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For more than 50 years, WHUR has been broadcasting to listeners in the U.S. capital from Howard University, a historically black institution. A commercial station owned by the university, it offers music, news and education opportunities. During Black History Month, VOA’s Cristina Caicedo Smit met the team behind the unique station. …
Washington — The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday threw out the murder conviction and death penalty for Richard Glossip, an Oklahoma man who has steadfastly maintained his innocence and averted multiple attempts by the state to execute him. The justices found that Glossip’s trial violated his constitutional rights. The justices heard arguments in October in a case that produced a rare alliance in which lawyers for Glossip and the state argued that the high court should overturn Glossip’s conviction and death sentence because he did not get a fair trial. The victim’s relatives had told the high court that they want to see Glossip executed. Oklahoma’s top criminal appeals court had repeatedly upheld the conviction and sentence, even after the state sided with Glossip. Glossip was convicted and sentenced to death in the 1997 killing in Oklahoma City of his former boss, motel owner Barry Van Treese, in what prosecutors have alleged was a murder-for-hire scheme. Glossip has always maintained his innocence. Another man, Justin Sneed, admitted robbing Van Treese and beating him to death with a baseball bat but testified he only did so after Glossip promised to pay him $10,000. Sneed received a life sentence in exchange for his testimony and was the key witness against Glossip. …
U.S. President Donald Trump plans to send 30,000 undocumented migrants to Guantanamo Bay, the U.S. naval base in Cuba. While it is most well known for housing terror suspects after 9/11 — and for drawing condemnation from human rights groups — Guantanamo has been occasionally used as a processing center for immigrants trying to reach the U.S., mostly from Haiti and Cuba. Although Guantanamo’s Migrant Operations Center is separate from the high-security jail, that doesn’t mean it has escaped scrutiny. …
BERLIN — A trial began Tuesday in Germany for four alleged members of U.S.-designated terror group Hamas who are suspected of organizing weapons caches across Europe. The country’s top prosecutor accuses the men of membership in a foreign terrorist organization. It’s a pilot case for prosecutors, German news agency dpa reported. “For the first time in Germany, people are facing charges of participating as members of the foreign terrorist organization Hamas,” prosecutor Jochen Weingarten said, according to dpa. The men are accused of seeking out some weapons depots set up years ago, as well as setting up new ones, for Hamas across Europe so it could later use the firearms and ammunition for attacks against Israeli and Jewish targets on the continent, prosecutors said when filing charges last year. The weapons were allegedly moved around Europe in preparation for Hamas’ terror attack against Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, prosecutors said. Around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed in that attack, and about 250 taken hostage. The attack triggered Israel’s air and ground offensive in Gaza, which has killed more than 48,200 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between combatants and civilians. The ministry says more than half the dead have been women and children. Hamas also considered targeting the Israeli Embassy in Berlin, the area around Tempelhof Airport in the capital and the U.S. Ramstein Air Base in Germany, authorities said. Abdelhamid Al A., Mohamed B., Nazih R. and Ibrahim El-R. were arrested in December 2023. Prosecutors identified them only by their first name and last initial in line with German privacy laws. All four had important positions within Hamas, prosecutors asserted. The men allegedly set up a weapons cache in Bulgaria in 2019 and in Denmark later that year. They sought to find a spot in Poland but were unsuccessful, prosecutors said. …
The Trump administration has proposed punitive new fees on international shipping that would target vessels owned by Chinese companies or manufactured in Chinese shipyards, promising to dramatically alter the economics of global trade. The new policy would charge Chinese-owned cargo ships, as well as third-country flagged vessels built in China, $1 million or more per port-of-call in the U.S. Large container ships often make multiple stops when delivering goods to the U.S., and would face new fees at each port. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) published the proposal Friday, tying it to an investigation into allegations by several U.S. labor unions that China has unfairly distorted the international shipbuilding industry. The investigation, conducted under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974, determined that the Chinese government has pursued a policy of subsidizing its domestic shipbuilding industry with the aim of “targeting for dominance” the global market. Growing market share The investigation pointed out that over the past 25 years, China’s share of the global shipbuilding industry has exploded. China accounted for about 5% of the total tonnage of ships manufactured in 1999. By 2023, the Chinese share of the market surpassed 50%. The USTR found that Chinese policy “burdens or restricts U.S. commerce by undercutting business opportunities for and investments in the U.S. maritime, logistics, and shipbuilding sectors; restricting competition and choice; creating economic security risks from dependence and vulnerabilities in sectors critical to the functioning of the U.S. economy; and undermining supply chain resilience.” The results of the investigation, which began during President Joe Biden’s administration, were announced last month. The proposal is open for public comment until March 24, at which point the administration will determine whether or not to implement it. Chinese reaction On Monday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian sharply criticized the U.S. move. “[T]o serve its political agenda at home, the U.S. has abused Section 301 investigation[s], which seriously violated WTO [World Trade Organization] rules and further undermined the multilateral trading system,” he said. “We call on the U.S. side to respect facts and multilateral rules and immediately stop its wrongdoings.” The China Association of the National Shipbuilding Industry (CANSI) and China Shipowner Association had previously blasted the USTR investigation as being “conclusions full of lies and distortion of facts.” In a statement issued when the results of the investigation were released, CANSI said, “Development of China’s shipbuilding industry strictly … “Trump administration proposes steep fees on Chinese cargo ships” →
After three years of relentless war, Ukraine is facing a mental health crisis, with hospitals overwhelmed by soldiers suffering from anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder. Doctors say the hidden wounds could linger for decades. Yan Boechat reports from Lviv in western Ukraine. …
The Church of England will seek to bring disciplinary proceedings against 10 clerics including former Archbishop of Canterbury George Carey, it said on Tuesday, implementing recommendations from an abuse report last year. The CoE, central to 85 million Anglicans worldwide, has been in crisis over safeguarding the vulnerable since the November report, which said ex-leader Justin Welby had taken insufficient action to stop one of the church’s most prolific serial abusers. Welby eventually stepped down over the findings. Eight priests and a former bishop were also listed among those potentially facing disciplinary action in the CoE statement as the CoE concluded its own independent review into all clergy criticized in last year’s report. That report found that the late John Smyth, a British lawyer who volunteered at Christian summer camps, subjected more than 100 boys and young men to “brutal and horrific” physical and sexual abuse over a 40-year period. The potential outcomes of the CoE’s disciplinary process, which is at its first stage, could result in various penalties ranging from a permanent ban from ministry to resignation by consent. “We must not forget that at the heart of this case are the survivors and victims who have endured the lifelong effects of the appalling abuse by John Smyth. We are truly sorry,” Alexander Kubeyinje, the CoE’s National Director of Safeguarding, said in the statement. “The Church is committed to taking very seriously its response to the findings of the review as well as responding to its recommendations.” …
Washington — The United States has started sending more migrants deemed by officials to be “high threat” criminal aliens to the U.S. naval base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, just days after emptying out the base’s migrant facilities. A U.S. defense official confirmed to VOA that a C-130 military cargo plane carrying migrants left Fort Bliss in Texas and arrived at Guantanamo Bay on Sunday. A second defense official said all 17 migrants were assessed to be “high threat” and are being held at the base’s detention facility. Both officials spoke to VOA on the condition of anonymity to discuss the deportation operations. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), which is spearheading the U.S. deportation efforts, along with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), has not yet responded to questions about the identities of the latest round of detainees sent to Guantanamo Bay, their countries of origin, or the crimes with which they are charged. The latest flight carrying migrants to Guantanamo Bay comes as U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is set to visit the base Tuesday to review the military’s efforts to support the mass deportations ordered by U.S. President Donald Trump. Hegseth, according to a Pentagon statement, “will receive briefings on all mission operations at the base, including at the Migrant Operations Center and the