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Addressing the Sixth All Belarusian People’s Assembly on Thursday, the man who has led Belarus for nearly 37 years warned the 2,700-person gathering of officials and industry leaders that the nation was facing one of its worst crises yet as protests continued six months after August’s disputed election. As members of the U.S.-led Western military alliance continue to criticize Lukashenko’s attempts to suppress the rallies, the Belarusian leader lashed out at “very powerful forces” stoking “a rebellion based on the blitzkrieg principle” against his administration....

The Ukrainian state border service (DPSU) said that the country’s frontier “was attacked by Russian troops supported by Belarus,” according to CNN. The network showed livestream video from the Belarus border crossing shot around 6:48 a.m local time Thursday of a column of troops and military vehicles crossing between Senkivka, Ukraine, and Veselovka, Belarus. Minsk and Moscow have close military ties, and Russian troops have been in Belarus for extensive military drills....

Roman Protasevich, the 26-year-old detained journalist, formerly worked for the opposition Telegram channel NEXTA, which broadcast news updates and footage from mass protests that took place in the wake of Belarus’ August 2020 election. Opposition activists have accused longtime Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko—who has been dubbed Europe’s “last dictator”—of rigging the election in the Eastern European nation. Protasevich now works for a different Telegram channel, Belamova, and was based in Lithuania....

The incident comes within the context of an unravelling drama ahead of presidential elections in the country dubbed “Europe’s last dictatorship.” Belta cited law enforcement officials claiming that Russia had sent 200 fighters to Belarus, 32 of whom were tracked down at a sanatorium outside the capital Minsk. Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko says that the men were sent to destabilize the country ahead of the August 9 ballot in which he seeks to extend his 26-year rule....

There is bad blood between these two heavyweights. This fight was supposed to have taken place back in 2008 only to have Shamrock back out after cutting his eye in warmups hours before the fight. Shamrock (28-15-2), who fought in the first-ever UFC card back in November 1993, looked good at Thursday’s weigh-in and seems motivated to put on a good performance. Slice (4-2) last fought in the UFC back in 2010, when he was stopped in the second round by a solid heavyweight in Matt Mitrione....

The main event features one of the most highly anticipated bouts of the year, as former UFC welterweight standout Rory MacDonald makes his debut for the promotion, as he battles the heavy-handed Paul Daley. The 27-year-old MacDonald (18-4) making the leap from the UFC to the Viacom-owned promotion was one of the biggest MMA stories of 2016. He is one of the most exciting fighters in the world and by far the biggest signing the promotion has made....

The main event features Gegard Mousasi defending the middleweight championship for the first time against current welterweight champion Rory MacDonald. MORE: Bellator 206 updates, results The co-main event, in heavyweight action, has former UFC light heavyweight champion Rampage Jackson battling former PRIDE two-division Wanderlei Silva for the fourth time. Also, taking place at the show, will be the beginning of the welterweight tournament with former champions Douglas Lima and Andrey Koreshkov squaring off....

Douglas Lima falls into the latter category. The Brazilian veteran has turned leg kicks, especially that low leg kick, into something of an art form over the course of his MMA career. An ultra-violent art form, as “The Phenom” has shown time and time again that his leg kicks hit different. There were the low leg kicks that Lima relentlessly fired to the point that Michail Tsarev couldn’t even stand, leading to the Brazilian recording a second-round TKO at Bellator 86 in January 2013....

Patricio “Pitbull” Freire beat A.J. McKee to reclaim the Bellator featherweight title Friday night. He is now a three-time champion in the division. The judges scored the contest a unanimous decision, 49-46, 48-47 and 48-47. Freire is back on top after McKee submitted him last July 31. He is still undefeated in rematches. McKee was hot right out of the gate as he went for a kick to the body....

The Belmont is a 1 1/2-mile race over dirt for 3-year-olds at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y., held on the second Saturday of June each year. It is broadcast on TV on NBC and can be watched online via NBCSports.com or the NBC Sports Live Extra app. It’s the third and final Triple Crown race — also the longest and most challenging, which is why so many hopefuls have fallen short....

