(WASHINGTON) — More than 500 American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian children died over the course of 150 years in Indigenous boarding schools run by the American government and churches to force assimilation, according to a new report.
The federal report follows an investigation launched in June 2021 by Department of the Interior Secretary Deb Haaland into the government’s role in the schools as part of an effort to dispossess Indigenous people of their land to expand the United States. The probe began after nearly 1,000 unmarked graves of Indigenous children were unearthed at Indigenous boarding schools in Canada.
Native Nations scholars estimate that almost 40,000 children have died at Indigenous boarding schools. And according to the federal report, the Interior Department “expects that continued investigation will reveal the approximate number of Indian children who died at Federal Indian boarding schools to be in the thousands or tens of thousands.”
“I come from ancestors who endured the horrors of the Indian boarding school assimilation policies carried out by the same department that I now lead,” a tearful Haaland said during a press conference on Wednesday.
Haaland, the first Native American to hold a Cabinet position, oversees the government agency that historically played a major role in the forced relocation and oppression of Indigenous people.
She is a member of the Laguna Pueblo Tribe and previously told ABC’s “Nightline” that her great grandfather was taken to the United States Indian Industrial School in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, which was open from 1879 to 1918.
“When my maternal grandparents were only 8 years old, they were stolen from their parents, culture and communities, and forced to live in boarding schools until the age of 13,” Haaland said on Wednesday. “Many children like them never made it back to their homes. Each of those children has a missing family member, a person who was not able to live out their purpose on this earth. Because they lost their lives as part of this terrible system.”
The United States operated or supported 408 Indigenous boarding schools in 37 states in which hundreds of thousands of Indigenous children were taken from their families, according to the report.
Interior Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs Bryan Newland, who led the initiative, said Wednesday the report shows the federal government targeted Indian children to further its policies.
“Federal Indian boarding schools have had a lasting impact on Native people in communities across America,” Newland said in an emotional address. “That impact continues to influence the lives of countless families. From the breakup of families of tribal nations to the loss of languages and cultural practices and relatives, this has left lasting scars for all Indigenous people.”
The deaths of the children occurred at approximately 19 federal Indian boarding schools, but the Interior Department expects the number of recorded deaths to rise as the investigation continues. The report also identified 53 burial sites for Indigenous students and emphasizes that more sites could be unearthed.
Some of the abuse children experienced included the “rampant physical, sexual, and emotional abuse; disease; malnourishment; overcrowding; and lack of health care,” the report found.
“I am here because my ancestors persevered,” Haaland said. “I stand on the shoulders of my grandmother and my mother and the work we will do with the federal Indian boarding school initiative will have a transformational impact on the generations who follow.”
Asked by ABC News if the federal government plans to offer reparations for Native American families impacted by the policies, Newland said the report is a “first step of this initiative.”
“There’s a lot more work that has to be done to simply tell them the truth and lay out the scope of the federal Indian boarding school system,” he added.
The second phase of the investigation will identify children who died and bring their remains back to their communities, as well as identify living survivors and descendants of attendees of Indian boarding schools to document their experiences, the report says.
It also commits to backing federal funding for the advancement of Native language revitalization, supporting scientific studies that promote Native health research and holding a federal memorial to recognize the generations of children forced into the boarding schools. It pledged to ensure that policies and practices are in compliance with the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act.
“I have a great obligation, but I was taught by my mother and my grandfather and my grandmother that when you are asked to do something for your people that you step up,” Haaland told “Nightline” earlier this earlier.
Haaland said she is launching a yearlong tour, “The Road to Healing,” in which she will travel across the country to meet with families impacted by the painful legacy of Indigenous boarding schools and give them a platform to share their stories and heal from “intergenerational trauma.”
“We have lived with the intergenerational trauma of federal Indian boarding school policies for many years,” Haaland said. “But what is new is the determination in the Biden-Harris administration to make a lasting difference in the impact of this trauma for future generations.”
ABC News’ Abby Cruz and Tenzin Shakya contributed to this report.
(KANKAKEE, Ill.) — President Joe Biden hit the road Wednesday to talk about the role American farmers can play in alleviating global food shortages caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
At O’Connor Farms, a family-run farm in Kankakee, Illinois, Biden outlined steps his administration is taking to help farmers ramp up domestic production.
“Right now America is fighting on two fronts,” Biden said. “At home, it’s inflation and rising prices. Abroad, it’s helping Ukrainians defend their democracy and feeding those who are left hungry around the world because Russian atrocities exist.”
Biden continued, “Our farmers are helping both on both fronts, reducing the food cost of price of food at home and expanding production and feeding the world in need.”
To support this cause, the administration will increase the number of counties that can get insurance for double cropping, or planting a second crop on the same land in a single year. It will also double Biden’s pledged funding for the production of fertilizer from $250 million to $500 million.
Jeff O’Connor, the owner of the Illinois farm, said the changes will allow U.S. farmers to “step up at a very critical time.”
“The farming community stands ready to maximize production, which we do so well, in this time of world need,” O’Connor said as he introduced Biden.
Biden’s appearance in Illinois came fresh on the heels of the release of April’s consumer price index — a key measure of inflation. The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported Wednesday morning consumer prices rose 8.3% last month from the year prior, a slight dip from March’s peak of 8.5% but still close to a four-decade high.
The cost of food as well as shelter, airfare and new vehicles were the main contributors to the April statistics, the bureau said.
Food prices overall are up 9.4% in the last 12 months, increasing 0.9% from March to April. Grocery prices are even higher, up 10.8% from a year ago.