Guantanamo Bay Detention Facility.” “The Secretary’s trip underscores the Department’s commitment to ensuring the security and operational effectiveness of Guantanamo Bay Naval Station,” the statement added. ICE announced last Thursday that it had transported 177 migrants being held at Guantanamo Bay to Honduras, where they were to be picked up by the Venezuelan government. U.S. officials had previously said that more than 120 of those detainees were dangerous criminals, including members of Tren de Aragua, a Venezuelan street gang designated by the U.S. as a foreign terrorist organization. The approximately 50 other individuals who were deported Thursday had been held at the base’s migrant facility, designed to hold nonviolent individuals. Earlier this month, the commander of U.S. Southern Command, which oversees operations at the naval base at Guantanamo Bay, told lawmakers that the base’s migrant facility had the capacity to hold about 2,500 nonviolent detainees. Efforts are under way to allow it to house as many as 30,000 nonviolent migrants slated for deportation. The American Civil Liberties Union, along with several immigration rights groups, earlier this month filed a lawsuit against DHS, alleging the detainees held … “US again sends ‘high threat’ migrants to Guantanamo Bay” →
VATICAN CITY — Pope Francis, who is in critical condition in a hospital battling double pneumonia, rested well throughout the night, the Vatican said on Tuesday. The 88-year-old pope was admitted to Rome’s Gemelli hospital on Feb. 14. “The pope rested well all night,” the Vatican said in a one-sentence statement. On Monday, the Vatican said the pontiff’s condition remained critical but had shown a “slight improvement,” adding that the “mild kidney insufficiency,” first reported at the weekend, was not a cause for concern. Double pneumonia is a serious infection that can inflame and scar both lungs, making it difficult to breathe. The Vatican has described the pope’s infection as “complex,” and said it was caused by two or more microorganisms. Francis, who has been pope since 2013, has suffered bouts of ill health over the past two years. He is particularly prone to lung infections because he developed pleurisy as a young adult and had part of one lung removed. Thousands of people gathered in St. Peter’s Square on Monday evening to pray for the pope’s recovery. His friend, the Honduran cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga, told La Repubblica newspaper: “I think…it’s not time for him to go to heaven yet.” The pope signaled in early February that he had a bad cold, which meant he could not read out his speeches. Despite this, he continued to work, with multiple daily meetings and even taking part in open-air Masses, despite the chill. Some well-wishers have said he should have taken better care of himself, but Maradiaga defended his work ethic. “He is aware that he has a mission he must carry out, and nothing stops him. The pope explained that he did not accept his election (as pontiff) in order to rest,” he said. In Monday’s statement, the Vatican said Francis had resumed working in his self-contained apartment within the Gemelli hospital, and had called the Catholic parish in Gaza, which the pope has done frequently during the Israel-Hamas war. …
BOGOTA, Colombia — An annual United Nations conference on biodiversity that ran out of time last year will resume its work Tuesday in Rome with money at the top of the agenda. That is, how to spend what’s been pledged so far — and how to raise a lot more to help preserve plant and animal life on Earth. The talks in Colombia, known as COP16, yielded some significant outcomes before they broke up in November, including an agreement that requires companies that benefit from genetic resources in nature — say, by developing medicines from rainforest plants — to share the benefits. And steps were taken to give Indigenous peoples and local communities a stronger voice in conservation matters. But two weeks turned out to be not enough time to get everything done. The Cali talks followed the historic 2022 COP15 accord in Montreal, which included 23 measures aimed at protecting biodiversity. Those included putting 30% of the planet and 30% of degraded ecosystems under protection by 2030, known as the Global Biodiversity Framework. “Montreal was about the ‘what’ — what are we all working towards together?” said Georgina Chandler, head of policy and campaigns for the Zoological Society London. “Cali was supposed to focus on the ‘how’ — putting the plans and the financing in place to ensure we can actually implement this framework.” “They eventually lost a quorum because people simply went home,” said Linda Krueger of The Nature Conservancy, who is in Rome for the two days of talks “And so now we’re having to finish these last critical decisions, which are some of the nitty gritty decisions on financing, on resource mobilization and on the planning and monitoring and reporting requirements under the Global Biodiversity Framework.” The overall financial aim was to achieve $20 billion a year in the fund