Feed aggregator

BEIRUT — Three United Nations observers and a translator were wounded on Saturday when a shell exploded near them as they were carrying out a foot patrol in south Lebanon, the U.N. peacekeeping mission said, adding it was still investigating the origin of the blast.  The U.N. peacekeeping mission known as UNIFIL, as well as unarmed technical observers known as UNTSO, are stationed in southern Lebanon to monitor hostilities along the demarcation line between Lebanon and Israel, known as the Blue Line. Lebanese armed group Hezbollah has been trading fire with the Israeli military across the Blue Line since October in parallel with the war in Gaza. UNIFIL said in a statement on Saturday that the targeting of peacekeepers is "unacceptable" and that the wounded staff had been evacuated for treatment. Two security sources had earlier told Reuters the observers were wounded in an Israeli strike outside the border town of Rmeish. The Israeli military denied involvement in the incident. "Contrary to the reports, the IDF did not strike a UNIFIL vehicle in the area of Rmeish this morning," the military said in a statement. Lebanon's caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati spoke with UNIFIL commander Aroldo Lozaro, condemning the "targeting" and wounding of U.N. staff in southern Lebanon, according to a statement from Mikati's office. The mayor of Rmeish, Milad Alam, told Reuters that he had spoken with the Lebanese translator and confirmed his condition was stable. "From Rmeish, we heard a blast and then saw a UNIFIL car zipping by. The foreign observers were taken to hospitals in Tyre and Beirut by helicopter and car," Milad said, without providing details on their condition. One of the observers was a Norwegian citizen, who was slightly injured, the Nordic country's defense ministry told Reuters. Lebanon's National News Agency said the other two wounded observers were Chilean and Australian. Israel's shelling of Lebanon has killed nearly 270 Hezbollah fighters but has also killed about 50 civilians – including children, medics and journalists - and hit both UNIFIL and the Lebanese army. UNIFIL last month said that the Israeli military violated international law by firing on a group of clearly identifiable journalists, killing Reuters reporter Issam Abdallah. The U.N.'s Special Coordinator for Lebanon, Joanna Wronecka, said in a statement that she was "saddened" to learn of the injuries and that the incident served as "another reminder of the urgent need to return to a cessation of hostilities across the Blue Line."  The U.S. and other countries have sought to secure a diplomatic resolution to the exchanges of fire between Hezbollah and Israel. Hezbollah said it will not halt fire before a cease-fire is implemented in Gaza. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also condemned the explosion and called for the safety of peacekeepers to be ensured, according to a statement from U.N.  spokesman Stephane Dujarric. "These hostile actions have not only disrupted the livelihoods of thousands of people, but they also pose a grave threat to the security and stability of Lebanon, Israel, and the region," Dujarric said.

ROME — Pope Francis presided over the Vatican's somber Easter Vigil service on Saturday night, delivering a 10-minute homily and baptizing eight people, a day after suddenly skipping the Good Friday procession at the Colosseum as a health precaution. Francis entered the darkened, silent St. Peter's Basilica in his wheelchair, took his place in a chair and offered an opening prayer. Sounding somewhat congested and out of breath, he blessed an elaborately decorated Easter candle, the flame of which was then shared with other candles until the whole basilica twinkled. Over an hour later, Francis delivered a 10-minute homily in a strong voice, clearing his throat occasionally. The evening service, one of the most solemn and important moments in the Catholic liturgical calendar, commemorates the resurrection of Jesus. The Vatican had said Francis skipped the Good Friday procession to ensure his participation in both the vigil service Saturday night, which usually lasts about two hours, and Easter Sunday Mass a few hours later. The 87-year-old Francis, who had part of one lung removed as a young man, has been battling respiratory problems all winter that have made it difficult for him to speak at length. He and the Vatican have said he has had bronchitis, a cold or the flu. He has canceled some audiences and often asked an aide to read aloud some of his speeches. But the alarm was raised when he ditched his Palm Sunday homily altogether last week at the last minute and then decided suddenly Friday to stay home rather than preside over the Way of the Cross procession at the Colosseum reenacting Christ’s crucifixion. The Vatican said in a brief explanation that the decision was made to "conserve his health." The decision appeared to have paid off Saturday night, as Francis was able to recite the prayers of the lengthy vigil service and perform the sacrament of baptism for the eight adults. The baptism is a traditional feature of the Vatican's Easter Vigil service. In his homily Francis referred to the stone that the faithful believe was removed from Christ’s tomb after his death. Francis urged Catholics to remove the stones in their lives that "block the door of our hearts, stifling life, extinguishing hope, imprisoning us in the tomb of our fears and regrets." "Let us lift our eyes to him and ask that the power of his resurrection may roll away the heavy stones that weigh down our souls," he said. Holy Week is trying for a pope under any circumstance, given four days of liturgies, rites, fasting and prayer. But that is especially true for Francis, who canceled a trip to Dubai late last year, just days prior, on doctor’s orders because of his respiratory problems. In addition to his respiratory problems, Francis had a chunk of his large intestine removed in 2021 and was hospitalized twice last year, including once to remove intestinal scar tissue from previous surgeries to address diverticulosis, or bulges in his intestinal wall. He has been using a wheelchair or cane for nearly two years because of bad knee ligaments. In his recently published memoirs, Life: My Story Through History, Francis said he isn’t suffering from any health problems that would require him to resign and that he still has " many projects to bring to fruition."

