Gun Violence

A manhunt is underway for at least 10 suspects in a mass shooting that left 12 people dead near Johannesburg, South Africa. The motive for the attack is not known but Al Jazeera’s Fahmida Miller reports that recent shootings have been linked to turf wars or gang violence.

Two separate incidents of violence have left nine people injured in World Cup host cities in the United States, raising concerns over the safety and security of fans attending the tournament that starts in three days.

Six people were wounded in a stabbing on Sunday at New York’s Penn Station, the city’s mayor said, as the metropolitan area geared up to host two major sporting events, the NBA Finals and the FIFA World Cup.

Meanwhile, nine people sustained non-life-threatening injuries in a shooting near England’s World Cup base camp in Kansas City, Missouri, on Saturday.

The New York City Fire Department said a suspect was detained and the victims, including one with serious injuries, were taken to hospital.

Fire Department officials initially reported five wounded, but Mayor Zohran Mamdani said on X that “based on the information available right now, six people were stabbed and the alleged perpetrator is in custody.”

Circumstances of the attack were not immediately clear, but city Comptroller Mark Levine said on X that the suspect is “said to be an emotionally disturbed homeless person”.

All victims are expected to survive, he added.

State Governor Kathy Hochul described the attack as “an act of horrific violence”.

“New Yorkers deserve to feel safe wherever they go, and we will never stop working to make that a reality,” she said in a statement.

The incident occurred at one of the nation’s busiest rail and subway transport centres as the city prepares for two huge sporting spectacles.

Madison Square Garden, located directly above Penn Station in downtown Manhattan, will host games three and four of the NBA Finals on Monday and Wednesday between the New York Knicks and the San Antonio Spurs.

MetLife Stadium, outside the city in neighbouring New Jersey state, will host its first match of the World Cup on Saturday.

US President Donald Trump is scheduled to attend Monday’s NBA game at Madison Square Garden, saying recently that he accepted an invitation from Knicks owner James Dolan.

Security has been enhanced in the city before the two events.

New York’s official emergency notification system did not describe the incident but said people should avoid the area and “expect traffic delays, road closures, mass transit disruptions & emergency personnel near Penn Station”.

Before the stabbing, New York officials had already cancelled an outdoor watch party set for Monday outside the Garden.

Thousands of spectators descended onto the streets outside the venue on Friday for a game two watch party. New York authorities said a police officer was assaulted and 26 people were arrested as a number of fans turned rowdy.

Meanwhile, Kansas City police said there were no suspects in custody and that at least three of the shooting victims were taken to local hospitals.

The incident occurred about 6.5km (4 miles) from where England are set to train at the Swope Soccer Village. England have not arrived in Kansas City and are due to play a friendly against Costa Rica in Orlando, Florida, on Wednesday.

What security measures has the US put in place for the World Cup?

The 48-team, 104-match World Cup comes with an unprecedented security challenge for the host nations, particularly the US, which is hosting 78 matches across 11 cities.

Overseeing the sprawling security apparatus is a legion of federal agencies, state and local police departments and private entities. Their responsibilities range from securing stadiums and fan zones to escorting teams and protecting dignitaries.

Their tools include hunter drones that can shoot nets over objects in restricted airspace, bag-inspecting robot dogs, giant X-ray trucks and thousands of AI-powered cameras trained on public spaces soon to be thronged by fans.

Drones are prohibited over stadiums and fan zones, and the FBI has a “full suite of options” to thwart incursions, according to FBI Special Agent in Charge Amit Kachhia-Patel.

On match days, the FBI will activate joint operations centres in each host city, bringing together local, state and federal law enforcement agencies to monitor and investigate threats.

The tournament has the same high-level federal security designation as the Super Bowl, just below a presidential inauguration or a national political convention, ensuring federal, state and local coordination. It coincides with other major events linked to the 250th anniversary of the US’s founding.

So far, there are no credible threats, according to Andrew Giuliani, executive director of Trump’s World Cup task force, which is overseeing the multiagency effort.

The Department of Homeland Security, focused on Trump’s immigration enforcement crackdown and hit by a funding lapse only recently resolved, estimates that up to seven million people will visit the US for the World Cup.

The US Secret Service, under scrutiny after security breaches and attempts on Trump’s life, is in charge of protecting world leaders who show up to cheer on their countries. Trump has expressed interest in attending a match.

Gun violence is common in the US, where there were more than 400 mass shootings in 2025, according to the Gun Violence Archive.