by 2025, and then $30 billion by 2030. So far, only $383 million had been pledged as of November, from 12 nations or sub-nations: Austria, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Japan, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Norway, Province of Québec, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Participants will discuss establishing a “global financing instrument for biodiversity” intended to effectively distribute the money raised. And a big part of the talks will be about raising more money. ‘Completely off track’ on larger financial goal Chandler and Kruger both said the finance points at Colombia’s talks were particularly contentious. “It’s really about how … “Talks to protect Earth’s biodiversity resume with money topping the agenda” →
Multiple regions of Ukraine came under aerial attack from Russian forces overnight, with officials in Kyiv and Sumy saying Tuesday there were injuries and damage to buildings. Mykola Kalashnyk, governor of the Kyiv region, said a 44-year-old woman was hospitalized as a result of the attacks, which also damaged several houses. Officials in Sumy said Ukrainian air defenses shot down seven drones, but that the attacks injured two people and damaged two apartment buildings. Cherkasy Governor Ihor Taburets said Tuesday on Telegram that the military destroyed 20 drones over his region. Taburets said there were no reports of injuries or damage. In the Dnipropetrovsk region, Governor Serhiy Lysak said air defenses destroyed three Russian drones, while Mykolaiv Governor Vitaliy Kim said the military shot down seven drones in his region. Russia’s Defense Ministry said Tuesday it shot down 20 Ukrainian drones overnight, mostly over the Bryansk region that is located along the Russia-Ukraine border. Bryansk Governor Alexander Bogomaz said on Telegram there were no injuries from the Ukrainian attack. Other intercepts took place over the Kursk and Kaluga regions, the Defense Ministry said. Some information for this story was provided by Reuters …
LONDON — More than 1,000 musicians including Kate Bush and Cat Stevens on Tuesday released a silent album to protest proposed changes to Britain’s copyright laws which could allow tech firms to train artificial intelligence models using their work. Creative industries globally are grappling with the legal and ethical implications of AI models that can produce their own output after being trained on popular works without necessarily paying the creators of the original content. Britain, which Prime Minister Keir Starmer wants to become an AI superpower, has proposed relaxing laws that currently give creators of literary, dramatic, musical and artistic works the right to control the ways their material may be used. The proposed changes would allow AI developers to train their models on any material to which they have lawful access, and would require creators to proactively opt out to stop their work being used. The changes have been heavily criticized by many artists, who say it would reverse the principle of copyright law, which grants exclusive control to creators for their work. “In the music of the future, will our voices go unheard?” said Bush, whose 1985 hit “Running Up That Hill” enjoyed a resurgence in 2022 thanks to Netflix show “Stranger Things.” The co-written album titled “Is This What We Want?” features recordings of empty studios and performance spaces to represent what organizers say is the potential impact on artists’ livelihoods should the changes go ahead. A public consultation on the legal changes closes later on Tuesday. Responding to the album, a government spokesperson said the current copyright and AI regime was holding back the creative industries, media and AI sector from “realizing their full potential.” “We have engaged extensively with these sectors throughout and will continue to do so. No decisions have been taken,” the spokesperson said, adding that the government’s proposals will be set out in due course. Annie Lennox, Billy Ocean, Hans Zimmer, Tori Amos and The Clash are among the musicians urging the government to review its plans. “The government’s proposal would hand the life’s work of the country’s musicians to AI companies, for free, letting those companies exploit musicians’ work to outcompete them,” said organizer Ed Newton-Rex, the founder of Fairly Trained, a non-profit that certifies generative AI companies for fairer training data practices. “The UK can be leaders in AI without throwing our world-leading creative industries under the bus.” …
