WASHINGTON (AP) — The Trump administration is telling European nations that they need to step up their travel restrictions for people coming to the continent from Ebola-hit countries in Africa, hinting that failure to do so may result in increased U.S. regulations on travel from Europe, including for the World Cup soccer tournament.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Tuesday called European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to convey the concerns and “to discuss U.S. and European coordination and response efforts to the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda,” the State Department said in a statement.
“The department’s highest priority and focus remain protecting the health of the American people and preventing this Ebola outbreak from reaching our shores,” it said.
A State Department official was more blunt, saying the U.S. “has stepped up” to confront the outbreak and “now the world must do more to step up as well.”
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the private call between Rubio and von der Leyen, said it's time for action and that without it, trans-Atlantic travel could be affected.
The official said the U.S. wants to see action that includes financial contributions to combat the disease and “commonsense restrictions on travel from the affected area.”
The World Cup tournament opens Thursday in Mexico and unfolds over nearly six weeks, with the United States hosting most of the games.
The Trump administration has banned travelers who have been in one of the affected countries in the previous three weeks from entering the United States and is establishing quarantine procedures for affected American citizens returning home from those places.
There are relatively few direct flights between Africa and the United States per day but more than 300 direct daily flights between Europe and the United States.
The U.S. says it has contributed more than $200 million to efforts to end the outbreak in Congo and Uganda since it was first confirmed last month.
The European Union announced earlier Tuesday that it was boosting its Ebola response funding by 16.5 million euros ($19 million) on top of 15 million euros ($17.3 million) related to the outbreak that it contributed last month. The European Union delegation in Washington had no immediate response about Rubio's call with von der Leyen.
Democrats assailed Rubio during congressional hearings last week about the dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development and the impact that may have had on the Ebola response. Rubio insisted that early detection programs have been rolled into health deals struck with African countries and that the U.S. “response has been very quick."
Secretary of State Marco Rubio testifies before the House Appropriations Committee, Tuesday, June 2, 2026 in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)
MCKINNEY, Texas (AP) — A Texas teenager who fatally stabbed a 17-year-old track athlete from a rival team during a high school meet was convicted of murder Tuesday and sentenced to 35 years in prison in a trial that drew attention far beyond the booming Dallas suburb where they were students.
A jury rejected Karmelo Anthony’s claims of self-defense during a confrontation with Austin Metcalf in stadium bleachers last year. Most people who testified were students who described a heated exchange over Anthony's refusal on a rainy spring day to leave a tent that belonged to Metcalf's team.
Anthony, now 19, did not testify at trial and only his mother took the stand during the sentencing phase, telling jurors her son was sorry and asking for their mercy.
Notoriety about the case spread, in part, because of a flood of social media posts that amplified the killing in racial terms. Anthony is Black; Metcalf was white. Lawyers on both sides, however, told jurors that the tragedy had nothing to do with race.
Jurors, who deliberated for less than three hours, had the option of a lesser charge, manslaughter, but didn’t choose it.
Prosecutor Bill Wirskye had asked for a lengthy prison term.
“Mercy to the guilty,” he said, “is cruelty to the innocent.”
Earlier Tuesday, during the trial's closing arguments, the jury heard dueling narratives from Wirskye and defense attorney Mike Howard about what happened in April 2025.
Several schools were competing when Anthony sat under the Memorial High School tent that was perched in the bleachers. Metcalf and others had repeatedly told Anthony to leave, witnesses testified, leading to an escalating confrontation.
Howard told jurors that Metcalf had “no legal right to put his hands on Karmelo.”
“Texas law does not require that you wait until you get hit,” Howard said. “In that split second of chaos, you must put yourself in his shoes.”
During the nearly weeklong trial, prosecutors said that Anthony provoked Metcalf, and witnesses have testified that Anthony was the aggressor.
“This is not self-defense, folks. It’s murder plain and simple,” Wirskye said.
Anthony at one point reached inside a bag and replied: “Touch me and see what happens,” according to a police report.
Metcalf pushed Anthony, according to witnesses, who said Anthony then pulled out a knife and stabbed him in the chest. The teens, both from Frisco, didn't know each other.
“You don’t get to meet a shove with a stab, especially if you provoke the shove,” Wirskye said.
The prosecutor also made a broader pitch to the jury: “Ultimately, this case is about accountability. What kind of community do you want to live in.”
The trial drew lines of spectators hoping to find seats in the gallery and unfolded amid heavy security at the Collin County courthouse. As police officers watched Tuesday, dozens of people stood outside the courthouse in 90 degree Fahrenheit heat (32 degrees Celsius) to await the verdict. There were wails of grief from one woman — “This isn’t real!” — when the result became known.
Frisco is one of Texas’ fastest-growing cities and is dotted with dozens of modern school campuses and gleaming athletic facilities. The parents of Anthony and Metcalf have said they were good students who planned to go to college.
Several students testified that Metcalf, after ordering Anthony to leave his team’s tent, scoffed before Anthony reached into a bag and pulled out a knife.
One teen recalled Metcalf telling Anthony, “You don’t have anything in that backpack. It’s Frisco.”
Associated Press writer Ed White in Detroit contributed to this report.
A crowd gathers by Collin County Sheriffs vehicles parke in front of the Collin County courthouse after the Karmelo Anthony verdict was reached Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
An Austin Metcalf supporter holds a sign as law enfrocement officilals walk past in front of the Collin County courthouse following the verdict in the trial was reached Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
Karmelo Anthony supporters voice their opinions in front of the Collin County courthouse after a verdict was reached Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
An emotional Karmelo Anthony supporter is consoled by another outside the Collin County courthouse after the verdict was reached in the trial Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
Law enforcement officials stand in front of the Collin County courthouse after the verdict was reached in the Karmelo Anthony trial Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
A person walks around announcing the guilty verdict in the Karmelo Anthony trial in front of the Collin County courthouse, Tuesday, June 9, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
Supporters for Karmelo Anthony demonstrate in front of the Collin County courthouse Thursday, June 4, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
A Collin County seriff drives past the front of the county courthouse Thursday, June 4, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
