Iran’s World Cup squad lands in Mexico amid US visa row
By AFP and Reuters Published On 7 Jun 20267 Jun 2026 Iran’s World Cup squad has landed in Tijuana, Mexico ahead of the World Cup – amid a diplomatic row with cohosts United States, which is at war with Tehran and has refused visas for several members of the Iranian delegation. The squad touched down shortly after 5am (1200 GMT) in the Mexican city, across the border from San Diego in California, after an overnight flight from Turkiye, where they have been training for the past three weeks. The Iranian football federation negotiated at the last minute to move the team’s base camp from Arizona to Mexico, due in part to uncertainty over whether they would be granted visas to enter the US. The US awarded visas to all the players on Friday, just 10 days before their first match, but several members of the support squad were not given visas, including “key managerial and administrative members,” according to the federation. The dispute comes days before the tournament kicks off on Thursday, when Mexico play South Africa in Mexico City. Iran will be based in the city throughout the tournament, despite playing their entire group stage on the US West Coast. When they do play in the US, it will be the first World Cup to see a host nation receive the team of a country it is at war with. ‘Hold the US accountable’ Iran’s team spent nearly three weeks at a training camp in Antalya, using their time in Turkiye to apply for visas for the three host nations. On the eve of their departure for Mexico, the players received their US visas, Washington’s envoy to Turkiye, Tom Barrack, said on X late on Friday. Advertisement But Iran’s embassy to Turkiye said 15 administrative and management staff had been denied visas. “You have now escalated the deliberate and discriminatory treatment against Iran’s national football team to its highest level,” the embassy posted on X on Saturday, calling for world football’s governing body FIFA “to hold the US accountable for violations of its rules”. Adding to the tensions, Iran’s ambassador to Mexico said on Saturday that the squad had been notified that under their visa conditions the team must enter and leave US soil on the same day as their matches. “We can enter in the morning and we must leave the same day,” Iran’s envoy Abolfazl Pasandideh told reporters. That appeared to contradict what the team’s spokesman Amir Mahdi Alavi told state TV earlier. “The visas issued for the national team are multiple-entry visas, and the national team will arrive at the match venue one day before the first game and, for the following games, two days prior to each match,” Alavi said. FIFA rules for World Cups stipulate that a team’s coach must give a news conference on the eve of the match at the venue where the game will be played. (Al Jazeera) ‘Political interference’ Iran’s Football Federation – whose chief Mehdi Taj was reportedly among those denied a visa – has described the decision as “political interference in sport in its worst form”. In response, a US administration official confirmed that “the visas necessary for Iran to compete in the World Cup, including for athletes and necessary support staff, have been issued.” Without directly addressing the matter of those whose visas were refused, the official added: “We will not allow the Iranian team to abuse this system to sneak terrorists into the United States under false pretences.” In April, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said any problem would not be with the Iranian players but “some of the other people (they) would want to bring with them,” suggesting some had ties to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which is on the US blacklist of “terrorist” groups. Iran are in Group G and will play New Zealand and Belgium in Los Angeles on June 15 and 21, followed by Egypt in Seattle on June 26. Adblock test (Why?)
Iran’s World Cup team arrives in Mexico as US visa row continues
NewsFeed Iran’s national football team has arrived in Mexico ahead of its World Cup matches in the US, after last-minute visas were approved for players, just 10 days before their first match in Los Angeles. The team shifted its base to Tijuana amid uncertainty over US entry permits, with several support staff denied visas. Published On 7 Jun 20267 Jun 2026 Click here to share on social media share-nodes Share googleAdd Al Jazeera on Googleinfo Adblock test (Why?)
