ALPHA MAG

As theIran warunfolded in the Mideast, Asif Merchant acknowledged in a U.S. court that he sought to put an assassination in motion during the 2024 presidential campaign — a plot that was quickly disrupted by American investigators before it had a chance to proceed.

A jury in Brooklyn convicted Merchant on terrorism and murder for hire charges.

After showing an acquaintance what he had in mind by usingobjects on a napkinto depict a shooting at a rally, Merchant was introduced to two supposed assassins — actually undercover FBI agents who were secretly recording him, as had the acquaintance.

Merchant told the supposed hit men he needed services that could include killing "some political person" and paid them $5,000 in cash in a parked car in Manhattan.

In remarkable testimony in a New York federal court, Merchant said he was carrying out instructions from a contact in the Islamic Republic's powerfulparamilitary Revolutionary Guard. According to Merchant, the handler never specified a target but broached names including then-candidateDonald Trump, then-PresidentJoe BidenandNikki Haley, the former U.N. ambassador who was also in the race for a time.

The Iranian government has denied trying to kill U.S. officials.

Advertisement

Merchant, 47, worked for Pakistani banks for decades before going into clothing and other businesses. He has two families, in Pakistan and Iran, and he sometimes visited the U.S. for his garment business.

Merchant testified that he met a Revolutionary Guard intelligence operative about three years ago. The contact gave him countersurveillance training and assignments including the assassination scheme, Merchant said.

He maintained that he had to do his handler's bidding to protect loved ones in Iran. The defendant said he reluctantly went through the motions but thought he'd be arrested and explain his situation to authorities before anyone was killed.

"I was going along with it," he said, speaking in Urdu through a court interpreter.

Prosecutors emphasized that Merchant admitted taking steps to enact the plan on behalf of the Revolutionary Guard, which the U.S. considers a foreign terrorist organization, and he didn't proactively go to authorities.

Instead, he was packing for a flight to Pakistan whenhe was arrestedon July 12, 2024, a day before an unrelatedattempt on Trump's lifein Butler, Pennsylvania. Officials said it appeared the Butler gunman acted alone but thatthey had been trackinga threat on Trump's life from Iran, a claim that the Islamic Republic called "unsubstantiated and malicious."

When Merchant subsequently spoke to FBI agents to explore the possibility of a cooperation agreement, he didn't say he had acted out of fear for his family.

Prosecutors argued that he didn't back up a defense of acting under duress. Merchant sought to persuade jurors he simply didn't think the agents would believe him because they seemed to "think that I am some type of super-spy," which he said he was "absolutely not."

Much of the intelligence Russia has shared with Iran has been imagery from Moscow's sophisticated constellation of overhead satellites, one of the people said. It is not clear what Russia is getting in return for the assistance.

CNN has asked the Kremlin and the Russian embassy in Washington for comment.

It is also not clear whether any single Iranian attack can be linked to Russian targeting intelligence, which wasfirst reportedby the Washington Post. But several Iranian drones have hit locations where US troops have been in recent days. An Iranian drone struck a makeshift facility housing US troops in Kuwait on Sunday, killing six US service members, CNN has reported.

One of the sources briefed on the intelligence said, "This shows Russia still likes Iran very much."

The US also has intelligence suggesting that China may be preparing to provide Iran with financial assistance, spare parts and missile components, three people familiar with the matter said, though Beijing has stayed out of the war up until now. China relies heavily on Iranian oil and hasreportedlybeen pressuring Tehran ⁠to allow safe passage for vessels through the Strait of Hormuz.

Advertisement

"China is more cautious in its support. It wants the war to end because it endangers their energy supply," one of the sources familiar said.

The CIA declined to comment. CNN has asked the Chinese embassy in Washington for comment on the suggestion China may be preparing to assist Iran.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters on Wednesday that Russia and China are "not really a factor" in the war with Iran.

Russia and Iran have been cooperating for at least the last three years on missile and drone technology, with Iran providing Russia with Shahed drones and short-range ballistic missiles to target Ukraine and helping to set up a massive drone factory to pump out Iranian-designed drones inside Russia. Iran has in turn sought Russia's help to bolster its nuclear program,CNN has reported.

