Trump Escalates Feud With Sessions

President Donald Trump escalated his long-running feud with Attorney General Jeff Sessions Friday, calling on him to probe a litany of recurring complaints against those investigating his administration and Democrats. Responding to Sessions’ declaration that he would not be influenced by politics, Trump tweeted that Sessions must “look into all of the corruption on the …

North Korean Defectors Sue in Japan, Alleging Rights Abuses

She was one of the more than 90,000 Koreans and their relatives in Japan who went to North Korea decades ago seeking what the country promised: “paradise on earth.” As North and South Korea make reconciliatory gestures and hundreds of war-separated relatives are reunited, Eiko Kawasaki and others like her feel forgotten. Kawasaki, 76, who …

One Year After Fleeing, Rohingya Refugees Say Myanmar Still Unsafe

One year ago, a great exodus began from Myanmar’s northern Rakhine state. Within a few months, 700,000 Rohingya Muslims had fled into neighboring Bangladesh. They gave accounts of rape, murder and villages burned to the ground, all at the hands of Myanmar’s security forces. VOA U.N. Correspondent Margaret Besheer reports that one year later, it …

Military Parade Marks Ukraine’s Independence Day

Armed forces and armored vehicles paraded through the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, during a celebration of the country’s Independence Day on August 24. Some 4,500 soldiers and 250 military vehicles took part in the parade, along with 18 delegations of foreign troops. …

Report: Tabloid Owner Linked to Trump, Cohen Granted Immunity

U.S. federal prosecutors have reportedly granted immunity to the owner of a tabloid that is a central focus of the investigation into President Donald Trump’s former personal attorney, Michael Cohen.  The CEO of the company that owns the National Enquirer, David Pecker, met with prosecutors to describe his involvement with Cohen, Trump, and the hush money …

Uganda Simmering as Treason Charge Brought Against Opposition Lawmaker

Tensions are high in Uganda after days of bloodshed, arrests and protests over treason charges brought against opposition lawmakers — including on Thursday against musician Robert Kyagulanyi, known as Bobi Wine. Authorities say the lawmakers and rowdy youth threatened President Yoweri Museveni’s life by throwing stones at his car. However, analysts say the clashes show …

British-Iranian Aid Worker Temporarily Released From Tehran Jail

A detained British-Iranian aid worker sentenced to five years in jail in Iran has been released from detention for three days, her supporters and Iran’s envoy to Britain said on Thursday, in a move welcomed by Britain’s foreign minister. Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a project manager with the Thomson Reuters Foundation, was arrested in April 2016 at …

Afghanistan War Commander: ‘Strategy Working,’ Despite No Battlefield Changes

The commander of U.S. and international forces in Afghanistan says the Trump administration’s strategy for the war-torn country is yielding progress, despite no significant changes on the battlefield and several deadly Taliban attacks. “I believe the strategy is working,” U.S. Army Gen. John Nicholson told reporters at the Pentagon via telephone. Last year, the Trump …

Third Brazilian Soldier Dies in Rio Security Operations

A third Brazilian soldier has died of wounds he sustained in a shootout with suspected drug traffickers in Rio de Janeiro’s slums, the army said. At least five civilians and two other soldiers have died since the army launched coordinated raids in violent neighborhoods in the north of the city Monday. A little over six …

US Judge Denies Bond to Iranian Man Accused of Spying for Tehran

A U.S. judge has denied bond to an Iranian-born U.S. resident accused of involvement in a conspiracy to spy for Tehran on Iranian opposition activists and Israeli and Jewish groups in the United States. At Tuesday’s hearing at the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, Magistrate Judge Michael Harvey denied a defense lawyer’s …

Ecuador Calls for Regional Summit on Venezuelan Migrants

The Ecuadorian government is asking 13 other South American nations to attend a regional summit to discuss the Venezuelan migrant crisis. The foreign ministry said it was inviting Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica, Chile, Mexico, Peru, Paraguay, Panama, Dominican Republic, Uruguay and Venezuela to a Sept. 17-18 meeting in Quito. According to the United …