will be snapped or uprooted,” the local weather service warned.

Between 50 to 70 percent of Guam’s vegetation could experience defoliation – the unnatural removal of much of a plant’s leaves and foliage, the weather service indicated.

Mawar rapidly intensified from Monday into Tuesday, with top wind speeds increasing by 50 mph in just 18 hours. Scientists have warned that the rapid intensification of tropical cyclones – like typhoons and hurricanes – is more likely as ocean temperatures climb and lay the groundwork for cyclones to explode at breakneck pace into deadly storms.

Unlike just 25 years ago, it’s now hard to find someone who hasn’t been on a plane.

It’s a unique travel experience that human beings didn’t do in significant numbers until quite recently. So it’s no wonder it does some strange and unexpected things to us, including bringing us to tears.

The reporting is anecdotal, but there’s plenty of it: Virgin Atlantic even did a survey in 2011 that found “over half of respondents (55%) agreed their emotions become heightened when on a flight and 41% of men surveyed said they hid under blankets to hide their tears.”

When we fly, we are more likely to cry – but why?

Psychological factors

The first reason is simple: We bring ourselves with us. That includes the myriad mental-health issues we carry.

“At every age level, across genders, religions, races and backgrounds, many people have one of the baseline mental illnesses, from claustrophobia to agoraphobia, and other various manifestations of anxiety – they’re ubiquitous,” says Dr. Robert L. Quigley, senior vice president and regional medical director of International SOS & MedAire.

“The stresses of travel are enough to trigger anyone who has a baseline mental health challenge,” he says.

Few would argue that flying isn’t stressful: Getting to the airport in time, the intense scrutiny of security, then boarding the plane and ensuring you squeeze all your belongings and your body into small spaces – as quickly as possible – is a challenge.

If you’re traveling solo, you’re locked inside a small space with a group of strangers for the duration of your flight. These circumstances put many on edge.

And then there’s the reason for your travel. Did you just say goodbye to a loved one or are you flying to a job interview or a place you have never been to? All of these things are stressful for even the most even-keeled people. Add in even a mild anxiety problem (anxiety is the most common mental illness, affecting almost 20% of the population) and it doesn’t seem so curious why people might find themselves in tears once aloft.

The physical part

Planes are also particular – and often, particularly uncomfortable – environments.

The ever-smaller seats and minimized legroom doesn’t just lead to painful hips and knees.

“The smaller seating arrangement increases anxiety – your basic physical boundaries are encroached,” says Dr. Jodi De Luca, a Colorado-based licensed clinical psychologist and expert on altitude and emotions.

“It’s not comforting to fly anymore. Our basic needs – food and drink, blankets and pillows, aren’t provided for. You’re even limited to how much you can bring on-board to comfort yourself,” she adds.

And then there’s the cabin pressure, usually maintained at a level of 5,000-8,000 feet, which can have very real physical effects, depending on the person.

“There’s a plethora of evidence that you go into a relative state of hypoxia [oxygen deficiency] when you’re in flight,” said Quigley.

The affects, she says, may not be realized by passengers.

“One person might feel weepy, another sleepy – hypoxia affects people in different ways. There may even be hormones triggered by hypoxia – it’s all idiosyncratic.”

Add these inputs together and it not surprising we cry at 36,000 feet. We feel physically weird, we have little control over our circumstances, and we may feel vulnerable.

Feeling this way, we might turn to in-flight movies, but anyone who has cried over a terrible rom-com – yes, that was me sniffling along to “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” – knows that sometimes media can work against reducing emotional feelings.

“There’s something special about crying on board an airplane,” says Stephen Groening, Professor of Cinema and Media at the University of Washington in Seattle, who has studied how inflight entertainment might have unique effects on travelers.

In a study on the subject, Crying while Flying: The Intimacy of Inflight Entertainment, he posits that “the technological apparatus of inflight entertainment generates a culture of intimacy [by creating] a relationship of extreme proximity between passenger and media form.”

Groening thinks it might be the combination of stressors and the closeness of the media that conspire to bring us to tears.

The role of alcohol

What goes better with a film than a glass of wine? Alcohol may help reduce the anxiety of flying for some people, but it can also have a host of negative effects: It can exacerbate dehydration, which is already affecting most travelers due to the cabin pressure.

