Author: Ohart

The Vatican has taken an unprecedented decision due to the coronavirus outbreak. All Holy Week services with Pope Francis will be held without a congregation, including Easter Sunday mass.

It will be a very different Holy Week for the faithful this year, particularly for those in Rome. No one will be allowed to attend any of the services due to the coronavirus outbreak. The large crowds in Saint Peter’s Square will not be possible this year.

A note on the web site of the Prefecture of the Pontifical Household that appeared late Saturday said the faithful will be able to follow the events as they are streamed on the internet or carried on television, but no one will be able to actively participate.  

Holy Week is normally one of the busiest times of the year for Pope Francis, with tens of thousands of people arriving from all over the world to join in celebrating the resurrection of Jesus.  

It is still unclear how the services will be held by the pope, or where exactly, as the Vatican is still to provide further details. Holy Week services begin on Palm Sunday, which marks Jesus’s triumphant entry into Jerusalem. Other important services include Holy Thursday Mass when the oils are blessed. Normally on that day Pope Francis washes the feet of prisoners but this is unlikely to happen this year.

The Lord’s Passion service is normally held in Saint Peter’s Basilica on Good Friday followed by the Way of the Cross around Rome’s ancient Colosseum. This too is likely to be canceled or will take place without public participation. Pope Francis will still be giving his twice-yearly Urbi et Orbi blessing on Easter Sunday.

Italian authorities locked down the entire country last Monday as the death toll from the coronavirus outbreak continues to soar. There are currently more than 21,000 positive cases in the country and the death toll has reached 1441. Churches in Rome have been reopened but all masses are canceled to avoid people gathering in one place.

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President Donald Trump has taken a coronavirus test but said on Saturday that his temperature was “totally normal,” and his administration extended a travel ban to Britain and Ireland to try to contain a pandemic that has shut down much of the daily routine of American life.

After White House officials took the unprecedented step of checking the temperatures of journalists entering the briefing room, Trump told reporters he took a test for the virus on Friday night and that he expects the results in “a day or two days.” He met with a Brazilian delegation last week, at least one member of which has since tested positive.

The top U.S. infectious diseases expert, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Anthony Fauci, said the country has recorded 20,226 case of the new coronavirus, but has not yet reached the peak of the outbreak.

“This will get worse before it gets better,” Surgeon General Jerome Adams said at the briefing.

Vice President Mike Pence, who is running the administration’s response to the outbreak, told reporters that visits to nursing homes were being suspended to protect the most vulnerable.

Earlier on Saturday, officials in New York said an 82-year-old woman became the state’s first coronavirus fatality.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo said the woman, who had previously suffered from emphysema, was hospitalized in Manhattan on March 3. He told reporters that the state’s tally of cases had risen to 524. Nationwide, more than 2,000 people have been infected and 50 have died.

On Friday, Trump declared a national emergency in a move that he said would bring “the full power of the federal government” to bear on the escalating health crisis by freeing up some $50 billion in aid. He also urged every state to set up emergency centers to help fight the virus.

On Saturday, his administration was expected to extend to Britain and Ireland a ban on travel from Europe that would go into effect on Monday night, U.S. and airlines and officials said.

Signaling a new stage in prevention measures to protect U.S.

leaders from the coronavirus, the White House on Saturday instituted a policy of checking the temperatures of journalists in the White House briefing room.

The pandemic has forced public schools, sports events and cultural and entertainment venues to close across the United States.

On Friday, American shoppers picked grocery store shelves clean of products ranging from disinfectants to rice, causing retailers to race to restock their stores. In response to the run on certain items, major retailers have imposed some purchase limits.

Coronavirus took its biggest toll yet on this year’s U.S.

presidential election when Louisiana announced on Friday it had postponed its Democratic and Republican presidential primaries.

Early on Saturday, the U.S. House of Representatives overwhelmingly passed a coronavirus aid package that would provide free testing and paid sick leave, in a bid to limit the economic damage from the outbreak.

By a bipartisan vote of 363 to 40, the Democratic-controlled House passed a multi-billion dollar effort that would expand safety-net programs to help those who could be thrown out of work in the weeks to come. Trump said he supported the package, raising the likelihood that it will pass the Republican-controlled Senate next week.

Economists say the impact of the outbreak on businesses could tip the U.S. economy into recession.

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The U.N. refugee agency and partners are appealing for $1.3 billion to assist more than two million South Sudanese refugees and five major countries hosting them — Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

After seven years of conflict, South Sudan has formed a Transitional Government of National Unity and appears to be on the cusp of peace.  But the new government faces many challenges.

One of the biggest is finding solutions for millions of South Sudanese who have been forcibly displaced by years of conflict, both internally and as refugees.  In the meantime, the U.N. refugee agency says some 2.2 million refugees and the countries hosting them continue to depend upon international support to provide them with life-saving assistance.

UNHCR spokesman Babar Baloch told VOA many thousands of refugees who have returned to South Sudan on their own initiative are stuck in limbo in their home country.  He says most of those who remain outside the country are in no rush to return.  They are waiting to see if peace holds.

“The 270,000 South Sudanese that have returned in the past couple of years or more, the majority of them have not been able to return back home. You are talking a big number — probably 70 percent or more.  And, in many areas, access still remains a challenge in terms of the humanitarian work,” he said.

Baloch said humanitarian workers and the South Sudanese displaced are hoping that the new political developments translate into long-lasting peace.

In the meantime, the UNHCR says funding is urgently needed to provide emergency care for the refugees including food, shelter, safe drinking water and health care.  It notes money also is needed to care for 65,000 unaccompanied children and action on sexual and gender-based violence.

The agency says many refugees are missing out on education and the gap must be closed.  It says refugees must be trained in the skills they need to provide for themselves and their families.  

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As Syria’s war enters its 10th year, the United Nations reports that alarming conditions of extreme deprivation and danger continue to engulf millions of people in the country.

Most at imminent risk of their lives are the 960,000 people displaced in Syria’s northwest Idlib province, where Russian-backed Syrian forces are fighting to regain control of this last rebel-controlled region in Syria.  

This huge displaced population, most of whom are women and children, is squeezed into an overcrowded area near the Turkish border. The United Nations reports about one-third are staying in camps and tents.  Many are living with host families. Hundreds of thousands of others are in unfinished buildings, collective centers or sheltering under trees, with little cover to protect them from the elements.

