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Scientists in Kenya say they are studying a mealworm native to Africa that can consume and biodegrade plastic. Experts report the mealworm produces enzymes that can help break down plastic waste. Juma Majanga reports from Nairobi, Kenya. Camera: Amos Wangwa.

Vietnam has recently ordered both Temu and Shein, Chinese cross-border shopping platforms, to suspend operations, following a similar move by Indonesia.   Analysts say businesses and officials believe the Chinese platforms pose a significant threat to local small- and medium-sized enterprises, forcing authorities to take countermeasures. VOA Mandarin reports that more countries are expected to roll out similar restrictions.   Click here for the full story in Mandarin.

VOA Russian speaks with Ksenia Kirillova, an analyst with Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA) and The Jamestown Foundation, on how Syria is being portrayed by Russian propaganda. Russian pro-government botnets have already started pushing the narrative that “Syria is of no benefit for Russia” following the fall of Moscow’s ally Bashar al-Assad.  Click here for the full story in Russian. 

In a statement, he said he 'accepted my arrest as a reward from the government for human rights advocacy'

The fall of Syria's Bashar al-Assad poses a threat to Russia's ability to project power throughout the Middle East and beyond. Russia has long been a close ally of Syria and has leases on two military bases in the country, giving it a strategic foothold in the Middle East.   Click here for the full story in Russian.

Guatemala issues arrest warrant in absentia for co-founder of El Periodico Juan Luis Font

Suspect Luigi Mangione's fingerprints also matched a water bottle and a protein bar wrapper that police found near the scene of the shooting of Brian Thompson

Businesses have reopened and many people are returning to work after the dramatic collapse of the government in Syria. But as VOA’s Heather Murdock reports from Damascus, some locals fear the war is not over, even as they celebrate new freedoms. Camera: Yan Boechat

Man says he returned because of his family; no reason given for his 3-month disappearance

Washington says it does not believe the weapon is a ‘game-changer’ in the nearly three-year war

Announcement comes a week and a half after President-elect Donald Trump said he intends to nominate loyalist Kash Patel for the job

Dozens of mysterious nighttime flights started in November and have raised growing concern among residents

African health officials credit the United States with helping in the fight against the pandemic

Using only the light on their mobile phones, wailing men and women examined disfigured bodies lying in a darkened hospital morgue in Syria's capital for signs of their relatives who had disappeared into Bashar al-Assad's notorious prison system, Reuters reported. Dozens of corpses - blackened, decomposing and missing limbs or heads - were found overnight by rescuers digging for hidden cells at Sednaya, a prison north of Damascus, where rights groups said torture and mass executions had been...

Russia’s war in Ukraine reached a standstill with Russian forces advancing and Ukraine struggling to counter, turning attention to a possible negotiated settlement in the new year under a new U.S. administration

Cambodia arrests suspected gunman after journalist dies from injuries sustained while investigating deforestation

A look at the best news photos from around the world.

What might Assad’s fall and support from Israel mean for the country’s Kurdish groups?

A Bushman who died in 2021 was buried this week after courts, under the previous government which was ousted in October, denied the family the right to bury him on his ancestral land