Новости за 25.07.2017

The United Nations accused "elements" of the Congolese army on Tuesday of digging most of the mass graves it has identified in the insurrection-ravaged Kasai region of central Democratic Republic of Congo. The report by the U.N. Joint Human Rights Office in Congo (UNJHRO) is the first time the United Nations has directly suggested that government forces dug the graves. Congo's human rights minister was not immediately available for comment but the government has repeatedly denied its troops were... Читать дальше...

About 1,000 landless peasant families invaded a farm belonging to a firm owned by the family of Brazilian Agriculture Minister Blairo Maggi on Tuesday, according to a statement from the group backing the occupation. The landless peasant movement, known as MST, said in a statement on its website that the occupation began early Tuesday morning on a farm 210 kilometers (131 miles) from Cuiabá, capital of Mato Grosso state. The group said the property belongs to Amaggi SA. Mato Grosso is Maggi's... Читать дальше...

An obviously angry President Donald Trump is keeping up his Twitter offensive against perceived enemies, including a fierce attack against his own attorney general, prompting condemnation from even Republican Party leaders and usually loyal conservative media outlets.     A day after raising eyebrows with a description of Attorney General Jeff Sessions as "beleaguered," Trump went several steps further Tuesday, leaving little doubt he wanted Sessions to resign.   Over the past months... Читать дальше...

Silicon Valley baron Elon Musk insulted rival billionaire Mark Zuckerberg on Tuesday, escalating a tech wizard war of words over whether robots will become smart enough to kill their human creators. "His understanding of the subject is limited," Musk said in a tweet about the Facebook founder whose algorithms and other technology revolutionized social media and won 2 billion monthly active users. Previously, Zuckerberg was asked about Musk's views on the dangers of robots. In his response, Zuckerberg... Читать дальше...

With U.S. lawmakers expected to finalize new sanctions on Russia this week, former NATO Supreme Commander James Stavridis told VOA that would be a positive move, since he believes President Donald Trump's administration has taken too weak a stance on Russia. In an interview Tuesday with VOA's Jela De Franceschi, Stavridis, now dean of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, said additional sanctions on Russia would be "appropriate, measured and make enormous sense, given the... Читать дальше...

In Poland's most-watched political satire, the president is mocked as a marginal and pitiful figure. He waits endlessly outside the office of the country's powerful ruling party chairman, who can never be bothered to see him, the chairman's secretary not even aware of the president's position or real name. The writers of the hit series “The Chairman's Ear” will now have to change their script. This week President Andrzej Duda took the country by surprise by vetoing two of three contentious laws... Читать дальше...

Swiss police on Tuesday arrested a 50-year-old man a day after he stormed into an insurance office wielding a chainsaw and wounded two staff members, bringing an end to a two-day manhunt that had also involved German police. Zurich cantonal place said in a statement that they had arrested the suspect in Thalwil, a town about 60 kilometers from Schaffhausen where the incident took place. Police had identified the suspect as Franz Wrousis, a drifter with a criminal record who mostly lived in the woods. Читать дальше...

Macedonia's defense minister reaffirmed her government's commitment to joining NATO and the European Union, saying in an interview that the nation's new government fully understands that success or failure is in its own hands. "Nobody will bring it to us," Defense Minister Radmila Sekerinska told VOA's Macedonian service. "We need to work toward it, to be accountable for the progress. And the international community's support will follow." In office since May 31, the government of Prime Minister... Читать дальше...

Nigeria's acting president will meet again with community leaders from the Niger Delta oil heartlands next week, his spokesman said Tuesday, in a bid to shore up a fragile truce between militants and the government there. With Africa's biggest economy mired in recession, delegations including Acting President Yemi Osinbajo have held talks since late last year with leaders in the oil-producing states in the southeast. But the local leaders have said the efforts to secure peace are empty promises... Читать дальше...

Barbara Sinatra, the fourth wife of legendary singer Frank Sinatra and a prominent children's advocate and philanthropist who raised millions of dollars to help abused children, died Tuesday at 90. Sinatra died of natural causes at her Rancho Mirage, California, home surrounded by family and friends, said John Thoresen, director of the Barbara Sinatra Children's Center. With her husband's help, Barbara Sinatra founded a nonprofit center in 1986 to provide therapy and other support to young victims of physical, sexual and emotional abuse. Читать дальше...

Historians generally agree that Josef Stalin was a dictator who killed and terrorized millions of people through a repressive police state. However among Russians, there are signs that people are starting to see him more as an "effective manager" and a symbol of Soviet-Russian power. According to a poll by the state-backed VTsIOM polling agency, the results of which were published on July 20, "more than half of Russians (62 percent) agree with the view that plaques, busts, [and] paintings that... Читать дальше...

Greece successfully sold debt to private investors for the first time in three years Tuesday, taking a significant first step toward financial independence when its third international bailout ends next year. The deal came a month after eurozone finance ministers signed off on a new loan and sketched out measures to chip away at Greece's debt mountain after the current bailout finishes in August 2018. Greek Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos hailed the successful sale, saying it was "a beginning"... Читать дальше...