Spokesman for the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs Jens Laerke briefed reporters Friday. He said there has been a de-escalation of fighting in Idlib since Turkey and Russia agreed to a cease-fire a week ago.  However, he notes the dangers have not gone away.

“Instances of shelling continue to be reported from areas along the front lines and the risk of death and injury from explosive hazards, such as unexploded ordnance, has increased over the past months due to artillery and aerial bombardments.  Humanitarian needs are acute and people’s survival and wellbeing, including children’s mental health, is at risk,” he said.

Laerke said there is very little protection inside Idlib, and displaced women and girls are particularly vulnerable to exploitation and abuse.  He said many feel exposed and unsafe.

“Aid workers are reporting incidents of exploitation and abuse of displaced women and girls by men in positions of power such as property owners, in exchange for cash or material assistance. We also have reports of women not being able to shower for several weeks due to lack of privacy, and refusing to eat or drink so they do not need to use a bathroom,”  Laerke said.

The U.N. is scaling up its humanitarian assistance in response to this situation.  So far this month, Laerke said the U.N. has sent 512 trucks across the border from Turkey into Idlib laden with food, shelter, water, sanitation, and hygiene assistance.

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Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates said Friday he is stepping down from the company’s board to focus on philanthropy.

Gates was Microsoft’s CEO until 2000 and since then has gradually scaled back his involvement in the company he started with Paul Allen in 1975.

He transitioned out of a day-to-day role in Microsoft in 2008 and served as chairman of the board until 2014.

The billionaire announced Friday that he’s leaving the Microsoft board entirely as well as his seat on the board of Berkshire Hathaway, the conglomerate headed by fellow billionaire Warren Buffett.

Gates said he plans to dedicate more time to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. He will also remain a technology adviser to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella and other company leaders.

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The United States on Friday summoned China’s ambassador after a senior official in Beijing tweeted the “ridiculous” suggestion that the U.S. military started the COVID-19 pandemic, the State Department said.

David Stilwell, the top U.S. diplomat for Asia, issued a “stern representation” to Ambassador Cui Tiankai a day after foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian tweeted the conspiracy theory.

“China is seeking to deflect criticism for its role in starting a global pandemic and not telling the world,” a State Department official said.

“Spreading conspiracy theories is dangerous and ridiculous. We wanted to put the government on notice we won’t tolerate it, for the good of the Chinese people and the world,” the official said.

Zhao, in tweets in both Mandarin and English that gained wide traction on Chinese social media, a day earlier suggested that “patient zero” in the global pandemic may have come from the United States, not the Chinese city of Wuhan, where cases were first reported in late 2019.

“It might be US army who brought the epidemic to Wuhan. Be transparent! Make public your data! US owe us an explanation,” tweeted Zhao, who is known for his provocative statements on social media.

‘Wuhan virus’

His comment came as President Donald Trump’s administration, which has faced increasing criticism over its own coronavirus response, has been increasingly highlighting the illness’ foreign origins, with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo dubbing it the “Wuhan virus.”

Cui, in contrast to Zhao, is known for his diplomatic approach. A day before he was summoned, Cui tweeted that China hoped to work closely with the United States to fight COVID-19 for “a more prosperous shared future.”

Scientists widely believe that the pandemic started in a market in Wuhan that sold exotic animals for human consumption.

Trump, speaking to reporters to announce a state of emergency over the pandemic, also dismissed the Chinese conspiracy theory when asked about it.

“They know where it came from. We all know where it came from,” said Trump, who also voiced confidence that the row would not affect a first-phase deal to resolve a trade war.

Rampant conspiracy theories

Conspiracy theories have been widely disseminated over social media as the novel coronavirus takes a heavy toll worldwide.

U.S. officials earlier told AFP that Russia had systematically spread disinformation in an effort to damage the U.S. reputation, with coordinated Facebook and Twitter posts that suggested that the United States was behind the novel coronavirus.

Russia denied responsibility for the social media effort, which recalled the former Soviet Union’s campaign in the 1980s to link HIV to the U.S. government.

Iran’s firebrand former president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, has written the World Health Organization to urge an investigation into the “biological war against humanity,” questioning why U.S. adversaries China and Iran have been so badly hit.

Italy, a close U.S. ally, officially has the most cases of COVID-19 after China.

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Pakistan moved Friday to temporarily seal borders with Iran and Afghanistan, close all educational institutions and ban large gatherings at public places for three weeks, including wedding parties, to prevent the coronavirus pandemic from spreading in the region.

The preventative measures were announced on a day when officials raised to 28 the national tally of people infected with the virus. Pakistan, with a population of more than 200 million, has reported no fatalities since detecting its first confirmed case late last month.

State Minister of Health Zafar Mirza said that all of Pakistan’s cases were imported by its nationals returning from countries, including Iran, Syria, China and the United Kingdom. He said there were no local transmissions of the virus as of Friday.

Syrian authorities, however, are reported to have denied the presence of coronavirus on their soil, saying dozens of suspected cases have tested negative.

Emergency meeting

Mirza and other senior cabinet colleagues told a Friday night news conference that the decision to introduce emergency measures was taken at a meeting of the national security council chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan and attended by top civilian and military leaders.

“We are completely closing our western border with Iran and Afghanistan for all human and commercial traffic for two weeks,” Mirza said. The only overland border crossing with China will also remain closed for another two weeks for all traffic.

“This will allow us to boost existing screening systems at entry points there to prevent infected people from entering Pakistan,” Mirza said, adding the decision would be reviewed after two weeks.

Pakistan shares a roughly 900-kilometer border with Iran, where officials have confirmed that COVID-19 has killed more than 500 people and that well over 10,000 others have been infected.

Pakistan’s border with landlocked Afghanistan stretches to nearly 2,600 kilometers, with several authorized entry points for people and trade as well as transit activities. Afghan officials have confirmed seven coronavirus cases, linking them with the Iranian outbreak

Mirza said Pakistan also decided to restrict outgoing and incoming international flights to only three airports in the country, in Islamabad, Karachi and Lahore, saying screening measures at those airports would be reinforced immediately.

Pakistan’s air links with Iran and China, where the coronavirus outbreak originated, remain suspended in the wake of the outbreak in both countries.

Schools closed, gatherings banned

Mirza said public and private schools as well as technical institutions across Pakistan would remain closed for three weeks. All public gatherings will be banned, including wedding halls and cinemas, for two weeks.

