Новости за 16.05.2023

Wildlife conservationists in Kenya said the killing of 10 lions in the past week is reversing gains made in efforts to protect the big cats' dwindling population. In two separate incidents next to Kenya's Amboseli national park last week, herders speared stray lions to death after the animals strayed into villages and attacked livestock and a dog. Conservationists said the killings are a blow to efforts to protect the big cats. Kenya's game parks are home to an estimated 2,500 lions according to national data... Читать дальше...

Zimbabwe's central bank on May 8 launched a gold-backed digital currency it hopes will reduce the demand for US dollars and the devaluation of the Zimbabwe dollar.  But analysts say the government-controlled foreign-exchange market is fueling the problem.  Columbus Mavhunga reports from Harare, Zimbabwe. Camera: Blessing Chigwenhembe

Since the 2021 coup, Myanmar’s military has consolidated control over the country’s mobile service providers, putting activists, opposition members and journalists at greater risk of surveillance, according to experts. With the country’s four mobile service providers now either directly or indirectly linked to Myanmar’s military, sensitive user data is more easily accessible and could be used to persecute opposition voices, experts say. “The military in Myanmar has continued to oppress human... Читать дальше...

English soccer star Jimmy Fryatt was known for his ability to head the ball, and the proof of his prowess may be in the damage it did to his brain. Still physically fit in his late 70s, Fryatt played tennis but couldn't keep score or remember which side of the net he was supposed to be on. He lived in Las Vegas for almost 50 years but started to get lost while riding his bicycle in the neighborhood. "I had to put a tracker on him," his wife, Valerie, said this week. "I'd call him and say: 'Stop. Читать дальше...

The life sentence imposed by China on a 78-year-old U.S. citizen, who was also a Hong Kong permanent resident, on spying charges shows the city should "stay vigilant" to security risks, its leader said Tuesday. Chief Executive John Lee answered none of the lingering questions about why John Shing-Wan Leung was prosecuted. The sentence was announced Monday but neither the Hong Kong government nor the court in the eastern Chinese city of Suzhou that tried Leung have released details of the charges. Читать дальше...

Executions worldwide increased by 53% in 2022 from a year earlier, with a significant rise in Iran and Saudi Arabia, Amnesty International said in an annual report Tuesday that also criticized Indonesia as having one of the highest numbers of new death sentences in Asia.  Amnesty said 70% of the executions in the Middle East and North Africa were carried out in Iran, where their numbers rose by 83% from 314 in 2021 to 576 in 2022. The number of executions in Saudi Arabia tripled from 65 in 2021 to 196 in 2022. Читать дальше...

U.S. law enforcement officials on Tuesday announced a series of criminal cases exposing the relentless efforts by Russia, China and Iran to steal sensitive U.S. technologies.   The five cases, which spanned a wide range of protected U.S. technologies, were brought by a new “strike force” created earlier this year to deter foreign adversaries from obtaining advanced U.S. innovation. “These charges demonstrate the Justice Department’s commitment to preventing sensitive technology from falling into the hands of foreign adversaries... Читать дальше...

Russia has charged one of its citizens, a former employee of the U.S. diplomatic mission in Vladivostok for 25 years, with collaborating with the United States, an arrest the U.S. State Department condemned on Tuesday and said was "wholly without merit." Russian state news agencies identified the employee as Robert Shonov, 62. The U.S. said he had been employed by the U.S. Consulate General in the far eastern provincial city of Vladivostok until Moscow ordered the facility shut two years ago, forcing... Читать дальше...

The Supreme Court of Namibia has ruled in favor of recognizing same-sex marriages from other countries, making Namibia only the second nation on the continent to do so after South Africa. A small group of LGBTQ activists gathered at Namibia’s Supreme Court Tuesday where justices ruled in a 4 to 1 vote that Namibians married to foreign nationals in foreign jurisdictions must be recognized as any other couple within the country. One of the judges, JA Mainga, dissented on the basis that the laws... Читать дальше...

U.S. President Joe Biden, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and other top congressional leaders appeared no closer Tuesday to a deal aimed at reaching agreement on raising the country’s debt ceiling so the government can borrow more to pay its existing obligations.      The impasse comes amid dire warnings from the U.S. Treasury that a default could cause “worldwide panic” and “catastrophe,” and as Biden prepares to leave Wednesday for a summit in Japan with the world’s top seven economies.      The... Читать дальше...

U.S. President Joe Biden, House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and other top congressional leaders are meeting Tuesday at the White House in a new effort to reach agreement on raising the country's debt ceiling so the government can borrow more to pay its existing obligations.  Biden has insisted that Congress raise the current $31.4 trillion debt ceiling without conditions on future spending. McCarthy and congressional Republicans have called for substantial cuts in future government spending in exchange for raising the debt limit for a year. Читать дальше...

