Opposition fighters are at Damascus' gates. Who are they and what now?

The western third of the college football world, so often excluded from the four-team College Football Playoff, will have three representatives in the inaugural 12-team version after Boise State and Arizona State secured automatic bids Friday night and Saturday morning, respectively. The Broncos (12-1) locked up their spot with a victory over UNLV in the Mountain West championship, and the Sun Devils (11-2) did the same with a dominating performance against Iowa State in the Big 12 championship. The region’s third CFP participant, top-ranked Oregon (12-0), will make the field regardless of the outcome of the Big Ten title showdown with Penn State later today. Across the entirety of the four-team playoff era (2014-23), only three western teams participated: Oregon in 2014 and Washington in 2016 and 2023. Had the four-team event remained in place this season, the Sun Devils would have been on the outside looking in the day they lost for a second time (Oct. 19). Boise State likely would have been excluded as a one-loss team from the Group of Five. “In creating the format for the 12-team event,” former CFP executive director Bill Hancock told the Hotline on Saturday (via text message), “it was important to make sure college football thrived in every part of the country. “It is working!” Exactly where the Broncos and Sun Devils fit within the 12-team bracket, which will be revealed Sunday at 9 a.m. (Pacific) on ESPN, is unclear. Both teams want one of the opening-round byes assigned to the four highest-ranked conference champions. The fifth conference champion isn’t as fortunate and must open the CFP on the road. (The opponent is expected to be the runner up from the Big Ten or SEC, or Notre Dame.) Boise State was No. 10 in the rankings released Tuesday, five spots ahead of ASU. Was the Sun Devils’ blowout victory over No. 16 Iowa State enough to catapult them over the Broncos, who beat No. 20 UNLV by two touchdowns? “In no way should a Group of Five champion be ranked above our champion,” Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark said earlier this week. Or could both Boise State and Arizona State receive byes — at the expense of the ACC champion? That seems unlikely if eighth-ranked SMU handles its business later today but entirely plausible if No. 17 Clemson topples the Mustangs. Arizona State’s victory brings a degree of clarity to the Pac-12’s bowl selection process, which includes all the legacy schools this season despite the breakup of the conference. With the Ducks and Sun Devils headed to the CFP, all other eligible teams will jump two spots from their natural position: — The Alamo Bowl has the first pick and is expected to select Colorado, which tied for first place in the Big 12 but lost the tiebreaker. The Buffaloes will face either Iowa State or Brigham Young, according to bowl officials. Given the Cyclones’ woeful performance in the title game — and their expected plunge in the rankings — Brigham Young is a safe bet to oppose Colorado. (The teams did not meet during the regular season.) — The Holiday Bowl has the second pick and will invite Washington State, which is protected by the Pac-12’s one-loss-down rule. It prevents bowl officials from bypassing one team for another if there is a two-game (or more) difference in losses. The Cougars are 8-4 and must be selected ahead of the three teams that finished with 6-6 records (USC, Washington and Cal), according to the Pac-12. Washington State’s opponent will be from the ACC. — Next up is the Las Vegas Bowl, which has its choice of the 6-6 teams and is expected to invite the Trojans, who began their season in Sin City with a dramatic victory over LSU. USC’s opponent will come from the SEC, which could mean a showdown against coach Lincoln Riley’s former team, Oklahoma. But we wonder if Mississippi, led by former USC coach Lane Kiffin, is more likely. — The Sun Bowl has the fourth pick and is expected to choose Washington, which has not played in El Paso since 2002. The Huskies will be matched against a team from the ACC. — That leaves the LA Bowl to select Cal, the lone remaining eligible team among the Pac-12 legacy schools. The selection makes sense in that the Bears have a large alumni base in Southern California and did not play a regular season game at USC or UCLA for the first time in eons. Cal would face an opponent from the Mountain West. The bowl pairings will become official Sunday afternoon, following the reveal of the CFP. *** Send suggestions, comments and tips (confidentiality guaranteed) to wilnerhotline@bayareanewsgroup.com or call 408-920-5716 *** Follow me on the social media platform X: @ WilnerHotlineDr. Manmohan Singh: The economist who shaped India's economic future

