Flyers celebrate return to the playoffs with a 3-2 win over Penguins in Game 1

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Travis Sanheim scored the go-ahead goal midway through the third period and the Philadelphia Flyers announced their return to the playoffs with a 3-2 win over Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday night.

Flyers Penguins Hockey

Philadelphia pulled off a stunner in the opener when Sanheim split a pair of Penguins at the top of the zone, glided down the slot and then fired the puck by Stuart Skinner. Porter Martone, the Flyers' 19-year-old rookie forward, provided some needed insurance when he beat Skinner on a wrist shot with 2:37 to play.

Game 2 is in Pittsburgh on Monday.

Jamie Drysdale also scored for the Flyers, who hardly appeared intimidated by an electric PPG Paints Arena crowd buzzing by Pittsburgh's first playoff appearance since 2022. Dan Vladar stopped 14 shots to pick up the first postseason win of his six-year career.

“We’ve been playing big games for the last month, month and a half, meaningful games, must-win games,” Flyers forward Sean Couturier said. “We’re put to the test and thought we did a good job of preparing ourselves and being ready.”

Evgeni Malkin scored his 68th career playoff goal for Pittsburgh but the Penguins, the NHL's third-highest scoring team during the regular season, had trouble sustaining pressure against the Flyers. Bryan Rust pounded home a rebound with 1:01 remaining to get Pittsburgh within a goal, but Vladar stoned Anthony Mantha in the final seconds as Philadelphia held on.

“We got away from things that worked,” first-year Penguins coach Dan Muse said. “Part of that is intensity. Everything is ramped up in the playoffs. They’ve been playing that way for a while.”

The eighth all-time playoff meeting between the cross-state rivals may also be the most surprising. The Penguins' retooling under general manager Kyle Dubasunexpectedly picked up speedunder Muse.

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The Flyers — who arrived at PPG Paints Arena for their morning skate wearing T-shirts with sleeves that had “3.8 percent” printed on them as a nod to their slim postseason chances a couple months ago —used a scorching final stretchto reach the playoffs for the first time since 2020.

Philadelphia wasted little time keeping that momentum going. The Flyers held Sidney Crosby and the rest of the Penguins in check while deftly countering to create numerous odd-man rushes.

The new kids helped Philadelphia match Pittsburgh hit for hit and then smashed the gas over the final 20 minutes, with Matrone's first playoff goal — in just his 10th-ever NHL game — providing the final difference.

“I think coming in here, I think the older guys have done a great job, not just with me, but all the guys on the team, showing us the ropes,” Martone said after becoming the youngest Flyer to score in his postseason debut.

And the ropes dictate that a promising start guarantees nothing in a best-of-seven.

“We won one game, this is going to be a long series,” Philadelphia coach Rick Tocchet said. "Those kids, they were hooting and hollering a little bit, but they were pretty even keel.”

AP NHL playoffs:https://apnews.com/hub/stanley-cupandhttps://apnews.com/hub/nhl

byAlpha World

in

April 21, 2026

Flyers celebrate return to the playoffs with a 3-2 win over Penguins in Game 1

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Travis Sanheim scored the go-ahead goal midway through the third period and the Philadelphia Flyers announced their r...

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Iranian official says US 'maximalist' demands stall face-to-face talks

ANTALYA, Turkey (AP) — Iran is not yet ready to hold a new round of face-to-face talks with U.S. officials, a senior Iranian official said Saturday, citing Washington's refusal to abandon “maximalist” demands on key issues.

Turkey Diplomacy

In an interview with The Associated Press on the margins of a diplomacy forum in Turkey, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh also said his country will not hand over its enriched uranium to the United States, rejecting claims made by President Donald Trump.

“I can tell you that no enriched material is going to be shipped to United States,” Khatibzadeh said. “This is non-starter and I can assure you that while we are ready to address any concerns that we do have, we’re not going to accept things that are non-starters.”

On Friday, Trump said that the U.S. will go into Iran and “get all the nuclear dust,” referring to the 970 pounds (440 kilograms) of enriched uranium believed to be buried under nuclear sites badly damaged by U.S. military strikes last year.

Khatibzadeh said there have been many exchanges of messages between the sides but accused the United States of holding firm on demands Iran deems to be excessive.

“We are still not there yet to move on to an actual meeting because there are issues that the Americans have not yet abandoned their maximalist position,” Khatibzadeh said. Iran was seeking the finalization of a “framework agreement” before moving to an in-person meeting, he added.

The Iranian official would not go into specifics of the negotiations with the United States or say which issues remain unresolved but called on Washington to address Iran’s concerns, including sanctions imposed on Iran.

“The other sides also should understand and address our main concerns, which are illegal unilateral sanctions that Americans have imposed on Iranians and this economic terrorism which has targeted Iranian people to suffocate them and make them to revolt against the political structure inside Iran,” Khatibzadeh said.

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Asked whether Iran would respond to renewed attacks by Israel on Lebanon despite the ceasefire, Khatibzadeh said: “Iran has no option, just to stop aggressors once and forever.”

Trump said that Israel is “prohibited” by the U.S. from further strikes on Lebanon and that “enough is enough” in the Israel-Hezbollah war.

The State Department said the prohibition applies only to offensive attacks and not to actions taken in self-defense.

The Iranian official renewed Iran’s position that Tehran’s actions were defensive and in response to unprovoked aggression occurring in the middle of negotiations.

He also reiterated Iran's position that the ceasefire must extend to Lebanon, where Israel had been fighting with the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah.

