The top soccer referee in Africa says he's devastated he won't be able to officiate in the 2026 World Cup after being denied entry into the United States last Saturday.
"am very, very disappointed," Artan told The New York Times in a telephone interview from Istanbul, Turkey, where he had been diverted after landing in the U.S.
"I’m just simply a referee who’s trying to live his dream, the biggest dream of my life, to come to the World Cup."
Artan told The Times he flew to Miami International Airport on Saturday, June 6 − five days before the tournament's opening games. However, he was stopped by U.S. border officials, who took him into a small room and questioned him for 11 hours.




Volkswagen is considering plans to convert one of its German car factories into a production hub for Israel’s missile defence systems, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday.
Danish shipping giant Maersk is still shipping smaller weapons components to Israel that include rifle and pistol parts, as well as bomb bodies, despite its assertion to the contrary last year, according to a report published on Monday by the Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM) and Oxfam Denmark.
Russian overnight strikes across Kharkiv region killed three people in Chuhuiv and injured at least 15 others in Kharkiv city, including three children. Officials reported damage to apartment buildings and private homes, while emergency crews worked to extinguish fires and search through rubble.
Nithya Raman, a progressive Los Angeles city council member, has advanced to the November runoff for LA mayor, edging out former reality TV villain Spencer Pratt for the chance to face incumbent mayor Karen Bass.
A pilot and co-pilot from the United States have died in a fiery plane crash as they attempted an emergency landing in the Dominican Republic, authorities said.
Gordon S Wood, a Pulitzer prize-winning author and historian, was killed on Sunday when he was struck by a car in a supermarket parking lot in Rhode Island.
Time to look up, stargazers – there’s going to be a planetary "kiss" on June 9.





























