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Canelo aims to land knockout blow against Scull in Saudi debut

Mexican boxing legend Saul “Canelo” Alvarez will be looking to unify the super middleweight titles this weekend, when he squares off with IBF champion William Scull in Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh. Alvarez, 34, brings a record of 62-2-2 with 39 knockouts into what promises to be a high-stakes clash, as he continues his tradition of fighting during the Cinco de Mayo weekend.Canelo is coming off a punishing unanimous decision over Edgar Berlanga in Las Vegas in September. Ahead of that bout, Alvarez was stripped of his International Boxing Federation belt when he opted to box Berlanga rather than Scull — the IBF’s mandatory challenger.This weekend’s contest will mark the first time the Mexican champion will fight outside of North America during his nearly 20-year professional career. The boxers are set to enter the ring in the early hours of Sunday morning in Riyadh to coincide with Saturday evening festivities over the Cinco de Mayo weekend back in North America.   Alvarez inked a four-fight deal with Saudi Arabia’s Riyadh Seasons promotion in February, the latest boxing superstar to flock to the kingdom for a mega payday. “Believe me. This is nothing new for me. But for him, it’s gonna be something different, for sure,” said Alvarez during a press conference in Riyadh on Thursday.  The betting lines show that Scull remains a massive underdog going into the weekend’s fight. With the contest flying under the radar for casual fans, many see the bout as a warm-up match ahead of a widely anticipated super fight between Alvarez and Terence Crawford later this year, which is rumoured to be in the final stages of negotiations.  But all of that hinges on Canelo winning in Riyadh this weekend. “No one could be a bigger spoiler than William Scull,” said veteran combat sports journalist Ariel Helwani during a podcast this week. “If William Scull wins somehow, someway on Saturday night, he ruins all of those plans.”In the lead up to the fight, Scull said he remained relaxed and confident, as he brushed away concerns that an early-morning start time could affect his performance.  “This is a fight and I’m ready to do it any time,” Scull told AFP earlier this week. “Canelo is a great boxer. It’s a tough fight but it’s another man. I’m looking to take what is mine as well,” the undefeated 32-year-old Cuban added.   On the undercard, French super middleweight Bruno Surace will be looking to silence any remaining doubters during his rematch against Jaime Munguia, after scoring a devastating sixth-round knockout in Tijuana in December. The win earned the Marseille native the prestigious Ring magazine’s “Upset of the Year” award.Boxing sits high in the growing portfolio of Saudi Arabia’s oil-funded thrust into the sporting world, which has drawn accusations of “sportswashing” its dubious human rights record.Along with Formula One, the LIV Golf tour, Newcastle United and attracting several ageing football stars to its domestic league, the conservative kingdom’s strategy cemented its crowning moment late last year after Saudi Arabia was named as the host of football’s 2034 World Cup.

Israel strikes near Damascus presidential palace over Druze violence

Israel’s military said Friday it launched air strikes near the presidential palace in Damascus after the country’s defence minister threatened intervention if Syrian authorities failed to protect the Druze minority.Syria’s Druze spiritual leader has condemned a “genocidal campaign” against his community after sectarian clashes killed 102 people. The violence poses a serious challenge to the Islamist authorities in Syria who ousted longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December.Israel has since then attacked hundreds of Syrian military sites and on Friday announced its “fighter jets struck adjacent to the area of the palace” in the capital Damascus, a military statement said.Syrian Druze spiritual leader Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri had denounced the sectarian violence near Damascus as an “unjustifiable genocidal campaign”.He called in a statement Thursday for immediate intervention by “international forces to maintain peace and prevent the continuation of these crimes”.The Druze killings come after a wave of massacres in March in Syria’s Alawite heartland on the Mediterranean coast in which security forces and allied groups killed more than 1,700 civilians, mostly from Assad’s Alawite community, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani on Thursday called for “national unity” as “the solid foundation for any process of stability or revival”.”Any call for external intervention, under any pretext or slogan, only leads to further deterioration and division,” he wrote on X.Israel sees the new forces in Syria as jihadists and has warned them to protect the Druze minority, with Defence Minister Israel Katz saying his country could otherwise respond “with significant force”.Israel carried out strikes near Damascus on Wednesday and has also sent troops into the demilitarised buffer zone that used to separate Israeli and Syrian forces on the Golan Heights.Two wounded Syrian Druze have been evacuated to northern Israel for treatment, according to the Israeli military.- ‘Reprehensible’ violence – At a meeting of Druze leaders, elders and armed groups in the city of Sweida, the community agreed it was “an inseparable part of the unified Syrian homeland”, a spokesperson said. “We reject partition, separation or disengagement,” the spokesperson added.The Syrian Observatory said the fighting this week had involved security forces, allied fighters and local Druze groups.The Britain-based monitor, which relies on a network of sources in Syria, said the 102 death toll included 30 government loyalists, 21 Druze fighters and 10 civilians, including Sahnaya’s former mayor, Husam Warwar.In the southern Druze heartland province of Sweida, it said 40 Druze gunmen were killed, 35 in an “ambush” on the Sweida-Damascus road on Wednesday.The monitor told AFP the fighters were killed “by forces affiliated with the ministries of interior and defence and gunmen associated with them”.The violence was sparked by the circulation of an audio recording attributed to a Druze citizen and deemed blasphemous.AFP was unable to confirm the recording’s authenticity.US State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said Thursday the violence and rhetoric against the Druze community in Syria was “reprehensible and unacceptable”, and called on the interim authorities to hold perpetrators accountable.Truces were reached Tuesday in Jaramana and a day later in Sahnaya, both areas near Damascus.The Syrian government announced it was deploying forces in Sahnaya to ensure security, and accused “outlaw groups” of instigating the clashes.However, Hijri said he no longer trusts “an entity pretending to be a government… because the government does not kill its people through its extremist militias… and then claim they were unruly elements after the massacres”.”The government (should) protect its people,” he said.The Druze gathering on Thursday urged the government to engage “the judicial police in Sweida, drawing from the province’s own residents” on the issue. Syria’s new authorities, who have roots in the Al-Qaeda jihadist network, have vowed inclusive rule in the multi-confessional, multi-ethnic country, but must also contend with pressures from radical Islamists.On Wednesday a foreign ministry statement vowed to “protect all components” of Syrian society, including the Druze.burs-srm-sbk/rsc/pst

