Новости за 12.07.2017

Gambia could become the first country in sub-Saharan Africa to eliminate malaria on its track record of combating the mosquito-borne disease but more donor funds are needed for the "last mile" of the drive, health experts said Wednesday. The prevalence of the malaria parasite in children younger than five has plunged to 0.2 percent from 4 percent in 2011, according to the National Malaria Control Program (NMCP). The total number of new malaria cases across the West African nation has fallen by about 40 percent in that time ... Читать дальше...

Sri Lanka's prime minister said on Wednesday Buddhism will remain paramount in the bitterly divided island, seeking to head off protests led by the powerful Buddhist clergy against proposed changes to the constitution. The government announced plans last January to devolve power to provinces including in areas dominated by the country's ethnic Tamil minority in an effort to address alienation and bury the kind of ethnic tension that led to a 26-year civil war, but Buddhists who make up 70 percent... Читать дальше...

Senegal’s former president, Abdoulaye Wade, is making a comeback. The 91-year-old politician returned to Senegal this week for the second time since his 2012 defeat, and will be on the campaign trail for the next two weeks [until July 28], traveling around the country to boost his party’s chances in the legislative elections at the end of this month. Thousands gathered at Dakar’s international airport to welcome the former leader. “Gorgui is great,” chanted the crowds as Wade made his way through the city. Читать дальше...

Facebook, Twitter, Alphabet and dozens of other major technology companies protested online on Wednesday against proposed changes to U.S. net neutrality rules that prohibit broadband providers from giving or selling access to certain internet services over others. In support of the "Internet-Wide Day of Action to Save Net Neutrality," more than 80,000 websites - from big social media platforms like Facebook to streaming services like Netflix and matchmaking website OkCupid — are displaying banners... Читать дальше...

Tuareg separatists have seized a town in Mali's desert north from a pro-government ethnic Tuareg militia after days of fighting, the separatists and a local legislator close to the government side said Wednesday. Fighting between rival Tuareg factions has intensified and threatens to derail a 2015 peace deal meant to end years of conflict and instability in the landlocked West African nation, a major gold producer. The rebel Coordination of Azawad Movements (CMA) and the pro-government Gatia... Читать дальше...

Argentina's President Mauricio Macri blamed Congress on Wednesday for lack of progress on a corruption investigation involving Brazil's Odebrecht SA that has roiled Latin America in recent months. His government banned the company from bidding on new public works projects for a year in a measure published in the official gazette last Friday, but Macri said on Wednesday the company would be welcome to get back to work if Congress passed a law that would enable his government to negotiate a leniency deal. Читать дальше...

Search the Internet for "Native American Art” and you’ll find dozens of sites offering tribal jewelry, paintings and crafts at low prices. But as much as 80 percent of these products aren’t “Indian” at all; they are manufactured in Asia or the Middle East. Native American artists say, “Enough.” With all the phony products in the marketplace, they can no longer compete and they are calling on the government to take action. At a Senate committee field hearing July 7 in Sante Fe, New Mexico, U.S. Senators Tom Udall... Читать дальше...

French Prime Minister Edouard Philippe outlined a plan Wednesday to address the high number of migrants arriving in the country, but conceded he has no “magic wand” to resolve a situation that is larger than France and won't go away any time soon.   The plan calls for speeding up asylum claims, creating more housing for asylum-seekers and other measures to make life easier for people hoping to remain in France. A new law in the making would help enforce expulsions of those deemed to be in the country illegally. Читать дальше...

Seven hundred tourists were evacuated by boat from wildfires in Sicily on Wednesday, local media reported, as swathes of southern Italy burned after months with little rainfall. There were no reports of injuries caused by the blaze at the Calampiso seaside resort west of the island's capital Palermo, but the mayor of a nearby town appealed for help in the rescue. "We need minibuses and cars to pick people up at the little port and take them to school buildings," Matteo Rizzo, mayor of San Vito Lo Capo, wrote on Facebook. Читать дальше...

Bosnia boycotted a transport pact and Kosovo frustrated a European Union attempt to forge a customs union in the Balkans on Wednesday, at a summit that once again brought promises of accession but no firm timetable. With enlargement on hold, the EU is pushing six Balkan nations to integrate their economies in the hope of fostering development and stability, concerned over sometimes fraught relations in the region and the influence of an emboldened Russia. But what was billed as a common market... Читать дальше...

Yemeni female security forces descended on a small women's rally in the southern port city of Aden on Wednesday, beating the women and dispersing the gathering, activists said. The policewomen stripped one protester of her niqab, the all-covering face veil worn by conservative Muslim women, then punched her repeatedly in the face, according to the activists who organized and joined the demonstration. Two women were briefly detained and interrogated, they added, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of retribution. Читать дальше...

American cable television channel MTV is launching drama series in Egypt and in India with storylines on female genital mutilation, child marriage and sex work with the aim of generating debate around issues often seen as taboo. Both series by the Viacom-owned youth entertainment broadcaster will feature soundtracks to appeal to young audiences and popular local actors who will be trained on the issues to help stimulate debates via social media. "We will be using gripping plots based on true... Читать дальше...

