News Briefs

Columbia University students protesters take over building. Dozens of protesters took over a building at Columbia University in New York April 30, barricading the entrances and unfurling a Palestinian flag out of a window. Protesters on Columbia’s Manhattan campus locked arms in front of Hamilton Hall and carried furniture and metal barricades to the building, one of several that was occupied during a 1968 civil rights and anti-Vietnam War protest, video footage showed. While the university didn’t call police to roust the demonstrators, school spokesperson Ben Chang said suspensions had started but could provide few details.

On university campuses in the Vietnam era, opposition to the war galvanized a mass movement. But the conflict over Gaza involves two groups with passionate and personal views on a complex political issue.

Nine states sue Biden administration over Title IX protections. Nine Republican-led states and several conservative groups on April 29 filed lawsuits challenging new Biden administration regulations that bar schools and colleges that receive federal funding from discriminating against students based on their gender identity. The states and advocacy groups filed the lawsuits in federal courts in Alabama, Louisiana, and Texas challenging new U.S. Department of Education regulations that extend Title IX sex discrimination protections in federal civil rights law to LGBTQ students. 

Israeli security units committed human rights violations. The United States found five units of Israel’s security forces responsible for gross violations of human rights, the State Department said on April 29, though it has not barred any of the units from receiving U.S. military assistance. Israel has conducted “remediation” in the cases of four of the units in compliance with U.S. law, State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel said. The incidents in question took place outside of Gaza before conflict broke out between Israel and Hamas in October, Mr. Patel said.

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Haiti will choose next president amid gang violence. Haiti’s new transition council is set to choose the country’s next president on April 30, but leaders of the gangs who have exerted increasing control are clamoring for political influence and amnesties and threatening violence if their demands are not met. On April 25, after former Prime Minister Ariel Henry resigned, the council was formally installed, seen as a key step in re-establishing security after years of gang violence that has recently skyrocketed. The regional Caribbean Community (CARICOM) body that led the drafting of the council’s make-up forbade gang members from joining.

Scotland’s first minister, Humza Yousaf, resigns. His resignation triggers a leadership contest as the governing Scottish National Party seeks to heal internal divisions and strengthen its position ahead of U.K.-wide parliamentary elections expected later this year. Mr. Yousaf’s pro-independence party has been weakened by a campaign finance scandal and divisions over transgender rights. He was brought down by his decision to oust the Green Party from his governing coalition because of differences over climate change goals. He resigned after being unable to cobble together a majority in Scotland’s devolved regional parliament.

Spain’s prime minister will stay in office. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez says he will continue in office “even with more strength” after days of reflection. Mr. Sánchez shocked the country last week when he said he was taking five days off to think about his future after a court opened preliminary proceedings against his wife on corruption allegations. The legal complaint against his wife Begoña Gómez was filed by a well-known far right-wing legal platform that says Ms. Gómez used her position to influence business deals. 

Georgia “foreign agents” bill stirs protests. Thousands of Georgians marched through the capital, Tbilisi, on April 29, as protests grew against a bill on “foreign agents” that the country’s opposition and Western countries have said is authoritarian and Russian-inspired. Georgia’s parliament said it would hold the bill’s second reading on April 30, with opposition parties and civil society groups calling for mass protests against its expected passage. If passed, the draft law would require organizations receiving more than 20% of their funding from abroad to register as “foreign agents” or face fines. 

Polls show that 85% of Georgia’s citizens want a West-facing future – and membership in the European Union. But since the Georgian Dream party won democratic elections in 2012, there has been backsliding in anti-corruption, press freedom, and justice.

Kenya dam collapses in heavy rain. A dam in Kenya collapsed following heavy rains sending waters sweeping through house, cutting off a major road, and killing at least 40 people, local police reported. The Old Kijabe Dam, located in the Mai Mahiu area of the Great Rift Valley region that is prone to flash floods, collapsed April 29 and water spilled downstream, carrying mud, rocks, and uprooted trees. Ongoing rains in Kenya have caused flooding that has already killed nearly 100 people and postponed the opening of schools.

World Central Kitchen will resume Gaza aid. World Central Kitchen (WCK) said it would resume operations in the Gaza Strip on April 29, a month after seven workers of the U.S.-based charity were killed in an Israeli air strike. Prior to halting operations, WCK had distributed more than 43 million meals in Gaza since October, representing by its own accounts 62% of all international nongovernmental organization aid. The charity said it had 276 trucks with the equivalent of almost 8 million meals ready to enter through the Rafah Crossing and will also send trucks into Gaza from Jordan.

As international aid agencies pulled back in Gaza after the drone strike on a World Central Kitchen convoy last month, a heavier burden fell on local humanitarian workers. Their determination to save lives helps them persevere.

Germany begins coup plot trial. Nine people charged with terrorism in connection with an alleged far-right plot to topple the German government have gone on trial in one of three linked cases. The trial that opened April 29 in Stuttgart is the first to start and focuses on those defendants of the self-described Reich Citizens group who allegedly were part of its military arm. The plot came to light in late 2022. Federal prosecutors in December filed terrorism charges against a total of 27 people, one of the largest legal proceedings in German history.

