Для сепаратистів ЗНО – не потрібне, а для дітей Героїв України – потрібне! Здобули?
Для поширення вашого відео чи повідомлення в Мережі Правди пишіть сюди, або на email: pravdaua@email.cz
Найкращі пропозиції товарів і послуг в Мережі Купуй!
Ваші потенційні клієнти про потрібні їм товари і послуги пишуть тут: MeNeedit
Month: July 2020
Банда обиженного карлика пукина увеличила вывоз золота из путляндии
Банда обиженного карлика пукина увеличила вывоз золота из путляндии.
your ad here
Последние новости россии и мира, экономика, бизнес, культура, технологии, спорт
Для распространения вашего видео или сообщения в Сети Правды пишите сюда, или на email: pravdaua@email.cz
Лучшие предложения товаров и услуг в Сети SeLLines
Ваши потенциальные клиенты о нужных им товарах и услугах пишут здесь: MeNeedit
Cameroon Truck Drivers Stuck at CAR Border After Health Officials Refuse to Accept their COVID Test Results
The trucking of goods and humanitarian aid from Cameroon to the landlocked Central African Republic has slowed to a trickle, raising tensions between the two sides. Despite an agreement that Cameroon drivers who test negative for COVID-19 would be given access, testing kits are in short supply at the border, forcing some trucks to wait weeks to cross.El Hadj Oumarou, the head of Cameroon’s land freight transportation bureau, says hundreds of trucks at the border town of Garoua Boulay have not been given access to the Central African Republic.He says all attempts to convince C.A.R. transport and health officials that the drivers have tested negative for COVID-19 in Cameroon have failed.Oumarou says this week, Cameroon’s transport minister assured truck drivers that the C.A.R. will accept COVID-19 test results done in Cameroon hospitals. But Oumarou says, the COVID-19 test results done in Cameroon are still rejected by C.A.R. border officials. He says he is scandalized that trucks, goods and humanitarian aid are blocked at the border for several weeks.The C.A.R. and Cameroon sealed their borders in March to stop the spread of the coronavirus, after both countries recorded cases of COVID-19. The landlocked C.A.R. entered an agreement with Cameroon to allow passage of humanitarian aid and goods from Cameroon’s seaside town of Douala to the C.A.R. capital, Bangui.According to the agreement, only truck drivers who tested negative for COVID-19 were to enter the C.A.R. But the plan was crippled by a shortage of tests at the border.The drivers, who are mostly Cameroonians, started carrying out the tests in local hospitals. But C.A.R. officials began rejecting the results last month when the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Cameroon increased to more than 13,000.On Monday of this week, delegates from the two countries held a crisis meeting at Garoua Boulay, and the C.A.R. agreed to recognize COVID-19 test results carried out in Cameroon.But C.A.R. Transport Minister Arnaud Djoubaye Abazene says the decisions made at the meeting were not final.Abazene says the mixed commission that the presidents of Cameroon and C.A.R. created to manage land transport will meet to examine threats caused by COVID-19. He says only that the commission can address all the misunderstandings caused at the border as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.Abazene said that once goods and supplies are brought to the border, C.A.R. drivers will transport them to Bangui. He said his country will also consider COVID-19 test results conducted in the C.A.R. in case the border posts run short of rapid diagnostic tests.CameroonCameroon’s minister of transport, Jean Earnest Ngale Bibehe, says Cameroon wants a solution to the crisis as soon as possible.He says the coronavirus pandemic preoccupies all governments in the world and there is no state that will want to joke over COVID-19. He says it is in the interest of Cameroon and the C.A.R. to work together and rescue their collapsing economies.The Central African Republic depends on the Douala seaport for about 95 percent of its goods and humanitarian aid.
…
Tropical Storm Fay Moves Toward Mid-Atlantic, New England
Tropical Storm Fay slightly picked up speed and strength as it moved closer to land Friday, and forecasters decreased projections for rain totals and flooding.Fay was expected to bring 2 to 4 inches (5 to 10 centimeters) of rain, with the possibility of flash flooding in parts of the mid-Atlantic and southern New England, The U.S. National Hurricane Center said in its 5 a.m. advisory. That’s down from earlier forecasts of about 3 to 5 inches (8 to 13 centimeters) of rain.The storm picked up speed Friday morning, moving north around 10 mph (17 kph) and producing top sustained winds of 50 mph (85 kph), forecasters said. Earlier observations showed it moving at 8 mph (13 kph) with top sustained winds of 45 mph (75 kph).A tropical storm warning remained in effect from Cape May, New Jersey, to Watch Hill, Rhode Island. The warning area includes Long Island and the Long Island Sound in New York, forecasters said.Fay is the earliest sixth-named storm on record, according to Colorado State University hurricane researcher Phil Klotzbach. The previous record was Franklin on July 22, 2005, Klotzbach tweeted.Two named storms formed before the official June 1 start of the hurricane season. None of this season’s previous five named storms strengthened into hurricanes.
