CAIRO (AP) — Standing on her balcony in the Iranian capital, Tehran, the teacher shouted out into the darkness, “Death to the dictator!” and “Death to the murderer, Khamenei!” on a recent night, joining the slogans coming from windows and rooftops around her relatively affluent neighborhood.

A few voices in the darkness responded with slogans in support of Iran’s 47-year-old Islamic Republic.

“Shut up! Choke on it!” her neighbors shouted back, drowning out the pro-government voices, the teacher recounted to The Associated Press, speaking on condition of anonymity for her safety.

Iranians across the country are still reeling with shock, grief and fear after massive nationwide protests were crushed by the deadliest crackdown ever seen under the rule of the 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Thousands were killed and tens of thousands are believed to have been arrested.

But a vein of defiance persists. A seething anger at Iran’s rulers is evident in videos shared on social media and in conversations with protesters. At the same time, three protesters reached by the AP also expressed futility over what can be done after hundreds of thousands braved taking to the streets only to be met with overwhelming violence. The protesters all spoke on condition of anonymity, fearing retribution or arrest.

Adding to the uncertainty is the United States’ threat to strike Iran. The U.S. has positioned warships and fighter jets nearby even as it holds negotiations with Iran over its nuclear program.

The defiance appears in the shouting of slogans from windows and rooftops at night, a ritual displayed in past waves of protests.

It is also evident at memorial gatherings for those killed 40 days earlier. Such commemorations — known as the “chehelom,” Persian for “the 40th” – are traditionally held by families for anyone who has died. But in times of unrest, chehelom can have a political dimension.

Commemorations turn to protests

This week marks 40 days since Jan. 8 and 9, the deadliest days of the crackdown, and multiple videos circulating online show 40-day ceremonies in towns and cities around Iran. Some appear to have drawn hundreds of people, who often break into anti-government chants.

Often they are festive, with friends and loved ones of the slain protester singing and throwing flowers – a rejection of the solemn atmosphere encouraged by the state at official ceremonies. Most avoid calling the dead “shaheed,” or “martyr,” a term with Islamic religious connotations. Instead, they use the term, “javid nam,” a Persian phrase meaning, “Long live the name.”

Videos posted this week and verified by the AP showed a crowd of hundreds at the main cemetery in the small western Iranian town of Abdanan, chanting, “Death to Khamenei” and pumping their fists at the chehelom of Alireza Seydi, a 16-year-old boy killed on Jan. 8. The videos show security forces firing from an armored vehicle, raising clouds of what appeared to be tear gas, sending men and women running.

During the 1979 Islamic Revolution that toppled the shah and brought the Islamic Republic to power, 40-day memorials for slain protesters often turned into rallies that security forces tried to crush, causing new deaths – which then would be marked 40 days later with new protests.

Postings on social media have reported security forces trying to restrict people from attending some chehelom ceremonies.

“For every person killed, a thousand more stand behind him,” a crowd of several hundred chanted Tuesday while gathered in the eastern city of Mashhad for the chehelom of Hamid Mahdavi, according to a video verified by the AP. When a few police officers harassed some people commemorating Mahdavi, a fireman shot to death in January protests, the crowd shouted, “Shameless! Shameless!”

The government held its own chehelom for those killed, whom the Revolutionary Guard in a statement depicted as victims of violence caused by foreign-backed armed “terrorist” groups that exploited “legitimate public demands.” It said the 40-day commemoration was “a chance to renew commitment to national unity.”

‘Mass depression’ and anger

“More than sad, people are angry. Everyone is so angry. Everyone is waiting for some kind of explosion,” said a resident of Karaj, a city just outside of Tehran.

He joined street marches on Jan. 8 and Jan. 9 and said five of his relatives and family friends were killed when security forces opened fire on protesters.

The Human Rights Activists News Agency has so far counted more than 7,000 dead and believes the death toll is far higher. Iran’s government offered its only death toll on Jan. 21, saying 3,117 people were killed; it has depicted many of the protesters as “terrorists.”

“I don’t know anyone around me who doesn’t know someone who was killed, or someone who was arrested or wounded,” the 26-year-old teacher in Tehran said. Two of her acquaintances were killed and the husband of one of her co-workers arrested, she said.

Iranians are also struggling with a rapidly worsening economy, as the value of their currency plummets.

Every day, prices rise, said the Karaj resident. “We are getting near an economic collapse,” he said. “Buying fruit has become a luxury.”

