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June 11 (UPI) — President Donald Trump said Thursday that the United States may take control of Iran’s oil and gas industries like it did in Venezuela earlier this year.

Trump posted the threat on social media, warning that the United States will continue attacking Iran after a series of airstrikes on Wednesday.

“The United States will be hitting Iran (Whose Navy, Air Force, Radar, Anti Aircraft, and all other forms of Defense, together with most of its offensive capability, are GONE!), VERY HARD TONIGHT,” Trump wrote. “At some point in the not too distant future, we will be taking Kharg Island, and other oil infrastructure points, and assume total control of their Oil and Gas Markets, much like we have with Venezuela, which is working out brilliantly for both Venezuela and the United States of America.”

About 90% of Iran’s crude oil shipments were exported from Kharg Island before the United States and Israel launched the war on Feb. 28.

The United States has launched strikes on Kharg Island during the Iran war but it has not seized control of any of its oil and gas infrastructure yet.

Trump further discussed taking control of Iranian infrastructure during an appearance on Fox News on Thursday morning.

“Look, my preference has always been take Kharg Island,” he said. “I don’t think America has the stomach for that. I think they’d like to see us come home, but we did it with Venezuela. Venezuela’s worked out great for everybody.”

Fighting has heightened again between the United States and Iran with Iran shooting down a U.S. helicopter earlier this week near the Strait of Hormuz. The U.S. military launched what it is calling “self-defense strikes” on Iranian military surveillance, communication systems and air defense targets.

U.S. Central Command said Wednesday that the strikes were “in response to Iran’s unwarranted and continued aggression.”

Trump has said for weeks that Iran and the United States are close to reaching a peace agreement, saying at several points Iran wanted to reach a deal. Fighting between Iran and Israel paused over the weekend after Trump urged both sides to stop exchanging fire.

The United States continues to enforce a blockade on ships using Iranian ports on the Strait of Hormuz.

Four activists from the Palestine Action group face sentencing in the United Kingdom as “terrorists” on Friday, despite only being convicted by a jury of other criminal charges.

Palestine Action was formally proscribed as a “terrorist” organisation in the UK last July.

Last month, four of six activists on trial were convicted at Woolwich Crown Court in London of criminal damage during a 2024 raid on a factory in Filton, Bristol, operated by Israeli defence firm Elbit. One of the defendants was also found guilty of striking a police officer with a sledgehammer.

The possibility that the judge will rule that the offences have a “terrorist connection” for sentencing purposes has prompted protests.

What is Palestine Action?

The protest group Palestine Action, launched in July 2020, describes itself as a movement “committed to ending global participation in Israel’s genocidal and apartheid regime”.

It seeks to use “disruptive tactics” to target “corporate enablers” and companies involved in the manufacture of weapons for Israel, such as Israel-based Elbit Systems, Italian aerospace company Leonardo, French multinational Thales and Teledyne from the United States. The group has targeted British facilities linked to those companies.

The UK parliament voted in favour of proscribing the group on July 2, 2025, classifying it as a “terrorist” organisation, and bringing it into the same category as armed groups such as al-Qaeda and ISIL (ISIS). The proscription came days after its activists sneaked into an air force base in southern England.

Critics decried the move by MPs, arguing that while members of the group have caused damage to property, they have not committed violent acts that amount to terrorism.

What were they convicted of?

In August 2024, Palestine Action activists raided a factory in Filton near Bristol in southwest England, operated by Israeli arms manufacturer Elbit Systems. They entered the site and caused extensive damage in an attempt to disrupt the production of weapons and drone components they say would be used by Israel in Gaza.

The raid, which prosecutors said caused about one million pounds ($1.36m) of damage, happened 10 months into Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza that began in October 2023.

Last month, jurors at Woolwich Crown Court convicted Charlotte Head, 30, Samuel Corner, 23, Leona Kamio, 30, and Fatema Zainab Rajwani, 21, of criminal damage. The four activists have become known as “the Filton 4”.

Corner was also found guilty of striking a police officer with a sledgehammer and convicted of inflicting grievous bodily harm.

Two other Palestine Action activists, Zoe Rogers, 22, and Jordan Devlin, 31, were found not guilty.

The verdict followed an earlier trial, at which all six defendants were acquitted of aggravated burglary, while the jury was unable to reach verdicts for the criminal damage charges.

Each of the defendants gave evidence, admitting that they damaged Israeli military drones and equipment inside Elbit’s research and development facility in Filton – in order to “save lives in Palestine”, according to a statement by their lawyers.

What would a terrorism sentencing mean?

The jury was not told that, if they convicted, the four could be sentenced under terrorism laws. Criminal damage is not usually a terrorism offence, but in England and Wales judges can decide to treat an offence as having a “terrorist connection” at sentencing, even when the charge itself is not a terrorism offence.

If the court decides there was a terrorism connection, the activists would have to serve their entire sentences in prison, unless they have already completed at least two‑thirds of the sentence and a parole board decides they can be released.

Conversely, non-terrorist prisoners usually serve about 40 percent of their sentence in custody and are released early, but under conditions and supervision, sometimes called licence conditions. If they break those conditions, they can be sent back to prison to finish their sentence.

Additionally, if the activists are sentenced in this way, they can be recorded as “terrorists” for the rest of their lives, would be required to register new mobile devices, email addresses and bank accounts with the police for their lifetime, and face being returned to prison if they breach their licence conditions or reoffend.

What has the reaction to all this been?

On Wednesday, a group of more than 50 lawyers and law professors published an open letter denouncing plans to sentence the four Palestine Action members as terrorists.

The letter highlights that damage to property has been a recurring feature of protest campaigns from the Suffragettes who fought for women to have the right to vote, to environmental protest group Extinction Rebellion.

“It has never previously even been suggested that those taking such action should be treated as terrorists. Blurring the distinction between principled direct action and terrorism is the hallmark of authoritarian regimes,” the open letter stated.

The letter has been signed by law professors from universities in the UK, the Netherlands, Norway and Canada as well as by dozens of practising barristers and solicitors.

According to local news reports, a protest is expected at Woolwich Crown Court on Friday against the potential judgement.

At a motion for a vote of no confidence against Arwa Elrayess, the first Palestinian president of the University of Oxford’s debating society, Oxford Union, she was accused by a 20-year-old student of contributing to “an atmosphere of hostility and harassment”.

In a video of the forum last week at the prestigious university, which was shared with Al Jazeera, Elrayess is seen replying to Ben Ashworth, “Not just in my career within the union but in my existence as a Palestinian, there seems to always be this post-mortem vilification of Palestinians.”

The room was full of onlookers as Elrayess, who became the head of the Oxford Union late last year, stood tall in a green sequinned dress.

“Palestinians, when they talk, are for some reason a danger. Our very existence is something that is scary,” she added.

The motion was filed after screenshots of text messages from Elrayess were quoted in outlets including The Telegraph and the BBC as saying that the Hamas-led incursion into southern Israel on October 7, 2023 was “proportional”.

The text also said groups branded as terrorists were often later “lauded as heroes”.

Ashworth cited the Sunday Telegraph directly in his accusation. The newspaper’s political editor, Camila Turner, whose father serves as chief executive of UK Lawyers for Israel, had carried the claim that Elrayess said Hamas would be “lauded as heroes”.

But Elrayess did not make any statement of support for Hamas.

Nine months ago – before Elrayess was president – she was in a group chat of students meant to discuss politics.

In the group chat, October 7 and Palestine – and broader conversations on resistance groups – were discussed.