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Liverpool wing wizard Mohamed Salah hit yet another Premier League goalscoring landmark as Arne Slot 's league leaders fought back to defeat Leicester City 3-1 on Boxing Day. The 32-year-old came into the festive fixture aiming to score or assist for the 10th Premier League game on the spin, having continued to smash records in the weekend's 6-3 pummelling of Tottenham Hotspur . However, things went pear-shaped for Salah and Liverpool early doors, as Jordan Ayew turned and fired in a low strike past Alisson Becker with the help of a deflection off of Virgil van Dijk . The Reds initially did not have the answers to Ruud van Nistelrooy 's resolute defence in a foggy first 45, but that was until Alexis Mac Allister laid off Cody Gakpo to curl in a wonderful leveller. Salah had clipped the woodwork with an equally exquisite curler just before Gakpo restored parity, and the Egypt international was then heavily involved in Liverpool's second, as Curtis Jones completed the turnaround following a VAR check. Salah would not finish the game without his customary contribution, though, picking out the bottom corner from the right flank to rubber-stamp yet another Premier League win for the title favourites. The winger's goal was a momentous one, as he has now struck 100 times at home in the Premier League, netting twice at Stamford Bridge for Chelsea and now sitting on 98 top-flight Anfield efforts. Salah has become just the eighth Premier League player to notch a century of goals at home, following in the footsteps of Alan Shearer , Thierry Henry , Sergio Aguero , Andy Cole , Wayne Rooney , Harry Kane and Robbie Fowler . Furthermore, the ex-Blues attacker has only taken 142 home matches to hit 100 goals in the Premier League, the fourth-quickest time after Shearer (91), Henry (113) and Aguero (125). Salah's strike coupled with Erling Haaland 's penalty miss in Manchester City's 1-1 draw with Everton also saw the Egyptian extend his lead in the race for the Golden Boot , now sitting on 16 goals for the Premier League season to go alongside his league-high 11 assists . Thanks to Chelsea's shock 2-1 home loss to Fulham earlier on Boxing Day, Liverpool have opened up a seven-point lead over the Blues in the Premier League table , and they crucially still have a game in hand on Enzo Maresca 's men. The Reds would therefore open up a double-digit lead over the West London side should they win that outstanding match against Merseyside rivals Everton, which was postponed due to the devastation caused by Storm Darragh . However, Liverpool's lead at the top will be reduced to six points if Arsenal get the better of Ipswich Town on Friday night, two days before the Reds head to West Ham United in their final game of 2024. The second half of Thursday's tie was not completely flawless for Slot's side, though, as a key midfielder picked up his fifth yellow card of the season and will therefore miss the trip to West Ham.An online debate over foreign workers in tech shows tensions in Trump’s political coalitionShare this Story : PWHL did Ottawa Charge no favours by booking CTC game when it did Copy Link Email X Reddit Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Breadcrumb Trail Links Sports Hockey PWHL PWHL did Ottawa Charge no favours by booking CTC game when it did It's the timing of the event that left about 8,000 seats empty at Canadian Tire Centre. Author of the article: Don Brennan Published Dec 07, 2024 • 5 minute read Join the conversation You can save this article by registering for free here . Or sign-in if you have an account. Montreal Victoire's Dara Greig checks Ottawa Charge's Danielle Serdachny during the second period at the Canadian Tire Centre on Friday, Dec. 6, 2024. Photo by PATRICK DOYLE / THE CANADIAN PRESS Article content Of all the dates on the schedule, the PWHL could not have picked a worse night for the Ottawa Charge to play their first game at Canadian Tire Centre. Article content We apologize, but this video has failed to load. Try refreshing your browser, or tap here to see other videos from our team . PWHL did Ottawa Charge no favours by booking CTC game when it did Back to video Article content Coach Carla MacLeod was praising the fans, not criticizing the league, when she was asked about having 11,065 show up for her team’s 2-1 loss to the Montreal Victoire on Friday. But it’s the timing of the event that left about 8,000 seats empty as Ottawa fell embarrassingly short of PWHL record crowds at Toronto’s Scotiabank Arena (19,285) and Montreal’s Bell Centre (21,105) last season. Advertisement 2 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Exclusive articles from Elizabeth Payne, David Pugliese, Andrew Duffy, Bruce Deachman and others. Plus, food reviews and event listings in the weekly newsletter, Ottawa, Out of Office. Unlimited online access to Ottawa Citizen and 15 news sites with one account. Ottawa Citizen ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Exclusive articles from Elizabeth Payne, David Pugliese, Andrew Duffy, Bruce Deachman and others. Plus, food reviews and event listings in the weekly newsletter, Ottawa, Out of Office. Unlimited online access to Ottawa Citizen and 15 news sites with one account. Ottawa Citizen ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition to view on any device, share and comment on. Daily puzzles, including the New York Times Crossword. Support local journalism. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Sign In or Create an Account Email Address Continue or View more offers If you are a Home delivery print subscriber, online access is included in your subscription. Activate your Online Access Now Article content “Great ... great,” MacLeod said emphatically of the fans’ support after Friday’s game. “Think of it. This market is just flooded with hockey right now. You’ve got the 67’s going, you’ve got us, you’ve got the Sens, we’ve got the World Juniors coming in, it’s Christmas, It’s December ... “All these folks took time and money out of their day to cheer us on at CTC. Unbelievable. We just couldn’t be more pleased with what we had turnout. They tried to carry us through a couple of those periods. We needed them and they delivered. So, you’re never going to get me saying other than we have the best fans in Ottawa, because it’s true.” Hockey fans in Edmonton might disagree. They could think they support the Charge better than Ottawa, as they’ve purchased every available ticket in the 18,500-seat Rogers Place for a Feb. 16 neutral-site game in which Ottawa is the “home team” against Toronto. But that game was also properly scheduled. It falls during the NHL’s two-week break for the 4 Nations Face-Off. Playing at TD Place on Friday was not an option for the Charge, as the 67’s had reservations for what turned out to be a 6-1 win over the Sarnia Sting, but a road game seems like it would have been a solution. Sports Get the latest sport headlines and breaking news. There was an error, please provide a valid email address. Sign Up By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Thanks for signing up! A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sports will soon be in your inbox. We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try again Article content Advertisement 3 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content Meanhile, it would have been wise for the PWHL to negotiate the CTC game for the same month as the Edmonton game, when the Senators will be out of their building from Feb. 2-21. Availability is always an issue, but the local NHL arena can’t be booked every night of the season — and just about every other night would have been a better one to have the Charge play its second home game in Kanata. Montreal Victoire’s Mikyla Grant-Mentis (left) celebrates her goal as Ottawa Charge’s Anna Meixner skates away during the second period on Friday night. Photo by PATRICK DOYLE / THE CANADIAN PRESS The sweet taste of revenge The winning goal was scored by Mikyla Grant-Mentis, who had three assists in six games with Ottawa last season before being released and picked up by Montreal. “It felt pretty great,” said the 26-year-old Brampton, Ont., native. “Every time I play Ottawa, I think I always have a little oomph under me, but it was nice to get a goal this time.” Asked if she had any bad feelings with Ottawa after the way things ended last year, Grant-Mentis replied: “I love all the girls.” Reverse effect This is not to say Charge players felt let down when they saw they didn’t draw the numbers that Montreal and Toronto had for PWHL games in their rinks last season, but for whatever reason they didn’t have the expected boost of playing before the largest crowd in franchise history. Advertisement 4 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content MacLeod admitted her players “came out a little bit flat” but didn’t blame the bigger stage as a distraction. “When you get to this level, they’re all pro ... it’s not so much about where you’re playing, it’s that you are playing,” she said. “I don’t think we can lean into any sort of external excuse, I think just internally, we weren’t quite ready to go.” The ice was “tilted” in Ottawa’s favour during the third period, as MacLeod pointed out, but not dramatically. The Charge held an 8-5 edge in shots on goal while looking for the equalizer over the final 20 minutes, and that included a span of 2:33 with goalie Emerance Maschmeyer on the bench for an extra attacker. “We were a little bit on the perimeter tonight, like we were kind of just playing keep away in the zone, versus trying to score a goal,” said MacLeod. “So certainly that’s something we’ll go take a look at and make sure that we’re generating high-end scoring chances.” Bar out The Charge did come close to tying the game when Savannah Harmon’s shot banged off the crossbar. Harmon thought it went in and she raised her arms and punched a fist into the air, and she wasn’t the only one. Advertisement 5 Story continues below This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Article content “It sounded like it, but it turns out it wasn’t,” said