From online class to Revolution Square: A Tehran teacher’s routine amid war
The “Ramadan War”, as the US-Israel war on Iran is popularly known, disrupted daily life in Iran. Universities, schools and industries were bombed, and streets were emptied out. Mehran, a 47-year-old teacher based in central Tehran, has been forced to teach his students online from a cramped corner of his modest apartment as distance learning has become the norm. “Life hasn’t stopped here, as some might imagine, but it has taken on a completely different rhythm,” Mehran told Al Jazeera, which shadowed the teacher, who wished to be identified by a single name, as he navigated a new reality dictated by the war. From the frustrations of a virtual classroom to pharmacies with bare shelves, and from hyperinflation to crowded, fare-free public buses, Mehran’s day offers a microcosm of a city desperately trying to maintain normalcy as war leaves its indelible mark. The digital bottleneck Mehran’s day begins with a gruelling battle for bandwidth. Following the curbs on the internet during the early days of the war, the education system shifted to the domestic “Shad” e-learning platform. “The national internet is available, but it has become frustratingly weak due to the massive surge in users,” the teacher explained with an exhausted smile. “Sometimes my voice breaks up, and suddenly dozens of students just vanish from the platform.” Inside his small apartment in the Amirabad neighbourhood, the day is a cacophony of overlapping lives. In the living room, his 14-year-old daughter, Mehraneh, squints at an old tablet for her own lessons. In the narrow hallway leading to the kitchen, his eight-year-old son, Sam, clings to his mother’s smartphone, hovering near the window to catch the strongest signal. Advertisement Meanwhile, Mehran’s 41-year-old wife, Azadeh, manages the finances for a private company from another room – a job that transitioned entirely to remote work until last month. “The weak internet can barely sustain one stable connection, let alone three or four at the same time,” Mehran said. “Add to that the cramped space and total lack of privacy, and the daily toll just multiplies”. The cost of survival When the virtual school bell rings, Mehran heads to a nearby pharmacy to buy heart medication for his mother. At first glance, the shelves look neat and well-stocked, but a closer look reveals that dozens of essential medicines have been unavailable for over a month. According to Mehri, a young pharmacy worker, prices for both domestic and imported drugs have skyrocketed. After paying for a month’s supply, Mehran quietly slips the boxes into his bag. “Medicines now eat up a quarter of my salary; they used to be just seven percent,” he noted. Still, he considers himself lucky. Other families face severe shortages of life-saving drugs due to the United States naval blockade of Iranian ports and suspended flights that have crippled supply chains. The economic strain is even more glaring at the Jomhouri electronics market. Mehran travelled there to buy a new television ahead of football’s World Cup, which is going to be held in Mexico, the US and Canada, as his old set was damaged by explosions near his home during the final week of the war. Football is the most popular sport in Iran. Its national team has been based in Mexico amid the conflict with the US. Mehran has opted for the metro over a taxi amid soaring inflation. Public transport has been free since the war began, a government measure to ease traffic and conserve petrol. Inside an electronics shop, a vendor observed: “The war made transportation free, but it made everything else unaffordable, especially food.” The vendor noted that TV prices in his shop alone had surged by 40 to 60 million rials ($29 to $44) – roughly matching the dramatic plunge of the local currency, the rial, against the US dollar. At a nearby shop selling TV stands, 59-year-old owner Ali Morad said prices have doubled since last winter, despite the goods being entirely locally manufactured. He blamed soaring wages, rent, and raw material costs, which have driven customers away as their purchasing power has evaporated. An illusion of normalcy Exhausted by the market, Mehran takes a break at the nearby Osta public park. The scene is jarringly serene: children bouncing around colourful playgrounds, families picnicking under ancient trees, and young men vigorously using outdoor gym equipment. Advertisement In a quiet corner, an elderly woman sits entirely absorbed in a paperback book, insulated from the chaos. “For a second, looking at this, you forget we are living under a blockade,” Mehran reflected. “You see Tehran wresting its right to live from the jaws of breaking news and a relentless war.” But 22-year-old Mona sees a different reality. The calm, she argued, is just the “face of a city learning to dance on the edge of crisis”. Speaking to Al Jazeera, Mona explained that the people in the park are not there for leisurely strolls; they are seeking a free space to breathe. Their household budgets have been decimated by doubled food costs and internet bills. To Mona, the parkgoers are hiding profound exhaustion behind a facade of tranquility. “It’s as if they collectively decided to grant themselves an hour-long ceasefire from the idea of war before they have to go back home,” she added. Searching for rhythm in the dark As night falls over Tehran, Mehran does not head home. Instead, he makes his way to Enghelab (Revolution) Square near Tehran University. Here, hundreds of men and women gather nightly to chant nationalistic slogans and sing in support of the state and its armed forces. “These gatherings make us feel like we are all in the same trench,” he said. “We might not have stealth bombers or aircraft carriers, but we have our voices and our physical presence. The war may have stolen our comfort, but it gave us back our social solidarity.” What started as a political statement has evolved into a psychological anchor. “Up until the 10th night, I came here out of duty,” Mehran
‘I’m a cockroach’: Gen Z protest movement lands in Indian capital