“Analysing something is not giving it moral legitimacy,” she told Al Jazeera. “Even though I described explicitly in all the messages that I’m not describing this as legitimate or morally justified, I’m just providing analysis; all of this was stripped away when it was reported in The Telegraph or the Daily News.”

The full quote in question on the group chat read: “Any resistance group will inevitably be deemed a terrorist organisation by the West until they achieve their liberation, by which time they’ll be lauded as heroes as history has historically proven.”

‘Entirely misquoted’

The messages were not meant as commentary on Hamas specifically, she argued.

“It was entirely misquoted; I believe it was entirely intentional to frame as having said something that I simply did not say,” she told Al Jazeera.

To the Jewish Chronicle, though, Elrayess reiterated her position by saying, “I condemn Hamas’ targeting of innocent civilians, just as I condemn the targeting of innocent civilians by the [Israeli army] or any other actor.”

After refuting the allegation and misquotations, Ashworth is seen in the video yelling at Elrayess, asking whether she condemns Hamas again.

Ashworth, who is not Jewish, has faced criticism for recently visiting Israel with the Pinsker Centre, a think tank formerly known as the Pinsker Centre for Zionist Education.

The motion for a vote of no confidence overwhelmingly failed, receiving 126 votes, 116 of which were online signatures, far below the 150 needed to proceed to a poll.

This is not the first misinformation campaign against Elrayess.

In October 2025, just before her election as president of the debating society, falsified minutes were ratified by an unnamed member of the union, alleging that Elrayess “argues that alumni members shouldn’t be allowed to vote, reiterating her claims that they are incapable of making a rational judgement”.

Elrayess believes that the minutes were made up and spread to “paint me as someone who hates alumni of this institution”.

After an internal disciplinary process, the person who falsified the minutes was suspended from office and the minutes were de-ratified.

Shortly after her win, opposition within the Union brought forward a number of charges against Elrayess, ranging from misuse of social media to antisemitism. In January, it was found that the charges were un-evidenced. By this point, however, Elrayess had lost two months of her presidency.

Alongside this, an article was published in the Oxford Standard alleging that she was related to a leader of Hamas who happened to share the same surname as her, and that she had created and shared a cartoon of herself stepping on a lizard and a hook-nosed anti-Semitic caricature to celebrate her victory.

The claims, again, were false. The cartoon linked to an anonymous meme page that Elrayess had nothing to do with, and she had no family ties to Hamas. The article had no author attributed to it, and the Oxford Standard did not contact Elrayess or reply to her emails, fact-checking the article.

Within days, Elrayess had emails from journalists at The Jerusalem Post, Jewish Chronicle and The Telegraph, asking her to clarify her family affiliation with Hamas and her views of Jewish people, stemming from the stark untruths shared in the nameless Oxford Standard article.

The only cause for the allegations, some have observed, appeared to be Elrayess’s Palestinian identity.

A colleague and friend of Elrayess, who wished to remain unnamed, described to Al Jazeera a sense of distress among Elrayess and her friends.

“The level of attacks that Arwa and her friends received was astounding,” he said.

The Oxford Standard, which no longer exists, deleted both the article and their website altogether. But the rumours they began, with no facts to back them up, have snowballed into national news headlines of Oxford Union’s first Palestinian president being a supporter of Hamas and a proud anti-Semite.

Tweets by prominent Zionist influencers like Eylon Levy, former spokesperson for Israel, sharing the lie that Elrayess is a Hamas heiress, with now-broken Oxford Standard links and no factual corrections.

‘I’m a very proud Palestinian’

Elrayess’s dedication to debate and free speech has brought controversy to her tenure. She invited prominent Israel supporter Tommy Robinson to a debate, triggering widespread protest in Oxford, and has engaged with conservatives and Zionists in her union and her own appointed committee.

Oliver Jones-Lyons, director of finance of the Oxford Union, works alongside Elrayess and describes himself as a “pretty public Zionist”.

Still, despite their diametric positions, Lyons-Jones does not endorse the growing smear campaign against Elrayess.

“I have never felt oppressed, abused or discouraged from sharing my views openly, quite the opposite in fact,” said Jones-Lyons in a statement to Al Jazeera. “Me and Arwa obviously vehemently disagree on a lot of issues; however, our conversations about issues that are deeply personal to both of us have never once been aggressive and have always been productive, in fact I can certainly say Arwa has changed my mind on issues I never thought I would.”

Oxford Union member Oliver Goldstein said, “Personally, I like Arwa. I don’t agree with many of her comments, but do I feel unsafe as a Jewish student at the Oxford Union? No … I don’t think she’s an anti-Semite.”

Despite the inundation of misinformation, Elrayess remains determined.

“My father is from Gaza,” she said. “He would always tell me, ‘It doesn’t really matter what you say or do not say; people will always find a way to spin it in such a way that you become a target, because you’re already a target.”

She said she lives by her father’s words.

“I’m not resigning from my position. They can throw 1,000 different letters in 1,000 different articles. I’m very vocal, and I’m a very proud Palestinian.”

June 11 (UPI) — The United States and Iran traded attacks Wednesday night for a second straight day with American forces hitting multiple military, surveillance and radar installations in southern Iran and Iran hitting back at its Persian Gulf neighbors.

U.S. Marine Corps, Air Force, and Navy assets deployed precision munitions against Iranian “military surveillance capabilities, communication systems, and air defense sites across Iran” posing a threat to U.S. forces and international commercial ships transiting regional waters,” U.S. Central Command said in a statement on X.

Tomahawk missiles were fired from the guided-missile destroyer USS Michael Murphy.

“The strikes are in response to Iran’s unwarranted and continued aggression,” added CENTCOM.

Bahrain’s Interior Ministry reported a second night of airborne attacks and condemned what it called “sinful Iranian aggression” after an 11-year-old girl was injured.

“Vehicles caught fire and houses were damaged in Hamad Town and Manama due to falling debris of drones interception. Civil Defense and National Ambulance have taken necessary measures,” the ministry said Thursday morning in an online post accompanied by photos of burnt-out cars, blast damage and firefighters tackling blazes.

In a post on X in the early hours of Thursday, the Kuwait Army said its air defense systems were “currently intercepting hostile aerial targets.”

Royal Jordanian Air Force warplanes intercepted and downed 20 Iranian missiles headed toward the Azraq region in Zarqa Governorate, east of the capital, Amman.

In a statement issued Thursday via the National Center for Security Crises and Management, the General Command of the Jordan Armed Forces-Arab Army said debris from downed missiles fell in multiple locations but that there were no injuries or damage.

Meanwhile, the Indian government confirmed the deaths of three Indian crew members missing from the Palau-flagged oil tanker, M/T Settebello, a day after it was struck by the U.S. military in the Gulf of Oman, through which vessels transiting the Hormuz Strait must transit.

“Sadly, three Indian seafarers initially reported missing are now confirmed dead after bodies have been located and identified. This is a profound loss to our maritime family. The Modi government stands firmly with the bereaved during this difficult hour and is fully committed to supporting the next of kin,” Ports, Shipping & Waterways Minister Sarbananda Sonowal wrote on X.

“I have directed officials to ensure immediate repatriation of the rescued crew members and swift return of the mortal remains of the deceased for their final rites.”

CENTCOM said a U.S. aircraft fired precision munitions into the vessel’s engine room Wednesday after the vessel, which it said was violating the United States’ blockade by attempting to ship oil from Iran, failed to comply with instructions from U.S. forces.

The National Assembly on Thursday launched formal procedures for a potential parliamentary investigation into ballot shortages reported during last week’s local elections, with requests for the probe submitted by both the ruling and opposition parties being reported to a plenary session.