Pakistan’s chief justices are being requested to instruct all courts not to schedule cases for three weeks, and no visitors will be allowed to visit prisoners in jails during this period, Mirza said.

Critics note that Pakistan, like other South Asian countries, is ill-equipped to deal with a large-scale health emergency such as coronavirus because of a poor and deteriorating health infrastructure.

Army spokesman Major General Babar Iftikhar confirmed to VOA on Friday that the annual national day military parade scheduled for March 23, where thousands of guests are invited, had also been canceled.

Organizers of Pakistan’s largest national cricket competition, which features prominent international players, also shortened and closed its remaining matches to spectators. Many foreign players have opted to leave Pakistan.

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Asian markets plunged Friday, one day after Wall Street’s worst performance since the “Black Monday” crash of 1987.

Stock indexes in Japan, Thailand and India dropped as much as 10% at one point Friday morning, triggering the circuit breaker rule, or the temporary halt of trading in Thailand and India.

SET 100 in Bangkok was down 8.7% and the Sensex in Mumbai was down 9.4% after trading resumed.

The drop wasn’t as severe in mainland China, where communities are recovering from the deadly coronavirus pandemic, with the Shanghai Composite index down 3%.

Other Asian regional markets dropped between 4% and 6% by midday Friday.

Fed rally short-lived

In the United States, the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 2,353 points Thursday — a 10% drop. The Standard & Poor’s-500 and NASDAQ were also off 10%.

European markets were also hit hard. London was down 11% while major French and German indexes took a 12% hit.

Brazil’s Ibovespa index closed 15% lower.

Trading in New York was automatically stopped for 15 minutes when stock prices dropped like a stone shortly after the markets opened Thursday.

The markets rallied briefly after the Federal Reserve said it would ease what it called “highly unusual disruptions” in the usually reliable U.S. treasuries. But the optimism quickly went away.

Travel and airline stocks took the biggest hits and the price of oil dropped again, in part because less travel means less demand.

Recession fears

Analysts say the ever-growing list of closings, cancellations and restrictions because of the coronavirus means less consumer spending, a slower global economy, and investor fears of a recession.

But many financial experts say fear is what is driving the new bear market — fear of where the coronavirus is going to go next and warnings from the World Health Organization and U.S. experts that the pandemic is going to get worse before it gets better.

Advice from veteran investors include telling their clients to look for bargain-priced stocks and buy them — and consider investing in companies that can withstand global economic shocks, including insurance firms and manufacturers of consumer staples.

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As Haitian government officials intensify their efforts to inform and prepare the nation for the coronavirus pandemic sweeping the world, residents of Petionville, a suburb of the capital, Port-au-Prince, seemed woefully uninformed about the deadly disease.

“Do you know how people get infected with coronavirus?” a woman who didn’t want to appear on camera asked VOA Creole’s reporter. “It’s the result of too many sins. That’s why the disease is spreading worldwide. This is God’s way of punishing us.”

Louis Jeune Francois, a voodoo worshiper who had just attended a service believes the pandemic is a conspiracy.

“There are 21 families which rule the world. Maybe they feel the population is too big, so they found a way to reduce it. They created a virus to kill a group of people,” he said. “They especially want the virus to kill people in the poorest countries.”

Another voodoo worshiper told VOA she doesn’t believe coronavirus has anything to do with black magic.

“Coronavirus isn’t just a hex on Haiti, don’t you see China is infected with the virus too?” she said. “People who are blaming it on religion are wrong, the virus targets both Protestants and Pagans. You just need to be cautious.”

Another man who didn’t want to be identified seemed to understand the basics.

“From what I understand, the coronavirus is a virus. It’s a virus that’s transmitted through the air,” he said.

Asked what preventative measures they can take to avoid being infected, residents offered various solutions.

“Don’t shake hands, fist bump instead,” one man suggested.

“Wash your hands, don’t touch your mouth, don’t pick your nose, use a handkerchief,” a woman selling clothing at the local open air market advised.

“I don’t buy this washing hands thing,” another man said. “Of course you have to wash your hands, because if your hand is dirty you won’t be able to use it. I was brought up to do that. But some people say you should eat limes, eat local fruits, because they are natural (and won’t harm your health).”

Expanding on the homeopathic remedy idea, a man told VOA he heard there are vegetable leaves you can boil to protect yourself from the virus.

“Boiling leaves is part of our culture,” he said.

Most people VOA Creole spoke to said the government should act more responsibly to inform the nation about the virus.

“Haiti is a free country, people do whatever they want here, but there are countries where planes are not allowed to land, transportation is restricted, but here there are no restrictions that I’m aware of,” a woman shopping at the open air market said. “We have no protections whatsoever. We’re in God’s hands.”

“If the government forbids groups of 500 people or more to meet, I will know that if I see that happening I should not attend,” one man said. “But if the number they give is 1,000 or 2,000 then I’ll go ahead and attend because it’s hard to get that many people in one place around here.”

Haiti’s Public Health Minister Marie Greta Roy Clement announced Wednesday that the government has stepped up efforts to keep coronavirus out. The measures include screening at the nation’s airports and official border crossings, training for health professionals and journalists, and public service announcements airing on radio and television.

Renan Toussaint in Port-au-Prince contributed to this report.

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Congressional Democrats are at odds with the Trump administration over legislation that would provide a swift response to the catastrophic public health and economic impact of the coronavirus. The battle between the White House and Capitol Hill comes as many Democrats say Trump’s Wednesday night Oval Office speech was inadequate in addressing the growing U.S. crisis. VOA’s congressional correspondent Katherine Gypson has more on this historic political battle.

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British rock band The Who have cancelled their UK tour due to coronavirus, just four days before they were due to take to the stage in Manchester.

The group, famous for tracks like “My Generation” and “Substitute”, said the three-week tour would go ahead later in the year.

“Haven’t reached this decision easily, but given the concerns about public gatherings, we couldn’t go ahead,” guitarist and singer Pete Townshend said in a statement on Thursday.

Fears over the rapid spread of the virus have led to the cancellation of concerts and sports events across the globe, such as the Indian Wells tennis tournament and the Coachella music festival, and have raised questions about whether the Tokyo Olympic Games should go ahead.
 

