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Anaheim, California — Disneyland performers who help bring Mickey Mouse, Cinderella and other beloved characters to life at the Southern California resort chose to unionize following a three-day vote culminating Saturday. The Actors' Equity Association labor union said in a statement Saturday that cast members for the parades and characters departments at Disney's theme parks near Los Angeles voted by a wide margin for the union to become the bargaining agent for the group of roughly 1,700 workers. An association website tracking the balloting among cast members indicated passage by 78.7% (953 votes) in favor and 21.3% (258 votes) opposed. "They say that Disneyland is 'the place where dreams come true,' and for the Disney Cast Members who have worked to organize a union, their dream came true today," Actors' Equity Association President Kate Shindle said in a statement Saturday night. Shindle called the workers the "front lines" of the Disneyland guest experience. The association and cast members will discuss improvements to health and safety, wages, benefits, working conditions and job security before meeting with Walt Disney Company representatives about negotiating the staff priorities into a contract, she said. The union already represents theatrical performers at Disney's Florida parks. Barring any election challenges, the regional director of the National Labor Relations Board will certify the results within a week, the association said. The NLRB did not immediately respond to an email from The Associated Press seeking confirmation or additional information about the vote. The election took place on Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday in Anaheim, California, after workers earlier this year filed cards to form the unit called "Magic United." Parade and character workers who promoted unionizing said they love helping to create a magical experience at Disneyland but grew concerned when they were asked to resume hugging visitors after returning to work during the coronavirus pandemic. They said they also suffer injuries from complex costumes and erratic schedules. Most of the more than 35,000 workers at the Disneyland Resort, including cleaning crews, pyrotechnic specialists and security staff, are already in labor unions. The resort includes Disneyland, the Walt Disney Co.'s oldest theme park, Disney California Adventure and the shopping and entertainment district Downtown Disney in Anaheim. In recent years, Disney has faced allegations of not paying its Southern California workers, who face exorbitant housing costs and often commute long distances or cram into small homes, a livable wage. Parade performers and character actors earn a base pay of $24.15 an hour, up from $20 before January, with premiums for different roles. Union membership has been on a decadeslong decline in the United States, but organizations have seen growing public support in recent years during high-profile contract negotiations involving Hollywood studios and Las Vegas hotels. The NLRB, which protects workers' right to organize, reported more than 2,500 filings for union representation during the 2023 fiscal year, which was the highest number in eight years. The effort to organize character and parade performers in California came more than 40 years after those who play Mickey, Goofy and Donald Duck in Florida were organized by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, a union traditionally known to represent transportation workers. At that time, the Florida performers complained about filthy costumes and abuse from guests, including children who would kick the shins of Disney villains such as Captain Hook.

Houston, Texas — Houston area residents affected by deadly storms last week that left at least seven dead were finally getting some good news as officials said they expected power to be restored by Sunday evening to most of the hundreds of thousands still in the dark and without air conditioning amid hot and humid weather. The widespread destruction of Thursday's storms brought much of Houston to a standstill. Thunderstorms and hurricane-force winds tore through the city — reducing businesses and other structures to piles of debris, uprooting trees and shattering glass from downtown skyscrapers. A tornado also touched down near the northwest Houston suburb of Cypress. More than 352,000 homes and businesses in Texas remained without electricity Sunday morning, with most of those in the Houston area. "It's been a madhouse out here," Cypress resident Hallie O'Bannon said. "You know we don't have any power. No hot water. It's been really crazy." At one of five cooling centers for people still without power in their homes in Houston, residents took shelter from the heat at a community center in the Cloverleaf neighborhood. Carolina Sierra and her 6-year-old son, Derek, enjoyed the air conditioning for a couple of hours Sunday. She said they have been without electricity since the storm hit Thursday, and their home has been stifling. Derek passed the time coloring a picture of a dragon while his mother charged her cellphone and a portable lamp, they planned to use Sunday night if the power was still not restored. Sierra, 38, said she gives her son multiple baths to try to keep him cool, but he tosses and turns at night and struggles to sleep. "We are desperate. We hardly sleep at night because of the heat," Sierra said. Harris County Commissioner