When the European Union issued its latest tranche of sanctions against Israeli settler groups and their leaders, Regavim, founded in part by the country’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, these groups welcomed the measures as a “badge of honour.”

Another sanctioned figure, Daniella Weiss, whose movement, Nachala, has held conferences on the Gaza border to discuss plans for settlement expansion into the occupied Palestinian territory, likewise dismissed the European penalties as “ridiculous” and “banal”.

In total, the EU sanctioned four entities and three individuals associated with the settler movement, which includes high-profile characters such as Weiss, Regavim and its director, Meir Deutsch, and the Amana cooperative association, which offers logistical and financial support to settlements in the occupied West Bank.

Even government figures have been targeted in recent Western actions. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a son of the settler movement, was sanctioned by the United Kingdom, Canada and several other countries for his alleged role in supporting or enabling violence in the West Bank, highlighting how the settlement project has the support of the highest echelons of the Israeli state.

Overall, the nonchalant response from the targeted figures and entities suggests that none of the EU measures will do anything to stop settlement expansion or make individuals accountable for the growing wave of violence against Palestinians.

Ironically, the largely toothless measures might instead become a source of domestic prestige for their leaders, analysts say, as few would expect these hardline settler figures to spend their summers in Paris or London and thus be affected by the sanctions. Instead, a wave of terror in the occupied West Bank will likely continue, with the tacit support of the government.

Endemic violence

In the eyes of many activists and observers who spoke to Al Jazeera, the EU’s focus on group and individual “violations” falls far short of articulating the scale of the highly coordinated settler attacks or the extent to which the state and society support them.

Following the Hamas-led attack of October 2023, United Nations and human rights monitors have documented systemic lethal settler attacks in places such as the South Hebron Hills, where residents of villages like Susiya and Umm al-Khair have been killed or seriously injured in collective incursions.

In the northern West Bank, Palestinian residents of villages around Nablus and Ramallah have seen their homes, vehicles and olive groves torched during nighttime settler raids. Entire Bedouin herding communities in the Jordan Valley have also been forcibly displaced following sustained campaigns of intimidation and violence.

All of this underscores the depth and breadth of settler activity, which, according to people on the ground, has the direct support of the Israeli government.

“It’s gotten much worse since October 2023. They now have the courage to attack into the heart of densely populated Palestinian villages. I see them, they came into the heart of my village outside Ramallah, they feel safe to do so,” Tahseen Alayan, deputy director of Al-Haq, told Al Jazeera.

“If you buy a sheep, they will steal it. If you build a house, they will destroy it. If you buy a car, they will burn it.”

Examples of Israeli government complicity in these settler raids are not hard to find, and the statistics indicate collective efforts to entrench Israeli control over the West Bank, which has been occupied since 1967.

Israeli forces and settlers are accused of killing an estimated 1,168 people in the occupied West Bank since October 2023 and injuring a further 12,666 Palestinians. Another 33,000 people have been displaced, while Israel has also detained nearly 23,000 Palestinians in the West Bank during this period, many without charge.

“The violence does not happen in a vacuum,” Alayan continued. “This is an extension of the Israeli government; settlement is at the core of their identity. They are protected by the government and by the occupying services, and they freely admit it.”

A tragic incident that comes to mind is settler Yinon Levi, who allegedly shot dead Palestinian activist Awdah Hathaleen in Masafer Yatta last year. Despite the murder being captured on video, Levi nevertheless remains at large.

“Even if they are ever prosecuted, the sentences rarely reflect the severity of the crime,” Alayan said. “These people return to their homes and are seen as heroes.”

‘Entitlement and superiority’

This sense of impunity that settlers appear to be imbued with cannot be detached from the appointment to ministerial positions of leading figures or sympathisers of the settler movement – notably Ben-Gvir and Smotrich, the latter born in an illegal settlement in the occupied Golan Heights.

In a sign of state-settler cooperation to achieve direct control of the West Bank, in contravention of the Oslo Accords, Israel last year announced plans for the establishment of the E1 settlement that would link occupied East Jerusalem with its growing Maale Adumim bloc.

According to plans outlined by Smotrich, when established, this settlement would kill any hopes of the creation of a Palestinian state in the West Bank and Gaza and fulfil a biblical prophecy that many in the movement have been working towards.

Daniel Bar-Tal, a professor of social-political psychology from the Department of Education at Tel Aviv University, interpreted the thinking behind the settlers leading this violence across the West Bank.

“It is divine order to settle West Bank. With divine order you do not argue but achieve it in the way Yehoshua carried it 3,000 years ago when he entered the promised land,” he explained. “He achieved it with sword, so we need to do the same.”

