On a recent Sunday, Early Rain Covenant Church, one of China’s most prominent unregistered Protestant congregations, was violently interrupted mid-worship when armed law enforcement officers stormed the hotel ballroom venue where the congregation had gathered in the southwestern city of Jiangyou. In a formal statement released via the messaging platform Telegram the following day, church representatives confirmed that more than 30 congregants and leaders were forcibly taken from the service to a local detention center for interrogation, with two senior pastors, Yan Hong and Wu Wuqing, remaining in custody as of the latest updates. Members of the congregation estimate that at least 50 officers, including personnel from the Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) unit, were on site during the 11 a.m. local time raid. Visual evidence shared by the church, including photographs and video clips, shows uniformed officers surrounding seated worshippers, while plainclothes officers can be seen on stage repeatedly demanding the congregation stop singing hymns. According to the church’s account, even after the raid, worshippers who remained in the ballroom — including elderly attendees and children — were locked in the space for hours while officers conducted mandatory identity checks. While in detention, the congregants detained for interrogation continued to fellowship, sing hymns and pray together, the statement added. Officers attempted to pressure congregants locked in the ballroom to sign an undisclosed affidavit in exchange for their release; all attendees refused to sign the document, but were ultimately released by 6 p.m. local time. All detainees except pastors Yan and Wu were released between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m. Sunday, the church confirmed. No public explanation for the detentions has been issued by Chinese authorities, who have not responded to requests for comment on the incident. This is not the first time either Yan or Wu have been detained by authorities: the pair were most recently summoned by police in January on unsubstantiated charges of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble.” Founded in 2008 and originally based in the southwestern provincial capital of Chengdu, Early Rain Covenant Church has been a high-profile target of Chinese government regulation for years due to the country’s strict state control over religious practice. The church’s founding pastor, Wang Yi, was arrested during a large-scale 2018 raid and is currently serving a nine-year prison sentence on widely criticized charges of “inciting subversion of state power” and “illegal business operations.” China’s ruling Communist Party officially permits religious practice only through state-sanctioned denominations led by government-appointed clergy. According to official 2018 data, China is home to roughly 44 million Christians, though independent observers note this figure almost certainly excludes millions of worshippers who attend unregistered “house churches” like Early Rain Covenant, which operate outside state oversight. In recent years, Christian advocacy groups say government restrictions on unregistered religious activity have grown significantly harsher, with frequent raids and detentions of independent congregational leaders becoming the norm. Bob Fu, founder of ChinaAid, a non-profit organization that tracks religious freedom violations in China, called Sunday’s raid a clear demonstration of the ruling party’s ongoing framing of peaceful Christian worship as a threat to state authority. The incident comes less than a year after a similar large-scale crackdown on another prominent independent Chinese church: in October of last year, 30 leaders of the Beijing-based Zion Church were detained in coordinated raids across seven Chinese cities, and the church’s founder, Ezra Jin, remains in state custody to date.
作者： admin
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World Cup: South American teams start off on the wrong foot
PHILADELPHIA — The 2026 FIFA World Cup has delivered an unexpected early twist, as powerhouse South American national teams have failed to secure a single win across their opening three fixtures, a rocky start that stands in stark contrast to a dominant opening performance by host-region North American sides on home soil.
The latest setback for South American soccer came Sunday at Philadelphia’s Lincoln Financial Field, where Ivory Coast claimed a tight 1-0 victory over Ecuador. The result brought an end to Ecuador’s 19-game undefeated run stretching back to a 1-0 loss to Brazil last September, even as a pro-Ecuador crowd of 68,274 — most clad in the team’s iconic yellow kits — turned the venue into a near-home field for La Tri.
Ecuador’s defeat follows two other underwhelming South American results from the tournament’s opening weekend: five-time World Cup champions Brazil were held to a 1-1 draw by Morocco on Saturday, while Paraguay suffered a lopsided 4-1 rout at the hands of co-host United States.
Post-match comments from South American coaching staff shared a common tone of reflection following the underwhelming starts. Ecuador manager Sebastián Beccacece described the result as a “very painful situation”, noting “I’m very sorry we did not give our fans the joy they came to seek. It was an unfair defeat, played out in a fantastic stadium atmosphere. We have to process it, put what happened behind us, focus on what lies ahead, and I believe we keep the faith.”
Paraguay head coach Gustavo Alfaro echoed that language, calling his side’s heavy defeat to the U.S. a “very painful lesson”, and offered unreserved praise for the co-hosts’ performance: “The U.S. won this match very clearly and fairly. They dominated tactically, technically and physically as well. They have answers to everything you throw at them.”
Even for Brazil, the most decorated men’s World Cup program in history, the opening draw did not spark panic. Legendary manager Carlo Ancelotti urged the side to remain confident, reminding critics and players alike: “You don’t win a World Cup based on your first match.”
Ecuador’s playing staff also pushed back against narratives that an opening loss eliminates their title hopes, pointing to recent tournament history as proof early results do not determine final outcomes. Captain Enner Valencia said the squad retained its optimism despite the setback: “We’re keeping our heads held high knowing that this is just the beginning, and there’s still a tournament ahead of us.”
Ecuador goalkeeper Hernan Galindez expanded on that point, referencing Argentina’s 2022 World Cup victory to illustrate the unpredictability of the tournament: “In the last World Cup, we won the first game and then were left out. Argentina, in the last World Cup, lost the first game and won the World Cup, so nothing guarantees you anything.”
