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.

Windhoek, Namibia  — An umbrella body representing 77 environmental protection groups in Namibia is voicing opposition to proposed green hydrogen production in the Tsau Khaeb National Park by a German company because of the harm they say it poses to animals and plant life in that area. The Tsau Khaeb National Park in southern Namibia is one of 36 recognized globally recognized hotspots for biodiversity. It is renowned for succulent plants as well as wildlife that includes antelopes, leopards and brown hyenas. However, this biodiversity will be harmed if green hydrogen is to be produced in that pristine wilderness, said Chris Brown, the head of the environmental coalition known as Namibia’s Chamber of Environment.  “When Germany and to a certain extent other countries in the European Union are offsetting the costs of green hydrogen, offshoring it, and we are carrying the burden of those costs and we are carrying the long-term, permanently long-term cost of losing a national park with all its future developments, to provide relatively short-term cover for Germany’s energy, that is a major problem," Brown told VOA at his offices in Windhoek. "It’s a moral problem as well as a long-term economic problem and a welfare problem for Namibia.” Green hydrogen is produced using wind, water and solar power to produce ammonia, which is then converted to hydrogen, which can be used for steel production and as a fuel for ships and vehicles. In a rush to decarbonize, European member states like Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands have allocated millions of euros to pilot projects along Namibia’s sunny and windy coastline for green hydrogen production. Ambassador Ana Beatriz Martins heads the EU delegation to Namibia. She held a public lecture on green hydrogen at Namibia’s University of Science and technology on Wednesday.  “Private European companies are already invested in some of the nine projects of green hydrogen, with the pipeline of investments of 401 billion Namibian dollars on our side," Martins said. "We have grants and loans - you can see here, I don’t need to mention that. We also have public money.” However, environmental law expert Hans-Christian Mahnke questions the legality of allowing green hydrogen production to take place in the 2 million-hectare Tsau Khaeb National Park. “That’s another legal aspect," he said. "There is the Park Management Plan, which is a contract between the government and the people. Now, certain NGOs and communities ... have concessions in the park. The park plan is a contract - it’s not a policy or whatever. They agreed [to] something [in] which [the] government said that this is how it’s gonna go. But the moment green hydrogen comes in, then they have to throw that Park Management Plan out of the window, which they haven’t done yet.” In its quest to become carbon neutral, Europe wants to cut carbon emissions by 57 percent by 2030, and this means producing 10 million tons of green hydrogen in Europe and importing the same amount from countries like Namibia. The Chamber of Environment coalition says that it does not oppose green hydrogen production itself, but that it should not be done at the expense of Namibia’s environment.

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 — A high-level Pakistani delegation met with Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities on Thursday and urged “decisive action” against militants who allegedly used Afghan soil to orchestrate cross-border attacks, including a recent suicide car bombing that killed five Chinese engineers.  Kabul hosted the meeting several days after Islamabad revealed it had apprehended about a dozen suspects in connection with the deadly assault on Chinese civilians in March, saying an Afghan national carried out the bombing with the support of his handlers sheltering in Afghanistan. The victims were working on a China-funded hydropower project in northwestern Pakistan.  Officials said Deputy Taliban Interior Minister Muhammad Nabi Omari and his Pakistani counterpart, Muhammad Khurram Agha, led their respective delegations at Thursday’s meeting in the Afghan capital.  A post-visit Pakistani Foreign Ministry statement said discussions focused on the March 26 “terrorist attack” against Chinese nationals. It added that the Pakistani side shared the findings of their investigation into the bombing with Taliban officials and “sought Afghanistan’s assistance in apprehending the perpetrators.”  The Afghan side “agreed to examine the findings of the investigation and expressed the resolve to work with the Pakistan side to take the investigation to its logical conclusion,” the statement added.  Officials privy to the talks told VOA that the Pakistani side highlighted the involvement of the Tehrik-i-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, in the attack on Chinese workers and other acts of terrorism being committed against Pakistan.   “Mr. Khurram Agha talked about the attack on the 26th of March this year … and hoped for the Afghan government’s help in the security sector,” Abdul Mateen Qani, Taliban Interior Ministry spokesman, said while sharing details of Thursday’s meeting between the two countries.  He quoted Omari as describing the “terrorist attack” on Chinese nationals “as a tragic incident.” The minister stated, "Our intentions and actions are to promote peace in the region for the benefit of ourselves and everyone.”  Omari renewed Afghanistan’s commitment “to not allowing others to use its territory against anyone, and we wish the same from others.”   TTP, a globally designated terrorist organization, has for years waged deadly attacks in Pakistan, targeting security forces and civilians.  Officials in Islamabad maintain that fugitive TTP leaders and combatants relocated to sanctuaries in Afghanistan after the Taliban retook control of the country nearly three years ago and have since intensified cross-border attacks with “greater operational freedom.”  Taliban authorities reject the charges, saying neither TTP nor any other militant group is based on Afghan soil.  “The two sides agreed to remain engaged to confront the threat posed by terrorism to regional countries and to address the concerns raised by Pakistan,” said the Pakistani statement Thursday.  The Pakistani military said Thursday that a meeting of its leadership reviewed the security situation and the threat of terrorism emanating from Afghan soil.  “The forum expressed serious concerns over continued cross-border violations from Afghanistan and terrorism being orchestrated using Afghan soil, noting that Pakistan's adversaries were using Afghanistan to target security forces and innocent civilians inside Pakistan,” said a post-meeting military statement. 

