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Across the Middle East and beyond, the fall of Syria’s authoritarian government at the hands of jihadi militants set off waves of jubilation, trepidation and alarm. Expatriate Syrians and many residents across the Middle East exulted at the overthrow of a leader who led his country through 14 years of civil strife that left half a million Syrians dead and displaced millions to countries around the world. While others are worried about further instability rocking a region already in turmoil. Governments — whether allies or opponents of Bashar Assad — scrambled to absorb the sudden, stunning development and assess the implications for the Middle East and the world. In the US, President Joe Biden said that the sudden collapse of the Syrian government under Mr Assad is a “fundamental act of justice” after decades of repression, but it was “a moment of risk and uncertainty” for the Middle East.Speaking at the White House, Mr Biden said the US was not sure of Mr Assad’s whereabouts, but was monitoring reports he was seeking refuge in Moscow. Mr Biden credited action by the US and its allies for weakening Syria’s backers — Russia, Iran and Hezbollah. He said “for the first time” that they could no longer defend Mr Assad’s grip on power. “Our approach has shifted the balance of power in the Middle East,” Mr Biden said. In a social media post on Saturday, before Mr Assad’s fall was confirmed, President-elect Donald Trump said: “Syria is a mess but is not our friend, & THE UNITED STATES SHOULD HAVE NOTHING TO DO WITH IT. THIS IS NOT OUR FIGHT. LET IT PLAY OUT. DO NOT GET INVOLVED!” The US has about 900 troops in Syria, including US forces working with Kurdish allies in the opposition-held north east to prevent any resurgence of the Islamic State group. In Lebanon, thousands of Syrians headed for the Masnaa border crossing to return to their home country, despite the uncertainty. “Anything is better than Bashar,” said Sami Abdel-Latif, a refugee from Hama who was heading back to join his wife and four children. “This is a feeling we’ve been waiting 14 years for,” said Malak Matar, who was preparing to return to the capital of Damascus. Now, he said, “Syrians have to create a state that is well organised and take care of their country.” Many citizens in Syria’s neighbouring countries reacted with joy to the news Mr Assad was gone. In Jordan’s capital, Amman, resident Muhab al-Majali said his fall marked the end of “unjust and tyrannical rule”. “I believe that the future is beautiful and prosperous for the Syrians,” he said. Syria’s neighbours stepped up security along their borders. Lebanon said it was closing all but one of its land border crossings with Syria. Jordan also closed a border crossing. Iran, a key ally of Mr Assad, said the Syrian people should decide their country’s future “without destructive, coercive foreign intervention”. The Foreign Ministry in Tehran said Iran supports Syria’s unity and national sovereignty and hopes to see “the end of military conflicts, the prevention of terrorist activities and the start of a national dialogue” with the participation of all groups. The Iraqi government, which is close to Iran, said it “supports all international and regional efforts seeking to open a dialogue” for Syria. Egypt’s foreign ministry urged a “comprehensive political process” to establish a new era of peace in the war-torn country. The head of Yemen’s internationally recognised government welcomed the fall of Mr Assad as “a historic moment”. Turkey has backed anti-Assad militant groups in Syria and could play a key role in what happens next. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said the fall of Assad brought “hope” and he called on the world to help “unite and reconstruct” Syria. In Europe, many governments welcomed Mr Assad’s departure while urging a rapid return to stability. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said in a statement that the end of Mr Assad’s rule was “good news”, adding that “what matters now is that law and order are quickly restored in Syria”. France’s foreign ministry welcomed the fall of Mr Assad, saying “the Syrian people have suffered too much”. British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer also welcomed the end of Mr Assad’s “barbaric regime”. “We call on all sides to protect civilians and minorities and ensure essential aid can reach the most vulnerable in the coming hours and days,” he said. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also called for calm and urged work to ensure an “orderly political transition to renewed institutions”. Russia, which backed Mr Assad with troops and warplanes, said it has been following the “dramatic events” in Syria “with extreme concern”. State media later reported that Mr Assad was in Moscow with his family and they had been granted asylum. Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha of Ukraine, which is at war with Russia, wrote on X that the ousted Syrian leader had suffered the fate of “all dictators who bet on (Russian President Vladimir) Putin. He always betrays those who rely on him”.Arsenal up to second after Kai Havertz goal sees off struggling Ipswich

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Sunday's inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff bracket reveal officially set the stage for the most anticipated postseason the sport has ever seen. Eight more spots in the playoff field have created two extra rounds to determine a national champion, which could come from the Big Ten, the Southeastern Conference or even the Mountain West! Now that the initial matchups are set, it's time to examine the FanDuel odds for the first-round games and, of course, the latest national championship odds. CFP Bracket: Odds for First-Round Games Oregon's win over Penn State in the Big Ten championship locked the Ducks into the No. 1 seed, while Georgia's overtime triumph over Texas for the SEC crown moved the Bulldogs up to No. 2. Boise State slotted in at No. 9 in the final CFP rankings but is the No. 3 seed thanks to its win over UNLV in the Mountain West championship. With SMU losing to Clemson in the Atlantic Coast Conference title game, No. 12-ranked Arizona State is the four seed after it throttled Iowa State to win the Big 12. The top four teams get a bye, with the 5-12 seeds meeting in the first round. 12-seed Clemson (+330) vs. 5-seed Texas (-11.5) Texas was favored to win the SEC and lock down a top-four seed, but Clemson was not expected to beat SMU for the ACC title. The Longhorns will therefore hunt redemption, while Dabo Swinney's team is essentially playing with house money. The winner will face Arizona State in the Peach Bowl. 9-seed Tennessee (+215) vs. 8-seed Ohio State (-7.5) The third-highest-ranked team from the SEC (No. 7 Tennessee) will face off with the third-highest-ranked squad from the Big Ten (No. 6 Ohio State). This game brings the Buckeyes a chance at redemption for their embarrassing loss to Michigan to end the regular season. The winner will travel to the Rose Bowl to play Oregon. 