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ISIS claims attack in Iran as an Iran-backed militia leader is killed in Baghdad by a U.S. drone strike. Good news from Ukraine as over 200 POWs come home, and we take a look at what the future might hold for Kyiv. Plus, North Korea is ratcheting up anxiety on the Korean Peninsula.

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.

Perry, Iowa — Police in Perry, Iowa, say multiple people were shot at the city's high school Thursday, early on students' first day back in classes after their annual winter break. Two gunshot victims were taken by ambulance to Iowa Methodist Medical Center in the state capital of Des Moines, about 64 kilometers southeast of Perry, a community of about 8,000 people. Dallas County Sheriff Adam Infante said the shooting occurred before school was set to start, so there were few students and faculty in Perry High School. The suspect in the shooting has died of what investigators believe is a self-inflicted gunshot wound, a law enforcement official told The Associated Press. The official was not authorized to publicly discuss details of the investigation and spoke to The AP on condition of anonymity. The shooting occurred in the backdrop of the Iowa caucuses and not far from where Republican presidential candidates were campaigning. An active shooter was reported at 7:37 a.m. Thursday morning and officers arrived seven minutes later, Infante said. He added during a news conference that officers located multiple people with injuries, but couldn't confirm how many there were or their conditions. A spokesperson for UnityPoint Health, which operates the Des Moines hospital, confirmed the two gunshot victims arriving there. An enormous number of emergency vehicles surrounded the building that houses both the town's middle school and high school. Zander Shelley, 15, was in a hallway waiting for the school day to start when he heard gunshots and dashed into a classroom, according to his father, Kevin Shelley. Zander was grazed twice and hid in the classroom before texting his father at 7:36 a.m. Kevin Shelley, who drives a garbage truck, told his boss he had to run. "It was the most scared I've been in my entire life," he said. Rachael Kares, an 18-year-old senior, was wrapping up jazz band practice when she and her bandmates heard what she described as four gunshots, spaced apart. "We all just jumped," Kares said. "My band teacher looked at us and yelled, 'Run!' So we ran." Kares and many others from the school ran out past the football field, as she heard people yelling, "Get out! Get out!" She said she heard additional shots as she ran, but didn't know how many. She was more concerned about getting home to her 3-year-old son. "At that moment I didn't care about anything except getting out because I had to get home with my son," she said. FBI agents from the Omaha-Des Moines office were on scene to help with the investigation led by the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation. "There are a bunch of speculative numbers floating around," said Dirk Cavanaugh, Perry's mayor. "We have no confirmed numbers of who was involved yet." Erica Jolliff said that her daughter, a ninth grader, reported getting rushed from the school grounds at 7:45 am. Distraught, Jolliff was still looking for her son Amir, a sixth grader, one hour later. "I just want to know that he's safe and OK," Jolliff said. "They won't tell me nothing." Jasmine Augustine, 18, was at the high school shortly after everything happened Thursday morning. She said she was dropping off a friend at the high school and his brother, who goes to the town's elementary school about a mile (1.61 kilometers) away. "I was at Casey's convenience store and saw one car speed by. I thought it was just someone getting pulled over," she said. Augustine said that when she pulled in at the high school, someone told her there was an active shooter "and then we hurried up and left." "After that, there's just tons and tons and tons of cops who came," said Augustine, whose sister attends the high school but wasn't near what happened. Jasmine and her dad picked up her sister from the armory afterward. The high school is part of the 1,785-student Perry Community School District. The town of Perry is more diverse than Iowa as a whole, with census figures showing that 31% of the residents are Hispanic, compared to less than 7% for the state. Those figures also show that nearly 19% of the town's residents were born outside the U.S. The shooting occurred in the backdrop of the Iowa caucuses and not far from where Republican candidates were campaigning. Phone messages left with the Perry School Board's president and vice president, and an email message left with Superintendent Clark Wicks, were not immediately returned.

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.

