Salem News Channel

MIAMI, July 6 (Reuters) - FIFA dismissed Belgium's challenge to United States striker Folarin Balogun's eligibility for Monday's World Cup last-16 showdown as 'inadmissible', leaving the European side to approach the U.S. Soccer Federation to contest his inclusion. FIFA suspended Balogun's red-card ban and cleared him to play in the last-16 tie after U.S. President Donald Trump personally urged FIFA chief Gianni Infantino to review the case. Infantino denied being involved in the final decision. "The FIFA Appeal Committee has rendered a request submitted by the Royal Belgian Football Association (RBFA) as inadmissible," FIFA said in a statement. "The request was rendered inadmissible on the grounds that the RBFA is not a party to the proceedings and, as such, has no standing to appeal the decision." The RBFA said it had still not received any decision or any explanation from FIFA regarding Balogun's eligibility and had no alternative but to challenge his eligibility. The Appeal Committee is chaired by American Neil Eggleston but FIFA said he was not involved in the decision. However, the RBFA said it has informed the U.S. Soccer Federation that it contests Balogun's eligibility, should the player be listed on the referee's team sheet ahead of kickoff. "This leaves all further actions open," the RBFA added. "To date, the RBFA has still not received any grounds for this decision, nor has it received the information it has been requesting since the start of this procedure." Belgium had requested a copy of the decision and the motivation declaring Balogun eligible as well as the referee's report. REJECTED ON TECHNICAL GROUNDS Earlier on Monday, the RBFA said FIFA considered its correspondence requesting information to constitute an appeal and rejected it on technical grounds. "For an appeal to be admissible, FIFA's own regulations state that the reasoned decision must first have been communicated to the appellant," the RBFA said. "While the RBFA was merely seeking legitimate explanations, FIFA itself created an appeal and immediately ensured that it would be declared inadmissible. "All of this occurred while FIFA simultaneously refused to respond to the RBFA's legitimate requests." The RBFA also said FIFA removed the automatic player suspension section from a pre-match coordination meeting presentation and failed to explain the change despite repeated oral and written requests. "Regardless of the sporting outcome of this match, the RBFA is deeply concerned by the course of events and will continue to fight in the coming hours, days and months in defence of the fundamental principles of ethics, fair competition, and the interests of football as a whole," the RBFA added.

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A five-day preliminary hearing for the man accused of killing conservative activist Charlie Kirk is underway in Utah. Prosecutors are seeking to convince a state judge that they have enough evidence against 23-year-old Tyler Robinson to proceed to a trial. Robinson is charged with aggravated murder in the assassination of Kirk on the Utah Valley University campus last September. Kirk’s parents and widow, Erika Kirk, were in the courtroom for the first time, along with Donald Trump Jr., President Donald Trump’s son. The hearing marks the most significant presentation of evidence in the case so far. After the hearing concludes, the judge must determine if the case should proceed.

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WASHINGTON, July 6 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump said on Monday the United States would either reach a deal with Iran or "finish the job," renewing his threat of military action as Tehran projects defiance following the funeral of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Indirect U.S.-Iran talks ended last week without any public sign of headway toward a lasting peace, despite a 60-day ceasefire intended to create space for diplomacy following the U.S. and Israeli strikes that triggered the conflict. "We're either going to make a deal or we're going to finish the job. OK. And it won't be tough to finish the job. I'd rather make a deal, because I don't want to affect 91 million people," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. "We can knock down their bridges in one hour, we can knock out their energy supply.... They don't have any money now. We haven't given them any money." Trump spoke after Khamenei's weekend funeral where, rather than looking weakened by the war that began with U.S. and Israeli strikes on February 28, Iranians appeared to be defiant, united and determined ?to shape what comes next. The 60-day ceasefire was intended by Washington to revive ?diplomacy on stopping Iran developing a nuclear arsenal.