Shai Parnes of the Israeli human rights group B’Tselem told Al Jazeera that the absence of international pressure has bolstered the alliance between the state and settler movement.

“The Israeli regime is an apartheid regime based on Jewish supremacy and institutionalised discrimination against Palestinians,” Parnes told Al Jazeera.

“Any Israeli, civilian or soldier, who harms a Palestinian receives full immunity and support from the Israeli systems, and Israel itself receives this from the international community. These facts explain the Israelis’ sense of entitlement and superiority.”

Yehouda Shenhav-Shahrabani, one of Israel’s leading sociologists, described the channelling of “Jewish supremacy” from the individual to the group, to the state, and back again, as a “closed loop”.

This, he said, fosters a sense of superiority among individuals, and when combined with a militarised society, makes violence against the native Palestinian population, who are in the way of realising this supposed biblical prophecy, almost inevitable.

“Some believe they’re in the West Bank because God said it was theirs. Others are there because they’re too poor to be anywhere else, and have been told they’re superior anyway,” he said.

“Two-thirds of the time, these same people are soldiers. They carry guns all the time. Looking on while they carry out this violence against Palestinians are other soldiers who believe almost exactly the same thing, and behind them politicians. Like I said, it’s a closed loop.”

BREAKINGBREAKING,

The shooting ends a 12-hour standoff in the city of Bakersfield between suspect and law enforcement.

Agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) in the United States have fatally shot a man allegedly holding hostages inside of a building in California.

The shooting ended a 12-hour standoff at an office in Bakersfield that houses a bank branch and school district office.

In a statement, the Bakersfield police said the suspect was killed in “an officer-involved shooting involving Federal Bureau of Investigation personnel”.

It added that “all hostages were located unharmed and received medical evaluation and treatment at the scene”.

Police had originally been called following a bomb threat at the location. Police said the man barricaded himself inside with several people, two of whom were released Tuesday after negotiations with authorities.

Authorities established a wide perimeter around the building, evacuating the nearby City Hall and the police headquarters.

Bakersfield police sergeant Eric Celedon told reporters on Tuesday the department had “every single resource at our disposal out here to bring this to the safest resolution possible”.

Police on Wednesday said the investigation was ongoing and that “significant” law enforcement would remain in the area.

The identity of the suspect was not immediately released and a motive was unclear.

On October 28, 2025, more than 2,500 police officers launched a massive raid on two favelas in Rio de Janeiro. They were targeting leaders of Red Command, one of Brazil’s largest drug trafficking groups. By the end of the day, more than 120 people were dead, making it Brazil’s bloodiest police operation.

In the aftermath, police withdrew without securing the scene. Bodies were left behind, and forensic teams never arrived. Residents recovered the dead themselves, which erased critical evidence of what happened.

Through exclusive reporting, Fault Lines reconstructs the case of Douglas de Almeida da Silva, a father and small business owner shot by police that night. Officers say he fired first, but forensic analysis and witness footage raise serious questions about their account.

The raid reflects a broader pattern in Rio, where police routinely fail to preserve crime scenes, undermining investigations and shielding officers from accountability.

Despite repeated deadly raids, gangs continue to control the favelas, raising questions about whether these operations curb the violence or simply add to it.

The charges stem from the January 14 shooting of Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis in Minneapolis during Operation Metro Surge.

An Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent charged with shooting a Venezuelan man during a controversial immigration raid in Minnesota has been arrested in Texas, according to United States authorities.

Agent Christian Castro, 52, was taken into custody on Friday after investigators from Minnesota tracked him down in the southern state, where he was arrested with assistance from the Texas Rangers and the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) inspector general’s office. He faces four counts of second-degree assault and one count of falsely reporting a crime.

The charges stem from the non-fatal shooting on January 14 of Julio Cesar Sosa-Celis in Minneapolis during Operation Metro Surge, a large-scale immigration enforcement campaign that drew widespread criticism for its aggressive tactics.

Prosecutors allege Castro fired through the front door of a residence, striking Sosa-Celis in the leg.

“Mr Castro was charged earlier this month with four counts of second-degree assault and one count of falsely reporting a crime for an incident on January 14, 2026, when he discharged his weapon through the front door of a home knowing there were people who had just run inside,” the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office said in a statement.

“The bullet travelled through the door and struck one victim in the leg before making its final impact in the wall of a child’s room.”

Minnesota officials welcomed Castro’s arrest, saying federal agents should be held to the same legal standards as everyone else.