Brianne Jenner, who was on the ice. “I had my arms up,” said Maschmeyer, who was watching from the bench. “It was a good shot. But sometimes you have games where it’s bar down, and other days it’s bar out.” Poulin-ed again Last season, Ottawa held Marie-Philip Poulin to four assists, but no goals, in four games. In two games this season, Poulin has beaten the Charge with a shootout goal (low stick side) and scored again (high glove side) Friday on a shorthanded breakaway. Asked if she thought Poulin would go low stick side again, Maschmeyer replied: “The game is so quick. In those moments, it’s just trying to read her body language. And every situation is different, whether it’s a shootout versus a break, where she’s coming in with more speed. So yeah, I just try to read whatever she’s giving me.” Time to regroup With the PWHL taking an “international break” for its European players to meet other commitments in their homelands, the Charge doesn’t play again until Dec. 17 in Boston. Just three games into the season, it’s a welcome and needed break. “We have a good opportunity here,” said Maschmeyer. “We have about 10 days to work on our craft as a team. We’ve had some moments of really good success and momentum, and other moments where we’ve kind of seen the last few games what we can work on. So we’re excited to get back on the ice and work on our craft.” Recommended from Editorial Ottawa Charge captain Brianne Jenner 'ready to get in the game' for PWHL season debut Third period rally leads Ottawa Charge to victory over Toronto Sceptres in PWHL home opener Article content Share this article in your social network Share this Story : PWHL did Ottawa Charge no favours by booking CTC game when it did Copy Link Email X Reddit Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Comments You must be logged in to join the discussion or read more comments. Create an Account Sign in Join the Conversation Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. 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By MICHELLE L. PRICE WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — An online spat between factions of Donald Trump’s supporters over immigration and the tech industry has thrown internal divisions in his political movement into public display, previewing the fissures and contradictory views his coalition could bring to the White House. The rift laid bare the tensions between the newest flank of Trump’s movement — wealthy members of the tech world including billionaire Elon Musk and fellow entrepreneur Vivek Ramaswamy and their call for more highly skilled workers in their industry — and people in Trump’s Make America Great Again base who championed his hardline immigration policies. The debate touched off this week when Laura Loomer , a right-wing provocateur with a history of racist and conspiratorial comments, criticized Trump’s selection of Sriram Krishnan as an adviser on artificial intelligence policy in his coming administration. Krishnan favors the ability to bring more skilled immigrants into the U.S. Loomer declared the stance to be “not America First policy” and said the tech executives who have aligned themselves with Trump were doing so to enrich themselves. Much of the debate played out on the social media network X, which Musk owns. Loomer’s comments sparked a back-and-forth with venture capitalist and former PayPal executive David Sacks , whom Trump has tapped to be the “White House A.I. & Crypto Czar.” Musk and Ramaswamy, whom Trump has tasked with finding ways to cut the federal government , weighed in, defending the tech industry’s need to bring in foreign workers. It bloomed into a larger debate with more figures from the hard-right weighing in about the need to hire U.S. workers, whether values in American culture can produce the best engineers, free speech on the internet, the newfound influence tech figures have in Trump’s world and what his political movement stands for. Trump has not yet weighed in on the rift, and his presidential transition team did not respond to a message seeking comment. Musk, the world’s richest man who has grown remarkably close to the president-elect , was a central figure in the debate, not only for his stature in Trump’s movement but his stance on the tech industry’s hiring of foreign workers. Technology companies say H-1B visas for skilled workers, used by software engineers and others in the tech industry, are critical for hard-to-fill positions. But critics have said they undercut U.S. citizens who could take those jobs. Some on the right have called for the program to be eliminated, not expanded. Born in South Africa, Musk was once on an a H-1B visa himself and defended the industry’s need to bring in foreign workers. “There is a permanent shortage of excellent engineering talent,” he said in a post. “It is the fundamental limiting factor in Silicon Valley.” Related Articles National Politics | Should the U.S. increase immigration levels for highly skilled