PARIS — Iran executed at least 975 people last year in a “horrifying escalation” of its use of capital punishment, two human rights groups said on Thursday. Norway-based Iran Human Rights (IHR) and French group Together Against the Death Penalty (ECPM) said the figure was the highest since IHR began recording executions in Iran in 2008. The figure “reveals a horrifying escalation in the use of …
Australia, Papua New Guinea vow to strike defense treaty
SYDNEY — Australia said Thursday it will strike a defense treaty with Papua New Guinea, bolstering ties with a Pacific state that has been courted persistently by China. The historically close Pacific nations said in a joint statement they were committed to negotiating the treaty to deepen integration of their forces and make it easier to offer security support. “This will enable our two defense forces …
Thousands without power, heat in Odesa
Thousands of residents in Ukraine’s city of Odesa were without electricity or heating after Russia launched a massive drone attack for the second night in a row. In his address to the nation on Wednesday night, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said repair work was underway after 80,000 people lost power and the same number lost heating. Governor Oleh Kiper, writing on the Telegram messaging …
Trump’s comments on Ukraine draw mixed reaction from US lawmakers
U.S. President Donald Trump’s comments this week claiming Ukraine was responsible for starting the three-year conflict with Russia and calling Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy “a dictator without elections” drew criticism from congressional Democrats and pushback from some members of the Republican Party. “Clearly, Vladimir Putin is responsible for this war,” Republican Senator Thom Tillis told reporters. “His decision has resulted in the murder, rape, torture …
VOA Persian: Activists protest death penalty outside Iran’s Evin prison
A group of civil rights activists and supporters of the “No to Execution Tuesdays” campaign gathered outside Evin Prison in Tehran, Iran, on Tuesday night, chanting slogans against capital punishment. Videos shared on social media on Wednesday show prominent activists, including Narges Mohammadi, Sedigheh Vasmaghi, Alieh Motallebzadeh, Kambiz Norouzzadeh, Hasti Amiri, Shaghayegh Moradi, Ali Nanvayi, Majid Mosafer and Elham Salehi, participating in the protest. Marking …
After decades in exile, Syria’s Jews visit Damascus
DAMASCUS, Syria — For the first time in three decades, Rabbi Joseph Hamra and his son Henry read from a Torah scroll in a synagogue in the heart of Syria’s capital Damascus, carefully passing their thumbs over the handwritten text as if still in awe they were back home. The father and son fled Syria in the 1990s, after then-Syrian president Hafez al-Assad lifted a travel …
VOA Russian: Experts say US-Russia talks start of long process
VOA Russian talked to experts after the U.S.-Russia talks in Saudi Arabia on how to end the Ukraine war. They warned that this is only the beginning of negotiations that may last for some time and take several turns. Exiled independent Russian political analyst Dmitry Oreshkin compared the first meeting to “not even a warm-up of two boxers, but just a weigh-in ahead of the …
Program helps Ukrainians displaced by war find new homes
Many Ukrainians are dealing with the reality of starting over after losing their homes in the war with Russia. One project helps them find new homes and jobs while assisting in the development of small villages. Lesia Bakalets reports from the Kyiv region. Camera: Vladyslav Smilianets. …
WTO holds ‘constructive’ talks after China condemns Trump tariffs
GENEVA — The World Trade Organization said on Wednesday that discussions on trade tensions were “constructive,” after China accused the United States of imposing “tariff shocks” that could upend the global trading system. China condemned tariffs launched or threatened by U.S. President Donald Trump at a WTO meeting on Tuesday. Washington dismissed China’s comments as hypocritical. Trump has announced sweeping 10% tariffs on all Chinese imports, …
VOA Kurdish: Irbil governor notes lack of support from city’s Sunni Arab leaders
Governor Omid Khoshnaw told VOA that many Sunni Arab leaders live in Irbil, benefiting from the security and quality of life in the Kurdish capital, with their children attending schools there. However, despite enjoying these privileges, they do not support the Kurds on key disputed issues, particularly regarding the status of disputed areas. Click here for the full story in Kurdish. …
Italian Premier Meloni visits Pope Francis in hospital, says he’s ‘alert and responsive’
Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni visited Pope Francis in the hospital Wednesday and reported he was “alert and responsive” and full of good humor, despite his diagnosis of pneumonia and a complicated bronchial infection that has sidelined the 88-year-old pontiff for six days. Meloni said she wanted to bring get-well wishes to the pope on behalf of the government and the entire nation. “We joked around …
Austria arrests teen over foiled plot to attack Vienna station
VIENNA — Austria arrested a 14-year-old on Feb. 10 on suspicion of planning a militant attack on a Vienna train station, the Interior Ministry said Wednesday, calling the suspect an Islamic State supporter who became radicalized online. The announcement follows a knife attack in the southern town of Villach on Saturday in which a 23-year-old Syrian refugee is suspected of killing a teenager and wounding five …
Philippines to hold large military drills as China tensions simmer
