BANGKOK (AP) — Fátima Bosch Fernández of Mexico was crowned Miss Universe 2025 on Friday, a dramatic victory for a 25-year-old at the center of the turbulent 74th staging of the popular beauty pageant in Bangkok who stood up to public bullying from one of the hosts.
The issues at this year’s event sprang from a sharp-tongued scolding of Bosch, which sparked a controversy marked by a walkout, feminist solidarity and a teary, melodramatic apology from the local organizer who set it all off.
Click to Gallery
Miss Venezuela Stephany Abasali competes during the final round of the 74th Miss Universe Beauty Pageant in Nonthaburi province, Thailand, Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Miss Venezuela Stephany Abasali competes during the final round of the 74th Miss Universe Beauty Pageant in Nonthaburi province, Thailand, Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Miss Japan Kaori Hashimoto competes during the final round of the 74th Miss Universe Beauty Pageant in Nonthaburi province, Thailand, Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Mexico Fatima Bosch competes during the final round of the 74th Miss Universe Beauty Pageant in Nonthaburi province, Thailand, Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Miss Mexico Fatima Bosch, center, is celebrated by other contesters after winning the 2025 Miss Universe pageant in Nonthaburi, north of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
When Bosch was announced as the winner, cheers and screams erupted from the audience, with Mexican flags waved by elated supporters.
Speaking to the media after her victory, Bosch said that she would like to be remembered as “a person that changed a little bit the prototype of what is a Miss Universe and a real person that gives the heart.”
She also paid tribute to the pageant, describing it as “a platform that is strong because they have the space that women are searching to have a voice.”
The first runner-up was 29-year old Praveenar Singh of Thailand and 25-year-old Stephany Adriana Abasali Nasser of Venezuela placed third. Rounding up the finishers were Ahtisa Manalo, 28, of the Philippines, and 27-year-old Olivia Yacé of Ivory Coast who came fifth.
At the livestreamed sashing ceremony for the more than 100 contestants on Nov. 4, Thai national director Nawat Itsaragrisil hectored Bosch for allegedly not following his guidelines for taking part in local promotional activities. He called security when she spoke up to defend herself.
Bosch walked out of the room, joined by several others in a show of solidarity, including Miss Universe 2024, Victoria Kjær Theilvig of Denmark.
“What your director did is not respectful: He called me dumb,” an unbowed Bosch told Thai reporters. “If it takes away your dignity, you need to go.”
Nawat insisted that he did not call her “dumb.”
The Miss Universe Organization president, Mexican businessman Raúl Rocha Cantú, released a statement condemning Nawat’s conduct as “public aggression” and “serious abuse.”
Even Mexico’s first woman president, Claudia Sheinbaum, piled on, saying at a news conference in her country’s capital that she wanted to give “recognition” to Miss Mexico for voicing her disagreement in a “dignified” way.
“It seems to me that it is an example of how women should raise our voices,” Sheinbaum said.
Sheinbaum recalled being told in the past that “women look more beautiful when they keep quiet.”
“We women look more beautiful when we raise our voice and participate, because that has to do with the recognition of our rights,” she said.
Nawat later apologized for his actions, appearing both tearful and defiant at the same time.
“If anyone (was) affected and not comfortable it happened, I am so sorry,” he said in front of the contestants. He then turned to them and said “It’s passed. OK? Are you happy?”
Bosch's official Miss Universe biography says she studied fashion in Mexico and Italy and has focused on creating sustainable designs and working with discarded materials. It says she has volunteered with sick children, promoted environmental awareness and engaged in supported migrants and mental health issues.
This year's competition also saw a report that two judges had quit, with one of them suggesting that there was an element of rigging to the contest. The allegation was denied. Separately, Thai police investigated the alleged illegal promotion of online casinos as part of the event’s publicity.
Mishaps and controversies are not rare for the pageant. The 2021 event attracted criticism because it was held in Israel, to the dismay of supporters of the Palestinian cause.
An example of a minor misstep — literally — occurred Wednesday when Miss Universe Jamaica, Gabrielle Henry, fell off the stage during the evening gown competition. She was not badly hurt.
——
Associated Press writer Grant Peck contributed to this report.
Miss Venezuela Stephany Abasali competes during the final round of the 74th Miss Universe Beauty Pageant in Nonthaburi province, Thailand, Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Miss Venezuela Stephany Abasali competes during the final round of the 74th Miss Universe Beauty Pageant in Nonthaburi province, Thailand, Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Miss Japan Kaori Hashimoto competes during the final round of the 74th Miss Universe Beauty Pageant in Nonthaburi province, Thailand, Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Mexico Fatima Bosch competes during the final round of the 74th Miss Universe Beauty Pageant in Nonthaburi province, Thailand, Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
Miss Mexico Fatima Bosch, center, is celebrated by other contesters after winning the 2025 Miss Universe pageant in Nonthaburi, north of Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, Nov. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Sakchai Lalit)
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran kept up its attacks on Israel and Persian Gulf neighbors on Wednesday as airstrikes pounded Tehran and U.S. President Donald Trump again made contradictory statements about whether he was ready to wind down the war or escalate it.
Trump struck a belligerent tone Wednesday in a Truth Social post, demanding that Iran stop blocking the Strait of Hormuz — the waterway vital to global oil supplies — or the U.S. would bomb the Islamic Republic “back to the Stone Ages.” A day earlier, Trump said the U.S. “will not have anything to do with” ensuring the security of ships passing through Hormuz; that was an apparent backtrack from a previous threat to attack Iran's power grid if it didn't open the strait by April 6.