…
Oxygen Already Runs Low as COVID-19 Surges in South Africa
The coronavirus storm has arrived in South Africa, but in the overflowing COVID-19 wards the sound is less of a roar than a rasp.Oxygen is already low in hospitals at the new epicenter of the country’s outbreak, Gauteng province, home to the power centers of Johannesburg and the capital, Pretoria.Health Minister Zweli Mkhize, visiting a hospital Friday, said authorities are working with industry to address the strained oxygen supply and divert more to health facilities. South Africa Takes Part in Human Trial for Potential COVID-19 Vaccine South Africa takes part in Africa’s first human trial for coronavirus vaccine Some of the hospital’s patients spilled into heated tents in the parking lot. They lay under thick blankets in the middle of winter in the Southern Hemisphere, with a cold front arriving this weekend and temperatures expected to dip below freezing.South Africa overnight posted another record daily high of confirmed cases, 13,674, as Africa’s most developed country is a new global hot spot with 238,339 cases overall. More than a third are in Gauteng.”The storm that we have consistently warned South Africans about is now arriving,” Mkhize said this week.A nurse at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital — the third largest hospital in the world with more than 3,000 beds — painted a bleak picture, saying new patients with the virus are now being admitted into ordinary wards as the COVID-19 ones are full.”Our hospital is overloaded already. There has been an influx of patients over the last two weeks,” the nurse said, speaking to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to give interviews.More and more colleagues at the hospital are testing positive daily for the virus, the nurse said, “even people who are not working in COVID wards.” Africa Seeks Equitable Access to Any COVID-19 Vaccine African leaders rally calling for investment to manufacture a serum at an affordable price as number of infections on continent surpasses 321,000 casesAlready more than 8,000 health workers across Africa have been infected — half of them in South Africa.Any struggles in how the country manages the pandemic will be amplified in other nations across Africa, which has the world’s lowest levels of health funding and health staffing. The continent as of Friday had 541,381 confirmed cases, but shortages in testing materials means the real number is unknown.South Africa’s surge in cases comes as the country loosens what had been one of the world’s strictest lockdowns, with even alcohol sales banned until June 1. Now restaurants have sit-down service and religious gatherings have resumed. The economy was hurting and needed reopening, authorities said.But nervous officials in Gauteng province have called for stricter lockdown measures to return. On Friday, Gauteng Premier David Makhura announced he had tested positive with mild symptoms.”We must double our efforts,” he said in a statement, urging people to wear face masks, wash their hands and distance themselves.Warning signs keep flashing. Hospital beds in all provinces could be full within the month, the health minister said this week. On Friday he said a team is looking at 2,000 additional beds for field hospitals in Gauteng.In addition to the shortage of beds, many hospitals are grappling with limited oxygen supplies to treat patients with the respiratory disease.Guy Richards, director of clinical care at Charlotte Maxeke Hospital in Johannesburg, told the AP they are extremely worried about potential shortages.”Even a big hospital like ours has difficulty supplying sufficient amounts of oxygenation for our patients. The same thing is happening at Helen Joseph (Hospital), and this is a major problem,” he said.Tshwane District Hospital, which the health minister visited Friday, has been devoted completely to COVID-19 patients, said Veronica Ueckermann, head of the COVID-19 response team at Steve Biko Academic Hospital, which includes Tshwane District Hospital.”Currently we are stretched but we are still coping in terms of our wards, our sisters and doctors are working extremely hard,” she said.
…
Notre Dame Cathedral to be Rebuilt Without Modern Touches
Notre Dame Cathedral will be rebuilt just the way it stood before last year’s devastating fire.No swimming pool or organic garden on the roof of the medieval Paris monument, or contemporary glass spire, or other modern twists. And to stay historically accurate, it will again be built with potentially toxic lead.That’s the verdict reached by French President Emmanuel Macron, the cathedral’s present-day architects and the general in charge of the colossal reconstruction project for one of the world’s most treasured landmarks.Macron, who wants Notre Dame reopened in time for the 2024 Olympics, had initially pushed for a contemporary touch atop the cathedral, prompting eye-catching proposals from architects around the world.Rebuilding of Paris’ Notre Dame Stalled as Pandemic RagesCOVID measures stop reconstruction plans, and one year after it was heavily damaged in a fire, no one knows when the iconic cathedral will be repairedBut Macron came around to the traditionalists’ argument, and approved reconstruction plans for the 12th century monument that were presented Thursday, according to a statement from the state agency overseeing the project.The plan includes recreating the 19th century spire designed by architect Eugene Viollet-le-Duc that collapsed in the fire and “favors fidelity to the monument’s form and a restoration of the cathedral in its latest state,” the statement said.That means how Notre Dame was on the afternoon of April 15, 2019, before the fire broke out, consumed the roof and threatened the rose-windowed twin towers that keep the cathedral upright.More than a year later, the structure remains unstable. It took nearly a year to clear out dangerous lead residue released in the fire and to get to the point where workers could start removing scaffolding that had been in place for a previous renovation effort. Actual reconstruction won’t start until next year.The reconstruction plan presented Thursday says the project will replicate original materials “to guarantee the authenticity, harmony and coherence of this masterpiece of Gothic art.” Those materials included tons of lead, which is raising concerns among health and environmental groups. Lead particles released during the fire forced schools in the area to close and prompted a lengthy, painstaking cleanup effort of the cathedral’s historic neighborhood on an island in the center of Paris.