The head of the Proceedings Division of the National Assembly Secretariat said that the requests for a parliamentary probe were submitted separately by the ruling Democratic Party (DP) and the main opposition People Power Party (PPP), with all lawmakers from each party sponsoring their respective requests.

The move marks the first step toward establishing a special parliamentary committee to examine allegations of mismanagement by the National Election Commission during the voting process.

The establishment of the committee is expected to undergo negotiations, as proposals from the DP and the PPP differed over the scope of the probe and the number of seats to be allotted to each party on the committee.

The PPP has argued that a separate special counsel probe should be launched alongside the parliamentary investigation, while the DP has maintained that such a move should be considered after the parliamentary probe.

In a meeting chaired by National Assembly Speaker Cho Jeong-sik, the rival parties shared a consensus on holding a plenary session as early as next week to adopt a plan for the parliamentary probe, according to officials.

Separately, the PPP’s new floor leader Jeong Jeom-sig met with Hong Ik-pyo, presidential secretary for political affairs, and stressed the need for a special counsel probe into the incident.

Hong said the presidential office would be open to the idea of a special counsel investigation if the rival parties reach an agreement, according to PPP spokesperson Choi Soo-jin.

Ballot shortages were reported at more than a dozen polling stations in Seoul during last Wednesday’s local elections, temporarily disrupting voting and prompting protests by people alleging election fraud.

Copyright (c) Yonhap News Agency prohibits its content from being redistributed or reprinted without consent, and forbids the content from being learned and used by artificial intelligence systems.

The World Cup 2026 starts on Thursday, kicking off the biggest tournament in football history across the United States, Canada and Mexico.

A record 48 teams will play 104 matches over the next six weeks, with millions of fans turning their attention to the opening ceremony, the first games and the storylines set to define the tournament.

Here’s what to watch on day one:

What’s the schedule on June 11?

The World Cup gets under way on Thursday, June 11, with two Group A matches taking place in Mexico.

The opening ceremony at Mexico City Stadium in Mexico City begins at 11am local time (17:00 GMT) and will feature a celebration of Mexican and Latin music.

Mexican singer Alejandro Fernandez will perform the national anthem, joined by artists including Mana, Los Angeles Azules, Lila Downs and Belinda. Colombia’s J Balvin and Venezuela’s Danny Ocean are also set to appear, while Shakira headlines the ceremony alongside Nigeria’s Burna Boy with the debut performance of “Dai Dai”, the tournament’s official song.

Hosts Mexico then face South Africa at the same venue at 1pm local time (19:00 GMT).

Later, South Korea take on Czechia at Estadio Guadalajara (Estadio Akron) in Guadalajara, with kickoff scheduled for 8pm local time (02:00 GMT on June 12).

What do the predictions say for Mexico vs South Africa match?

Mexico are the clear favourites to beat South Africa in the World Cup opener, with the Opta supercomputer giving the hosts a 66.3 percent chance of victory based on 10,000 pre-match simulations.

South Africa are assigned a 14.3 percent probability of winning, while a draw occurs in 19.4 percent of the simulations.

Looking beyond the opening fixture, Opta also projects Mexico to finish top of Group A, ahead of South Korea, Czechia and South Africa.

El Tri will be led by veteran striker Raul Jimenez and 17-year-old midfielder Gilberto Mora, while goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa is set to make history by playing in a record sixth World Cup. South Africa, meanwhile, are appearing at the tournament for the fourth time and for the first time since hosting it in 2010.

Teams playing in Mexico will compete at some of the highest-altitude venues in the tournament. Mexico City Stadium is located about 7,300 feet (2,225 metres) above sea level, while Guadalajara sits at roughly 5,138 feet (1,566 metres).

What do the predictions say for South Korea vs Czechia match?

South Korea are slight favourites against Czechia, with Opta assigning them a 42.9 percent chance of victory compared with Czechia’s 31.1 percent.

The likelihood of a draw stands at 26.0 percent, suggesting a closely contested match.

In the wider Group A outlook, South Korea have a 70 percent chance of reaching the knockout stages and a 21.3 percent probability of winning the group, while Czechia are given a 64.3 percent chance of advancing and a 17.9 percent chance of topping the standings.

What else is shaping the World Cup?

While the opening ceremony and first matches take centre stage, they are far from the only stories defining this World Cup. From immigration controversies and soaring ticket prices to new technology and late injury setbacks, here’s what else is making headlines as the tournament gets under way.

Somali referee Omar Artan receives hero’s welcome after World Cup ban

Artan received a hero’s welcome in Mogadishu after being denied entry to the US ahead of the tournament. Hundreds of supporters waving Somali flags gathered to greet the referee, who had been set to become the first Somali official to officiate at a World Cup.

US authorities stopped him at Miami International Airport, citing unspecified “vetting concerns”, and FIFA later removed him from the referees’ roster. Artan told The New York Times he was questioned for 11 hours before being sent back.

Despite the setback, he remained hopeful. “I promise you, God willing, that I will attend the next one,” he told supporters.

Sky-high ticket prices anger fans

World Cup 2026 is shaping up to be the most expensive in the tournament’s history, with soaring ticket prices, costly transport and accommodation, and concerns over US immigration policies prompting some fans to reconsider attending.

FIFA introduced dynamic pricing for the first time, meaning ticket costs rise with demand. With more than 500 million ticket requests submitted during the initial sales phase, some seats have reached eye-watering prices.

“Already there’s so much inflation. I have to pay so much already for the gas to get here, and now even more for tickets, you know, that’s so awful,” a football fan told Al Jazeera.

“That definitely means I won’t be able to go and I think a lot of people are going to feel very jaded for that. So I really hope they can re-evaluate it or at least give some kind of a discount for people who are really huge fans,” she added.

When tickets first went on sale in December, prices ranged from $140 to $8,680 for the final. By April, FIFA had raised the top price to $10,990, nearly seven times the $1,550 maximum outlined in North America’s original bid.

New tech rules

FIFA and the International Football Association Board (IFAB) have introduced a series of changes aimed at speeding up play and improving decision-making.

These include upgraded semiautomated offside technology, a smart match ball fitted with sensors that send real-time data to VAR, visible five-second countdowns to discourage time-wasting on throw-ins and goal kicks, stricter substitution rules and expanded VAR powers to review clear errors involving second yellow cards, mistaken identity and incorrectly awarded corner kicks.

World Cup injury setbacks

The Netherlands have been dealt a blow with Arsenal defender Jurrien Timber ruled out after failing to recover from a groin injury. The Dutch FA said the 24-year-old was not fit enough to cope with the demands of the tournament.

Brazil have also lost a key defender, with AS Roma right back Wesley ruled out after suffering a left thigh injury in a friendly against Egypt. He has been replaced by Atalanta midfielder Ederson ahead of Brazil’s Group C opener against Morocco.

Why are drinks breaks controversial?

FIFA has introduced mandatory three-minute hydration breaks midway through each half of all 104 World Cup games, saying the measure is necessary to protect players from extreme heat following concerns raised during last year’s Club World Cup in the United States.

Critics, however, argue the rule applies too broadly, even in cooler venues, and have accused FIFA of commercialising the stoppages after allowing broadcasters to air advertisements during the breaks.

Trump might not attend United States World Cup opener

President Donald Trump has not said whether he will attend the United States’s opening World Cup match against Paraguay in Los Angeles on Friday. However, several people familiar with the tournament planning said they do not currently expect him to be there, according to a report by Politico, although his plans could still change.

The US government will still be represented at the match. The State Department said Secretary of State Marco Rubio will attend, along with Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin.

