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New York City officials are contending with a surge of illegal marijuana shops that have appeared on nearly every corner of the Big Apple due to cannabis legalization. Aron Ranen reports.

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.

New Delhi — Urging peace during a visit to Moscow, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Russian President Vladimir Putin that the death of children was painful, and a resolution to the war in Ukraine cannot be found on the battlefield. The two leaders held a summit Tuesday, their first since Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, in which both leaders underlined their commitment to deepen ties.   Modi’s remarks came a day after the main children's hospital in Kyiv was hit by a missile strike, which Ukraine blamed on Russia, but for which Moscow has denied responsibility. Several other cities in Ukraine also were hit in deadly strikes, killing at least 31 people. In televised remarks at the Kremlin, Modi said, "Whether it is war, conflicts, or terror attacks, everyone who believes in humanity is pained when there is loss of lives. But when innocent children are killed, when we see innocent children dying, it is heart-wrenching and that pain is immense.” Asserting that India is ready to cooperate in "all ways" for restoration of peace in the region, Modi said that “amid bombs, guns and bullets, solutions and peace talks do not succeed. We will have to follow the path to peace only through talks."   It was Modi’s first visit to Moscow in five years. The two countries had been holding annual summits since 2000, but none since 2021. Images displayed bonhomie between the Indian and Russian leaders as they hugged, rode a golf cart at Putin’s residence and talked for several hours during a private dinner hosted by the Russian president on Monday before formal talks were held on Tuesday. Putin called Modi his “dear friend.” As Modi began his visit, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy criticized the meeting. "It is a huge disappointment and a devastating blow to peace efforts to see the leader of the world’s largest democracy hug the world’s most bloody criminal in Moscow on such a day," he wrote Monday on the social media platform X, in reference to the missile strike on the children’s hospital. During Modi’s two-day visit, both countries hailed their strong partnership that dates back to the Cold War years.   "Our relationship is one of a particularly privileged strategic partnership," Putin said. "I am grateful to you for the attention you pay to the most pressing issues, particularly trying to find ways to resolve the Ukraine crisis, primarily through peaceful means,” he was quoted as saying by the official TASS news agency. Modi said the relationship had scaled new heights under Putin’s leadership and that they had taken significant decisions to deepen their partnership.   The visit came amid concerns that New Delhi’s longstanding ties with Russia were stagnating as it builds a closer partnership with the United States. Analysts said Russia’s growing proximity to Beijing is also a source of worry for New Delhi, whose ties with China are at an all-time low. Modi said the energy cooperation between the two countries had helped India control fuel prices and bring stability in global markets. India did not join Western sanctions and has markedly increased its purchases of oil from Russia. After the talks, Putin conferred Russia’s highest civilian award, the Order of Saint Andrew the Apostle, on Modi and said both countries were working for stability. During an address to the Indian diaspora in Moscow, Modi called Russia a trusted ally and an “all weather friend.” "Every Indian considers Russia to be India’s friend in good and bad times,” Modi said. Expressing appreciation for Putin’s leadership, he said that "the commitment of our relationship has been tested multiple times, and it has emerged very strong each time. Modi announced the opening of two new consulates in Russia — in Kazan and Yekaterinburg. Russia also agreed to facilitate the return of Indian nationals working in its army, following discussions between the two leaders, according to reports in the Indian media. Several cases of Indians lured to Russia with the promise of lucrative jobs or education, who ended up fighting against Ukraine have been reported in the last few months. The meeting between Modi and Putin took place as NATO leaders opened a summit in Washington where support for Ukraine against the Russian invasion is set to top the agenda. India has walked a fine line as it builds a strong partnership with the United States but maintains ties with Russia. As Modi began his visit on Monday, the United States said it has raised concerns with India about its relationship with Russia. "So, we would hope [that] India and any other country when they engage with Russia would make clear that Russia should respect the U.N. Charter, should respect Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told reporters. While the West has imposed sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, multiple countries including China and India have continued to build ties, setting back efforts to isolate it.

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.