President Donald Trump said Monday he’s nearing a deal with Ukraine and with Russia to end the war in Ukraine after a packed day of meetings at the White House with French President Emmanuel Macron. Trump urged Europe to take a bigger role in funding, and Paris pushed for more assurances from Moscow. The U.S. president pushed his desire for a deal to end the war, which struck its grim third anniversary Monday. He has said this will include an agreement with Ukraine for its critical minerals — a deal he hinted could be signed as soon as next week by Ukraine’s president. “There’s tremendous distrust on both sides,” Trump said. “That’s why it’s good that I’m coming in now. But I think it’s to the very much benefit of Russia to make a deal and to go on with leading Russia in a very positive way. That’s what you have to do. But I really believe that he wants to make a deal. I may be wrong, but I believe he wants to make a deal.” Macron was more circumspect, correcting Trump in the Oval Office when Trump said Europe supported Ukraine with a loan. Macron then warned against trusting Moscow. “Let’s try to get something first which … can be assessed, checked and verified,” he said in English. “And let’s be sure that we build sufficient guarantees in the short run. And this is where we are ready to be engaged. As for France, a lot of my European colleagues are ready to be engaged. But we do need this American backup, because this is part of the credibility of the security guarantees. And this is our collective deterrence capacity. And I have the feeling that the president has this capacity.” Analysts spoke of what the two leaders accomplished in their meetings. “It looks like they agreed to have European peacekeepers enforce the peace between Russia and Ukraine,” said William Pomeranz, a senior scholar at the Wilson Center Kennan Institute. “There are a lot of other side issues that I haven’t really been able to get a hold of, but yes, there are attempts to have a peace agreement and a use of peacekeepers to enforce the agreement between Russia and Ukraine.” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed hope and emphasized the importance of Washington’s role. “Our teams are already working productively with the U.S. on an economic agreement, … “Trump hosts French leader to discuss Ukraine endgame” →
STATE DEPARTMENT — Three years into Russia’s aggression in Ukraine, China is closely monitoring U.S. President Donald Trump’s strategy to end the war, as Beijing calculates its moves to position itself as a strategic partner for Ukraine while maintaining a no‐limits partnership with Russia, according to experts and former officials. This week, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron are set to hold in-person meetings in Washington, following the Feb. 18 direct talks between senior U.S. and Russian officials in Riyadh, the Saudi capital. Macron met with Trump Monday morning at the White House for a meeting that lasted nearly two hours. Both leaders participated in a videoconference with other G7 leaders about Ukraine. Earlier on Monday, Chinese President Xi Jinping spoke with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who updated Xi on the Riyadh talks and reaffirmed the “comprehensive strategic partnership” between Russia and China. A Chinese readout said, “China welcomes the positive efforts made by Russia and relevant parties to resolve the crisis.” ‘Crisis’ but not war For three years, Chinese officials have said Beijing will “play a constructive role” in the “political settlement of the crisis,” refraining from using the term “Ukraine war” to describe Russia’s aggression since Feb. 24, 2022. Beijing also commended the recent U.S.-Russia talks, during which Ukraine was not present. China and Ukraine “established a strategic partnership in 2011. … In recent years, China has been Ukraine’s largest trading partner,” Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha on Feb. 15 on the margins of the Munich Security Conference. “Regarding the Ukrainian crisis … China has always worked for peace and promoted talks,” Wang said. Notably, the Chinese readout of the meeting made no mention of Ukraine’s sovereignty or territorial integrity. On Feb. 20, two days after the U.S.-Russia talks, Wang held in-person discussions with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at the G20 ministerial meeting in Johannesburg, South Africa, where Lavrov briefed him on the Riyadh talks. Wang reaffirmed China’s “comprehensive strategic partnership” with Russia. Wang said China “supports” all efforts dedicated to peace, including “the recent consensus reached between the United States and Russia” in Riyadh. Talks, not negotiations U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the Riyadh talks — the first between Washington and Moscow in years — were not negotiations aimed at striking any deal on Ukraine, despite concerns from Ukraine and European countries that they were … “China eyes Trump’s Ukraine strategy, strengthens ties with Russia” →