Gas prices hit a record high on Wednesday of $4.40 per gallon, according to AAA.
“While it is heartening to see that annual inflation moderated in April, the fact remains that inflation is unacceptably high,” Biden said in a statement reacting to the April data. “As I said yesterday, inflation is a challenge for families across the country and bringing it down is my top economic priority.”
Inflation is poised to be one of the biggest issues in the 2022 midterm elections. In bad news for Biden, a recent ABC News/Washington Post poll found most Americans disapprove of his handling of the economic issue.
In anticipation of the new data on consumer prices, Biden on Tuesday delivered remarks on efforts by his administration to combat inflation. His speech also took aim at what he describes as “ultra-MAGA” Republicans, most notably Florida Sen. Rick Scott and his plan to have all Americans pay some federal income tax.
“The Republican plan is to increase taxes on middle class families,” Biden said, despite the fact that Scott’s plan has been dismissed by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.
After his remarks, Biden was asked by a reporter when the public can expect prices to come down.
“I don’t know, but I know what we have to do to make sure that we can bring it down,” Biden responded.
(WASHINGTON) — A major producer of the abortion pill in the U.S. says it has ample supply if demand suddenly soars in the wake of a Supreme Court decision and that it’s working with federal regulators to make the drug available in pharmacies by the end of the year.
“We are prepared for any surge,” said the spokesperson for Danco Laboratories, which manufactures the brand-name drug Mifeprex.”Our supply is stable and plentiful.”
Mifeprex, along with its generic version, is quickly taking center stage in the abortion debate, as several states move to outlaw its use while others try to expand access.
Here’s what to know about the abortion bill:
What is Mifeprex?
A single 200-mg tablet, Mifeprex is the brand name for the drug mifepristone that is used to end a pregnancy up to 10 weeks. Packed in a blister foil pack inside an orange box, the single tablet induces an abortion by blocking the hormone progesterone.
The pill is typically taken with misoprostol, which causes cramping and bleeding to empty the uterus.
Medical experts say a doctor would not necessarily be able to tell if the woman took the drug or if she miscarried unless she told them.
Mifeprex has been on the market for 22 years, and the FDA regards it as a safe drug for most women. While the number of abortions has declined in recent decades, use of the drug has steadily increased. Now, about half of abortions in the U.S. are medication abortions, rather than a surgical abortion.
While opponents refer to mifepristone as a “chemical abortion,” doctors and drugmakers say that is not a term they use.
How do women get it?
To obtain the drug legally, a woman has to get a prescription from a certified provider.
It’s currently not available through U.S. pharmacies, although Danco Laboratories says it’s working with the Food and Drug Administration so that pharmacies would be allowed to carry the drug by year’s end.
The FDA allows the drug to be prescribed through a telehealth appointment and mailed to her home. However, at least 19 states have enacted laws requiring that the clinician be present physically when administering the drug.
The average cost for women is about $400-$500, a price that includes the consultation with a doctor and follow-up care. But the pill itself only costs about $50. It has a five-year shelf life before it expires.
Who makes it?
For nearly two decades, Danco Laboratories (pronounced DANK-oh) operated as the nation’s sole legal provider of abortion pills in the US, distributing its Mifeprex to all 50 states and territories.
In 2019, a generic version of the drug manufactured by a company called GenBioPro was approved by the FDA.
A third company, Corcept Therapeutics, uses mifepristone to produce an FDA-approved drug for patients with Cushing’s Syndrome. But that drug, called Korlym, which uses a much higher dose of the drug, is not prescribed for abortions.
Both Danco and GenBioPro withhold general information about their companies from the public, including the names of officials, where its facilities are located or production estimates. A spokesperson for GenBioPro could not be reached, while Danco said they do so for security reasons and to protect the privacy of their team members, as well as to safeguard proprietary information.
The FDA said it does not divulge this information either, citing laws aimed at protecting trade secrets and a concern for potential attacks on employees.
“The FDA concluded that there is a risk that individuals associated with the development, marketing and distribution of mifepristone for medical termination of early pregnancy may become the targets of threats of harm or violence,” the agency told ABC News in a statement. “Therefore, the agency does not disclose the names or locations of such individuals.”
Danco will only disclose that the company’s headquarters is located in New York City, while the drug itself is produced out of facilities in Europe that are inspected by U.S. federal officials.
The spokesperson described the company as modestly profitable and said it no longer needs to rely on private investors as it had early on in its tenure.
What happens if Roe v. Wade is overturned?
The Guttmacher Institute, which supports abortion rights, predicts that there are 26 states certain or likely to quickly ban abortion — including medication abortion — “to the fullest extent allowed” by the Supreme Court.
Abortion foes say their goal will be to ensure the drug doesn’t cross state lines.
Still, it’s not entirely clear how easy it will be for states to block a drug that can be obtained through a telehealth appointment and discretely mailed to someone’s home, including from online-based international organizations.
European-based Aid Access, for example, says it relies on a pharmacy in India to mail mifepristone to women in the US without approval by the FDA, despite warnings by the FDA that unregulated drugs can put women’s health at risk.
The result is an untested, complicated legal landscape.
“If there’s a telehealth abortion, that doctor could be in California. That doctor could be in the Netherlands. And in both of those cases, you’re going to have a very hard time getting that doctor into your courtroom,” said Mary Ziegler, a professor at Florida State University College of Law who specializes in the legal history of reproduction and abortion.
