Новости за 05.10.2017

The Texas congressional delegation asked Thursday for $19 billion to help the Lone Star State recover from Harvey, with both Republicans and Democrats teaming up behind a request to repair water projects and help homeowners and communities rebuild from the storm. The bipartisan request comes on top of President Donald Trump's request Wednesday for $29 billion for hurricane aid, pairing $13 billion for emergency hurricane response with a $16 billion cash infusion for the financially troubled federal flood insurance program. Читать дальше...

Congressional Republicans moved to hasten an overhaul of the U.S. tax code on Thursday, while Federal Reserve officials warned in rare public remarks that President Donald Trump's tax plan could lead to inflation and unsustainable federal debt. In a procedural step forward, the Republican-controlled House of Representatives approved by a 219-206 vote a fiscal 2018 spending blueprint to help them advance an eventual tax bill. The blueprint contains a legislative tool that would let Republicans... Читать дальше...

Spacewalking astronauts gave the International Space Station's big robot arm a new hand Thursday. Commander Randy Bresnik and Mark Vande Hei accomplished the job on the first of three NASA spacewalks planned over the next two weeks. "One down, two to go," Bresnik said as the seven-hour spacewalk came to a close. The pair will go back out Tuesday to lubricate the new arm attachment. The latching mechanism on one end of the 58-foot robot arm malfunctioned in August. It needed to be replaced before... Читать дальше...

Tropical Storm Nate unleashed intense rainfall across much of Central America on Thursday, leaving at least three dead in Costa Rica and several missing in neighboring Nicaragua, according to local officials. Exxon Mobil Corp said it is evacuating all staff from its Lena platform in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico ahead of Nate, which is expected to strengthen into a hurricane and make landfall on the Louisiana coast early Sunday. Nate was about 30 miles (48 km) northwest of Puerto Cabezas, Nicaragua... Читать дальше...

Human Rights Watch urged Uzbekistan on Thursday to stop new politically motivated arrests at a time when it has been freeing some prominent political prisoners, saying such a "revolving door" cast doubt on its announced reform drive. In less than two weeks, the Central Asian nation has released two dissidents imprisoned under the previous president, Islam Karimov, while detaining two others. The releases have been welcomed by the West, but the New York-based Human Rights Watch said the fresh... Читать дальше...

A new report has found that Washington's “swamp” of lobbyists appears to have expanded during President Donald Trump's short time in office, with scores of former campaign staffers, transition workers and even a brief administration official, parlaying their connections into “K street” cash. At least 44 registered federal lobbyists with ties to Trump or Vice President Mike Pence have collectively billed nearly $41.8 million, according to an analysis of federal lobbying disclosure filings through Aug. Читать дальше...

A recent report provides some surprises about which countries are gaining traction in the digital space and which are stalling. Researchers at the Fletcher School of International Affairs at Tufts University in Massachusetts looked at where digital is replacing "physical interactions," in communications, society and politics, commerce, media and entertainment. For example, instead of handing over paper currency to a human who locks it in a safe, we now make bank transfers with the swipe of a phone screen, regardless of location. Читать дальше...

The Pakistani army on Thursday confirmed that a plan was in place to try to integrate militant-linked groups into the mainstream of the country's politics. Milli Muslim League (MML), a new militant party controlled by Islamist Hafiz Saeed, backed a candidate in the September by-election for a seat vacated by ousted Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in the eastern city of Lahore. The United States has offered a $10 million bounty for Saeed's capture. Reuters reported last month that the foray into... Читать дальше...

A retired U.S. Army colonel and founder of a U.S.-based nonprofit Haitian diaspora organization has been indicted on charges that he tried to bribe foreign officials involved in an $84 million port project in Haiti. Joseph Baptiste, who has a dental practice in the Washington suburb of Silver Spring, Maryland, was charged Wednesday with six violations, including one count each of conspiracy and of money laundering. The indictment was filed in the northeastern state of Massachusetts. Baptiste... Читать дальше...

For every U.S. president, there comes a time to assume the role of the nation's comforter-in-chief, a leader who seeks to bring the country together and lift spirits in the midst of a national tragedy. President Donald Trump found himself in that situation this week, consoling survivors of the worst mass shooting in recent U.S. history and traveling to Puerto Rico to comfort those devastated by Hurricane Maria. The day after the tragedy in Las Vegas, Trump sounded a somber note at the White House... Читать дальше...

Bangladesh is building the world's largest refugee camp to house over half a million Rohingya who have fled Myanmar, officials said Thursday. Refugees who are currently scattered in 23 camps along the border will be transferred to one central camp in Cox's Bazaar, Mofazzal Hossain Chowdhury Maya, minister for disaster management and relief, said Thursday. Chowdhury said that all other camps would be closed after the transfer is complete. Meanwhile, the United Nations, which has praised Bangladesh... Читать дальше...

A group of bipartisan United States lawmakers wants to put strong new limitations on federal law enforcement agents’ ability to gather foreign intelligence within U.S. borders. The bill, which will be introduced Friday by members of the House Judiciary Committee, would require the FBI to obtain a warrant prior to reviewing emails and phone-call transcripts of Americans gathered by the National Security Agency. “The bill contains new accountability and transparency requirements to address the... Читать дальше...

