Thai Wins First International Golf Event In Pakistan In 11 Years
Thai golfer Tirawat Kaewsiribandit has won the first international golf event to be held in Pakistan in 11 years. …
Hurricane’s Chaos, Destruction Prompts Residents to Take Action
The clean-up continues in areas hit by Hurricane Michael. For residents still trapped in their homes, help is not coming fast enough. A team of volunteers is trying to change that with a chainsaw and some water. VOA’s Elizabeth Lee has this report from the coastal town of Panama City, Florida. …
IOM: Committee Empowers Rohingya Refugee Women in Pursuit of Aid
The International Organization for Migration reports some Rohingya refugee women in Cox’s Bazar have formed a committee that will enable them to present their concerns and needs to U.N. camp managers directly, without having to go through a man. More than 100 Rohingya women have formed this first-of-a-kind committee. These women represent only a minuscule …
Read more “IOM: Committee Empowers Rohingya Refugee Women in Pursuit of Aid”
Buffer Zone Brings Fragile Calm to Syria’s Rebel-Held Idlib
A month after Russia, Turkey and Iran came together in a last-ditch effort to avert a potentially catastrophic Syrian government offensive in Idlib, they appear to have succeeded in creating a buffer zone around the northern rebel-held province, defusing tensions in a major flashpoint region. The deal has for now averted a government offensive on …
Read more “Buffer Zone Brings Fragile Calm to Syria’s Rebel-Held Idlib”
Serbian Film Icon Milena Dravic Dies After Lengthy Illness
Actress Milena Dravic, one of Yugoslavia’s most revered actors who also won critical acclaim abroad, has died in Belgrade at the age of 78. …
Majlis Podcast: Where Are Russian-Uzbek Relations Headed Under Mirziyoev?
Russian President Vladimir Putin is scheduled to visit Uzbekistan on October 18-19. Uzbekistan’s relations with Russia were often poor during Islam Karimov’s 25 years as president. Some are wondering just how far new President Shavkat Mirziyoev can take this new relationship. …
‘They’ve Stolen Everything’: In Russia’s Far East, Dreams Deferred Amid Grim Mood Over Pension Reform
In this Far East Russian city, pension reform has elicited a backlash against official corruption and vocal anger toward a president Russians rarely criticize in public. …
13 Dead in Afghan Election Rally Blast
At least 13 people were killed and 21 others wounded in an attack on an election rally in northeastern Afghanistan Saturday afternoon. Officials in Takhar province said most of the victims were civilians, except two policemen and one person from the Afghan intelligence agency NDS. Khalil Aseer, a spokesman for Takhar provincial police, …
UNICEF: Armed Militia in NE Nigeria Releases 833 Child Soldiers
The U.N. Children’s Fund reports a local militia fighting Boko Haram Islamists in northeast Nigeria has released 833 child soldiers. UNICEF says it hopes the move will be followed by further releases. The local militia that released the children is one of several vigilante groups that formed an alliance in 2013 to fight Boko Haram …
Read more “UNICEF: Armed Militia in NE Nigeria Releases 833 Child Soldiers”
What Comes Next As Ukrainian Orthodox Church Pushes For Independence From Moscow?
