Israel will begin a contentious land regulation process in a large part of the occupied West Bank, which could result in Israel gaining control over wide swathes of the area for future development, according to a government decision on Sunday. It paves the way for the resumption of “settlement of land title” processes, which had been frozen in the West Bank since the Middle East war in 1967. It me...
Israel will begin a contentious land regulation process in a large part of the occupied West Bank, which could result in Israel gaining control over wide swathes of the area for future development, according to a government decision on Sunday. It paves the way for the resumption of “settlement of land title” processes, which had been frozen in the West Bank since the Middle East war in 1967. It means that when Israel begins the land registration process for a certain area, anyone with a claim to...
Border Patrol Fired Army Lasers At Party Balloons, Forcing El Paso Air Traffic Shutdown On Wednesday, after the FAA suddenly shut down airspace over El Paso, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced the unsettling move was prompted by a "cartel drone incursion," and assured Americans that "the threat has been neutralized." However, that shutdown, which impeded everything from commercial air t...
Border Patrol Fired Army Lasers At Party Balloons, Forcing El Paso Air Traffic Shutdown On Wednesday, after the FAA suddenly shut down airspace over El Paso, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced the unsettling move was prompted by a "cartel drone incursion," and assured Americans that "the threat has been neutralized." However, that shutdown, which impeded everything from commercial air traffic to medevac helicopter flights, was actually caused by a trigger-happy border Border Patrol unit firing a US Army laser weapon at a party balloon, not far from El Paso International Airport. The introduction of the weapon into a border-security role without FAA approval may have violated federal law. The proposal for arming the border patrol with the anti-drone weapon was first presented to Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg in the spring of 2025, sources tell the New York Times . The goal was the interdiction of drones used to smuggle drugs across the frontier. According to two people, Pentagon staff cautioned that the idea would require approval of the FAA and Transportation Department , but Feinberg said the Pentagon was free to do what it wanted with the weapons. The Pentagon called their account "a total fabrication." In a Feb 6 email obtained by the Times , the FAA's chief lawyer warned a DOD official that putting the weapon into the border-enforcement mix without restricting the airspace "a grave risk of fatalities or permanent injuries” to civilians flying overhead. CPB officers reportedly fired an AeroVironment LOCUST laser counter-drone weapon on loan from the US Army (AeroVironment photo) In the predawn hours on Monday, Feb 9, as military service members observed, Customs and Border Protection officers fired the laser weapon at what they assumed was a drone near Fort Bliss , but it was actually a metallic party balloon. Around 5pm that day, a DOD official emailed an FAA lawyer, reiterating the Pentagon's stance that prior FAA approval wasn't needed, an...
Ofelia Torres, 16, spotlighted her dad Ruben’s illegal detention last fall during Trump’s crackdown in Chicago A Chicago teenager, whose father was detained by immigration authorities while she navigated cancer, died on Friday, a family spokesperson said. Ofelia Torres, a 16-year-old in Chicago, had been undergoing treatment for an aggressive and rare form of cancer since late 2024. As she and her...
Ofelia Torres, 16, spotlighted her dad Ruben’s illegal detention last fall during Trump’s crackdown in Chicago A Chicago teenager, whose father was detained by immigration authorities while she navigated cancer, died on Friday, a family spokesperson said. Ofelia Torres, a 16-year-old in Chicago, had been undergoing treatment for an aggressive and rare form of cancer since late 2024. As she and her family struggled with the medical procedures, her father, Ruben Torres Maldonado, was detained by immigration authorities while at a Home Depot in October, leading to a contentious and public case that highlighted the human effects of the Trump administration ’s aggressive immigration crackdown . Continue reading...
gonin/iStock via Getty Images Fund Highlights U.S. large capitalization companies Historically paid consistent, growing dividends Distinctive approach is centered on linking valuations with barriers to entry Seeks to invest in businesses that are trading below what is believed to be its estimate of the companies' intrinsic value Focuses on businesses that are believed to have a sustainable competi...
