Новости за 24.12.2017

Turkey dismissed more than 2,700 employees from its public service sector Sunday - the latest firings in a widescale crackdown since a failed military coup in July 2016. A total of 2,756 people, including academics, soldiers, and military personnel were dismissed on Sunday, accused of links to what Ankara has labeled as terror groups, according to the Official Gazette. In a separate emergency decree Sunday, Turkey the country's defense procurement agency was ordered to report to President Recep... Читать дальше...

The number of migrants crossing the Mediterranean to Europe continued to fall last month, and the European Union says its policies to ease the crisis are working.  On the so-called central Mediterranean route from North Africa, arrivals were down by a third. And Europe claimed success in slowing the arrival of migrants.  But Amnesty International claims the bloc’s collaboration with Libyan groups involved in the detention of migrants makes it complicit in gross human rights abuses. Maria... Читать дальше...

An Iranian official says Saudi Arabia should know that if Iranian missiles were used in the Yemen conflict, the outcome of the war would be totally different, as Tehran continues to push back against allegations that it is arming Houthi rebels. "We have announced repeatedly that the Yemeni army and people have the support of Iran. However, we have also made it clear that we have not given any missiles to Yemenis," said Hossein Naqavi Hosseini, the spokesman for the Iranian Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission... Читать дальше...

An Iranian official says Saudi Arabia should know that if Iranian missiles were used in the Yemen conflict, the outcome of the war would be totally different, as Tehran continues to push back against allegations that it is arming Houthi rebels. "We have announced repeatedly that the Yemeni army and people have the support of Iran. However, we have also made it clear that we have not given any missiles to Yemenis," said Hossein Naqavi Hosseini, the spokesman for the Iranian Parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission... Читать дальше...

Spain is trying to turn back a growing wave of African migrants who seek to enter the country through its southern coast or its small enclaves in North Africa. About 800 migrants rushed the border fence in the enclave of Ceuta on Friday. At least 30 managed to climb over the seven-meter-high fence according to Spanish police, who turned back hundreds more with help from Moroccan riot police. Ceuta and another city along the Moroccan coast, Melilla, have been Spanish possessions since the 1500s. Читать дальше...

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

For the first time in the more than three years since Islamic State militants took over vast swaths of Iraq and Syria, Iraqi Christians have gone to church to celebrate Christmas in Mosul — a former militant stronghold. Worshipers and Muslim activists say they are hoping the holidays may bring some healing. During the time Islamic State militants ruled Mosul, this church was a prison. Today, worshipers celebrate Christmas here for the first time since Islamic State militants took over the city in 2014... Читать дальше...

Venezuela's leftist government released the first of 80 prisoners promised to be freed Sunday, in a rare goodwill gesture to the opposition. Reuters reported that 36 of the 80 were released Sunday. President Nicolas Maduro's government announced Saturday that it would release at least 80 people who were detained after participating in anti-government demonstrations. The prisoners were being released one at a time. Rights groups say the government is holding as many 268 political prisoners. Читать дальше...

Turkey is working with Russia to evacuate around 500 people from the besieged Damascus suburb of eastern Ghouta, Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Sunday. "There are around 500 people, including 170 children and women who need urgent humanitarian aid," Erdogan said ahead of his departure on an official visit to Sudan. He said he had discussed the issue with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin. Ankara aimed to bring people in need of assistance to Turkey to provide treatment and care. ... Читать дальше...

South Sudan's armed opposition on Sunday accused government troops of violating a cease-fire just hours after it came into effect. A statement by opposition spokesman Lam Paul Gabriel said government troops have been "bombarding" opposition positions in Yei county and launched an attack in Koch county Sunday morning that opposition forces "repulsed." Gabriel said government troops also were en route to launch another attack in the Wau area. "It is a matter of time before they reach our positions," he said. Читать дальше...

The World Health Organization reports the number of cholera cases in war-torn Yemen has decreased significantly. But the U.N. agency warns the epidemic is far from over and more efforts are needed to contain the disease and prevent future outbreaks. The World Health Organization says cholera cases in Yemen have topped one million over the last 14 months, confirming this as the worst cholera epidemic in history. While this is a huge number of infections, WHO spokesman Tarik Jasarevic says the death toll of 2,227 is very low. Читать дальше...

Palestinian boy and girl scouts kicked off Christmas celebrations in Bethlehem on Sunday with a colorful march through Manger Square. Playing drums and bagpipes, they paraded past a giant Christmas tree outside the ancient Church of the Nativity, the traditional birthplace of Jesus. But religion mixed heavily with politics in this little West Bank town, which is ruled by the internationally-backed Palestinian Authority.  Two big signs in Manger Square declared that “Jerusalem will always be the... Читать дальше...

Amazon's diligent, computerized know-it-all is the latest technology to enlist in NORAD Tracks Santa, the military-run program that fields phone calls and emails from children around the world eager to ask when Santa will arrive. Now entering its 62nd year, NORAD Tracks Santa will go live Sunday, with about 1,500 volunteers answering calls and emails at Peterson Air Force Base in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Updates will be posted on social media and at www.noradsanta.org. And if you have Amazon's voice-activated Echo device... Читать дальше...

