fear

SPRINGFIELD, Ohio — In a church crowded to overcapacity, two-dozen faith leaders and their audience of hundreds sang and prayed together in unity Monday as a sign of support for Haitian migrants, some of whom fear their protected status in the United States may be ended this week.

Religious leaders representing congregations from across the United States attended the event at Springfield’s St. John Missionary Baptist Church, demanding an extension of the Temporary Protection Status that allowed thousands of Haitian migrants to legally arrive in Springfield in recent years fleeing unrest and gang violence in their homeland. The TPS designation for Haiti is set to expire Tuesday, and those gathered were hoping that a federal judge might intervene and issue a pause.

“We believe in the legal system of this country of ours, we still believe. We believe that through the legal ways, the judge hopefully will rule in favor of current TPS holders today that will allow them to stay while we continue to fight,” Guerline Jozef, executive director of the Haitian Bridge Alliance, told the packed church.

“We have been called for such a time as this to protect those who have nowhere else to go. They cannot go back to Haiti,” she said.

So many people turned up for the church event that a fire marshal had to ask 150 to leave because the building had exceeded its 700-person capacity.

Hundreds joined a choir clapping and singing: “You got to put one foot in front of the other and lead with love.”

They also observed a moment of silence for people who died in federal immigration detention and for Alex Pretti and Renee Good, who were shot and killed by federal officers in Minneapolis. Some of the speakers evoked biblical passages while appealing for empathic treatment of migrants.

Federal immigration crackdown and TPS

The Department of Homeland Security announced last June that it would terminate TPS for about 500,000 Haitians in the U.S., including some who had lived in the country for more than a decade. DHS said conditions in the island nation improved enough to allow their safe return.

“It was never intended to be a de facto asylum program, yet that’s how previous administrations have used it for decades. The Trump administration is restoring integrity to our immigration system to keep our homeland and its people safe,” DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement, noting there were no new enforcement operations to announce.

A federal judge in Washington is expected to rule any day on a request to pause the TPS termination for Haitians while a lawsuit challenging it proceeds.

TPS allows people in the U.S. to stay and work legally if their homelands are deemed unsafe. Immigrants from 17 countries, including Haiti, Afghanistan, Sudan and Lebanon, had the protective status before President Trump’s second term started.

The uncertainty over TPS has deepened worries for an already embattled Haitian community in Springfield.

Trump denigrated the community while campaigning in 2024 for a second term, falsely accusing its members of eating their neighbors’ cats and dogs as he  pitched voters  on his plans for an immigration crackdown. The false claims exacerbated fears about division and anti-immigrant sentiment in the mostly white, working class city of about 59,000 people.

In the weeks after his comments, schools, government buildings and the homes of elected officials received  bomb threats.

Since then Springfield’s Haitians have lived in constant fear that has only been exacerbated by the federal immigration crackdowns in Minneapolis and other cities, said Viles Dorsainvil, leader of Springfield’s Haitian Community Help and Support Center.

“As we are getting close to the end of the TPS, it has intensified the fear, the anxiety, the panic,” Dorsainvil said.

Sunday church service

Some of Springfield’s estimated 15,000 Haitians also sought comfort and divine intervention in their churches Sunday.

At the First Haitian Evangelical Church of Springfield, its pastor estimated that half of the congregants who regularly attend Sunday service stayed home.

“They don’t know the future; they are very scared,” Rev. Reginald Silencieux said.

Flanked by the flags of Haiti and the United States, he advised his congregation to stay home as much as possible in case of immigration raids. He also offered a prayer for Trump and the Haitian community and reminded congregants to keep their faith in God.

“The president is our president. He can make decisions. But he is limited,” he said. “God is unlimited.”

After the service Jerome Bazard, a member of the church, said ending TPS for Haitians would wreak havoc on his community.

“They can’t go to Haiti because it’s not safe. Without the TPS, they can’t work. And if they can’t work, they can‘t eat, they can’t pay bills. You’re killing the people,” he said.

