North Korea says leader Kim Jong Un has been promoted to marshal, the country’s highest military rank. State media announced the move in a brief special message Wednesday. It comes after a shakeup of the military’s leadership this week, which included the departure of Ri Yong Ho, North Korea’s top military figure and a key […]
UN Investigator: Too Early to Lift Eritrean Sanctions
Posted July 17th, 2012 at 7:15 pm (UTC-5)
The head of the United Nations monitoring group on Somalia and Eritrea says it is too early to lift U.N. sanctions against Eritrea, despite a report suggesting the Asmara government no longer actively supports Somali al-Shabab insurgents. U.N. coordinator Matt Bryden spoke to VOA Tuesday. “While we’ve seen some improvement, I don’t think we see […]
Annan: Security Council Needs to Unite on Syria
Posted July 17th, 2012 at 6:00 pm (UTC-5)
United Nations envoy Kofi Annan says he hopes the Security Council will unite in the search for peace in Syria. Mr. Annan met with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow Tuesday as the Council faces-off on competing resolutions about Syria. Lavrov said he does not see why the Council cannot […]
UNESCO Awards Controversial Obiang Prize
Posted July 17th, 2012 at 4:10 pm (UTC-5)
The United Nations culture and science body awarded a life sciences prize in a Paris ceremony Tuesday boycotted by European leaders because the prize is funded by the leader of Equatorial Guinea. Human rights groups accuse Teodoro Obiang of corruption and allowing citizens of the African nation to live in poverty despite the country’s oil […]
Activists Call for Global Pressure on China After Tibetan’s Suicide
Posted July 17th, 2012 at 4:00 pm (UTC-5)
The London-based rights group Free Tibet says the death of an 18-year-old Tibetan monk in a self-immolation protest in southwest China Tuesday should prompt international pressure on Beijing to “let Tibetans decide their own future.” In a written statement, Free Tibet director Stephanie Brigden said Tuesday’s suicide of Lobsang Lozin in Sichuan province shows that […]
Obama Campaigns in Texas, Romney in Pennsylvania
Posted July 17th, 2012 at 3:15 pm (UTC-5)
U.S. President Barack Obama says his “middle-out, bottom-up” economic approach will push the country ahead in the next four years. “I don’t believe in top-down economics. I believe in middle-out economics. I believe in bottom-up economics. I believe in fighting on behalf of working families and giving them opportunity, and putting some money in their […]
Egypt Train Crash Injuries 4
Posted July 17th, 2012 at 2:25 pm (UTC-5)
Egyptian medical officials say a train derailed and crashed south of Cairo Tuesday, injuring at least four people. The train reportedly collided with a stationary train and came off the line in the Badrashin area of Giza. Several of its carriages were overturned. Security officials had said an unknown number of people had died in […]
UN: Somali Refugees Surpass 1 Million in Horn of Africa
Posted July 17th, 2012 at 1:15 pm (UTC-5)
The United Nations refugee agency says the number of Somalis who have fled their country has surpassed 1 million. According to the agency, most of the refugees are fleeing to neighboring Kenya and Ethiopia. The most recent arrivals — like previous ones — cite continued unrest and food shortages in Somalia. However, the outflow of […]
US Tech Giant Microsoft Facing New EU Penalty
Posted July 17th, 2012 at 12:50 pm (UTC-5)
The European Union is threatening to impose a stiff fine on U.S. technology giant Microsoft because the company failed to give European customers a choice of web browsers. Microsoft apologized on Tuesday for what it called a “technical error” in failing to offer 28 million European users of its Windows 7 operating system a choice […]
Egypt Train Crashes, Unknown Number of Casualties
Posted July 17th, 2012 at 12:40 pm (UTC-5)
Egyptian security officials say a train derailed and crashed south of Cairo Tuesday, causing an unknown number of casualties. The train reportedly collided with a stationary train and came off the line in the Badrashin area of Giza. Five of its carriages were overturned, and some reports say it caught fire.
