Charlie Kirk, who was fatally shot at a US university on Wednesday, was the eloquent spokesman for a younger generation of Donald Trump’s hard-right Republican movement.The 31-year-old boasted millions of followers on social media who delighted at his whip-smart edits and provocative takedowns of hecklers and ideological challengers.Kirk’s conservative ideology was closely aligned with Trump: he backed the US president’s false claims of fraud when he lost the 2020 presidential election and used his heavyweight influence to lash out at migrants and transgender people.In speaking gigs at American universities, he invited students to debate with him in quick-fire exchanges that often went viral online — especially those with progressives opposed to his views.It was during one of these events in Utah on Wednesday that he was shot in the neck in a moment of violence that was swiftly condemned on both sides of the political aisle. Trump himself announced that Kirk died from his wounds. “The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead. No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie,” Trump posted on Truth Social.When Kirk addressed a university crowd in Nevada last October, some in the audience told AFP he was a breath of fresh air on campuses that the political right complains are dominated by liberal ideology.”He brings different ideas to the table,” said Eric Hansen, 22. “Ideas that some of us believe in, but are sometimes afraid” to voice.- ‘Charismatic Christian nationalist’ – Not everyone was full of praise for Kirk.”Charlie Kirk is a charismatic Christian nationalist, who essentially acts as a spokesperson for Trumpism and extremist ideas,” said Kyle Spencer, author of a book that examines the birth of Turning Point USA, a youth movement Kirk helped found when he was just 18.In a little over a decade, it became the largest group of young conservatives in the United States. It nurtured an army of enthusiastic activists, some of whom were bussed to Washington on January 6, 2021 for a rally that turned into a mob invasion of the Capitol with the goal of stopping certification of Trump’s election loss to Democrat Joe Biden. In addition to Turning Point USA, Kirk ran Turning Point Action, one of the main organizations that Trump entrusted with his door-to-door voter drives in 2024.Originally from the suburbs of Chicago, Kirk did not graduate from university but began dedicating himself to activism as a teenager. His strengths soon made him a go-to figure in Republican circles and by 2016 he was serving as a personal assistant to Trump’s son, Donald Trump Jr.- Charlie’s ‘truth’ -His pugnacious oratory led to regular spots on frequently right-wing Fox News, and later to the helm of “The Charlie Kirk Show,” one of the most popular podcasts in the country.There, he fed listeners an unmediated diet of half-truths and conspiracies, boosting Trump’s “stolen election” claims and riffing on Covid-19 theories that struck a chord with many on the right.His conspiracy theories sometimes percolated right to the top. For example, in September 2024, Kirk was among the first to share allegations that Haitian immigrants were eating cats and dogs in Ohio. Days later Trump repeated the claim — for which there was never any proof — during his televised presidential debate with Democrat Kamala Harris.In an interview with AFP last year, Kirk brushed aside questions about his veracity.”I say we spread the truth,” he said.

South Korea’s top diplomat made a direct appeal Wednesday to the United States to release hundreds of workers detained in an immigration raid that stunned the close US ally, as a plane dispatched by Seoul was delayed.South Koreans made up the majority of 475 people arrested at a Hyundai-LG battery plant under construction in Georgia last week, according to immigration agents. The operation was the largest single-site raid conducted under Donald Trump’s sweeping immigration crackdown, a top political priority for the president since he returned to office in January.The raid, less than a month after Trump welcomed South Korea’s new President Lee Jae Myung to the White House, has brought shock to South Korea which for decades has seen the United States as its pivotal ally.Foreign Minister Cho Hyun flew to Washington where he met Secretary of State Marco Rubio behind closed doors.Cho also met Korean businesses in Washington and said he was seeking the “prompt and safe return” of the workers as well as assurances that they would not face any repercussions if they seek to visit the United States again in the future, the South Korean foreign ministry said in a statement.In the meeting with Rubio, Cho “strongly requested the US administration’s special interest and support to ensure they can swiftly depart the US without any physical restraints, including handcuffs — given that they are not criminals,” South Korea’s Yonhap news agency said, quoting the foreign ministry.Rubio in a State Department statement saluted the endurance of the alliance with the South, formally known as the Republic of Korea, and only referred in passing to the raid.Rubio said the United States “welcomes ROK investment into the United States and stated his interest in deepening cooperation on this front,” State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott said.- Repatriation plane -A Korean Air Boeing 747-8I, which seats over 350 passengers, left Seoul Wednesday, a company representative told AFP.The Yonhap news agency reported that the plane due to take the workers back home  will leave the United States early Thursday. While no official time has been given for the return flight, South Korean officials said Wednesday it had been delayed “due to circumstances on the US side,” without giving details.South Korean diplomats had been dispatched to Georgia in a major push to free the workers, including through contacting local authorities.In addition to being a key US security ally, South Korea is Asia’s fourth-biggest economy and a major automaker and electronics producer, and its companies have multiple plants in the United States.Seoul also heeded Washington’s repeated call during tariff negotiations for global investment in the United States.The site of the raid is a $4.3 billion joint venture between two South Korean firms –- Hyundai and LG Energy Solution –- to build a battery cell manufacturing facility in Georgia.Experts said most of the detained South Korean workers likely held visas that do not allow for hands-on construction work.The case could provide momentum for Seoul officials to push for a special visa act tailored to South Koreans, said US-licensed attorney Yum Seung-yul.”Using this as a case in point, officials here could strongly push for the Partner with Korea Act in Washington,” he said, referring to a proposal that would create a quota of 15,000 visas for skilled professionals.

NASA has begun barring Chinese nationals with valid visas from joining its programs, underscoring the intensifying space race between the rival powers.The policy shift was first reported by Bloomberg News and confirmed by the US government agency.”NASA has taken internal action pertaining to Chinese nationals, including restricting physical and cybersecurity access to our facilities, materials, and network to ensure the security of our work,” NASA press secretary Bethany Stevens told AFP Wednesday.According to Bloomberg, Chinese nationals had previously been allowed to work as contractors or students contributing to research, although not as staff. But on September 5 several individuals told the outlet they were suddenly locked out of IT systems and barred from in-person meetings. They spoke on condition of anonymity.The move comes amid escalating anti-China rhetoric under President Donald Trump’s administration. The United States and China are competing to send crews to the Moon.The US Artemis program, a follow-up to the Apollo landings from 1969–1972, is targeting a 2027 landing but has suffered cost overruns and delays.China, by contrast, aims to land its “taikonauts” by 2030 under its program, and has recently been more successful at meeting deadlines.”We’re in a second space race right now,” NASA’s acting administrator Sean Duffy told reporters Wednesday, speaking at a news conference related to discoveries made with a US rover on Mars.”The Chinese want to get back to the Moon before us. That’s not going to happen. America has led in space in the past, and we are going to continue to lead in space in the future.”China is also seeking to become the first country to return a sample from the Martian surface, with a robotic mission slated to launch in 2028 and bring rocks back as soon as 2031.The Trump administration, meanwhile, has signaled through its budget proposal that it wants to cancel a planned Mars Sample Return mission, a joint project with the European Space Agency. It has hinted the job could instead be accomplished by a crewed mission, although no firm details have been provided.