The shirt worn by Diego Maradona when he scored the controversial “Hand of God” goal against England in the 1986 World Cup has sold for $9.3 million (7.1 million pounds), the highest price ever paid at auction for a piece of sports memorabilia. 

Auctioneer Sotheby’s sold the shirt in an online auction that closed Wednesday. It did not identify the buyer. 

Maradona scored two goals during the quarterfinal game in Mexico City on June 22, 1986, just four years after Britain and Argentina had fought a war over the Falkland Islands. The Argentine great’s first goal was ruled a header, but the ball had bounced off Maradona’s fist, out of sight of the referee. 

Maradona said afterward that it had been scored “a little with the head of Maradona, and a little with the hand of God.” 

Maradona’s second goal saw him dribble the ball past almost the entire English team before beating goalkeeper Peter Shilton. In 2002, it was voted “goal of the century” in a FIFA poll. 

Argentina won the game 2-1 and went on to win the World Cup. 

After the game. Maradona swapped shirts with England midfielder Steve Hodge, who loaned it long-term to England’s National Football Museum in Manchester before putting it up for sale. 

Maradona, considered by many to be the greatest player of all time, struggled with cocaine abuse and other excesses and died in November 2020 at age 60.

After Sotheby’s announced the coming sale last month, relatives of Maradona expressed doubt the blue No. 10 jersey was the shirt the soccer star had worn in the second half of the game, when he scored both goals. The auction house said the shirt’s identity was confirmed by sports memorabilia photo-matching firm Resolution Photomatching and confirmed by Sotheby’s chief science officer. 

Brahm Wachter, Sotheby’s head of streetwear and modern collectibles, said the shirt was “a tangible reminder of an important moment not only in the history of sports, but in the history of the 20th century.” 

The previous record for sports memorabilia was $8.8 million paid at a December 2019 auction for the manifesto that launched the modern Olympic movement. The previous record for a piece of sportswear was $5.64 million for a Babe Ruth New York Yankees jersey in 2019. 

The sale prices include an auction house charge known as the buyer’s premium.
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Eminem, Lionel Richie, Carly Simon, Eurythmics, Duran Duran and Pat Benatar have been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, a list that also includes Dolly Parton, who initially resisted the honor.

The honorees — voted on by more than 1,000 artists, historians and music industry professionals — “each had a profound impact on the sound of youth culture and helped change the course of rock ‘n’ roll,” said John Sykes, the chairman of the Rock Hall, in a statement Wednesday.

Parton had gone on social media to “respectfully bow out” of the process, saying she did not want to take votes away from the remaining nominees and had not “earned that right.” The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation responded by saying ballots had already been sent and it was up to the voters to decide if Parton was elected. Parton later said she would accept an induction.

To be eligible, artists are required to have released their first record 25 years prior to induction. Parton, Richie, Simon and Duran Duran were selected on their first go-round. Simon was a first-time nominee this year more than 25 years after becoming eligible. Eminem becomes the 10th hip-hop act to be inducted, making the cut on his first ballot.

The hall also announced Wednesday that Judas Priest and Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis are getting the award for musical excellence and that Harry Belafonte and Elizabeth Cotten will be honored with the Early Influence Award.

Other artists and groups that failed this year for induction in the performer category are A Tribe Called Quest, Rage Against the Machine, Dionne Warwick, Carly Simon, Beck, Kate Bush, DEVO, Fela Kuti, MC5 and the New York Dolls.

Parton is most associated with country music and is in the Country Hall of Fame, but she has performed songs with a rock feel. Artists who have made both the Rock Hall and Country Hall of Fame include Brenda Lee, Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley, Chet Atkins, Hank Williams and the Everly Brothers.

The induction ceremony will be held Nov. 5 at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles.
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U.S. comedian Dave Chappelle was attacked on stage on Tuesday night at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles by an assailant who rugby-tackled him before being apprehended and arrested, video footage verified by Reuters showed.

The attack came just over a month after actor Will Smith slapped comedian Chris Rock on stage at the Oscars, an unprecedented incident at the globally televised event that prompted concerns that performers might be subject to copycat assaults.

Smith, who won the best actor award, was subsequently banned from attending the Oscars for 10 years.

It was not immediately clear if Chappelle was injured in Tuesday’s attack, or what motivated it.

An agent and public relations representative for Chappelle were not immediately available for comment. A representative for the Hollywood Bowl told Reuters the incident was under investigation, declining to comment further.