South American soccer carries a unique global legacy: it is the only continent outside Europe to produce men’s World Cup champions, and has claimed nine of the 22 titles awarded in tournament history. Three more South American sides are yet to kick off their 2026 campaigns, with Uruguay facing Saudi Arabia on Monday, defending champions Argentina taking on Algeria on Tuesday, and Colombia meeting Uzbekistan on Wednesday.
The rocky opening for South American nations stands in sharp contrast to the strong start by all three North American co-hosts. Following the U.S.’s lopsided win over Paraguay, Mexico opened its tournament with a 2-0 victory over South Africa, while Canada earned its first ever World Cup point with a 1-1 draw against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
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Iran and US reach an initial deal to end the war and open the Strait of Hormuz but challenges remain
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND — In a tentative breakthrough that offers a glimmer of relief for strained global energy markets, the United States and Iran have reached an initial agreement Monday to extend their fragile existing ceasefire and reopen the strategically critical Strait of Hormuz, the world’s most important oil chokepoint. The path to a permanent end to the ongoing regional conflict, however, remains littered with substantial, potentially deal-breaking obstacles, most notably Israel’s refusal to end its offensive in Lebanon and withdraw from occupied Lebanese territory.
Details of the framework agreement have not been released to the public, and all sides have confirmed the deal will not go into effect until a formal signing ceremony, scheduled for this Friday in Geneva under the mediation of Pakistan. Preparatory closed-door talks between US and Iranian diplomatic teams will kick off this week in Doha, Qatar, a senior diplomat with direct knowledge of the negotiations told the Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
Even if the strait — through which roughly 20% of the world’s daily oil and natural gas shipments flowed before the conflict — opens as planned on Friday, energy analysts warn the global energy crisis triggered by its near-total closure will take months to abate, as shipping firms and energy producers work to rebuild disrupted supply chains and restore pre-conflict operational capacity.
The current conflict traces its roots back to 2018, when then-President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew the United States from the multinational Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the landmark nuclear agreement that had placed strict limits on Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief. The withdrawal sparked years of escalating tensions that eventually erupted into open war on February 28, when the US and Israel launched joint military operations against Iran. The conflict has killed thousands across the Middle East, including top Iranian clerical leaders, and driven sharp spikes in global fuel, food and commodity prices that have impacted consumers far beyond the region.
One of the biggest threats to the deal’s survival is Israel’s unyielding stance on its military campaign in Lebanon, where Israeli forces have been battling Iranian-backed Hezbollah militants. Israel joined the US in the war but is not a signatory to the new ceasefire agreement. On Monday, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz announced the country would maintain permanent military control over the roughly 1,000 square kilometers of territory it has seized in Lebanon, Gaza and Syria over the past two and a half years, vowing to stay “indefinitely.”
A spokesman for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office reaffirmed that Israel will continue all military operations necessary to defend its national security against what it frames as ongoing threats from Hezbollah and other Iranian-aligned groups. The spokesman added that Israel remains fully aligned with the US on preventing Iran from developing a nuclear weapon, but will not be bound by the terms of the US-Iran agreement.
Iran has publicly insisted that any comprehensive peace deal must include an immediate end to all hostilities in Lebanon. Israeli officials have already rejected that demand, raising serious questions about whether the preliminary agreement can survive. An Israeli airstrike on Beirut’s southern suburbs just one day before the deal was announced nearly derailed the negotiations entirely, and cross-border exchanges of fire have continued in the weeks since the last temporary ceasefire took effect.
Hezbollah, for its part, issued its first public response to the deal Monday calling it a “major achievement” for Iran that could eventually lead to the full liberation of Lebanese territory, the return of displaced residents and prisoners, and the reconstruction of war-devastated border areas. The group, however, rejected any return to the status quo that existed before the latest conflict, when a nominal ceasefire was in place but Israel continued regular targeted strikes on Hezbollah positions in Lebanon. It also criticized the Lebanese government’s past efforts at US-mediated direct negotiations with Israel that failed to deliver on the ground, calling on officials to abandon “illusions and losing bets.”
Beyond the Lebanon impasse, the agreement also faces major unresolved challenges on the nuclear issue that sparked the original tensions. The deal only gives the two sides 60 days to reach a permanent agreement on the future of Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium and its overall nuclear program. The US and Israel have long alleged Iran is pursuing a nuclear weapons capability, a claim Iran has repeatedly denied, saying its nuclear program is entirely for peaceful energy and medical purposes. Negotiators note it took years of diplomacy to reach the 2015 JCPOA agreement, making a final deal in just two months an extremely high bar.
Early in the conflict, Iranian attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz brought traffic through the waterway to a near standstill, prompting the Trump administration to implement a full blockade of Iranian ports in response. The closure of the strait, combined with Iranian strikes on Gulf energy infrastructure and the US blockade, sent global fuel prices skyrocketing and sent ripple effects through every sector of the global economy, pushing inflation higher in almost every country worldwide.
Trump, who is facing growing political pressure to end the conflict ahead of November’s congressional midterm elections, initially hailed the preliminary agreement on social media, saying he had authorized the immediate opening of the strait and an end to the blockade. He later corrected his statement to confirm the strait would not open until the formal signing on Friday. Iran’s deputy foreign minister Kazem Gharibabadi confirmed the agreement on Iranian state television Monday, saying Iran would not begin implementation until the deal is formally signed.
