The mid-size three-row SUV's starting price is $1600 higher than last year, and the new X-Pro off-road model is $48,765. Kia's refreshed 2024 Sorento sees its base price jump to $33,365. That's a $1600 increase over the 2023 model. Only the strictly gas-powered Sorento gets updated for 2024. Gas-electric hybrid and PHEV models will receive the facelift for 2025. Plastic surgery isn't cheap, and Kia is passing the cost of the 2024 Sorento's facelift on to consumers by way of a $1600 bump to its base price. The base LX now starts at $33,365, and the new X-Pro off-road trim level tops off the lineup at $48,765. What does the Sorento's update include? Well, a far more handsome mug and a revised interior, not to mention a couple of new trims. That's for gas models, at least. Gasoline-electric Sorento hybrid and plug-in hybrid (PHEV) models retain last year's looks for 2024, though those variants will adopt the new duds come 2025. We don't yet have pricing details for the forthcoming updated hybrid versions. Under the skin, this is largely the same Sorento we've developed a love-hate relationship with, as evidenced by our long-term test of a 2022 Kia Sorento SX. The current generation of Sorento offers plenty to love on paper: a comfortable ride, enjoyable driving dynamics, an ergonomic cabin that employs high-quality materials, a versatile cargo hold, and comfortable seats for those in the first two rows (the third row even offers passable space given the Sorento's size). So what's not to love? Well, that pesky eight-speed dual-clutch automated transmission that pairs with the available 281-hp 2.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine. Whereas Kia cut the dual-clutch gearbox from the recently updated Seltos and replaced it with a traditional eight-speed automatic with planetary gears and a torque converter, the Korean brand does no such thing for the Sorento. This powertrain combination comes standard on Sorento trims EX ($39,365) and up. As we learned during our long-term stint, the dual-clutch transmission is a fine partner when the stars align. Unfortunately, the stars are prone to getting out of place, something that ultimately led to our Sorento needing a new transmission midway through its stay. We'd recommend the Sorento's standard naturally aspirated 2.5-liter inline-four that mates to a traditional eight-speed automatic, but that engine's 191 horsepower struggle to move this three-row SUV with verve at higher speeds. It comes standard on only the lowest two trims, the base LX and the $35,765 S. Those willing to roll the dice on the turbocharged 2024 Sorento (a risk that may be worth taking thanks to Kia's lengthy warranty) or tolerate the lackadaisical naturally aspirated 2.5-liter (be sure to drive it with a few adult passengers before making up your mind) will surely appreciate the updates that Kia has made to the Sorento. https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a46584377/2024-kia-sorento-price/