ISTANBUL — Turks vote Sunday in nationwide municipal elections focused on President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's bid to reclaim control of Istanbul from major rival Ekrem Imamoglu, who aims to reassert the opposition as a political force after bitter election defeats last year. Istanbul Mayor Imamoglu dealt Erdogan and his AK Party the biggest electoral blow of two decades in power with his win in the 2019 vote. The president struck back in 2023 by securing re-election and a parliament majority with his nationalist allies. Sunday's votes could now reinforce Erdogan's control of NATO-member Turkey, or signal change in the major emerging economy's divided political landscape. An Imamoglu win is seen fueling expectations of him becoming a future national leader. Polling stations open at 7 a.m. local time, 0400 GMT, in eastern Turkey, with voting elsewhere starting at 8 a.m. and ending at 5 p.m. Initial results are expected by 10 p.m., 1900 GMT. Polls suggest a tight race in Istanbul, a city of 16 million people that drives Turkey's economy, where Imamoglu faces a challenge from AKP candidate Murat Kurum, a former minister. The results are likely to be shaped in part by economic woes driven by rampant inflation near 70%, and by Kurdish and Islamist voters weighing up the government's performance and their hopes for political change. While the main prize for Erdogan is Istanbul, he also seeks to win back the capital Ankara. Both cities were won by the opposition in 2019 after being under the rule of his AKP and Islamist predecessors for the previous 25 years. Erdogan's prospects have been helped by the collapse of the opposition alliance that he defeated last year, though Imamoglu still appeals to voters beyond his main opposition Republican People's Party. Voters of the main pro-Kurdish party were crucial to Imamoglu's 2019 success. Their DEM party this time is fielding its own candidate in Istanbul, but many Kurds are expected to put aside party loyalty and vote for him again. In the mainly Kurdish southeast, DEM is looking to reaffirm its strength after the state unseated pro-Kurdish party mayors following previous elections over alleged ties to militants. One factor working against Erdogan is a rise in support for the Islamist New Welfare Party due to its hardline stance against Israel over the Gaza conflict and dissatisfaction with the Islamist-rooted AKP's handling of the economy. 

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.

beirut, lebanon — A bomb exploded in a market in a north Syrian city held by pro-Turkish forces early Sunday, killing eight people and wounding more than 20 others, a war monitor said.  At least "eight people were killed and 23 others wounded" when "a car bomb exploded in the middle of a popular market" in Azaz, in Aleppo province, said the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, adding the toll was provisional.   The Britain-based Observatory, which has a network of sources inside Syria, said the blast caused "significant damage" and sparked a fire, adding that ambulances and rescue personnel were at the scene.  Syria's war began after the government repressed peaceful protests in 2011 and escalated into a deadly conflict that pulled in jihadists and foreign armies.  The war has killed more than 507,000 people, displaced millions, and battered the country's infrastructure and industry.  Turkey has launched successive military offensives in Syria, most of them targeting Kurdish militants that Ankara links to the Kurdistan Workers' Party, or PKK, which has waged a decades-long insurgency against the Turkish state.  Turkish troops and their Syrian proxies hold swathes of the border, including several major cities and towns such as Azaz. 

