Israeli Defence Forces carried out their first strikes against the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen since the Tel Aviv-Tehran ceasefire. The Israeli military attacked three Yemeni ports and a power plant around midnight on local time Sunday night and into Monday morning, CNN reported.

The attacks come shortly after the Israeli military issued evacuation orders for civilians in the areas, warning of imminent air strikes, the BBC said.

The Israeli Air Force said these strikes on Yemen’s three ports were in response to “repeated attacks” by the Houthis on Israel and its citizens. It added that the targeted ports were being used to “transfer weapons from the Iranian regime to carry out terror plans” against Israel and its allies.

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz confirmed on social media the strikes on the Houthi-controlled sites, including a power station and a ship that was hijacked by the group two years ago.

Houthis will pay ‘a heavy price’

Katz said the strikes were part of “Operation Black Flag” and warned that the Houthis “will continue to pay a heavy price for their actions”.

“The fate of Yemen is the same as the fate of Tehran. Anyone who tries to harm Israel will be harmed, and anyone who raises a hand against Israel will have their hand cut off,” he said in a post on X.

“Houthi forces installed a radar system on the ship and have been using it to track vessels in the international maritime arena to facilitate further terrorist activities,” the IDF said in a statement following the strikes.

Following the strikes, Houthi forces said they “effectively repelled” the Israeli attacks, according to a post from a Houthi spokesperson on X, according to ABC News.

It had been six years since Enrique Iglesias last sang on Spanish soil, but on Saturday night in Gran Canaria, he didn’t just return—he reclaimed it. And nobody expected it because, as reported by Euro Weekly News in mid-2022, the son of Julio Iglesias had announced his retirement from the music business.

Under the warm island sky and in front of 25,000 roaring fans, the Madrid-born global star brought his entire world back to where it began. And what unfolded wasn’t just a concert. It was a reckoning—intimate, explosive, and unapologetically his.

The stadium was vibrant, filled with energy even before Iglesias sounded off his first note. There was a hum in the air and a roaring vibration on the ground as if something unprecedented or surreal was about to happen. And then, it did. The opening bars of “Súbeme la radio” streamed through the air and into the night, and just like that, time collapsed. 

No filler, no gimmicks

Thousands of LED bracelets lit up the stands, and thousands of Iglesias’s fans danced to his rhythm, as if the crowd itself had become a living, breathing constellation.

For two hours, Enrique delivered what his fans expected. He gave them all he is and all he has, which is more than enough. 

No filler, no gimmicks—just music, memory, and connection. From “Bailando” to “El perdón” to “Duele el corazón,” each track hit like a homecoming anthem. The hits weren’t dusted off for nostalgia—they were alive, pulsing with new urgency, sung not just by him but by a crowd that knew every word and had waited too damn long to shout them back.

But the night’s real magic came not with the bangers, but with the stillness. Mid-set, Enrique dimmed the lights and brought out Argentine artist Emilia. The two performed “Héroe,” a song that’s now old enough to vote, yet still holds the emotional weight of a fresh scar. Emilia, fresh off her own fiery set, met Enrique note for note—raw, exposed, and unafraid. Their duet was less a performance, more shared memory. And in that moment, every love lost and held onto in that crowd rose with them.

Later, Emilia posted simply, “Gracias de corazón, Enrique.” She didn’t need to say more. The moment had spoken for itself.

“Héroe” has never left the Spanish bloodstream. Even pop royalty like Dua Lipa paid tribute to it earlier this year, performing it in Spanish during her Madrid tour stop. That song, like Enrique himself, doesn’t age—it transforms.

There was a gravity to this night, and not just because it marked Enrique’s first show in Spain since 2019. He turns 50 this year. It’s also the 30th anniversary of his debut album—three decades that saw him break from Julio Iglesias’s long shadow and build his throne on the global stage.

He’s no longer just the heartthrob from the ’90s. He’s one of the best-selling Latin artists of all time, with over 180 million albums sold and more than 19 billion streams in the digital ether.

They sang like he’d never left

But here’s the truth Enrique proved on Saturday: statistics don’t sing back. People do. And the people of Spain? They sang like he never left.

The Gran Canaria performance was also one of only five shows on his 2025 tour—a list that includes cities as far-flung as Sofia, Abu Dhabi, and Mumbai. Spain got the only hometown date. And the fans knew it. They treated every note like a gift.