New Delhi, India – Saurav Kushwaha, 17, packed just a change of clothes and boarded an overnight train with his elder brother to reach New Delhi early on Saturday from their village in central India’s Madhya Pradesh. The brothers rested on a footpath, waiting for Abhijeet Dipke to arrive from the United States. The anger in Indian youth – where half of the country’s 1.4 billion population is under 25 – has been simmering for a while now, exacerbated by paper leaks and discrepancies in the country’s largest school boards. And that anger seemed to have found an unexpected outlet in a satirical political party, the so-called Cockroach Janata Party (Cockroach People’s Party, or CJP), born out of taunts and jokes. The Indian chief justice’s comments last month equating the youth with cockroaches drew widespread ire. In turn, Dipke, a recent graduate of Boston University, pondered on X at the time: “What if all cockroaches came together?” It became a sensation on the Indian internet, making way for the launch of the CJP, a play on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Dipke’s casual joke attracted more than 22 million followers on Instagram, double that of Modi’s party, which has been in power since 2014. But Dipke and hundreds of others who turned up in New Delhi on Saturday, demanding that Modi’s education minister resign, are not joking any more. “The warning to the Modi government is simple: get the education minister to resign,” Dipke said, addressing a swelling crowd. “Or we will not leave from here.” ‘All cockroaches, assemble!’ Part of this movement is Kushwaha, the student from Madhya Pradesh, who has just cleared the 12th school-leaving exams from India’s Central Board of Secondary Education. The process had been mired in controversy over several discrepancies, including digital marking on the answer sheets. Advertisement He is not sure if he can afford higher education, but Kushwaha is angrier about the government “that has been indifferent to the people who voted them to power”. The school board’s fiasco came just a week after the top medical examination for graduates was cancelled after the paper was leaked. Such events, the distraught students say, are an annual affair, with no political accountability. After gaining online traction, Dipke’s CJP first tapped on the youth’s anger to galvanise support for the movement. The party had called for “all cockroaches to assemble” at New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, a designated protest site in the capital, to demand Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation. “I followed them on Instagram for fun,” Kushwaha said among the crowd. “But there is a chance that we can actually get the minister to resign.” That would be a first for Modi’s 12 years in power, if and when it happens. India’s Gen Z population – the largest such cohort in the world – has only seen the rule of Modi’s Hindu nationalist BJP. Critics say the government has criminalised dissent, with India slipping in multiple democratic indices since Modi rose to power in 2014. Abhijeet Dipke of the Cockroach Janta Party was overwhelmed by supporters during a protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on Saturday, where demonstrators demanded the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan [Yashraj Sharma/Al Jazeera] A season left behind Still dressed for the chill he had left behind in the US, Dipke stepped into New Delhi’s sweltering, oppressive heat in a black zip-up hoodie, with a cap pulled low over his face. Pushing through a crowd of cameras jostling for a glimpse, Dipke reached for the mic and gestured to the crowd to erupt in slogans. Drenched in sweat, he shrugged off the hoodie. In his opening words, Dipke recalled the anxious overnight flight, saying his family feared he would be arrested after landing in New Delhi. “But this is not a fear only of my mother,” he said, as the crowd shouted, “Shame!” “Every mother in this country fears that if one talks about politics, speaks against this government, [they] will be arrested,” he added. The Modi government has jailed several human rights and student activists over the last few years, in what the opposition and critics of the government say is a slump towards authoritarian rule. The BJP and the Modi government reject these allegations, insisting that they have followed the law of the land and the constitution. For Dipke, 30, who left for the US two years ago to pursue higher studies in public relations, it has been a quick turn of events as he finds himself leading a political movement out of nowhere. In his interview with Al Jazeera last month, Dipke said he felt a responsibility for the overwhelming response his initiative has garnered. Advertisement Standing exhausted from the heat, Dipke handed over the mic and fell back against a wall to drink water, tossing his remaining bottle towards the crowd. “I love you, Abhijeet,” a young protester shouted. Several protesters, wearing a cockroach mask, turned up with roses or bouquets in their hands and carried books, as Dipke’s party had asked them to on social media. “To everyone who believes that Indian youth only post on social media, come down here and see this,” Dipke said later, now donning the Indian cricket team’s blue jersey. “And to those who think we will go away after shouting, I want to say: we are cockroaches and we will stay until the minister resigns.” Saurav Kushwaha (right), 17, travelled from his home in Madhya Pradesh via overnight train to attend the Cockroach Janta Party’s first protest in New Delhi on Saturday [Yashraj Sharma/Al Jazeera] ‘Get on streets’ Mohammad Aftab, a 28-year-old gig worker from one of Delhi’s satellite townships, climbed a tree to catch a clearer view of Dipke. He said he could not complete high school due to economic struggles, and instead delivers groceries for a living, with no social security net. To leave a day’s work could mean no dinner, said Aftab, wearing a cockroach mask. “But still, I wanted
Activists disrupt German military exhibit over arms sales to Israel
NewsFeed Pro-Palestine activists interrupted an army recruitment event during German Armed Forces Day. They climbed onto a tank and unfurled a banner reading ‘Genocide with German weapons’ and named Rheinmetall, a key arms supplier to Israel’s military. Read more Published On 6 Jun 20266 Jun 2026 Click here to share on social media share-nodes Share googleAdd Al Jazeera on Googleinfo Adblock test (Why?)