The physical and psychological effects of drinking plus cabin pressure are additive, says Quigley. So if you quaff a cocktail while flying, the two can exacerbate each other.

“Alcohol can make you more emotional – so can hypoxia,” says Quigley.

DeLuca doesn’t advise drinking while flying and points out that it’s dangerous to combine medication for anxiety with alcohol.

“You can go into respiratory failure,” she says.

So what can you do if you feel emotional when you fly? One option is just to cry it out, as long as you can do so without upsetting other passengers. Everyone cries differently, it may be that you can shed tears in a private way.

But keep in mind that you are in public, says De Luca. She advises travelers to consider their own well-being as well as the others around them. So if you feel tears coming on, consider finding a private place to cry (which she admits is a challenge on most planes).

To avoid the tears, “If you are traveling with someone, talk your feelings out,” De Luca advises as a first line of defense. If you are solo, she suggests distracting yourself, “So the brain is forced to think instead of feel – do a crossword or Soduku, play a video game or play mental games using the alphabet.”

Some find meditation podcasts – Insight Timer and Tara Brach offer dozens for free – helpful for calming and relaxing a racing or emotional mind.

Self-regulate what you are watching or listening to, and avoid media that would normally make you feel emotional, De Luca suggests.

That’s easier than ever – and may even change how often crying while flying happens.

“The thing that has changed about inflight entertainment is that people are bringing their own devices on board more often now. So we may see a decline in crying on board because people are choosing what to bring on a plane,” rather than selecting from pre-chosen options, says Groening.

Some are skeptical that people cry more at altitude.

Dr. Paul Wicks published a study that showed people cried at the same rate they did at home, and called the whole concept we cry more while flying a “pseudo-phenomena.”

Memory might be a play here too. We might also be that we remember the times we’ve cried on a plane better than other occasions we’ve shed tears.

“Crying by yourself isn’t memorable to you the way crying on a plane is,” said Groening.

Either way, it couldn’t hurt to pack extra tissues.

Officials at Yellowstone National Park say they were forced to put down a newborn bison calf after another unfortunate encounter between a park visitor and wildlife, according to a release from the National Park Service.

On Saturday evening, an unidentified man disturbed a bison calf after it was separated from its mother and herd when crossing the Lamar River in the park, the news release said.

“As the calf struggled, the man pushed the calf up from the river and onto the roadway,” NPS said in the news release.

Park regulations state that people need to stay at least 25 yards away from bison, elk and most other wildlife and 100 yards away from bears and wolves. Approaching wild animals can affect their well-being and their survival, NPS said.

The calf was later seen by visitors walking up to and following both cars and people, creating a hazard for those nearby, NPS said.

“Interference by people can cause wildlife to reject their offspring,” NPS said. After park rangers failed in their attempt to reunite the calf with its herd,they decided to euthanize the calf as “it was abandoned by its herd and was causing a hazardous situation to approaching cars and people along the roadway,” the news release said.

Yellowstone National Park released an image of the unidentified man lifting the bison calf from the river in the press release.

NPS is asking for anyone who was in the area on May 20 and has any information to contact the Yellowstone National Park Tip Line.

Visitors at Yellowstone have previously interacted with bison and been injured severely, including at least three in May and June of 2022. In one instance, a 71-year-old woman was gored by a bison one day after another visitor was injured by different bison.

Turkey’s Aegean coast is summer personified. Inhabited by a mostly Greek community under the Ottoman Empire before the creation of the Turkish republic in 1923, the historic towns and villages are gaining new life, attracting a new surge of visitors and defining a modern Aegean culture. Dishes are prepared with the region’s sun-drenched herbs and produce, olive oil from its many groves and seafood straight from the Aegean. Wines from local vineyards are uncorked and cocktails are reimagined with local ingredients.

Alongside classic beach towns like Bodrum and Alaçatı, two of the coast’s loveliest spots are the little-known seaside town of Ayvalık and the nearby island of Cunda. The pair sit a little under 100 miles north of Izmir, across the water from the Greek island of Lesbos.

Ottoman architecture and Greek churches

Once the center of olive oil production during the Ottoman era, the chimneys of Ayvalık’s old factories can still be seen while exploring the winding cobblestone alleys that lead past historic churches and old stone houses with colorful window shutters.

