‘Christy’
Black Bear
Donald Trump has given the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, a warm welcome to US soil as they begin a critical summit on the war in Ukraine.
Both leaders disembarked their planes at 11.08am local time at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, a cold war-era air force base on the outskirts of Anchorage, Alaska.
The friendly, tactile body language that followed offered a stark contrast to Trump’s shakedown of the Ukrainian president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, in the Oval Office in February.
Trump and Putin walked down red carpets that had been rolled up to their respective planes and met where the carpets came to a T, with Trump arriving first and clapping as Putin approached.
The men shared a warm handshake and what appeared to be some lighthearted banter. Trump gave Putin a friendly tap on the arm. Putin grinned and pointed skyward while their hands were still clasped.
The pair walked together towards a platform bearing a sign that read Alaska 2025 as B-2s and F-22s – military aircraft designed to oppose Russia during the cold war – flew over to mark the moment.
Trump and Putin stood looking towards the media but did not respond to shouted questions including: “President Putin, will you stop killing civilians?” The Russian president, who is wanted by the international criminal court, appeared to shrug.
Putin then joined Trump in the presidential limousine nicknamed “the Beast” – a rare privilege for allies and adversaries alike – and could be seen laughing with glee.
The men then sat together in a conference room with their respective delegations, seated to the side in front of a blue backdrop that had the words “Pursuing Peace” printed on it several times. Trump was joined by the secretary of state, Marco Rubio, and special envoy Steve Witkoff, and Putin by his foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, and foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov.
The White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, said the previously planned one-on-one meeting between Trump and Putin is now a three-on-three negotiation. That is a shift from a 2018 meeting in Helsinki, when Trump and Putin first met privately just with their interpreters for two hours.
The coming hours of discussions could reshape the war in Ukraine and relations between Moscow and Washington. The war has caused heavy losses on both sides and drained resources. Zelenskyy and European leaders are not invited.
Critics say that, by bringing Putin on to US soil for the first time in a decade, the president is giving him the legitimacy he craves after he became a global pariah following his invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
European allies fear that the notoriously mercurial Trump might sell out Ukraine by essentially freezing the conflict with Russia and recognising – if only informally – Russian control over one-fifth of Ukraine.
Trump sought to assuage such concerns as he boarded Air Force One, saying he would let Ukraine decide on any possible territorial swaps. “I’m not here to negotiate for Ukraine, I’m here to get them at a table,” he said.
after newsletter promotion
Asked what would make the meeting a success, he told reporters: “I want to see a ceasefire rapidly … I’m not going to be happy if it’s not today … I want the killing to stop.”
On his way to Alaska, Trump sat for an interview on Air Force One with Fox News Channel’s Bret Baier. In a clip posted online, he said he thought the meeting would “work out very well – and if it doesn’t, I’m going to head back home real fast.”
“I would walk, yeah,” he added, after a follow-up question.
Any success is far from assured because Russia and Ukraine remain far apart in their demands for peace. Putin has long resisted any temporary ceasefire, linking it to a halt in eastern arms supplies and a freeze on Ukraine’s mobilisation efforts, which are conditions rejected by Kyiv and its western allies.
Trump previously characterised the summit as “really a feel-out meeting”. But he has also warned of “very severe consequences” for Russia if Putin does not agree to end the war.
Trump said earlier in the week there was a 25% chance that the summit would fail but also floated the idea that, if the meeting succeeds, he could bring Zelenskyy to Alaska for a subsequent, three-way meeting.
European allies also have concerns that Trump could be tempted by economic incentives and potential deals. On Friday, the Reuters news agency reported that the US has had internal discussions on using Russian nuclear-powered icebreaker vessels to support the development of gas and LNG projects in Alaska.
Rushdi AbualoufGaza correspondent reporting from Istanbul and
Wyre DaviesBBC News, Jerusalem
The Israeli military has destroyed a high-rise block in Gaza City, the second major tower it has targeted in as many days.
