WASHINGTON — A journalist with VOA’s sister outlet, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, was released from Belarus on Wednesday, after spending more than four years imprisoned in a case that was widely viewed as politically motivated. Andrey Kuznechyk, a journalist with RFE/RL’s Belarus service was released from Belarus on Wednesday, RFE/RL said. RFE/RL President Stephen Capus welcomed Kuznechyk’s release. “This is a joyous day for Andrey, his …
Middle East strategy central during Turkish President Erdogan’s visit to Pakistan, experts say
Pakistan rolls out the red carpet Wednesday for Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The Turkish leader will jointly hold the 7th session of the Pakistan-Turkey High Level Strategic Cooperation Council with Pakistani Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif during his brief visit ending Thursday. VOA Pakistan bureau chief Sarah Zaman reports on key topics of discussion. …
Rubio heads to Munich amid diplomatic push for Ukraine peace deal
STATE DEPARTMENT — U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio is set to depart Thursday for Munich and later this week will visit the Middle East amid an intensive diplomatic push to end Russia’s aggression in Ukraine, as well as efforts to follow up on U.S. President Donald Trump’s plan for the post-war Gaza Strip. Preparations are also underway for Rubio to hold talks with his counterparts …
Evacuations in eastern Ukraine’s Pokrovsk as Russian forces inch closer
Ukrainian forces are trying to slow down an ongoing Russian advance toward the city of Pokrovsk in Eastern Ukraine’s Dontesk region. The Ukrainian government has been evacuating civilians from the region, but constant shelling is making it dangerous. Kateryna Besedina has the story, narrated by Anna Rice. (Camera: Artyom Kokhan, Anna Rice) …
Arab League chief rejects Trump plan to displace Palestinians from Gaza
Arab League Secretary-General Ahmed Aboul Gheit rejected any plan to displace Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, saying Wednesday that such resettlement would be “unacceptable.” Aboul Gheit told the World Governments Summit that U.S. President Donald Trump’s proposal to move the roughly 2 million Palestinians out of war-ravaged Gaza would push the region into a cycle of crises with a “damaging effect on peace and stability.” …
Investigators file criminal complaints against Philippine vice president
MANILA, Philippines — Philippine government investigators filed criminal complaints, including sedition, against Vice President Sara Duterte on Wednesday over her public threat to have the president assassinated if she herself was killed in an escalating political storm. National Bureau of Investigation Director Jaime Santiago said at a news conference that the complaints of inciting to sedition and grave threats against Duterte were filed at the Department …
VOA Kurdish: Increased ISIS activity in Iraq raises security concerns
Security and military sources report a significant increase in ISIS movements between Kirkuk and Salahaddin, with militants wearing military uniforms and carrying advanced weapons. Iraqi forces continue airstrikes in key areas, including recent bombings that killed high-ranking ISIS members. Despite efforts to suppress the group, officials warn that ISIS remains a security threat, taking advantage of political instability to reorganize and strengthen its presence, particularly …
Deadly Russian missile, drone attacks hit Kyiv
Ukrainian officials said Wednesday Russian forces launched overnight attacks involving ballistic missiles and more than 120 drones, killing at least one person in Kyiv. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said on Telegram that three other people also were injured as a result of the attacks. Kyiv emergency services reported fires and other damage at buildings in four districts in the city. Ukraine’s military said missiles also …
Russia says it rescues all 139 fishermen stranded on ice floe in Western Pacific sea
Russia’s emergency services said on Wednesday that it had rescued all 139 fishermen stranded on an ice floe drifting in the Sea of Okhotsk in the Western Pacific. Earlier, the ministry said that about 300 were stranded and that some of them refused “to leave without a catch, under any circumstances.” The ministry posted several videos from the rescue operation, including one showing fishermen walking …
Russia says some of the 300 fishermen stranded on ice floe refused evacuation
Some of the 300 Russian fishermen stranded on an ice floe drifting in the Sea of Okhotsk in the Western Pacific have refused evacuation, Russia’s emergency ministry said on Wednesday. A rescue operation with helicopters and vessels has brought 109 of the fishermen ashore, but some refused to be rescued, the ministry said in a post on the Telegram messaging app. “Some extreme sports enthusiasts …
Teacher questioned in stabbing death of first-grader in South Korea
SEOUL, SOUTH KOREA — South Korean police on Tuesday were questioning an elementary school teacher who allegedly stabbed a first-grader to death in the city of Daejeon. The killing on Monday during after-school care has shocked the nation and prompted the country’s acting president to order school safety standards reviewed. The female suspect was receiving medical treatment for self-inflicted wounds following the death of the girl …
US teacher returns home after being freed by Russia
U.S. President Donald Trump welcomed American teacher Marc Fogel to the White House late Tuesday after Fogel was freed from Russia where he had been detained since August 2021 for bringing medically prescribed marijuana into the country. “I feel like the luckiest man on Earth right now,” Fogel said as he stood next to Trump. Fogel praised the president, U.S. diplomats and lawmakers for working …