The architecture reflects its history, with Greek and Ottoman buildings side by side. Standouts include the Çınarlı Mosque, formerly the Greek Orthodox church of Ayios Yorgis, built in 1790 with its ionic columns and cinquefoil windows. The Taksiyarhis Memorial Museum, meanwhile, isn’t a museum as such – it’s a Greek Orthodox cathedral, built in 1844. Used as a warehouse in the 20th century and then abandoned, it’s been restored to its former glory, complete with decorated marble columns and frescoed vaults.

Shopping with artisans

The old houses of Ayvalık offer an attractive space for ateliers and artisan workshops, so shopping in the center revolves mostly around handmade goods, whether wood, ceramic or textile.

Near the Taksiyarhis Memorial Museum, in a beautifully renovated historic house with large arched windows, is Moyy Atölye. Owner Özlem Erol works with local female artisans who produce organic clothes from feretiko, a traditional hand-woven hemp cloth from Turkey’s Black Sea region.

Near the waterfront, the porcelain studio of Santimetre sits in a renovated neoclassical townhouse. Designer Tulya Madra, who’s also worked in New York, is known for her hand-cast, glazed dinnerware in colors ranging from Aegean blues to soft pinks, greens and sunny yellows.

Modern Aegean eats

Near the sea and surrounded by verdant olive groves and orchards, Ayvalık’s gastronomy is downright Aegean, with dishes centered round fresh and local ingredients. Inside a renovated old house with baby-blue window frames, Sofia Ayvalık serves modern Aegean dishes including pilaf with coriander and artichoke, stuffed dried tomatoes with sour cherries, and celery soup with sage and rosemary. It’s all accompanied by local wines, and tables are set up in the alley outside as well as upstairs overlooking the sea.

Located right by the sea inside a repurposed olive oil factory, Cleto’s is one of Ayvalık’s most popular restaurants. Founded by chef Anacleto Salciccia and his wife Funda Kocadağ Salciccia, the upscale restaurant serves classic Italian food, from seabass carpaccio with lemon mayonnaise to linguine with squid ink and prawns.

For a truly Aegean dining experience inside an olive grove, Karina Ayvalık is worth the 10-minute drive south to the village of Küçükköy. Run by couple Özge and Sinan Sabuncu, the menu doubles as their declaration of love for fresh, local ingredients from the Aegean – think seafood pasta or grilled calamari, paired with carefully selected wines from the region.

Olive oil is still central to the area’s identity. Also in Küçükköy, Kürşat Ayvalık – the region’s most respected olive oil producer – recently renovated their mill, adding an additional building to house a museum, shop and restaurant. A family-run business with roots in Crete, siblings Zeynep and Ali Kürşat continue their grandparents’ trade, harvesting olives by hand so as not to bruise the fruit.

At their restaurant, Ayna – 15 minutes northwest of Ayvalık, on the nearby island of Cunda – you can taste simple Aegean dishes, from seabass ceviche with capers and orange zest to rolled phyllo dough with local cheese, oregano and wild honey.

‘I feel history as I walk’

Istanbul-based photographer and paper sculpture artist Deniz Yılmaz Akman has spent the last 20 summers at her family home in Ayvalık, capturing the town’s locals and its many hidden corners with her lens. The historic houses on 13 Nisan Caddesi (April 13th Street) are one of her favorite photo-friendly spots.

“Ayvalık is a summer getaway that also has the feel of a city,” she says. “I can breathe in the Aegean air and feel history as I walk through the old streets with their historic houses. It’s a place where I can while away [the hours] at a historic café or browse antique shops but then also taste modern Aegean flavors at a trendy restaurant and sip cocktails at a cool bar.”

“I would recommend that visitors catch a classical music concert at the Ayvalık International Music Academy; try the famous local black mulberry and sour grape juices at Camlı Kahve; try muhallebi [milk pudding] with mastic at Macaron Muhallebicisi, and mastic cookies and ice cream at İmren Pastanesi.”

She also recommends the famous Ayvalık toast (with melted cheese, Turkish fermented sausage and pickles) at cafe Şeytanın Kahvesi, and the fried cuttle fish and mezze at restaurant Hüsnü Babanın Yeri.

