A U.S. Senate panel begins confirmation hearings Tuesday on the nomination of federal appellate court judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, a pivotal life-time appointment President Donald Trump hopes will cement a conservative-leaning majority on the court for years to come. Kavanaugh will face tough questioning from lawmakers on the Senate Judiciary Committee about his views on a range of issues, including abortion, the powers of a special prosecutor to investigate Trump and Russian meddling in the 2016 election, the conflict between religious beliefs and gay rights, environmental controls and numerous other issues. The White House is hoping the full Senate will confirm the 53-year-old Kavanaugh to the nine-member court later in September, in time for him to fill the vacancy left by the retirement of Justice Anthony Kennedy when the court opens a new term on October 1. Kennedy most often sided with the court’s four-member conservative bloc, …

U.S. forces in Afghanistan say they targeted and killed the leader of Islamic State Khorasan Province last month in eastern Afghanistan.   ISKP is the branch of IS operating in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and the vicinity.   Abu Sayeed Bajaur, also known as Abu Saad Orakzai, is the third ISKP leader killed by coalition forces in the past two years. The announcement came Sunday, when a new U.S. commander took charge of the NATO and U.S. forces in Afghanistan.  General Scott Miller said a vital part of his mission in Afghanistan is to keep the country from becoming a safe haven for terrorist groups.  “America and her allies are in Afghanistan to maintain pressure on the networked, trans-regional terrorists attempting to plot, resource and direct attacks from here,” he said. While ISKP has been facing pressure in Afghanistan and the area under its direct control has been reduced by increased U.S. …

While many people come to Hollywood looking for fame in front of the cameras, Iris Lee prefers to work behind the lens. “I’m young, but I think I would really want to be a cinematographer in the future,” said Lee, who studied communications and film in college and graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles several months ago. She is now getting hands-on experience at Disney through the Academy Gold program. ​Underrepresented communities Lee was born in the United States, but her parents are from Taiwan, and convincing them of what she wants to do has taken some time. “I think initially they had a stronger reaction than they did now,” Lee explained. “When they came here (U.S.) and had me, I don’t think they expected me to have a career in entertainment. I don’t think any first-generation children go into entertainment.” The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and …

President Donald Trump’s administration wants to shut down U.S. government radio stations that announce official time, a service in operation since World War II. WWV and WWVB in the state of Colorado and WWVH on the island of Kauai in the mid-Pacific state of Hawaii, send out signals that allow millions of clocks and watches to be set either manually or automatically. WWVB continuously broadcasts digital time codes, using very long electromagnetic waves at a frequency of 60 kilohertz, which are automatically received by timekeeping devices in North America, keeping them accurate to a fraction of a second. “If you shut down these stations, you turn off all those clocks,” said Don Sullivan, who managed the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) stations between 1994 and 2005. ​GPS not good enough Some argue the terrestrial time signal have been rendered obsolete by the government’s Global Positioning System, whose satellites …

The film industry organization that presents the Academy Awards is also developing young talent through a program called Academy Gold — an internship and mentoring program for students and young professionals from communities currently underrepresented in Hollywood. Some of the participants are either immigrants or children of immigrants who are trying to create an unorthodox career path for themselves. VOA’s Elizabeth Lee reports from Los Angeles. …

The 17th commander to lead the NATO and United States forces in Afghanistan in what has become America’s longest war took charge in a change of command ceremony in Kabul Sunday morning.   General Austin Scott Miller of the U.S. Army is taking over at a time when Afghanistan is experiencing a combination of hope, apprehension, and uncertainty. A first-ever cease-fire between the warring factions during the Muslim holy festival Eid-al-Fitr in June, followed by direct contacts between Taliban and U.S. officials in Qatar, raised hopes that a start of negotiations with the Taliban for a political settlement of the 17 year old conflict could be imminent.     Those hopes were dashed last month when the Taliban failed to reciprocate President Ashraf Ghani’s offer for a second cease-fire during the holy festival of Eid-al-Adha.   General John Nicholson, the outgoing commander, indicated that the Taliban decision may have been …

