Month: February 2018

Egypt Continues Sinai Security Effort Amid Reports of Israeli Help

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Egypt’s armed forces Saturday continued what it describes as “intensive airstrikes against terrorist targets and gatherings” in Central and North Sinai.

An Egyptian Army spokesperson, in a statement Saturday, confirmed the military operation will continue but gave no details or numbers on casualties or arrests.

The military campaign is part of what the Egyptian government calls “Comprehensive Operation Sinai 2018.” The mission, announced Friday, is intended to target “terrorist and criminal elements and organizations” across Egypt.

“The armed forces and the police assert their determination to uproot terrorism and to achieve peace and stability,” said Colonel Tamer al-Rifai in the statement.

Egypt is quietly carrying out the operation with cooperation from Israel. The countries fought three wars but now face a common foe, say analysts, in an attempt to stop a jihadist insurgency in the Sinai. Last year, militants attacked a Sufi mosque in the region, killing 311 worshipers. The Sinai borders Israel and the Gaza Strip and has long been a bastion for Islamic insurgent groups tied to al-Qaida.

 

Israeli airstrikes in the Sinai are targeted individuals or small groups of militants as opposed to infrastructure, according to media reports.

Unlikely partners

The growing military cooperation between Israel and Egypt has long been rumored and in June, Israel’s Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) noted that if the frequent claims of anti-terror coordination were accurate it would show “the level of trust between the nations has reached the point where Israel is providing various military, technological and operational intelligence to Egypt and is operating attack UAVs [unmanned aerial vehicles] in Sinai with Cairo’s approval.”

Relations between Egypt and Israel have improved dramatically since the army ousted Islamist Mohamed Morsi from the presidency in July, 2013.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi reinstated an ambassador in Tel Aviv in 2016, reversing Morsi’s withdrawal of the envoy to protest a 2012 Israeli assault on Gaza. The same year Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry visited Israel, making a trip to the home of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. It was the first time an Egyptian foreign minister had visited Israel in two decades.

And last September Sissi met Netanyahu for the first time in public, the encounter coming ahead of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. But the pair had talked, according to the Egyptian leader, frequently before then. In a 2015 interview with The Washington Post, Sissi said he talked “a lot” with the Israeli prime minister, part of an effort to “reassure him that achieving peace [with the Palestinians] will be a historic deal for him and for Israel, and that we are ready to help reach this peace.”

He said also that the high level of trust between them had been demonstrated by Israel’s willingness to authorize Egypt to deploy more troops and attack helicopters in the Sinai that are permitted by the 1979 Camp David peace accord between the two countries. “The hostile mood and skepticism have diminished with peace with Israel,” Sissi said.
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Rising Temperatures, Terrorism Threaten Cameroon’s Food Security

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Cameroon says its northern border with Nigeria and Chad and most of the Lake Chad basin face a food crisis because of desertification and the Boko Haram conflict that stopped farmers from doing their work.

Thousands of school children selected from all local primary and secondary schools planted trees on the outskirts of Garoua, capital of the northern region of Cameroon. Didier Djonwe, an official of Cameroon’s Ministry of Secondary Education, says the children were invited to plant trees because temperatures have been rising to up to 48 degrees Celsius from 42 degrees Celsius in the past couple of years.

Djonwe said by planting trees the children will understand that it is a citizen’s duty to protect the environment and keep it healthy for living, both for themselves and future generations.

Djonwe said each school in Garoua is expected have students water the trees on a schedule until the rainy season begins.

Up to 90 percent of rainfall in Garoua comes from June to September and evaporation, the government says, has been very high, with harsh, hostile and fragile climatic conditions.

Sali Seini of Cameroon’s National Action Plan for the Fight Against Desertification, said Garoua is one of the towns in northern Cameroon witnessing the worst effects of desertification and land degradation.

He said more than eight million hectares of arable land has either been completely destroyed or is losing its fertility to a level that it is becoming impossible to grow crops, which is a very serious handicap to agricultural production. He said all the degraded soil should be restored through tree planting and the construction of water wells and boreholes where possible.

Vicious circle

Seini says the phenomenon has worsened over the years, triggering a vicious circle of environmental degradation, leading to poverty, food insecurity and mass migration in dry areas.

Hanson Langmia, Cameroon Country Director for the World Wildlife Fund for Nature says the situation is getting serious because of decreasing rainfall and water shortages and wild fires and the cutting of trees for fuel.

 

“Our rivers will dry up and a lot of things will happen and we will face the impact. The heat we are facing is because the ozone layer that is supposed to be protecting the earth is being destroyed by overexploitation of our resources and the release of gases that are destroying the ozone layer,” Langmia said.

Cameroon reports that 40 percent of its northern border with Nigeria and Chad has been affected by desertification and it has resulted in famine threatening 30 percent of the 3 million people of the far north region, including over 80,000 Nigerian refugees and 100,000 internally displaced persons.

The central African state says the situation may grow worse because the Boko Haram insurgency has prevented farmers from working their land and as a result, food production has dropped.

The situation is also bad in neighboring states of the Lake Chad Basin that depended on Cameroon for their food supply as the insurgency has moved.

 
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Upsurge in Yemen Fighting Sends Thousands Fleeing

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The U.N. refugee agency UNHCR reports an upsurge in violence in battle-scarred Yemen has sent more than 85,000 people fleeing for their lives in the past 10 weeks, adding to the already huge displacement that exists across the country.

More than two million people have become internally displaced in Yemen since March 2015.  That is when a Saudi-led coalition began a bombing campaign against Houthi rebels in support of Yemen’s government.  

The UNHCR is alarmed by the recent escalation of fighting that has uprooted tens of thousands of civilians since December 1.  It says most of the new displacement is taking place in Yemen’s west coast cities of Al Hudaydah and Taizz.

UNHCR spokeswoman Cecile Pouilly says there is particular concern about the welfare of civilians who remain close to hostilities in these areas.

“As a result of prolonged fighting in those two governorates, conditions continue to deteriorate, exposing people to violence and disease, without access to basic services.  Most of those displaced in the governorates of Al Hudaydah and Taizz remain hosted by relatives or friends, trapped inside homes or in caves as ground clashes, aerial bombardment and sniper fire rage around them,” Pouilly said.  

