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100 people were killed and 400 injured by Israeli air strikes in Lebanon in the latest escalation of tensions between Israel and Hezbollah. The UN General Assembly is underway in New York, and US President Joe Biden is preparing to address the conference for the final time as President. In a move widely condemned by free speech advocates, Israeli forces raid the offices of Al Jazeera and confiscate equipment. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is in the US as Ukraine strikes major weapons storage facilities inside Russia, and Sri Lanka has a new president.

geneva — United Nations investigators are accusing the Belarusian government of Alexander Lukashenko of instilling “a pervasive climate of fear by quashing all avenues of dissent” by systematically oppressing its perceived political opponents. “Measures of repression and intimidation aimed at suppressing dissent continue unabated in Belarus, particularly in the lead-up to the presidential election scheduled in 2025,” Karinna Moskaleko, chair of the Group of independent Experts told the U.N. human rights council Monday. Moskaleko presented a searing account of widespread human rights violations, abuse, and horrific cases of cruelty and deprivation in this first oral update of the human rights situation in Belarus by the Expert Group, newly created by the council in March. She read out a list of abuses committed in Belarus since May 2020, when nationwide protests erupted, following Lukashenko’s decision to seek another term as president. Among those cited are arbitrary deprivation of the right to life and to liberty, torture and ill-treatment, including sexual and gender-based violence, denial of a fair trial, violations of the rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and association. “While sexual and gender-based violence is underreported, there is credible information some women and men in detention have been threatened with rape and subjected to forced nudity and cavity searches,” Moskaleko said. “We continue to observe a misuse of national security and criminal laws to silence any dissent. Individuals perceived as political opponents continue to be charged and arrested under the criminal code, for exercising their legitimate rights to freedom of expression and association,” she said, adding that “free trial rights are systematically violated.” The report notes that Belarusians forced into exile continue to be harassed by Lukashenko’s government, that their assets and properties are seized and relatives left behind are intimidated by the authorities. The group of experts accused the government “for the near-total destruction of civic space and fundamental freedoms,” with most of the opposition either imprisoned or forced into exile since the 2020 elections … creating a chilling effect on any participation in activities “perceived as critical of the government.” Lukashenko recently pardoned dozens of people who had been convicted for participating in the 2020 protests. While welcoming the announced release, Moskaleko noted that “they represent only a small fraction of those who have been arrested” and urged the government to promptly release “all those arbitrarily detained on politically motivated charges.” Larysa Belskaya, Belarusia ambassador to the U.N. in Geneva was unimpressed by what she heard and told “the West,” which she claimed was behind the report, “to stop meddling in our domestic affairs.” She said next year’s presidential election will be the domestic affair of a sovereign state. “We do not need foreign approval or disapproval regarding the outcome of our peoples’ expression of their will,” she said. “Belarus, like the overwhelming majority of developing countries, does not accept interference in its domestic affairs or pressure or sanctions.” This set off a spirited debate in the council with Western countries strongly condemning the persecution and intimidation of all segments of Belarusian society. They demanded an end to the government’s repressive policies and urged the immediate release of all political prisoners. They denounced the Belarusian government’s support of Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and called for an end to its complicity in the illegal deportation of Ukranian children by Russia. Michele Taylor, U.S. ambassador to the U.N. human rights council in Geneva, condemned the ongoing repression in Belarus “including the use of torture, arbitrary detention, intimidation, harassment of families of political prisoners and transnational repression of Belarusians.” On the other hand, Stanislav Kovpak, chief counselor at the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Department for Multilateral Human Rights Cooperation deplored “the double standards and biased approach in assessing the situation in Belarus.” “At the same time, the role of the West is hushed up as is their significant support for the opposition who has emigrated,” he said, criticizing the use of illegal restrictive measures by Western countries against the Belarusian economy … “and the stirring up of anti-government feeling by Western-controlled, biased media.” He rebuked the group of experts who “worked here in gross violation of the basic principles of impartiality that should underpin the human rights body.” Addressing the council via videolink, exiled opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya said she was speaking for the more than 1,400 political prisoners who could not speak for themselves, along with the teachers, doctors and activists behind bars for “speaking the truth and dreaming of freedom.” “Many of them are held in complete isolation, incommunicado … no letters, no phone calls, no contact with the outside world. My husband Syarhei has been cut off for over a year. I do not know if he is alive,” she said. Syarhei Tsikhanouski was arrested and imprisoned in 2020 after announcing his plan to challenge Lukashenko for the presidency.