Syrian Druze leader slams ‘genocidal campaign’, Israel issues warning

Syrian Druze spiritual leader Sheikh Hikmat al-Hijri on Thursday condemned what he called a “genocidal campaign” against his community after two days of sectarian clashes left 102 people dead.Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz warned his country would respond “with significant force” if Syria’s new authorities fail to protect the Druze minority, whose representatives rejected any attempt to force them out. The violence poses a serious challenge to the Islamist authorities who ousted longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad in December.It comes after a wave of massacres in March in Syria’s Alawite heartland on the Mediterranean coast in which security forces and allied groups killed more than 1,700 civilians, mostly from Assad’s Alawite community, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.Hijri denounced the latest violence in Jaramana and Sahnaya near Damascus as an “unjustifiable genocidal campaign” against the Druze.He called in a statement for immediate intervention by “international forces to maintain peace and prevent the continuation of these crimes”.Israel has ramped up support of Syria’s Druze, with Foreign Minister Gideon Saar urging the international community to “fulfil its role in protecting the minorities in Syria — especially the Druze — from the regime and its gangs of terror”.At a meeting of Druze leaders, elders and armed groups in the city of Sweida, the community agreed it was “an inseparable part of the unified Syrian homeland”, a spokesperson said. “We reject partition, separation, or disengagement,” the spokesperson added.- ‘Outlaw groups’ blamed -The Syrian Observatory said the fighting had involved security forces, allied fighters and local Druze groups.The Britain-based monitor, which relies on a network of sources in Syria, said the 102 death toll included 30 government loyalists, 21 Druze fighters and 10 civilians, including Sahnaya’s former mayor, Husam Warwar.In the southern Druze heartland province of Sweida, it said 40 Druze gunmen were killed, 35 in an “ambush” on the Sweida-Damascus road on Wednesday.The monitor told AFP the fighters were killed “by forces affiliated with the ministries of interior and defence and gunmen associated with them”.The violence was sparked by the circulation of an audio recording attributed to a Druze citizen and deemed blasphemous.AFP was unable to confirm the recording’s authenticity.Truces were reached in Jaramana on Tuesday and in Sahnaya on Wednesday.The government announced it was deploying forces in Sahnaya to ensure security, and accused “outlaw groups” of instigating the clashes.However, Hijri said he no longer trusts “an entity pretending to be a government… because the government does not kill its people through its extremist militias… and then claim they were unruly elements after the massacres”.”The government (should) protect its people,” he said.The Druze gathering on Thursday urged the government to engage “the judicial police in Sweida, drawing from the province’s own residents” on the issue. Syria’s new authorities, who have roots in the Al-Qaeda jihadist network, have vowed inclusive rule in the multi-confessional, multi-ethnic country, but must also contend with pressures from radical Islamists.On Wednesday, a foreign ministry statement vowed to “protect all components” of Syrian society, including the Druze.- Israeli strikes -Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani on Thursday reiterated Syria’s rejection of demands for international intervention, posting on X that “national unity is the solid foundation for any process of stability or revival”.”Any call for external intervention, under any pretext or slogan, only leads to further deterioration and division,” he added.Israel sees the new forces in Syria as jihadists and carried out strikes near Damascus on Wednesday.Israel has attacked hundreds of military sites in Syria since Assad’s overthrow and said its military would hit government targets “should the violence against Druze communities continue”.It has also sent troops into the demilitarised buffer zone that used to separate Israeli and Syrian forces on the Golan Heights and voiced support for Syria’s Druze.Israel’s military said Thursday two wounded Syrian Druze had been evacuated to northern Israel for treatment. In a statement Thursday, US State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce said the violence and rhetoric against the Druze community in Syria was “reprehensible and unacceptable”, and called on the interim authorities to hold perpetrators accountable.burs-srm-sbk/tw/sco/rsc