When the U.S. and Iran declared a temporary truce last week, Pakistan and Iran said it extended to Lebanon, but Israel — and later the U.S. — denied this. Israel then launched a series of airstrikes on central Beirut, prompting Iran to announce it was once again closing the Strait of Hormuz. Following implementation of a truce in Lebanon Friday, Iran said it had reopened the strait.

“Iran negotiated with good faith, accepted a ceasefire and told everybody that this ceasefire should include all countries, including Lebanon,” Khatibzadeh said. “Then the other side said that, it is not committed to this and then started atrocities.”

He said that a “new protocol” would be put in place for the Strait of Hormuz as part of the negotiations with the U.S. and it would “remain open and safe for all civilian passage.”

Trump has said a U.S. blockade of the Strait of Hormuz will remain and attacks will resume if no agreement is reached with Iran.

byAlpha World

in

April 21, 2026

Iranian official says US 'maximalist' demands stall face-to-face talks

ANTALYA, Turkey (AP) — Iran is not yet ready to hold a new round of face-to-face talks with U.S. officials, a senior Iranian official s...

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Tyler Reddick's last-lap move, his fifth win, and a pace not seen since Dale Earnhardt in 1987

KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — None of the past fourNASCAR Cup Series championsmanaged to win more than four races in their entire season.

Puts into perspective the kind of roll Tyler Reddick is on right now.

The driver for the 23XI Racing team co-owned by Denny Hamlin and Michael Jordan picked up hisfifth win of the season on Sunday,when he made a last-lap pass of reigning series champ and defending race winner Kyle Larson to win at Kansas Speedway.

It wasn't just Reddick's fifth win of the season. It was his fifth through nine races, a pace matched only four times in NASCAR's top series, and not since Dale Earnhardt started off the 1987 season that way. Earnhardt went on to win six more times while claiming the third of his seven championships, and there's little to make it seem that Reddick can't do the same thing.

“I mean, it's early,” Reddick said after joining Jordan in a post-race celebration. “Certainly over these next 17 races (before the playoffs), the ones that are missing it a little bit here and there are going to start hitting. I think the competition will certainly continue to tighten up as we get through this year. We've done a really good job of making the most of our days."

Scoring a lot of points, too. The revamped postseason structure means that whomever is leading before the Chase begins gets a huge advantage, and Reddick already has a big lead over Hamlin and the rest of the field in that regard.

“We’ll just try and get as comfortable a lead as possible,” he said. “If we can maintain a gap like this as we get further into the season, hopefully it puts us in position to try and steal some more wins if it’s split-strategy calls middle of the race or late in the race.”

It's not just Reddick that is running on all cylinders, though. His entire team is on a roll.

Bubba Wallace ran near the front most of Sunday and finished fifth. Riley Herbst was 14th, one spot ahead of Corey Heim, who made a spot start in the No. 67 car for the first time since the season-opening Daytona 500 yet was every bit as quick.

That's pretty strong stuff for a race team that is in just its sixth season.

“I think the missing part has been really executing across the board,” 23XI president Steve Lauletta said. "Our pit crews have taken a big step forward. Everybody worked really hard in the offseason to refine our processes and our communication.

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“We're only what, nine races into our sixth season? Still a lot of work to do be done.”

Yet the work is clearly paying off.

After winning three times in 2024, Reddick was shut out entirely last year. Wallace won the team's only race at the Brickyard 400, and an organization that seemed to be ascending suddenly appeared to have leveled off a bit.

Now, 23XI is on an entirely different level. One that nobody else seems to be matching.

“I mean, again, super gratifying,” Lauletta said. “It wasn't just (Reddick) not winning, right? Just as an organization, we only won one race. It was the Brickyard, which was great. There was no heads being hung. It was just more the attitude of, ‘We’ve got to get to work,' and that was across the board. ... A lot of really good things are happening overall that started with the work that we needed to do in the offseason to kind of make sure we would be where we wanted to be as an organization this year.”

Where they wanted to be was up front. Reddick is putting them there every week.

It's not just the five wins, either. He was in contention to win a couple of weeks ago at Bristol before finishing fourth, had another top-10 run at Phoenix, and has finished in the top 15 and on the lead lap in each of the first nine races this season.

Next up is Talladega, too, where Reddick won just a couple of years ago.

“When you win,” Jordan said Sunday, “it's always fun. Right now it's fun for everybody at 23XI. Me being here (in Kansas) and being able to see all the wins, I'm so happy for the team. I just think we need to continually build on this, without a doubt.”

AP auto racing:https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing

byAlpha World

in

April 21, 2026

Tyler Reddick's last-lap move, his fifth win, and a pace not seen since Dale Earnhardt in 1987

KANSAS CITY, Kan. (AP) — None of the past fourNASCAR Cup Series championsmanaged to win more than four races in their entire season. ...

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Why The Independent’s evidence from last September is a problem for Starmer

As he set out his defence to the House of Commons,Sir Keir Starmerwas asked multiple times by MPs, including the Conservative leaderKemi Badenoch, aboutThe Independent’sfront page story on 12 September last yearthatPeter Mandelsonhad failed security vetting.

More damaging still are the WhatsApp messagessent by this publicationto the then director of communications in Downing Street, Tim Allan, raising the issue on 11 September.

This has been described by a number of civil servants and senior politicians as the “smoking gun” in the entire scandal, because it is at odds withthe prime minister’s own assessment.

Sir Keir claimed that he, his ministers and Downing Street only found out about the security vetting failure last week. But doubt has been cast on this claim becauseThe Independentinformed Downing Street’s most senior communications official months before.