gonin/iStock via Getty Images Fund Highlights U.S. large capitalization companies Historically paid consistent, growing dividends Distinctive approach is centered on linking valuations with barriers to entry Seeks to invest in businesses that are trading below what is believed to be its estimate of the companies' intrinsic value Focuses on businesses that are believed to have a sustainable competitive advantage or a high barrier to entry in place Market Recap The U.S. Federal Reserve built on its September rate cut by delivering two additional 25 basis point reductions at its final meetings of the year, moving policy closer to neutral amid signs of a softening labor market. At the same time, divisions within the Federal Open Market Committee have become more pronounced, with concerns about labor-market downside risks balanced against the possibility of renewed inflation pressures. While recent data suggests inflation has plateaued, goods prices remain a potential source of upside risk, reflecting ongoing tariff pressures and uncertainty surrounding a pending Supreme Court ruling on their legality. Following stronger-than-expected GDP growth of 4.3% in the third quarter, economic activity is expected to moderate in the fourth quarter, largely reflecting the temporary drag from the U.S. government shutdown. Growth is anticipated to normalize in early 2026 as these effects fade. Beyond weighing on activity, the shutdown has complicated interpretation of economic data due to delayed and incomplete releases. Looking ahead, tax policy could provide a tailwind, with accelerated depreciation supporting capital spending and individual tax cuts bolstering consumer demand. However, job growth has slowed meaningfully and could begin to weigh on consumption should unemployment continue to rise. As rate cuts eased financial conditions and underlying fundamentals remained supportive, the S&P 500 reached new highs during the quarter, finishing the year with a 17.9% gain and marking...
Hungary requested that Croatia allow the shipment of Russian crude via the Adriatic pipeline while a key route through Ukraine remains blocked. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto and Slovak Economy Minister Denisa Sakova jointly wrote to the Croatian government in Zagreb with the request, Szijjarto said in a statement Sunday. Oil transit along the Druzhba pipeline via Ukraine has been halt...
Hungary requested that Croatia allow the shipment of Russian crude via the Adriatic pipeline while a key route through Ukraine remains blocked. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto and Slovak Economy Minister Denisa Sakova jointly wrote to the Croatian government in Zagreb with the request, Szijjarto said in a statement Sunday. Oil transit along the Druzhba pipeline via Ukraine has been halted since late last month amid large-scale Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, with the governments in Budapest and Kyiv in a standoff over the fallout. Budapest relies on the Druzhba pipeline connecting Hungary with Russia through war-torn Ukraine for most of its oil flows. Read more: Hungary Accuses Ukraine of Blocking Oil Following Russian Strike Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban , who has remained committed to buying Russian energy sources for his landlocked country, has also frequently engaged in debate with neighboring Croatia over the capacity of the Adriatic pipeline. Energy policy is also likely to feature in Orban’s talks in Budapest with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Monday. Orban has found an ally in Slovak counterpart Robert Fico , who on Sunday echoed his views that Ukraine was using the Druzhba pipeline for political leverage, which officials in Kyiv have denied.
tupungato/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Listen below or on the go via Apple Podcasts and Spotify Walmart features in a holiday-shortened week with 57 S&P 500 reports. (0:17) Economists expect Q4 GDP growth near 2.8%. (1:10) Supreme Court could rule soon on Trump tariffs. (1:37) The following is an abridged transcript: It’s a holiday-shortened week for Wall Street, with markets closed Monday fo...
tupungato/iStock Editorial via Getty Images Listen below or on the go via Apple Podcasts and Spotify Walmart features in a holiday-shortened week with 57 S&P 500 reports. (0:17) Economists expect Q4 GDP growth near 2.8%. (1:10) Supreme Court could rule soon on Trump tariffs. (1:37) The following is an abridged transcript: It’s a holiday-shortened week for Wall Street, with markets closed Monday for Presidents’ Day — officially Washington’s Birthday, and observed as such by the NYSE. But in the four trading days, there’s still plenty on the calendar, with 57 S&P 500 ( SP500 ) companies reporting results. Walmart ( WMT ) is the marquee name. The retail giant is expected to report fiscal Q4 EPS of $0.73 on revenue of $188.54B when it reports Thursday. Same-store sales are forecast to rise about 4.2%. Walmart also joined the $1T market-cap club last week. Seeking Alpha analyst Grassroots Trading says Walmart is aggressively integrating AI — including “Sparky” — to drive efficiency and profitability, narrowing the gap with Amazon ( AMZN ). But they rate the stock a Strong Sell, arguing the valuation looks extreme, with limited margin of safety if multiples revert. Also on the earnings calendar : Palo Alto Networks ( PANW ) and Medtronic ( MDT ) report Tuesday, followed by DoorDash ( DASH ) and Occidental ( OXY ) on Wednesday. On the economic front, the first look at Q4 GDP is due Friday, with economists expecting 2.8% annualized growth. Wells Fargo says the underlying fundamentals still look solid — but estimates growth could run closer to 1.6% if you factor in the government shutdown’s drag on headline activity. Also due Friday are the December income and spending figures, which include the core PCE price index — the Fed’s preferred inflation gauge. Core PCE is forecast to tick up to 3% year over year. In Washington, a Supreme Court ruling on President Trump’s tariffs could come as soon as Friday . The court has flagged three opinion days: Feb. 20, Feb. 24, and Feb. 25....