Venezuelan intelligence officials arrested two more judges appointed by the opposition-run parliament that is in defiance of President Nicolas Maduro's government Tuesday. Jesus Rojas Torres and Zuleima Gonzalez were the second and third opposition-appointed judges arrested by Maduro's government. Judge Angel Zerpa was arrested Saturday. Maduro had threatened to arrest the judges in a televised speech over the weekend, during which he also verbally attacked U.S. President Donald Trump and several... Читать дальше...

Colombia's ELN rebel group said on Tuesday it had proposed a three-month cease-fire to the government during peace talks in Ecuador, where the two sides are negotiating an end to more than a half century of war. The National Liberation Army (ELN) and the administration of President Juan Manuel Santos, which started formal talks in February, began a fresh cycle of negotiations this week. Both sides say they want to work toward a cease-fire. "This would be a starting bilateral cease-fire, it's not the end of the conflict... Читать дальше...

Hundreds of firefighters in the Riviera region of southern France and on the island of Corsica battled wind-whipped blazes Tuesday that have left first responders injured. Eight firefighters and some 15 police officers have been hurt in the fires that broke out Monday and have consumed nearly 4,000 hectares (9880 acres) of vegetation, according to French authorities. The French civil security authority has asked the European Union for help and to provide two Canadair planes to contain and extinguish the wildfire. Читать дальше...

The U.S. Senate Tuesday approved a motion to open debate on a Republican initiative to overhaul the health care system put in place under former President Barack Obama. The motion passed 51-50, the tie-breaking vote cast by Vice President Mike Pence. "We don't have to accept it any longer," Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said of the current health care law, the Affordable Care Act, on the Senate floor moments before the procedural vote. McConnell is leading the push to move away from the Affordable Care Act... Читать дальше...

Backstreet Boys got their first hit country song this year on a collaboration with country duo Florida Georgia and now the two powerhouse acts are teaming up for a “CMT Crossroads” episode airing Aug. 30. The cross-genre television show will feature all-star group performances of each other's biggest singles, including “I Want It That Way,” “As Long As You Love Me,” “Cruise” and “H.O.L.Y.” as well as their partnership on the platinum hit “God, Your Momma, and Me.” The two groups are popping up together a lot this year. Читать дальше...

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

After days of enduring pointed criticism from President Donald Trump and calls from Congressional Democrats to testify over his contacts with Russian officials, Attorney General Jeff Sessions' former colleagues in the Senate came to his defense on Tuesday. Senator Lindsey Graham, a prominent Republican member of the Senate Judiciary Committee and former presidential candidate, and Richard Shelby, another Senator from Sessions' home state of Alabama, took to Twitter to refute Trump's latest censure of his embattled attorney general. Читать дальше...

The Boy Scouts of America is distancing itself from U.S. political disputes after President Donald Trump gave a controversial speech to thousands of scouts at their national encampment. “The Boy Scouts of America is wholly non-partisan and does not promote any one position, product, service, political candidate or philosophy,” the group said Tuesday. “The invitation for the U.S. President to visit the National Jamboree is a long-standing tradition and is in no way an endorsement of any political... Читать дальше...

Eight siblings who grew up in southwestern Indiana have amassed nearly 450 years of combined marriage.   Bruce Clinkenbeard of Freelandville, Indiana, and his wife Sally have been married for 53 years, but that's just the tip of the Clinkenbeard family's matrimonial iceberg.   Bruce and his seven siblings have together racked up a combined 448 years of marriage, and counting. Seven of the eight siblings either have been or were married for more than a half-century. That includes a sister who died in 2013 after 63 years of matrimony. Читать дальше...

Katinka Hosszu has a case full of medals. She wants so much more. From marketing marvel to ambitious businesswoman to fledgling union organizer, the Hungarian swimmer known as the "Iron Lady" knows how to make a splash - in and out of the pool. Along with American star Katie Ledecky, Hosszu is perhaps the biggest name at the world championships this week, the home-country favorite whose face seemingly appears on every billboard around Budapest, whose every appearance at Duna Arena is accompanied by foot-stomping, flag-waving euphoria. Читать дальше...

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has criticized Israel for security measures at the al-Aqsa Mosque, also known as the Temple Mount, in Jerusalem. Rising tensions over the mosque could threaten attempts at rapprochement between Israel and Turkey. Erdogan chose his weekly address to his parliamentary deputies to launch a strong attack on Israel for the introduction of security measures to access the al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem, the third holiest site for Muslims. Erdogan said Israel's legitimacy... Читать дальше...

We encountered the first floes around Point Barrow, the northernmost tip of Alaska. Much of it was already rotten, as our ice navigator David "Duke" Snider explained. The ice was fraying at the edges. Some of it was covered in sand and dirt from crashing against the coast, while larger floes had pools of turquoise meltwater on top. A trained eye can tell how old the ice is and where it is likely to have come from. So-called first-year ice formed during the last winter. It is typically between... Читать дальше...

President Donald Trump surveyed the crowd of thousands of Boy Scouts at their summit Monday and assessed, “There's a lot of love in this big, beautiful place. And a lot of love for our country.” He singled out for affection West Virginia, a state that gave him his largest margin of victory in November. “What we did, in all fairness, is an unbelievable tribute to you and all of the other millions and millions of people that came out and voted to make America great again,” he said as chants of “USA!” broke out among the Scouts... Читать дальше...