According to an ABC report, Rock, who had performed earlier in the evening, joined Chappelle on stage moments after it took place and joked: “Was that Will Smith?”

Chappelle and Rock were giving shows as part of an 11-day comedy festival called “Netflix is a Joke.”

Los Angeles police took a male suspect into custody who NBC Los Angeles said was armed with a replica gun capable of ejecting a knife blade.

Video footage obtained by Reuters showed the suspect on a stretcher being placed into an ambulance. He was taken to hospital with minor injuries, NBC Los Angeles cited police as saying.

Los Angeles Police Department officials did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Chappelle’s Netflix comedy special “The Closer” was criticized last year by some who saw it as ridiculing transgender people. Supporters of the comedian viewed it as a cry against cancel culture.

Brianna Sacks, a journalist for BuzzFeed News who attended h event, said the altercation took place as Chappelle ended his performance.
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This was the first Eid al-Fitr in the United States for most of the more than 70,000 Afghan refugees who came to the country following the Taliban takeover last August. For VOA, Genia Dulot met with some of those refugees in California to see how they are marking the end of Ramadan. Camera:  Genia Dulot  
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Hundreds of A-listers dressed to the theme of “gilded glamour”  gathered Monday in New York for the annual Met Gala extravaganza known as “the party of the year.

The fundraiser is back in its usual early May slot after the coronavirus pandemic forced the cancellation of the 2020 event and delayed last year’s edition to autumn.   

Some 400 celebrities from the worlds of music, film, fashion, sports and more  strutted their stuff at the over-the-top costume parade on the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s carpeted steps.

The invitation-only guest list is a closely guarded secret, but frequent attendees have included Beyoncé, Justin Bieber and Elon Musk.  

Some of the more eye-catching outfits worn over the years have included Beyoncé’s “naked dress” and Kim Kardashian’s face-covering black bodysuit.    

In 2019, the last edition before the pandemic, Lady Gaga did a striptease of four different outfits, starting in a billowing fuchsia dress and ending in black lingerie. 

Also grabbing headlines that year was singer and actor Billy Porter, who dressed as a sun god. With outstretched golden wings, he was carried in by six shirtless men.

At last year’s event, held in September, left-wing politician Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez caused a stir by wearing a dress emblazoned with the slogan “Tax the Rich.” 

That struck a nerve at the celebration of fashion where tickets cost $35,000 and tables go for up to $300,000.   

The gala — overseen by the high-priestess of fashion, Vogue magazine editor-in-chief Anna Wintour — raises millions of dollars for The Met’s Costume Institute.

Last year, the event raised more than $16.4 million for the institute. 

The dress code comes from the annual exhibit that the party coincides with. This year’s is “In America: An Anthology of Fashion,” a retrospective from the late 19th century to the present. 

Monday’s gala was co-hosted by actor-couple Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds, Oscar-winning actress Regina King, and Lin-Manuel Miranda, creator of the Broadway hit “Hamilton.” 

This year’s honorary presidents are Instagram boss Adam Mosseri and designer Tom Ford, who was expected to dress many of the attendees. 

The gala was first held in 1948 and was for a long time reserved for New York’s high society.  Wintour took over running it in 1995, transforming the event into a catwalk for the rich and famous. 
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The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) reported there was a spike in Islamophobia and a surge in hate crimes against Muslims in the United States last year. The council recommends bringing minority communities together to try to defuse tensions. One such effort is linked to celebrations to mark the end of the Muslim month of Ramadan. VOA’s Saqib Ul Islam reports from a Sikh community in Virginia. Camera:  Saqib Ul Islam    
Produced by: Saqib Ul Islam    
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The UEFA Champions League, soccer’s governing body, announced Monday the Russian women’s soccer team will be banned from the Women’s European Championship in July and from participating in qualifying for next year’s World Cup over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The Russian team will be replaced by the Portuguese team for the tournament that will be played from July 6-31 in England.

Russian soccer faced a slew of bans following the invasion.

“Further to its 28 February 2022 decision to suspend all Russian representative teams and clubs from participating in UEFA competition matches until further notice, the UEFA Executive Committee today took a series of decisions relating to the implications of that decision for its upcoming competitions, in order to ensure their smooth staging in a safe and secure environment for all those concerned,” UEFA said in a press release.

UEFA also denied Russia’s bid to host the men’s European championships in 2028 and 2032.

Russian club teams will also be barred from participating in the Champions League, the Europa League and the Europa Conference League next year.