Be sure to provide the correct payment and complete information when filing Form I-140, Immigrant Petition for Alien Workers.

washington — Violent crime in the United States is down for a second consecutive year, with law enforcement agencies reporting significant declines in murder and rapes, according to a just-released report from the FBI. The FBI Crime in the Nation report released Monday found violent crime, overall, fell by 3% from 2022 to 2023, with murder and manslaughter rates dropping by 11.6% and rape down by more than 9%. There were also smaller declines in the number of robberies and aggravated assaults. Additionally, property crimes, which include burglary, fell by an estimated 2.4% year over year, though motor vehicle theft jumped by 12.6%. FBI officials, briefing reporters on the report, described the drop in the number of murders as notable, saying the 11.6% decline is the largest recorded over the past 20 years. Overall, the officials said the rate of all violent crimes in 2023 was 363.3 crimes per 100,000 inhabitants, down from a rate of 377.1 violent crimes per 100,000 inhabitants in 2022. More than 16,000 U.S. state and local law enforcement agencies contributed data for the report, including all agencies serving cities with more than one million people. The decrease in violent crimes across the U.S. continues a trend dating back to 2021, when crime rates fell after a spike in murders in 2020, during the coronavirus pandemic. The violent crime rate also remains well below a peak in rates during the early 1990s. Some crimes, though, have seen slight increases, including the number of aggravated assaults with knives, cutting instruments or other weapons. The number of so-called “strong-arm” robberies – involving intimidation or a threat of the use of force – rose by 3.2%. Assaults on police officers also jumped to a 10-year high according to the FBI report, including 60 officers murdered in the line of duty. The number of hate crimes and victims of hate crimes also increased from 2022 to 2023, though FBI officials said the rise could have been impacted by an increase in the number of law enforcement agencies reporting hate crime data. FBI officials declined to comment on whether the trends and the overall decrease in violent crime from 2022 to 2023 have extended into 2024. But a report issued by the non-partisan Council on Criminal Justice (CCJ) in July indicates the number of violent crimes continue to fall. That study, based on monthly crime rates for dozens of major U.S. cities found murder rates fell by 13% in the first half of 2024 compared to the first six months of 2023. Assaults, assaults with guns and carjacking also fell. But while the CCJ report called the overall trends encouraging, it noted, “many cities are still experiencing disturbingly high leve

DAKAR, Senegal — At least 30 bodies were found on a boat drifting off the coast of Senegal's capital, the military said Monday, as the number of migrants leaving West Africa increases.  The navy was informed of the vessel's presence on Sunday evening and sent out a boat patrol to the area, 70 kilometers (38 nautical miles) from Dakar, Ibrahima Sow, spokesperson for Senegal's military, said in a statement.  "So far, 30 bodies have been counted," Sow said.  The advanced state of decomposition of the bodies is making the identification process very difficult, the military said, adding that investigations will provide more information on the death toll and the boat's origin.  Earlier this month, a boat carrying 89 people on board capsized off the coast of Senegal. At least 37 people died, according to Senegalese authorities.  Many of the migrants leaving West Africa through Senegal flee conflict, poverty and a lack of jobs. Most head to the Canary Islands, a Spanish archipelago off the coast of West Africa, which is used as a stepping stone to continental Europe.  Since the beginning of the year, more than 22,300 people have landed on the Canary Islands, 126% more than the same period last year, according to statistics released by Spain's Interior Ministry.  Last month, the Senegalese army said it had arrested 453 migrants and "members of smuggling networks" as part of a 12-day operation patrolling the coastline. More than half of those arrested were Senegalese nationals, the army said.  In July, a boat carrying 300 migrants, mostly from Gambia and Senegal, capsized off Mauritania. More than a dozen died and at least 150 others went missing.  The Atlantic route from West Africa to the Canary Islands is one of the deadliest in the world. While there is no accurate death toll because of the lack of information on departures from West Africa, the Spanish migrant rights group Walking Borders estimates the victims are in the thousands this year alone.  Migrant vessels that get lost or run into problems often vanish in the Atlantic, with some drifting across the ocean for months until they are found in the Caribbean and Latin America carrying only human remains.