Despite the significant uncertainties surrounding the deal, world leaders have broadly welcomed the preliminary breakthrough. French President Emmanuel Macron, who is hosting Trump and other G7 leaders at a summit this week, said France and other Western partners are “ready to take action very quickly” to help restore safe shipping through the strait once the agreement enters into force, noting that France already has substantial military assets in the region, including its nuclear-powered aircraft carrier the Charles de Gaulle. China and other global powers have also issued statements welcoming the step toward de-escalation. Other European leaders have struck a more cautious note, however, with Luxembourg’s Foreign Minister Xavier Bettel noting “It’s a long time till Friday,” a reference to the multiple hurdles that remain before the deal can be implemented.
The Associated Press contributed reporting from Athens, Islamabad, Washington, Jerusalem, Beirut, Doha, Tel Aviv and Evian-les-Bains.
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Hong Kong opens consultation on first 5-year plan that echoes mainland China’s playbook
In a move that marks a notable shift in how the special administrative region frames its long-term growth strategy, Hong Kong kicked off a two-month public consultation on its first ever five-year development blueprint on Monday, bringing the city’s planning framework more closely into alignment with mainland China’s national development approach.
Speaking at an official press conference to launch the consultation, Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Janice Tse laid out the core logic of the new planning structure: mainland China has already commenced work on its 15th five-year national plan, covering the 2026–2030 period, and Hong Kong’s local blueprint is designed to synchronize with this national agenda while preserving the city’s long-standing commitment to free market principles. For decades, Hong Kong has positioned itself as a bastion of limited government intervention in the economy, even as it has referenced Beijing’s national vision for the city’s role within China’s broader growth story.
Tse emphasized that alignment with the national five-year plan does not override Hong Kong’s free market system. Instead, she argued, clear strategic direction from government across major policy areas creates a more stable, predictable operating environment that lets market forces flourish more effectively. Under the draft framework, Hong Kong will double down on strengthening its established status as a global financial, maritime and trade center. Officials also outlined two key priority development projects: accelerating construction of the Northern Metropolis, a planned new tech and education hub located directly across the border from mainland China’s leading tech center Shenzhen, and deepening integration across the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, Beijing’s flagship initiative to build a unified economic hub across 11 cities including Hong Kong, Macau and nine mainland Guangdong municipalities.
Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee previously framed the five-year plan as a framework to balance what he calls a “capable government” and an “efficient market”, arguing that proactive government leadership will boost the private sector’s overall competitiveness. Lee also noted that the plan will help individual Hong Kong residents identify clear personal development pathways and give greater clarity for businesses doing long-term strategic planning.
To gather public input, residents will be able to submit feedback via an official government website, email or traditional postal mail over the consultation period. The government will also host a series of engagement sessions with residents, industry stakeholders and political figures to collect on-the-record input. Officials have targeted the third quarter of this year to publish the finalized, approved version of the five-year plan. Separately, a senior Beijing official overseeing Hong Kong and Macau affairs is scheduled to arrive in Hong Kong on Tuesday for a two-day working visit focused on studying progress toward aligning the city’s development with the 2026–2030 national plan and advancing the Northern Metropolis project.
The shift toward formal five-year planning has drawn mixed commentary from local analysts. John Burns, a professor of politics and public administration at the University of Hong Kong, noted that Hong Kong has long struggled with coordination gaps and missed opportunities due to the absence of overarching long-term strategic planning. At the same time, he pointed out that public consultation processes in Hong Kong have long faced criticism for being performative, with authorities rarely making substantive changes to proposed policies even after receiving critical public feedback.
Burns described the consultation as an effort by the government to build community buy-in for a local five-year plan explicitly structured to align with central government priorities, adding that the current consultation document does not include concrete, measurable targets or binding timelines for key initiatives.
Contextual background helps frame the significance of this policy shift: since the 1997 handover that returned Hong Kong to Chinese rule after more than 150 years of British colonial administration, the city has grown increasingly integrated with mainland China through expanding economic, cultural and infrastructure ties. Under Beijing’s “one country, two systems” framework, Hong Kong retains its own independent executive, legislative and judicial systems, but Beijing’s political influence over the city has grown substantially in recent years. Following large-scale anti-government protests in 2019, Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law on the city that authorities have framed as essential to restoring stability, but which has effectively eliminated all open political dissent. Hundreds of opposition activists have been jailed under the law, and a subsequent electoral overhaul has ensured that Hong Kong’s legislature is dominated exclusively by politicians loyal to Beijing.
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US musician Oliver Tree dies in helicopter collision in Brazil
A devastating mid-air collision between two helicopters over Rio de Janeiro, Brazil has claimed the lives of six people, including 32-year-old American alternative pop artist and internet personality Oliver Tree, who was in the middle of a global tour.
The crash, which unfolded on Sunday, sent one of the stricken aircraft crashing into a car dealership’s parking lot, igniting an intense blaze that destroyed roughly 20 parked vehicles. Local Brazilian media has shared publicly obtained footage of the disaster capturing one helicopter plummeting from the sky, followed by towering plumes of black smoke and intense flames consuming the impact zone.
Emergency response teams from the Military Fire Department of the State of Rio de Janeiro confirmed they were dispatched to the crash site at approximately 9:00 a.m. local time, which translates to 12:00 p.m. GMT. Official passenger and crew manifests have identified all fatal casualties: alongside Tree on the first helicopter were Argentine popular content creator Gaspar Prim Diaz, widely known by his online alias Gaspi, passengers Lucas Brito Chaves and Lucas Vignale, as well as pilot Alexandre Souza. The second helicopter carried only its pilot, Charles Marsillac, who also died in the collision.
