US pro table tennis league blasts niche sport into spotlight

(The Center Square) – A student at Torrey Pines High School in San Diego was suspended after posting a pro-Immigration and Customs Enforcement flyer reading, “We [heart] ICE – Real Americans,” following an anti-ICE walkout on campus, according to the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression.

Student-led anti-ICE walkouts have continued to rise nationwide. In 2026 alone, more than 300 such walkouts and protests have taken place. Various organizations have led training programs within K–12 schools, and the National Education Association has provided $1.7 million in funding to a May Day 2026 training toolkit that includes anti-U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement messaging, according to an investigation by Defending Education.

A “Four Weeks of Power” training series is organized and led by Free the Future, the Alliance to Reclaim Our Schools, New York University’s Steinhardt Metro Center and the Midwest Academy.

Torrey Pines school officials reportedly claimed the student's flyer was “harassment” and “intimidation,” leading to the student's suspension and prompting concerns from free speech advocates.

“Schools cannot favor one viewpoint over another. When students express themselves non-disruptively, the First Amendment guarantees their right to freedom of speech, regardless of what opinion they share,” Conor Fitzpatrick, senior attorney at FIRE, told The Center Square.

Midwest Academy has received $1,735,000 since 2015. The NEA funding has supported trainings and organizing efforts that promote demonstrations calling for policies like taxing the wealthy, opposing ICE and expanding democracy, according to materials outlined in the toolkit.

At the school level, the toolkit encourages participants to stage “walk-ins,” where students and supporters gather on campus to protest or “celebrate” issues related to school conditions and public policy.

“It should be deeply concerning that one of the suggested tactics is to enter schools to protest against policies they don’t like,” Rhyen Staley, director of research at Defending Education, said in a statement. “Putting children's education and safety at risk for political gain is unethical and immoral.”

The Center Square reached out to Defending Education for further comment but has not received a response. 

Fitzpatrick said punishing students for expressing certain viewpoints while allowing others raises concerns about viewpoint discrimination.

“Any time a student is punished for non-disruptive speech, it makes others scared to exercise their own free speech rights,” Fitzpatrick said. “We expect schools to prepare students for real life, and in life, students will have co-workers, neighbors and elected officials who may not talk, think or pray the same way they do.”

Fitzpatrick added that, generally, speech in schools rises to the level of punishable harassment only if it is “so severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive” that it effectively denies other students equal access to educational opportunities. He said intimidation must meet a high legal threshold, such as a true threat involving intent to commit unlawful violence, to be subject to discipline.

The Center Square reached out to the NEA for a comment, but has not received a response.

Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Doncic will miss the remainder of the NBA regular season with a left hamstring strain, the team said Friday.

Doncic "has been diagnosed with a Grade 2 left hamstring strain and will be out for the remainder of the regular season," the Lakers, who have five games left in the regular season, said in a statement.

ESPN reported that Doncic, who leads the league in scoring, is "uncertain" for the playoffs.

Doncic's injury is a massive blow to the Lakers, who have clinched a playoff berth but at third in the Western Conference are just one game ahead of the fourth-placed Denver Nuggets.

Doncic, who is averaging 33.5 points per game, 8.3 assists and 7/7 rebounds, limped out of the third quarter of the Lakers' crushing 139-96 loss to the reigning champion Oklahoma City Thunder on Thursday.

The 27-year-old Slovenian was emotional as he hobbled toward the sideline. Moments earlier he had pulled up in obvious pain while driving to the basket.

Doncic produced a magical March campaign, delivering 13 30-point performances. That included seven 40-point games -- with one game of 51 and one of 60.

He had joined icon Michael Jordan as the only players in NBA history to score 600 points in the month of March and became one of just 10 players to score 600 points in any calendar month.

He has been central to the Lakers' surge to third in the West and put himself firmly in the Most Valuable Player conversation.

But missing five more games could see him fail to play the minimum 65 games required for award eligibility.

Doncic had felt some discomfort in the hamstring in the first half of Thursday's game, but coach JJ Redick said team medical staff had cleared him to return for the second half.