SANTA FE, N.M. — Alec Baldwin's trial in the shooting of a cinematographer is set to begin Tuesday with the selection of jurors who will be tasked with deciding whether the actor is guilty of involuntary manslaughter. Getting chosen to serve in a trial of such a major star accused of such a major crime would be unusual even in Los Angeles or Baldwin's hometown of New York. But it will be essentially an unheard-of experience for those who are picked as jurors in Santa Fe, New Mexico, though the state has increasingly become a hub of Hollywood production in recent years. Baldwin and his wife Hilaria arrived at the courthouse Tuesday with at least one of their youngest children. The couple have several children, with the youngest set to turn 2 in September. Baldwin, 66, could get up to 18 months in prison if jurors unanimously decide he committed the felony when a revolver he was pointing at cinematographer Halyna Hutchins went off, killing her and wounding director Joel Souza during a rehearsal for the Western film "Rust" in October 2021 at Bonanza Creek Ranch, some 18 miles (29 kilometers) from where the trial is being held. Baldwin has said the gun fired accidentally after he followed instructions to point it toward Hutchins, who was behind the camera. Unaware the gun contained a live round, Baldwin said he pulled back the hammer — not the trigger — and it fired. The star of "30 Rock" and "The Hunt for Red October" made his first appearance in the courtroom on Monday, when Judge Mary Marlowe Summer, in a significant victory for the defense, ruled at a pretrial hearing that Baldwin's role as a co-producer on "Rust" isn't relevant to the trial. The judge has said that the special circumstances of a celebrity trial shouldn't keep jury selection from moving quickly, and that opening statements should begin Wednesday. "I'm not worried about being able to pick a jury in one day," Marlowe Summer said. "I think we're going to pick a jury by the afternoon."  Special prosecutor Kari Morrissey, however, was dubious that Baldwin's lawyers, with whom she has clashed in the run-up to the trial, would make that possible. "It is my guess that with this group of defense attorneys, that's not gonna happen," Morrissey said at the hearing. Baldwin attorney Alex Spiro replied, "I've never not picked a jury in one day. I can't imagine that this would be the first time." Dozens of prospective jurors will be brought into the courtroom for questioning Tuesday morning. Cameras that will carry the rest of the proceedings will be turned off to protect their privacy. Jurors are expected to get the case after a nine-day trial. Attorneys will be able to request they be dismissed for conflicts or other causes. The defense under state law can dismiss up to five jurors without giving a reason, the prosecution three. More challenges will be allowed when four expected alternates are chosen. Before Marlowe Sommer's ruling Monday, prosecutors had hoped to highlight Baldwin's safety obligations on the set as co-producer to bolster an alternative theory of guilt beyond his alleged negligent use of a firearm. They aimed to link Baldwin's behavior to "total disregard or indifference for the safety of others" under the involuntary manslaughter law. But the prosecution managed other wins Monday. They successfully argued for the exclusion of summary findings from a state workplace safety investigation that placed much of the blame on the film's assistant director, shifting fault away from Baldwin. And the judge ruled that they could show graphic images from Hutchins' autopsy, and from police lapel cameras during the treatment of her injuries.

Abuja — In Nigeria, bushmeat is more than just food, it's a culinary tradition and a trade. Despite the risk of zoonotic diseases like Ebola and Lassa fever, 45% of the country consumes bushmeat regularly, and now discussions to raise awareness are taking center stage. Following last week’s World Zoonoses Day celebrations, Nigeria's bush meat consumption comes under scrutiny due to the associated health risks. Abuja-based civil servant Barnabas Bagudu among the 45% of Nigerians who consume bushmeat frequently, despite being aware of the potential risks. His personal favorites include antelope, rabbit, grasscutter, and alligator. Bagudu emphasizes bushmeat's unique taste and cultural significance. "I like bushmeat so much that if I see it anywhere, I like to eat it, mostly antelope and rabbit. Since it is from bush, it's blessed by God naturally, more than the one that we trained at home," he said. Bushmeat is also a thriving trade for many, like Evelyn Agbo, a seller of various types of bushmeat for over a decade. She draws a huge patronage across Abuja, Nigeria's capital, with antelope being her bestseller. Agbo explains the preparation process. "When I get the bushmeat, I dress it with salt and heat over fire with firewood until it is dried. I could do this for two days because if it's not dry, flies will perch on it and attract diseases," she said.  The World Health Organization states that about 60% of all infectious diseases are zoonotic, passing from animals to humans. Nigeria has a high prevalence of zoonotic pathogens like Ebola, tuberculosis, and Lassa fever. Abuja-based public health expert Ejike Orij warns about bushmeat consumption amid a fragile healthcare system. "So, if for any reason that animal is infected and then it is now killed and served to humans in bats and in restaurant, that's how the transmission starts," he said. The theme of the 2024 World Zoonoses Day was awareness and prevention of zoonotic diseases. In Nigeria, efforts to promote safer bushmeat consumption practices remain low. Orji stresses the need to ramp up awareness. "There has been a lot of public education and community engagement by government on the issue of bushmeat, especially when there was an epidemic of lassa fever...it's just to spread the awareness especially to the people who prepare it," he said. While bushmeat is a top delicacy in Nigeria, the need for safer consumption practices is urgent. Public health experts urge Nigerians to explore domestic protein sources like chicken and to increase public awareness to mitigate risks.