Mexico’s Claudia Sheinbaum won’t attend either

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum won’t be using the ticket FIFA gave her for the opening match. Instead, it went to Yolett Cervantes Cuaquehua, a 21-year-old from Veracruz who won a contest by showing off her football juggling skills.

The challenge invited young women to keep the ball up for one minute on camera, and Sheinbaum also awarded tickets to three other winners.

“They are the pride of Mexico. They will not represent the president, or the head of government, they will represent Mexico,” Sheinbaum said at a news conference to give away the ticket to Cervantes Cuaquehua.

World Cup celebrations begin amid protests in Mexico City

As Mexico gets ready to host the opening match, protests are taking place across the capital. Teachers from the CNTE union, along with transport workers, farmers and families of missing people, have taken to the streets to demand better pay, pension changes and action on longstanding issues.

Some demonstrations have affected World Cup preparations, with protesters blocking roads leading to the Estadio Azteca and removing some tournament installations.

The 2026 World Cup arrives carrying more baggage than most.

Alongside the excitement of the opening matches are concerns about immigration crackdowns, travel restrictions, the wars in Gaza and Iran, and the close relationship between FIFA boss Gianni Infantino and US President Donald Trump.

Journalist Ashish Malhotra, speaking to Al Jazeera’s The Take, argued that Trump has placed himself at the centre of the tournament. “One reason, Donald Trump. He’s really put himself front and centre for this World Cup,” he said, adding that the US president is using the event as a distraction from other crises.

Malhotra was equally critical of football’s governing body. “FIFA is 100 percent a political actor and it has been for close to a century,” he said, pointing to the organisation’s history of aligning itself with leaders accused of human rights abuses.

And yet, despite the contradictions, billions are still expected to tune in. “Sports are a bit of a drug. It’s a bit of an addiction,” Malhotra said. “The way that a World Cup brings people together is why people get sucked in.” It is perhaps the tournament’s greatest paradox: even amid controversy, the pull of the beautiful game remains difficult to resist.

Who: South Korea vs Czechia
What: FIFA World Cup 2026 Group A match
Where: Estadio Guadalajara, Zapopan, Mexico
When: Thursday, 8pm local time (02:00 GMT Friday)
How to follow: Keep up with all updates on Al Jazeera Sport

South Korea, Asia’s most successful team at the World Cup, begin their 2026 campaign with a game against Czechia, who are back at the tournament after a 20-year absence.

With a talented squad featuring Son Heung-min, Lee Kang-in and Kim Min-jae, former semifinalists South Korea – who are ranked 25th in the world – are favourites in the Group A clash and will be keen for an early win in a tough group that also includes cohosts Mexico and South Africa.

But 40th-ranked Czechia are no pushovers. With players like Adam Hlozek, Patrik Schick and Pavel Sulc, they are more than capable of pulling off an upset.

Son leads South Korea’s charge

As always, all eyes will be on South Korea’s superstar Son Heung-min, who now plays his club football for Los Angeles FC.

Set for his fourth appearance at the finals, the 33-year-old former Tottenham winger could be appearing in his final tournament, though it’s not confirmed.

Fans will be hopeful of the captain featuring on the scoresheet after he scored twice in a recent friendly.

The Koreans reached the last 16 in 2022, with Hwang Hee-chan scoring a stoppage-time winner against Portugal to take his team ‌into the knockout rounds. The Wolverhampton Wanderers forward is now keen for a repeat performance at the upcoming tournament.

“If I can have another play like that, it will be great for myself and for our team,” said Hwang, who will be appearing at his third World Cup. “I am working hard for a moment like that.

“Every match is important, but the first match is especially so.”

Czechia: Two-time runners-up

As Czechoslovakia, the Czech team finished runners-up in 1934 and 1962. But since then, their record has been poor, with only four appearances, including just one past the group stage – a quarterfinal run in 1990.

The Czechs are now back at the World Cup after 20 long years, having navigated their way to the finals through dramatic penalty shootout wins in the UEFA qualifiers.

The appointment of coach Miroslav Koubek in December 2025 turned around their fortunes as they went from having a crisis-hit campaign to finishing the job with flying colours.

Now, after two decades, as they return to football’s grandest stage, the Czechs will hope to sneak into the knockouts.

With two-metre (6ft 7-inch) Slavia Prague striker Tomas Chory at their disposal, Koubek’s side will seek to impose their physicality on the ⁠South Koreans.

They are blessed with more attacking firepower in Bayer Leverkusen striker and Euro 2020 joint top scorer Schick, while Hoffenheim striker Hlozek offers another experienced option up front.

Koubek will also lean on West Ham midfielder Tomas Soucek ‌and ‌35-year-old Vladimir Darida to provide experience and stability.

How does the World Cup group stage work?

South Korea, Czechia, Mexico and South Africa are in Group A.

The top two teams from each of the 12 groups – along with the eight best third-placed teams – proceed to the next phase, the round of 32, which has been introduced at the World Cup for the first time.

All square in head-to-head record

South Korea and Czechia have met three times, winning one match each, while the other game ended in a draw.

Their last meeting dates back to June 2016 – exactly a decade ago – when South Korea emerged 2-1 winners in a friendly in Prague.

Form guide:

(Last five games, latest first)

South Korea: W-W-L-L-W

Czechia: W-W-W-W-W

Czechia are in fine form heading into the opener, having beaten Kosovo and Guatemala in their pre-World Cup friendlies. Before that, they beat Denmark and Ireland on penalties in the UEFA qualifying playoffs, and also thrashed Gibraltar.

South Korea, on the other hand, are in mixed form. They beat El Salvador and thrashed Trinidad and Tobago in the pre-World Cup friendlies, but lost to Austria and the Ivory Coast.

Where to watch South Korea vs Czechia?

Fans in South Korea can watch the game on platforms Chzzk and JTBC, with kickoff scheduled at 11am local time on Friday.

In Czechia, CT Sport Plus, CT Sport and Nova Action will show the game, which is set to begin at 4am local time on Friday.

Viewers in the United Kingdom can watch it on ITV, while those in the United States can tune in to Fox.

South Korea and Czechia team news

Coach Koubek has a selection headache awaiting.

With Hlozek recently recovering from injury, and Sulc and Lukas Provod also in the mix, Koubek needs to make the tough call on which two attackers will support Schick.

Meanwhile, South Korea’s coach Hong Myung-bo has to contend with some concerns.

Winger Bae Jun-ho – one of the youngest players in the squad – is a major doubt due to an ankle injury, but left-back Lee Tae-seok has returned to team training after a sore calf.

South Korea’s predicted starting XI

Kim Seung-gyu (goalkeeper); Kim Min-jae, Lee Han-beom, Lee Gi-hyuk; Seol Young-woo, Lee Tae-seok, Hwang In-beom, Paik Seung-ho; Lee Kang-in, Lee Jae-sung; Son Heung-min

Czechia’s predicted starting XI

Matej Kovar (goalkeeper); Vladimir Coufal, David Doudera, Tomas Holes, Ladislav Krejci, Jaroslav Zeleny; Tomas Soucek, Michal Sadilek; Adam Hlozek, Pavel Sulc, Patrik Schick

You can follow the action on Al Jazeera’s dedicated FIFA World Cup 2026 page with all the latest news, match build-up and live text commentary, and keep up to date with group standings, real-time match results and schedules.

Video released by US Central Command shows what the military says are ‘self-defence’ strikes on Iranian military surveillance capabilities, communications systems and air defence sites. The footage accompanied a statement that US forces had completed the latest wave of attacks.

June 10 (Asia Today) — Senior U.S. human rights officials visiting South Korea met over two days with families of South Koreans detained or abducted by North Korea, civic groups said Wednesday.

