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This is VOA news. I'm Jim Randle.
U.S. President Donald Trump says he would be "very disappointed" if reports that North Korea is rebuilding a rocket launch site are true. Just days after he boasted of having a strong relationship with North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, multiple sources say the Pyongyang regime has restored part of a site it began to dismantling after the Singapore summit last year. Satellite images are said to show structures on the launch pad at Sohae had been rebuilt between February 16 and March 2 on the heels of the failed Hanoi summit. President Trump's former personal attorney Michael Cohen returned to Congress today for another closed-door hearing before the House Intelligence Committee. More from AP's Sagar Meghani. Cohen told the House Intelligence Committee in 2017 he'd abandoned a Trump real estate project in Moscow in January 2016 and later admitted he'd pursued the project for months as Trump continued his White House bid. Lawmakers have been interested in talking to him about the project ever since he pleaded guilty to lying to Congress. Today, a person familiar with the interviews says Cohen turned over documents related to the project. Last week, he told another panel Trump's lawyers had "reviewed and edited" the false statement he gave to Congress. One of the lawyers is denying that today. Sagar Meghani, Washington. Two top U.S. Homeland Security officials defended the Trump administration's border policies on Capitol Hill today, a day after newly released data showed a spike in the number of undocumented families crossing into the United States over the southern border. Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said the situation is not a "manufactured" crisis but "truly an emergency." It was testimony meant to bolster President Trump's declaration of a national emergency meant to finance a border wall against the will of Congress. For all the day's news, everyday you can go online to voanews.com or use the [U.S.] VOA mobile app. This is VOA news. The former head of the U.S. Central Command, retired Army General John Abizaid, President Trump's choice for ambassador to Saudi Arabia, went before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee today for a confirmation hearing. He talked about some complicating factors in the U.S.-Saudi relationship. "War in Yemen, the senseless killing of Jamal Khashoggi, rifts in the Gulf alliance, alleged abuses of innocent people -- to include an American citizen and female activists -- all present immediate challenges." General Abizaid also talked about the importance of U.S. ties to Riyadh. "It is difficult to imagine a successful U.S. effort to undercut Sunni extremism or keep Iran in check without engaging and partnering with the kingdom." Abizaid's nomination is expected to easily win Senate confirmation. U.N. human rights chief Michelle Bachelet is telling Saudi Arabia to release a group of women activists charged with harming the interests of the kingdom. There are reports the women have been tortured. "Today, allow me to voice my concern at the apparently arbitrary arrest and detention, and alleged ill-treatment or torture, of several women human rights defenders in Saudi Arabia. The persecution of peaceful activists would clearly contradict the spirit of the country's proclaimed new reforms. So, we urge that these women be released." Saudi Arabia's public prosecutors reportedly set to put the women on trial. Passengers aboard a Virgin Atlantic flight from Barbados to London today were put into quarantine because of a mysterious illness aboard the plane. We get a report from AP's Charles De Ledesma. Staff say the quarantine measure was necessary after a number of customers are reported feeling unwell on board. Then on arrival, the passengers and crew were immediately taken to a reception center near Gatwick Airport for medical assessment One traveler tweeted that the passengers had all been on a cruise ship in the Caribbean and that it is believed the illness originated on the ship and not on the plane. He said the sickness appeared to involve a bad cough and possible chest infection. The airline says it's conducting a probe into the circumstances. Charles De Ledesma, London. London's counterterrorism police are trying to track down who mailed three small and incendiary devices to two airports and a major rail station on Tuesday. No one was injured though one of the devices caused a small fire in an office building at Heathrow Airport. The other packages were discovered at the Waterloo rail station and in an office at London City Airport. A British security analyst says investigators from Ireland are looking into the origin of the explosives because they had stamps from Dublin. A spokesman for South Korean President Moon Jae-in says he is proposing a joint project with China to use artificial rain to clean the air in Seoul where an increase in pollution has caused alarm. Jim Randle, VOA news. |