“In Minnesota, we believe in equal justice under the law. That means nobody is above the law, including agents of the federal government,” said Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison. “I am pleased to hear Christian Castro has been taken into custody and will stand trial for the crimes he allegedly committed in Minnesota.”

Operation Metro Surge faces increasing legal scrutiny

The case became a flashpoint after federal authorities initially claimed Sosa-Celis and another man had assaulted ICE officers.

Those allegations later unravelled when video and other evidence emerged that contradicted agents’ accounts, prompting prosecutors to drop charges against Sosa-Celis and his housemate, Alfredo Aljorna.

The DHS later acknowledged that officers involved in the incident had provided false information about the shooting.

The outgoing director of ICE, Todd Lyons, also indicated a federal investigation was under way. “Lying under oath is a serious federal offense,” he said.

But through a spokesperson, ICE rejected Minnesota’s effort to prosecute the agent involved, calling the case “unlawful” and “a political stunt”.

Castro is the second federal officer charged this year in connection with Operation Metro Surge, an unusual step that reflects growing scrutiny of federal agents’ conduct during the immigration crackdown.

Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty is also pursuing investigations into other incidents linked to the operation.

Operation Metro Surge began in Minnesota in December 2025. By the time Sosa-Celis was shot on January 14, hundreds of federal agents had been deployed across the Minneapolis-St Paul area in what officials described as the largest DHS operation in US history.

The crackdown ultimately prompted intense controversy, particularly after the fatal shootings of two US citizens: Renee Good on January 7 and Alex Pretti on January 24.

Against that backdrop, the investigation into the Sosa-Celis shooting further intensified scrutiny of federal agents’ tactics and conduct during the operation.

The right-wing president highlighted anti-crime operations and economic progress, while critics warned of abuses.

Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa has used his State of the Union speech to tout his United States-backed crime-fighting strategies as well as improvements to the economy.

Addressing the National Assembly in the capital Quito on Sunday, Noboa cited the extradition of a dozen crime bosses to the US and the seizure of almost 300 tonnes of drugs as examples of what he described as his decisive and effective approach.

“We will seek them out, find them and extradite them,” Noboa said of wanted criminals. He also asserted that the South American country cannot develop “if families live in fear”.

Organised crime is the leading concern among Ecuadorians this decade, after a spike in homicides during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since 2021, Ecuador has struggled to contain drug violence as rival cartels partner with local gangs to battle for control of routes and coastal ports used to smuggle cocaine. The country is wedged between Colombia and Peru, the world’s top cocaine producing countries.

Last year, Ecuador recorded its highest homicide rate in decades, with approximately 50 murders for every 100,000 residents, according to the Ministry of the Interior.

In response, Noboa, who was reelected last year to a four-year term, has used a state of exception to allow the military to implement a variety of crime-fighting strategies, including joint patrols with police officers and property searches without warrants.

Earlier this year, Ecuador’s military also carried out an operation with US forces against a training camp allegedly used by Colombian drug traffickers, attacking the site with drones, helicopters and boats.

Noboa’s approach, however, has come under criticism from civil society groups, who say his iron-fisted methods have failed to reduce crime while putting civilians in danger.

Glaedys Gonzalez, an analyst for the Andean region at the International Crisis Group, said on Sunday that Noboa may have been optimistic in his speech regarding the country’s security.

“Progress on violence is far from being achieved,” Gonzalez said. “It is evident that the situation in Ecuador has reached unprecedented levels.”

Sunday’s speech also promoted Ecuador’s economic progress, with Noboa telling lawmakers that poverty dropped from 26 percent to 21.4 percent in 2025. Extreme poverty, he added, went down from 10.4 percent to 8.4 percent.

Noboa was first elected in 2023 during a snap election triggered when then-President Guillermo Lasso dissolved the National Assembly and shortened his own term.

The daughter of mosque security guard Amin Abdullah is remembering him as the “absolute best dad in the world.” Family and community members gathered Tuesday to honour Abdullah, who was killed while confronting gunmen during the attack on a San Diego mosque.

BREAKINGBREAKING,

Authorities say they are deploying ‘significant resources’ to the scene of the incident at Islamic Center of San Diego.

Police in California have said they are responding to an active shooter at a mosque in San Diego.

Authorities called on residents in Monday to avoid the area of the incident at the Islamic Center of San Diego.

There have been no official reports of casualties, but the Associated Press news agency cited officer Anthony Carrasco as saying that he believes people have been shot.

The police department said later on Monday that the situation remains active but has been “contained” without providing further details. “We have significant resources on scene at this time,” the department said.