Earlier in the day, festival-goers were treated to vibrant sets by Rawayana, Ca7riel and Paco Amoroso, and the electric Picoco’s, but once Enrique Iglesias took the stage, time just seemed to freeze and stand still in awe. The music, the light, the voices—it became something tribal—a collective release.

When it ended, there was no encore. Just Enrique, hand on his heart, eyes full of something unsaid. Maybe gratitude. Maybe relief. Maybe both.

What’s certain is this: Spain didn’t just witness a concert. It welcomed home a son.

Legend has it that the Greek mithological hero Teucro founded the medieval city of Pontevedra, Spain, in the early 1100s B.C.. Teucro fought in the Trojan War alongside his half-brother Ayanx.

According to the myth, upon returning home from the war, his father, Talamon, rejected him for not having avenged Ayanx’s death, which led him to end up in Cartagena and Pontevedra, where he died allegedly trying to swim to a nymph or siren called Leucoina. A statue of Teucro still stands in the Plaza de San José in Pontevedra. 

The Spanish Federation of Municipalities and Provinces (FEMP) presents a different account of Pontevedra’s history.

The Roman road passage

“Pontevedra’s first inhabited settlements date back to Turoqua, a mansion located on the Roman road XIX, which crossed the Lérez River. The ancient town was born linked to its oldest bridge,” it stated.

 “A milestone dating to the year 137 of the Emperor Hadrian was discovered in 1988 at the southern end of the bridge, confirming the passage of the Roman road through the city,” the FEMP added.

The first evidence of the existence of a place called “Ponte Veteri,” a direct allusion to the old Roman bridge, is found in a deed from the Monastery of Lérez, dated 1141.

The fact is, Pontevedra is a must-visit medieval city that, in essence, has it all, from ancient historic buildings to beaches and excellent Galician restaurants.

Presently, Pontevedra has become one of the very few cities worldwide whose city centre is pedestrian-only, a utopic aspiration many have.

A region full of hidden gems

Notable examples of pedestrian-only cities include Venice, the largest car-free historic centre in all of Europe. Other than that, there are ski villages like Zermatt, Switzerland, and islands like Fire Island, New York, and the Isle of Sark in the U.K.’s Channel Islands. 

However, lesser-known but equally impressive is the historic Pontevedra, a region in the northwest full of hidden gems, such as this little town on Spain’s rugged coast, offering panoramic views and unforgettable sunsets.

Apart from service vehicles, deliveries, and other specified autos, cars are allowed only on Pontevedra’s outer rings. 

The policy is not specifically unfriendly to motorists: In fact, you can leave your car for free, and without time limits, in designated areas. Drivers are encouraged to park and walk into the historic centre to enjoy its medieval squares, cobblestoned streets, and open-air cafés, all blissfully free of traffic. 

An influx of new residents

It’s no wonder the small city, with a population of 80,000, has seen an influx of new residents — estimated at 12,000 — since becoming a pedestrian-friendly community in the late 1990s.

“It was a sad and stressed city,” said Xosé Cesareo Mosquera, Pontevedra’s head of urban infrastructure, in an interview with CityChangers. “People felt like they had to escape to live on the outskirts.” 

The city’s new mayor, Miguel Anxo Fernández Lores, made waves in 1999 by prohibiting on-street parking, lowering speed limits, replacing traffic lights with roundabouts, and pedestrianising large areas of the historic centre. 

The city is a historic stop on the Portuguese Way, a section of the famous Camino de Santiago, and its landmarks are easily accessible on foot. 

Nestled around picturesque plazas are the 16th-century Basílica de Santa María a Maior, the city’s main church, which features a blend of Gothic and Portuguese architectural elements, and the 14th-century Convento de San Francisco, once home to Franciscan monks. 

The Ruínas de San Domingos, the remains of a 14th-century Dominican convent, are now part of the Museo de Pontevedra, a free museum that features archaeological exhibits and masterpieces by Pablo Picasso and Salvador Dalí.

Apart from sightseeing, one of the great pleasures of visiting Pontevedra is just wandering around its quiet streets and squares. The colourful Mercado Municipal marketplace is a great place to pick up fresh fruit, locally produced cheeses, and wines.