• F1, FIA approve GM-backed Cadillac entry as 11th team
• Bodies say necessary assessments have been completed

Formula One will have an 11th team on the grid next year after Cadillac’s long-anticipated entry was finally rubber-stamped by the sport’s bosses.

Cadillac, a division of American motoring giant General Motors, will be supported by TWG Motorsports and powered by Ferrari before it develops its own engines.

State department also looks into merging some bureaus in Washington amid Trump effort to slash US government

The US state department is preparing to shut down a number of consulates that are mainly in western Europe in the coming months and looking to reduce its workforce globally, multiple US officials said on Thursday.

The state department is also looking into potentially merging a number of its expert bureaus at its headquarters in Washington that are working in areas such as human rights, refugees, global criminal justice, women’s issues and efforts to counter human trafficking, the officials said.

Reuters interviews with 11 federal judges in multiple districts reveal mounting concern over their security

• US politics live – latest updates

US Marshals have warned federal judges of unusually high threat levels as the tech billionaire Elon Musk and other Trump administration allies ramp up efforts to discredit judges who stand in the way of White House efforts to slash federal jobs and programs, said several judges with knowledge of the warnings.

In recent weeks, Musk, congressional Republicans and other top allies of Donald Trump have called for the impeachment of some federal judges or attacked their integrity in response to court rulings that have slowed his administration’s moves to dismantle entire government agencies and fire tens of thousands of workers.

• Australian claims he and Gary Kirsten were undermined
• Javed’s interim role extended for tour of New Zealand

The former Pakistan Test coach Jason Gillespie labelled his successor Aaqib Javed a “clown” and accused the former fast bowler of undermining him and ex-white-ball coach Gary Kirsten in order to take charge of the national team across all formats.

Gillespie’s comments were in reply to a social media post containing quotes from Javed a few days after hosts Pakistan had crashed out of the Champions Trophy without a win. Javed told reporters on Tuesday that Pakistan had changed 16 coaches and 26 selectors in around two years, and that any side would struggle in such circumstances.

Officials say slashing of US Agency for International Development leaves power vacuum for adversaries

Hundreds of diplomats at the state department and US Agency for International Development have written to the secretary of state, Marco Rubio, protesting against the dismantling of USAid, saying it undermines US leadership and security and leaves power vacuums for China and Russia to fill.

In a cable expected to be filed with the department’s internal “dissent channel”, which allows diplomats to raise concerns about policy anonymously, the diplomats said the Trump administration’s 20 January freeze on almost all foreign aid also endangers American diplomats and forces overseas while putting at risk the lives of millions abroad that depend on US assistance.

Raphinha struck a second-half winner to give Barcelona a lion-hearted victory at Benfica on Wednesday as they overcame a red card for Pau Cubarsí early in the game to steal an advantage in the first leg of their Champions League last-16 tie.

Barcelona’s teenage defender Cubarsí was given a straight red card for a last-man foul on Vangelis Pavlidis in the 22nd minute, but the visitors hung on with the goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny putting in a brilliant performance.

Foreign minister says country needs international help to dismantle programme and ensure Syria becomes ‘aligned with international norms’

Syria’s foreign minister has vowed to swiftly rid the country of the chemical weapons remaining after the downfall of Bashar al-Assad’s government, and he appealed to the international community for help.

Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani spoke during closed-door meetings at the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) in The Hague, where he became the first Syrian foreign minister to address the disarmament agency.

‘He thought he was doing what was right,’ his father says

James Anderson will spend five years in prison before being transferred to a penal colony

Tourists have been warned about violence in the Thai tourist hotspot of Pattaya after a string of incidents.

"We have seen reports raising concerns about support for U.S. Navy vessels in Norway. This is not in line with the Norwegian government's policy," Norway's Defence Minister Tore Sandvik said in a statement.

Trump made the promise hours after he shocked the world by chastising Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky

The social media giant is reportedly considering the launch of a separate app to rival TikTok