Aerial television footage shows a heavy police presence outside the mosque.

San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria said he is continuing to receive reports about the incident. “Emergency personnel are on scene and actively working to protect the community and secure the area,” he wrote on X.

The office of California Governor Gavin Newsom said he is following the situation and coordinating with local law enforcement agencies. “We are grateful to the first responders on the scene working to protect the community and urge everyone to follow guidance from local authorities,” the office said in a statement.

The mosque is in a heavily residential neighbourhood about 9 miles (14 km) north of downtown San Diego. It is the largest mosque in San Diego County, according to its website.

More to come…

After the shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner, has the US entered a new age of political violence? The third alleged attempted assassination of US President Donald Trump in recent years follows a series of politically motivated violent incidents last year, including the assassinations of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk and Democratic state legislator Melissa Hortman. What is causing the increase in political violence in America? And how much is the Trump administration driving the politically divisive atmosphere with violent rhetoric and lethal foreign policy?

This week on UpFront, Redi Tlhabi speaks with Robert Pape, professor of political science at the University of Chicago and author of the upcoming book “Our Own Worst Enemies: America in the Age of Violent Populism”.

A high-profile shooting incident that targeted United States President Donald Trump at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner has raised security concerns about the country’s role as cohost of the FIFA World Cup 2026.

US authorities said on Sunday that the gunman accused of trying to storm the dinner was targeting Trump and members of his administration.

The suspect — who was armed with a shotgun, a handgun, and multiple knives — rushed a US Secret Service checkpoint at the Washington Hilton hotel and managed to shoot a law enforcement officer, although the suspect himself was not struck by gunfire.

The incident is seen as a major breach of security by football fans around the globe, millions of whom will follow their teams at the World Cup tournament, which the US will cohost June 11-19 with Canada and Mexico.

Here’s what fans and experts are saying about the incident and how it could affect their safety at the World Cup:

Will the Trump shooting impact World Cup security?

With the US hosting the majority – 78 of 104 – fixtures, it is expected to see an influx of five to 10 million football fans from around the world, many of whom have expressed concerns for their teams’, as well as their own, safety following the targeting of Trump.

“Their [US] own security service allowed a single person with a shotgun into the most secure building in the world, and missed every shot at him. How are the players going to be safe?” a fan wrote in a social media post.

Others questioned how fans and other members of the public will be safe during the tournament if the country’s president has come under attack.

This is not the first time Trump has been involved in an attempted assassination; he was injured in a shooting at a campaign rally in Pennsylvania in July 2024, and in September 2025, a suspect was convicted of plotting to kill Trump while he was playing golf in Florida a year earlier.

However, security analyst Massimiliano Montanari believes the shooting in the US capital will have “no impact” on security preparations for the World Cup.

“It’s undeniable that this shooting creates additional concerns, but with or without this shooting, the US Secret Service is keeping the highest level of attention on the president,” Montanari told Al Jazeera.

“The world is in a moment of immense pressure; several international turmoils are happening at this time, and the shooting will not change the perception of fans coming to the US,” he added.

“The US has very strong security and counterterrorism experience; I’m sure all necessary measures are in place.”

FIFA did not respond to Al Jazeera’s request for comment on World Cup security in the aftermath of the shooting in Washington.

How will Trump’s presence affect security and fan experience at the World Cup?

Fans critical of the US and its lax gun laws, which lead to hundreds of mass shootings across the country each year, say the latest security breach highlights the country’s failure to control gun violence.

Comments on social media ranged from fans questioning the US as a host to calling for the matches in the country to be cancelled altogether due to security risks.

Mass shootings are a common occurrence in the US. In 2026, the country has seen more than 126 incidents which have resulted in more than 3,100 deaths and 5,300 injuries so far, according to Gun Violence Archive, a non-profit research group.

Some critics also wondered if Trump’s likely presence at World Cup games will endanger fans and negatively impact their experience at the tournament.

“I presume Donald Trump will attend the World Cup at some point as the President of the host nation,” Kate Wilton, a social media user, noted in a post on X. “If he’s an assassination risk, surely him attending is a security risk to all those attending?”

US President Trump shares a close relationship with FIFA President Gianni Infantino and was present at the World Cup draw on December 5, 2025.

Later that month, Trump’s attendance at the US Open men’s tennis final delayed the start of the match, as hordes of tennis fans struggled to get through security checkpoints.

What does ICE presence at World Cup mean for fans?

The White House shooting also invoked a broader conversation regarding national security in the US, which has seen immigration-related crackdowns across various states.