A resident of north Tehran who works in tourism and joined last month’s protests said that with the Persian New Year approaching in March, the bazaar would usually be full of shoppers, but not now.

“It’s a combination of grieving, lack of money and inflation,” he said, describing people in the capital as being in a state of “mass depression.”

The mood has dampened Iran’s normally vibrant cultural sphere. One prominent actor posted that she would no longer accept new roles “in this land that smells of blood.”

Alireza Ostad Haji, who referees a popular television strongman competition, offered condolences to “all mourning families” in an Instagram post and resigned from two national athletic committees. He broke down in tears as he spoke of a former bodybuilding champion, Masoud Zatparvar, who was killed. “He was not a terrorist, he was a protester,” he said.

‘They see no alternative’

There is also a fear that street protests can’t bring change in the face of the state’s overwhelming use of violence.

The Karaj resident and the Tehran protester who works in tourism both expressed support for the son of the ousted shah, Reza Pahlavi, who from exile has put himself forward as a leader of the fragmented Iranian opposition. Pahlavi has encouraged protests and called for the U.S. to strike Iran.

The depth of support for Pahlavi around Iran is impossible to gauge. But during January’s wave of protests, chants in support of him were common, a notable change from the past, when the shah’s son drew scant attention within the country or was seen as out of touch.

Some are even taking what was a previously unimaginable step for many — expressing hopes for an American attack.

“Every night, every hour, I wish I could hear (U.S.) strikes,” the protester who works in tourism said. “We cannot fight anymore with our fists against machine guns.” He said many of his friends who took to the streets alongside him in January say they won’t do so again because of the state’s violence.

The teacher said that, while she joined past protests, she didn’t in January because she didn’t like the expressions of Pahlavi support.

But she said some of her friends who also oppose the shah’s son joined the January protests and even repeated the slogan, “Long live the shah!”

“People have become very tired, and they see no alternative,” she said.

She worried a U.S. attack will bring war, civil strife and even more bloodshed.

“I am afraid there will be more massacres,” she said.

___

Chehayeb reported from Beirut. Associated Press writer Lee Keath in Cairo contributed to this report.

MILAN (AP) — On a night of American comebacks at the Milan Cortina Games, Alysa Liu delivered the U.S. its first women’s figure skating Olympic gold medal in 24 years.

The 20-year-old Liu performed a near-flawless free skate Thursday to upstage Japanese rivals Kaori Sakamoto and Ami Nakai. She finished with a career-best 226.79 points. Nakai and Sakamoto each made a mistake on a combination sequence.

Liu had walked away from the sport after the 2022 Beijing Games only to launch a remarkable comeback.

It was the first individual gold medal for an American woman figure skater since 2002, when Sarah Hughes won in Salt Lake City, and it was the second gold for Liu at these Games. She helped the Americans win team gold.

Sakamoto scored 224.90 points to earn a silver. Nakai finished third with 219.16 points.

Liu was third after the short program two nights earlier, though within range of gold.

US beats Canada in OT for women’s hockey gold

The U.S. women’s hockey team delivered an Olympic comeback for the ages by beating Canada 2-1 in overtime to win the gold medal.

With her team trailing 1-0, American captain Hilary Knight forced overtime by tipping in Laila Edwards’ shot with 2:04 remaining in regulation.

Megan Keller then scored 4:07 into overtime to hand the U.S. its third Olympic gold medal in women’s hockey.

It was the seventh time the two powerhouses faced off for Olympic gold since women’s hockey debuted at the 1998 Nagano Games. In the 2022 Beijing final, Canada beat the Americans in the final.

With the sides playing 3-on-3 in overtime, Keller broke up the left wing and pushed past Claire Thompson. Driving to the net, Keller got off a backhander that beat Ann-Renee Desbiens.

Kristin O’Neill scored a short-handed goal for Canada in the second period.

Earlier Thursday, Alina Muller scored the bronze medal-winning goal in overtime in Switzerland’s 2-1 victory over Sweden. It came 12 years after Muller scored the clinching goal to deliver the Swiss their first Olympic medal in women’s hockey — a bronze at the 2014 Sochi Games.

Jordan Stolz stunned in 1,500 meters

U.S. speedskater Jordan Stolz’s late push wasn’t enough.

The American star settled for silver in the 1,500 meters, missing a chance to secure a third gold medal at the Milan Cortina Games.

