Salt Bae holds soccer World Cup trophy on field: FIFA to take action against breach in protocol
FIFA administration said that it would take suitable action on an internal level to address the act of holding the trophy on the field by the celebrity chef Salt Bae, which was a breach of World Cup protocol, reports PTI.
The chef, Salt Bae, is seen with FIFA president Gianni Infantino very often. He mingled with the players from Argentina and posed for pictures after the team won the World Cup in Doha, Qatar, on Sunday.
Since FIFA considers the trophy a 'priceless icon', it lays restrictions on touching and holding it, saying only a select group of people, including former winners of the World Cup and heads of the state, may do so.
“Following a review, FIFA has been establishing how individuals gained undue access to the pitch after the closing ceremony at Lusail stadium on Dec. 18,” the world soccer body said.
Salt Bae owns a restaurant in Doha and was a regular guest of the FIFA, with VIP access during the World Cup. He also posted photos and video clips during the event on social media.
After Argentina won in a penalty shootout, following a 3-3 draw, he was filmed holding Lionel Messi's arm on the field in an attempt to catch the attention of the Argentina captain.
Messi, however, looked irked by this in the video clip, although he then posed for a photo with Salt Bae, which the latter posted on Instagram.
Messi deserves another World Cup for not giving a single fuck about Salt Bae pic.twitter.com/EIsM8lnc8S
— Bobby Reagan (@BarstoolReags) December 19, 2022
Salt Bae needs to be stopped pic.twitter.com/m6u9NIhs2X
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) December 20, 2022
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Explosive device kills 13, injures 38 on bus in southwestern Colombia as violence persists
Bogota (Colombia) (PTI): An explosive device killed 13 people travelling on a bus in southwestern Colombia on Saturday, an attack the country's army chief described as a “terrorist act" that also left at least 38 injured as violence linked to drug trafficking in the region escalates.
Octavio Guzman, the governor of the region of Cauca, said on X that the device was set off while the bus was travelling along the Panamerican Highway in the municipality of Cajibio. Five children were among the injured, Cauca Health Secretary Carolina Camargo told Noticias Caracol, a TV news program.
Gen. Hugo Lopez, commander of Colombia's Armed Forces, told a news conference that it was a “terrorist act" and blamed the network of a man known as “Ivan Mordisco” — one of Colombia's most wanted figures — and the Jaime Martínez faction. Both are dissidents of the now-defunct Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia that operate in the region.
Neither Ivan Mordisco nor the Jaime Martínez faction abide by the peace agreement signed with the state in 2016.
Colombian President Gustavo Petro condemned the attack on X.
“Those who carried out the attack and killed seven civilians — and wounded 17 others — in Cajibío — many of them Indigenous people — are terrorists, fascists, and drug traffickers,” he wrote.
The attack is the latest in a spate of explosions that have attempted to target public infrastructure. At least 26 incidents have taken place in the past two days in southwestern Colombia, which Lopez said have only affected civilians.
They included a shooting at a police station in the rural area of Jamundi, and an attack on a Civil Aviation radar facility in El Tambo, where authorities took down three explosives-laden drones earlier on Saturday. No one was hurt.
On Friday, two vehicles rigged with explosives were detonated near military units in Cali and Palmira, causing material damage.
The escalation of violence in that region — a territory contested by illegal armed groups linked to drug trafficking — prompted the mobilisation of high-ranking officials on Saturday. Led by Defence Minister Pedro Sanchez, the delegation that includes regional governors and local authorities, was meeting in Palmira when the deadly explosion occurred.
“These criminals seek to instil fear, but we will respond with firmness,” Sanchez said on X.
Meanwhile, Francisca Toro, governor of Valle del Cauca, has called upon the national government to provide “immediate support.” In a message on X, Toro called for a reinforcement of public security forces, enhanced intelligence operations and “decisive actions” against crime in the face of a “terrorist-level escalation.”
According to authorities, Cauca and Valle del Cauca serve as a critical hub for illicit activities of illegal armed groups vying for control over sea and river access routes leading to the port of Buenaventura — a key transit point used to traffic drugs to Central America and Europe.
The government has also offered a reward of more than 1 million dollars for information leading to the capture of “Marlon,” who is identified as the leader of the region's dissident group. On Friday, local authorities offered more than USD 14,000 for information leading to the identification and location of those behind the attacks in Cali and Palmira.