Islamabad — Pakistan has appointed Lieutenant-General Muhammad Asim Malik as the new head of the country’s top spy agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence, or ISI.  The move comes amid persistent criticism of the powerful military-run agency for its alleged role in making or breaking elected governments in the South Asian nation. A senior Pakistani security source confirmed to VOA on Monday that Malik will assume office as the agency's next director general on September 30, replacing the current ISI chief, Nadeem Anjum.  The military's media wing did not immediately comment on the high-profile appointment, but Pakistan’s state broadcaster reported it with a brief profile of the new ISI chief.  Malik graduated from Fort Leavenworth in the United States and the Royal College of Defence Studies in London and currently serves as an adjutant general at the military headquarters in Rawalpindi, adjacent to the Pakistani capital, Islamabad.  The ISI’s meddling in national politics has lately been the subject of intense debate in Pakistan’s national media and political circles.   Jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan accuses current ISI chief Anjum of playing a role at the behest of the military in ousting him from power in 2022 through an opposition parliamentary no-confidence vote, instituting frivolous lawsuits subsequently, and unleashing a crackdown on his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party to keep himfrom returning to power.  Several federal and provincial court judges, in a recent letter to the Supreme Court chief justice, have also alleged that the ISI was pressuring them to decide cases against Khan to ensure he remains in jail. The incarcerated former prime minister remains Pakistan’s most popular politician.  The military, in turn, has recently arrested Anjum’s predecessor, Faiz Hameed, and initiated his court marshal on various charges, including the use of his position as the ISI chief to enable Khan to suppress political opponents while in office.  It is widely believed that Khan's decision not to let Anjum replace Hameed in October 2021 angered the military and eventually led to the prime minister's removal from power several months later. Subsequent governments and the military deny having any political role or pressuring judges, a claim critics dispute.  The army has ruled Pakistan for more than three decades since the country gained independence from Britain in 1947. Former Pakistani prime ministers, including Khan, and political parties say generals maintain control over foreign policy and national security issues. Khan has persistently alleged in statements from his prison cell that the current coalition government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif “is merely a tout” of the military. He alleges that the army leadership used the ISI to massively rig the February 8 parliamentary elections this year to prevent his party from winning.     The allegations were supported by a detailed Supreme Court majority decision released on Monday, resolving a petition concerning pre- and post-election controversies. The judgment declared several actions of Pakistan’s election commission in the lead-up to the polls “unlawful,” saying they were meant to keep PTI-nominated candidates from winning. The judgment stated that the commission “has failed to fulfill this role in the general elections of 2024.” It noted that election authorities’ actions “significantly infringe upon the rights of the electorate and corrode their own institutional legitimacy.” The vote outcome has worsened the political turmoil triggered by Khan’s ouster, undermining Pakistan’s efforts to stabilize an already troubled economy. A spike in militant violence, particularly in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Baluchistan provinces, which border Afghanistan, has added to the challenges facing the military-backed Sharif administration.  "All this has familiar echoes of the past — a government unwilling to engage with the opposition, jailing opposition leaders, trying to steamroll legislation, and a desperate opposition in constant protest mode against a backdrop of economic gloom, weak governance, and ubiquitous establishment pulling the strings from behind the scenes,” Maleeha Lodhi, Pakistan’s former ambassador to the U.S. and the United Nations, wrote in an article published by Pakistan’s Dawn newspaper Monday.