…
Ousted NY Prosecutor Tells Panel Barr ‘Urged’ Him to Resign
The ousted U.S. attorney who was leading investigations into President Donald Trump’s allies told the House Judiciary panel on Thursday that Attorney General William Barr “repeatedly urged” him to resign during a hastily arranged meeting that sheds light on the extraordinary standoff surrounding his departure.Geoffrey Berman, the former federal prosecutor for the Southern District of New York, provided the committee with a detailed account behind closed doors of three days in June as he was pushed out, according to his opening statement, which was obtained by The Associated Press.Top Manhattan Prosecutor Leaves Job After Standoff With BarrUS Attorney Geoffrey Berman says he was assured that investigations by the prosecutor’s office into the president’s allies would not be disturbedBerman said Barr, over a 45-minute session at the Pierre Hotel in New York, “pressed” him to step aside and take on a new job heading up the Justice Department’s Civil Division so the administration could install Jay Clayton, chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission, to the top prosecutor post in Manhattan.”I told the attorney general that I was not interested,” Berman told the panel.Berman explained, “There were important investigations in the office that I wanted to see through to completion.” He told Barr that, while he liked Clayton, he viewed the SEC commissioner as “an unqualified choice” for the job.”He had had no criminal experience,” Berman said.When Barr warned that if he didn’t go, he would be fired, “I told him that while I did not want to get fired, I would not resign,” Berman said.The Judiciary Committee interview, which is being transcribed for public release later, comes as the panel deepens its probe of politicization at the Justice Department.Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., has called Berman’s dismissal “part of a clear and dangerous pattern” of behavior by Barr. The panel’s Democratic majority is pursuing its investigation of the attorney general, who they say operates more like Trump’s personal lawyer than the nation’s top law enforcement official. Barr is set to testify before the committee later this month.The Southern District, known for its high-profile prosecutions, is where Berman oversaw several ongoing investigations of Trump associates, including some who figured prominently in the House impeachment inquiry of the president.Berman’s office is looking into the business dealings of Rudy Giuliani, Trump’s personal lawyer and a former New York mayor. It has also prosecuted Trump’s former personal lawyer and fixer Michael Cohen, who went to prison for lying to Congress and campaign finance crimes.The closed-door interview with Berman spanned three hours. He was not expected to disclose information about the investigations into Trump’s circle, but rather to discuss only his removal, according to a person familiar with the proceeding who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss it. He arrived without a lawyer.The session comes as the Capitol remains partially shut down during the COVID-19 crisis. A handful of lawmakers, but not all those on the panel, attended.Berman, a Republican lawyer and donor to Trump, was tapped by the administration in 2018 as the U.S. attorney for SDNY. He ultimately agreed to step down from his post, but only after being assured his office’s probes of Trump’s circle would continue.As he sat alone before the committee, Berman told the panel of the series of events that started with a Thursday email from Barr’s office requesting the meeting. He said he was not told what it was about.When he arrived at Barr’s hotel suite the next day, there “were sandwiches on the table, but nobody ate.” Barr told him he wanted to make changes at the office. Berman resisted, saying he “loved” his job and asked if Barr was “dissatisfied” with his performance.Barr assured him the move was solely because Clayton wanted to relocate to New York and the administration wanted to “keep him on the team.” Back and forth it went, with Barr saying the move would be good for Berman’s resume and eventual return to the private sector, Berman said. Berman would “only have to sit there” for five months until the presidential election determined next steps, Barr said. He told Berman it would be an opportunity to accumulate a “book of business” — clients — to bring to a private firm.As Berman remain unmoved, Barr told him “he was trying to think of other jobs in the administration” that might be of interest. “I said that there was no job offer that would entice me to resign from my position,” Berman recalled. Late that Friday the Justice Department issued a statement saying Berman was stepping down, launching the standoff. Berman issued his own statement saying he had “no intention of resigning.” He showed up for work Saturday.On Saturday night, Barr publicly released a letter saying Berman had been fired by the president. At the time, Trump told reporters it was “all up to the attorney general,” adding, “I wasn’t involved.”Berman told the panel the letter also contained a “critical concession” from Barr. In it, Barr stated that Berman’s hand-picked deputy would take over as acting U.S. attorney until the permanent successor was in place. Berman said that with “full confidence” the work of the office would continue, “I decided to step down and not litigate my removal.”It’s not the first ouster of a U.S. attorney from the SDNY. Preet Bharara, a former federal prosecutor appointed by President Barack Obama, announced that he was fired in March 2017, shortly after Trump took office.Berman had worked from 1987 to 1990 for the independent counsel who investigated the administration of President Ronald Reagan in the Iran-Contra affair. He previously served in the SDNY office as an assistant U.S. attorney from 1990 to 1994 before joining private practice, including time at the same firm as Giuliani. He reportedly met with Trump before being assigned the top federal prosecutor job in Manhattan.SDNY has probed Trump’s inaugural fundraising and overseen the prosecution of two Florida businessmen, Lev Parnas and Igor Fruman, who were associates of Giuliani and tied to the Ukraine impeachment investigation. The men were charged in October with federal campaign finance violations.
…
28 Georgian Soldiers in Afghanistan Infected with Coronavirus
The novel coronavirus has reportedly infected 28 Georgian soldiers in the NATO Resolute Support mission in Afghanistan.
The infected soldiers have been transported back to their country and are undergoing treatment in a military hospital, local media quoted Georgia’s Ministry of Defense as saying. It described the health condition of the soldiers as “satisfactory.”
A spokesman for the non-combatant military alliance in Afghanistan, when contacted for comments Friday, referred VOA to Georgian defense officials to talk about the status of their forces.
“Resolute Support does not confirm individual case numbers. Protection of the force from all threats, to include COVID-19, remains our top priority,” said the spokesman.
Georgia is said to be the largest non-NATO contributor to the 38-nation military mission in Afghanistan with around 900 soldiers.
The military alliance has reported several cases of infections since the pandemic reached Afghanistan four months ago without disclosing the nationalities of those suffering from the virus.
As of Friday, the official tally of coronavirus cases in Afghanistan stood at about 34,000, with nearly 1,000 deaths.
Afghan public health officials, however, have warned that the actual numbers are much higher, citing limited testing capacity, among other challenges facing the war-hit health care system. They anticipate that more than half of the country’s estimated 37 million population could become infected in the coming months.
NATO has lately stepped up cooperation with Afghan national security forces to help them fight the pandemic by providing supplies of personal protective medical equipment, including 1.4 million masks, 500,000 gloves and 460,000 gowns.
The virus is reportedly sweeping through Afghan military and police forces. The Afghan defense ministry, however, denies any large scale infections among security forces.