The Trump administration’s push for mass deportation, as well as its efforts to tighten legal immigration pathways, have spurred concerns about whether the World Cup’s international audience might be targeted by US immigration authorities.

In February, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) acting Director Todd Lyons confirmed to a committee in the House of Representatives that his agency would be on the ground for World Cup events. When questioned about visitor concerns, he declined to commit to pausing ICE operations at the matches.

“Fans should be treated as guests and clients of the event, not as a potential threat or as criminals,” Montanari, who heads the International Centre for Sport Security (ICSS), said of the border patrol agents’ presence.

He emphasised that any security officials on the ground must be deployed as discreetly as possible.

“Major global sporting events like the World Cup must remain sporting events and not security events,” he explained, adding that the elements of safety, security and service must work cohesively.

Montanari emphasised that at the previous World Cup in Qatar, where he is currently based, fans were not discriminated against for their nationalities or backgrounds, something that upcoming iterations of the event must emulate.

“I think at any World Cup, the key success factor will be the level of international or regional cooperation; no country can deliver a safe major sporting event without that.

“Securing an event is not just about securing venues, but protecting the overall community, and this involves strong partnership with the government, the business community, and civil society — a holistic effort everyone has to put together.

Last week, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and Amnesty International, along with more than 120 civil society groups, issued a “travel advisory” for foreigners attending the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the US due to the “deteriorating human rights situation in the US and the absence of meaningful action and concrete guarantees from FIFA, host cities, or the US government”.

The US Senate has taken the first steps towards reopening the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) – which has been partially shut down since mid-February after Democrats demanded immigration-enforcement policy changes following fatal shootings of two protesters by federal agents. The Senate approved a budget framework that would fund immigration enforcement agencies, despite opposition from the Democrats.

With 50 days to go until the World Cup kicks off, FIFA and the tournament’s host nations face criticism over wide-ranging social, political and logistical issues surrounding the global event.

Canada and Mexico will cohost the tournament with the United States, which, alongside Israel, launched a war on World Cup participant nation Iran on February 28. While the war is currently under a fragile temporary ceasefire, Iran’s participation in the tournament remains uncertain.

Fans across the three host countries are in uproar over exorbitant ticket prices, which have affected sales and interest in the world’s most popular quadrennial sporting event.

Local politicians and the public have also raised concerns over the hike in transport fares on routes connecting match venues in the US.

Al Jazeera Sport takes a look at the growing concerns in the run-up to the tournament, which begins on June 11 with the opening fixture between Mexico and South Africa:

What’s the latest on Iran’s participation in the World Cup?

Iran’s football team is preparing for the championship. However, officials say a final decision on the team’s participation will be taken by the government and the National Security Council after they review the players’ safety in the US.

Iran had said last month that it would not participate in the tournament amid the war, especially if the host nation could not guarantee players’ security. It followed a social media post from President Donald Trump, where he suggested that the Iranian team’s safety and security could not be guaranteed in the US, where Iranians are scheduled to play all their games.

The Iranian football federation then asked FIFA to relocate its games from the US to Mexico. FIFA rejected the request.

FIFA chief Gianni Infantino said last week that Iran “has to come” to the tournament.

Iran will play all their group stage matches on the US West Coast. Should they advance to the knockouts, the remaining games would also be held in the US.

Outrageous commuter fare prices in US host cities

Fans can expect to pay nearly 12 times the regular $12.90 fare for a round-trip train ride from Manhattan’s Penn Station to the MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, venue of the World Cup final and seven other major fixtures.

New Jersey Governor Mikie Sherrill and FIFA have chided each other on the $150 price tag for a roughly 15-minute, 14km (9-mile) ride; Sherrill said FIFA should bear the costs, while the global body hit back, saying it is not obligated to do so.

Train commutes to Gillette Stadium in Boston’s suburbs cost roughly four times the regular price ($20), while round-trip bus fares to Foxborough cost $95.

Host cities Los Angeles and Philadelphia have pledged to keep their transit fares unchanged, while Kansas City is offering a $15 round-trip fare to Arrowhead Stadium. Houston said it has added buses and train cars to serve fans but intends to keep fares at current levels: $1.25 for buses and light rail trains, and park-and-ride options ranging from $2 to $4.50.

High prices, low demand for match tickets

Sky-high ticket prices have left fans outraged at what they say is pricing that excludes supporters from the tournament. A lag in ticket sales for blockbuster matches, including hosts USA vs Paraguay, seems to be a testament to the high price tag.