The Russian national men’s team was already banned from the upcoming World Cup in Qatar.

Some information in this report comes from Reuters.
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Skateboarding tends to be the domain of the young and agile. But as Genia Dulot reports from Los Angeles, Tracie Garacochea finds age and limited mobility are no barriers to the sport or other aspects of her life.
Videographer: Genia Dulot Produced by: Genia Dulot, Jack Lacy
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Egyptian worshippers, workers, families, and friends are celebrating Eid al-Fitr, the three-day Islamic holiday marking the end of the holy month of Ramadan.
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Russia’s Bolshoi Theatre has announced it is cancelling the performances directed by Kirill Serebrennikov and Timofey Kulyabin who have spoken out against Moscow’s military campaign in Ukraine.

Late Sunday, Russia’s top theatre announced that instead of the three performances of “Nureev,” a ballet directed by Serebrennikov, the audiences this week will see a production of Aram Khachaturian’s ballet, “Spartacus.”

The prestigious theatre also said that instead of “Don Pasquale,” a comic opera by Gaetano Donizetti directed by Timofey Kulyabin, audiences this week will see a production of Gioachino Rossini’s “The Barber of Seville.”

The Bolshoi did not give any reason for the cancellations and spokeswoman Katerina Novikova told AFP on Monday that she had no “official” comment.

The Bolshoi performed “Spartacus” in early April, saying that proceeds would be used to help the families of Russian troops who died in Ukraine.

Serebrennikov, 52, was allowed in March to leave Russia, where he had been found guilty in 2020 of embezzling funds at Moscow’s Gogol Centre theatre.

His supporters say the conviction was revenge for his criticism of authoritarianism and homophobia under President Vladimir Putin.

Speaking to AFP in Berlin last month, Serebrennikov said he felt “just horror, sadness, shame, pain” about Russia’s military campaign in pro-Western Ukraine.

“Nureev” is based on the life of Russian dance legend Rudolf Nureyev, and its use of onstage nudity and profane language outraged Russian conservatives.

Kulyabin, 37, who is also believed to be now based in Europe, has spoken out against Putin’s decision to send troops to Ukraine.

Several dancers have in recent weeks quit the Bolshoi including prima ballerina Olga Smirnova.
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Ray Charles and The Judds joined the Country Music Hall of Fame on Sunday in a ceremony filled with tears, music and laughter, just a day after Naomi Judd died unexpectedly.

The loss of Naomi Judd altered the normally celebratory ceremony, but the music played on, as the genre’s singers and musicians mourned Naomi Judd while also celebrating the four inductees: The Judds, Ray Charles, Eddie Bayers and Pete Drake. Garth Brooks, Trisha Yearwood, Vince Gill and many more performed their hit songs.

Naomi and Wynonna Judd were among the most popular duos of the 1980s, scoring 14 No. 1 hits during their nearly three-decade career. On the eve of her induction, the family said in a statement to The Associated Press that Naomi Judd died at the age of 76 due to “the disease of mental illness.”

Daughters Wynonna and Ashley Judd accepted the induction amid tears, holding onto each other and reciting a Bible verse together.

“I’m sorry that she couldn’t hang on until today,” Ashley Judd said of her mother to the crowd while crying. Wynonna Judd talked about the family gathering as they said goodbye to her and she and Ashley Judd recited Psalm 23.

“Though my heart is broken I will continue to sing,” Wynonna Judd said.

Fans gathered outside the museum, drawn to a white floral bouquet outside the entrance and a small framed photo of Naomi Judd below. A single rose was laid on the ground.

Charles’ induction showcased his genre-defying country releases, which showed the genre’s commercial appeal. The Georgia-born singer and piano player grew up listening to the Grand Ole Opry and in 1962 released “Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music,” which became one of the best-selling country releases of his era.

The piano player, blinded and orphaned at a young age, is best known for R&B, gospel and soul, but his decision to record country music changed the way the world thought about the genre, expanding audiences in the Civil Rights era.

Charles’ version of “I Can’t Stop Loving You,” spent five weeks on top of the Billboard 100 chart and remains one of his most popular songs. He died in 2004.

Brooks sang “Seven Spanish Angels,” one of Charles’ hits with Willie Nelson, while Bettye LaVette performed “I Can’t Stop Loving You.”

Country Music Hall of Famer Ronnie Milsap said he met Charles when he was a young singer and that others tried to imitate Charles, but no one could measure up.

