China

Moorhead, Minnesota, is home to more than 3,000 Kurds, some of whom have been there since the mid-1970s. They are the town’s largest minority group and hope this election might bring them representation in local government. Dakhil Shammo of VOA’s Kurdish service went to Minnesota and met with two local candidates in this story narrated by Amy Katz. …

Gaza, Gaza Strip — Forty-seven Palestinians were killed and dozens injured, most of them children and women, in overnight Israeli bombardment of the the central Gaza Strip, the Palestinian news agency WAFA reported Friday. The attacks occurred in the city of Deir Al-Balah, the Nuseirat camp and the town of Al-Zawayda, it said.  The Israeli military said its troops had identified and eliminated “several armed terrorists” …

After nearly a year’s deadlock, Iraq’s parliament elected a new speaker Thursday. Prominent Sunni lawmaker Mahmoud al-Mashhadani, who served as parliament’s speaker from 2006 to 2009, was elected by 182 of the 269 politicians in attendance. Iraq’s parliament has been without a speaker since last November, following a ruling of the Federal Supreme Court in a case that involved then-speaker Mohammed al-Halbousi, the country’s most …

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea on Friday bragged about its recently tested new intercontinental ballistic missile, calling it “the world’s strongest.” Outside experts saw the claim as propaganda, though the test did show  advancement in the North’s quest to build a more reliable weapons arsenal.  A missile that North Korea launched Thursday flew higher and stayed in the air longer than any other weapon the …

Paekon Township, Myanmar / WASHINGTON — In a crowded church filled with mourners on September 6, a young high school teacher sat among friends, her face streaked with tears as she gazed at the makeshift shrouds covering the small bodies laid out before her. Among them were her students — children she had taught, known and cared for deeply. “I couldn’t recognize some of them,” she …

Germany will close three Iranian consulates in response to Iran’s announcement of the execution of Jamshid Sharmahd, a German Iranian national and a U.S. resident, earlier this week. “We have repeatedly and unequivocally made it clear to Tehran that the execution of a German citizen will have serious consequences,” German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said Thursday in announcing the closure of the consulates in Frankfurt, …

bangkok — A recent attack on a Chinese consulate in Myanmar reflects growing anti-Chinese sentiment in the country fed by Beijing’s support of the ruling junta, experts say.  On October 18, the Chinese consulate in Mandalay, Myanmar’s second-largest city, was struck by a small explosive device. Reports say the building was damaged but there were no casualties.  It was the first attack was on a Chinese …

Recent attempts by Iran to establish deterrence through direct strikes on Israel have mainly failed, according to analysts, leaving the Islamic Republic more vulnerable to its prime foe. Israel’s recent retaliatory airstrikes on Iran are said to have dismantled all of Iran’s S-300 defense missile system. The strikes came in response to Iran’s October 1 ballistic missile attacks against Israel. Iran says it is still …

Islamabad — Pakistan pushed back Thursday against China’s criticism of the safety of Chinese personnel in the country, calling the comments “perplexing” and contrary to established diplomatic traditions between the neighbors. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mumtaz Baloch said at a weekly news conference in Islamabad that the government is dedicated to ensuring the security of Chinese nationals, projects, and institutions in Pakistan.  Baloch was responding to a …

Gaza, Lebanon and Sudan will take decades to recover from the conflicts raging on their soil, the International Monetary Fund said on Thursday after downgrading the region’s growth forecast.   Israel’s military actions against Hamas in the Gaza Strip and Hezbollah in Lebanon, and Sudan’s civil war would have enduring impacts, the IMF said.   “The damage caused by these conflicts will leave lasting scars …

Papua New Guinea on Thursday declared a boycott of next month’s UN climate summit, branding the global warming negotiations a “waste of time” full of empty promises from big polluters. While plenty have criticized the annual COP summit in the past, it is rare for any government to so totally dismiss the UN’s premier climate talks. “There’s no point going if we are falling asleep …

China has told its automakers to halt big investment in European countries that support extra tariffs on Chinese-built electric vehicles, two people briefed about the matter said, a move likely to further divide Europe. The new European Union tariffs of up to 45.3% came into effect on Wednesday after a year-long investigation that divided the bloc and prompted retaliation from Beijing. Ten EU members including …

