Feed aggregator

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Srinagar — Voters in Indian Kashmir are going to the polls from May 13 through May 25 to select their representatives in the Indian parliament. Local media reports claim that more than 1.7 million voters will determine the outcome for 24 candidates competing for the Srinagar constituency.  This is part of India’s ongoing general elections, which began in late April and run through June. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is seeking a third term. The vote comes nearly five years after the Modi government stripped Muslim majority Kashmir of its semiautonomous status. Kashmir's loss of its special status in August 2019 led to the division of the region into two federal territories — Jammu and Kashmir, and Ladakh. Both areas are ruled by the central government and have no legislatures of their own. Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party is not contesting the elections in Indian Kashmir. News reports say the move signals ongoing discontent over the 2019 move and there is speculation BJP candidates would have lost. Residents say the Indian general elections are important for the people of Kashmir. They maintain that the Modi government has robbed the region of rights that were guaranteed to them under the Indian constitution. “What’s left for us locals? Our land is given to non-locals, jobs are taken by them too, our electricity is sent to other Indian states and everywhere you look, high-ranking officials are not from Jammu and Kashmir,” Fayaz Ahmad Malik, a resident, told VOA during a rally at Fateh Kadal, an area in Indian Kashmir’s capital. “I have not voted in my life ever before but today I feel it is necessary because we are suffering. Modi and his party want to destroy us, but we have to stop him,” he said. Modi visited Indian Kashmir in March for the first time since the region lost its special status. Amid tight security, he told a crowd that had packed the Bakshi Stadium in the region's capital, Srinagar, that Kashmir has seen significant changes and prospered since his government acted in 2019. Muzamil Maqbool, a political analyst and host of the podcast show Plain Talk, told VOA that the Kashmir valley is expected to see record-breaking voter turnout. He said the situation on the ground has changed since 2019. “The government of India always wanted to increase the voting percentage here because for years and decades Kashmir has witnessed a massive boycott,” Maqbool said. “The government of India, political institutions and others always wanted Kashmiris to vote irrespective of which candidate will be chosen and the government of India has highly succeeded in that,” he added. Maqbool believes people want to cast their vote and support their candidates openly. He added that young people, first time voters especially from central Kashmir, south and north Kashmir, are very eager to show the power of voting in democracy. Gul Mohammad Khan, a resident of Srinagar, said that he expects a strong candidate who would dare to challenge Modi and other Hindu leaders openly. “In the past no Kashmiri politician supporting India has shown such courage. They instead have aligned themselves with New Delhi’s interests,” Khan said. “I hope for a leader who can make Indian leaders dance to his tune,” he said. Professor Noor Baba, another political analyst, told VOA that competition in Kashmir will be primarily between two regional political parties; the National Conference, or NC, and the People’s Democratic Party, or the PDP. Modi's ruling party, Baba said, chose not to contest voting in Kashmir despite significant investment it made in reshaping politics in the area. India’s main opposition party, the Indian National Congress, or INC, is supporting the NC. “In Srinagar, the NC candidate has the support of his voters while the PDP candidate has also gained sympathy as he has been a victim of post-2019 politics,” Baba said. Nasir Aslam Wani, the National Conference provincial president, and Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi, National Conference’s candidate for Srinagar, were contacted for comments but their phones were switched off. “NC has an advantage due to its longer historical presence and stronger social base. There is a perception that PDP played a role in the political rehabilitation of the BJP in the politics of the erstwhile state by forming a government with it as its alliance partner. It played a key role in facilitating BJP’s reshaping politics in Kashmir,” Baba added.  Just before the ruling BJP revoked Kashmir’s special status in 2019, the party withdrew its support from the PDP, ending their alliance. The PDP is now a bitter rival to Modi’s party. The “2024 elections in Kashmir are different from previous ones. Expectations are high, especially among the youth, who seek candidates to truly represent them in the Indian parliament,” said Tariq Ahmad Bhat, a senior youth leader of the People’s Democratic Party, to VOA.   “Previously the public viewed elections negatively, believing that voting would not make any difference. Today I can see the change. People have realized that undeserving candidates cannot be governed anymore,” Bhat added. Jammu and Kashmir has been a disputed Himalayan region between India and Pakistan since the countries gained independence from British rule in 1947. Two wars have been fought between India and Pakistan over Kashmir. Both nations govern the territory under its control. 

