Category: World

The brother of an Iranian environmentalist says Iranian authorities have detained the activist in an apparent continuation of a wave of arrests of environmentalists in western Iran in recent months. Speaking to VOA Persian by phone from Germany on Wednesday, Jolan Farhadi Babadi said Iranian security agents detained his brother, Yousef Farhadi Babadi, in the …

Read more “Iran Arrests Environmentalist Who Joined Labor Protest, Brother Says”

An LGBTQ rights group expressed skepticism Thursday of a reported campaign by the Trump administration to decriminalize homosexuality around the world, after President Donald Trump expressed no knowledge of the plan.  “We have a lot of questions about their intentions and commitments and are eager to see what proof and action will follow,” said Jeremy Kadden, …

Read more “LGBTQ Group Skeptical of US Decriminalization Move”

The United States says it will at least temporarily leave 200 “peacekeeping” troops in Syria after a planned pullout of the main U.S. force from the war-torn country. …

Moldovan President Igor Dodon says his country needs to maintain good relations with Russia amid uncertainty about the future of the European Union. …

Two Moldovan opposition leaders have accused the authorities of poisoning them, three days before parliamentary elections. …

Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders is the latest entrant into the increasingly crowded Democratic presidential field for 2020. Sanders and several other Democrats in the race advocate progressive views on key issues like the economy, the environment and health care. In response, President Donald Trump charged that the Democratic Party is headed down the road of …

Read more “As Democrats Lean Left for 2020, Trump Cries Socialism”

Delivering his annual speech to Russian parliament Feb. 20, President Vladimir Putin promised an “asymmetric” response to the West and specifically to the United States, should Washington decide to deploy its intermediate-range nuclear weapons in Europe. The Russian leader said his country would target “decision-making centers” in the West, if the US doesn’t give credence …

Read more “Putin Vows to Target US If Washington Deploys Missiles in Europe”

The Trump administration is set Thursday to resume high-level talks with Chinese officials, aiming to ease a trade standoff that’s unnerved global investors and clouded the outlook for the world economy. A Chinese delegation led by Vice Premier Liu He will meet in Washington with a U.S. team led by Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and …

Read more “Resumption of High-level US-China Trade Talks Raises Hopes”

North Macedonian police have arrested the former parliament speaker and two other ministers in the previous government, alleging they played roles in a violent invasion of the legislature in 2017. …

Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic’s gay partner has given birth to a baby boy, her office reports, in a country that still does not recognize same-sex marriages. …

A French citizen has been in Iranian custody since October, France’s foreign minister has confirmed. …

Jehovah’s Witnesses, a U.S.-based religious denomination that Russia has branded extremist and banned, says that police in Russia’s Khanty-Mansi region have tortured several members of the congregation. …

Uganda’s ruling party has endorsed President Yoweri Museveni as its candidate for the 2021 elections. The decision by the National Resistance Movement to nominate the 74-year-old Museveni comes after parliament approved legislation in 2017 to repeal the presidential age limit of 75 years old, which was upheld last July by Uganda’s Constitutional Court. It was …

Read more “Ugandan Ruling Party Endorses Museveni for 2021 Elections”

Russian President Vladimir Putin warned the United States not discount the power of his country’s weapons. In his annual state-of-the-nation address on February 20, Putin said that he wanted friendly relations with Washington but any serious threats to Russia’s security would be reciprocated. …

A Belgian woman has been killed by an avalanche in Kyrgyzstan’s northern Issyk-Kul region, local authortities said on February 20. …

A convoy of trucks Wednesday carried civilians away from the last area of Syria still under the control of Islamic State militants. The group of at least eight trucks carried people from the town of Baghouz, continuing an evacuation of civilians that has taken place in recent weeks as a U.S.-backed militia closed in. It …

Read more “Trucks Carry Civilians From Last Islamic State Enclave in Syria”

When Gankhuyag Natsag makes one of his famous masks, he spends a lot of time thinking. “During that time I am thinking that it’s all based on Buddhist philosophy. It allows for meditation, inspiration and a peaceful life,” he says. The renowned Mongolian mask maker, known as Ganna, makes the elaborate representations of characters that …

Read more “Ancient Art of Mongolian Mask Making”

U.S. President Donald Trump will sign a directive on Tuesday to outline the establishment of the Space Force as the newest branch of the military. Space Policy Directive 4, which VOA obtained a copy of ahead of the signing, says the force will adapt U.S. national security “to deter aggression and protect our interest” in …

Read more “Trump to Sign Space Force Directive”

Amnesty International says the Ukrainian criminal justice system has “resisted and obstructed justice” when dealing with the human rights violations committed by police during the Euromaidan protests five years ago. …

Zimbabwe could run out of bread in a week after flour stocks dwindled due to the country’s failure to pay for imported wheat, according to a confidential letter written to bakers by the country’s grain millers’ group on Monday. The southern African nation is in the grip of a severe shortage of U.S. dollars that …

Read more “Millers: Zimbabwe to Run Out of Bread in One Week”

Azam Jangravi fled Iran after being sentenced to three years in prison for removing her hijab in a protest against the country’s strict Islamic dress code. …

The European Union on Tuesday warned British Prime Minister Theresa May that her trip to EU headquarters to seek an elusive breakthrough in Brexit negotiations stands no chance of success when it comes to her central demand for the divorce deal to be reopened. Reinforcing the message, EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker made it clear …

Read more “EU, UK to Have More Brexit Talks But Key Disagreement Intact”

Under President Vladimir Putin, the Russian government has moved to rein in the media, regional leaders, and dissent, among other things. What’s next, waistlines? Senior officials seem intrigued by a Japanese law that seeks to restrict the girth of citizens 40 years and up. …

Glen Libby looks back fondly on his days as a Maine shrimp trawler, but he’s concerned about what seafood lovers will think if the shuttered fishery ever reopens.   “Shrimp? What are those?” he said. “There will be a market. But it depends how big of a market you’re talking about.”   Maine’s historic shrimp …

Read more “Shrimpers Hope Industry Lost to Warm Seas Won’t Be Forgotten”