INTERNACIONAL
Soros-backed prosecutor set for Capitol Hill grilling as sanctuary policies face reckoning
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Steve Descano, the George Soros-backed prosecutor in Fairfax County, Virginia, will make his first Capitol Hill appearance next month as House Republicans press him on the county’s immigration policies following a murder tied to a repeat illegal immigrant offender.
Descano and Fairfax County Sheriff Stacey Kincaid are set to appear May 14 before the House Judiciary Committee’s immigration subcommittee, according to letters provided to Fox News Digital confirming their participation. The hearing, titled «Fairfax County, Virginia: The Dangerous Consequences of Sanctuary Policies,» will examine whether the county’s policy limiting cooperation with federal immigration authorities threatens public safety.
The hearing will put new federal scrutiny on Descano and Fairfax County’s limits on cooperation with immigration authorities as Republicans argue the county’s policies and prosecutorial decisions helped allow accused killer Abdul Jalloh — whom the Department of Homeland Security says had been arrested 30 times — to remain free before Stephanie Minter’s fatal stabbing.
Minter’s case spurred the federal oversight and calls for legislative reforms, and Minter’s family is now also backing a recall effort against Descano that could threaten his tenure, according to local reporting.
ANGEL MOM, GOP BLAME SPANBERGER AFTER ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT WITH 30 ARRESTS CHARGED IN KILLING
Steve Descano, Commonwealth’s Attorney of Fairfax County, Virginia, speaks at an event at the Center for American Progress about Virginia’s Newly Elected Progressive Prosecutors on Tuesday, December 17, 2019. (Getty Images)
Descano has previously testified in state-level legislative hearings, including before the Virginia Senate Judiciary Committee, but the May 14 hearing would mark his first known appearance before a congressional committee.
«CA Descano is looking forward to the opportunity to discuss Fairfax’s record as one of the safest large jurisdictions in the country,» Descano’s office told Fox News Digital on Monday when asked about his upcoming testimony.
Upon first announcing the hearing in April, prior to the committee confirming Descano’s attendance and a finalized date, Republican leaders said Descano’s testimony would help inform possible reforms targeting sanctuary jurisdictions.
The scrutiny was driven largely by the murder of Minter, a Fredericksburg mother who was stabbed to death at a Fairfax County bus stop earlier this year. Jalloh, her alleged killer and a Sierra Leone national, is an illegal immigrant with a lengthy criminal history whose prior encounters with law enforcement had raised concerns.
Fairfax County police had previously warned Descano’s office multiple times, including last year, about Jalloh’s potential for violence, including one officer who cautioned in an email that it was «not a question of if, but rather when he will maliciously wound (or worse) again.»
Despite those warnings, prosecutors dropped multiple charges against Jalloh, allowing him to remain free. DHS authorities said Jalloh had been arrested 30 times, including for violent offenses, before targeting Minter.
Abdul Jalloh, 32, is accused of killing Stephanie Minter, 41, at a bus stop in Virginia. (Fox 5 DC)
ILLEGAL ALIEN MURDER SUSPECT AVOIDED SYSTEM AS ICE PUSHES DEM GOVERNOR TO KEEP HIM LOCKED UP
Descano has also faced criticism for his broader posture on immigration after campaigning on what he said was a two-tiered justice system that disadvantaged noncitizens, who could also see deportation as a consequence for their crimes.
Descano, for his part, has received more than $600,000 in campaign support from the Justice and Public Safety PAC, a committee primarily funded by Democratic megadonor George Soros that supports progressive prosecutors, according to public records.
George Soros, Founder and Chairman of the Open Society Foundations, arrives for a meeting in Brussels, Belgium, on April 27, 2017. (Olivier Hoslet/AFP)
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DHS and House Republicans have also pointed to Fairfax County plea deals involving noncitizens, including a high-profile 2024 murder case where two defendants received five-year sentences, which they linked to Descano’s avoidance of immigration-related outcomes.