WASHINGTON — A federal judge on Monday denied a request by the Associated Press to restore full access for the news agency’s journalists after President Donald Trump’s administration barred them for continuing to refer to the Gulf of Mexico in coverage. U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden, a Trump appointee, declined to immediately grant the AP’s request for a temporary injunction restoring its access to the Oval Office and Air Force One during a hearing in Washington federal court. The AP sued three senior Trump aides on Friday, arguing that the decision to block its reporters from those locations violates the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment protections against government abridgment of speech by trying to dictate the language they use in reporting the news. Lawyers for the Trump administration argued in a court filing before the hearing that the AP does not have a constitutional right to what it called “special media access to the president.” White House Communications Director Steven Cheung in an earlier statement had called the AP lawsuit a “blatant PR stunt.” During an appearance last week at the Conservative Political Action Conference, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt also said, “We feel we are in the right in this position.” Leavitt is one of the three White House officials named as defendants in the lawsuit. The other two, Chief of Staff Susan Wiles and Deputy Chief of Staff Taylor Budowich, have not responded to requests for comment. Trump signed an executive order last month directing the U.S. Interior Department to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. The AP said in January it would continue to use the gulf’s long-established name in stories while also acknowledging Trump’s efforts to change it. The White House banned AP reporters in response. The ban prevents the AP’s journalists from seeing and hearing Trump and other top White House officials as they take newsworthy actions or respond in real time to news events. The White House Correspondents’ Association said in a legal brief backing the AP in the case that the ban “will chill and distort news coverage of the president to the public’s detriment.” Reuters released a statement in support of the AP. …
BELVEDERE, CALIFORNIA — Clint Hill, the Secret Service agent who leaped onto the back of President John F. Kennedy’s limousine after the president was shot, then was forced to retire early because he remained haunted by memories of the assassination, has died. He was 93. Hill died Friday at his home in Belvedere, California, according to his publisher, Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. A cause of death was not given. Although few may recognize his name, the footage of Hill, captured on Abraham Zapruder’s chilling home movie of the assassination, provided some of the most indelible images of Kennedy’s assassination in Dallas on Nov. 22, 1963. Hill received Secret Service awards and was promoted for his actions that day, but for decades blamed himself for Kennedy’s death, saying he didn’t react quickly enough and would gladly have given his life to save the president. “If I had reacted just a little bit quicker. And I could have, I guess,” a weeping Hill told Mike Wallace on CBS’ 60 Minutes in 1975, shortly after he retired at age 43 at the urging of his doctors. “And I’ll live with that to my grave.” It was only in recent years that Hill said he was able to finally start putting the assassination behind him and accept what happened. On the day of the assassination, Hill was assigned to protect first lady Jacqueline Kennedy and was riding on the left running board of the follow-up car directly behind the presidential limousine as it made its way through Dealey Plaza. Hill told the Warren Commission that he reacted after hearing a shot and seeing the president slump in his seat. The president was struck by a fatal headshot before Hill was able to make it to the limousine. Zapruder’s film captured Hill as he leaped from the Secret Service car, grabbed a handle on the limousine’s trunk and pulled himself onto it as the driver accelerated. He forced Mrs. Kennedy, who had crawled onto the trunk, back into her seat as the limousine sped off. Hill later became the agent in charge of the White House protective detail and eventually an assistant director of the Secret Service, retiring because of what he characterized as deep depression and recurring memories of the assassination. The 1993 Clint Eastwood thriller In the Line of Fire, about a former Secret Service agent scarred by the JFK … “Clint Hill, agent who leaped onto JFK’s car after president was shot, dies at 93” →
Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, who has ruled the republic since 2007, said he wants to remain in power for life. VOA Russian spoke to regional experts who believe that despite this being illegal according to Russian laws, Kadyrov will resist stepping down in 2026 when his term ends. Oleg Orlov from the Nobel Prize-winning Memorial group draws parallels between Kadyrov and Russian President Vladimir Putin, both relying on repression to continue their rule. Click here for the full story in Russian. …
VOA Russian spoke to independent analyst Jakub Janovsky who documents Russian military equipment losses in the war with Ukraine. He noted that Russia has lost 136 military planes and 151 helicopters in three years of the war, reducing its aviation fleet so Moscow now relies more on long-range missiles and drones. Janovsky also said Russia has noticeably reduced the use of the heavy military equipment, such as tanks and armored fighting vehicles, on the frontline in Ukraine in the past several months, though the reasons for that are unknown. Click here for the full story in Russian. …
