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An anti-racism organization has accused a former official at soccer clubs in England and Wales of using “callous language” to stereotype Black players. In an interview with The Pink Un, a local newspaper in Norwich, Stuart Webber, who resigned from his position as sporting director of Norwich City last year, mentioned five Black players he had worked with: Jonny Rowe, Abu Kamara, Max Aarons, Jamal Lewis, and Raheem Sterling. In an interview regarding his impending four-week adventure to climb Mount Everest for charity, Webber made these remarks. He continued, “Where [the players] come from, it had to work out for them in football because the alternative is potentially jail or something else. We want to help the guys who really need it, not the ones who are maybe privileged.” The remarks on X, formerly known as Twitter, have drawn strong criticism.

The sports anti-discrimination organization Kick It Out called the remarks “racially profiling” and “deeply offensive and concerning.” Kick It Out stated, “To read such callous language being used by someone who was a senior executive at the top of the English game until recently paints a very damning picture.” “It is evidently distressing for the individuals who have been singled out, and it also demonstrates an extreme lack of consideration for their families, who have been integral to the players’ experiences,” CNN has made an effort to get in touch with Webber.

Co-founders of the Summit Foundation with his wife Zoe, Webber collaborates with other nonprofits to develop youth-focused initiatives. One of the foundation’s goals, according to its website, is to use education to break the cycle of poverty. “We need to inspire the youth in this community, give them goals to work toward, and if we can, provide financial support,” he stated to The Pink Un. “We will carry on with the charitable work after Everest.” Kamara, a striker on loan from Norwich City to League One outfit Portsmouth, expressed his and his family’s “deep sadness and shock” over Webber’s comments in a statement posted on X. “I want to say to all the black and ethnic minority children that you don’t have to be a professional athlete to avoid living a life of crime,” he continued, emphasizing how crucial it is to dispel this myth for younger audiences. “I acknowledge the sacrifices my family has made for me to be able to play football, and I am proud of my background.

These comments indicate that more work has to be done before everyone is treated fairly. In a post on X, Lewis’ mother Catrina described Webber’s comments as “very unprofessional,” while Aarons’ mother Amber stated that there was “not a chance any of those boys… would have been in jail.” Webber’s remarks “do not in any way reflect the wider views of the football club,” Norwich said in a statement on Monday. “Since the interview was published, club representatives have concentrated on having direct conversations with Jonathan Rowe and Abu Kamara to learn about their concerns and provide support,” the statement continued. “The club is currently conversing with Kick It Out and corresponding with the other players on the list. “Everyone has a home in Norwich City.” We are steadfast in our efforts to foster an atmosphere where everyone feels appreciated and welcomed in the areas of equality, diversity, and inclusion. Webber previously worked at Huddersfield Town, Wolverhampton Wanderers, Queens Park Rangers, Liverpool, and Wrexham. His wife Zoe is an executive director at Norwich City.

Max Verstappen’s formidable hold on the Formula One championship was broken on Sunday at the Australian Grand Prix by Carlos Sainz, who caused the Red Bull driver to retire from the competition. It was noteworthy since it was Sainz’s first race back since he underwent appendix surgery only two weeks prior. Oliver Bearman, an 18-year-old reserve driver, replaced Sainz at the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix due to appendicitis. After starting the race second on the grid behind Verstappen, the three-time world champion, the Spaniard kept a close distance from him before overtaking him with ease on the second lap.

Verstappen’s car’s issues soon became evident as he yelled over the radio, “I have smoke, fire, fire, brake, my brake,” before slowing down and hobbling into the pit lane with flames in his wheels and smoke billowing behind him. He retired from a Grand Prix for the first time in just two years, blaming brake failure. The 26-year-old later conveyed his dissatisfaction. It’s not perfect, yes. After retiring for the first time since the 2022 Australian Grand Prix, Verstappen stated, “Of course you always want to finish the races but it’s a mechanical sport.” “Unfortunately, these things do happen, but I believe the most crucial thing is that we comprehend why it happened.”

Due to his dominance over the previous two seasons, the Dutchman’s withdrawal from the race placed the other competitors in a vulnerable position. But Sainz never really seemed like he was going to lose, and he held on to win easily. His colleague Charles Leclerc finished in second place to clinch a Ferrari 1-2. After the race, Sainz told Sky Sports, “I felt really good out there.” Naturally, it wasn’t the easiest race and was really stiff, especially physically. However, I was fortunate to be mostly by myself, so I was able to control my pace, my tyres, and everything else. But I’m also really content, proud of the team, and glad to be playing in a 1-2 with Charles.