Added to that, it raises serious questions about what the prime minister was told in September by his then director of communications.

In normal circumstances, these issues are raised through the system and lead to investigations into the truth. Most crucially, they should have raised a red flag with the prime minister.

But it seems that nothing happened and the warnings were ignored.

This is no small thing. Lord Mandelson spent months as the UK’s ambassador to Washington.

He was the most important UK diplomat in the United States at a time when Britain was grappling with a difficult president in the White House.

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As ambassador, he would have been party to a huge amount of information, some of it designed to be seen only by those who have passed the highest level of security vetting.

When the prime minister sacked him last September, he accused Lord Mandelson of lying to his officials during that process and said he had fired him when the full extent of his relationship emerged with the paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.

Then, crucially, in February, Sir Keir told journalists: “Security vetting, carried out independently by the security services, which is an intensive exercise that gave him clearance for the role. You have to go through that before you take up the post. Clearly, both the due diligence and the security vetting need to be looked at again.”

But this took place months afterThe Independentinformed No 10 of the failure.

On Monday, the PM insisted that he should have been told last year that his former man in Washington had failed security clearance. But, of course, Downing Street was told this byThe Independent.

Last week, Sir Keir said he was “furious” when he found out and that it was unacceptable he was not told.

Within hours, he had fired the most senior civil servant in the Foreign Office, Sir Olly Robbins. That, Sir Keir has been very clear about, was because he was aware of the recommendation not to give Lord Mandelson security clearance and did not inform the prime minister.

But Sir Keir still faces a key question, one which was summed up by the mother of the House, the long-time Labour MP Diane Abbott, who is currently suspended from the party and sits as an independent.

She cornered him in the Commons to ask: “It’s one thing to say, as [Starmer] insists on saying, ‘Nobody told me, nobody told me anything, nobody told me’. The question is, why didn’t the prime minister ask?”

byAlpha World

in

April 21, 2026

Why The Independent’s evidence from last September is a problem for Starmer

As he set out his defence to the House of Commons,Sir Keir Starmerwas asked multiple times by MPs, including the Conservative leaderKem...

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‘Serious consequences’: Telegram faces major Ofcom probe over child sexual abuse concerns

Ofcomhas launched a formal investigation into themessaging app Telegramto determine if it "has failed, or is failing" to tackle child sexual abuse material.

The UK’s online safety regulator initiated its probe after receiving evidence from theCanadian Centre for Child Protection, which alleged the presence and sharing of such illegal content on Telegram.

Following its own assessment, the UK regulator decided to open an investigation into possible failings by Telegram "to comply with its duties in relation to illegal content."

Under the UK'sOnline Safety Act, providers of so-called user-to-user services, such as Telegram, are "required to assess and mitigate the risk of this horrific crime being perpetrated on their platforms."

Ofcom said firms which fail to do what is required of them to protect children will “face serious consequences”.

Suzanne Cater, director of enforcement at Ofcom, said: “Child sexual exploitation and abuse causes devastating harm to victims, and making sure sites and apps tackle this is one of our highest priorities.

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“It’s why we work so closely with partners in law enforcement and child protection organisations to identify where these harms are occurring and hold providers to account where they’re failing to meet their obligations.

“Progress has undeniably been made, particularly with file-sharing services, which are too often used to share horrific child sexual abuse imagery.

“But this problem extends to big platforms too, and teen-focused chat services are too easily being used by predators to groom children. These firms must do more to protect children, or face serious consequences under the Online Safety Act.”

If failures to comply with the Act were identified, it is possible Ofcom could impose fines of up to £18 million or 10% of qualifying worldwide revenue, depending on whichever is greater.

Ofcom also said in the most serious cases it can seek a court order requiring internet service providers to block access to the service in the UK.

The regulator also announced on Tuesday that it had opened investigations into whether the providers of chat services Teen Chat and Chat Avenue “are taking appropriate steps to assess and mitigate the risk of UK users encountering illegal content and activity, including grooming”.

The watchdog said its work with child protection agencies had raised concerns about the risk to children on the platforms, which both have chatrooms, private messaging, and what it described as media sharing functionalities.

byAlpha World

in

April 21, 2026

‘Serious consequences’: Telegram faces major Ofcom probe over child sexual abuse concerns

Ofcomhas launched a formal investigation into themessaging app Telegramto determine if it "has failed, or is failing" to tack...

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Trump accuses Iran of violating ceasefire with Strait of Hormuz ship attacks

President Donald Trump said Sunday that Iran had violated the ceasefire agreement with the U.S. by attacking ships in the Strait of Hormuz, and he repeated threats to attack Iranian energy infrastructure unless it accepts a deal to end the war.

“Iran decided to fire bullets yesterday in the Strait of Hormuz — A Total Violation of our Ceasefire Agreement!” he posted on Truth Social. “That wasn’t nice, was it?”

“We’re offering a very fair and reasonable DEAL, and I hope they take it because, if they don’t, the United States is going to knock out every single Power Plant, and every single Bridge, in Iran,” he continued. “NO MORE MR. NICE GUY!”

His comments came as faltering diplomacy between the two sides saw Iran reimpose an effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, citing acontinued U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports, just one day after declaring the waterway “completely open” under the current ceasefire.

Trump said that Iran had targeted vessels from France and the United Kingdom, without providing further details. Maritime authorities on Saturday reported gunfire and a projectile strikeinvolving Indian vesselsin the strait. Iranian state media has confirmed that shots were fired near the two Indian ships to force them to turn back.