workers? National Politics | Trump threat to immigrant health care tempered by economic hopes National Politics | In states that ban abortion, social safety net programs often fail families National Politics | Court rules Georgia lawmakers can subpoena Fani Willis for information related to her Trump case National Politics | New 2025 laws hit hot topics from AI in movies to rapid-fire guns Trump’s own positions over the years have reflected the divide in his movement. His tough immigration policies, including his pledge for a mass deportation, were central to his winning presidential campaign. He has focused on immigrants who come into the U.S. illegally but he has also sought curbs on legal immigration , including family-based visas. As a presidential candidate in 2016, Trump called the H-1B visa program “very bad” and “unfair” for U.S. workers. After he became president, Trump in 2017 issued a “Buy American and Hire American” executive order , which directed Cabinet members to suggest changes to ensure H-1B visas were awarded to the highest-paid or most-skilled applicants to protect American workers. Trump’s businesses, however, have hired foreign workers, including waiters and cooks at his Mar-a-Lago club , and his social media company behind his Truth Social app has used the the H-1B program for highly skilled workers. During his 2024 campaign for president, as he made immigration his signature issue, Trump said immigrants in the country illegally are “poisoning the blood of our country” and promised to carry out the largest deportation operation in U.S. history. But in a sharp departure from his usual alarmist message around immigration generally, Trump told a podcast this year that he wants to give automatic green cards to foreign students who graduate from U.S. colleges. “I think you should get automatically, as part of your diploma, a green card to be able to stay in this country,” he told the “All-In” podcast with people from the venture capital and technology world. Those comments came on the cusp of Trump’s budding alliance with tech industry figures, but he did not make the idea a regular part of his campaign message or detail any plans to pursue such changes.

A Richmond man failed to report almost $7.5 million in income from flipping homes and has been sentenced in provincial court to a conditional sentence and fines of more than $2.1 million. Balkar Singh Bhullar pleaded guilty in August 2023 to one count of tax evasion under the Income Tax Act. A Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) investigation showed Bhullar failed to report $7,485,246 in taxable income for the years 2011, 2012 and 2014. The income was from assignment fees earned from flipping 14 properties between Jan. 1, 2011 and Dec. 31, 2014, thereby allowing him to evade $2,153,394 in federal Income taxes, according to a news release from the CRA. Bhullar, who is 67 years old, was sentenced on Dec. 19 in B.C. Provincial Court (Robson Square) to a conditional sentence of two years less a day and a fine of $2,153,397.

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President Javier Milei has fired the head of Argentina’s tax bureau after she authorised modifications to the agency’s “streamers and influencers” regime. Florencia Mizrahi was dismissed from her post on Saturday, with local media outlets reporting that the order to expel the director of the Agencia de Recaudación y Control Aduanero (ARCA) came directly from Milei. Local news agencies said the decision was down to “differences in the direction of the organism,” but the government ARCA was recently given a new name, after the national government decided to rebrand the Administracion Federal De Ingresos Publicos (AFIP) tax bureau. Mizrahi will be replaced by Juan Pazo, who until today held a position in the Economy Ministry headed by Luis Caputo. “The President of the Nation took the decision to dismiss the head of ARCA and two officials for the modification of the streamers and influencers regime,” said Presidential Spokesperson Manuel Adorni in a post on the X social network, referring to a resolution published earlier this week that would have the targeted groups begin paying tax on their economic activities. “Juan Pazo will take over as the new head of ARCA and Pablo Quirno will assume the role of Secretary of International Economic Relations of the Argentine Foreign Ministry,” he added. Mizrahi was appointed to her post in December 2023, but has failed to last a year in office of the agency, which manages tax and customs regimes. AFIP was renamed to ARCA in October earlier this year, with Milei administration officials announcing it would see a 34-percent reduction in staffing levels. It was created to “improve tax and customs control through a more agile operation, in line with the policies of reorganisation and administrative transparency promoted by the executive branch,” according to the government decree that created the agency. – TIMES/NA Ads Space Ads Space