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Russia’s space agency Roscosmos and the European Space Agency have decided to postpone the launch of a joint research mission to Mars until the fall of 2022 because of the situation around coronavirus in Europe, Roscosmos said on Thursday.

“…The parties had to recognize that the final phase of ExoMars activities are compromised by the general aggravation of the epidemiological situation in European countries,” the Russian agency said in a statement.

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A Las Vegas wedding with an Elvis impersonator: Canceled. A 3,500-kilometer (2,200-mile) trans-America road trip, a voyage of a lifetime that took months to prepare: On ice, too.

The new anti-virus travel ban announced by U.S. President Donald Trump threw Europeans’ best-laid plans — family reunions, birthday celebrations, vacations, trips for both business and pleasure — into utter disarray Thursday.

For Europeans brought up on imports of American television, music, sports and fast food, the idea of suddenly being temporarily unwelcome on the other side of the Atlantic was a psychological shock, too, akin to being spurned by an old and familiar friend.

“We were going to get married in Las Vegas, with Elvis. It was going to be epic,” said Sandrine Reynaert, a Parisian who was having to cancel the ceremony on April 20, a date that Gael, her future husband, already has engraved on the inside of his ring.

“It’s strange,” she said of the travel ban. “Perhaps an overreaction compared to the epidemic.”

Reynaert said she’d take a day off work Friday to devote herself to canceling or adjusting reservations, unraveling the road trip that, as well as Las Vegas, also would have taken them to other iconic spots of Americana: Route 66, Joshua Tree National Park, the Grand Canyon.

Likewise, retired French teacher Jean-Michel Deaux spent months planning the 3,500-kilometer (2,200-mile) trans-America road trip that has now evaporated just when it was within touching distance, with a flight into New Orleans that had been booked for March 24.

The March-May voyage with his wife, Christiane, would have taken them through multiple states, on a giant south-north loop. They planned to follow in the footsteps of the Marquis de Lafayette, the French aristocrat who fought with American colonists against the British. They wanted to see Amish communities in Pennsylvania, take in music in Memphis and ride a boat on the Mississippi. They even bought extra suitcases to carry gifts and souvenirs back to France.

“We’ve been preparing this trip for years,” Jean-Michel Deaux said. “It was going to be a pilgrimage.”

“I’ve been studying the maps every night,” he added. “I had already pictured myself on the boat.”

As the pandemic grips Europe and the U.S., it continues to ebb in China, where the first cases of COVID-19 emerged in December. China reported a record low of just 15 new cases Thursday and was cautiously monitoring new arrivals who were returning with the virus from elsewhere.

More than three-fourths of China’s patients have recovered. Most people have only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough, though symptoms can be severe, including pneumonia, especially in older adults and people with existing health problems. Recovery for mild cases takes about two weeks, while more severe illness may take three to six weeks, the World Health Organization says.

Trump, in a rare Oval Office address to the nation Wednesday night, said the monthlong restriction on travel from Europe would begin at midnight Friday.

While Trump said all European travel would be cut off, Homeland Security officials later clarified that the new travel restrictions would apply only to most foreign nationals who have been in the “Schengen Area” at any point for 14 days prior to their scheduled arrival to the United States. The area includes France, Italy, German, Greece, Austria, Belgium and others in the zone that has the highest number of confirmed COVID-19 cases outside of China.

On the receiving end of the restrictions, Europeans struggled to make sense of them. A Parisian mother said she got woken during the night by her 19-year-old daughter calling from Los Angeles to say that she wouldn’t be coming home for a visit this month because she feared that she wouldn’t then be allowed back into the United States to finish her course of schooling there.

There were immediate howls of concern from the travel industry. Americans also scrambled to leave Europe too, even though the travel ban shouldn’t stop them from getting home.

“I’ve been hysterical for two days, so a complete panic attack about getting home,” said Helen Neumann from Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, who was flying to Boston on a direct flight from Rome on Thursday. “I was like, I’ve got to get out of here.”

Reynaert expects to postpone her trip and the Elvis wedding in Vegas to next year.

“We didn’t want to do something conventional in France,” she said.

Deaux said he’d try to reschedule their voyage for later this year, in hopes the virus passes.

“When I heard this morning, I was very disappointed but not surprised,”  he said. “All the preparations, ruined.” 

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Seven children stood shoulder-to-shoulder in a Texas immigration facility. Their image was beamed 1,000 miles away to Atlanta, where a judge sat in a largely empty courtroom and contended with glitchy audio.

At multiple points, a woman’s voice broke through the audio into the Atlanta courtroom, translating the testimony of an asylum seeker in a separate hearing.

The Trump administration this week expanded the use of video hearings for immigrant children, having dozens of them held in Houston appear before a judge based in Atlanta. Advocates believe the effort could portend a nationwide expansion of video courts to process the immigration claims of children in U.S. government custody.

While the government would not confirm its plans, advocates warned of a greater burden being placed on detained immigrant children, many of whom are not yet teenagers and don’t have guaranteed access to an attorney.

Technical difficulties caused delays and snarled the launch of the hearings in Houston, one of the busiest immigration courts in the nation.

Video court hearings already occur for some children held in facilities that are hours away from an immigration court — in parts of Texas, Virginia, New York and Tennessee.

But Houston has one of the nation’s largest immigration courts, with hundreds of cases heard weekly and children often appearing before a judge in person.

Neither the Executive Office for Immigration Review, which oversees immigration courts, nor the Office of Refugee Resettlement, which has custody over 3,650 immigrant children, would answer why the Houston-to-Atlanta pilot was necessary. EOIR spokeswoman Kathryn Mattingly said that using video in general “reduces costs, increases hearing flexibility for backlogged dockets, and generally reduces processing or waiting times for decisions in administrative proceedings, without affecting the integrity of the proceedings.”

There were 25,351 immigration court hearings held by video conference in the first 17 days of January, roughly a quarter of the 95,492 for all of 2019, according to government figures obtained by immigration attorney Andrew Free.

Most of the children in government custody crossed the U.S.-Mexico border alone. Some children in ORR’s custody were sent across the border by their parents in border camps, while others may have been separated from a parent or adult relative due to suspected fraud or neglect.

On Monday, the first day of the change, Judge Sirce Owen in Atlanta saw dozens of children via video conference. They included a confused 7-year-old boy with no lawyer, a teenage mother trying to calm her toddler daughter, and a group of kids all dressed in the same green sweaters.

