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US authorities on Sunday detained a person of interest in the mass shooting at Brown University that left two people dead and nine others wounded, the latest in a long line of school attacks nationwide.A shooter opened fire on Saturday at the elite Ivy League university in Providence, Rhode Island in a building where exams were taking place, triggering a campus lockdown and launching an hours-long hunt for the suspect.Providence Mayor Brett Smiley told an early Sunday press conference that a “person of interest” had been detained and the shelter-in-place order lifted.Police Colonel Oscar Perez added that authorities were “not at this point” looking for anyone else in relation to the attack.Of the nine wounded, one was in critical condition, seven were in stable condition and one was discharged, Smiley said.Joseph Oduro, a teaching assistant at Brown, said he was in a campus auditorium when the gunman entered.”I was standing in the front of the auditorium, and he came through the back, so we pretty much directly made eye contact, and then as soon as that happened, I looked at my students and signaled them to come to the front, and then I just ducked,” Oduro told CNN.”He came in, pointed the gun and then screamed something… then he just started shooting right after that.”Police released 10 seconds of footage of the suspect, seen from behind, walking briskly down a deserted street after opening fire inside a first-floor classroom. “It is shocking and so terribly sad. I know the students here, many of whom were sheltering for many, many hours last night,” Smiley said later on CNN. “They’re all incredibly shaken up.”Final exams scheduled for Sunday were postponed, university officials said.- Latest mass shooting -Brown University President Christina Paxson confirmed in a letter to community members that all 11 victims were students.The attack is the latest incident of mass shooting in a country where attempts to restrict access to firearms face political deadlock.”This should not be normal,” Smiley said on CNN. “This should not be the case that every community needs to prepare for something like this to happen. And I certainly never thought that it would actually happen in Providence, although we were well prepared for it.”There have been more than 300 mass shootings in the United States so far this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive, which defines a mass shooting as four or more people shot.During an event at the White House on Sunday afternoon, US President Donald Trump spoke briefly about the shooting at the Ivy League campus. “Great school… really one of the greatest schools anywhere in the world. Things can happen,” the president said. “So to the nine injured, get well fast, and to the families of those two that are no longer with us, I pay my deepest regards and respects from the United States of America.”- Emergency alert -Brown, which has a student body of about 11,000, sent an emergency alert at 4:22 pm (2122 GMT) on Saturday reporting “an active shooter near Barus and Holley Engineering,” which is home to the engineering and physics departments. Two exams had been scheduled at the time.”Lock doors, silence phones and stay hidden until further notice,” the university said.Law enforcement and first responders swarmed the scene, with local news station WPRI reporting “clothing and blood on the sidewalk.”The deadliest school shooting in US history took place at Virginia Tech on April 16, 2007, when South Korean student Seung-Hui Cho killed 32 people and wounded 17 others before taking his own life.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was set to push on with talks in Berlin on Monday with US President Donald Trump’s envoys on how to end the grinding war with Russia.As the conflict raged on, Zelensky’s delegation huddled for over five hours on Sunday with Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and the US president’s son-in-law Jared Kushner.Witkoff said afterwards on X that “a lot of progress was made, and they will meet again tomorrow morning.”Their meeting was held under tight security in the chancellery in Berlin, where Germany’s leader Friedrich Merz was Monday due to host a dinner with Zelensky, a group of European leaders and the NATO and EU chiefs.An AFP photographer saw the Ukrainian leader leave the chancellery shortly before 9:00 pm (2000 GMT).Trump has pushed for an end to the almost four-year-old war, but Kyiv and its allies in Europe are at pains to prevent any settlement that would strongly favour Russia.Key questions remain on Ukrainian territorial concessions, future security guarantees for Kyiv, and whether Moscow would agree to any proposal hammered out by the Europeans and Americans.”We want a lasting peace in Ukraine,” Merz wrote on X. “Difficult questions lie ahead of us, but we are determined to move forward.”Ukrainian interests are also European interests.”Zelensky, as he headed to Germany, said he was ready for “dialogue” on ending the war that started with Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.He said he hoped Washington would back the idea of freezing the front line where it is, rather than Ukraine ceding the entire Donbas region as Moscow demands.”The fairest possible option is to ‘stay where we are’,” Zelensky told reporters on his way to Berlin. “This is true because it is a ceasefire… I know that Russia does not view this positively, and I would like the Americans to support us on this issue.”