UNITED NATIONS — The head of the United Nations agency that assists Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, warned Friday that the expected implementation later this month of Israeli legislation aimed at shuttering the agency would be “catastrophic” to humanitarian efforts in Gaza. “A chaotic dismantling of UNRWA will irreversibly harm the lives and future of the Palestinians,” said Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini. “I believe it will obliterate their trust …
VOA Persian: Iran intensifies repression of women, dissidents, minorities, says watchdog
Human Rights Watch, in its “World Report 2025,” warned of the worsening human rights situation in Iran. Citing evidence and reports, the organization highlights intensified repression of women and girls, a rise in executions, lack of fair trials, harassment of activists, students, journalists and justice-seeking families, as well as continued discrimination against the LGBTQ+ community by the Islamic Republic in 2024. Click here for the …
VOA Mandarin: Experts cast doubt on China’s 5% GDP increase in 2024
China reported 5% GDP growth in 2024, meeting its target. Analysts linked the growth to late-2023 stimulus measures and Q4 export surges but questioned the sustainability of strong consumer spending. Experts warn that economic growth may have peaked, with annual declines expected, potentially dropping to 2% by 2030. Click here for the full story in Mandarin. …
Taiwan faces decline in troop numbers, report reveals
TAIPEI, TAIWAN — Taiwan’s military has announced new recruitment and retention measures to help sustain troop levels, as the island faces continued threats from China amid a shrinking number of volunteer soldiers. According to Taiwan’s Central News Agency, the Ministry of National Defense unveiled measures Wednesday that call for pay raises for volunteer enlistees among other incentives. According to data from the Budget Center of Taiwan’s …
UK leader condemns ‘poison of antisemitism’ on Auschwitz visit
WARSAW, POLAND — British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Friday condemned what he called “the poison of antisemitism rising around the world” after a visit to Auschwitz-Birkenau, the former German Nazi concentration camp. His visit came as many international delegations are expected to attend the Jan. 27 ceremony commemorating 80 years since the Soviet Red Army liberated the death camp built in occupied Poland. King Charles …
US medic helps wounded Ukrainians during war
For nearly three years, a combat medic from California named Jennifer Mullee has been saving the lives of Ukrainian soldiers on the frontlines. Mullee decided to join the Ukrainian war effort following the death of a close friend. Anna Kosstutschenko has her story. Camera: Pavel Suhodolskiy …
Trump holds phone call with Xi Jinping ahead of inauguration
TAIPEI, TAIWAN — U.S. President-elect Donald Trump held a phone call with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday, just hours after China announced its plan to send Vice President Han Zheng to attend Trump’s inauguration ceremony on Monday. In a post on his social media platform “Truth Social,” Trump described the call as “a very good one” for the United States and China and said the …
Iranian president in Moscow for treaty signing with Putin
MOSCOW — Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian arrived in Moscow on Friday for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin and the signing of a strategic partnership treaty involving closer defense cooperation that is likely to worry the West. Pezeshkian, on his first Kremlin visit since winning the presidency last July, will hold talks with Putin focusing on bilateral ties and international issues before signing the treaty. Ahead …
VOA Russian: Soviet-born designer builds his first hypercar in California
Sasha Selipanov, a well-known car designer, was born in the Soviet Union but at 17 moved to the U.S. In California, he mastered the skill of designing high-end cars, creating vehicles for Lamborghini and Bugatti among others. He showed VOA Russian the concept of his first hypercar, which he is building in Los Angeles. Click here for the full story in Russian. …
VOA Russian: Moscow unhappy about Armenia’s partnership with US
As the U.S. and Armenia signed a strategic partnership agreement in Washington this week, experts say the Kremlin is slowly losing one of its few remaining allies. While Moscow says that Armenia’s distancing itself from Russia will bear consequences, the Armenian government is trying to steadily chart a pro-Western path. Click here for the full story in Russian. …
South Korea’s Yoon refuses questioning as deadline looms on detention
SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA — Impeached South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Friday again refused investigators’ efforts to question him over his failed martial law bid, as the deadline on his detention neared. Yoon threw the nation into chaos on Dec. 3 when he attempted to impose martial law, citing the need to combat threats from “anti-state elements.” But his bid lasted just six hours, as …
Chinese economic growth among slowest in decades
BEIJING — China recorded one of its slowest rates of economic growth in decades last year, data showed Friday, as leaders nervously eye a potential trade standoff with incoming U.S. President-elect Donald Trump. Beijing has in recent months announced its most aggressive support measures in years in a bid to reignite an economy that has suffered on multiple fronts, including a prolonged property market debt crisis …