In the Atlanta courtroom, against the din of fuzzy audio, the judge pressed on with the group of seven children from a government-run facility in Corpus Christi, Texas, telling them why they were there and explaining their rights.

As the audio interference worsened, Owen narrowed her eyes at the screen and said, “We’re hearing some feedback on the microphone.”

The audio problems continued as the judge finished with the kids, resetting their hearings for April 20 to give them time to find attorneys.

As Owen waited for another group of children to file into the room in Corpus Christi, a female interpreter’s voice came over the speakers in the courtroom, “…and they pointed a gun at me…” before fading to garble.

Outside observers are typically prevented from sitting in on asylum testimony to protect the privacy of the person applying. Owen ultimately cut off the video and delayed court for more than an hour so the problem could be fixed.

Eventually, Owen got to the children waiting in Houston. One by one, she called up about a dozen children from a facility wearing matching forest-green zip-up sweaters. The children sat at a table next to an attorney from Catholic Charities.

Owen’s face was shown on a flat-screen television to the left of the table. But the children instead looked forward at a Spanish-language interpreter.

In the courtroom gallery, a teenager waiting for her hearing tried to calm her 2-year-old daughter as the delays mounted. The toddler tapped a toy against the bench and ran up and down the line, gently hitting the knees of other children waiting for their hearings.

A 7-year-old boy named Justin appearing from a government-run facility seemed confused when the judge asked him about whether he understood his right to an attorney. Owen explained again slowly and the boy told her he did want more time to find one.

Owen saw more than 40 children Monday. She reset some cases to allow the children to find attorneys or to give their attorneys time to prepare. She granted a handful of voluntary departure requests. And she transferred some to the adult docket because they would turn 18 before their next hearing.

“Kids are being railroaded through the proceedings,” said Zenobia Lai, vice president of immigration legal services for the Catholic Charities chapter in Houston.

“If it’s in person, the judge would be able to catch body language,” she said. “Here, I don’t know if the judge was looking at them at all. I don’t know what she sees.”

Judges have been urged to decide children’s cases more quickly and children’s attorneys learned that government-contracted facilities would no longer take children to law offices for meetings, making these cases more difficult to prepare, said Jennifer Podkul of immigrant advocacy group Kids in Need of Defense.

Gladis Molina, child advocate program director at the Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights, notes that video has been used for children at government-contracted facilities in recent years. In a previous pilot program in Phoenix, children participated in their hearings from the facility while the judge and government attorney were in court about five minutes away, she said.

“It almost felt in the courtroom what was happening was the processing of file after file because the kids weren’t there,” she said. “They were just images on a screen as opposed to children whose lives were being impacted by the decision that was being made in court.”

…

The Supreme Court on Wednesday said it would allow the Trump administration to continue enforcing a policy that makes asylum-seekers wait in Mexico for U.S. court hearings, despite lower court rulings that the policy probably is illegal.
    
The justices’ order, over a dissenting vote by Justice Sonia Sotomayor, overturns a lower court order that would have blocked the policy, at least for people arriving at the border crossings in Arizona and California.
    
The high court action came a day before the lower court order was to have taken effect. Instead, the “Remain in Mexico” policy will remain in force while a lawsuit challenging it plays out in the courts.
    
The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco has ruled that the policy, known officially as “Migrant Protection Protocols,” probably is illegal under U.S. law to prevent sending people to countries where their lives or freedom would be threatened because of their race, religion, nationality, political beliefs or membership in a particular social group.
    
About 60,000 asylum-seekers have been returned to Mexico to wait for their cases to wind through clogged U.S. immigration courts since the policy was introduced in January 2019 in San Diego and later expanded across the border.
 

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Speaker Nancy Pelosi is moving swiftly toward House passage of a coronavirus aid package possibly this week as Congress rebuffs President Donald Trump’s proposed payroll tax break and focuses on immediate sick pay, unemployment benefits and other resources for America’s workers hit by the crisis.

Pelosi plans to unveil the measure Wednesday, with voting possible as soon as Thursday, and GOP leaders signaled it could have bipartisan support. Congress is racing to contain the outbreak and financial fallout on another grueling day as the number of confirmed U.S. cases topped 1,000 and the World Health Organization declared that the global crisis is now a pandemic. Communities nationwide canceled public events in the hopes of stopping the spread of the infection.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, whom Trump tapped to negotiate with the Democratic leader, agreed with the need for fast action.

“We urge Congress to pass legislation quickly,” Mnuchin testified on Capitol Hill.

Mnuchin told lawmakers there will be a “large number” of workers who will need to self-quarantine or stay home with family members — comparing the costs to a natural disaster that would require federal aid.

“We think it is appropriate for the government to pick up those costs. This is a little bit like a hurricane, and we need to cover these outside of normal expenses,” Mnuchin said. He and Pelosi spoke again early Wednesday to discuss proposals for the package.

The GOP leader in the House, Rep. Kevin McCarthy of California, signaled potential Republican support.

“We need to do something,” McCarthy said. “I think the things that will be put forth will not be as controversial, and I think they could become very bipartisan.”

Testifying on Capitol Hill, Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, warned that the outbreak in the U.S. is going to get worse.

“I can say we will see more cases, and things will get worse than they are right now,” Fauci told the House Oversight and Reform Committee. The hearing was abruptly paused as he and other high-level officials rushed back to the White House for meetings.

The president was promoting an economic stimulus package as the financial markets reel. They nosedived at the start of the week, climbed back up and then fell again Wednesday. But lawmakers from both political parties roundly panned Trump’s call for a payroll tax holiday or industry aid as they focus on stopping the virus spread and helping households.

“Right now we’re trying to deal with the direct impact of the virus on individual citizens,” said House Budget Committee Chairman John Yarmuth, D-Ky., on Wednesday as Democrats met behind closed doors. “So paid family leave, making sure the tests are free to everybody, boosting unemployment insurance and so forth. That’s immediate. That’s tomorrow.”

Democratic lawmakers are preparing a more limited, immediate response aimed at helping workers without paid sick leave and those facing temporary layoffs because of the outbreak rather than broader stimulus for the economy.

Pelosi’s goal is to pass a more narrowly drawn measure as soon as Thursday, before lawmakers leave town for a previously scheduled weeklong recess, and revisit potential stimulus measures later on, those familiar with the thinking said. They were not authorized to speak publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.