It demonstrates how perseverance pays off and how wacky life can be at times. Oscar Piastri, who races for McLaren, finished fourth, and Lando Norris finished third. They managed to hold off Sergio Pérez, who, although driving an all-conquering Red Bull car, could only manage fifth place. Mercedes, on the other hand, had a terrible race when both of their vehicles had to be retired. George Russell crashed into the wall on the final lap while attempting to take sixth place, and Lewis Hamilton’s engine failed on lap 17, forcing a virtual safety car to stop the race.

Thanks to its incredibly brilliant ensemble, great songs, references to the original film, and timeless (if well-known) teachings about high school life, “Mean Girls” deserves a place at the cool kids table. It remains a challenge to set itself apart from the Disney Channel/teen musical pack, but in the end, whether seen in a theater or on streaming, it’s a lot of fun and an all-too-rare find. In addition to writing the story and producing the production, Tina Fey and Tim Meadows reprise their roles as principal and instructor in this adaption of the musical based on the 2004 movie.

Nevertheless, the junior cast plays a major role in the film’s development, as do the creative and catchy songs written by lyricist Nell Benjamin and composer Jeff Richmond. Directors Samantha Jayne and Arturo Perez Jr. This time, Angourie Rice (“Mare of Easttown”) plays Cady Heron, the wide-eyed outsider who just joined the high school clique after receiving her education in Kenya from her mother Jenna Fischer. Following a few awkward moments, Cady befriends two colorful misfits, Janis (Auli’i Cravalho) and Damian (Jaquel Spivey), who are initially only looking out for her. To everyone’s surprise, however, Cady gets an invitation to sit with Regina George, the school’s queen bee (played by Reneé Rapp in “The Sex Lives of College Girls”), who rules over the student body with her two devoted sidekicks, Avantika and Bebe Wood, a dynamic that is aptly captured by the song “Apex Predator.”

The reserved Cady, a gifted math student, also suffers from a severe case of “calculust,” as she humorously sings, over Aaron (Christopher Briney), who is Regina’s ex and, therefore, off limits if she wants to maintain her standing in the cool-girl tier. Nevertheless, she is working as a kind of double agent, entering Regina’s trio on Janis’s behalf while gradually giving in to the allure of being at the top of the adolescent social hierarchy. The viral films that Layne and Perez Jr. skillfully translate from stage to screen and into the 2020s feature fast-paced, often overly fast-paced content. But the fundamental conflicts and relationships endure, and the best of the music bursts with contagious intensity and a Fey-like disregard for musical traditions.

Along with “The Color Purple” and the stage-filmed musical “Waitress,” “Mean Girls” joins a stellar lineup of recently released musicals. More, including the two-part “Wicked,” are in the works. The biggest challenge is keeping this content apart from the abundance of adolescent entertainment available on TV and streaming services, but to be honest, it should be sufficient to introduce “Mean Girls” to a new generation and provide the best seat in the house for Cravalho’s performance of “I’d Rather Be Me” or Rapp’s performance of “World Burn.” “Mean Girls” may rehash tired clichés about the caste system in high school, but it passes muster with audiences looking for a fun couple of hours at the theater.

According to a law enforcement source who spoke with CNN, search warrant action at the residences of producer and musician Sean “Diddy” Combs on Monday was connected to a continuing investigation into sex trafficking. Due to the delicate nature of the inquiry, the insider would not say if Combs was the specific target. The Department of Homeland Security Investigations New York acknowledged that it had “executed law enforcement actions as part of an ongoing investigation” in response to reports of raids at Combs’ residences. According to CNN correspondents on the scene, law enforcement was spotted at two of Combs’ residences on Monday: one in the Miami region and the other in Los Angeles.

According to HSI New York, local law enforcement, HSI Miami, and HSI Los Angeles all provided support in this action. “We will furnish additional details as they become accessible,” the law enforcement division informed CNN. The US Department of Homeland Security’s principal investigative division, HSI, is in charge of looking into threats and transnational crimes, including human trafficking. Carlos Suarez of CNN was informed by an HSI Miami spokesman that the police conduct amounted to a “search warrant execution.” It’s unclear at this time if Combs or other locals are the intended targets of the police activity. CNN has contacted Combs’s agents to request a statement. Multiple armed law enforcement personnel were seen strolling around Combs’ Los Angeles home’s grounds in aerial imagery. Agents were processing documents on card tables at his Miami area home and the Los Angeles home, both of which had mobile command post vehicles visible. Considering the extent of the properties, it will probably take some time to find and process the evidence.