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.

Jakarta, indonesia — Roads turned into murky brown rivers, homes were swept away by strong currents and bodies were pulled from mud during deadly flash floods and landslides after torrential rains hit West Sumatra in early March, marking one of the latest deadly natural disasters in Indonesia.  Government officials blamed the floods on heavy rainfall, but environmental groups have cited the disaster as the latest example of deforestation and environmental degradation intensifying the effects of severe weather across Indonesia.  "This disaster occurred not only because of extreme weather factors, but because of the ecological crisis," Indonesian environmental rights group Indonesian Forum for the Environment wrote in a statement. "If the environment continues to be ignored, then we will continue to reap ecological disasters."  A vast tropical archipelago stretching across the equator, Indonesia is home to the world's third-largest rainforest, with a variety of endangered wildlife and plants, including orangutans, elephants, giant and blooming forest flowers. Some live nowhere else.  For generations the forests have also provided livelihoods, food, and medicine while playing a central role in cultural practices for millions of Indigenous residents in Indonesia.  Since 1950, more than 74 million hectares (285,715 square miles) of Indonesian rainforest — an area twice the size of Germany — have been logged, burned or degraded for development of palm oil, paper and rubber plantations, mining and other commodities according to Global Forest Watch.  Indonesia is the biggest producer of palm oil, one of the largest exporters of coal and a top producer of pulp for paper. It also exports oil and gas, rubber, tin and other resources. And it also has the world's largest reserves of nickel — a critical material for electric vehicles, solar panels and other goods needed for the green energy transition.  Vulnerable to climate change Indonesia has consistently ranked as one of the largest global emitters of plant-warming greenhouse gases, with its emissions stemming from the burning of fossil fuels, deforestation and peatland fires, according to the Global Carbon Project.  It's also highly vulnerable to climate change impacts, including extreme events such as floods and droughts, long-term changes from sea level rise, shifts in rainfall patterns and increasing temperatures, according to the World Bank. In recent decades, the country has already seen the effects of climate change: More intense rains, landslides and floods during rainy season, and more fires during a longer dry season.  But forests can help play a vital role in reducing the impact of some extreme weather events, said Aida Greenbury, a sustainability expert focusing on Indonesia.  Flooding can be slowed by trees and vegetation soaking up rainwater and reducing erosion. In dry season, forests release moisture that helps mitigate the effects of droughts, including fires.  But when forests diminish, those benefits do as well.  A 2017 study reported that forest conversion and deforestation expose bare soil to rainfall, causing soil erosion. Frequent harvesting activities — such as done on palm oil plantations — and the removal of ground vegetation leads to further soil compaction, causing rain to run off the surface instead of entering groundwater reservoirs. Downstream erosion also increases sediment in rivers, making rivers shallower and increasing flood risks, according to the research.  After the deadly floods in Sumatra in early March, West Sumatra Governor Mahyeldi Ansharullah said there were strong indications of illegal logging around locations affected by floods and landslides. That, coupled with extreme rainfall, inadequate drainage systems and improper housing development contributed to the disaster, he said.  Experts and environmental activists have pointed to deforestation worsening disasters in other regions of Indonesia as well: In 2021, environmental activists partially blamed deadly floods in Kalimantan on environmental degradation caused by large-scale mining and palm oil operations. In Papua, deforestation was partially blamed for floods and landslides that killed more than 100 people in 2019.  There have been some signs of change: In 2018 Indonesian President Joko Widodo put a three-year freeze on new permits for palm oil plantations. And the rate of deforestation slowed between 2021-2022, according to government data.  But experts warn that it's unlikely deforestation in Indonesia will stop anytime soon as the government continues to move forward with new mining and infrastructure projects such as new nickel smelters and cement factories.  "A lot of land use and land-based investment permits have already been given to businesses, and a lot of these areas are already prone to disasters," said Arie Rompas, an Indonesia-based forestry expert at Greenpeace.  President-elect Prabowo Subianto, who is scheduled to take office in October, has promised to continue Widodo's policy of development, including large-scale food estates, mining and other infrastructure development that are all linked to deforestation.  Watchdogs say protections weakening Environmental watchdogs also warn that environmental protections in Indonesia are weakening, including the passing of the controversial Omnibus Law, which eliminated an article of the Forestry Law regarding the minimum area of forest that must be maintained at development projects.  "The removal of that article makes us very worried (about deforestation) for the years to come," said Rompas.  While experts and activists recognize that development is essential for Indonesia's economy to continue to go, they argue that it should be done in a way that considers the environment and incorporates better land planning.  "We can't continue down the same path we've been on," said sustainability expert Greenbury. "We need to make sure that the soil, the land in the forest doesn't become extinct." 