Adrian Garcia stood outside the center Sunday, helping load water and ice onto the vehicles while offering words of encouragement to residents still waiting for power to be restored. "We are seeing a bit of the recovery come through. But we can't see enough of it fast enough," Garcia said. Help was also on the way in the form of disaster assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and loans from the Small Business Administration, said Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo, the top elected official in the county where Houston is located. The federal assistance, which can help pay for temporary housing and repairs, will help residents affected by last week's storms as well as by flooding from heavy rainfall in late April and early May in parts of Houston, Harris County and several counties north of Houston. CenterPoint Energy said it anticipated that about 80% of affected customers in the Houston area would have service restored by Sunday evening. Hidalgo said 90% of customers could be restored by Wednesday. Officials had worried that high-voltage transmission towers that were torn apart by the high winds would substantially prolong efforts to restore power. "They were able to go around and reroute around those downed towers because of the new technologies. It's great news," Hidalgo said. But Hidalgo warned residents that if the equipment in their home is damaged, they will not get power until residents take care of those repairs. More than 4,600 customers remained without power Sunday morning in Louisiana, which had also been hit by strong winds and a suspected tornado. CenterPoint Energy said 2,000 employees and more than 5,000 contractors were working in the Houston area to restore power. "We understand the higher temperatures we are experiencing across Houston and surrounding communities make getting the lights and air conditioning back on even more important," Lynnae Wilson, CenterPoint's senior vice president of electric business, said in a statement. Residents broke into cheers as lights and air conditioning kicked on at the eight-story senior housing Houston Heights Tower on Sunday morning. The nearly 200 residents had been living on emergency power since Thursday evening, with generators providing enough electricity to run just one of the building's elevators and a handful of fans in the community room, leaving apartments in darkness. Volunteers and city workers had been ensuring residents received a steady supply of water, food and essentials like toilet paper. "It just goes to show you how people come together," 72-year-old resident Joseph Torregrossa said, choking back tears. The National Weather Service said in a post on the social media site X, that residents should expect "sunny, hot and increasingly humid days" in the Houston area. Highs of about 32 Celsius were expected this week, with heat indexes likely approaching 39 Celsius by midweek. Houston area school districts canceled classes for more than 400,000 students Friday. The Houston Independent School District, the state's largest, said power had been restored to nearly 200 campuses and those schools would be open Monday. But another 77 campuses remained without power.

Mexico City — Tens of thousands of mostly opposition supporters protested Sunday against Mexico's president in the capital's vast colonial-era main plaza ahead of the June presidential election. The protesters in Mexico City carried signs saying, "We are Mexicans," referring to what they claim are attempts by President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador to divide the country. Mexico is extremely polarized ahead of the June 2 presidential election. Lopez Obrador regularly rails against reporters, the middle class, businesspeople and those he calls "individualists" and social climbers. The protest was originally called to defend independent electoral agencies the president wants to reduce or defund. But many protesters carried banners supporting opposition candidate Xochitl Galvez. Former Mexico City Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum of the president's Morena party appears to be leading the race going into the June 2 vote. Mexican presidents are limited to a single six-year term. Mexico City resident Joel Guerra, 59, carried a sign that read, "Reclaim Mexico." "The president says that only his supporters are 'the good people' of Mexico, and the rest of us don't have rights," Guerra said. "We are people, too." Guerra was particularly concerned by a new law that Lopez Obrador has passed that seizes unclaimed personal pension accounts to hand out to other retirees. "Unfortunately, the people governing us right now have completely divided the country," said businesswoman Alana Leal. "There are two groups of Mexicans, and that's not fair. It's not fair to create so much hate, because at the end of the day, we're all in the same boat, and we are all working for the country's progress." Lopez Obrador frequently attacks anyone who disagrees with him as "racist, classist, conservative." He also favors state-owned companies and government handout programs and derides the accumulation of personal wealth. The march came before the candidates were to hold their third and final debate late Sunday. Sheinbaum has pledged to try to reconcile Mexicans if she wins, but Leal doubted she would. "I think it will be very difficult to achieve a reconciliation between the two groups," she said, adding, "That is very regrettable."