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July 6 (Reuters) - More than 485,000 homes and businesses were without power as of late Sunday due to extreme weather conditions across several areas of the United States, according to data from PowerOutage.us. Michigan was the hardest hit, with about 100,378 outages, roughly 2% of the state's 5.1 million customers, according to the data. The hardest-hit utility was a unit of DTE Energy in Michigan, where around 82,472 homes and businesses were without service. "Our Storm Response Team is working as quickly and safely as possible to restore service and is on track to restore 95% of impacted customers by the end of day today, Monday, July 6," DTE Energy said on its website. Pennsylvania had the second-highest number of outages by state, with about 95,732 customers without power. A unit of PPL Electric Utilities in Pennsylvania had around 65,401 customers without power, which is about 3.3% of its customers in the state. "Crews restored power to more than 196,000 customers since Friday," PPL Electric Utilities said on its website. New York-based energy company Con Edison said on Sunday it had restored power to more than 166,800 of the approximately 173,700 customers whose service was impacted by extreme weather. Con Edison said the cities of Yonkers, Mount Vernon, Rye and New Rochelle in Westchester County, which is north of New York City, experienced the greatest number of storm-related outages, and 95% of its Westchester customers affected by the July 4 storms are expected to be restored by Monday at 7 p.m. EDT (2300 GMT). Here are the eight biggest outages by state: State Outages Michigan 100,378 Pennsylvania 95,732 New Jersey 56,616 New York 45,863 Connecticut 32,140 Maryland 29,854 Ohio 16,553 Texas 13,977 Total 485,890

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HAVANA, Cuba (AP) — An island-wide blackout hit Cuba on Monday as fuel reserves dwindle and its electric grid continues to crumble. The blackout was reported by Cuba’s Electric Union, which said on X that the cause was under investigation. Fuel has been running out across Cuba since January when U.S. President Donald Trump threatened tariffs on any country that sells or provides oil to the island, deepening the island's ongoing economic and financial crisis. Public transportation has largely been halted, and officials have canceled tens of thousands of surgeries.

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Real Life with Jack Hibbs, July 12, 2026

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Harvest with Greg Laurie, July 12, 2026

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Turning Point with Dr. David Jeremiah, July 12, 2026

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America’s Laws, America’s Citizens, America’s Vote

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Kirk Family Faces Painful New Chapter As Preliminary Hearing Unfolds

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With Theo Wold, Former White House Deputy Assistant for Domestic Policy under President Trump.

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With Del. Matt Morgan, represents St. Mary's County in Maryland and chairman of the Maryland Freedom Caucus.

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With Willie Nelson, White House Correspondent for Salem News Channel.

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With Hans Von Spakovsky, Senior Legal Fellow at Advancing American Freedom's (AAF).

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At least 19 people in New Jersey are believed to have died from heat-related causes after several days of record-breaking temperatures, according to state officials. Many of the victims were found in homes without air conditioning as temperatures climbed above 100 degrees in parts of the state. Officials say the prolonged heat placed dangerous stress on vulnerable residents. As the heat wave begins to ease, severe storms have swept across the eastern U.S., knocking out power to nearly one million homes and businesses and raising concerns about additional flash flooding and dangerous weather.

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The Trump administration plans to open a new 528-bed ICE facility in central Louisiana designed to process migrant families and unaccompanied children awaiting deportation. The facility will be built at a former military base in Alexandria, adjacent to one of the nation's busiest hubs for deportation flights. Immigration and Customs Enforcement describes the site as a "staging facility," not a detention center. Immigration advocates say the proposal raises concerns about whether children could be held longer than limits established under existing court agreements and legal protections.

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A Delta Air Lines flight reported being struck by what the crew believed was a firework while descending into Chicago Midway International Airport during Fourth of July celebrations. The Airbus A319, carrying 52 passengers and six crew members from Atlanta, landed safely without injuries. Delta says mechanics inspected the aircraft and found no damage. The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating the incident after the flight crew reported hearing a loud bang just before landing. Air traffic control recordings also indicated there were multiple reports of fireworks near aircraft in the Chicago area that night.

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Eight people, including four children, were shot during a Fourth of July cookout near New York City's Coney Island on Saturday night, police said. Authorities say a masked gunman opened fire into the courtyard of an apartment building about a block from the famous boardwalk before fleeing the scene. Police recovered a firearm but have not announced any arrests. A 21-year-old woman remains in critical condition, while the other seven victims — including children ages 6, 7, 12 and 14 — are expected to survive. Investigators continue searching for the suspect and are asking anyone with information to come forward.

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Dems & Media Hate America's 250th Birthday

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Thousands of mourners gathered in Iran this weekend for the funeral of former Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Several of Khamenei's sons were seen praying beside his coffin and those of other family members killed in recent violence. However, his successor, Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei, did not attend the public funeral, drawing attention as the country continues its political transition. The funeral came amid heightened tensions in the region following recent fighting between Iran and the United States.

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