News Wrap: Russian shelling casts shadow on first day of school in Ukraine

In our news wrap Monday, Russian shelling on Ukraine wounded three people and cast a shadow over what was to be the first day of the school year there, the U.S. government seized a private plane used by Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, Chicago police say a shooting on a subway train killed four people and more than 10,000 hotel workers across the U.S. spent this Labor Day on strike.

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John Yang: There is other news.

In Ukraine, residents of Kyiv awoke to the aftermath of Russian shelling that wounded three people. It also cast a shadow on what was supposed to be the first day of the school year. This morning, parents took their children to one school, only to find buildings destroyed and classes canceled.

Olena, Kyiv Resident (through interpreter): We heard strong explosions since the morning. We live not far from here. We hid in bathroom, where it was relatively safe. She’s going to this school for the first time. It is a new school for her. And so we came and saw this.

At first, we did not see messages that our studies were being postponed, so we came with our neighbors. The children were hoping for a celebration today.

John Yang: Explosions rocked Russia’s Belgorod region just across the border from Ukraine. The governor there blamed Ukraine for the shelling, which injured one person and damaged several homes.

The U.S. government has seized a private plane used by Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro. The Justice Department says the $13 million jet was smuggled from Florida last year, in violation of sanctions and export control laws. In a statement, the Commerce Department, which partnered with DOJ, said this sends a message that “aircraft illegally acquired from the United States for the benefit of sanctioned Venezuelan officials cannot just fly off into the sunset.”

The seizure comes just over a month since Venezuela’s contested presidential election. The U.S. says Maduro lost to his opponent, Edmundo Gonzalez.

Police in Chicago say a shooting on a subway train early Monday has left four people dead. Three people died at the scene at an aboveground station in the Western suburb of Forest Park. A fourth victim died later at a hospital. Officials say a suspect initially fled, but was arrested on a train on a different line and a weapon was recovered. They described it as an isolated incident. An investigation is ongoing.

More than 10,000 hotel workers across the country are spending this Labor Day on strike. They’re calling for higher pay and more even workloads. Hundreds of hospitality workers at a Hilton in Baltimore were the latest to join the growing walkout. There are nearly 200,000 fewer hotel workers now than there were before the pandemic. The union wants staffing levels restored and wages increased.

Michael Correa, Hotel Worker: We have a lot of people that are just living check to check. We’re asking for a $10 raise. And even with that $10 raise that we’re asking for in the next four years, by inflation numbers, we would still be considered poor as a hotel worker in the next four years. So we’re asking for a contract that is a modest contract.

John Yang: Union president Gwen Mills says the strikes are part of a long-running battle over benefits in an industry that’s disproportionately made up of women and people of color. Representatives from Hyatt and Hilton say they’re open to negotiations.

At the Paralympic Games in Paris, Team USA’s lineup of para triathletes won a combined eight medals today, among them, veteran Hailey Danz, who struck gold after finishing second in both the Rio Games in 2016 and Tokyo the last time around.

On the track, a Paralympic debut for Ezra Frech turned into a golden finish in his classification of the 100-meter dash. Americans also won medals today in swimming, badminton and wheelchair rugby.

And you may not know the name, but you have probably read one of her stories. Longtime Associated Press reporter Linda Deutsch has died. For nearly 50 years, she covered some of the biggest criminal and civil trials in America. She was in the courtroom for proceedings against cult leader Charles Manson and Unabomber Ted Kaczynski, against Michael Jackson and O.J. Simpson.

Trials, she once said, are human drama.

Linda Deutsch, Associated Press: “Oh, you cover all these grisly, horrible things.” She said: “Don’t you feel like a voyeur?”

Do you feel like a voyeur when you’re watching “Hamlet” or “Macbeth”? That’s — it’s the same thing. And it’s as old as Shakespeare and as old Socrates, and it’s an extremely powerful theater.

John Yang: Linda Deutsch was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2022. She was 80 years old.