Myanmar pledged on Wednesday "no restrictions" on journalists visiting the troubled state of Rakhine this week, in the first official trip to include foreign reporters to mostly Rohingya Muslim villages affected by violence since October. Eighteen Myanmar nationals and foreigners representing international media, including Reuters, arrived in the state capital of Sittwe on Wednesday ahead of a government-escorted visit to the northern areas of Buthidaung and Maungdaw, where most residents are stateless Rohingyas. Читать дальше...

House Speaker Paul Ryan said a strong sanctions bill against Russia would come up for a vote soon, despite procedural delays and claims of partisan clashes on Capitol Hill. "I'm a Russia hawk. I believe in strong, bold Russian sanctions," Ryan told reporters Wednesday morning. The House Speaker said the bill had been delayed by procedural concerns, including technical changes to insure the Senate-passed version of the bill complied with the U.S. Constitution. But House Democrats announced they... Читать дальше...

U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has not announced a breakthrough or substantial progress after holding talks in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia with the ministers from four Arab nations that are locked in a stand-off with Qatar. On June 5, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Egypt severed diplomatic ties and instituted a land, air and sea blockade of Qatar. The Saudi-led group of Arab nations accuses Qatar of supporting terrorism and has given Doha a 13-point list of demands. Qatar has said it is willing to negotiate... Читать дальше...

Russian cyber security firm Kaspersky Lab, reacting to a U.S. government move restricting its activities, said on Wednesday it had fallen victim to U.S.-Russia global sparring while the Kremlin criticized the U.S. action as politically-motivated. The Trump administration on Tuesday removed the Moscow-based firm from two lists of approved vendors used by government agencies to purchase technology equipment, amid concerns its products could be used by the Kremlin to gain entry into U.S. networks. Читать дальше...

Kurdish fighters with the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces rescued dozens of civilians trapped in the besieged city of Raqqa as clashes intensified with Islamic State militants. More than 100 civilians were freed, said Habun Osman, an officer with the SDF, a coalition of Kurdish, Arabic and Turkmen fighters. “IS had been using these civilians as human shields to impede our progress in Raqqa,” he told local reporters. Among those freed in the past 24 hours was a Yazidi woman and 10-year-old... Читать дальше...

Shaka Ssali discusses the 29th African Union Summit with Emira Woods, Africans Rising for Justice Peace & Dignity, an international working group member and with Reath Muoch Tang, former South Sudanese Member of Parliament.

Yazidi female fighters are joining the ongoing operation to liberate Raqqa, the de facto "capital" of Islamic State. Fighting alongside the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), these fighters are resolved to fight the terror group that wreaked havoc on Yazidis in Iraq's Sinjar region in 2014. VOA's Mahmoud Bali reports.

A look at the best news photos from around the world.

The number of refugees allowed into the U.S. this fiscal year has exceeded 50,000, the cap set by President Donald Trump in his executive order restricting travelers and refugees to the U.S. As of mid-day Wednesday the total number of refugees admitted was 50,086. While the cap has been reached, the number of refugees will continue to grow because of the Supreme Court ruling that allows any refugee “who can credibly claim a bona fide relationship with a person or entity in the U.S.,” the Department... Читать дальше...

The Del Ray neighborhood in Alexandria, Virginia, touts itself as a place "Where Main Street Still Exists." Just across the Potomac River from the nation's capital, Del Ray is a place where kids ride bikes, people dine at small restaurants and families stroll about eating ice cream. But the peaceful, welcoming community was shaken and shocked one morning when hate signs targeting blacks, Muslims and other groups were discovered on trees and windshields. "That type of hatred and those negative... Читать дальше...

A herd of Holstein cows was airlifted to Qatar in an effort to increase local dairy supplies as the Saudi-led boycott of the emirate continues. The cows were flown in Tuesday from Budapest in a Qatar Airways cargo plane. It was the first of 60 flights that will bring more than 4,000 cows to the country. They are being imported by Mountaz Al Khayyat, chairman of Power International Holding. The Doha businessman, whose main field is construction, saw an opening in the dairy industry as several... Читать дальше...

A new report finds more than two billion people lack access to safe drinking water and more than twice that number or 4.5 billion people lack safe sanitation. The report by the World Health Organization and U.N. Children’s Fund is the first global assessment of water, sanitation and hygiene for the Sustainable Development Goals. The United Nations reports nearly 850,000 people die every year from lack of access to good water, sanitation and hygiene. This includes more than 360,000 children under... Читать дальше...

Police in Germany have arrested four suspects in connection with a $4 million gold coin heist earlier this year from Berlin's Bode Museum. Around 300 special police commandos took part in raids Wednesday morning in Berlin's Neukoelln area, but still did not find the missing coin. "We are at the moment conducting searches and executing arrest warrants in several places in Berlin concerning the break-in at the Bode museum in March," said Berlin police. The coin "was either cut into small pieces... Читать дальше...