Island life

Connected to Ayvalık via a causeway, Cunda is a popular summer getaway for Turks, who spend their days exploring the small island on foot and their nights at the restaurants and bars around crowded Hayat Caddesi near the seaside. Some of the favorites here include modern Italian restaurant L’arancia, with its Sicilian-inspired décor, and third wave coffee shop Nona, which does a mean cappuccino and lemon cheesecake. In the evening, cocktail bars such as Orman and Çeşni are filled with young people sipping craft cocktails made from the best of local ingredients like elderflower, satsuma and linden.

Cups of freshly roasted Turkish coffee are served inside Taş Kahve, a historic café, while the smell of fresh bread and pastries wafts through the street where Cumhuriyet Fırını has been baking since the 1990s.

Off the main drag, Cunda is more serene. Pomegranate trees hang heavy with fruit in gardens in the labyrinthine alleys that lead uphill and away from the shore. Residents sweep the fallen leaves off their front steps as stray dogs nap beneath flowering vines.

Getting lost on Cunda leads to discoveries – like the Cunda Taksiyarhis Rahmi M. Koç Museum inside a renovated Greek Orthodox church with a collection of antique cars, motorcycles and toys. It’s another rescued structure that was once in a state of disrepair but which, repurposed, is now full of life.

And so to bed

So where to stay? Ayvalık’s most unique vacation rentals were created by the architect couple Erdoğan Altındiş and Gabriele Kern-Altındiş who run Manzara, a collection of design-forward homes in both Istanbul and Ayvalık. The properties here consist of five carefully restored stone houses with secluded gardens, sea views and modern interiors, while preserving preserved historic architectural details. Otherwise, on the town’s seafront is Villa Pietra Hotel, with its restaurant cantilevered over the water.

The Küçükköy Otel, in the village of the same name, has pretty rooms with exposed brick walls and a peaceful small pool.

And on a quiet side street in Cunda, in a renovated stone house, is Engin Reis. One of the island’s most tasteful hotels, it has a coastal aesthetic, clad in white linens and wicker furniture.

When you think about booking a summer holiday, you might think of trips with partners, friends or family. The idea of going on holiday alone can be daunting, or even unappealing. It raises all kinds of questions – who will you talk to? Who will you eat with? Will you be safe?

There has long been a stigma against solo consumption. Societal norms encourage us to be with someone – leisure experiences are billed as something to share with others. There may also be a level of guilt or self-indulgence associated with solo travel, feeling as if you are shirking responsibility or abandoning time with family.

An increase in single-person households, however, means the hospitality industry is now serving solo consumers in addition to families and couples. The continuously blurred line between work and play, particularly for Millennials and younger generations, makes it easier to work remotely or travel as part of our jobs. We are more transient than ever, and have more opportunities to work and travel alone without feeling completely disconnected from the rest of our lives.

In recent years, people have been increasingly traveling alone – including younger vacationers. They also share their experiences to a large audience on social media – the hashtag #SoloTravel has over 7 million posts associated with it on Instagram. Solo travelers are taking part in the growing solo economy – new products and services targeting the lone consumer.

Hotels, cruises, restaurants, tourism companies and festivals are showing how design, staff and technology can be tailored to accommodate – and even encourage – solo consumption in travel. Our research into the experience of solo consumers in coffee shops offers insight into how solo consumption can be as pleasurable and fulfilling as going with a partner or friend. Through freewriting exercises, these consumers shared their own experiences. Their words offer some reasons you should try it too.

Be together, alone

Our research participants highlighted key factors that help them enjoy their solo experience – high seats and window views allowing them to sit back and observe others’ lives without any direct interaction or connection. You don’t need to arrive with others to feel part of a social environment. Alone in a crowded square or on a busy beach, the proximity of other people and their conversations can be a source of comfort, distraction or even entertainment.

The seat is important -– I like the window, especially a stool and “shelf” table facing out … I see people, imagine their lives, see cars and life pass by. I watch other customers, I watch the street out the window, the cliché of “watching the world pass by.” The setting, context and environment of the café are important to that moment of pause.

Research participant

Take time for yourself

Being alone can be a therapeutic experience, a time to process thoughts, feelings and emotions and leave you ready to tackle the world again. Perhaps take time to write, draw or practice another creative activity in your own time. Bask in your own thoughts without feeling pressure to please anyone else or force a conversation.

Sitting alone with my thoughts can be a comforting experience; picking a seat, getting comfy… I can find silence with my thoughts and don’t feel any pressure to act for anybody or involve myself in a conversation that doesn’t interest me.