Les Bleus’ post-tournament refit has not been as drastic as expected and they face Ireland with a team of relative veterans France players lie dejected on the turf after losing to South Africa in the quarter-final of the Rugby World Cup last year. Photograph: Photosport/Inpho/Shutterstock ‘We would be kidding ourselves not to speak about it,” William Servat said. France’s forwards coach was first up to face the press as Six Nations preparations began last week and, inevitably, he was asked about the World Cup quarter-final defeat by South Africa and how the team would respond. Three and a half months on, the players have now come to terms with the agonising early exit on home soil, Servat said. “We have to make use of this frustration as a way to prepare for the Ireland game,” the former hooker added, having debriefed the squad on their return to the Marcoussis training centre for the Six Nations. At the start of this week, Thomas Ramos said returning to action with a possible title decider on Friday against Andy Farrell’s Ireland side means the team won’t have time to “dither”. The versatile full-back, who was promoted recently by Fabien Galthié to the six-player leaders’ group, is keen to move on as quickly as possible: “If we beat Ireland and we have a good tournament, maybe people will talk less about the World Cup.” Facing a similarly revanchist Ireland side is, however, hardly the most straightforward beginning to the second instalment of the Galthié era though. The task is made all the more daunting by the long-term absence of Antoine Dupont. With the scrum-half choosing instead to play sevens at the Olympics, the head coach has been left without his talismanic captain and chief orchestrator. Although he has said that Dupont’s sabbatical was planned well in advance, the decision will have, nonetheless, left Galthié shorthanded at a crucial time in his reign. No single French player can replicate the influence that the 2021 world player of the year has accrued, but several will occupy the spotlight in his absence. Damian Penaud is closing in on Serge Blanco’s record of 38 tries for Les Bleus. An in-form Matthieu Jalibert will be playing his first full Six Nations as starting fly-half since 2021, as Romain Ntamack continues his recovery from the injury that kept him out of the World Cup. Gaël Fickou will have a point to prove after a disappointing tournament. Louis Bielle-Biarrey, who burst on to the scene with four tries last autumn, will hope to consolidate his spot on the wing. Dupont’s positional replacement will be Maxime Lucu, backed up by Racing 92’s Nolann Le Garrec. Basque scrum-half Lucu was an obvious choice – he deputised impressively at the World Cup in the matches Dupont missed through his cheek injury and has been central to Bordeaux’s success this season. His understanding with his club teammate Jalibert will be a key asset to France’s grand slam hopes; “We’re like an old couple, only without the monotony,” he told Midi Olympique last week. More surprising, though, was the choice of Grégory Alldritt as stand-in captain – the intuitive choice would have been Charles Ollivon, who was given the armband when Galthié first took charge four years ago. The 26-year-old Alldritt’s Scottish roots played a part in the decision. “He understands Anglo-Saxon mentalities and speaks the language,” the head coach said, adding that the La Rochelle captain is also more likely to be a part of the squad for the 2027 World Cup, given he is four years younger than Ollivon. Alldritt had notably taken a two-month break after the World Cup, to recover mentally and physically from a trying schedule. On his return to action, the back row has picked up where he left off with Les Maritimes. As France’s new director of performance, Nicolas Jeanjean, said last week, Alldritt’s extended break is a first for modern French rugby – “I think he and his club have been precursors for a kind of recovery that we’ll be seeing more of in the future.” Dupont isn’t the only important absentee who France have to replace – all of Ntamack, Thibaud Flament, Melvyn Jaminet and Emmanuel Meafou are unavailable for the start of the tournament, while Anthony Jelonch faces another long-term layoff after his second cruciate ligament injury in the space of a year. Despite key absences, the post-World Cup turnover has not been as drastic as initially predicted – the veteran forwards Uini Atonio and Romain Taofifénua have even gone back on their decisions to call time on their France careers. Nearly a third of the players who were called up this week are over 30, a stark contrast to Galthié’s early squads. Most will have been through the “shared experience”, as the new forwards coach Laurent Sempéré put it, of the defeat to South Africa. Galthié and Servat have been keen to stress a sense of continuity in the overall project, even if new members of staff have come on board – including two mental coaches who come in to speak to the players at the start of the week. For Sempéré, who takes charge of the forwards alongside Servat, it’s important to look at the bigger picture: “We shouldn’t disconnect the World Cup from the four years that came before.” Antoine Dupont is not the only notable absentee who France have to replace. Photograph: Xavier Laine/Getty Images Initially, the Bordeaux centre Nicolas Depoortère was the only member of last summer’s Under‑20 World Cup winning squad to graduate to the senior squad for this Six Nations. Last Thursday’s session then saw a group of five high-potential players called up for the day, among whom was another Tuilagi – Perpignan’s Posolo. The daylong call-ups, part of the agreement between the FFR and Top 14 over player releases, are the chance for the new generation to claim their spots in future squads. With questions over his eligibility cleared up, Tuilagi did exactly that at last week’s session, which was attended by his father, Henry, the former Samoa international. Posolo, the second-row sensation, has since been included in the wider squad that will prepare for the Ireland game at Marcoussis. Les Bleus will, nevertheless, attack Friday’s match in Marseille with a lineup of relative veterans – now is not quite the time to throw the new faces into the deep end. Depleted and Dupont-less, the approach for France will be to soldier on, in the hope that the disaster in October did not stunt the momentum that had built up in the previous four years. https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2024/jan/30/the-breakdown-can-france-recover-after-rugby-world-cup-heartache

