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Athletics superstar Carl Lewis has criticised the US men’s 4x100m relay team, calling their performance a “total embarrassment” after failing to qualify for the final at the Tokyo Olympics.

They only finished sixth in their heat which was won by China.

This was despite the US team having stars including individual 100m silver medallist Fred Kerley, Ronnie Baker who came fifth in that final, and Trayvon Bromell who has the fastest time of the year so far at 9.77 seconds.

During the heat, Kerley and Baker got tangled up in a poor baton exchange, costing them precious time before Cravon Gillespie ran the anchor leg.

Nine-time Olympic gold medallist Carl Lewis said on Twitter: “The USA team did everything wrong in the men’s relay.

“The passing system is wrong, athletes running the wrong legs, and it was clear that there was no leadership. It was a total embarrassment.”

It marks the first time since 2008 that the US men’s 4x100m relay team will not run in an Olympic final.

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Five years ago at the Rio Games they were disqualified for a faulty baton exchange.

Speaking on Thursday, Baker told reporters the team had little time to practice.

Carl Lewis won nine Olympic gold medals. Pic: Action Images
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Carl Lewis won nine Olympic gold medals during a glittering athletics career. Pic: Action Images

But former American sprint champion Michael Johnson, who has four Olympic gold medals, was critical in a Twitter message directed at governing body USA Track & Field: “This isn’t rocket science @usatf.”

“Trying to get two people running full speed to exchange a baton within a 20 meter zone requires practice! Especially, when you haven’t won this event since Sydney 2000 due to drops and zone violations! Embarrassing and ridiculous.”

Team GB are through to Friday’s final after finishing second in their heat, behind Jamaica.

So far the US men’s team has only won one athletics gold medal at the Games, courtesy of Ryan Crouser in the shotput.

In contrast, the American women have dazzled, winning four golds so far.

China won the heat while the US was sixth. Pic: AP
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China won the heat while the US was sixth. Pic: AP

Sydney McLaughlin broke her own world record to win the 400m hurdles and Athing Mu delivered a first US 800m gold since 1968.

There were also golds in the women’s discus and the pole vault.

However, the US men’s 4x400m relay team has a chance of gold. America has won that event at seven of the last nine Olympics.

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Trump issues Gaza ceasefire ultimatum to Hamas as he warns ‘all hell is going to break out’ if hostages not returned

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Trump issues Gaza ceasefire ultimatum to Hamas as he warns 'all hell is going to break out' if hostages not returned

Donald Trump says the Gaza ceasefire should be cancelled if all remaining Israeli hostages are not returned by noon on Saturday – as he warned Hamas that “all hell is going to break out”.

The US president’s intervention came hours after Hamas has said it will delay the release of more hostages and accused Israel of violating their ceasefire deal.

While signing a series of new executive orders, Mr Trump said he feared many Israeli hostages scheduled for release are already dead.

Referring to his Saturday deadline for the release of hostages, Mr Trump said: “If they’re not here, all hell is going to break out.”

He acknowledged that a decision to end the ceasefire was up to Israel, adding: “I’m speaking for myself. Israel can override it.”

Hours earlier, Mr Trump said Palestinians would not have the right to return under his plan for US “ownership” of Gaza – contradicting officials in his administration who said they would be relocated temporarily.

Trump latest: ‘Palestinians will have no right to Gaza return’

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Widespread destruction seen in Gaza City. Pic: AP
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Widespread destruction seen in Gaza City. Pic: AP

Hamas halts release of hostages

Earlier on Monday, Hamas claimed ceasefire violations had included “delaying the return of the displaced to the northern Gaza Strip, and targeting them with shelling and gunfire”.

Spokesman Abu Obeida said Hamas remained committed if Israel kept to the terms, but that the 15 February handover was postponed “until the occupation commits to and compensates for the past weeks”.

Egyptian security sources told Reuters that mediators now fear the deal will break down.

They said Hamas believes Israel isn’t serious about the ceasefire – which began on 19 January.

The last hostage release took place at the weekend and saw three Israeli men set free. Five Thai citizens released last month were also finally reunited with their families in Bangkok.

They were among about 250 people taken during the 7 October 2023 attack, when 1,200 people were murdered.

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Tears as Thai hostages return home

Five swaps have taken place so far, with 21 hostages and more than 730 Palestinian prisoners released.

Saturday’s exchange was due to involve three more Israelis and hundreds of Palestinians.

