Savannah DeMelo was a surprise addition to the U.S. roster for the Women's World Cup because she had never played for the national team

DashCon, a 2014 convention for Tumblr users plagued by low attendance and mismanagement, taught us hard lessons about what happens when social media meets the real world.

Ukraine claims to have made advances in the face of “extremely fierce” fighting during its counteroffensive against Vladimir Putin’s forces, and has suggested Russia is losing a “staggering” 900 troops a day. As the lower house of Russia’s parliament gave its initial backing to plans to enable Moscow to enlist suspected or convicted criminals to bolster its army in Ukraine, Kyiv’s deputy defence minister claimed advances of several hundred metres near Bakhmut and Zaporizhzhia. The claimed advances – which contrast with Russian claims to have repelled attacks – preface a critical Nato meeting this week where Kyiv will urge the West to greenlight delivery of fighter jets, with senior Kyiv official Yuriy Sak telling The Independent that if “had we had F-16s, by now the situation would have been different”. Meanwhile, Mr Putin said that if necessary Moscow would use weapons with depleted uranium in response to reports that the United States would supply such weapons to Ukraine, as his ally Alexander Lukashenko claimed Belarus had begun to receive Russian tactical nuclear weapons three times more powerful than those dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Read More Russia losing 900 soldiers a day during counteroffensive, Ukrainian officials claim Putin mixes threats of new offensive in Ukraine with offers of peace talks UN nuclear chief says large Ukraine atomic power plant held by Russia faces 'dangerous situation'

New York Mets star first baseman Pete Alonso will miss 3-to-4 weeks with a bone bruise and sprain in his left wrist

A missile targeted Kyiv on Saturday, ending nearly two months of relative calm in the Ukrainian capital, while frontline regions fended off waves...

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A teenager has been found responsible for a hacking spree in which victims’ savings were stolen and major companies, including the maker of the best-selling Grand Theft Auto video games, were blackmailed. Arion Kurtaj, 18, and a 17-year-old who cannot be named for legal reasons, were described by the prosecution as the “key players” in the LapsusS hacking group. Psychiatrists had assessed Kurtaj as unfit to stand trial so the role of the jury in his case was to decide whether he had committed the acts alleged against him. On Wednesday, following a two-month trial at London’s Southwark Crown Court plus nine hours and 19 minutes of deliberations, a jury unanimously found Kurtaj had carried out 12 offences in his spree of innovative hacks. These offences included six counts of carrying out an unauthorised act to impair the operation of a computer, three counts of blackmail, two fraud offences, and of failing to comply with a section 49 notice to disclose a key when he did not give up the password to his mobile phone when asked to by police. He tried to blackmail Rockstar Games by threatening to “leak the stolen source code for the Grand Theft Auto sequel onto internet forums”, the indictment stated. Kurtaj and the youth were also accused of hacking software company Nvidia in February 2022 before threatening to “release Nvidia Corporation’s intellectual property on to the web” if it did not pay them. The 17 year-old showed no emotion as he was found guilty of one count of fraud, a charge of blackmail and also of having carried out an unauthorised act to impair the operation of a computer. His mother wept uncontrollably after the verdicts were read out. Keep in mind Arion Kurtaj's psychological make-up, and in particular his psychological condition, his education or lack thereof - could he be the highly intelligent, competent genius that the prosecution set out at the beginning? Arion Kurtaj's defence counsel David Miller Prosecutors alleged Kurtaj and the 17-year-old, aided by unknown associates, hacked the servers and data files of broadband provider BT and mobile operator EE before demanding a four million US dollar ransom on August 1 2021. But the 17-year-old was found not guilty of a charge of have carried out an unauthorised act to impair the operation of a computer and a further charge of blackmail in relation to BT. He previously pleaded guilty to one offence under the Computer Misuse Act and one count of fraud. Neither defendant gave evidence during the jury trial. Sentencing dates at the same court have yet to be fixed for either defendant. This has been a complex and sensitive investigation involving a multi-agency response and there have been a number of challenges throughout the police investigation and judicial process Detective Superintendent Richard Waight A case management hearing has been set for Kurtaj on September 21, while it is hoped that a sentencing date may be fixed for the 17 year-old on November 9. During the trial, the court was told that Kurtaj had been living in care since the age of 14 and had been housed for a period in a Travelodge “for his own protection”. Kurtaj’s defence counsel David Miller described the youngster as “the most vulnerable of adolescents” who was now pitted against huge companies and corporations worth billions, who had unlimited funds and unlimited resources including the FBI, National Crime Agency, Interpol and City of London Police. During closing speeches, he told the jury: “Keep in mind Arion Kurtaj’s psychological make-up, and in particular his psychological condition, his education or lack thereof – could he be the highly intelligent, competent genius that the prosecution set out at the beginning?” After the verdicts, Detective Superintendent Richard Waight, of the City of London Police, said: “This has been a complex and sensitive investigation involving a multi-agency response and there have been a number of challenges throughout the police investigation and judicial process. “We thank the judge and jury for being patient throughout the trial, during deliberations and for the subsequent verdicts.” Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Social media firms should reimburse online purchase scam victims – Barclays Hozier would consider striking over AI threat to music industry Snapchat experiences ‘temporary outage’ as My AI chatbot posts own Story