Born Oliver Tree Nickell in Santa Cruz, California in 1993, the artist first catapulted to mainstream fame in 2016 when his work went viral across major social media platforms. Recognizable by his signature iconic bowl haircut, Tree built a global fanbase through chart-topping hits including *Life Goes On*, *Miss You*, and *Alien Boy*. He kicked off his latest world tour just weeks before the crash, delivering his most recent live performance to a crowd in São Paulo, Brazil on June 6. Upcoming scheduled stops on the tour included a July 1 show in Lisbon, Portugal, and September performances in three UK cities: Glasgow, Manchester, and London.
Tributes have poured in from across the global entertainment industry from fellow creators and collaborators shocked by his sudden passing. British rapper, content creator, and *Britain’s Got Talent* judge KSI, who collaborated with Tree on the 2023 track *Voices*, shared an emotional tribute on his X (formerly Twitter) account. “Can’t believe I’m actually having to type this. You’re 32 man. You should still be here. You still had so much life to live. So much music to make. So much content to make,” KSI wrote. “You’re a legend and will always be a legend. Still doesn’t feel real. Genuinely feel sick. I love you bro.”
Stunt performer and *Jackass* star Steve-O, whose legal name is Stephen Glover, also shared a heartfelt tribute alongside a candid photo of the two friends together online. “I was incredibly lucky to become friends with Oliver Tree,” he wrote. “He would check in on me regularly, and let me know he cared about how I was doing. Such a great person… I’m going to miss him.”
Beyond his music career, Tree earned notable industry recognition and a place in Guinness World Records. In 2024, his hit collaboration *Miss You* with German producer Robin Schulz earned a nomination for a prestigious Brit Award. In 2020, he broke the Guinness World Record for constructing the world’s largest functional kick scooter, measuring 3.13 meters long and 0.16 meters tall.
Brazilian authorities have launched a formal investigation to determine the root cause of the mid-air collision, with updates expected as forensic work and witness interviews progress.
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World Cup 2026: For Iran, politics and football collide again
For decades, Iran’s journey in the FIFA World Cup has been inextricably intertwined with the nation’s political and social upheavals. But the 2026 tournament, hosted in part by the United States, has brought the country’s national team, Team Melli, into an uncharted maelstrom of competing pressures that no other side in the competition’s history has had to navigate.
Team Melli’s opening match against New Zealand in Los Angeles falls just one day after former U.S. President Donald Trump announced a landmark tentative deal with Iran’s government, a development that could bring a close to three and a half months of open conflict. The location of the match alone adds layers of tension: Los Angeles is widely nicknamed “Tehrangeles,” home to one of the largest Iranian diaspora communities in the world, the majority of which hold staunch anti-regime views. Back in Iran, public support for the national team is deeply divided, with many Iranians viewing the side as a symbol of the ruling government rather than a unifying national representative. This rift has deepened dramatically after the government’s reported crackdown on mass anti-government protests earlier this year that left thousands of demonstrators dead.
“There is a long history of politics mixing with football in Iran,” explained Jahanyar Mohebbi, a former head coach of Iran Pro League side Foolad FC. “The players feel the pressure from all sides – the politicians, the fans in the U.S. and at home.” This pattern of political entanglement stretches back to Iran’s very first World Cup appearance in 1978. As the squad traveled to Argentina for the tournament, revolution was already sweeping across the country, and the Shah’s government tried to insulate the team from growing domestic unrest. Iran’s star player Parviz Ghleechkhani, who passed away just last month, was barred from the tournament after the Shah’s secret police detained and questioned him over his outspoken political views. Even the team’s legendary goalkeeper Nasser Hejazi, who turned heads with his standout performances in Argentina, missed out on a historic transfer to English powerhouse Manchester United after the revolution disrupted all transfer negotiations.
After the 1979 revolution established the Islamic Republic, the new government under Ayatollah Ali Khomeini remained wary of football, recognizing the sport’s unmatched ability to mobilize mass passion and public discontent. That wariness was validated in 1997, when Iran defeated Australia in a playoff in Melbourne to qualify for the 1998 World Cup. Widespread spontaneous celebrations across Iran grew so large that the team was ordered to delay their return home to let public tensions subside. That qualification set the stage for one of the most politically charged matches in World Cup history: Iran’s group stage clash with the United States in Lyon. Ahead of the game, then-U.S. President Bill Clinton released a public message of goodwill, and Iranian players presented flowers to their American opponents before securing a 2-1 victory. “Every day somebody from the government, from sports officials, they were asking about the game and demanding a win,” recalled Jalal Talebi, Iran’s head coach at the 1998 tournament. “What I tried to tell the players was, ‘Forget what they said – it’s all politics.’ I knew exactly how much pressure they were carrying.”
In the decades that followed, political undertones remained a constant in Iran’s World Cup campaigns. The 2006 tournament brought less international tension, but controversy emerged from within the squad, with reported deep divisions between supporters of star players Ali Daei and Ali Karimi. Karimi later made headlines during 2010 World Cup qualifiers when he and several other players wore green armbands, a gesture widely interpreted as a show of support for opposition protesters contesting the disputed re-election of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Most recently, at the 2022 Qatar World Cup, protest took center stage again: following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in morality police custody for allegedly violating hijab laws, the entire Iranian squad refused to sing the national anthem before their opening match against England, a silent rebuke of the government that drew global attention.