Kincaid, who will also testify, has drawn separate scrutiny for declining to honor Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainers and instead requiring judicial warrants before transferring inmates to federal custody once they leave local jails, a policy federal officials have said conflicts with how ICE operates.
immigration, migrant crime, illegal immigrants, sanctuary cities
INTERNACIONAL
China slams US military blockade of Strait of Hormuz as a ‘dangerous and irresponsible move’
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China slammed the ongoing U.S. military blockade of the Strait of Hormuz Tuesday as a «dangerous and irresponsible move.»
The remark from Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Guo Jiakun came after the U.S. began enforcing a blockade on Iranian ports in key waterway at 10 a.m. ET on Monday. President Donald Trump ordered the blockade after peace talks with Tehran collapsed this weekend.
«With the temporary ceasefire agreement still in place, the United States ramped up military deployment and resorted to a targeted blockade. This will only aggravate confrontation, escalate tension, undermine the already fragile ceasefire and further jeopardize safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz,» Guo said. «It is a dangerous and irresponsible move.»
«China believes that only a complete ceasefire can fundamentally create conditions for easing the situation. We urge relevant parties to honor the ceasefire agreement, stick to the direction of peace talks and take concrete actions to deescalate the situation so that normal traffic via the Strait will be able to resume as soon as possible,» he added.
LIVE UPDATES: FRESH IRAN TALKS COULD BEGIN THIS WEEK AS US CONTINUES BLOCKADE ON PORTS
President Donald Trump, left, and Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Guo Jiakun. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images; Johannes Neudecker/picture alliance via Getty Images)
The White House did not immediately respond Tuesday to a request for comment from Fox News Digital.
The Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway between Iran, Oman and the United Arab Emirates, is one of the world’s most critical energy choke points. It carries roughly 20 million barrels of oil a day, along with about one-fifth of global liquefied natural gas.
TRUMP ORDERS A BLOCKADE IN THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ AS TENSIONS WITH IRAN SOAR
A ship is seen passing through the Strait of Hormuz during a two-week temporary ceasefire between the United States and Iran on April 8, 2026. (Shady Alassar/Anadolu/Getty Images)
US Central Command announced plans to enforce the blockade earlier Monday in a notice to seafarers.
«Any vessel entering or departing the blockaded area without authorization is subject to interception, diversion, and capture,» the note said.
A satellite image shows the Strait of Hormuz, a key maritime passage connecting the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman, vital for global energy supply. (Amanda Macias/Fox News Digital)
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Iran has condemned the blockade as «piracy» and vowed to respond with force, potentially ending the fragile ceasefire with the U.S.
Fox News Digital’s Anders Hagstrom and Amanda Macias contributed to this report.
war with iran, middle east, china, iran, military, world
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Republicans are escalating attacks on Iowa Democratic candidate Sarah Trone Garriott by pointing to her past op-eds — including her defense of a Wiccan-led statehouse prayer in which she argued «Jesus engaged with pagans» — in a high-stakes race for a GOP-held district.
Democratic congressional candidate Sarah Trone Garriott, a Lutheran minister who is vying for the battleground seat held by Rep. Zach Nunn, R-Iowa, penned an op-ed in The Des Moines Register in 2015 criticizing Christian lawmakers who boycotted a Wiccan-led statehouse prayer. This writing and others, including another op-ed in which she shared how the 9/11 terrorist attacks made her «more aware of the rising anti-Muslim bigotry and its harm,» have become the target of GOP attacks as the Republicans ramp up efforts to defend their House majority.
«Sarah Trone Garriott is once again wagging her finger at Iowans for not being woke enough and embracing her coastal elite Harvard values,» RNC spokesman Zachary Kraft said in a statement to Fox News Digital. «Trone Garriott better hope those spells and potions work if her campaign strategy is to oppose men in women’s sports and embrace neopagan witchcraft.»
