VOA常速英语:印尼锡纳朋火山爆发

Indonesia's Mount Sinabung volcano on the island of Sumatra sent a cloud of hot ash as high as five kilometers into the sky on Tuesday. It was its first big eruption since August. Indonesia's Volcanology and Geological Hazard Mitigation Center says the volcano erupted around 6:30 a.m. local time. No casualties were reported, but officials have urged people to stay at least three kilometers away from the mountain. The volcano measuring 2,460 meters high was dormant for centuries before roaring back to life in 2010 when an eruption killed two people. It erupted again in 2013, 2014 and again in 2016.

The director of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation acknowledged to the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday that the January 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol building is considered domestic terrorism. The riot by supporters of former President Donald Trump was aimed at preventing the certification of Joe Biden's presidential victory. FBI Director Christopher Wray said in his opening statement, "That siege was criminal behavior, plain and simple." Wray's testimony comes amid concern that the FBI was not adequately prepared for the riot despite warnings days before the attack. Lawmakers are pressing Wray on how the FBI is dealing with the national security threat from white nationalists and from violent domestic extremists and whether the agency is adequately equipped to handle the problem.

The Biden administration on Tuesday announced sanctions on several Russian individuals for what it says is their role in the attempted murder of Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny. The sanctions are being coordinated with the European Union, which had already imposed sanctions against a small number of Russian officials in connection with the Navalny case. A senior administration official said, "We're sending a clear signal to Russia that there are consequences for the use of chemical weapons."

And the European Court of Justice on Tuesday ruled that new Polish regulations regarding the appointment of Supreme Court judges could violate European law. The ruling effectively strikes down efforts to exert political influence over the judiciary in Poland. The rules in question regulate Poland's political influence over a top judicial body and its procedure of appointments to the Supreme Court. The ruling obliges Poland's right-wing government to stop using those regulations. The EU has been strongly critical of Poland's conservative government for the changes it has introduced to the judiciary since it won power in 2015. Marissa Melton, VOA news.