Combs (54), also known by his stage names Puff Daddy and Diddy, started the record company Bad Boy in 1993. Combs, who is recognized for his contributions to the development of the hip-hop genre, has received 14 nominations and three Grammy awards during his career. Although Combs first found fame with his music, he also rose to prominence as a producer and businessman. The incident comes after months of controversy for Combs, however it is unclear if Monday’s law enforcement action is connected. Combs resolved a lawsuit filed in November 2023 by singer Casandra “Cassie” Ventura, his ex-girlfriend, who claimed Combs had sexually assaulted her and mistreated her repeatedly over a period of years. “A choice to resolve a lawsuit, particularly in 2023, is not an acknowledgement of misconduct,” Combs’ lawyer Ben Brafman stated in a statement to CNN at the time. “Mr. Combs’ choice to resolve the litigation does not contradict his categorically asserted denial of the allegations in any way. He’s glad they were able to come to an amicable agreement and hopes the best for Ms. Ventura.

A few weeks later, Combs was the target of at least two more civil cases brought in New York, one of which was brought in federal court in December and contained accusations of sex trafficking in addition to the charges of sexual assault. In reaction to the December lawsuit, Combs stated, “I have sat silently and watched people try to assassinate my character, destroy my reputation, and my legacy.” I’ve been the target of horrifying accusations from people hoping to get rich quick. To be crystal clear, I did not do any of the horrible things that are being said. I’ll stand up for the truth, my family, and my name. In a separate civil case brought by a former male employee last month, Combs was accused of sexual assault and harassment. Combs, via his counsel, refuted the allegations.

Vladimir Putin of Russia has admitted that “radical Islamists” were responsible for the deadly attack on a Moscow concert hall that occurred on Friday. However, he has reiterated his assertion that they were connected to the West and Ukraine in some way. Ukraine has dismissed the Russian assertion as nonsensical. The terrorist organization known as the Islamic State (IS) claims responsibility for the 139 fatalities and has made video of the assault public. According to Russian officials, 22 patients—including two children—remain critically ill in the hospital. During a televised conference on Monday, the Russian leader stated: “We know that the crime was committed by the hands of radical Islamists, whose ideology the Islamic world itself has been fighting for centuries.”

He continued, saying, “We want to know who ordered it.” He stated that there were still a lot of unsolved questions and restated the falsehood that the assailants had attempted to escape to Ukraine in the south. He questioned, “Who was waiting for them there?” “This atrocity may be just a link in a whole series of attempts by those who have been at war with our country since 2014.”  According to him, the US was attempting to persuade everyone that Kyiv was unrelated to the incident. Furthermore, he blamed the West, stating that attempts by those who had battled Russia through Kyiv were the only ones that might be connected to the incident. During his weekly video address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky refuted the Russian accusations, saying, “Putin was talking to himself again… Once more, Ukraine is to blame. A sick and jaded being.”

France has issued a warning of a rise in terrorist threats, while numerous European countries have increased security. The US claims that IS is “solely” responsible for the attack in Moscow. Four Tajikistani nationals have shown up in court on charges of carrying out the massacre. A 31-year-old man from Kyrgyzstan is one of four suspects accused of providing support to terrorism. He is suspected of renting out an apartment used by the assailants. The US embassy issued a warning that “extremists have imminent plans to target large gatherings in Moscow, to include concerts” just over two weeks prior to the incident. It was only last week that Mr. Putin dismissed the warning as inflammatory. The Russian president said that the US was exploiting its threat of an impending attack to “intimidate and destabilize our society,” three days before the shooters targeted Crocus City Hall on the northwest edge of Moscow.

In the meantime, the Russian security agency FSB declared on Tuesday that it had stopped pro-Ukrainian Russian fighters from attacking Samara, a city in the south of the country. It reported that a paramilitary member of the Russian Volunteer Corps had blown himself up after being captured. Antonio Tajani, the foreign minister of Italy, stated that while it was evident that Mr. Putin was seeking excuses to strike Kiev, the attack’s footage was unambiguous, and many claims from the IS supported the assumption that it was responsible. Ahead of a summer filled with significant international sporting events, concerns about fresh jihadist plots in Western Europe have increased following the attack in Moscow, which US intelligence has attributed to the Islamic State-Khorasan, a regional offshoot of IS.

