VOA NEWS

July 7, 2014

From Washington, this is VOA news. Ukrainian forces capture more territory from pro-Russia separatists, and Israeli authorities arrest six Jewish suspects in the killing of a Palestinian teenager. I'm Michael Lipin reporting from Washington.



Ukrainian troops have pursued retreating pro-Russian separatists near the Russian border a day after recapturing the separatist stronghold of Slovyansk. Ukrainian authorities say government forces regained control of four towns between Slovyansk and the rebel-held border city of Donetsk on Sunday.

Rebel leaders admitted suffering heavy losses while abandoning Slovyansk.

Ukrainian Defense Minister Valery Heletey warned that separatists who do not give up will face the consequences.

Heletey said "In the coming days, I believe, you will see that those people who refuse to lay down arms will find out that fighting the Ukrainian army and Ukrainian people is not just dangerous, it will be a sentence for them."

Pro-Russian forces had been in control of Slovyansk since early April when they seized the city as part of a push to establish a republic free of Ukrainian government control.



Israeli media say authorities have arrested six Jewish extremists suspected of kidnapping and killing of a Palestinian teenager in East Jerusalem this past week.

The reports say one of them confessed to the crime and implicated the other suspects.

The body of 16-year-old Palestinian, Mohammed Abu Khdeir, was found on Wednesday. He had been burned to death.

Israeli media say police believe the Jewish extremists carried out the killing in revenge for the murders of three Israeli teenage boys by suspected Palestinian militants last month.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated his condemnation of the killing of the Palestinian boy, saying there is no place for such murders in Israeli society.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas urged the United Nations to investigate what he called "terrorist crimes" committed by Israelis against Palestinians.

Israeli Arabs angered about the killing of the Palestinian teenager staged another day of riots on Sunday. Hundreds threw stones at police, set tires on fire and tried to block major highways.

Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip also fired more rockets at southern Israeli communities during the day.

Israeli media say Israel's Air Force continued striking militant targets in Gaza in response, killing two suspected members of a Palestinian rocket-firing squad.



U.S. lawmakers are expected to focus on U.S. border enforcement and immigration reform when they return to work this week after an Independence Day recess.

As VOA's Michael Bowman reports, U.S. lawmakers are engaged in a heated debate about how to deal with a stream of undocumented minors arriving on America's southern border.

With an estimated 11 to 12 million foreign nationals living illegally in the United States, and a crush of underage would-be immigrants arriving daily, Republican lawmakers like Senator Jeff Sessions are pinning the blame on the Obama administration.

"The sad reality of lax enforcement, plus the lack of a clear message, is what's driving the surge. The reality is, if you get into the country today, you are not being deported. That's true."

But America's immigration challenges cannot be solved through law enforcement alone, according to Democratic Senator Harry Reid.

"Eleven million people. We cannot fiscally deport 11 million people. We cannot physically do it. It just won't work."

A comprehensive immigration reform bill that would provide an arduous path to citizenship for the undocumented and boost border enforcement passed the Senate last year, but stalled in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. Now, President Obama is asking Congress for additional funds to speed the processing and deportation of new arrivals from mostly-Central American nations.

That was Michael Bowman in Washington.



At the Wimbledon Grand Slam tennis tournament in London, top seed Novak Djokovic of Serbia has won his second men's singles title. Djokovic defeated fourth seed Roger Federer of Switzerland in five sets. Djokovic also won the Wimbledon title in 2011.



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