World

  Firefighters work at the site of a Russian missile strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Dnipro, Ukraine November 21, 2024. Press service of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Dnipropetrovsk region/Handout via REUTERS Ukrainian officials reported damage Thursday to an industrial site in the Dnipropetrovsk region after a series of Russian attacks. Dnipropetrovsk Governor Serhiy Lysak said the attacks hit the city of Dnipro and also caused several fires. Volodymyr Artiukh, governor of Ukraine’s Sumy region, said on Telegram that Russian forces shelled areas along the border between the two countries and attacked with an aerial drone. Russia’s Defense Ministry said its air defenses destroyed two Ukrainian drones over the Rostov region and two drones over Volgogr...

  A general view of the Bangkok Hospital Udon, where an Australian teenager was taken after drinking alcohol contaminated with methanol in Laos and passed away, in Udon Thani province, Thailand November 21, 2024. An Australian teenager died Thursday in Laos, a week after drinking alcohol tainted with methanol. Nineteen-year-old Bianca Jones is the fourth person to die since a group became sick during a night out in the town of Vang Vieng. The other deaths include an American and two Danes. "This is every parent\'s worst fear and a nightmare no one should have to endure," Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese told parliament on Thursday. "All Australians offer them our deepest sympathy in this time of heartbreak." Vang Vieng is an area popular with backpackers locat...

  FILE - The C-Lion1 submarine telecommunications cable is being laid to the bottom of the Baltic Sea by cable ship Ile de Brehat on the shore of Helsinki, Finland on October 12, 2015. HELSINKI, Finland — Finnish authorities said Wednesday they have opened an investigation into the rupture of a data cable under the Baltic Sea, adding to a Swedish probe into the possible sabotage of that link and another cable. The C-Lion1 cable, which runs between Finland and Germany was damaged on Monday, the day after similar damage to a cable that crosses the Baltic between Lithuania and Sweden, with the incidents occurring off the Swedish islands of Oland and Gotland respectively. Germany\'s defense minister said Tuesday that the damage appeared to h...

  FILE - Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai pauses during an interview in Hong Kong, July 1, 2020. Lai's court appearance on Wednesday marked the first time the former publisher provided testimony in a high-profile trial that started nearly one year ago. washington — Wearing a gray jacket and flanked by prison officers, pro-democracy publisher Jimmy Lai smiled and waved to supporters Wednesday as he entered the Hong Kong courtroom. For his son, Sebastien, Lai\'s testimony at his national security trial hearing was a chance to see — from afar — how his 77-year-old father is doing. Sebastien Lai followed the hearing from Washington, where he has been advocating for his father\'s release.   Jimmy Lai's wife, Teresa Lai, and retired Chinese Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze-Kiun arri...

  FILE - A handmade version of the Islamic State group's flag is seen on Sept. 17, 2020. (U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York via AP) washington — The Islamic State terror group\'s small but influential affiliate in Somalia is growing, thanks in part to what the United Nations describes as an "influx of foreign fighters." A new report this week by the U.N. Sanctions Monitoring Team for Somalia warns that fighters, including some from countries in the Middle East, have helped the Islamic State\'s Somali affiliate, also known as IS-Somalia, to more than double in size to between 600 and 700 fighters. "Foreign fighters arrive in Puntland [Somalia] using both maritime and overland routes," according to the report, which is based on intelligence estimates...

  The Zambia Conference of Catholic Bishops, shown here in Lusaka in an undated photo provided by the organization, issued a letter on Nov. 17, 2024, spelling out the bishops' alarm at the state of human rights and democratic freedom in the country. LUSAKA, ZAMBIA — In Zambia, Catholic bishops raised the alarm this week about increased arrests and prolonged detentions of opposition leaders. In a letter signed by all 11 of the country’s Catholic bishops, they lamented what they called significant restrictions on democratic freedom, illustrated by charges being brought against at least six opposition leaders, as well as journalists and civil society activists, for political activities. The Zambia Conference of Catholic Bishops, the chu...

  FILE - Former acting Attorney General Matt Whitaker waves as Donald Trump speaks at a caucus night party in Des Moines, Iowa, on Jan. 15, 2024. President-elect Trump on Nov. 20, 2024, announced Whitaker as his choice to be the U.S. ambassador to NATO. U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on Wednesday named Matt Whitaker, a former acting attorney general from his first presidency, as the U.S. ambassador to NATO, the cornerstone Western military alliance whose member countries Trump has criticized for not spending enough money on defense. In a statement, Trump described Whitaker, 55, as "a strong warrior and loyal patriot" who "will ensure the United States\' interests are advanced and defended" and "strengthen relat...

  FILE - A protester rolls a tire to burn during a protest in the Choupal neighborhood of Maputo, Mozambique, Nov. 15, 2024. Maputo, Mozambique — In a state of the nation address late Tuesday, outgoing Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi invited the four presidential candidates for a dialogue as part of a bid to end post-election unrest that has left several people dead and dozens of others injured. Protesters say the October 9 election won by ruling party candidate Daniel Chapo was rigged. The government denies that accusation. Nyusi said the demonstrations are having a negative impact on the economy, as they limit the activities of companies and ports and increase unemployment, among other issues. He said in his address that he will wo...

  FILE - A steelworker moves an artillery projectile during the manufacturing process at the Scranton Army Ammunition Plant in Scranton, Pennsylvania, on April 13, 2023. The U.S. Defense Department said last week that some weapons deliveries to Ukraine will take months to complete. Some U.S. weapons deliveries to Ukraine may take place after President Joe Biden\'s term ends in January, Pentagon officials tell VOA, noting it will take time for certain capabilities to arrive in Ukraine. "As you know, some equipment and some systems can get to Ukraine very quickly, and you\'ve seen that happen within days or weeks. Sometimes, it does take longer … and that could be longer than weeks; that could be months,” Pentagon Deputy Press Secretar...

  FILE - A truck is packed with crushed granite at a mining plant in Zamfara, Nigeria, April 21, 2016. Abuja, Nigeria — Nigeria concluded a three-day conference Wednesday to mark National Mining Week. Authorities in the West African nation have been seeking to expand investments in the mining industry in a bid to diversify the economy, amid the global surge in demand for minerals. The conference, attended by government officials, mining industry players and international investors, was part of the Nigerian government\'s campaign to boost not only mining, but also local processing of the minerals extracted. Earlier this year, the Nigerian government said new investors will be required to set up local processing plants if they want to obta...