Garriott’s 2015 opinion piece titled, ‘Look closely at scripture before acting in faith,’ blasted Iowa lawmakers for skipping the prayer led by a self-described «cabot witch,» saying they didn’t «look closely and honestly» at Christian Holy Scriptures when deciding to boycott.
CBS NEWS’ MARGARET BRENNAN ACCUSED OF MOCKING PEOPLE OF FAITH AFTER PETE HEGSETH’S PRAYER REMARKS
State Senator Sarah Trone Garriott, D-West Des Moines, speaks during debate on a bill in the Iowa Senate at the Statehouse in Des Moines, Iowa, on March 14, 2023. (Charlie Neibergall / AP)
A spokesperson for Garriott shared in a statement to Fox News Digital that the message behind her opinion piece was to call on her fellow Christians to love everyone, including pagans.
«As Sarah said, her faith in God calls her to follow Jesus’ example of loving one’s neighbor and spreading His grace to everyone, including those whose belief systems are fundamentally different from her own Christianity,» a spokesperson for Garriott said. «Scripture teaches Jesus’ unconditional grace, and that’s the belief that grounds Sarah’s life and ministry.»
Wicca is a modern pagan tradition in which members worship a Goddess and God and engage in witchcraft and rituals. One Iowa House member who boycotted told The Des Moines Register at the time that he felt uncomfortable «seeking guidance from the occult.»
Another lawmaker told The Des Moines Register he attended the invocation but turned his back in protest, saying he asked himself what Jesus would do and felt compelled to act in that way.
«Clearly, Christian elected officials should be asking, ‘What would Jesus do?’ when it comes to matters of budget and public safety,» Garriott wrote. «But at the least, as a Christian, I would appreciate it if they would actually consult the recorded witness of Jesus’ life and teaching before claiming to act in his name.»
WARNOCK LIKENS PRO-TRUMP CHRISTIAN LEADERS TO THOSE WHO USED SCRIPTURE TO DEFEND SLAVERY
Rudy Alderette’s altar in his Fresno, California home includes a cauldron with a pentagram, a wand, chalice, statues of the Wiccan god and goddess, and incense holder. (Darrell Wong / Fresno Bee / Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
Garriott wrote that «Christians specifically» should be aware that Jesus interacted with pagans throughout the New Testament, noting that Jesus always acted from «a place of kindness and compassion,» and that he «did not turn his back» on the pagans he met.
She listed Mark 7:24-30, Luke 8:26-39, Matthew 15:21-28 and John 4:5-38 as examples of Jesus interacting with pagans. In those passages, Jesus is depicted interacting with non-Jews but not participating in their religious practices.
Garriott next suggested that Jesus Christ was more concerned with the behavior of Christians than with pagans.
«Instead, it was the hypocrisy of those of his own religious community that Jesus protested — and not silently,» Garriott wrote.
TEXAS DEMOCRATIC SENATE NOMINEE JAMES TALARICO DOUBLES DOWN ON GOD BEING «BEYOND GENDER» COMMENTS
Congressman-elect Zach Nunn (R-Iowa) attends orientation for newly elected members of the 118th U.S. Congress, following the 2022 midterm elections, at the Hyatt Hotel in Washington, U.S., November 13, 2022. (REUTERS/Michael A. McCoy)
Nunn’s spokesperson Mark Matava weighed in, arguing the opinion piece is just another example of Garriott’s «preachy» radical views.
«Sarah Trone Garriott has been lecturing Iowans for over a decade,» Matava said. «Choose a Christian school for your kids and she calls it segregation. Stand up for your daughter in sports and she calls it sexism. Walk out of a witchcraft invocation and she calls it bigotry.»
Garriott has previously criticized the display of Christian symbols in political spaces, arguing America is «not a Christian nation,» but «it’s a nation for all of us,» in remarks before her congregation.
In early April, RNC Research posted on X a clip of Garriott speaking in which she shared the «uncomfortable ways» in which Christianity was showing up in politics. She argued that the conflation of the American flag and cross is an example of how Christianity has become «threatening.»