US, Japan aligned in ‘peace through strength’ to counter China
WASHINGTON — After the meeting between U.S. President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba last week, the two nations voiced alignment on Trump’s “peace through strength” approach toward countering China in the Indo-Pacific region, analysts said. “The prime minister and I will be working closely together to maintain peace and security — and I also say – peace through strength all over the Indo-Pacific,” …
Russia frees American serving 14-year marijuana sentence
Marc Fogel, an American teacher detained in Russia since August 2021 for bringing medically prescribed marijuana into the country, was freed by Moscow on Tuesday and headed back to the United States, the White House announced. The 63-year-old history teacher, who had been serving a 14-year sentence, was expected to be reunited with his family in the eastern state of Pennsylvania by the end of …
US withdrawal from UN human rights body draws mixed reactions
Washington — Human rights experts in Washington are divided over whether the U.S. withdrawal from a United Nations body on human rights will hurt North Korea’s already poor human rights situation. Last Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order pulling the U.S. out of the U.N. Human Rights Council, or UNHRC, reintroducing the stance he held during his previous term. The executive order said …
Trump doubles down on Gaza takeover plan to Jordan’s King Abdullah
WASHINGTON — King Abdullah II was at the White House on Tuesday as U.S. President Donald Trump doubled down on his demand that Jordan permanently take in Palestinians and support the United States to take over Gaza — a plan that Trump said will “be wonderful” for the Middle East. “You’re going to see some great progress,” Trump told the Jordanian king in front of reporters …
VOA Kurdish: Iraqi president sues PM, finance minister over unpaid salaries
Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid, who is a Kurd, filed a lawsuit against Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani and Finance Minister Taif Sami over the delayed salaries of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) civil servants. The lawsuit, filed with the Iraqi Federal Supreme Court on Jan. 20 but made public Sunday, seeks to ensure salaries are paid “continuously and on time” while negotiations continue between …
VOA Russian: Washington deems US woman wrongfully detained in Russia
The U.S. State Department has determined that dual U.S.-Russian national Ksenia Karelina, also known as Ksenia Khavana, was wrongfully detained in Russia. Karelina was jailed by a Russian court for 12 years for donating $51 to a Ukrainian charity. The new determination will enable U.S. authorities to operate more actively in securing her release. Karelina’s civil partner remains optimistic that efforts by the administration of …
Europe announces plans to ease AI regulations in bid to become heavyweight
Europe says it will ease regulations on artificial intelligence at a key AI summit in Paris on Feb. 11, 2025, that brought together the U.S. and other global tech giants and politicians. But some experts see bigger challenges stalling the bloc’s ambitions to be an AI heavyweight, from the need to pool resources to attracting more investment and talent. After U.S. President Donald Trump’s massive …
Amid USAID debate, Britain offers model for merging aid, diplomacy
London — As Washington debates the future of the U.S. Agency for International Development or USAID amid reports that it may be put under the control of the State Department, analysts say Britain could offer lessons for America on merging diplomacy and aid. The Trump administration last month paused funding for USAID, citing a need to align the agency with the president’s America First policy. British …
Iran pardons journalists who covered woman’s death that triggered protests
Iran’s top judicial authority has pardoned two journalists who uncovered the death of a young woman in police custody, the judiciary’s news outlet, Mizan, said Tuesday. The case triggered widespread protests in 2022. Journalists Elaheh Mohammadi and Niloofar Hamedi had been sentenced to 12 and 13 years in prison, respectively, by an Iranian Revolutionary Court in 2023 for their coverage of the death of Mahsa …
As fragile ceasefire holds, aid trickles into Gaza via Egypt
Weeks into the first phase of a three-stage ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, Cairo photojournalist Hamada Elrasam observes the fragile deal slowly being implemented as life-saving aid trucks and ambulances converge on Egypt’s side of the Rafah border crossing with the besieged Gaza Strip. Captions written by Elle Kurancid. …
Vance tells Europeans that heavy regulation could kill AI
Paris — U.S. Vice President JD Vance told Europeans on Tuesday their “massive” regulations on artificial intelligence could strangle the technology, and rejected content moderation as “authoritarian censorship.” The mood on AI has shifted as the technology takes root, from one of concerns around safety to geopolitical competition, as countries jockey to nurture the next big AI giant. Vance, setting out the Trump administration’s America First …
Russia, Ukraine strike energy infrastructure
Russia and Ukraine attacked each other’s energy infrastructure overnight, just days before U.S. and Ukrainian officials were set to discuss steps toward ending the nearly three-year war sparked by Russia’s 2022 invasion. Russian strikes damaged natural gas production facilities in Ukraine’s Poltava region overnight, using a combined attack of 19 cruise, ballistic and guided missiles, the Ukrainian air force said. As a result of the …