Yemen, scene of the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, has more than 22 million people in need of humanitarian assistance.  Aid agencies warn needs are increasing – fueled by the ongoing conflict, collapsing economy, lack of social services and livelihoods.

Pouilly said her agency is worried it will not have the money to help all those in need.  She said UNHCR’s $200 million appeal for this year, so far, is only three percent funded.

 
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Norway’s Bjoergen Glides Into Olympic History

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Norway’s Marit Bjoergen entered the history books Saturday at the Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.  She became the most decorated female winter Olympian of all time when she won a silver medal in the 15K skiathlon.  It was her 11th medal – six gold, four silver and a bronze.

Charlotte Kalla of Sweden won this year’s first gold medal when she won the skiathlon.  She won the race by more than seven seconds, breaking away from the pack in the final two kilometers to avenge her loss to Bjoergen in the 2014 Sochi Olympics.

Krista Parmakoski of Finland won the bronze.  U.S. skier Jessie Diggens finished fifth, the best-ever cross-country finish by an American woman.

U.S. Vice President Mike Pence and his wife Karen, meanwhile, watched heats of short-track speed skating at Gangneung Ice Arena Saturday.

Saturday’s games at the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics feature the first match of the joint North-South Korean women’s ice hockey team, as diplomacy takes center stage at the start of the games.  

The divided Koreas agreed to compete as one team in women’s ice hockey amid heightened global tensions surrounding Pyongyang’s nuclear and ballistic missile program.

 

Medals will also be awarded Saturday in men’s short-track speed skating, women’s speed skating, women’s biathlon and men’s ski jumping.

 

The winter games run through February 25.

The 2018 Winter Olympics officially began Friday when a parade of athletes entered the Olympic stadium, including athletes from North and South Korea who marched together behind a blue and white Korean unification flag. 

Meanwhile, U.S. journalist Josh Rogin managed to photobomb North Korea’s cheerleading squad, proudly posting his feat to Twitter.
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Capturing Baltimore’s Violence

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American cities are becoming safer as violent crime decreases nationwide. But the city of Baltimore is an exception. Amy Berbert, a local artist whose photography project ‘Remembering the Stains on the Sidewalk’ aims to bring awareness and compassion to the frequently forgotten victims of Baltimore’s homicides.
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In Photographs, Famous and Unknown, ‘The Beauty of Lines’ is Felt as Much as Seen

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“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder” — an old saying that often elicits groans — is just what organizers of an exhibition of 20th and 21st century photographic masterpieces at the Musée de l’Élysée in Lausanne believe and are promoting.

The exhibit, “The Beauty of Lines,” exposes 160 photographs from the extensive, New York-based Sondra Gilman and Celso Gonzalez-Falla collection, considered one of the top five private collections in the world.

“The exhibition is a journey throughout the beauty of photography,” said Tatyana Franck, director of the internationally renowned Swiss photographic museum.

“The show is intended to have visitors experience beauty by how they feel,” she said. “You cannot explain beauty. It is something you feel, depending on your own history.”

Photo Gallery: ​’The Beauty of Lines’ Exhibit at the Musée de l’Élysée

First time in Europe

This is the first time selected works of the 1,500 original prints from the collection of the husband and wife team are being presented in Europe.

The collection includes the works of 73 master photographers from the United States, Canada, Latin America, Europe and Japan, such as Berenice Abbott, Robert Adams, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Imogen Cunningham, Rineke Dijkstra, Robert Mapplethorpe, Man Ray and Hiroshi Sugimoto.

When she first met the two prominent collectors three years ago, Franck said she was “amazed by their enthusiasm and passion for photography” and their desire “to share their passion with the world.”

Celso Gonzalez-Falla told VOA he saw nothing unusual in that. 

“The reason why we buy the photographs and are creating our collection is to share it with the rest of the world,” he said.

Sondra Gilman affirmed that “our philosophy is that no one should or could own art. It belongs to the world. To have wonderful art and have it limited to one family or a small group of people is outrageous.”

​Show follows themes

The exhibit itself is not chronological. It is a thematic show that conveys the universality of artistic expression through photographs that explore ideas and concepts of humanity, society and nature without being constrained by time and nationality.

The show is divided into three sections: Lines, Abstractions and Curves.

“Lines, especially straight and parallel lines are used by photographers who want to depict reality,” Franck said. “Straight, vertical and parallel lines are being used by artists not only to document reality, but also to give some sociological messages.”

A noteworthy example of this is a 1933 print, “View of Exchange Place from Broadway,” by American photographer Berenice Abbott. The photo presents an image of a modern town in which tall buildings lean into each other, creating a sense of loneliness and powerlessness among the almost microscopically small people below.

This somewhat claustrophobic image is offset by an expansive view of “The George Washington Bridge,” a photograph by Margaret Bourke-White, the first U.S. female war correspondent and one of the world’s first female photojournalists.

Franck said Bourke-White wanted to glorify the modernity of New York by shooting the bridge within a vertical and short frame. Although the picture was made in 1933, she said, “Today, 100 years later, that print seems and continues to seem modern.”

​Unknown artists, too

In a departure from the exhibit’s focus on the works of famous photographers, the photo chosen for the cover of the catalogue is by an unknown Italian artist, Augusto Cantamessa.

The picture, “Breve Orizzonte” (Short Horizon), stands out for its poetic and graceful beauty. It captures a row of pencil thin trees swaying and seemingly straining to leave the frame that confines them. The trees tower over two miniature bikers peddling slowly through this strange forest.

“He was a true discovery for us. We never heard of this photographer,” Franck said. “What makes this collection extremely interesting is Sondra Gilman and Celso Gonzales-Falla … do not have a criterion of names. They have the criteria of quality” when buying a print.

Gilman agreed that she and her husband were not affected by fame. 

“We are only affected by the image, by our judgment and emotional reaction,” she said.

​Abstractions and Curves

One of the finest examples in the second section, Abstractions, which presents the line in its purest form, is a 1960 picture by U.S. photographer Ray K. Metzker, called “Venice.”

In this photo, as in others in this section, the real world disappears behind abstract lines, creating a different kind of reality. The Metzker picture depicts two black doors split by a large vertical crack through which a sharp, dazzlingly bright light shines. Franck said she was certain that behind the doors she would find “true light and a huge welcoming sun.”

