UR MAG

Kuala Lumpur Malaysia— Another member of the Iran women's soccer teamwho accepted a refugee visato stay in Australia has decided to return to her homeland, a sport official said Monday.

That leaves two of an initial seven squad members who'd accepted asylum as sticking with their original decisions.

The Iranian women's soccer team had yet to reveal plans to leave Malaysia when most of the seven squad members who created a diplomatic furor by accepting asylum in Australia a week ago had rejoined their teammates in Kuala Lumpur, the sport official said.

The squad flew from Sydney on March 10 after being knocked out of the Women's Asian Cup in Australia, leaving behind six players and a support staff member who had accepted protection visas.Four players and the staffer have since rejoined the teamin Kuala Lumpur, the latest flying in on Monday. No reasons have been given for the changes of heart, but the Iranian diaspora in Australia blames pressure from Tehran. Some suspect the team is holding a 10-hour flight from Sydney until the two outstanding players are persuaded to rejoin them from Australia.

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The team is being supported in Kuala Lumpur by the Asian Football Confederation. The confederation's general manager, Windsor Paul John, said the team was waiting in Malaysia's largest city to make flight connections to their war-torn homeland."It could be today, tomorrow or next week," Windsor told reporters in Kuala Lumpur. "We are just waiting for them to tell us their plans."Windsor said his confederation hadn't received any direct complaints from players about returning home, despite media reports their families in Iran could face retaliation for the team failing to sing their national anthem before the opening match."We couldn't verify anything. We asked them and they said, 'No, it's OK,'" he said. "They are actually in high spirits. ... They didn't look afraid."Iranian authorities have welcomed the women's decisions to reject asylum as a victory against Australia and President Trump.Iran's squad had arrived in Australia for the tournament shortly before the war in the Middle East began on Feb. 28, complicating travel arrangements.Assistant Immigration Minister Matt Thistlethwaite described the women's plight in Australia as a "very complex situation.""These are deeply personal decisions, and the government respects the decisions of those that have chosen to return. And we continue to offer support to the two that are remaining," Thistlethwaite said.Those who stayed in Australia have been moved to an undisclosed safe location and are receiving assistance from the government and the Iranian diaspora community, he said.Kylie Moore-Gilbert, a political scientist at Sydney's Macquarie University who spent more than two years in Iranian prisons on spying charges from 2018 to 2020, said "winning the propaganda war" had overshadowed the women's welfare."The high stakes made the Iranian regime sit up and pay attention and try to force their hand in response, in my view," Moore-Gilbert said."I do think in this case, had these woman quietly sought asylum without that publicity around them, it's possible that the Islamic Republic officials might have, as they have in the cases of other Iranian sports people in the past who've defected ... simply allowed that to happen," she added.Iran's Tasnim News Agency said the players who left Australia were "returning to the warm embrace of their family and homeland," describing their return as a failure of what it called an American-Australian political effort.Concerns about the team's safety in Iran heightened when the players didn't sing the Iranian national anthem.The Australian government was urged to help the women by Iranian groups in Australia and by the American president.Some members of the Iranian diaspora in Australia have accused the support staffer who initially accepted aylum, then left Australia on Saturday of spreading Iranian government propaganda to her teammates via text messages.Thistlethwaite said there was no evidence to support the theory that the staffer had persuaded others to leave. All those who had remained in Australia after the team had left were "genuine asylum seekers," he said.

The Iranian embassy in the national capital Canberra remains staffed, despite the Australian government expelling the ambassador last year.Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese cut off diplomatic relations with Iran in August after announcing that intelligence officials had concluded that the Revolutionary Guard had directed arson attacks on a Sydney kosher food company and Melbourne's Adass Israel Synagogue in 2024.Australian-Iranian Society of Victoria vice president Kambiz Razmara said the women who accepted asylum had been under pressure from the Tehran regime."They've had to make decisions at the spur of the moment with very little information and they've had to react to the circumstance," Razmara said. "I'm surprised that they've decided to go, but I'm actually not surprised because I appreciate the pressures that they're experiencing."

With Iran choking off the Strait of Hormuz, what can the U.S. do?

All in the family

A Hollywood landmark preserved

Spring may be almost here, but it might not feel like it for millions facing alerts for wintry weather, including heavy snow, possible tornadoes and high winds.

More than half a million customers were without power early Monday as a wide-ranging pattern of severe weather spread across large parts of the country, according topoweroutage.us.

Almost 30 million people are under winter alerts, including blizzard warnings extending into Michigan. More than 120 million people from the Mississippi Valley into New England are under wind alerts, while 60 million from northern Florida to New York state are under the risk for severe storms capable of destructive winds and numerous tornadoes.