Hamas says the proposal involves three stages, including the release of hostages held by the group and Palestinian prisoners held in Israel. Senior Hamas leaders, Yahya Sinwar (3rd R), Ismail Haniyeh (4th R) sit among other Hamas officials. (AFP) Hamas has confirmed that it is studying a three-phase proposal for a truce in Gaza, while hardline members of the Israeli government have threatened to collapse the coalition if any deal is not to their liking. The Palestinian group’s political leader Ismail Haniyeh confirmed on Tuesday that he is studying the proposal, thrashed out in Paris over the weekend, to halt the war and enable the exchange of Israeli and Palestinian prisoners. Haniyeh said in a statement that the group is “open to discussing any serious and practical initiatives or ideas, provided that they lead to a comprehensive cessation of aggression”. Hamas also said that the plan must ensure the “complete withdrawal of the occupation forces from the Gaza Strip”. The group’s leadership, he said, had received an invitation to Cairo to reach an “integrated vision” on the framework agreement. Three phases In a statement sent to Reuters, Hamas said the proposal involved three stages. The plan has been sent to Gaza to obtain the opinion of Hamas leaders there. “The Hamas leadership will meet to discuss the paper and express its final opinion on it,” the statement said. Sources told the news agency that the first phase would consist of a pause in fighting and the release of elderly, civilian women and children hostages. Major deliveries of food and medicine to Gaza, facing a ruinous humanitarian crisis, would resume. The second phase would see the releases of female Israeli soldiers and another increase in aid deliveries and restoration of utility services to Gaza. The third phase would see the release of the bodies of deceased Israeli troops in exchange for Palestinian prisoners freed, two sources said. The Hamas statement said the second phase would also involve the release of male military recruits. “Military operations on both sides will stop during the three stages,” it said. The number of Palestinian prisoners to be released is to be left to the negotiation process “at every stage, with the Israeli side preparing to release those with high sentences,” it said. The ultimate aim of this phased approach is the end of the war and the release of male soldiers held captive in Gaza in exchange for Israel’s release of additional Palestinian prisoners held in jail. If Hamas does agree to the framework proposal it could still take days or weeks to settle logistical details of the truce and the release of hostages and prisoners, an official told Reuters. Progress Qatar’s prime minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani, said the framework discussed in Paris is based on elements of an initial proposal made by Israel and a counterproposal made by Hamas. “We tried to blend things together to come up with some sort of reasonable ground that brings everybody together,” he said at Washington’s Atlantic Council think tank on Monday. He added that “good progress” was made on a possible deal during meetings between intelligence officials from Egypt, Israel and the United States over the weekend. The Qatari prime minister noted that Hamas has previously demanded a permanent ceasefire as a precondition to enter negotiations. However, he suggested that there is hope its stance may have shifted. “I believe we moved from that place to a place that potentially might lead to a ceasefire permanently in the future,” he said. The Palestinian Islamic Jihad group in Gaza said it will not engage in any understandings regarding Israeli hostages without ensuring a comprehensive ceasefire and the withdrawal of the Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip, the group’s secretary general Ziad al-Nakhala said in a statement on Tuesday. ‘Government split’ Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday said Israel would continue its war in Gaza until “absolute victory” over Hamas. He ruled out releasing “thousands” of Palestinian prisoners as part of any deal to halt the fighting and said the army would not withdraw from Gaza. “I would like to make it clear… We will not withdraw the IDF [army] from the Gaza Strip and we will not release thousands of terrorists. None of this will happen,” he said in an address at Eli settlement in the occupied West Bank. Netanyahu is under significant pressure from the families of the remaining captives held by Hamas to reach a deal to secure their release. Hamas killed at least 1,139 people in Israel and took about 240 captives on October 7, according to Israeli figures. However, Netanyahu is also being pushed to continue the war by hardline coalition partners in his government. Commenting on the reported truce negotiations earlier on Tuesday, far-right Israeli Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir appeared to suggest that a deal with Hamas would trigger a government collapse. “Reckless deal = Government split,” Ben-Gvir wrote on X. The national security minister is known for his inflammatory commentary on the conflict. However, his Jewish Power (Otzma Yehudit) party is a major player in Israel’s ruling coalition. Al Jazeera’s Mohammed Jamjoom, reporting from Tel Aviv, said anonymous Israeli officials confirmed that the government signed off to a deal that was presented to Hamas. This includes a pause in fighting and the release of Israeli captives in Gaza in exchange for thousands of Palestinian prisoners. Jamjoom said that while right wing government members were against the deal, Yair Lapid, Israel’s opposition leader and former prime minister, said he would support the government if it meant bringing the captives homes. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was also expected to land in Israel on Saturday for his sixth trip to the region since the war started to discuss post-war scenarios in Gaza, Jamjoom reported. Escalation The proposals were circulated to Hamas as fighting intensified in Gaza. Heavy Israeli strikes and urban combat across the besieged enclave killed 128 more people overnight, according to the Ministry of Health in Gaza. An Israeli ‘hit squad’ also killed three men that it labelled as “terrorists” in an undercover operation at a hospital in the occupied West Bank. “The world must put pressure on the occupation to stop these massacres and war crimes, including the policy of torture to which our people are exposed in the areas of the West Bank, executions and arrests,” said Haniyeh. Amidst the uptick in fighting, Israel has charged that around a dozen staff of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) took part in the October 7 attack, leading key donor countries including the United States and Germany to suspend funding. Haniyeh said that the decision of countries to suspend contributions was a “clear violation” of last week’s International Court of Justice interim ruling, which called for increasing humanitarian aid to Gaza. Countries cutting aid support Israel’s “occupation through starvation and siege”, the Hamas chief asserted. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/1/30/hamas-studying-ceasefire-plan