"We checked him out," Redick said after the game. "He got work done, but he was cleared. We're not going to put a player at risk. Those things happen."

bb/amz

Thiago Tirante stunned top-seeded Ben Shelton 7-6 (7/5), 3-6, 6-4 on Friday to book a semi-final showdown with friend and fellow Argentinian Roman Burruchaga at the ATP clay court tournament in Houston, Texas.

Tirante, ranked 83rd in the world, notched his second career win over a top-10 player as he sent the ninth-ranked Shelton packing to reach the second ATP semi-final of his career.

"I knew that Ben was a very difficult player, a great player, so I had to take more risks at some times of the match," said Tirante, who fended off a break point early in the third set and broke Shelton for a 5-4 lead before serving it out with a comfortable hold.

"I did sometimes good, I did sometimes bad, but that's the key. (I had to stay) mentally strong all the time and try to break the serve -- he serves amazing."

Burruchaga, ranked 77th, upset third-seeded American Learner Tien, ranked 22nd in the world, 7-5, 6-4 to reach his first career semi-final.

The son of former soccer player Jorge Burruchaga, who won the World Cup with Argentina in 1986, the 24-year-old had already knocked out another member of the world top 40 on Thursday, 33rd-ranked local favorite Brandon Nakashima.

bb/amz

As Artemis 2 astronauts forged ahead Friday on their lunar mission, NASA released initial images taken from inside the Orion spacecraft, including a full portrait of Earth featuring its deep blue oceans and billowing clouds.

After a flurry of high-stakes activity including a dramatic blast-off and an engine firing that catapulted them on their historic trajectory to circle the Moon, the four astronauts aboard were able to catch their breath, even as they continued to perform a variety of equipment checks and tests.

"There has been a tremendous amount of disbelief for me, it's just so extraordinary," said Canadian Jeremy Hansen during a Q&A session with press late Thursday.

"I really like it up here," said Hansen, on his first ever journey to space. "The views are extraordinary."

"It's really fun to be floating around" in zero gravity, he added. "It just makes me feel like a little kid."

Hansen is on the crew with Americans Christina Koch, Victor Glover and Reid Wiseman.

They are due to loop around the Moon early next week -- a feat not accomplished in more than 50 years.

NASA official Lakiesha Hawkins praised the photographs taken by commander Wiseman, calling them "amazing" during a briefing Friday.

"We continue to learn all about our spacecraft as we operate it in deep space with crew for the first time," Hawkins said.

"It's important to remind ourselves of that as we learn a little bit more day by day.

- 'Great spirits' -

Friday's to-do list includes a CPR demonstration and medical kit checks, the US space agency said, as well as preparation for the scientific observations they'll need to document when they are closest to the Moon on day six of their journey.

NASA officials reported Friday that all systems were performing well, and that the astronauts were in "great spirits" and had spoken to their families.

The next major milestone of the approximately 10-day journey is expected overnight Sunday into Monday, at which point the astronauts will enter the "lunar sphere of influence" -- when the Moon's gravity will have stronger pull on the spacecraft than Earth's.

If all proceeds smoothly, as Orion whips around the Moon the astronauts could set a record by venturing farther from Earth than any human before.

"There is nothing normal about this," said mission commander Wiseman late Thursday.

"Sending four humans 250,000 miles away is a Herculean effort, and we are now just realizing the gravity of that."

The Artemis 2 mission is part of a longer-term plan to repeatedly return to the Moon, with the goal of establishing a permanent lunar base that will offer a platform for further exploration.

bur-mdo/mlm

Pope Leo XIV led a torch-lit procession at the Colosseum in Rome on Friday as he prepares for his first Easter as pontiff in the shadow of war in the Middle East.

Among the 30,000 people attending the poignant ceremony, known as the Way of the Cross, was Sarah, a Palestinian Catholic.

"We need peace in the Holy Land," she told AFP.

"People like you and me listen, but the governments don't. They still do whatever they want. They don't listen. They promise and they don't deliver," the 61-year-old said.

Geryes Bejjani, a 33-year-old Lebanese man, said he had come with friends to "carry a message of peace and coexistence," despite the difficulty of travelling from his homeland which has been dragged into the war.

