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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.

DUBAI — Iran's foreign minister said that Tehran was open to diplomacy to solve disputes but not "threats and pressure," state media reported on Saturday, after the U.S. and three European powers imposed sanctions against the country's aviation sector. Abbas Araqchi's comments come a day after the European Union's chief diplomat said the bloc is considering new sanctions targeting Iran's aviation sector, in reaction to reports Tehran supplied Russia with ballistic missiles in its war against Ukraine. "Iran continues on its own path with strength, although we have always been open to talks to resolve disputes ... but dialogue should be based on mutual respect, not on threats and pressure," Araqchi said, according to the official news agency IRNA. Araqchi said on Wednesday that Tehran had not delivered any ballistic missiles to Russia and that sanctions imposed on Iran by the United States and three European powers would not solve any problems between them. The United States, Germany, Britain and France on Tuesday imposed new sanctions on Iran, including measures against its national airline, Iran Air.

ALGIERS, Algeria — Algeria's constitutional court on Saturday certified the landslide victory of President Abdelmadjid Tebboune in last weekend's election after retabulating vote counts that he and his two opponents had called into question. The court said that it had reviewed local voting data to settle questions about irregularities that Tebboune’s opponents had alleged in two appeals Monday. “After verification of the minutes of the regions and correction of the errors noted in the counting of the votes," it had lowered Tebboune's vote share and determined that his two opponents had won hundreds of thousands more votes than previously reported, said Omar Belhadj, the constitutional court's president. The court's decision makes Tebboune the official winner of the September 7 election. His government will next decide when to inaugurate him for a second term. The court's retabulated figures showed Tebboune leading Islamist challenger Abdellali Hassan Cherif by around 75 percentage points. With 7.7 million votes, the first-term president won 84.3% of the vote, surpassing the 2019 win by millions of votes and a double-digit margin. Cherif, running with the Movement of Society for Peace, won nearly 950,000 votes, or roughly 9.6%. The Socialist Forces Front's Youcef Aouchiche won more than 580,000 votes, or roughly 6.1%. Notably, both challengers surpassed the threshold required to receive reimbursement for campaign expenses. Under its election laws, Algeria pays for political campaigns that receive more than a 5% vote share. The results announced by the election authority last week showed Cherif and Aouchiche with 3.2% and 2.2% of the vote, respectively. Both were criticized for participating in an election that government critics denounced as a way for Algeria's political elite to make a show of democracy amid broader political repression. Throughout the campaign, each of the three campaigns emphasized participation, calling on voters and youth to participate and defy calls to boycott the ballot. The court announced nationwide turnout was 46.1%, surpassing the 2019 presidential election, when 39.9% of the electorate participated.

KYIV, Ukraine — U.S. historian and author Timothy Snyder led a charity run in Kyiv Saturday to raise awareness of the conditions under which Ukrainian prisoners of war are held in Russia as the conflict approaches a third winter. The race came following a recent escalation in Russian missile and drone attacks, largely aimed at Ukraine's electricity infrastructure. People clapped and cheered after Snyder, a 55-year-old Yale University professor who has written extensively on eastern Europe and the global resurgence of authoritarian regimes and is much admired in Ukraine, addressed the nearly thousand runners. He then joined a workout and participated in the run. “Thousands of Ukrainian civilians and soldiers are illegally held in captivity during an illegal war,” Snyder told The Associated Press just ahead of the run. “This race is about reminding everyone of that and expressing solidarity with Ukrainians and giving Ukrainians a chance to do something together.” The 5K and 10-kilometer runs took place around a sprawling park in the Ukrainian capital created out of a renovated Soviet-era exhibition center. The runners included members of the public, service people and veterans, as well as wives of the POWs. Among them was 27-year-old Anastasia Ofyl, whose husband Oleksandr was captured by the Russians. “We have to fight for him,” she said. “That’s why I’m running.” Ukrainian soldiers often give harrowing accounts of their conditions in Russian captivity when they return home as part of regular prisoner exchanges. In a report issued in July, a United Nations human rights agency said it “continued to document the widespread use of torture and ill-treatment, including sexual violence, against civilians and Ukrainian prisoners of war held by the Russian Federation.” Snyder, who has organized fundraisers as part of the country’s war-relief effort, enjoys near-celebrity status in Ukraine. On Tuesday, he visited President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who thanked him for his charity work. The Ukrainian head of state also received former U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson, former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, and the American actor Michael Douglas this week. After Saturday’s race, Snyder was surrounded by admirers, many of whom waited in line for autographs and selfies. Some asked the historian to sign translated copies of his widely read books on Ukraine, “Bloodlands: Europe between Hitler and Stalin” and “The Road to Unfreedom: Russia, Europe, America.” Saturday’s race was organized by the Kyiv School of Economics’ charity foundation which, according to its website, has been raising funds for charitable assistance for Ukrainians since the start of the Russian invasion.