(NEW YORK) — A judge in New York on Wednesday said he would purge his contempt finding against former President Donald Trump provided he met certain conditions by the end of next week, including paying a daily fine that had accompanied the order.
Judge Arthur Engoron held Trump in contempt, and fined him $10,000 a day, for failing to comply with a subpoena for documents issued by the New York Attorney General’s Office as part of a civil investigation into Trump’s business practices.
Trump’s attorney said he had no documents responsive to the subpoena, but the judge faulted Trump’s failure to swear, under oath, that he even bothered to look.
If Trump provides satisfactory affidavits, if an outside firm he hired to search his files completes a report and if he pays the fine, Engoron said he would lift the contempt order.
“I want the fine paid,” Engoron said. “That fine is now $110,000.”
Trump had said in a sworn affidavit on April 29 that he did not possess any documents related to Attorney General Letitia James’ investigation into how the Trump Organization valued its real estate holdings while applying for loans and tax benefits.
“To the best of my knowledge, (i) I do not have any of the documents requested in the subpoena dated December 1, 2021 in my personal possession; and (ii) if there are any documents responsive to the subpoena I believe they would be in the possession or custody of the Trump Organization,” Trump’s affidavit said.
He added, “At all relevant times, I have authorized, and continue to authorize, the release of a responsive document to the Office of the Attorney General.”
(ATLANTA) — Parents are being asked to look out for symptoms of hepatitis in their kids as an unexplained outbreak of cases in children continues across the United States.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) issued a health alert Tuesday aimed at educating parents on symptoms.
“Hearing about severe liver disease in children can be concerning. If you have any questions about your child’s health, call your child’s healthcare provider,” the CDC wrote, adding that parents should be aware of the symptoms associated with liver inflammation, including fever, fatigue, nausea, and jaundice, which is yellowing of the skin.
Hepatitis means inflammation of the liver. It can be caused by heavy alcohol use, toxins, some medications and medical conditions and is often caused by a virus, according to the CDC.
Here are five things to know about the CDC’s alert on hepatitis and kids and the outbreak.
1. The latest hepatitis outbreak in kids is global.
In April, researchers in the United States and Europe announced they were investigating small clusters of the cases emerging across the globe.
As of this week, the World Health Organization (WHO) says more than 340 probable cases of hepatitis in children have been reported in 20 countries.
In the U.S., there are at least 109 confirmed cases with five deaths in over 25 states and Puerto Rico, according to the CDC.
2. The cause of the outbreak remains unknown.
The cause of the reported cases of hepatitis in children in the U.S. remains unknown, according to the CDC.
“We do not know and are investigating what role other factors play in this illness, such exposure to toxins or other infections that the children might have,” the agency wrote in its latest health alert, also adding it is “not unusual” for the cause of hepatitis cases in children to remain unknown.
Some of the children who have had hepatitis also had adenovirus type 41, a type of virus that can cause severe stomach illness in kids, according to the CDC.
Adenoviruses are different types of viruses that can cause illnesses ranging from the common cold to acute bronchitis, pneumonia, pink eye and acute gastroenteritis, or inflammation of the stomach, according to the CDC.
3. The hepatitis vaccine is not protectant against this latest outbreak.
Hepatitis viruses are the most common cause of hepatitis in the world, including hepatitis A, B, and C, but they’ve been ruled out in the latest outbreak.
The strain of hepatitis seen in this vaccine is not one covered by the hepatitis vaccine that kids receive, according to Dr. Jennifer Ashton, ABC News chief medical correspondent.
“These cases of hepatitis are none of those [covered by the vaccine], so it’s really mystifying public health officials at this point,” Ashton said Wednesday on Good Morning America.
4. The hepatitis outbreak does not appear to be COVID-19-related.
Health officials do not believe the current outbreak in pediatric cases is linked to the novel coronavirus or the COVID-19 vaccine, according to Ashton.
“I just spoke to the CDC director, Dr. Rochelle Walensky, this morning,” Ashton said. “She wanted me to emphasize that the majority of these cases have been in children ages 2 to 5. These children, as we all know, are not eligible for the COVID vaccine, so this has nothing to do with the vaccine.”
5. Parents should call their pediatrician if symptoms appear.
The CDC has advised parents to be on the lookout for symptoms in their kids including fever and fatigue, nausea and vomiting, abdominal pain, joint pain, jaundice — a yellowing of the white part of the eyes or the skin — or a change in the color of urine or stool.
If any of those symptoms are present, parents should call their child’s pediatrician as quickly as possible, according to the CDC.
The agency also urges parents to make sure their child is up to date on all vaccinations and follow safety protocols, like washing hands often, avoiding people who are sick, covering their coughs and sneezes and avoiding touching the eyes, nose or mouth.
(NEW YORK) — On wheels across the Mississippi Delta region, a group of three women is pulling up their sleeves and reaching underserved communities with free reproductive and sexual health care services.
Dr. Caroline Weinberg founded Plan A, a mobile health clinic, to offer free sexual and reproductive services, including mammograms, pap smears, contraception and STD testing, to patients regardless of insurance status, income or location. The first clinic opened in April 2021, providing health care services on wheels to the Mississippi Delta region.
“Something we have to accept [is] that we can’t solve every problem; like we can’t buy a mammogram machine, we can’t have a colonoscopy on-site, we can’t do surgery,” Weinberg said. “But we can add what we can, and if we’re able to get the resources to pull it off, then we just kind of expand whatever ways we can.”