Israel agrees to hostage deal with Hamas
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says a deal to return hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip has been reached, clearing a hurdle toward a ceasefire aimed at ending the 15-month war between the two sides. A statement released early Friday by the prime minister’s office said Netanyahu “was informed by the negotiating team that agreements have been reached on a deal to release …
Israelis, Palestinians both hopeful, skeptical about ceasefire deal
Hours after Qatar’s prime minister announced the first stage of an Israel-Hamas ceasefire, the talks hit a snag when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Hamas of backtracking on parts of the deal. Hamas denied the accusation. Linda Gradstein reports from Jerusalem. Camera: Ricki Rosen. …
Britain, Ukraine sign 100-year agreement
Britain and Ukraine signed a 100-year agreement Thursday, with Britain pledging to provide Ukraine with $3.6 billion in military aid this year. The deal was announced during a joint news conference in Kyiv, Ukraine, at the presidential palace where British Prime Minister Keir Starmer joined Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Starmer is on his first trip to Ukraine since he took office. Starmer called the agreement …
VOA Mandarin: Why India-China border dispute remains difficult to resolve
The chief of the Indian army this week said that India is not yet looking to reduce troops at the India-China border in the winter season. The comment comes days after both countries agreed on six principles to ensure peace and stability at the border in a meeting in Beijing. But analysts believe a lack of trust and differences in strategic objectives would make the …
Putting aside past tensions, Turkey’s Erdogan sees new Trump presidency as opportunity
With Donald Trump returning to the White House, analysts say Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sees an opportunity to rekindle what he calls his close working relationship with the president-elect. However, as Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul, the incoming Trump presidency poses risks as well as opportunities. …
Ukraine’s Zelenskyy seeking continued US support under Trump
As Russia’s war with Ukraine approaches the three-year mark in February, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is emphasizing his country’s hope for continued U.S. support under the incoming Trump administration. “We are waiting for the inauguration of the U.S. president. I think the whole world is waiting because the United States is a strategic partner in global stability,” Zelenskyy said this week during a joint press …
WHO appeals for $1.5 billion to tackle ‘unprecedented’ global health crisis
GENEVA — The World Health Organization appealed Thursday for $1.5 billion for emergency operations this year, warning that conflict, climate change, epidemics and displacement had converged to create an “unprecedented global health crisis.” The U.N. health agency estimated that health crises would leave 305 million people in need of urgent humanitarian assistance this year. “WHO is seeking $1.5 billion to support our lifesaving work for the …
Families mourn Ukrainian women killed in action since Russia’s invasion
Thousands of Ukrainian soldiers have died fighting since Russia invaded the country in February 2022, and some of them have been women. Tetiana Kukurika met with two families who lost loved ones in the war. Anna Rice narrates her story. VOA footage by Sergiy Rybchynski. Video editing by Vitaliy Hrychanyuk and Anna Rice. …
Russia exploits wildfires in Los Angeles to push anti-US, anti-Ukraine propaganda
In California, qualifying inmates volunteer as firefighters to assist in combating wildfires in Los Angeles. China uses forced labor involving arbitrarily detained Muslims in Xinjiang. …
China reports problems at 5 reservoirs in Tibet after earthquake
BEIJING — Chinese authorities in Tibet have detected problems, including cracks, at five out of 14 hydropower dams that they have inspected since a magnitude 6.8 earthquake rocked the southwest region last week, an emergency official said Thursday. Of the five affected dams, three have since been emptied, the Tibet emergency management official told a news conference. In the county of Tingri, the quake’s epicenter, the …
US experts question reason for probe of loudspeaker broadcasts into North Korea
A move by South Korean opposition leaders to launch an independent probe of embattled President Yoon Suk Yeol over Seoul’s use of loudspeaker broadcasts into North Korea is raising questions among some U.S. experts about the future direction of Seoul’s approach toward Pyongyang. Yoon, who was impeached and suspended from his duties last month for imposing emergency martial law on his unsuspecting country, was …
Netanyahu accuses Hamas of backtracking on Gaza ceasefire deal
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused Hamas of backtracking on parts of a Gaza ceasefire deal Thursday and said his Cabinet would not meet to give necessary approval to the agreement until the militant group accepts all of the elements. A statement from Netanyahu’s office said Hamas was trying to “extort last minute concessions.” The multiphase ceasefire, announced Wednesday after months of negotiations, was due …