Research participant

Get out of your comfort zone

Being able to do your own thing, without needing to consider others can be relaxing and can also give you the opportunity to do something you’ve never done before, free of judgement. You might want to go to some sort of class, shop or have a complete chill-out day.

Findings from our research indicate that time spent doing things alone can relieve some of the pressures that companions can bring. Alone time gives you the space to experience things in your own time and take in your surroundings without distraction. In doing this, you may find yourself in new situations, away from your comfort zone – an energising and enthralling experience.

Embrace solo traveler culture

Solo travelers have their own way of doing things, they have a shared behaviour and process and often become a collective in themselves. They acknowledge the process of traveling alone and respect others doing the same, and may even seek out spaces to be alone, together. Solo travellers can engage in a shared experience and dialogue while maintaining their own individualism – helping each other when needed, but also leave one another alone.

We search for places where we feel we fit … We are happy to smile at one another. We don’t need to chat to engage. We are happy on our own with a coffee. I am amongst my tribe.

Research participant

Clare McCamley is a senior lecturer in marketing at the University of Huddersfield.

Moscow and Beijing lashed out against the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Hiroshima, where leaders of major democracies pledged new measures targeting Russia and spoke in one voice on their growing concerns over China.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Saturday slammed the G7 for indulging in their “own greatness” with an agenda that aimed to “deter” Russia and China.

Meanwhile China’s Foreign Ministry accused G7 leaders of “hindering international peace” and said the group needed to “reflect on its behavior and change course.”

Beijing had made “serious démarches” to host country Japan and “other parties” over their decision to “smear and attack” China, it said.

Both Russia’s brutal assault on Ukraine and how to handle an increasingly assertive Beijing have loomed over the three-day gathering of the world’s leading industrialized democracies taking place in Japan – just across regional seas from both countries – where Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky made a surprise, in-person appearance.

G7 member countries made the group’s most detailed articulation of a shared position on China to date – stressing the need to cooperate with the world’s second-largest economy, but also to counter its “malign practices” and “coercion” in a landmark joint communique Saturday.

Leaders also pledged new steps to choke off Russia’s ability to finance and fuel its war, and vowed in a dedicated statement to ramp up coordination on their economic security – a thinly veiled warning from members against what they see as the weaponization of trade from China, and also Russia.

The G7 agreements follow a hardening of attitudes on China in some European capitals, despite differing views on how to handle relations with the key economic partner, deemed by the US as “the most serious long-term challenge to the international order.”

Countering China’s ‘coercion’

Beijing’s retort later Saturday urged the G7 “not to become an accomplice” in American “economic coercion.”

“The massive unilateral sanctions and acts of ‘decoupling’ and disrupting industrial and supply chains make the US the real coercer that politicizes and weaponizes economic and trade relations,” the Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

“The international community does not and will not accept the G7-dominated Western rules that seek to divide the world based on ideologies and values,” it continued.

G7 member countries are Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States. The European Union also joins as a non-country member.

A number of non-G7 leaders also attended the summit, including Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Indonesian President Joko Widodo, and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

Albanese on Sunday said he has been concerned “for some time” over China’s actions, including its military activities in the South China Sea, and called for “transparency” by Beijing over the detention of Australian journalist Cheng Lei.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak also on Sunday said China “presents the greatest risk to security and prosperity,” adding its behavior is “increasingly authoritarian at home and assertive abroad.”

China’s image in Europe has taken a severe hit over the past 15 months as leaders there have watched China’s Xi Jinping tighten ties with fellow authoritarian Russian President Vladimir Putin, even as Moscow’s invasion sparked a massive humanitarian crisis and Moscow’s leader was accused of war crimes by an international court.

Beijing’s increased military aggression toward Taiwan – the self-ruling democracy the Chinese Communist Party claims as its territory but has never ruled – and economic penalties against Lithuania following a disagreement over Taiwan have also played a role in shifting sentiment.

Concern about such incidents was reflected in the G7 statement on ensuring economic security and countering economic coercion, which did not explicitly mention China.

The G7 leaders’ ability to sign onto a statement “so specifically directed at Beijing” would have been “hard to believe” two years ago, according to Josh Lipsky, senior director of the Washington-based think tank Atlantic Council’s GeoEconomics Center.

“The bottom line is that the G7 has shown it will increasingly focus on China and will try to maintain a coordinated policy approach. That’s a major development,” he said.