Katie Gee Salisbury saw a picture roughly twenty years ago that she would remember for a long time. The monochrome picture showed a sea of parade participants encircling a convertible. A sleek and gorgeous Chinese American woman was seated in the back seat. Salisbury was enthralled with the woman right away. He is a fifth generation Chinese American with rich connections in Chinatown, Los Angeles. On her first day as an intern at the Chinese American Museum in Los Angeles, a curator informed her that she would be studying Anna May Wong, the well-known actress from the 1920s and 1930s who is credited as being the first Asian American movie star in Hollywood history.

Salisbury remarks, “I wanted to know more about this woman.” “I was shocked that no one had ever informed me about her.” Salisbury’s latest book, “Not Your China Doll: The Wild and Shimmering Life of Anna May Wong,” was finally sparked by that picture and was released on March 12. Salisbury freely acknowledges that she is not the first to document Wong’s life and accomplishments. However, she believed that while other histories of the actress made significant contributions to the understanding of Wong’s life, they fell short in certain areas.

She continues, “I always felt that they were missing the perspective of an Asian American woman because a lot of them are written by academics or by men.” Salisbury claims that previous biographers portrayed Wong as a tragic person, exaggerating stories about her sexual orientation, her battles with drinking, and her choice to never get married. With “Not Your China Doll,” Salisbury aimed to present an alternative narrative. Wong’s life was undoubtedly difficult; due to Hollywood’s bigotry, she was much too frequently cast in clichéd supporting roles and turned down for numerous roles in favor of White performers wearing yellowface.

However, as Salisbury notes, she also experienced a great deal of success. Her lead role as Madame Liu-Tsong’s title character on TV was the first for an Asian American. In addition to winning over critics and viewers, the trailblazing singer ultimately paved her own way in an otherwise discriminatory field. Salisbury discussed how Hollywood has evolved since Wong’s day, how Wong resisted stereotypes about Asian women, and how her own Asian American identity influenced the book in an interview with CNN. The duration and clarity of this chat have been adjusted. I work in a rather special position. My Chinese American family has lived in this nation for five generations, on the one hand. There was kinship there simply by virtue of our shared southern Chinese immigration history with Anna May Wong’s family.

Andy Murray, the famous British tennis player, will be out for a considerable amount of time following a catastrophic ankle injury he sustained during his Miami Open third-round loss. At the Miami Open, the 36-year-old Murray fell to Tomáš Macháč of the Czech Republic 5-7 7-5 7-6(7-5) in the third round on Sunday. He disclosed the next day that, at the course of the game, he had sustained a near full thickness rupture of his calcaneofibular ligament (CFL) and a complete rupture of his anterior talofibular ligament (ATFL). “When I get back home, I’ll see an ankle specialist to figure out what to do next,” the former world number one stated on Instagram.

“Obviously, this is a difficult one to accept, but when the time is right, I’ll return with one hip and no ankle ligaments.” Murray, the two-time Mami Open singles champion, overcame a 5-5 deficit in the third set against Macháč and then seemed to roll his left ankle after winning a point. After the point, he was clearly in pain, and a physiotherapist on the court helped him right away. Murray would continue playing, forcing a tie-break and saving a match point before falling short in nearly three and a half hours.

The three-time grand slam champion considered the idea that this match might have been his final one at the competition after the contest. “I would have preferred it to have lasted a little bit longer because I have spent so much of my tennis career here,” he remarked. “It was a little more emotional leaving the court today than it might have been at some of the other events, because this tournament is particularly important to me.” Murray has struggled with severe and ongoing problems in the past few years, requiring two hip surgeries in 2019.

He actually hasn’t been able to continuously compete at the top level for a time, and he currently plays with a metal hip. Following his loss to Tomás Martín Etcheverry of Argentina in the Australian Open’s first round in January of this year, Murray acknowledged that this might be his last season competing. “I discussed it with my team. I’ve discussed it several times with my relatives. “It’s not as though I haven’t been thinking about it,” he remarked at the time.

Lewis Hamilton, a seven-time Formula One winner, will join Ferrari in 2025 after leaving Mercedes, the teams confirmed on Thursday. Hamilton was under contract with the club until the end of 2025; Mercedes confirmed in a statement on X, the former Twitter, that he “has activated a release option in the contract announced last year.” The British driver will be joining the squad on a “multi-year contract,” according to a statement made by Ferrari. “I have had an amazing 11 years with this team and I’m so proud of what we have achieved together,” Hamilton said in a statement posted on the Mercedes website. Since I was thirteen years old, Mercedes has been a part of my life. It was one of the hardest decisions I have ever had to make to leave, as it is a place where I have grown up. “But I’m eager to take on a new challenge and I think the time is right for me to take this step.”

