UK Watchdog Faces Backlash For Criticizing British Flags

England football badges worn by staff at immigration detention facilities could be perceived as intimidating by detained migrants, according to a newly published report by a UK government watchdog, sparking controversy ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

England are due to begin their World Cup campaign against Croatia next week, a period during which displays of the St George’s Cross and other patriotic symbols traditionally become commonplace across the country.

However, the Independent Monitoring Boards (IMB), which oversees conditions in prisons and immigration detention facilities, raised concerns after observing staff at a short-term holding facility wearing England flags on their uniforms during the summer of 2025, when England’s women’s team successfully defended its European Championship title.

"On two occasions during the summer, staff at one short-term holding facility were observed wearing England flags affixed to their uniforms," the report states.

According to the watchdog, the displays could have been interpreted negatively by migrants. "The Board felt this risked perceptions of bias or even intimidation among detained people, especially in the light of recent anti-immigration protests in which flag displays were prominent," the report continues.

The IMB added that the incidents raised concerns about "professional standards and workplace culture" within the facility.

Notably, the conclusion appears to be based on two observed incidents at a single holding centre, with the report not identifying a wider pattern of similar behaviour elsewhere in the detention system.

The findings quickly triggered a backlash among commentators and social media users, many of whom expressed disbelief that British staff working in England could be criticized for wearing England flags while supporting the national team during a World Cup.

Critics argued that the report effectively suggested that a symbol representing the host nation could be perceived as threatening in an immigration detention facility located within that very nation.

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Viral World Cup Model Is Back

The 2026 FIFA World Cup is here, but many fans are wondering if Croatia superfan Ivana Knöll will make an appearance in one of the 16 cities in Canada, Mexico and the United States that will host the tournament.

The 5-foot-11 model went viral and became known as the "sexiest fan" with her sultry outfits at the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. Fans in the stands lined up for photos with her at matches, while some raised an eyebrow at her revealing outfits due to the the strict dress code in the Middle Eastern country.

After that, she shared photos and videos of her attending high profile parties and mingling in circles with celebrities such as Shaquille O'Neal, Drake, Naomi Campbell, Jamie Foxx and Floyd Mayweather.

Knöll has since entered the music industry as a DJ and record label owner under the name KNOLLDOLL.

The internet sensation, who has 2.9 million Instagram followers, will be part of the action at this year's World Cup and will be making at least one stop in Los Angeles.

Knöll announced her record label, Knolldoll, in April, and debuted her single, "We Are The People," the next month, which she said is her "World Cup Anthem."

The song went viral and gained momentum at her 2026 shows in Miami, Houston, Toronto and Philadelphia.

Knöll, who performed at LIV Nightclub in during the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix weekend, 1-3 May, went viral again when she was shown on the Sky Sports broadcast at the race.

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NY Democrats Support Bill Bill Replacing 'Mother' And 'Father'

New York Democrats recently passed a bill that would remove the words "mother" and "father" from parts of state law, sending the legislation to Gov. Kathy Hochul's desk for final approval.

Under the new bill, targeting state child custody and parental laws, "mother" becomes "gestating parent," "father" becomes "non-gestating parent," and "paternity" becomes "parentage."

It passed in the state Senate this week after progressing through the Assembly in March.

Democrats who drafted the legislation claimed the wording shift would promote "inclusivity," while critics claim the change is unnecessary, with the legislative session having ended for the year, FOX 5 New York reported.

Hochul said during a news conference that she isn't familiar with the proposal, but promised to review it.

"I have until the end of the year to review them and make a decision, so I won't be commenting on pending legislation," Hochul said.

Republican gubernatorial candidate Bruce Blakeman shared multiple posts responding to the bill on social media.

"In Kathy Hochul's New York, 'mom' is now defined as 'gestating parent,'" Blakeman wrote. "Not when I'm Governor! I'll stand up for moms and dads against this insanity."

"This bill is a continuation of Hochul's war on families, and I won't stop fighting until we take New York back," he added.

Rep. Claudia Tenney, R-N.Y., reacted to the bill on X, saying, "The party that can't define a woman is now rewriting New York law to erase mothers and fathers. Only in Albany could 'mom' and 'dad' become too controversial."

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Nike Stock Crashes Because Of "Woke" Shift

Several sources agree on one thing, Nike is either in a heap of trouble or slowly steadying the ship after the John Donahoe era — a time when the company lacked innovation and focused too heavily on building out direct-to-consumer (DTC) sales.