- ‘Very strong objections’ -Trump has been stepping up pressure on Ukraine to reach an agreement since revealing a plan last month to end the war that was criticised as echoing Moscow’s demands.Kyiv officials later said they had sent Washington a revised version. Witkoff said “in-depth discussions” were held on Sunday about that plan, “economic agendas, and more”.Zelensky said on Sunday: “The most important thing is that the plan should be as fair as possible, first and foremost for Ukraine, because Russia started the war.”In Russia, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov cast strong doubt on the latest round of diplomacy.”I think the contribution of both Ukrainians and Europeans to these documents is unlikely to be constructive, that’s the problem,” he said in a video message. Ushakov said Moscow had not seen the latest documents but added that “if there are any relevant amendments, we will have very strong objections, since we have very clearly stated our position, which, it seems, was quite clear to the Americans.”Europeans and Ukrainians have asked the United States to provide them with “security guarantees” before Ukraine negotiates any territorial concessions, France said Friday.Under the latest US plan, Ukraine would be able join the EU as early as January 2027, a senior official familiar with the matter told AFP Friday on condition of anonymity.The latest push in the efforts to put an end to the war came as Kyiv reported new aerial strikes on its territory.According to its air force, Russia launched 138 drones and a ballistic missile overnight.A Russian drone has hit “one of the hospitals in Kherson”, wounding two people, including a nurse, the regional administration said on Telegram.At least 11 people were wounded in strikes on the Zaporizhzhia region, governor Ivan Fedorov said.burs-fz/rlp

World leaders voiced horror and revulsion at Sunday’s mass shooting in which 11 people were killed at Sydney’s Bondi Beach.Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the “shocking and distressing” attack, which Australian police are calling a “terrorist” incident, was “beyond comprehension”, after assailants fired on a gathering celebrating the Jewish festival of Hanukkah.- Israel -President Isaac Herzog condemned what he called a “very cruel attack on Jews” by “vile terrorists”.In a speech in Jerusalem, he called on Australia to “fight against the enormous wave of antisemitism which is plaguing Australian society”.- United States -US President Donald Trump branded it “a purely antisemitic attack”.”That was a terrible attack, 11 dead, 29 badly wounded. And that was an antisemitic attack, obviously,” Trump said during a Christmas celebration at the White House.”Antisemitism has no place in this world,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, said on X.”Our prayers are with the victims of this horrific attack, the Jewish community, and the people of Australia.”- Britain -King Charles III, head of the 56 countries of the Commonwealth, of which Australia is a member, said he was “appalled” by “most dreadful antisemitic terrorist attack on Jewish people”.Prime Minister Keir Starmer called it “deeply distressing” and sent condolences to “everyone affected by the appalling attack”.- United Nations -UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres said on X he was “horrified” by the “heinous deadly attack”.”My heart is with the Jewish community worldwide on this first day of Hannukah, a festival celebrating the miracle of peace and light vanquishing darkness.”- European Union -EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said in a post to X she was “shocked” by what she condemned as an “appalling act of violence”.She added: “Europe stands with Australia and Jewish communities everywhere. We are united against violence, antisemitism and hatred.”- Palestinian Authority -The Palestinian foreign ministry condemned the shooting, saying it rejected “all forms of violence, terrorism and extremism, which contradict humanitarian values”.In a statement it voiced its “full solidarity” with “friendly Australia”.- Iran -Israel’s arch-enemy Iran joined in the condemnations.”Terror and killing of human beings, wherever committed, is rejected and condemned,” foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said on X.- France, Italy, Germany -French President Emmanuel Macron condemned the attack and vowed that France would “fight relentlessly against antisemitic hatred”.Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on X she felt “profound grief” at the attack.”By once again firmly condemning all forms of violence and anti-semitism, Italy expresses its own condolences for the victims,” she added.German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul said in a post on X: “I am deeply shocked by the terrorist attack in Sydney –- an act of hatred directed against all Jews worldwide on the first day of Hanukkah.”