The staff behind the clinic hopes to provide health care services to underserved communities across the area. By providing services around reproductive and sexual health care, Juliet Thomas, Plan A’s community health worker, hopes to destigmatize the conversation around those topics.
“It is [considered a taboo] when you talk about sex, birth control or anything like that’s really not talked about,” Thomas said.
Weinberg said she built the clinic on the belief that Roe v. Wade would one day be overturned. While the clinic does not offer abortions, Weinberg said they play a role by offering preventive measures to avoid pregnancies.
“I built the organization on the assumption that [Roe v. Wade] was kind of destined to be overturned,” she said. “Roe v. Wade being overturned in really any capacity doesn’t directly impact our day today, but it has an incredible impact on the community that we serve.
“As we seek to empower women and give them the options to kind of move forward with their reproductive health in whatever direction it is, that’s more challenging because their options are limited within the state.”
To fit the needs of the community, Plan A has expanded its operations to add primary care services like blood pressure screenings as well as COVID-19 vaccines. A 60-minute drive from where the mobile clinic is parked, Plan A has a brick-and-mortar clinic in Louise, Mississippi, to offer additional services to a broader community.
Mississippi is one of 12 states to not expand Medicaid since the passage of the Affordable Care Act in 2010 — a critical source of revenue for hospitals and a safety net for poor Americans. The federal government covers 90% of the costs for Medicaid, leaving 10% to be covered by the state.
Although at least eight expansion bills were proposed in the 2022 legislative session, not one was debated.
For Brock Slabach, chief operations officer of the National Rural Health Association, the issue with expanding Medicaid is around the arguments of federal involvement in state policy.
“The reason that they’ve given for their lack of participation in the costs that the federal government giveth and the federal government taketh away,” Slabach said. “At some point, if the federal government decided not to fund 90% of the cost of the expansion, then they would be stuck holding the bag in terms of the dollars it would cost to cover that expanded population.”
If expanded, the American Rescue Plan would provide an additional $600 million per year to the state and qualify more than 225,000 Mississippians.
The roadblocks, however, lie within its own government — with Gov. Tate Reeves and Speaker of the House Philip Gunn being two of Medicaid’s fiercest critics.
“I just don’t think Medicaid expansion is realistic, personally, I’m not for it,” Reeves said during a January interview with WAPT. “I don’t see that as a way forward in Mississippi. We need to be looking at ways to get people off Medicaid, not put them on Medicaid.”
But their stand on the issue is not what the majority population thinks. According to a Millsaps College and Chism Strategies poll, some 60% of voters believe that Medicaid should be expanded.
Patients like Lisa McCarty, who was formerly uninsured, sought the services of Plan A to access contraceptives.
The care and staff made McCarty a loyal patient. Without Plan A, McCarty told ABC News, she would be struggling with paying the doctor’s bill — or even have another child.
“Everyone knows each other and we’re so small here that it’s uncomfortable because you feel like, ‘OK, well, hey, this person may know what’s going on with me and I’m, you know, I don’t feel comfortable,’” McCarty said.
Now with insurance, McCarty said she will continue visiting Plan A, in part because of the wide variety of services outside reproductive health that are offered by the clinic.
As the clinic continues to expand, Desiree Norwood, Plan A program coordinator, hopes to reach more underserved communities across the state.
“I’m very excited because I know that there’s so much more great work that Plan A is going to do for the area, and I feel hopeful. Often the Mississippi Delta is looked at as one of the unhealthiest places, but we’re determined to change the narrative “
(BURLINGTON, Mass.) — As her alleged would-be kidnapper was set to appear in court, a Massachusetts mother spoke out about the terrifying random roadside attack and was reunited Wednesday with the good Samaritan who stopped to save her.
The suspect, Tyler Healey, 23, was arrested Tuesday after Burlington, Massachusetts, police released security video of what they described as a random attempted abduction that only ended when a passing female motorist intervened and called 911.
The suspect was arraigned Wednesday in Woburn District Court on charges of assault with intent to rape, attempt to commit a crime, assault with intent to commit a felony and indecent assault and battery on a person 14 or older.
During the arraignment, a prosecutor said Healey’s father recognized his son’s brightly colored sneakers and distinctive tattoo from the security video and identified him to police. Healey’s father told authorities his son suffers from mental health issues and was violent at times, the prosecutor said.
A judge ordered Healey to remain in custody pending a hearing next week.
The incident unfolded around 8:20 p.m. Sunday as the victim, 37-year-old Zayra Mendoza, was walking down a street in Burlington. The security video captured the attacker following Mendoza on foot, then quickly closing the gap between them and grabbing her.
The grainy black-and-white footage appears to show the assailant dragging Mendoza and ripping off her top as she tried to fight back.
Ariel Naylor said she was driving by in her SUV when she saw the assault in progress and called 911. Naylor said that when she slammed on her brakes and stopped, the attacker released Mendoza and ran away.
Mendoza and Naylor were reunited on Wednesday morning and in an exclusive interview with ABC’s Good Morning America, Mendoza said of Naylor, “God sent me an angel.”
Naylor said she didn’t hesitate to stop and help.
“I did what any person should do when you see somebody in trouble,” Naylor said.
Naylor applauded Mendoza for fighting and trying to stay in the light of street lamps so she could be seen.
“She knew to get to the light and to get to the side of the road so somebody could help her,” Naylor said. “So she made it possible for me to help her.”
In an earlier interview with ABC affiliate station WCVB in Boston, Mendoza recounted the horrifying ambush.
