Washington — China issued sanctions on U.S. Representative Jim McGovern, the sponsor of a bill advocating for a peaceful resolution of the China-Tibet dispute China views Tibet as an “inseparable part of China since ancient times,” despite supporters of the Tibetan Government in Exile and the Dalai Lama saying that Tibet has historically been independent. Framed as a response to McGovern’s efforts to undermine Chinese territorial …
UN Security Council meets over Middle East escalations
united nations — Iran and Israel each appealed to the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday to strongly condemn the other for recent deadly attacks. The council called for calm in a region it fears is sliding toward a wider war. “The Security Council should take immediate steps to hold Israel accountable for this act of aggression,” Iranian Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani told an emergency meeting of …
Chinese netizens watch Venezuelan protests, seize opportunity to speak out
washington — As thousands of people in Venezuela protested the results of Sunday’s election, many in China were watching and commenting on social media platforms. While social media are tightly censored in China and most comments echoed support for incumbent Venezuela President Nicolas Maduro, videos of the protests spread widely, and some voiced support for the protesters. Others used the opportunity to subtly criticize China’s authoritarian …
China’s new ‘wolf-warrior’ envoy to Cambodia portends superpower rivalry
PHNOM PENH, CAMBODIA — China’s new ambassador to Cambodia, Wang Wenbin, arrived in early July with a reputation as a highly experienced and combative diplomat in what is seen as the first move in a coming battle for influence between superpowers in the Southeast Asian nation. The United States and Australia are expected to follow soon with their own new envoys who are seasoned in China …
Iran threatens retaliation against Israel for assassination of Hamas leader Haniyeh
Israel is bracing for retaliation from Iran after senior Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated there. Iran immediately blamed Israel, which did not comment. But Israel has previously said it will assassinate every Hamas member involved in the October 7 terror attack. Linda Gradstein reports for VOA from Jerusalem. …
US denies involvement in killing of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh
The United States said it was not involved in the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh in an overnight strike in Tehran. Haniyeh is the second Iran-backed militant group leader assassinated this week. White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara has the story. …
US strengthens Indo-Pacific alliances
Tokyo — The United States this week moved to significantly strengthen its alliances in the Indo-Pacific amid a perceived security threat from China, including a major upgrade of the U.S. military command in Japan. Washington and Tokyo insist the changes are purely defensive, but questions remain about the military readiness of the United States and its allies if conflict erupts. The United States has around 55,000 …
Hamas leader’s death prompts celebratory posts from Iran’s Persian critics
Washington — Persian opponents of Iran’s Islamist rulers have mocked them widely on social media and expressed support for Israel after Hamas and its Iranian patron blamed the Jewish state for the assassination of Hamas’ political chief in Tehran on Wednesday. Ismail Haniyeh was killed in a predawn strike on a residence in Iran’s capital, where he had traveled to attend the inauguration of Iranian President …
Myanmar junta extends state of emergency by six months
Yangon, Myanmar — Myanmar’s junta on Wednesday extended the state of emergency by six months, again delaying fresh polls it has promised to hold as it battles opposition to its coup. The Southeast Asian nation has been in turmoil since the February 2021 coup which ended a 10-year experiment with democracy and sparked mass protests and a crackdown on dissent. Three and a half years later, …
India-China Military Tensions Persist Even as Their Trade Surges
New Delhi — As tensions between India and China persist with tens of thousands of soldiers confronting each other along their disputed Himalayan borders for a fifth year, analysts say they see few signs of a reduction in military tensions between the Asian rivals despite calls from both sides to stabilize ties. But trade between the two countries has surged. “The ground reality is that the …
Tough-talking Haniyeh was seen as the more moderate face of Hamas
DUBAI/LONDON — Ismail Haniyeh, the Hamas leader who was killed in Iran, was the tough-talking face of the Palestinian group’s international diplomacy as war raged back in Gaza, where three of his sons were killed in an Israeli airstrike. But despite the rhetoric, he was seen by many diplomats as a moderate compared to the more hardline members of the Iran-backed group inside Gaza. Appointed to the Hamas top job in …
