Nepal evacuates 253 students stranded in Israel
Kathmandu (PTI): Nepal's Foreign Minister N P Saud on Thursday left Israel along with 253 students who were stranded in the war-torn country following the surprise multifront attack by the Palestinian militant group Hamas, officials here said.
"Rescue aircraft has just taken off from Ben Gurion Airport Tel Aviv," Nepal's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a post on X.
It thanked Israeli authorities for their prompt support in relocating Nepali nationals to safe zone, movement to airport, flight clearance and other procedures.
"We commend (the) tireless works of our Embassy in Tel Aviv and duly acknowledge support and cooperation received from various agencies back home to make this possible," the ministry said in another post.
The flight is expected to arrive in Kathmandu at 1.30 am on Thursday, according to the secretariat of Foreign Minister Saud, who arrived in Israel on board the same aircraft earlier in the day.
Ten Nepalese students were killed when Hamas launched a sudden strike at a farm in Israel's Kibbutz.
There were 17 Nepalese students on the farm where the Hamas launched the attack. Ten Nepalese nationals were killed, six escaped and one went missing in the incident.
Four of the students who sustained injuries in the incident are currently undergoing treatment in a hospital with the assistance of the Israeli government.
After the killing of 10 students of agriculture working as interns in Israel under a learn and earn scheme, the Nepal government with the assistance from Israel military relocated the remaining Nepalese students to a safe zone.
Besides 265 agriculture students, who have gone to Israel from different universities in Nepal under the 'Learn and Earn' internship programme, there are 450 other Nepalese working in different fields in Israel.
Israel has vowed an unprecedented offensive against Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, after its fighters broke through the border fence and stormed into the country's south through air, land and sea on October 7. The conflict that has already claimed more than 2,500 lives on both sides.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