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Cairo — Islamic State on Sunday claimed responsibility for an attack by gunmen on tourists in Afghanistan's central Bamiyan province, the group said on its Telegram channel. Three Spanish tourists were killed and at least one Spaniard was injured in the attack, Spain's foreign ministry said on Friday. Taliban interior ministry spokesman Abdul Mateen Qaniee four people had been arrested over the attack in which gunmen opened fire. In addition to the three foreign tourists, one Afghan citizen had been killed in the attack. Four foreigners and three Afghans were also injured, he added. Mountainous Bamiyan is home to a UNESCO world heritage site and the remains of two giant Buddha statues that were blown up by the Taliban during their previous rule in 2001. Since taking over Afghanistan in 2021, the Taliban have pledged to restore security and encourage a small but growing number of tourists trickling back into the country. They have sold tickets to see the site of the destroyed Buddha statues. Friday's attack was among the most serious targeting foreign citizens since foreign forces left and the Taliban took over in 2021. The Islamic State claimed an attack that injured Chinese citizens at a hotel popular with Chinese businessmen in Kabul in 2022.

London — The final report of the U.K.'s infected blood inquiry will be published Monday, nearly six years after it began looking into how tens of thousands of people contracted HIV or hepatitis from transfusions of tainted blood and blood products in the 1970s and 1980s. The scandal is widely seen as the deadliest to afflict Britain's state-run National Health Service since its inception in 1948, with around 3,000 people believed to have died as a result of being infected with HIV and hepatitis, an inflammation of the liver. The report is expected to criticize pharmaceutical firms and medical practitioners, civil servants and politicians, although many have already died given the passage of time. It's also set to pave the way to a huge compensation bill that the British government will be under pressure to rapidly pay out. Had it not been for the tireless campaigners, many of whom saw loved ones die decades too soon, the scale of the scandal may have remained hidden forever. "This whole scandal has blanketed my entire life," said Jason Evans, who was four when his father died at the age of 31 in 1993 after contracting HIV and hepatitis from an infected blood plasma product. "My dad knew he was dying and he took many home videos, which I've got and replayed over and over again growing up because that's really all I had," he added. Evans was instrumental in the decision by then-Prime Minister Theresa May to establish the inquiry in 2017. He said he just "couldn't let it go." His hope is that on Monday, he and countless others, can. Here is a look at what the scandal was about and what the report's impact may be. What is the infected blood scandal? In the 1970s and 1980s, thousands of people who needed blood transfusions, for example after childbirth or surgery, became exposed to blood tainted with hepatitis, including an as yet unknown kind that was later termed Hepatitis C, and HIV. Those with haemophilia, a condition affecting the blood's ability to clot, became exposed to what was sold as a revolutionary new treatment derived from blood plasma. In the U.K., the NHS, which treats the majority of people, started using the new treatment in the early 1970s. It was called Factor VIII. It was more convenient when compared with an alternative treatment and was dubbed a wonder drug. Demand soon outstripped domestic sources of supply, so health officials began importing Factor VIII from the U.S., where a high proportion of plasma donations came from prisoners and drug users who were paid to donate blood. That dramatically raised the risk of the plasma being contaminated. Factor VIII was made by mixing plasma from thousands of donations. In this pooling, one infected donor would compromise the whole batch. The inquiry heard estimates that more than 30,000 people were infected from compromised blood or blood products via transfusions or Factor VIII. Missed chances By the mid 1970s, there was evidence haemophiliacs being treated with Factor VIII were more prone to hepatitis. The World Health Organization, which had warned in 1953 of the hepatitis risks associated with the mass pooling of plasma products, urged countries not to import plasma. AIDS, the biggest public health crisis since World War II, turned up in the early 1980s. Originally thought to be isolated to the gay community, it soon started appearing among haemophiliacs and those who had received blood transfusions. Though the cause of AIDS — HIV — was not identified until 1983, warnings had been relayed to the U.K. government the year before that the causative agent could be transmitted by blood products. The government argued there was no conclusive proof. Patients were not informed of the risk and persisted with a treatment that put them in mortal danger. Mistakes The inquiry is expected to conclude that lessons from as early as the 1940s had been ignored. Campaigners argue that since the 1940s it had been clear that heat killed hepatitis in another plasma product, albumin. They say authorities could have made Factor VIII safe before it was sold. Evidence given to the inquiry suggested that authorities' main objection was financial. Non-heated Factor VIII was prescribed by the NHS until late 1985. Campaigners hope the inquiry's core finding is that Factor VIII concentrates should never have been licensed for use unless heated. Why now? In the late 1980s, victims and their families called for compensation on the grounds of medical negligence. Though the government set up a charity to make one-off support payments to those infected with HIV in the early 1990s, it did not admit liability or responsibility and victims were pressured to sign a waiver undertaking not to sue the Department of Health to get the money. Crucially, the waiver also prevented victims from suing for hepatitis, even though at that stage they only knew about their HIV infection. Years after signing, victims were told they had also been infected with hepatitis, mainly Hepatitis C. There was no further group litigation until Evans, whose mother "crumbled" after his father's death and who was called "AIDS boy" at school, brought a case claiming misfeasance in public office against the Department of Health. Combined with political and media pressure, May announced the independent inquiry. It was, she said, "an appalling tragedy which should simply never have happened." Compensation The government has accepted the case for compensation, with most estimates putting the final bill in the region of $12.7 billion. In October 2022, authorities made interim payments of 100,000 pounds to each survivor and bereaved partners. The government is expected to announce different payments for different infections and address how and when bereaved families can apply for interim payments on behalf of the estates of people who have died.

