CARDIFF, Wales (AP) — Joe Bugner, a heavyweight who took boxing greats Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier the distance in fights in the 1970s, has died. He was 75.
The death of the Hungary-born Bugner, who was also a British citizen, was announced Monday by the British Boxing Board of Control, which said he died at his care home in Brisbane, Australia.
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FILE - Former British heavyweight champion Joe Bugner holds up a George Foreman tee shirt after confirming his comeback to boxing at a gym in Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia, Friday Aug. 25, 1995. (AP Photo/Steve Holland, file)
FILE - American Heavyweight Champion Muhammed Ali, right, launches an attack on Joe Bugner, British and European Heavyweight Champion, during their 12 round Heavyweight fight in Los Vegas, Nevada, on Feb. 14, 1973. (AP Photo, file)
FILE - Joe Bugner, British heavyweight boxing champion, right, is pictured with American boxer Joe Frazier at a news conference at the Sportsman Club in London, June 1973, prior to their bout. (AP Photo, file)
FILE - British Heavyweight boxer Joe Bugner winks towards the camera, after completing his daily training session at the British Boxing Board of Control's gymnasium at Chalk Farm, London, on Oct. 5, 1972. (AP Photo/Bob Dear, file)
FILE - British heavyweight champion Joe Bugner, left, is pictured with U.S. heavyweight champion boxer Muhammad Ali, at a press conference in New York, May 27, 1975. T (AP Photo/Dave Pickoff, file)
Bugner struggled to gain affection in Britain after sending national treasure Henry Cooper into retirement with a contentious points win in 1971 to capture the British, Commonwealth and European titles.
He lost those belts later in the year but was European champion again by the time he fought Ali for the first time, in 1973, in a non-title fight in Las Vegas. Ali won on points and Frazier did the same five months later in a fight at Earl's Court in London.
Bugner met Ali for a second time in 1975, on that occasion a world-title fight in Kuala Lumpur, and the American again won on points in a bout over 15 rounds.
A boxing career spanning 32 years ended in 1999, by which time he had relocated to Australia — where he spent the final years of his life in a care home after being diagnosed with dementia. Bugner was affectionately known as "Aussie Joe" in his last few years as a boxer.
Bugner, who was a child refugee when he moved to Britain after his family fled Hungary amid the 1956 Soviet invasion, won 69 of his 83 fights, 41 inside the distance.
“The British Boxing Board of Control passes on its condolences to Joe’s family,” the BBBofC said in a short statement.
AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports
FILE - Former British heavyweight champion Joe Bugner holds up a George Foreman tee shirt after confirming his comeback to boxing at a gym in Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia, Friday Aug. 25, 1995. (AP Photo/Steve Holland, file)
FILE - American Heavyweight Champion Muhammed Ali, right, launches an attack on Joe Bugner, British and European Heavyweight Champion, during their 12 round Heavyweight fight in Los Vegas, Nevada, on Feb. 14, 1973. (AP Photo, file)
FILE - Joe Bugner, British heavyweight boxing champion, right, is pictured with American boxer Joe Frazier at a news conference at the Sportsman Club in London, June 1973, prior to their bout. (AP Photo, file)
FILE - British Heavyweight boxer Joe Bugner winks towards the camera, after completing his daily training session at the British Boxing Board of Control's gymnasium at Chalk Farm, London, on Oct. 5, 1972. (AP Photo/Bob Dear, file)
FILE - British heavyweight champion Joe Bugner, left, is pictured with U.S. heavyweight champion boxer Muhammad Ali, at a press conference in New York, May 27, 1975. T (AP Photo/Dave Pickoff, file)
ADEN, Yemen (AP) — The United Arab Emirates said early Saturday it had withdrawn all its troops from Yemen.
The move comes after days of airlifts by UAE military aircraft following an order to withdraw from anti-Houthi forces in Yemen following Saudi Arabia pushing back against the advance of Emirati-backed separatists there.
“The UAE forces follows the implementation of a previously announced decision to conclude the remaining missions of counter-terrorism units,” a Defense Ministry statement said. “The process has been conducted in a manner that ensured the safety of all personnel and carried out in coordination with all relevant partners.”
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.
ADEN, Yemen (AP) —
Yemen 's separatist movement on Friday announced a constitution for an independent nation in the south and demanded other factions in the war-torn country accept the move in an escalation of a confrontation that has pitted Gulf powerhouses Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates against each other.
The UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council depicted the announcement as a declaration of independence for the south. But it was not immediately clear if the move could be implemented or was largely symbolic. Last month, STC-linked fighters seized control of two southern provinces from Saudi-backed forces and took over the Presidential Palace in the south's main city, Aden. Members of the internationally recognized government — which had been based in Aden — fled to the Saudi-capital Riyadh.