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In another clip posted by RNC Research, Garriott talked about how Iowa has «a long way to go» to ensure that Iowans are truly represented.
«It’s mostly white, mostly Christian, mostly older men,» Garriott said. «We have tremendous opportunities to get different kinds of people who represent our community into those leadership positions.»
midterm elections, iowa, faith values, democrats, republicans, controversies
INTERNACIONAL
Con sobrevivientes del Holocausto, se hizo la Marcha por la Vida en el campo de concentración de Auschwitz
Auschwitz no es un lugar más en el mapa. Es un nombre que pesa. Que interpela. Que obliga. Y que, sin embargo, cada año convoca a miles de personas de todo el mundo a caminar en silencio para recordar lo que nunca debería repetirse.
Durante décadas, estudié la Segunda Guerra Mundial y el Holocausto. Libros, archivos, cifras. Pero nada se compara con estar aquí. Hay energías, olores, texturas, sentidos que solo se activan en el lugar. No sabía que el choque sería tan estremecedor. Los datos quedan pequeños. Desabridos ante la elocuencia de los atroz.
Por las calles y barracas de los campos de concentración, vivieron sueños, temores, ilusiones. Murieron planes, historias y anhelos. Aquí asfixiaron y cremaron a la razón misma.
La Marcha por la Vida no es solo una ofrenda al pasado, es también un grito en el presente y una advertencia hacia el futuro: que nunca más el odio hacia una raza, un credo o una fe sea una sentencia de muerte.
Rumbo a la memoria
11 de abril de 2026. Nuestro viaje al pasado —con el sello del presente y foco en el futuro— comenzó en Varsovia.
El frío atraviesa el cuerpo. El viento corta la cara. Y, entre ese paisaje reconstruido, se revelan —o se rebelan— miles de narcisos amarillos. Flores simples, casi frágiles, que contrastan con la historia que carga este lugar. Simbolizan la vida que insiste. La memoria que no se rinde. El cansancio se vuelve pudoroso cuando uno recuerda que miles de prisioneros soportaron años el calvario.
Varsovia hoy está viva. Pero fue escombro. Fue ceniza. Fue destrucción total.
Allí recorrimos las huellas del Gueto de Varsovia, donde más de 400.000 personas fueron confinadas. Hambre, hacinamiento, enfermedad. Y luego, la resistencia. El Levantamiento del Gueto de Varsovia, símbolo de dignidad en medio del horror.
Esta mezcla de tiempos y lecciones tiene a Gastón Taratuta como punto de unión. El fundador de Aleph reunió a 45 personas de distintas nacionalidades y religiones para comprender juntos el Holocausto en el territorio donde ocurrió.
“Quisimos que este grupo viviera en primera persona lo que significó el Holocausto, porque entenderlo desde el lugar donde sucedió cambia para siempre la forma de ver el mundo”, explicó Taratuta.
“Esto no es solo un viaje histórico. Es una experiencia humana que interpela, que moviliza y que obliga a reflexionar sobre el presente”, agregó.
Y fue más allá: “Si logramos que cada persona se lleve un compromiso, entonces la memoria deja de ser pasado y se convierte en acción”.
Voces que vencieron al silencio
El 12 de abril, abrimos otro viaje a los oscuros sótanos de la humanidad. Camino a Treblinka, uno de los campos de exterminio más brutales —donde cerca de 900.000 personas fueron asesinadas— aparece una voz que atraviesa todo: la de Irene Shashar.
Irene Shashar y Gastón Taratuta en Auschwitz.
Tiene 88 años. Parece pequeña y frágil como un narciso. Pero solo parece. Cuando habla, ella se agiganta.
En un artículo de mi querida periodista Jessica Fabaro, Irene fue nombrada como “La Niña Escondida”. Su historia tiene ecos de Ana Frank, pero con otro final.
Irene mira al vacío y suspira: “La diferencia con Ana Frank es que a mí y a mi familia no nos delataron. Mi madre logró esconderme en un armario y salvarme escapándonos por alcantarillas, entre ratas y pánico”.