“It is perfection in terms of composition,” she said. “It is like a spiritual experience.”

Curved Lines are represented in the show with works by Edward Weston, Andre Kertesz and Robert Mapplethorpe among others. Curves capture life as it is. They are a symbol of sensuality. Curves show human beings in motion, moving from one situation to another.

The exhibition, which runs through May 6, is beautifully mounted and easily relatable within the intimate setting of the museum. From conversations with visitors, the collection seems to have changed the lens through which some now view photography.

‘Pictures talk to each other’

It even has added a new dimension to the way Gilman and Gonzalez-Falla see their collection.

“It has totally changed the way I look at my own photographs because we never ever analyzed them so distinctly as to isolate line,” Gilman said. “It has opened up a new world to us.”

Gonzalez-Falla had a similar reaction. “We always looked at our photographs because we loved them,” he told VOA. “The show now makes me look at the collection in a different light.”

Calling it a “marvelous installation,” Gonzalez-Falla said that he was particularly impressed with the way the photographs have been hung. “They have the pictures talk to each other.”
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US, Israel Say Israel Has Right to Defend Itself

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The U.S. Defense Department said Saturday that Israel was entitled to protect itself against acts of aggression. The statement was made after Israel attacked a dozen Iranian and Syrian targets in Syria earlier in the day.

“Israel is our closest security partner in the region and we fully support Israel’s inherent right to defend itself against threats to its territory and its people,” said Pentagon spokesman Adrian Rankine-Galloway, adding that the U.S. was not involved in the attack.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed similar remarks after speaking with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Russia is militarily supporting the Syrian government in its war against rebel and jihadist forces.

“I reiterated to him our obligation and right to defend ourselves against attacks from Syrian territory. We agreed coordination between our armies would continue,” said Netanyahu, who also discussed the strike with U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson.

The State Department later released a statement saying, “The United States is deeply concerned about today’s escalation of violence over Israel’s border and strongly supports Israel’s sovereign right to defend itself.”

The Israeli attack consisted of waves airstrikes inside Syria, launched after an Iranian drone infiltrated Israeli territory on the disputed Golan Heights and was shot down. The Israeli army said a “large-scale attack” destroyed at least a dozen Syrian and Iranian targets in Syria.

Also, anti-aircraft fire downed an Israeli F-16 fighter jet in Israel that was returning from the raid on Iranian-backed positions in Syria. The two pilots ejected; Israel said one pilot was severely injured and the other was slightly injured.

Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Brigadier General Ronen Manelis said, “Iran is dragging the region into a situation in which it doesn’t know how it will end. We are prepared for a variety of incidents … whoever is responsible for this incident is the one who will pay the price.”

The Syrian attack resulted in air raid sirens being activated in the Golan Heights and Beit She’an, but no casualties were reported.

“The IDF will continue to operate against attempts to infiltrate Israeli airspace and will act with determination to prevent any violations of Israel’s sovereignty,” an IDF spokesperson said Saturday. 

Iranian efforts

Saturday’s clashes occurred amid warnings from Israeli leaders that they will not tolerate growing efforts by Iran to establish military bases in Syria and Lebanon that could be used to launch attacks against the Jewish State.

Reuven Ben Shalom, a former Israeli fighter pilot, says Israel’s quick interception of the drone and surgical strikes on Syrian and Iranian targets sent a clear message to the other side.

“This demonstrates our capabilities, demonstrates our resolve not to allow the breach of Israeli sovereignty. That means we can do whatever we want to do, we can take out any component we want, wherever we want. And I think it’s good that our enemies learn and understand these capabilities,” he said.

Nevertheless, in Damascus the incident was seen as a victory.

Syria’s state media said Syria was responding to “new Israeli aggression,” following the Israeli raid. 

Feras Shehabi, a Syrian lawmaker, said Syria’s response to Israel’s assault signaled a “major shift in the balance of power in favor of Syria and the axis of resistance.” He said “Israelis must realize they no longer have superiority in the skies or on the ground.”
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North Korea’s Kim Invites South Korea’s Moon to Summit in the North

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South Korea says North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has invited South Korean President Moon Jae-in for a summit meeting in the North. 

 

Moon’s spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom said Saturday Kim’s sister verbally delivered his offer in a lunch meeting with Moon at Seoul’s presidential palace. 

 

The spokesman says Moon replied that the North and South should continue to work to build conditions so that a summit can take place. 

 

The spokesman says Moon also called for a quick resumption of dialogue between the United States and North Korea.

 

Moon’s office says Kim’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, came to the South as his special envoy. 
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Pictures Are Worth 10,000 Words

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A new vocabulary program claims to dramatically accelerate a child’s understanding of language. As Faith Lapidus reports, the Mrs Wordsmith teaching system relies on cartoon drawings and short word exercises to boost academic achievement.
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Experts: More Stock Volatility Ahead, but No Reason to Panic

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It’s been a tough week on Wall Street. The Dow Jones Industrial average closed more than 300 points higher Friday, after plunging more than 1,000 points the day before, the second steepest decline in history. The biggest dive happened Monday when the blue chip index fell more than 1,100 points. It’s enough to make even the most experienced investors swoon. But does this mean the end of the nine-year bull market? Is it time to worry? Mil Arcega spoke with economic analysts to get some answers.
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State Department: No One Drives a Wedge Between US and South Korea

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With the launch of the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea, U.S. State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert dismissed concerns that U.S. efforts to counter North Korea’s “charm offensive” could create a rift with South Korea. But some analysts are expressing concern that tough talk from Vice President Mike Pence on Pyongyang could put the U.S. on a collision course with its long-time ally, South Korea. VOA diplomatic correspondent Cindy Saine reports from the State Department.
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Michigan State University Disciplines Officials in Wake of Nassar Abuse Scandal

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Michigan State University is taking disciplinary actions against more officials in the wake of the sexual abuse scandal of Larry Nassar, a former employee who also served as a doctor for the U.S. Olympic gymnastics team. 

The university said Friday it plans to fire the former dean of its osteopathic medicine college, William Strampel, taking the first step to remove his tenure. It also said Suresh Mukherji, chairman of the Department of Radiology and chief medical officer of the MSU HealthTeam, has been suspended. 