Burkina Faso is home to many people internally displaced by years of insecurity and conflict. Most of them live in various towns across the country, and some are now trying to find jobs in the capital, Ouagadougou, or starting businesses. VOA’s Gildas Da has this report, narrated by Anthony LaBruto.

CAPE TOWN — Elephants trampled to death a Spanish tourist at a South African wildlife reserve after he left his vehicle and approached a herd to take photographs, police and local government authorities said Tuesday. The 43-year-old man was killed on Sunday at Pilanesberg National Park in North West province, about 180 kilometers  from Johannesburg, police said. The elephant herd included young calves. Wildlife experts often warn that elephants are especially protective of their young and can react aggressively to a perceived threat. Police said the man's fiancée and two other women, all from Johannesburg, were also in the vehicle and unharmed. Piet Nel, acting chief conservation officer for the North West Parks and Tourism Board, said guests at Pilanesberg are told they are not allowed to leave their vehicles while driving through the park and must sign forms showing they understand the rules. "In some cases, people are oblivious to the dangers in the parks," Nel said. "We must remember that you are entering a wild area." Elephants killed two American tourists this year in separate attacks in the southern African nation of Zambia.

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 — The U.S. Federal Reserve is making "modest" progress in its inflation fight, the head of the U.S. central bank told lawmakers Tuesday, on the first of two days of testimony in Congress. When prices surged in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Fed responded by hiking interest rates to a two-decade high as it attempts to cool down the U.S. economy and return inflation to its long-term target of two percent. Inflation has eased significantly since it peaked in 2022, but progress stalled in the first quarter of this year, effectively putting the Fed's fight on pause. The data in the second quarter has been more encouraging, prompting some cautious optimism from some policymakers in recent weeks. Speaking in Washington on Tuesday, Fed Chair Jerome Powell told lawmakers on the Senate Banking Committee that the most recent readings "have shown some modest further progress" since the first quarter of the year. "More good data would strengthen our confidence that inflation is moving sustainably toward two percent," he added, according to prepared remarks. The Fed is widely expected to hold interest rates again when it meets to set interest rates later this month, but could begin cutting rates in September. Futures traders have assigned a probability of more than 75% that the Fed will make its first rate cut by September.