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.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — A new attempt has begun to try to salvage an oil tanker burning in the Red Sea after attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels, a European Union naval mission said Saturday. The EU’s Operation Aspides published images dated Saturday of its vessels escorting three ships heading to the Greek-flagged oil tanker Sounion. The mission has “been actively involved in this complex endeavor, by creating a secure environment, which is necessary for the tugboats to conduct the towing operation,” the EU said. A phone number for the mission rang unanswered Saturday. However, satellite images taken Saturday morning by Planet Labs PBC and later analyzed by The Associated Press showed what appeared to be the three salvage vessels close to the Sounion. A warship could be seen nearby. The Sounion came under attack from the Houthis beginning Aug. 21. The vessel had been staffed by a crew of 25 Filipinos and Russians, as well as four private security personnel, who were taken by a French destroyer to nearby Djibouti. The Houthis later planted explosives aboard the ship and detonated them. That’s led to fears the ship’s 1 million barrels of crude oil could spill into the Red Sea. The Houthis have targeted more than 80 vessels with missiles and drones since the war in Gaza started in October. They seized one vessel and sank two in the campaign that also killed four sailors. One of the sunken vessels, the Tutor, went down after the Houthis planted explosives aboard it and after its crew abandoned it due to an earlier attack, the rebel group later acknowledged. Other missiles and drones have either been intercepted by a U.S.-led coalition in the Red Sea or failed to reach their targets. The rebels maintain that they target ships linked to Israel, the U.S. or the U.K. to force an end to Israel’s campaign against Hamas in Gaza. However, many of the ships attacked have little or no connection to the conflict, including some bound for Iran.

BUCHAREST, Romania — Five people in eastern Romania were found dead after torrential rainstorms dumped unprecedented rain, leaving hundreds stranded in flooded areas, emergency authorities said Saturday. Rescue services scrambled to save people in the hard-hit eastern counties of Galati and Vaslui. The bodies of three elderly women and two men were found in the localities of Pechea, Draguseni, Costache Negri and Corod, the Department for Emergency Situations said. Authorities later added that one of the victims had been dead for two days and “did not die due to the effects of the weather” but from other causes. Emergency authorities released video footage showing teams of rescuers evacuating people using small lifeboats through muddy waters and carrying some elderly people to safety. Some of the most significant flood damage was concentrated in Galati, where 5,000 households were affected. A Black Hawk helicopter was also deployed there to help with the search and rescue. The storms battered 19 localities in eight counties in Romania, with strong winds downing dozens of trees that damaged cars and blocked roads and traffic. Authorities sent text message alerts to residents to warn them of adverse weather as emergency services rushed to remove floodwaters from homes. By 1 p.m. Saturday, more than 250 people had been evacuated with the help of 700 Interior Ministry personnel deployed to affected communities, authorities said. Romania’s environment minister, Mircea Fechet, told The Associated Press that in some of the badly flooded areas, more than 160 liters of rain fell per one square meter, which he said is a rare occurrence. “What we are trying to do right now is save as many lives as possible,” said the minister, who was on his way to Galati to assess the situation. Romanian President Klaus Iohannis offered his condolences to the victims' families, writing on Facebook: "We must continue to strengthen our capacity to anticipate extreme weather phenomena. “Severe floods that have affected a large part of the country have led to loss of lives and significant damage,” Iohannis said. “We are again dealing with the effects of climate change, which are increasingly present throughout the European continent, with dramatic consequences on people.” Central Europe braces for intense flooding The stormy weather comes as several central European nations anticipate severe flooding to hit the Czech Republic, Poland, Austria, Germany, Slovakia and Hungary over the weekend. In the Czech Republic, river waters reached dangerous levels in dozens of areas across the country Saturday morning, flooding houses and roads in several towns and villages. Heavy rain and high winds left more than 63,000 households without power, the Czech power company CEZ said. A hospital in the country's second-largest city of Brno was forced to evacuate as dozens of citizens moved to safer grounds. Fallen trees and floodwaters caused a dozen railways across the country to also shutter. In neighboring Austria, authorities declared 24 villages in the northeast Lower Austria province disaster zones Saturday afternoon and began evacuating residents from those areas. “The coming hours will be the hours of truth for flood protection, for our emergency forces and numerous compatriots,” State Governor Johanna Mikl-Leitner said, adding that in one area, “we expect challenges of historical dimensions.” The torrential downpours have also caused a sharp rise in water levels on the Danube River in Austria's capital, Vienna, where special flood relief channels were built in the 1970s and ’80s and are likely to be tested over the weekend. The River Kamp, a tributary of the Danube, is also swelling due to the unprecedented weather. Heavy rain also hit Moldova on Saturday, where emergency workers pumped floodwater from dozens of peoples’ homes in several localities, authorities said. Meteorologists say a low-pressure system from northern Italy was predicted to dump much rain in most parts of the Czech Republic, including the capital and border regions with Austria and Germany in the south, and Poland in the north. “We have to be ready for worst-case scenarios,” Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala said after the government’s central crisis committee met. “A tough weekend is ahead of us.” In Poland, dozens of people were evacuated as a precautionary measure Saturday from two villages near the town of Nysa, in the Nysa River basin, after meteorologists warned of unprecedented rainfall, and water levels on some rivers in the area sharply rose, according to Interior Minister Tomasz Siemoniak. “The worst is yet to come,” he warned. Polish authorities appealed to residents Friday to stock up on food and to prepare for power outages by charging power banks. The weather change arrived following a hot start to September in the region. Scientists have documented Earth’s hottest summer, breaking a record set just one year ago. A hotter atmosphere, driven by human-caused climate change, can lead to more intense rainfall.