Both Strampel and Mukherji are accused of not doing enough to enforce restrictions against Nassar following a university investigation. That investigation cleared Nassar of sexual assault allegations in 2014, but recommended Nassar not be alone with patients while treating their “sensitive areas.”

The university’s president and athletic director have stepped down amid a storm of criticism about how the school handled the sexual assault scandal.

​Olympic committee response

Nassar worked for Michigan State University and also treated gymnasts on the U.S. team in his role as a volunteer doctor.

He has pleaded guilty to molesting female athletes under the guise of medical treatment for nearly two decades, and has been given two prison sentences in Michigan of 40 to 125 years and 40 to 175 years. He is also serving a 60-year federal term for child pornography convictions.

In another development Monday, U.S. Olympic Committee leaders defended CEO Scott Blackmun’s response to sex-abuse complaints from gymnasts despite calls for him to resign. 

U.S. Olympic Committee Chairman Larry Probst told reporters in Pyeongchang, South Korea, the committee will wait for results of an independent investigation into the federation’s handling of sex-abuse complaints before making any decision. 

Probst also apologized to victims of Nassar: “To the women, both those who chose to testify and those who did not, who have demonstrated tremendous bravery, poise and strength in the most difficult circumstances imaginable, let me say this: the Olympic system failed you and we are so incredibly sorry.”
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Report: Military Probe Calls for Fewer Ground Missions in West Africa After Niger Ambush

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The New York Times is reporting that a draft military investigation into the deaths of U.S. soldiers in Niger last year calls for the Pentagon to reduce the number of ground missions in West Africa.

Military officials with knowledge of the findings told the newspaper the investigation also concludes that commanders in the field should have less authority to send troops on potentially high-risk patrols. Higher-level commanders will now need to approve certain missions that carry a higher risk.

No drawdown in Libya, Somalia

The officials say U.S. troops will continue to carry out joint patrols with local military forces, but say military officials will more thoroughly vet such missions, according to the paper. The officials said missions would not be scaled back in Libya or Somalia, where U.S. troops have been working with local forces to fight Islamic State and al-Shabab militants.

The draft investigation findings have not yet been released to the public.

The Times said the military investigation describes a string of errors that led to the deaths of the Americans, including bad decision-making and a breakdown in communication.

​October ambush in Niger

Pentagon and Nigerien defense officials said Islamic State fighters ambushed their forces Oct. 4, killing four American soldiers, four Nigerien soldiers and a Nigerien interpreter.

In the attack, a group of 12 members of a U.S. Special Operations Task Force had accompanied 30 Nigerian forces on a reconnaissance mission from the capital city of Niamey to an area near Tongo Tongo.

Members of the team had just completed a meeting with local leaders and were walking back to their vehicles when they were attacked, U.S. officials told VOA.

The soldiers said the meeting ran late, and some suspected the villagers were intentionally delaying their departure, one of the officials said.

About 1,300 U.S. military personnel work in the Lake Chad Basin — Niger, Nigeria, Cameroon and Chad — to help strengthen local militaries and counter Boko Haram, al-Qaida, IS and other extremist groups.
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US Clamping Down on Islamic State’s Global Network

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The United States is ramping up pressure on regional and local Islamic State operatives and facilitators, part of an effort to shut down the terror group’s global financial lifeline.

The U.S. Treasury Department Friday announced sanctions against a series of individuals and companies from Somalia, Turkey and the Philippines, describing the moves as part of a larger campaign targeting networks that helped give the terror group access to money, weapons and even drones.

“Each individual and entity targeted has contributed to the spread of ISIS’s terror reach in their respective corner of the world,” Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Sigal Mandelker said in a statement, using an acronym for the terror group.

At least one of the individuals is in custody.

Abdulpatta Escalon Abubakar was detained in September by Philippine authorities at the airport in Manila, after flying in from Saudi Arabia.

​Working with IS

U.S. officials said Abubakar had been working with IS since at least the start of 2016 and had helped transfer tens of thousands of dollars to the IS affiliate in the Philippines. It is thought he also worked with the affiliate’s now deceased leader, Isnilon Hapilon, to acquire weapons and explosives.

Treasury officials also sanctioned two businessmen, one from Turkey and one from Somalia.

Officials said Yunus Emre Sakarya set up his company, Profesyoneller Elektronik, in Turkey in 2015 and used it as a front for IS, helping the terror group acquire more than $500,000 in components for unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones.

In Somalia, where IS has been struggling for years to establish a presence to compete with the al-Qaida-affiliated terror group al-Shabab, U.S. officials targeted Mohamed Mire Ali Yusuf, a well-known smuggler.

U.S. officials said Yusuf used his livestock trading company to help funnel money to Abdulkadir Mumin, the leader of IS in Somalia.

But Yusuf’s activities on behalf of IS may have been even more extensive. In 2016, a United Nations task force tied him to a larger network of smugglers who have supplied multiple groups. And two Somali government sources told VOA’s Somali service that Yusuf maintains several boats and has run weapons and other contraband between Yemen, Dubai and Somalia.

The Somali officials also said Yusuf arranged for weapons shipments to IS in Somalia on multiple occasions.

‘Isolating nodes’ in IS network

Some analysts see the targeting of operators like Yusuf as a positive sign.

“Treasury is doing its part to isolate nodes in the global Islamic State logistics network that provides support for the militants’ transnational operations and on-the-ground activities,” said Jade Parker, a senior research associate at the Terror Asymmetrics Project.

For months, U.S. and Western intelligence officials have warned that despite the collapse of its self-declared caliphate in Iraq and Syria, IS had managed to preserve its lines of communication as well as some of its logistical capabilities.

A key part of that success, they said, was the result of the close relationship IS had forged with smugglers and other global criminal organizations.

Analysts like Parker hope the latest round of sanctions is an indication the U.S. and its partner may be starting to make a dent in that loose but beneficial alliance.

“By designating, and ultimately removing, these actors from their financial and material support roles, it provides international entities and local authorities leverage to further degrade the capabilities of Islamic State affiliates,” she said. “I anticipate we’ll see many more of these kinds of designations going forward.”

Harun Maruf with VOA’s Somali service contributed to this report.

 
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Freed Captives, Families of Murdered Western Hostages Demand Justice 

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The detention in northern Syria by U.S.-backed Kurdish fighters of two notorious British jihadists, the remaining members of a militant quartet that tortured and beheaded Western hostages, including American journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, is being greeted with pleas by former Western captives of the terror group that they face trial.