Beyond the political and social pressures, longstanding international isolation has systematically held Iranian football back. On a practical level, the Iranian Football Federation frequently struggles to access prize money and funding from international governing bodies held in overseas accounts. There has been chronic underinvestment in training facilities and international training camps for the national team, the domestic league has fallen behind other top leagues in the Middle East, and leading international nations routinely refuse to schedule friendly matches against Iran. While Japan, the first team to qualify for 2026, has prepared for the tournament with high-profile tune-up matches against Brazil, England, the U.S. and Mexico, Iran has only been able to arrange warm-up games against Russia, Tanzania, Costarica, Nigeria and Gambia.
Yet for all these systemic obstacles, Iran has consistently qualified for World Cup tournaments and remains the second-highest ranked men’s national team in Asia, trailing only Japan. The 2026 campaign, however, represents the most daunting challenge the side has ever faced. Until just days before the tournament, there was open uncertainty over whether the entire Iranian squad would even be granted entry to the United States, forcing the team to relocate its pre-tournament training camp from Arizona to Tijuana, Mexico, on the U.S. border.
Mohebbi noted that the chaotic preparation has brought one unexpected upside: “Usually national teams arrive at the tournament exhausted after a long domestic season, but Iran have had a long break and have been training almost like a club side.” That advantage is outweighed by significant drawbacks, though: the Iranian domestic league was canceled back in February, leaving players without competitive match action for months, and constant logistical uncertainty has created pervasive anxiety. “The most challenging thing is the logistics,” Mohebbi added. “Will they even be allowed to train at the stadium a day in advance, or will they just show up for the match? That uncertainty makes everything much harder.”
Team captain Mehdi Taremi, who is competing at his third World Cup, echoed those frustrations after several members of the Iranian delegation were denied U.S. visas. “I’ve been to three World Cups, and they always say once you get off the plane and enter the host country, there’s just a unique atmosphere of friendliness and global connection,” Taremi told ESPN. “Unfortunately, I’m not feeling it right now. There’s a lot of tension right now in this World Cup, you can feel it in the atmosphere, and it’s because of actions like these visa denials.” Still, Taremi emphasized that the squad remains united, regardless of differing views on the Iranian government. “Obviously some people outside Iran, many here, are against the government, but we are all Iranian,” he said. “We are united and we are looking for peace. I think they will come there to support us, and we have to bring them joy.”
For the players, anxiety extends far beyond logistics and visa issues, as they remain constantly concerned about loved ones back in Iran amid ongoing unrest. “It’s been very difficult, I’ll be honest with you, for every single one of us with the whole situation back home,” said winger Alireza Jahanbakhsh. “You have to keep checking on your family, on your loved ones, on your people back home, and of course it’s affecting the whole group.” As the team takes the pitch in Los Angeles, all eyes will be on how the 11 players caught in the middle of global political conflict will perform under the weight of unprecedented pressure.
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US star Gaethje wins at Trump’s UFC White House show
In a landmark moment that blends elite mixed martial arts competition with United States national celebration, the UFC has made history by hosting the first-ever professional live sporting event on the White House South Lawn. Billed as UFC Freedom 250, the blockbuster card was timed to coincide with both the 250th anniversary of American independence and former President Donald Trump’s 80th birthday, drawing a crowd of more than 89,000 spectators across the South Lawn and nearby Ellipse Park, with the majority of in-person attendees being active-duty and veteran U.S. military members.
Leading up to the event, organizers faced minor disruption concerns when forecasts called for severe thunderstorms across Washington, D.C. A brief half-hour delay to the opening bell caused by passing rain did little to dampen the mood of the crowd, and the rest of the fight card proceeded without issue. The event opened with a ceremonial procession that saw Trump and UFC CEO Dana White walk from inside the White House to the Truman Balcony overlooking the octagon, followed by a performance of the U.S. national anthem accompanied by a flyover from U.S. Air Force fighter jets. In a unique touch, all main card fighters began their walkouts from inside the White House, with the Marine Band providing musical accompaniment — headliner Justin Gaethje even started his entrance in the Oval Office, pausing to take in the historic setting before passing portraits of former U.S. presidents en route to the cage.
The main event delivered on every bit of the hype, delivering what UFC commentator Joe Rogan called one of the greatest upsets in the sport’s history. Thirty-seven-year-old American underdog Gaethje entered the bout facing undefeated Ilia Topuria, the Georgian-Spaniard incumbent lightweight champion who carried an unblemished 17-0 professional record into the octagon after moving up from the featherweight division. From the opening bell, the bout was a brutal back-and-forth striking contest. Topuria drew first blood in the second round, dropping Gaethje with a series of sharp body shots, but the American weathered the storm and seized control of the fight from that point onward.
Gaethje landed a devastating right hand that put Topuria on the canvas in the third round, then followed up with relentless punishment via uppercuts and knee strikes that left Topuria bloodied and badly swollen. The challenger’s pace never let up through the fourth round, and despite a doctor clearing Topuria to continue between rounds, the champion’s corner made the call to pull him from the bout before the fifth round, handing Gaethje a fourth-round stoppage victory. It is the first undisputed UFC lightweight title of Gaethje’s career, coming on his third attempt at the belt, and he was awarded a custom red, white, and blue commemorative belt to mark the historic occasion.
