By Leika Kihara TOKYO The Bank of Japan's surprise decision last week to raise a cap on interest

As fans are split over the top two, Murmuration and Ahren Belisle will compete in the finale

A former US general took to Twitter on Sunday to remind Republicans laying blame on the Biden administration after Hamas militants launched the deadliest attack on Israel in decades that Donald Trump shared classified intelligence from Israel with Iran-allied Russia when he was president. Retired army general Mark Hertling shared a story about allegations the former president told top Russian officials that Israel had successfully hacked Isis computers in order to gain intelligence about bomb plots against the West in a meeting at the White House in 2017. At the time, the former president’s actions reportedly ignited fears by Israel that Russia could have passed the information to its ally Iran, which has long been a supporter of the Palestinian cause. Mr Trump reportedly leaked the information in a meeting in the Oval Office in May 2017 with the Russian foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, and the then-Russian ambassador to the US, Sergey Kislyak. Amid uproar over the revelation, Mr Trump insisted he had every right to give Russia the information. He tweeted: “As president, I wanted to share with Russia (at an openly scheduled WH meeting) which I have the absolute right to do, facts pertaining to terrorism and airline flight safety. Humanitarian reasons, plus I want Russia to greatly step up their fight against Isis and terrorism." General Hertling’s reminder of the incident comes after Republican presidential contenders accused the Biden administration of helping to fund the attacks in Israel, which saw more than 700 killed, after a deal was struck to free up $6bn in previously frozen assets to assist humanitarian causes in Iran. The complex deal was announced by the Biden administration in September as part of the agreement to release five US citizens detained in Iran. As part of the deal, roughly $6bn in frozen Iranian assets that were being held in South Korea were transferred to an account in Doha, Qatar. Administration officials have insisted the money has not yet been spent and is now being held in a restricted account in Doha – but in the wake of the Hamas attacks on Israel over the weekend, Republicans including Donald Trump, Ron DeSantis, Tim Scott and JD Vance have claimed the money may have been linked to the attacks. In response to Biden administration claims the money can only be used for humanitarian purposes, conservatives have responded that the money is “fungible”, meaning Iran could take advantage of the $6bn by reallocating or moving around other funds. “For all those focused on ‘fungible’ perhaps this is something to be considered,” General Hertling, the former commander of US troops in Europe and an outspoken critic of Mr Trump, tweeted. Iran provides some $100m a year to Palestinian armed groups, including Hamas and Islamic Jihad, according to the US State Department. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis accused Joe Biden of “policies that have gone easy on Iran” and have “helped to fill their coffers.” In a video statement, he said: “Israel is now paying the price for those policies. We’re going to stand with the State of Israel, they need to root out Hamas and we need to stand up to Iran.” Meanwhile, South Carolina Senator and GOP presidential hopeful Tim Scott alleged the attack was “the Biden $6bn ransom payment at work.” “We didn’t just invite this aggression, we paid for it,” he said in a statement. Mr Trump also accused the Biden administration of funding the Hamas attack on Israel, falsely stating American taxpayer dollars helped fund these attacks. Senior Biden administration officials have stressed $6bn is not taxpayer money, and comes from payments made by South Korea to Iran to buy oil in recent years. Mr Trump also argued that, under president Biden, the US is perceived as being “weak and ineffective” on the global stage, thereby opening the door to hostility. “They didn’t have that level of aggression with me. They didn’t have it. This would have never happened with me either,” Mr Trump claimed, adding later in Cedar Rapids that Mr Biden had “betrayed Israel” with the deal. The White House insists the money is ringfenced for humanitarian purposes — such as food and medicine for Iranians — and handled by what the administration described as vetted non-Iranian vendors. Adrienne Watson, a spokeswoman for the White House National Security Council, said she could not directly address Republican criticism due to federal restrictions. “But I can clarify the facts: Not a single cent from these funds has been spent, and when it is spent, it can only be spent on things like food and medicine for the Iranian people,” she said on Saturday in a statement. “These funds have absolutely nothing to do with the horrific attacks today and this is not the time to spread disinformation.” Over the weekend, Hamas militants stormed into Israel, killing hundreds of people and taking dozens captive across the Gaza border. More than 700 people were killed, with at least nine Americans among the dead. Palestinian officials have said that more than 400 have been killed in retaliatory Israeli attacks on Gaza. Thousands more people are believed to be injured while the number of individuals taken hostage by Hamas is currently unclear. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu immediately declared a state of war and promised “mighty vengeance” on Israel’s attackers. On Monday, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant ordered the “complete siege” of Gaza, saying authorities will cut electricity and block the entry of food and fuel. Meanwhile, sirens have sounded in both Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, with witnesses in the latter city hearing explosions that may have been from rocket impacts or from mid-air interceptions. Read More Israel-Hamas war live updates: ‘Complete siege’ on Gaza ordered as rocket explosions heard in Jerusalem Donald Trump 'handed Russia classified intelligence on Israel successfully hacking Isis computers' Families of Britons killed or held hostage in Israel-Hamas war share ‘indescribable pain’ The Body in the Woods | An Independent TV Original Documentary The harrowing discovery at centre of The Independent’s new documentary