On Friday, Saudi warplanes bombed camps and military positions held by the STC in Hadramout province as Saudi-backed fighters tried to seize the facilities, a separatist official said. It was the latest direct intervention by Saudi Arabia, which in recent weeks has bombed STC forces and struck what is said was a shipment of Emirati weapons destined for the separatists.
Ostensibly, Saudi Arabia and the UAE and their allies on the ground in Yemen have all been part of a Saudi-led coalition fighting Iranian-backed Houthi rebels who control the north in the country's decade-long civil war. The coalition's professed goal has long been to restore the internationally recognized government, which was driven out of the north by the Houthis. But tensions between the factions and the two Gulf nations appear to be unraveling the coalition, threatening to throw them into outright conflict and further tear apart the Arab world's poorest country.
The head of the STC, Aidarous al-Zubaid, issued a video statement Friday saying that the constitution his group issued would be in effect for two years, after which a a referendum would be held on “exercising the right to self-determination for the people of the South.” During those two years, he said, the “relevant parties” in north and south Yemen should hold a dialogue on “a path and mechanisms that guarantee the right of the people of the South.”
He said that if the other factions don't agree to his call or if they take military action, “all options remain open.”
The 30-article “constitution” proclaimed the creation of “the State of South Arabia," covering the same territory of the former People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen, the independent southern state that existed from 1967-1990.
It seemed to be the most overt move yet by the STC toward its long-proclaimed goal of independence. In the confusion that has reigned in the south in recent weeks, it was not clear what practical impact it would have. But the declaration could set back efforts to avert an outright conflict between the separatists and the rest of the Saudi-led coalition.
The UAE’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement Friday that the country was dealing with the situation “with restraint, coordination, and a deliberate commitment to de-escalation, guided by a foreign policy that consistently prioritizes regional stability over impulsive action.”
The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen demands the withdrawal of the STC-linked Southern Shield forces from the two governorates they seized, Hadramout and Mahra, as part of de-escalation efforts. The STC has so far refused to hand over its weapons and camps.
Saudi-backed fighters, known as the National Shield Forces, advanced on two STC-camps in Hadramout, said a senior STC official, Ahmed bin Breik, a former governor of the province. The separatist forces refused to withdraw and in response, Saudi planes struck the camps, he said.
Mohamed al-Nakib, spokesperson for the STC-backed forces, said the strikes caused fatalities, without providing details. The Associated Press couldn’t independently verify that claim.
He told the AP later Friday that “intense clashes” erupted between his forces and the National Shield forces across several areas of Hadramout.
It was not clear if the Saudi-backed forces succeeded in retaking the camps.
Salem al-Khanbashi, the governor of Hadramout who was chosen Friday by Yemen's internationally recognized government to command the Saudi-led forces in the governorate, said the move to reclaim the camps was “not a declaration of war and is not seeking an escalation.” He said it was a “pre-emptive measure to remove weapons.”
In a post on X, the Saudi ambassador to Yemen, Mohammed al-Jaber, said the kingdom had tried “all efforts with STC” for weeks "to stop the escalation" and to urge the separatists to leave Hadramout and Mahra, only to be faced with “continued intransigence and rejection from Aidarous al-Zubaidi."
Al-Jaber said the STC had not permitted a Saudi delegation's jet to land in Aden, despite having agreed on its arrival with some STC leaders to find a solution that serves “everyone and the public interest.”
Yemen’s Transportation Ministry, aligned with STC, said Saudi Arabia on Thursday imposed requirements mandating that flights to and from Aden International Airport undergo inspection in Jeddah. The ministry denounced the decision. There was no confirmation from Saudi authorities.
ِA spokesperson with the transport ministry told the AP late Thursday that all flights from and to the UAE were suspended until Saudi Arabia reverses these reported measures.
Khaled reported from Cairo. Associated Press writer Bassem Mroue in Beirut contributed to this report.
Yemeni workers chat at a popular market in Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)
A Southern Yemen soldier of Southern Transitional Council (STC) stands at a check point, in Aden, Yemen, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. (AP Photo)
A Yemeni rides his motorbike under a banner honoring Houthi leaders who were killed during Israeli airstrikes, in Sanaa, Yemen, Thursday, Jan. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Osamah Abdulrahman)
Supporters of the Southern Transitional Council (STC), a coalition of separatist groups seeking to restore the state of South Yemen, hold South Yemen flags during a rally, in Aden, Yemen, Friday, Jan. 2, 2026. (AP Photo)
Supporters of the Southern Transitional Council (STC), a coalition of separatist groups seeking to restore the state of South Yemen, hold South Yemen flags during a rally, in Aden, Yemen, Friday, Jan. 2, 2026. (AP Photo)
Southern Yemen soldiers of Southern Transitional Council (STC) at a check point, in Aden, Yemen, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2025. (AP Photo)