Iran’s semiofficial Tasnim news agency reported two more tankers, sailing under the flags of Botswana and Angola, were forced to turn back by Iran’s forces on Sunday.

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has warned vessels against trying to cross the strait, which it said would be considered “cooperation with the enemy,” adding that “any violating vessels would be targeted.”

Trump said negotiators would arrive on Monday evening in Islamabad, Pakistan, which last weekend hosted direct talks between the two sides, with the current two-week ceasefire set to end on Wednesday.

However, Iran's semiofficial Tasnim news agency reported that Iran has not yet decided to send a negotiating delegation, and that there will be no negotiations as long as the U.S. naval blockade remains.

U.N. Ambassador Mike Waltz told NBC News' "Meet the Press" of the planned talks: "We'll see what the Iranians decide to do. They can choose to be a responsible member of the international community, or they can continue to be a rogue regime that masters its own people and seeks to hold the world hostage with a nuclear weapon."

"Everything’s on the table," he said, suggesting that mixed messaging from Iran on the status of the strait was an indication of "real confusion on the Iranians’ part" and "discord within their ranks."

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Iranian officials said Saturday that new U.S. proposals were under review.Iran’s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said Saturday thatprogress has been made toward a peace deal, with some issues “concluded,” but he warned Iran still has a “complete distrust” of the U.S. negotiators.

Speaking on state TV on Saturday night, Ghalibaf, who also serves as Iran’s chief negotiator, said officials had “stated our demands firmly,” adding: “Some issues in the negotiations have been concluded, while others have not. There is still a distance to a final agreement.”

“There must be a guarantee that this cycle of war, ceasefire and negotiation will not be repeated,” he said.

Ghalibaf said the strait had been closed because the U.S. was only “partially implementing the ceasefire,” adding that it will remain closed if the “naval blockade against us continues.”

“If the ceasefire is not implemented, we will not continue negotiations, and we will start the war,” he said.

Trump convened a Cabinet meeting in the situation room Saturday morning to discuss the Strait of Hormuz and the situation in Iran, according to two U.S. officials with knowledge of the meeting.

He had earlier said that his administration was currently talking to Iran and that talks were going “very well.”

But Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Sunday that Trump was seeking to deny Iran its “nuclear rights” and that Iran was trying to end the war “with full dignity.”

“If a human being does not defend himself, he is dead,” he said. “They attacked us, and we defended.”

The Trump administration said its blockade of Iranian ports remains in force, with more than 20 ships turned back since Monday.

Following a summit of 51 countries that was co-chaired by France and the U.K. on Friday, French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer “called for the unconditional, unrestricted, and immediate re-opening of the Strait of Hormuz.”

They also announced a joint neutral mission to provide reassurance to merchant vessels in the region.

byAlpha World

in

April 20, 2026

Trump accuses Iran of violating ceasefire with Strait of Hormuz ship attacks

President Donald Trump said Sunday that Iran had violated the ceasefire agreement with the U.S. by attacking ships in the Strait of Hor...

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Fired by Trump, this immigration judge set off on the migrant trail

Five months after he was fired as a U.S. immigration judge, Jeremiah Johnson found himself rumbling into the highlands of Guatemala on a crowded bus, a bouquet of flowers in hand.

His unusual, if poetic, mission: to visit relatives of an indigenous family who fled their village for the United States and won asylum in his courtroom.

Johnson, 52, served nearly a decade as an immigration judge in San Francisco, in a famously liberal circuit, hearing hundreds of asylum cases. Day in, day out, he heard stories of political and religious persecution, torture, violence, rape. He granted asylum89% of the time.

That statistic, he believes, is likely one of the reasons the Trump administration targeted him and the San Francisco court in an effort to rid the system of alleged bias in favor of immigrants, and against the Department of Homeland Security.

The Department of Justice, which oversees immigration judges, didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

While PresidentDonald Trump's mass deportation effort has played out in dramatic U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement sweeps of major American cities and the expansion of immigration detention, the White House has also been quietly working to reshape the nation's immigration courts, where immigrants can be ordered deported or granted the right to stay.

Since Trump took office in January 2025, the DOJ has fired at least 107 immigration judges, including roughly two dozen in San Francisco alone, according to the National Association of Immigration Judges, a union for the judges. Nationwide, another 50 or so have left or been dismissed.

"Under President Trump, asylum is now granted in just 7% of cases," the White House said inan April 9 news release, citing an investigation by theNew York Times. The release touted: "The era of amnesty is over."

That statistic likely includes not only judges' decisions but abandoned cases in which the applicant failed to appear, according to the right-leaningCenter for Immigration Studies. In PresidentJoe Biden's last year, the comparable asylum grant rate including abandoned cases was 36%.

The San Francisco court has the third-highest number of asylum cases in the nation after New York and Miami, according to theTransactional Records Access Clearinghouse, which compiles government data. The administration has ordered the court to close by May 1; the majority of the court's cases are shifting to judges 30 miles away in a smaller, suburban court in Concord, California.

"The fact that these judges are being aggressively removed and bullied by the administration – they don't have the protections that a regular judge has and I don't think people realize that," said U.S. Rep. Mark DeSaulnier (D-California).

On the bus in Guatemala in mid-April, Johnson had no phone number and no address as he rode into the green mountains southeast of Todos Santos, not far from the Mexican border. He had only the family's name in a notebook and a local guide, a veterinarian, who spoke the indigenous Mam language of the region. He wore a bucket hat.

