Luis Rubiales: Spanish FA president resigns after kissing player at Women’s World Cup final
Spanish FA president Luis Rubiales has said he will resign after he kissed a player following the country’s Women’s World Cup win.
Mr Rubiales, who was suspended by football’s governing body FIFA over the kiss, has said in an interview on Piers Morgan Uncensored on TalkTV that he now plans to resign because he “cannot continue my work”.
His decision comes after the Spanish football federation previously called for him to step down following the incident.
Mr Rubiales said: “About my resignation, yes I am going to do… Because I cannot continue my work.”
Asked what lead him to make the decision to step down, Mr Rubiales continued: “My father, my daughters, I spoke with them… Some friends, very close to me, they say ‘Luis, you have to focus on your dignity and to continue your life, because you know probably that you are going to damage people you love and the sport you love.”
He added: “But this is more a question of not only me, the attitude of me can affect third parties that are very important.”
Mr Rubiales has also posted a document on X, formerly known as Twitter, confirming he has handed in his resignation to the acting president of the Spanish football federation Pedro Rocha.
He confirmed that he has also resigned as one of UEFA’s vice presidents.
Mr Rubiales writes that the suspension by FIFA and other proceedings mean he cannot return to the role he held for more than five years.
He adds that trying to hold on to the position would not contribute to “anything positive”.
Mr Rubiales also said that his family have suffered during the fallout from the kiss and he must now look to the future.
He wrote in his post itself: “I will defend my honourability. I will defend my innocence. I have faith in the future. I have faith in the truth. Thank you all.”
Read more:
Who is Luis Rubiales?
What did Rubiales and Hermoso say in kiss row?
Spanish FA apologises for ‘enormous damage’
The 46-year-old faced widespread criticism for kissing Spain’s captain Jennifer Hermoso on the lips during the awards ceremony after Spain’s 1-0 victory over England in the competition’s final on 20 August.
Spain’s women’s football team had said they would not play any further matches for their country until Mr Rubiales had been removed from his post.
The resignation follows the Spanish prosecutor filing a lawsuit against him for sexual assault and coercion.
Marta Durantez Gil’s decision came after Hermoso filed a complaint with the prosecutor’s office. She accused Mr Rubiales of sexual assault after he grabbed her head and kissed her on the lips.
With the complaint, Mr Rubiales could face criminal charges, in addition to the ongoing inquiry by Spain‘s top sport court for “serious misconduct” and an investigation by FIFA.
Pic:Noe L amas/SPP/Shutterstock
It is up to the court to present formal charges. A sexual assault charge carries a prison term of between one and four years in Spain.
The footballer has repeatedly said the kiss was not consensual, but a defiant Mr Rubiales had previously refused to resign, saying it was “spontaneous, mutual, euphoric and consensual”.
Mr Rubilaes previously admitted he made “some obvious mistakes” that he sincerely regrets, but claimed there was no aggression or discomfort when the kiss occurred.
“There was not even the slightest discomfort, but an overflowing joy in both,” Mr Rubiales said.
“The spontaneity and happiness of the historic moment led us to carry out a mutual and consented act, the product of great enthusiasm.”
US president-elect Donald Trump has suggested Israel and Hamas could agree a Gaza ceasefire by the end of the week.
Talks between Israeli and Hamas representatives resumed in the Qatari capital Doha yesterday, after US President Joe Biden indicated a deal to stop the fighting was “on the brink” on Monday.
A draft agreement has been sent to both sides. It includes provisions for the release of hostages and a phased Israeli troop withdrawal from Gaza.
Qatar says Israel and Hamas are at their “closest point” yet to a ceasefire deal.
Two Hamas officials said the group has accepted the draft agreement, with Israel still considering the deal.
An Israeli official said a deal is close but “we are not there” yet.
More than 46,500 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since Israel launched its ground offensive in the aftermath of the 7 October attacks, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.
Read more:
What’s in the proposed deal?
Palestinians inspect the site of an Israeli strike on beachfront cafe in Deir al Balah. Pic: Reuters
Biden hails possibility of agreement
President Biden said it would include a hostage release deal and a “surge” of aid to Palestinians, in his final foreign policy speech as president.
“So many innocent people have been killed, so many communities have been destroyed. Palestinian people deserve peace,” he said.
“The deal would free the hostages, halt the fighting, provide security to Israel, and allow us to significantly surge humanitarian assistance to the Palestinians who suffered terribly in this war that Hamas started.”
Qatari mediators have sent Israel and Hamas a draft proposal for an agreement to halt the fighting.
Analysis:
Deal might be close, but there are many unanswered questions
Pic: Reuters
Trump: ‘We’re very close’
President-elect Donald Trump has also discussed a possible peace deal during a phone interview with the Newsmax channel.