Can you use a flat tin for a fat cake? And does size really matter? Our experts reveal all … Does the size of your baking tin actually matter, or is a cake’s shape maybe a more important consideration? Photograph: ClarkandCompany/Getty Images I often don’t have the required size of cake or tart tin called for in a recipe. How many tins does a person need? If I don’t have the right size, should I go smaller or larger? Nicky, Norwich “You know Maslow’s hierarchy of needs? Well, I think of baking kit a bit like that,” says pastry chef Nicola Lamb, whose first book, Sift, is out in May. At the bottom of the pyramid, you’ve got basic needs, such as food and safety, then, at the top, there are life’s luxuries. “So, while a six-inch (15cm) tin would be nice if you’re into layer cakes, it’s not necessary,” she says, whereas a round/eight-inch (20cm) springform cake tin is essential. Guardian baking columnist Benjamina Ebuehi agrees (although she prefers a simple loose-bottomed tin to a springform one), while Sarah Lemanski, founder of Nova Bakehouse in Leeds, likes a nine-inch (23cm) springform. When it comes to tarts, Ebuehi keeps two 23cm tins in her arsenal: “If you’re making a lemon or chocolate tart, a shallow tin is nice, but if you’re making a quiche or custard tart, you’ll want something deeper,” she says. What other paraphernalia you equip your kitchen with really depends on what you like to bake; a couple of sandwich tins would be up there for Ebuehi and Lemanski, while Lamb’s go-to is a 20cm square tin for brownies and the like. Loaf tins are another matter altogether. “They’re one of my biggest bugbears,” Lamb says. “Is 1lb the maximum amount of dough that will fit in it, or is it the ideal amount? I don’t know, and neither do manufacturers.” For this reason, she sticks to measurements: “a 24cm x 14½cm x 6cm loaf tin gives consistent results.” Happily, cake is still possible if you’re lacking the right size of tin for the job, but there are certain things to consider. “The concern with a really deep amount of batter [when using a smaller tin] is that the outside will get crusty and overcooked before the middle is done,” Lamb explains, although, conversely, if you bake a 20cm cake in a 23cm tin, say, it will be shallower and will therefore cook faster. On balance, though, Lamb would be inclined to size up: “Lower the temperature slightly, be aware of those signs of readiness, which could be that it smells and/or looks right, and be prepared to whip out the tin foil and cover if it’s browning too quickly.” And avoid overfilling the tin. “That’s key, so don’t go above halfway,” says Ebuehi, who bakes any surplus batter in a cupcake tray. You could, of course, scale the recipe to suit your tin size, which is Lemanski’s preferred strategy. “Say I want to fill a nine-inch round pan with the same amount of batter called for in a recipe for an eight-inch pan, divide the area of the first pan (64 square inches) by the area of the second (50), and that will give the number to multiply each ingredient by to achieve the intended results.” That said, you might then get into the mess that is fractions of eggs, but we must all suffer for our art. Finally, to keep those tart dreams alive, Lamb suggests using a slightly smaller tin. “You don’t want to stretch the pastry, so get the thickness right and freeze any excess,” she says – or use it (plus leftover filling) to make a bonus mini tart and have yourself an afternoon snack. https://www.theguardian.com/food/2024/jan/30/what-baking-tin-what-job-does-it-matter-kitchen-aide