The asylum-seeking family's head of household "was a refugee," a married man and father of two boys, Johnson said. The family belonged to an indigenous Mam-speaking Mayan community that was at odds with the Spanish-speaking Ladinos in the area. A conflict over water turned deadly.

In 2017, the man and his brother went to pull water from a well originally built by their grandfather. A group of eight Ladino men confronted them, then violently attacked, according to the family's I-589 Application for Asylum, shared with USA TODAY. The man escaped to get help. "When I returned with my wife and mother, we found my brother's body. He had been beaten to death," he said in the asylum petition.

Their identities are redacted from the asylum application and the family's immigration attorney, Alicia Chen, asked for their names to be withheld to protect the family.

The water conflict had deep roots in the country's civil war, which pitted the military and Ladino elites against Mayan indigenous groups. Though the war ended in the 1990s, vestiges remained of the racial and ethnic conflict. The family relied on other water sources for awhile, but they dried up. When they attempted to draw water from their grandfather's well again, Ladinos again violently confronted them. He, his wife and young son were left "bleeding and severely injured," according to his statement. The family walked two hours to the nearest police station to file a report; they were mocked instead, he said.

Johnson heard all this in court. Theirs was the last case he decided.

"My last words on that bench were through the Mam interpreter," he recalled. "'You've been granted asylum in the United States. That decision is final.'"

"Their persecution goes back to the civil war," he said by phone from Guatemala. "These villages were all burned."

In the village, he sketched a church that during the war, he learned, served as a jail where indigenous Mam people were imprisoned.

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'To ever keep in mind the needs of others'

Johnson was appointed to the bench during the first Trump administration by then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions. Originally from New Jersey, he attended the University of San Francisco School of Law. He interned at the International Rescue Committee, and was inspired by lawyers who deftly navigated complex immigration laws.

He held fast to his own father's words of wisdom, "to ever keep in mind the needs of others." He became an asylum officer for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services before applying to join the court.

If he or the San Francisco court had a higher-than-most asylum grant rate, he said, that was driven by the mix of cases on the docket; the case law of the liberal 9th Circuit and the high level of attorney representation in his court.

Nationwide, judges might see only the asylum cases of Chinese nationals; or Cubans; or, in Johnson's case, a large number of Sikhs from the Punjab region of India, where many faced religious or political persecution, he said.

But the closure of the San Francisco court is a symbolic win for the Trump administration: Immigration judges hold the power to deport immigrants, or let them stay, and San Francisco judges more often let them stay.

The DOJ put immigration judges on notice ina June 2025 memothat said some judges "appear to believe... that exhibiting bias is justifiable in certain situations, as long as that bias is in favor of an alien and against the Department of Homeland Security."

That belief is deep-seated in the White House. Trump Homeland Security adviser and deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller is a critic of asylum.

"Everyone involved in the asylum system knows and understands the claims are all fake: the aliens who make them, the free NGO lawyers who file them, the judges who hear them, the federal officers who process them," he wrote on X on April 1.

Johnson's termination letter landed in his inbox on the Friday before Thanksgiving in 2025; his email was locked so fast he didn't have time to print it.

Finding the family

Last year, nationwide, senior managing judges were let go first, Johnson said. In San Francisco, the new judges, still on their two-year probation, were the first fired. The remaining judges saw their caseloads balloon. Beginning in July, Johnson started seeing six cases a day, including three "detained" cases of people in ICE detention.

There are nearly3.8 millioncases in the nation's immigration court backlog. Roughly two-thirds, or2.4 million, are asylum applications, according to the Executive Office for Immigration Review, which runs the immigration courts within the DOJ.

A bill to establishan independent immigration court system‒ first introduced in 2022 under the Biden administration ‒ has been reintroduced this year by Rep. Zoe Lofgren, (D-California). The bill, which is supported by the immigration judges' union, would create a system that better reflects other U.S. courts and protects them from being hired or fired by the executive branch.

On that Friday in November, Johnson's docket was empty except for one case, the family of four from Guatemala.

A view from the border:Along the Rio Grande in Big Bend, Texans unite against Trump wall

Tossed from the bench, Johnson packed a backpack and set off heading in the reverse direction of what is now a mostly empty migrant trail.

He had beers with humanitarians at the Arizona border in January. He spoke with border ranchers who voted for Trump. He had coffee with a retired Border Patrol agent, then was invited to his house for strawberry crepes. He took notes.

In Guatemala, the veterinarian asked around for the parents of the man who survived the water well attack and found them. "They're home," he told Johnson. "They'll see you." After pleasantries and explanations and the gift of flowers, Johnson asked about their murdered son, the refugee's brother.

"There were tears on the señora's face," he said. The father "started rubbing his chest."

He and his wife wanted to show him the grave.

Lauren Villagran covers immigration for USA TODAY and can be reached at lvillagran@usatoday.com and on Signal at laurenvillagran.57.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Federal immigration court judge embarks on odyssey to Central America

byAlpha World

in

April 20, 2026

Fired by Trump, this immigration judge set off on the migrant trail

Five months after he was fired as a U.S. immigration judge, Jeremiah Johnson found himself rumbling into the highlands of Guatemala on ...

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Struggling Phillies place closer Jhoan Durán on 15-day IL with left oblique strain

The Philadelphia Phillies are heading into Saturday night’s home game against the Atlanta Braves as losers of seven of their last nine games. The Phillies’ pitching staff has been struggling, and the team revealed hours before first pitch that it won’t have its closer for a while longer.

