Новости за 11.05.2024

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — A growing number of civilians and police officers are demanding the dismissal and arrest of Haiti's police chief as heavily armed gangs launched a new attack in the capital of Port-au-Prince, seizing control of yet another police station early Saturday.  Armed men raided the coastal community of Gressier in the western tip of Port-au-Prince late Friday, injuring people, burning cars and attacking homes and other infrastructure as scores of people fled into the nearby mountains following a barrage of gunfire overnight. Читать дальше...

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Iran's hard-liners won most of the remaining seats in an election runoff to give them full control over the country's parliament, authorities said Saturday, while not sharing any details on the turnout.  The result, and that of the previous vote in March, gives hard-liners 233 of the 290 seats in Iran's parliament, according to an Associated Press tally.  Hard-liners seek more cultural and social restrictions based on Islamic sharia, including demanding that women wear the Islamic veil in public. Читать дальше...

YAOUNDE, CAMEROON   — Chad says it has deployed combat-ready troops to stop armed attacks and maintain peace as the death toll increased to 12 people in post-election violence on Saturday. At least 90 people have sustained severe injuries in the capital, N'djamena.  Chad state TV reports that keeping and using war weapons and firearms is prohibited until further notice by the central African state's military. It noted the prohibition of weapons was imposed after 9 people were killed and upwards... Читать дальше...

Analysts say whichever candidate wins the 2024 U.S. presidential election will face the challenge of trying to restore the country's influence on the continent of Africa, home to more than 1.2 billion people. VOA White House correspondent Anita Powell reports from Washington.

MANILA, PHILIPPINES — The Philippines said Saturday it has deployed ships to a disputed area in the South China Sea, where it accused China of building "an artificial island" in an escalating maritime row.  The coast guard sent a ship "to monitor the supposed illegal activities of China, creating 'an artificial island,'" the office of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said in a statement, adding that two other vessels were in rotational deployment in the area.  Philippine coast guard spokesperson... Читать дальше...

MALMO, Sweden — The Netherlands' contestant in the Eurovision Song Contest was dramatically expelled from competition hours before Saturday's final of the pan-continental pop competition, which has been rattled by protests over the participation of Israel. Competition organizer European Broadcasting Union said Swedish police were investigating “a complaint made by a female member of the production crew” against Dutch performer Joost Klein. The organizer said it wouldn't be appropriate for Klein... Читать дальше...

PANAMA CITY — Panama is on the verge of a dramatic change to its immigration policy that could reverberate from the dense Darien jungle to the U.S. border. President-elect Jose Raul Mulino says he will shut down a migration route used by more than 500,000 people last year. Until now, Panama has helped speedily bus the migrants across its territory so they can continue their journey north. Whether Mulino can reduce migration through a sparsely populated region with little government presence is unknown, experts say. Читать дальше...

JOHANNESBURG — A man was rescued from the rubble five days after a deadly building collapse in South Africa in what Western Cape Premier Alan Winde said was "nothing short of a miracle." Officials said in a statement that of 81 people who were on site when the five-story building collapsed on Monday in the city of George, east of Cape Town, 13 were confirmed dead, 29 were alive and 39 were still unaccounted for. In a post on social media platform X, Winde said on Saturday the survivor had been... Читать дальше...

TORONTO — An evacuation alert has been issued for Fort McMurray, Alberta, as an out-of-control fire rages southwest of the Canadian oil town, making it among the first actions ahead of the wildfire season. In a notice late Friday night, the Alberta government said the wildfire danger is "extreme" in the Fort McMurray Forest Area. It said strong winds are expected Saturday, as a cold front continues to pass over the region. Residents in Saprea Creek Estates were also placed on alert from the municipality of Wood Buffalo. Читать дальше...

GENEVA — As Brazil’s heavily flooded southern state of Rio Grande do Sul braces for a weekend of intense rain, the U.N. refugee agency, UNHCR, is calling for greater support to help tens of thousands of refugees, who are among the most vulnerable people affected by the disaster. “Those affected include some 41,000 refugees and others in need of international protection, including many Venezuelans and Haitians who live in the affected areas — some of [whom] can only be reached by boat,” William Spindler... Читать дальше...

ISLAMABAD — The United Nations and Taliban authorities said Saturday that the death toll from flash floods following heavy seasonal rains in Afghanistan’s northern Baghlan province had risen to a least 300. The U.N. World Food Program said the flooding destroyed more than 1,000 houses. It said that “this has been one of many floods over the last few weeks due to unusually heavy rainfall.” A senior Taliban official said in a social media video message that Friday’s calamity had left at least 150... Читать дальше...

