Feed aggregator

ISLAMABAD — A Taliban Health Ministry spokesman says Afghanistan has recorded no polio cases so far in 2024, contradicting reports of nine cases recorded by the World Health Organization. "This year, we haven't had a positive case of poliovirus in the entire country," Sharafat Zaman, the Afghan Ministry of Public Health spokesperson, said in a video announcement ahead of a four-day polio vaccination campaign that began Monday. However, the WHO-led Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) has recorded nine paralytic polio cases in Afghanistan so far in 2024, including three reported this week from the southern province of Kandahar. "The Afghan Ministry of Public Health has reported all the cases of wild poliovirus as per the IHR (International Health Regulations) protocols to WHO," Hamid Jafari, director of polio eradication for the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region, which includes Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan, told VOA. Jafari told VOA that the information is available weekly in the WHO polio analysis published online. Afghanistan did not detect a polio case this year until April. It recorded six cases in 2023. "[As of] now, we have no confirmed cases of poliovirus," Zaman reiterated Tuesday in written remarks when VOA contacted him for an explanation regarding his ministry's claims of no polio cases in Afghanistan this year, despite the nine cases recorded by the WHO. Afghanistan and Pakistan are the only countries in the world where wild poliovirus is still endemic. The highly contagious disease affects young children and can paralyze them in severe cases or can be deadly in certain instances. In his video statement, the Public Health spokesperson stated that the ongoing polio vaccination campaign would inoculate roughly 8 million children under the age of 5 against the paralytic virus in 23 of the 34 Afghan provinces. He called on parents, religious scholars, and community leaders to collaborate with vaccinators to help eradicate polio in the country. WHO's Jafari noted that Afghanistan has a "long and positive track record in complying with" IHR recommendations. The regional WHO director told VOA that in addition to participating at every quarterly meeting of the IHR's emergency committee, the crisis-ridden country "has intensified polio eradication efforts and identified ways of implementing temporary recommendations." WHO has warned that the recent repatriation of Afghan refugees from Pakistan has increased the risk of polio spreading on both sides of the border. An ongoing crackdown on undocumented migrants in Pakistan has forced hundreds of thousands of Afghans to return to their home country since November 2023. Polio in Pakistan Pakistan recorded six cases of paralytic poliovirus in 2023 and has reported eight cases so far this year. According to the GPEI data, the worldwide case count stands at 17 as of Tuesday, nine from Afghanistan and eight from Pakistan. The WHO has reported 44 positive wild poliovirus environmental samples from Afghanistan and 211 from Pakistan to date in 2024. "The persistent detection of poliovirus in environmental samples and polio cases will delay the interruption of transmission beyond the timeline of the end of 2024 and will likely get pushed to the next low season in the first half of 2025," Jafari said. Polio immunization campaigns have long faced multiple challenges in both countries, including security and vaccine boycotts, dealing setbacks to the goal of eradicating the virus from the globe. While the return of the Taliban to power in Afghanistan in 2021 effectively ended years of war-related violence there, surging militancy and allegations that vaccines cause infertility or that vaccinators are government spies continue to hamper polio eradication efforts in Pakistan. "Despite immense efforts to stop polio, transmission of wild poliovirus type 1 in Afghanistan and Pakistan expanded through late 2023 and 2024," Jafari stated. He mentioned that the rise in poliovirus detection in environmental samples in Pakistan since August 2023 is mainly due to "unpredictable" population movements, leading to virus detection in previously polio-free areas. "The large, unusual population movements were in part related to the repatriation of migrants," said the WHO regional director.