PESHAWAR, Pakistan — Heavy rains killed eight people, mostly children, and injured 12 in Pakistan's northwest, an official said Saturday.  Downpours in different districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province caused rooms to collapse, crushing the people inside, according to Anwar Shahzad, a spokesperson for the local disaster management authority.  Shahzad said that three of the dead were siblings aged between 3 and 7 years old, from the same family. The casualties occurred in the past 24 hours, he added.  This year, Pakistan has experienced a delay in winter rains, which started in February instead of November. Monsoon and winter rains cause damage in Pakistan every year.  Earlier this month, about 30 people died in rain-related incidents in the northwest.  Across the border in Afghanistan, heavy rainfall on March 29 and 30 destroyed more than 1,500 acres of agricultural land, causing severe damage to hundreds of homes and critical infrastructure such as bridges and roads in seven provinces, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said Saturday.  The provinces most affected are northern Faryab, eastern Nangarhar, and central Daikundi.  It's the third time that the northern region has experienced flooding in less than a month, with seven people killed and 384 families affected by heavy rains, the U.N. agency said. 

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.

baltimore, maryland — Teams of engineers are working Saturday on the intricate process of cutting and lifting the first section of twisted steel from the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge in Maryland. The bridge crumpled into the Patapsco River on Tuesday after a massive cargo ship crashed into one of its main supports. Sparks could be seen flying from a section of bent and crumpled steel Saturday afternoon. The U.S. Coast Guard confirmed that work has started to remove a section of the toppled structure. Crews are carefully measuring and cutting the steel from the broken bridge before attaching straps so it can be lifted onto a barge and floated away, Coast Guard Rear Adm. Shannon Gilreath said Saturday. Seven floating cranes — including a massive one capable of lifting 1,000 tons — 10 tugboats, nine barges, eight salvage vessels and five Coast Guard boats are on site in the water southeast of Baltimore. Each movement affects what happens next and ultimately how long it will take to remove all the debris and reopen the ship channel and the blocked Port of Baltimore, Maryland Governor Wes Moore said. "I cannot stress enough how important today and the first movement of this bridge and of the wreckage is. This is going to be a remarkably complicated process," Moore said. Undeterred by the chilly morning weather, longtime Baltimore resident Randy Lichtenberg and others took cellphones photos or just quietly looked at the broken pieces of the bridge, which including its steel trusses, weigh as much as 4,000 tons. "I wouldn't want to be in that water. It's got to be cold. It's a tough job," said Lichtenberg from a spot on the river called Sparrows Point. The shock of waking up Tuesday morning to video of what he called an iconic part of the Baltimore skyline falling into the water has given way to sadness. "It never hits you that quickly. It's just unbelievable," Lichtenberg said. What's next One of the first goals for crews on the water is to get a smaller auxiliary ship channel open so tugboats and other small barges can move freely. Crews also want to stabilize the site so divers can continue a search for four missing workers who are presumed dead. Two workers were rescued from the water in the hours following the bridge collapse early Tuesday, and the bodies of two more were recovered from a pickup truck that fell and was submerged in the river. They had been filling potholes on the bridge and while police were able to stop vehicle traffic after the ship called in a mayday they could not get to the construction crew who were from Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador. The crew of the cargo ship Dali, which is managed by Synergy Marine Group, remains on board with the debris from the bridge around it. They are safe and are being interviewed. They are keeping the ship running as they will be needed to get it out of the channel once more debris has been removed. The vessel is owned by Grace Ocean Private Ltd. and was chartered by Danish shipping giant Maersk. The collision and collapse appeared to be an accident that came after the ship lost power. Federal and state investigators are still trying to determine why. Assuaging concern about possible pollution from the crash, Adam Ortiz, the Environmental Protection Agency's mid-Atlantic Regional Administrator, said there was no indication in the water of active releases from the ship or materials hazardous to human health. Rebuilding bridge, economy Officials are also trying to figure out how to handle the economic impact of a closed port and the severing of a major highway link. The bridge was completed in 1977 and carried Interstate 695 around southeast Baltimore. Maryland transportation officials are planning to rebuild the bridge, promising to consider innovative designs or building materials to hopefully shorten a project that could take years. President Joe Biden's administration has approved $60 million in immediate aid and promised the federal government will pay the full cost to rebuild. Ship traffic at the Port of Baltimore remains suspended, but the Maryland Port Administration said trucks were still being processed at marine terminals. The loss of a road that carried 30,000 vehicles a day and the port disruption will affect not only thousands of dockworkers and commuters, but also U.S. consumers, who are likely to feel the impact of shipping delays. The port handles more cars and more farm equipment than any other U.S. facility.