In Bangladesh, two-thirds of all girls are married before the age of 18, depriving some of their childhood and others their right to an education. A U.S.-based nonprofit organization is trying to change that by providing educational support through a program called Girls Education Program.  But the support is also coming from everyday citizens, like a mother and her 9-year-old daughter from Maryland who are going out of their way to help girls living in poverty, halfway around the world. When Sasha Forbes heard an interview with the founder of Speak Up for the Poor, she was moved and inspired by their mission. “I’m very passionate about empowering girls and empowering women,” Forbes said. ​Speak Up for the Poor The U.S.-based nonprofit does a lot of work in Bangladesh, one of the poorest countries in the world. Troy Anderson is the founder and international director of Speak Up. “So in …

The chief of the United Nations agency that helps Palestinian refugees is promising continued aid for Palestinians, even as the United States says it is ending its financial contribution to the agency. In the letter late Saturday, Pierre Krahenbuhl, commissioner-general of the U.N. Relief and Works Agency, said the U.S. decision “will only strengthen our resolve.”  He said, “The funding decision of an individual member state – albeit our historically most generous and consistent donor – will not modify or impact the energy and passion with which we approach our role and responsibility towards Palestine refugees.”    But on Sunday, Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, said his country welcomed the end to U.S. funding, saying the relief agency “has proven itself an impediment to resolving the conflict by keeping the Palestinians in perpetual refugee status.  The Palestinian attempt to approach the U.N. is another empty statement.  It’s …

Scientists are using a new way to track animal species without having to capture them. Through a process called environmental DNA, scientists can now obtain the genetic trail animals leave behind, which could help to protect and save threatened species. VOA’s Deborah Block has more. …

The Islamic State terror group is losing its grip on parts of Afghanistan, slowly succumbing to pressure from U.S. and Afghan forces, the outgoing commander of U.S. Forces-Afghanistan said Saturday. General John Nicholson rejected the notion that IS-Khorsasan, also known as ISIS-K or IS-K, has been able to meaningfully expand its presence following a concerted effort to wipe it out, which began last year. That effort included use of the largest non-nuclear bomb in the U.S. arsenal. “ISIS-K is not growing,” said Nicholson, who hands over command of U.S. Forces-Afghanistan on Sunday to Lieutenant General Austin Miller.  “They have been able to replenish a portion of their losses by recruiting from other violent extremist organizations,” he added in an email statement to VOA. “Despite this recruiting, they are losing fighters and losing ground.” Recent estimates from U.S. counterterrorism officials put the number of IS-Khorasan fighters at more than 1,000, even …

The U.S. military says it has decided to cancel $300 million in aid to Pakistan that had been suspended over Islamabad’s perceived failure to act decisively against militants, in a new blow to deteriorating ties. The so-called Coalition Support Funds were part of a broader suspension in aid to Pakistan announced by President Donald Trump at the start of the year, when he accused Pakistan of rewarding past assistance with “nothing but lies & deceit.” The Trump administration says Islamabad is granting safe haven to insurgents who are waging a 17-year-old war in neighboring Afghanistan, a charge Pakistan denies.  But U.S. officials had held out the possibility that Pakistan could win back that support if it changed its behavior. U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis, in particular, had an opportunity to authorize $300 million in CSF funds through this summer if he saw concrete Pakistani actions to go after insurgents. Mattis chose not to, a U.S. official told Reuters. “Due …

Russia is not giving up on efforts to destabilize Afghanistan and drive divisions between the United States and its coalition partners, according to the outgoing commander of U.S. forces in the country. The commander of U.S. Forces-Afghanistan and of Operation Resolute Support, General John Nicholson, is scheduled to step down Sunday after serving in the position for more than two years. But before relinquishing command, he took time to cast doubts on Russia’s intentions in the region, despite recent overtures from Moscow to help the Taliban reconcile with the Afghan government. “We know that Russia is attempting to undercut our military gains and years of military progress in Afghanistan, and make partners question Afghanistan’s stability,” Nicholson said in an email to Voice of America, following on questions from his August 22 briefing with Pentagon reporters. “It is no secret that Russia seeks any opportunity it can find to drive a …

