Iranian boxer on death row wins human rights award as athletes push to save his life

Mohammad Javad Vafaei Sani was arrested after 2019 protests and charged with 'corruption on earth'

An Iranian boxing champion on death row has won an international human rights award, bringing renewed attention to his case after prominent athletes urged Iran to spare his life.

Mohammad Javad Vafaei Sani was named the 2026 Magnitsky Award winner for Outstanding Human Rights Activist, according to the award organizers. The honor is scheduled to be presented on his behalf Thursday in London, according to the National Council of Resistance of Iran, an opposition coalition.

British lawmaker Bob Blackman, chair of the British Committee for Iran Freedom, is listed as the award’s presenter.

Vafaei Sani, a boxer and coach from Mashhad, was arrested in 2020 following the November 2019 anti-government protests. Authorities accused him of supporting the opposition People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran, also known as the PMOI or MEK, according to the NCRI.

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Iranian boxer Mohammad Javad Vafaei Sani 

His prosecution involved allegations of arson and destruction of public property under the capital charge of "corruption on earth," according to IranWire. Rights advocates have condemned the proceedings as unfair.

The award organizers describe his case as a "symbol of the persecution of peaceful dissent" in Iran. They say he has endured physical and psychological torture, lengthy solitary confinement and repeated threats of execution.

Iran’s Supreme Court twice overturned his death sentence before a Revolutionary Court sentenced him to death again in September 2024. The Supreme Court upheld that third sentence in October 2025, according to the organizers and the Sport & Rights Alliance.

However, his lawyer, Babak Paknia, announced a stay of execution in December 2025, IranWire reported. That order paused the execution without overturning his conviction. IranWire reported last month that Human Rights for Sports continued to list him among athletes facing capital punishment.

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His case has drawn support from some of the most recognizable names in sports.

Tennis great Martina Navratilova, former NCAA swimmer Riley Gaines, British Olympic swimming medalist Sharron Davies and three-time Olympic swimming gold medalist Nancy Hogshead signed a November 2025 appeal calling for international intervention.

Other signatories included former U.S. Olympic cyclist Inga Thompson and former Australian national soccer team captain Craig Foster.

"The world must not stand by while Iran silences its champions," the athletes’ statement said.

The World Boxing Council joined the calls to save Vafaei Sani in November 2025, urging the United Nations, International Olympic Committee and other sporting bodies to intervene.

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"From the WBC, we call on the Iranian authorities to reconsider and annul the death sentence against Mohammad Javad Vafaei Sani," WBC President Mauricio Sulaimán said.

The Sport & Rights Alliance separately raised his case with the IOC, arguing that its commitments to human rights and athlete protection required action. The alliance also cited Amnesty International’s objections that the charge of "corruption on earth" fails international standards requiring clear, legally defined offenses.

Amnesty included Vafaei Sani among people at risk of execution in a May 2026 urgent action concerning Iranian protesters and dissidents.

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The international solidarity campaign extended beyond sports last month. Leopoldo Maldonado, the U.N. special rapporteur on freedom of opinion and expression, announced a 24-hour hunger strike in support of Iranian political prisoners, according to posts reproduced by Iran Freedom, an advocacy outlet. He highlighted Vafaei Sani among prisoners facing death sentences.

The Magnitsky Awards began in 2015 and recognize journalists, politicians and activists working to defend human rights. They are named for Sergei Magnitsky, who died in Russian custody after exposing government corruption.

Previous recipients include the late Sen. John McCain, journalist Maria Ressa and Russian opposition figure Boris Nemtsov, according to the organizers.

https://www.foxnews.com/outkick-sports/iranian-boxer-death-row-wins-human-rights-award-athletes-push-save-life

Bari Weiss eyed replacing ‘Face the Nation’ host Margaret Brennan as two top producers exit CBS show: report

 CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss privately considered replacing “Face the Nation” host Margaret Brennan earlier this year — and now has an opportunity to reshape the Sunday political program as two of its senior producers prepare to leave, according to media newsletter Status.

The potential move against Brennan never materialized, but the program faces a leadership shake-up following Wednesday’s announcement by Mary Hager, its senior executive producer, that she is leaving CBS News after 35 years.

CBS’ Face The Nation Anchor Margaret Brennan broadcasts Live from CBS Bureau in Washington, DC in August.