Luego, baja la voz y deja una frase que pesa: “Sobrevivir no fue el final de la historia. Fue el comienzo de la responsabilidad de contarla. Soy la niña escondida y, con dos hijos, siete nietos y tanto amor, siento que vencí a Hitler”.
Y agrega, como advertencia: “El odio empieza de a poco. Por eso hay que frenarlo antes de que sea demasiado tarde”.
Treblinka hoy es silencio. Un campo abierto. Piedras que simbolizan comunidades enteras borradas del mapa. No hay edificios. No hacen falta.
Tres kilómetros eternos
Llega el 14 de abril.
La llamada Marcha por la Vida une Auschwitz y Birkenau. Son apenas tres kilómetros. Tres mil pasos. Pero se sienten eternos. Rina Chachkas 93 años e Irene Shashar, de 88.
Miedo. Angustia. Inquietud. Bronca. Lágrimas. Impotencia. Incredulidad. Y otra vez angustia.
Caminamos cuatro horas. El frío cala con 7 grados. El viento empuja. El cansancio aparece. Pero ese cansancio se vuelve pudoroso cuando uno recuerda que miles de prisioneros soportaron años este calvario.
Con 20 grados bajo cero, ingerían una ración diaria mínima: agua caliente sucia por la mañana. Un pedazo de pan a las 15.00 y algo parecido a una sopa salada. Todos los días menos de 800 calorías. Otra forma de matar. Un Zyklon B (el gas usado en la cámaras de exterminio) pero en capítulos. Grupo de Argentina, Brasil, EEUU, México, Israel y Bélgica. Fuente: TN.com.ar
Durante la marcha, por allí camina Irene, abrazada y admirada. También marchan otros sobrevivientes. Más atrás evocan, Taratuta con su grupo: jóvenes, adultos, un ruso, un turco, un ateo, un cristiano. Se abrazan. Caminan. Comparten el paso y el peso.
Porque hay algo que se siente: peso. Mucho peso.
Ese mismo trayecto fue, hace más de ocho décadas, el último camino de millones. Donde hoy hay banderas y abrazos, hubo humo, muerte y deshumanización.
Más de un millón de personas fueron asesinadas en Auschwitz.
El presente interpela
En estas barracas de Auschwitz y Birkenau, todavía parece revolotear el infierno nazi. Pero también resuena fuerte abril de 2026. Un mundo en guerra. Expresiones antisemitas que crecen. Discursos de odio que vuelven a aparecer.
El silencio, entonces, no es solo pasado. Es advertencia. El cansancio se vuelve pudoroso cuando uno recuerda que miles de prisioneros soportaron años el calvario.
La Marcha de la Vida, iniciada en 1988, ya reunió a más de 300.000 personas. Más del 70 % de los participantes son jóvenes. Generaciones que no vivieron la guerra, pero que entienden que olvidar no es opción.
Durante la marcha, el silencio se mezcla con cantos, oraciones y abrazos. El viento sigue soplando. El frío también. Pero algo cambia: miles de personas caminando juntas.
Al llegar a Birkenau, frente a las ruinas de los crematorios, se encienden velas. Se leen nombres. Se canta. Se llora.
Y aparece la pregunta inevitable: ¿qué hacemos con esta memoria? Porque recordar no alcanza si no se transforma en acción.
Los participantes de la Marcha por la Vida.
La historia demuestra que los genocidios no comienzan con cámaras de gas. Empiezan con palabras. Con estigmatización. Con indiferencia.
Auschwitz es la consecuencia extrema de ese proceso. Por eso, caminar estos tres kilómetros no es solo un homenaje. Es una advertencia.
La Marcha de la Vida no cambia el pasado. Pero interpela el presente.
Y deja una certeza incómoda, pero necesaria: la memoria no es un acto del ayer. Es una responsabilidad de ahora. Una advertencia hacia el futuro.
Auschwitz
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