"The pope is the only purely selfless political leader... There's no hidden agenda, there's no ambiguity in his message. And that's his strength," he said.

Leo, the first US-born pope, has repeatedly and ever more insistently called for peace in the Middle East and this week directly urged US President Donald Trump to find an "off-ramp".

"Hopefully he's looking for a way to decrease the amount of violence, of bombing," he said.

The United States and Israel sparked the war on February 28 by bombing Iran, which retaliated with strikes against Gulf states and an effective chokehold on the vital Strait of Hormuz.

"If only Trump would listen to anyone!" said Ines Duplessis, 29, who came from Paris to the Colosseum ceremony, where attendees held candles in a silence broken only by liturgical chants and recited prayers.

"For me, it's very symbolic, but nothing more," she said of the pope's appeals.

"Sadly, everything is so driven by political and economic interests" that "it's a bit of a lost cause", she said.

On Sunday, Leo will preside over Easter Mass in St. Peter's Square before delivering a typically political blessing which is especially anticipated this year.

– 'A form of humility' –

It is the first time since 2022 that the pope has personally taken part in the Way of the Cross, which has been organised at the Colosseum since 1964.

In recent years, his predecessor Francis, who died on Easter Monday last year aged 88, had to give up attending for health reasons.

Wearing his red mozzetta and stole, Leo appeared deep in prayer during the ceremony, listening with eyes closed.

The 70-year-old pope himself carried a large wooden cross through all 14 stations retracing Jesus Christ's path to the tomb, marking a return to a tradition observed by John Paul II and Benedict XVI.

Augustin Ancel, from Paris, said the pope carrying the cross was "a powerful message".

"It's also a form of humility, because we naturally tend to see the pope as distant, as someone in a very important role," he said.

cmk/dt/sbk

Vanessa Trump, former daughter-in-law of US President Donald Trump, offered a supportive message to boyfriend Tiger Woods on Friday after the golf superstar's driving under the influence arrest.

Vanessa Trump shared a photo of herself and Woods relaxing in a hammock to her Instagram feed with the caption "love you" and a couple of heart emojis.

Woods and Trump, who divorced Donald Trump Jr. in 2018 after a 13-year marriage, had revealed their romance in simultaneous social media posts in March of 2025.

At that time, the famously private Woods wrote on X "Love is in the air and life is better with you by my side," in a caption to photos of the couple -- one of which was the photo Vanessa Trump used on Friday to reaffirm her support.

Woods, 50, was arrested on March 27 on suspicion of DUI after clipping a trailer being pulled by a pickup truck and rolling his vehicle on a residential road near his Florida home.

A breathalyzer test cleared Woods of driving under the influence of alcohol, but he refused a urine analysis and officers at the scene determined he was impaired by an unknown substance.

Police found two hydrocodone painkiller pills on Woods, who told deputies he takes "a few" prescription medications.

Woods, who has undergone multiple back operations and surgeries on severe leg injuries he suffered in a 2021 California car crash, pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to DUI.

But he issued a statement saying he was "stepping away for a period of time to seek treatment and focus on my health."

That decision means Woods won't play in or attend the upcoming Masters tournament at Augusta National, where he is a five-time champion.

The 15-time major champion hasn't teed it up in a top-level golf event since the 2024 British Open.

He has become a key figure shaping plans to revamp the US PGA Tour schedule, but the PGA of America announced on Wednesday he will not captain the 2027 US Ryder Cup team.

Martin County Court judge Darren Steele on Wednesday granted Woods's request to leave the country to seek treatment.

In his motion to travel Woods's attorney Douglas Duncan cited the golfer's urgent need for an "intensive, highly individualized and medically integrated program" as well as privacy from media and public scrutiny.

Celebrity news website TMZ reported on Friday that Woods's private jet had landed in Zurich, Switzerland, although it could not confirm he was on board.

President Trump, who awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Woods in 2019 and last week called him a "very close friend," told the New York Post on Tuesday that he had spoken with Woods following his arrest.