China’s Ning Zhongyan won Thursday’s race in an Olympic-record time of 1 minute, 41.98 seconds. The 21-year-old Stolz, who won gold medals in the 500 and 1,000 at these Games, crossed 0.77 seconds later.

As Stolz glided by, hands on his knees, Ning raised his country’s flag aloft with both hands and started a victory lap.

Stolz, a Wisconsin native, will participate in the mass start on Saturday.

Dutch skater Kjeld Nuis, who won the 1,500 at the past two Olympics, took bronze.

Eileen Gu advances to halfpipe final despite fall

Defending Olympic champion Eileen Gu shook off a fall during her opening run to advance to Saturday’s final in freeski halfpipe. The 22-year-old Gu was born in the United States and competes for China.

She clipped the lip of the halfpipe on the third trick of her first run, knocking her left ski off and sending her skittering to the bottom of the course.

That set up a pressure-packed second attempt that run earned 86.50 points, good enough to place fifth among the 12 skiers who advanced to the final.

US and Canada reach women’s curling semifinals

The United States and Canada advanced to the women’s curling semifinals.

The Americans, skipped by Tabitha Peterson, beat Switzerland 7-6 in a match that went to an extra end. The teams will square off again in Friday’s semifinals.

Peterson threw the decisive rock and her teammates swept it into position, just a hair closer to the button than the Swiss’ nearest stone.

Canada beat South Korea 10-7 and will play Sweden on Friday.

___

AP Winter Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/milan-cortina-2026-winter-olympics

The Friday letters page has some choice words to say about Sony’s handling of the PS5 generation, as one reader thinks Mario Kart Arcade is a bad game.

Games Inbox is a collection of our readers’ letters, comments, and opinions. To join in with the discussions yourself email gamecentral@metro.co.uk

Wasted generation
Just seen the news that Sony is shutting down Bluepoint Games and I’m appalled. That team put out nothing but top quality games and were specialists in remakes, which we’ve had more and more of recently, so you would’ve thought they’d be extra valuable to Sony right now.

Instead, we just see continued short-sighted, bone-headed decision making from Sony, who have been awful this whole generation. The PlayStation 5 has been a disaster and I’m not confident that Sony has any kind of plan to avoid permeant decline, all the while shutting down more and more developers. I definitely would be polishing up my CV if I worked at Bungie or Bend Studio.

The obsession with live service games, which clearly hasn’t ended at all, has been such a disaster. Not just in terms of failed games (remember, Concord cost $400 million!) but a whole wasted generation, where developers have had no time to make anything else, and are now being shut down before they have the chance anyway.

I detest Sony for how they’re handling all this, and I say that as someone that’s owned an original PlayStation console and everything else since. They shut down one of their best developers just so they could look good to their investors for five minutes and it’s obvious they’ll happily sacrifice more for the same reason.
Cranston

Pity the poor exec
Thank goodness that Hermen Hulst, Head of Worldwide Studios at PlayStation from 2019-2024, is here to protect the company from ‘changing player behaviours’ and ‘rising development costs’ by shuttering one of their most renowned studios.

Absolutely nothing else he could’ve done since 2019, to give players the type of games they expect from PlayStation. Nope, we all wanted 12 live service games, from studios who specialise in single-player games, so it’s our fault for changing our minds…

PlayStation has been on the slide since they consolidated and moved their headquarters to the USA. They’ve lost almost all of the riskiness and playfulness that made them successful in the first place. Hope the Bluepoint employees bounce back quickly.
Magnumstache

Never-ending Kratos
I was really hoping that Santa Monica Studio would be working on a new IP or sci-fi game but it really doesn’t sound like that’s what’s going on. I loved the last two God Of War games but the story’s over and I have very little confidence that there’s a good plan for what happens next.

Cory Barlog said he didn’t make the Norse games a trilogy because he didn’t want to work on the same story for 15 years but here we are and it’s looking very much like he’s just going straight back to God Of War.

I know the next game is meant to be a spin-off but how different is it going to be really? Unless it’s a flight sim or something it’s just going to be more of the same and that’s a shame.
Coolsbane

Email your comments to: gamecentral@metro.co.uk

Experimental reasoning
It does make me laugh that Todd Howard has now publicly admitted that people find Starfield boring, but I’m sure he doesn’t really understand why. How someone of his supposed experience could have put out such a dull, badly made game I don’t know. He’s just lucky the Fallout TV show was a hit, as otherwise I think he would’ve fond himself out the door.

