Voice of America’s immigration news

There is little that the presidential campaigns of Donald Trump and Joe Biden agree on. One is the presidential candidacy of an activist lawyer with a famous political pedigree: Robert F. Kennedy, Junior. VOA’s chief national correspondent Steve Herman at the White House reports both the Biden and Trump camps see Kennedy as a potential spoiler in this November’s election. Camera and edit: Adam Greenbaum

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Caen, France — French police Wednesday were hunting for a group of gunmen who killed two prison officers in an attack at a motorway toll booth that freed a convict linked to gangland drug killings. The killings and dramatic getaway by the perpetrators have shocked France, with authorities under pressure to catch those responsible, who all remain at large. "We have put a lot of resources into finding not only the person who escaped", but also "the gang that released him under such despicable circumstances," Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin told the RTL broadcaster. "We are putting in considerable resources, we are making a lot of progress," he added. On Tuesday, more than 450 police officers and gendarmes were mobilized just for the search in the northern department of Eure where the attack took place, he said. 'We will be uncompromising' Two prison officers were killed in the attack and three others wounded, Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said late on Tuesday. One of the injured men was fighting for his life in hospital and two more were receiving critical care, she said. The incident took place late on Tuesday morning at a road toll in Incarville in the Eure region of northern France. The inmate was being transported back to his prison in the town of Evreux after he was questioned by a judge in the regional center of Rouen in Normandy. The prosecutor said the prison van was rammed head-on by a stolen Peugeot vehicle as it went through the toll crossing. But the van and another vehicle in the prison convoy were also followed by an Audi. Gunman emerged from the two cars and shot at both prison vehicles. "We will be uncompromising," President Emmanuel Macron said on X, describing the attack as a "shock." French television channels broadcast footage of the attack taken by surveillance cameras at the toll, showing the Peugeot colliding head on with the prison van. In the video, several gunmen dressed in black emerge from both attack vehicles. A firefight ensues and one individual appears to be guided away from the van by the gunmen. A vehicle believed to have been used by the attackers was later found as a burned-out wreck at a different location. 'Never have imagined ' The prison officers who died, both men, were the first to be killed in the line of duty since 1992, according to Justice Minister Eric Dupond-Moretti. One of them was married and had twin children while the other "left a wife who is five months pregnant," he said. Prison officer unions announced a day of minimum service on Wednesday and asked for urgent measures to improve the safety of staff. Dupond-Moretti said he would meet union representatives on Wednesday. "We are in mourning," Vanessa Lefaivre, of the FO union at the Fleury-Merogis prison outside Paris told AFP. "We would never have imagined that prison staff would be killed like this." 'Kills more than terrorism' Prosecutor Beccuau named the inmate as Mohamed Amra, born in 1994, saying that last week he had been convicted of aggravated robbery and charged in a case of abduction leading to death. But a source close to the case said that Amra was suspected of involvement in drug trafficking and of ordering gangland killings. Another source said he is suspected of being at the head of a criminal network. Some media said he had the nickname "La Mouche" (the fly). His lawyer Hugues Vigier said Amra had already made an escape attempt at the weekend by sawing the bars of his cell and said he was shocked by the "inexcusable" and "insane" violence. "This does not correspond to the impression that I had of him," the lawyer told BFMTV. The incident came on the same day as the French Senate published a damning report warning that government measures had been unable to prevent the flourishing of the narcotics industry in France. "Narco-banditry kills many people, much more than terrorism," said Darmanin, also pointing to the responsibility of drug users. "One cannot at the same time cry for the widows and orphans of the Eure toll booth attack and then smoke a joint... this is called schizophrenia." Law and order is a major issue in French politics ahead of next month's European elections and the prison van ambush sparked fierce reactions from politicians, especially the far right. "It is real savagery that hits France every day," said Jordan Bardella, the top candidate for the far-right National Rally (RN), which is leading opinion polls for the elections.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