- Canada -Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said he was “horrified by the antisemitic terror attack” in a post to X.”Canada stands with the people of Australia and Jewish people everywhere in sorrow, and determination never to bow to terrorism, violence, hatred and intimidation,” he added.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on Sunday met with US President Donald Trump’s envoys for talks on how to end the war with Russia, kicking off two days of crisis diplomacy in Berlin.Trump has pushed for an end to the almost four-year-old conflict but key questions remain on territorial concessions, future security guarantees for Kyiv, and whether Russia would agree to any proposal hammered out by the Europeans and Americans.German leader Friedrich Merz was shown offering a “warm welcome” to Zelensky as well Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and the US president’s son-in-law Jared Kushner in a short video released by the chancellery.”We began our meeting,” Zelensky said on Facebook, posting pictures of the Ukrainian delegation joined by Merz, the US representatives and NATO’s top commander in Europe, US General Alexus Grynkewich.”We want a lasting peace in Ukraine,” Merz wrote on X. “Difficult questions lie ahead of us, but we are determined to move forward.”Ukrainian interests are also European interests.”On Monday, Merz was due to again host Zelensky at a German-Ukrainian business conference before they will be joined for dinner by a group of European heads of state and government and the leaders of NATO and the EU.- ‘Strong objections’ -Zelensky, as he headed to Germany, said he was ready for “dialogue” on ending the grinding war that started with Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, adding that “the summit in Berlin is important”.Zelensky said he hoped the United States would back the idea of freezing the front line where it is, rather than Ukraine ceding the entire Donbas region as Moscow demands.”The fairest possible option is to ‘stay where we are’,” Zelensky told reporters in an online briefing. “This is true because it is a ceasefire… I know that Russia does not view this positively, and I would like the Americans to support us on this issue.”Trump has been stepping up pressure on Kyiv to reach an agreement since revealing a plan last month to end the war that was criticised as echoing Moscow’s demands.The proposal triggered a flurry of diplomacy, with Kyiv officials recently saying they had sent Washington a revised version.Zelensky said he had not received a response from Washington on Ukraine’s amendments, but added: “I am receiving all the signals and will be ready for the dialogue that will begin today.”In Russia, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov cast doubt on the latest efforts.”I think the contribution of both Ukrainians and Europeans to these documents is unlikely to be constructive, that’s the problem,” he said in a video message. Ushakov said Moscow had not seen the latest documents but added that “if there are any relevant amendments, we will have very strong objections, since we have very clearly stated our position, which, it seems, was quite clear to the Americans.”- Aerial strikes -Last week Zelensky said that Washington was still pushing Ukraine to cede land to Russia.Washington proposed for only Ukraine, not Russia, to withdraw its troops from parts of the eastern Donetsk region, where a demilitarised “free economic zone” would be installed as a buffer, said Zelensky.Europeans and Ukrainians are meanwhile asking the United States to provide them with “security guarantees” before Ukraine negotiates any territorial concessions, France said Friday.Under the latest US plan, Ukraine would join the EU as early as January 2027, a senior official familiar with the matter told AFP Friday on condition of anonymity.Zelensky said on Sunday: “The most important thing is that the plan should be as fair as possible, first and foremost for Ukraine, because Russia started the war.”The latest push in the efforts to put an end to the war came as Kyiv reported new aerial strikes on its territory.According to its air force, Russia launched 138 drones and a ballistic missile overnight.A Russian drone has hit “one of the hospitals in Kherson”, wounding two people, including a nurse, the regional administration said on Telegram.At least 11 people were wounded in strikes on the Zaporizhzhia region, governor Ivan Fedorov said.burs-fz/fec/rlp

