PARIS — Candidates in France on Tuesday faced a deadline to register for the run-off round of a high-stakes parliamentary election, as President Emmanuel Macron's centrist camp and a left-wing alliance scrambled to prevent the far right from taking power. On Sunday, French people go to polls for the decisive final round of the snap election Macron called after his camp received a drubbing in European elections last month. His gamble appears to have backfired, with the far-right National Rally... Читать дальше...
SYDNEY — Australia’s Labor government is facing a backlash from the Muslim community over its suspension of an Afghan-born lawmaker. Senator Fatima Payman, an Australian Muslim, says she has been exiled after voting against party lines on issues around Palestinian statehood. Australia advocates a two-state solution in which Israel and a future Palestinian state coexist within internationally recognized borders. Payman was suspended after voting against her own party to recognize Palestine as a state in federal Parliament. Читать дальше...
Phnom Penh, Cambodia — A Cambodian court on Tuesday sentenced 10 environmentalists to between six and eight years in jail for plotting to commit crimes in their activism, the latest legal crackdown on the country's green campaigners. The campaigners from Mother Nature, one of Cambodia's few environmental activism groups, denied the charges, which they said were politically motivated. Am Sam Ath, operations director of rights group LICADHO, told AFP the court sentenced the activists to jail terms ranging from six to eight years. Читать дальше...
Jakarta, Indonesia — Indonesian President-elect Prabowo Subianto has undergone leg surgery but is continuing to work as he recovers, a spokesman said Tuesday. The defense minister and former general, who had suffered for years from a limp attributed to parachuting accidents, underwent surgery on his left leg at the National Defense Central Hospital in Jakarta, his team said. Specifics of the procedure were kept under wraps, but Prabowo, who succeeds President Joko Widodo in October, described... Читать дальше...
The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled for the first time that former presidents have broad immunity from criminal prosecution for official acts. We talk to Joel Richard Paul is a professor of law at the University of California Hastings Law School in San Francisco and Carolyn Shapiro, the founder and co-director of Chicago-Kent's Institute on the Supreme Court of the United States. The Israeli army has ordered a mass evacuation of Palestinians from much of Gaza's second largest city, Khan Younis. Hurricane... Читать дальше...
The U.S. government's representative to the Minerals Security Partnership, an alliance of mostly Western countries that aims to speed the development of energy mineral supply chains, said last month that a Chinese company was using "predatory" tactics to hold down the price of cobalt mined in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Henry Wilkins looks at what this means for Africa.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken affirmed Monday that President Joe Biden's proposal to end the Israel-Hamas conflict is still achievable. Blinken also underlined the importance of postwar plans to rebuild Gaza. VOA's Veronica Balderas Iglesias reports.
New York — Donald Trump’s lawyers on Monday asked the New York judge who presided over his hush money trial to set aside his conviction and delay his sentencing scheduled for later this month. The letter to Judge Juan M. Merchan cited the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling earlier Monday and asked the judge to delay Trump’s sentencing while he weighs the high court’s decision and how it could influence the New York case, the people said. The people could not discuss details of the letter before it was... Читать дальше...
washington — The United States’ commitment to providing extended deterrence to South Korea is being put to the test, with some South Korean politicians publicly questioning the effectiveness of the U.S. nuclear umbrella after Russia and North Korea reached a new defense pact. Debate over the U.S. extended deterrence was sparked by Representative Na Kyung Won, a five-term lawmaker of South Korea’s ruling People Power Party, who is running for the party leadership. “The deterrence under the solid... Читать дальше...
Former South Carolina Governor and U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley continued to draw support from Republican voters long after she dropped out of this year’s U.S. presidential race. VOA’s Dora Mekouar looks at how Haley supporters may help determine the winner of the election between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.
doha, qatar — The third round of U.N.-led talks to explore engagement with Afghanistan ended Monday without the Taliban making any reform pledges or winning concessions from the international community. A few international organizations and special envoys for Afghanistan from nearly two dozen countries met with Taliban officials in Doha, Qatar, over two days. Rosemary DiCarlo, U.N. undersecretary-general for political and peacebuilding affairs, who presided over the event, told reporters the talks... Читать дальше...
The US Supreme Court sides with Donald Trump in that the president of the United States, no matter who that person is, is entitled to “presumptive immunity” for official acts in office. A move that further delays his trial for trying to overturn the results of the 2020 election. The United States continues pushing for an Israel-Hamas peace plan involving regional intermediaries Egypt and Qatar. The far-right wins big in French elections and liberals in the U.S. are worried about their candidate’s... Читать дальше...
islamabad — A group of independent experts from the United Nations demanded Monday the immediate and unconditional release of Pakistan’s former Prime Minister Imran Khan, asserting that his imprisonment is arbitrary and violates international laws. The Geneva-based Working Group on Arbitrary Detention, which reports to the U.N. Human Rights Council, published the opinion, saying that Pakistani authorities have “no legal basis” for Khan’s detention. The five-member group pointed out that the imprisonment... Читать дальше...
baghdad, iraq — Iraqi police announced Monday the arrest of three suspected members of a militant group accused of arson attacks in the country's north. The announcement comes at a time of heightened tension in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region, where the Turkish army is conducting operations against the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), which is listed as a "terrorist" group by Ankara and several Western allies. The region is also scheduled to hold much-delayed elections in October. The... Читать дальше...