No one would love The Elder Scrolls 6 to be great more than me, but Bethesda is too high on its own supply nowadays and I really have much less confidence in them than I used to. He tries to paint Starfield as some big, risky experiment but all they do was take all the best bits out of Skyrim and replace it with nothing.

I’m not really sure what he’s on about with Fallout 76 either. It’s just a bog standard MMO cobbled together with left over bits from Fallout 4. It’s those two games that made me start to think less of Bethesda, not because they were risky ventures but because they were lazy cash grabs.
Shortround

Kart it off
I always wondered why Nintendo bothered with the Mario Kart arcade games. They weren’t very good, because they let Bandai Namco make them, and it hardly seems like Mario Kart is a series they have to get people interested in or promote. It’s not exactly an unknown brand, is it?

Putting Pac-Man in was extra weird too, as even though he’s a cartoon character he still looks out of place. Anyway, I still gave it a go. But paying £1 to play one race of the worst Mario Kart ever isn’t something I’d want to do again.
Biter

Bad business
The gaming world can truly change on a dime. Bluepoint Games has been shut down by Sony. After giving us fans a brilliant remake of Demon’s Souls and Shadow Of The Colossus, Sony has closed down the studio. One of their most revered, to say the least. It’s out of nowhere and quite a baffling decision. From what I understand, the studio was to create a video game based on an original IP and not another remake. So why Sony have chosen to erase that prospective idea is beyond my understanding.

Then again, we hadn’t heard any news, updates or any information from them in a long time, so perhaps it was inevitable. I suppose the silence was a reckoning or rather an ill omen in the shadows. I really would have liked to see what Bluepoint were making or what was cooking behind the scenes. To see the creativity floating around, but it either happens with a new studio that is formed, or it remains a what if?

It worked for Sandfall Games. After they broke away from Ubisoft, we were presented with Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and the rest is history. So maybe the developers still have a semblance of a future. What that will be is unclear at this moment, so who knows what is next?

On another note, it’s a week from tomorrow that Resident Evil Requiem releases. A funny anecdote is that I pre-ordered it for £47.99, on Amazon. I take another look and it’s suddenly £59.95. Talk about a lucky move. It looks absolutely fantastic and since Leon Kennedy is my favourite male gaming character, I hope it reviews well.
Shahzaib Sadiq

Two for two
I want to recommend Pure Pool Pro on PlayStation 5. It’s a really fun game with excellent physics. It looks great and has an enjoyable career mode and trophies.

It’s only the second game I’ve bought for the PlayStation 5 after Everybody’s Golf Hot Shots. Keep up the good work.
EricBIG777 (PSN ID)

GC: Thank you.

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Actually final
RE: Ochreblue. I find it hard to imagine, after the Final Fantasy 7 remakes have been completed, that another remake of a fan favourite would be made anytime soon, at least on the scale of Final Fantasy 7’s budget.

I think that so much money has backed these three massive games that it would seem nonsensical to risk another big venture so soon, due to what the actual returns were from a financial point of view. I can imagine that it would have needed a lot more sales to accommodate a reason to make, let’s say the sixth or ninth Final Fantasy games in the series, even if they definitely do deserve one.

Possibly a remastered version of Chrono Trigger would be interesting, with a fresh lick of paint and a new up-to-date remake of the original soundtrack would be a great winner for me and other fans. No need to go and rebuild everything like the FFVII Remake, but way simpler using artwork that is skilfully applied to the cute looking world whilst keeping the atmosphere peak.

But we definitely have to get into our minds that the Final Fantasy 7 remakes could be the ultimate Final Fantasies, encapsulating everything from the original and introducing so much more.

This asks the question of how powerful do the next generation of consoles really need to be and have graphical qualities reached their zenith yet? GTA 6 will probably be that zenith but it’ll be pretty obvious that GTA 6 will be earning a hefty profit when the sale figures start coming in.

But definitely it will be an exception compared to other big releases, who will be relatively successful but with way less titles being sold. Let’s see what happens over this year and the next.
Alucard

Inbox also-rans
Sony shut down Bluepoint Games? Make it make sense! Surely they should be remaking Bloodborne?
Zombiekicker

One positive thing about all these console delays is that parents could be saved the £400 to £1,000 yearly scramble to get a new toy for their spoiled kids.
Bobwallett

GC: Who is spending £1,000 on new consoles every year?