On April 15, Sudan’s capital turned into a battleground. But how did the country get to this point? VOA looks back at the critical years that led to the war between two top generals.

In Rabat, Morocco, a group of young film enthusiasts has created the Univers Ciné Plus, or UCP, an association that aims to get more young people interested in cinema and audiovisual production. Emmanuel Moadjidibaye has this story from Casablanca, Morocco, narrated by Salem Solomon. Video editing by Emmanuel Victoire Ngapela.

Researchers at the University of Southern California are using machine learning to analyze brain scans to better predict diseases associated with aging. For VOA, Genia Dulot has the story from Los Angeles. Camera: Genia Dulot

History reveals decades of strained diplomatic ties between the world's two largest economies. VOA looks back at more than 50 years of on-again, off-again relations.

The U.N. refugee agency, UNHCR, says that the number of people who fled from Sudan to Chad has doubled to 55,000 in the last week, and many are women and children. Henry Wilkins spoke to Sudanese refugees who just arrived at a newly created camp in Borota, Chad.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said Tuesday a badly needed batch of humanitarian supplies reached Port Sudan, as more violence was reported amid the conflict between Sudan’s army and a rival paramilitary group. The shipment included blankets, kitchen sets and mosquito nets for 500 families, the IFRC said in a statement. Another shipment was expected in the coming days containing medical supplies. “Most of our aid supplies were already distributed to people in need... Читать дальше...

A military standoff between India and China has entered its fourth year, but despite talks between their senior ministers and military commanders, there is no sign of a resolution to the dispute that has brought ties to their lowest point in six decades.     Analysts say the volatility along their 3,500-kilometer-long disputed boundary appears to be widening as a new flashpoint has emerged.       In December last year, soldiers from both sides scuffled in India’s northeastern state of Arunachal Pradesh – a territory also claimed by China. Читать дальше...

With Turkey’s weekend election inconclusive, the nation appears headed for a runoff. In Thailand, analyists say the Move Forward Party’s win is a strong rebuke of military-backed rule. And Pickleball is the fastest-growing sport in the United States, but not everyone loves it.

Striking members of the Writers Guild of America have said they will not picket next month's Tony Award telecast, clearing a thorny issue facing show organizers and opening the door for some sort of Broadway razzle-dazzle on TV.   The union last week denied a request by Tony organizers to have a waiver for their June 11 glitzy live telecast. It reiterated that in a statement late Monday, saying the guild “will not negotiate an interim agreement or a waiver for the Tony Awards.”  But the guild... Читать дальше...

An annual U.S. government report finds religious freedom under assault throughout the world, notably in what the State Department calls Countries of Particular Concern —China, Iran, Russia, Myanmar — among others. VOA State Department Bureau Chief Nike Ching has more.

The FBI lacked "actual evidence" to investigate Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign and relied too heavily on tips provided by Trump's political opponents to fuel the probe, U.S. Special Counsel John Durham concluded in a report released on Monday. The report marks the end of a four-year probe launched in May 2019 when then-Attorney General William Barr appointed Durham, a veteran prosecutor, to investigate potential missteps by the FBI when it launched its early stage "Crossfire Hurricane"... Читать дальше...

An 18-year-old gunman shot three people to death and wounded six others, including two police officers, in a northwestern New Mexico town on Monday before police shot him dead outside a church a short time later, police said.  The late-morning shooting unfolded in a residential area of Farmington, New Mexico, about 290 kilometers (180 miles) northwest of Albuquerque.  Police responded "to find a chaotic scene where a male subject was actively firing upon individuals in that neighborhood," Baric Crum... Читать дальше...

A former civilian employee at a U.S. Army facility in South Korea has been arrested on charges of receiving $400,000 in kickbacks from military contractors, federal prosecutors in Manhattan said Monday.  Young Beom Kim, 62, was responsible for overseeing construction contracts at the Army Garrison Yongsan-Casey from 2017 to 2021. Prosecutors said he made sure contracts for equipment such as blast doors designed to protect Army personnel from an attack went to companies that had paid him kickbacks. Читать дальше...

One of Guatemala's oldest news outlets, known for its investigations into government corruption, is ceasing operations Monday amid what it described as a campaign of government persecution.    ElPeriódico announced on Friday that it would cease operations in three days.   "With deep sadness, we are forced to stop the daily edition of elPeriódico," the directors said in a statement. "The persecution has intensified, as has the harassment of our advertisers."  The 27-year-old outlet laid off... Читать дальше...