Will Smith says a “mutiny” by his daughter, Willow Smith, is what first caused him to change his perspective of success. The Hollywood actor has been stepping back into the spotlight following his infamous outburst at the 2022 Oscars, where he slapped Chris Rock on stage after the comedian made a joke about his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. In an interview with fellow actor and comedian Kevin Hart, on his Peacock show Hart to Hart, Smith spoke about the moment his family rose to fame in 2010. While Smith had enjoyed his own success from 1999 thanks to NBC’s sitcom The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, Willow and his son Jada achieved their own fame in the early Noughties. Musician Willow, 22, released her debut single “Whip My Hair” in 2010, breaking into the UK and US charts when she was just nine years old. Meanwhile Jaden, a rapper and actor, starred opposite Jackie Chan and Taraji P Henson in The Karate Kid that same year, when he was 11. “2010 was like the greatest year as an artist, as a parent,” Smith told Hart, Metro reports. “Karate Kid came out in June and ‘Whip My Hair’ came out in October. I’m building this dream of a family I’ve had in my mind. I’m going to do it better than my father did it. We’ve talked about it, my father was abusive.” Smith seemed to imply that he was too hard on his family while trying to achieve the vision he had of a successful family. “‘No one wanted to be in a platoon,” he said. “Willow was the first one to begin the mutiny and it was my first realisation that success and money don’t mean happiness. “Up until that point, I really believed that you could succeed your way – to a house and a family – and you could win your way to happiness.” In a 2022 interview with The Independent, Willow Smith revealed that her parents struggled to understand her while she was growing up, due to their different upbringings. Meanwhile Jaden, 25, asked to become emancipated – where a child is removed from the control of their parents or legal guardians – from his parents when he was a minor, aged 15. His request came after he starred opposite his father in the box-office disaster, After Earth, which was also panned by critics. In his 2021 memoir, Smith recalled the moment his “heart shattered” when Jaden asked to become emancipated. “And what was worse was that Jaden took the hit,” the Independence Day star wrote, adding: “Jaden had faithfully done everything that I’d instructed him to do, and I had coached him into the worst public mauling he’d ever experienced.” Jaden ultimately decided against pursuing emancipation, but moved out of his family home that year. Will Smith is currently shooting a Bad Boys sequel with Martin Lawrence, with whom he has co-starred in three previous Bad Boys films, including the 1999 original. Read More Netflix leaves fans distraught as it announces end of beloved series One Tree Hill star Sophia Bush changes name after ‘filing for divorce’ from husband Grant Hughes Zhanna D’Art: Who was the controversial vegan raw food influencer who died from ‘starvation’? Who was controversial vegan raw food influencer Zhanna D’Art: Eva Mendes reveals she doesn’t let her daughters use the internet What is Stiff Person Syndrome?

By Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) -If Russia does not agree to extend a deal allowing the safe export of

NBA star James Harden expressed disbelief after Chinese fans snapped up 10,000 bottles of his own-branded wine in seconds, demonstrating the massive reach of livestreaming in the country, where basketball is loved by millions.