The region at greatest risk for damaging straight-line winds of more than 75 mph and tornadoes was the mid-Atlantic, specifically from northern South Carolina to southern Maryland. Boston, Philadelphia and New York could see heavy rain and isolated strong wind gusts.

Across the Upper Midwest and the upper Great Lakes region, a major winter storm is moving through with heavy snow continuing to fall across Wisconsin and Michigan. As of Monday morning, more than 129,000 customers were without power, according to poweroutage.us. More than 13,000 customers are in the dark in Wisconsin.

Throughout Monday, an additional 6 to 12 inches of snow is expected to fall from eastern Iowa into Michigan.

Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, declared a snow emergency for Monday after the National Weather Service issued a blizzard warning for the southeast part of the state. "Travel is not advised and will be difficult throughout this weather event," County Executive David Crowleysaidin a statement on X.

Semi-trucks were left stranded on an interstate in Wisconsin, according to images released by the state's Department of Transportation.

Strong winds and blizzard conditions will make travel extremely hazardous in these areas until the weather system moves north into Canada later Monday.

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Energy companies from New York to Tennessee put workers on standby to respond to repairs from downed power lines.

"People also need to be prepared for prolonged and additional power outages as there are many customers across Ohio and Western Pennsylvania which are still without power Sunday morning from strong winds on Friday,"AccuWeatherSenior Meteorologist Dan Pydynowski said.

Air travel has also been severely affected, with more than 2,700 cancellations within, into or out of the country as of Monday, according toFlightaware.com. More than 3,000 flights have been delayed.

A ground stop was ordered at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, the nation's busiest, and Charlotte Douglas International Airport due to the weather, according to anFAA alert.

One driver recordednear white-out conditionswithvery low visibilitynorth of Ames, Iowa.

Severe thunderstorms are likely to sweep across the entire eastern U.S. on Monday, with the interior mid-Atlantic the worst-affected region, the weather service said in an early forecast.

"The combination of the vigorous dynamics ahead of the potent front and maximum daytime heating will be ripe for eruption of severe weather, especially across interior Mid-Atlantic late Monday afternoon into early evening," it said.

Florida will be hit by heavy rain and a recent warm spell across the South will be replaced by Arctic air and below-freezing temperatures from the Florida Panhandle to the Gulf Coast, with the wind chill factor, by Tuesday morning.

Parts of Arkansas were under a tornado warning Sunday, with high winds toppling trees.

An Afghan immigrant who worked with the U.S. military inAfghanistandied less than 24 hours after being detained inTexasbyImmigration and Customs Enforcement, a U.S. advocacy group and a family friend said Sunday.

Mohommad Nazeer Paktyawal, 41, died of unknown causes Saturday, a day after he was taken into custody outside his apartment complex in the Dallas suburb of Richardson.

In astatement Sunday,ICE described Paktyawal as a "criminal illegal alien from Afghanistan" and said his death was under investigation.

Paktyawal, a father of six who had applied for U.S. asylum, was about to take his children to school Friday morning when he was surrounded by masked men who drove up and put him in handcuffs, Rahmanullah Zazy, a family friend and leader in the local Afghan community, told NBC News in an interview.

"His kids started crying and yelling, you know, screaming," Zazy said, leading Paktyawal's wife to come out on the balcony and plead in vain with the agents not to take him away.

Speaking to relatives from ICE custody later that day, Paktyawal — who had no known health issues — said he was not feeling well. In a statement, his family said they were told he was admitted to hospital late Friday, and then told Saturday morning that he had died.

AfghanEvac, a San Diego-based group that advocates for Afghan allies, called for an immediate investigation, saying it was "not normal" for a healthy 41-year-old to die so suddenly in federal custody.

"Mr. Paktyawal survived our war in Afghanistan and trusted the United States enough to rebuild his life here," Shawn VanDiver, the group's president, said in a statement. "His family deserves answers. The American public deserves answers. The U.S. service members who fought alongside Afghan partners deserve answers."

Paktyawal is at least the 12th person this year to die in ICE custody under PresidentDonald Trump's immigration crackdown, compared with more than 30 last year, the highest in two decades.

ICE said in its statement that Paktyawal had been arrested in a "targeted enforcement action" and that he had not reported any prior medical history. It said it was "committed to ensuring that all those in custody reside in safe, secure and humane environments."

Late Friday, officials said, Paktyawal began complaining of shortness of breath and chest pains while at an ICE field office in Dallas, upon which he was immediately taken to Parkland Hospital. He received breathing treatment and doctors recommended that he stay overnight for observation.