The US operation against Iran currently involves more than 50,000 troops, more than 200 fighter jets and two aircraft carriers, CENTCOM Commander Adm. Brad Cooper said this week, and administration officials have not said how long the war is expected to last. The US military objective, according to Pentagon officials, is to eliminate Iran's ballistic missile capabilities, which Pete Hegseth said this week Iran was using as a "shield" to develop its nuclear program.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account atCNN.com

"It's an experience I wouldn't wish on anyone," López said in an interview with Noticias Telemundo from his home in Alexandria, Virginia.

About a decade ago, immigration officials argued that the citizenship López obtained as a minor through his naturalized mother was not valid. This put him on a path to deportation because of a previous drug conviction when he was younger.

During those years, López always insisted that he was a U.S. citizen when he was questioned by ICE officers, his lawyers, judges and journalists.

"I came from El Salvador with permanent residency when I was 11 years old, and when my mother became a citizen, I was 16 years old, so I automatically obtained citizenship derived from my mother. That's how it was," he said.

According to the website of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services,derivative citizenship refers to the automatic acquisition of U.S. citizenshipby children under 18 years of age through the citizenship status of their parents and, under certain circumstances, by adopted children of U.S. citizens born abroad.

López was detained by ICE officials in January 2023 and was held at the Caroline Detention Facility in Bowling Green, Virginia. He was not released until Feb. 13 of this year after the 4th Circuit U.S. Court of Appealsissued a rulingthat not only stopped his deportation, but also reaffirmed that he's a U.S. citizen.

"The court says in its decision that he has been an American citizen since 1998. That's why they are releasing him," said Benjamin Osorio, López's lawyer.

Neither ICE nor the Department of Homeland Security responded to requests for comment from Noticias Telemundo on López's case.

Why was a U.S. citizen detained by ICE?

López's arrest was the final step in a long process in which he had to fight the courts to try to have his citizenship recognized.

López came to the U.S. as a legal resident after his mom, a legal resident and a single mother, completed the paperwork to bring him from El Salvador in the early 1990s. When he was 16, his mother became a naturalized U.S. citizen and he automatically acquired derivative citizenship underTitle 8, Section 1432 of the U.S. Code,the law in effect at that time.

At age 20, López was convicted of drug offenses (in 2004 and 2005) and served a seven-year prison sentence. During his time in prison, he was visited by officials from DHS, who in 2009 determined that he had obtained U.S. citizenship through his mother.

"They came to see me in 2009 and declared that I was a citizen," López said in aninterview with Noticias Telemundo last year, while he was in custody.

After his release from prison in 2011, López rebuilt his life: He finished high school, learned electrical work, started his own company and spent more than a decade working, married and raising his children without further legal trouble.

However, in 2016, according to court papers and López's attorney, DHS changed its position, deemed him a legal resident but not a citizen and initiated removal proceedings because of his previous drug conviction.

Advertisement

From that time until his eventual immigration detention in 2023, López and his attorneys had been trying to prove he had legitimately acquired U.S. citizenship through his single mother.

The government argued that the Salvadoran constitution had eliminated legal distinctions between children born in or out of wedlock, meaning that deriving citizenship from his mother was not enough.

"He would have had to prove that his father was also naturalized, but apparently his father never had a relationship with him," said Charles Wheeler, a senior attorney with theCatholic Legal Immigration Network.

López said that in 2023, "one day I went to work and about eight immigration agents were waiting for me." The agents told him he wasn't a citizen, that he was still a legal resident with "aggravated felonies," and that he was now deportable.

The ruling that declares him a citizen

Last month, the 4th Circuitissued its decisionconcluding that López met the requirements of the law that governed derivative citizenship before its reform in 2001. The judges analyzed Salvadoran law on parentage and legitimation, as well as López's family history, to determine whether or not his biological father had "established paternity" in the required legal sense.

"They concluded that my father never established paternity and never made me a legitimate son, even though his name appeared on my birth certificate," López explained. Essentially, the court agreed that his mom had been his sole parent and legal guardian, so deriving U.S. citizenship from her alone had been legal.

Immigration attorney Enrique Espinoza recommends that people with parents who are U.S. citizens by naturalization or birth consult with a lawyer and, if possible, obtain formal proof of citizenship — such asthe N-600 certificateor a U.S. passport — before a misunderstanding turns into a crisis.

In fact, Espinoza said it's not uncommon for people to have acquired U.S. citizenship through their parents "and not know it — that really does happen."