War in Ukraine

The G7 agreements land as China has been marshaling its diplomats in a concerted attempt to repair ties with Europe, largely by recasting itself as a potential agent of peace in the war in Ukraine, even if that claim has been met with widespread skepticism among Western nations.

Last week as European leaders headed to Asia, Chinese special envoy Li Hui began his own European tour billed by Beijing as a means to promote peace talks.

Li, who was dispatched after Xi late last month made his first call to Zelensky since the Russian invasion, visited Ukraine on Tuesday and Wednesday, where he fronted China’s vision of a “political settlement.”

That calls for a ceasefire but not for the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukrainian territory first – a scenario which critics say could serve to cement Russia’s illegal land grab in the country and runs counter to Ukraine’s own peace plan.

Zelensky’s travel to the G7 in Asia is also “a way of putting pressure on China,” according to Jean-Pierre Cabestan, an emeritus professor of political science at Hong Kong Baptist University.

The message to China is for it “to be more more outgoing in its support for a solution” that aligns with Kyiv’s interests in terms of its territorial integrity and Russian troops pulling out from Ukraine, he said.

When asked about the possibility of China playing a role in ending Russia’s war, a senior White House official on Saturday said the US hopes that Xi views this week’s summit as a signal of “resolve.”

“We would hope that what President Xi and the (People’s Republic of China) extract from what they’ve been seeing here … is that there’s an awful lot of resolve to continue to support Ukraine … and that China could have a meaningful role in helping end this war,” the official said.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine triggered a flood of refugees. Many of them were pet owners who had to leave their dogs and cats behind, hoping it would only be a matter of days before they were able to return to them.

It wasn’t long before Ukrainian veterinarians Valentina and Leonid Stoyanov learned that many pets were locked in nearby homes.

At the time, the couple specialized in exotic animal and wildlife rescue. With the invasion came a new mission: caring for these beloved but abandoned pets.

The Stoyanovs began working with local police to access homes to rescue dogs and cats. Within a week of the invasion, Leonid said they were caring for some 400 animals in their Odesa clinic.

“Each animal for us, it’s like members of our family,” Valentina said.

For the last decade, the couple has worked together treating more unusual animals and wildlife. Before the war, their videos of the monkeys, snakes, owls, and other creatures they rescued and cared for found a growing audience on their “Vet Crew” TikTok and Instagram feeds.

Valentina said their “simple life” has changed drastically.

“All our family – mother, father – have to leave Ukraine,” Leonid said. “But we decided we stay here and help animals – a lot of animals.”

Their clinic is partially underground and surrounded by taller buildings offering some protection from Russian attacks. But the lack of electricity is one of their most serious challenges. The couple needed to find a generator to keep the lights on and their reptiles warm.

The Stoyanovs purchased tons of dog and cat food that they distribute to area shelters. They have also often driven to the front lines to help animals in need. Leonid recalls wearing body armor on his many trips vaccinating and feeding dogs there.

“Russian army a lot of times shooting our car and they bombed it. And one time they missed (by) maybe ten meters. And we have a lot of holes in our car,” he said.

During the last year, Leonid’s health also took a turn for the worse. He suffered a heart attack and said he was clinically dead for several minutes before doctors were able to revive him.

“They say, “You have a lot of animals. You need to (be) here,” he said.

He has since had two surgeries, including one to implant a pacemaker. And despite some discomfort, he says he feels “physically normal” now.

The Stoyanovs usually try to find new homes for the animals they rescue, or they release wild animals back into their natural habitat. But it was a different story for a blind husky named Casper, now a permanent member of the Stoyanov family. He belonged to a Ukrainian soldier named Sergei who had no family and asked the couple to care for his dog while he was away fighting.

“It was very touching moment when Casper and … Sergei say goodbye (to) each other. Because Sergei crying and Casper also crying,” Valentina said.

Sergei would call every week, but after about two months, Casper began acting strangely and cried. The Stoyanovs later learned that this was around the time when Sergei was killed, Leonid said.

“It’s very, very depressive situation (here),” Leonid said. “We cannot sleep because we are nervous. … We have a lot of work, a lot of animals, a lot of people dying, a lot of our friends dying.”

Despite all of the challenges, the couple say they have no plans to stop.

“We just hold on and continue to do what we do because we see how it is important for animals, for all these lives around us,” Valentina said.