Early Saturday, the statement said, Paktyawal was eating breakfast when medical staff noticed his tongue had become swollen, "prompting a medical response." He was declared dead at 9:10 a.m. after multiple lifesaving attempts.

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According to the statement, Paktyawal had been arrested twice since the fall: once Sept. 16 for SNAP fraud and once Nov. 1 for theft. Paktyawal's family has disputed the accuracy of that information, Zazy said. NBC News approached ICE for comment on this but had not received a response overnight.

The ICE statement did not mention Paktyawal's military service. He was an Afghan special forces soldier who worked with U.S. Army Special Forces in Paktika province starting in 2005.

"It was dangerous work, but he believed in helping bring stability to his country and protecting the people around him," his family said.

The U.S. government evacuated Paktyawal and his family from Afghanistan in August 2021, amid the withdrawal of U.S.-led forces and the Taliban's return to power.

According to AfghanEvac, Paktyawal worked at an Afghan halal market in the Dallas area and was the primary provider for his wife and children, the youngest of whom is 18 months old.

"His children adored him, and he worked hard every day to take care of them and build a future for them in the United States," his family said.

Since returning to office last year, Trump has severely restricted U.S. entry for Afghan nationals, including those who worked with the U.S. military and their families, citing security concerns. AfghanEvac and other advocacy groups say those approved for U.S. resettlement undergo extensive vetting.

On Saturday, Zazy said, more than 100 members of the Afghan community gathered outside the hospital in Dallas, asking to see Paktyawal's body. Hospital officials told them it could not be released pending an autopsy, he said.

As they wait for answers, members of his community are fearful, said Zazy, who also worked with the U.S. military in Afghanistan for more than 10 years.

"We support this country. We help this country. When we see this kind of incident, our families, we don't feel safe," he said.

Zazy said the community wants justice, which comes down to one word: "Stop."

"They have to stop arresting Afghan people," he said.

PARIS (AP) — Former French PresidentNicolas Sarkozyreturned to court on Monday for an appeal hearing in Paris over his conviction linked to the alleged illegal campaign financing of his 2007 presidential campaign by Libya,a casethat led him to spend20 days in prisonlast year.

France Libya Sarkozy

Sarkozy, 71, is challenging a September ruling by a Paris court that found him guilty of "criminal conspiracy." He was sentenced to five years in prison for his alleged part in a scheme to obtain funds from the government of late Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi in exchange for political and diplomatic favors.

The verdict marked the first time that a former president of modern France had been sentenced to actual prison time. Sarkozy — who led France from 2007 to 2012 — began serving his sentence before a Paris appeals courtordered his releaseunder judicial supervision pending the new trial.

The appeal hearing, which is scheduled to last until June 3, will reexamine all of the evidence and testimony related to Sarkozy and nine co-defendants — including three former ministers.

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In September, the judges found that Sarkozy and his associates had formed a criminal association between 2005 and 2007 to secure money from Libya to support his successful presidential bid.

Sarkozy has denied wrongdoing and suggested the accusations were politically motivated.

He has faced multiple legal cases since leaving office but remains an influential figure in conservative politics.

In November, the Court of Cassation — France's top court —upheld his convictionfor illegal campaign financing of his 2012 reelection bid, requiring him to spend six months under house arrest wearing an electronic ankle tag, a sentence that has yet to be implemented.

Penny Hardaway is getting a ninth season at his alma mater.

Hardaway will return for the 2026-27 season, according to multiple reports on Monday. The former NBA star has coached the Tigers since the 2018-19 season with uneven recent results.

[Yahoo Fantasy Bracket Mayhem: Fill out brackets for your shot at $50K]

Memphis went 13-19 in 2025-26 and missed the NCAA tournament for the second time in three seasons. The Tigers were just 8-10 in the American Conference this season and allowed more points per game (76.7) than they scored (75.2).

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The season was a lost cause even before conference play. After a season-opening win over San Francisco, Memphis lost four straight games. The Tigers were above .500 just once all season; after getting to 9-8 on Jan. 18 with a win over last-place UTSA, Memphis lost two straight games.

The Tigers entered the season after winning both the American regular season and tournament titles in 2024-25. Memphis was a No. 5 seed in the 2025 NCAA tournament, but lost 78-70 to No. 12 Colorado State in the first round. Leading scorer PJ Haggerty then transferred to Kansas State for the 2025-26 season.

Memphis has made the tournament three times in Hardaway's tenure but has won just one game in those three appearances. That victory came in his first March Madness game, too. Hardaway's 2022 team beat No. 8 Boise State in the first round before losing by four to Gonzaga.

Overall, Memphis is 175-87 in Hardaway's tenure.