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Referee halts Feyenoord-Inter Champions League game after fans fire flares on to field

Sport

Referee halts Feyenoord-Inter Champions League game after fans fire flares on to field
Sport

Sport

Referee halts Feyenoord-Inter Champions League game after fans fire flares on to field

2026-11-04 07:53 Last Updated At:08:00

ROTTERDAM, the Netherlands (AP) — The Champions League game between Feyenoord and Inter Milan was interrupted on Tuesday after home fans, disappointed with their side losing, fired flares that landed on the pitch and on the roof of the De Kuip Stadium.

Inter, like Feyenoord on three points ahead of the game, went ahead early with a first European goal for defender Yann Bisseck.

Italy’s 21-year-old forward Pio Esposito headed the second goal later in the first half and Piotr Zieliński made the final score 3-0 with a long-range strike after 54 minutes.

It was the signal for the home fans to rain the flares on to the field, forcing the referee to stop the game for about two minutes and give officials a chance to clear the playing arena.

Inter's victory helped it bounce back from a 3-1 loss to rival AC Milan in Serie A on Saturday, while Feyenoord is set to be punished by UEFA for the behaviour of its fans.

See AP’s full soccer coverage here

Inter Milan players celebrate third goal during the Champions League soccer match between Feyenoord and Inter Milan in Rotterdam, Netherlands, Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Patrick Post)

Inter Milan players celebrate third goal during the Champions League soccer match between Feyenoord and Inter Milan in Rotterdam, Netherlands, Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Patrick Post)

Feyenoord's goalkeeper Tjark Ernst walks by a flare during the Champions League soccer match between Feyenoord and Inter Milan in Rotterdam, Netherlands, Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Patrick Post)

Feyenoord's goalkeeper Tjark Ernst walks by a flare during the Champions League soccer match between Feyenoord and Inter Milan in Rotterdam, Netherlands, Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026. (AP Photo/Patrick Post)

MIAMI (AP) — A federal judge in New York temporarily blocked President Donald Trump’s administration plans to deport Afghans detained in the United States to Afghanistan or Pakistan on Tuesday, after advocates and dozens of members of Congress warned that their lives would be at risk.

The government told the court Tuesday that Immigration and Customs Enforcement had no chartered or commercial flights for deporting Afghan nationals to Afghanistan or to Pakistan at least to the end of the week. Judge Valerie Caproni’s order, which expires Saturday, asks all officials to adhere to that. ICE books the flights weeks in advance.

A letter led by California Democratic Rep. Scott Peters and signed by 65 other members of the House and Senate said they were “extremely concerned that sending vulnerable people” would expose them to “persecution, torture, or even death.” The letter was sent Monday to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin.

Immigrant rights organizations have also warned that those deported could face retaliation from the Taliban.

Thousands of Afghans fled persecution and feared for their lives after helping the U.S. military and aid groups in Afghanistan.

According to court documents obtained by the Associated Press, the U.S. planned to deport Afghan immigrants on Monday on flights from Louisiana, where ICE has immigrant detention and processing facilities, to Pakistan.

The Trump administration has deported thousands of immigrants to countries other than their own. In some cases, it has resorted to third-country deportations when removal to their countries of origin was not possible, like when formal diplomatic relations were absent, as is the case with Afghanistan’s Taliban government. In other instances, third-country deportations have been used as a deterrent.

Advocates and attorneys said that more than 80 detained Afghans had contacted them after ICE notified them that they could be deported this week via Pakistan. Among them are women, a police officer, members of religious minorities, and people whose family members served in the U.S. military. Most fled Afghanistan because of persecution and do not have legal representation, according to Human Rights First and AfghanEvac, a nonprofit organization that advocates for immigrants.

Before the judge signed her order, Zia Ahmad Takal, deputy spokesman of foreign ministry, said “the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan expresses its serious concern" about the reports that U.S. plans to transfer Afghans to Pakistan.

Takal called the U.S. to make sure that decisions or actions are based on rights and “legitimate demands” of those involved, and said “third-party countries should not engage in dealings concerning the fate of another nation’s citizens.”

“Today is a good day,” Shawn VanDiver, president at AfghanEvac, said at a news conference. “But I want to be honest with you, this is a reprieve, not a resolution. We haven’t stopped this fight forever. This is just a pause.”

Savitri Arvey, director of policy, refugee and immigrant rights for Human Rights First, said individuals returned to Afghanistan “face grave, systematic dangers,” including arbitrary detentions, executions, public flogging and retaliatory violence.

“The stakes were very, very high,” she said, and noted that women and girls faced severe restrictions in Afghanistan, like systematic denials of education, employment and public speech.

Advocates expressed their concerned about the role of the Pakistani government in facilitating the returns to Afghanistan and the fact that there is no information about the arrangements that the U.S. has made with Pakistan.

“We celebrate today, but we’re getting right back to work tomorrow, continuing to make sure through our flight tracking that none of these flights are taking off,” Arvey said.

Abdul Qahar Afghan contributed from Jalalabad, Afghanistan.

FILE - Rep. Scott Peters, D-Calif., vice chair of the New Democrat Coalition, speaks with members of the press outside the West Wing of the White House on March 30, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)

FILE - Rep. Scott Peters, D-Calif., vice chair of the New Democrat Coalition, speaks with members of the press outside the West Wing of the White House on March 30, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky, File)

FILE - A federal agent wears an Immigration and Customs Enforcement badge in New York, June 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura, File)

FILE - A federal agent wears an Immigration and Customs Enforcement badge in New York, June 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura, File)

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