The meetings included families of South Korean missionaries detained in North Korea, wartime and postwar abductees and prisoners of war who were not repatriated after the Korean War.

Riley M. Barnes, assistant secretary of state for democracy, human rights and labor, met Tuesday with Choi Jin-young, the son of South Korean missionary Choi Chun-gil, who is being held in North Korea, according to civic groups.

Julie Turner, acting deputy assistant secretary in the State Department’s Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, and Belsis Romero, a White House faith liaison, also took part in the visit.

On Wednesday, U.S. officials met representatives of groups representing families of Korean War abductees, postwar abductees and prisoners of war.

The U.S. officials told the families that Washington continues to pay attention to the issue and that its position has not changed on supporting efforts to confirm the detainees’ status and seek their return, according to the groups.

Choi thanked Barnes for calling for the release of South Koreans detained in North Korea, including missionaries Kim Jung-wook, Kim Kuk-gi and Choi Chun-gil, during a video message last month for an international conference announcing the formation of the Republic of Korea Hostage Family Association.

Choi also delivered a letter addressed to President Donald Trump asking the United States to make the safe return of South Korean detainees, including the three missionaries, part of its North Korea diplomacy.

He also delivered 10,000 signatures gathered online and offline, largely through Korean churches in Los Angeles, calling for the detainees’ repatriation and confirmation of whether they are alive.

Kim Jung-sam, the older brother of missionary Kim Jung-wook, also sent a letter asking Trump to speak out during his presidency on detainees and religious freedom.

Choi said he asked U.S. officials to send a message that Washington has not forgotten the detained missionaries.

“I asked that the U.S. ambassador, the secretary of state or the president meet from time to time with families of South Korean abductees, detainees and prisoners of war,” Choi said. “In that context, I also requested that the U.S. ambassador to South Korea attend an event for Abductees Remembrance Day.”

Lee Sung-eui, head of the Korean War Abductees’ Family Union, Choi Sung-ryong, head of the Association of the Families of Postwar Abductees, and Sohn Myung-hwa, head of a group representing families of prisoners of war, met Turner on Wednesday and urged continued U.S. attention to the abduction issue.

Lee delivered a letter asking Washington to place humanitarian issues first in any future U.S.-North Korea talks, including the return of detained South Koreans, confirmation of the fate of abductees and visits by bereaved families to graves in North Korea.

Lee said he emphasized that wartime abductions during the 1950-53 Korean War were “the root of all forced disappearance crimes committed by North Korea.”

Barnes and Turner also met Saturday with Son Hyun-bo, pastor of Segero Church, who led rallies opposing the impeachment of former President Yoon Suk Yeol. The U.S. officials discussed religious freedom issues in South Korea and attended a Sunday worship service.

On Monday, the U.S. delegation also met Chang Wook-jin, director-general for global multilateral diplomacy at South Korea’s Foreign Ministry, to discuss bilateral efforts to promote democracy and human rights.

A South Korean Foreign Ministry official said the U.S. State Department regularly communicates with a wide range of stakeholders inside and outside South Korea while preparing annual reports on human rights, trafficking in persons and international religious freedom.

The official said the delegation’s visit to South Korea was part of that regular outreach.

A civic group official who recently visited the United States and met State Department officials said the bureau’s meeting with families of North Korean detainees appeared connected to Washington’s recent attention to religious persecution.

The official said U.S. officials also asked questions during a recent meeting about religious freedom and human rights issues involving the South Korean government.

— Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI

© Asia Today. Unauthorized reproduction or redistribution prohibited.

Original Korean report: https://www.asiatoday.co.kr/kn/view.php?key=20260610010003179

Protesters chant ‘Albania is not for sale’ as demonstrations swell against Kushner-backed luxury resort plan.

Thousands of Albanians have taken to the streets of the country’s capital, Tirana, in the ⁠largest protest yet against a luxury resort development backed by United States President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner.

Protesters on Wednesday held signs that said “Albania is not for sale” and chanted “New Albania” outside Prime Minister Edi Rama’s office as the crowd stretched half a mile down one of the city’s main boulevards.

The project, expected to cost about 5 ⁠billion euros ($5.8bn), has provoked outrage in the Balkan country because of its location near a protected wetland home to flamingos, seals and sea turtle nesting sites.

Critics have also raised concerns about a lack of transparency surrounding the plans designed by foreign investors.

“This is the prime example of what has been happening in Albania for the last 35 years,” protester Leand Lakrori told the Reuters news agency. “So today, enough is enough.”

The protests, which erupted in the village of Zvernec on the southern coastline where the resort is planned, have been dubbed the Flamingo Revolution, in reference to the protected wetland at the development site that serves as a migratory stop for the birds.

Rama has sought to play down the ecological concerns, saying an environmental impact assessment would be completed and that the project would proceed responsibly.

“We are very proud of what we have done for the wildlife in Albania,” he said. “The ‌European Commission has no reason to doubt our firm will to protect whatever has to be protected when it comes to wildlife and nature.”

EU warning

The European Union, which has said it could admit Albania and other Balkan countries by 2030, warned that alignment with European environmental law would be a condition of accession.

“Albania should refrain from action that could undermine the fulfilment of the closing benchmark,” said EU spokesman Guillaume Mercier. “We expect the Albanian authorities to act without delay.”

The protests are the latest test for Rama, who has been in power since 2013 and who many now blame for not eradicating widespread corruption or doing enough to improve basic services like healthcare.

Rama said he has made strides to deal with corruption by creating a special prosecution office, which has opened a series of ⁠high-profile investigations.

Still, clashes also broke out earlier this year as protesters demanded the resignation of Rama’s deputy, ⁠Belinda Balluku, over alleged corruption. Rama fired Balluku, but ⁠the mistrust remains.

“I’m here to protest, to finish this saga of the Albanian government. It’s always the same two parties,” protester Fabio Bracaj told Reuters. “We want a new era. We want a better country.”

The resort development is the ‌brainchild of Kushner and his wife, Ivanka Trump, who described falling in love with Albania a few years ago while visiting on a yacht.

Opposition ignited last month when developers erected a fence around part of the Zvernec site. The fence was later removed following an outcry.

Rama has said the project will go ahead regardless.

June 10 (UPI) — Brad Lander, former New York City comptroller, appeared in a Manhattan court Wednesday after his arrest last year at 26 Federal Plaza, the site of the city’s major immigration court.

Police arrested Lander on Sept. 18 during his attempt, with other officials, to inspect holding rooms for detained immigrants. Police also arrested about 10 other officials, The Guardian reported.

Lander said that he pleaded not guilty to misdemeanor charges so he could question Immigrations and Customs Enforcement operations under oath, WABC-TV reported.

“Someone for the past year has been unreasonably obstructing the usual use of 26 Federal Plaza as an immigration court hearing, but the guilty party is ICE, the guilty party is not us,” Lander said.

Lander was ticketed on a violation for allegedly blocking an elevator bank on the 10th floor of the building. He testified Wednesday that he was there in his role as comptroller and that there were concerns that the holding rooms — usually used for much shorter periods of time — were crowded and unsafe, The Guardian reported. When the officials were not allowed to inspect the rooms, they sat down to wait.

The Guardian said that the trial unfolded “slightlysurreally — with an emphasis on the detail of alleged elevator blocking.”

“Were you trying to block the elevator?” asked Deidre von Dornum, Lander’s attorney.

“No,” Lander said, saying that the officials were there to inspect the rooms. “Our purpose was not to block the elevators.”

He said the elevator near him “did not ding, or open, during that time.”

