Новости за 13.06.2023

It has been only a few weeks since Thailand’s historic elections, which saw opposition parties win a decisive victory, but already questions are being raised about whether the winners will ever have an opportunity to govern the country. For many Thais, the elections were seen as a gateway into a new political era and an end to several years of instability marked by military rule, civil unrest and economic downturns. Millions picked the orange-clad Move Forward Party, headed by Pita Limjaroenrat, to lead the next government. Читать дальше...

In its heyday, Hong Kong was the Hollywood of Asia, turning out stars such as Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, Chow Yun-Fat and recent Best Actress Oscar winner Michelle Yeoh. While the industry has seen a decline over the past two decades, Hong Kong is experiencing what some say is a film revival, despite stricter controls and censorship. For VOA, Cindy Sui reports from Hong Kong.

The death toll from a Kenyan starvation cult crossed 300 on Tuesday after authorities exhumed more bodies in a forest, in one of the worst cult-related tragedies in recent history. Authorities say the dead were members of the Good News International Church, led by Paul Mackenzie, who is accused of ordering his followers to starve themselves and their children to death so they could go to heaven before the end of the world. A total of 303 people have now died after 19 bodies were exhumed from... Читать дальше...

The United Nations expects close to one million people to flee Sudan by October, most of them to neighboring countries like the Central African Republic, Chad, Egypt, Ethiopia and South Sudan. But most of those nations have their own problems with people displaced by conflict who face food insecurity and instability. Henry Wilkins reports from Borota, Chad, on what Sudanese refugees will face in their host communities.

Sudan's warring factions are not taking advantage of talks facilitated by the United States and Saudi Arabia meant to yield a permanent ceasefire they originally agreed, a senior U.S. State Department official said on Tuesday. The United States is now consulting with Saudi Arabia and other partners, including in the Arab world and in Africa, about a path forward and hopes to announce a recommended approach in the next few days, the U.S. official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told reporters in Washington. Читать дальше...

The U.S. has used electronic surveillance programs to catch fentanyl smugglers and the hackers who temporarily shut down a major U.S. fuel pipeline, the White House said Tuesday as part of its push to have those programs renewed by Congress. Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act expires at the end of this year. President Joe Biden's administration is trying to convince Congress to renew the law, which authorizes spy agencies to capture huge swaths of foreign emails and phone calls. Читать дальше...

Blood banks in Cameroon are usually close to empty due to widely held taboos against blood donation. Officials in the central African country are trying to convince people to move past those beliefs amid an increased demand for blood and blood products in hospitals and on the front lines where soldiers are fighting separatists and Islamist militants. The effort comes ahead of World Blood Donor Day, observed on June 14.  Illustrating the shortages is the story of a woman who told nurses at the Yaounde... Читать дальше...

U.S. Olympic champion sprinter Tori Bowie died from complications of childbirth, according to an autopsy report.  Bowie, who won three medals at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Games, was found dead last month. She was 32.  The report from the office of the medical examiner in Orlando, Florida, said Bowie was estimated to be eight months pregnant and showing signs of undergoing labor when she was discovered dead on May 2. It said she was found in bed in a "secured residence" with possible complications including respiratory distress and eclampsia. Читать дальше...

The Zimbabwe African National Union- Patriotic Front or ZANU-PF has ruled the country for 43 years. But the opposition party thinks the nation’s poor economy might give it an opportunity to make gains in the country’s upcoming elections. Columbus Mavhunga has this report from Zimbabwe's capital, Harare. Camera: Blessing Chigwenhembe

After colleges went online during the pandemic, professors reported “stunning levels of student disengagement.” Now, many schools are walking back those policies and no longer offer coursework online. While this is welcome for many students, others with disabilities and chronic illnesses argue that Zoom is the only safe way for them to attend. Julian Roberts-Grmela of the Chronicle of Higher Education has more. (June 2023)

Consumer prices in the United States cooled last month, rising just 0.1% from April to May and extending the past year's steady easing of inflation. At the same time, some measures of underlying price pressures remained high. Measured year over year, inflation slowed to just 4% in May — the lowest 12-month figure in over two years and well below April's 4.9% annual rise. The pullback was driven by tumbling gas prices, a much smaller rise in grocery prices than in previous months and less expensive furniture, air fares and appliances. Читать дальше...

Kosovo's prime minister on Tuesday presented a plan to defuse tensions in its Serb-majority north that would include fresh local elections and cuts in special police, bowing to pressure from key Western supporters of its independence. Kosovo police meanwhile said they arrested a Serb identified by Pristina as an organizer of attacks on NATO peacekeepers who deployed in the north last month amid violent Serb unrest over the installation of ethnic Albanian mayors in their area. During the operation to arrest Milun Milenkovic... Читать дальше...