jerusalem — A three-ship convoy left a port in Cyprus on Saturday with 400 tons of food and other supplies for Gaza as concerns about hunger in the territory soar.  The World Central Kitchen charity said the vessels and a barge carried enough to prepare more than 1 million meals from items such as rice, pasta, flour, legumes, canned vegetables and proteins. Also on board were dates, traditionally eaten to break the daily fast during the holy month of Ramadan.  It was not clear when the ships would reach Gaza. The first ship earlier this month delivered 200 tons of food, water and other aid.  The United Nations and partners have warned that famine could occur in devastated, largely isolated northern Gaza as early as this month. Humanitarian officials say deliveries by sea and air are not enough and that Israel must allow far more aid by road. The top U.N. court has ordered Israel to open more land crossings and take other measures to address the crisis.  Truce talks will resume, says source Meanwhile, Egypt's state-run Al Qahera TV said truce negotiations between Israel and Hamas will resume Sunday, citing an unnamed Egyptian security source. The channel has close ties to the country's intelligence services.  Just one weeklong cease-fire has been achieved in the war that began after Hamas-led militants stormed across southern Israel on October 7 and launched a terror attack that killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took about 250 others hostage. On Saturday, some Israelis again rallied to show frustration with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government and urge him to resign.  Families of hostages vowed to take to the streets across Israel. "Give the negotiations team a wide mandate and tell them, 'Don't come home without a deal, bring back our loved ones,'" said Raz Ben Ami, wife of hostage Ohad Ben Ami.  Nearly six months of war has destroyed critical infrastructure in Gaza including hospitals, schools and homes as well as roads, sewage systems and the electrical grid. More than 80% of Gaza's population of 2.3 million has been displaced, the U.N. and international aid agencies say.  In the coastal tent camp of Muwasi, mothers said they feared young children were losing memories of life before the war. "We tell them to write and draw. They only draw a tank, a missile or planes. We tell them to draw something beautiful, a rose or anything. They do not see these things," said one mother, Wafaa Abu Samra. Children piled up for turns on a small slide twice the length of their bodies, landing in the sand.  Gaza's Health Ministry says 32,705 Palestinians have been killed, with 82 bodies taken to hospitals in the past 24 hours. The Health Ministry doesn't distinguish between civilians and combatants in its toll but has said the majority of those killed have been women and children.  Israel says more than one-third of the dead are militants, though it has not provided evidence to support that, and it blames Hamas for civilian casualties because the group operates in residential areas.  Israel's military on Saturday acknowledged shooting dead two Palestinians and wounding a third on Gaza's beach, responding to a video broadcast earlier this week by Al Jazeera that showed one man falling to the ground after walking in an open area and a bulldozer pushing two bodies into the garbage-strewn sand. The military said troops opened fire after the men allegedly ignored warning shots.  Israel's military said it continued to strike dozens of targets in Gaza, days after the United Nations Security Council issued its first demand for a cease-fire.  Aid falls on Gaza Aid also fell on Gaza. The U.S. military during an airdrop on Friday said it had released over 100,000 pounds of aid that day and almost 1 million pounds overall, part of a multi-country effort.  The United States also welcomed the formation of a new Palestinian autonomy government, signaling it was accepting a revised Cabinet lineup as a step toward political reform. The Biden administration has called for "revitalizing" the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority in the hope that it can also administer Gaza once the war ends.  The authority is headed by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who chose U.S.-educated economist Mohammad Mustafa as prime minister this month. But both Israel and Hamas — which drove Abbas' security forces from Gaza in a 2007 takeover — reject the idea of it administering Gaza. The authority also has little popular support or legitimacy among Palestinians because of its security cooperation with Israel in the West Bank.  More than 400 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces or settlers in the West Bank or east Jerusalem since October 7, according to local health authorities. Dr. Fawaz Hamad, director of Al-Razi Hospital in Jenin, told local Awda TV that Israeli forces killed a 13-year-old boy in nearby Qabatiya early Saturday. Israel's military said the incident was under review.  Israel has said that after the war it will maintain open-ended security control over Gaza and partner with Palestinians who are not affiliated with the Palestinian Authority or Hamas. It's unclear who in Gaza would be willing to take on such a role.  Hamas has warned Palestinians in Gaza against cooperating with Israel to administer the territory, saying anyone who does will be treated as a collaborator, which is understood as a death threat. Hamas calls instead for all Palestinian factions to form a power-sharing government ahead of national elections, which have not taken place in 18 years. 

