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I'm VOA's Joe Ramsey with this worldwide news update.
U.S. President Donald Trump's top diplomat and his main spokesperson on Wednesday walked back the idea that he wants the permanent relocation of Palestinians from Gaza. AP correspondent Sagar Meghani reports. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and White House spokesman Caroline Levitt compare Gaza to a "demolition site," the scene of a natural disaster, and say the president's generously offered to rebuild it. "In the interim, obviously people are gonna have to live somewhere while you're rebuilding it." "The president has made it clear that they need to be temporarily relocated out of Gaza." That's not what the president said yesterday. "If we can get a beautiful area to resettle people, permanently, in nice homes." American allies and Republican lawmakers pushed back on his suggestion that the U.S. own Gaza. Palestinians are rejecting calls for even a temporary move, worrying if they leave they'll never be let back in. Sagar Meghani, Washington. President Trump's proposal that the U.S. take over the Gaza Strip has been swiftly rejected and announced by American allies and adversaries alike. AP correspondent Karen Chammas reports. Saudi Arabia weighed in quickly, noting the kingdom's long call for an independent Palestinian state was a firm, steadfast and unwavering position. Similarly, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told reporters nothing has changed. "The Australian government support and a bipartisan basis a two-state solution in the Middle East. Rafa resident ??? told the AP, "Trump's remarks are wrong. We'll remain in our homes and on our land. We will not leave, not to Egypt, nor anywhere else. Nothing worse can happen to us than what has already happened." I'm Karen Chammas. This is VOA News. USAID workers abroad are scrambling to pack up households after the Trump administration abruptly pulled almost all agency staffers off the job and out of the field. AP correspondent Donna Warder reports. One USAID contractor working in an often violent region in the Middle East speaks of waking up one morning earlier this week and being blocked from access to government email and other systems. And the person says an emergency panic button app on their smartphone had been wiped off, putting the contractor and family in danger because they weren't able to reach the U.S. government for help if needed. The Trump administration had assured that the U.S. government would bring agency workers home safely within 30 days, but some fear being stranded in the field and left to make their own way back. Donna Warder, Washington. A U.S. federal judge on Wednesday ordered a second nationwide pause on President Trump's executive order seeking to end birthright citizenship for anyone born in the United States to someone in the country illegally. U.S. District Judge Deborah Boardman said "no court in the country has endorsed" the Trump administration's interpretation of the 14th Amendment. "This court will not be the first." Trump's birthright citizenship order was already on temporary hold because of a separate suit brought by four states where a judge called it "blatantly unconstitutional." Twenty-two states in total, as well as other organizations, have sued to try to stop the executive action. The Trump administration asserts children of non-citizens are not subject to the jurisdiction of the U.S. and therefore not entitled to citizenship. President Trump signed an executive order on Wednesday intended to ban transgender athletes from participating in girls' and women's sports. The order gives federal agencies wide latitude to ensure entities that receive federal funding abide by Title IX in alignment with the Trump administration's view, which interprets sex as the gender someone was assigned at birth. Title IX prohibits sexual discrimination in schools, meaning any school found in violation could potentially be ineligible for federal funding. It is the latest aggressive shift by the Republican president's second administration in how the government views transgender people and their rights. Trump has already ordered the government to define sex as only male or female. The latest order was condemned by trans rights advocates, including the National Women's Law Center. That wraps up this update, but the world and news never stop. For additional updates, visit our website, voanews.com. I'm Joe Ramsey, VOA News. |