Washington — The U.S. Commerce Department on Monday proposed prohibiting key Chinese software and hardware in connected vehicles on American roads due to national security concerns — a move that would effectively bar nearly all Chinese cars from entering the U.S. market. The planned regulation, first reported by Reuters, would also force American and other major automakers in the coming years to remove key Chinese software and hardware from vehicles in the United States. The Biden administration has raised serious concerns about the collection of data by Chinese companies on U.S. drivers and infrastructure through connected vehicles as well as about potential foreign manipulation of vehicles connected to the internet and navigation systems. The White House ordered an investigation into the potential dangers in February. The prohibitions would prevent testing of self-driving cars on U.S. roads by Chinese automakers and extend to vehicle software and hardware produced by other U.S. foreign adversaries including Russia. "When foreign adversaries build software to make a vehicle that means it can be used for surveillance, can be remotely controlled, which threatens the privacy and safety of Americans on the road," Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo told a briefing. "In an extreme situation, a foreign adversary could shut down or take control of all their vehicles operating in the United States all at the same time causing crashes, blocking roads." The move is a significant escalation in the United States' ongoing restrictions on Chinese vehicles, software and components. Earlier this month, the Biden administration locked in steep tariff hikes on Chinese imports, including a 100% duty on electric vehicles as well as new hikes on EV batteries and key minerals. There are relatively few Chinese-made cars or light-duty trucks imported into the United States. But Raimondo said the department is acting "before suppliers, automakers and car components linked to China or Russia become commonplace and widespread in the U.S. automotive sector... We're not going to wait until our roads are filled with cars and the risk is extremely significant before we act." Nearly all newer cars and trucks are considered "connected" with onboard network hardware that allows internet access, allowing them to share data with devices both inside and outside the vehicle. A senior administration official confirmed the proposal would effectively ban all existing Chinese light-duty cars and trucks from the U.S. market, but added it would allow Chinese automakers to seek "specific authorizations" for exemptions. The United States has ample evidence of China prepositioning malware in critical American infrastructure, White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told the same briefing. "With potentially millions of vehicles on the road, each with 10- to 15-year lifespans the risk of disruption and sabotage increases dramatically," Sullivan said. The Chinese Embassy in Washington last month criticized planned action to limit Chinese vehicle exports to the United States: "China urges the U.S. to earnestly abide by market principles and international trade rules, and create a level playing field for companies from all countries. China will firmly defend its lawful rights and interests." The proposal calls for making software prohibitions effective in the 2027 model year while the hardware ban would take effect in the 2030 model year or January 2029. The Commerce Department is giving the public 30 days to comment on the proposal and hopes to finalize it by Jan. 20. The rules would apply to all on-road vehicles but exclude agricultural or mining vehicles not used on public roads. The Alliance For Automotive Innovation, a group representing major automakers including General Motors, Toyota, Volkswagen and Hyundai, has warned that changing hardware and software would take time. The group noted connected vehicle hardware and software are developed around the world, including China, but could not detail to what extent Chinese-made components are prevalent in U.S. models.

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services today posted a Federal Register notice establishing procedures for Liberians covered by Deferred Enforced Departure to apply for Employment Authorization Documents that will be valid through June 30, 2026.

Moscow — A Soyuz capsule carrying two Russians and one American from the International Space Station landed Monday in Kazakhstan, ending a record-breaking stay for the Russian pair. The capsule landed on the Kazakh steppe about 3 1/2 hours after undocking from the ISS in an apparently trouble-free descent. In the last stage of the landing, it descended under a red-and-white parachute at about 7.2 meters per second (16 mph), with small rockets fired in the final seconds to cushion the touchdown. The astronauts were extracted from the capsule and placed in nearby chairs to help them adjust to gravity, then given medical examinations in a nearby tent. Oleg Kononenko and Nikolai Chub returned after 374 days aboard the space station; on Friday they broke the record for the longest continuous stay there. Also in the capsule was American Tracy Dyson, who was in the space station for six months. Eight astronauts remain in the space station, including Americans Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who have remained long past their scheduled return to Earth. They arrived in June as the first crew of Boeing's new Starliner capsule. But their trip was marred by thruster troubles and helium leaks, and the U.S. space agency NASA decided it was too risky to return them on Starliner. The two astronauts are to ride home with SpaceX next year.

Muslims account for less than 2% of the U.S. population, but as VOA’s Kane Farabaugh reports, Muslim American influence in U.S. elections is growing, driven largely by concerns over the continued war between Israel and Hamas.