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Monday tweeted a pirate-style picture of himself with a black eye patch and dark-red bruises on the right side of his face — the result of a jogging accident on the weekend. “Am excited to see the memes," the chancellor wrote in the caption. To deflect any possible worries about his health, on the photo, which appears to have been taken at the chancellery, Scholz smiled slightly and also wrote: “Thanks for the well wishes, it looks worse than it is!” Scholz fell while jogging on Saturday and sustained bruises to his face, prompting him to cancel some appointments this weekend, the government said. His spokesperson told reporters in Berlin later on Monday that the chancellor was doing well considering the circumstances. “He was in quite a good mood this morning, but still looks a bit battered,” Steffen Hebestreit said adding that the photo was published “so that everyone can get used to how he will look in the next week or two.” On Sunday, the 65-year-old German leader canceled appointments in the central Hesse region, where a state election is being held on Oct. 8. However, he was expected to attend public appearances later on Monday in Berlin. Local media reported that Scholz fell while running in his hometown of Potsdam which is located 28 kilometers (17 miles) southwest of the German capital. Scholz has led Germany since December 2021. He previously served as the country’s finance and labor minister, and as mayor of Hamburg. In a profile on his party’s website, Scholz says that he hated sports when he was at school but acquired a taste for it from his wife, Britta Ernst. “Today I jog as often as I can,” he says. Scholz says he tries to find time for jogging, rowing or walking two or three times a week and also enjoys cycling. Read More Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide

Real estate agent Davina Thomasula and constructor Kristin Leitheuser take on projects in Hudson Valley on HGTV's 'Small Town Potential'

Lewis Hamilton fears Mercedes could lose second spot to Ferrari in the constructors’ championship after he admitted it will be a scramble to qualify in the top 10 for Sunday’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc topped practice at the Yas Marina Circuit, seeing off McLaren’s Lando Norris by just 0.043 seconds, with world champion Max Verstappen third. But George Russell and Hamilton finished only sixth and eighth respectively for Mercedes, with the latter half a second behind Leclerc. Mercedes, who are facing up to their first winless season since 2011, hold only a four-point lead over Ferrari heading into Sunday’s finale in the desert. And Hamilton said: “It was not the greatest of days. We have had difficult qualifying sessions this year, and getting out of Q1 and into Q2 has always been a tough battle, and getting into Q3 is a challenge. “The work tomorrow is to try and get into Q3. But it is going to be close.” Hamilton completed only four timed laps on Friday. He made way for the team’s Danish junior driver Frederik Vesti in the opening running, before a combined 30-minute delay wiped out half of the one-hour second session after Carlos Sainz and Nico Hulkenberg both crashed out. Russell fared better than Hamilton, but he still finished three tenths behind Leclerc. However, it was not a day without incident for Ferrari following Sainz’s crash. A week after a loose drain cover tore through his Ferrari in Las Vegas, Sainz was in the wars again, but on this occasion it was through driver error. Sainz – who appeared to be put off by another car arriving from the pits – lost control of his machine through turn three and ended up in the barrier. Although the Spaniard was unharmed in the high-speed smash after just eight and a half minutes, he sustained significant damage to his car, with the sidepods, floor, rear suspension and front wing of his Ferrari all destroyed. Sainz’s impact also left the barrier in a mess, and a 22-minute delay ensued as the tyre wall was repaired. But only moments after the running restarted, the red flag was out again – this time after Nico Hulkenberg crashed on the exit of turn one. On cold tyres, the German was too hasty on the throttle, sliding into the barrier before pulling up in his wounded machine. The stoppages arrived as a blow to half the grid who sat out the opening session as 10 rookie drivers – including three Britons – were earlier blooded at the Yas Marina Circuit. British drivers Zak O’Sullivan, 18, and Jake Dennis, 28, made their Formula One weekend debuts for Williams and Red Bull respectively, while Ollie Bearman, 18, who in Mexico became the youngest debutant from Britain at a Grand Prix, was handed his second practice appearance by Haas. Dennis, in Verstappen’s Red Bull machine which Hamilton has described as the fastest ever seen in F1, finished 16th of the 20 runners, 1.1 secs off the pace. O’Sullivan was 18th – seven tenths behind Williams’ Logan Sargeant – with Bearman 20th and last, albeit only a tenth slower than Kevin Magnussen in the other Haas. Read More Charles Leclerc edges Lando Norris in practice after two red flags in Abu Dhabi Mayhem, mischief and Masi: Abu Dhabi, two years on Christian Horner reveals talks with Lewis Hamilton’s father over Red Bull seat George Russell fastest as rookies handed chance in first Abu Dhabi practice F1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix LIVE: Practice updates and times at Yas Marina F1 2023 official calendar: All 23 Grand Prix this year

What shirt numbers Dominik Szoboszlai will have available to him at Liverpool & which he has worn in the past.

It wasn’t a good weekend for the Texas Rangers who dropped two of three games to the Aaron Judge-less Yankees in the Bronx, so they’ll be happy to be back home for a four-game set with the Detroit Tigers. The Rangers still hold a comfortable lead in the AL West at 47-30 while the Tigers ...

The US president spoke at a press conference in Hanoi about his visit to India for the G20 summit.

Spirit AeroSystems, a key supplier to Boeing, is set to reopen next week after members of the International Association of Machinists voted Thursday to ratify a tentative labor agreement and end a week-long strike.

Andrew Tate was replying to a tweet sent on June 3, 2023, by Nina Turner, a senior scholar at the Institute on Race, Power, and Political Economy

Amid reactions to the brawl, a new video was posted on X, showcasing a group hilariously reenacting the brawl near a pool