Month: February 2021

The Russian government said Friday it was expelling Western diplomats for attending rallies in support of jailed opposition politician Alexey Navalny. Diplomats from Poland and Sweden in St. Petersburg and from Germany in Moscow were targeted for participating in “unlawful” rallies on January 23, according to Russia’s foreign ministry. Tens of thousands of protesters filled the streets …

Read more “Russia Expels Western Diplomats Who Attended Pro-Navalny Protests”

The pro-democracy group Freedom House has released a report detailing how countries such as China, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Russia, and Turkey systematically employ violence and intimidation against exiles and diasporas to silence dissent beyond their borders. VOA’s Diplomatic Correspondent Cindy Saine reports. Producer: Jesse Oni …

Authorities in Turkey made dozens of new arrests in cities across the country Thursday, after downplaying international criticism — including U.S. condemnation — of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s crackdown on university student rallies.       According to police, about 600 people have been detained since January 4 as protests spread in the capital, Ankara, and …

Read more “Turkey Detains Dozens More Over University Protests”

Some 80 journalists are included among the thousands of people who have been detained across Russia during protests over the arrest and sentencing of opposition politician Alexey Navalny.Several of the journalists were beaten. At least one was jailed because of posts on social media about the unrest.The strong tactics used by security forces to contain …

Read more “New Generation of Russian Protesters Harnesses Social Media”

The pro-democracy group Freedom House has released a report detailing how countries such as China, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Russia, and Turkey systematically employ violence and intimidation against exiles and diasporas to silence dissent beyond their borders. VOA’s Diplomatic Correspondent Cindy Saine reports. Producer: Jesse Oni …

French Prime Minister Jean Castex said Thursday that while the COVID-19 pandemic remains serious, he does not think another nationwide lockdown is necessary. But he urged people to take all necessary precautions to avoid contracting the coronavirus.During a COVID-19 news briefing from Paris, Castex said that while France’s infection rate remains too high, it is …

Read more “French PM Says No Need for COVID-19 Lockdown for Now”

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is facing domestic and international pressure to stop a crackdown on student protests that erupted after the Turkish leader’s decision to install a new rector at one of the country’s main universities. Critics say the move was aimed at silencing dissent at what many regard as one of the last remaining …

Read more “In Challenge to Erdogan, Protests at Istanbul University Escalate”

The United States and Russia have agreed that their five-year extension of the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, known as START, will enhance national and international security. The treaty limits the number of strategic nuclear warheads and intercontinental ballistic missiles each side can maintain. In separate speeches to the U.N. Conference on Disarmament, U.S. and Russian permanent …

Read more “US, Russian Officials Hail START Treaty Extension”

Testing began in Britain on Thursday to determine if different COVID-19 vaccines can be used together in a two-shot regimen.Researchers are aiming to inoculate more than 800 volunteers with one shot of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, followed either four or 12 weeks later with a booster shot of the vaccine developed jointly by AstraZeneca and Oxford …

Read more “UK Examines Whether Different COVID-19 Vaccines Can Be Used in 2-Shot Regimen”

A court in Belgium has convicted an Iranian diplomat for plotting a thwarted bomb attack against an Iranian opposition group in France in 2018. The court on Thursday sentenced Assadollah Assadi to 20 years in prison. Belgian prosecutors said the Vienna-based Assadi and others planned to bomb a rally of the Paris-based National Council Resistance of Iran. The …

Read more “Belgian Court Sentences Iranian Diplomat to 20 Years for Bomb Plot “

Testing began in Britain on Thursday to determine if different COVID-19 vaccines can be used together in a two-shot regimen.Researchers are aiming to inoculate more than 800 volunteers with one shot of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine, followed either four or 12 weeks later with a booster shot of the vaccine developed jointly by AstraZeneca and Oxford …

Read more “British to See if Different COVID-19 Vaccines Can Be Used in Same 2-Dose Regimen”

At an appeals hearing Tuesday, Russian prosecutors accused journalist Svetlana Prokopyeva of being a “mouthpiece of the West” as the court upheld her conviction of “justifying terrorism.” The hearing came amid a wider backdrop of Moscow taking legal action against her employer, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. A Russian court last month fined the independent U.S.-funded news …

Read more “Russia Ups Legal Pressure on Foreign Media Outlets”

The Czech Republic health ministry reported Wednesday the nation passed one million confirmed COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began. The agency also reported that the day-to-day increase in new infections reached 9,057 since Tuesday, which puts the nation over the one-million mark for confirmed cases since the first three cases were detected March 1, 2020. The current …

Read more “Czech Republic Passes 1 Million COVID-19 Cases”

Russian human rights monitors say authorities have arrested at least 1,400 protesters in Moscow after a court sentenced opposition politician Alexey Navalny to serve out the remaining time of a three-and-a-half year suspended sentence in a prison colony. The decision Tuesday came just weeks after Navalny returned to Russia following a poisoning attack that nearly …

Read more “Russia Cracks Down After Navalny Sentencing”

A coronavirus vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University cut transmission of the virus by two-thirds, according to a study released by the university Wednesday.   The study has not been peer-reviewed, but Britain’s Health Secretary Matt Hancock told the BBC the findings are “good news.”   “It does show the world that the Oxford …

Read more “UK Study Finds AstraZeneca Vaccine Cuts COVID Transmission by 2/3”

Mexico’s regulatory agency approved emergency use of the Russian Sputnik V vaccine, shortly after Deputy Health Minister Hugo Lopez-Gatell announced Tuesday the country’s plan to combat the novel coronavirus would involve use of the vaccine. The Associated Press reports Mexico is launching its vaccination program as its capital, Mexico City, is struggling to accommodate a growing number of coronavirus patients and provide adequate oxygen to hospitals.  Meantime, Lopez-Gattel said the first batches of the 7.4 …

Read more “Mexico Grants Emergency Use of Russia Vaccine to Fight Coronavirus”

The United States on Tuesday condemned a Russian court’s decision to sentence the Kremlin’s most outspoken critic, Alexei Navalny, to 3.5 years in prison. State Department officials says the U.S. is reviewing what actions it will take in the matter. VOA’s Jesusemen Oni has more. …

COVID-19 testing tents are popping up in the French capital as extensions of local pharmacies that allow people to walk in and get a free COVID screening. More with VOA correspondent Mariama Diallo.   …

Britain launched an emergency program of door-to-door testing in several areas Tuesday following the discovery of hundreds of cases of the coronavirus variant, first identified in South Africa, which scientists say could be more resistant to vaccines.  Mobile testing units were deployed to several regions, including parts of central and suburban London, while firefighter units …

Read more “Britain Battles Mutant Coronavirus Outbreak”

Northern Ireland temporarily suspended some inspections at two ports late Monday after threats of violence and increased tensions have been reported in the area. Graffiti was discovered in Belfast describing port staff as “targets.” Staff have also reported suspicious behavior such as people writing down license plate numbers. Police say they are increasing patrols near ports of …

Read more “Northern Ireland Suspends Inspections at Ports After Threats of Violence”