First there was panic, then bluster. The alert the U.S. military gave Russia on Thursday of an upcoming cruise missile strike was quickly circulated by Russian officials to their Syrian counterparts. Fearing the al-Shayrat air base might not be the only target, many fled Damascus or hustled their families out of the Syrian capital, according… more

John Glenn, the first American to orbit the earth who later became the world’s oldest astronaut and a longtime U.S. senator, was laid to rest on Thursday at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia. Glenn, who author Tom Wolfe once called “the last true national hero America has ever had,” died four months ago in his… more

The U.S. has warned Americans living in or planning to travel to Kenya about possible outbreaks of violence before the country’s August 8 general elections. In a travel alert issued Thursday, the State Department said, “rallies, demonstrations, and protests may occur with little notice and even those intended to be peaceful can escalate into violence.”… more

The United States military, in partnership with Afghan forces, has promised to eliminate Islamic State terrorists in Afghanistan this year and contain a resurgent Taliban, citing recent battlefield successes against the two groups. U.S. counterterrorism airstrikes in support of Afghan operations against IS strongholds in the eastern border provinces of Nangarhar and Kunar have killed… more

The World Cup champion women’s soccer team has a new labor contract, settling a dispute in which the players sought equitable wages to their male counterparts. The agreement with the U.S. Soccer Federation runs through 2021, meaning the players will be under contract through the 2019 World Cup in France and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.… more

A gap is widening between the Trump administration and European allies over the future of President Bashar al-Assad and how to end the six-year war in Syria. While U.S. officials have shifted the focus away from Assad having to relinquish power, European leaders remain adamant he has no future as ruler of Syria. His departure,… more

Political and humanitarian leaders gathered Tuesday on Capitol Hill to call for action to prevent a looming humanitarian disaster in parts of Africa. The event was hosted by Rep. Karen Bass, D-Ca., who said the United States needs to get off the sidelines and lead an international effort to help the estimated 20 million people… more

A new poll released Tuesday shows Americans’ attitudes toward China are improving over years past, before a planned meeting later this week between presidents Donald Trump and Xi Jinping. The timing of the poll’s release appears to be good news for Xi, whose visit coincides with the highest U.S. China favorability rating since 2011.  According… more

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres “deeply regrets” the United States’ decision to cut funding to the U.N. Population Fund, which provides life-saving care to millions of women and girls around the world.   The Trump administration said Monday it would no longer fund the program, because it has determined that it “supports, or participates in the… more

Large numbers of job seekers from around the world are filing applications at U.S. federal offices as the season opened Monday for H1-B visas for foreign workers.   H1-Bs allow employers – mostly high-tech firms – to hire skilled foreign workers for jobs in the United States for three years. Eighty-five thousand slots are available… more

A key U.S. lawmaker says he will try to force President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser to repay “tens of thousands of dollars” to Russian and Turkish interests he represented in recent years even as he came to play a prominent role in Trump’s election campaign. Michael Flynn, a retired U.S. Army general, held… more

The United States has carried out about 20 additional strikes in Yemen against al-Qaida militants since the middle of last week, a Pentagon spokesman said on Monday. Pentagon spokesman Captain Jeff Davis told reporters that since February 28, the United States has carried out more than 70 strikes against al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP)… more

Activists say an Iranian-American who has been serving an 18-year prison sentence for “collaboration with a hostile government” has been released on bail.   Hadi Ghaemi, the executive director of the New York-based Center for Human Rights in Iran, said on Monday that San Diego resident Robin Shahini is out of prison.   Ghaemi says… more

Nikki Haley, the United States ambassador to the United Nations, said Sunday that President Donald Trump has not blocked her from attacking Russia, even as he continues to assail U.S. news media for its reporting on congressional and legal investigations into whether his aides colluded with Russian officials to help him win the election. “The… more

The United States and Egypt are expected to reach accord on enhanced collaboration in the fight against radical Islamist terrorism Monday when Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi comes calling on President Donald Trump at the White House. “Both have a very deep antipathy toward political Islamism,” said H.A. Hellyer, senior fellow at the Rafik Hariri… more

As his parents wait for word of their son, who went missing in China more than a decade ago, there is a renewed push in Congress to search for him as suggestions emerge that he may be held against his will in North Korea. Eight senators co-sponsored a resolution Monday to reinvigorate the investigation into… more

The language at a small graduation ceremony inside a federal office building in Washington Friday morning was militaristic: Fighting. Frontlines. Enemies. War. For a fifth year, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) rather quietly has trained a small team of injured, wounded or sick military veterans for a different type of deployment – supporting the… more

As the U.S. Senate prepares for a confirmation vote on Republican President Donald Trump’s Supreme Court nominee Neil Gorsuch, Democratic opposition continues to mount. Three more Democratic senators, Claire McCaskill, Richard Blumenthal and Brian Schatz, announced their opposition to Gorsuch Friday, setting up a confrontation with Republicans. Democrats have said they will use a procedure… more

U.S. President Donald Trump’s executive orders on trade deficits and import duty evasion are a sign that Washington plans to move away from free trade and international agreements, German Economy Minister Brigitte Zypries said on Saturday. Trump instructed his administration on Friday to study the causes of U.S. trade deficits and clamp down on countries… more

For the last five years, Michael J. Sharp lived in one of the most dangerous countries in Africa, trying to broker peace between armed groups. “He was following his passion and mission to make peace in the world — a very broken and violent world,” his father, John Sharp, told VOA in an interview late… more

More than two dozen photos of the Pentagon taken after a plane crashed into it on September 11, 2001, have reappeared in recent days on the FBI’s website six years after they were first made public. The posting misled some to believe the photos from 9/11 had never before been seen. FBI spokeswoman Jillian Stickels… more

The Trump administration is appealing the stay placed on President Donald Trump’s executive order banning entry to people from six majority-Muslim countries and halting refugee admissions. A U.S. federal judge extended a suspension of the travel order Wednesday, placing a preliminary injunction against Trump’s order at the request of the state of Hawaii. U.S. District… more

The Natchez Trace Parkway is a 700 km drive through exceptional scenery and 10,000 years of North American history. …… more

Hundreds of Iranian students already accepted into U.S. graduate programs may not be able to come next fall because of the uncertainty around President Donald Trump’s proposed travel ban, potentially derailing research projects and leaving some science programs scrambling to find new students. With admission season still in full swing, 25 of America’s largest research… more

The Vietnamese blogger known as Mẹ Nam, or Mother Mushroom, missed meeting Melania Trump when the first lady awarded the International Women of Courage Award to 13 women in Washington on Wednesday. Social activist Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh spent the day in a Khanh Hoa Province prison, where she has been held since she was… more

The top general for U.S. military operations in the Middle East says the military has launched a formal investigation into the circumstances that caused estimates of about 100 civilian deaths in Mosul, Iraq, while the U.S. was conducting counter-Islamic State airstrikes in the area. Army Gen. Joseph Votel, the commander of U.S. Central Command, told… more