The Philliesannouncedthat Jhoan Durán has been placed on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to April 15, with a left oblique strain. He hasn’t pitched since April 11, when he recorded a save in a 4-3 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Durán,whom Philadelphia acquired from the Minnesota Twins at the trade deadline last year, has made seven appearances for the 8-11 Phillies this season, notching a save in each of his five opportunities.

Theflame-throwingrighty’s posted a 1-1 record so far with a 1.35 ERA, piling up eight strikeouts without issuing a walk in the 6 2/3 innings he’s pitched.

Durán’s spot on the roster will be taken by right-handed reliever Seth Johnson. The Phillies recalled him from Triple-A Lehigh Valley. Johnson has made one relief appearance for Philadelphia this season, and that was on Monday in a 13-7 win over the Chicago Cubs.

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When the 27-year-old entered the game, the Phillies were ahead 12-2. He made it through the seventh inning unscathed before allowing five runs — three earned — in the eighth.

Johnson logged 10 appearances for the club last season, posting a 4.26 ERA.

The Phillies’ bullpen has been nipped by the injury bug so far this spring. Jonathan Bowlan and Zach Pop have also spent time on the IL.

Durán won’t be eligible to come off the IL until April 30. With him out, it’s possible Philadelphia looks to another right-hander in closing situations, Brad Keller. The Phillies signed Keller to a two-year deal in free agency this past offseason. He served as the Cubs’ closer late last season, collecting a trio of saves.

Keller has a 4.70 ERA through 7 2/3 innings of work this season.

Regardless whom the Phillies pick to fill Durán’s void, their bats will have to come to life in his absence. Philadelphia’s offense, which has been shut out three times in this forgettable nine-game stretch, has also been lacking the juice it was expected to bring in 2026.

byAlpha World

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April 20, 2026

Struggling Phillies place closer Jhoan Durán on 15-day IL with left oblique strain

The Philadelphia Phillies are heading into Saturday night’s home game against the Atlanta Braves as losers of seven of their last nine ...

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NHL playoffs winners and losers: Stars falter in Game 1 again

The Dallas Stars, despite reaching the conference finals the past three seasons, have a poor record in Game 1s.

The effort in their Saturday, April 18 playoff opener was poorer than usual.

The Stars were routed 6-1 at home by the Minnesota Wild and find themselves trailing after the first game of the series for the ninth time in their last 11 openers.

Stars coach Glen Gulutzan said "to a man," the Wild were better than his team, which didn't happen a lot during the regular season.

"You can't get your game going if you're not going to win battles," he told reporters. "You can take any metric and if you lose skating battles and puck battles, you're always on the receiving end of everything negative."

The Stars, under previous coach Peter DeBoer, overcame a 5-1 loss in their 2025 playoff opener to beat the Colorado Avalanche in seven games, so they are far from in trouble.

"There's room for growth," Gulutzan said.

Here are the winners and losers from the opening night of the 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs:

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WINNERS

Jesper Wallstedt, Minnesota Wild

Coach John Hynes chose the rookie over veteran Filip Gustavsson for Game 1. Wallstedt made 27 saves for a victory in his first playoff game. In fact, coaches made the right decisions in net in other games. Carolina veteran Frederik Andersen got the start over Brandon Bussi and had a 22-save shutout. Stuart Skinner kept the Penguins in the game during their loss to the Philadelphia Flyers.

Porter Martone, Philadelphia Flyers

What a move on his goal, which ended up being the game-winner at Pittsburgh. He skated hard into the zone, stopped, circled back and ripped a shot past Skinner for a 3-1 lead. Martone is 19 and just signed after his Michigan State season ended.

Wild power play

The Wild had the third-best power play in the regular season behind Dallas and the Edmonton Oilers. It connected twice in Saturday's game, with both goals by Joel Eriksson Ek.

LOSERS

Jake Oettinger, Dallas Stars

He waspulled in his last playoff gamein 2025 by DeBoer and gave up five goals on Saturday. Gulutzan never considered pulling Oettinger, saying he didn't think goaltending was an issue in the loss.

"I'm going to be a lot better next game," Oettinger said.

Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins

The Flyers did what they could to get Crosby off his game. He took two penalties in the game, the first one for pulling off Jamie Drysdale's helmet. He was sent off the ice for a retaliatory slash on Travis Sanheim, who had cross-checked him. That meant Crosby was unavailable as the Penguins were pressing to rally from a 3-1 deficit late in the third period.

"We have to stay out of it a little more and trust that when they try to stir it up that they're going to be penalized for it," Crosby told reporters.

Artem Zub, Ottawa Senators

The Senators defenseman delivered a big hit on Carolina's Seth Jarvis but took the worst of it. He exited the game, leaving Ottawa short-handed on defense in a 2-0 loss. There was no update on his condition after the game.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:NHL playoff openers winners and losers: Stars crushed in Game 1

byAlpha World

in

April 19, 2026

NHL playoffs winners and losers: Stars falter in Game 1 again

The Dallas Stars, despite reaching the conference finals the past three seasons, have a poor record in Game 1s. The effort in the...

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UK’s Cooper urges full resumption of shipping through Strait of Hormuz

By Tuvan Gumrukcu

ANTALYA, April 18 (Reuters) - British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said on Saturday the Strait of Hormuz had yet to ‌return to normal operations despite a ceasefire in the Iran ‌war, urging Tehran to allow global shipping to fully resume.

"We are at a critical ​diplomatic moment with a ceasefire now in place ... but we don't yet have normal passage through the strait," Cooper told Reuters on the sidelines of a diplomacy forum in Antalya.

A convoy of tankers was crossing the strait ‌on Saturday, the first major ⁠movement of ships in the crucial waterway since the U.S. and Israel launched their war on Iran on ⁠February 28.

Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said on Saturday that Tehran had agreed to "the managed passage of a limited number of oil tankers and commercial ​vessels through ​the Strait of Hormuz". It added ​that the strait will remain ‌under strict Iranian control if the U.S. does not ensure full freedom of navigation for vessels travelling from and to Iran.

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Cooper said the U.S.-Iran truce needed to develop into a lasting peace, adding that restoring shipping through the waterway was urgent for the global economy.

"We need the Strait ‌of Hormuz open ... because this helps all ​of our economies right across the world ​that are currently being held ​hostage," she said.

Cooper said more than 50 countries had ‌backed efforts to support freedom of ​navigation, with over ​a dozen prepared to provide maritime support, including demining and reassurance for shipping, once the conflict ends.

She said there was still “considerable work ​to do” to ‌turn the ceasefire into an enduring settlement and urged all sides ​to uphold the truce.

(Reporting by Tuvan Gumrukcu; Editing by Jonathan ​Spicer, Louise Heavens and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)

byAlpha World

in

April 18, 2026

UK’s Cooper urges full resumption of shipping through Strait of Hormuz

By Tuvan Gumrukcu ANTALYA, April 18 (Reuters) - British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said on Saturday the Strait of Hormuz had...

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Sarfaraz to coach Pakistan test team as selectors name 4 uncapped players for Bangladesh series

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Former Pakistan captain Sarfaraz Ahmed was named as head coach of the Pakistan test team as selectors named four uncapped players on Saturday for next month’s two-test series in Bangladesh.

Sarfaraz, who won the Champions Trophy in 2017,retiredfrom internationalcricketlast month. The Pakistan Cricket Board also appointed former test batter Asad Shafiq as the new batting coach while Umar Gul will be bowling coach.

Left-handed batter Shan Masood will continue to lead the test team with Babar Azam, Mohammad Rizwan and Imam-ul-Haq the other experienced batters in the side.

Abdullah Fazal, Amad Butt, Azan Awais and Mohammad Ghazi Ghori are the four uncapped players in the test team.

Fazal and Awais are both left-handed batters and have been rewarded after impressing the selectors in domestic cricket. Butt, who made his first-class debut in 2015, is a seasoned all-rounder and carries over a decade of playing in domestic cricket.

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The first test will be played in Dhaka from May 8-12 with Sylhet hosting the second test from May 16-20. The series is part of World Test Championship where Pakistan stands at No. 5 afterdrawingthe home test series against South Africa 1-1 last October.

Bangladesh lost its opening WTC series in Sri Lanka 1-0 and is eighth in nine-team event.

Pakistan squad: Shan Masood (captain), Abdullah Fazal, Amad Butt, Azan Awais, Babar Azam, Hasan Ali, Imam-ul-Haq, Khurram Shahzad, Mohammad Abbas, Mohammad Rizwan, Muhammad Ghazi Ghori, Noman Ali, Sajid Khan, Salman Ali Agha, Saud Shakeel and Shaheen Shah Afridi.

AP cricket:https://apnews.com/hub/cricket

byAlpha World

in

April 18, 2026

Sarfaraz to coach Pakistan test team as selectors name 4 uncapped players for Bangladesh series

ISLAMABAD (AP) — Former Pakistan captain Sarfaraz Ahmed was named as head coach of the Pakistan test team as selectors named four uncap...

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Is your area at risk for severe weather? 100 million in path of storms

Severe weather is expected tostretch across a large portion of the countryWednesday, April 15, with storms developing from the southern Plains into the Midwest and southern Great Lakes — impacting more than 100 million people.

Forecasters say multiple rounds of thunderstorms could bring large hail, damaging wind gusts and a few tornadoes as the system moves east through the day and into the evening. The setup is complicated, with leftover storms from earlier in the day influencing where new storms form.

"Severe thunderstorms posing a risk for large hail to very large hail, severe gusts, and a couple of tornadoes will be possible across portions of the southern Plains toward the Great Lakes this afternoon and evening," theStorm Prediction Centerwrote.

More:Tornado watch issued? Here's what to do when sirens go off

Where is the greatest threat?

The strongest storms are expected from parts of Oklahoma and north Texas through Missouri, Iowa and into Illinois and Wisconsin, according to the Storm Prediction Center.

In the Southern Plains, storms are likely to develop along a dryline by midafternoon, especially across Oklahoma and North Texas. Some of these storms could quickly become severe, producing very large hail and damaging winds. A tornado or two cannot be ruled out, particularly early in the storms’ development.

Farther north, across Iowa and northern Missouri into Illinois, the atmosphere is expected to become unstable again after morning storms. This could lead to scattered thunderstorms capable of producing very large hail, with some tornado risk as well.

Storms may also redevelop farther east into parts of Ohio and Pennsylvania later in the day. While uncertainty remains higher there, isolated severe storms — including the potential for damaging winds and a brief tornado — are possible.

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Storms continue through the week

The active pattern will not end Wednesday.

On Thursday, April 16, the severe weather threat shifts east, with isolated strong to severe storms possible from the Mid-South through the Ohio Valley and into parts of the Northeast, including New York and southern New England, according to theStorm Prediction Center. The main concerns will be damaging wind gusts and hail, though the threat appears more limited than Wednesday.

By Friday, April 17, a more significant setup is expected to develop again.

A stronger system is forecast to bring widespread severe thunderstorms from the southern Plains into the Mississippi Valley and parts of the Midwest. This includes areas such as Oklahoma, Kansas, Missouri and Iowa, where all hazards — large hail, damaging winds and tornadoes — will be possible.