Many children in the Springfield Haitian community are U.S. citizens who have parents in the country illegally. If they are detained, Dorsainvil said, some parents signed caregiver affidavits that designate a legal guardian in hopes of keeping their kids out of foster care.

“They’re not sending their kids to school,” he said.

Volunteers from nearby towns and from out of state have been calling the Haitian community center offering to deliver food for those afraid to leave home, Dorsainvil said. Others have been stockpiling groceries in case immigration officers flood the community.

Some, he said, have been receiving desperate calls from family members abroad asking them to leave. “They keep telling them that Springfield is not a safe place now for them to stay.”

Henao writes for the Associated Press. AP reporter Julie Carr Smyth in Columbus, Ohio, contributed to this report.

THE disappearance of the mother of Today show co-anchor Savannah Guthrie is being investigated as a crime scene as investigators race against time to locate the 84-year-old.

Nancy Guthrie, the elderly mother of the beloved morning host, has limited mobility and is in dire need of her daily medication, which if she does not take could be fatal, police said.

“We need her back. We need to find her and time is very critical,” Pima County Sheriff Chris Nanos said during a morning press conference on Monday.

Guthrie was last seen at around 9:45 pm on Saturday after her children dropped her off at her home in Tucson, Arizona, authorities said.

Nanos said the department received a distressing call at noon on Sunday informing them of Guthrie’s disappearance.

The sheriff said evidence recovered from Guthrie’s home was “concerning” to authorities, who are now investigating the case as a “crime scene.”

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“As I said yesterday, we saw some things at the home that were concerning to us,” Nanos added.

“We believe now, after we processed that crime scene, that we do in fact have a crime scene, that we do in fact have a crime, and we’re asking the community’s help.”

The sheriff did not disclose additional evidence about why investigators are probing Guthrie’s disappearance as a crime.

Nanos said he was “not ruling out” foul play.

A neighbor of Guthrie told the Daily Mail that the community fears the elderly woman could have been “abducted.”

“We heard that the front door was left open,” neighbor Paul Arnaud told the outlet, adding that he heard Guthrie “vanished shortly after being dropped off from a church function by a friend” on Saturday evening.

“So a lot of us are worried that it was an abduction because they did a thorough search throughout the entire day and early evening of the entire area and they could not find her.”

RACE AGAINST TIME

Guthrie suffers from physical ailments, Nanos said, adding that she could not walk 50 yards by herself.

She is also in need of her daily medication, which if she does not take within 24 hours could be fatal.

“She needs her daily medication and anybody that sees anything that even looks, maybe that’s her, just take a quick picture, take a video, send it to us,” the sheriff added.

Despite Guthrie’s “limited” mobility, Nanos stressed the 84-year-old is of “great sound mind” and does not suffer from cognitive impairments.

“She is as sharp as a tack. This is not somebody who just wandered off. Her physical limits are just based on age. It’s more physical. She is clearly as sharp as a tack,” said Nanos.

He said evidence from the home suggests Guthrie did not “voluntarily walk out of her home.”

SAVANNAH’S PAIN

Guthrie’s family, including her daughter, Savannah, have been cooperating with Pima County Sheriff officials.

Savannah Guthrie skipped Monday’s edition of the Today show amid her mother’s disappearance.

The Today co-anchor, 54, released a statement during the show, saying, “On behalf of our family, I want to thank everyone for the thoughts, prayers and messages of support. Right now, our focus remains on the safe return of our dear mom.”

Savannah is on the ground working with the Pima County Sheriff’s Department in its attempt to locate her mom, Nanos said.

The search effort included volunteers on the ground, drones, K9 units, and a helicopter, said the sheriff.

“We’ve pretty much just thrown everything at this that we can,” he added.

During the 10 am block, a shaky-voiced Jenna Bush Hager opened by saying Savannah’s mother was still missing.

“We are thinking of our dearest, dearest Savannah and her whole family this morning,” Jenna said.

Savannah’s new co-host, Sheinelle Jones, recapped the information thus far on the case, and added that Guthrie has medication she needs to take daily.