World leaders express their horror and revulsion at Sunday’s mass shooting in which 11 people were killed at Sydney’s iconic Bondi Beach.Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the “shocking and distressing” attack, which Australian police are calling a “terrorist” incident, was “beyond comprehension” as assailants fired on a gathering celebrating the Jewish festival of Hanukkah.Israeli President Isaac Herzog condemned what he called a “very cruel attack on Jews” by “vile terrorists”.King Charles III, head of the 56 countries of the 56-nation Commonwealth, of which Australia is a member, said he was “appalled” by “most dreadful antisemitic terrorist attack on Jewish people”.US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, also on X, said: “Antisemitism has no place in this world. “Our prayers are with the victims of this horrific attack, the Jewish community, and the people of Australia.”EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said she was “shocked” at what she condemned as an “appalling act of violence”.She added in a post to X: “Europe stands with Australia and Jewish communities everywhere. We are united against violence, antisemitism and hatred.”British Prime Minister Keir Starmer lamented what he described as the “deeply distressing news from Australia.”The United Kingdom sends our thoughts and condolences to everyone affected by the appalling attack in Bondi beach,” he added.Israel’s arch-enemy Iran joined the condemnations. Posting on X, foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said: “We condemn the violent attack in Sydney, Australia. Terror and killing of human beings, wherever committed, is rejected and condemned.”- ‘Entirely forseeable’ -French President Emmanuel Macron condemned the attack and vowed that France would “fight relentlessly against antisemitic hatred.”Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on X she felt “profound grief regarding the dramatic news arriving from Sydney.”By once again firmly condemning all forms of violence and anti-semitism, Italy expresses its own condolences for the victims,” she added.German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, also in a post to X, said: “I am deeply shocked by the terrorist attack in Sydney –- an act of hatred directed against all Jews worldwide on the first day of Hanukkah.”My thoughts are with the families of those murdered, the injured and the Jewish community,” he added.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky posted on X that his country “stands in solidarity with Australia in the face of the brutal terrorist attack at Bondi Beach, Sydney, which targeted the Jewish community.”Terror and hatred must never prevail — they must be defeated everywhere and every time,” he said.A major Australian Muslim organisation also condemned the “horrific” shooting.”Our hearts, thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their families, and all those who witnessed or were affected by this deeply traumatic attack,” the Australian National Imams Council said, urging all Australians to stand together in unity, compassion, and solidarity.The head of Australia’s Jewish Association meanwhile said the shooting was a “tragedy but entirely foreseeable.”The Albanese government was warned so many times but failed to take adequate actions to protect the Jewish community,” Robert Gregory told AFP.

Hundreds of police officers hunted on Sunday for a gunman who killed two people and wounded nine others at Brown University, plunging the eastern US campus into lockdown.The streets around the university in Providence, Rhode Island, were filled with emergency vehicles hours after the shooter opened fire on Saturday at a building where exams were taking place.The violence is the latest in a long line of school attacks in the United States, where attempts to restrict access to firearms face political deadlock.Witness Katie Sun told the Brown Daily Herald student newspaper she was studying in a nearby building when she heard gunfire. She ran to her dormitory, leaving all her belongings behind.”It was honestly quite terrifying. The shots seemed like they were coming from… where the classrooms are,” she said.Brown University student Lydell Dyer was working in the school’s gym at the time, according to CNN.”We had to go gather everybody, bring them up to the top floor, turn off the lights, and put down the blinds,” he told the broadcaster, saying he hid silently in the dark with 154 others.The gunman was still at large 10 hours after the shooting, and some 400 officers ranging from FBI agents to campus police swarmed the quaint New England campus.Police released 10 seconds of footage of the suspect walking briskly down a deserted street, seen from behind after opening fire inside a first-floor classroom.Brown University President Christina Paxson confirmed in a letter to community members that all 11 victims were students.”Nine members of our community who were transported to local hospitals are all students. And we lost two students to today’s devastating gun violence,” Paxson said in the letter posted to the school’s website.”We learned from the hospital that six students remain in critical but stable condition. One student is in critical condition, another is considered in stable condition, and one was treated and released.”There have been more than 300 mass shootings in the United States so far this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive, which defines a mass shooting as four or more people shot.A shelter order remains in place, the Providence Emergency Management Agency said on social media.Providence Mayor Brett Smiley said city officials “do not feel that it is necessary” for local residents to cancel holiday-related plans over the weekend or throughout the week.”In the hours that have eclipsed since the initial shooting, we’ve received no additional credible information that there is any specific ongoing threat from this individual,” Smiley said.Final exams scheduled for Sunday have been postponed, university officials said.