ISLAMABAD — The head of the U.N. refugee agency met the Pakistani prime minister Tuesday to discuss the situation of Afghan refugees living in uncertainty since Islamabad began a persistent anti-migrant crackdown last year. Pakistan has long hosted an estimated 1.7 million Afghans, most of whom fled during the 1979-1989 Soviet occupation. More than half a million others escaped Afghanistan after the Taliban takeover in 2021, with thousands waiting in Pakistan for resettlement in the United States and elsewhere. Since the widely criticized clampdown started in November, an estimated 600,000 Afghans have returned home. The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, who arrived in Pakistan on Sunday, spent two days meeting Afghan refugees. He posted on social media platform X: "I spent time with Afghan refugees whose resourcefulness is testimony to their strength — and to Pakistan's long hospitality." Grandi added that his visit aimed to "discuss how we can best support both amidst growing challenges." Pakistan's Prime Minister Shabaz Sharif told the UN refugee agency head that Afghan refugees were treated with "exemplary respect and dignity" despite facing multiple challenges, according to a statement released by his office Tuesday. Sharif also urged the international community to "recognize the burden being shouldered by Pakistan while hosting such a large refugee population and demonstrate collective responsibility." The prime minister also asked for help from UNHCR to repatriate the refugees in "a safe and dignified" manner. Also on Tuesday, Grandi met with Asif Durrani, the country's special representative for Afghanistan. Durrani wrote on X that the two sides "expressed readiness to find a durable solution to the Afghan refugee problem, including their repatriation". Pakistan had previously said the crackdown targeted those without valid documents regardless of nationality. U.N. agencies have decried the forced expulsion of Afghans from Pakistan, saying it could lead to severe human rights violations — including the separation of families and deportation of minors. Although Pakistan had been routinely deporting Afghans who came here without valid documents in recent years, the ongoing crackdown is unprecedented in scale. Since the crackdown, the neighboring Taliban-led government said it set up a commission to deal with repatriated nationals and has criticized Islamabad's actions. Pakistan has also faced a surge in militant attacks on security forces and civilians alike, mostly blamed on Pakistani Taliban — a separate militant group but a close ally of the Afghan Taliban — straining the ties between the two countries.

Paris — French parties sought to project strength and gather allies on Tuesday, with the government adrift following an election in which no one political force claimed a clear majority. Having defied expectations to top the polls, new MPs from the left-wing New Popular Front (NFP) alliance began showing up to visit their new workplaces in parliament ahead of a first session on July 18. But the coalition of Greens, Socialists, Communists and the hard-left France Unbowed (LFI) is still debating over who to put forward as a potential prime minister and whether it could be open to working in a broader coalition. Combined, the left-leaning parties' hold 193 of 577 seats in the National Assembly and are well short of the 289-seat threshold for a majority. Nevertheless, members plan to name a potential prime minister "by the end of the week," leading LFI figure Mathilde Panot said. In the French system, the president nominates the prime minister, who must be able to survive a confidence vote in parliament — a tricky proposition with three closely-balanced political forces in play. Any left-leaning government would need "broader support in the National Assembly," influential Socialist MP Boris Vallaud acknowledged in an interview with broadcaster France Inter. Macron's camp came second in Sunday's vote, taking 164 seats after voters came together to block the far-right National Rally (RN) from power. This left the anti-immigration, anti-Brussels outfit in third place with 143 MPs. The president has kept Prime Minister Gabriel Attal's government in place for now, hoping horse-trading in the coming days and weeks could leave an opening for him to reclaim the initiative. However, "there has been an institutional shift. Everyone thinks it's up to the newly-elected National Assembly to bring forth a solution, which (Macron) would simply have to accept," wrote commentator Guillaume Tabard in conservative daily Le Figaro. 'None can govern alone' In a sign that some divisions remain, the left parties' MPs planned to enter the parliament at different times throughout the day. The Socialists are still hoping to glean a few more members for their group to outweigh LFI and have a greater say over the alliance's direction. Meanwhile, members of Macron's camp were eyeing both the centre-left Socialists and conservative Republicans as possible allies of convenience for a new centrist-dominated coalition. "None of the three leading blocs can govern alone," Stephane Sejourne, head of Macron's Renaissance party, wrote in daily Le Monde. "The centrist bloc is ready to talk to all the members of the republican spectrum," he added — while naming red lines including that coalition members must support the EU and Ukraine and maintain business-friendly policies. These requirements, he warned, "necessarily exclude LFI" and its caustic founder Jean-Luc Melenchon. Markets are paying close attention to the EU's second-largest economy. Ratings agency Moody's warned it could downgrade its credit score for France's more than three-trillion-euro debt pile if a future government reverses Macron's widely-loathed 2023 pension reform, echoing a Monday warning from S&P on the deficit. What next? Even as politicians struggle to define the immediate path ahead, eyes are also already turning to the next time French voters will be called to the polls. Macron's term expires in 2027 and he cannot run a third time — potentially leaving the way open for his twice-defeated opponent, RN figurehead Marine Le Pen, to finally capture the presidency. The far-right outfit has been digesting a disappointing result after polls suggested it could take an absolute majority in parliament. On Tuesday, party sources told AFP its director-general Gilles Penelle had resigned. Penelle, elected last month to the European Parliament, was the architect of a "push-button" plan supposed to prepare the RN for snap elections, which ultimately failed to produce a full roster of credible candidates. The far right outfit's progress is undeniable, having advanced from just eight MPs soon after Macron's first presidential win in 2017 to 143 today. Greens and LFI leaders nevertheless called Tuesday for the RN to be shut out of key parliamentary posts. "Every time we give them jobs, we increase their competence. It's important not to give them jobs with responsibilities," leading LFI lawmaker Mathilde Panot said. "Today we represent 10 million French people with 143 MPs," retorted RN representative Thomas Menage, calling the appeal "anti-democratic". As for Macron, he has sought to stay above the fray, planning for a trip to Washington for a NATO summit starting on Wednesday where allies may be in need of reassurance of France's stability.