In his rousing post-fight interview, Gaethje leaned into the event’s patriotic theme, drawing a parallel between his underdog status going into the bout and the odds facing America’s founding fighters 250 years prior. “I’m from America, 250 years ago we were way bigger than 6-1 dogs, and look at us thriving now,” Gaethje said. He also closed his remarks with a tribute to U.S. service members, saying “To all the current, former and future military service members, thank you so much.” After the interview, Gaethje completed his signature post-victory backflip from the top of the octagon cage before meeting and being congratulated by Trump at ringside. Entering the event with a professional record of 27 wins and 5 losses, the victory pushes Gaethje’s career mark to 28-5, cementing his reputation as one of the most exciting competitors in UFC history.
The co-main event also delivered a stunning upset, as Ciryl Gane halted Alex Pereira’s quest to become the first fighter in UFC history to claim titles in three different weight divisions. Pereira, who already held belts at middleweight and light heavyweight, was challenging for the interim heavyweight crown, but Gane’s signature fluid footwork and sharp striking proved too much for the Brazilian. Gane hurt Pereira with jabs and body kicks in the first round, consistently evading his opponent’s power shots to control the distance. In the second round, Gane landed a perfectly timed counter jab as Pereira stepped in to attack, dropping the 38-year-old. Though Pereira returned to his feet quickly, Gane swarmed his dazed opponent, forcing the referee to stop the contest.
The win makes Gane a two-time interim heavyweight champion, and marks his first successful bout since a controversial no contest against British champion Tom Aspinall last October. That bout was called off after repeated eye pokes from Gane left Aspinall unable to continue, and Gane used his post-fight interview to call for a rematch with Aspinall this October. “I just want to see thank you to Dana and the UFC, thank you to Pereira,” Gane said after the win.
The historic event generated immediate buzz across combat sports, with additional breaking stories emerging in the hours after the main event, including a clarification from Eric Trump that social media messages claiming the fight was rigged were fabricated using artificial intelligence. Tyson Fury also appeared at the event, teasing a potential future bout with Anthony Joshua that would be held under the UFC banner alongside Dana White.
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Prominent Cambodian opposition politician seeks Supreme Court reversal of incitement conviction
PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA — As hundreds of chanting supporters gathered outside Cambodia’s Supreme Court on Monday, prominent opposition political figure Rong Chhun emerged from his appeal hearing voicing urgent hope that judges would toss out a controversial incitement conviction that has sidelined him from national politics, clearing the way for his return to public life.
Rong Chhun, 56, a senior policy adviser to the opposition-aligned Nation Power Party, was found guilty of inciting civil disorder last year following his meetings with local villagers displaced by state-backed infrastructure development projects. His conviction is widely categorized as one of a series of coordinated legal actions targeting government critics under the administration of newly installed Prime Minister Hun Manet. The ruling handed down last year sentenced him to four years behind bars and imposed a lifetime ban on his right to run for public office and cast a ballot. Throughout his original trial, Rong Chhun maintained he had done nothing illegal, noting his only public action was sharing photos of his meetings with affected villagers alongside commentary on his Facebook page.
After closing Monday’s morning appeal session, Rong Chhun stepped out of the courthouse to a crowd of roughly 300 supporters, who waved homemade signs calling for his freedom and chanted in unison, “Drop the charges, free Rong Chhun!”
Addressing the gathered crowd, Rong Chhun emphasized that as Cambodia navigates rising border tensions with neighboring Thailand, a sagging national economy, and a host of unresolved domestic challenges, he is committed to advancing a platform of national reconciliation and unity for the country’s 17 million residents. “I hope the court will grant me freedom and justice so that I can continue to practice politics in the future,” he said.
In a sign of the government’s sensitivity to public displays of support for the opposition figure, access roads leading to the Supreme Court compound were blocked by dozens of uniformed police officers manning concrete barricades. Despite the security presence, Rong Chhun walked the final stretch to the courthouse alongside a contingent of supporters that included both local and international human rights defenders.
“We are not worried about going to prison,” he told the crowd. “We are willing to sacrifice everything, and we are determined to use the lives our parents gave us to work toward a Cambodia that achieves true freedom and democracy.”
Incitement charges have become a routine tool for Cambodian authorities to target political opponents, a pattern that predates Hun Manet’s premiership. Rong Chhun was previously handed a two-year prison sentence on identical incitement charges in 2021, after he was accused of spreading misinformation about Cambodia’s shared border with Vietnam during meetings with border-region farmers. That conviction was ultimately overturned by an appeals court later the same year, and he was released from custody.
International observers and rights groups have long documented a pattern of systematic political suppression in Cambodia. The Cambodian government publicly maintains it upholds the rule of law within a functioning electoral democracy, but any independent political party deemed a credible threat to the long-ruling Cambodian People’s Party (CPP) has either been forcibly dissolved by the country’s courts or seen its leaders targeted with imprisonment, legal harassment, or punitive bans from political life.
For nearly four decades, former autocratic Prime Minister Hun Sen oversaw a regime that drew widespread international condemnation for systematic human rights abuses, including widespread crackdowns on freedom of speech and freedom of association. Hun Sen handed power to his American-educated son Hun Manet in August 2023, but to date, analysts and activists have recorded almost no visible progress toward political liberalization or improved respect for civil liberties under the new administration.