- Emergency alert -Brown, which has a student body of about 11,000, sent an emergency alert at 4:22 pm (2122 GMT) reporting “an active shooter near Barus and Holley Engineering,” which is home to the engineering and physics departments. Two exams had been scheduled at the time.”Lock doors, silence phones and stay hidden until further notice,” the Ivy League university said.Law enforcement and first responders swarmed the scene, with local news station WPRI reporting “clothing and blood on the sidewalk.”Authorities urged anyone with information to come forward.”We’re utilizing every resource possible to find this suspect. The shelter in place is still in order and I urge people to take that very seriously. Please do not come to the area,” Deputy Police Chief Timothy O’Hara told a news briefing.He said the gunman was last seen leaving the building and that no weapon had been recovered.US President Donald Trump has been briefed on the shooting and called the incident a “terrible thing.””All we can do right now is pray for the victims,” he said.The deadliest school shooting in US history took place at Virginia Tech on April 16, 2007, when South Korean student Seung-Hui Cho killed 32 people and wounded 17 others before taking his own life.

A gunman killed two people and wounded nine others on Saturday at Brown University, plunging the eastern US campus into lockdown as hundreds of police hunted the suspect late into the night.The streets around the university in the state of Rhode Island were filled with emergency vehicles hours after the gunfire at a building where exams were taking place. The shooting is the latest in a long line of school attacks in the United States, where attempts to restrict access to firearms face political deadlock.Witness Katie Sun told the Brown Daily Herald student newspaper she was studying in a nearby building when she heard gunfire. She ran to her dorm, leaving all her belongings behind.”It was honestly quite terrifying. The shots seemed like they were coming from… where the classrooms are,” she said.Six hours after the shooting, the gunman was still at large, and some 400 police ranging from FBI agents to campus cops swarmed the quaint New England campus. “I can confirm that there are two individuals who have died this afternoon, and there are another eight in critical status, though stable,” Providence, Rhode Island Mayor Brett Smiley told a news conference. A ninth person who “received fragments from the shooting” was later taken to the hospital, authorities said.Police released ten seconds of footage of the suspect walking briskly down a deserted street, seen from behind after opening fire inside a first-floor classroom.University officials stressed that the campus was still in lockdown as midnight approached.Ten of the 11 victims were students, Brown University President Christina Paxson said in a late night briefing.”My heart breaks for the students who were looking forward to a holiday break and instead are dealing with another horrifying mass shooting,” Rhode Island Senator Sheldon Whitehouse posted on X.  – Exams -The shooting took place at the Barus and Holley building, home to the engineering and physics departments, on the campus of the Ivy League university.  Two exams had been scheduled to take place in the building at the time of the shooting, the university said.Law enforcement described the suspect as a man dressed all in black.”We’re utilizing every resource possible to find this suspect. The shelter in place is still in order and I urge people to take that very seriously. Please do not come to the area,” Deputy Police Chief Timothy O’Hara said.The gunman was last seen leaving the building, and no weapon had been recovered, authorities said.Brown sent an emergency alert at 4:22 pm (2122 GMT) reporting “an active shooter near Barus and Holley Engineering.””Lock doors, silence phones and stay hidden until further notice,” it said.Law enforcement and first responders swarmed the scene, with local news station WPRI reporting clothing and blood on the sidewalk.The FBI was providing “all capabilities necessary,” Director Kash Patel said on X.Agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were also responding.US President Donald Trump had been briefed on the shooting.”What a terrible thing it is,” he said. “All we can do right now is pray for the victims.”Brown University in Providence, near Boston, has about 11,000 students.The deadliest school shooting in US history took place at Virginia Tech on April 16, 2007, when South Korean student Seung-Hui Cho killed 32 people and wounded 17 others before taking his own life.