'ICE should not detain U.S. citizens'

Following the recent court decision, López's legal team is focusing on obtaining all the necessary citizenship certification and pursuing some form of redress.

"We are going to sue the government. ICE should not detain American citizens," said Osorio, López's attorney. After three years in prison, López lost his business as an electrician.

"He has lost his job. He has lost a lot. We are going to try to recover his money," Osorio said.

"This has cost me dearly; I've lost everything. My family had to endure a very unpleasant experience because of my unjust arrest, even though they knew I was an American citizen," López said.

While his legal team continues working on his case, López says he is trying to return to a normal life and always carries a copy of the 4th Circuit's decision in case a police officer or federal agent arrests him again. His main goal is to rebuild his electrical company and resume working with the contractors who knew him before his arrest.

"I can't get that time back — what's lost is lost," López said. "Now I have to start over. I have many contacts who know that my dedication and honesty at work are 100% guaranteed."

During the long nights while he was detained, López began writing songs about his legal situation and what he saw in the detention centers. He wrote that his family kept him going as he fought the government, and that the "love of my family continues to wait for me."

An earlier version of this story was first published in Noticias Telemundo.

The organization is enduring another brutal NBA campaign, with their one-year revival as a playoff team in 2023 disintegrating into yet another rebuild andthe worst record in the leagueless than three years later. But Westbrook insisted during a tense exchange at a March 5 news conference that local media members are contributing to the problems with "false comments" regarding him and other Kings' players.

"You guys have a lot of opinions about how we do what we're doing. What you got," Westbrook asked in the aftermath ofSacramento's 133-123 loss to the New Orleans Pelicans. "You make a lot of statements and broad statements that you have no context, so where do you get your context from? Are you in practice? Are you at our film session? Are you anywhere around the building?"

Oct. 26: The Brooklyn Nets' Michael Porter Jr. dunks in front of the San Antonio Spurs' Victor Wembanyama at Frost Bank Center.

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

Dribble into this collection of dunk photos as NBA stars posterize opponents

LEBRON JAMES:Breaks Kareem Abdul-Jabbar NBA record for field goals

Westbrook declined to elaborate when asked for specifics about what sparked his comments, but continued to answer questions with criticism of the team's media coverage.

Advertisement

When one reporter noted criticism of the team was fair considering its record and status in the bottom-three of the NBA in offensive and defensive rating this season, the 37-year-old guard said backlash against the Kings (14-50) has too often not been about basketball.

"You guys' job is to talk about the game, what's happening in the game, not stir up a bunch of – I don't want to cuss here because I don't want to get fined – but stir up a bunch of stuff that, it's not accurate and that's my problem," Westbrook said. "Being in the league awhile, I've been able to experience a lot of these times where people outside of our building, outside of the film session, outside of what we do daily, how much work we put in, that is not an easy job to do.

"Y'all come in, y'all make your comments, and nobody say nothing. But I don't have to sit back and say nothing," Westbrook continued. "... As a leader of this team, it's my job to speak up for the guys in the locker room. We talk about it. They see it. I hear it. Because of the comments you guys make, you got guys thinking about a bunch of random things that has nothing to do with the game. You guys are making false comments about our team and what we're doing here, and I don't appreciate that. So my ask is that you respect what we do and we'll respect what you do."

Russell Westbrook stats

Westbrook, now finishing up his 18th NBA season,signed a one-year deal with the Kings in October. They are his seventh team in eight seasons after starting his career with the Oklahoma City Thunder. The 2017 NBA MVP winner is averaging 15.3 points, 6.4 assists and 5.3 rebounds in nearly 29 minutes per game in Sacramento this season.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Russell Westbrook confronts media over 'false comments' about Kings

WBC Venezuela Netherlands Baseball

It was a 1-0 game. In the first inning. Didn't matter.

"For our people, baseball is joy," Jessalyn Suarez, an office manager from Miami, said as she walked into the ballpark about an hour earlier. "Today is joy. Today is not about anything else."

She was like many other Venezuelan fans Friday — wearing her team's jersey, her country's flag knotted loosely around her neck, the country's yellow-blue-red color scheme painted on her face and the faces of some of her friends.