Among the supporters who traveled to Phnom Penh to rally for Rong Chhun on Monday was Tim Ratha, a 55-year-old vegetable vendor who made the multi-hour drive from her home in Siem Reap province in northern Cambodia to attend the hearing. “He has devoted everything to us,” she told the Associated Press. “He had no wife, no children — his whole life is dedicated to our cause.”
The Supreme Court has scheduled its final verdict in the appeal for June 19, leaving Rong Chhun and his supporters waiting weeks to learn the outcome of the case.
The Associated Press’s report on the hearing was contributed by correspondents based in Bangkok, Thailand.
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West Indies beat Sri Lanka by 5 wickets to clinch the T20 series
In a thrilling conclusion to their three-match Twenty20 International series in Kingston, Jamaica, the West Indies pulled off a last-over five-wicket win against Sri Lanka on Sunday, clinching the series 2-1 with just two deliveries remaining. The dramatic run chase, capped by batter Sherfane Rutherford’s unbeaten half-century, capped a seesaw contest that kept spectators on the edge of their seats from the first over to the last.
After winning the pre-match toss, West Indies captain made the tactical call to send Sri Lanka into bat first, a decision vindicated by seamer Shamar Joseph’s career-best player-of-the-match performance. The fast bowler picked up five wickets for just 33 runs, including two strikes in the sixth over and three more in the final over of Sri Lanka’s batting innings, narrowly missing out on a hat-trick twice.
Sri Lanka got off to a fast start, reaching 49 for one after just five overs, but the momentum shifted abruptly when Joseph claimed wickets on back-to-back deliveries. First, opener Pathum Nissanka (26 off 17) top-edged a pull to Roston Chase after sharing a 43-run second-wicket stand, before Pavan Rathnayake was trapped lbw on the very next ball. The host’s fielding also delivered early: Matthew Forde pulled off a spectacular one-handed catch off his own bowling to remove dangerous batter Kusal Mendis for just five in the ninth over of the match.
A late lower-order rally led by Dunith Wellalage dragged Sri Lanka to a competitive total of 169 all out. Wellalage anchored the recovery with a 28-ball 43, and shared a 49-run seventh-wicket partnership with Wanindu Hasaranga, but the stand was broken when Hasaranga was run out in the 19th over. Wellalage became the first of three Sri Lankan wickets to fall in the 20th over, closing out the visitors’ innings and setting the West Indies a target of 170 runs for victory.
The West Indies chase got off to a shaky start, losing opener Shai Hope to Dunith Wellalage on just the third delivery of the innings. The hosts recovered quickly to reach 52 for one, before a collapse that saw three wickets fall for just one run in a 12-ball period handed the momentum back to Sri Lanka. Rutherford, who would eventually become the innings hero, combined with captain Rovman Powell to rebuild the chase, putting on an 81-run fifth-wicket partnership that got the West Indies back on track for victory.
The contest turned chaotic in the 17th over, bowled by Sri Lankan paceman Dushmantha Chameera. The over stretched to nine deliveries after a no-ball and two wides, yielded 24 runs for the West Indies, and ended with Powell being dismissed for 33 off the final ball. After the over, the West Indies still needed 36 runs from the final three overs, with the equation narrowing to 29 runs from 12 balls by the start of the 19th over.
All-rounder Jason Holder turned the game irreversibly in the West Indies’ favor in the penultimate over, smashing three sixes off Chameera in just four deliveries. The blitz cut the required runs down to just six for victory heading into the final over, with Rutherford still at the crease. Rutherford, who had benefited from two costly dropped catches by Sri Lankan fielders earlier in his innings, hit the winning runs to bring up his half-century off 40 balls, finishing unbeaten on 54. Holder ended the innings on 21 not out from just five deliveries, as the West Indies reached 170 for five to seal the series.
The series win for the West Indies comes after the first two matches were split: the hosts won the opening fixture by seven wickets, before Sri Lanka claimed a 37-run victory in the second match on Saturday to leave the series tied heading into the decider. Prior to the T20I series, Sri Lanka claimed the preceding three-match ODI series 1-0, after the final two matches were washed out by rain following a 41-run win in the opening fixture. The two sides will next face off in a two-match Test series, scheduled to get underway on June 25 in Antigua.
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Spain at a Tennessee boarding school, Iraq in a rural West Virginia town: Where World Cup teams live
Nestled in the shadow of Tennessee’s iconic Signal and Lookout Mountains, 8-year-old Beckham McClure balanced precariously on a wooden fence for more than three hours on a warm summer day. Clutching a crumpled handwritten note addressed to Spanish soccer stars Pedri and Lamine Yamal, the young fan waited patiently for the Spain national men’s team to step out of their team bus and onto Chattanooga soil. The note read simply: “I love you and I look up to you. Thanks for coming to my city. I hope you win the World Cup.” When the world-famous athletes finally jogged onto the training pitch, Beckham’s eyes went wide with disbelief. “Dad,” he whispered, “they’re real.”
For Beckham’s father Jaxon McClure, a Marine Corps veteran and lifelong local soccer coach who named his son after the legendary David Beckham, that moment of childhood wonder encapsulated everything this World Cup experience has meant for small Southern American communities. This summer marks 32 years since the United States first hosted the FIFA World Cup, and for the 2026 iteration co-hosted by the U.S., Mexico and Canada, dozens of small to mid-sized cities across the South have stepped into the global spotlight as official base camps for competing nations, where teams can settle in, train, and prepare between matches.