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.

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.

TOKYO — Eight years ago, Yuriko Koike became the first woman to lead Tokyo, beating her male predecessor. She won her third term as governor Sunday, and one of her closest rivals was a woman. Multiple women competing for a top political office is still rare in Japan, which has a terrible global gender-equality ranking, but Koike's win highlights a gradual rise in powerful female officials and a society more open to gender balance in politics. That said, even if a woman eventually becomes prime minister, politics here is still overwhelmingly dominated by men, and experts see a huge effort needed for equal representation. "There are growing expectations for women to play a greater role in politics," said parliamentarian Chinami Nishimura, a senior official with the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan. "In politics or parliament, which are still largely considered men's work, it is extremely meaningful for women to show their presence and have our voices heard." Nishimura, who also heads the opposition party's gender-equality promotion team, hopes to have women make up 30% of her party's candidates in the next national election. Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's conservative Liberal Democratic Party last year vowed to achieve 30% female representation within 10 years and is working to recruit more female candidates. Finding aspiring female candidates, however, isn't easy. Women in Japan are still often expected to be in charge of childrearing, elderly care and other family responsibilities. National parliamentarians are also expected to regularly travel between Tokyo and their home constituencies, which makes it especially difficult for female lawmakers trying to balance a career and family. Nishimura says former female colleagues have quit national politics and returned to local assemblies because of such demands. Nishimura began her political career in her hometown Niigata's prefectural assembly in 1999, the first woman to serve there in decades. The 53-member assembly now has five women. A growing number of women are now seeking political careers, but they are still in the minority, especially in national politics where electoral decisions are largely determined by closed-door, male-dominated party politics, and outspoken women tend to be targets. One of Koike's top rivals was a woman, Renho, a veteran former parliamentarian who goes by one name and who finished third. Renho told reporters last month that she often saw headlines about the Tokyo governor's race that trumpeted "A battle of dragon women." "Would you use that kind of expression to describe a competition between male candidates?" she asked. Koike, a stylish, media-savvy former television newscaster, was first elected to parliament in 1992 at age 40. She served in several key Cabinet posts, including as environment minister and defense chief, for the long-ruling Liberal Democratic Party, before becoming Tokyo governor in 2016. Renho, known for asking sharp questions in parliament, was born to a Japanese mother and Taiwanese father. A former model and newscaster, she was elected to parliament in 2004 and served as administrative reform minister in the government led by the now-defunct Democratic Party of Japan. Attacks on Renho's aggressive image were a clear example of gender bias in a society that expects female candidates to be "motherly or cute," said Chiyako Sato, a Mainichi Shimbun editorial writer and a commentator on politics. Because of a small female presence in politics, powerful women tend to get excessive attention. Their presence in Tokyo governor's election "conveyed a positive message that women can become political leaders, but a large amount of the noise about them also reflected Japan's sad reality," said Mari Miura, a Sophia University professor and expert on gender and politics. For instance, a survey of national and local lawmakers in 2022 conducted by a civil group showed one-third of about 100 female respondents faced sexual harassment during election campaigns or at work. Earlier this year, a gaffe-prone former prime minister, Taro Aso, was forced to apologize for describing Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa, a woman, as capable but not beautiful. Women make up about 30% of the Tokyo assembly, and their presence in town assemblies