…
Seoul Mayor Found Dead Friday; Suicide Suspected
South Korean police say Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon was found dead early Friday, a suspected suicide.The body of 64-year-old Park was found near an entrance at the mountain Bugaksan in Seoul after just midnight, several hours after he had been reported missing Thursday.The day before, Park’s former secretary filed a sexual harassment claim.The Seoul Metropolitan Government said Friday a five-day funeral service will be held at Seoul National University Hospital.The Korea Herald said Park apologized to everyone, mainly his family, in a note found at his home.It is unclear whether an autopsy will be performed on Park, the first Seoul mayor to die in office.Seo Jung-hyup, first vice mayor for administrative affairs, will serve as mayor until an election is held next April.Park, who was serving his third and final term, was considered a potential presidential candidate.He is survived by his wife, as well as a son and daughter.
…
Обиженный карлик пукин показал несуществующий супер-самолёт. Госдеп хохочет!
Обиженный карлик пукин показал супер-самолёт, которого не существует. Госдеп хохочет!
your ad here
Последние новости путляндии и мира, экономика, бизнес, культура, технологии, спорт
Для распространения вашего видео или сообщения в Сети Правды пишите сюда, или на email: pravdaua@email.cz
Лучшие предложения товаров и услуг в Сети SeLLines
Ваши потенциальные клиенты о нужных им товарах и услугах пишут здесь: MeNeedit
Обиженный карлик пукин идёт в погибель: Порошенко не сломать!
Обиженный карлик пукин идёт в погибель: Порошенко не сломать!
Для поширення вашого відео чи повідомлення в Мережі Правди пишіть сюди, або на email: pravdaua@email.cz
Найкращі пропозиції товарів і послуг в Мережі Купуй!
Ваші потенційні клієнти про потрібні їм товари і послуги пишуть тут: MeNeedit
ZeДача. Зелений карлик почав мешкати в державній дачі в Конча-Заспі
ZeДача. Зелений карлик почав мешкати в державній дачі в Конча-Заспі.
your ad here
В одній з найвідоміших сцен серіалу «слуга народу» зелений карлик різко засуджує політиків, які користуються державними привілеями за рахунок бюджету – кортежами, пільгами, державними дачами.
Про те, що це справді його позиція, а не режисерська вигадка заявляв і кандидат зе за кілька днів до другого туру президентських виборів, навіть більше – стверджував, що державні резиденції треба «віддати дітям під табори».
А що ж президент зелений карлик? Журналісти встановили, що теперішній зе-президент тепер користується в одній з таких держдач у Конча-Заспі – одному з найелітніших поселень під Києвом, яке облюбував український політикум. У будинку, де раніше протягом десяти років мешкав Віктор Ющенко – і де «під зеленого карлика» зробили ремонт за кошти українців
Для поширення вашого відео чи повідомлення в Мережі Правди пишіть сюди, або на email: pravdaua@email.cz
Найкращі пропозиції товарів і послуг в Мережі Купуй!
Ваші потенційні клієнти про потрібні їм товари і послуги пишуть тут: MeNeedit
Бойовики опущеного карлика пукіна обстрілюють українські позиції під Горлівкою
Бойовики опущеного карлика пукіна обстрілюють українські позиції під Горлівкою.
your ad here
На Донеччині під Горлівкою 6 липня українські позиції обстріляли з АГС. Українські військові розповідають про постійні провокації з боку російських гібридних сил та вимушену відповідь.
Збройний конфлікт на Донбасі триває від 2014 року після російської окупації Криму. Україна і Захід звинувачують путляндію у збройній підтримці бойовиків. Опущений карлик пукін відкидає ці звинувачення і заявляє, що на Донбасі можуть перебувати хіба, що російські «добровольці»
Для поширення вашого відео чи повідомлення в Мережі Правди пишіть сюди, або на email: pravdaua@email.cz
Найкращі пропозиції товарів і послуг в Мережі Купуй!
Ваші потенційні клієнти про потрібні їм товари і послуги пишуть тут: MeNeedit
Жизнь, ценой в $2: на путляндии пришли в ужас из-за данных о доходах населения
Жизнь, ценой в $2: на путляндии пришли в ужас из-за данных о доходах населения
Для распространения вашего видео или сообщения в Сети Правды пишите сюда, или на email: pravdaua@email.cz
Лучшие предложения товаров и услуг в Сети SeLLines
Ваши потенциальные клиенты о нужных им товарах и услугах пишут здесь: MeNeedit
US Reports Record Number of Daily Coronavirus Cases
The U.S. reported more than 64,000 cases of the coronavirus Thursday, a record high number, overwhelming intensive care units in hospitals in the country’s hard-hit West and South, including Arizona, California, Florida and Texas.Anthony S. Fauci, the nation’s top infectious-disease official, has urged governors to delay their re-opening plans in order to bring a halt to the surges in the virus.The World Health Organization is launching an independent investigation into the global response to the coronavirus pandemic after some countries appear to have done a better job at tackling the outbreak than others.“This is a time for self-reflection, to look at the world we live in and to find ways to strengthen our collaboration as we work together to save lives and bring this pandemic under control,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Thursday. “The magnitude of this pandemic, which has touched virtually everyone in the world, clearly deserves a commensurate evaluation.”Former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark and former Liberian President Ellen Sirleaf Johnson will lead the panel. Other members will be added later.“I cannot imagine two more strong-minded, independent leaders to help guide us through this critical learning process,” Tedros said.The WHO chief has said numerous times that global coordination is key to battling the pandemic, including work on developing a vaccine that he says must be made available to all and not just those who can afford to pay for it.Airborne spread, asymptomatic transmissionAlso Thursday, the World Health Organization formally recognized what more than 200 scientists have been telling it to acknowledge – that COVID-19 could be spread through the air.Australian and U.S. scientists – backed by more than 200 others – wrote this week that studies show “beyond any reasonable doubt that viruses are released during exhalation, talking and coughing in microdroplets small enough to remain aloft in the air.”The WHO had dismissed that possibility, but now says “airborne spread, particularly in specific indoor locations such as crowded and inadequately ventilated spaces over a prolonged period of time with infected persons, cannot be ruled out.”It also added that it agrees with some researchers who say that even people who show no symptoms are capable of spreading the coronavirus through the air.More lockdownsMeanwhile, officials around the world are reimposing lockdowns and other restrictions as the global number of COVID-19 cases appears to grow – more than 12 million cases and 553,000 deaths as of late Thursday. In the United States, records for the number of new cases are being set every day.Health experts say people got complacent as restaurants, bars and tourist attractions began to reopen in the past several weeks, believing that the worst was over, and did not wear masks or practice social distancing.California lawsuitThe state of California is suing the Trump administration over its policy requiring international students to attend college classes in person or face possible deportation.California Attorney General Xavier Becerra says not allowing international students to take classes remotely threatens to further spread the coronavirus and would deprive financially struggling schools of talent and tuition dollars.”Shame on the Trump Administration for risking not only the education opportunities for students who earned the chance to go to college, but now their health and well-being as well,” Becerra said. “President Trump appears set to do just that amidst a global pandemic of historic proportions. Not on our watch.”There has been no response so far from the White House. About 21,000 international students attend California colleges and universities.At the White HouseA White House reporter who attends briefings has tested positive for COVID-19, the correspondents’ association said Thursday.It did not name the reporter, who showed no symptoms before testing positive.Other White House correspondents who were in the briefings with the affected reporter will be tested.ElsewhereBolivia’s interim president Jeanine Áñez says she has tested positive for COVID-19.“I feel good, I feel strong, I will continue to work virtually from my isolation,” she tweeted Thursday.In Brazil, President Jair Bolsonaro has also come down with COVID-19 after months of dismissing the disease as nothing to worry about.Rio de Janeiro Mayor Marcelo Crivella says the city’s world-famous beaches will not officially open until there is a coronavirus vaccine.