Unusual political times didn't seem to matter. Thousands of Venezuelans — the stadium was maybe one-third filled for Venezuela vs. Netherlands on Friday, with the overwhelming majority of fans cheering for "La Vinotinto" — showed up to watch their national team play on U.S. soil, two months after American forcesexecuted a military operationin Venezuela to capturedeposed leader Nicolás Maduroand bring him to New York to face drug trafficking charges.

"Nobody is thinking about him today," Jesus Otero, a retired heavy machine operator from nearby Hialeah, said as he watched batting practice. "He's not here."

There were a few Netherlands caps and shirts in the crowd — but for the most part, the party was very Latin.

Advertisement

At 10:30 a.m. outside the ballpark, more than 90 minutes before first pitch, fans arrived as music from Elsen Pro, Bacilos and Carlos Vives blared over giant speakers. At a gas station across the street from one of the parking garages, someone was selling Venezuela jerseys, caps and flags, all packed up into a couple of duffle bags that were serving as display cases.

Inside, fans cheered from the very first pitch. Many had their phones out to grab video of the team being announcing, taping what was being shown on the huge screen in center field. The upper deck was almost entirely empty, but the lower deck — especially on the third-base side, the one where Venezuela's dugout was — was bustling.

"Venezuelan baseball fans are very motivated and involved with everything that happens with the team," said Nelson Zurita, a Venezuelan who calls Chile home but flew to Miami for the tournament. "They are aware of every transaction in the anticipation to the Classic. The country will always be focused on sports but especially baseball. ... The players do not want to mix politics with baseball, but the country is completely behind them."

There were no signs of protests outside the ballpark Friday afternoon; there was a presence of police officers and sheriff's deputies, but that seemed largely for standard security and traffic-control reasons. Fans were going through the usual sorts of ticket-checks and bag searches that are in place for Miami Marlins games and other events at the ballpark.

WBC officials said the night game Friday — Nicaragua vs. Dominican Republic — was trending toward becoming sold-out.

"The presence of this team provides some relief from the everyday political stress," Zurita said. "The emphasis instead is on the Classic. Baseball breathes new life."

AP MLB:https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

The 35-year-old forward has tallied 42 points (22 goals, 20 assists) in 59 games in his fifth season with the Kraken. His 18:37 average ice time is his highest since the 2014-15 campaign.

Advertisement

A two-time All-Star, Eberle has 770 points (330 goals, 440 assists) in 1,119 games across 16 NHL seasons with the Edmonton Oilers (2010-17), New York Islanders (2017-21) and Kraken.

The Saskatchewan native was named the Seattle franchise's second captain on Opening Day of the 2024-25 season. Eberle was in the final season of a two-year, $9.5 million contract.

--Field Level Media

In a sworn filing, the official said that CBP needs an additional 45 days to create a system to process refunds for the more than 53 million entries related to the unlawful tariffs.

"CBP has never been ordered to, nor has it attempted to, process a volume of refunds anywhere near the volume of total entries and Entry Summary lines on which IEEPA duties have been deposited," wrote Brandon Lord, the executive director of CBP's Trade Programs Directorate.

What's next for Trump's tariffs? Experts explain

The disclosure comes two days after a judge from the Court of International Trade initially ordered the Trump administration to remove the tariffs from its backlog of import paperwork. Even though the liquidation process -- when the agency finalizes a tariff payment after goods enter the country -- is largely automated and the Supreme Courtoverturned the tariffstwo weeks ago, Lord said that Customs and Border Protection "is not able to comply" with the court's order.

Advertisement

"CBP is now facing an unprecedented volume of refunds. Its existing administrative procedures and technology are not well suited to a task of this scale and will require manual work that will prevent personnel from fully carrying out the agency's trade enforcement mission," Lord said.

According to Lord, the current system used to process tariffs cannot handle the volume of refund requests, and that doing so manually would take resources away from "responsibilities that serve to mitigate imminent threats to national security and economic security."

Supreme Court invalidates most of Trump's tariffs

Following a hearing on Friday related to the refund process, which was closed to the public, Judge Richard Eaton of the Court of International Trade suspended his earlier order to immediately begin recalculating tariffs dues.

By lifting his initial order, the judge appears to be making room for the refund process to play out, though the exact timeline of refunds remains unclear.

During previous hearings, the judge had expressed skepticism that the refund process would be a "mess" or that the government lacked the resources to issue refunds.