Prosecutor Arial Cohen said Lander ignored multiple warnings to move.

Michael Bass, another attorney for Lander, said the comptroller was “concerned for the safety of his constituents.”

“Arrest is the bludgeon of suppression, and this case is yet another example of the administration’s suppression of political dissent,” Bass said.

Lander is running for the congressional seat held by incumbent Democrat Dan Goldman.

Migrants say they are living in fear after a campaign group gave people living illegally in South Africa until June 30 to leave. Nigeria’s diplomatic mission in South Africa says many of those returning no longer feel safe to continue living or working in the country.

June 10 (UPI) — A Norwegian appeals court has denied a request from Marius Borg Høiby, son of Norwegian Crown Princess Mette-Merit, to leave custody because of his mothers’ illness. Høiby is behind bars while he awaits a verdict in his rape trial.

The court overturned a verdict by a lower court Monday that had ordered Høiby’s release before the verdict, which is expected June 15. Hoiby, 29, is facing 40 criminal charges and has been in custody since February.

Princess Mette-Merit, 52, has pulmonary fibrosis, a chronic lung condition, The BBC reported. Her doctors added her to a lung transplant list last week.

“We are very, very disappointed. I find the decision almost incomprehensible,” defense lawyer Ellen Holager Andenæs said to Norwegian news outlet VG, as cited by Nine.com.au.

Høiby had told the lower court that “sitting inside while I know Mum is so sick is unbearable,” The BBC said.

Høiby was detained before his trial after new allegations of assault and violating a restraining order. The appeals court disagreed with the lower court that had ordered his release, saying his risk of reoffending was “virtually unchanged” since its earlier decision.

“As the Court of Appeals sees it, this is not a question of will, but a question of ability, lifestyle and risk factors,” the ruling said. It noted that Høiby is not the only one in prison with a family member affected by serious illness and will not receive special treatment.

Høiby denies four counts of rape but had admitted to lesser charges such as drug possession and traffic offenses. The judges are also considering charges of violence, threats and abusive behavior within a relationship.

Høiby was born before his mother married Norwegian Crown Prince Haakon and is not a member of the royal family. He was first arrested in August 2024.

Monduli, Tanzania – When drought wiped out most of her family’s livestock, 30-year-old Nesirkar Loongidong’i, a Maasai mother of four from Selela village in northern Tanzania, found herself with very few options. The dry season had already killed most of their animals.

Today, she makes a living growing and selling drought-resistant livestock fodder.

“Before I planted fodder, I lost most of our goats. Now, people come from other villages to buy grass, and I can support my children. I don’t fear drought anymore,” Loongidong’i told Al Jazeera.

With the income, she has built a house and bought five goats.

Loongidong’i’s story is part of a much larger and fast-growing shift. Across northern Tanzania, Maasai women, part of a community of about 430,000 people, are turning fodder production from a survival tactic into a climate-adaptation business. The work is coordinated by the Pastoral Women’s Council (PWC) and is spreading across pastoral districts.

The PWC is a women-led membership organisation working across three northeastern districts, covering more than 28,000 square kilometres (10,810 square miles) and serving about 456,000 people, most of them Maasai pastoralists. Founded in 1997, it now counts around 6,500 members in 90 villages, with years of work focused on land rights, economic empowerment, and girls’ education.

For Loongidong’i, it all comes down to growing pasture grass without irrigation. Because demand remains steady, so does her income, and with it, her household’s stability. Today, she lives in a home with a metal roof, and nearby, her goats graze in a fenced area as their numbers slowly grow again.

According to Tanzania’s Ministry of Livestock and Fisheries, at least 306,358 animals, including cattle, goats, sheep, and donkeys, died between September 2021 and January 2022 due to prolonged drought. In Simanjiro district alone, 92,047 livestock were lost, wiping out livelihoods across pastoral communities.

In response, the PWC established 10 major grass seed banks across eight villages in Monduli and Longido districts. Today, about 75 hectares (185 acres) are under fodder production, with another 37 hectares (90 acres) expected to be added in the 2025-2026 season. Around 250 women directly manage these farms, while thousands of herders now depend on them for feed during dry seasons.

The impact is already visible. In 2025, a single seed bank earned 6.6 million Tanzanian shillings (about $2,500) from seed sales, along with 1,111 hay bales sold at 6,000 shillings ($2.30) each. For many women, this has shifted their role from dependents to economic providers.

Backed by organisations such as the Global Fund for Women and Oxfam, the PWC is now seen as offering a replicable model for protecting a livestock economy worth millions of dollars.

This shift is no longer limited to survival. Across northern Tanzania, it is becoming a quiet but steady form of enterprise, reshaping daily life in pastoral communities.

From survival to business

In Longido and Monduli, deep in northern Tanzania, Maasai life has been slowly changing. As traditional grazing patterns weaken under worsening droughts, women are increasingly taking on roles once tied only to herding, now growing pasture for income on open communal land.

Loongidong’i explains that what began as a way to survive dry years has now become a reliable source of income for many women. In the past, planting hardy grasses such as Cenchrus ciliaris was simply about keeping livestock alive. Today, it is also a business.

To respond to declining rainfall, women grow resilient species such as Rhodes grass (Chloris gayana) and Masai love grass (Eragrostis superba) on designated community plots. These grasses stay green longer than natural pasture during dry periods. Once harvested, they are bundled and sold to local herders as animal feed.

“Seeds are also saved and traded later when demand rises,” Loongidong’i says, adding that this cycle now supports many households across arid areas.

Herding families also benefit during drought periods, when natural grazing disappears and these managed plots become a lifeline for livestock.

The seed bank project, managed by Naisho, the group Loongidong’i works with under the PWC, generated about 6.6 million Tanzanian shillings ($2,514) from seed sales, alongside more than 1,000 bales of grass. Small in scale, but steady in output, it has proven what organised local production can achieve.

For the Maasai, cattle are more than livestock; they are the centre of daily life, economy, and identity. When rains fail, the impact is immediate: animals weaken, and families struggle.

As in many pastoral communities, women carry much of the responsibility for daily survival, from food preparation to fetching water and caring for children. Now, alongside those roles, they are also becoming earners.

“Women who once depended entirely on their husbands now have their own income,” says Rachel Letiety, a founding member of the PWC. “Families are becoming more stable. Men are beginning to value women’s contributions, especially during droughts.”

Ongoing challenges

Still, the progress comes with challenges.

Loongidong’i says some farms are affected when weeds take over and when fences break, allowing livestock, and sometimes wild animals, to destroy carefully cultivated plots.

“I have seen invasive plants ruin large parts of our farms,” she says. “And sometimes animals enter and destroy what we have worked on for months. It is not easy to guard these fields every day.”

She also points to tensions within groups, where disagreements sometimes arise over responsibilities and how income is shared.

At present, with support from organisations such as Justdiggit, Trees for the Future, and Swissaid, around 200 women are directly involved in the project. Many more benefit indirectly, especially during drought periods when pasture becomes scarce.

“This work prevents our cattle from dying and keeps them healthy,” says Nairiyamu Laizer, a mother of three and secretary of the Naisho group. “It also helps sustain the bulls we raise.”

“If all women take up this opportunity, these projects can lift our economy,” she adds.

“We harvest the grass and sell it; some buyers use it for cattle feed, others for thatching houses. We also grind some of it into animal feed,” she says.

For Loongidong’i and many Maasai women, growing fodder is no longer just about surviving difficult seasons. It has become a new beginning, reshaping livelihoods and the place of women in pastoral life.

“Now women help bring money into their homes,” she says, “and families are becoming more stable.”

This article is published in collaboration with Egab.