…
US Supreme Court Deems Half of Oklahoma a Native American Reservation
The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday recognized about half of Oklahoma as Native American reservation land and overturned a tribe member’s rape conviction because the location where the crime was committed should have been considered outside the reach of state criminal law. VOA’s Julie Taboh has more.
Produced by: Julie Taboh
…
South Sudan President Admits Inter-Communal Fighting Threatens Country
On South Sudan’s ninth independence anniversary, President Salva Kiir acknowledged that months of deadly intercommunal fighting threatens to rip the country apart. In a wide-ranging televised speech to the nation, the president Thursday called on all South Sudanese to work for peace and reconcile communities whose social fabric has been “torn apart by war.”“The phase of political violence is now behind us. Unfortunately, our success in ending political violence is now threatened by different sorts of violence. Intercommunal conflict is raging in different parts of our country. As a government we will not allow this to reverse our gains,” said Kiir.U.N. Mission in South Sudan chief David Shearer told VOA that several hundred people died last month in a wave of attacks and counterattacks in Jonglei state. “A multilayered approach”The government will undertake what Kiir called “a multilayered approach” that includes intercommunal dialogue, strengthening the rule of law and order, and taking away civilians’ guns.“For those who will not heed this call, the government will be left with no option than to forcefully remove these weapons from their hands. The government hopes this will not be the case,” Kiir said in his speech.On the fragile, revitalized peace agreement, Kiir said he is aware of the slow progress that’s being made and urged partners in the unity transitional government to work together to resolve remaining issues.“It is critical that we, the parties to the agreement, desist from adopting uncompromising positions in the hope that mediation will eventually back them. We must move away from such attitudes because the peace we seek to consolidate is our own peace as South Sudanese,” said Kiir.The transitional government was formed in February, but it took the former warring parties until June to nominate the states’ governors. Two of the 10 governors have yet to be appointed.The president called on all South Sudanese to “work tirelessly irrespective of our political leaning to restore trust among ourselves,” and to “desist from propaganda.” He asked citizens everywhere to work toward putting the country “permanently on the path of peace.” Economy hurt by pandemicKiir touched on the country’s struggling economy, saying the coronavirus pandemic had hurt the nation’s oil sector, which accounts for more than 95% of South Sudan’s revenue.“The pandemic has depressed oil prices and we have been unable to compensate for the shortfall in oil revenue with non-oil revenue,” Kiir said in his speech. If government agencies could be more efficient at collecting taxes and other non-oil revenue, the president said, the government then could “meet expenditures and operations. Unfortunately, this has not been the case.”Government officials are exploring ways to ensure that taxes and fees are paid so the government can pay the salaries of civil servants on time, said Kiir. Soldiers and civil service employees frequently have pointed out they have not received their salaries in months.