Tehran. Iran — Fear and worry weighed on Iran Sunday as the Islamic Republic waited for news on the fate of President Ebrahim Raisi after his helicopter went missing in a foggy mountain area. Thousands of Muslim faithful prayed for his safe return in mosques nationwide — including amid the minarets of 63-year-old Raisi's hometown, the shrine city of Mashhad. Tearful Iranians fearing the worst were also praying for Raisi and Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian, who was with him on the helicopter, in Valiasr Square in central Tehran. Iran has endured years of tensions and turmoil, most recently coming to the brink of war with arch enemy Israel in a series of tit-for-tat attacks sparked by the Gaza war. In recent times it has been shaken by waves of mass protests, while its people have endured economic pain deepened by U.S. sanctions over its contested nuclear program. Supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei took to the airwaves to comfort the nation, urging Iranians to "not worry" about the leadership of the Islamic Republic, saying "there will be no disruption in the country's work."    One Tehran citizen, a 29-year-old journalist who only gave her name as Vakili, said she "feared" the worst and said it recalled previous tense moments in recent years.   "I hope they are okay and that they are found," she said as a massive search effort continued for Raisi and others aboard the helicopter in the mist-shrouded hills of East Azerbaijan province. A strange feeling   "It's a strange feeling, like we felt before with Haj Qasem Soleimani," she said, referring to revered Revolutionary Guards commander who was killed in a 2020 U.S. drone strike in Baghdad. Expressions of concern and offers to help the search effort poured in from regional powers, including Iran's regional rival Saudi Arabia. While U.S. President Joe Biden was briefed on the situation, the European Union activated its satellite mapping program to help in the effort to find the helicopter. "I am deeply saddened," said another resident of the capital, a private sector employee named Hadi. "We hope that he (Raisi) and his companions are found in good health."   The helicopter suffered an accident as Raisi was heading to the northern city of Tabriz after he inaugurated a dam project on the border with Azerbaijan, state media said. The presidential convoy included three helicopters, of which two landed safely but one vanished. Poor weather conditions complicated communication with the helicopter carrying Raisi and the other officials.   State media soon reported "an accident" over the province's Jolfa region, while some officials referred to a "hard landing." Iranians were glued to TV screens and their smartphones for updates, as footage showed rescue teams moving up a slope through dense fog and drizzling rain, using dogs and drones.   Military personnel along with the Revolutionary Guards and police had also deployed teams to the area, said army chief-of-staff Mohammad Bagheri.   As the nation waited, Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi said rescue teams were dealing with a "steep and forested slope" where "visibility is very limited." "The rescue forces unfortunately have yet to reach the desired point," he was quoted by Tasnim news agency as saying.   "We hope that with prayers of the dear people we reach the accident site as soon as possible." Rumors and speculation quickly swirled around social media in Iran over the fate of Raisi and his companions.   Vahidi urged Iranians not to trust information relayed by channels hostile to the Islamic Republic and to get their information "from state television only."   

