Donald Trump gets a July 4 military parade amid backlash from critics


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US President Donald Trump's desire for a military parade to mark Independence Day will become a reality on Thursday, with F-18s flying over Washington DC and tanks thundering down its streets.

Mr Trump's "Salute to America” celebration and parade on July 4 will include two Super Hornet F-18s and two F-35C jets, four Apache helicopters, a B-2 bomber and two F-22 fighters alongside H-60 and H-65 helicopters and an HC-134 aircraft.

Two M1A2 Abrams tanks and other military vehicles have been taken to Washington for the occasion.

After wishing the country a “Happy 4th of July”, Mr Trump hailed the celebration as “one of the biggest” in history.

The parade, conceived when Mr Trump watched Bastille Day celebrations in France with French President Emmanuel Macron in 2017, was initially envisioned for Veterans Day last year.

The idea was rebuffed by former chief of staff John Kelly and former secretary of defence James Mattis.

But new chief of staff Mick Mulvaney allows the US President to "indulge his whims and impulses", The Washington Post says, and the event is a reality.

While the parade is generating enthusiasm among Mr Trump’s support base, the cost of the event and fears of politicising the July 4 holiday are bringing significant backlash.

Some have compared it to a “Make America Great Again” rally, while hundreds are planning to protest against the event and are floating a giant “Baby Trump” balloon over Washington’s mall area, near where Mr Trump will be speaking at the Lincoln memorial.

The cost of the event and concerns of damage that the tanks can create to the memorial are also driving some of the criticism.

The "National Park Service will redirect nearly $2.5 million to help cover costs related to the extravaganza, money that is traditionally assigned to improve parks across the country", The Post reported.

But Mr Trump said the cost would be minimal, without disclosing the amount.

The US military received 5,000 tickets but military chiefs are concerned that the event is being politicised, CNN reported.

The White House insists that Mr Trump’s remarks will not be political.

"It's about saluting America, our flag and our great armed forces,” a US official said.

But the appearance of army generals next to Mr Trump as he addressed a crowd of his supporters is raising eyebrows.

The Republican National Committee, a partisan group, has distributed most of the tickets and party donors received VIP seats.

Retired general Anthony Zinni told The New York Times that the highlight should have been the troops and not the artillery.

“Put troops out there so we can thank them," Mr Zinni said. "Leave the tanks for Red Square."

Others also compared the event with the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests in Beijing. But defence analysts scoffed at the comparison.

"Abrams tanks are very impressive and cool," tweeted David French of The National Review. "This isn't prep for martial law. It's not Tiananmen Square.

"Kids will love to see them. Many adults will also. It's totally normal in America to have military air shows, etc. No one should be scared by this, truly.”

___________

How recent US presidents marked July 4

Others say the timing of the parade is wrong, with an immigration crisis on the southern border as detention centres are filled with migrants and children.

For the White House, ensuring a high level of attendance and not a repeat of Mr Trump’s scattered-crowd inauguration photos is a main challenge today, as some of the invitations went out only last week.

Thunderstorms and scorching heat in the US capital could impede that goal.

If%20you%20go
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What can victims do?

Always use only regulated platforms

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Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence

The Settlers

Director: Louis Theroux

Starring: Daniella Weiss, Ari Abramowitz

Rating: 5/5

Frankenstein in Baghdad
Ahmed Saadawi
​​​​​​​Penguin Press

IF YOU GO

The flights

FlyDubai flies direct from Dubai to Skopje in five hours from Dh1,314 return including taxes. Hourly buses from Skopje to Ohrid take three hours.

The tours

English-speaking guided tours of Ohrid town and the surrounding area are organised by Cultura 365; these cost €90 (Dh386) for a one-day trip including driver and guide and €100 a day (Dh429) for two people. 

The hotels

Villa St Sofija in the old town of Ohrid, twin room from $54 (Dh198) a night.

St Naum Monastery, on the lake 30km south of Ohrid town, has updated its pilgrims' quarters into a modern 3-star hotel, with rooms overlooking the monastery courtyard and lake. Double room from $60 (Dh 220) a night.

 

Conflict, drought, famine

Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.

Band Aid

Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.

