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From Washington, this is VOA news.
President Trump said Congressman Steve Scalise is "in some trouble" as he fights to recover from a gunshot wound he suffered Wednesday in a surprise attack on Republican lawmakers. It happened at a baseball practice in Alexandria, Virginia, just outside Washington. Scalise remains in critical condition. He has had three surgeries so far. The hospital said in a statement Wednesday that Scalise "will require additional operations." Eighteen people linked to an attack on protesters last month, including bodyguards to Turkey's president, face assault charges in Washington DC. Four have been arrested. The remainder are at large. The announcement came at a news conference by the city's mayor and by police chief Peter Newsham. "When these events unfolded in early May we said we would do everything we possibly could to hold those responsible accountable for their actions. We are hopeful that those responsible will do their part and present themselves to answer to these charges." Police closely looked at video of protesters being kicked and hit near the Turkish ambassador's residence in Washington. Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was sitting in a car nearby when the attack happened. But Newsham, the chief, said investigators had insufficient evidence to charge Erdoğan in what he characterized is a "pretty brutal attack." The Turkish leader said Thursday that he will launch a political and legal fight over the arrest warrants. According to a report by CNN Turk, nine people were injured in the skirmish. Twelve of the remaining suspects are Turkish citizens and have not been detained. Two more are Canadian. You are listening to news from the Voice of America. An American college student released by North Korea after 17 months in detention suffered a "severe neurological injury," a hospital spokeswoman said Thursday. After returning home from North Korea, 22-year-old Otto Warmbier was immediately transported to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center hospital, where he is in stable condition. Doctors say Warmbier suffered severe damage to all parts of his brain. His parents said their son has been [in coma] in a coma for more than a year, and they described his release as a medical evacuation. At a news conference Thursday, Fred Warmbier said he does not believe what North Korea said was the cause of their son's condition. "We relied on this false premise that they would treat Otto fairly and let him go, and we -- Otto was held as a war criminal. They termed his confinement as a war criminal. And so that seemed to get Cindy and I's attention." A suicide bomber blew himself up inside a crowded Shiite Muslim mosque in Afghanistan's capital late Thursday, killing at least six people and wounding many others. The Islamic State terrorist group through its global mouthpiece, the Amal News Agency, claimed responsibility for the bombing. Witnesses at Kabul's Al Zahra mosque reported that police guards identified and tried to intercept the bomber, but he opened fire at them and forced his way into the worship place. The U.S. Senate voted 98-2 Thursday to approve sweeping sanctions against Russia and make it harder for President Trump to ease punitive measures against Moscow. Russian President Vladimir Putin said he doesn't believe his country and the United States are enemies and downplay those fresh sanctions. During his annual nationwide call-in show Thursday, Putin said, "I know the mood of our people. We do not believe America is our enemy. There is hysteria in the media and it defects the mood. But many people in Russia admire the achievements of the American people and I hope relations will normalize." Greece's European lenders agreed Thursday to release another $9.5 billion of a desperately needed bailout installment while holding out the hope of debt relief. All sides reached a deal in Luxembourg Thursday after months of often bitter negotiations. The European Union's top economy official said Greece has respected its commitments for economic reforms and that it is now time for its creditors to "take theirs." He said the Greek people need to see the "light at the end of the tunnel of austerity." There is more on these and other stories anytime at voanews.com. That's the latest world news from VOA. |