In bodycam footage from the crash scene Woods is heard telling officers he was on the phone "with the president," although he didn't specify that it was Trump.

bb/amz

Here are the latest developments in the Middle East war:

- Iran says second US plane downed -

Iran's military says it has downed a second US military jet in the Gulf, according to state media.

There was no immediate confirmation or denial from Washington.

- Man killed in Syria -

State media in Syria said Israeli fire killed a man in Quneitra province in the country's south near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights.

The SANA agency said the man had been killed in an attack by "an Israeli tank", while state television said a car was targeted.

- One killed at UAE gas site -

An Egyptian national was killed and four others wounded after a fire at a gas complex in Abu Dhabi, caused by falling debris from an intercepted attack, the government media office said.

Two of the four people hurt were from Egypt, while the others were from Pakistan, it said. 

- Trump briefed on downed plane, Iran hunts for pilot -

US President Donald Trump has been briefed about the downing of a military jet in Iran that has triggered a major search and rescue operation for the crew, the White House said.

US media has reported that one crew member was rescued.

Iranian authorities urged people living in the rugged southwest of the country to search for the jet's crew, as state TV broadcast images of what was said to be the mangled debris. 

- Lebanon university warning -

The US embassy in Lebanon, where the Tehran-backed Hezbollah militant group is at war with Israel, said that Iran and allied groups could seek to target universities in the country.

Among other universities, Lebanon is home to the American University of Beirut, one of the most prominent US institutions in the region, whose campus and hospital are in the heart of the capital.

- Trump seeks $1.5 tn defence budget -

Trump asked lawmakers to approve a massive $1.5 trillion defence budget for 2027, as the United States faces rising costs from its war with Iran and mounting global security commitments.

The proposal would lift Pentagon spending by more than 40 percent in a single year -- the sharpest increase since World War II.

- UN peacekeepers wounded -

The United Nations force in Lebanon said a blast at one of its positions had wounded three peacekeepers, two of them seriously -- the third such incident in a week.

The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) is deployed in the country's south near the border, where Israel and Hezbollah have been at war for a month and where Israeli troops are carrying out a ground invasion.

- 'Immediate ceasefire' urged -

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan called for an immediate ceasefire in the Middle East war during a phone call, the Kremlin said.

"It was noted that intense military action is leading to serious negative consequences not only regionally but also globally, including in the areas of energy, trade, and logistics," it added.

- Fresh strikes on Beirut -

Fresh strikes hit Beirut's southern suburbs as the Israeli army said it was targeting "terror infrastructure", hours after having issued an evacuation warning for the area.

An AFP correspondent heard explosions as the state-run National News Agency reported strikes on the area, a Hezbollah bastion that has largely emptied of residents since war erupted last month.

- Tankers cross Hormuz -

Three tankers, including one co-owned by a Japanese company, crossed the Strait of Hormuz by hugging close to Oman's shore, a rare transit route as Iran maintains a chokehold on the key war-torn passageway.

Their passage was notable because they sailed close to the Omani Musandam Peninsula to the south of the waterway, maritime traffic data showed Friday.

- Italian PM visits Gulf -

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni began a surprise visit to Saudi Arabia as part of a Gulf tour to boost "national energy security", a government source said.

The source said Meloni would meet with officials from Saudi Arabia, as well as from Qatar and United Arab Emirates on what had been a hitherto unannounced trip.

burs/sst/jgc

(The Center Square) – Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers vetoed a pair of bills Friday that would have exempted overtime pay and cash tips from state income taxes.

Assembly Bill 461 would have matched a temporary federal income tax exemption on overtime that would apply to the extra pay received for working overtime up to $12,500 per year for an individual or $25,000 per year for joint filers.

The exemption is targeted at middle-income residents and is phased out for those making an adjusted gross income between $150,000 and $275,000 as an individual or $300,000 to $550,000 as a joint filer.

“My position has always been that when we provide tax relief, it should be real, responsible, and targeted to the middle class and working families who need it,” Evers said in his veto message. “Unfortunately, I must veto this bill in its entirety because I object to this bill changing the tax code in a way that will treat Wisconsin workers who earn similar wages differently just because of their classification as salaried or hourly workers.