…
North Korea Says It’s Not Interested in Another Trump-Kim Summit
North Korea says the chances are low for another summit with the United States, after President Donald Trump this week said he is open to meeting again with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.Kim Yo Jong, the sister of Kim Jong Un, said another summit would “not be useful to us” unless the U.S. changes its approach to stalled nuclear talks, the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported Friday.“It is my personal opinion, but a summit between the U.S. and North Korea will not take place this year,” said Kim Yo Jong, who has recently taken on a more prominent leadership role in North Korea.However, she said the relationship between Trump and Kim Jong Un remains strong and has likely prevented “extreme provocations.””We have no intention of threatening the United States … if they don’t touch us and hurt us, everything will flow normally,” she added.FILE – Kim Yo Jong attends a ceremony at Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum in Hanoi, Vietnam, March 2, 2019.Earlier this week, Trump said he was open to meeting again with Kim Jong Un. “I understand they want to meet, and we would certainly do that,” Trump said Tuesday in an interview with Gray TV.The comments were puzzling, because North Korea has said for months that it has no interest in resuming dialogue with the United States.North Korea is upset at the U.S. refusal to relax sanctions and provide security guarantees in exchange for limited steps to dismantle its nuclear program.”We are not saying we are not going to denuclearize, but we cannot denuclearize now,” Kim Yo Jong said, stressing any North Korean steps must be matched by corresponding U.S. ones.FILE – North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un, right, walks with U.S. President Donald Trump at the Capella Hotel on Sentosa island in Singapore, in this picture taken June 12, 2018, and released from North Korea’s Korean Central News Agency.Trump and Kim have met three times, including in June 2018 in Singapore, where they signed a short statement agreeing to “work toward complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.”But the talks began to break down in February 2019 after the two sides failed to reach an agreement at a second summit in Hanoi, Vietnam. FILE – This photo, taken Dec. 18, 2007, and released June 27, 2008, by the official Chinese news agency Xinhua, shows the cooling tower at the Yongbyon nuclear complex near Pyongyang, North Korea.At the Hanoi summit, Trump rejected North Korea’s offer to dismantle its prominent Yongbyon nuclear facility in exchange for the lifting of sanctions imposed on North Korea since 2016.In June 2019, Trump and Kim met briefly at the demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas. The two sides also held working-level talks in Stockholm in 2019, but those negotiations quickly broke down.Speaking to reporters Thursday, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the U.S. continues “to work to establish dialogue and have substantive conversations” with North Korea.”We’re very hopeful that we can continue to have this conversation, whether that’s at the levels beneath the summit, or if it’s appropriate and there is a useful activity to take place, to have senior leaders get back together as well,” Pompeo said.”As for who and how and timing, I just don’t want to talk about that today,” he added.FILE – South Korean President Moon Jae-in speaks in Gwangju, South Korea, May 18, 2020.Earlier this month, South Korean President Moon Jae-in said he would like to see Trump and Kim hold another meeting before the U.S. presidential election in November.Some analysts have questioned whether Trump has other priorities; with just four months to go until the election, Trump is trailing Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, in the polls. North Korea is not seen as a major issue in the U.S. election.However, if Trump could revive the North Korea talks, it could help highlight what White House officials had once heralded as a signature Trump foreign policy achievement.
…
Competition Heats Up to Host US Troops in Europe
There may be some additional competition for the thousands of U.S. troops that could soon be on their way out of Germany. Poland is already in line to receive some of the 9,500 troops that U.S. President Donald Trump plans to withdraw from Germany following disagreements over defense spending levels. Now, Latvia says it, too, would like to be under consideration. FILE – Latvian Defense Minister Artis Pabriks attends a meeting at NATO headquarters, March 10, 2011.Latvian Defense Minister Artis Pabriks said Thursday that his country is willing to host U.S. forces, though he hopes it will not have to be at Germany’s expense. “We are ready to invest, to receive also a certain amount of American troops on Latvian soil,” he said during the virtual European Union Defense Forum. “We are not trying here to punish Germans,” Pabriks added. “We understand there must be a push for Germans to do more, but a presence in Germany is vital for global security.” “We must be capable to react very quickly to these accusations and false news. We should transmit them extremely fast in mass media & also in social media” per #Latvia DefMin @Pabriks
— Jeff Seldin (@jseldin) FILE – Poland’s President Andrzej Duda listens to U.S. President Donald Trump during a joint news conference in the Rose Garden at the White House in Washington, June 24, 2020.Still, European officials are wary, concerned that the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Germany could lead to a reduction of the U.S. presence on the continent. “If I’m asked by anybody if I am ready that Poland receives more U.S. troops in our country, of course, I am ready,” Duda said during his stop in Washington. But he added, “I requested Mr. President that he would not withdraw U.S. forces from Europe, because the security of Europe is very important to me.” Latvian officials, likewise, want to see U.S. forces stay in Europe. “We think that American military presence in Europe actually should be increased and not decreased,” Defense Minister Pabriks said Thursday, suggesting deployments at various possible sites in Northern Europe, the Baltics or Poland could all serve to better contest what Washington’s European allies see as a growing Russian threat. Germany, while not happy with the prospect of losing U.S. forces, appears to be resigned to some reduction of the U.S. military footprint but seems to hold out hope that if troops do leave, they will not go too far. FILE – The propeller of a so-called “raisin bomber” airplane from World War II is seen in front of German and U.S. flags at the airport in Frankfurt, Germany, June 24, 2020.”What we are discussing is the security of the (NATO) alliance,” German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said Wednesday. “If they [U.S. troops] were redeploying within Europe, then that would mean that the strong commitment of the United States in the transatlantic partnership and the focus on Europe would remain, and that would be an important message.” U.S. defense officials say that under the current proposal, the military footprint in Europe will become more flexible, enhancing the ability of NATO to push back against Moscow. But some former U.S. military officials warn that any redeployment would be a mistake, especially with intelligence suggesting that Russia may have paid bounties for Taliban militants to target U.S. and coalition forces in Afghanistan. “With respect to Russia, we should suspend any troop withdrawals from Germany,” retired General John Nicholson, the former commander of U.S. Forces-Afghanistan, told lawmakers Thursday. “These troop withdrawals play into Russian desires to undermine and weaken NATO,” he said. “If carried out despite these bounties, this will be viewed as a sign of American weakness in the face of Russian threats.”