On October 11, the Ukrainian Orthodox Church moved one big step closer toward independence from the Moscow Patriarchate. But the road ahead might be even more daunting. …
Putting An End To 20 Years Of Death Along The Tajik-Uzbek Border
Tajik officials have announced that work has started to demine the border with Uzbekistan with help from Uzbek authorities. Dozens of citizens of Tajikistan have been killed and maimed by these land mines that Uzbekistan laid nearly 20 years ago. …
Daghestan Police Say Two Suspected Militants Killed In Raid
Police in Russia’s Daghestan region say they have killed a suspected militant during a security operation focusing on the village of Endirei in the northern district of Khasavyurt. …
WFP: Climate Change to Accelerate World Hunger
The World Food Program warns climate change will have a devastating impact on agriculture and the ability of people to feed themselves. The WFP forecasts a huge increase in worldwide hunger unless action is taken to slow global warming. The WFP warns progress in reducing global hunger is under threat by conflict and the …
UN Worker Among Sharp Increase in DRC’s Ebola Caseload
A U.N. employee in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo has tested positive for Ebola, the first such incident during the current outbreak, according to the head of the U.N. peacekeeping mission. “I am writing today to inform you that my leadership team and I have regretfully just received news that a U.N. colleague based …
Read more “UN Worker Among Sharp Increase in DRC’s Ebola Caseload “
Trump Administration Steps in to Kill Police Reform Plan
The Trump administration informed a federal judge in Chicago on Friday that it’s seeking to scuttle a plan negotiated between the nation’s third-largest city and the state of Illinois that envisions far-reaching reforms of Chicago’s 12,000-officer police force under close federal court supervision. In a statement announcing the intervention, Attorney General Jeff Sessions blasted the …
Read more “Trump Administration Steps in to Kill Police Reform Plan”
Report: US Envoy, Taliban Meet in Qatar
The U.S. envoy for Afghanistan peace efforts met with Taliban representatives in Qatar on Friday as President Donald Trump’s administration pushed to find a way to end the 17-year-old Afghan war, the Wall Street Journal reported. The Journal, citing a person familiar with the gathering, said U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad met …
Russian Bobsledder Agrees To Eight-Month Ban After Positive Drug Test
One of the four doping cases at the Pyeongchang Olympics has been closed in an agreement between bobsled’s governing body and Russian driver Nadezhda Sergeeva. …
Opponent Of Reinstating Russia Says Was ‘Bullied’ By Anti-Doping Officials
The chairman of the World Anti-Doping Agency’s Athlete Committee has said in a BBC interview that she was “bullied” by some WADA officials over her opposition to reinstating Russia’s anti-doping authority. …
Pashinian Touts As Success First Francophonie Summit In Armenia
The leaders of over three dozen mostly French-speaking counties wrapped up a two-day meeting in Yerevan which Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian said has raised Armenia’s international profile. …
Trump Reluctant to Suspend Arms Sales to Saudi Arabia Over Disappeared Journalist
President Donald Trump says he is very concerned about the fate of Jamal Khashoggi, the Saudi journalist who disappeared last week while visiting the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, Turkey. But the president said he is reluctant to suspend a $110 billion U.S. arms deal with Saudi Arabia. VOA’s Diplomatic Correspondent Cindy Saine reports from the …
Read more “Trump Reluctant to Suspend Arms Sales to Saudi Arabia Over Disappeared Journalist”
Japan Dials Up Pressure on China Over Southeast Asian Sea
Warfare exercises in the disputed South China Sea over the past two months reveal a sustained, long-term escalation of Japanese activity in a region where Tokyo has strategic interests that include keeping Beijing in check. In September a Japanese submarine, helicopter carrier and two destroyers explored the sea contested by six governments, with China the …
Read more “Japan Dials Up Pressure on China Over Southeast Asian Sea”
Bosnian Muslim Wartime Commander, 16 Others Charged With War Crimes
Bosnian Muslim wartime commander Atif Dudakovic and 16 members of his unit were charged on October 11 with carrying out atrocities against Serbs in western Bosnia during the 1992-95 war. …
IMF: Pakistan Submits Request for Emergency Lending
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) says Pakistan has formally requested financial assistance from the lender to help address the country’s economic challenges. Pakistani Finance Minister Asad Umar submitted the request to IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde during a meeting on the sidelines of the IMF and World Bank annual conference in Bali, Indonesia. “An IMF …
Read more “IMF: Pakistan Submits Request for Emergency Lending”
IMF Sending Team To Pakistan To Discuss Emergency Loan Package
The head of the International Monetary Fund said she is sending a team to Pakistan in the coming weeks after the government requested emergency bailout loans. …