Defence Minister Israel Katz posted video of the building collapsing on X, with the caption: “We’re continuing”.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF), which has been expanding operations in Gaza, said the Sussi Tower was being used by Hamas – a claim denied by the militant group.
It was not immediately clear whether there were any casualties. Ahead of Saturday’s strike, Israel dropped leaflets repeating calls for Palestinians to relocate to what it calls a humanitarian zone in the south.
In a social media post, IDF Arabic-language spokesman Avichay Adraee urged residents to “join the thousands of people who have already gone” to al-Mawasi – an area between Khan Younis and the coastline.
The IDF has repeatedly encouraged civilians to move there, saying medical care, water and food will be provided.
However, the UN has said the tent camps in al-Mawasi are overcrowded and unsafe, and that southern hospitals are overwhelmed.
On Tuesday, five children were killed while queuing for water in al-Mawasi. Witnesses said they were struck by an Israeli drone, an incident which the IDF said was “under review”.
The Sussi Tower is the second high-rise to be destroyed in as many days. On Friday social-media footage showed the Mushtaha Tower, in the city’s al-Rimal neighbourhood, collapsing after a massive explosion at its base.
The IDF said precautionary measures had been taken to mitigate harm to civilians, “including advance warnings to the population” and the use of “precise munitions”.
But Palestinians said displaced families had been sheltering in the Mushtaha Tower, and Gaza civil defence agency spokesman Mahmud Bassal accused Israel of enacting “a policy of forced displacement”.
Satellite imagery shows several neighbourhoods in parts of the city have been levelled by Israeli strikes and demolitions over the past month.
The residential and commercial tower blocks in Gaza City represented an important chapter in the city’s history, tied to hopes of ending the Israeli occupation and building an independent Palestinian state.
The rise of multi-storey towers – more than five floors – began after the signing of the Oslo Accords in 1993, which allowed tens of thousands of Palestinians to return from exile to Gaza and parts of the West Bank.
Following the Israeli withdrawal from most of Gaza in 1994, vertical expansion became a necessity to accommodate the influx of returnees.
The Palestinian Authority encouraged large investments in the construction sector, with entire neighbourhoods named after the towers.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Israel’s intention to seize all of the Gaza Strip after indirect talks with Hamas on a ceasefire and hostage release deal broke down in July.
The UN estimates nearly one million people remain in Gaza City, where it declared a famine last month. It has warned of an imminent “disaster” if the assault proceeds.
The Israeli military launched a campaign in Gaza in response to the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.
At least 63,746 people have been killed in Israeli attacks in Gaza since then, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.
The ministry also says 367 people have so far died during the war as a result of malnutrition and starvation.
Additional reporting by Ruth Comerford
Week 2 of the 2025 college football season begins Saturday with a handful of intriguing matchups in the early window, and the main event — which happens to be the only ranked-on-ranked game of the entire weekend — coming later in the day.
After losing its season-opener to Ohio State on the road, Arch Manning and No. 7 Texas will look to bounce back in a showdown against San Jose State. In the same window, College Football Playoff hopeful No. 11 Illinois travels to Durham, North Carolina, to face Duke. And if you like rivalry games, this window has that, too, as No. 16 Iowa State hosts Iowa with the Cy-Hawk Trophy on the line.
During the afternoon window, No. 6 Oregon faces Oklahoma State on CBS at 3:30 p.m. ET. No. 8 Clemson is coming off a loss to LSU and will look to record its first win of the season against Troy.
The top game on this weekend’s slate is a matchup between No. 15 Michigan and No. 18 Oklahoma in the evening window. The Sooners are coming off a blowout win over Illinois State, while Michigan quarterback Bryce Underwood led his team to a victory over New Mexico.