Baghdad/Washington — The U.S. military carried out a retaliatory strike in Baghdad on Thursday that killed a militia leader it blames for recent attacks on U.S. personnel, a U.S. official told Reuters. Iraqi police sources and witnesses said a drone fired at least two rockets in eastern Baghdad at a facility used by the Iraqi militia group al-Nujaba'a.   Police and militia sources said the rockets hit a vehicle inside the Nujaba'a headquarters and killed four people, including a local group commander and one of his aides. Health sources confirmed the death toll. The U.S. military has come under attack at least 100 times in Iraq and Syria since the Israel-Hamas war began in October, usually with a mix of rockets and one-way attack drones.   The United States has 2,500 troops deployed in Iraq and 900 in neighboring Syria in a bid to prevent a resurgence of Islamic State militants. "The Iraqi armed forces hold the international coalition forces responsible for this unjustified attack on an Iraqi security entity," the prime minister's military spokesman said, referring to Thursday's strike. The statement described the militia group as an Iraqi force operating with the authorization of Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani. The U.S. official said the strike hit the vehicle with the intention of killing the militia leader and that was accomplished. Video footage published by pro-militia websites showed a destroyed vehicle in flames. Reuters could not independently verify the authenticity of the footage. Iran-aligned groups in Iraq and Syria oppose Israel's campaign in Gaza and hold the United States partly responsible.   Prime Minister Al-Sudani has limited control over some Iran-backed factions, whose support he needed to win power a year ago and who now form a powerful bloc in his governing coalition. Iraqi security sources said they had no further detail on who might have carried out the strike pending a government investigation. Iraqi militia commanders accused the United States of carrying out the attack and threatened to retaliate. "We will retaliate and make the Americans regret carrying out this aggression," Abu Aqeel al-Moussawi, a local Iraqi militia commander, said. Last month, the United States carried out retaliatory air strikes in Iraq after a drone attack by Iran-aligned militants that left one U.S. service member in critical condition and wounded two others.

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.

Rome — Pope Francis has urged prayers for Nicaragua where two Catholic bishops,15 priests and two seminarians are in custody, with the most recent arrests taking place on Dec. 31. Observers fear the government of President Daniel Ortega is trying to eradicate the Catholic Church’s presence in Nicaragua. The pontiff opened the new year with an appeal for prayer for the Central American country, expressing his deep concern for bishops and priests "deprived of their freedom" there and urging “the path of dialogue be always sought to overcome difficulties.” “I follow with worry the events in Nicaragua, where priests and bishops have been deprived of their liberty,” he said. “I express closeness to families and the people, and I invite all of you of here present and all the people of God [to pray fervently], and hope for peace to overcome the difficulties. Let us pray for Nicaragua.” Observers say the pope used his New Year’s Day address to shed light on the growing crackdown by Ortega’s government on the Catholic Church in Nicaragua, where clerics have been arrested, Catholic radio stations and a university have been shuttered, missionaries expelled, and religious festivities restrained. Jason Problete is a U.S.-based Catholic lawyer specializing in international religious freedom issues. He told VOA that there is no real functioning opposition in Nicaragua, a deeply Catholic country, and that has made the Catholic Church a target for Ortega’s government as international sanctions bite. “The Catholic Church, it’s an easy target for Ortega,” Problete said. “The priests, to their credit, they don’t want to be involved in politics. But they are being thrust into that because the people of Nicaragua are looking for leadership in Nicaragua. There is a civil society outside of Nicaragua, but they have no sway inside Nicaragua. Where do people go to next? The Catholic Church is still a force to be reckoned with.” Observers point to the deterioration in relations between the Catholic Church and Ortega’s government during protests against social security reforms in 2018. Ortega accused Catholics of supporting the opposition during demonstrations, after the church sheltered protesters. Anyone seen as a government critic is severely repressed, analysts say. International lawyer Problete sees Ortega carrying out the left-wing Sandinista’s policies against the Catholic Church. In 1979, Ortega led the Sandinista revolution, which overthrew the dictatorship of Anastasio Somoza Debayle. But having lost elections in 1990, Ortega regained the presidency in 2007. Analysts, like Problete, say he has squelched any opposition. “The Sandinista’s ultimate goal is to eradicate the Catholic Church,” he said. “This is their words. They don’t want the Catholic Church in Nicaragua.” Martha Patricia Molina, a Nicaraguan lawyer and author of the study “Nicaragua: A Persecuted Church?” reports that the Ortega government has carried out more than 770 arrests, attacks, expropriations and harassments against the Catholic Church, including “impediments to processions, prayers, masses in cemeteries,” as well as spread hate messages, since 2018.

AILA Law Journal author Betsy Fisher shares more about her recent article published in the journal which reflects on the disappointing results she has seen in one kind of humanitarian program: Priority-2 (or P-2) refugee resettlement, and seeks to identify ways to best leverage P-2 resettlement.

The post Digging Into One Key Aspect of Refugee Designations first appeared on Blog: Think Immigration.

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.

Burned residential buildings, destroyed warehouses, scorched cars — these are the consequences of a Russian missile attack Tuesday morning in Kyiv. According to the mayor's office, 50 people were injured and at least two were killed. Anna Kosstutschenko talked to survivors. VOA footage by Pavel Suhodolskiy.

Hundreds of Hamas militants were killed or captured during their October 7 rampage in which they killed some 1,200 Israelis and kidnapped 240, sparking the war in Gaza. Israeli officials say many of them were found carrying pills of the amphetamine Captagon, a stimulant that can lower inhibitions and radically boost stamina. Linda Gradstein reports for VOA from Jerusalem. VOA footage by Ricki Rosen. Warning: This video contains graphic images that some may find disturbing. Viewer discretion is advised.