Forecasters say some storms could become intense, especially if discrete supercells develop before storms merge into a larger line. That could increase the risk for very large hail and stronger tornadoes before a transition to a more widespread wind threat later in the day.

Rolling storm damage report

As storms move across the country, this interactive map lets you track impacts in real time. See where tornadoes touched down, hail sizes reported, trees knocked over and roads closed due to flooding.

Hover over each icon to view detailed reports from National Weather Service stations right in the strike zone.

U.S. weather radar

U.S. weather watches and warnings

Stay informed. Get weather alerts via text

Brandi D. Addison covers weather across the United States as the Weather Connect Reporter for the USA TODAY Network. She can be reached atbaddison@gannett.com.Find her on Facebook here.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:US severe weather threatens 100 million. Maps show greatest risk areas

byAlpha World

in

April 18, 2026

Is your area at risk for severe weather? 100 million in path of storms

Severe weather is expected tostretch across a large portion of the countryWednesday, April 15, with storms developing from the southern...

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Tiger Woods fighting subpoena for medication records in DUI case

The legal battle overTiger Woods’ prescription medication recordsis officially underway in Florida.

After the famed golferwas arrested in FloridaMarch 27 on suspicion of driving while impaired, Florida state prosecutors filed a notice in court April 7 that said they planned tosubpoena Woods’ medication recordssince Jan. 1.

Now Woods’ attorney has fired back with a response that states Woods has a constitutional right to privacy with these records unless the state can convince the court why such records are relevant to the state’s criminal investigation of Woods.

“The defense objects to the issuance of a subpoena and requests the court to conduct a hearing to determine if the prescription records are ‘relevant to the criminal investigation,’” said Woods’ attorney, Douglas Duncan.

If the court grants the state’s request for a subpoena for these records, Woods’ attorney also wants a protective order governing the use and release of these records to shield them from public view.

Why is the state trying to get these records from Tiger Woods?

Woods, 50, wasarrested in Jupiter Island March 27after authorities say his Land Rover clipped the back of a trailer from behind in a residential neighborhood and then tipped over. Authorities suspected he was impaired by medications, not alcohol, after evaluating him on the scene.

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After Woods refused to take a urine test, Martin County Sheriff John Budensiek said, “We will never get definitive results as to what he was impaired on at the time of the crash."

State prosecutors didn’t say why they wanted to subpoena Woods’ prescription records, but such records could help bolster their case regarding Woods’ alleged impairment. Meanwhile, Woods haspleaded not guiltyand said he is “stepping away” to “seek treatment and focus on my health.”

Tiger Woods was arrested for driving under the influence after a car crash in Florida on Friday, March 27, the Martin County Sheriff's Office said. Woods and the other driver involved in the two-car crash were not injured. Photos release by Martin County Sheriff's Office show the scene of the crash.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> The crash took place in Jupiter Island, Florida. Mark Steinberg, Woods' longtime agent, did not immediately respond to a request for information about Woods' condition.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> Woods and the other driver involved in the two-car crash were not injured, authorities said during a news conference on Friday, March 27.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> Tiger Woods rollover crash on Jupiter Island on March 27, 2026. The crash occurred just after 2 p.m. local time in the 200 block of Beach Road.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> The Drug Recognition Expert (DRE) on the scene believes Woods’ impairment stemmed from “some kind of medication or drug,’’ according to the sheriff. While a breath test showed that Woods was not under the influence of alcohol, he refused a urinalysis test and was charged with the misdemeanor.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> Martin County Sheriff John Budensiek speaks about Tiger Woods' rollover crash on Jupiter Island on March 27, 2026 at Jupiter Island Town Hall.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> Tiger Woods rollover crash on Jupiter Island on March 27, 2026. The crash occurred just after 2 p.m. local time in the 200 block of Beach Road.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> Martin County Sheriff John Budensiek speaks about Tiger Woods' rollover crash on Jupiter Island on March 27, 2026 at Jupiter Island Town Hall.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" />

Photos show aftermath of Tiger Woods rollover crash in Florida

Tiger Woodswas arrested for driving under the influence after a carcrash in Floridaon Friday, March 27, the Martin County Sheriff's Office said. Woods and the other driver involved in the two-car crash were not injured. Photos release by Martin County Sheriff's Office show the scene of the crash.

Tiger Woods' driving history with suspected impairment

It was the fourth time since 2009 that Woods has been involved in a dangerous incident with his vehicle, including in 2017, when he was charged with driving under the influence in Florida after police found him asleep behind the wheel with the engine running. Several medications were found in his blood then, including thesleep drug Ambienand painkiller Vicodin.

In 2021, he broke his leg in Los Angeles County after his Genesis SUV veered off the road in a straight line at a high speed while his lane curved right. He wasn’t ticketed or charged then, raising questions aboutwhy Woods wasn’t investigated for impairmenteven though it looked like aclassic case of falling asleep at the wheel.

In 2009, Woods was ticketed for careless driving after hitting a row of hedges and a fire hydrant outside his mansion in Florida. A witness described him assnoring at the scene afterward.

Follow reporter Brent Schrotenboer@Schrotenboer. Email: bschrotenb@usatoday.com

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Tiger Woods fights subpoena for prescription drug records in DUI case

byAlpha World

in

April 18, 2026

Tiger Woods fighting subpoena for medication records in DUI case

The legal battle overTiger Woods’ prescription medication recordsis officially underway in Florida. After the famed golferwas arr...

Read More