Paris, France — Chinese online marketplace Temu said Saturday it would drop an advertising offer in which clients could gain vouchers in exchange for surrendering their personal data for an indefinite period.  The campaign, launched this month in England and later in France, promised vouchers of up to 100 euros if a client downloaded the Temu shopping app and invited another person to sign up.  But the terms of the offer state that Temu is granted the right to use for life, and without notice, much of a client's personal data.  British news site The Independent reported this week that the terms specified the use of "photo, name likeness, voice, opinions, statements, biographical information, and/or hometown and state for promotional or advertising purposes in any media worldwide."  Temu, part of Chinese low-price retailer Pinduoduo, said in a statement to AFP that its offer had been a "great success in France, with numerous satisfied clients."  Nevertheless, it had been halted in both France and Britain because of "misunderstandings on the extent of client data use." Temu said it had only involved "usernames and profile pictures."  It did not respond to requests on whether the promotional offer was being used in other countries.  "Temu is committed to client confidentiality," it said. "We do not and will not sell client data."  Earlier this month, Temu's parent Pinduoduo, a main competitor of the Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, reported a 90-percent surge in net profit for 2023, to 60 billion yuan ($8.3 billion). 

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.

ottowa, canada — OTTAWA - Canada has sent about 70 soldiers to Jamaica to train troops from Caribbean nations who are set to take part in a United Nations-authorized mission to Haiti, the Canadian defense ministry said Saturday.  Kenya announced last year it would lead the force, which is designed to help national police fight powerful gangs in Haiti where spiraling violence has fueled a humanitarian disaster. The initiative has been tied up in Kenyan court challenges ever since, effectively putting the mission on hold.  The Canadian troops, from the predominantly French-speaking province of Quebec, will provide training on core peacekeeping skills and combat first aid, the defense ministry said in a statement. French is one of Haiti's two official languages.  The troops are scheduled to stay in Jamaica for an initial period of a month and will train about 330 troops from Jamaica, Belize and the Bahamas.  Canada said last month it would give $59.6 1illion to support the deployment of the Kenyan-led mission.

tokyo — Japanese government health officials raided a factory Saturday producing health supplements that they say have killed at least five people and hospitalized more than 100 others.  About a dozen people wearing dark suits solemnly walked into the Osaka plant of Kobayashi Pharmaceutical Co. in the raid shown widely on Japanese TV news, including public broadcaster NHK.  The company says little is known about the exact cause of the sicknesses, which include kidney failure. An investigation into the products is underway in cooperation with government health authorities.  The supplements all used "benikoji," a kind of red mold. Kobayashi Pharmaceuticals' pink pills called Benikoji Choleste Help were billed as helping lower cholesterol levels.  Kobayashi Pharmaceuticals, based in the western Japanese city of Osaka, said about 1 million packages were sold over the past three fiscal years. It also sold benikoji to other manufacturers, and some products have been exported. The supplements could be bought at drug stores without a prescription from a doctor.  Reports of health problems surfaced in 2023, although benikoji has been used in products for years.  Kobayashi Pharmaceuticals President Akihiro Kobayashi has apologized for not having acted sooner. The recall came March 22, two months after the company had received official medical reports about the problem.  On Friday, the company said five people had died and 114 people were being treated in hospitals after taking the products. Japan's health ministry says the supplements are responsible for the deaths and illnesses and warned that the number of those affected could grow.  Some analysts blame the recent deregulation initiatives, which simplified and sped up approval for health products to spur economic growth. But deaths from a mass-produced item is rare in Japan, as government checks over consumer products are relatively stringent.  The government has ordered a review of the approval system in response to supplement-related illnesses. A report is due in May.  

