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Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

In an interview with CNN, U.S. President Joe Biden said he will halt shipments of weapons to Israel if it invades Rafah. We talk to Rajan Menon, director of the Grand Strategy program at Defense Priorities about this. Washington, DC police began clearing a pro-Palestinian encampment at George Washington University early Wednesday morning. Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Budapest late on Wednesday marking the third stop on his first European tour in five years. And If taking out the trash isn't on your list of favorite things to do; AI robots may soon be able to help with that chore or any other mundane physical task you can think of.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

In Barentsburg, Norway, a coal mining town in the high Arctic, Ukrainian residents lived side by side with Russians. Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, however, Ukrainians have left the town after finding themselves in conflict with the Russian community. Henry Wilkins reports from Barentsburg. Camera: Henry Wilkins 

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Tehran, Iran — An Iranian court has sentenced prominent filmmaker Mohammad Rasoulof to jail time for "collusion against national security," his lawyer Babak Paknia said Wednesday. Rasoulof's film "The Seed of the Sacred Fig" is to be shown at the main competition at Cannes Film Festival this month. The director, who is in his early 50s, has been sentenced to eight years in prison but will only serve five, Paknia said in a post on social media platform X. According to the lawyer, the appeals court confirmed the verdict and included "flogging, a fine, and confiscation of property." He said that the court had found Rasoulof guilty of "collusion against national security." Official media in Iran have yet to publish the verdict. On April 30, Paknia said Iranian authorities had summoned for questioning some crew members involved in the production of "The Seed of the Sacred Fig," adding that they were under pressure to have it withdrawn from the Cannes festival. Some crew members have been questioned in recent weeks while actors had also been questioned and barred from leaving Iran, the lawyer said. It was not immediately clear how many people involved in the production have been questioned. Rasoulof won the Golden Bear, the Berlin Film Festival's top prize, in 2020 with his anti-capital punishment film "There Is No Evil." He was detained in July 2022 and released the following year after a wave of nationwide protests that began in September 2022 subsided. Paknia had previously said that it was not clear whether Rasoulof would be allowed to leave Iran to attend the Cannes festival in southern France. Appearances at the Cannes Festival have in recent years been increasingly contentious for Iranian directors and actors. Prominent director Saeed Roustaee was sentenced to six months in prison for the screening of his film "Leila's Brothers" at the 2022 festival. Iranian authorities said at the time it had been shown without authorization. The film's star, Taraneh Alidoosti, was released in early 2023 after almost three weeks in jail over her support for the protest movement that broke out in 2022. The monthslong demonstrations were sparked by the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, who had been arrested for allegedly flouting Iran's strict dress code for women. Iran has long had a thriving cinema scene, with figures like Jafar Panahi and Asghar Farhadi winning awards around the world.