Israeli attacks in Lebanon kill 10 people, including high-ranking soldiers
At least 10 people, including high-ranking soldiers, have been killed in Israeli strikes across southern Lebanon, days after the countries agreed to a conditional truce during United States-mediated talks. Lebanon’s army said on Saturday that two officers, a brigadier general and a captain, as well as a soldier, were killed in an Israeli strike on a military vehicle on the Khardali-Nabatieh road. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list The Israeli army said in a statement that the attack had been in an “active combat zone”, and that “movement in a combat zone requires coordination” with the Israeli army. It added that “the incident remains under investigation”. Following the attack on its soldiers, the Lebanese army said that “the continuation of the deliberate and repeated brutal Israeli aggression … is aimed at thwarting all efforts to reach a solution”. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun condemned the attack and said in a statement posted on social media that his office considered the attack a “flagrant violation of Lebanese sovereignty and of international laws and norms”. Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam also condemned the attack, describing it as “a heinous crime and an attack on Lebanon and all Lebanese people”. In a statement, Salam extended his condolences to the families and colleagues of Brigadier General Wassam Sabra, Captain Elie Khoury and soldier Hussein Ghozal, as well as to the Lebanese army itself. The Lebanese armed group Hezbollah dubbed the attack a “heinous crime” and accused the Lebanese government of exposing its own country to bloodshed through its “complete surrender to the enemy’s demands in Washington”. Advertisement “This is not the first time that Lebanese army soldiers or officers have been killed,” said Al Jazeera’s Ali Hashem, reporting from Beirut, adding that more than 50 have been killed since the start of the conflict on March 2. However, “this is the first time that such a high-ranking general was killed.” A lot of rhetoric has come from Lebanese officials, “but there’s nothing that the government can do. A few weeks ago, more than 13 national security personnel were killed and nothing was really done by the government,” said Hashem. “The only thing the government could do over the past weeks was to withdraw its troops from the southern villages and towns that, at the moment, the Israelis are approaching.” Lebanon’s ‘real foe’ Separately, an Israeli air strike on the southern village of Saksakiyah, in the Sidon district, killed six people and wounded four others, reported state-run National News Agency (NNA), while another person was killed in an Israeli drone strike targeting a car on the highway in Deir al-Zahrani, in the Nabatieh district. Israel also renewed forced displacement orders for the southern Lebanese villages of Armati, Mashgara, Kafr Huna, Sajad and Ansariya, ordering residents to move north of the Zahrani River. Hezbollah, meanwhile, said its fighters struck a Merkava tank at the newly established Blat outpost in the Bint Jbeil area using an Ababil swooping drone, claiming a confirmed hit. A ceasefire that was supposed to end the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah took effect on April 17, but has never been fully respected. Hezbollah and Israel have frequently exchanged accusations of truce violations, with each side justifying its own attacks by citing the alleged violations committed by the other side. A further conditional truce was announced by Lebanese and Israeli envoys this week in Washington. Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem rejected this ceasefire as it did not include Hezbollah or provide for Israel’s withdrawal from southern Lebanon. While Israel and Hezbollah continue to fight, the Lebanese army has historically avoided confrontations and has not engaged in the current conflict. The latest outbreak of conflict between Hezbollah and Israel began at the beginning of March after the group said it was acting in support of Tehran. At least 3,558 people have been killed and 10,870 others injured in Israeli attacks across Lebanon since March 2, according to the latest figures from Lebanon’s Health Ministry. On Saturday morning, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi rejected comments made by President Aoun that Beirut was a bargaining chip for Tehran during its negotiations with the US. Advertisement “Had Lebanon been a bargaining chip for Iran, we’d have a deal long ago,” he said in a post on social media. “Save Lebanon from your real foe, Mr President.” Adblock test (Why?)
