Highlights

•     Referee Artan was denied entry to US ahead of World Cup
•     He urges Somalis not to lose hope, thanks FIFA for support
•     Disappointed Somali fans call decision ‘shameful’

Somali soccer ​referee Omar Abdulkadir Artan said on Wednesday (10 June) the decision to bar him entry to the United ‌States for the World Cup was “fate” and urged his fellow Somalis not to lose heart over it.

Artan, Africa’s referee of the year in 2025, had been set to become the first Somali to officiate at soccer’s global showpiece, but was turned back ​by US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) over the weekend.

The Trump administration said on Tuesday the US had ​denied Artan entry for the World Cup because of his links to “suspected members of ⁠terror organizations”.

“What happened has happened and it was fate. I am grateful for the support FIFA gave me,” ​Artan told reporters after arriving in Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu, and urged his supporters to stand behind their country.

“Somalia is ​ours, whether things are good or bad. I want to tell our youth not to lose hope in our country,” he said. “I am now in my country, and there is no other place I want to be.”

The Trump administration’s strict immigration policies have ​been a point of concern, opens new tab before the World Cup, with Washington imposing a sweeping travel ban last year on ​citizens of 12 countries, including Somalia.

A FIFA spokesperson said Artan would now not be able to train or officiate at the ‌tournament, ⁠which is being held in the US, Mexico and Canada and starts on Thursday.

FANS UPSET

The news was greeted with bitter disappointment by Somali soccer fans who had been eagerly anticipating Artan’s presence at the tournament.

“It would have been a massive moment not just for him, but for the rest of us and Africa,” Abdifatah, a student ​who gave only his first ​name, told Reuters.

Photographer Najib ⁠A. Farah, 26, described the decision as “shameful”.

“Omar Artan was a role model for Somali referees and turning him away sends the wrong message to young Somalis aspiring to ​careers in football,” he said.

Somalia’s government said it had tried unsuccessfully to negotiate ​with the US ⁠and FIFA so that Artan could enter the US and was saddened by what had happened.

Without identifying Artan, the CBP said a Somali national arrived at Miami International Airport from Istanbul on Saturday and was deemed inadmissible because of ⁠vetting concerns.

An ​administration official later said CBP officials had determined that Artan was ​a threat to national security.

It was not clear which game or games Artan would have refereed, although such information is typically only announced ​two to three days in advance.

Ain O Salish Kendra (ASK) has expressed deep concern and demanded swift justice over the gang rape of a woman and her teenage daughter by robbers in Cox’s Bazar’s Matamuhuri upazila on Monday (8 June).

The victims’ husband works in Chattogram city, leaving the woman with her two daughters, aged fifteen and seven.

A gang of eight to ten robbers broke into their home late Monday night. They cut through a window grill to enter. After looting gold and cash, the gang raped the woman and her teenage daughter.

Ask labeled this act as barbaric and not just a personal tragedy, but raises serious questions about the state’s ability to ensure women’s and children’s safety. Such violence damages citizens’ sense of security and creates fear in society.

The organisation noted that despite repeated incidents of violence against women and children, gaps remain in prevention, swift investigation and accountability.

Ask strongly demanded that all perpetrators be identified, arrested and punished under the law. It also called for urgent medical care, mental health support, legal aid and maximum security for the mother and daughter.

Ain O Salish Kendra further stated that the state must take preventive measures. This includes boosting law enforcement capacity, strengthening local surveillance and ensuring quick justice free from any influence.

Ask said there can be no place for violence against women and children in a just and democratic state. It urged the state to follow a zero-tolerance policy strictly to combat such crimes.

Dr Zubaida Rahman, vice president of the Ziaur Rahman Foundation, today (10 June) proposed an environmental start-up fund, along with the establishment of a green volunteering programme and climate youth fellowship, to strengthen environmental protection efforts in Bangladesh.

Speaking while inaugurating a month-long tree plantation campaign and a science fair in Dhaka University’s Curzon Hall area, organised to mark Ziaur Rahman’s 45th death anniversary, she said green volunteering can be incorporated into the curriculum to raise environmental awareness among students.

Tree planting should not remain a routine programme but should instead be transformed into a green revolution driven by public participation, bringing economic, social and intergenerational benefits, she added.

Highlighting the role of science and innovation, Zubaida said those engaged in scientific fields must make effective use of their talents and advance through healthy competition.

New innovations will help fulfil people’s aspirations, while scientific innovation will provide solutions to many of our challenges, she added.

She said teachers and students dedicated to scientific inquiry are a source of confidence not only for the nation but for the wider world.

Tomorrow’s Bangladesh will move forward on the strength of their ideas and vision, Zubaida said.