Budapest, Hungary — Police say two people have died and five are missing following a boat collision on the Danube River in Hungary. Hungarian police received a report late Saturday night that a man had been found with a head injury on the shore of the Danube near the town of Veroce, around 50 kilometers north of the capital, Budapest. The bodies of a man and a woman were later discovered nearby. Hours after the police began their search, they discovered a damaged boat in the water, which they towed to shore. They are still searching for five adults — three men and two women — who they believe were on the boat. Police said they determined that a river cruise boat had been in the area at the time of the accident. They stopped a cruise boat with a damaged hull near the town of Komarom, more than 80 kilometers farther upriver. Hungarian public television station M1 reported that the cruise boat, Heidelberg, is a 357-foot Swiss craft that can accommodate 110 people. No passengers on that boat sustained any injuries, M1 said. The Danube at Veroce is roughly 460 meters wide and is in the center of an area called the Danube Bend where the river makes a sweeping, nearly 90-degree turn to the south. The area is a popular recreational and boating destination and is on a route often used by cruise boats between Budapest and the Austrian capital, Vienna, some 230 kilometers upriver. The deadly accident comes five years after at least 27 people were killed in Budapest when a river cruise boat collided with a smaller tourist vessel, sinking it in seconds. The tourist boat Hableany, carrying 35 people who were mostly South Korean tourists, was overtaken from behind by the much larger cruise boat, Viking Sigyn, beneath Budapest's Margit Bridge, in May 2019.   The Ukrainian captain of the Viking Sigyn was last year found guilty of negligence leading to a fatal mass catastrophe and sentenced to five years and six months in prison. He has appealed the decision. Police said Sunday they have initiated criminal proceedings against an unknown perpetrator on suspicion of endangering water transport and causing the deaths of several people. A spokesperson for the Directorate General for Disaster Management told Hungarian news agency MTI that a group of nearly 90 people from several regional disaster management agencies were conducting the search for the missing from the land, water and sky. Twelve boats and three drones are involved in the search, and two rescue divers are also involved, Imre Doka said.

SIHANOUKVILLE, Cambodia — Two Chinese warships docked Sunday at a commercial port in Cambodia, in preparation for joint naval exercises between the two countries. The Jingangshan amphibious warfare ship and the Qi Jiguang training ship sailed into the Sihanoukville Port as onlookers waved Cambodian and Chinese flags from the piers. The port is north of the Ream Naval Base, where China has funded a broad expansion project that has been carefully watched by the United States and others over concerns it could become a new outpost for the Chinese navy on the Gulf of Thailand. The Gulf is adjacent to the South China Sea, which China claims virtually in its entirety, and would give easy access to the Malacca Strait, one of the most important shipping lanes in the world. Wang Wentian, China's ambassador to Cambodia, dismissed concerns about Ream, telling reporters at Sihanoukville that wherever the Chinese navy sails "we bring friendship, we bring cooperation" and nothing else. "The cooperation between the two armies, between China and Cambodia, is conducive to the security of both countries and the security of the region," he said, standing on the pier. The Jingangshan and the Qi Jiguang are due to take part in naval exercises from the Ream base from May 24-27, along with two Chinese corvettes that have been docked at Ream's new pier for more than five months. The joint training is the naval component of the ongoing Golden Dragon exercises, which are regularly held between the two countries. Controversy over Ream Naval Base initially arose in 2019 when The Wall Street Journal reported that an early draft of a reputed agreement seen by U.S. officials would allow China 30-year use of the base, where it would be able to post military personnel, store weapons and berth warships. Cambodia's then-Prime Minister Hun Sen denied there was such an agreement. He pointed out that Cambodia's constitution does not allow foreign military bases to be established on its soil but said visiting ships from all nations are welcome. As the Golden Dragon exercises opened on May 16, Cambodian army Commander in Chief Gen. Vong Pisen thanked China for providing new equipment and helping to upgrade military facilities, including the Ream Naval Base. At the same time, he underscored Cambodia's official position, saying the country would "not allow any foreign military base on our territory."