Trump hails jobs surge, says Iran talks ‘going well’
NewsFeed US President Donald Trump hailed stronger-than-expected jobs growth before pivoting to Iran, saying negotiations with Tehran “seem to be going quite well”. Trump offered no further details on the talks as he arrived in Wisconsin for an agriculture event. Published On 5 Jun 20265 Jun 2026 Click here to share on social media share-nodes Share googleAdd Al Jazeera on Googleinfo Adblock test (Why?)
Cobolli into final as virus-struck Arnaldi pulls out of French Open
Published On 5 Jun 20265 Jun 2026 Italy’s Flavio Cobolli said he was “sad and happy at the same time” after reaching his first Grand Slam final at the French Open on Friday, following the last-minute withdrawal due to illness of his last-four opponent and compatriot Matteo Arnaldi. The 24-year-old 10th seed will meet Alexander Zverev in Sunday’s final, which will produce a new major champion, after the German second seed earlier moved past Jakub Mensik in the other semi-final. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list Just more than 20 minutes before Cobolli and Arnaldi were due to take to Court Philippe Chatrier, tournament organisers announced that the 104th-ranked Italian had been forced to pull out with a “virus”. “When he came to me almost one hour ago, I almost cried. You know, it’s something that you don’t expect at all. I was ready to play this match,” Cobolli told reporters during a news conference he held with his close friend Arnaldi, as the pair sat three metres (10 feet) apart. “When he came, I was completely sad for him. But, at the same time, of course, I’m really happy for the result that I reached this week. “Yeah, now I’m sad and happy at the same time.” For first-time major semifinalist Arnaldi, withdrawing was “not something that you wish to anybody”, but “the right decision for me to take”. “It’s tough, because for how the tournament was, for how many hours I’ve been on the court, I was feeling actually very good,” Arnaldi, who had spent the most amount of time on court for a player en route to a Grand Slam semifinal, said. The 25-year-old added that, on Thursday, he was “feeling OK” during practice, but after his dinner, he began to feel unwell during the night. Advertisement “I started to feel so-so with my stomach. I was, like, ‘All right, just didn’t digest very well,’” he recounted. “But then I woke up at 1:00am, and I started vomiting, and I wasn’t feeling the best. Then I tried to sleep. I couldn’t sleep at all. At 6:00, 7:00am, I vomited again. “We called the doctor into the room. He came, gave me some stuff. I was hoping that it would just be something from dinner or something like that, but then throughout the day, I couldn’t eat. Every time we did something or would drink, I would go back to the bathroom.” Despite his best efforts, his state worsened throughout the day. “I tried to get ready and tried to stay as much as I could here and tried to see if I could go on court, but every time I get up, I feel dizzy,” Arnaldi said. “It’s a virus, I think, because I was feeling pretty cold. I think I had a fever, like, during the day. I don’t know, to be honest. “I just know that I can’t move, and I can’t eat, and I can’t drink. So, there was really no way that I will be able to play.” Cobolli paid tribute to a tearful Arnaldi. “Matteo is a big inspiration for all of us. He’s an amazing player and amazing professional,” Cobolli said. “He’s, I think, the best person outside the court for how his match preparation, focus, cool-down. He’s one of the best on the tour, for sure.” After the conference, Cobolli took to centre court to have a hit watched on by a decent smattering of spectators that had come for the match but stayed to see the world number 14 keep his eye in. After his quarterfinal victory over Canadian fourth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime on Wednesday, Cobolli will go into the weekend’s final with plenty of rest. “Maybe having almost four days off is a lot, so you lose the rhythm,” he said. “Now, I got practice again. I think I will be ready, for sure, for the final, but I also know that I will be fresh, for sure. “Maybe [the extra time off] will help; maybe not. I’ll tell you after the final.” Adblock test (Why?)
Zelenskyy: Putin choosing war by rejecting offer for in-person talks
NewsFeed Russian President Vladimir Putin has turned down an offer for in-person talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, saying he sees no point in meeting. Zelenskyy said Russia “has again chosen war” by rejecting his open letter appealing for a face-to-face meeting. Published On 5 Jun 20265 Jun 2026 Click here to share on social media share-nodes Share googleAdd Al Jazeera on Googleinfo Adblock test (Why?)
Iran war live: Hezbollah rejects truce as Israel continues Lebanon strikes
blinking-dotLive updatesLive updates, Israel’s supreme court annuls a government ban on the International Committee of the Red Cross visiting Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails. Published On 5 Jun 20265 Jun 2026 Click here to share on social media share-nodes Share googleAdd Al Jazeera on Googleinfo Adblock test (Why?)