CBS Sports will be here every step of the way to update you with the latest scores, highlights and storylines throughout the evening. All times Eastern
No. 11 Illinois at Duke — ESPN — GameTracker
Iowa at No. 16 Iowa State — Fox — GameTracker
San Jose State at No. 7 Texas — ABC — GameTracker
Oklahoma State at No. 6 Oregon — 3:30 p.m. on CBS — Expert picks, preview
Grambling at No. 1 Ohio State — 3:30 p.m. on Big Ten Network
No. 20 Ole Miss at Kentucky — 3:30 p.m. on ABC — Expert picks, preview
South Florida at Florida — 4:15 p.m. on SEC Network
Bethune-Cookman at No. 5 Miami — 7 p.m. on ESPN+
No. 12 Arizona State at Mississippi State — 7:30 p.m. on ESPN2
Louisiana Tech at No. 3 LSU — 7:30 p.m. on ESPN+
No. 15 Michigan at No. 18 Oklahoma — 7:30 p.m. on ABC — Expert picks, preview
Check out the entire Week 2 scoreboard
Sydney Sweeney‘s latest performance in the David Michôd-helmed boxing biopic Christy has premiered at the 50th Toronto International Film Festival to mixed reviews.
The 2x Emmy nominee stars as boxer Christy Martin, who never imagined life beyond her small-town roots in West Virginia—until she discovered a knack for knocking people out. Fueled by grit, raw determination, and an unshakable desire to win, she charges into the world of boxing under the guidance of her trainer and manager-turned-husband, Jim (Ben Foster). But while Christy flaunts a fiery persona in the ring, her toughest battles unfold outside it, as she confronts family, identity, and a relationship that just might become life-or-death.
While some critics have praised Sweeney for disappearing into the role of the professional boxer, others say that’s all the movie has going for it.
Deadline’s Pete Hammond said Christy is an “overlong (at 135 minutes), somewhat repetitive and finally, in the third act, excruciating-to-watch movie,” although he admitted, “Sweeney delivers, and then some, putting her all into this sometimes extremely dark tale, and really does show she has the acting chops to pull it off, as if we didn’t already know.”
“If only the movie didn’t feel like we have seen this before because Martin’s personal story … is worthy of it being told to as many people as possible,” adds Hammond. “Let’s hope Christy, despite its flaws, gets an audience for that reason alone.”
‘Christy’
Black Bear
In IndieWire‘s review, Kate Erbland wrote that Sweeney “disappears into the role, not just changing her hair color, eye color, accent, and way of moving, but her general air, her overall mien, the space she takes up in a room.”
The New York Post‘s Johnny Oleksinski called Sweeney “a knockout” in her performance, adding that the film is “a major step to showing there’s much more to her than rom and com.”
Meanwhile, Nick Schager wrote for The Daily Beast that Sweeney “gives a believable performance that almost transcends her role’s derivativeness. This manipulative hybrid of Rocky, Million Dollar Baby, and Monster, however, is so rote that even an A.I. wouldn’t dare try to pass it off as original.”
TheWrap‘s Chase Hutchinson wrote, “It succeeds about half the time, making for a split decision where Sweeney and Christy both emerge as champions while the film itself can’t quite go the distance.”
For The Guardian, Benjamin Lee concluded, “Christy Martin’s life was filled with devastating blows but in her biopic, we barely feel the impact.”
Producers are Kerry Kohansky-Roberts, Teddy Schwarzman, Brent Stiefel, Justin Lothrop, Michôd and Sweeney, and the movie premieres Nov. 7 in theaters via Black Bear.
The Guardian view on Trump and the Fed: independence is no substitute for accountability | Editorial
Building Trust in Military AI Starts with Opening the Black Box – War on the Rocks
SDAIA Supports Saudi Arabia’s Leadership in Shaping Global AI Ethics, Policy, and Research – وكالة الأنباء السعودية
Journey to 1000 models: Scaling Instagram’s recommendation system
Mumbai-based Perplexity Alternative Has 60k+ Users Without Funding
VEX Robotics launches AI-powered classroom robotics system
Happy 4th of July! 🎆 Made with Veo 3 in Gemini
Kayak and Expedia race to build AI travel agents that turn social posts into itineraries
Macron says UK and France have duty to tackle illegal migration ‘with humanity, solidarity and firmness’ – UK politics live | Politics
OpenAI 🤝 @teamganassi