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China vows to boost economic growth by balancing reform, national security
TAIPEI, TAIWAN — China’s ruling Communist Party concluded a highly anticipated party conclave Thursday, promising to boost economic growth through comprehensive reform while reiterating the importance of maintaining national security. The Central Committee, in a communique at the end of the four-day, closed-door Third Plenum, laid out reform objectives to be completed by 2029, the 80th anniversary of the People’s Republic of China. The party’s top …
China’s Third Plenum does nothing to revive economy, observers say
Taipei, Taiwan — China’s ruling party has concluded the Third Plenum of its 20th Central Committee with a communique described as vague and cliché by China watchers, who said it lacks specific measures to address China’s economic difficulties. Shi He-ling, an associate professor of economics at Monash Business School at Monash University in Caulfield, Australia, said the communiqué was disappointing and that its writers were completely …
Aid leaves Cyprus for Gaza to start sea distribution
The U.S. military is dismantling the temporary pier it built to deliver aid to Palestinians in Gaza. But officials say the military will continue to help transfer aid for Gaza from Cyprus to the Israeli port of Ashdod. VOA Pentagon Correspondent Carla Babb reports. …
Israel says strike killed elite Hezbollah unit field commander
beirut — A field commander in Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force was killed in an Israeli strike on south Lebanon, the Israeli military and two security sources said Thursday, the latest senior member of the group to be killed in months of tit-for-tat strikes across the border with Israel. Habib Maatouk had replaced another commander in the elite unit, Ali Ahmed Hassin, who was killed in …
UN agency cites improvements in North Korea’s food security; experts still cautious
washington — The head of the United Nations agency responsible for alleviating world hunger is heaping praise on the government of North Korea after a breakthrough visit to the reclusive country, the first from any official of a U.N. specialized agency since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2019. Qu Dongyu, director general of the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO), “commended the great achievement made …
New US sanctions target Houthi financial network
WASHINGTON — The United States issued Yemen-related counterterrorism sanctions on Thursday targeting individuals and entities linked to Houthi financial facilitator Sa’id al-Jamal. The Treasury Department said the actions affected a dozen people and vessels, including Indonesia-based Malaysian and Singaporean national Mohammad Roslan Bin Ahmad and China-based Chinese national Zhuang Liang, “who have facilitated illicit shipments and engaged in money laundering for the network.” …
Oman Shiite mosque attackers were Omani citizens, police say
DUBAI, UAE — The three gunmen who shot and killed six people at a Shiite Muslim mosque in Oman in an attack claimed by Islamic State this week were all Omani nationals, police said on Thursday. The assault began on Monday evening at the Ali bin Abi Talib Mosque in the Wadi Kabir neighborhood of Oman’s capital, Muscat, as Shiite Muslims gathered. The Royal Oman Police …
Wall Street Journal firing shocks chair of Hong Kong journalists group
BANGKOK — The newly elected chair of the Hong Kong Journalists Association says she was “shocked and appalled” to be fired by the Wall Street Journal this week, immediately after taking her position. Selina Cheng says the media outlet terminated her contract Wednesday after she accepted the role leading the association, known as the HKJA. Speaking with VOA, Cheng said, “I think I would not be terminated if …
Vietnam files UN claim to extended continental shelf in South China Sea
HANOI, Vietnam — Vietnam has filed a claim with the United Nations for an extended continental shelf (ECS) in the South China Sea, a month after regional neighbor the Philippines made a similar move, Vietnam’s foreign ministry said on Thursday. The submission of the continental shelf beyond the current 200 nautical miles is to exercise the rights and obligations of state parties in accordance to the …
Uncertainty is the winner and incumbents the losers so far in a year of high-stakes global elections
LONDON — Discontented, economically squeezed voters have turned against sitting governments on both right and left during many of the dozens of elections held this year, as global power blocs shift and political certainties crumble. From India to South Africa to Britain, voters dealt blows to long-governing parties. Elections to the European Parliament showed growing support for the continent’s far right, while France’s centrist president scrambled …
US arrests Syrian who oversaw prison where alleged abuse took place
LOS ANGELES — A former Syrian military official who oversaw a prison where human rights officials say torture and abuse routinely took place has been arrested, authorities said Wednesday. U.S. Department of Homeland Security agents took Samir Ousman al-Sheikh into custody last week at Los Angeles International Airport, said agency spokesperson Greg Hoegner. The 72-year-old has been charged with immigration fraud, specifically that he denied on …
Fire kills 16 people at shopping mall in southwestern China
Beijing — A fire at a shopping mall killed 16 people in the southwestern Chinese city of Zigong, state media reported early Thursday. Firefighters and rescuers responded to a fire call shortly after 6 p.m. at the 14-story commercial building, and pulled 75 people to safety, according to the official news agency Xinhua. Rescue efforts were ongoing. It was not immediately known what caused the fire …
Six killed in China mall fire, people trapped inside
Beijing — Firefighters in China pulled six bodies from a shopping centre on Wednesday, state media reported, with an unknown number still trapped after a blaze broke out in a 14-storey building. Footage broadcast by state broadcaster CCTV and shared on social media showed thick black smoke billowing out of the tower, located in Zigong in southwestern Sichuan province. The blaze started in the early evening …
Learning center helps prepare young refugees for resettlement
Indonesia has become a temporary home for thousands of refugees from Asia and Africa. Dave Grunebaum reports from Cisarua, Indonesia, on a program that is helping some of them prepare for the lives that lie ahead of them. (Camera: Dave Grunebaum) …
US military: Islamic State attacks on track to double in Iraq, Syria compared to last year
Baghdad — The U.S. Central Command said Wednesday that the Islamic State group is trying “to reconstitute” as the number of attacks in Syria and Iraq is on track to double this year, compared to the year before. IS claimed 153 attacks in the two countries in the first six months of 2024, CENTCOM said in a statement. According to a U.S. defense official, who spoke …