11-seed SMU (+240) vs. 6-seed Penn State (-7.5) Concerns over strength of schedule dog both teams. Both have 11-2 records and were runners-up in their respective conferences. Penn State's only win over a ranked opponent was against then-No. 19 Illinois in Week 4, while SMU has knocked off then-No. 22 Louisville and then-No. 18 Pittsburgh. The winner will meet Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl. 10-seed Indiana (+230) vs. 7-seed Notre Dame (-7.5) The Hoosiers may be the biggest surprise in college football this season, although their inclusion came with a few concerns over the strength of their schedule. After falling flat in a potential statement game against then-No. 2 Ohio State on Nov. 23, Indiana can prove its might against a Fighting Irish squad that won its last 10 games. The winner will take on Georgia in the Sugar Bowl. National Championship Odds and Picks Oregon was the betting favorite (odds via FanDuel) prior to the final rankings reveal at +230. Post-reveal, Texas and Georgia are co-favorites at +360, followed by Oregon at +380, Ohio State at +500 and Penn State at +600. Boise State is the biggest long shot at +7500 despite having a first-round bye. Like Boise State, Arizona State saw its odds go from +3500 to +6000 even though it doesn't play until the quarterfinals. The Picks are In... First-Round Best Bet: Indiana-Notre Dame UNDER 51.5-both teams have solid offenses but will find it difficult to move the ball against the other's defense. Upset Special: Clemson (+340) over Texas-Cade Klubnik will have his hands full against the Texas secondary, but the Clemson defense could be up for the challenge against Quinn Ewers and the Longhorns offense. National Championship Winner: Favorite-Oregon +380; Dark Horse-Notre Dame +1200; Long Shot-Arizona State +6000 --Field Level Media

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Northern Territory Don't miss out on the headlines from Northern Territory. Followed categories will be added to My News. Gas giant Santos is honing in on its Territory onshore activities with an increased focus on the McArthur Basin and the Beetaloo as the energy producer sets its sights on longer-term backfill projects that could require Territory gas. The Barossa-field developer is looking to move beyond the $6bn Darwin LNG renewal project with an enhanced focus on the Territory and the gas-rich McArthur province that extends 180,000sq km across the north-eastern Northern Territory. Santos’ board was in Darwin this week, where chief executive Kevin Gallagher expressed his optimism about the company’s NT plans. “It is the strong support of governments like the Territory’s that give us confidence to continue to invest here,” he said. Santos chief executive Kevin Gallagher. Picture: NCA NewsWire / RoyVphotography “I hope that the industry together with the NT government can unlock the wealth of the Territory’s gas resources over the next four years - both offshore with Barossa but also onshore in the Beetaloo.” Delayed by greens legal-activism that led to $9m costs being awarded to Santos by the federal court last week, the Barossa offshore project is now 84 per cent complete and on track for first gas next year while the Darwin LNG life extension project is 67 per cent complete. This has given Santos the time and space to re-focus on its McArthur and Beetaloo basin assets, which were put on ice as the company battled egregious cultural heritage claims that were thrown out by the federal court earlier this year. At an investor briefing late last month, Santos executive vice president Brett Darley described its Barossa asset as “a fantastic resource” and flagged an uptick in activity to become the third main Beetaloo player behind Tamboran and Empire Energy. He said the company would be able to leverage off existing extraction technologies honed at the Marcellus Shale, one of the world’s largest natural gas deposits in the United States. SANTOS Executive vice president Brett Darley. Picture: Supplied “Beetaloo is the potential project we are really excited about,” he said. “We believe we have a sweet spot in the MacArthur Basin, with the Beetaloo being a subset of that. “We are talking tens of trillion cubic feet of gas that could help fill Darwin LNG or Gladstone LNG. “It’s scalable, it’s a drill to fill operation that then we can plan our capital on. So again, fits very well into our operating model. (Another) thing we also like about it is it’s analogous to shales that are currently being developed with current technology in the Marcellus. “So this isn’t inventing the technology, this is leveraging technology that already exists large scale in the US. “We’re looking to actually do some further appraisal in 2026 and we’re really excited about just how supportive the new Northern Territory government is to actually exploiting these opportunities. This is a fantastic resource for us.” A Macquarie bank investor flashnote published late last month identified future partnerships between Santos and pipeline builder APA to connect the Beetaloo with the company’s Gladstone LNG resource. “Santos (as LNG operator) and APA Group ... are two key stakeholders that could be critical in fast tracking Beetaloo basin development on a larger scale beyond the pilot phase,” it said. More Coverage ‘Lack of regard for the truth’: Greenies ordered to pay gas giant’s legal costs Camden Smith Major NT energy project defies protests to near completion Camden Smith Originally published as Santos steps-up its focus on the Territory’s Beetaloo gas precinct Join the conversation Add your comment to this story To join the conversation, please log in. Don't have an account? Register Join the conversation, you are commenting as Logout More related stories Northern Territory Amye Un-Kon Vatskalis Facebook saga brought to close by tribunal Darwin’s ‘Laksa Queen’, an elected City of Darwin councillor, sought to overturn a decision that the Lord Mayor did not breach the Code of Conduct when he returned fire in their sordid social media war, but she has failed. Read more News Rugby player’s grand final night rollover crushes mate, fractures spine A well-regarded club rugby player and coach rolled his brother’s troopy at Marrara, ejecting his friend who became pinned under the vehicle, suffering horrific injuries, a court has heard. He then claimed the victim was the driver. Read moreTejashwi Yadav, Sharad Pawar Back Mamata for I.N.D.I.A. Head