A United Airlines Boeing 777 bound for Tokyo had to turn back to Washington’s Dulles International Airport on Saturday after an engine failed during takeoff, igniting a brush fire near the runway, officials said.No injuries were reported among the 275 passengers and 15 crew members aboard the wide-bodied jet, which had to make an emergency landing.”Shortly after takeoff, United Flight 803 returned to Washington Dulles and landed safely to address a power loss issue with one of its engines,” the airline said.The engine failed as the 777-200ER departed for Tokyo’s Haneda Airport at around 12:20 pm (1720 GMT) Saturday, sources told AFP. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said on X that a piece of the engine cover “separated and caught fire, sparking a brush fire on the ground.””The fire was extinguished and the flight returned to Dulles, landing safely at about 1:30 pm, when it was checked by airport fire responders,” an airport spokesperson said.According to the official, the affected runway had to be closed for a short time, “but Dulles has multiple runways and other flight operations were not impacted.”The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it would investigate the incident.Aircraft manufacturer Boeing referred questions to United Airlines. According to specialist site AirLive, the plane dumped its fuel over the city of Fredericksburg in Virginia, “a critical safety procedure used to reduce the plane’s weight to a safe level before attempting an emergency landing.”According to registration information provided by the site, the 777 in Saturday’s incident was delivered in November 1998 to Continental Airlines, which was later absorbed in a corporate takeover by United Airlines. The plane is equipped with two General Electric engines — now known as GE Aerospace.United Flight 803 took off in a different plane later Saturday, six-and-a-half hours after its original departure time, bound for Haneda.

An aging president faces poor poll numbers and suspicions about his health but insists that America is thriving. Joe Biden? No, it’s Donald Trump.The Republican, back in power for nearly a year, continues to compare himself to his predecessor.Biden would be senile, while Trump brims with energy; the Democrat would have driven the country into bankruptcy, but the Republican presides over an economic “golden age” – so Trump says.At a Pennsylvania rally on Tuesday, Trump uttered his rival’s name more than 20 times and even called him a “sleepy son of a bitch.” Yet for the past few weeks, a strong sense of deja vu has colored the billionaire’s presidency. Some of his statements, in the unabashed style that is his hallmark, echo remarks made by Biden. “America has the best economy in the world,” the Democratic president declared in April 2024, a statement running counter to voters’ perceptions.The US economy deserves “A+++++”, Trump declared in an interview with Politico published on Tuesday.He repeated that prices are falling, even though Americans still complain about the high cost of living. “There will always be a portion of his supporters that are going to be with him regardless. If he says the sky is not blue, then they will agree that the sky is not blue,” said Alex Keena, a political science professor at Virginia Commonwealth University. But “that’s not the majority of the American public,” the researcher told AFP. “At the end of the day, people will go out and they will buy things and their experiences are undeniable.”- 31 percent -According to a poll by the University of Chicago for the Associated Press, published Thursday, only 31 percent of Americans are satisfied with Trump’s economic policy.”When will people understand what is happening? When will Polls reflect the Greatness of America at this point in time, and how bad it was just one year ago?” Trump wrote in a post on his Truth Social network. While campaigning, Trump accused Biden of ignoring the struggles of low-income households. Like his predecessor, Trump today is trying to steer some of consumers’ discontent toward big corporations suspected of inflating prices.Like Biden, he is also struggling to generate enthusiasm for his plans to bolster purchasing power. And like the former president, Trump is dogged by questions about his health, though not as intensely as concerns about his rival’s decline — which Trump himself has fueled.- Blue on the hand – By portraying Biden as an old man unfit to govern, Trump is “tapping into a very real frustration” over the aging of America’s political class, Keena noted. But this strategy could backfire on Trump, the oldest president ever elected in the United States.The 79-year-old is now the one whose every public appearance is scrutinized, and who is being attacked on social media. On Thursday, for example, a fake photo showing him with a walker circulated. Was that Trump nodding off during this cabinet meeting, or was he resting his eyes for a moment? And was that bandaged bruise on the back of his hand really the result of countless handshakes, as the White House keeps saying?Biden’s team had furiously denied allegations of declining health, but also increasingly shielded the octogenarian president from public view and journalists’ questions.Trump, for his part, remains much more accessible than his predecessor ever was and frequently engages in lengthy impromptu exchanges with the press. But beware, anyone who dares — as the New York Times recently did — to investigate his work pace and vitality.”I actually believe it’s seditious, perhaps even treasonous, for The New York Times, and others, to consistently do FAKE reports in order to libel and demean ‘THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES,'” he wrote on Truth Social. 