Palestinian health officials said an Israeli raid Thursday in the occupied West Bank killed at least three people.  The operation included airstrikes in the area of the Nur Shams refugee camp.  The Israeli military said it was targeting “terrorist infrastructure” and that it killed a Hamas militant who was involved in planning attacks.  Since Hamas attacked southern Israel in October 2023, Israeli forces have killed …

TEHRAN, Iran — America’s presidential election next week comes just after Iran marks the 45th anniversary of the 1979 U.S. Embassy hostage crisis — and for many, tensions between Tehran and Washington feel just as high as they did then. Iran remains locked in the Mideast wars roiling the region, with its allies — militant groups and fighters of its self-described “Axis of Resistance” — battered …

seoul, south korea — More than 100 North Koreans have gone missing after being caught by secret police while trying to defect from the isolated country or even for trying to call relatives in South Korea, a Seoul-based human rights group said Thursday. The Transitional Justice Working Group (TJWG) released a report detailing patterns of enforced disappearances through its study based on interviews with 62 North …

IRBIL, Iraq — Election results from the vote for the regional parliament in Iraq’s semi-autonomous northern Kurdish region show the two dominant Kurdish parties have maintained their hold while an opposition party has made inroads, officials said Wednesday. According to the Independent High Electoral Commission, the Kurdistan Democratic Party — with its base of support in the regional capital, Irbil, and in the city of Dohuk …

SEOUL/TOKYO — North Korea conducted what appeared to be its longest ever intercontinental ballistic missile test on Thursday, as South Korea warned Pyongyang could seek missile technology from Russia in exchange for deploying troops to help with the war in Ukraine. The missile was launched on a sharply lofted trajectory from an area near the North’s capital and splashed down about 300 km (190 miles) west …

Israeli airstrikes hit the historic eastern Lebanese city of Baalbek on Wednesday, killing at least 19 people, according to Lebanon’s health ministry. Hours before it struck, Israel’s military issued evacuation orders for the entire city and parts of eastern Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, where Baalbek is located. Tens of thousands of Lebanese fled in a chaotic scene of panic, one Lebanese civil defense official said. “The …

Pentagon and United Nations — U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and his South Korean counterpart, Kim Yong-hyun, urged North Korea on Wednesday to withdraw from Russia an estimated 10,000 troops, which both countries believe are headed to fight alongside Russia in its war in Ukraine. “They’re doing this because [Russian President Vladimir] Putin has lost a lot of troops, a lot of troops. And, you know, …

ISLAMABAD — China has increased diplomatic pressure on close ally Pakistan to take action against the militants responsible for repeated attacks on Chinese workers, warning that the violence is “unacceptable” and poses “a constraint” on Beijing’s investments under its Belt and Road Initiative, or BRI. The rare public warning accusing Islamabad of consistent security lapses concerning Chinese workers was issued by Beijing’s ambassador, Jiang Zaidong, while …

The decision by Saudi authorities to sentence a cartoonist to an extra 23 years in prison marks an escalation in the kingdom’s suppression of dissent, analysts say. Mohammed al-Ghamdi, a cartoonist for Qatar-based Lusail newspaper, was already serving six years on a range of charges. But a court in October reopened the case and sentenced him to an additional 23 years without the possibility of …

harare, zimbabwe — Zimbabwe is aiming to be home to Africa’s largest steel plant, but disputes over the project continue even as it ramps up production. Over the past few months, villagers have been accusing the Chinese steel plant’s subsidiary Dinson Iron and Steel Company, or DISCO, of taking over their land without compensation, damaging the environment and not helping them relocate. There are also concerns …

The U.S. military has struck a number of Islamic State group camps in Syria this week, killing as many as 35 militants, U.S. Central Command said Wednesday.  The airstrikes in the desert of central Syria were done Monday evening and targeted multiple locations and senior leaders of the group. The attacks came on the heels of a number of joint operations with Iraqi forces that …

WASHINGTON — The United States on Wednesday imposed curbs on hundreds of targets in fresh action against Russia, taking aim at sanctions circumvention in a signal that the U.S. is committed to countering evasion. The action, taken by the U.S. Treasury and State departments, imposed sanctions on nearly 400 entities and people from over a dozen countries, according to statements from the Treasury and State departments. …