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.

When Kamala Harris and Donald Trump faced each other on the debate stage less than two months before Election Day, the two candidates were at odds on issues ranging from the economy to tariffs and Ukraine. But on immigration, their positions were especially different. VOA immigration reporter Aline Barros brings us the story.

LONDON — Prince Harry was always something different. From the moment he first appeared in public, snuggled in Princess Diana’s arms outside the London hospital where he was born in 1984, Harry was the ginger-haired scamp who stuck his tongue out at photographers. He grew to be a boisterous adolescent who was roundly criticized for wearing a Nazi uniform to a costume party, and then a young man who gave up the trappings of royal life and moved to Southern California with his American wife. Through it all, there was a sense that Harry was rebelling against an accident of birth that made him, in the harsh calculus of the House of Windsor, just “the spare.” As the second son of the man who is now King Charles III, he was raised as a prince but wouldn’t inherit the throne unless brother William came to harm. Now the angry young man is turning 40, the halfway point in many lives, providing a chance to either dwell on the past or look forward to what might still be achieved. For the past four years, Harry has focused mainly on the past, making millions of dollars by airing his grievances in a wildly successful memoir and a Netflix docu-series. But he faces the likelihood that the royal aura so critical to his image may be fading, said Sally Bedell Smith, author of “Charles: The Passions and Paradoxes of an Improbable Life.” “He is at a sort of crossroads,’’ Smith told The Associated Press. “And he appears to be struggling with how he wants to proceed.’’ How did we get here? It wasn’t always this way. Six years ago, Harry and his wife were among the most popular royals, a glamorous young couple who reflected the multicultural face of modern Britain and were expected to help revitalize the monarchy. Their wedding on May 19, 2018, united a grandson of Queen Elizabeth II with the former Meghan Markle, a biracial American actress who had starred for seven years in the U.S. television drama “Suits.” George Clooney, Serena Williams and Elton John attended their wedding at Windsor Castle, after which the couple were formally known as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. But the optimism quickly faded amid allegations that Britain’s tabloid media and even members of the royal household treated Meghan unfairly because of racism. By January 2020, the pressures of life in the gilded cage had become too much, and the couple announced they were giving up royal duties and moving to America, where they hoped to become “financially independent.” They signed lucrative deals with Netflix and Spotify as they settled into the wealthy enclave of Montecito, near Santa Barbara, California. Since then, Harry has missed few opportunities to bare his soul, most famously in his memoir, aptly titled “Spare.” In the ghostwritten book, Harry recounted his grief at the death of Princess Diana, a fight with Prince William and his unease with life in the royal shadow of his elder brother. From accounts of cocaine use and losing his virginity to raw family rifts, the book was rife with damning allegations about the royal family. Among the most toxic was Harry’s description of how some family members leaked unflattering information about other royals in exchange for positive coverage of themselves. The prince singled out his father’s second wife, Queen Camilla, accusing her of feeding private conversations to the media as she sought to rehabilitate an image tarnished by her role in the breakup of Charles’ marriage to Diana. The allegations were so venomous that there is little chance of a return to public duty, Smith said. “He criticized the royal family in such a powerful and damaging way. You can’t un-say those things,” she said. “And you can’t unsee things like Meghan in that Netflix series doing a mock curtsey. It’s such a demeaning gesture to the queen.’’ Harry, who agreed not to use the honorific HRH, or “his royal highness,” after he stepped away from front-line royal duties, is now fifth in line to the British throne, behind his brother and William’s three children. While he grew up in a palace and is said to be in line to inherit millions of dollars on his 40th birthday from a trust set up by his great-grandmother, applied developmental psychologist Deborah Heiser thinks that, in many ways, Harry is just like the rest of us. Like anyone turning 40, he is likely to have learned a few lessons and has a good idea of who his real friends are, and that will help him chart the next phase of his life, said Heiser, who writes a blog called “The Right Side of 40” for Psychology Today. “He has had a very public display of what a lot of people have gone through,” Heiser said. “I mean, most people are not princes, but … they have all kinds of issues within their families. He’s not alone. That’s why he’s so relatable.’’ Harry's next chapter Of course, Harry’s story isn’t just about the drama within the House of Windsor. If he wants to write a new chapter, Harry can build on his 10 years of service in the British Army. Before retiring as a captain in 2015, the prince earned his wings as a helicopter pilot, served two tours in Afghanistan and shed the hard-partying reputation of his youth. Harry also won accolades for establishing the Invictus Games in 2014, a Paralympic-style competition to inspire and aid in the rehabilitation of sick and wounded servicemembers and veterans. Harry and Meghan made headlines this year with their two international trips to promote mental health and internet safety. While some in British media criticized them for accepting royal treatment in Nigeria and Colombia, the couple said they visited at the invitation of local officials. Will Charles see the grandkids? The prospects of reconciliation are unclear, although Harry did race home to see his father after Charles' cancer diagnosis. And in what may be seen as a tentative olive branch, the paperback edition of “Spare” slated for October has no additions — so nothing new to stir the pot. But plainly at this point, Harry is thinking about his family in California. He told the BBC about the importance of his two young children, Archie and Lilibet. “Being a dad is one of life’s greatest joys and has only made me more driven and more committed to making this world a better place,” the prince said in a statement released by his spokesperson.

KYIV, UKRAINE — Russia and Ukraine conducted a major exchange of prisoners Saturday, 206 in all, in their second such swap in two days, following negotiations mediated by the United Arab Emirates, officials said. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that all 103 Ukrainians returned were from the military — 82 soldiers and privates and 21 officers. The Russian Defense Ministry said that the 103 Russian soldiers exchanged had been taken prisoner in the Kursk border region where Ukrainian forces launched a surprise incursion in August. "Our people are home," Zelenskyy said on the Telegram messaging app. "We have successfully brought back another 103 warriors from Russian captivity to Ukraine." Zelenskyy posted pictures of servicemen wrapped in the national blue and yellow flag, hugging each other, talking on mobile phones and posing for group photographs at an undisclosed location. The exchange was mediated by the UAE, Emirati state news agency WAM said. It was the country's eighth such mediation since the start of 2024, it said. Kyiv and Moscow have frequently exchanged prisoners since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, and Saturday's swap was the third since Ukraine began its incursion into the Kursk region. Ukrainian officials have previously said its troops had captured at least 600 Russian soldiers during the incursion, and that this would help it secure the return of captured Ukrainians. Dmytro Lubinets, Ukraine's ombudsman, said most of the freed Ukrainians had been in Russian captivity since the early days of the invasion. He posted a short video on the Telegram messaging app showing the servicemen standing in front of a bus and shouting "Glory to Ukraine." Lubinets said that Kyiv had so far secured the return of 3,672 Ukrainians in 57 exchanges.

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.

DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Israeli airstrikes hit central and southern Gaza overnight into Saturday, killing at least 14 people as friends and family members of a Turkish-American activist killed by an Israeli soldier honored her in a funeral. The airstrikes in Gaza City hit one home housing 11 people, including three women and four children, and another strike hit a tent in Khan Younis with Palestinians displaced by the Israel-Hamas war, Gaza's Civil Defense said Saturday. They followed airstrikes earlier this week that hit a tent camp on Tuesday and a United Nations school sheltering displaced people on Wednesday. Polio vaccination campaign A campaign to inoculate children in Gaza against polio drew down, and the World Health Organization said about 559,000 people under the age of 10 — seven out of every eight children the campaign aimed to vaccinate — have recovered from their first dose. The second doses are expected to begin later this month as part of an effort in which the WHO said parties had already agreed to. "As we prepare for the next round in four weeks, we’re hopeful these pauses will hold, because this campaign has clearly shown the world what’s possible when peace is given a chance,” Richard Peeperkorn, WHO’s representative in Gaza and the West Bank, said in a statement on Saturday. Turkish-American activist buried In Turkey, activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi, the 26-year-old from Seattle who held U.S. and Turkish citizenships, was laid to rest in her hometown of Didim on the Aegean Sea. The Israeli military has said that Eygi was likely shot “indirectly and unintentionally” by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank on September 6. Turkey announced it will conduct its own investigation into her death. An Israeli protester who witnessed the shooting said she was killed after a demonstration against Israeli settlements. “We are not going to leave our daughter’s blood on the ground, and we demand responsibility and accountability for this murder,” Numan Kurtulus, the speaker of Turkey's parliament, told mourners. Eygi's body had been earlier brought from a hospital to her family home and Didim's Central Mosque. Thousands of people bid her farewell in the town's streets, which were lined with Turkish flags. Her death was condemned by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken as the United States, Egypt and Qatar push for a cease-fire and the release of the remaining hostages held by Hamas. Talks have repeatedly bogged down as Israel and Hamas accuse each other of making new and unacceptable demands. The war began when Hamas-led fighters killed some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, in an October 7 terror attack on southern Israel. They abducted 250 people and are still holding about 100 hostages after releasing most of the rest in exchange for Palestinians imprisoned by Israel during a weeklong cease-fire in November. About a third of the remaining hostages are believed to be dead. The United States, the U.K. and other Western countries designate Hamas as a terror group. The war has caused vast destruction and displaced roughly 90% of Gaza’s population of 2.3 million, often multiple times, and plunged the territory into a severe humanitarian crisis. Gaza’s Health Ministry says upwards of 41,000 Palestinians have been killed since the war began. The ministry does not distinguish between civilians and militants in its count, but says women and children make up just over half of the dead. Israel says it has killed more than 17,000 militants in the war.

MORONI, COMOROS — Comoros President Azali Assoumani is "out of danger" after he was injured on Friday in a knife attack by a 24-year-old police officer who was found dead in his cell a day later, officials said Saturday. The attack occurred around 2 p.m. Friday in Salimani Itsandra, a town just north of the capital, Moroni. "The president is doing well. He has no health problems; he is out of danger. A few stitches were given," Energy Minister Aboubacar Said Anli said at a press conference in Moroni on Saturday. Azali was attacked as he attended a funeral, according to the presidency. The motive for the attack has not yet been determined. The attacker, Ahmed Abdou, went on leave Wednesday before orchestrating the attack on Friday. Abdou was placed in a cell after he was taken into custody. However, "this Saturday morning, when investigators went to see him, they found him lying on the ground, his body was lifeless," Ali Mohamed Djounaid, Comoros' public prosecutor, said at a separate press conference. He added that an investigation was being conducted to determine the motive of the attack and the cause of his death. In May, Assoumani was sworn in for a fourth term in office following a tense January election, which his opponents claim was tainted by voter fraud. Officials deny the allegations.