One recent day at Miami’s international airport, Andy, age 6, was getting ready to fly to Guatemala. He was anxious, this was no year-end vacation to visit his relatives.Andy was moving to his ancestral country to reunite with his father, recently deported as part of President Donald Trump’s aggressive policy to expel undocumented migrants.”They took my brother and I’ve had to take care of the little one,” said Osvaldo, Andy’s uncle who brought him to the airport but was not getting on the plane with him.Andy was making the trip with six other children aged 3 to 15 — three of them US citizens, the others Guatemalans who grew up in Florida. They were all moving to a country where they either had never been, or one which they barely remembered.The sprawling city of Miami on Florida’s east coast is about 70 percent Hispanic, and often called the Gateway to Latin America.Across the United States, cities with large immigrant communities are primary targets of Trump’s virulent anti-immigrant policies and rhetoric.Trump’s administration has deployed heavily armed and masked enforcement agents and onlookers have filmed them in various cities tackling people in the street or dragging them from cars.- ‘I worry about the child’ -Born in the United States, Andy is a US citizen. Until November, he lived with his father Adiner, who had been in Florida for a decade. His mother hasn’t been in his life since the parents separated.One day, when Andy’s father came to pick him up from school, a police officer stopped him. He had neither a visa nor a residency permit.Andy — who wore a backpack and a little cross necklace for the flight to Guatemala City — was happy about being reunited with his father but also “a little nervous” about the trip, said Osvaldo, who did not want his full name published for fear of arrest.”I keep thinking about my brother, about why they nabbed him. And I also worry about the child,” he said.The trip was organized by the Guatemalan-Maya Center, a nonprofit group serving “uprooted children and families” in the Miami area. Mariana Blanco, its director of operations, circulated among the children, checking they had everything needed for the trip.She pointed out Franklin, 3, and his 6-year-old brother Garibaldi, both US citizens. The younger boy wore a Spider Man hoodie, a dinosaur backpack, and an anxious expression.Like Andy, they were travelling to reunite with their deported father, because their mother works long hours in Miami and fears she too will be arrested. – ‘Trampling on children’s rights’ -Two volunteers with the Guatemalan-Maya Center were accompanying the children on the trip.One of them, Diego Serrato, accused the Trump administration of racism and “trampling on children’s rights.” “It’s sad to see worry and fear on their little faces instead of the smiles they should have,” Serrato said.The group also included Mariela, 11, traveling to live with her mother because her father fears arrest; Alexis, 11, who had to stay for a few days with an aunt he’d never met after his father was arrested; and Enrique, 13, about to see his mother for the first time in eight years after his father ended up in an ICE lockup.”No one should go through that, especially not a child,” said Blanco.The children, all of them Mayan, would have to adapt to life in Guatemala, where their families primarily live in impoverished rural areas, Blanco said. Most of the older ones would have to start working because middle school and high school in Guatemala come with expenses that their parents cannot cover, she added. As the group headed towards customs, Andy suddenly turned, hugged his uncle Osvaldo tightly, before rejoining the other children.