☀ Up & Up 🌙

Welcome back to Araw Araw!

Good morning. With Independence Day coming up, it’s the perfect time to highlight our prowess and room to bloom.

The Philippines has long been a trailblazer in Asian sports, founding Asia’s first basketball league, the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA), in 1975. Basketball quickly became the sport across the nation, showcasing our talent and passion. However, the PBA is currently facing challenges. Like a lot of systems and organizations in our beloved country, the PBA is a reminder that while we have a proud legacy, there’s always room for growth and improvement. By addressing these issues, we can ensure that we remain a source of national pride and continue to inspire future generations.

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World News

⚔️ High Stakes and Heavy Costs: Israel’s Daring Hostage Rescue in Gaza

By Tobias Bautista

Israeli Army, Reuters

In a daring daytime raid, Israeli forces rescued four hostages from Gaza, but not without a heavy cost. The operation, which was weeks in the making, resulted in the deaths of at least 274 Palestinians and left hundreds injured, according to Gazan authorities.

The hostages – Noa Argamani, Almog Meir Jan, Andrey Kozlov, and Shlomi Ziv – were abducted from the Nova music festival back in October. Their families are overjoyed, but the celebration might be short-lived. Israeli PM Netanyahu is still under pressure and rescue more hostages, while casualties continue to climb.

The IDF executed a surprise raid on the Nuseirat camp, with soldiers disguising themselves and using models of the hostage locations for training. Despite the risk, the operation was a success, though one Israeli officer was killed.

The high civilian toll has sparked outrage. Gazan residents described the scene as "hell on earth," with relentless bombardments hitting markets and homes. Hamas condemned the raid as a massacre, while international leaders are pushing for a ceasefire.

The operation highlights the complexity of hostage rescues in Gaza, with debates raging over whether military action or ceasefire deals are the best approach to bring hostages home.

Space Update

🚀 One Giant Leap with Virgin Galactic

By Tobias Bautista

Reuters

Virgin Galactic just gave four tourists the ride of a lifetime, whisking them to the edge of space and back on its spaceplane. This was the company's second trip this year, because who doesn't love an encore? The Galactic 07 mission saw Turkish, U.S., and Italian passengers cruising at an altitude of about 55 miles, all within a neat hour-long adventure.

Taking off from Spaceport America in New Mexico, the mission was a perfect mix of "Up, up, and away!" and "Honey, I'm home!" But it was also a bit of a farewell tour for the VSS Unity spaceplane, as Virgin Galactic is rolling out its fourth-gen spaceships, ready to launch in 2026. So, if you've got space travel on your bucket list, better start saving up now! It only costs about $450,000 or 26.4 Million pesos.

Sports

🏆 Grit and grind give the Celtics a 2-0 lead over the Mavericks in the 2024 NBA Finals

By Koby del Rosario

AP

The Boston Celtics were in full force on their 105-98 Game 2 victory over the Dallas Mavericks yesterday morning PH time to reinforce the series in their favor, 2-0.

It was a collective effort from the C’s as two-way guard Jrue Holiday had a masterclass of 26 points on 11-of-14 shooting to go along with 11 rebounds. The J’s also had great games as Jaylen Brown put up 21 points and seven assists while Jayson Tatum showed his playmaking skills with 12 dimes and nine boards despite only shooting 6-for-22 (18 points) from the field.

MVP runner-up Luka Doncic’s 32-point, 11-rebound, 11-assist triple double was the lone bright spot for the Mavs as he still takes the blame for the loss on his eight turnovers despite limited production from his supporting cast. 

Game 3 of the 2024 NBA Finals is scheduled on Thursday morning PH time. Let’s see if the Mavericks bounce back on their home floor after a controversial play late in the game halted any chance of a stolen win for them.

⚡️ Meralco takes a 2-1 lead over the Beermen in the PBA Philippine Cup Finals

By Koby del Rosario

PBA

In a thrilling Game 3, the Meralco Bolts conquered the San Miguel Beermen in the clutch to come away with the tight 93-89 win to bring them within two more wins of the chip, 2-1.

Chris Newsome was the night’s savior as his late-game heroics paved the way to the triumph, as he finished with 26 points and four rebounds and assists apiece. Complementing his performance were Raymond Almazan and Bong Quinto who had 17 and 16 markers, respectively. 

Meanwhile for SMB, the “Kraken” was limited to only 12 points as big man Mo Tuatuaa carried the scoring load with 19 points as the veteran team looks to even up the series next game.

Game 4 of the hotly-contested 48th PBA Philippine Cup Finals is scheduled for tomorrow, June 12, at 7:30 pm in the same venue.

Lifestyle

🎮 Call Of Duty reveals Black Ops 6 with the release of the installment’s first trailer

By Koby del Rosario

Call Of Duty

Fans of one of Call Of Duty’s most successful franchises, Black Ops, finally got a taste of what’s in store for the series’ sixth iteration.

Co-developed by Treyarch and Raven Software, publisher Activision took the gaming world by surprise when they released the first look into Call Of Duty: Black Ops 6 yesterday morning PH time.

It’s due for an October release date later this year for Xbox Series X|S, PS5, and PC; surprisingly enough, even PS4 and Xbox One too. The consoles of the past generation are still getting some love in 2024 we see.

The campaign story of the game will be set in the early 1990’s, with an emphasis on it being a spy action type thriller. As per usual, much details were announced for the game's multiplayer mode, but the installment also marks the return of the fan-favorite round-based zombies mode.

Watch the first official reveal trailer in the game’s official Youtube page. We all can’t wait to play a fresh new COD project coming our way soon enough that’ll mix elements from both new and old titles.

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