“When I looked, the man was right on top of me,” Mendoza said following Healey’s arrest in the Boston suburb of Winthrop, 21 miles south of Burlington. “I thought this man is going to rape me, going to kill me.”
Mendoza, speaking in Spanish as her brother interpreted, added, “I was screaming. I was trying to fight him off. I was running out of strength. He was dragging me by one arm.”
Mendoza said she thought of her 9-year-old daughter as she was being dragged off and wondered what would have happened to her had Naylor not stopped.
“Thanks to her, it all came to an end,” Mendoza said.
Middlesex County District Attorney Marian Ryan praised Naylor for intervening and stopping the attack.
“The person who made that call really prevented this from being so much worse,” Ryan said.
Police are continuing to investigate if there are similar incidents involving Healey.
(WASHINGTON) — Inflation eased slightly last month, according to the latest figures released Wednesday by the Labor Department.
The Consumer Price Index rose 8.3% in April compared to the same time period last year — a drop from the 8.5% increase in March.
Month-to-month, prices were up 0.3% last month compared to March. Increases in prices for shelter, food, airline fares and new vehicles were the largest contributors to the increase, the Labor Department said.
(NEW YORK) — Nearly two years after her son was murdered at home, a New Jersey judge is fighting to get a federal bill passed that would limit access of public officials’ private information.
U.S. District Judge Esther Salas says the Daniel Anderl Judicial Security and Privacy Act would be vital in protecting federal judges and justices.
“I think we have to start asking ourselves why are our leaders not passing this law. Why are they not moving it? To my knowledge, there is nothing controversial about protecting judges’ home addresses and our social security numbers,” Salas told ABC News’ Good Morning America Wednesday. “The Daniel Anderl Judicial Security and Privacy Act is ready to go. It’s been ready to go for months. It’s narrowly tailored to address this immediate interest, this governmental interest that is vital to democracy.”
The act is named after Salas’ son, Daniel Anderl, who was 20 when he was shot and killed at home on July 19, 2020. A gunman had targeted the family’s home, also critically injuring Salas’ husband, Mark Anderl.
The assailant was identified as Roy Den Hollander, a lawyer who posed as a FedEx delivery driver to carry out what was later determined to be a racially motivated attack. Hollander had allegedly been upset with the way Salas had handled a case he had been involved in and kept a detailed dossier of private information on the judge, including her home address, according to the FBI. The day after the attack, Hollander was found dead in a car from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Daniel’s Law, which “protects the home addresses and telephone numbers of judges, prosecutors, and law enforcement officers from public disclosure,” was signed by New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy in November 2020, according to a press release from the governor’s office.
A similar law, the Supreme Court Police Parity Act, has been introduced at the federal level and the U.S. House is set to vote on the proposal Wednesday. The act passed unanimously in the Senate Monday and would grant Supreme Court justices and their families the same level of security that is given to other government officials in the legislative and executive branches. If it passes in the House, the act would get sent to President Joe Biden’s desk.
The act has gained more support in recent days as protesters have been gathering at the homes of Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Brett Kavanaugh and Samuel Alito, following the leak of a draft opinion last week that indicated the nation’s highest court may overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade case that made abortion legal in the country.
But for Salas, the Supreme Court Police Parity Act doesn’t go far enough. She said the priority should be on the Daniel Anderl Judicial Security and Privacy Act.
“I think of Daniel the moment I opened my eyes in the morning and I think about him every single moment of my life. And you know what? We need to know that we can do our jobs. without fear of retribution, retaliation or death. That is all that judges are asking for,” Salas said.
Diego Herrera Carcedo/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
(NEW YORK) — Russian President Vladimir Putin’s “special military operation” into neighboring Ukraine began on Feb. 24, with Russian forces invading from Belarus, to the north, and Russia, to the east. Ukrainian troops have offered “stiff resistance,” according to U.S. officials.
The Russian military last month launched a full-scale ground offensive in eastern Ukraine’s disputed Donbas region, attempting to capture the strategic port city of Mariupol and to secure a coastal corridor to the Moscow-annexed Crimean Peninsula.
Here’s how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
May 11, 7:52 am
Fighting continues between Ukrainian and Russian forces on Snake Island, UK says
Fighting has continued on Ukraine’s Zmiinyi Island, also known as Snake Island, “with Russia repeatedly trying to reinforce its exposed garrison located there,” the U.K. Ministry of Defense said Wednesday in an intelligence update.
“If Russia consolidates its position on Zmiinyi Island with strategic air defence and coastal defence cruise missiles, they could dominate the north-western Black Sea,” the ministry warned.
The island is strategically located, as it provides access to Ukraine’s major port cities, including Odesa, the country’s largest seaport and one of the largest in the Black Sea basin, serving as a major gateway for grain shipments and other key exports.
Ukraine, however, has managed to successfully strike Russian air defenses and resupply vessels with drones, according to the ministry.
“Russia’s resupply vessels have minimum protection in the western Black Sea, following the Russian Navy’s retreat to Crimea after the loss of the Moskva,” the ministry added.
May 11, 6:57 am
Zelenskyy thanks House for aid, as Russia denies responsibility for Ukrainian deaths
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday thanked the U.S. House of Representatives for its approval of a nearly $40 billion package of humanitarian and military aid to Ukraine in a bill passed on Tuesday.
“We are looking forward to the consideration of this important document for us by the Senate,” Zelenskyy wrote in a tweet expressing gratitude to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, President Joe Biden and “all friends of Ukraine” in the House.