Defence minister Israel Katz said any delay in releasing hostages would be “a complete violation” and he had instructed troops to be on highest alert.

The Hostages and Missing Family Forum called on mediating countries to restore the deal, saying “time is of the essence” and citing “the shocking conditions of the hostages released last Saturday”.

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As part of the ceasefire deal, Israeli forces pulled back from a key passage through Gaza on Sunday.

The four-mile-long Netzarim corridor separates northern Gaza from the south, and hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians have now crossed back over.

However, Israel pushed back the withdrawal by a few days in protest at the chaotic release of hostages Arbel Yehud and Gadi Moses.

This may be what Hamas is referencing what it talks of “delaying the return of the displaced”.

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Palestinians return to destroyed Netzarim

There have also been examples of Israeli troops shooting at or near Palestinians approaching Israeli forces after being warned to stay back.

So far, little progress has been made on an extension to the first six-week phase of the ceasefire.

A delegation from Israel has arrived in Qatar for further talks amid concern the deal might collapse before all remaining hostages are freed.

Israel has previously said it will not agree to a complete withdrawal from Gaza until Hamas’s military and political capabilities are eliminated.

Hamas has countered that it will not hand over the final hostages until Israel removes all its troops from Gaza.

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Trump imposes 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports

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Trump imposes 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports

Donald Trump has signed two proclamations imposing 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminium imports to the US.

A proclamation is a form of presidential directive to government officials, but they do not carry the force of law, as an executive order would.

However the White House has said the tariffs will take effect from 4 March.

“This is a big deal,” Mr Trump said in the Oval Office as he announced the tariffs. “The beginning of making America rich again.”

He added: “We were being pummelled by both friend and foe alike.”

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President Donald Trump speaks with reporters as he signs executive orders in the Oval Office at the White House. Pic: PA
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‘We were being pummelled by both friend and foe alike,’ said the US president

The proclamations mean the president has now removed the exceptions and exemptions from his 2018 tariffs on steel to allow for all imports of the metal to be taxed at 25%.

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The new tariff on aluminium is also much higher than the 10% duty he imposed on the material in his first term.

The tariffs are part of an aggressive push by Mr Trump to reset global trade, as he claims that price hikes on the people and companies buying foreign-made products will ultimately strengthen domestic manufacturing.

Outside economic analyses suggest the tariffs would increase costs for the factories that use steel and aluminium, possibly leaving US manufacturers worse off.

Canada, the largest source of steel imports to the US, criticised the move.

Candace Laing, CEO of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce, said Mr Trump was destabilising the global economy.

“Today’s news makes it clear that perpetual uncertainty is here to stay,” she said.

Hard to see how tariffs won’t be inflationary



Ed Conway

Economics and data editor

@EdConwaySky

At least part of the idea behind tariffs is to bring some production back to the US, but imposing them will have consequences.

What kinds of consequences? Well, at its simplest, tariffs push up prices. This is, when you think about it, blindingly obvious.

A tariff is a tax on a good entering the country.

So if aluminium and steel are going up in price then that means, all else equal, that the cost of making everything from aircraft wings to steel rivets also goes up.

That in turn means consumers end up paying the price – and if a company can’t make ends meet in the face of these tariffs, it means job losses – possibly within the very industrial sectors the president wants to protect.

So says the economic theory. But in practice, economics isn’t everything.

There are countless examples throughout history of countries defying economic logic in search of other goals.

Perhaps they want to improve their national self-reliance in a given product; perhaps they want to ensure certain jobs in cherished areas or industries are protected.

But nothing comes for free, and even if Donald Trump’s tariffs succeed in persuading domestic producers to smelt more aluminium or steel, such things don’t happen overnight.

In the short run, it’s hard to see how these tariffs wouldn’t be significantly inflationary.

Trump’s war of tariffs

Mr Trump’s proclamations come days after the US imposed a 10% tariff on all goods imported from China.

In return, China imposed 10% tariffs on American crude oil, agricultural machinery, large-displacement cars and pickup trucks.

There will also be 15% tariffs on coal and liquefied natural gas from the US.

US plans to impose 25% tariffs on Mexico and Canada were paused after agreements were reached on border security.

Mexico’s president said she was sending 10,000 National Guard troops to the US border immediately in return for a tariff delay.

Mr Trump said the Mexican soldiers would be “specifically designated” to stop the flow of fentanyl into the US, as well as illegal migrants.