“There was one of him and only one,” said Milsap. “He sang country music like it should be sung.”

The Hall of Fame also inducted two recording musicians who were elemental to many country songs and singers: Eddie Bayers and Pete Drake.

Bayers, a drummer in Nashville for decades who worked on 300 platinum records, is a member of the Grand Ole Opry band. He regularly played on records for The Judds, Ricky Skaggs, George Strait, Alan Jackson and Kenny Chesney. He is the first drummer to join the institution.

Drake, who died in 1988, was a pedal steel guitar player and a member of Nashville’s A-team of skilled session musicians, played on hits like “Stand By Your Man” by Tammy Wynette and “He Stopped Loving Her Today” by George Jones. He is the first pedal steel guitar player to become part of the Hall of Fame.
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Afghan Taekwondo champion Nisar Ahmad Abdulrahimzai fled Afghanistan for Ukraine and is now in Switzerland. Despite his circumstances, he says he is ready to represent Afghanistan in competition. VOA’s Waheed Faizi has the story.
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Naomi Judd, the Kentucky-born singer of the Grammy-winning duo The Judds and mother of Wynonna and Ashley Judd, has died. She was 76.

The daughters announced her death Saturday in a statement provided to The Associated Press.

“Today we sisters experienced a tragedy. We lost our beautiful mother to the disease of mental illness,” the statement said. “We are shattered. We are navigating profound grief and know that as we loved her, she was loved by her public. We are in unknown territory.”

Naomi Judd died near Nashville, Tennessee, said a statement on behalf of her husband and fellow singer, Larry Strickland. It said no further details about her death would be released and asked for privacy as the family grieves.

The Judds were to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame on Sunday and they had just announced an arena tour to begin in the fall, their first tour together in over a decade. They also made a return to awards shows when they performed at the CMT Music Awards earlier this month.

“Honored to have witnessed ‘Love Can Build a Bridge’ just a few short weeks ago,” singer Maren Morris posted on Twitter Saturday.

“This is heartbreaking news! Naomi Judd was one of the sweetest people I’ve ever known,” singer Travis Tritt posted on Twitter, noting that he had worked with Judd several times on screen and during performances.

The mother-daughter performers scored 14 No. 1 songs in a career that spanned nearly three decades. After rising to the top of country music, they called it quits in 1991 after doctors diagnosed Naomi Judd with hepatitis. Wynonna continued her solo career.

The Judds’ hits included “Love Can Build a Bridge” in 1990,”Mama He’s Crazy” in 1984, “Why Not Me” in 1984,”Turn It Loose” in 1988, “Girls Night Out” in 1985, “Rockin’ with the Rhythm of the Rain” in 1986 and “Grandpa” in 1986.

Born Diana Ellen Judd in Ashland, Kentucky, Naomi was working as a nurse in Nashville, when she and Wynonna started singing together professionally. Their unique harmonies, together with elements of acoustic music, bluegrass and blues, made them stand out in the genre at the time.

“We had a … such a stamp of originality on what we were trying to do,” Naomi Judd told The AP after it was announced that they would be joining the Country Music Hall of Fame.

The Judds released six studio albums and an EP between 1984 and 1991 and won nine Country Music Association Awards and seven from the Academy of Country Music. They earned a total of five Grammy Awards together on hits like “Why Not Me” and “Give A Little Love.”

The Judds sang about family, the belief in marriage and the virtue of fidelity. Because Naomi was so young looking, the two were mistaken for sisters early in their career.

They first got attention singing on Ralph Emery’s morning show in early 1980, where the host named them the “Soap Sisters” because Naomi said she used to make her own soap.

After the success of “Mama He’s Crazy,” they won the Horizon Award at the 1984 CMA Awards. Naomi started her speech by saying “Slap the dog and spit in the fire!”

Daughter Ashley Judd is an actor known for her roles in such movies as “Kiss the Girls,” “Double Jeopardy” and “Heat.”

Strickland, who was a backup singer for Elvis Presley, was married to Naomi Judd for 32 years.
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For many students, living and studying at one of the most prestigious schools in the United States can be stressful and sometimes a little lonely. But some Muslim students at Princeton University can find comfort in their community during the month of Ramadan. VOA’s Nida Samir reports.
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A musical that depicts the remarkable escape from the Holocaust of a renowned Jewish sculptor and his family is about to open in Australia. Driftwood recounts the journey of Karl Duldig, his wife Slawa Horowitz-Duldig – inventor of the modern foldable umbrella – and their baby daughter, Eva. They fled the Nazis from Vienna in 1938, sought refuge in Singapore, but were deported to Australia in September 1940.