FIFA put tickets on sale in December at prices ranging from $140 for Category 3 in the first round to $8,680 for the final. Later, it raised prices to as high as $10,990 when sales reopened on April 1.

The North American bid had initially promised tickets would be available for as little as $21; however, the cheapest ticket has been priced at $60. Most tickets cost at least $200 for matches involving higher-ranked teams.

FIFA announced another round of ticket sales on Wednesday to coincide with the 50-day countdown. Tickets will be available across categories 1 to 3 for all 104 matches on a first-come, first-served basis.

Pushback against immigration raids during World Cup matches

The Trump administration’s push for mass deportation and its efforts to tighten legal immigration pathways have spurred concerns about whether the World Cup’s international audience might be targeted by US immigration authorities.

Infantino was approached last week to pressure Trump to avoid immigration raids at this year’s tournament. Reporters suggested that agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) were present at last year’s FIFA Club World Cup matches, though the Trump administration denied conducting enforcement efforts.

A report by The Athletic explained that FIFA executives have framed the possibility of an immigration moratorium as a potential public relations boon for the Trump administration. It also indicated that the executives hoped Infantino would leverage his friendly relationship with Trump to assuage any immigration-related fears.

Violence in Mexico raises fears over tournament security

World Cup cohost Mexico is also under the spotlight due to concerns for fan safety after a lone attacker opened fire on tourists near the country’s capital on Monday.

The accused opened fire on top of one of the Teotihuacan pyramids — a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of Mexico’s most frequented tourist attractions — and killed one Canadian tourist and injured 13 others.

It raised questions about security protocols taken by Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum’s government in the run-up to the global football tournament.

Sheinbaum said Mexico will beef up security ahead of the World Cup.

“Our obligation as a government is to take the appropriate measures to ensure that a situation like this does not happen again. But clearly, we all know — Mexicans know — that this is something that had not previously taken place,” she said on Tuesday.

DEVELOPING STORYDEVELOPING STORY,

Louisiana community in shock as domestic violence incident leaves eight children dead and two others injured.

Eight children have been killed in a shooting spree in the southern US state of Louisiana, in what police said appears to have been an incident of domestic violence.

The gunman, who was not immediately identified, was fatally shot by police after a car chase early Sunday, officials said.

The incident occurred in Shreveport, northwestern Louisiana.

“This is a rather extensive crime scene spanning between two residences,” Shreveport Police Corporal Chris Bordelon told a press conference, adding that a third residence was also part of the scene being combed by investigators.

The victims ranged in age from one to 14, Bordelon said.

“Some of the children inside were his descendants,” he added.

Two other people were struck by gunfire, but their conditions were not immediately known.

Officials said they were still gathering details about the crime scene, which extended across three locations. Police Chief Wayne Smith said the suspected shooter was fatally shot by police during a vehicle chase.

“This is an extensive scene, unlike anything most of us have ever seen,” Smith added.

Louisiana State Police say their detectives have been asked by Shreveport police to investigate. In a statement, state police say no officers were harmed in the shooting that involved an officer after a police pursuit into Bossier City on Sunday morning.

State police are asking anyone with pictures, video or information to share it with state police detectives.

The attacker has been identified as a “58-year-old Moscow man”, but no motive has been established.

A gunman who killed at least six people in Kyiv and took hostages has been shot dead by Ukrainian police, officials said.

The attack occurred on Saturday in the capital’s Holosiivskyi district, where the assailant opened fire on civilians in the street before barricading himself inside a nearby supermarket, Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram.

Special tactical police units stormed the supermarket after roughly 40 minutes of failed negotiations, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said on Telegram. The gunman shot at police officers during the standoff.

“We tried to persuade him, knowing that there was likely a wounded person inside,” Klymenko told The Associated Press news agency. “We even offered to bring in tourniquets to stop the bleeding, but he did not respond.”

Ultimately, authorities were given the order to “neutralise” the attacker, he said.

At least 10 others were hospitalised, including one child, and four hostages were rescued, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a post on X.

Prosecutor General Ruslan Kravchenko said the attacker was a 58-year-old born in Moscow.

Klymenko said the man was carrying a legally registered gun and had approached licensing authorities as recently as December 2025 to renew his weapons permit, submitting a valid medical certificate at the time. He added that investigators would determine which medical institution issued the document.

Zelenskyy offered his condolences to the families of the victims, saying he had instructed officials to make all verified information publicly available. “We expect a swift investigation,” he wrote.

Death toll rises to 10 after shooting by 14-year-old student at the Ayser Calik School in Kahramanmaras.

