Seasonal rains are bringing relief from a toxic haze that had blanketed Malaysia and Singapore. The air pollution disrupted the lives of millions of people and concerns remain about whether the problem will keep happening. Dave Grunebaum has the story from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. …
Seasonal rains have brought relief from the haze that blanketed much of Malaysia and Singapore. The toxic air disrupted life for tens of millions of people. Face masks were a common site across Malaysia in September as people tried to protect themselves. (D. Grunebaum/VOA) Face masks were in common usage …
The world’s first female spacewalking team made history high above Earth on Friday, floating out of the International Space Station to fix a broken part of the power network. As NASA astronauts Christina Koch and Jessica Meir emerged one by one, it marked the first time in a half-century …
Amnesty International said in a report Friday that Turkish military forces and a coalition of Turkish-backed Syrian armed groups have shown a “shameful disregard for civilian life” during the offensive into northeast Syria. According to the account, the “serious violations and war crimes” include “summary killings and unlawful attacks that …
Despite a U.S.-brokered cease-fire agreement, fighting continued Friday in northeast Syria. Loud bangs and gunfire could be heard, and smoke could be seen rising over the town of Ceylanpinar, a day after Turkey and the U.S. agreed to a five-day cease-fire in Turkey’s offensive against Kurdish fighters. Turkey considers the …
The portion of Americans with no religious affiliation is rising significantly, in tandem with a sharp drop in the percentage that identifies as Christians, according to new data from the Pew Research Center. Based on telephone surveys conducted in 2018 and 2019, Pew said Thursday that 65% of American adults …
China says two Americans involved in a teaching exchange program were detained three weeks ago near Shanghai for allegedly “illegally moving people across borders.” Alyssa Petersen, who attended the Idaho campus of Brigham Young University from 2014 to 2017, was being held in a Chinese jail outside Shanghai, according to …
New health classes and government partnerships with not-for-profits focused on menstrual health are improving education for girls in Zambia. In 2017, the government announced it would distribute free sanitary pads to girls in some rural and underserved areas. Two years later, menstrual hygiene management classes have been introduced in schools, …
U.S. President Donald Trump’s Iran policy came under strong criticism at a Senate hearing in which Democrats and some Republicans accused him of emboldening Iran by pulling U.S. troops out of Syria. Trump’s Special Representative for Iran Brian Hook, the sole witness at Wednesday’s Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing, rebuffed …
A Cuban man who had sought asylum in the United States has died while being held at an immigration jail in Louisiana. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials confirmed Wednesday that Roylan Hernandez Diaz, 43, had died at a private detention facility of an apparent suicide. Hernandez Diaz applied for …
Barack Obama is urging Canadians to reelect Prime Minster Justin Trudeau, an apparently unprecedented endorsement of a candidate in a Canadian election by a former American president. Obama tweeted Wednesday that he was proud to work with Trudeau and described him as a hard-working, effective leader who takes on big …
Protesters and police clashed late on Tuesday in Barcelona during rallies against the jailing of nine Catalan separatist leaders, with the unusually tense confrontations turning into a major challenge for Spanish and regional authorities. Protesters threw cans, stones and flares at riot police, and set garbage containers and cardboard on …
Rescue workers in Japan searched for the missing on Wednesday as the death toll from one of the worst typhoons to hit the country rose to 74, public broadcaster NHK said, many drowned by flooding after scores of rivers burst their banks. Public broadcaster NHK said 12 were missing and …
China’s foreign ministry said on Wednesday that Beijing resolutely opposed new measures passed by the U.S. House of Representatives related to the Hong Kong protests and urged lawmakers to stop interfering. China’s relationship with the United States will be damaged should the legislation become law, foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang …
The toll of death and destruction from a typhoon that tore through central and northern Japan climbed Tuesday, as the government said it was considering approving a special budget for the disaster response and eventual reconstruction. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told a parliamentary session that the number of deaths …
Russian President Vladimir Putin visited the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday, as part of a Mideast tour aimed at strengthening ties between Moscow and this longtime U.S. ally amid tensions in the wider Persian Gulf. Abu Dhabi’s powerful crown prince, Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, met Putin at the airport …
Hong Kong pro-democracy advocates are urging the U.S. Congress to pass a human rights bill that could impose trade sanctions on this international financial center, a measure that critics say could cause more harm than good. At a massive pro-American, pro-democracy rally on Monday evening in central Hong Kong, …
President Donald Trump is trying to influence votes on ABC’s “Dancing with the Stars.” Trump on Monday tweeted that viewers should vote for former White House press secretary Sean Spicer. The president called Spicer a “good guy” and wrote “he has always been there for us!” Spicer tweeted his …
Rescue workers and search dogs are gingerly moving through a dangerously unstable building in New Orleans that partially collapsed over the weekend. They were looking Monday for the only person still unaccounted for following Saturday’s disaster at a hotel under construction at the edge of the French Quarter. Two people …
A retired soldier who was shot in the head while searching for Army Pvt. Bowe Bergdahl has died. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports 46-year-old Master Sgt. Mark Allen of Loganville, Georgia, died Saturday. His obituary says he died from complications of an injury sustained while serving in Afghanistan. Allen …
American Simone Biles became the most decorated gymnast in world championship history on Sunday when she won the beam and floor finals to take her career tally to 25 medals. Soon after securing a convincing victory on the beam in Stuttgart to overtake Belarusian Vitaly Scherbo’s record tally of 23 …
Parents of the British teen killed when his motorcycle collided with car allegedly driven by an American diplomat’s wife are on their way to the U.S. hoping to seek justice. Harry Dunn, 19, died in August in near the Croughton Royal Air Force base in Northhamptonshire, which is used by …
California has become the first U.S. state to ban all production and sale of animal fur products. Governor Gavin Newsom signed the bill that will make it illegal to make, sell and even donate any new item made using animal fur starting in 2023. The bill excludes used items, taxidemy …
There are more than a dozen candidates running against U.S. President Donald Trump in the next presidential race, but one Democrat who is standing out in the Asian American community is entrepreneur, Andrew Yang. He may not be one of the top three candidates in the Democratic Party, but he …
Banned Books Week happens every year as many children in America begin a new school year. In honor of the occasion, local libraries organize readings of Harry Potter, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, To Kill A Mockingbird and hundreds of other novels. Despite many of them being considered classical literature, they …
There are thousands of Venezuelans stranded at the border after the Ecuadorian government imposed new rules that bar people from entering the country without a visa. But many of the refugees are stuck because they can’t afford the $50 fee to get a visa. VOA’s Celia Mendoza reports from the …