TAIPEI, TAIWAN — Philippine defense officials say they will hold a large, 10-day military training exercise next month, aiming to strengthen the country’s ability to respond to any crisis caused by an “external threat.” Although Manila did not name China explicitly when it announced the drills — the biggest in recent years — they come as Beijing has increased the frequency of its maritime patrols and …
Landmines slow return to Palmyra, Syria, home of famed ancient ruins
Before Syria’s civil war, the ancient ruins of Palmyra were one of the country’s premier tourist attractions. But as VOA’s Heather Murdock reports, the modern city is itself now in ruins and littered with mines that have killed several people trying to return to their homes. Videographer: Yan Boechat …
China proposes new rules to tighten control over rare earth sector
BEIJING — China on Wednesday began public consultation on new regulations designed to protect its domestic rare earth industry, a sector where Beijing has previously weaponized its dominance via export controls and other restrictions. The draft regulations were released by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology late on Wednesday and touched on issues including quotas for mining, smelting and separating, as well as monitoring and …
China opposes Vietnam’s building work on disputed reef in South China Sea
BEIJING — China opposes Vietnam’s construction activities on a disputed islet in the South China Sea known as the Barque Canada Reef, its foreign ministry said on Wednesday. Occupied by Vietnam since the 1980s, the reef in the Spratly Islands is claimed by several countries, in a dispute that has intensified as China and the United States vie for influence in the strategic Southeast Asian nation. …
UAE says it rejects any attempt to displace Palestinian people
United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan told U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio that the UAE rejects “any attempts to displace the Palestinian people from their land” as Rubio made a visit Wednesday to Abu Dhabi. UAE state media reported the comments and said the president highlighted the need to prevent an expansion of the conflict in Gaza. “He also underscored …
Swedish Supreme Court: Activists can’t sue over climate action
STOCKHOLM — Sweden’s Supreme Court ruled on Wednesday that Greta Thunberg and hundreds of other young activists cannot sue the state in a Swedish court over what they say is insufficient action against climate change. Activists filed a class action lawsuit in 2022 with a district court claiming the state violates their rights as laid out in the European Convention on Human Rights by not doing …
New Zealand must ‘reset’ Cook Islands ties after China pact, foreign minister says
New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters said on Wednesday his country must “reset” its relationship with the Cook Islands government after its Pacific neighbor signed agreements with China without consultation. In a speech to the Pacific Island Political Science Association in Wellington, Peters said Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown’s opaque dealings with Beijing was the latest attempt to test constitutional ties with New Zealand. …
Ukrainian drone hits oil pumping station
Russia shot down 21 Ukrainian drones late Tuesday, but a drone attack on an oil pumping station in southern Russia reduced oil supplies for Kazakhstan and the global market, Russian officials said. Meanwhile, Ukrainian forces said one of their drones struck and knocked out a North Korean self-propelled howitzer on the eastern front. “In Luhansk region, fighters of the 412th separate regiment of Nemesis drones …
Saudi prince proving crucial to Trump efforts to end Ukraine, Gaza wars
WASHINGTON — Top U.S. and Russian officials wrapped up their meetings Tuesday in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, to discuss a pathway to end the war in Ukraine, days before Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is set to convene a summit with leaders from Egypt, Jordan, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates to discuss an Arab response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s vow to take over Gaza. …
US, Russia begin talks on Ukraine — without Ukraine
The Trump administration on Tuesday hailed talks in Saudi Arabia that included U.S. and Russian officials but no Ukrainians. The White House said this parallel-track diplomacy — speaking separately with the warring partners — is a key first step in ending the three-year conflict that has rocked Europe. VOA White House correspondent Anita Powell reports from Washington. Kim Lewis contributed. …
VOA Kurdish: Governor of Irbil discusses Sunni Arab officials in the city
Governor Omid Khoshnaw told VOA that many Sunni Arab leaders live in Irbil, benefiting from the security and quality of life in the Kurdish capital, with their children attending schools there. However, despite enjoying these privileges, they do not support the Kurds on key disputed issues, particularly regarding the status of disputed areas. Click here for the full story in Kurdish. …
VOA Kurdish: Iraq struggles to implement law to return Kurd, Turkmen land
The Iraqi parliament recently passed a law to return occupied Kurdish and Turkmen lands. However, over the weekend, Kurdish farmers in Kirkuk were stopped by the Iraqi army while trying to work on their lands, even though local forces should handle security. Kurdish politicians protested. They argue that Article 140 of the constitution has not been enforced. Click here for the full story in Kurdish. …