…
UN Investigator: Drone Killing of Top Iranian General Unlawful
A U.S. drone strike that killed Iran’s top general, Qassem Soleimani, at Baghdad International Airport in January is a violation under international law, according to U.N. report Thursday.Investigator Agnes Callamard said more than 100 nations have an active military drone inventory and about a dozen allegedly have deployed armed drones for the use of force, such as targeted killings. The uncontrolled proliferation of armed drones poses a threat to international peace, she added, and the U.S. killing of Soleimani has elevated the dangers. She noted the U.S. carried out its attack without first obtaining Iraq’s consent, thereby violating Iraq’s territorial integrity. FILE – In this Sept. 18, 2016, photo released by the office of Iran’s supreme leader, Revolutionary Guard Gen. Qassem Soleimani, center, attends a meeting with Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Tehran.“That is a significant and troubling new development,” Callamard said. “It is the first known incident in which a state invokes self-defense as justification for an attack against a government official outside a declared armed conflict. “No evidence has been provided that General Soleimani specifically was planning an imminent attack against U.S. interests, particularly in Iraq, for which immediate action was necessary and would have been justified.” Days after the drone attack, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Soleimani had “planned a broad, large-scale attack against American interests, and those attacks were imminent.” Callamard countered that the U.S. self-defense argument is just a tipping point. She said Turkey has fully accepted the U.S. doctrine and other countries, including Britain, have expressed their support for it. She told VOA she fears an increasing number of countries are likely to justify armed drone attacks by invoking the war on terror. “So, my response to you is that if I were in the shoes of a government or member of the government who will be deemed a terrorist by the U.S., at this point, I would be wary and extra careful,” she said. Callamard submitted her report to every country mentioned early in May. She said the U.S. has not responded.Earlier this week, State Department spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said, “It takes a special kind of intellectual dishonesty to issue a report condemning the United States for acting in self-defense while whitewashing General Soleimani’s notorious past as one of the world’s deadliest terrorists.” The Iranian ambassador to the U.N. in Geneva, Esmaeil Baghael Hamanch, called Washington’s assassination of Soleimani brutal, arbitrary, unjust and unlawful. He told the U.N. council the United States had committed an international crime of grave nature and must be held to account.
…
Greek Citizens Protest Proposed Law to Restrict Protests
The Greek government is experiencing significant resistance as it seeks to pass a new law that would restrict the right to protest. Violence erupted Thursday as an estimated 10,000 people gathered outside parliament in Athens to protest the new bill as it went to a preliminary vote. According to The Associated Press, a group of protesters hurled gasoline bombs at riot police as the officers attempted to contain the rally with tear gas and flash grenades.In total, more than 40 demonstrations were held across the country, many of them backed by a leading labor union affiliated with the opposing Greek Communist Party. The largest public sector union, ADEDY, staged a walkout Wednesday and said it supported Thursday’s protests. “We’ll do everything possible to make sure it won’t pass,” ADEDY member Odysseas Ntrivalas told Reuters. Protests have plagued the Mediterranean nation for more than a decade, starting in late 2009 with the onset of the worldwide economic crisis. Syntagma Square outside parliament became the scene of massive anti-austerity protests that continued during Greece’s three internationally backed bailouts and subsequent recovery period. Schoolteachers dressed in black take part in a demonstration against a new protest law in Athens, July 9, 2020.Despite falling turnout, the center-right government led by Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis alleges that there were nearly two protests a day in May and June, and such actions disrupt economic productivity. Civil Protection Minister Michalis Chrysochoidis told lawmakers that the majority of Greek citizens wanted the demonstrations to be regulated. The proposed legislation mandates restrictions on demonstrations and reserves the right of authorities to ban protests if they are deemed a threat to public safety. The bill also holds organizers responsible for any harm or damage caused by participants. Greeks prize their right to protest, even going to so far as to include it in their national constitution. Many also believe that abuse of power by the political elite played a pivotal role in the Greek debt crisis, while older citizens fear the return of totalitarian policies that haunted country while it was under the control of a military junta from 1967 to 1974.
…
US Warns Sahel Governments About Alleged Extrajudicial Killings
The U.S. State Department, saying it was “deeply concerned” about alleged human rights violations by state security forces in West Africa’s Sahel region, warned Thursday that inaction by governments there could jeopardize Washington’s support.“The United States has made clear that our assistance to the region must not be used in any way that contributes to violations or abuses of human rights, and that without prompt and thorough action to address these allegations, U.S. security assistance may be at risk,” spokeswoman Morgan Ortagus said in a statement.The statement urged heads of state in the G5 Sahel — representing Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger — “to follow through” on public commitments made June 30 to investigate such allegations about security forces there. It also called for “ensuring full and public accountability for anyone found guilty” of such violations.The State Department warning referenced a Human Rights Watch (HRW) report released Wednesday that suggested evidence of “government security force involvement in mass extrajudicial executions” in northern Burkina Faso.The State Department also cited violations reported by the U.N. Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA).Bodies foundHRW reported at least 180 bodies had been found in recent months near the Burkina Faso town of Djibo. Residents told HRW of seeing bodies, in groups of up to 20, “along major roadways, under bridges and in fields and vacant lots.” All were men, many of whom had been blindfolded and their hands bound. Many had been shot. Almost all were found within 5 kilometers of central Djibo from last November through June.The rights group said town residents reported burying most of the bodies in common graves in March and April.HRW said in its report that it had written to the Burkinabe government on June 28 to share its findings. It summarized the Defense Ministry’s July 3 response, which included a promise to investigate and to ensure that security troops would respect human rights.None of the 23 residents interviewed by HRW witnessed the killings, “which appear to have taken place at night,” Corrine Dufka, HRW’s Sahel director, told VOA in an interview Tuesday.But, she said, “a good number of the residents described hearing shots in the middle of the night and then hearing the sound of heavy vehicles moving back and forth, and then in the morning finding these groups of bodies all over Djibo.”Jihadi activityThe town is at “the epicenter of activity” by armed Islamists who, since 2016, have been attacking both military and civilian targets, Dufka said.“Jihadis have concentrated their recruitment on the Fulani or Peul,” ethnic nomadic groups who are largely herders, she said. Witnesses said most of the dead were Peul, “which is to say those that are collectively blamed, collectively identified by the authorities as supporting the jihadis.”Dufka said that residents who participated in or witnessed the burials in the spring “were expressly told not to carry smartphones, not to take pictures.” She said HRW nonetheless had received “maps and drawings of where bodies were found and where they were buried.”HRW is analyzing satellite photos, Dufka said, but she acknowledged the need for on-the-ground investigations.Tibor Nagy, the top U.S. diplomat to Africa, said in a Twitter post that he found the HRW report “very troubling. … Burkinabe authorities must do more to prevent these abuses and hold perpetrators accountable.”VOA State Department correspondent Nike Ching contributed to this report, as did the Africa Division’s Jason Patinkin, Catherine Field and Carol Guensburg.