in urban areas is also growing. On average, female representation in more than 1,740 Japanese local assemblies doubled to 14.5% in 2021 from 20 years ago. There are growing calls for more female voices in politics. But in rural areas, where more traditional gender roles are more usual, 226, or 13% of the total, had "zero women" assemblies last year, according to the Gender Equality Bureau of the Cabinet Office. In parliament, where conservative Liberal Democrats have been in power almost uninterruptedly since the end of World War II, female representation in the lower house is 10.3%, putting Japan 163rd among 190 countries, according to a report by the Geneva-based Inter-Parliamentary Union in April. In 1946, the figure wasn't much different — only 8.4% — when a first group of 39 women were elected to parliament, according to the Gender Equality Bureau. "There have been changes starting from regional politics, but the pace is too slow," Sato said, proposing a mandatory quota for women. One woman in a Cabinet of about 20 ministers was standard in the 1990s. Lately, two is usual. Maintaining an increased number of female ministers is a challenge because of a shortage of women with seniority. Women are also given limited leadership chances, which delays gender equality laws and policies. "Because of the absence of leadership change, the metabolism is bad in Japan. Because of that, politics does not change despite changes in the public view," Miura said. Koike became the first female candidate to run in the LDP leadership race in 2008. Two others, Sanae Takaichi and Seiko Noda, ran in 2021 against Kishida. Most recently, Kamikawa, the foreign minister, is seen as having a chance, because the LDP wants change as it struggles with dwindling support ratings and corruption scandals. The winner, determined by a vote among LDP lawmakers and party members, automatically becomes prime minister because of the LDP's dominance in parliament. Under the Japanese system, however, having a female prime minister doesn't necessarily mean progress in gender equality because of overwhelming male political influence. But it could be a crucial step forward, even if symbolic, said Sato, the political commentator. "Having role models is very important ... to show gender equality and that women can also aim for a top job," Sato said. "Women in politics are no longer expected to be wallflowers."

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia — Malaysian authorities have arrested six members of an international crime ring known as the "Ninja Turtle Gang" and seized about 200 smuggled tortoises and turtles, a wildlife official said Tuesday. Abdul Kadir Abu Hashim, director-general of Malaysia's wildlife and national parks department, said four Cambodians and two Malaysians were arrested during a July 2 raid on a house in Kuala Lumpur by police and wildlife officials. He told AFP some 200 turtles and tortoises worth an estimated $52,300 were rescued during the raid, the second seizure in Malaysia in less than a week. Many people across Asia believe turtles and tortoises bring good luck and prosperity. Abdul Kadir said the six arrested belong to the Ninja Turtle Gang, an international crime ring involved in smuggling the reptiles. Police and wildlife officials rescued 400 tortoises during an initial raid on June 29 that were meant for sale in Southeast Asia and were worth $805,084 on the black market. Animals rescued in the latest raid included the critically endangered Chinese striped-necked turtle, which is also known as the golden thread turtle, Abdul Kadir said. Other species included the endangered black pond turtle, snapping turtle, sulcata tortoise, leopard tortoise and the red-footed tortoise found throughout South America and the Caribbean islands of Trinidad and Barbados. "Initial investigations revealed that the reptiles were smuggled from abroad to meet the lucrative pet market," Abdul Kadir said. Also discovered were three snakes, four softshell turtles, a skink and five frogs. The rescued animals were being kept in a Malaysian wildlife department quarantine center. The reptiles are illegally brought into Malaysia by road or in suitcases by smugglers aboard commercial flights, Abdul Kadir said last week. Traffic, a wildlife NGO, has said that Southeast Asian countries "function as source, consumer and as entrepots for wildlife originating from within the region as well as the rest of the world."