The 39-year-old, who began his career with McLaren in 2007 and now shares the record for the most Formula One world titles with Michael Schumacher, joined Mercedes in 2013. The British driver went on to have a brilliant time, winning six titles in a span of seven years. Mercedes has had difficulty sustaining its leadership in recent years, but Hamilton—who placed third in the driver standings the previous year—signed a contract extension in August that will keep him with the team through the end of the 2025 campaign. But in a shocking move that was first revealed on Thursday by Spanish and Sky Sports media, Hamilton will now be playing for one of the biggest rivals of the Silver Arrows.

Toto Wolff, the principal of the Mercedes team, stated, “We knew our partnership would come to a natural end at some point, and that day has now come.” “We respect Lewis’s choice to look for a new challenge, and it’s exciting to think about the opportunities we have ahead of us.” In the constructor standings from the previous season, Mercedes came in second, three points ahead of Ferrari in third, but both teams trailed a much stronger Red Bull squad. In 2025, Hamilton will replace Carlos Sainz at Ferrari by working with Charles Leclerc. The Spanish driver announced in a post on X that he will depart the team at the end of 2024 and will disclose his next move “in due course.”

Phil Duncan, a CNN contributor and Press Association F1 correspondent, stated to CNN Sport’s Amanda Davies on Thursday that Lewis Hamilton has gone two years without winning a grand prix, which is practically unique for him and something he has never had to cope with in his career. “At 39 years old, he’s undoubtedly thinking that this is his final big opportunity, his final great step, and his final opportunity to drive for Ferrari—a team that has always attracted him. This is arguably the largest transfer in Formula One history, and it has revitalized the competition.

The biggest attack to strike a concert hall in Moscow in years occurred on Friday. Days after President Vladimir Putin took office for a fifth time, gunmen broke into the facility and murdered over 130 people. Four members of the Islamic State group (IS) are claimed to have carried out the attack. This is the current state of knowledge. Just after 20:00 (17:00 GMT) on Friday night, gunmen broke into the foyer of Crocus City Hall, a musical venue for the rock group Picnic, which was scheduled to take place on the outskirts of Moscow, 20km (12 miles) from the Kremlin. On camera, at least four individuals could be seen firing indiscriminately before entering the music hall and starting to fire.  A woman inside the theater claimed that as soon as she realized shots were being fired, she and other guests hurried towards the stage. “I saw a person in the stalls with a sidearm and there were cracks [of gunfire] going off, I was trying to crawl behind a loudspeaker,” she stated on Russian television.

There is a glimpse of flames within the hallway at one point. Later, glass on the top two stories of the seven-story building burst out, and flames consumed the facade. According to Russia’s Investigative Committee, “the terrorists used a flammable liquid to set fire to the concert hall’s premises, where spectators were located, including wounded.” Although 160 tonnes of water were dropped by helicopters, it took roughly ten hours to put out the fire. Hundreds had been slain and injured by the time the suspects managed to flee; by some estimates, the attack lasted for roughly twenty minutes. Some people died from smoke inhalation, while many others died from bullet wounds. The members of Picnic’s band escaped uninjured. For the event, almost 6,000 Russians had gone to the shopping and entertainment complex. There has been a steady increase in the death toll. At least 137 deaths have been reported by Sunday afternoon.

According to the initial official list of dead, the oldest victim appeared to be in her 70s and had three children. Authorities have cautioned that additional people could perish in addition to the dead and that at least 60 people are still in critical condition. On the northwest edge of Moscow, Krasnogorsk, Khimki, and other neighboring towns accounted for a large number of the dead and injured.  A manhunt was launched after it seems that the attackers were able to flee the chaos and fire they had left behind. The attackers, according to Russian MP Alexander Khinshtein, drove off in a white Renault. He claimed that when police attempted to halt the car in the Bryansk area, some 340 kilometers (210 miles) from Moscow, they were able to apprehend two persons while the other two ran away. The Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) declared that 11 persons had been detained, including four who were “directly involved,” around 14 hours after the initial reports of the shooting. On Sunday, four suspects—Dalerdzhon Mirzoyev, Muhammadsobir Fayzov, Shamsidin Fariduni, and Saidakrami Murodali Rachabalizoda—were brought into a Moscow courtroom.