Lewis Hamilton in 2018

Australia 2nd; Bahrain 3rd; China 4th; Azerbaijan 1st; Spain 1st; Monaco 3rd; Canada 5th; France 1st; Austria DNF; Britain 2nd; Germany 1st; Hungary 1st; Belgium 2nd; Italy 1st; Singapore 1st; Russia 1st; Japan 1st; United States 3rd; Mexico 4th

MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW

Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman

Director: Jesse Armstrong

Rating: 3.5/5

How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE

When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.

WWE Evolution results
  • Trish Stratus and Lita beat Alicia Fox and Mickie James in a tag match
  • Nia Jax won a battle royal, eliminating Ember Moon last to win
  • Toni Storm beat Io Shirai to win the Mae Young Classic
  • Natalya, Sasha Banks and Bayley beat The Riott Squad in a six-woman tag match​​​​​​​
  • Shayna Baszler won the NXT Women’s title by defeating Kairi Sane
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  • Ronda Rousey retained the Raw Women’s title by beating Nikki Bella
Sam Smith

Where: du Arena, Abu Dhabi

When: Saturday November 24

Rating: 4/5

Indoor cricket in a nutshell

Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai

16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side

8 There are eight players per team

There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.

5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls

Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership

Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.

Zones

A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs

B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run

Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs

Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full

Indoor cricket in a nutshell

Indoor Cricket World Cup - Sep 16-20, Insportz, Dubai

16 Indoor cricket matches are 16 overs per side

8 There are eight players per team

There have been nine Indoor Cricket World Cups for men. Australia have won every one.

5 Five runs are deducted from the score when a wickets falls

Batsmen bat in pairs, facing four overs per partnership

Scoring In indoor cricket, runs are scored by way of both physical and bonus runs. Physical runs are scored by both batsmen completing a run from one crease to the other. Bonus runs are scored when the ball hits a net in different zones, but only when at least one physical run is score.

Zones

A Front net, behind the striker and wicketkeeper: 0 runs

B Side nets, between the striker and halfway down the pitch: 1 run

Side nets between halfway and the bowlers end: 2 runs

Back net: 4 runs on the bounce, 6 runs on the full

The specs

Engine: 4.0-litre, six-cylinder

Transmission: six-speed manual

Power: 395bhp

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6.40pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (Dirt) 1,400m; Winner: Bochart, Fabrice Veron, Satish Seemar

7.15pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (T) 1,200m; Winner: Mutaraffa, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi

7.50pm: Longines Stakes – Conditions (TB) Dh120,00 (D) 1,900m; Winner: Rare Ninja, Royston Ffrench, Salem bin Ghadayer

8.25pm: Zabeel Trophy – Rated Conditions (TB) Dh120,000 (T) 1,600m; Winner: Alfareeq, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi

9pm: Handicap (TB) Dh105,000 (T) 2,410m; Winner: Good Tidings, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi

9.35pm: Handicap (TB) Dh92,500 (T) 2,000m; Winner: Zorion, Abdul Aziz Al Balushi, Helal Al Alawi

 

Bharat

Director: Ali Abbas Zafar

Starring: Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif, Sunil Grover

Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars

The specs: McLaren 600LT

Price, base: Dh914,000

Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo V8

Transmission: Seven-speed automatic

Power: 600hp @ 7,500rpm

Torque: 620Nm @ 5,500rpm

Fuel economy 12.2.L / 100km

Ticket prices
  • Golden circle - Dh995
  • Floor Standing - Dh495
  • Lower Bowl Platinum - Dh95
  • Lower Bowl premium - Dh795
  • Lower Bowl Plus - Dh695
  • Lower Bowl Standard- Dh595
  • Upper Bowl Premium - Dh395
  • Upper Bowl standard - Dh295
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre flat-six
Power: 510hp at 9,000rpm
Torque: 450Nm at 6,100rpm
Transmission: 7-speed PDK auto or 6-speed manual
Fuel economy, combined: 13.8L/100km
On sale: Available to order now
Price: From Dh801,800
Volvo ES90 Specs

Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)

Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp

Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm

On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region

Price: Exact regional pricing TBA

PROFILE OF SWVL

Started: April 2017

Founders: Mostafa Kandil, Ahmed Sabbah and Mahmoud Nouh

Based: Cairo, Egypt

Sector: transport

Size: 450 employees

Investment: approximately $80 million

Investors include: Dubai’s Beco Capital, US’s Endeavor Catalyst, China’s MSA, Egypt’s Sawari Ventures, Sweden’s Vostok New Ventures, Property Finder CEO Michael Lahyani