Mourners have gathered in Turkiye’s southern province of Kahramanmaras for the funerals of victims killed in the second of two school shootings that rocked the nation this week.

Funerals were held on Thursday for eight students and maths teacher Ayla Kara, 55, who were killed in Wednesday’s shooting, The Associated Press news agency reported.

A 10th victim died while being treated in hospital on Thursday, authorities said. Six of those wounded in the attack were in critical condition, officials said.

Isa Aras Mersinli, 14, opened fire on two classrooms in the Ayser Calik School in Kahramanmaras city on Wednesday. The attacker was later found dead.

Interior Minister Mustafa Ciftci said the attacker is believed to have used guns that belonged to his father, a former police officer.

At a funeral for four of the victims held near Kahramanmaras city’s main mosque on Thursday, one father sat motionless beside the coffin of his daughter, 10‑year‑old Zeynep, the AFP news agency reported.

“Our grief is endless. These children were like our own. They were all innocent,” said Vezir Yucel, father of a student named Yusuf, who lost his close friend, 10-year-old Bayram, in the shooting.

Nilgun Ruci, a 55‑year‑old homemaker, told AFP that she rushed to Ayser Calik School after hearing gunshots. When she arrived, she saw the daughter of a neighbour lying gravely wounded.

“She had been shot in the leg and the shoulder,” Ruci said. “At first, I thought she had fainted. Today I learned that she died.”

Second attack in two days

The attack was the country’s second school shooting in two days, coming after Tuesday’s attack at a high school in Sanliurfa province in the southeast, which was carried out by a former student who wounded 16 people.

As of Thursday, 20 people had been detained in connection with Tuesday’s shooting in Sanliurfa.

The interior and education ministries held a joint school security meeting in the capital, Ankara, on Thursday, which was attended by both ministers and all 81 of Turkiye’s provincial governors, as well as police chiefs and provincial education directors.

Until this week, school shootings were rare in Turkiye. But dozens of students were arrested Thursday over alleged social media posts implying they might stage similar attacks.

Justice Minister Akin Gurlek announced that 67 social media users were detained over posts targeting 54 different schools.

At least nine people have been arrested following the stampede, including police officers and ministry employees.

Haiti has begun three days of national mourning, following a deadly stampede at the Citadelle Laferriere in the northern part of the country.

At least 25 people were killed in the crush that formed at the entrance of the popular tourist site on Saturday, with some visitors pressing to exit while others pushed to enter.

On Tuesday, the Ministry of Culture and Communication announced that two government officials were fired in the aftermath of the stampede.

One, a director with the Institute for the Preservation of National Heritage, was accused of “serious negligence”. The other, who served in the Ministry of Culture and Communication, was criticised for “biased passivity”.

“The Ministry of Culture and Communication, without going into the details of the criminal investigation, believes that the tragedy at La Citadelle is the result of administrative negligence,” it said in a statement.

The government, it added, “will fully assume its responsibilities”, as the event “must outrage the public conscience”.

The tragedy marks one of several crises the Haitian government is facing as it approaches its first round of general elections later this year.

Already, nine suspects have been arrested in connection with the deadly stampede, including five police officers and two employees from the Institute for the Preservation of National Heritage.

The crush of people took place as a local DJ held an event at the citadel, a 19th-century fortress commissioned after the Haitian Revolution, when Haiti’s enslaved population overthrew French colonial rule.

Since its construction, the citadel has become a symbol of Haitian sovereignty.

But the stampede on Saturday was exacerbated by stormy weather conditions, as rain pummelled northern Haiti and participants at the event ran for cover.

Elsewhere in the country, approximately 12 people died due to the heavy downpours, and at least 900 homes and one hospital have been flooded.

The Haitian government has also been grappling with the threat of gang violence, particularly since the assassination of then-President Jovenel Moise in 2021.

His death left a power vacuum in the government that criminal networks have sought to exploit. Federal elections have been repeatedly postponed for much of the last decade.

Earlier this month, a United Nations-backed Gang Suppression Force began to arrive in the country to help address the violence.

From March 2025 through mid-January of this year, the UN has counted at least 5,519 gang-related deaths in Haiti. Roughly 16,000 people have been killed since 2022, and more than 1.5 million have been displaced.

Authorities called for more aid on Tuesday, as the violence continued. In the Marigot commune, seven people were killed and a police station was burned in an overnight gang attack.

Marigot Mayor Rene Danneau described the victims as informants who helped the police. He called on Haiti’s government to step in.

“We are asking the prime minister to take all necessary measures,” he told Radio Television Caraibes.