MEXICO CITY — Mexico issued a tropical storm warning Saturday along the coast, from Altata to Huatabampito, and has discontinued all watches and warnings for Baja California Sur after rain from Storm Ileana pounded the resort-studded Los Cabos a day before. Ileana moved northward over the southern Gulf of California at 11 kph, according to the U.S. National Hurricane Center. The storm was about 110 kilometers east of La Paz, Mexico, with maximum sustained winds of 65 kph, the center said. Tropical storm warnings have been issued for the coasts of northern Sinaloa and extreme southern Sonola. On Friday, a warning was in effect for portions of the Baja California Peninsula, including Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo. Juan Manuel Arce Ortega of Los Cabos Civil Protection said the municipalities of La Paz and Los Cabos were on red alert at the time and urged residents to avoid crossing rivers, streams and low areas where they can be swept away by water. All schools in Los Cabos were suspended Friday due to the storm. Oscar Cruces Rodriguez of Mexico’s federal Civil Protection said in a statement that residents should avoid leaving their homes until the storm passes and if residents are in an area at risk of flooding, to find temporary shelters. Authorities prepared 20 temporary shelters in San Jose del Cabo and Cabo San Lucas, according to Los Cabos Civil Protection. At the Hacienda Beach Club and Residences in Cabo San Lucas, valet worker Alan Galvan said the rain arrived late Thursday and has been constant. “The rain isn’t very strong right now, but the waves are choppy,” he said. “The guests are very calm and already came down for coffee,” Galvan said. “There’s some flights canceled, but everything is OK at the moment.” Galvan said they are awaiting further advisories from authorities. The rain remained consistent through Los Cabos Friday afternoon, with several roads flooded and some resorts stacking up sandbags on their perimeters. Some people were still walking around boat docks with their umbrellas. “The priority has to be safety, starting with the workers. We always have to check on our colleagues who live in risk areas,” said Lyzzette Liceaga, a tour operator at Los Cabos. “We give them the information shared by the authorities — firefighters in risk areas — so that they can go to the shelters, if necessary.”

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.

BUKWO, Uganda — Dozens of mourners in Uganda paid respects to Rebecca Cheptegei, the Olympic athlete who died last week in Kenya after her partner set her on fire. Local leaders and others gathered at the local administration hall Saturday as they awaited her burial at her ancestral home in a village near the Kenya border. Cheptegei died after her body suffered 80% burns in the attack by Dickson Ndiema, who doused her in gasoline at her home in western Kenya’s Trans-Nzoia County on September 3. Ndiema sustained 30% burns on his body and later died. According to a report filed by the local chief, they quarreled over a piece of land the athlete bought in Kenya. The horrific gasoline attack shocked many and strengthened calls for the protection of female runners facing exploitation and abuse in the East African country. Cheptegei’s body was returned to Uganda Friday in a somber procession following a street march by dozens of activists in the western Kenyan town of Eldoret who demanded an end to physical violence against female athletes. Cheptegei, who was 33, is the fourth female athlete to have been killed by her partner in Kenya in a pattern of gender-based violence in recent years. Kenya’s high rate of violence against women has prompted several marches this year. Ugandan officials have condemned the attack, demanding justice for Cheptegei. Janet Museveni, who serves as Uganda’s education and sports minister, described the attack as “deeply disturbing.” Don Rukare, chair of the National Council of Sports of Uganda, said in a statement on X that the attack was “a cowardly and senseless act that has led to the loss of a great athlete.” Four in 10 dating or married Kenyan women have experienced physical or sexual violence perpetrated by their current or most recent partner, according to the 2022 Kenya Demographic and Health Survey. Many Ugandan athletes train across the border in Kenya, an athletics powerhouse with better facilities. Some of the region’s best runners train together at a high-altitude center in Kenya’s west. Cheptegei competed in the women’s marathon at the Paris Olympics, finishing in 44th place, less than a month before the attack. She had represented Uganda at other competitions.

ISLAMABAD — A bomb explosion in Pakistan’s violence-hit southwestern Baluchistan province ripped through a police vehicle Saturday, killing at least two officers and wounding as many others. Abdul Hameed, an area police officer, told VOA by phone that the attack occurred on a main highway passing through Kuchlak near the provincial capital of Quetta. He said that a homemade bomb targeted a police mobile unit and that an investigation into the incident was underway. There were no immediate claims of responsibility for the deadly bombing in the natural resources-rich Pakistani province, where separatist ethnic Baluch groups routinely target security forces. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned Saturday’s attack on the police as a terrorist act, his office said in a statement in Islamabad. A daylong series of insurgent attacks rattled Baluchistan last month, killing more than 50 civilians and security personnel. The outlawed Baluch Liberation Army, the largest of all the separatist groups active in the province, claimed responsibility for orchestrating the violence, which targeted security installations and passenger vehicles. The BLA, designated as a global terrorist group by the United States, has lately intensified its attacks in Baluchistan. The province shares Pakistan’s border with Afghanistan and Iran and hosts major China-funded infrastructure projects.

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.