US carries out strike in Iraq as regional tensions worsen
BAGHDAD/WASHINGTON — The United States on Tuesday carried out a strike in Iraq in self-defense, U.S. officials told Reuters, as regional tensions rose after an Israeli airstrike in Beirut that Israel said killed Hezbollah’s most senior commander. Iraqi police and medical sources said the strike inside a base south of Baghdad used by Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) killed four members of the group, which includes …
Rafah water facility demolition raises health risks in Gaza, UN says
GENEVA — U.N. agencies warn that the demolition of a critical water facility in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip increases the risk of infectious diseases as people are forced to drink unsafe water while sanitary conditions continue to deteriorate. “Until recently, that reservoir served thousands and thousands of internally displaced people who had sought refuge in Rafah in the area,” James Elder, UNICEF spokesperson, told …
Israelis, Lebanese brace for full-scale Israeli response to Hezbollah rocket attack
Tensions are escalating in Lebanon, where Israel on Tuesday said it attacked Hezbollah targets in seven areas of south Lebanon with airstrikes and artillery fire. As Linda Gradstein reports from Jerusalem, people in both countries are bracing for a full-scale Israeli response to a Hezbollah rocket attack Sunday that killed 12 Druze children and teenagers. VOA footage by Zev Schwartz. …
Foreign lawmakers shine light on China tensions over Taiwan
Taipei, Taiwan — Forty-nine lawmakers from 24 countries gathered in Taiwan on Tuesday to discuss how China is raising tensions with the democratically ruled island and to assess the economic impact a potential conflict could have on the international community. The two-day summit was organized by the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, or IPAC, a group that includes hundreds of lawmakers from 35 countries who are concerned …
China’s top leaders vow to support consumers and improve confidence in its slowing economy
BANGKOK — China’s powerful Politburo has endorsed the ruling Communist Party’s long-term strategy for growing the economy by encouraging more consumer spending and weeding out unproductive companies to promote “survival of the fittest.” A statement issued after the meeting of the 24 highest leaders of the party warned that coming months would be tough, perhaps alluding to mounting global uncertainties ahead of the U.S. presidential election …
Meloni seeks better terms for Italian firms in China
BEIJING — Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni came to China to boost co-operation with the world’s second-largest economy and reset trade ties, she said on Tuesday, during a visit to burnish relations after leaving the Belt and Road scheme. Meloni, making her first visit to China as prime minister, which comes after Italy left Chinese President Xi Jinping’s flagship initiative last year, said the euro zone’s …
Hardest-hit Israeli kibbutz in Oct. 7 attack starts to rebuild
Among all the communities bordering Gaza, Kibbutz Beeri was hit hardest in the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist attack, with 101 of its civilian residents murdered and 30 taken hostage. Now the community is starting to rebuild. Linda Gradstein reports for VOA from Kibbutz Beeri. Camera credit: Ricki Rosen. …
Morocco pardons 3 journalists held for years
Rabat, Morocco — Morocco’s King Mohammed VI on Monday pardoned three journalists detained for years, as hundreds of prisoners saw their sentences commuted to mark the monarch’s 25th anniversary on the throne. Omar Radi, Soulaimane Raissouni and Taoufik Bouachrine, as well as historian and rights advocate Maati Monjib, were among the 2,476 people pardoned, a government official said on condition of anonymity. Rights groups, including Reporters …
Macron warns Iran against support of Russia’s Ukraine war
Paris — French President Emmanuel Macron urged his new Iranian counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian on Monday to not support Russia’s “war of aggression” against Ukraine, in talks between the two leaders, his office said. Macron also told Pezeshkian that “all must be done to avoid a military escalation” between Israel and Lebanon after a deadly rocket strike in the Golan Heights blamed on Tehran-backed Hezbollah, calling on …
Japan surges past China for Olympics men’s gymnastics team gold
Paris — Japan surged past its longtime rival China to win gold in the Paris Olympics men’s gymnastics competition Monday, and the Americans earned bronze for their first medal since 2008. It was Japan’s eighth team gold and first since Rio de Janeiro in 2016. The Japanese overtook their rivals on the final rotation, after China’s Su Weide fell twice off the horizontal bar. Japan won …