DEVELOPING STORYDEVELOPING STORY,

Explosions hit Qeshm Island, ports along Strait of Hormuz after Trump threatens to hit Iran ‘very hard’.

The United States has launched fresh strikes against “multiple targets” in Iran at President Donald Trump’s direction, in a fresh escalation that prompted Tehran to declare the Strait of Hormuz closed to “all types of vessels”.

The US military said the strikes late on Wednesday were “in response to Iran’s unwarranted and continued aggression”, as Iranian state media reported explosions on Qeshm Island and in the cities of Bandar Abbas and Sirik along the Strait of Hormuz.

Blasts also hit the southern city of Kargan, wounding at least two people.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps accused the US of “repeated violations” of their April ceasefire, and said the Strait of Hormuz was “closed until further notice”.

It said all traffic in the vital waterway, including oil tankers and commercial vessels, would be affected, and firmly rejected the US’s previous claims that it had helped ships pass through the strait.

The IRGC subsequently added that “two oil tankers attempting to illegally pass through the strait were hit”.

The escalation comes a day after the US and Iran exchanged tit-for-tat strikes over the downing of a US Apache helicopter in the Strait of Hormuz.

Earlier, Trump said the US would hit Iran “very hard”.

“We’ll see what happens with the deal. We were really close to a deal. But they keep stringing us along. They keep playing us for suckers because you know what? They dealt with some very stupid presidents. I have to say that I’m embarrassed to say it,” he told reporters at the White House.

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian slammed Trump’s threat in a post on X.

“Critical infrastructures are the lifeblood of the people. Threats to target them – from transportation networks to the electricity and water industries – are not a show of strength but a sign of desperation in the face of a nation’s will,” he wrote.

“Iran, relying on the knowledge and capabilities of its specialists, national unity, and solidarity, will stand firm against any pressure or threat,” he added.

June 10 (Asia Today) — Artificial intelligence is reshaping the cybersecurity battlefield, South Korea’s spy agency warned, saying North Korean hacking groups are moving toward autonomous attacks that can identify vulnerabilities, break into systems and monetize stolen data with limited human involvement.

The National Cyber Security Center, operated under the National Intelligence Service, issued the warning in its 2026 National Information Security White Paper, released Sunday.

The agency said the rapid development of AI has sharply increased the capabilities of attackers, while the spread of cloud infrastructure and the neglect of aging systems have exposed structural weaknesses in South Korea’s cyber defenses.

The agency focused in particular on the rise of agentic AI, a form of autonomous artificial intelligence that can set goals, analyze data and manipulate external systems without constant human direction.

When used by hackers, the technology can generate large volumes of phishing messages and other social engineering content, develop hacking tools such as ransomware and carry out large-scale operations with fewer people, less time and lower costs.

Concerns over the misuse of agentic AI grew recently after Anthropic’s AI model Mythos was reported to have produced Windows attack code in 31 minutes.

The shift is especially visible among North Korean hacking organizations. Global cybersecurity companies including Kaspersky and Google Threat Intelligence Group have identified signs that the North Korea-linked group Kimsuky used large language models to help write code.

Another North Korea-linked hacking group, APT45, repeatedly entered prompts at scale to search for software vulnerabilities and test whether attack code could be executed.

Analysts increasingly believe North Korea began designing and testing AI-automated attacks last year and has now largely adopted the technology. The change is seen as allowing North Korean hackers to overcome personnel limitations and launch larger attacks on a regular basis.

North Korea stole a record 2.2 trillion won, or about $1.46 billion, in virtual assets last year.

While North Korea’s cyber capabilities are advancing rapidly, many South Korean public and private systems remain vulnerable because of aging infrastructure. The risk is growing as organizations adopt AI across more areas of work without fully updating their defenses.

The agency said agentic AI is particularly suited to manipulating AI systems used by target organizations, meaning South Korea could be expanding potential attack routes unless it strengthens its security systems.

“Starting this year, agentic AI will autonomously carry out the full attack life cycle and generate tens of thousands of malicious actions per second,” the agency said. “Defense systems also must immediately shift to autonomous security operations that minimize human intervention and identify and isolate threats at machine speed.”

Experts said isolated responses are no longer enough and called for a national-level control tower capable of continuous cyber response.

“The only current method is to use AI to find security problems, patch them as quickly as possible and prevent attacks,” said Choi Byung-ho, a research professor at Korea University’s Human-Inspired AI Research Institute. “A governance system capable of responding to hacking within 24 hours is needed, but it is difficult because of issues such as delegated authority.”

— Reported by Asia Today; translated by UPI

© Asia Today. Unauthorized reproduction or redistribution prohibited.

Original Korean report: https://www.asiatoday.co.kr/kn/view.php?key=20260609010003141

Interim ODNI chief Bill Pulte has been slammed by Democrats as a Trump loyalist with no intelligence background.

United States President Donald Trump has directed Bill Pulte to cut staff at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI) as soon as he takes up his role as acting intelligence chief.

The order came in a Truth Social post on Wednesday, in which Trump doubled down on his choice of Pulte, a controversial pick.

“I have named William Pulte to be Acting Director of National Intelligence, who will take over on June 19th, and have asked him to execute the immediate and needed downsizing of the office, reverting staff to their home agencies,” Trump wrote.

Pulte’s appointment has sparked bipartisan pushback, with Democrats especially questioning his qualifications.

A businessman with ties to construction and private equity, Pulte has no intelligence or military background, and critics see him as a Trump loyalist who has attacked the president’s critics.

In Wednesday’s post, Trump did emphasise he was already searching for Pulte’s successor. “I am looking for a permanent ODNI Nominee with experience in National Security,” he wrote.

But Pulte’s short-term appointment has become a flashpoint in Congress, with Democrats refusing to renew a controversial surveillance measure until a permanent pick is selected.

When he takes up his interim role next week, Pulte will succeed former Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, who stepped down last month after her husband was diagnosed with cancer.

But Congress members like Democrat Mark Warner, a key figure on the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, have decried Pulte as “grossly unqualified”.

Warner and other leaders have also warned that Pulte’s appointment would complicate negotiations to renew Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), which allows warrantless surveillance of communications involving foreigners.

That measure is divisive on both sides of the aisle, as it has also resulted in the surveillance of US citizens. It allows intelligence agencies to collect emails, texts and phone data without warrants, if the communications in question are believed to involve individuals outside the US.

Warner said naming Pulte to head the ODNI was like “throwing a live hand grenade” into Congress’s efforts to reauthorise Section 702.

Last week, all but one Senate Democrat and seven Republicans voted against a three-year extension of Section 702, citing concerns about Pulte. Pennsylvania’s John Fetterman was the only Democrat to break party ranks in that 52-47 vote.

But Trump has called on Congress to pass a temporary extension of Section 702, denouncing Democrats for blocking the bill.

“Just like they did on Border Funding, the Radical Left Dumocrats [sic] are trying to take our National Security hostage because of unrelated issues,” Trump wrote on Wednesday. “They should stop playing politics with the safety of our Great Country.”

Still, Trump has faced backlash from within his Republican Party, with congressional leaders calling on the president to select a permanent intelligence chief to put the matter to bed.

“We don’t need a weaponised DNI [director of national intelligence],” Senate Majority Leader John Thune told reporters. “We need professionals here.”

Critics have questioned whether Pulte would use US intelligence capabilities to persecute Trump’s perceived political enemies.

Currently, the 38-year-old Pulte serves as the head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

In that position, Pulte has accused several of Trump’s adversaries of mortgage fraud. They include  Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook, New York Attorney General Letitia James and Democratic Senator Adam Schiff, all of whom Trump has personally attacked.