TOKYO — Russia's deepening military cooperation with North Korea has underlined the need for Japan to forge closer ties with NATO as regional security threats become increasingly intertwined, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida told Reuters. In written remarks ahead of his attendance at a NATO summit in Washington this week, Kishida also signaled concern over Beijing's alleged role in aiding Moscow's 2-year-old war in Ukraine, although he did not name China. "The securities of the Euro-Atlantic and the Indo-Pacific are inseparable, and Russia’s aggression against Ukraine and its deepened military cooperation with North Korea are strong reminders of that," Kishida said. "Japan is determined to strengthen its cooperation with NATO and its partners," he added. The world, the Japanese leader said, should not tolerate attempts by some countries to disrupt the established international order and reiterated a warning that Ukraine today could be East Asia tomorrow. He also urged cooperation to confront new security threats that transcend geographical boundaries, such as cyber-attacks and conflicts in space. South Korea, Australia and New Zealand, which along with Japan are known as the Indo-Pacific Four (IP4), are also attending the meeting with NATO leaders. South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol told Reuters this week that he planned to discuss the threat Pyongyang poses to Europe by deepening its Russia ties. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un signed a mutual defense pledge with Russia last month during President Vladimir Putin's first visit to Pyongyang in 24 years, and expressed his "full support" for Russia's war in Ukraine. The U.S. and its allies have accused Pyongyang of providing ballistic missiles and artillery shells that Russia has used in its war in Ukraine and say they fear Moscow in return could provide support for North Korea's nuclear missile development. Washington has also said China is supplying drone and missile technology, satellite imagery and machine tools to Russia, items which fall short of lethal assistance but are helping Moscow build its military to sustain the Ukraine war. Beijing has said it has not provided any weaponry to any party. Without naming China, Kishida told Reuters "some countries" have allegedly transferred dual-use civilian-military goods to Russia, which has served "as a lifeline" for its Ukraine war. "The geographical boundary of 'Euro-Atlantic' or 'Indo-Pacific' is no longer relevant in safeguarding global peace and security. Japan and Indo-Pacific partners can play a great role for NATO allies from this perspective." Constrained by decades of pacifism, Tokyo has been reluctant to supply lethal aid to Ukraine. It has, however, provided financial aid to Kyiv, spearheaded efforts to prepare for its post-war reconstruction, and contributed to NATO’s fund to provide Ukraine with non-lethal equipment such as anti-drone detection systems. Tokyo has also repeatedly warned about the risks of a similar conflict emerging in East Asia, where China has been taking an increasingly muscular stance towards its territorial claims including the democratic island of Taiwan. "This summit is a critical opportunity for Japan, the U.S., and the other NATO allies to confront the ongoing challenges against the international order and to reaffirm values and principles that have shaped global peace and prosperity," he said. There may be limits, however, over how far NATO members are prepared to go in forging closer ties in Asia. A plan that surfaced last year for NATO to open a liaison office in Japan, its first in Asia, was blocked by France and criticized by China.

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.