Rafah, Gaza Strip — In what could be a sign the Israeli military is preparing for a ground assault, Israel ordered more evacuations Saturday from Gaza's southern city of Rafah and surrounding area and told civilians there to seek refuge in al-Mawasi, a humanitarian zone northwest of Rafah. About 300,000 civilians so far have moved toward al-Mawasi, according to Israeli military estimates released Saturday. Some 110,000 people had fled Rafah as of Friday, amid fighting between Israeli forces and Hamas militants... Читать дальше...

BARCELONA, Spain — Carles Puigdemont, Catalonia's fugitive former leader, stares confidently out the backseat window of a car, the sun illuminating his gaze in a campaign poster for Sunday's critical elections in the northeastern Spanish region. The image plays on another one imagined from six years prior when Puigdemont hid in the trunk of a car as he was smuggled across the French border, fleeing Spain's crackdown on a failed illegal 2017 secession attempt that he had led as Catalan regional president. Читать дальше...

TEL AVIV, Israel — The head of the United Nations World Food Program says northern Gaza has entered "full-blown famine" after nearly seven months of war between Israel and Hamas. But a formal, and highly sensitive, famine declaration faces the complications of politics and of confirming how many people have died. Cindy McCain in an NBC interview broadcast Sunday said severe Israeli restrictions on humanitarian deliveries to the territory that has long relied on outside food assistance have pushed civilians in the most isolated... Читать дальше...

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — The Vodou faithful sing, their voices rising above the gunfire erupting miles away as frantic drumbeats drown out their troubles. They pause to swig rum out of small brown bottles, twirling in unison as they sing in Haitian Creole: "We don't care if they hate us, because they can't bury us." Shunned publicly by politicians and intellectuals for centuries, Vodou is transforming into a more powerful and accepted religion across Haiti, where its believers were once persecuted. Читать дальше...

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — Prices in Argentina have surged so dramatically in recent months that the government has multiplied the size of its biggest bank note in circulation by five — to 10,000 pesos, worth about $10. The central bank announcement Tuesday promised to lighten the load for many Argentines who must carry around giant bags — occasionally, suitcases — stuffed with cash for simple transactions. Argentina's annual inflation rate reached 287% in March, among the highest in the world. The new denomination note ... Читать дальше...

CANOAS, Brazil — A Brazilian horse nicknamed Caramelo by social media users garnered national attention after a television news helicopter filmed him stranded on a rooftop in southern Brazil, where massive floods have killed more than 100 people. About 24 hours after he was first spotted and with people clamoring for his rescue, a team in Brazil's Rio Grande do Sul state on Thursday successfully removed Caramelo, providing a dose of hope to a beleaguered region. The brown horse had been balancing... Читать дальше...

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina — At least 90 people were injured in Argentina's capital when a passenger train struck an empty boxcar on the tracks and derailed Friday, authorities said, a rare collision that fueled questions about basic safety. The train was on its way from Buenos Aires to the northern suburbs when it derailed around 10:30 a.m. on a bridge in the trendy neighborhood of Palermo, safety officials said. While it was not immediately clear why the idled boxcar had been on the bridge, Argentina's... Читать дальше...

WASHINGTON — Liam and Olivia have for a fifth year together topped the list of baby names for brand new boys and girls born in the U.S. in 2023. And Mateo joins the top 10 baby names list for the first time. The Social Security Administration annually tracks the names given to girls and boys in each state, with names dating back to 1880. The agency gathers the names from applications for Social Security cards. Based on cultural and population trends, the list shows how names can rise and fall in popularity. Читать дальше...

Chinese President Xi Jinping departed Hungary Friday after a five-day trip to Europe. Xi pledged to work with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in a new “multipolar world order.” As Henry Ridgwell reports, analysts say Xi wants to exploit the West's different approaches to Beijing.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken submitted a report to Congress criticizing Israel's conduct in Gaza. However, the report says Israel is not currently stopping aid into Gaza and stops short of saying it is using U.S. weapons in ways that violate U.S. or international law. The findings follow Washington’s suspension of a bomb shipment to Israel over concerns that the Israeli prime minister plans to expand military operations in Rafah. White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara has the story.

The UN says at a time when fragile humanitarian operations urgently require expansion, border closures in southern Gaza are further limiting the ability to reach thousands of people living in dire conditions. Ciarán Donnelly with the International Rescue Committee describes how even the limited operation Israel launched earlier this week has thrown humanitarian operations into crisis. Despite deep divisions and a rise in antisemitism incidents, Jewish donors raise unprecedented funds to feed people in Gaza. Читать дальше...