amman, jordan — Iraq's largest Christian denomination, the Chaldean Catholics, are canceling Easter celebrations this year to protest a presidential decision revoking the title of Patriarch from Chaldean Catholic Cardinal Louis Sako. Though Easter is considered the most important festival of the Christian calendar celebrating Jesus' death and resurrection, Easter Sunday in Iraq will be observed this year only through prayers, the Chaldean Catholic Patriarchate in Baghdad announced Monday. All festivities, Mass ceremonies and processions, media coverage and reception of government officials are canceled in a sign of solidarity with Sako. The move highlights political tensions between groups linked to Iran-backed militias and those who oppose them, fearing their growing dominance in government and daily life. The Chaldean Catholic Church is an ancient Eastern rite church in full communion with the Holy See. Iraq's Chaldean Catholics say they are protesting the removal of the title Patriarch from Sako by Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid last July. In protest, the cardinal moved from Baghdad to Irbil, the capital of the northern autonomous region of Kurdistan that same month, and was welcomed by the Kurdish leadership. Critics say a rogue Christian lawmaker and militia leader closely linked to Iran, Rayan al-Kildani, influenced the president's decision. The U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned al-Kildani in 2019 for alleged human rights abuses, while others accuse him of seeking control of Chaldean Church assets, including properties that Cardinal Sako oversees. Nadine Maenza is the president of the Washington-based International Religious Freedom Secretariat. It encourages the improvement of religious freedom conditions in 40 countries worldwide, including Iraq. She told VOA cancellation of Easter festivities in Iraq points to the growing pressure Christians and other minorities face as Iran's influence grows in the country. "The situation for Christians is dire," said Maenza. "The Iranian militias used to be a threat as a nonstate actor, but now their influence on the Iraqi government itself is also troubling. So we see an environment hostile for Iraq which is why Cardinal Sako left Baghdad and moved into the Kurdistan region. It's troubling to see what this means for one of the oldest Christian communities in the world." Sako made the landmark visit to Iraq of Pope Francis possible during the 2021 coronavirus pandemic. He told VOA that the pope's visit made a major impression on ordinary Iraqis, but a different government is now in place, influenced by Iran. Sako has worked for years for all of Iraq's religious and ethnic minorities to have equal citizenship rights. He hopes a visit to Washington next month by Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani might yield benefits. "The situation is very critical, and Christians have no trust for the future because there is no vision and no plans for a real change of a real state of law, democracy, respect in which everyone can live in dignity and freedom," said Sako. "Christians are still leaving the country because there are no actions, only promises. The prime minister is visiting the United States. I hope they can do something to ask him for the benefit of Christians and keep Christians in their land and hoping and living in dignity and freedom. The Iraqi population is different, they are so nice with us. The pope during his visit changed their minds. They are showing us their solidarity, but not the political class." Maenza warns that if a high-profile Christian leader such as Sako found the threats in Baghdad difficult, forcing him to relocate to Kurdistan, "imagine the vulnerabilities other Christians feel with the growing threats from Iran-backed militias." Commenting on the current political situation, Greg Kruczek of Penn State University in the United States wrote, "Iraq's larger political forces do not make decisions to benefit minority communities. They make decisions based on their rivalries with one another that often have a detrimental effect on Christians and other minorities." His remarks are found in the online academic The Duck of Minerva publication. Before the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, there were some 1.5 million Christians in Iraq but sectarian violence over the years has dwindled their numbers to some 150,000 according to the 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom by the U.S. State Department.

