Iraq World Cup Playoff: Coach Calls for Postponement Amid US-Israeli-Iran Conflict

Mar 9, 2026 Iraq's World Cup playoff against Bolivia or Suriname in Monterrey, Mexico, on March 31 is in doubt due to the US-Israeli war with Iran. Coach Graham Arnold says the team may not be able to travel due to Middle East travel disruptions. The Iraqi coach emphasizes the importance of the game for the country and its passionate fans, aiming for the team's first World Cup appearance since 1986. He is exploring alternatives as the airport remains closed.

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Iranian women's soccer team seemingly make 'call to help'

'Save our girls': Supporters urge Australia to offer asylum for Iran women's football team

Growing calls for the Iranian women’s football team to be granted protection

Visuals of Israel’s massive strike on Tehran’s Mehrabad airport and obliteration of 16 aircraft

Australian government, FIFA urged to protect Iranian football team

Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei injured in airstrike, according to Iran's state media

The Man Who Stole an F-14 from Iran - An Amazing Story

On September 2, 1986, Iranian Air Force Major Ahmad Moradi Talebi climbed into the cockpit of an F-14 Tomcat and turned west — toward Iraq. He had been planning to defect for months. The Iraqis were waiting. They had an officer assigned to receive him. They had agreed on the exact route, altitude, and airspeed. There was just one problem: he was one day early.

What followed is one of the most devastating cases of friendly fire in Cold War history — shot down by the very people he was defecting to, then hunted down in Geneva eleven months later by the country he had fled. This is the full story of The Wrong Day.

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مجتبی خامنه‌ای به عنوان رهبر جدید جمهوری اسلامی تعیین شده است

Has Iran executed its ‘impossible to kill’ Quds general for being a spy? Reports say ‘man with nine lives’ who was always mysteriously absent when Israel carried out assassinations is dead

IRAN’S top military leader may have been executed by the regime after being identified as the turncoat who betrayed slain Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, it was claimed today.

Brigadier General Esmail Qaani – leader of the rogue state’s elite Quds Force – miraculously escaped the blitz which killed Khamenei a week ago.

But rumours spread last night that he had been identified as the mole at the pinnacle of the crumbling regime.

Unverified reports began swirling that he had been sentenced to death today after nothing was heard of him since war erupted.

The bearded strongman had survived despite being the focus of suspicion for years which earned him the nickname “The Man With Nine Lives.”

He is reported to have convinced interrogators of his innocence several times after mysteriously leaving sites wiped out by Israeli missile and drone strikes soon after.

Unverified reports circulating in Arab online media claimed Qaani left the site minutes before blasts wiped out 86-year-old Khamenei in his presidential palace last Saturday.

It is not the first time 68-year-old Qaani has cheated death during pinpoint attacks launched by his arch enemy.

He was believed to have died alongside Hezbollah heir apparent Hashem Saffeieddine, 60, in last week’s bunker blast.

But sources in Lebanon, Iraq and Iran have since revealed was not at the meeting – and dodged another a week earlier in which Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah was blitzed.

FIFA, AFC urged to protect Iran women footballers after ‘traitors’ threat

The global representative organisation for professional footballers, FIFPRO, has urged governing bodies responsible for the 2026 Women’s Asian Football Confederation Cup to protect the Iran national team after they were labelled “wartime traitors” by an Iranian state ‌television presenter.

Both FIFA, world football’s governing body, and the AFC have been called upon to “undertake all necessary steps to ensure the safety of Iran’s Women’s National Team players”.

The Iran women’s national football team players did not sing their national anthem before their Asian Cup opener against South Korea in Australia earlier ⁠this week.

Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting presenter Mohammad Reza Shahbazi said in a video that the players showed a lack of patriotism and their actions amounted to the “pinnacle of dishonour” in footage circulating widely on social media.

“Let me ⁠just say one thing: traitors during wartime ⁠must be dealt with more severely,” Shahbazi said.

“Anyone who takes a step against the country under war conditions must be dealt with more severely. Like this matter of ⁠our women’s football team not singing the national anthem … these people must be dealt with more ⁠severely.”

FIFA and the AFC must act immediately.