“We don’t think they should just throw money out of an airplane and hope some of it lands on the people who are affected,” said Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer, who proposed additional measures including cash infusions for small businesses and student loan forbearance. “It’s aimed at people, not at big corporations.”

With Trump’s GOP allies in Congress split over his tax plans, support may be slim, leaving Democrats to push ahead with their initial response. Mnuchin appeared to concur with that approach.

“We want to get done what we can do this week, and we will come back,” Mnuchin said on the Hill.

For most people, the new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as fever and cough. For some, especially older adults and people with existing health problems, it can cause more severe illness, including pneumonia.

The vast majority of people recover from the new virus. According to the World Health Organization, people with mild illness recover in about two weeks, while those with more severe illness may take three to six weeks to recover. In mainland China, where the virus first exploded, more than 80,000 people have been diagnosed, and more than 58,000 have so far recovered.

Facing questions from lawmakers, Fauci explained, “It is 10 times more lethal than the seasonal flu.”

In Washington, tourists still arrived for springtime visits with crowds at the U.S. Capitol, but lawmakers were instructed by the House’s attending physician to step up their social-distancing practices – avoiding “shaking hands, giving/receiving hugs, taking selfies, etc.”

One lawmaker, Rep. Seth Moulton, D-Mass., announced his office staff would be primarily working remotely, halting all person-to-person contact and suspending its staff-led tour of the Capitol. He said in a posting to constituents that he hoped his plan could serve as a “template” for others.

Several lawmakers, including Trump confidants, have placed themselves in quarantine after being exposed to someone who had the virus.

On Wednesday, Trump was poised to announce an executive order  insisting on American-made medical supplies and pharmaceuticals in response to the virus, according to a person familiar with the plan who wasn’t authorized to discuss it and spoke on condition of anonymity.

Trump on Tuesday pitched his economic stimulus ideas privately to wary Senate Republicans, but the president’s GOP allies have been cool to additional spending at this stage. Democrats prefer their own package of low- or no-cost virus testing, unemployment insurance and sick pay for workers struggling to keep paychecks coming as the outbreak disrupts workplaces.

Trump’s team offered few specifics at the closed-door GOP lunch on the size of the payroll tax break or its duration, senators said. Trump has long promised to bring about an election year “tax cuts 2.0” and seemed to be seizing on the virus fears as a way to bring about a victory on that front before November. Behind closed doors he discussed the coming elections in swing states like Arizona and Montana, where GOP senators face tough races.

Besides payroll tax relief, Trump has said he wants help for hourly wage workers to ensure they’re “not going to miss a paycheck” and “don’t get penalized for something that’s not their fault.” He’s also mentioned small-business loans. But details are slight.

Some Republicans endorsed Trump’s suggestion that help be provided to the beleaguered cruise ship and airline industries, while others spoke up for other industries, including energy and gas. Some pushed for broader economic stimulus from a bipartisan highway bill they said was shovel-ready and popular. The payroll tax plan remained a work in progress.

Key Democrats displayed little appetite to prop up corporations harmed by the outbreak.

“The airlines have had record profitability last three years. I assume they have substantial cash reserves,” said Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Peter DeFazio, D-Ore. “I don’t see any immediate need to bail out the private sector. We need to take care of the people first — people who don’t have health insurance, people who don’t have sick leave.”

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Avoid large crowds and places where there can be close contact with people is one way to avoid the coronavirus, health authorities say — and sports leagues across the globe are taking such advice very seriously.

Italy, which has the Europe’s worst outbreak, has canceled all sports events until at least the first week in April — a major blow to the country’s ribald football (soccer) fans and players.

Football matches in Spain, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and Slovenia — among other countries — will go on as scheduled, but in empty stadiums, while some games have been scrapped altogether.

The Summer Olympic torch will be lit in Tokyo without spectators for the first time in nearly 40 years.

Tennis tournaments, golf opens, paralympic rowing, cycling, and weightlifting are among the other events that have either been postponed or cancelled.

Four U.S. major leagues — baseball, basketball, hockey, and soccer — have so far declined barring fans from their games.

Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James said last week he would refuse to play in an empty arena, saying there’s no real point in playing without fans.

But Tuesday, he appeared to back away from his earlier comments, saying he would be disappointed if no one could watch him play, but would do whatever is best for the safety of the players.

…

Avoid large crowds and places where there can be close contact with people is one way to avoid the coronavirus, health authorities say — and sports leagues across the globe are taking such advice very seriously.

Italy, which has the Europe’s worst outbreak, has canceled all sports events until at least the first week in April — a major blow to the country’s ribald football (soccer) fans and players.

Football matches in Spain, the United Kingdom, Germany, France, and Slovenia — among other countries — will go on as scheduled, but in empty stadiums, while some games have been scrapped altogether.

The Summer Olympic torch will be lit in Tokyo without spectators for the first time in nearly 40 years.

Tennis tournaments, golf opens, paralympic rowing, cycling, and weightlifting are among the other events that have either been postponed or cancelled.

Four U.S. major leagues — baseball, basketball, hockey, and soccer — have so far declined barring fans from their games.

Los Angeles Lakers superstar LeBron James said last week he would refuse to play in an empty arena, saying there’s no real point in playing without fans.

But Tuesday, he appeared to back away from his earlier comments, saying he would be disappointed if no one could watch him play, but would do whatever is best for the safety of the players.

…

Western-backed efforts to counter terror groups across Africa are falling short, increasing the chances one or more affiliates of Islamic State or al-Qaida could try to carve out their own caliphate on the continent, according to the latest assessment by a top U.S. commander.

The stark warning, shared with lawmakers Tuesday, builds on previous intelligence showing Africa-based groups have been growing more ambitious and more capable, with some increasingly bent on targeting the West.

“Western and international and African efforts there are not getting the job done,” Gen. Stephen Townsend, commander of U.S. Africa Command, told lawmakers regarding developments in West Africa and the Sahel.

“ISIS and al-Qaida are on the march,” he said, using an acronym for Islamic State. “If ISIS can carve out a new caliphate, or al-Qaida can, they will do it.”

U.S. officials warn that many of the IS and al-Qaida affiliates have already grown so strong that Africa Command has been forced to shift its strategy to trying to contain the groups rather than to degrade their capabilities.

Much of the attention has focused on the IS affiliates, buoyed by publicity from a steady stream of attacks on Nigerian government forces and others in the region.