The U.N. refugee agency is urging Greek authorities to speedily transfer thousands of refugees and migrants living under grim conditions on Greek islands to the mainland where they can receive better care. The agency acknowledges that about 6,000 asylum seekers have been moved to the mainland since mid-October. But, it notes, that still leaves some 10,000 living in crammed, sub-standard conditions in government-run facilities on the islands of Lesvos, Chios and Samos. The agency says people... Читать дальше...

Hundreds of Nigerian refugees who have fled the Boko Haram insurgency to the Minawao camp in northern Cameroon, now have the potential to become professional models after they were trained by the United Nations to be self-reliant and useful to themselves and their communities if they accept to voluntarily return. A majority of the carpenters and seamstresses are mothers. Twenty-nine-year old Naomi Haman cuts wood with a hand saw to make a bench for the Minawao refugee camp school. The refugee who has been in the camp for two years... Читать дальше...

A six-nation parliamentary conference has begun in Pakistan to debate challenges of terrorism and inter-regional connectivity. House speakers of Pakistan, China, Russia, Turkey, Afghanistan and Iran are leading their respective delegations at the event underway amid tight security in the national capital. The chairman of the Pakistani Senate, upper house of parliament, used the high-profile conference to denounce what he called U.S. President Donald Trump's policy of blaming Pakistan for failures of the United States in Afghanistan. Читать дальше...

A federal judge ruled Saturday that the U.S. military must provide legal counsel to an American citizen who was picked up months ago on the Syrian battlefield and accused of fighting with Islamic State militants. The unidentified American, who has not been charged, surrendered to U.S.-backed fighters in Syria around Sept. 12 and is being held in Iraq as an unlawful enemy combatant. The American Civil Liberties Union filed a court petition challenging his detention and asking to act on his behalf to provide him access to legal counsel. Читать дальше...

The U.S.-based research company hit by a fire in the Philippine city of Davao Saturday now confirms that 37 employees "were lost" in the blaze. In an press release, Research Now SSI, says it employs 500 people in its local call center operation, and is offering counseling to workers and condolences and prayers to the families of the victims.   The mayor of the southern Philippines city says fire fighters recovered a body Sunday from a mall fire and have also determined that there is no chance... Читать дальше...

Philippine firefighters recovered one body from a burning shopping mall Sunday and there was zero chances of survival for 36 other trapped people inside the four-story building in southern Davao city, an official said.   Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio said firefighters told distraught relatives of the 36 trapped employees of a business outsourcing company at the top floor of the NCCC Mall that nobody could survive the extreme heat and thick black smoke.    “They were told that the chances of survival are zero,” she said... Читать дальше...

One of the deadliest storms to hit the Philippines this year blew out of the country’s south Sunday after leaving more than 120 people dead and 160 missing in landslides and flash floods. Tropical Storm Tembin strengthened into a typhoon before moving into the South China Sea. Most of the dead and missing were reported in the hard-hit provinces of Lanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur and on the Zamboanga Peninsula. Intense rainfall in the mountains most likely caused landslides that blocked rainwater... Читать дальше...

Rescuers continued to search for survivors of a storm that ravaged the Philippines this week as the death toll neared 200. Rescue missions were slowed as rains continued and bridges and roads on the island of Mindanao were destroyed or blocked by landslides that followed Tropical Storm Tembin. Disaster officials said over 70,000 people had been forced from their homes in the southern Philippines following the storm. Officials say that many residents did not heed warnings to evacuate and were later surprised by the strength of the storm. Читать дальше...

In 2017, China's Xi Jinping rose to become the country's most powerful leader in decades. And as he shoulders more responsibility, analysts say the government in Beijing is likely to take more risks in 2018 at home and overseas, even as it deals with economic challenges at home, a nuclear North Korea and the looming threat of trade tensions with the United States. VOA's Bill Ide has this report.

In his newly unveiled National Security Strategy, U.S. President Donald Trump vows to “ensure the balance of power remains in America’s favor in key regions of the world.”  The Indo-Pacific led the list of “key regions” identified by the White House, followed by Europe and the Middle East. How Washington will accomplish this strategic goal is being closely watched, as China, identified as a rival, shows no sign of lessening its interest in a region that is witnessing dramatic power shifts. ... Читать дальше...

The role of religion in the formation and development of the United States is at the heart of an exhibition at the National Museum of American History in Washington. The exhibition, which runs until June 2018, explores the themes of religious diversity, freedom and growth from America's colonial era through the 1840s. VOA's Nikoleta Ilic spoke with the curator, Peter Manseau, and filed this report.

A group that helps young residents of the inner city develop job skills is sharing the holiday spirit with the young people who are turning their lives around. Mike O'Sullivan has more from Los Angeles.