Nicolas Henin, a French reporter held for 10 months by the British gang, has told British and U.S. broadcasters that he wants the militants to face justice for their crimes somewhere he and other former hostages and the relatives of murdered victims will be able to attend and testify. 

El Shafee Elsheikh and Alexanda Amon Kotey, the last two members of the British quartet that Western hostages dubbed “The Beatles,” were captured last month by the U.S.-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) in eastern Syria. News of their detention was reported Thursday by The New York Times. U.S. officials have confirmed their capture and say they were identified from their fingerprints and biometric data.

“This is the beginning of a process that will bring them eventually, hopefully, to a trial. Justice is just what I want,” Henin said. “What I want is a trial and a trial potentially that I can attend, so rather, a trial in London rather than one in Kobani in northern Syria.”

He rejected the idea of them facing a U.S. military commission in Guantanamo, saying that would risk a “denial of justice.”

“Guantanamo was opened 16 years ago. There hasn’t been a single trial there,” he said. 

Rights campaigners are urging the U.S. government not to transfer the men to Guantanamo. “They should prosecute them in U.S. federal court, not send them to Guantanamo,” said Laura Pitter of the Human Rights Watch.

“These men are accused of committing serious crimes, including torture, murder and other offenses. If they end up in [formal] U.S. custody, the U.S. should not jeopardize their prosecutions by sending them to the dysfunctional military commissions at Guantanamo where important cases involving serious crimes have languished for years.”

According to European captives who were freed by the Islamic State terror group in return for ransoms, the group of four British militants put their Western captives, especially the British and Americans, through rounds of excruciating suffering, routinely beating and waterboarding them and staging mock executions.

Thanks to IS propaganda videos, the gang quickly acquired a singular place in this century’s annals of terrorism. James Foley, the first of the Western hostages to be beheaded, was earmarked for the worst treatment of all, possibly because he had a brother who had served with U.S. forces in Afghanistan. 

“You could see the scars on his [Foley’s] ankles,” Jejoen Bontinck, a 19-year-old Belgian and convert to Islam, said in interviews later. Bontinck, a jihadist recruit who fell afoul of IS, shared a prison cell with Foley in 2013. “He told me how they had chained his feet to a bar and then hung the bar so that he was upside down from the ceiling. Then they left him there.”

Foley’s mother, Diane, told the BBC on Friday that the crimes of the British jihadists “are beyond imagination.” She says they need to face life in prison. “It doesn’t bring James back, but hopefully it protects others from this kind of crime.”

An international manhunt was launched by Western governments for the fighters in 2014 when IS released a video of Foley’s execution at the hands of an masked English-accented militant, who called himself “John” and was the leader of the gang. He was nicknamed by the British media “Jihadi John” and was later identified as Mohamed Emwazi, who was born in Kuwait, but was raised like the rest of the gang in west London.

He was killed in a drone strike in November 2015.

Another member of the gang, Aine Davis, was sentenced last year in Turkey to a seven-and-a-half-year prison term. He was charged with membership in a terrorist organization, but a weightier charge of preparing acts of terrorism, which carried the possibility of a longer sentence, was dropped by Turkish prosecutors for lack of sufficient evidence. 

U.S. officials say El Shafee Elsheikh, who fled from Sudan in the 1990s but grew up in London, and Alexanda Amon Kotey, whose ethnic background is Greek Cypriot, are providing information on the remaining IS structure and leaders. But it is unclear who has been interrogating them and whether British intelligence officers also have had access to the pair alongside U.S. counterterror officials. 

Family and friends of British photojournalist John Cantlie, a friend of Foley, who remains missing, say they hope the captured jihadists provide information about his whereabouts. Cantlie was used by IS to front propaganda videos.

The British IS gang also was responsible for the murder of U.S. aid worker Peter Kassig, according to freed captives, as well as David Haines, a British aid worker, and Alan Henning, a British taxi driver from Salford outside Manchester, who had volunteered to deliver humanitarian aid to Syria.  

Elsheikh traveled to Syria in 2012 and joined al-Qaida in Syria before switching to IS. U.S. officials say he took pleasure in staging crucifixions and waterboarding while an IS jailer. The two captured jihadists knew Emwazi in the British capital, where all three attended Al-Manaar mosque in west London. 

Officials on both sides of the Atlantic say the fate remains unclear of the captured jihadists, who may be considered non-state combatants. They could be handed over to the U.S. Justice Department to stand trial in the U.S. or be transferred to the U.S. military authorities to face a tribunal at Guantanamo Bay detention center. U.S. President Donald Trump recently signed an order to keep the detention center. 

Another option is for their fate to be left to the Kurdish authorities in northern Syria, but that option is being opposed by freed captives. French officials have raised the possibility of the pair standing trial at the International Criminal Court in The Hague, which has jurisdiction to prosecute individuals for crimes of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. However, the U.S. is not a signatory to the court. 

The French position was echoed Friday by a British defense minister, Tobias Elwood, who said the two jihadists shouldn’t be tried before a U.S. military tribunal or sent back to Britain, but should face justice at The Hague in order to uphold the rule of law.

Relatives of other alleged victims have echoed Henin’s call for a trial.

Bethany Haines, the daughter of David Haines, posted on Facebook: “It’s brilliant that these evil people have been caught. The families will now have people to hold account for their loved ones death.”

She added, “No punishment is enough for these barbarians and in my opinion they should be sentenced to a slow painful death.”
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Tillerson to Press Turkey to Free Detained Americans, Show Restraint in Afrin

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U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will press Turkey to release Americans detained by Ankara, and urge the NATO ally to show restraint in military operations in northern Syria, according to senior U.S. officials.

“At times like this, engagement is all the more important,” said a State Department official on Friday, while acknowledging, “It’s going to be a difficult conversation.”

Turkey is the second stop of Tillerson’s five-nation visit to the Middle East next week, following a visit to Jordan. He will also meet with senior officials from Lebanon, Egypt and Kuwait.

The top U.S. diplomat’s visit to Ankara comes amid escalated tensions between the two NATO allies over a series of disagreements, including human rights cases and the Syria crisis. 