NEW YORK — A sprightly miniature poodle named Sage was crowned "Best in Show" on Tuesday at the 148th annual Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, winning the grand prize in the most prestigious competition among pure-bred canines in the United States. Sage, the finalist representing 21 breeds classified as non-sporting dogs, triumphed over more than 2,500 top-ranked dogs competing in the two-day contest, held at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center in the Queens borough of New York City. Sage, a 4-year-old black-colored female groomed in the fine, fluffy topiary style traditional for poodles, competed head to head against the winners in six other groups — terriers, hounds, herding dogs, working dogs, sporting dogs and toy dogs. She was the first female to win the top prize at Westminster since 2020, according to commentators on the Fox Sports channel, which broadcast the event live. And she became the fourth miniature poodle to claim the top prize in the 148-year history of the contest, with the trophy previously going to her breed in 1943, 1959 and 2002, according to kennel club records. The larger "standard" poodle breed has been declared Best in Show five times, most recently in 2020, and the smaller "toy" poodle breed has won twice. The poodle originated as a hunting dog in Germany and is now recognized as the national dog of France. Sage's handler, Kaz Hosaka, cried tears of joy and carried his prized poodle in his arms around floor of the auditorium to cheers of the crowd as he celebrated what he said was his 45th year participating at the Westminster dog show and the last of his career. The Westminster dog show bills itself as the second-oldest U.S. sporting event, behind only the Kentucky Derby thoroughbred horse race. This year's competition drew a field of contenders representing 200 breeds from all 50 U.S. states and 12 other countries. Mercedes, a female 4-year-old German shepherd, was named runner-up for the overall contest, after first winning the top prize in the herding dog group. Along with Sage and Mercedes, the two other finalists chosen on Monday were Comet the Shih Tzu, representing the toy group, and Louis, the Afghan hound leading the hound group. Rounding out the finalists were three group winners chosen on Tuesday - Micah the black cocker spaniel, representing sporting dogs; Monty, the giant schnauzer, leading the working dogs; and Frankie, a colored bull terrier from the terrier group.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

SYDNEY — Researchers in New Zealand say that artificial intelligence, or AI, can help solve problems for patients and doctors.   A new study from the University of Auckland says that an emerging area is the use of AI during operations using so-called "computer vision." The study, published in the journal Nature Medicine, says that artificial intelligence has the potential to identify abnormalities during operations and to unburden overloaded hospitals by enhancing the monitoring of patients to help them recover after surgery at home. The New Zealand research details how AI “tools are rapidly maturing for medical applications.”  It asserts that “medicine is entering an exciting phase of digital innovation.” The New Zealand team is investigating computer vision, which describes a machine’s understanding of videos and images.    Dr. Chris Varghese, a doctoral researcher in the Department of Surgery at the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences at the University of Auckland, led the AI research team. He told VOA the technology has great potential. “The use of AI in surgery is a really emerging field. We are seeing a lot of exciting research looking at what we call computer vision, where AI is trying to learn what surgeons see, what the surgical instruments look like, what the different organs look like, and the potential there is to identify abnormal anatomy or what the safest approach to an operation might be using virtual reality and augmented reality to plan ahead of surgeries, which could be really useful in cutting out cancers and things like that.” Varghese said doctors in New Zealand are already using AI to help sort through patient backlogs.   “We are using automated algorithms to triage really long waiting lists," he said. "So, getting people prioritized and into clinics ahead of time, based on need, so the right patients are seen at the right time.” The researchers said there are limitations to the use of artificial intelligence because of concerns about data privacy and ethics. The report concludes that “numerous apprehensions remain with regard to the integration of AI into surgical practice, with many clinicians perceiving limited scope in a field dominated by experiential” technology. The study also says that “autonomous robotic surgeons…. is the most distant of the realizable goals of surgical AI systems.”

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Ukraine's military said on Tuesday it was moving troops to new positions in the north of Kharkiv region in response to heavy Russian fire and advances. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was in Ukraine saying Russia should pay for rebuilding Ukraine. After his diplomatic duties he sang and played the guitar at a night club in Kyiv on Tuesday. U.S. President Joe Biden on Tuesday unveiled steep tariff increases on an array of Chinese imports including electric vehicles. We talk to Kyle Handley, an economist who specializes in international trade at the University of California San Diego School of Global Policy and Strategy. And robots are taking to the seas – performing jobs that are dangerous and mundane.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.