Meanwhile, Canada’s prime minister Justin Trudeau said almost 10,000 frontline personnel “are and will be working on protecting the border”.

He added that his country was appointing a “fentanyl czar”, drug cartels would be listed as terrorists, and there would be “24/7 eyes on the border”.

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Trump says Palestinians couldn’t return to Gaza under his redevelopment plan

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Trump says Palestinians couldn't return to Gaza under his redevelopment plan

Donald Trump has said Palestinians would have no right to return to Gaza under his proposal to relocate its population and rebuild the Strip.

The president last week debuted his suggestion to “own” Gaza and shut out Hamas while it’s redeveloped, but has now contradicted officials who had said any relocation would be temporary.

Asked by Fox News if Palestinians could return, he replied: “No, they wouldn’t, because they’re going to have much better housing. In other words, I’m talking about building a permanent place for them.”

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Speaking on Monday at the White House, Mr Trump also suggested the current ceasefire in Gaza should end on Saturday if Hamas does not release hostages as planned.

He then went further, saying all the remaining hostages should be released by midday on Saturday, or the ceasefire should be cancelled – and that “all hell is going to break out” if the hostages are not freed then.

But the US president added: “I’m speaking for myself. Israel can override it.”

Hamas said earlier it would delay the release of hostages – accusing Israel of violating the ceasefire.

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‘I would own this’ – Trump on Gaza

Mr Trump told Fox News his future vision for Gaza was to build multiple “safe communities, a little bit away from where they are, where all of this danger is”, adding the area is currently “not habitable”.

He said he believed he could cut a deal with Jordan or Egypt to take people in.

However, Arab allies – including Egypt and Saudi Arabia – have dismissed the idea of relocating Gaza’s two-million-plus population.

Western countries have also rejected the proposal; an independent state for Palestinians remains the favoured way forward but is a no-go for the Israeli government.

When asked in the media, Palestinians have also rubbished the idea.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has supported Mr Trump’s controversial proposal.

Donald Trump meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office. 
Pic: Reuters
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Donald Trump meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office. Pic: Reuters

Much of Gaza lies in ruins due to Israel‘s attempt to wipe out Hamas after its 2023 terror attack that killed around 1,200 people in Israel.

About 250 were also kidnapped, but those still alive have started to be released in recent weeks after a hard-won truce took effect last month.

Since the ceasefire began on 19 January, five swaps have taken place – with 16 Israeli and five Thai hostages released.

In total, Israel has said it will release up to 1,904 Palestinian prisoners in return for 33 Israeli hostages during the deal’s first phase.

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Israeli police confiscate books in raid on Palestinian bookshops

Prospect of no return most offensive part of radical plan

From Donald Trump, it’s a hardened “No”. Asked directly if Palestinians would have the right to return to a redeveloped Gaza, he told Fox News Channel’s Brett Baier: “No, they wouldn’t, because they’re going to have much better housing.”

If the notion of Trump building on Gaza has offended its people, most offensive is the prospect for them of no return. Since Donald Trump first suggested taking and building on Palestinian land, observers in America, the Middle East and all countries in between have been assessing its seriousness.

Everything he’s said since indicates he’s committed both to the project and to ignoring entrenched objections from allies and adversaries alike.

In spite of flat refusals by Jordan and Egypt to resettle Palestinians in those countries, Trump said: “I think I could make a deal with Jordan. I think I could make a deal with Egypt. You know, we give them billions and billions of dollars a year.”

If peace in the Middle East was a matter of money, it would have been solved long ago. Tuesday’s meeting in Washington between Trump and Jordan’s King Abdullah won’t be easy.

In the White House, the Jordanian leader will talk numbers of his own – the hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees already living in the Hashemite kingdom and the instability threatened by moving more.

Trump is also due to meet the Egyptian president and the Saudi crown prince in the coming days – it is a chorus of Arab voices to caution an expansionist president at a delicate time, as parties involved in the current conflict work through the phases of a ceasefire deal.

Trump’s plan is radical and it invites fresh-eyed debate over a way forward for the region.

However, it is the property deal that separates a people from their home – again. At the heart of a radical plan, it’s the inherent recklessness.

So far, little progress has been made on an extension to the first six-week phase of the ceasefire.

A delegation from Israel has arrived in Qatar for further talks amid concern the deal might collapse before all remaining hostages are freed.

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