DNY59/iStock via Getty Images Executive Summary Sycamore Capital's Small Cap Value investment team employs a disciplined, bottom-up, fundamental process to invest in what we believe are better businesses that trade at a discount to the team's estimate of intrinsic value and possess fundamental drivers that may narrow the valuation gap. By investing in businesses that exhibit these attributes, we s...
DNY59/iStock via Getty Images Executive Summary Sycamore Capital's Small Cap Value investment team employs a disciplined, bottom-up, fundamental process to invest in what we believe are better businesses that trade at a discount to the team's estimate of intrinsic value and possess fundamental drivers that may narrow the valuation gap. By investing in businesses that exhibit these attributes, we seek to minimize downside risk without sacrificing the upside potential. The Victory Sycamore Small Company Opportunity Fund (A Shares without sales charge) underperformed the Russell 2000® Value Index for the fourth quarter of 2025 and for the 12-month period ended December 31, 2025. During the quarter, both stock selection and sector allocation were unfavorable, with security selection having a larger impact on relative underperformance. For the 12-month period, stock selection was the primary driver of relative underperformance, while sector allocation had a marginally positive impact for the period. Sector weighting is a by-product of the bottom-up stock selection process and not a result of top-down tactical decisions. Market Overview Third Consecutive Year With Double-Digit Returns U.S. equities capped off another year of double-digit returns for the major indices. That marked the third consecutive year of double-digit returns for the S&P 500® Index, Russell Midcap® Index, Russell 2000® Index and the Nasdaq Composite. For the S&P 500® Index, Russell Midcap® Index and the Russell 2000® Index, 2025 marked the eighth year of double-digit returns in the past 10 years. For the Nasdaq Composite, it was the seventh out of the past 10 years—marking an impressive streak for U.S. equities. It was also a stellar year for precious metals, with gold (+64.4%) and silver (+141.4%) both having their best years since 1979. Conversely, the U.S. dollar clocked its worst year since 2017—down 9.5%. WTI crude was also in the penalty box—declining approximately 20% for the year—making it the...
Millie Turner assists and then scores on her first start back from injury to help Manchester United come from behind and beat London City Lionesses 2-1.
Millie Turner assists and then scores on her first start back from injury to help Manchester United come from behind and beat London City Lionesses 2-1.
On Friday afternoon, Ars Technica published an article containing fabricated quotations generated by an AI tool and attributed to a source who did not say them. That is a serious failure of our standards. Direct quotations must always reflect what a source actually said. That this happened at Ars is especially distressing. We have covered the risks of overreliance on AI tools for years, and our wr...
On Friday afternoon, Ars Technica published an article containing fabricated quotations generated by an AI tool and attributed to a source who did not say them. That is a serious failure of our standards. Direct quotations must always reflect what a source actually said. That this happened at Ars is especially distressing. We have covered the risks of overreliance on AI tools for years, and our written policy reflects those concerns. In this case, fabricated quotations were published in a manner inconsistent with that policy. We have reviewed recent work and have not identified additional issues. At this time, this appears to be an isolated incident. Ars Technica does not permit the publication of AI-generated material unless it is clearly labeled and presented for demonstration purposes. That rule is not optional, and it was not followed here. Read full article Comments
Azu adds 200m gold to 60m title in Birmingham Issy Boffey wins 800m after Hodgkinson withdrawal Amid a raft of high-profile absentees from Birmingham this weekend it was quite the surprise to see Jeremiah Azu’s name on the 200m start list for the UK Athletics Indoor Championships on Sunday. The 200m is not contested internationally during the indoor season so elite athletes almost never race it, a...