President Donald Trump pledged last week to impose an additional 25% tariff on U.S.-bound imports of cars, semiconductors and medical products, possibly after April – a move that experts believe could significantly affect Taiwan. TSMC, which is based in Taiwan and the world’s largest contract chipmaker, may suffer the most as 60% of its revenues are believed to be generated in the U.S. Click here for the full story in Mandarin. …
Dr. Nelson Castro, a close friend of Pope Francis and author of The Health of the Popes, told VOA that the pontiff’s health has worsened and his medical team is on high alert. Click here for the full story in Spanish. …
NEW YORK — Roberta Flack, the Grammy-winning singer and pianist whose intimate vocal and musical style on Killing Me Softly with His Song, The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face and other hits made her one of the top recording artists of the 1970s and an influential performer long after, died Monday. She was 88. She died at home surrounded by her family, publicist Elaine Schock said in a statement. Flack announced in 2022 she had ALS, commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, and could no longer sing, Little known before her early 30s, Flack became an overnight star after Clint Eastwood used The First Time I Ever Saw Your Face as the soundtrack for one of cinema’s more memorable and explicit love scenes, between the actor and Donna Mills in his 1971 film Play Misty for Me. The hushed, hymn-like ballad, with Flack’s graceful soprano afloat on a bed of soft strings and piano, topped the Billboard pop chart in 1972 and received a Grammy for record of the year. In 1973, she matched both achievements with Killing Me Softly, becoming the first artist to win consecutive Grammys for best record. She was a classically trained pianist discovered in the late 1960s by jazz musician Les McCann, who later wrote that “her voice touched, tapped, trapped, and kicked every emotion I’ve ever known.” Versatile enough to summon the up-tempo gospel passion of Aretha Franklin, Flack often favored a more reflective and measured approach. For Flack’s many admirers, she was a sophisticated and bold new presence in the music world and in the social movements of the time, her friends including the Rev. Jesse Jackson and Angela Davis, whom Flack visited in prison while Davis faced charges — for which she was acquitted — for murder and kidnapping. Flack sang at the funeral of Jackie Robinson, major league baseball’s first Black player, and was among the many guest performers on the feminist children’s entertainment project created by Marlo Thomas, Free to Be … You and Me. …
U.S. tech giant Apple has announced plans to create some 20,000 jobs and invest $500 billion over the next four years in the United States. Apple says it will expand teams and facilities in nine states across the country and that it aims to open a 23,200-square-meter server manufacturing facility in Texas in 2026. The announcement comes just days after Apple CEO Tim Cook met with U.S. President Donald Trump. “We are bullish on the future of American innovation, and we’re proud to build on our long-standing U.S. investments with this $500 billion commitment to our country’s future,” Cook said on the investment. “From doubling our Advanced Manufacturing Fund, to building advanced technology in Texas, we’re thrilled to expand our support for American manufacturing. And we’ll keep working with people and companies across this country to help write an extraordinary new chapter in the history of American innovation,” he added in a company statement. Trump thanked Cook and Apple for the investment on Monday morning on the social media platform Truth Social. “Apple has just announced a record $500 billion investment in the United States of America. The reason, faith in what we are doing, without which, they wouldn’t be investing 10 cents,” Trump said. Most of Apple’s consumer goods are currently assembled and produced overseas. Many of them, assembled in China, are liable to 10% tariffs imposed by Trump earlier in February. To reduce its reliance on international supply chains, Apple announced in January that it had begun mass producing its own chips at an Arizona factory owned by TSMC, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company. The TSMC Arizona factory, along with legislation aimed at increasing U.S. semiconductor production, were two of Trump’s largest industrial policy moves during his first term. In a release on its website, Apple said the $500 billion commitment includes the company’s work with thousands of suppliers across all 50 states, direct employment, Apple Intelligence infrastructure and data centers, corporate facilities, and Apple TV+ production in 20 states. Apple said it is also set to open a manufacturing academy in Michigan, offering training led by engineers and local university staff to support mid-sized manufacturing firms in areas like project management and manufacturing processes. …