Juba, South Sudan — At 75, Galiche Buwa has lived through civil wars, famine and natural disasters, but the South Sudanese widowed mother of four always managed to get by, thanks to her grocery business. Now, however, even that standby is on shaky ground, as the oil-dependent nation's economy reels from revenue losses following the rupture of a key pipeline in its war-torn neighbor Sudan in February. The damaged pipeline was crucial for transporting South Sudan's crude oil abroad, with petroleum exports traditionally accounting for about 90 percent of the impoverished country's GDP. The implications have been far-reaching, with inflation soaring as the value of the South Sudanese pound relative to the U.S. dollar plunges on the black market, from 2,100 in March to 3,100 today. The official rate slipped from around 1,100 in February to nearly 1,550 this month. "Since the 1970s up to now I am still here, but these days we are suffering. Things are tough," Buwa said as she glumly tended to her stall at the Konyo-Konyo market in the capital Juba. "We are unable to buy stock, things are expensive... and prices keep rising every day," she said, compelling her to purchase supplies on credit. As wholesale costs shoot up, retail prices follow -- a mug of maize sold by Buwa was worth 800 South Sudanese pounds in March, compared to 2,000 today, she said. Teddy Aweye, a 28-year-old mother of two, said she was struggling to put food on the table, forcing her family to eat just one meal a day. "You go to the market today, you get a price, and tomorrow you go back and you get a different price... I had to return home without buying anything," Aweye told AFP. "Life is really very difficult." Losses upon losses It is a common refrain across Juba's biggest market, where several traders told AFP they were racking up losses every day. Abdulwahab Okwaki, a 61-year-old butcher, said his business was in crisis. "A customer who used to (buy) one kilo is now taking half a kilo, and the one taking half a kilo now takes a quarter... and the one who was taking a quarter is not coming anymore," he said. The father of eight often loses money when he is unable to sell meat before it goes bad. Many of his fellow butchers have simply quit, unable to make ends meet, he said. Higher-end businesses have also taken a hit. Harriet Gune, a 27-year-old entrepreneur, said her fashion boutique was losing customers. "The more you increase prices for the items in the shop, the more you scare away clients," she told AFP. A pair of jeans that used to cost 25,000 South Sudanese pounds in March now sells for 35,000, she told AFP, adding that she needed to raise prices "to be able to get enough money to order new stock". 'Develop alternatives' Even government officials are feeling the pinch. In May, Finance Minister Awow Daniel Chuang told parliament that the government would struggle to pay salaries to lawmakers, military, police, civil servants and other officials because of a shortfall in revenues. He said the country was losing about 70 percent of its oil revenues because of the pipeline rupture, which has affected exports of Nile blend crude and Dar blend crude. "The production is only from Blocks 12, 14, and 58, which means there is only around 30 to 35 percent of the oil that is flowing," he said. South Sudan was in crisis even before the pipeline shutdown sent shock waves through its economy, with fears that long-anticipated elections, currently scheduled for December, will be delayed. In addition to rampant corruption draining its coffers, with the ruling elite routinely accused of plunder, the country is very vulnerable to currency shocks, because it imports nearly everything, including agricultural produce. The fighting in Sudan between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces since April 2023 has only exacerbated the situation, analysts say. The conflict has killed tens of thousands of people, forced millions to flee -- including over 700,000 to South Sudan -- and pushed Sudan to the brink of famine. Economist and government advisor Abraham Maliet Mamer told AFP that South Sudan, which declared independence from Sudan in 2011, needed to plan ahead to secure its future. "Our country is suffering. We have less money, we have fewer services, and our security is a problem," he said, urging the government to build refineries and pipelines through other nations. "Sudan will never be the same again. Until we develop alternatives... we will be having issues," he warned.

SYDNEY — Australia has Tuesday appointed its first antisemitism envoy in response to an increase in attacks against its Jewish community. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the envoy would promote social cohesion and help to curb a rise in violence and abuse against Australia’s Jewish community since the start of the Israel-Gaza conflict last October. The Prime Minister said that overwhelmingly Australians did not want the conflict in the Middle East to bring violence here. Jillian Segal, a lawyer and business executive who has been a senior member of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, will serve as antisemitism envoy for three years. Albanese told reporters in Sydney Tuesday that the country’s successful multiculturalism must be protected. “What is clear is that we cannot take that for granted. What is clear is we continue to reinforce the need for social harmony and that is what today’s announcement of Jillian (Segal) is all about.” Segal will advise the government and also promote education and awareness of antisemitism. She told a media conference in Sydney on Tuesday that intolerance must not be allowed to take root.    “It triggers the very worst instincts in an individual," she said. "To blame others for life’s misfortunes and to hate, and it is often based on misinformation and inaccurate rumor and it can spread from individual to individual to contaminate the collective, damaging life for the entire community and leading to violence as we have seen.” But the Jewish Council of Australia, which has been critical of Israel's actions in Gaza, told local media in a statement that Segal was an “Israel lobbyist” and her appointment would worsen social division. Community groups have reported an increase in Islamophobic and antisemitic abuse in Australia since Israel’s war in Gaza began more than nine months ago. Australian police are continuing to investigate an attack by a masked gang on the Melbourne office of a Jewish-Australian lawmaker last month. Windows were smashed, and fires were lit. The slogan "Zionism is fascism" was graffitied in red paint over an image of Josh Burns, a federal government parliamentarian. Albanese also reconfirmed the government would also appoint a special envoy on Islamophobia.     