Tournament favorites Spain set up their training headquarters at Baylor School, a private boarding academy nestled along the Tennessee River in Chattanooga; the Iraq national team has taken up residence at a remote mountain resort town in West Virginia that counts fewer than 3,000 full-time residents; and four-time World Cup champions Germany have made their home in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, where historic cobblestone streets and repurposed tobacco warehouses now stand side-by-side with German national flags and roaming television crews.
Across these communities, classic Southern hospitality is on full display for visiting teams. In Chattanooga, the 144-foot underground waterfall tucked beneath Lookout Mountain is lit up in Spain’s signature red, and the downtown Embassy Suites where the squad is staying is draped in the red-and-yellow Spanish flag, la Rojigualda. Giant welcome banners emblazoned with “Bienvenidos a Chattanooga” and portraits of star players greeted the team the moment they touched down at Chattanooga Airport. Local resident Skip Schwartz, who now serves on Baylor’s board of trustees, notes that Spanish jerseys are everywhere you turn. “You don’t know if they’re traveling fans from Spain hoping to get a glimpse, or locals who have jumped on the La Roja bandwagon,” Schwartz said.
Demand to watch the world’s best players train up close has been overwhelming: roughly 25,000 local fans entered a public lottery for just 1,000 available spots to watch Spain’s open practice at Baylor. In Winston-Salem, all tickets to see Germany train at Wake Forest University sold out in just four minutes.
Local businesses have also leaned into the excitement. Savannah Lahey, who manages Small Batch Beer Co., a popular soccer-focused bar in downtown Winston-Salem, extended opening hours to host public watch parties and created a special German-inspired menu for the tournament, featuring schnitzel sandwiches and sauerbraten ahead of Germany’s opening match. “It’s just fun to see everyone start to care about something they didn’t care about before,” Lahey said. “It makes our visiting friends feel at home, even when they’re thousands of miles away.”
At West Virginia’s historic Greenbrier Resort, a luxury property that has hosted U.S. presidents and foreign leaders for more than a century, Iraqi and American flags fly side-by-side as the Iraq national team settles into their training camp.
Spain’s decision to choose Chattanooga over larger American hubs like Chicago and Los Angeles comes down to the quality of Baylor School’s world-class soccer facilities. Under FIFA rules, higher-ranked national teams get first pick of approved base camps across North America, and the Spanish federation selected Baylor after FIFA inspectors gave top marks to the academy’s grass pitches, drainage, irrigation systems, and on-site operations. To keep the natural grass pitches in perfect condition for the Spanish team, Baylor’s own high school soccer team moved their entire spring training schedule to artificial turf, a sacrifice the senior class accepted without hesitation, said Sam Green, the school’s operations and systems director.
Tucked behind a dense line of trees, two pristine grass pitches form the core of Spain’s daily routine. The training ground is just minutes from both the airport and the team’s downtown hotel, and Atlanta, where Spain will play two of their group-stage matches, is an easy drive away. After their first official training session, players headed straight to the school’s campus pool to relax and cool off ahead of their next workout.
For Schwartz, the local trustee who played soccer at Baylor back in the late 1980s and early 1990s, when he and his teammates helped lay the Bermuda sod for the school’s first dedicated soccer field, the moment feels almost surreal. That original field has since been replaced by an indoor tennis center that now serves as Spain’s on-site media center, and the school has grown to boast three full soccer pitches and one of the top youth soccer programs in the region. “If somebody had told me then that 40 years later Spain would be using this campus as the foundation for a World Cup, I wouldn’t even have tried to fathom it,” he said.
Local excitement has turned even casual fans into diehard La Roja supporters. At Spain’s open practice, hundreds of fans chanted “Vamos, España!” after nearly every touch of the ball, and even fans with other rooting interests have found themselves swept up in the energy. Seventeen-year-old Baylor midfielder Heath Techasiriwan, a Filipino American lifelong Lionel Messi fan who supported Argentina in the 2022 World Cup, said there’s no question who he’s backing this tournament. “Without a doubt, I’m cheering for Spain,” he said. “I can’t see players like Pedri, Gavi and Lamine Yamal literally right in front of me and not cheer for them.”
Before the open practice, Baylor students snuck into the team locker room to snap photos of stalls freshly labeled with Spain’s biggest stars, joking and debating which player had ended up with “their” locker. Sixteen-year-old goalkeeper Mathew Ramirez, who commutes an hour each way from Calhoun, Georgia to train with Baylor, grew up watching Barcelona with his Guatemalan immigrant father. After the practice, 18-year-old star Lamine Yamal signed his custom Barcelona jersey. Ramirez told the young prodigy in Spanish: “Watching you play gives me happiness.” Ramirez says he plans to watch all of Spain’s matches this tournament surrounded by family and friends, eating traditional carne asada together.
For young Beckham McClure, the day ended with signatures, selfies, and a new Spain jersey that his father says he insisted on sleeping in that night. After meeting his heroes, Beckham kept repeating the same thought: “Wait, Dad. They’re real. Lamine Yamal is a real person. I just thought they were like superheroes. They’re only on TV.”
For Jaxon McClure, who grew up playing pickup soccer in Chattanooga neighborhoods using trash cans as goalposts and now coaches roughly 850 local children, moments like these prove how far the city’s soccer culture has come. Today, Chattanooga is home to both professional men’s and women’s soccer teams. “They could have gone anywhere in this country,” McClure said of Spain. “And they chose us.”