They must issue a clear public statement affirming that every player competing under their jurisdiction holds the unqualified right to any response, or non-response, to their own national anthem.

They must make equally clear that any… pic.twitter.com/Y9jITqFyHk

— Craig Foster (@Craig_Foster) March 6, 2026

Trump wants new Iranian leadership, says there will be ‘no deal’

A new form of of transitional leadership must have Armed Forces support. A current moderate polition or a moderate military general who can establish order and run the country can take up the tranisionary tasks until it will be time for general election.  

Trump said that new leadership in the country is “going to work like it did in Venezuela,” in reference to the U.S. taking out former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. But the logistical and political parameters surrounding each country are different, and it is unclear whether a band of U.S.-friendly leadership could emerge in Iran as it seems to have with Caracas.

The president’s latest comments came after he said in a phone interview with Axios on Thursday that he must be personally involved in the selection of Iran’s new leadership. What that looks like at this point is unclear.

“We want someone that will bring harmony and peace to Iran,” Trump told the outlet.

“They are wasting their time. Khamenei’s son is a lightweight. I have to be involved in the appointment, like with Delcy [Rodríguez] in Venezuela,” the president said.

Iran security forces issue shoot-to-kill orders, escalating crackdown amid growing unrest

Iranian authorities have issued direct threats against citizens as the US-Israel strikes continue, warning that security forces will use lethal force against suspected thieves and protesters.

Ahmadreza Radan, commander-in-chief of Iran's Law Enforcement Forces (LEF), said Friday that police had been authorised to shoot suspected thieves on sight.

"Because we are in a state of war, I have issued a shoot-to-kill order for dealing with potential thieves," Radan said in an interview with state television. "If any thief is caught by our forces, they will be shot and immobilised."

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اختصاصی؛ اطلاعات سپاه زنان ملی‌پوش فوتبال را تهدید به بازداشت خانواده‌‌شان کرد

نهادهای امنیتی، بازیکنان و مربیان تیم ملی فوتبال زنان ایران را پس از بازی مقابل
کره‌جنوبی، از طریق زیر فشار گذاشتن خانواده‌های‌شان تهدید کرده بودند.

یک منبع آگاه به ایران وایر اطلاع داده که پس از دیدار تیم‌های ملی فوتبال زنان ایران و کره‌جنوبی در رقابت‌های «جام ملت‌های زنان آسیا» و خودداری بازیکنان و مربیان، از هم‌خوانی سرود جمهوری اسلامی در مراسم پیش از بازی، سازمان‌های امنیتی با همکاری فدراسیون فوتبال و وزارت ورزش و جوانان، از طریق اعضای درجه یک خانواده بازیکنان با آن‌ها تماس گرفته و آن‌ها را تهدید کرده بودند که در صورت هم‌خوانی نکردن سرود جمهوری اسلامی و خودداری از اجرای حرکت «سلام نظامی» در بازی دوم، اعضای خانواده‌شان بازداشت خواهند شد.

سازمان اطلاعات سپاه، پیش از این در سال ۱۴۰۱ و زمانی که «الناز رکابی» بدون حجاب اجباری در رقابت‌های بین‌المللی صخره‌نوردی کره جنوبی شرکت کرد نیز «داود رکابی» برادر این صخره‌نورد را بازداشت کرد تا الناز رکابی را وادار به بازگشت به ایران و تن دادن به اعتراف اجباری در فرودگاه خمینی کند.

فرد آگاه به ایران وایر گفته است که بازیکنان تیم ملی فوتبال زنان ایران مطلع شده‌اند در صورت هم‌خوانی نکردن سرود حکومتی، عدم اجرای سلام نظامی در زمان پخش سرود و حتی اقدام به اعلام پناهندگی در استرالیا و عدم بازگشت به ایران، اعضای خانواده درجه یک آن‌ها مانند «والدین»، «همسر» یا «خواهر و براداران‌شان» توسط اطلاعات سپاه بازداشت خواهند شد.