“We’re seeing increased activity by ISIS affiliates in West Africa, East Africa,” State Department counterterrorism coordinator, Ambassador Nathan Sales, said late last month. “The ISIS brand lives on.”

But military officials warn it is the increased activity by al-Qaida affiliates in West Africa that is their biggest cause for concern.

“They want to eventually establish a caliphate,” Brig. Gen. Dagvin Anderson, commander of Special Operations Command Africa, recently told the Combating Terrorism Center Sentinel. 

“They’re quietly establishing their connections,” he said. “We’ve seen them intermarry into the local tribes. We’ve seen them become very entrenched in local politics and do this very quietly. But they know if they’re too public about their intentions, or if they raise the flag over some city, that will draw the attention of the West.”  

Making matters more complicated, U.S. military and intelligence officials say they see an increasing willingness by al-Qaida and IS affiliates to collaborate.

One United Nations official said such cooperation was one of the factors behind a “devastating surge” that saw 4,000 civilians killed in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger last January.

There are also concerns in East Africa, where the U.S. has focused increased firepower on al-Shabab in Somalia.

US Strikes in Somalia Nearly on Par with Strikes in Iraq, Syria

The US has carried out 25 strikes against al-Shabab to date in 2020, and 29 airstrikes against Islamic State in Iraq and Syria from January 1 to March 1

“The (al-Shabab) threat has been higher in the last few months than it was eight months ago when I first got to AFRICOM,” Townsend told reporters Tuesday after the hearing. “They aspire to attack Americans wherever they find us, to include the homeland.”  

However, some U.S. allies are pushing back, agreeing that while the long-term concerns are real, the immediate threat is overstated.

“In the short term, the Sahel region and the Horn of Africa are unlikely to replace the Middle East and Afghanistan as regions from which the main threat to Europe emanates,” one European Union security official recently told VOA.

US, Europe Split Over Terror Threat from Africa

While American officials increasingly talk of a threat to the homeland, allies caution, as of now, there’s nothing to suggest imminent attacks in Europe or the US

That type of sentiment may be making it more difficult for the U.S. to persuade some European partners to put more resources into the counterterror fight at a time when the Pentagon is looking at reducing its military footprint.

The U.S. has about 6,000 troops in Africa, but officials are in the middle of a review that could reduce that number by perhaps 10% or more over the next few years.

“The Sahel is principally a CT (counterterror) mission,” Defense Secretary Mark Esper said during a trip to Europe last month. “I’m not looking to put more troops in that fight.”

Instead, the U.S. and France, which has been leading the counterterror fight in West Africa with about 5,100 troops, have been pressuring other European countries to increase their military contributions.

“We’re not a lead partner in any of that. We’re a supporting player,” Townsend told reporters. “We, the world, need to do something about that.”

VOA’s Carla Babb and Nike Ching contributed to this report.
 

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Voters in six U.S. states cast ballots Tuesday in the race for who will be the Democratic Party’s presidential nominee. The focus will be on the key Midwestern state of Michigan, where polls show former Vice President Joe Biden leading Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders.

Michigan is the biggest prize in Tuesday’s voting with 125 delegates at stake.

Sanders won Michigan’s 2016 primary, but numerous polls in recent days show him trailing Biden by a double-digit margin.

Elections are also being held in Washington, Missouri, Mississippi, Idaho and North Dakota.

The contests are the first since last week’s Super Tuesday batch of states when the selection process transformed from smaller states holding votes one at a time to multiple states spread across the country voting at the same time.

Sanders won California, the biggest state, but it was Biden who emerged as the front-runner by winning 10 of the 14 states last week.

“You know, just over a week ago, the press and the pundits had declared his campaign dead. Then South Carolina spoke. Then Super Tuesday spoke and the turnout was incredible,” Biden told a crowd Monday in Detroit.  “And now tomorrow, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, North Dakota, Idaho, Washington State you will be heard. And Michigan, I’m counting on you in a big way.”

Biden entered Tuesday leading with 670 pledged delegates so far, ahead of Sanders and his 574 delegates, according to Associated Press estimates.

Sanders says his progressive campaign is what the country needs more than the moderate positions of Biden, and that he is the best challenger for Trump in the November national election.

“My point here is to ask you to think that in a general election, which candidate can generate the enthusiasm and excitement and the voter turnout we need? So if, if you want to defeat Trump, which all Democrats do, and a majority of independents and some Republicans do, we are that campaign,” Sanders told his supporters in Missouri.

A candidate needs 1,991 delegates to secure the nomination, which will not be officially decided until Democrats hold their national convention in July.

Biden and Sanders are scheduled to debate each other next Sunday ahead March 17 elections in Florida, Illinois and Ohio. 

…

For the sixth year in a row, an Ethiopian Airlines flight has flown from the Ethiopian capital to Washington, D.C. with an all-female crew to mark International Women’s Day.  VOA’ s Amharic Service was at the welcoming ceremony in Washington’s Dulles International Airport.  VOA’s Salem Solomon has more. 

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With the Grand Princess cruise ship in the Port of Oakland, people flocked to welcome the passengers and snap photos of what has become the symbol of the COVID-19 virus in the U.S. How people are responding to the virus varies person to person, but the cruise ship’s presence highlights a truth in the U.S. – that the virus is disrupting normal life. Michelle Quinn reports.

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Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is behind the kingdom’s boldest and riskiest moves in decades, most recently shutting down Islam’s holiest sites to pilgrims to stymie the spread of a new virus and the government’s decision to slash oil prices in what analysts say has sparked a price war  with major producer Russia.

As his father’s favored son, the 34-year-old prince oversees nearly every major aspect of the country’s defense, economy, internal security, social reforms and foreign policy. With no deputy, he is the only foreseeable heir to the crown and its absolute powers.

The prince’s headline-grabbing path to power has been paved with controversy, conflict and combat. Here are some of Prince Mohammed’s riskiest gambles:

Reforming the kingdom

Royal decrees to lift the ban on women driving and allowing women to obtain a passport and travel abroad without male permission mark the most significant advancement for women’s rights in the kingdom. These decisions have largely eroded key parts of male guardianship  laws and curtailed powers of the once-feared ultraconservative religious police.

They also opened an era of broader social liberalization in the kingdom. Prince Mohammed has permitted concerts, allowed movie theaters to open and removed gender-segregated barriers  separating single men from women in restaurants and cafes. Other key reforms included allowing girls to play sports in government-run schools and allowing all women into sports stadiums as spectators.