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department confirmed to The U.S. Sun that Border Patrol agents are assisting with the search.

The FBI is also on standby, although the federal agency has not officially joined the search effort.

Guthrie is described as 5 feet 5 inches tall, weighing about 150 pounds, with brown hair and blue eyes.

It’s unknown what she was last wearing when she disappeared.

Timeline of Nancy Guthrie’s disappearance

Nancy Guthrie, the 84-year-old mother of Today show co-anchor Savannah Guthrie, disappeared from her home on February 1, 2026.

Timeline:

• January 31: Family members dropped off Guthrie, 84, at her home in Tucson, Arizona, at around 9:45 pm.
• February 1: The Pima County Sheriff’s Office received a 911 missing person call at noon.
• Pima County Sheriff Christopher Nanos said the scene found at Guthrie’s home caused “grave concern.”
• February 2: Nanos said investigators are probing Guthrie’s case as a crime, adding that officials do not believe the 84-year-old voluntarily walked out of her home.
• The Pima County sheriff said Guthrie has “limited mobility” and is in dire need of her daily medication, which if she does not take could be “fatal.”
• Savannah Guthrie released a statement to her co-hosts at Today, saying, “On behalf of our family, I want to thank everyone for the thoughts, prayers and messages of support. Right now, our focus remains on the safe return of our dear mom.”
• Savannah missed the February 2 edition of Today as she flew to Arizona to assist in the search for her mother.

After a tumultuous month of continued national immigration raids and the ICE shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti in Minneapolis, nationwide protests are set to occur today amid calls for a general strike. Small businesses across the L.A. area announced Friday closures in observation of the strike, while others who voiced support said the decision to close is impossible — especially for independent restaurants, which suffered an outsized string of hardships through 2025, causing a growing number of permanent closures.

Many operators who say they are unable to close are donating a portion or all profits from Friday’s business to immigrant rights causes. Some say they’ve left the decision up to their staff, who rely on the day’s wages. One restaurateur, who requested anonymity for fear of ICE retaliation, said their employees’ earnings regularly pay for undocumented staff’s private transportation to and from work, and they cannot afford to close for even a single night.

Some of L.A.’s restaurants, bars and cafes closed in observance of the strike and protests include Proof Bakery, Wilde’s, South LA Cafe, Lasita, Bar Flores, Canyon Coffee, Chainsaw, Yellow Paper Burger, Kitchen Mouse, Bacetti and Civil Coffee.

Guelaguetza‘s co-owner and Independent Hospitality Coalition member Bricia Lopez took to social media Thursday afternoon to provide tips for fellow restaurateurs who can’t afford to close their businesses today. They included donating to immigrant rights organizations or spotlighting specific fundraising dishes, as many across the county now are.

Some local restaurants are opting to remain open but are donating the day or the weekend’s proceeds to nonprofits and legal funds, or they’re temporarily flipping their dining rooms to centers for community action such as making protests signs.

Guelaguetza is offering free horchata and cafe de olla for protesters or those who can provide proof of donations to immigrant communities through 3 p.m. In Glassell Park, a pop-up tonight will raise funds for street vendors currently avoiding work for fear of ICE. Taiwanese chef Vivian Ku is fundraising at her downtown and Highland Park restaurants, while she closes Silver Lake’s Pine & Crane to the public in order to use it as a staging ground for aid groups today.

“For a lot of restaurants, coffee shops, etc., they’re just a few bad days from being upside down for the month, and a few bad months from having no business at all,” an owner of Highland Park’s Santa Canela posted to Instagram on Thursday. “We understand the weight and power of collective action, but plain and simple: We didn’t feel comfortable making financial decisions on behalf of our entire team as to whether or not they could afford to lose another shift at the end of the month at a time when cost of living has never been higher.”

Home-style Chinese restaurant Woon, with locations in Historic Filipinotown and on the edge of Pasadena bordering Altadena, will remain open, too.

“I wish we had the luxury of closing our doors, but we will keep them open as we stand in solidarity with our community and neighbors,” chef-owner Keegan Fong posted to Instagram. “We’ve given our staff the option to take the day off while also allowing those who need the hours to continue to work.”

