Ayaz Gul — President-elect Donald Trump says that future financial assistance to Afghanistan will be contingent upon the return of U.S. military equipment by the Taliban leaders currently in power. Trump’s remarks at a Sunday rally in Washington on the eve of his January 20 inauguration have heightened uncertainty regarding his administration’s stance on the…
read moreBad Bunny released his latest album, which mixes urban and Afro-Caribbean rhythms. Between sad and joyful stories, the artist opens a space for social criticism that focuses on Puerto Rico’s identity, traditions and current challenges. Click here for the full story in Spanish. …
read moreWASHINGTON — When President-elect Donald Trump is sworn in as president of the United States inside the Capitol’s rotunda, he will do so facing a bust of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. on the federal holiday commemorating King’s legacy. It’s a disquieting contrast for some civil rights advocates who wish to fulfill the late reverend’s…
read moreSEOUL, SOUTH KOREA — South Korea pledged on Monday a record amount of financing support for exporters to mitigate any negative impact from changes in U.S. trade policies as Donald Trump was poised to be sworn in for his second presidency. The government plans to provide 360 trillion won, or $247.74 billion, worth of policy financing…
read moreVoters prioritized the economy in the 2024 election, sending Donald Trump back to the White House. But what economic legacy is Joe Biden passing on to the new administration? “It’s the economy, stupid.” Coined by political strategist James Carville, these famous words have become synonymous with U.S. election success since 1992. Despite the growing influence…
read moreDamascus, Syria — The mother of American journalist Austin Tice, who was taken captive during a reporting trip to Syria in August 2012, arrived in Damascus to step up the search for her son and said she hopes she can take him home with her. Tice, who worked as a freelance reporter for The Washington…
read moreFor the first time in U.S. history, a president-elect will welcome foreign leaders for one of the most American political traditions — the peaceful transfer of power. President-elect Donald Trump invited Chinese President Xi Jinping and conservative world leaders such as Argentine President Javier Milei and Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni to the inauguration. Xi sent…
read moreA hallmark of the nearly 250-year American democracy is the quadrennial peaceful transfer of presidential power, and it is set to unfold again on Monday, with Donald Trump, the 45th president until he lost his 2020 reelection bid, set to be inaugurated as the country’s 47th leader after winning last November’s election. Millions of Americans…
read moreA calm environment prevails in the United States as President-elect Donald Trump prepares to take office Monday. Even though the presidential race stood out for the heated rhetoric, there are some who expect Trump will adopt a conciliatory tone in his inaugural speech. VOA’s Veronica Balderas Iglesias reports. (Videographer: Saqib Ul-Islam, Carolyn Presutti) …
read moreWashington — President Joe Biden on Sunday posthumously pardoned Black nationalist Marcus Garvey, who influenced Malcolm X and other civil rights leaders and was convicted of mail fraud in the 1920s. Also receiving pardons were a top Virginia lawmaker and advocates for immigrant rights, criminal justice reform and gun violence prevention. Congressional leaders had pushed for…
read moreWashington — President-elect Donald Trump said Sunday that he plans to issue an executive order that would give TikTok’s China-based parent company more time to find an approved buyer before the popular video-sharing platform is subject to a permanent U.S. ban. Trump announced the decision in a post on his Truth Social account as millions of…
read moreWASHINGTON — The U.S. Treasury Department on Friday imposed sanctions on alleged hacker Yin Kecheng and cybersecurity company Sichuan Juxinhe Network Technology Co., accusing both of being involved in a series of hacks against American telecom companies. The intrusions, known under the name Salt Typhoon, have allegedly exposed a huge swath of Americans’ call logs to…
read moreIt is one of the 20th century’s most memorable images: a naked girl, screaming, running from a napalm bombing during the Vietnam War. More than a half-century later, a new documentary is calling into question who took it — and the retired Associated Press photographer long credited for the photo insists it was his, while…
read moreWASHINGTON — TikTok stopped working in the United States late on Saturday and disappeared from Apple and Google app stores ahead of a law that takes effect Sunday requiring the shutdown of the app used by 170 million Americans. President-elect Donald Trump said earlier in the day he would “most likely” give TikTok a 90-day reprieve…
read moreWhen Donald Trump returns to the White House on Monday, his family circle will look a little different than it did when he first arrived eight years ago. His youngest son, Barron, was in fifth grade back then. He’s now a college freshman who towers over his 1.8-meter-plus dad. Granddaughter Kai, who was 9 in…
read moreWASHINGTON — Donald Trump arrived in Washington on Saturday night ahead of his second inauguration as president. Trump flew in on a U.S. military C-32 aircraft from West Palm Beach, Florida, with his wife, Melania Trump, and their son, Barron, on a flight dubbed Special Air Mission 47 — a nod to Trump becoming the 47th…
read moreU.S. President-elect Donald Trump said Saturday that he “most likely” would give TikTok 90 more days to work out a deal that would allow the popular video-sharing platform to avoid a U.S. ban. Trump said in an NBC News interview that he had not decided what to do but was considering granting TikTok a reprieve…
read moreWASHINGTON — It is unclear who will take over at the Pentagon and the military services when the top leaders all step down Monday as U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is sworn into office. As of Friday, officials said they had not yet heard who will become the acting defense secretary. Officials said the military chiefs of…
read moreWHITE HOUSE — Israel’s Cabinet approved a deal for a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release, with 24 ministers voting in favor and eight ministers rejecting the agreement. The deal is scheduled to be implemented beginning Sunday. The deal to end the fighting between Israel and Hamas was achieved after more than a year of negotiations, with…
read moreThe Israeli Cabinet approved the Gaza ceasefire for hostage release early Saturday, paving the way for the deal to be implemented beginning Sunday, a day before President-elect Donald Trump takes office. White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara looks at how his incoming administration might enforce the multiphase deal, and the president-elect’s role in securing it.…
read moreA former CIA analyst pleaded guilty Friday in federal court in Virginia to charges that he leaked classified information about Israeli plans to strike Iran. Asif William Rahman, 34, of Vienna, Virginia, was arrested last year in Cambodia and later taken to Guam. He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison on each…
read moreWASHINGTON — U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said that the government would reach its statutory borrowing limit on Tuesday and begin employing “extraordinary measures” to keep from breaching the cap and risking a potential catastrophic default. Yellen, in a letter on Friday to congressional leaders just three days before the Biden administration turns over U.S. government…
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