U.S. Sends First Coal Shipment To Ukraine To Bolster Energy Security
The United States sent its first shipment of anthracite coal to Ukraine from the U.S. port Baltimore on August 22 under a deal designed to increase Ukraine’s energy security. …
Israeli Leader To Raise Concern About Iran’s Military In Syria With Putin
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he will discuss with Russian President Vladimir Putin his concerns about Iran’s military presence in Syria. …
Venezuelan Leader Asks Russia, Vatican To Help Fend Off U.S. ‘Military Threat’
Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has called on Russia and the Vatican to help fend off a U.S. “military threat,” and said he will soon go to Moscow to visit with Russian President Vladimir Putin. …
North Korea: Trump Tweets ‘Weird Articles,’ ‘Spouts Rubbish’
North Korea on Tuesday described President Donald Trump as a leader who frequently tweets “weird articles of his ego-driven thoughts” and “spouts rubbish” to give his assistants a hard time. The North’s official Korean Central News Agency made the comments in response to tough talk in Washington and Seoul over threats posed by Pyongyang’s nuclear …
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Trump Rebuffs Coal Industry; CEO Claims Promise Broken
The Trump administration has rejected a coal industry push to win a rarely used emergency order protecting coal-fired power plants, a decision contrary to what one coal executive said the president personally promised him. The Energy Department says it considered issuing the order sought by companies seeking relief for plants it says are overburdened by …
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Report: Iran says Twitter ready to Talk on Unblocking Site
Iran’s new telecommunications minister says Twitter is ready to talk about unblocking access to the microblogging site. The state-owned IRAN newspaper quoted Mohammad Javad Azari Jahromi on Tuesday as saying Twitter has “officially announced readiness to talk with Iran for resolving the problems.” San Francisco-based Twitter did not immediately respond to a request …
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‘In Six Months I’ll Be Dead’: Russian Activists Warn Of Looming Spike In AIDS Deaths
If the Russian government doesn’t quickly start doing more to combat the spread of HIV infections and to treat those already infected, activists say, the country can expect 20,000 AIDS deaths this year and more in the following years. …
Kazakhstan Detains Eight Syrians For Using ‘Doctored’ Bulgarian Passports
Kazakh authorities say they have detained eight Syrian nationals they said were caught using doctored Bulgarian passports when entering and leaving Kazakhstan. …
Body Found After Massive Fire In Rostov-On-Don
A fire that tore through a neighborhood whose residents have reportedly received threats has killed at one person, authorities say. …
Devotion to Mary in Assiut, Egypt
Every August, tens of thousands of Egypt’s Coptic Christians and Egyptian Muslims take buses and trains to the Virgin Mary Monastery in Assiut. This year, Muslims were banned from attending the event by the Egyptian authorities. The monastery is believed to have been visited by the Holy family when they fled Israel out of fear …
Trump To Explain Path Forward On Afghanistan
The White House says U.S. President Donald Trump will deliver a major address to the nation on August 21 to explain “the path forward for America’s engagement in Afghanistan and South Asia.” …
Militants Counterattack as Airstrikes Pound Raqqa
Islamic State militants continue counterattacking from their remaining strongholds in Raqqa, Syria, as coalition-backed forces advance to recapture the city. Families fleeing the fighting often have no place to go but to camps desperately short of clean water, food and medicine. VOA’s Heather Murdock is on the scene in Raqqa and in the Ain Issa …
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Bergdahl Chooses to Have Trial Heard by Judge, Not Jury
Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl has decided be to tried by a judge — not a military jury — on charges that he endangered comrades by walking off his post in Afghanistan. Bergdahl’s lawyers told the court in a brief filing last week that their client chose trial by judge alone, rather than a panel of officers. …
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Barcelona Attacker Shot Dead, Spanish Police Say
Spanish police have confirmed that fugitive Barcelona van-attack suspect Younes Abouyaaqoub has been shot dead. …
Top Vatican Diplomat Arrives In Moscow
The Vatican’s secretary of state, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, has arrived in Moscow for an official visit slated to include a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. …
Sudanese Children of IS Militants Released in Libya
Four children from Sudan whose parents are believed to have been killed fighting for Islamic State in the Libyan city of Sirte last year were handed over to the Sudanese consul on Sunday for return to their country. Sirte was a stronghold for Islamic State from 2015-2016, when Libyan forces backed by U.S. air strikes …
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Stifled in Middle East, Lebanese Band Finds Audience in West
Lebanese band Mashrou’ Leila’s blend of indie rock and lyrics about social and political injustice has won a passionate following among fans seeking an alternative to Arab pop with its romantic themes. But securing a firm footing in the Middle East has been difficult for the band. Jordanian authorities cancelled its concert in June, for …
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US Navy Destroyer Collides with Merchant Ship
The U.S. Navy destroyer USS John S. McCain has been involved in a collision with a merchant ship east of Singapore, near the Strait of Malacca. The U.S. 7th Fleet released a statement early Monday that the guided-missile destroyer collided with the Alnic MC at about 6:20 local time. The John S. McCain was damaged, …
Australia Defeats Iran To Claim Asian Cup Basketball Title
Australia defeated Iran 79-56 to claim the championship of the FIBA Asian Cup basketball tournament on August 20 in Beirut. …
Millions Rush To U.S. Cities On Path Of Total Solar Eclipse
Millions of Americans were heading to cities along the path of the first total solar eclipse in 99 years that will sweep across the full length of the United States. …
U.S.-Based Group Sending Veterinarians To Treat Stray Dogs Of Chernobyl Area
A Boston-based international animal-welfare group says it is sending a veterinary team to Ukraine to treat dogs near the site of the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster. …
Researchers Find Wreckage of WWII-era USS Indianapolis
Civilian researchers say they have located the wreck of the USS Indianapolis, the World War II heavy cruiser that played a critical role in the atomic bombing of Hiroshima before being struck by Japanese torpedoes. The sinking of the Indianapolis remains the Navy’s single worst loss at sea. The fate of its crew — nearly …
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Comedian, Civil Rights Activist Dick Gregory Dies
Dick Gregory, the comedian and activist and who broke racial barriers in the 1960s and used his humor to spread messages of social justice and nutritional health, has died. He was 84. Gregory died late Saturday in Washington, D.C. after being hospitalized for about a week, his son Christian Gregory told The Associated Press. He …
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Iraq Starts Offensive to Take Back Tal Afar From Islamic State
Iraqi security forces launched on Sunday an offensive to take back the city of Tal Afar, their next objective in the U.S.-backed campaign to defeat Islamic State militants, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said. “You either surrender, or die,” Abadi said in a televised speech announcing the offensive, addressing the militants. A longtime stronghold of hardline …
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