Hager, who has also served as executive editor of politics since 2022, played a prominent role in the network’s Washington bureau and its coverage of successive presidential elections.

Anne Hsu, the show’s executive producer, is also departing her position to take a new assignment at CBS News’ Hong Kong bureau, Status reported.

The two departures will leave Weiss with an opportunity to install new editorial leadership at “Face the Nation,” whose future she has privately weighed, according to the report.

CBS News editor-in-chief Bari Weiss considered shaking up “Face the Nation.”

A CBS News insider pushed back on suggestions that the departures have thrown “Face the Nation” into turmoil, telling The Post that Hager has been planning to retire at the end of the year and has discussed her intentions with colleagues for some time.

Hager, who has spent 35 years at CBS News and 15 years in her current position, is a beloved figure at the network whose departure will be felt by colleagues, the insider said. But the source disputed any suggestion that her retirement was unexpected or the result of acrimony within the organization, noting that longtime employees eventually retire or pursue other opportunities.The insider also noted that Hsu, who is originally from Hong Kong, will be working out of the network’s bureau there rather than leaving CBS News altogether.

As for Brennan, the source pointed to “Face the Nation” being the No. 1 Sunday public affairs program, ahead of NBC’s “Meet the Press,” while declining to speculate about the host’s future or how CBS News might deploy her going forward.

https://nypost.com/2026/11/11/business/bari-weiss-eyed-replacing-face-the-nation-host-margaret-brennan-as-two-top-producers-exit-cbs-show-report/

“CONGRATULATIONS, YOU’RE STUPID!” — Sen. John Kennedy TORCHES Anyone Calling the 2026 Midterms Normal

Louisiana Senator John Kennedy didn’t mince words on Wednesday as he assessed the 2026 midterm results that handed Democrats control of both the House and Senate.

In classic Kennedy fashion, the plain-spoken Republican told anyone still insisting the outcome was routine that they were simply not paying attention.

“This was not a normal midterm election,” Kennedy said. “If you have concluded otherwise, congratulations, you’re stupid.”

Kennedy acknowledged that the president’s party historically tends to lose congressional seats during midterm elections. But he argued that the magnitude of the Democrats’ gains this year should serve as a serious warning to Republican leadership.

“If you go back 50 years or so, it’s fairly normal for the party opposing the party of the president in power to lose votes in Congress, even to lose the Congress, or lose one or both houses of Congress,” Kennedy said, apparently referring to the party holding the presidency.

He cited 1998 and 2002 as notable exceptions to the historical pattern.

But Kennedy insisted that Republicans cannot simply hide behind historical precedent to explain away what happened.

“So, to the extent that the Republicans have lost control of Congress, historically, that’s not abnormal. It was the size of the loss,” he explained. “Normally, there’s about a 7-vote swing. In this case, under normal circumstances, it would be a 7-vote swing in favor of the Democrats. In this election, there was a 13-vote—13% swing. This was not a normal midterm election.”

Kennedy’s blunt assessment lands amid a wave of independent analyses that have highlighted just how far outside historical norms the 2026 results sit.

The Gateway Pundit has reported extensively on those patterns. One analysis found that Republicans retained roughly 85% of President Trump’s 2024 share across Senate and gubernatorial races in a remarkably consistent formula that held across widely different states, an outcome with extremely low historical probability.

Related reporting documented multiple historical firsts, including Democrat Senate candidates in traditionally Republican states receiving more raw votes than Kamala Harris received in those same states in 2024, a scenario described as approaching zero probability in the modern record.

Additional work placed the odds of Democrats prevailing in 29 of 30 contested Senate races at roughly 1 in 5,510. Separate examinations have flagged voting-equipment issues, adjudication anomalies, and other irregularities reported on Election Day and in the days that followed.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2026/11/congratulations-youre-stupid-sen-john-kennedy-torches-anyone/

Wild video shows crazed animal rights activist smack NYC horse carriage driver in face with skateboard

Wild footage shows a crazed, self-righteous animal rights activist smacking a horse-drawn carriage driver in the face with her skateboard in Central Park — before cops arrested her for felony assault, police said Wednesday.