Even those who are closing today have stressed the importance of supporting local restaurants.

Historic Filipinotown bar Thunderbolt posted its decision to close on Friday morning, with a statement on Instagram that read, “This strike isn’t about small businesses, but they will bear the weight of it…For small business in the food and beverage industry, closing the doors on a Friday night — during an already brutal January — can be catastrophic.”

Here are some L.A.-area restaurants remaining open today but fundraising for immigrant rights.

Deir el-Balah and Khan Younis, Gaza – For the past two years, Khitam Hameed has clung to the hope of a single sliver of news that could fundamentally change the fate of her entire family.

The reopening of the Rafah crossing, shut and controlled by Israel as part of its genocidal war on Gaza in spite of a ceasefire agreement, would allow her family to travel and reunite with her husband outside Gaza.

But for this family, the reopening is not just about freedom of movement. It represents both a chance for reunion after a long separation, and an opportunity to secure treatment for their son, whose life, schooling, and normal childhood have all been destroyed by the two-year Israel-Palestine war.

With the United States pushing a deeply intransigent Israel to progress to phase two of the ceasefire that began on October 10, the reopening of the Rafah crossing was directly tied by the far-right government to the recovery of the remains of the final Israeli captive, and only partially for pedestrian use under strict military supervision.

On Monday, the retrieval of the last Israeli captive’s body appeared to open that locked door, with thousands in urgent need of treatment or family reunification in a state of anxious anticipation.

From her family’s displacement site in the Nuseirat refugee camp near Deir el-Balah in central Gaza, Khitam, 50, a mother of six, sits trying to organise her thoughts as news circulates about Rafah.

Next to her is her 14-year-old son, Yousef, unable to walk, suffering from a rare genetic disorder called Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS), a painful condition primarily affecting his bone development, with potential cardiac complications.

“Yousef has been undergoing treatment for this syndrome since he was very young … he has had around 16 surgeries,” Khitam tells Al Jazeera.

“We got used to hospitals, but before the war, there was some monitoring and a little hope.”

Since long before October 2023, the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt has been a lifeline for Palestinians, not only as a natural exit and entry point, but also as a symbol of connection with the outside world.

Before the war, the crossing was heavily used by patients seeking medical treatment, families visiting relatives abroad, and the movement of goods and supplies that helped ease Gaza’s economic pressure under Israeli blockade.

Its closure, beginning in May 2024 after Israeli forces took control, marked a dramatic turning point in the humanitarian crisis.

The shutdown affected not just the movement of people, but also significantly reduced the flow of medical aid and essential supplies, impacting thousands of patients waiting for treatment outside Gaza, including children and the wounded, amid a severe shortage of health services and medical equipment.

‘Opening the crossing shouldn’t be a miracle’

Before the war, Khitam and her family monitored Yousef’s condition regularly, and he could walk and move.

But the war halted everything. Hospitals were routinely bombed by Israel, and most ceased functioning. Medics were killed by the hundreds, medications ran out, and medical checkups became nearly impossible.

“Since the war, Yousef’s condition has deteriorated. His legs are weaker, walking is harder, he uses crutches,” Khitam pauses before continuing: “He falls often… and my heart is in my throat every time.”

The mother no longer knows the full extent of her son’s health. “I don’t know if he has heart complications, or if his spine has worsened … we are living with him with no answers.”

The war also separated the family. Weeks before the conflict erupted, Khitam’s 52-year-old husband, Hatim, had left Gaza for Egypt, as an initial step to secure a chance for the family to migrate and access advanced medical care for Yousef.

“Since then, I’ve been alone. Six children, one with a special medical condition, war, displacement, hunger,” Khitam says, her voice exhausted.

“Being displaced alone is so difficult. You don’t know where to go, how to protect your children, how to provide food or safety. The constant anxiety and fear have affected everyone, but Yousef suffers the most.”

“No school, no play, no outings, no treatment … even psychologically, he is exhausted. A child his age should be living his life, not caught between war and illness.”