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Cairo — Cholera is spreading in war-torn Sudan, killing at least 388 people and sickening about 13,000 others over the past two months, health authorities said, as more than 17 months of fighting between the military and a notorious paramilitary group shows no sign of abating.   The disease is spreading in areas devastated by recent heavy rainfall and floods especially in eastern Sudan where millions of war displaced people sheltered.   The casualties from cholera included six dead and about 400 sickened over the weekend, according to Sunday’s report by the Health Ministry. The disease was detected in 10 of the country’s 18 provinces with the eastern Kassala and al-Qadarif provinces the most hit, the ministry said.   Cholera is a fast-developing, highly contagious infection that causes diarrhea, leading to severe dehydration and possible death within hours when not treated, according to the World Health Organization. It is transmitted through the ingestion of contaminated food or water.    The disease is not uncommon in Sudan. A previous major outbreak left at least 700 dead and sickened about 22,000 in less than two months in 2017.   Sudan was plunged into chaos in April last year when simmering tensions between the military and a powerful paramilitary group, the Rapid Support Forces, exploded into open warfare across the country.   The fighting, which wrecked the capital, Khartoum, and other urban areas has been marked by atrocities including mass rape and ethnically motivated killings that amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity, especially in the western region of Darfur, according to the United Nations and international rights groups.   It has killed at least 20,000 people and wounded tens of thousands others, according to the U.N. However, rights groups and activists say the toll was much higher.   The war also has created the world’s largest displacement crisis. More than 13 million people have been forced to flee their homes since the fighting began, according to the International Organization for Migration. They include over 2.3 million who fled to neighboring countries.   Devastating seasonal floods and cholera have compounded the Sudanese misery. At least 225 people have been killed and about 900 others were injured in the floods, the Health Ministry said. Critical infrastructure has been washed away, and more than 76,000 houses have been destroyed or damaged, it said.   Famine was also confirmed in July in the Zamzam camp for displaced people, which is located about 15 kilometers (10 miles) from North Darfur’s embattled capital of al-Fasher, according to global experts from the Famine Review Committee. About 25.6 million people — more than half of Sudan’s population — will face acute hunger this year, they warned.   Fighting, meanwhile, rages in al-Fasher, the last major city in Darfur that is still held by the military. The RSF has been attempting to retake it since the start of the year.   Last week, the paramilitary force and its allied Arab militias launched a new attack on the city. The military said its forces, aided by rebel groups, managed to repel the attack and kill hundreds of RSF fighters, including two senior commanders. 

Brussels, Belgium — Eurozone business activity declined for the first time in seven months in September, as France lost steam after the end of the Paris Olympic Games, a key survey said Monday.   S&P Global's purchasing managers' index (PMI) — a key gauge of the overall health of the economy — dropped to 48.9 in September, down from 51 in August.  Any reading below 50 indicated contraction.     "The eurozone is heading towards stagnation. After the Olympic effect had temporarily boosted France, the eurozone heavyweight economy, the Composite PMI fell in September to the largest extent in 15 months," said Cyrus de la Rubia, chief economist at Hamburg Commercial Bank.    "Considering the rapid decline in new orders and the order backlog, it doesn't take much imagination to foresee a further weakening of the economy."   The survey showed that Germany and France, the eurozone's top two economies, were largely responsible for driving the slump in the 20-country single currency area.   French private sector output returned to contraction after the shot in the arm from the Olympics, while German business activity dropped the fastest since February.   The "big decline" in eurozone PMI "suggests that the economy is slowing sharply, that Germany is in recession and that France's Olympics boost was just a blip", said Andrew Kenningham, chief Europe economist at London-based research group Capital Economics.   "With France's new minority government now planning to tighten fiscal policy significantly, prospects for growth in France look increasingly poor," he said.   President Emmanuel Macron named a new government led by Prime Minister Michel Barnier Saturday, 11 weeks after an inconclusive parliamentary election.   The eurozone PMI data showed the manufacturing sector was down across the board, falling for the eighteenth month in a row.     "Manufacturing is getting messier by the month," de la Rubia said.    "Looking ahead, the sharp drop in new orders and companies' increasingly bleak outlook for future output suggest that this dry spell is far from over."   The decline in business activity could add impetus to calls for the European Central Bank (ECB) to cut its key interest rate again in October.   The bank for the 20 countries that use the euro cut its deposit rate by a quarter point to 3.50% this month — the second decrease since June.   The ECB had hiked rates at record pace from mid-2022 to tame surging consumer prices but has started easing the pressure as inflation drifts back down towards its 2% target.