The sneaker giant's share price is currently down more than 70 percent from its high in 2021 during the pandemic. Nike shares are currently trading at around US$ 44.

The last month in particular, the company has been plagued by a string of bad news coming out of the sneaker giant's Beaverton, Oregon, headquarters.

Nike faced backlash after its Boston Marathon "Runners Welcome, Walkers Tolerated." ad. It eventually apologized and walked the ad back. Then, the retailer announced that it was cutting 14,000 employees from its workforce, primarily in its tech department.

Nike has now done two rounds of layoffs in 2026. It's also the fourth consecutive year the company has downsized staff. Nike has said recent layoffs are about better positioning the company for the current pace of sports and accelerating its growth.

To make matters worse, Nike's new campaign promoting the Dutch national team’s new kit ahead of the 2026 World Cup under the slogan "Strength is found in diversity" is under fire. In the caption accompanying the promotional video, the companies stated that they sought to "reimagine Dutch football through the spirit of New Netherlands".

The intention is laudable, but the one-minute visual featured almost exclusively non-white individuals, including Surinamese brass bands and youths in animal masks moving on all fours, resembling some kind of urban jungle. Combined with the use of the term "New Netherlands", the campaign quickly sparked widespread mockery and backlash online.

Morningstar analyst ⁠David Swartz recently told Reuters that the "wokeness" started Nike's problems and it "runs deeper than originally thought." He added the company should be further along in its recovery, while acknowledging Nike may have been overstaffed thanks to diversity quotas.

Nike's revenue was down 3 percent to US$ 11.3 billion on a currency neutral basis in its fiscal third quarter. Guidance for the current quarter left investors unimpressed and caused a sell-off of its stock.

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Palestinian-Flag-Carrying Graduate Defy Rules Almost Denied Diploma

Berkeley educators refused to hand a diploma to a graduate who held aloft the Palestinian flag unless he got rid of it.

It happened during the Spring graduation ceremony for the Goldman School of Public Policy at the University of California Berkeley, when a student walked across the stage to get their diploma and flashed the flag.

In a video from the ceremony, the student walked up to the person holding their diploma and the professor refused to hand it over.

One of the announcers said, "I’m sorry, but we’re not allowed to have flags."

"Flags are prohibited. We’re not allowed to have flags."

In the footage from the celebration, it appeared the student was being instructed to get rid of the flag before the ceremony could resume and his diploma would be handed over.

The ceremony was halted for more than a minute as the student carrying the flag refused to put it away to get his diploma.

This happened in front of the entire audience made up of family members of graduates, faculty and fellow students.

As the audience got confused, the announcer apologized and said "I’m sorry it’s not our policy, it’s the university policy."

Eventually, the graduate walked over to someone in the audience and handed over the flag.

A spokesperson for the university issued a statement to the outlet that "Campus guidelines regarding commencement decorum, stating that demonstrations or political displays that disrupt the flow of the graduation ceremony are prohibited."

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WHO Steps Up Testing As Ebola Rapidly Spreads In Congo

The World ‌Health Organization said ‌on 28 May on X that, in partnership with the national medical research ‌organization of ⁠the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), ⁠it is scaling up Ebola diagnostic capacities in the ‌country to help swiftly contain an outbreak.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said ‌the effort aims to strengthen the laboratory ‌network to deliver real-time data, rapidly identify confirmed cases and ‌save lives.

Meanwhile, doctors and public health workers at the epicenter of the Ebola outbreak in eastern DRC told ABC News that the deadly virus is still spreading at an alarming rate.

"The outbreak is completely out of control," said Dr. Richard Kojan in an interview from the city of Bunia in Ituri province, which is the hardest hit.

Kojan, who has been involved in fighting previous Ebola outbreaks in central and western Africa and is president of the Alliance for International Medical Action, said deep mistrust within some local communities is hampering efforts to contain the virus.

Another clinician, Dr. Richard Lokudi, who is the director of the main hospital in Mongbwalu, the hardest hit area, told ABC News that the disease was spreading "at an exponential speed."

Dr. Lokudi said seven symptomatic patients suspected of having Ebola had recently "escaped" from Mongbwalu Hospital.

This was creating "chains and chains of contamination," Dr. Lokudi said, adding that this was making the virus "difficult to fight."

According to the WHO, more than 1,000 suspected cases of a rare strain of Ebola, known as Bundibugyo, have been identified in the eastern DRC and more than 230 suspected deaths from the virus have been recorded.