But, she adds, “just the idea of travelling eases us a bit psychologically. It feels like a door might open” for treatment outside of the besieged enclave.

She still fears how the crossing will operate, even as hope keeps her going.

“Even if the crossing opens, not everyone can leave, and not every case will be approved,” she adds. “Opening the crossing shouldn’t be a miracle… it’s a right.”

Yousef’s story intersects with those of hundreds of families of sick children in Gaza, for whom Rafah is not just a crossing, but a lifeline.

‘The family started a new battle against time’

Local estimates indicate that more than 22,000 patients and injured people, including about 5,200 children, are unable to travel for treatment due to the Israeli closure, with thousands more waiting for approved medical transfers that cannot be executed.

Among them is Hur Qeshta, a newborn girl only 15 days old, born with a large, unusual tumour in her neck, affecting breathing and swallowing.

She requires urgent surgery outside Gaza, according to doctors at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, in southern Gaza.

Her mother, Doaa Qeshta, 32 and a mother of five, tells Al Jazeera, “From the first moment she was born, the family started a new battle against time to ensure she could urgently travel for treatment.”

Hur was delivered via Caesarean section and now lies in the Nasser Hospital neonatal ICU, on oxygen and fed via a tube from her abdomen.

“She can’t breastfeed, everything is through a tube, and the mass is growing rapidly … all within 15 days,” says her mother.

Doctors confirmed that surgery inside Gaza is currently impossible due to a lack of facilities.

Doaa links her daughter’s condition to the circumstances during her pregnancy, including displacement in a tent in al-Mawasi, exposure to nearby shelling, smoke, gunpowder, hunger, and lack of nutrition.

“I was pregnant during famine … no food, no vitamins, no safety,” she recalls. “Shelling was nearby, 300 metres (980 feet) away… the tent shook; we thought we were dead.”

“Opening the crossing means saving my daughter’s life,” she says. “I’ve registered the whole family as companions … the most important thing is Hur goes, gets treatment, and survives.”

Of the reopening of the Rafah crossing, Doaa says, “We hear news and live on hope, but we are really in a limbo… we don’t know what’s happening or when. We just pray this is true.”

‘Our lives and futures hang on a hope’

The effects of Rafah’s closure go beyond medical access, affecting an entire generation of youth whose education has been halted at a closed gate.

Among those affected is Rana Bana, a 20-year-old from the Daraj neighbourhood in Gaza City.

She graduated from high school in 2023 with a 98 percent average in the science track, with a focus on pharmacy. Within a single year, she received multiple opportunities abroad, but none materialised due to Rafah’s closure.

“In 2024, I was accepted for a scholarship in Egypt, ready to leave, but the crossing closed. A year later, I got a scholarship to Turkiye, did the online interviews, was accepted, and since then I’ve been stuck,” Rana tells Al Jazeera.

Her Turkish scholarship includes 220 students from Gaza, all from different disciplines, most with high academic grades.

Over the past two years, Rana tried not to stagnate, taking Turkish language courses and exploring alternatives like local universities. But she would hold back each time she heard news of Rafah possibly reopening.

“Every time there’s news the crossing might open, I tell myself, ‘Let me wait a bit’… but it turns out to be just talk, and my hopes are dashed,” she adds. “A lot of our time and life has been wasted waiting … our lives and futures hang on a hope.”

Rana is displaced with her family of eight. They returned briefly to northern Gaza during the first ceasefire, found their home intact, but fled again after fighting resumed, and are now settled in Deir el-Balah.

“My biggest fear is leaving and not being able to come back,” she says. “Before, they [her family] were 100 percent supportive. Now there’s fear because the travel process is unclear, and they don’t know how many will be allowed or registered to travel.”

Many Palestinians fear leaving Rafah would be a one-way ticket as part of an openly touted Israeli plan to permanently expel the population from Gaza.

“We students and youth are the most affected group during the war,” Rana says. “Our years have gone by silently, our studies destroyed by war, and no one talks about us. All we want is education — not travel for tourism or anything else.”