“We’re very close to getting it done and they have to get it done,” he said.
“If they don’t get it done, there’s going to be a lot of trouble out there, a lot of trouble, like they have never seen before.
“And they will get it done. And I understand there’s been a handshake and they’re getting it finished and maybe by the end of the week. But it has to take place, it has to take place.”
Read more:
Pope Francis honoured by Joe Biden
Donald Trump’s inauguration 2.0
Pic: AP
Israeli official: Former Hamas leader held up deal
Speaking on Tuesday as negotiations resumed in Qatar, an anonymous Israeli official said that an agreement was “close, but we are not there”.
They accused Hamas of previously “dictating, not negotiating” but said this has changed in the last few weeks.
“Yahya Sinwar was the main obstacle for a deal,” they added.
Sinwar, believed to be the mastermind of the 7 October attacks, led Hamas following the assassination of his predecessor but was himself killed in October last year.
Under Sinwar, the Israeli official claimed, Hamas was “not in a rush” to bring a hostage deal but this has changed since his death and since the IDF “started to dismantle the Shia axis”.
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Biden: ‘Never, never, never, ever give up’
Iran ‘weaker than it’s been in decades’
Yesterday, President Biden also hailed Washington’s support for Israel during two Iranian attacks in 2024.
“All told, Iran is weaker than it’s been in decades,” the president said.
Mr Biden claimed America’s adversaries were weaker than when he took office four years ago and that the US was “winning the worldwide competition”.
“Compared to four years ago, America is stronger, our alliances are stronger, our adversaries and competitors are
weaker,” he said.
“We have not gone to war to make these things happen.”
The US president is expected to give a farewell address on Wednesday.
A draft ceasefire deal on the table between Israel and Hamas would see 33 hostages set free and a phased withdrawal of IDF forces from parts of Gaza.
President Joe Biden said an agreement to stop the fighting was “on the brink” and high level negotiations between the two sides resumed in Qatar on Tuesday.
The deal would see a number of things happen in a first stage, with negotiations for the second stage beginning in the third week of the ceasefire.
It would also allow a surge in humanitarian aid into Gaza, which has been devastated by more than a year of war.
Details of what the draft proposal entails have been emerging on Tuesday, reported by Israeli and Palestinian officials.
Relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages hold photos of their loved ones during a protest on 8 January. Pic: AP
Hostages to be returned
In the first stage of the potential ceasefire, 33 hostages would be set free.
These include women (including female soldiers), children, men over the age of 50, wounded and sick.
Israel believes most of these hostages are alive but there has not been any official confirmation from Hamas.
In return for the release of the hostages, Israel would free more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.
People serving long sentences for deadly attacks would be included in this but Hamas fighters who took part in the 7 October attack would not be released.
An arrangement to prevent Palestinian “terrorists” from going back to the West Bank would be included in the deal, an anonymous Israeli official said.
Read more:
A timeline of events since the 7 October attacks
The hostages who still haven’t returned home
Smoke billows as buildings lie in ruin in Beit Hanoun in Gaza. Pic: Reuters
Phased Israeli withdrawal from Gaza
The agreement also includes a phased withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, with IDF troops remaining in the border perimeter to defend Israeli border towns and villages.
Security arrangements would be implemented at the Philadelphi corridor – a narrow strip of land that runs along the border between Egypt and Gaza – with Israel withdrawing from parts of it after the first few days of the deal.
The Rafah Crossing between Egypt and Gaza would start to work gradually to allow the crossing of people who are sick and other humanitarian cases out of Gaza for treatment.
Unarmed North Gaza residents would be allowed to return to their homes, with a mechanism introduced to ensure no weapons are moved there.
“We will not leave the Gaza Strip until all our hostages are back home,” the Israeli official said.
What will happen to Gaza in the future?
There is less detail about the future of Gaza – from how it will be governed, to any guarantees that this agreement will bring a permanent end to the war.
“The only thing that can answer for now is that we are ready for a ceasefire,” the Israeli official said.
“This is a long ceasefire and the deal that is being discussed right now is for a long one. There is a big price for releasing the hostages and we are ready to pay this price.”
The international community has said Gaza must be run by Palestinians, but there has not been a consensus about how this should be done – and the draft ceasefire agreement does not seem to address this either.
In the past, Israel has said it will not end the war leaving Hamas in power. It also previously rejected the possibility of the Palestinian Authority, which exercises limited governing powers in the West Bank, from taking over the administration of Gaza.
Since the beginning of its military campaign in Gaza, Israel has also said it would retain security control over the territory after the fighting ends.
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