TBILISI — Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze vowed on Sunday to push ahead with a law on "foreign agents" that has sparked a political crisis, after opponents of the bill rallied in one of the largest protests seen since independence from the Soviet Union in 1991.  Kobakhidze told a televised briefing that the ruling Georgian Dream party would secure passage of the bill in a third reading this week, and threatened protesters with prosecution if they resort to violence.  Georgia's opposition has called on opponents of the bill to stage on all-night protest outside parliament to prevent lawmakers from entering the building on Monday, when they are due to begin debating the bill's third reading.  The bill requires organizations receiving more than 20% of their funding from abroad to register as agents of foreign influence or face punitive fines.   Western countries and Georgia's opposition denounce it as authoritarian and Russian-inspired. Critics liken it to Russia's 2012 "foreign agent" law, which has been used to hound critics of Vladimir Putin's Kremlin.  The dispute over the bill has come to be seen as key to whether Georgia, which has had traditionally warm relations with the West, continues its push for European Union and NATO membership, or instead builds ties with Russia.  The EU, which granted Georgia candidate status in December, has repeatedly said the bill could jeopardize Tbilisi's further integration with the bloc.  Georgian Dream's founder, billionaire ex-prime minister Bidzina Ivanishvili, said last month that the law was necessary to assert Georgian sovereignty against Western powers which he said wanted to drag the country into a confrontation with Russia.  On Saturday evening, a crowd of protesters braved driving rain to stage the largest protest yet, with several columns of marchers shutting down much of central Tbilisi.  A Reuters estimate, using the Mapchecking crowd counting tool, placed the number of protesters at around 50,000 people.  Some Georgian media and activists have put the crowd size in the hundreds of thousands, citing their own calculations. The ruling party said 18,000 attended, but did not explain its reasoning.   

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

BANGUI — Armed rebels Sunday attacked a Chinese-run gold mining town and killed at least four people in Central African Republic, authorities said.  Maxime Balalu, a local government spokesperson, told The Associated Press that the Coalition of Patriots for Change, an alliance of rebel groups aligned with former President Francois Bozize, had carried out the attack in Gaga, a village roughly 125 miles (200 kilometers) from the capital, Bangui.  He said the death toll might rise and included several individuals who worked at the nearby mine. Several others were injured in the attack, Balalu said.  Central African Republic has been in conflict since 2013, when predominantly Muslim rebels seized power and forced President Francois Bozize from office. Mostly Christian militias fought back.  A 2019 peace deal only lessened the fighting, and six of the 14 armed groups that signed later left the agreement. The Coalition of Patriots for Change was founded in 2020 in the aftermath of the agreement.  The country remains one of the poorest in the world despite its vast mineral wealth of gold and diamonds among others. Rebel groups have operated with impunity across the embattled country over the past decade, thwarting mining exploration by foreign companies.  Many of those now operating in the country are Chinese-run and have faced security challenges. Last year, nine Chinese nationals were killed at another gold mine in Central African Republic during an attack that the government blamed on the same rebel alliance. In 2020, two Chinese nationals died when residents led an uprising against a Chinese-operated mine in Sosso Nakombo. 

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

WARSAW — A fire broke out Sunday morning in a vast shopping center housing 1,400 shops and service outlets in the Bialoleka district in Poland's capital. The fire brigade said more than 80% of The Marywilska 44 shopping complex was on fire, and 50 teams, including chemical and environmental rescue specialists, were carrying out rescue operations. A police spokesperson told the news agency PAP there were no injuries reported. Authorities also sent a text message warning Warsaw residents about the fire and telling them to stay home with the windows closed. Footage aired by private broadcaster TVN24 showed thick black smoke rising over the area. Mirbud, an industrial construction company listed on the Warsaw Stock Exchange, owns the shopping center. Shopping centers and large shops are usually closed on Sunday due to a ban on trade imposed by the previous government which had close ties to the Catholic church, viewing it as a day of worship. Such outlets are exempt from the ban only about half a dozen Sundays a year, to allow people to shop ahead of Christmas, Easter and other events.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