«محمدرضا شهبازی» مجری برنامه‌های صداوسیما حکومتی پنج‌شنبه ۱۴اسفند در واکنش به همخوانی نکردن سرود جمهوری اسلامی توسط بازیکنان تیم ملی فوتبال زنان ایران در بازی مقابل کره جنوبی، این بازیکنان را «بی‌شرف» خواند و از مسوولین خواسته بود با آن‌ها طبق «خائنان در شرایط جنگی» برخورد کنند تا «بقیه هم ماست‌شان را کیسه کنند.»

طبق اطلاعات رسیده به ایران وایر، از ۲۰دی۱۴۰۴ «محسن معتمدکیا» رییس روابط عمومی وزارت ورزش و جوانان موظف شده است به صورت روزانه، عملکرد ورزشکاران در فضای مجازی و مراودات آن‌ها را به سازمان اطلاعات سپاه گزارش دهد. همچنین فدراسیون فوتبال تحت ریاست «مهدی تاج» سردار بازنشسته اطلاعات سپاه اصفهان، طی سال‌های گذشته همکاری نزدیکی با نهادهای امنیتی و حکومتی داشته است.

Sri Lanka takes control of second Iranian vessel a day after US sub attack

Sri Lanka has taken control of an Iranian naval vessel off its coast, a day after the US sunk an Iranian warship in the same waters - in an attack that killed at least 87 people.

The vessel, the Irins Bushehr, had requested on Wednesday to dock at one of Sri Lanka's ports as one of its engines had malfunctioned. Some 208 members of the vessel have been evacuated.

Sri Lanka allowed it to dock at a north-eastern port after hours of discussion, with its president saying they would "never hesitate to protect humanity".

The South Asian country has stressed its neutrality, saying it would take no sides as it finds itself caught in the middle of the US-Israeli military campaign against Iran.

"Our position has been to safeguard our neutrality while demonstrating our humanitarian values," President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said in a statement.

"[Sri Lanka] intervened in a way that demonstrated our commitment to international conventions, protecting the reputation and dignity of our country, and protecting human lives," he said on Thursday.

His statements come after an American submarine on Wednesday torpedoed the Iris Dena - which was struck about 44 nautical miles (81km) off Sri Lanka's southern coast.

The frigate, which was carrying about 180 crew, was part of a multinational naval exercise in the Bay of Bengal. Sri Lanka lies in the Indian Ocean, southeast of India and southwest of the Bay of Bengal.

The sinking of the Iris Dena marked an escalation in the widening Middle East conflict.

Iran TV calls women’s soccer team 'traitors' for not singing anthem

(Reuters) – An Iranian state television presenter has labelled the women’s national soccer team as “wartime traitors” after the players did not sing their national anthem before the Asian Cup game against South Korea in Australia.

Iran are playing in the continental tournament even as a military conflict escalates back home after the U.S. and Israel launched air strikes over the weekend, killing the Islamic Republic’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

“Anyone who takes a step against the country under war conditions must be dealt with more severely. Like this matter of our women’s football team not singing the national anthem … these people must be dealt with more severely.”

Iran TV calls women’s soccer team 'traitors' for not singing anthem

US president Donald Trump says he does not care if Iran participate in this summer’s World Cup.

The United States and Israel began attacking targets in the country on Saturday, with the conflict in the Middle East since spreading to the wider region.

Iran have qualified for the World Cup, which will take place in the US, Canada and Mexico in June and July, but their presence is now potentially in doubt. They are scheduled to play all three of their group games in the US, with their opener coming against New Zealand in Los Angeles on 15th June.

US President Trump told Politico: “I really don’t care. I think Iran is a very badly defeated country. They’re running on fumes.”

Neighbours Iraq are scheduled to face the winners of Bolivia versus Suriname in the intercontinental World Cup play-offs in Monterrey on 31st March with a place at the tournament at stake.

A national team statement said they were continuing discussions with Fifa regarding the match, outlining the issues they were facing.

“Fifa and the Asian Football Confederation are fully aware of every development regarding our team’s situation,” the Iraqi national team said.

“Because of airspace closures, our head coach, Graham Arnold, is unable to leave the United Arab Emirates. In addition, several embassies remain closed at the present time, preventing several professional players, technical and medical staff members from obtaining entry visas to Mexico.”