The young quarterback is in the NFL’s concussion protocol, and it’s hard for a player to pass all the tests on a short week. When asked about his positional counterpart Tuesday, Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger said he wanted to see Luck, 27, out there, but only if he’s capable. “The brain is nothing to mess with. He’s young and has a long career ahead of him," Big Ben said during a conference call....

This matchup will most likely be Roethlisberger’s last time facing the Browns since he is predicted to retire after the 2021-22 season. Out of the Steelers’ AFC North opponents, Roethlisberger has won the most games against the Browns. Playing the Browns has always been interesting for Roethlisberger since he’s originally from Lima, Ohio, which is less than three hours from Cleveland, and he attended Miami University in Ohio. When he played his last game in Cleveland, he got a huge round of applause since Cleveland is somewhat of a hometown field for him....

According to The Athletic’s Sam Amick, there are “approximately 30 players who would satisfy the Sixers in a Simmons swap.” Not only that, but there’s said to be an “internal belief” that a fair amount of those players could become available at some point over the next couple of years. “This is like a multi-year thing,” a 76ers source told Amick. NBA League Pass: Sign up to unlock live out-of-market games (7-day free trial)...

According to The Athletic’s Shams Charania and Sam Amick, Lillard intends to give the Trail Blazers time to find a new leader of basketball operations following the firing of Neil Olshey, but he “still wants significant changes to the roster.” Multiple sources told Charania and Amick that Lillard “would like to play with” Simmons. Charania reported before the start of the 2021-22 season that the Trail Blazers had turned down a potential package from the 76ers revolving around Simmons and CJ McCollum that included three first-round picks and three draft swaps....

According to Japan’s state-run NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation) news agency, the tiger, named Volta, is almost 10 feet long and weighs over 400lbs. Police are currently investigating the incident at Nasu Safari Park in the Tochigi prefecture. It is thought the zookeepers were getting ready to move two tigers from the animal house into the outside enclosure before the park opened. According to local news reports, zookeepers are normally kept separate from the tigers via a door....

After the game, Bengals coach Marvin Lewis confirmed the team’s worst fears: The right knee injury that defensive tackle Geno Atkins suffered in the second quarter is likely a torn ACL that would put an end to his 2013 season. It didn’t look good for Atkins when he fell awkwardly to the ground with just more than four minutes left before halftime. He stayed there for a while before being helped off the field and then carted into the locker room....

Linebacker Vontaze Burfict contributed mightily to that heartbreaker, drawing an unnecessary roughness penalty for hammering Steelers receiver Antonio Brown on an incomplete pass. The NFL suspended Burfict for the first three games of 2016 for repeated violations of league player-safety protocols. MORE: Draft projections | Burfict vows change in play style But Duke Tobin, the Bengals director of player personnel, feels the good far outweighs the bad when it comes to Burfict’s intensity....

Of course, No. 1 pick Joe Burrow suffered a season-ending knee injury last year. Burrow should be back, and the Bengals have a young supporting cast on offense that added first-round pick Ja’Marr Chase. Cincinnati ranked 22nd in the NFL in scoring defense last season, and they are up against a tough schedule that includes the NFC North and AFC West. How does that schedule look now? Here is a complete breakdown of the Cincinnati Bengals’ 2021 schedule, including dates and start times for all 17 games and our early prediction....

Usually, fluid, rest, relaxation, and anti-inflammatory medication (like ibuprofen) would help alleviate the discomfort. But sometimes headaches in postpartum women last longer than 24 hours, are more severe than usual, and/or are not relieved by typical measures. When this happens, you should contact your healthcare provider, as this could signal a medical condition specific to the postpartum period (which can rarely be life-threatening). Causes One older study reviewed the outcomes of 95 women with postpartum headache....

After a number of rebuffed approaches from Tottenham in September 2015 the striker’s stock has fallen dramatically over the past 12 months - Berahino blaming the pressure of media focus for his fall from grace. The 23-year-old has only featured five times in all competitions for the Baggies this season, his last appearance coming in West Brom’s 1-0 win over Bournemouth on September 10. In November he was twice sent to France in a bid to improve his conditioning but he still remains a long way from forcing his way into Pulis’ plans....