With world leaders about to gather in New York for a U.N. Climate Action Summit next week, millions of young people from Australia to Iceland will take off from school or work on Friday to demand urgent measures to stop environmental catastrophe. Protests, inspired by Swedish activist Greta Thunberg, 16, are planned in 150 countries. The …
A large array of international players, including corporate giants in the United States and China, have profited from South Sudan’s long civil war, according to a report by a Washington-based watchdog group. The Sentry, which reports on links between corruption and mass atrocities in Africa, charged in its report …
President Donald Trump’s pick for Labor secretary sought to quell concerns among Democrats that he’s too close to the corporate world, telling lawmakers Thursday that if confirmed he’ll ask ethics officials if he can participate in the crafting of a conflict of interest rule for stockbrokers. As a private sector …
The American Dream is many things to many people. For the Savchuk family who came to the U.S. from Ukraine more than 15 years ago, achieving their dream meant opening a small business and making a decent living. VOA’s Iryna Matviichuk met with the family and saw their dream come …
Israelis went to the polls again this week, but unofficial results show another deadlock. Neither Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of the Likud Party nor challenger Benny Gantz of the Blue and White party can form a governing coalition. Many in Israel say the two large parties must unite despite their …
U.S. President Donald Trump has ordered additional sanctions against Iran after receiving reports that Tehran is most likely responsible for Saturday’s attacks on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities. The president said Wednesday that he had directed Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin to stiffen existing sanctions. He also named his fourth national security …
It’s a common sight in Los Angeles. Thousands of people living in tents on sidewalks, sometimes with trash piled outside their makeshift shelters, conditions that breed typhus and other diseases. Analysts say the problem is complex, has been decades in the making and that a response requires coordination at many …
A multi-pronged attack is under way on the Afghanistan national electronic ID distribution centrt in Jalalabad, the capital of Nangarhar province. An explosion at the front gate of the compound cleared the way for multiple attackers to enter the compound Wednesday afternoon, according to Ataullah Khogyani, a spokesman for the …
The British government was back at the country’s Supreme Court on Wednesday, arguing that Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s decision to suspend Parliament just weeks before the country is set to leave the European Union was neither improper nor illegal. It’s the second day of a historic three-day hearing that pits …
The United States filed a lawsuit on Tuesday against Edward Snowden, the former National Security Agency contractor who in 2013 leaked secret documents about U.S. telephone and Internet surveillance, saying his new book violates non-disclosure agreements. The Justice Department said Snowden published his memoir, “Permanent Record,” without submitting it to …
Corey Lewandowski, President Donald Trump’s former campaign manager and close confidant, on Tuesday stoutly defended his former boss and lashed out at Democrats during testimony to a U.S. congressional panel considering whether to impeach Trump. “We as a nation would be better served if elected officials like you concentrated your …
Older Americans aren’t moving as much as they used to. The migration rate of people over 55 has dropped steadily over the past two decades from a high of 6% in 1996, to 4.3% between 2017 and 2018, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Moving rates for Baby Boomers — …
An innovative boat that saves energy by rising out of the water on hydrofoil wings underwent testing on the Seine river in Paris on Monday as its backers seek to obtain a license to operate a taxi service on the river. The SeaBubbles craft is powered by electric motors and …
More than 450,000 people have signed up for a chance to receive $1,000 per month from U.S. presidential candidate Andrew Yang. During last week’s debate, the Democrat announced that he will pick 10 families to receive the money for a year from his campaign funds. Since he made the …
Slovak Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini should easily defeat a no-confidence vote on Tuesday, but his government is being increasingly damaged by revelations about the reach of the main suspect in the 2018 murder of a journalist into state offices. The murder of investigative reporter Jan Kuciak, who uncovered fraud cases …
Purdue Pharma, the maker of prescription painkiller OxyContin, has filed for bankruptcy protection in a U.S. court. The company is facing numerous lawsuits from local and state governments and other plaintiffs alleging it aggressively marketed dangerous, addictive painkillers that helped fuel the opioid crisis in the United States. The bankruptcy …
A new large supply transport ship will help the Beijing government ferry supplies to its holdings in the disputed South China Sea, a resource-rich waterway contested by other countries. China has alarmed the other countries since 2010 by landfilling small islets for military use. Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan, Vietnam and the …
Members of the United Auto Workers union began a strike Monday against General Motors as the two sides remain apart on the terms of a new contract. Talks are set to resume Monday, but plants that makes cars and parts in nine states will be closed with nearly 50,000 workers …
Hong Kong protesters clashed with police Sunday. Protesters threw Molotov cocktails and bricks at police near the Legislative Council building. Police responded by firing water cannons filled with blue jets of water, a practice usually initiated to identify protesters later. Thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators were on Hong Kong’s streets Sunday. …
Less than two months into its term, Thailand’s post-junta government is fending off a series of challenges to its very existence, including a brewing political storm over the Cabinet’s failure to recite the full oath of office. A general election in March returned the 2014 coup leader, Prime Minister Prayut …
Promised talks this month between the United States and North Korea will give President Donald Trump yet another chance to conclude a deal with the reclusive nation, something that has eluded several of his predecessors. But after three summits and more than two years of on-and-off talks, some analysts are …
The flag-draped coffin had arrived, followed by black-clad family members, their heads bowed. Several dozen suited dignitaries marched in, chests puffed out. Military members stood rigid and proud. All of the pomp and circumstance one would expect at the memorial for a man hailed as an African icon was in …
Congo’s National Ebola Response Committee says confirmed Ebola deaths in the east of the sprawling African nation are nearing 2,000 and confirmed cases of the virus have exceeded 3,000. The committee released the latest numbers Friday after a discussion in Goma by the Catholic Church and the Anglican Church about …
While the political and economic crisis worsens in Venezuela, countries in the Western Hemisphere continue to be economically impacted by migrants seeking refuge and asylum. To help alleviate some of the burden, the United States Navy has deployed the Comfort hospital ship to assist countries like Colombia, Ecuador and Costa …
Government experts Friday backed an experimental treatment for children with peanut allergies that could become the first federally approved option for preventing life-threatening reactions. The treatment is daily capsules of peanut powder that gradually help children build up a tolerance. The outside panel of advisers to the Food and Drug …
They scan social media, peer under rubble, or try to follow the smell of death to try to find family and friends. They search amid alarming reports that 1,300 people remain listed as missing nearly two weeks after Hurricane Dorian hit the northern Bahamas. The government, which has put the …