Earlier on Tuesday, two senators unveiled a resolution calling on the Biden administration to designate Russia as a state sponsor of terrorism. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D.-Conn., and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R.-S.C., said the designation, which could result in further sanctions for Russia, is warranted by Russia’s war on Ukraine and conduct elsewhere under President Vladimir Putin.
“Putin is a thug, and a bully, and he will continue being an increasing threat to Europe and the world unless he is stopped,” Blumenthal said at a press conference, adding, “If there’s anybody who embodies terrorism, totalitarianism and tyranny, it’s Putin.”
The resolution was originally requested by the Ukrainian parliament, but Secretary of State Antony Blinken has so far declined to add Russia to the list of countries — Cuba, Iran, North Korea and Syria — considered to be state sponsors.
Russia’s Ministry of Health sent the World Health Organization a letter in which it “strongly rejects” its responsibility for the rising death toll in Ukraine.
“The health emergency in Ukraine and neighboring countries is caused by the unconstitutional coup that took place in this country in 2014, and by the subsequent military aggression of the Kyiv regime against the population of Donbass in the period of 2014–2022,” Andrey Plutnitsky, Russia’s envoy to the WHO, wrote in the letter.
Plutnitsky called on WHO member states to pay “special attention” to “the military biological activities undertaken by a number of countries on the territory of Ukraine, which represent a significant danger to the region.”
Members of the Russian military are trying to hide their involvement in some hostilities in Ukraine, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry’s intelligence service said on Wednesday.
Russian troops, including some from the air and space forces, have demanded that the command keep their involvement in the invasion secret in order to avoid further possible responsibility for war crimes, the Ukrainian intelligence claimed.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Defense confirmed that 89 of the 90 M777 Howitzers promised to Ukraine have been handed over to the Ukrainian military.
Of the total count of 184,000 rounds of ammunition committed to Ukraine, “65 percent, so almost 120,000 rounds, are in [Ukraine],” a senior defense official said at a background briefing on Tuesday. The Russians added two battalion tactical groups to their force in Ukraine in the past 24 hours, the official added, bringing the new count of operational Russian BGTs up to 99.
May 10, 11:18 pm
House approves $40 billion in Ukraine aid, sending measure to Senate
The House on Tuesday approved a nearly $40 billion package of humanitarian and military aid to Ukraine, the latest tranche of relief to the country the U.S. is aggressively backing in its fight against Russia.
The bill, which was finalized earlier Tuesday and includes nearly $7 billion more funding than requested by the Biden administration, was approved in a 368-57 vote, with all Democrats backing the bill and all opposition coming from Republicans.
With the vote, Congress has now directed more than $50 billion to support Ukraine in the war with Russia. The House voted 36-169 on March 9 on a $13.6 billion package for Ukraine and other key European allies.
The Senate is expected to vote on the measure in the coming days.
The package includes $6 billion to help train, equip and support the Ukrainian armed forces, and more than $9 billion to replenish the U.S. stockpiles of military equipment and ammunition in the U.S. and abroad that have been tapped to re-arm Ukraine.
The measure would also help fund and support U.S. troops stationed in Europe and the operation of a Patriot air defense missile system in Europe, and it includes more than $900 million to support Ukranian refugees with housing, counseling and English language classes, as well as helping process and screen those traveling to the United States.
Additionally, the bill directs the inspector general of the Defense Department to provide a written report to the House and Senate defense committees reviewing the Ukraine program spending within 120 days of the law’s enactment.
May 10, 6:46 pm
State Department calls on Congress to pass additional aid
The State Department is urging Congress to quickly move on passing additional funding for Ukraine, calling the aid “vital” and warning the administration’s other means of financing military support were quickly running out.
“Our assistance to Ukraine has been just as we promised: massive,” State Department spokesperson Ned Price said during his daily briefing Tuesday. “We have provided $4.5 billion worth of security assistance to Ukraine since the start of this administration, some $3.8 billion worth of security assistance since the invasion began. These are supplies — weapons — precisely what Ukraine needs to defend itself.”
But, he said, maintaining that support depends on lawmakers fulfilling the White House’s request for another $40 billion in funding.
“The fact, however, is that right now, our coffers in terms of drawdown funding — they’re dwindling,” he said. “We now have less than $100 million left and we will exhaust those funds within the next week.”
Price said the new tranche of funding would “help our Ukrainian partners and also our NATO allies do precisely what we feel it is imperative that they be positioned to do at this moment.”
Pressed on whether the administration had a limit in mind when it came to sending lethal aid to Ukraine, Price said the focus was on fulfilling its promises to “provide Ukraine with the security assistance it needs to defend itself” and ensuring “our allies — especially our allies on the eastern flank — had what they needed to deter and potentially even respond to Russian aggression.”
-ABC News’ Shannon Crawford
May 10, 5:32 pm
Nominee for US ambassador to Ukraine testifies in confirmation hearing
Amid a three-year vacancy and with Ukraine in the grips of a brutal war, the U.S. Senate took its first major step towards confirming an American ambassador to Ukraine on Tuesday with a hearing in its Foreign Relations Committee for President Joe Biden’s nominee, Bridget Brink.
Brink — a veteran diplomat with 25 years of experience and the current U.S. ambassador to Slovakia — acknowledged the great difficulties that would come with the post but said it would be the “honor of a lifetime.”
“We face the biggest threat to peace and security in Europe in decades,” she said during her opening statements. “If confirmed, I pledge to work with you to continue our commitment to a sovereign, democratic and independent Ukraine — free to choose its own future.”