The US Department of Homeland Security is looking at how artificial intelligence can be used to help identify goods made with child or forced labor and to prevent them from entering the country. VOA’s Julie Taboh has more. Camera: Adam Greenbaum

For many American children, running a lemonade stand during the hot summer months serves as their first venture into the world of business. Two sisters from Seattle took the idea to a whole new level. VOA Correspondent Natasha Mozgovaya has their story.

Muslim migrants on the U.S.-Mexico border have a safe place in Tijuana at a shelter with halal food, separate areas for men and women, and prayers five times a day. Genia Dulot has our story. Video editor: Barry Unger.

Journalism — once a popular career path for young Afghan men and women — is losing its appeal for new students as the Taliban ban women from higher education and the country’s media work in an increasingly restrictive environment. For VOA, Shaista Sadat Lami has the story.

Officials in Pakistan said Tuesday that "precautionary evacuations" were underway to move thousands of people out of the path of a "very severe cyclonic storm" approaching over the northeast Arabian Sea. The tropical cyclone named Biparjoy, is about 470 kilometers south of the port city of Karachi and 460 kilometers south of Thatta district. The Pakistani meteorological department said that Biparjoy was traveling with maximum sustained winds of up to 150 kilometers per hour and gusts up to 170 kilometers per hour... Читать дальше...

A "final Beatles record", created with the help of artificial intelligence, will be released later this year, Paul McCartney told the BBC in an interview broadcast on Tuesday. "It was a demo that John (Lennon) had, and that we worked on, and we just finished it up," said McCartney, who turns 81 next week. The Beatles -- Lennon, McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr -- split in 1970, with each going on to have solo careers, but they never reunited. Lennon was shot dead in New York in 1980... Читать дальше...

India threatened to shut Twitter down unless it complied with orders to restrict accounts critical of the government's handling of farmer protests, co-founder Jack Dorsey said, an accusation Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government called an "outright lie." Dorsey, who quit as Twitter CEO in 2021, said on Monday that India also threatened the company with raids on employees if it did not comply with government requests to take down certain posts. "It manifested in ways such as: 'We will shut Twitter down in India'... Читать дальше...

Australia’s national science agency Tuesday unveiled a new blueprint to ensure the nation’s food supply is secure and resilient. The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization has said the sector faces serious challenges, including climate change and disruptions to supply chains. More than 70% of Australia’s agricultural production is exported overseas, according to government data, helping to feed an estimated 70 million people around the world and at home. It makes Australia a key global food producer. Читать дальше...

Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi said during a visit to Venezuela on Monday that the two countries have “common interests and we have common enemies.”  Raisi, who met with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, said Iran and Venezuela want to boost trade from about $3 billion per year to $20 billion a year.  Both countries are under heavy U.S. sanctions.  The two sides signed a number of agreements Monday, including expanding cooperation in petrochemicals and mining.  Raisi is on a tour of allies... Читать дальше...

The U.S. military said Monday a "helicopter mishap" in northeastern Syria injured 22 service members.  U.S. Central Command said in a statement there was no enemy fire reported and the cause of the incident was under investigation.  It said 10 of those injured were taken for treatment at higher-care facilities outside of the region overseen by CENTCOM, which stretches from Egypt to Kazakhstan.  The United States has about 900 troops in Syria as part of a mission to advise and assist partners in the fight against the Islamic State group. Читать дальше...

Cambodia has thrown a diplomatic wrench in ASEAN plans for joint military drills in the contested South China Sea, in the latest test of Prime Minister Hun Sen's balancing act between the regional bloc and Beijing. Indonesia's military commander, Admiral Yudo Margono, announced on Thursday that his regional counterparts had agreed on first-ever joint military drills in September. Margono said the drills would focus on strengthening "ASEAN centrality," while an Indonesian military spokesman cited the "high risk of disaster in Asia... Читать дальше...

Former President Donald Trump arrived at his golf club outside Miami on Monday ahead of his arraignment on charges stemming from his alleged mishandling of classified national security documents after he left the White House in 2021. The arraignment, set for 3 p.m. (EDT) on Tuesday, will take place under heavy security in a federal courtroom in downtown Miami. Federal authorities have beefed up security around the court building, and Miami officials say they're prepared to prevent violence from Trump supporters and counterprotesters. Читать дальше...

Italy's former prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi, has died. Preparations are underway in Florida ahead of former President Donald Trump’s arraignment. And more than half of youths engaged in child labor are involved in work that poses a danger to their health.