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Beijing — China's commerce ministry on Sunday launched an anti-dumping probe into POM copolymers, a type of engineering plastic, imported from the European Union, United States, Japan and Taiwan. The plastics can partially replace metals such as copper and zinc and have various applications including in auto parts, electronics, and medical equipment, the ministry said in a statement. The investigation should be completed in a year but could be extended for six months, it said. The European Commission, which oversees EU trade policy, said it would carefully study the contents of the investigation before deciding on any next steps. "We expect China to ensure that this investigation is fully in line with all relevant WTO (World Trade Organization) rules and obligations," a spokesperson said. China's plastics probe comes amid a broader trade row with the United States and Europe. The United States on Tuesday unveiled steep tariff increases on Chinese electric vehicles, or EVs, computer chips, medical products and other imports. On Friday, the European Union launched a trade investigation into Chinese tinplate steel, the latest in a string of EU trade and subsidy probes into Chinese exports. Most notably, the European Commission launched a probe last September to decide whether to impose punitive tariffs on cheaper Chinese EVs that it suspects of benefiting from state subsidies. Beijing argues the recent focus by the United States and Europe on the risks to other economies from China's excess capacity is misguided. Chinese officials say the criticism understates innovation by Chinese companies in key industries and overstates the importance of state support in driving their growth.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania — Pro-Palestinian protesters set up a new encampment at Drexel University in Philadelphia over the weekend, prompting a lockdown of school buildings, a day after authorities thwarted an attempted occupation of a school building at the neighboring University of Pennsylvania campus. After several hundred demonstrators marched from Philadelphia's City Hall to west Philadelphia on Saturday afternoon, Drexel said in a statement that about 75 protesters began to set up an encampment on the Korman Quad on the campus. About a dozen tents remained Sunday, blocked off by barricades and monitored by police officers. No arrests were reported. Drexel President John Fry said in a message Saturday night that the encampment "raises understandable concerns about ensuring everyone's safety," citing what he called "many well-documented instances of hateful speech and intimidating behavior at other campus demonstrations." University buildings were "open only to those with clearance from Drexel's Public Safety," he said. Authorities at Drexel, which has about 22,000 students, were monitoring the demonstration to ensure it was peaceful and didn't disrupt normal operations, and that "participants and passersby will behave respectfully toward one another," Fry said. "We will be prepared to respond quickly to any disruptive or threatening behavior by anyone," Fry said, vowing not to tolerate property destruction, "harassment or intimidation" of students or staff or threatening behavior of any kind, including "explicitly racist, antisemitic, or Islamophobic" speech. Anyone not part of the Drexel community would not be allowed "to trespass into our buildings and student residences," he said. On Friday night, members of Penn Students Against the Occupation of Palestine had announced an action at the University of Pennsylvania's Fisher-Bennett Hall, urging supporters to bring "flags, pots, pans, noise-makers, megaphones" and other items. The university said campus police, supported by city police, removed the demonstrators Friday night, arresting 19 people, including six University of Pennsylvania students. The university's division of public safety said officials found "lock-picking tools and homemade metal shields," and exit doors secured with zip ties and barbed wire, windows covered with newspaper and cardboard and entrances blocked. Authorities said seven people arrested would face felony charges, including one accused of having assaulted an officer, while a dozen were issued citations for failing to disperse and follow police commands. The attempted occupation of the building came a week after city and campus police broke up a two-week encampment on the campus, arresting 33 people, nine of whom were students and two dozen of whom had "no Penn affiliation," according to university officials. On Sunday, dozens of George Washington University graduates walked out of commencement ceremonies, disrupting university President Ellen Granberg's speech, in protest over the ongoing siege of Gaza and last week's clearing of an on-campus protest encampment that involved police use of pepper spray and dozens of arrests. The ceremony, at the base of the Washington Monument, started peacefully with fewer than 100 protesters demonstrating across the street in front of the Museum of African American History and Culture. But as Granberg began speaking, at least 70 students among the graduates started chanting and raising signs and Palestinian flags. The students then noisily walked out as Granberg spoke, crossing the street to a rapturous response from the protesters. Students and others have set up tent encampments on campuses around the country to protest the Israel-Hamas war, pressing colleges to cut financial ties with Israel. Tensions over the war have been high on campuses since the fall but demonstrations spread quickly following an April 18 police crackdown on an encampment at Columbia University. Nearly 3,000 people have been arrested on U.S. campuses over the past month. As summer break approaches, there have been fewer new arrests and campuses have been calmer. Still, colleges have been vigilant for disruptions to commencement ceremonies. President Joe Biden told the graduating class at Morehouse College on Sunday, which included some students wearing keffiyeh scarves around their shoulders on top of their black graduation robes, that he heard their voices of protest and that scenes from the conflict in Gaza have been heartbreaking. Biden said given what he called a "humanitarian crisis" there, he had called for "an immediate cease-fire" and return of hostages taken by Hamas. The latest Israel-Hamas war began when Hamas and other militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing around 1,200 people and taking an additional 250 hostage. Palestinian militants still hold about 100 captives, while Israel's military offensive has left more than 35,000 people in Gaza dead, according to the territory’s health ministry, which doesn't distinguish between civilians and combatants.