The decisions are part of the prince’s efforts to transform the kingdom economically in the face of lower oil prices and a burgeoning youth population. His brashness on other fronts, however, has rattled foreign investors, and his efforts to diversify away from oil face steep challenges.

Jailing critics

At the same time, he has launched far-reaching crackdowns on perceived critics. The prince was widely criticized around the world for the killing of Saudi dissident and Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi by agents who worked for him. The prince insists he had no knowledge of the operation. No senior officials have been held responsible.

Dozens of critics in Saudi Arabia are jailed or facing trial, including women’s rights activists who say they have been tortured, as well as human rights activists, clerics, writers and academics.

There have also been allegations the prince may have sent malware that hacked into Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ phone, and U.S. prosecutors allege Saudi Arabia recruited two Twitter employees to gather confidential personal information on thousands of accounts.

Cutting ties with Qatar

Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates led a diplomatic assault on Qatar that began in mid-2017. They along with Egypt and Bahrain cut transport links and diplomatic ties with Qatar and accused it of supporting terrorism.

Qatar denies the allegations and says the moves against it are politically motivated. Rather than force a change in its policies, Qatar allied closer with Saudi rivals Turkey and Iran.

Overseeing devastating war in Yemen

In his role as defense minister, the prince has overseen a years-long war in Yemen that pushed millions to the brink of famine  and sparked a widespread cholera outbreak. Rights groups say the Saudi-led coalition’s airstrikes have killed civilians in what amounts to war crimes.

The war has failed to dislodge Iranian-allied rebels from the capital, Sanaa. The Yemeni conflict has also drawn widespread condemnation from around the world and has prompted resolutions by multiple Western legislatures to halt arm sales to the kingdom.

Crackdown on princes

The prince has upended royal norms by targeting senior members of the royal family.

In recent days, his forces detained the king’s brother, Prince Ahmed bin Abdelaziz, and the king’s nephew and former counterterrorism czar, Prince Mohammed bin Nayef. People close to the royal court say the arrests were a warning to royals feeling disenfranchised to fully back the crown prince.

In late 2017, the prince locked up top royals, officials and senior businessmen for up to several months in the luxurious Ritz-Carlton hotel in Riyadh in an unprecedented anti-corruption sweep that  helped him consolidate power. Many were forced to sign over billions of dollars in assets for their freedom in secretive agreements.

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European Union leaders are set to hold a teleconference “shortly” to discuss a coordinated EU response to the coronavirus outbreak, the president of the European Council Charles Michel said on Monday.

“Following consultations I will hold a EUCO members conference call shortly on COVID-19 to coordinate EU efforts. We need to cooperate in order to protect the health of our citizens,” Michel, who chairs EU summits, said on Twitter.

An EU official said the call was likely to take place on Tuesday.

…

China should replace its ambassador in the Czech Republic after the Chinese embassy sent a threatening letter to Czech authorities, Prime Minister Andrej Babis said, a position that may further strain relations between the two countries.

In January, China’s embassy in Prague said in a letter sent to the Czech president’s office that Beijing would retaliate against Czech companies operating in China if a senior Czech lawmaker went ahead with a planned visit to Taiwan.

The Jan. 10 letter suggested that Czech companies operating in mainland China, such as the Volkswagen subsidiary Skoda Auto and lender Home Credit Group, would suffer if then- Senate speaker Jaroslav Kubera visited the island.

Kubera died before he could make the trip. His successor, Milos Vystrcil, is likely to push for China to replace the ambassador, and Babis would support such a demand, Czech Television reported.

“This man is quite distinctive, and what he has written, that is absolutely unacceptable, we must reject that,” Czech Television quoted Babis as saying.

Four top Czech officials, including President Milos Zeman, who has pushed for closer ties with China in recent years, will meet on Wednesday for a regular debate on foreign policy, where they are expected to address the matter.

Diplomatic ties between the two countries cooled last year when city authorities in Prague showed support for Tibet and demanded changes to an intercity partnership agreement with Beijing over a reference to China’s policy on Taiwan.

China quit the agreement and Prague instead entered a partnership with Taipei, the capital of Taiwan. China considers Taiwan part of its territory and has pushed for a “one country, two systems” model, which Taiwan rejects. Babis’s government has repeatedly said it adheres to the one-China policy.

An earlier dent in bilateral relations came in December 2018 when the Czech cyber-security watchdog warned about the risks of using network technology provided by Chinese telecoms equipment makers Huawei and ZTE.

…

Relatives of the victims of the MH17 plane crash set up 298 empty chairs outside the Russian embassy in the Netherlands, a day before four individuals will stand trial at the Hague over their alleged involvement in the downing of the passenger jet.

The Malaysian air flight crashed over territory in Ukraine held by pro-Russia separatists in July of 2014.  Russia has denied accusations of involvment, but relatives of the deceased are calling on Moscow to participate in the investigation into the crash which killed all 298 people on board.

The silent protest was staged a day before three Russians and a Ukrainian are to be tried at the Hague for their alleged roles in the missile attack.  

Rows of white folding chairs were arranged to resemble seats on the airplane. Among the victims of the 2014 crash were 196 Dutch citizens, 43 Malaysians, and 38 Australians. “

We have the utmost confidence in the Dutch legal system to establish the truth and do justice in this case,” a statement released by the U.S. State Department Sunday said. “

We again urge Russia to cease its continuing aggressive and destabilizing activities in Ukraine,” the statement went on.

Tomorrow, the trial will begin for four individuals indicted for the downing of Malaysia Airlines Flight #MH17. We support the ongoing investigatory work of the Joint Investigation Team and urge #Russia to cease its continuing aggressive and destabilizing activities in #Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/26eGUqp1bs

— Morgan Ortagus (@statedeptspox) March 8, 2020

Two independent investigators determined that the plane was shot down by an anti-aircraft missile sent to Ukraine by Russia to help pro-Russia separatists fight Ukraine.  Russia has denied providing financial or military support for separatists in Ukraine.

Russian citizens Igor Girkin, Sergei Dubinsky, and Oleg Pulatov, and Ukrainian separatist Leonid Kharchenko are the four individuals going on trial Monday, though none are expected to appear in court. If they do not send legal representatives, the Dutch court is expected to order that their trial be conducted in absentia.

…