Trump, who is scheduled to give a televised address Wednesday evening, said Tuesday he could walk away from the war in two to three weeks once he felt confident Iran would not be able to build a nuclear weapon — even if Tehran does not agree to a ceasefire.
But his latest Truth Social post struck a harder line as more American troops move into the region for a possible ground offensive after weeks of airstrikes targeting Iran.
Trump also claimed Wednesday that “Iran's New Regime President” wanted a ceasefire. It wasn't clear to whom the U.S. president was referring since Iran still has the same president. Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman, Esmail Baghaei, called Trump's claim “false and baseless,” according to a report on Iranian state television.
Speaking earlier to Al Jazeera, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi signaled Tehran’s willingness to keep fighting. “You cannot speak to the people of Iran in the language of threats and deadlines,” he said. “We do not set any deadline for defending ourselves.”
Since the war began on Feb. 28, Trump has offered shifting objectives and repeatedly has said it could be over soon while also threatening to widen the conflict. Thousands of additional U.S. troops are currently heading to the Middle East, and speculation abounds about the purpose of their deployment.
Just days ago, Trump threatened to attack Iran’s Kharg Island oil export hub. And there has also been speculation about whether the U.S. could decide to send in military forces to secure Iran’s uranium stockpile — a complex and risky operation, fraught with radiation and chemical dangers, according to experts and former government officials.
Adding to the confusion is what role Israel — which has been bombing Iran alongside the U.S. — might play in any of these scenarios.
Trump has been under growing pressure to end the war as oil prices have skyrocketed, pushing up the cost of gasoline, food and other goods. The price of Brent crude, the international standard, is up more than 40% since the start of the war, though it declined slightly on Wednesday and traded at around $101 a barrel.
The U.S. has presented Iran with a 15-point plan aimed at bringing about a ceasefire, including a demand for the strait to be reopened and for its nuclear program to be rolled back.
Iran insists its nuclear program is peaceful. And in a report last week by Iranian state TV's English-language broadcaster, an anonymous official was quoted as saying Iran had its own demands to end the fighting, including retaining sovereignty over the strait.
In the interview with Al Jazeera, Araghchi acknowledged receiving direct messages from U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff. He insisted, however, that there were no direct negotiations and said Iran has no faith that talks with the U.S. could yield any results, saying “the trust level is at zero.”
He warned against any U.S. attempt to launch a ground offensive, saying “we are waiting for them.”
In a deal ostensibly to give diplomacy a chance, U.S. officials have given “clear assurances” that Araghchi and Iran's Parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf won't be targeted, according to three officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they're not authorized to speak publicly about the matter.
A cruise missile slammed into an oil tanker off Qatar’s coast Wednesday, the Defense Ministry said. The crew was evacuated and no casualties were reported. A Kuwaiti oil tanker came under attack off Dubai the day before, one of more than 20 ships attacked by Iran during the war.
In the United Arab Emirates, a person was killed when he was hit by debris from an intercepted drone in Fujairah, one of the country’s seven emirates.
In Kuwait, the state-run KUNA news agency said a drone hit a fuel tank at Kuwait International Airport, sparking a large fire.
Jordan’s military said it intercepted a ballistic missile and two drones fired from Iran in the last 24 hours. No casualties were reported. Two drones were also intercepted in Saudi Arabia.
In Israel, sirens sounded to warn of incoming missiles and AP reporters heard loud booms in Tel Aviv as the windows of buildings shook from the reverberations. There were no immediate reports of damage or casualties.
An airstrike on Tehran appeared to have hit the former U.S. Embassy compound, which has been controlled by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard since American diplomats were held hostage there in 1979. Witnesses said buildings outside the massive compound had their windows blown out.
In Lebanon, at least five people were killed in an Israeli strike on a Beirut neighborhood.
Israel invaded southern Lebanon after the Iran-linked Hezbollah militant group began launching missiles into northern Israel days after the outbreak of the war. Many Lebanese fear another prolonged military occupation.
More than 1,200 people have been killed in Lebanon and more than 1 million displaced, according to authorities. Ten Israeli soldiers have also died there.
In Iran, authorities say more than 1,900 people have been killed, while 19 have been reported dead in Israel. More than two dozen people have died in Gulf states and the occupied West Bank, while 13 U.S. service members have been killed.
Rising reported from Bangkok. Associated Press writers Giovanna Dell’Orto in Miami, Farnoush Amiri in New York and Samy Magdy in Cairo contributed to this report.
A young girl is comforted by her father and Israeli soldiers as they take cover in a bomb shelter during air raid sirens warning of incoming Iranian missile strikes in Bnei Brak, Israel, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
People inspect the site of an Israeli strike amid debris and damaged vehicles in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
A man feeds stray cats in Tehran, Iran, Tuesday, March 31, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
The Indian flagged LPG carrier Jag Vasant transporting liquefied petroleum gas, is seen at the Mumbai Port in Mumbai, India, after it arrived clearing the Strait of Hormuz, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
Firefighters and rescue workers work at the site of Israeli airstrikes, in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
A firefighter extinguishes a car at the site of Israeli airstrikes, in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Israel's rescue teams and residents take shelter as sirens sounds next to a site struck by an Iranian missile in Bnei Brak, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
A police vehicle is seen through a shattered windshield at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
Two men ride scooters past charred debris at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, April 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)
