The first group of Chinese activists has arrived in Hong Kong after being deported by Japan. Five activists and two television journalists received a hero’s welcome when they landed on a flight from Okinawa. They are part of a group of 14 Chinese arrested after landing on an island claimed by both Tokyo and Beijing. […]
Ecuador’s President Defends Asylum Grant For Assange
Posted August 17th, 2012 at 8:05 pm (UTC-5)
Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa says the main reason his country has granted asylum to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is that no one could guarantee that Assange would not be extradited to a “third country.” Assange has been sheltered in the Ecuadorean embassy in London since June. The Australian took refuge there after losing a legal […]
South African President Orders Probe into Mine Shootings
Posted August 17th, 2012 at 7:35 pm (UTC-5)
South African President Jacob Zuma has ordered an official inquiry into the police killing of 34 striking miners, the deadliest security operation in the country since the end of apartheid. Mr. Zuma said he was “shocked and dismayed” at what he called “senseless violence.” The president cut short a visit to a regional summit in […]
Ecuador’s President Defends Asylum Grant For Assange
Posted August 17th, 2012 at 6:35 pm (UTC-5)
Ecuadorean President Rafael Correa says the main reason his country has granted asylum to WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is that no one could guarantee that Assange would not be extradited to a “third country.” Assange has been sheltered in the Ecuadorean embassy in London since June. The Australian took refuge there after losing a legal […]
Chinese Activists Deported from Japan
Posted August 17th, 2012 at 5:40 pm (UTC-5)
The first group of Chinese activists have arrived in Hong Kong after being deported by Japan. Five activists and two television journalists received a hero’s welcome when they landed on a flight from Okinawa. They are part of a group of 14 Chinese who were arrested after landing on an island claimed by both Tokyo […]
Syrians Hold Anti-Government Protests After Shelling, Clashes
Posted August 17th, 2012 at 2:55 pm (UTC-5)
Thousands of Syrians took to the streets Friday in anti-government demonstrations, as Syrian aerial forces targeted opposition hubs in the northern city of Aleppo and fought rebels in neighborhoods around Damascus. VOA’s Scott Bobb said he witnessed a demonstration in the northern town of Marea that was held in sympathy for the dozens of people […]
US “Disappointed” by Ukraine’s Lutsenko Verdict
Posted August 17th, 2012 at 2:25 pm (UTC-5)
The United States says it is “disappointed” by Friday’s verdict in the trial of Ukraine’s former Interior Minister Yuriy Lutsenko, calling it a “politically motivated prosecution of opposition members.” In a statement, the U.S. embassy in Kyiv said the prosecution of Lutsenko and his close ally, jailed opposition leader Yulia Tymoshenko, raises serious concerns about […]
US, EU Condemn Russian Sentence for Punk Band
Posted August 17th, 2012 at 1:50 pm (UTC-5)
The United States, European governments and human rights activists have condemned the two-year prison sentence given to members of a Russian punk rock band. A Russian judge handed down the sentence for three members of the band Pussy Riot who performed a song ridiculing President Vladimir Putin in a Moscow cathedral. The U.S. State Department […]
South African Police: Mine Shootings Were in Self-Defense
Posted August 17th, 2012 at 12:40 pm (UTC-5)
South Africa’s national police chief says her forces opened fire in self-defense against striking mine workers, in violence that left 34 people dead and 78 injured. Riah Phiyega said Friday that police used force to protect themselves after coming under attack Thursday by strikers armed with “dangerous weapons.” The mining company also said after the […]
Pakistan’s Army Chief: No Joint US Military Operation in Northwest
Posted August 17th, 2012 at 12:30 pm (UTC-5)
Pakistan’s army chief is rejecting what he says is “speculative reporting” about a joint military operation with the United States in Pakistan’s North Waziristan. The northwestern tribal agency is a known stronghold of Taliban and al-Qaida-linked militants and U.S. officials have repeatedly called on Pakistan to launch an offensive there. The militant Haqqani network, which […]
