News blog about US politics
Journalists celebrate important verdict against US government
Updated March 10, 2026 – 3:01 amReading time: 19 minutes
The USA cannot stop a UN declaration for more women’s rights. Trump renews his threats to Cuba. All developments in the news blog.
The organization Reporters Without Borders welcomed the ruling on the unlawful dismissal of hundreds of journalists at the US international broadcaster Voice of America (VOA). “The ruling confirms what we already knew when we filed this lawsuit nearly a year ago: Kari Lake and the Trump administration acted unlawfully in firing VOA employees,” said Reporters Without Borders U.S. office director Clayton Weimers. The case shows how important it is to fight for freedom of the press.
US President Donald Trump appointed Lake in his second term as head of the state-funded broadcaster’s parent company, the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM). She announced the layoffs there at the end of last August. According to court information, over 500 employees would have been affected.
A judge now thwarted the plans, citing Lake’s illegal appointment as the reason. Lake came into office without Senate approval – a path that is only permitted in a few exceptions, such as when it concerns an official with experience in a senior position. However, the court found that none of the exceptions applied in the present case. The official actions taken by Lake are therefore invalid.
Despite the humanitarian catastrophe in Afghanistan, the US has called for a reassessment of international aid to the country. The Taliban’s intransigence and its exclusion of women from basic rights must lead to a careful examination of aid funds, US Ambassador Mike Waltz told the UN Security Council on Monday. He pointed out that the UN Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has the largest budget of any special UN mission in the world. The mandate of the mission
expires next week. Waltz criticized the fact that female Afghan UN employees were not even allowed to enter their offices.
According to the UN, more than 17 million Afghans, a third of the population, suffer from acute food shortages, 4.7 million of whom suffer from emergency-level hunger. Acting UNAMA chief Georgette Gagnon warned that funding cuts would worsen the crisis. Of the $1.71 billion needed for 2026, only ten percent have been financed. The almost two-week conflict with Pakistan and the situation on the Iranian border have caused prices for basic foods to rise. The Taliban have controlled Afghanistan since coming to power in August 2021 and have since gradually restricted women’s rights, including bans on education and work.
