Month: March 2018

Hundreds of rights activists marched through Yangon City Monday to oppose proposed amendments to a bill that regulates peaceful protesting in the Southeast Asian nation. VOA Burmese reports that around 500 protesters marched through the city Monday, while nearly 200 civil society groups in Myanmar signed a petition against the amendment. Amendments to the 2011 …

Read more “Myanmar: Hundreds March Against Proposed Amendments to Protest Laws”

Waves nearly 30 feet (9 meters) high from a U.S. winter storm slammed into Puerto Rico on Monday, forcing authorities to evacuate dozens of families and close roads and schools across the U.S. territory. Huge waves downed palm trees, knocked over cement benches and forced curious crowds to flee as saltwater flooded streets and homes …

Read more “Huge Waves Slam Into Puerto Rico, Force Evacuations”

“They kicked us out of our home and stole our furniture and valuables,” said Rugya Saleem, a mother of six, plucking at the carpet of the tent in a desert refugee camp. She said her husband was forced to join Islamic State militants, and then was later killed by victims of the group. “They said …

Read more “New Wave of Families Flees Post-Islamic State Iraq”

Having lived his whole life in the shadow of the dictator who executed his father, Aleksei Nesterenko now pickets each Wednesday, calling for a museum in the Moscow building where his father was executed on Stalin’s order. …

Looks in neutrals, reds and purples brought the drama Sunday on the Oscars carpet at Hollywood’s biggest fashion show. Salma Hayek looked like exotic royalty in a custom Gucci gown in lilac. It was heavily jeweled and had a busy, ruffled tiered skirt. Rita Moreno, meanwhile, honored Academy Awards history by donning the same gown …

Read more “Drama in Red and Neutrals on Oscars Red Carpet”

The United States lambasted Moscow for its “brutal” complicity in civilian deaths in Syria’s rebel-held enclave in eastern Ghouta region, accusing Russian aircraft of flying bombing missions in defiance of a United Nations cease-fire. …

American actor David Ogden Stiers, known as the arrogant but brilliant surgeon Charles Emerson Winchester on the television series MASH,  has died of bladder cancer at 75. MASH was the story of an army hospital near the front lines during the Korean War. The series was a well-established hit when Stiers, a classically-trained stage and …

Read more “MASH Star David Ogden Stiers Dies at 75”

Slovak President Andrej Kiska has called for a substantial government reshuffle or snap elections to rebuild public trust following the murder of an investigative reporter. …

Provincial officials in eastern Nangarhar province expressed concerns over the dozens of youths in the province recruited by Islamic State (IS). “I have received reports from districts that unemployment, poverty and IS recruiting efforts have led to youths joining the terror group’s ranks,” Matiullah Ahmadzai, director of Youth Affairs at Nangarhar Department of Culture and …

Read more “Unemployment Leads Dozens of Youths to Join IS Ranks in Eastern Afghanistan”

Kyrgyz President Sooronbai Jeenbekov marked 100 days in office on March 3. …

Social media users like to have friends and followers on various platforms. But how many accounts are real and how many are generated by computers? Two university students in California say they have a way of detecting if you’re communicating with a human or a “bot”. Michelle Quinn reports. …

In Frederick, Maryland, a group of women have a project. They crochet mats for the homeless in their area. As Faiza Elmasry tells us, these women are not using the usual yarn, they are crocheting used grocery plastic bags for the greater good. Faith Lapidus narrates. …

President Donald Trump threatened on Saturday to impose a tax on European cars if the European Union chooses to retaliate against his plans to place tariffs on imported steel and aluminum. In a tweet Saturday morning, Trump said the U.S. had an “$800 Billion Dollar Yearly” trade imbalance because of “very stupid” trade deals and …

Read more “Trump Threatens to Tax European-built Cars as Trade War Rhetoric Builds”

Mushers and dog teams participated in a short sprint in Anchorage, Alaska, for the ceremonial start of the famed Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. …

Voters in Italy are going to the polls to determine a new parliament, with populist and far-right parties, including three-time Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s coalition, and a center-left alliance looking to win the right to form a new government. …

A standoff continued between police in Bosnia-Herzegovina and hundreds of veterans of the country’s 1992-95 war who are protesting for more rights, including improved social benefits. …