Azu adds 200m gold to 60m title in Birmingham Issy Boffey wins 800m after Hodgkinson withdrawal Amid a raft of high-profile absentees from Birmingham this weekend it was quite the surprise to see Jeremiah Azu’s name on the 200m start list for the UK Athletics Indoor Championships on Sunday. The 200m is not contested internationally during the indoor season so elite athletes almost never race it, and Azu had already won the 60m title a day earlier. In an era where world-class athletes tend to wrap themselves in cotton wool for fear of injury it was unusual to see one so accomplished run an additional three times in three hours when there was no particular need. Continue reading...
Defence chiefs write joint appeal urging public to prepare for threat of war with Russia with attendant costs As defence chiefs, we must warn you about Russia and say this: rearmament is not warmongering Britain and Germany’s highest ranking military chiefs have made an unprecedented joint appeal to the public to accept the “moral” case for rearmament and prepare for the threat of war with Russia....
Defence chiefs write joint appeal urging public to prepare for threat of war with Russia with attendant costs As defence chiefs, we must warn you about Russia and say this: rearmament is not warmongering Britain and Germany’s highest ranking military chiefs have made an unprecedented joint appeal to the public to accept the “moral” case for rearmament and prepare for the threat of war with Russia. The pair said they were making the plea not just as the military leaders of two of Europe’s largest military spenders, but “as voices for a Europe that must now confront uncomfortable truths about its security”. Continue reading...
Our security is more uncertain than in decades. But by working together, and by showing strength, Britain, Germany and the rest of Europe can preserve peace Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton is UK chief of the defence staff. Gen Carsten Breuer is German chief of defence Top British and German military chiefs press ‘moral’ case for rearmament We write today not merely as the military leaders o...
Our security is more uncertain than in decades. But by working together, and by showing strength, Britain, Germany and the rest of Europe can preserve peace Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton is UK chief of the defence staff. Gen Carsten Breuer is German chief of defence Top British and German military chiefs press ‘moral’ case for rearmament We write today not merely as the military leaders of two of Europe’s largest military spenders, but as voices for a Europe that must now confront uncomfortable truths about its security. Through the early years of our careers, Europe was emerging from the shadow of the cold war. Governments of all political colours chose to take what was known as the “peace dividend” – investing in public services and reducing spending on defence. That was an understandable choice at the time. Now it’s clear that the threats we face demand a step change in our defence and security. European leaders, along with military and civilian officials, have just discussed necessary consequences at the annual Munich security conference . As military leaders, we see every day from intelligence and open sources how Russia’s military posture has shifted decisively westward. Its forces are rearming and learning from the war in Ukraine, reorganising in ways that could heighten the risk of conflict with Nato countries. This is a reality we must prepare for; we cannot be complacent. Moscow’s military buildup, combined with its willingness to wage war on our continent, as painfully evidenced in Ukraine, represents an increased risk that demands our collective attention. Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton is UK chief of the defence staff. Gen Carsten Breuer is German chief of defence Continue reading...
Wing to learn fate after red card in Scotland Immanuel Feyi-Waboso also out with injury Steve Borthwick is facing a selection headache as England seek to get their Six Nations campaign back on track against Ireland on Saturday, with Henry Arundell set for disciplinary action after his red card against Scotland . England have promised an “honest and emotional” review into their dismal Calcutta Cup ...
Wing to learn fate after red card in Scotland Immanuel Feyi-Waboso also out with injury Steve Borthwick is facing a selection headache as England seek to get their Six Nations campaign back on track against Ireland on Saturday, with Henry Arundell set for disciplinary action after his red card against Scotland . England have promised an “honest and emotional” review into their dismal Calcutta Cup defeat before Borthwick decides how to configure his backline against Ireland, with Arundell facing the prospect of a suspension for his two yellow cards against Scotland. Continue reading...