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Caitlyn Clark Is All Set For Another WNBA Record

Caitlin Clark now officially stands alone in WNBA assist history, and she's so far in a different stratosphere that the Indiana Fever superstar will be tough to catch.

She became the league's all-time assists per game leader last 28 May night. Why we are not surprised? She has convincingly dominated this one particular category like no one else.

Clark already had the best average in league history, but to go on the official leaderboard, she needed to reach 500 career assists.

She entered the matchup with the Golden State Valkyries at 497 assists. When Clark had three assists in the first half, she could join the charts, and she's the highest average there now.

Clark entered the contest averaging 8.6 assists per game across her three-year career so far.

So why might this record never be broken? It's about the other averages.

The previous leader in this category before Clark was Courtney Vandersloot.

Vandersloot averaged 6.62 assists per game in her career, about 2.0 less than Clark has averaged so far. Second place is an active player, Sabrina Ionescu, but at just 5.90 assists per game.

Clark is averaging assists at a rate more than 20 percent higher than anyone in the history of the WNBA.

To think that someone else can come along and do that in these 10-minute quarters is quite the radical thought.

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Fifa Asked To Explain World Cup Ticket Pricing

Fifa is under fire and must answer questions after allegations of "artificially inflating prices" and "misleading fans" over the sale of tickets for the 2026 World Cup.

It comes as the attorneys general of New York and New Jersey officially launched an investigation into Fifa's practices.

New Jersey attorney general Jennifer Davenport called the process a "gauntlet of confusion, fake scarcity and impossibly high prices".

She added there would be a "thorough investigation of Fifa's conduct" with world football's governing body subpoenaed to provide information.

A subpoena compels a party to release specified internal documents or information.

Davenport made a joint announcement alongside New York attorney general Letitia James and the New York City department of consumer and worker protection (DCWP).

DCWP commissioner Samuel AA Levine said the body would be taking "allegations of blatantly deceptive conduct very seriously" and would look into allegations of "artificially inflating prices".

In particular, Fifa has been asked to explain why tickets have "exceeded the prices for any previous World Cup tournament".

Fans have reported they were "misled" about the location of seats, including through the creation of more expensive 'front' category tickets released after the initial sales.

It is also alleged variable pricing through various phases had allowed Fifa to raise prices for about 90 of the 104 fixtures by an average of 34 percent.

The investigation will consider how the ticket release schedule and public statements may have impacted prices.

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Gardening Offers Health Benefits

Gardening has long been associated with relaxation, fresh air, and spending more time outdoors, but new research suggests it may also provide meaningful physical and emotional benefits for older adults. As more people search for lower-impact ways to stay active later in life, gardening is increasingly being viewed as more than just a seasonal hobby.

A new study from the Mather Institute explored how older adults view gardening and the role it can play in supporting long-term wellness. According to the research, many participants said gardening helps them stay physically active while also improving their mood and reducing stress.

The findings arrive as interest in gardening continues growing among older adults who want hobbies that combine movement, routine, and time outside without the intensity of more structured exercise programs. Consistent gardening can become an important routine and a way to stay physically engaged and mentally sharp.

According to research from the Mather Institute, nearly 90 percent of respondents said gardening has a positive impact on their physical health. Many participants also viewed gardening as a form of exercise because it naturally incorporates movement into everyday routines.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that older adults get at least 150 minutes of moderate physical activity or 75 minutes of vigorous activity each week. According to the study, many who participate in regular gardening exceed those recommendations.

Tasks like digging, planting, pulling weeds, watering, bending and carrying gardening supplies can all contribute to regular physical activity. Unlike traditional workouts, garden work often feels more purposeful and relaxing, and that sense of accomplishment tends to make people more likely to stick with it over time.

Researchers and health organizations, such as the CDC, have increasingly pointed to low-impact physical activity as an important factor in supporting mobility and overall wellness as people age. For older adults who may not enjoy gyms or formal exercise programs, gardening can offer a more approachable alternative.

The research study also highlighted the broader lifestyle habits of adults who garden. According to the study, gardeners were more likely to report healthier eating habits and higher overall fruit and vegetable consumption.

"Older adults are interested in ways to improve their wellness, and gardening is a secret way to achieve this goal," said Jennifer Smith, vice president of Mather Institute. "From our research, we also found gardeners tended to consume significantly more fruit and vegetables and engage in other healthy eating habits more often, and the rewards of this simple hobby can be truly meaningful. We hope this research offers accessible steps older adults can take to nurture their gardening journey so they can age well."

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