washington — Israel's decision to shut down Al Jazeera in the country puts audiences at risk of missing out on news and may herald a concerning turn for the future of free expression, analysts say.  Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that his government had unanimously decided to shut down the Qatari-owned news outlet over national security concerns. The channel went off air in Israel shortly after the announcement, and the outlet's websites have also been blocked.  "The government headed by me unanimously decided: the incitement channel Al Jazeera will be closed in Israel," Netanyahu said in a Sunday statement on X.  Al Jazeera's main office in west Jerusalem and its office in east Jerusalem were closed and equipment confiscated. According to Reuters, the Israeli satellite service Yes displayed a message that read: "In accordance with the government decision, the Al Jazeera station's broadcasts have been stopped in Israel."  Al Jazeera Managing Editor Mohamed Moawad described the action as "oppressive."  "This is a way of delegitimizing our coverage," Moawad told VOA from Doha. "It's oppressive. It's really devastating, because it means that Israel, which calls itself a democracy, is now joining the club of very authoritarian regimes."  Tension escalates after October attack The longtime feud between Netanyahu's administration and Al Jazeera has been punctuated by sporadic shutdown threats over the years. But the dispute escalated following the October 7 terror attack by Hamas on southern Israel in which about 1,200 people were killed.  Israel's offensive in response has led to a humanitarian crisis and the deaths of more than 34,000 people in Gaza, according to the territory's health ministry.  In early April, Israel's parliament passed a law permitting the government to temporarily close foreign news outlets viewed as threatening state security. In November, Israel used emergency measures to shut down the Lebanese outlet Al Mayadeen over national security claims. UN condemns shutdown Israeli Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi has previously referred to Al Jazeera as "a propaganda mouthpiece" for Hamas and accused the outlet of exposing Israeli soldiers to potential attacks.  The new law allows the government to shut down Al Jazeera for 45 days, but that period can be renewed.  "The whole legal situation is really ambiguous," Moawad said.  The action against the international broadcaster has been condemned by the United Nations and media advocates. A primary concern among those is that the move may lay the groundwork for the Israeli government to shut down other news outlets.  "This is a dark day for the media. This is a dark day for democracy," the Foreign Press Association in Jerusalem said in a statement on Sunday. The association called on Israel to reverse "this harmful step and uphold its commitment to freedom of the press — including outlets whose coverage it may not like." Al Jazeera 'houshold name' in ME In some parts of the world, audiences don't widely consume Al Jazeera. But in the Middle East, "it's a household name," said Nour Odeh, a Palestinian political analyst and former Al Jazeera reporter. "They're simply unmatched in the scope and the strength of their operation."  People in Israel will lose out on Al Jazeera's coverage, according to Odeh, who is based in Ramallah, while audiences around the region will no longer receive on-the-ground Israel coverage from Al Jazeera because the outlet's journalists can no longer report from Israel, including occupied East Jerusalem.  "Once, in any society, you normalize the idea that you can pick and choose what kind of media is acceptable, then there's no way you can put the brakes on that," said Odeh, who briefly served as a Palestinian Authority spokesperson in 2012.  Gideon Levy, a columnist at the Israel's Haaretz newspaper, also said the shutdown will make it harder for people in Israel to understand what's happening in Gaza.  "Israeli TV shows nothing from Gaza — nothing. So, anyone who really wants to see what's going on in Gaza needs CNN, needs BBC, needs Sky News and needs Al Jazeera English," Levy told VOA. "And they don't want us to see those images," he added, referring to the Israeli government.  The shutdown means that Al Jazeera reporters will now have to find a way to report on Israel from outside the country.  The channel remains accessible through Facebook and YouTube in Israel, according to media reports and analysts. To Haaretz's Levy, that means the impact is perhaps more symbolic than practical. He said he believes the shutdown was intended to garner support among Israel's right-wing base.  "The fact that this is being closed shows much more about Israel than about Al Jazeera," Levy said. "The government is not a TV critic."  'Allowing propaganda to really thrive' The Al Jazeera shutdown is also an example of another press freedom issue that has imbued the Israel-Hamas war since it began: lack of media access to Gaza.  Since the war began, journalists have been able to enter the Gaza Strip only by embedding with Israel Defense Forces. Reporters and press freedom groups have criticized those trips as overly restrictive, with journalists able to see only what the military wants them to see.  "The fact that they are not allowing international journalists to enter Gaza is, in itself, a successful attempt to conceal what's happening in Gaza," said Moawad, who previously worked at VOA's sister outlet Alhurra TV.  The void created by a lack of access for independent media on both sides allows propaganda to flourish, according to Clayton Weimers of Reporters Without Borders.  "Press freedom has always been tricky in the Palestinian territories, and there has been a tendency towards propagandistic content being distributed," Weimers said. "One problem that we're seeing, though, is that the lack of independent media in place to cover this war is allowing propaganda to really thrive on all sides."  A simple remedy, he said, is that "if you allow the international media in to verify some of these claims, then you won't allow potential propaganda to thrive."  The Al Jazeera shutdown comes within the context of a war that has taken an unprecedented toll on journalists. As of May 8, at least 97 journalists have been killed since the war began, including 92 Palestinians, two Israelis and three Lebanese, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.  Michael Lipin contributed to this report. 