Saturday ceremonies in Washington for late Senator John McCain …

Orson Swindle’s first conversation with the late Senator John McCain was tapped out in code on a wall between prison cells. The retired Marine officer met McCain in 1967 when both were prisoners of war at the infamous “Hanoi Hilton” prison in Vietnam. U.S. servicemen used a secret code to communicate with each other while confined to their cells. “The first thing he tapped to me was a joke that I can’t tell you,” Swindle said, because the joke was a bawdy one. The two men, imprisoned together until their release in early 1973, quickly formed a friendship that lasted until McCain’s death last week. McCain’s condition was dire when he was brought into what was formally known as Hòa Lò prison with two broken arms, a broken leg and other injuries sustained after his Skyhawk bomber jet was hit by a Vietnamese missile, October 26, 1967, forcing him to …

Education Secretary Betsy DeVos says she has “no intention of taking any action” regarding any possible use of federal funds to arm teachers or provide them with firearms training. DeVos’ comments came Friday after a top official in her department, asked about arming teachers, said states and local jurisdictions always “had the flexibility” to decide how to use federal education funds. Frank Brogan, assistant secretary of elementary and secondary education, said arming educators “is a good example of a profoundly personal decision on the part of a school or a school district or even a state.” President Donald Trump and DeVos have said that schools may benefit from having armed teachers and should have that option. DeVos not authorized DeVos said Friday that “Congress did not authorize me or the Department to make those decisions” about arming teachers or training them on the use of firearms. Her comments were in …

The five-day mourning period for the late Senator John McCain will end Sunday when he is buried at his alma mater, the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, near Washington. The final resting place of the Arizona Republican, who died last Saturday at age 81, will be next to that of his longtime friend and academy classmate, Admiral Chuck Larson, who died in 2014.  McCain, a former aviator who was a prisoner of war in Vietnam for more than five years, made one of his last public appearances at the academy in October, when he told the student body that the school prepared him for challenges he had yet to confront. “I would discover that a sense of honor had been imparted to me here that would speak to me in the darkest hours,” he said. “And so I came back, again and again, to the place where I learned to …

California lawmakers have voted to make net neutrality state law, becoming the latest of several states to approve such measures. The move by state legislators is a rejection of the Trump administration’s repeal of national net neutrality rules that did not allow internet service providers to discriminate in their handling of internet traffic. Net neutrality was first put in place by the Obama administration in 2015. When it was repealed, it opened the door for internet service providers to block content, slow data transmission, and create “fast lanes” for consumers who pay premiums. If California Governor Jerry Brown signs net neutrality into law, the state could possibly face a legal fight from the Federal Communications Commission, which has declared that states cannot pass their own net neutrality rules. Analysts say other states are watching how California will handle the issue. If the home of Silicon Valley finalizes the new law, …

In Minnesota, Hmong farmers have banded together to make a better living. Originally from China, the Hmong are an Asian ethnic group that migrated to Vietnam and Laos in the 18th century. But they have never had a country of their own. After the Vietnam War ended, many resettled in the U.S. and now, decades later, Hmong farmers are at the center of a local food economy in Minnesota. VOA’s June Soh has more in this report narrated by Carol Pearson. …

Family, loved ones, celebrities and political leaders, including former U.S. President Bill Clinton, were among the thousands who gathered at Detroit’s Greater Grace Temple Friday for an all-day funeral to honor Aretha Franklin. The star-studded event with performances by Stevie Wonder, Jennifer Hudson and Faith Hill among others was at times somber and often joyful, a larger than life tribute to the woman known and loved around the world as the “Queen of Soul.” VOA’s Cindy Saine has more. …