Each of them faces a life sentence in jail after being accused of terrorism. All four were from Tajikistan, according to Russia’s official news agency Tass. IS claimed responsibility for the attack in a succinct statement on Friday. It published a picture on Saturday purporting to show the four attackers, all of whom were wearing masks. Later, the organization made extremely gory attack footage public. The BBC has confirmed the authenticity of the video, which shows one of the gunmen starting to fire on many individuals. This video will not be shown on the BBC. The IS claim was made two weeks after the US issued a warning about a possible attack targeting “large gatherings” in Moscow; Russian officials have not responded to the warning. Russian officials have expressed dissatisfaction with the US intelligence’s lack of specificity. And only last week, Putin said: “Recent provocative statements by a number of official Westerns structures about the possibility of terrorist attacks in Russia… resembles outright blackmail and an intention to intimidate and destabilise our society.”

Now, days of absence and suffering instead of weeks or months, are Rachel Goldberg-Polin’s new calendar. She writes a number on a piece of tape and attaches it to her clothes every morning when she wakes up. It’s the number of days that Hamas kidnapped her son Hersh and claimed him as his own. That number is 155 when we get together in Jerusalem. When she checked her phone in the morning on October 7, she saw two texts from Hersh. First, they said, “I love you.” The second message that was sent out right away was, “I’m sorry.” Her call went unanswered. Her words, “It rang and rang,” I penned, ‘Are you alright? Tell me if you’re alright. There was never any evidence of those texts. My gut turned inside and my throat tightened. I simply knew that a terrible thing was happening, and I knew he knew it too.” Hersh became entangled in the chaos that Hamas had unleashed during the Supernova music festival. He went to a crowded bomb shelter for safety. Hand grenades were being thrown in by Hamas fighters who were nearby.

The 23-year-old’s most recent photo appears in a Hamas video. With shooters all around, he is being carried onto a pickup vehicle. It’s blasted off his left arm. 1,200 Israelis were murdered in the Hamas strikes, the most of them were civilians. Since then, officials in the Hamas-run region of Gaza claim that Israel has attacked the area nonstop, killing over 31,000 people. There, women and children make up 70% of the deceased. Rachel’s quest is to return her son and the other prisoners home while the conflict rages in Gaza. Hersh is one of the 130 hostages from the strikes of October 7th that are still in Gaza. Israel estimates that at least thirty have already passed away. “Every morning I make a concerted effort and say to myself, ‘now, pretend to be human so that I can get up and try to save Hersh and the other remaining hostages’,” she shares with me. “What I want to do is lay in a ball on the floor weeping, but that won’t help them.”

Despite her petite size and slight build, Rachel is a formidable mother of three. We get together at the office of a venture capital firm, which a friend leased us, which serves as her family’s campaign headquarters. She currently works as a campaigner full-time. Ever since the day of the assaults, she has not returned to her job. Jon, her spouse, hasn’t either. However, after five months, both domestically and internationally, attention is beginning to shift away from the hostages. Family members are fighting arduously to maintain their public profile. When you inquire about her, Hersh, a smile appears on her face. “That’s my favourite subject – my children,” she continues. “Hersh is a carefree, easygoing soccer enthusiast. Since he was a young boy, he has been enthralled with travel and geography, and he is a huge music festival enthusiast.” Her son, a dual citizen of the United States and Israel, was scheduled to depart for a year or two of travel throughout the globe. He had already purchased his ticket.

The date of departure was December 27. There was talk of a possible agreement to free the Palestinian captives and bring an approximate 40-day peace in exchange for the hostages being released before the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. A dismal Ramadan has arrived, devoid of any progress. But in the coming day or so, negotiations on a potential deal are scheduled to pick back up in Doha. I’m terrified, uncertain, and anxious all the time, says Rachel. “You know the adage, don’t count your chickens before they hatch? Don’t count yourself hostage, in my opinion, until you’ve given them a hug.” However, she maintains that optimism “is mandatory”. “I believe it and I have to believe it, that he will come back to us.” Even in the midst of her suffering, she recognizes the suffering of Gazan families without delay. The suffering, she believes, has to end, and not just for Israelis. “There are thousands and thousands of innocent civilians in Gaza who are suffering,” she continues. “There is an abundance of misery in the world. And I would adore it if all of our leaders declared, “We’re going to do whatever it takes to make the lives of ordinary people better.”