“Driftwood” is based on a 2017 memoir by Karl Duldig’s daughter, Eva. She was a child when the family arrived in Australia. It was during World War II, and the family were classified as enemy aliens. They were interned in an isolated camp in the state of Victoria until 1942, when Karl Duldig joined the Australian army.

Eva de Jong-Duldig, who became a talented tennis player and reached the quarterfinals at Wimbledon in 1961, says the musical is an epic story of survival.

“My parents were inspiration. I think what I admire most is their resilience after coming through such a terrible period in which they lost nearly all their family. They made new lives here in Australia and they became wonderful art teachers, and my dad became really very well recognized as a sculptor,” she noted.

They rebuilt their lives as artists in Melbourne in what is described as a “magical” family history of “creativity, perseverance and freedom.”

Their granddaughter, Tania De Jong, is one of the musical’s main performers. She told the Australian Broadcasting Corp., that Driftwood has become a story with a global appeal.

“Both of us just felt a really strong yearning to create a new Australian musical that was deep and substantial and told a very meaningful story. But we do also have an enormous amount of interest from international film producers to turn this epic story into a feature film as well,” she expressed.

Karl Duldig died in Melbourne in 1986. His wife, Slawa, died in 1975.

The show has had positive reviews from Australia’s Jewish community.

Hadassah Australia, an organization that supports programs that connect the Australian community with Israel, said it looked “forward to the success of the musical telling [of Eva de Jong-Duldig] parents’ story.”

Theatrepeople.com.au, an online publication, said “Driftwood” “features a fluid sense of time, as characters reconstruct past experiences, to make sense of history. It is an epic, ambitious theatrical piece and a truly original Australian story.”

The Australian Jewish News said it would be giving away free tickets to the show’s opening night.

The world premiere takes place at Monash University in Melbourne May 13.
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Muslim worshippers in Turkey’s southeastern city of Diyarbakir say they are struggling to purchase essential groceries for Ramadan celebrations because of the country’s high inflation rate. VOA’s Xecican Farqin has details in this report narrated by Rikar Hussein. Camera: Xecican Farqin
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Veteran Hong Kong actor Kenneth Tsang has died while in a COVID-19 quarantine hotel in the southern Chinese city, local media reported.

Tsang was best known internationally for his action roles in the 2002 James Bond film Die Another Day,'' John Woo'sThe Killer” in 1989, Rush Hour 2'' in 2001 starring Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker, and 1998'sThe Replacement Killers” alongside Chow Yun-Fat and Mira Sorvino.

Tsang had been undergoing seven days of quarantine after returning from Singapore on Monday and was found collapsed on the floor of his hotel room by staff on Wednesday, according to the South China Morning Post and other media.

The South China Morning Post said Tsang was 87 years old but other sources gave his age as 86.

No cause of death was given and the paper said he had tested negative for the virus and had no underlying medical conditions.

In all, Tsang had some 237 acting credits, mainly in Hong Kong film and television productions, and especially in detective and martial arts movies, according to his IMDb page.

Born in Shanghai, Tsang began acting after obtaining an architecture degree at the University of California, Berkeley, making his debut in 1955. In 1969 alone, he was credited in more than 20 movies and continued working up to the time of his death.

Tsang was married three times and had a son with his first wife, Lan Di, and a daughter with his second wife, Barbara Tang.

Hong Kong is dealing with a renewed outbreak in cases of the highly transmissible omicron variant and requires all inbound travelers to undergo quarantine for up to 14 days.
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Belarusian-American composer Eugene Magalif has organized an international musical event to honor and show support for Ukraine. Maxim Moskalkov has the story.
Videographer: Andrey Degtyarev
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Sensor-packed robots are changing how movies and commercials are made. Deana Mitchell has the story.
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Kenya saw a jump in cases of gender-based violence (GBV) during its COVID-19 lockdowns, which heightened social and financial stress.  To address the problem, Kenyan authorities are turning to the dramatic arts.

At the Kenya’s National Theatre in Nairobi, some 65 young people are putting their acting skills to use, as part of Kenya’s latest strategy to educate the public about the evils of gender-based violence.