“Look, it’s difficult. The rhetoric is hot, the Turks are angry and this is a difficult time to do business, but it’s our belief that there are still some very fundamental underlying shared interests,” the senior official said Friday.

U.S. citizen Serkan Golge, a NASA scientist who was arrested in July 2016, was convicted without credible evidence on Feb. 8 by Turkish authorities for being a member of a terror organization. On Feb. 1, Amnesty International’s Turkey chairman, Taner Kilic, was re-arrested and placed back in pretrial detention. Kilic is facing terrorism charges.

The State Department said it is deeply troubled by those cases and urged the Turkish government to “end the protracted state of emergency, to release those detained arbitrarily under emergency authorities, and to safeguard the rule of law consistent with Turkey’s own domestic and international obligations and commitments.”

In the year after a failed coup in July 2016, Turkey arrested more than 40,000 people and fired 125,000, including many from the police, army and judiciary. 

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Fethullah Gulen, an exiled cleric based in the U.S., of orchestrating the attempted coup. Gulen has denied any role in the plot. Ankara has also asked Washington to extradite Gulen.   

The lack of trust between Washington and Ankara grew after Turkey started an air and ground offensive in Afrin, Syria against a Kurdish group known as the People’s Protection Units, or YPG. Turkey considers the YPG to be a terrorist organization, alleging it is an extension of a Kurdish group fighting for autonomy in Turkey for decades. 

The U.S. denies those connections and sees the YPG as a key ally in the battle against Islamic State militants.

“We are urging them [Turkish authorities] to show restraint in their operations in Afrin, and to show restraint further along the line across the border in northern Syria,” said a senior State Department official. 

“We can work with them to address their legitimate security concerns while, at the same time, minimizing civilian casualties and above all else, keeping everything focused on the defeat ISIS fight, which is not over,” he added, using the acronym of the Islamic State militants.

In Amman, Tillerson will meet with the Jordanian leadership on the conclusion of a new memorandum of understanding on bilateral assistance, and discuss key regional issues, such as the ongoing crisis in Syria and Jordan’s support for Middle East peace.

In Beirut, he will meet with Lebanese President Michel Aoun, Prime Minister Saad Hariri, and Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri to emphasize U.S. support for the Lebanese people and the Lebanese armed forces.

Building on Vice President Mike Pence’s recent visit to Cairo, Tillerson will meet with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi and Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry to discuss regional security issues such as Libya and Syria, as well as Israeli-Palestinian issues.

The chief U.S. diplomat will also lead a delegation to the ministerial meeting in Kuwait of the 74-member Global Coalition to Defeat ISIS. He will also participate in the Iraq Reconstruction Conference, which is the first since Islamic State was defeated in Raqqa, Syria and Iraq declared some of its own territory liberated.

The three-day Iraq Reconstruction Conference will showcase private sector investment opportunities and international support for Iraq.
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As Brexit ‘Cliff-Edge’ Fears Grow, France Courts Japanese Firms In Britain

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There are growing fears that Britain could be headed for a so-called “cliff-edge” exit from the European Union, as big differences remain between Brussels and London over the shape of any future deal. 

The European Union’s chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, voiced frustration Friday that London has yet to detail what type of relationship it wants with the EU after Brexit.

“We had agreed with the British team on an agenda this week covering Ireland, the governance of the withdrawal agreement, and of course the transition,” Barnier told reporters in Brussels. “We had also planned an update by the United Kingdom on the future relationship. That update could not take place as planned this morning due to a scheduling issue on the British side.”

He also warned that both sides must agree on precise legal terms on the future border arrangements between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

“Once again, ladies and gentlemen, it is important to tell the truth. A U.K. decision to leave the single market and to leave the customs union would make border checks unavoidable,” Barnier said.

That would mean the return of a physical border along the frontier, which many fear could reignite sectarian violence. Analyst Jonathan Portes of the U.K. in a Changing Europe program at Kings College London said the Ireland issue could determine the success of any overall Brexit deal.

“We have to work out how to translate the political fudge on the Northern Irish border that was agreed at the end of December into hard legal language,” he said. “And at the moment, no one really has any idea how to do that.” 

Britain says it wants frictionless trade with the EU after Brexit, but also the freedom to strike trade deals with other countries. But analyst Portes said the government is deeply divided over the shape of Britain’s future relationship with Europe, making negotiations difficult. A leaked government analysis suggests that economic growth in Britain will be reduced by up to 8 percent after it leaves the bloc.

Warning from Japan

Meanwhile, Tokyo’s ambassador to Britain warned that Japanese businesses might pull out of Britain if they faced higher costs after Brexit.

“If there is no profitability of continuing operations in the U.K., not Japanese only, no private company can continue operation. So, it’s as simple as that, and this is all high stakes that I think all of us need to keep in mind,” Ambassador Koji Tsuruoka told reporters Thursday, ahead of a meeting between British Prime Minister Theresa May and bosses of Japanese firms.

Japan has invested billions of dollars in Britain, lured by the promise of a tariff-free gateway to Europe. Carmakers Nissan, Honda and Toyota produce almost half of Britain’s cars, while pharmaceutical firms, tech companies and banks employ thousands of people.

Britain’s competitors, notably France, are eyeing that investment keenly. French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian visited Tokyo last week and said any hopes that Britain might reverse course and stay in the EU were unfounded.

“It’s our choice, and our move, to tell the Japanese companies that, yes, the U.K. as part of the EU is over, but here is what we can offer you,” Le Drian told reporters.

‘Difficult pill’

Britain and Europe both want a transition period to ease the changeover for businesses. 

“Which is likely going to mean that the U.K. accepts that the EU makes all the rules, and we continue to pay, but we get no say. That’s going to be quite a difficult pill to swallow,” said Portes.

As the one-year Brexit countdown approaches, pressure is growing from Britain’s global and European partners for clarity over what future it wants after the European Union.
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US Steps Up Effort to Avert Confrontation With Turkey Over Syrian Kurdish Militia

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U.S. National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster is due in Turkey this weekend, as a potential military confrontation looms between the two countries over Syria. The NATO allies disagree over Turkey’s military intervention in Syria against a Kurdish militia which is a key U.S. ally in the war against Islamic State.

Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu this week lambasted Washington, accusing it of making deals with Islamic State militants and claiming his government has lost confidence in its alliance with the U.S.

