German Health Minister Calls for COVID-19 Vaccine Stockpile

Germany’s health minister, Jens Spahn, Thursday stressed the need for Germany to stock up on COVID-19 vaccine for possible repeat shots next year, and said the nation should do so with or without the rest of the European Union.Spahn made the remarks during a Berlin virtual news briefing on the countries COVID-19 vaccination program and …

Southern African Leaders Promise Action on Mozambique Islamist Insurgency 

Botswana’s President Mokgweetsi Masisi says member states of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) will respond in a “meaningful manner” to the deadly Islamist insurgency in northern Mozambique. Masisi made the comments Wednesday after meeting with Zimbabwe’s President Emmerson Mnangagwa.  Botswana President Mokgweetsi Masisi told reporters late Wednesday he talked to his South African counterpart Cyril …

Traveling Kenyan Music Producer Gives Hope to Rural Artists

A Kenyan music producer is taking his work to remote villages to record up-and-coming artists on location to offer something new and different for Kenya’s competitive music industry.  Juma Majanga caught up with producer Presta George in Awendo, Kenya, and filed this report.Camera: Jim Makhulo, Producer: Henry Hernandez … From: BoorSee

US Unemployment Benefit Claims Increased Again Last Week

New U.S. unemployment compensation claims jumped again last week, the Labor Department reported Thursday, as the recovery from the economic damage caused by the coronavirus remains tenuous.The government said 719,000 workers filed for benefits last week, up 61,000 from the revised figure of the previous week. The week-ago figure of 658,000 was the smallest total …

Tigray, Ethiopia: From Conflict to Humanitarian Crisis

VOA traces the beginnings of the conflict that grew into a humanitarian crisis in Ethiopia’s Tigray region. In early November 2020, the federal government of Ethiopia — led by Nobel Peace Prize-winning Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed — launched a military campaign to regain control of the contested region from the Tigray People’s Liberation Front fighters. …

US Officer on Trial for Death that Sparked Protests Against Police Brutality

A court in the U.S. state of Minnesota proceeds Thursday with the trial of Derek Chauvin, the police officer charged in the death of George Floyd last year that sparked widespread protests against police brutality and systemic racism last year.Jurors on Wednesday saw about 20 minutes of police body camera video that spanned the time …

Child Among 4 Dead in Shooting at California Office Building

A child was among four people killed Wednesday in a shooting at a Southern California office building that left a fifth victim and the gunman critically wounded, police said.The violence in the city of Orange southeast of Los Angeles was the nation’s third mass shooting in just over two weeks.When police arrived at the two-story …

7 Hong Kong Democracy Activists Convicted Over 2019 Protest

Seven of Hong Kong’s prominent pro-democracy activists were found guilty Thursday of organizing and participating in an unlawful assembly during the 2019 anti-government demonstrations.The activists include media tycoon Jimmy Lai, the founder of the pro-democracy newspaper Apple Day, and 82-year-old barrister Martin Lee, one of the founders of the opposition Democratic Party.  Also convicted Thursday …

UN: 2 Women, 3 Children Drown in Shipwreck off Libya’s Coast

Two women and three children drowned when a boat carrying dozens of Europe-bound migrants capsized off Libya, a U.N. official said Wednesday. It was the latest shipwreck involving migrants seeking a better life in Europe.Safa Msehli, spokesman for the International Organization for Migration, said the incident took place late Tuesday. A fishing boat and Libya’s …

Philippines Demands China Remove Vessels at 6 islands, Reefs

The Philippine government said Wednesday that more than 250 Chinese vessels it believes are operated by militia have been spotted near six Manila-claimed islands and reefs in the disputed South China Sea and demanded that China immediately remove them.The gathering of the Chinese-flagged vessels, along with four Chinese navy ships at a Chinese-occupied manmade island …

Georgia State Overhauls Citizen Arrest Law Following Ahmaud Arbery’s Death

Georgia overhauled a Civil War-era law Wednesday that allowed residents to arrest anyone they suspected of committing a crime — a “citizen’s arrest” law invoked by the defense of the three men accused of killing Ahmaud Arbery last year. The Arbery case garnered international outrage with civil rights activists saying it marked yet another example of a targeted attack on a Black man. The Georgia General …