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.

cairo — Truce talks between Israel and Hamas will resume Sunday in Cairo, the latest attempt to bring about a pause after nearly six months of war in the Gaza Strip, Egypt's Al Qahera News TV reported Saturday, citing a security source.  An Israeli official told Reuters that Israel will send a delegation to Cairo on Sunday. However, a Hamas official told Reuters the group would wait to hear from Cairo mediators on the outcome of their talks with Israel first.  The warring sides have stepped up negotiations, mediated by Qatar and Egypt, on a six-week suspension of Israel's offensive in return for the proposed release of 40 of the 130 hostages still held by the Palestinian militant group in Gaza.  Hamas has sought to parlay any deal into an end to the fighting and withdrawal of Israeli forces. Israel has ruled this out, saying it would eventually resume efforts to dismantle the governance and military capabilities of Hamas.  Hamas also wants hundreds of thousands of Palestinians who fled Gaza City and surrounding areas southward during the first stage of the war to be allowed back north. One Israeli official said his country was open to discussing allowing back only "some" of the displaced.  More than 32,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's military offensive in the Gaza Strip since October 7, according to health authorities in the territory.  The war erupted after Hamas militants broke through the border and rampaged through communities in southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and abducting 253 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.  Israel kept up its aerial and ground bombardment of the Gaza Strip on Friday, killing 82 Palestinians in the past 24 hours, the territory's health ministry said as fighting raged around Gaza City's main Al Shifa hospital.  The ministry added that Israeli forces in control of the hospital had blockaded 107 patients in the human resources department without water, electricity, or medication for several days, refusing all calls to evacuate them.  Armed wings of Hamas and the Islamic Jihad said their fighters continued to battle Israeli forces around the medical facility, the Gaza Strip's biggest hospital before the war, which had been one of the few health care facilities even partially operational in north Gaza before the latest fighting.  The Israeli military said forces operating in Al Shifa killed three armed Hamas commanders inside two buildings of the medical facility. Forces located sniper rifles, AK-47s, magazines, and grenades during the activity, the military said.  Israel said it killed and detained hundreds of Hamas and Islamic Jihad gunmen at Al Shifa during its raid there. Hamas and medical staffers deny any armed presence inside medical facilities, accusing Israel of killing and arresting civilians. 

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.

KYIV, Ukraine — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismissed a longtime aide and several advisers Saturday in a continuing reshuffle while Russia unleashed fresh attacks overnight.  Zelenskyy dismissed top aide Serhiy Shefir from his post of first assistant, where he had served since 2019. The Ukrainian president also let go three advisers, and two presidential representatives overseeing volunteer activities and soldiers' rights.  No explanation was given immediately for the latest changes in a wide-reaching personnel shakeup over recent months. It included the dismissal Tuesday of Oleksii Danilov, who served as secretary of the National Security and Defense Council, and Valerii Zaluzhnyi as head of the armed forces on February 8. Zaluzhnyi was appointed Ukraine's ambassador to the United Kingdom earlier this month.  Ukraine's air force said Saturday that Russia launched 12 Shahed drones overnight, nine of which were shot down, and fired four missiles into eastern Ukraine.  Russia unleashed a barrage of 38 missiles, 75 airstrikes and 98 attacks from multiple rocket launchers over the last 24 hours, Ukraine's armed forces said in social media posts.  Two people were killed and one wounded in Russian shelling in Ukraine's partially occupied Donetsk province, regional Governor Vadym Filashkin said Saturday.  Ukrainian energy company Centrenergo announced Saturday that the Zmiiv Thermal Power Plant, one of the largest thermal power plants in the eastern Kharkiv region, was destroyed following Russian shelling last week. Power outage schedules were still in place for around 120,000 people in the region, where 700,000 people had lost electricity after the plant was hit on March 22.  Russia has escalated its attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure in recent days, causing significant damage in several regions.  Officials in the Poltava region said Saturday there had been "several hits" to an infrastructure facility, without specifying whether it was an energy facility.  Meanwhile, the toll of Friday's mass barrage of 99 drones and missiles hitting regions across Ukraine came to light Saturday, with local officials in the Kherson region announcing the death of one civilian. A resident of the Dnipropetrovsk region died in a hospital from shell wounds, according to regional Gov. Serhiy Lisak.