Taipei, Taiwan — In a campaign ad for Taiwan's President-elect Lai Ching-te, incumbent President Tsai Ing-wen was shown driving with Lai in the passenger seat, exchanging reflections on their years governing together. Tsai later turned over the driving to Lai, who was joined by running mate Bi-khim Hsiao. The message was clear: Lai would steer the island in the direction set by Tsai, who after eight years in power was barred from running again. Lai, 64, will take office Monday. Continuing Tsai's legacy means aiming to strike a balance between cultivating Taiwan's unofficial alliance with the United States and maintaining peace with China, which claims Taiwan as its own territory, to be retaken by force if necessary. Lai is also expected to build on some of Tsai's domestic reforms, despite political gridlock. Lai and Tsai's Democratic Progressive Party has lost the majority in the legislature, making it hard for Lai to push through legislation, including the approval of crucial national defense budgets. Tsai, 67, has been Taiwan's first female president and one of Asia's few female leaders who didn't hail from a political dynasty. Her legacy will be tied to defending the island's sovereignty from China while refashioning it as a credible partner for the U.S. and other democracies. She will also be remembered for overseeing the legalization of same sex-marriage, steering Taiwan through the COVID years and kickstarting the island's military modernization. She leaves office with high approval ratings. A recent poll by broadcaster TVBS showed 42% of respondents were satisfied with her eight-year performance. Her predecessor, Ma Ying-jeou, left office with approval ratings of around 23%. Tsai's popularity partly reflects a shift in Taiwan's identity. A vast majority of residents now identify as Taiwanese as opposed to Chinese and want to be governed separately from Beijing. Taiwan and China have had different governments since a civil war in 1949 saw the Nationalists flee to the island while China's Communist Party took control of the mainland. Tsai veered from the more China-friendly policies of the previous ruling party, the Kuomintang. By the end of Ma's tenure, the frequent exchanges with Beijing were making many Taiwanese nervous, said Shelley Rigger, a Taiwan expert at Davidson College. Beijing called Tsai a separatist after she refused to acknowledge the 1992 Consensus, an agreement which says Taiwan is part of "One China." While pulling away from Beijing, however, Tsai left a door open for communication. "President Tsai has always said that Taiwan, under her leadership, is happy, willing and eager to have dialogue with Beijing, just not on terms unilaterally imposed by Beijing," said Wen-Ti Sung, a fellow with Washington-based research group Atlantic Council. China has not only declined to speak to Tsai but also ramped up military and economic pressure on the island, sending warships and military jets near it daily. Beijing prevents countries it has diplomatic relations with from having formal ties with Taipei. During Tsai's tenure, it intensified a campaign to lure away the island's few diplomatic partners. During Tsai's years in office, China poached almost half of Taiwan's diplomatic allies, bringing the remaining number to 12. Tsai pushed back by diversifying trade relationships and increasing military spending including submarine development. She also elevated Taiwan's standing on the international stage, said outgoing Foreign Minister Joseph Wu. "Her leadership style is very moderate, but at the same time very firm in dealing with any kind of international pressure," he said. "She strengthened awareness of Taiwan around the world and its ties with the international community," said Bonnie Glaser, the director of the Indo-Pacific program at the German Marshall Fund of the United States. 'Tsai 2.0' Lai, who served as vice president during Tsai's second term, came across as more of a firebrand earlier in his career. In 2017, he described himself as a "pragmatic worker for Taiwan's independence," drawing Beijing's rebuke. He has since softened his stance and now supports maintaining the status quo across the Taiwan Strait and the possibility of talks with Beijing. "Lai has spent the last two-plus years trying to convince the world that he is Tsai Ing-wen 2.0," said Lev Nachman, an assistant professor at National Chengchi University. Lai will build on Tsai's efforts to strengthen ties with the United States, which doesn't formally recognize Taiwan as a country but is bound by its own laws to provide the island with the means to defend itself. By some measures, Lai's greatest uncertainty on the foreign policy front might come from Washington. A new Donald Trump administration could throw off whatever balance Tsai has achieved in Taipei's relations with Washington and Beijing, Nachman said. What's next at home During Tsai's tenure, Taiwan became the first society in Asia to legalize same-sex marriage, although critics say she skirted political responsibility by leaving the decision up to the Supreme Court and a series of referendums. She oversaw a controversial pension and labor reform and extended the military conscription length to one year. She also kickstarted a military modernization drive, including a program for building indigenous submarines at more than $16 billion each. Tsai's leadership during the COVID pandemic split public opinion, with most admiring Taiwan's initial ability to keep the virus largely outside its borders but criticizing the lack of investment in rapid testing as the pandemic progressed. Tsai's mixed success on the domestic policy front contributed to historically poor results for the DPP in local elections, said Sung with the Atlantic Council. The party's poor performance in the 2022 elections led to Tsai resigning as party chairwoman. And while Lai won the presidential election, DPP lost its majority in the legislature. "Much of President Tsai's government's success comes from the foreign policy and related international outreach fronts, and in terms of making inroads on the much more grassroots party machinery level, for example, those still have room for improvement," Sung said.

