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read moreLOS ANGELES — The total hectares burned in California this year surpassed 1 million as spiking temperatures Tuesday added to the challenges facing firefighters struggling to contain a stubborn blaze in the mountains northeast of Los Angeles that flared up over the weekend. Evacuation orders were expanded again Monday for remote communities northeast of Los Angeles…
read moreLOS ANGELES — American actor John Amos, who starred as the family patriarch on the hit 1970’s sitcom Good Times and earned an Emmy nomination for his role in the seminal 1977 miniseries Roots, has died. He was 84. Amos’ publicist, Belinda Foster, confirmed the news of his death Tuesday. No other details were immediately available. …
read moreWASHINGTON — The United States on Tuesday imposed sanctions on Hilltop Youth, a group of extremist settlers in the Israeli -occupied West Bank who attack Palestinians and their property. In addition, the State Department placed diplomatic sanctions on two men — Israeli settler Eitan Yardeni, for his connection to violence targeting West Bank civilians, and Avichai…
read moreA new exhibit in Washington sheds some light on a little-known layer of the sea and the strange creatures that live there. Artechouse art center and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution collaborated on the spectacle, called Twilight Zone: Hidden Wonders of the Ocean. Maxim Adams has the story. …
read moreWashington is trying to keep a Mideast war from snowballing after a dramatic weekend in Lebanon, but regional powers are expressing concerns as Israel’s leadership seems determined to continue. From the White House, President Joe Biden has called for a cease-fire, but VOA’s Anita Powell asks: Will anyone listen? …
read moreASHEVILLE, N.C. — President Joe Biden was set to survey the devastation in the mountains of Western North Carolina on Wednesday, where exhausted emergency workers continued to work around-the-clock to clear roads, restore power and cellphone service, and reach people left stranded by Hurricane Helene. The storm killed at least 133 people and hundreds more were…
read morePHILADELPHIA — Dockworkers at ports from Maine to Texas began walking picket lines early Tuesday in a strike over wages and automation that could reignite inflation and cause shortages of goods if it goes on more than a few weeks. The contract between the ports and about 45,000 members of the International Longshoremen’s Association expired at…
read morePENTAGON — Islamic State in Somalia has approximately doubled in size over the past year, the chief of U.S. Africa Command told VOA. “I am concerned about the northern part of Somalia and ISIS growing in numbers,” AFRICOM commander Gen. Michael Langley said in an exclusive interview, using an acronym for the terror group. Langley declined…
read moreNEW YORK — Pete Rose, baseball’s career hits leader and fallen idol who undermined his historic achievements and Hall of Fame dreams by gambling on the game he loved and once embodied, has died. He was 83. Stephanie Wheatley, a spokesperson for Clark County in Nevada, confirmed on behalf of the medical examiner that Rose died…
read moreIn the U.S. election, vice presidential candidates JD Vance and Tim Walz meet Tuesday for their first, and only, debate. VOA Correspondent Scott Stearns looks at what to expect when the candidates meet in New York. …
read moreWASHINGTON — The Biden administration will toughen an asylum ban at the U.S.-Mexico border to keep it in place for longer, U.S. Department of Homeland Security officials said Monday, signaling a desire to further curb illegal crossings. The change, effective just after midnight, will leave asylum restrictions in place until arrests of migrants crossing illegally drop…
read moreSince 2015, one of America’s oldest eye clinics, Wills Eye Hospital, has been helping wounded Ukrainian soldiers with severe head or face injuries get their vision back. For one surgeon with Ukrainian roots, the work is personal. Iryna Solomko has the story, narrated by Anna Rice. VOA footage by Pavlo Terekhov. …
read moreDuring any campaign, it is crucial that voters and candidates have a way to measure the state of public opinion. Polling — surveying representative samples of the electorate — allows everyone to understand and adapt to prevailing sentiments. But it has its flaws. …
read moreJimmy Carter is the first U.S. president to reach the age of 100. VOA’s Kane Farabaugh has more from Georgia on the historic milestone. …
read moreLos Angeles — Kris Kristofferson, a Rhodes scholar with a deft writing style and rough charisma who became a country music superstar and A-list Hollywood actor, has died. Kristofferson died at his home in Maui, Hawaii on Saturday, family spokesperson Ebie McFarland said in an email. He was 88. McFarland said Kristofferson died peacefully, surrounded by…
read moreLos Angeles — Vice President Kamala Harris is set to rally in Las Vegas on Sunday night as both she and Republican Donald Trump continue to make frequent trips to Nevada, looking to gain momentum in the swing state as Election Day nears. The rally is part of Harris’ latest West Coast swing, which included making…
read morePERRY, Fla. — The U.S. Southeast grappled Sunday with rising death tolls, a lack of vital supplies in isolated, flood-stricken areas and the widespread loss of homes and property while the devastating toll of Hurricane Helene became clear to officials who warned of a lengthy and difficult rebuild. North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper said Sunday that…
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