Beijing Orders Closure of Chinese Law Firm Tied to Hong Kong Activists

A Chinese law firm linked to the defense of one of 12 pro-democracy activists who allegedly attempted to flee Hong Kong for Taiwan has been ordered to disband, a development that reflects tightening constraints on rights lawyers in China. Human rights lawyer Ren Quanniu, who represented one of the so-called Hong Kong 12, confirmed to VOA …

For This Year’s Mardi Gras, New Orleans Lets the Good Times Roll at Home

“Our Big Chief told us he doesn’t want us out there this Mardi Gras because of COVID,” Aaron “Flagboy Giz” Hartley told VOA. “He said it wasn’t safe for our members or for the public watching us.”Until this year, Hartley took part in a festive New Orleans tradition dating back to the 1800s, the Mardi …

Понад половина території України потерпає від браку опадів через зміни клімату – міністр агрополітики

Аграрії на більш ніж половині території України вже мають справу з наслідками змін клімату, заявив міністр аграрної політики та продовольства Роман Лещенко під час обговорення проєкту Національної економічної стратегії-2030 16 лютого. Лещенко перелічив ключові перетворення, які належить пройти аграрному сектору: фіналізацію земельної реформи, реалізацію національного проєкту зрошення та меліорації та створення інституту агрострахування, «щоб аграрії …

Лещенко анонсував геопортал даних про природні ресурси «найближчими тижнями»

Міністр аграрної політики і продовольства Роман Лещенко анонсував запуск геопорталу відкритих даних у найближчі кілька тижнів. Про це він заявив під час обговорення проєкту Національної економічної стратегії-2030 16 лютого. Лещенко звернув увагу на реформи в агропромисловій галузі, які уряд здійснив протягом 2020 року. Серед них – скасування мораторію на продаж сільськогосподарських земель і закон про …

France Says No Troop Withdrawals from Sahel 

France says it will not draw down its troop presence in Africa’s Sahel region, despite earlier reports that it could bring home hundreds of soldiers following significant gains against extremists.Addressing via videoconference regional leaders from Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, Mauritania and Chad, French President Emmanuel Macron said there would be no immediate reduction of French troops …

British Police Raid Clubs that Violate COVID-19 Restrictions

British police in the central city of Birmingham have issued thousands of dollars in fines after raiding two makeshift clubs hosting revelers in violation of COVID-19 restrictions. The West Midlands Police department released video of the February 14 raid on an illegal club, with about 150 people partying on two floors, complete with VIP area, …

На міжбанку стабілізувалися котирування гривні

На українському міжбанківському валютному ринку котирування в парі гривня-долар 16 лютого стабілізувалися поблизу позначки 27,80. Це сталося після значних коливань 15 лютого, коли на малооб’ємному через вихідний день у США ринку спекулянти спершу підвищили котирування до 28 гривень за долар і навіть більше, а потім опустили до 27 гривень 78 копійок. За даними Finance.ua, станом …

VP Harris and France’s Macron Discuss Cooperation

U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris spoke to French President Emmanuel Macron, expressing her commitment to strengthening bilateral relations, a White House statement said on Monday.  “Vice President Harris and President Macron agreed on the need for close bilateral and multilateral cooperation to address COVID-19, climate change, and support democracy at home and around the world,” the statement said. Since President Joe …

Winter Weather, Record Cold Grips Much of Central-Southern US

More than 150 million people in the central and southern United States were under winter storm warnings or advisories Monday, with record-breaking cold temperatures gripping the nation from the Gulf of Mexico to the Canadian border.   The south-central state of Texas may be takin g the worst of the winter weather.  Hit by ice …

British PM Calls for Global Treaty on Pandemics

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday suggested he would support a global treaty on pandemics that would establish standards for data-sharing and transparency. Johnson made the comment during his usual COVID-19 briefing from his office in London, when asked about the World Health Organization team’s recently concluded visit to Wuhan, China, to investigate the source …