Democrats have accused the 38-year-old Pulte of weaponising his government role for political aims.

June 10 (UPI) — The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists released its recommended maternal vaccine schedule Wednesday, breaking for the first time on advice from the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

The group advises four vaccines during pregnancy, including a COVID-19 shot; a flu shot; a tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis (Tdap) vaccine; and a vaccine that protects the fetus against respiratory syncytial virus, commonly called RSV.

“Changing national recommendations coupled with rampant vaccine misinformation are resulting in confusion for both patients and healthcare professionals,” Camille Clare, ACOG president, said in a statement.”It is incredibly important for the public to have access to reliable,evidence-based information on maternal immunizations from a trusted source.”

The schedule also includes additional vaccines for those with certain risk factors and for those postpartum and breastfeeding. Thirteen other medical societies, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy of Family Physicians and the American College of Nurse-Midwives, endorsed the list.

The CDC, under the leadership of Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a vaccine skeptic, changed its recommended maternal vaccine schedule last year, removing the flu and COVID-19 shots, The Hill reported.

In changing the schedule in 2025, the CDC did not its usual process of using a panel of vaccine experts to review studies and make advice. The American Academy of Pediatrics and some U.S. states have also broken with the new CDC guidelines.

“Immunization is an essential part of preventative care forpeople who are pregnant, postpartum and lactating — and for their infants,” ACOG said in its recommendations. “OB-GYNs can reduce the frequency of vaccine-preventable diseases by being aware of current vaccine recommendations, counseling patients to receive appropriate vaccines and integrating vaccination into routine clinical practice.”

June 10 (UPI) — The U.S. Embassy in Mexico issued a travel advisory for American citizens who plan to attend soccer matches at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, warning of security risks, mobility restrictions and significant differences in risk levels among Mexican states.

The diplomatic mission urged travelers to review current advisories for each Mexican state before traveling and reminded them that Mexico includes states classified from Level 1 (“exercise normal precautions”) to Level 4 (“do not travel”).

“If you scored tickets for a FIFA World Cup 2026 match in Mexico, check the latest travel advisory level and risk information before you travel,” the embassy said in a message released this week.

Although the Mexican government has announced deployment of nearly 100,000 security personnel to protect the World Cup host cities of Mexico City, Guadalajara and Monterrey, international travel advisories remain in place because of cartel-related violence and organized crime, which vary by state.

The State Department maintains a Level 2 advisory for Mexico, recommending travelers “exercise increased caution” because of risks related to terrorism, crime and kidnapping.

However, the agency noted that specific areas of the country remain under Levels 3 and 4, the highest risk categories.

According to the advisory, violent crimes including homicide, kidnapping, carjacking, sexual assault and robbery occur in Mexico.

The U.S. government also said there is a risk of terrorist violence and reminded travelers that consular assistance may be limited in certain regions.

U.S. authorities recommended that citizens follow the same restrictions that apply to U.S. government personnel stationed in Mexico.

Those measures include avoiding intercity travel at night, using only regulated transportation services or ride-hailing applications such as Uber and Cabify, avoiding solo travel in remote areas and refraining from driving between border cities and the country’s interior except in specific circumstances.

The advisory also says that emergency services may be limited or unavailable in rural and remote areas.

In addition, it advises travelers to cooperate with highway checkpoints and roadblocks, warning that ignoring instructions or attempting to flee could result in violent situations.

The State Department recommended that travelers enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program, obtain travel insurance and review security conditions in the states they plan to visit during the tournament.

June 10 (UPI) — Billionaire Microsoft founder Bill Gates told the House Oversight Committee Wednesday that he had no knowledge of Jeffrey Epstein‘s crimes and that Epstein had uses Gates’ personal life to pressure him.

“I never witnessed nor had any indication that Epstein was engaged in ongoing criminal conduct. I never went to his island, his ranch, or his Florida home. I have never victimized anyone,” Gates said in his prepared opening remarks.

“While he may have sought to foster a personal relationship, I was never interested in that and never reciprocated. I learned Epstein had become aware of sensitive information about my personal life, including the fact that I had been unfaithful in my marriage. These affairs had nothing to do with my interactions with Epstein, but they were painful for my family.”

His testimony comes a day after Epstein’s former executive assistant, Lesley Groff, testified saying she knew nothing about Epstein’s crimes.

Gates told the House Oversight Committee Wednesday that he was introduced to Epstein in 2011. Epstein “claimed he could raise billions of dollars for global health from people for whom he provided tax and estate services.”

“I recall being aware that Epstein had faced prior legal issues, but I did not fully understand the extent of the crimes he committed. I accepted the introduction without applying the scrutiny I should have,” he said.

Gates said that Epstein used his knowledge of Gates’ cheating on his wife, “in addition to many lies that he layered on top,” to re-engage with him after Gates had cut off contact in 2014.

“He was unsuccessful in this effort, but it shows some of the ways he tried to leverage his interactions with me to further his agenda. I should never have met with Epstein in the first place,” Gates’ opening statement said.

Before the interview, Gates said he was ready to testify.

“I hope my testimony is helpful to the important work of the committee to find justice for the victims,” Gates said in a brief statement after he arrived in Washington, D.C.

In a statement to The Guardian, a representative for Gates said that he “welcomes the opportunity to appear before the committee” and said that “while he never witnessed or participated in any of Epstein’s illegal conduct, he is looking forward to answering all the committee’s questions to support their important work.”

Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., told reporters earlier this week, “we want to know what did Mr. Gates know, who else was around that orbit, and why Mr. Gates continued to have a relationship with Mr. Epstein.”

Committee Chairman Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., told reporters Tuesday that “anything’s on the table.”

“He seems like he’s — according to his attorneys — I wouldn’t say eager to testify, but he’s willing to testify, and he hasn’t fought it. And I appreciate that.”

Gates became friends with Epstein in 2011, three years after he was convicted in Florida for soliciting an underage girl for prostitution. Epstein served 13 months in jail for that charge and became a registered sex offender.

Epstein died by suicide in jail in 2019.

Gates has publicly expressed regret for his friendship with Epstein. He has said he met with Epstein several times to discuss philanthropy but said it was “foolish” of him.

“Yes, I think I was quite stupid,” Gates said. “I thought it would help me with global health philanthropy; in fact, it failed to do that, and it was just a huge mistake.”

June 10 (UPI) — President Donald Trump signed a bill to fund the Department of Homeland Security’s immigration enforcement agencies through 2028 after months of battles to prevent it from happening.

“This morning I’m thrilled to sign the Secure America Act to immediately and fully fund the Department of Homeland Security through the end of my term, so we won’t have to be talking about it anymore,” the president said in the Oval Office.

The Senate passed the $70 billion funding package on Friday, and the House approved it on Tuesday.

Democrats fought the funding for months, refusing to agree to the bill unless there were reforms to the organization after two American citizens — Renee Good and Alex Pretti — were killed by federal agents in Minneapolis earlier this year. But the measure was passed via reconciliation, which only requires a majority vote instead of 60 votes needed to overcome a filibuster.

“We’ll give the heroes of ICE and Border Patrol — and that’s what they are, they’re heroes, what they have to go through to keep us safe — the support and resources they need to defend our borders, protect our homeland and to keep America safe,” the president added He also gave House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., credit for passing the bill with a slim majority in the House.

“Despite Democrat efforts to shut down ICE and Border Patrol, Republicans have now fully funded these agencies through President Trump’s entire second term to the tune of nearly $70 billion,” Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., in a statement. “Thanks to President Trump, our border has gone from its weakest point to its most secure point in less than two years.”

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.