California scientist and film-maker spot apparent pup – never before seen in the wild – in drone pictures An apparent baby great white shark spotted in drone footage. Photograph: Carlos Gauna/The Malibu Artist Researchers in California may have gotten the first ever look at a newborn great white shark, which they captured in drone images taken last summer. The newborn animal has never before been spotted in the wild. But in July, the wildlife film-maker Carlos Gauna and Phillip Sternes, a biology doctoral student at the University of California, Riverside, glimpsed something unexpected in the waters near Santa Barbara on California’s central coast. Gauna’s drone camera captured what appeared to be a great white shark pup, about 5ft long and pure white – an unusual coloring as the sharks are white on the bottom and gray on top. “We enlarged the images, put them in slow motion, and realized the white layer was being shed from the body as it was swimming,” Sternes said in a university statement. “I believe it was a newborn white shark shedding its embryonic layer.” Sternes and Gauna, who have filmed sharks around the world in YouTube videos that have millions of views, documented their findings in an article published this week in the Environmental Biology of Fishes journal. In the article, the pair acknowledge the thin white film covering the shark could have been the result of a skin condition, but they say they believe it was a newborn great white. The animal they saw was within the size range of newborn sharks and its appearance was similar to near-term embryos, they wrote. Gauna said he had previously observed large great whites in the area that appeared pregnant and the newborn shark emerged within the time frame that pups are birthed. In the university statement, he described the finding as “one of the holy grails of shark science. No one has ever been able to pinpoint where they are born, nor has anyone seen a newborn baby shark alive.” They suspect the animal they documented was days or hours old. “There are a lot of hypothetical areas, but despite intense interest in these sharks, no one’s seen a birth or a newborn pup in the wild,” Sternes said. “This may well be the first evidence we have of a pup in the wild, making this a definitive birthing location.” Experts in the field mostly hailed the find in comments to CNN, calling the observation “hugely significant”. https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/jan/30/first-ever-baby-great-white-shark-image

The UK has accused Iran-backed groups of attacking a US base in Jordan, and imposed sanctions on a network linked to Iran. The summons came after the UK announced sanctions on Iranian officials [File: Vahid Salemi/AP Photo] 30 Jan 2024 Iran summoned the British ambassador to Tehran to protest against the “baseless accusations” and sanctions by London. “Following the continuation of the British regime’s accusations against the Islamic Republic of Iran, Simon Shercliff, the British ambassador in Tehran, was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs … and was informed of our country’s strong protest”, the IRNA state news agency said on Tuesday. While the statement did not explain the accusation against the United Kingdom, it said the director general of Western Europe at the Iranian foreign ministry, Majid Nili Ahmadabadi, criticised the British government and said its actions were another “destructive and unconstructive” act towards Iran. “This is a bitter historical irony that a country that is the founder and supporter of organised terrorist groups, drug trafficking, and criminal gangs wants to make accusations against the Islamic Republic of Iran and its loyal and honest forces, who are at the forefront of fighting organised crimes,” the official, cited by IRNA, said. The summons came after the UK announced sanctions on Iranian officials it said were involved in threats to kill journalists on British soil and others it said were part of international criminal gangs linked to Tehran. The UK has also accused Iranian-linked groups of being behind a deadly attack on US troops in Jordan. British Foreign Secretary David Cameron condemned the “attacks by Iran-aligned militia groups against US forces” and urged “Iran to de-escalate in the region”. However, Iran denied the accusation that it had any links to the Jordan strike that killed three US personnel and that it was not looking for an “expansion” of the tensions in the Middle East. “As we have clearly stated before, the resistance groups in the region are responding [to] the war crimes and genocide of the child-killing Zionist [Israeli] regime and … they do not take orders from the Islamic Republic of Iran”, Iranian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Nasser Kanaani was cited as saying by IRNA on Monday. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/1/30/iran-summons-british-ambassador-as-tensions-soar

Music title: Jonas Blue - Perfect Strangers ft. JP Cooper Signer: Jonas Blue Release date: 2016/06/14 Official YouTube link:

Nick movie: One Day Time: Netflix Netflix / Amazon / HBO: Netflix Duration of the movie: 2 mins Trailer:

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Accepted! Dm me here or in discord. T/C.

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PRO! Good player You have a good acitivity Respect the rules But I hope that next time you will stay out of trouble, improve your behavior, and not accuse the administrator of things that are not true Good luck!

PRO! Good activity Respect the rules Nice person Good luck!

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