Such verbal assaults against Washington by Turkey’s political leadership are almost a daily occurrence. A recent poll found only three percent of Turks trust the United States.

Tensions have come to a head over Washington’s support of the YPG Syrian Kurdish militia in its war against Islamic State. That support has outraged Ankara, which accuses the militia of being linked to an ongoing Kurdish insurgency inside Turkey by the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK).

Realpolitik

Political analyst Atilla Yesilada of Global Source Partners says when McMaster sits down for talks in Ankara, he will likely find little room to maneuver.

“Given the fact that there is this ironclad alliance between the PKK and the YPG, there is no way Turkey can allow a Syrian Kurdish state. Realpolitik is against that. Any Kurdish state will allow PKK activity, will provoke Turkish Kurds. I don’t think the West understands that,” Yesilada said.

Three weeks ago, in the face of repeated warnings by Washington, Turkish forces attacked the YPG Kurdish militia in the Syrian enclave of Afrin; but, diplomatic tensions could spill into a military confrontation between the NATO allies. Ankara is threatening to expand its operation to the Syrian town of Manbij, where U.S. forces are deployed with the YPG.

Political columnist Semih Idiz of the al-Monitor website says McMaster’s visit suggests a confrontation can still be averted.

“It shows a reflexive desire on the part of Washington to maintain a dialogue with Turkey, despite all the vitriolic remarks coming out of Ankara. So the sides are going to try and see how they come around this problem that they have. On the other hand, the lines have been drawn so firmly, so there is a standoff there. It’s a diplomatic one at the moment; whether it will turn into a military one or not, the coming days will have to show that. But the way things are in Syria, anything can happen,” Idiz said.

Analysts suggest de-escalating bilateral tensions is complicated by mixed messages coming from Washington. Just days before McMaster’s visit, U.S. generals were quoted by international media reaffirming support for the YPG in Manbij and warning any attack would be aggressively opposed. Such comments further infuriated Ankara, which accuses Washington of reneging on promises made about the YPG.

Need for common ground

Sinan Ulgen, a visiting scholar at Carnegie Europe, says the priority for McMaster is bridging the current trust deficit.

“There is still time for Washington and Ankara to find common ground to eliminate the prospect of a direct conflict. And I would say primarily to try to find an actionable agenda that would start to recreate trust between the two parties. For instance, I suggest a dialogue on the humanitarian dimensions of this conflict [in Afrin], and primarily the U.S. and Turkey working together to establish a humanitarian corridor for the civilians who are caught by this conflict,” Ulgen said.

Analysts point out trust could be further enhanced if Washington took steps to address another Turkish concern, U.S.-based Turkish cleric Fethullah Gulen. Ankara blames Gulen for a 2016 coup attempt and is demanding, at a minimum, his house arrest pending an extradition request.

But columnist Idiz warns that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s robust defense of the Syria military operation and his fiery declarations aimed at Washington, both popular among his constituents, means Erdogan may have already become trapped by his rhetoric.

“He is caught between a rock and hard place now. If he does go for a rupture, this is going to have very, very big ramifications, not just on the political, strategic dimensions, but also economic dimensions. But on the other hand, if he doesn’t, he appears weak in the eyes of his supporters,” Idiz said.

Elections further hamper bilateral U.S.-Turkish diplomatic efforts, with growing rumors Erdogan may call an early presidential and general vote for later this year, seeking to exploit the current wave of nationalism and anti-Americanism. Analysts are already warning Turkish-U.S. relations are now facing their greatest test.

 
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House Passes Massive Budget to End Government Shutdown

Posted on by SeeUS

The U.S. House of Representatives passed a massive $400 billion budget agreement early Friday intended to end a partial federal government shutdown.

The lawmakers voted 240-186 to approve the accord that now goes to President Donald Trump for his signature. However, it only funds the government through March 23. Lawmakers have until then to craft a detailed spending plan for the remainder of the fiscal year that ends September 30.  

The budget was passed, over the objections of some politicians who objected to its large spending increases, and without any plan of action to safeguard the more than one million undocumented young immigrants, known as “Dreamers.”

The U.S. government was shut down Friday morning when Congress missed the deadline to renew the federal government’s funding. It was the second partial federal shutdown in less than a month.  

Later, the Senate voted 71-28 to re-open the federal government.  

Vote delayed

A single Republican senator late Thursday held up a bipartisan bill to keep the U.S. government open hours before federal funds expired.

Rand Paul of Kentucky objected to the Senate proceeding to vote on a two-year budget deal that would boost military and domestic spending by hundreds of billions of dollars, saying it would explode America’s rising federal deficit and add to the nation’s more than $20 trillion national debt.

“I can’t, in all good honesty, in all good faith, just look the other way,” Paul said in a fiery and lengthy floor speech that consumed dwindling time that Congress had to act to avert a halt of nonessential federal operations. “We have a 700-page bill that no one has read that was printed at midnight. … Nothing will be reformed, the waste will continue.”

Paul’s objection drew an angry response from a fellow Republican, Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, who argued America’s military desperately needs additional funds after years of budget caps that constrained both the Pentagon and domestic programs.

“Debt and deficits are no excuse to leave the war fighter hanging,” Graham said. “Whatever it is to keep our military going, I’ll do it.”

​Senate rules

Under Senate rules, any member can speak for as long as he or she desires, unless three-fifths of the body votes to end debate. Any senator also can object to a vote, causing lengthy procedural delays.

Paul’s action also threw into chaos a carefully choreographed timetable for how the day’s legislative business was to be conducted, with swift Senate and House votes so that the budget deal could be sent to the White House Trump’s signature with time to spare before midnight in Washington, when federal spending authority ended absent an extension.

​Bipartisan support for bill

Negotiated between the Senate’s Republican and Democratic leaders, the funding bill appeared to have ample bipartisan support for passage in both houses of Congress.

“This agreement ensures that our armed forces will finally have the resources they need,” Republican Senator John Cornyn of Texas said. “In addition, the funding bill will provide support for our veterans, those who have worn the uniform as well as their families, and it will clear the way for new investment in our nation’s infrastructure.”

“It’s a good deal,” Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer of New York said. “And it’s a strong signal that we can break the gridlock that has overwhelmed this body and work together for the good of the country.”