TAPACHULA, Mexico — A strong earthquake shook the border of Mexico and Guatemala early Sunday, driving frightened residents into the streets.  The temblor struck just before 6 a.m. near the Mexican border town of Suchiate, where a river by the same name divides the two countries. The epicenter was just off the Pacific coast, 10 miles (16 kilometers) west-southwest of Brisas Barra de Suchiate where the river empties into the sea.  The earthquake had a preliminary magnitude of 6.4, according to the U.S. Geological Survey and a depth of 47 miles (75 kilometers).  In Mexico, there were no immediate reports of damage, but more mountainous, remote parts of the border are prone to landslides.  Across the border Guatemala's national disaster prevention agency shared photos of small landslides onto highways in the Quetzaltenango region and large cracks in walls in a hospital in San Marcos on its social media accounts, but there were no reports of deaths.  In Tapachula, near the border, civil defense brigades were moving through the city looking for signs of damage.   Didier Solares, an official with Suchiate's Civil Defense agency, said so far, they had not found damage.  “Luckily, everything is good,” Solares said. “We are talking with companies, to the [rural areas] via radio and there's nothing, there's no damage thank God,” he said.  The early morning quake still gave people a fright.  In the mountainous and picturesque colonial city of San Cristobal, the shaking was strong.  “Here we got up because we have the seismic alert service,” said resident Joaquin Morales. “The alert woke me up because it comes 30 seconds before [the quake].”  In Tuxtla Chico, a town near Tapachula, María Guzmán, a teacher said: “It was horrible, it felt strong. It was a real scare.” 