Romny, Ukraine — Maksym Halinichev won silver at the Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires in a match described at the time as "two of the best young fighters going for glory." He considered the bout a loss – it wasn't gold, after all – but it gave him a map for the future. So Halinichev made plans: He would defeat that boxer the next time around. He would teach his daughter the basics of his sport so she could defend herself. And he would win a medal for Ukraine at the Paris Olympics. Halinchev outlined those ambitions as an athlete in an interview for the Ukraine Boxing Federation website in December 2021, as Russian troops were already massing at Ukraine's borders. Asked if he was afraid before a fight, he described his thinking. "Fear can influence people in various ways. Some people are paralyzed by it. Some react by becoming more liberated," he said then. "If you can control yourself and your body and if you can set yourself the right way, then the fear will retreat." He'll not get to prove that philosophy in the Olympic ring in Paris. Halinichev signed up as a soldier and was killed at the front in March 2023 at age 22, one of more than 400 athletes killed since the outbreak of the war. His body has yet to be recovered. As one of Ukraine's most promising boxing prospects, Halinichev could have been shielded from the war. Ukraine has sent many of its Olympic hopefuls to train abroad ahead of the Summer Games. But not everyone wants to be saved. Some choose to defend their country's honor on the battlefield instead of the sports arena. Halinichev's attitude toward fear remained intact after the full-scale Russian invasion, but his priorities changed. It happened during a drive in April 2022 from his home region of Sumy to Kyiv, where he had planned to train for the next European championship. Russia had just retreated from the region, and all along the highway, he saw towns and villages ripped apart by Russian troops during their brief occupation, said his coach Bohdan Dmytrenko. "I have a little child. I don't want her to live in occupation among the aggressor, among the Russians," Halinichev told another of his coaches, Volodymyr Vinnikov. "I said, Maksym, please listen to me, you are still a representative of Ukrainian boxing, you also defend the honor of Ukraine. The flag, the anthem — it's also very important," Vinnikov recounted. "You won't convince me. I've made this decision. I will learn to shoot," Halinichev told him. Boxing was still important to him, but he wanted more, said his life partner, Polina Ihrak. Sumy, a border region, was still under attack despite the Russian withdrawal. Kherson, where he trained, was under Russian occupation and reports of the suffering of Ukrainians there were trickling back. "He couldn't understand how his friends, coaches who were in Kherson, were left without the ability to live, let alone train, and he would go somewhere in Europe," Ihrak said. "He couldn't let himself do it. It mattered to him." In May 2022, at 21 years old, Halinichev joined the airborne assault troops, according to Ukraine's Boxing Federation. He was wounded before the year ended near Bakhmut, with an injury to his foot and shrapnel embedded so deeply in his leg that doctors couldn't remove it. While recovering, Halinichev spent time with his coach but avoided discussing what he saw in the war. Everyone hoped he would quit the army, but Halinichev returned to the battlefield with his wounds unhealed. "He believed he had to return to his brothers in arms because he was needed," said Ihrak, the mother of their daughter, Vasilisa. Halinichev and Ihrak last spoke by video call on March 9, 2023. Days without contact became weeks. She tried calling Halinichev and his commander. Neither answered. She took to scrolling through Russian Telegram channels, looking for his face among battlefield photos of the dead and injured. One photo stood out, of a body in the forest. "His mom recognized him immediately, but I didn't because I guess I refused to acknowledge it," Ihrak said. He was killed on March 10, 2023, in Luhansk, a region now almost entirely under Russian control. At a recent commemoration for her father in the gym where he used to train, the 4-year-old Vasilisa bounced joyfully around the boxing ring, wearing oversized gloves that dwarfed her small hands. It will not be her father who teaches her how to fight, but Ihrak couldn't imagine Halinichev would do anything differently. "People go there (to the front) not to regret but to change something," Ihrak said. "He went back without any doubt." Among others who died fighting for Ukraine: pistol shooters Ivan Bidnyak, who won silver at the European Championships, and Yehor Kihitov, a member of Ukraine's national team; Stanislav Hulenkov, a 22-year-old judoka whose body was identified 10 months after he was killed; and weightlifter Oleksandr Pielieshenko, who represented Ukraine at the Rio Olympics in 2016. A Russian missile strike on Dnipro killed acrobatics coach Anastasia Ihnatenko, her husband and their 18-month-old son. Vinnikov, who coached Halinichev in 2017, has no doubt that the young man would be representing his country at the Paris Games that open July 26 had the invasion not derailed his plans. "He would have won a medal for his country," the coach said emphatically. He had huge potential: gold medal at the 2017 European Youth Championships, silver medal at the 2018 Youth Olympic Games, silver medal at the 2021 European Under-22 Championships. In his empty apartment in the town of Shostka, his parents have filled a room with proof of what he'd already achieved: trophies and medals from 2010 to 2021, neatly arranged on a shelf. His photograph stands in the corner along with a candle, his childhood pictures, a religious icon and flowers. His boxing gloves rest nearby. But Halinichev's parents don't live there anymore. Since the war, they've remade their lives in the Czech Republic. Ihrak is contemplating a move to Germany. Dmytrenko, his coach, keeps his photos of Halinichev neatly arranged in folders and still has the archive of their messages to each other. He recalled a moment just before the war where he was praising Halinichev's achievements. Halinichev simply replied: "Everything is still ahead."

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.

 A new homebuilding method with ancient roots in adobe offers protection from wildfires, earthquakes, high winds and floods, while being climate friendly and sustainable. The secret ingredient: compressed earth blocks made from mud. Shelley Schlender has the story in this week’s episode of LogOn from Superior, Colorado.

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.

Popular Mexican actor Eugenio Derbez has successfully transitioned to Hollywood. His bilingual comedy "Acapulco" on Apple TV is critically acclaimed and has put his work in front of new audiences. The show's star and producer spoke with Veronica Villafañe about his mission to create an authentic, family-friendly series that positively represents his home country.