Melbourne, Australia — Although China’s government has promised a rosier outlook for the economy in 2024, some migrant workers, labor brokers and shop owners tell VOA’s Mandarin Service that jobs in the country’s coastal cities are drying up, forcing many to go home or others to close shop.     For the past seven years, Ma Hailiang has worked as a labor broker for factories in the southeastern coastal city of Shantou. He said that before the COVID-19 pandemic, there were plenty of jobs in Shantou’s Chenghai District, home to many factories that manufacture toys. Now, orders and work have slowed dramatically in the city located north of Guangzhou and Shenzhen.     "Business here in Shantou is particularly bad right now, and no factory has orders," Ma said. "I initially brought 200 people to the factory, but they left for various reasons. Now, there are only 30 of them left.”   Some left because they were working more than 12 hours a day. Others left because the factory had no orders and had to lay off workers, he said.     In China, January is typically a time when many migrant workers begin an annual trip home to celebrate the Lunar New Year. However, this year, the massive exodus from coastal cities to provinces across the country began much earlier.   Shen Mei, 37, returned to Henan’s Xinxiang City from Guangzhou late last month. She told VOA that she once could earn around $1,000 to $1,100 a month working in a factory, which is much more than she could earn in her hometown.   "We would work 12 hours a day and often have to work overtime. It is normal to work 14 hours a day. I work the night shift and eat my first meal at 11 p.m.," she said.     Shen said that most young people in her hometown go to other cities to work, but it has been hard to find jobs nationwide as many factories have closed.     "The situation in China is particularly bad right now. Many people are gnashing their teeth against the government but dare not speak out. No one is happy except for those who work in government,” Shen said. “The miserable life of ordinary Chinese people is indescribable. It's not an individual case. It's how most people's lives are."      Since it lifted its draconian COVID-19 controls near the end of 2022, China's economy has been struggling to stage a comeback. Even Chinese President Xi Jinping acknowledged the challenges the country's economy faced in 2023, in a televised speech on December 31 to mark the New Year. He also pledged that things would get better. Xi said China would push ahead with reforms and "consolidate and enhance the positive trend of economic recovery and achieve stable and long-term economic development."     Despite his optimism, the outlook for some is grim.     Ma Lijuan, 38, is a chef at a toy factory in Guangzhou. She said she sees fewer workers in the canteen these days. She told VOA that many workers who have worked in the factory for a long time had pay cuts this year.     "My current income is half what it used to be before the pandemic," she said.      Ma Xin runs a beef noodle shop near the Foxconn industrial park in Shenzhen. Foxconn is the world’s largest maker of iPhones, and its massive factory there has employed hundreds of thousands of workers in the past.  Ma told VOA that he is not sure how many workers have left Shenzhen over the past year. Some media reports have suggested that more than a million would leave in 2023. What is clear, Ma said, is that the lack of customers is already having a big impact on his business.       "In the past, when there were many customers here, the daily turnover was more than 7,000 yuan [$984]. This year, we can only make about 1,800 yuan a day [$251]," Ma said, which is only enough to cover rent and staff wages.     Ali, the owner of another beef noodle shop in Shanghai more than 1,000 kilometers up the coast, told VOA that 2023 was a particularly difficult year.  He said that many people “have no money in their pockets, and their spending power is gone.”  Compared with the past, Shanghai’s floating population — the number of migrant workers who come to the city for work and opportunities — was much smaller this year, Ma said.    “It's sad. Many small factories here have closed down, and the main customers of those surrounding restaurants are migrant workers,” he said. And that has left many restaurants with no choice but to close.  Adrianna Zhang contributed to this report.

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.

London — British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on Thursday he expected to call a national election in the second half of this year, all but ruling out an earlier vote in May.   Sunak's Conservatives are heavily trailing the main opposition Labour Party in the polls ahead of an election which must be held by early 2025. Opposition parties have called for the vote to be held as soon as possible. "My working assumption is we will have a general election in the second half of this year, because in the meantime I have lots I want to get on with," Sunak told reporters during a visit to central England. "I want to keep going, managing the economy well and cutting people's taxes ... I've got lots to get on with." Sunak has struggled to make progress on key pledges he made exactly one year ago, including to stop small boats of migrants arriving on the south coast of England, to grow the economy and to cut hospital waiting lists, though he hit a target of halving inflation by the end of 2023.   Sunak and finance minister Jeremy Hunt have said they can turn attention to cutting taxes now inflation is under control. An announcement that a spring budget would be relatively early, on March 6, had fueled speculation that Sunak might opt for an election in May.

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.