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New Inbox updates appear every weekday morning, with special Hot Topic Inboxes at the weekend. Readers’ letters are used on merit and may be edited for length and content.

You can also submit your own 500 to 600-word Reader’s Feature at any time via email or our Submit Stuff page, which if used will be shown in the next available weekend slot.

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MORE: Games Inbox: Could memory shortages destroy the console industry?

MORE: Games Inbox: Will Resident Evil Requiem be worth getting?

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A report has found too many people diagnosed with cancer are not starting treatment quickly enough

Too many people diagnosed with cancer in Wales are not starting treatment quickly enough, a Welsh Government report has found. The findings also show that people who live in the most deprived areas have a lower chance of surviving.

The Welsh Government have a 62-day target for patients to begin treatment after they have been diagnosed with cancer. The latest data for November 2025 show only 58% of treatments start before this target.

In 2023, the Welsh Government set a target that 80% of cancer patients should start treatment within 62 days by March 2026, however they have fallen significantly behind this. Stay informed on the latest health news by signing up to our newsletter here

Certain cancers have longer waits for treatment, the figures from November 2025 show, with less than half of patients starting their treatment within 62 days for gynaecological (32 per cent), urological (34 per cent) and lower gastrointestinal (36 per cent) cancers and for sarcoma (27 per cent.)

Responding to the data shown in the Auditor General for Wales’s report on Cancer Services in Wales, the Wales Cancer Alliance explained: “It’s a clear indicator that the current system can’t keep up with the demand that we’re seeing coming into the system, and it isn’t working for far too many people across Wales.

“The impact on receiving a cancer diagnosis is devastating, but then to have to deal with the long delays in receiving that diagnosis compound it.”

The report also states that while improvements have been made in some areas, “the Senedd’s Public Accounts and Public Administration Committee warns that Wales continues to lag behind other UK nations and comparable countries internationally”.

Within the report the Committee share the response from the Welsh Government on the failure to meet the 62-day target. They were told that the Welsh Government has a: “target that is for 75 per cent of patients to be treated on the single cancer pathway within 62 days; 60 per cent is clearly an unacceptable level in terms of performance for those patients”.

They added: “The target is very challenging in order to be delivered, but doesn’t necessarily reflect the experience of a huge number of people who are on the cancer pathway. It only reflects those that go through and have treatment for cancer.”

In Wales there is a “significant deprivation gap in cancer survival rates” as more people from affluent areas survive than those living in the most deprived areas.

The Auditor General’s report explains that while 69 per cent of cancer patients living in the most affluent parts of Wales survive cancer at five years, that falls to 51 per cent for those in the most deprived areas.

The Committee heard evidence that “highlights persistent inequalities in access to timely diagnosis and treatment which are compounded by structural challenges across health boards and regional variation in service delivery”.

Speaking with Wales Cancer Alliance, the Committee were told that in Wales, death rates are 50 per cent higher in the most deprived groups compared to the least.

The Senedd’s Public Accounts and Public Administration Committee says these inequalities highlight persistent problems in access to timely diagnosis and treatment, variations in services between health boards, and barriers to screening uptake in disadvantaged groups.

The Chair of the Senedd’s Public Accounts and Public Administration Committee, Mark Isherwood MS, said: “Living with a cancer diagnosis places immense psychological, physical, and practical strain on individuals and their families. Cancer patients and their families deserve better than the level of performance we are seeing in Wales.

“The Welsh Government has set the national vision for cancer care, and it must now show far stronger leadership to deliver it. Waiting times remain unacceptable, inequalities are widening, and essential reforms are progressing far too slowly. The Government must grip this urgently – because without decisive national leadership, cancer outcomes in Wales will continue to fall short of what patients rightly expect and deserve.”

Cancer waiting time performance does not include the numbers of people who have been investigated and found not to have cancer.

In the most recent 12 months, more than 170,000 people on the cancer pathway received the good news they did not have cancer whilst some 24,000 people were diagnosed with cancer and started treatment.

The Welsh Government says: “We are working with the NHS to improve cancer care, including earlier access to diagnosis and treatment. Cancer is one of the most common causes of illness and death in Wales – there is more to do to prevent cancer and learn through research.

“We have invested tens of millions of pounds in new cancer facilities, equipment, digital systems, workforce training, treatments, screening and diagnostic services. We support health boards to improve cancer waiting times as part of our £2m Cancer Recovery Programme, which is changing how services are delivered to improve access.”

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