Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi is due to visit Turkey on January 24 for a summit with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, with the Israel-Hamas war topping the agenda. The two leaders have been vocal in their support for Hamas, but rivalries remain as Tehran and Ankara compete for influence in the Caucasus and Syria. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul.
GENEVA — China’s human rights record was the focus of intense scrutiny Tuesday by the U.N. Human Rights Council, where Beijing faced criticism from Western democratic societies over its treatment of Uyghurs, Tibetans and dissidents in Hong Kong. Tuesday’s meeting marked the fourth time that China’s rights record has been examined by the council’s Universal Periodic Review procedure and the first time since former High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet issued a blistering report... Читать дальше...
Nairobi, Kenya — Being the preferred choice of footwear for many, flip-flops - typically made of plastic or rubber - break easily and often aren’t disposed of properly. Therefore, millions of them end up in oceans, waterways, dumpsites, and landfills all over the world. Ocean Sole, a Kenya-based company, has found creative and functional ways to reuse the hundreds of thousands of discarded flip-flops that arrive regularly at their warehouse located in Karen, about 45 minutes from Nairobi’s city center. Читать дальше...
United Nations — There were nearly 5,000 homicides counted in Haiti last year, more than double than in 2022, a United Nations report said Tuesday, as the country endures rampant gang violence amid the near-collapse of its political institutions. "I am appalled by the staggering and worsening level of gang violence devastating the lives of Haitians, in particular in Port-au-Prince," U.N. chief Antonio Guterres said. According to the report, a total of 4,789 homicides were registered in 2023,... Читать дальше...
Being the preferred choice of footwear for many, flip-flops — typically made of plastic or rubber — break easily and don’t get disposed of properly. Millions of them, therefore, end up in oceans, waterways, dumpsites and landfills all over the world. A Kenya-based company has found creative and functional ways to reuse them. VOA Nairobi Bureau Chief Mariama Diallo visited their warehouse located in Karen, about 45 minutes from the city center, and has this report. Camera: Amos Wangua
A Palestinian pollster says that support for Hamas in the West Bank has risen rapidly since October 7, from 12% to 44% in December. In this report from the Am'ari Refugee Camp in the West Bank, reporter Henry Wilkins speaks to Hamas supporters and experts about the steep rise.
Israeli officials say Hamas is still holding 136 Israelis who were taken hostage Oct. 7, the start of the war in Gaza. Families of some of those hostages are in the United States to raise awareness about an issue they fear has been fading since the collapse of a November cease-fire. VOA’s Natasha Mozgovaya has our story.
The Palestinian Health Ministry says the death toll in Gaza has passed 25,000, while U.N. officials are warning of growing hunger and disease in the Gaza Strip. However, Israel says it is allowing food into Gaza and the problem is the distribution on the Gazan side. Linda Gradstein reports for VOA from Jerusalem. Camera: Ricki Rosen.
Abortion is on the ballot in 2024, the White House says, with Vice President Kamala Harris crisscrossing the country to equate the Biden campaign with protection and expansion of reproductive rights, and Republican candidates speaking of possible federal abortion bans. This leaves the ultimate choice on this sensitive issue to American voters. VOA’s Anita Powell reports from the White House.
U.S. and British forces carried out a new round of strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen. India marked the consecration of a temple to the Hindu god Lord Ram on a site believed to be his birthplace. And the world's first routine vaccination program against malaria was launched in Cameroon.
CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico — A giraffe named Benito started a 40-hour road trip Monday to leave behind the cold and loneliness of Mexico's northern border city of Ciudad Juarez to find warmth — and maybe a mate — in his new home 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) to the south. A campaign by animal rights activists won the 4-year-old giraffe a transfer to an animal park in Puebla state in central Mexico, where he will join a group of resident giraffes and enjoy a more suitable climate. It has been a long and lonesome road for Benito. Читать дальше...
PENTAGON — U.S. and British warplanes, backed by surface ships and submarines, launched a series of strikes into Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen late Monday, aimed at further degrading the capabilities of Iranian-backed Houthi militants who have sought to carry out attacks against key shipping lanes in the Middle East. U.S. defense officials said the strikes hit multiple targets across eight locations, including an underground storage facility as well as missile launch sites and other locations linked to Houthi surveillance capabilities. Читать дальше...
white house — Abortion is on the ballot in 2024, the White House says, with Vice President Kamala on Monday launching a cross-country tour to equate the campaign of President Joe Biden with protection and expansion of reproductive rights – as Republican candidates speak of possible federal abortion bans. On Monday — the 51st anniversary of the landmark Roe v. Wade Supreme Court ruling that federally protected the right to have an abortion — Harris visited the battleground state of Wisconsin to... Читать дальше...
london — Two motorists were killed, tens of thousands of people were left without electricity and hundreds of trains were canceled Monday after the latest winter storm lashed Britain and Ireland with heavy rain and wind gusts that topped 100 mph (160 kph). The storm littered roads and railways with downed trees that created deadly hazards and blocked travel, disrupting morning commutes. On Sunday night, an 84-year-old male passenger in a car in Scotland and a van driver in his 60s in Northern... Читать дальше...
Boston — A Chinese music student went on trial Monday on U.S. charges that he harassed an activist who posted flyers at the Berklee College of Music in Boston supporting democracy in China and threatened to report her activities to Chinese law enforcement. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alathea Porter told a federal jury in Boston that Xiaolei Wu, 25, scared the activist, referred to only as Zooey in court, by making threats online to chop off her hands and report her to the Chinese government because... Читать дальше...
NEW YORK — Norman Jewison, the acclaimed and versatile Canadian-born director whose Hollywood films ranged from Doris Day comedies and "Moonstruck" to social dramas such as the Oscar-winning "In the Heat of the Night," has died at age 97. Jewison, a three-time Oscar nominee who in 1999 received an Academy Award for lifetime achievement, died "peacefully" Saturday, according to publicist Jeff Sanderson. Additional details were not immediately available. Throughout his long career, Jewison combined... Читать дальше...
washington — A divided Supreme Court on Monday allowed Border Patrol agents to resume cutting for now razor wire that Texas installed along a stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border that is at the center of an escalating standoff between the Biden administration and the state over immigration enforcement. The 5-4 vote clears the way for Border Patrol agents to cut or clear out concertina wire that Texas has put along the banks of the Rio Grande to deter migrants from entering the U.S. illegally. Some... Читать дальше...