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.

Kyaukme, Myanmar — Residents of Kyaukme in northern Myanmar are counting their dead and picking through rubble following fresh fighting that shredded a Beijing-brokered ceasefire between the junta and an alliance of armed ethnic groups. Last week fighters from the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) took control of the town of 30,000 — on the main trade route to China — in the latest setback for the military as it battles opponents across the country. But air and artillery strikes, as well as rocket attacks, have gutted parts of the northern Shan State town, leaving buildings without roofs or windows, and residents desperate to flee.  Burned-out cars stood in front of one shattered four-story building, its corrugated roofing strewn about the streets. TNLA soldiers in combat fatigues stood guard outside the police station, while others carried out patrols and checked vehicles. Kyaukme resident Kyaw Paing told AFP his home was damaged by a huge blast after he saw a military plane fly overhead. "Pieces of body — head, hands and legs — were scattered on my roof when the bomb hit some houses nearby," he said. "Seven people were killed here, and there was huge damage. "I don’t want to live this poor, miserable life in the war... I feel so sad." Myriad armed groups Myanmar's borderlands are home to myriad armed ethnic groups who have battled the military since independence from Britain in 1948 for autonomy and control of lucrative resources. Some have given shelter and training to opponents of the military's 2021 coup that ousted the government of Aung San Suu Kyi and plunged the country into turmoil.  In January, China brokered a ceasefire between the military and the "Three Brotherhood Alliance," made up of the Arakan Army (AA), the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), and the TNLA. The truce ended an offensive launched last October by the alliance that seized a swath of territory in Shan state — including lucrative trade crossings to China — dealing the biggest blow to the junta since it seized power. Other towns along the highway that runs from China's Yunnan province to Myanmar's second city of Mandalay have also been rocked by the fighting. On Thursday, TNLA fighters attacked the government military’s northeastern command, located in Lashio, around 85 kilometers from Kyaukme. One Lashio resident who did not want to be named told AFP she heard artillery firing and airstrikes on Monday morning, but that the town had since been quiet, with some shops open. A worker at Lashio's bus station said there were lines of vehicles queuing to leave, but traffic was slow because of damage to the road outside the town. Local rescue workers say dozens of civilians have been killed in the latest clashes. AFP was unable to reach a junta spokesman for comment, but the military has said some civilians were killed in shelling by the alliance. China diplomacy Amid the new fighting, top general Soe Win traveled to China to discuss security cooperation in the border regions, according to the state-run Global New Light of Myanmar. China is a major ally and arms supplier to the junta, but analysts say Beijing also maintains ties with Myanmar's armed ethnic groups holding territory near its border. Ties between the junta and Beijing frayed in 2023 over the junta's failure to crack down on online scam compounds in Myanmar's borderlands targeting Chinese citizens. Analysts suggest Beijing gave tacit approval to the October "Three Brotherhood" offensive, which the alliance said was launched partly to root out the scam compounds. The threat of further military air strikes had caused many residents of Kyaukme to try to flee, although fuel is scarce and food prices are soaring. "We don't have extra money," said Naung Naung, another resident. "We have faced many difficulties — not only our family, but the whole town.                      "All residents are very worried about how long this war will go on."

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.