“A salaried worker who earns $35,000 (and is not eligible to earn overtime compensation) should not pay a different amount in taxes from an hourly worker who earns $35,000 through working overtime. We should focus on creating a fairer tax code that provides real, responsible tax relief that supports rather than divides working Wisconsinites.”

Senate Bill 36 would similarly had created an exemption for up to $25,000 in cash tips from state income tax.

“I am vetoing this bill because I object to the Legislature effectively ceding control over the direction of state tax policy to Congress by connecting the proposed state tax deduction for tips to any change in the federal deduction, regardless of what is best for Wisconsin,” Evers wrote in his veto message. “We should not be at the whims of a Republican-controlled Congress that has no problem gutting basic necessities and services like food and access to healthcare just to pay for tax cuts for millionaires and billionaires.

“Wisconsin should retain control over the parameters of a potential income tax deduction for tips so we can modify the policy based on what makes the most sense for Wisconsinites.”

Robert MacIntyre stormed to the top of the Texas Open leaderboard Friday with a superb 64 that put the Scot 14-under-par after two rounds of the US PGA Tour event.

Having eagled the par-five 14th hole, MacIntyre birdied four of his final five holes on day two to open up a commanding advantage with afternoon starters still on the course.

His nearest rival was Ludvig Aberg, who was in the clubhouse on 10-under.

MacIntryre's 130 is the lowest opening 36-hole score since the Texas Open moved to its current course, TPC San Antonio, in 2010.

Asked what had gone well for him on Friday, MacIntyre replied: "Everything."

"I've been driving the ball nice... Iron play today was exceptional, I would say. Hit a pure wedge shot on 17, I thought it was absolutely dynamite there," he said.

MacIntyre, ranked 11th in the world, will be among the contenders at next week's Masters, the first major of 2026.

He said he had entered the Texas Open to be "sharper going into Augusta," after having skipped San Antonio last year.

"I prefer playing my way in whether it's one, two, sometimes three events before a major," he said. 

Elsewhere it was a day to forget for overnight leader Mark Hubbard, who had opened with a fine 65 on Thursday.

The American struck a 77 on Friday including six bogeys and a double bogey on the 5th, where he became trapped in the rough beyond the green.

amz/bb

(The Center Square) – As homeownership may be growing out of reach for many young residents, Illinois lawmakers are split between trimming taxes and growing state programs.

Republicans are pushing tax relief as Democrat leaders seek to expand spending on housing programs across the state.

Illinois state Sen. Erica Harriss, R-Edwardsville, shared details of a bill she introduced in February. Senate Bill 3959 would give first-time homebuyers a $500 tax credit, applying to income tax liabilities.

Harriss told senators the average home buyer was 40 years old last year, and only 21% of all homes were bought by first-time buyers, according to Illinois Realtors Association data. She added that the median sale price has increased by 54% since 2017, with current data showing prices are roughly $295,000 statewide.

Additional data from the association shows the Chicago metro’s average is $360,000 as of February.

“As our younger generation delays buying a home, they miss out on years of building up that generational wealth, that's part of the American dream,” Harriss said. “For many young people, the path to home ownership is getting further out of reach. This bill takes a practical step to help.”

Democrats have a different plan to address housing costs in the state. In his yearly address to the General Assembly, Gov. J.B. Pritzker said housing supply is the main issue.

He proposed a plan to remove bureaucratic roadblocks that he says slow down the process while driving up costs. 

The governor’s plan also includes expanding state spending by $50 million on a program providing residents making under specific income thresholds with $15,000 mortgages.

Pritzker has been critical of Republicans’ stance on state property taxes, saying the state is not responsible for property taxes because rates are set by local governments. Republican legislators have recently called for major property tax reform.

Harriss’ bill is part of a legislative package aimed at making housing more affordable, in part by decreasing property tax burden for residents.

In a news conference announcing the package, she said Senate Bill 2093 would make a current tax credit toward residential property taxes refundable.

“It's actually a credit that most homeowners have never even heard of. Here's the problem. If the credit is worth more than you owe in income taxes, the state just keeps the difference,” Harris said.