“We do support the two-year spending bill,” White House Deputy Press Secretary Raj Shah told reporters at the daily briefing. “It lifts the caps on defense spending, which is something the secretary of defense and the president’s generals have told him they need to ensure that we rebuild our military and protect our national security.”

Opposition from all sides

The accord drew opposition from opposite extremes of Congress’ ideological spectrum, but not in sufficient numbers to threaten passage. Some conservative Republicans blasted the added spending as a surrender to fiscal insanity.

Some progressive Democrats, meanwhile, protested the agreement’s omission of any measure to end the threat of deportation for hundreds of thousands of young undocumented immigrants brought to America as children.

“They live and work here. They share our nation with us. Right now, we are being called upon to protect them from deportation and we must answer that call,” Democratic Congressman Luis Gutierrez of Illinois said. “Vote against this budget.”

Partial shutdown in January

Democrats blocked a stopgap spending bill in January, triggering a three-day partial federal government shutdown, in part to protest Congress’ inaction on Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), an Obama administration program that Trump ended last year and is now set to expire March 5.

Bipartisan negotiations have yet to reach a deal on an overhaul of America’s immigration. However, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has repeatedly promised to start Senate floor debate on immigration reform, including a fix for DACA recipients, after spending issues are resolved.

House Speaker Paul Ryan gave a similar assurance Thursday, saying, “To anyone who doubts my commitment to solve this problem and bring up a DACA and immigration reform bill, do not. We will bring a solution to the floor, one that the president will sign.”
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Britain Targets Global Corruption With Law to Seize Unexplained Wealth

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Politicians and public figures suspected of buying property with corrupt money will be forced to explain their wealth, or face the seizure of their assets under new legislation that has come into force in Britain this month. As Henry Ridgwell reports from London, the so-called Unexplained Wealth Orders have been welcomed by activists, who say the British capital is at the center of a global web of corrupt and embezzled money.
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Olympic Gymnast Simone Biles Takes On New Role: College Student

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World champion and Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles has 19 medals to her name, but there’s one accolade that’s been out of her reach. Until now. VOA’s Tina Trinh met with the all-star gymnast to discuss her next big goal.
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Pence in Pyeongchang for Olympics Opening Ceremonies

Posted on by SeeUS

U.S. Vice President Mike Pence arrived in Pyeongchang, South Korea, Friday to attend the opening ceremonies of the 2018 Winter Olympics.

Earlier Friday, Pence traveled to the South Korean Navy’s 2nd Fleet Command in Pyeongtaek, 70 kilometers south of Seoul, to visit a memorial for the South Korean warship Cheonan, which was sunk by an explosion blamed on the North. Nearly 50 sailors aboard the Cheonan were killed.

“Our objective here today is to stand with our allies. But is also to stand up for the truth. And to recognize that whatever images may emerge against the powerful backdrop and idealism of the Olympics, North Korea has to accept change,” Pence told reporters at the naval base before heading to the Olympic Games venue.

“They have to abandon their nuclear ambitions. They have to end the day of provocation and menacing. And frankly they have to end an appalling record of human rights that you heard first-hand today, the world community,” he added.

The vice president also met with North Korean defectors while in Pyeongtaek.

At the Olympics

U.S. officials have not ruled out the possibility that the vice president might meet a North Korean official at the Olympics. North Korean state media said Thursday there was no intention on the North Korean side for such talks to take place.

Pence said his team had not requested a meeting, but that if it did happen, he would continue his message that North Korea must entirely abandon its nuclear and ballistic missile efforts and will remain under pressure until it does so.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in said South Korea sees hosting the Olympics as a way to improve diplomatic relations with North Korea. He has referred to the games as the “Olympic Games of peace.”

Ahead of the opening ceremony in Pyeongchang, Pence, Moon and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attended a reception for about 200 dignitaries hosted by the South Korean president.

According to the vice president’s office, Pence stopped by many tables at the reception, “but did not come across the North Korea delegation.”

Vow to South Korea

On Thursday, Pence said in a meeting with Moon that Washington would “bring maximum pressure to bear on North Korea” until they abandon their nuclear weapons program.

Meeting with Moon at the Blue House in Seoul, Pence reaffirmed to longtime ally South Korea the U.S. commitment to economically and diplomatically isolate North Korea in order to achieve the goal of a denuclearized Korean Peninsula.

On Thursday, while in Japan, Pence stopped at Yokota Air Base in western Tokyo, where he gave a pointed speech against North Korea.

He said the United States will act with “vigilance and resolve” in the face of North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic missile threats, and reiterated the Trump administration’s warning that while its seeks peace, “all options are on the table.”

About 54,000 personnel are stationed at the U.S. base. Pence toured the facility and met with Air Force Lt. Gen. Jerry Martinez, commander of U.S. Forces Japan. He also was briefed on the capabilities of the base if “diplomacy fails.”

Pence said North Korea has repeatedly responded to overtures from the world with broken promises and provocations. He highlighted his earlier announcement that the United States would continue to intensify what he called a “maximum pressure campaign” and keep it in place until North Korea abandons its nuclear and ballistic missile programs.

“We’re standing in a country that has literally seen ballistic missiles overfly their land twice in a single month. And they’ve seen multiple ballistic missiles land within their economic zone in the Sea of Japan,” Pence later told reporters.

“American forces, the Self-Defense Forces of Japan are ready for any eventuality. And we will continue to make it clear to all parties that the United States and our allies in this region stand ready at a moment’s notice to defend our people and defend our way of life,” he added.
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US Airstrikes on Syrian Government-backed Forces New Twist to Syrian War

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U.S. officials say U.S. airstrikes against government-backed troops in eastern Syria late Wednesday and early Thursday were purely defensive. A Pentagon official said Thursday the airstrikes were launched after the Syrian government and its local supporters posed a threat to the Syrian Democratic Forces and their U.S. advisers in eastern Deir el-Zour province. VOA’s Zlatica Hoke reports renewed fighting on several fronts in Syria gives scant hope for a peaceful solution to the seven-year war.
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Eye Contact Between Adults, Babies Synchronizes Brainwaves

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When two people see things the same way, it is often said that they are “operating on the same wavelength.” That concept recently got a scientific stamp of approval when researchers at the University of Cambridge found that adults’ and infants’ brainwaves synchronize when they look at each other’s eyes while singing a nursery rhyme. VOA’s George Putic has more.
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