Brink has bipartisan support and her path to confirmation appears to be a smooth one, though Sen. Jim Risch (R-Idaho), the ranking member of the committee, foretold “a lot scrutiny from Washington” when it comes to moving the U.S. embassy back to Kyiv and “helping to shepherd U.S. military, humanitarian and financial aid in the right places.”
“I think it’s really important for us to be there in person and present,” Brink responded when questioned on plans to reopen the embassy in Kyiv. “I don’t know exactly how fast we will be able to do this process, but I know we are trying to do it as fast as possible and it is certainly my hope and plan, if confirmed, to be able to start my mission in Kyiv.”
She later added: “It’s necessary for us to be there on the ground.”
The nominee was also asked about the need for the aid package currently working its way through Congress.
“It is incredibly important that the supplemental move fast,” Brink said. “The needs are large.”
Brink also promised to work to assist Ukraine in holding Russia accountable for alleged war crimes.
“We are going to use every tool at our disposal,” she said. “I can tell you it’s a personal priority of mine.”
-ABC News’ Shannon Crawford
May 10, 3:23 pm
House expected to vote on nearly $40 billion Ukraine aid package
The House will vote on a new roughly $40 billion Ukraine aid package Tuesday night, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced.
The request includes funding for “critically needed resources, including military aid, support for the Ukrainian economy, and humanitarian assistance for food security to address the worldwide hunger crisis.”
The White House had initially requested $33 billion in assistance for Ukraine, but congressional leaders decided to tack on an additional $7 billion for more military and humanitarian assistance.
“This package, which builds on the robust support already secured by Congress, will be pivotal in helping Ukraine defend not only its nation but democracy for the world. Time is of the essence – and we cannot afford to wait,” Pelosi said in a letter to colleagues. “With this aid package, America sends a resounding message to the world of our unwavering determination to stand with the courageous people of Ukraine until victory is won.”
The bill is expected to pass in the House, after which it would head to the Senate.
-ABC News’ Mariam Khan
May 10, 3:10 pm
Pelosi, lawmakers to brief Biden on trip to Ukraine
President Joe Biden will host House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other members of Congress in the Situation Room on Tuesday afternoon to discuss the lawmakers’ recent trip to Ukraine, according to White House press secretary Jen Psaki.
Biden previously spoke with Pelosi over the phone about her trip but wanted a more thorough discussion in person, Psaki said.
Expected to attend are: Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass.; Rep. Gregory Meeks, D-NY; Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif.; Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif.; Rep. Bill Keating, D-Mass.; and Rep. Jason Crow, D-Colo.
-ABC News’ Ben Gittleson and Mariam Khan
May 10, 2:59 pm
Putin has goals beyond Donbas, US says
Russian President Vladimir Putin “is preparing for prolonged conflict in Ukraine during which he still intends to achieve goals beyond the Donbas,” according to Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines.
“The next month or two of fighting will be significant as the Russians attempt to reinvigorate their efforts. But even if they are successful, we are not confident that the fight in the Donbas will effectively end the war,” Haines told senators at an Armed Services Committee hearing Tuesday.
For now, Putin’s goal is to take control of the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts and encircle Ukrainian forces from the north and south of the Donbas “in order to crush the most capable and well-equipped Ukrainian forces who are fighting to hold the line in the East,” Haines said.
Putin also hopes to “consolidate control of the land bridge Russia has established from Crimea to the Donbas, occupy Kherson, and control the water source for Crimea,” Haines said. The U.S. sees indications his military wants to extend that land bridge to Transnistria in Moldova, she added.
Haines said Russia might be capable of achieving “most” of those goals in the coming months. However, “We believe that they will not be able to extend control over a land bridge that stretches to Transnistria and includes Odessa without launching some form of mobilization. And it is increasingly unlikely that they will be able to establish control over both oblasts and the buffer zone they desire in the coming weeks,” she said.
Sanctions from the West are having a “pretty significant” impact on Russia, according to Haines.
“Among the indicators that one might look at are, for example, the fact that we’re seeing close to about, we predict, approximately 20% inflation in Russia; that we expect that their GDP will fall about 10%, possibly even more over the course of the year,” she said.
The fighting itself has also worn on Russia’s capabilities.
“The ground combat forces have been degraded considerably. It’s going to take them years … to rebuild that,” she said.
But that could drive Putin to other means of exerting force. Haines said, “They may rely more on things like cyber, nuclear, precision, etc. … Putin would probably only authorize the use of nuclear weapons if he perceived an existential threat to the Russian state or regime.”
Haines warned, “The current trend increases the likelihood that President Putin will turn to more drastic means, including imposing martial law, reorienting industrial production, or potentially escalatory military actions to free up the resources needed to achieve his objectives as the conflict drags on, or if he perceives Russia is losing in Ukraine.”
“The most likely flashpoints for escalation in the coming weeks are around increasing Russian attempts to interdict Western security assistance, retaliation for Western economic sanctions or threats to the regime at home. We believe that Moscow continues to use nuclear rhetoric to deter the United States and the West from increasing lethal aid to Ukraine and to respond to public comments that the U.S. and NATO allies that suggest expanded Western goals in the conflict,” she said. “If Putin perceives that the United States is ignoring his threats, he may try to signal to Washington the heightened danger of its support to Ukraine by authorizing another large nuclear exercise involving a major dispersal of mobile intercontinental missiles, heavy bombers, strategic submarines.”