The Stoyanovs are grateful for the support they receive online from their social media community, whom they call their Vet Crew Family. They said it’s their encouragement that keeps them going.

“Without these people, what we do here right now in Ukraine will not be possible. And this is why all these people (become) family for us,” Valentina said. “And I think most important message for all of them, it is … thank you.”

After 20 incredible years in the NBA, LeBron James has added to speculation that he could finally be hanging up his sneakers for good.

This comes after the Los Angeles Lakers were swept out of the Western Conference Finals by Nikola Jokić and the Denver Nuggets following a disappointing 113-111 Game 4 loss.

“We’ll see what happens going forward. I don’t know,” the NBA’s all-time leading scorer said to reporters post-game. “I’ve got a lot to think about to be honest.

“Just for me, personally, going forward with the game of basketball, I’ve got a lot to think about.”

ESPN’s Dave McMenamin said he followed up with James following the press conference to further elaborate on his comments adding that retirement is under consideration.

“When you say you got to think about stuff, what thread should we be pulling on that?” McMenamin said he asked to which James replied, “If I want to continue to play.”

James later added that he’d have to think about it when pushed further about walking away next year, according to McMenamin. The Lakers star has one year left in his contract with the team after signing a two-year contract extension prior to the season.

In the win-or-go-home game, LeBron and Co. were looking to make history by overcoming a 3-0 series deficit to advance to the NBA Finals.

Mission impossible almost got off to the perfect start, but the Nuggets came up strong in the clutch and thwarted James’ efforts to send the game to overtime.

Marked by Nuggets wing Aaron Gordon, ‘King James’ missed two opportunities to save the game. The first a tough shot way off the mark, bouncing off the side of the glass. Then with the season truly on the line, Gordon blocked a James floater with 1.1 left on the clock.

Monday’s reversal on considering retirement comes as a surprise after the four-time champion previously said he’d like to play his final NBA season alongside his son Bronny James in an interview with The Athletic in 2022.

“My last year will be played with my son,” James said. “Wherever Bronny is at, that’s where I’ll be. I would do whatever it takes to play with my son for one year. It’s not about the money at that point.”

Despite the loss and his postgame comments, James’ Game 4 performance showed the 20-year veteran could easily continue his stellar career, to play with Bronny, if he so wished.

LeBron played all 48 minutes, scored 40 points on 15-of-25 shooting, grabbed 10 rebounds and dished out nine assists, as the 38-year-old left it all on the floor in an all-encompassing performance.

Yet, as so often in his long career, LeBron’s individual brilliance wasn’t enough and the Nuggets were able to advance to the NBA Finals for the first time in franchise history without dropping a game in the series.

Jokić had another standout series for Denver, and the two-time regular season MVP was awarded the Magic Johnson Western Conference Finals MVP trophy.

In Game 4, the ‘Joker’ was at his all-around best, with 30 points, 14 boards and 13 assists. The latest in a long line of triple-doubles also meant that Jokić broke Wilt Chamberlain’s 1967 record of the most triple-doubles in a playoff run – the Serbian star adding his eighth of the postseason.

“I think he’s showing other people nationally that he’s real. Like what he’s doing is real. The MVPs are real. The triple-doubles are real,” said Nuggets head coach Michael Malone on his star player. “The guy is a great player; give him his damn respect. Stop chopping him down at the knees. He’s a great player and give him the respect he deserves.”

The Nuggets can now look forward to the NBA Finals as they wait to see who wins between the Miami Heat and the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Finals.

Growing up, Yasmine Arrington’s father was in and out of prison and in and out of her life. After her mother passed away when she was 13, Arrington and her two brothers were raised by their maternal grandmother.

Having dealt with these struggles from such a young age, Arrington knew firsthand the challenges that came with having an incarcerated parent.

“All too often you become marginalized or dismissed as a delinquent,” said Arrington, now 30. “Having an incarcerated father also took a toll emotionally, mentally. … (Incarcerated) parents oftentimes miss graduations. They miss birthdays.”

Despite the difficulties, Arrington became a student who was very involved in extracurricular activities. As a high school junior, she joined a leadership and social change program for teenagers called LearnServe in Washington, DC. There, she was asked, “What pisses you guys off?” The intent of the question was for students to analyze issues they saw in their communities, schools, and personal lives. Arrington chose mass incarceration and the effects of parental incarceration on children and families.