Washington — The United States imposed sanctions on more than 30 people and vessels for their role in selling and transporting Iranian petroleum-related products as part of Tehran’s “shadow fleet,” the Treasury Department said. The sanctions target oil brokers in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Hong Kong, tanker operators and mangers in India and China, the head of Iran’s National Iranian Oil Company, and the Iranian Oil Terminals Company, Treasury said. It said the vessels sanctioned ship tens of millions of barrels of crude oil valued in the hundreds of millions of dollars, the department said in a statement. “Iran continues to rely on a shadowy network of vessels, shippers, and brokers to facilitate its oil sales and fund its destabilizing activities,” said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. The sanctions build on those imposed by the Biden administration. Such sanctions target key sectors of Iran’s economy with the aim of denying the government funds for its nuclear and missile programs. The move generally prohibits any U.S. individuals or entities from doing any business with the targets and freezes any U.S.-held assets. …
Russian forces have been shelling Kharkiv in northeastern Ukraine almost daily since the start of their invasion three years ago. Despite the constant bombardment, local business owners continue working, and volunteers from all over the world are on hand to offer support. Anna Kosstutschenko has the story. VOA footage and video editing by Pavel Suhodolskiy. …
Moscow — A Russian court on Monday upheld a three-year prison sentence for French researcher Laurent Vinatier, one of several Westerners jailed by Russia during the Ukraine offensive. France condemned the sentence as “arbitrary” and demanded Vinatier’s “immediate release,” after accusing Russia of taking Westerners hostage. Vinatier, who works for a Swiss conflict mediation NGO, was arrested last summer as tensions with France and other Western countries soared over Ukraine. In October, Russia found Vinatier guilty of gathering information on the Russian military and of violating its “foreign agent” law — which has usually been reserved for Russian nationals. “The sentence… against Laurent Vinatier is left unchanged,” judge Tatyana Sokolova said at an appeal hearing, an AFP reporter in court heard. After the sentence was upheld, tears welled in Vinatier’s eyes. Speaking in Russian in a video link from prison, Vinatier had earlier told the court: “I fully admit my guilt. I repent.” The researcher has said he was not aware that he should have registered as a “foreign agent.” The label, which has Stalin-era connotations, has mainly been used against domestic Kremlin critics. Vinatier worked as an adviser with the Geneva-based Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue and is a veteran researcher on Russia and other post-Soviet countries. Vinatier has said in court that in his work he always tried to “present Russia’s interests in international relations.” “Everything I did in Russia together with its representatives was only for the sake of peace,” Vinatier said. His lawyer Oleg Besonov said the sentence was “too severe” and told the court that Vinatier had two dependent minor children, one of whom is disabled. The French foreign ministry in a statement repeated a demand for Russia to release Vinatier and repeal its “foreign agents” law, which it said goes against Russia’s human rights commitments. French President Emmanuel Macron has repeatedly called on Russia to free Vinatier, saying that he is unfairly detained and that the “propaganda” against him “does not match reality.” Paris is one of Ukraine’s strongest supporters and Russia has singled out France as a particularly hostile state during the conflict. Russia has arrested several Westerners since its offensive in Ukraine and held several prisoner exchanges with the United States, including the biggest East-West swap since the Cold War in August 2024. Tensions between Europe and Moscow remain high, while US President Donald Trump meanwhile has warmed U.S. ties with the Kremlin in … “Russian court upholds French researcher’s jail sentence “ →
MARSEILLE, France — Two projectiles were thrown at the perimeter wall of Russia’s consulate in the southern French port city of Marseille on Monday, one of which exploded, a French security source said. It was not immediately clear if the projectiles cleared the wall. BFM TV said the projectiles were Molotov cocktails and that they landed in the consulate’s garden. Russia demanded a full French investigation and said the incident looked like an act of terrorism, state news agency TASS reported. No one was injured, the security source said. Consulate staff were kept indoors and police set up a security perimeter around the consulate. The incident in the southern French city took place on the third anniversary of the Russia-Ukraine war. “The explosions on the territory of the Russian Consulate General in Marseille have all the hallmarks of a terrorist attack,” TASS quoted Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova as saying. …