U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan says a firearm accessory used by the gunman who killed 58 people and wounded hundreds of others in Las Vegas, Nevada, should be examined, possibly leading to Republican consideration of gun control legislation. "Clearly, that is something we need to look into," the Wisconsin Republican said Thursday in an interview with MSNBC's Hugh Hewitt. Shooter Stephen Paddock installed a device called a "bump stock" on 12 semiautomatic rifles in his hotel suite, which significantly... Читать дальше...

Women’s rights groups on Thursday denounced police raids on their offices in several Polish cities that resulted in the seizing of documents and computers, a day after women staged anti-government marches to protest the country’s restrictive abortion law. The raids took place Wednesday in the cities of Warsaw, Gdansk, Lodz and Zielona Gora. They targeted two organizations, the Women’s Rights Center and Baba, which help victims of domestic violence and which also participated in this week’s anti-government protests. Читать дальше...

The House on Thursday passed a $4.1 trillion budget plan that promises deep cuts to social programs while paving the way for a GOP drive to rewrite the tax code later this year. The 2018 House GOP budget reprises a controversial plan to turn Medicare into a voucher-like program for future retirees as well as the party's efforts to repeal the so-called Obamacare health law. Republicans controlling the chamber have no plans to actually implement those cuts while they pursue their tax overhaul. Instead... Читать дальше...

The teachers' strike in Cameroon’s two English-speaking regions is coming up on 11 months with no end in sight, though the government tells VOA that talks are ongoing. Thousands of teachers celebrated World Teachers’ Day Thursday in Cameroon’s capital. Twenty-six-year-old Ernestine Tabe left her school in the English-speaking town of Kumba last month to look for a job in Yaounde. She had been without salary for five months due to the ongoing strike. "I decided to come here in order to get myself involved in teaching... Читать дальше...

In South Africa, the race to watch is the competition to select the next head of the African National Congress. The new leader is selected at the ANC conference in December. Since the ANC has won every national election since white-only rule ended in South Africa in 1994, its next leader will be in a good position to replace current party chief Jacob Zuma as president when his second and final term ends in 2019. There are two top candidates: Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa, and Zuma's ex-wife Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma... Читать дальше...

The president of the Brazilian Olympic Committee was arrested Thursday amid an investigation into a vote-buying scheme to bring the Olympics to Rio de Janeiro. Carlos Nuzman, who is also an honorary International Olympic Committee member, was held for questioning last month by Brazilian and French authorities. They said he was a central figure in channeling at least $2 million to Lamine Diack, a former IOC member from Senegal who helped secure votes when Rio was picked in 2009 by the IOC. Brazilian... Читать дальше...

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro has visited Belarus, emphasizing plans to bolster military ties with the ex-Soviet nation. Speaking at the start of Thursday's talks with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Maduro said that "cooperation in the military sphere has been very successful and we need to expand it." Maduro didn't elaborate and details of military cooperation aren't immediately known. Lukashenko said that Belarus would like to develop cooperation with Venezuela in energy, agriculture and construction. Читать дальше...

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

A panel discussion examining the on-going barriers to Internet access for women in developing countries and the workplace challenges of women in the IT industry.

The International Committee of the Red Cross reports an alarming spike in military operations in parts of Syria in the past two weeks is causing high levels of civilian casualties and the destruction of vital civilian infrastructure. The ICRC says the recent escalation of fighting in Syria is resulting in the worst and most intense levels of violence since the battle for Eastern Aleppo in 2016. The Red Cross says the violence that has been going on in Raqqa, Deir Ezzor, and western rural Aleppo... Читать дальше...

Europe-based Russia experts are receiving news of Jon Huntsman's ambassadorship with a mix of skepticism and eager anticipation that strained ties between Washington and Moscow could improve during his tenure. The new U.S. ambassador to Russia presented his diplomatic credentials Tuesday to Russian President Vladimir Putin at a Kremlin ceremony, a move that marks the beginning of his appointment. Receiving Huntsman, Putin characterized the current state of bilateral relations as unsatisfactory... Читать дальше...

A U.N. peacekeeping mission has helped maintain order in Haiti through 13 years of political turmoil and catastrophe is coming to an end. The last of the blue-helmeted soldiers are leaving amid concerns that the police and justice system are still not adequate to ensure security in the country. U.N. troops reached a height of more than 10,000 in the aftermath of the devastating January 2010 earthquake. The mission does not officially end until October 15. There are about 100 international soldiers in who will leave within days. Читать дальше...

Spain’s Constitutional Court has ordered the suspension of a Catalonian special parliamentary session next week, during which regional leaders plan to vote to break away from Spain. A spokeswoman for the court said judges "ordered the suspension of the plenary that has been called for Monday in the [Catalan] parliament" as the constitutional court hears appeals against it. Catalonian lawyers have said the session would be illegal because it deals with the referendum vote over the weekend, which... Читать дальше...