Days after an assassination attempt, Slovakia’s prime minister Robert Fico remains in serious condition, but the worst may be over, according to his deputy. A suspect remains in custody. VOA’s Arash Arabasadi has more.

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President Joe Biden and his Republican rival in the 2024 presidential race, Donald Trump, have agreed to participate in two debates. A set of rules aims to make their interactions as civilized as possible. But whether the debates will sway undecided voters remains to be seen, particularly given their timing. VOA’s Veronica Balderas Iglesias explains.

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Madrid — Europe’s far-right political parties unofficially launched their campaign Sunday for European Union elections in Spain with strong messages against illegal migration and the bloc’s climate policy while declaring their support for Israel in its war against Hamas. French National Rally party leader Marine Le Pen and Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni tried to rally voters at an event organized by Spain’s far-right Vox party in Madrid ahead of the European Union’s parliamentary elections June 6-9. Analysts say the vote across the bloc’s 27 nations could see a strong rise of the far right. “We are in the final stretch to make 9 June a day of liberation and hope,” said the French presidential candidate. “We have three weeks left to convince our respective compatriots to go out and vote.” Meloni, whose Brothers of Italy party has foundations in Benito Mussolini’s fascism, spoke in Spanish via video conference and called for young people to vote. “You are the only possible future for Europe,” Meloni told them. The defense of the EU’s borders was another main theme of the last of two days of a meeting organized by Vox in an arena in the outskirts of the Spanish capital. “We are not against human rights, but we want strong borders in Europe... because it is hours," said Andre Ventura, leader of Chega, a party that won the third largest number of parliamentary seats in Portugal earlier this year. “We cannot continue to have this massive influx of Islamic and Muslim immigrants into Europe,” he added. Meloni defended her country’s policy of reaching agreements with third countries to try to curb illegal immigration, while Le Pen advocated for reform of the Schengen area — which allows free movement of people within most of the bloc’s borders — so that “Europe allows each country to choose who enters and who leaves its territory.” Vox’s president, Santiago Abascal, called for unity of the far-right ahead of the European election. “In the face of globalism we must respond with a global alliance of patriots in defense of common sense, economic prosperity, security and freedom because we share the threat, and that leads us to solidarity,” Abascal said. The vote will indicate whether the continental political drift will match the rightward swing seen across much of the globe from the Netherlands to Slovakia to Argentina. Argentina’s flamboyant president, Javier Milei, who was welcomed like a star amidst chants of “Freedom”, dedicated his long speech to bashing socialism. He said that socialism “is an ideology that goes directly against human nature and necessarily leads to slavery or death.” “There is no other possible destiny,” he said. “To open the door to socialism is to invite death,” he added. Supporters who packed the Palacio de Vistalegre arena cheered on messages against the European Green Deal and in favor of farm workers, whose protests brought several cities in the continent to a standstill in recent months. They also applauded every speaker’s message in solidarity with Israel in its war in Gaza following the Oct. 7 Hamas attack. Israel was represented at the meeting by its minister for diaspora affairs, Amichai Chikli. Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban and the former prime minister of Poland, Mateusz Morawiecki, also spoke from a video screen. During the event, hundreds of left-wing activists were demonstrating against fascism in the city center in Madrid.   “I am here because in Vistalegre we have a summit of hate and we must fight against fascists,” said Frank Erbroder, a Polish activist at the gathering. “I am worried because Hitler won, because of democracy, and I think that maybe we’ll have the same situation.”