united nations — Humanitarians and medical professionals working in the Gaza Strip warned Wednesday that a full-scale Israeli military operation in Rafah would be a catastrophe and said the safe, mass evacuation of civilians is not possible. About 1.3 million Palestinians are sheltering in Rafah in southern Gaza after moving repeatedly from other parts of the strip to escape bombings and fighting. On Monday, Israel dropped leaflets on a 30-square-kilometer area in eastern Rafah, telling residents to move to the coastal town of Al Mawasi, which the United Nations says is already overcrowded and lacking safety and essential humanitarian services. Ghada Alhaddad, a spokesperson in Gaza for the British aid group Oxfam, said people do not know where to go, and tents are popping up all over Al Mawasi and in the central town of Deir al-Balah. “Even on the sidewalks, on the pavement, on the streets, in the graveyards, in the courtyards of hospitals, in the courtyards of the schools — there are tents that are being built,” she told reporters on a briefing call with doctors and humanitarians from several aid agencies. The population is so deteriorated after seven months of war, with many, including children, maimed by bombs or malnourished, that they are not healthy enough to relocate on foot — for most their only option. “Children and elderly who are so starved that they can barely walk — these people cannot just pick up and walk and relocate to another area,” Alexandra Saieh, head of humanitarian advocacy and policy at Save the Children International, told reporters. “The concept of a safe zone is a lie,” Helena Ranchal, director of international operations for French charity Medecins du Monde (Doctors of the World), said from Nablus in the West Bank. “There is not a safe area anymore in Gaza.”   She echoed the concerns expressed this week by many human rights advocates and aid workers about the Israeli-ordered evacuations — that civilians must be protected and have their basic needs met. “All of these criteria were not met, and these displacements constitute forcible transfer in grave breach of international humanitarian law,” she said. Malnutrition rising Israel began targeting Hamas battalions in eastern Rafah on Monday, and also took control of the Rafah border crossing, which is the main humanitarian entry point into Gaza. It has been closed since. Israel closed a second crossing, Kerem Shalom, after a Hamas rocket attack killed four Israeli soldiers on Sunday. It said the crossing had reopened on Wednesday, but the U.N. said no aid had passed through yet. A third crossing, Erez, has been open only sporadically, humanitarians said. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told his troops Tuesday that the Rafah operation would continue “until we eliminate Hamas in the Rafah area and the entire Gaza Strip, or until the first hostage returns." Humanitarians say the shutdown of the border crossings and the halt to the entry of supplies, including fuel, could risk the near-term collapse of their aid operations, even without a full-scale military operation in Rafah. “The whole aid operation runs on fuel. So, if the fuel is cut off, the aid operation collapses — and it collapses quickly,” said Jeremy Konyndyk, president of Refugees International. “That means water can’t be pumped, lights can’t be kept on in hospitals, vehicles can’t distribute aid.” He said it comes as the threat of famine is growing across Gaza, not just in the north but also in central and southern Gaza. “If there is a Rafah invasion, that will certainly push things past the tipping point, because then the aid operation will collapse, and then we will see really skyrocketing mortality related to famine,” Konyndyk said. Doctors who have worked in Gaza agree. British surgeon Nick Maynard has been to Gaza twice since the war started with British charity Medical Aid for Palestinians. He was evacuated from Rafah on Monday. He told reporters he treated patients who had developed complications and severe infections that were the direct result of malnutrition, because they have weakened immune systems. “I operated on many patients in the last two weeks who had awful complications from their abdominal surgery related to inadequate nutrition,” he said. “Particularly those with [their] abdominal wall breaking down. So literally, their intestines end up hanging outside.” He said malnutrition directly contributed to the deaths last week of two young female patients, ages 16 and 18, both with survivable injuries. “We will see far more of that over the coming months,” Maynard said. Doctors and aid workers are also worried about the impending summer heat. A recent three-day heat wave saw temperatures hit 37 degrees Celsius (100 degrees Fahrenheit). They say clean drinking water is already in short supply, and severe heat will make dehydration a major contributor to deaths. Already more than 34,000 Palestinians have been killed in the war, and more than 78,000 injured, according to the Gaza-run Health Ministry. Hamas killed 1,200 people in Israel during its October 7 terror attack. The U.N. office for humanitarian affairs said Wednesday that all the main medical facilities in Rafah could soon become inaccessible or inoperable. One of the three hospitals in Rafah — Al-Najjar — was vacated Tuesday because it is located in the area under the current evacuation order. The World Health Organization said Al-Najjar has the only dialysis department still operating in Gaza — a lifeline for 200 patients with kidney failure. The humanitarians stressed that the only way to help everyone in need is for the fighting to end. “The solution — and we are asking for that since the beginning — is a cease-fire,” Ranchal of Doctors of the World said. “A cease-fire now.” 

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

In a sharp escalation of pressure on Israel’s war conduct, the Biden administration has paused the shipment of weapons to Israel amid mounting concern about its plan to expand a military operation in Rafah that the United States does not support. White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara has this story.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

The Hamas attack on Israel on October 7 and the resulting war in Gaza led to a dramatic increase in antisemitism worldwide in 2023, a new report reveals. In the U.S., the Biden administration recommitted to the security of Israel and the safety of the Jewish community. Natasha Mozgovaya has the story.

washington — Hard-line Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene stunned colleagues Wednesday by calling for a vote to oust Speaker Mike Johnson. Lawmakers quickly rejected it.  Greene pressed ahead with her long-shot effort despite pushback from Republicans at the highest levels tired of the political chaos.  One of Donald Trump's biggest supporters in Congress, Greene stood on the House floor and read a long list of what she called transgressions that Johnson had committed as speaker. Colleagues booed in protest.  It was the second time in a matter of months that Republicans have tried to oust their own speaker, an unheard-of level of party turmoil with a move rarely seen in U.S. history.  Greene of Georgia criticized Johnson's leadership as "pathetic, weak and unacceptable."  Republican lawmakers filtered toward Johnson, giving him pats on the back and grasping his shoulder to assure him of their support.  House Majority Leader Steve Scalise quickly moved to table the effort — essentially stopping it from going forward. The motion to table was swiftly approved.  The Georgia Republican had vowed she would force a vote on the motion to vacate the Republican speaker if he dared to advance a foreign aid package with funds for Ukraine, which was overwhelmingly approved late last month and signed into law.  Johnson of Louisiana said he had been willing to take the risk, believing it was important for the U.S. to back Ukraine against Russia's invasion and explaining he wanted to be on the "right side of history."  "I just have to do my job every day," Johnson said Monday.  In a highly unusual move, the speaker received a boost from Democrats led by Representative Hakeem Jeffries of New York, whose leadership team had said it was time to "turn the page" on the Republican turmoil and vote to table Greene's resolution — almost ensuring Johnson's job is saved, for now.  Trump also weighed in after Johnson trekked to Mar-a-Lago for a visit, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee giving the speaker his nod of approval. And Trump's hand-picked leader at the Republican National Committee urged House Republicans off the move. 

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.