Sanctimonious skate punk Abigail Holbrook, 27, of Philadelphia first unleashed an unhinged tirade about “animal abuse” Tuesday on 59th Street near West Drive, according to footage shot by one of the drivers.

“You’re animal abusers! Horses do not do well in New York City. They are very sensitive to light and  noise,” she shouted, according to the video. “I’m Squid the Kid, bro. Y’all will know my f–ing name.”

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Abigail Holbrook, 27, was charged with two counts of felony assault.The Transport Workers Union of America

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Police arrested Abigail Holbrook, 27, of Philadelphia, after she hit a horse-carriage driver with her skateboard in Central Park.

When another 45-year-old driver made a muffled comment, Holbrook flipped out and wielded her longboard as a weapon — bashing him in the shoulder and face with it, according to cops and footage.

The driver then grabbed the skateboard away from her, prompting her to whine,  “Give me my board back!”

“Get the f-ck outta here,” the driver hollered back at her.

The wildly un-stable horse gal then grabbed her board away from him — and screamed at the cameraman, “You’re an animal abuser, are you proud of this?!”

She then appeared to rip his camera away as he shouted, “Call 911!” 

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Holbrook hit a horse-drawn carriage driver in the face and shoulder with her skateboard, according to police.The Transport Workers Union of America

Along with the skateboard assault, Holbrook is accused of punching a second 45-year-old carriage driver, according to police, who charged her with two counts of felony assault.

It was not immediately clear if the second assaulted driver was the man shooting footage.

Reps for New York City carriage workers — whose jobs are at risk after the controversial practice was banned last month — were champing at the bit to weigh in. 

“This is outrageous and unacceptable,” Transport Workers Union Local 100 Administrative Vice President Alexander Kemp said. 

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A heated exchange between a driver and Abigail Holbrook.The Transport Workers Union of America

“We need a more visible police presence for our members at horse-carriage stands in the park to protect against these wackos. This is their place of work and people are coming just to harass and attack them. All workers deserve to be safe at work,” he said.

“This is what you get when the City Council Speaker praises and poses for photos with extremist organizations like PETA and NYCLASS, whose leaders have lied and vilified us as animal abusers for decades,” said Local 100 Shop Steward Christina Hansen, who witnessed the attack Tuesday incident and called police.

City Council Speaker Julie Menin worked with PETA and animal welfare advocates to pass a bill last month that  bans horse-drawn carriages in New York City by 2028.

The bill was dubbed  “Romanch’s Law” after 18-year-old tourist Romanch Mahajan, who was thrown to his death from a Central Park horse-drawn carriage in July.

https://nypost.com/2026/11/11/us-news/wild-video-shows-crazed-animal-rights-activist-smack-nyc-horse-carriage-driver-in-face-with-skateboard/

DEVELOPING: Building Collapses in New York — Multiple People Trapped

This is a developing story.

A three-story building has partially collapsed in Brooklyn, NY, leaving multiple people trapped in the rubble.

The collapse occurred around 4 PM EST.

Emergency crews responded, and rescue efforts are underway.

Here are some photos and videos from the scene:

Here’s a longer clip from Fox News:

At this time, no fatalities have been reported and at least two individuals have been removed from the rubble.

There are reports of multiple injuries, with at least five civilians hospitalized.

CBS News has the latest update:

According to the FDNY, four people have been injured, and at least one was in critical condition. It’s unclear if anyone has been reported missing, but the FDNY initially said there were reports of people trapped.

The FDNY says a major technical rescue operation is ongoing. Dozens of firefighters could be seen sifting through the rubble by hand.

Photos and video from the scene appear to show an entire side of one building collapsed, exposing the interiors of stairwells and apartments.

Drivers are encouraged to avoid the area and should expect traffic delays and road closures, officials say.

The New York City Department of Buildings says the commissioner and investigators are on their way to the site to assess the damage.

According to city records, the buildings department issued a violation to a demolition contractor back in April because inspectors said an entire building at that site was demolished earlier this year despite a city order to stop all demolition work. That violation is now listed as resolved, and the violation notice does not say why the city issued a stop work order in the first place.

City records show there has recently been construction work happening at that address since the demolition. It’s unclear if that work has anything to do with Wednesday’s collapse.

https://wltreport.com/2026/11/11/developing-building-collapses-in-new-york-multiple-people-trapped/