College students arrested over protests. Protests against the war in Gaza are roiling college campuses nationwide. That means schools with graduation ceremonies next month are facing the possibility of protests colliding with commencements. Students are demanding the schools cut financial ties with Israel and hundreds of students have been arrested on campuses from coast to coast. Protesters on both sides of the issue shouted and shoved each other during demonstrations April 28 at the University of California, Los Angeles. About 275 people were arrested on April 27 at campuses including Indiana University at Bloomington, Arizona State University, and Washington University in St. Louis. 

As calls for campus order and safety rise alongside voices of anti-Israel protest, colleges and their leaders are facing an extraordinary test. The pressures are coming from both inside and outside.

Floods kill dozens in Kenya. Flooding and heavy rains in Kenya have killed at least 70 people since mid-March, a government spokesperson said, twice as many as were reported earlier this week. The East African country has seen weeks of heavy rains and severe flooding in its capital, Nairobi, as well as in the country's western and central regions. Kenya's government spokesperson Isaac Mwaura on April 26 refuted claims that hundreds of people have died in the ongoing flooding and said the official tally now stands at 70. More than 130,000 people are currently affected with thousands of houses washed away and others flooded. 

The FTC reinstates net neutrality rules. The Federal Trade Commission on April 25 voted to restore rules that prevent broadband internet providers such as Comcast and Verizon from favoring some sites and apps over others. The move effectively reinstates a net neutrality order the commission first issued in 2015 during the Obama administration. In 2017, under then-President Donald Trump, the FCC repealed those rules. The measure passed on a 3-2 vote split along party lines, with Democratic commissioners in favor and Republicans opposed. Net neutrality effectively requires internet service providers to treat all traffic equally, eliminating any incentive to favor business partners or hobble competitors.

Are consumers harmed by the dominance of tech companies like Amazon, Google, and Facebook? Their market power is stirring renewed antitrust activism, even if the charges against them may be difficult to prove.

U.S. will replenish Ukrainian air defenses. The U.S. will provide Ukraine additional Patriot missiles for its air defense systems as part of a massive $6 billion additional aid package, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy discussed the need for Patriots early April 26 at the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, a coalition of about 50 countries gathering virtually in a Pentagon-led meeting. The meeting fell on the second anniversary of the group, which Austin said has “moved heaven and earth” since April 2022 to source millions of rounds of ammunition, rocket systems, armored vehicles and even jets to help Ukraine rebuff Russia’s invasion.

Many Americans worry that U.S. support for Ukraine is a waste of money. But might underwriting Kyiv’s fight against Russia now be a kind of insurance against costlier U.S. military action later?

Palestinian authorities ask for a U.N. war crimes investigation. Palestinian civil defense team on April 25 called on the United Nations to investigate what it said were war crimes at a Gaza hospital, saying nearly 400 bodies were recovered from mass graves after Israeli soldiers departed the complex. Palestinian authorities have this week reported finding hundreds of bodies in mass graves at Nasser hospital, the main medical facility in central Gaza, after Israeli troops pulled out of the city of Khan Younis. The Israeli military said claims that the Israeli Defence Forces had buried the bodies were “baseless and unfounded.”

Not by bread alone: While reports indicate that flour supplies entering Gaza may be ticking up, aid experts say much more has to be done to alleviate burgeoning famine there.

It’s a quarterback scramble at the NFL draft. Caleb Williams is heading to the Windy City, aiming to become the franchise quarterback Chicago has sought for decades. Five other teams selected quarterbacks among the top 12 picks, setting a record with five in the top 10 and tying a record for the most in the first round. The Bears selected Mr. Williams at No. 1 overall in the NFL draft on April 25 after deciding weeks ago to bank on the Heisman Trophy winner from USC. The Washington Commanders followed up by taking Jayden Daniels from LSU and the New England Patriots took North Carolina’s Drake Maye.

A twist on the most popular sport in America may have started growing amid concerns about athlete safety and concussions. As it opens doors for girls, nontraditional athletes, and older adults, flag football is also helping to redefine sports.

Haiti prime minister resigns. Ariel Henry has resigned as prime minister of Haiti, paving the way for a new government to take power. The country has been wracked by gang violence that killed or injured more than 2,500 people from January to March. Mr. Henry presented his resignation in a letter signed in Los Angeles on April 24. It was released on the same day a council tasked with choosing a new prime minister and Cabinet for Haiti was sworn in. Mr. Henry’s Cabinet meanwhile chose Economy and Finance Minister Michel Patrick Boisvert as the interim prime minister. 

Weinstein rape conviction overturned. New York’s highest court has overturned Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction and ordered a new trial. The Court of Appeals ruled on April 25 that the judge at the disgraced movie mogul’s landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced him with improper rulings, including by letting women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case. Mr. Weinstein is serving a 23-year sentence in New York. He’ll remain imprisoned because a 2022 conviction in a Los Angeles rape case resulted in a 16-year prison term. The Manhattan district attorney’s office has indicated it plans to retry Mr. Weinstein.