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 — A 35-year-old Chinese national is facing charges related to committing cybercrimes that FBI Director Christopher Wray described as “likely the world’s largest botnet ever.”   The arrest in Singapore was the result of an international coordinated effort that included law enforcement agencies from Germany, Singapore, the United States and Thailand.  YunHe Wang, arrested on May 24, is accused of being the creator of the 911 S5 botnet, a residential proxy service.   Wang, along with other unnamed parties, created the 911 S5 botnet to facilitate “cyber-attacks, large-scale fraud, child exploitation, harassment, bomb threats, and export violations,” said Attorney General Merrick Garland in a Department of Justice press release on Wednesday.    Wang sold access to infected IP addresses to cybercriminals in exchange for crypto or fiat currency. From these transactions, he received at least $99 million in profits, the DOJ stated.   The cybercriminals Wang transacted with were allegedly able to use the infected IP addresses to “bypass financial fraud detection systems and steal billions of dollars from financial institutions, credit card issuers, and federal lending programs,” according to the DOJ release.   The compromised IP addresses allowed Wang’s customers to create fraudulent unemployment claims that targeted pandemic relief programs. The United States estimates they lost $5.9 billion from these fraudulent claims.   Wang used his profits to buy property in China, St. Kitts and Nevis, the United States, Singapore, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates. Wang also spent his money on luxury cars and watches.   Wang faces several charges including substantive computer fraud, conspiracy to commit computer fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Wang could face up to 65 years in prison if convicted.   Some information for this report was provided by Reuters and Agence France-Presse. 

The White House puts Africa front and center as President Biden welcomes Kenyan President William Ruto, celebrating six decades of partnership. This week on Inside Story: Biden’s Africa Outreach.

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.

Nairobi, Kenya — A Kenyan parliamentary committee is visiting central Kenya to hear from locals about the conduct of a British Army training unit that is accused of human rights violations, including the unresolved death of a woman more than ten years ago. The Kenya National Human Rights Commission prompted the inquiry by petitioning parliament to hold the British army accountable for alleged human rights abuses. Kenya's Parliamentary Committee on Defense and Foreign Affairs is visiting Laikipia and Samburu counties. They're there to hear people's complaints and look into reported abuses by the British army in the area. The committee, which started its inquiry on Tuesday, listened to families who blame the deaths of their relatives on unattended explosives around British training camps. The lawmakers also heard complaints of abuses at the hands of British officers, including mistreatment, torture, and unlawful detention and killings.  The committee chair, Nelson Koech, outlines explains some of the other complaints they heard from Laikipia and Samburu residents. "We've listened to people from different areas, to Lolldaiga Hills, where it's believed that officers from British Army lit fire, were burning vegetation and an entire conservancy, and driving animals out of the conservancy to where the human population is because many people have been maimed or killed by animals that now are under distress because of the training that is happening in those grounds, to many other allegations of water becoming heavily polluted. People are now starting to get effects from the fire and having chest problems," Koech said. In March 2021, a British training exercise caused a fire in the Lolldaiga Conservancy that lasted for several days.  Local activist James Mwangi wondered why the British army was allowed to train in water catchment areas with dangerous weapons.  "Lolldaiga supports so many water streams. Why are they allowing the army to train with chemical and poisonous weapons that they don't know how to use," Mwangi said. The inquiry was prompted by a petition to the parliament from the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR). Kenya has a defense cooperation agreement with the British government that allows up to 10,000 soldiers per year to conduct exercises in the East African nation. According to the Kenyan government, the presence of the British Army Training Unit in Kenya, or BATUK, provided 3,000 people with jobs and contributed $45 million to the economies of Isiolo, Laikipia, and Samburu. Koech says the parliamentarians will listen to all those who allegedly suffered from British Army activities and other government agencies to verify any abuses and human rights violations.  "You must remember this is one side of the story we have listened to. We will be visiting BATUK, and we will be going there personally to get information from the British army. This inquiry is important to mention that in an inquiry of this nature, the verdict of this inquiry is equivalent to the verdict of a high court of Kenya," Koech said. A spokesperson for the British High Commission in Kenya told the French news agency AFP that they intend to cooperate with the inquiry.  In 2012, Agnes Wanjiru was killed, allegedly by a British soldier. An investigation did not begin until 2019 and the findings of that probe were never made public.  In 2021, the Sunday Times reported that a British officer confessed to killing a 21-year-old in central Kenya to a colleague. Afterward, Kenyan police said they were reopening the inquiry.  Wanjiru’s family told the parliamentary committee to take her killing seriously and remove obstacles that may stop the prosecution of the British soldier.  The killing of Wanjiru has led to tensions between Kenya and Britain regarding the jurisdiction of British soldiers who commit crimes in Kenya.  The committee found that while some victims received compensation, it was usually less than what they were promised.  The committee will present its findings to the full parliament and also closely examine the Kenya’s defense cooperation agreement with the British government.  

Israel claims to have control of the Philadelphi Corridor, the border area between Gaza and Egypt; how will this change the course of the war, or the Israeli relationship with Egypt? Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Moldova to show support for Ukraine’s neighbor amid an increase of pressure from Russia. An update from Kyiv about Russian attacks overnight and Ukrainian successes at sea. North Korea’s attempted satellite launch appears to have also been a message to China, it’s main ally. Plus, democracy advocates convicted in Hong Kong and a human rights protest in Turkey has entered its thousandth week.