-ABC News’ Matt Seyler
May 10, 11:29 am
Russia has lost 8 to 10 generals so far, US believes
The U.S. believes eight to 10 Russian generals have been killed in Ukraine since the beginning of the invasion, Defense Intelligence Agency Director Lt. Gen. Scott Berrier told senators on Tuesday at an Armed Services Committee hearing.
This is slightly below the estimate from the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense, which said up to 12 Russian generals have been killed.
-ABC News’ Matt Seyler
May 10, 8:18 am
Ukrainian police probe over 10,000 cases of suspected war crimes
The national police chief of Ukraine, Gen. Igor Klimenko, told ABC News on Tuesday that his officers are currently investigating 10,800 cases of suspected war crimes across the country, in areas that were previously occupied by Russian forces.
In the Kyiv region alone, police said they have so far recovered 1,262 bodies of slain civilians. The head of Kyiv police, Andriy Nebytov, told ABC News on Tuesday that his officers are currently working to identify 258 of those bodies.
Local police said five bodies were recovered on Monday, including three men who were lying in a mass grave. Police said the men had been shot in the head.
Local officers in the Kyiv region said they have found so many dead bodies of people killed when Russian forces occupied the area that they do not have the capacity to store them all in morgues. Instead, DNA samples will be taken before the bodies are buried while the process of identifying the victims is carried out.
Once the DNA process is complete, the graves of the deceased can be properly marked, according to local police.
French police officers are also in Ukraine to help with the identity process. According to Ukrainian police, technology available to their French counterparts can finish the DNA identification process within 24 hours — something which would normally take Ukrainian police three to four days.
May 10, 6:47 am
Russia paying the price for underestimating Ukrainian resistance, UK says
Russia is paying the price for underestimating Ukrainian resistance, the U.K. Ministry of Defense said Tuesday in an intelligence update.
“Russia’s invasion plan is highly likely to have been based on the mistaken assumption that it would encounter limited resistance and would be able to encircle and bypass population centres rapidly,” the ministry said Tuesday in an intelligence update. “This assumption led Russian forces to attempt to carry out the opening phase of the operation with a light, precise approach intended to achieve a rapid victory with minimal cost.”
“This miscalculation led to unsustainable losses and a subsequent reduction in Russia’s operational focus,” the ministry added.
According to the ministry, these “demonstrable operational failings” prevented Russian President Vladimir Putin from announcing significant military success at Monday’s Victory Day parade in Moscow.
Although he showed no signs of backing down, Putin did not make any declarations of war or victory in his annual speech for Victory Day, a national holiday in Russia commemorating the Soviet Union’s defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II. Instead, he drew parallels between Soviet soldiers battling Nazi troops and the Russian forces fighting now in Ukraine, as he has vowed to “de-Nazify” the former Soviet republic.
“You are fighting for the motherland, for its future, so that no one forgets the lessons of the Second World War,” Putin said Monday during a military parade in Moscow’s Red Square.
May 10, 6:30 am
US suspends tariffs on Ukrainian steel
The U.S. will temporarily suspend 232 tariffs on Ukrainian steel for one year, Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo announced Monday.
Ukraine’s steel industry is one of the foundations of the country’s economy, employing 1 in 13 Ukrainians, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. Some of Ukraine’s largest steel communities have been among those “hardest hit by Putin’s barbarism,” the U.S. Department of Commerce said in a press release, and the steel mill in Mariupol has become a “lasting symbol of Ukraine’s determination to resist Russia’s aggression.”
“Steelworkers are among the world’s most resilient — whether they live in Youngstown or Mariupol,” Raimondo said.
The pledge to slash tariffs “is a signal to the Ukrainian people that we are committed to helping them thrive in the face of Putin’s aggression,” she said, “and that their work will create a stronger Ukraine, both today and in the future.”
Ukraine is currently losing about $170 million every day due to blocked ports and the country’s export potential has fallen by more than half, Ukrainian Prime Minister Denys Shmysal said on Monday.
Ukraine also submitted a several-thousand-page questionnaire, the second part of the answers, that must be completed by countries aspiring to join the European Union, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Monday during his nightly address.
“It usually takes months. But we did everything in a few weeks,” Zelenskyy said.
The Ukrainian president held talks with EU leaders on Monday and claimed Ukraine could be granted EU candidate status as early as June.
Russia running out of missiles
Russia has used up about half of its existing missiles during its invasion of Ukraine, Ukrainian Deputy Defense Minister Hanna Malyar said Monday. But the Russians still maintain the capacity and a certain supply of components to replenish some of their depleted arsenal, Malyar added.
The U.K. Ministry of Defense also stated in its Monday intelligence update that Russia’s stockpile of precision-guided munitions “has likely been heavily depleted.” Instead, the Russian military is now using “readily available but ageing munitions that are less reliable, less accurate and more easily intercepted.”
Russia will likely struggle to replace the precision weaponry it has already expended, the ministry said.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson tweeted Monday that he has “never been more certain that Ukraine will win,” adding that Britain will stand “shoulder-to-shoulder with Ukraine for as long as it takes.”
Fighting continued on May 9 at the Azovstal steel plant while “some occupiers were walking along the streets” of the surrounding city of Mariupol parading with flags and Ribbons of Saint George, a traditional Russian military symbol, said Petro Andriushchenko, the Mariupol mayor’s advisor. Russian forces on Monday tried to blow up the bridge used to evacuate people from the steel plant, trying to “cut off our defenders from the possibility to exit,” Andriushchenko said.
There are still more than 100 civilians trapped in Azovstal, Pavlo Kyrylenko, who heads the Donetsk military administration, told local media.