“My father has literally been in and out of jail and prison my entire life,” she said. “I began to do research, and I learned that there’s so many other people that are kind of my age experiencing what I’m experiencing.”

While applying for college scholarships with her grandmother, they noticed that there weren’t scholarships in her region specifically for teens who had incarcerated parents. Yet Arrington knew there were other students like her who had an incarcerated parent and wanted to go to college but needed financial assistance. So, in 2010, when she was 16, she created the nonprofit ScholarCHIPS – with CHIPS as an acronym for Children of Incarcerated Parents – to help young people like herself with scholarships, mentoring and a network of support.

The organization has since awarded more than $450,000 in scholarships and other aid and supported more than 80 scholars working toward their college degrees. New scholars join the program each year.

“Most of our scholars, when they apply to ScholarCHIPS, they say, ‘This is the first time I’ve ever told anyone’ that they have an incarcerated parent. So, ScholarCHIPS becomes a safe space where young people feel comfortable even divulging and sharing that information,” Arrington said.

Yasmine Arrington: My father is sort of a career criminal, and it’s a cycle that he has gone through for many years and a very, very long time. A lot of times I didn’t even know where my father was. Our communication was always sporadic. Sometimes he would reach out and then I wouldn’t hear from my dad for a long time – a year, two years, or more.

I never talked about it in school. It becomes a thing where someone can stereotype you or you can be stigmatized. So, most of the time we’re very silent about it. A lot of times it can get you down, get you depressed. Not having my father in my life for so long, I think that there was a gap in my childhood. And so when I became a teenager and a young adult, I really was looking for love in all the wrong places. I was still very insecure in a lot of ways.

Our scholars, they also have, for lack of a better term, suffered mentally, emotionally, or have had challenges. Having a parent that’s absent from the home, and particularly when you know that they’re incarcerated, a lot of questions go through your mind. Some of our scholars have close relationships with their incarcerated parents, and so when they’re able, they will go to visit their parents in prison. And that experience in and of itself is very humiliating. It is demoralizing. It becomes so layered and nuanced and complicated. It just sometimes makes our journey much more difficult.

Arrington: Our scholars are provided with brand-new laptops. We also have an emergency fund. When scholars have unexpected challenges that come up, for example their car may break down or they may be late on rent. Emergencies could be a number of things. We definitely step in to help.

Our scholars have the option (of) being matched with a mentor. And for those scholars who do opt in, we go through a thorough matching process. If a young person has never had someone in their family go to college, then we can match you with a mentor who has gone to college, who’s graduated, who is excited to be a mentor, who wants to walk you through this process, who wants to be a non-judgmental, supportive ear, a cheerleader, and a champion. Mentors serve as a listening ear, which is in many cases very helpful for our scholars. But also sometimes mentors become very resourceful, and they provide scholarship information that comes across their desk to their mentee, internship opportunities, lots of resources and opportunities. And ultimately with ScholarCHIPS, that’s what we want to continue to do – we are a network of support and a safety net which encapsulates within it numerous resources.

ScholarCHIPS offers community-building for our scholars, both virtually and in-person. It’s definitely a lifeline. We all are connected, particularly because of the lived and shared experience of having an incarcerated parent. So, we all sort of bond off that shared experience.

Arrington: The check-ins are very helpful because oftentimes we will discover a need a scholar has that we otherwise didn’t know. I ask our scholars questions about how their experience is going in college. Are there any challenges that they’re facing? Are there any current needs that they have? A lot of times we grew up where you don’t ask anybody for anything. Because if you do, you’re going to owe them something. Or if you ask somebody for help, that makes you weak. Or we’ve been accustomed to just doing things for ourselves and getting everything for ourselves for so long that a lot of us don’t even know how to ask for help.

I definitely stay in contact with scholars well after they’ve graduated. It really is a family of sorts. ScholarCHIPS (is) actually doing the real work (to) help to bridge the gap. And what happens is that not only do our scholars graduate, they gain a sense of confidence and they’re able to self-advocate for themselves once they get into their dream career. Just a little bit of support can go a very, very long way and make a difference not only in one person’s life, but in an entire family and then an entire generation.

Want to get involved? Check out the ScholarCHIPS website and see how to help.

To donate to ScholarCHIPS via GoFundMe, click here