PADANG, Indonesia — Heavy rains and torrents of cold lava and mud flowing down a volcano's slopes on Indonesia's Sumatra island triggered flash floods that killed at least 37 people and more than a dozen others were missing, officials said Sunday. Monsoon rains and a major mudslide from a cold lava flow on Mount Marapi caused a river to breach its banks and tear through mountainside villages in four districts in West Sumatra province just before midnight on Saturday. The floods swept away people and submerged more than 100 houses and buildings, National Disaster Management Agency spokesperson Abdul Muhari said. Cold lava, also known as lahar, is a mixture of volcanic material and pebbles that flow down a volcano's slopes in the rain. By Sunday afternoon, rescuers had pulled out 19 bodies in the worst-hit village of Canduang in Agam district and recovered nine other bodies in the neighboring district of Tanah Datar, the National Search and Rescue Agency said in a statement. The agency said that eight bodies were pulled from mud during deadly flash floods that also hit Padang Pariaman, and one body was found in the city of Padang Panjang. It said rescuers are searching for 18 people who are reportedly missing. Flash floods on Saturday night also caused main roads around the Anai Valley Waterfall area in Tanah Datar district to be blocked by mud, cutting off access to other cities, Padang Panjang Police Chief Kartyana Putra said Sunday. Videos released by the National Search and Rescue Agency showed roads that were transformed into murky brown rivers. The disaster came just two months after heavy rains triggered flash floods and a landslide in West Sumatra's Pesisir Selatan and Padang Pariaman districts, killing at least 21 people and leaving five others missing. The 2,885-meter Mount Marapi erupted late last year killing 23 climbers who were caught by a surprise weekend eruption. The volcano has stayed at the third highest of four alert levels since 2011, indicating above-normal volcanic activity under which climbers and villagers must stay more than 3 kilometers from the peak, according to Indonesia's Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation. Marapi is known for sudden eruptions that are difficult to predict because the source is shallow and near the peak, and its eruptions aren't caused by a deep movement of magma, which sets off tremors that register on seismic monitors. Marapi has been active since an eruption in January 2023 that caused no casualties. It is among more than 120 active volcanoes in Indonesia. The country is prone to seismic upheaval because of its location on the Pacific "Ring of Fire," an arc of volcanoes and fault lines encircling the Pacific Basin.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Washington — The first living patient to receive a genetically modified pig kidney transplant has died two months after the procedure, the US hospital that carried it out said. "Mass General is deeply saddened at the sudden passing of Mr. Rick Slayman. We have no indication that it was the result of his recent transplant," the Boston hospital said in a statement issued late Saturday. In a world first, surgeons at Massachusetts General Hospital in March successfully transplanted the genetically edited pig kidney into Slayman, who was 62 years old at the time and suffering from end-stage kidney disease. "Slayman will forever be seen as a beacon of hope to countless transplant patients worldwide and we are deeply grateful for his trust and willingness to advance the field of xenotransplantation," the hospital statement said. Organ shortages are a chronic problem around the world and Mass General said in March that there were more than 1,400 patients on its waiting list for a kidney transplant. The pig kidney used for the transplant was provided by a Massachusetts biotech company called eGenesis and had been modified to remove harmful pig genes and add certain human genes, according to the hospital. Slayman, who suffered from Type 2 diabetes and hypertension, had received a transplanted human kidney in 2018, but it began to fail five years later. When the hospital announced the successful transplant in March, Slayman said he had agreed to the procedure "not only as a way to help (him), but a way to provide hope for the thousands of people who need a transplant to survive." In a statement posted on Mass General's website, his family said while they were "deeply saddened about the sudden passing of our beloved Rick" they took "great comfort knowing he inspired so many." The family said they were "comforted by the optimism he provided patients desperately waiting for a transplant". More than 89,000 patients were on the national kidney waiting list as of March this year, according to a US health department website. On average, 17 people die each day while waiting for an organ transplant. Slayman's family also thanked the doctors "who truly did everything they could to help give Rick a second chance. Their enormous efforts leading the xenotransplant gave our family seven more weeks with Rick, and our memories made during that time will remain in our minds and hearts." "After his transplant, Rick said that one of the reasons he underwent this procedure was to provide hope for the thousands of people who need a transplant to survive," the family added. "His legacy will be one that inspires patients, researchers, and health care professionals." The transplantation of organs from one species to another is a growing field known as xenotransplantation. About a month after Slayman's procedure, surgeons at NYU Langone Health in New York carried out a similar transplant on Lisa Pisano, who had suffered heart failure and end-stage kidney disease. Pig kidneys had been transplanted previously into brain-dead patients, but Slayman was the first living person to receive one. Genetically modified pig hearts were transplanted in 2023 into two patients at the University of Maryland, but both lived less than two months. Mass General said Slayman's transplant had been carried out under a policy known as "compassionate use" that allows patients with "serious or life-threatening conditions" to access experimental therapies not yet approved by the US Food and Drug Administration.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Islamabad, Pakistan — Afghan officials said Sunday that the death toll from Friday’s flash floods in the northern Baghlan province had risen to at least 315, with more than 1,600 people injured. The refugee ministry announced the latest casualties through social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter. It said more than 2,600 homes had been "completely and partially destroyed" in the province since the calamity hit following heavy seasonal rains. The ministry stressed that it was reporting preliminary assessments from its Baghlan office, saying the financial and human losses could increase. The United Nations World Food Program said Sunday on X that most of the affected areas in the province are "inaccessible by trucks," and it is using "every alternative," including donkeys, "to get food to the survivors who lost everything."  The International Organization for Migration supported the losses reported by the Afghan Taliban authorities, saying the death toll has exceeded 300 and that it expected the number to rise. The agency said the flood had destroyed more than 2,000 homes. The IOM wrote on X, "We operate 16 warehouses throughout Afghanistan, and we are working with our partners to provide lifesaving aid to the affected people."   The spokesperson for U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres quoted him as saying that he was saddened by the loss of life in flash floods in Baghlan and extended his condolences to the victims’ families. "The United Nations and its partners in Afghanistan are coordinating with the de facto [Taliban] authorities to swiftly assess needs and provide emergency assistance," Stéphane Dujarric said. Experts attribute the high seasonal rainfall in Baghlan and subsequent flooding to climate change, which caught an apparently unprepared administration and local residents off guard. The deputy prime minister for economic affairs, Abdul Ghani Baradar, traveled to the province Sunday to oversee rescue operations, medical aid provision, emergency food distribution, and temporary shelter arrangements, his office said. Poverty-stricken Afghanistan, reeling from years of conflict, is prone to natural disasters such as earthquakes, droughts, and floods. It is considered by the U.N. to be among the countries most vulnerable to climate change. In mid-April, heavy rains and flash floods in 32 of the 34 Afghan provinces killed more than 100 people and destroyed nearly 1,000 homes. The calamity also destroyed 24,000 hectares of farmland in a country where 80% of the more than 40 million population depend on agriculture to survive. Afghanistan’s economy collapsed after the Taliban seized power militarily in August 2021. Aid groups say the Taliban-governed South Asian nation finds itself economically isolated, losing development funding that previously subsidized an estimated 75% of Afghanistan’s spending on public services. International humanitarian aid for the country has significantly declined since the Taliban takeover even though the U.N. estimates over 15 million Afghans, or 35% of the population, suffer from crisis or worse levels of food insecurity.