Titled “A Little Girls Worth,” the one-hour play by Kenyan playwrights Derrick Waswa and Tommah Sheriff, is a new production co-sponsored by the Ministry for Public Service, Youth and Gender Affairs. It tells a story of how despite their extraordinary contribution in society, women suffer disproportionately.

Derrick Waswa, the play’s director, said the goal is to sensitize the public on violence against women, which he said stems from cultural beliefs that a woman is part of a man’s possessions.

“Basically people are blaming the violence and not looking at the cause. What we are trying to explain is that the African cultural nature has made women to be submissive. From the bible, you are told to submit to your husband as it is to the Lord, and in this African set up where a man has to pay dowery for you, it means they are technically purchasing you,” he said.

A February 2022 report by the Kenya Federation of Female Lawyers (FIDA Kenya) shows that cases of gender-based violence rose sharply during the pandemic, to the point where they made up nearly half the cases reported to the federation.

Authorities attribute the rise in these cases to the pandemic and the economic losses it caused.

The play premiered this month with a three-night run to audiences of 350 at the National Theater.

Audience members like Samson Osoro expressed hope that the dramatic arts will help change men’s mindset.

“This play will go a long way to also sensitize especially the men, who may be so unwelcome or harsh to our ladies, to know that ladies are also very important as men are. As a father I would really wish for my daughter to be treated in a better way than during the time of our mother and grandmother,” he said.

Njeri Migwi is the founder of Usikimye, an organization working to end sexual and gender-based violence in Kenya.  The group’s name means “speak up” in Swahili.

Migwai told VOA that programs such as door to door campaigns will reach more people, but said the play is a step in the right direction.

“Art imitates life and so for the government to use that as a means of educating… one of the things that I have been very passionate about is calling the government to start educating people about the importance of them being aware of GBV and how to acknowledge one of the forms.  So the government putting up the effort to put out a play is amazing,” said Migwai.

No further dates are set, but youth affairs authorities are hoping to show the play in social halls across the country.
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A host of celebrities and comedy royalty will gather Sunday night at the Kennedy Center as comedian, talk show host and political influencer Jon Stewart receives the Mark Twain Prize for lifetime achievement in humor. 

Stewart, the 23rd recipient of the prize, will be honored by testimonials and skits from fellow comedians and previous Mark Twain recipients. Stewart himself spoke during Dave Chappelle’s Mark Twain ceremony in 2019. 

The 59-year-old Stewart — born Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz — rose to prominence as a standup comic and host of multiple failed talk shows before taking over  Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show” in 1999. His 16-year run as “Daily Show” host turned him into a cultural and political force as Stewart trained his satirical eye on both politics and an increasingly polarized national media. 

In perhaps his most iconic moment, Stewart went on CNN’s popular “Crossfire” debate show in 2004 and challenged the show’s entire premise of left-wing versus right-wing debate. Stewart told co-hosts Tucker Carlson and Paul Begala they had a “responsibility to the public discourse” that they were cheapening with insincere political role-playing. 

Stewart’s appearance rocketed him to new levels of prominence and political relevance and may have sealed the fate of “Crossfire,” which was canceled three months later. 

Since retiring from “The Daily Show” in 2015, Stewart has become a vocal proponent of a number of social causes and one of the most prominent voices in support of health care for Sept. 11 first responders in New York City. He recently returned to television as host of “The Problem with Jon Stewart” on Apple TV+. 

When Stewart’s selection was announced in January, Kennedy Center President Deborah F. Rutter hailed his body of work as “equal parts entertainment and truth.” 

Rutter said Stewart’s career “demonstrates that we all can make a difference in this world through humor, humanity, and patriotism.” 

This will be the first Mark Twain ceremony since Chappelle’s in 2019. The award skipped 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Aside from that two-year break, the prize has been presented annually since 1998, with Richard Pryor receiving the first honors. 

Other recipients include Carol Burnett (the oldest recipient at age 80), Tina Fey (the youngest at age 40), Eddie Murphy, Jonathan Winters, George Carlin and Lily Tomlin. 2009 recipient Bill Cosby had his prize rescinded in 2018 amid multiple allegations of sexual assault. 
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During Ramadan, communal iftars, or breaking of fasts for Muslims in mosques, are the norm in the United States, but since the coronavirus pandemic began, drive-through food distributions have become popular. VOA’s Faiza Bukhari takes us behind the scenes at one of Virginia’s Islamic centers, where a daily drive-through iftar for roughly 800 people is organized. Camera and video editing by Qazafi Babar.
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