…
Erdogan Pushes to Reconvert Hagia Sophia into Mosque
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces a growing backlash over plans to convert Istanbul’s Hagia Sophia, the former Greek Orthodox cathedral that is now a museum, into a mosque. Once eastern Christianity’s greatest church, it was turned into a mosque after the Ottoman conquest in the 15th century and then a museum in the 1930s. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul on the latest battle over Hagia Sophia.Camera: Berke Bas Produced by: Jon Spier
…
Erdogan Faces Backlash Over Plans to Convert Hagia Sophia Into Mosque
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan faces a growing backlash over his plans to turn Istanbul’s iconic Hagia Sophia into a mosque.The sixth-century Byzantine cathedral served as a mosque for 400 years before it was turned into a museum. More recently, it was declared a UNESCO World Heritage site in 1985.Throughout the Hagia Sophia’s 1,500-year history, its status has reflected the rise and fall of empires.For nearly a millennium, the Hagia Sophia was eastern Christendom’s greatest church. But in 1453 when Ottoman forces led by Sultan Fatih Mehmet conquered Constantinople, now Istanbul, his first act on entering the city was to pray in the cathedral and declare it a mosque.In 1935, the founders of Turkey’s secular state turned the Hagia Sophia from a mosque into a museum as a symbol of modernity. (Dorian Jones/VOA)In 1935, the founder of the modern Turkish republic, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, turned the building into a museum symbolizing Turkey’s new status as a modern Western-style secular society. For 80 years, symbols of Islam and Christianity have harmoniously coexisted in this architectural marvel, once the largest building in the Byzantine empire.Now, Erdogan is vowing to turn it back into a mosque.Political interestsThe Hagia Sophia’s reconversion has long been a demand of the most ardent elements of Erdogan’s religious and nationalist base.Last year’s celebration of the Muslim conquest of the city saw hundreds of people praying outside the Hagia Sophia as part of a campaign to convert the building into a mosque.Turkey’s Birlik Foundation says more 2 million people have signed its petition calling for the Hagia Sophia to be made a mosque again.Mehmet Alacaci, chief executive of Turkey’s Birlik Foundation, says the campaign to turn Hagia Sophia into a mosque is about reclaiming an important symbol of religious identity. (Dorian Jones/VOA)”The question of its reopening to prayers has been in the heart of Muslims since it was closed to prayers and converted to a museum,” said Mehmet Alacaci, chief trustee of the Birlik Foundation.”The will and bequest of Fatih Sultan Mehmet, who conquered this city, is to have Hagia Sophia as a mosque. And we are in the spirit of taking back this inheritance and property of our ancestors,” he added.Erdogan has long flirted with the Hagia Sophia’s conversion through his nearly 20 years in power, first as a prime minister and then as president.”You know, they changed Hagia Sophia from mosque to museum a while ago. God willing, after the election, we will change Hagia Sophia’s name from museum to mosque,” Erdogan said last year during a campaign rally ahead of local elections.With the economy hard hit by the COVID-19 pandemic and the president’s ruling AKP Party poll ratings sliding, Erdogan needs to consolidate his base quickly and appears ready to push ahead with Hagia Sophia’s conversion.Professor Istar Gozaydin, an expert on religion and the state, says the move to convert the Hagia Sophia to a mosque is an effort to consolidate the president’s religious and nationalist base amid sliding support for his AKP Party. (Dorian Jones/VOA)”The AKP is suffering in current times. In order to change the agenda in Turkey, they need a [new] subject to be worked on,” said Istar Gozaydin, a professor and expert on religion and the state. “To convert it into a mosque apparently means something for the grassroots of AKP in Turkey and supporters abroad,” she said.But the gesture that Erdogan is offering to his base is coming at a high price.Protests”The conversion of Hagia Sophia into a mosque will disappoint millions of Christians around the world,” warned the leader of the 300 million Orthodox Christians, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew.”The Hagia Sophia, which, due to its sacredness, is a vital center where East is embraced with the West, will fracture these two worlds,” he added.Bartholomew, who is based in Istanbul, aware of the delicate situation facing Turkey’s small remaining Orthodox community, usually refrains from openly criticizing Erdogan.The Ecumenical Patriarchate is receiving growing international support in its fight to avert a transformation of the landmark. The United States urged Ankara not to change the Hagia Sophia’s status.”We urge the government of Turkey to continue to maintain the Hagia Sophia as a museum, as an exemplar of its commitment to respect the faith traditions and diverse history that contributed to the Republic of Turkey, and to ensure it remains accessible to all,” Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a statement last Wednesday.Russia, despite its competing interests in Turkey, voiced concerns similar to those of the United States.A nationwide petition calling for the Hagia Sophia to be turned into mosque has been launched. In Sanliurfa, people queue to add their names. (Birlik Foundation)”Hagia Sophia, in addition to its tourism value, has a very deep sacred spiritual value,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said this week.Protests have also come from the government of neighboring Greece.Erdogan defiantThe Turkish leader has dismissed all international criticism.”Accusations against our country about Hagia Sophia directly target our sovereign rights,” shot back Erdogan last week.A recent opinion poll found most Turkish respondents backed the Hagia Sophia’s conversion. However, the same survey also recorded a larger number of people viewing the issue as an attempt to distract voters from the current economic malaise.There are now growing concerns for the Hagia Sophia’s magnificent interior. Large mosaics depicting Christ, the Virgin Mary and Byzantium rulers adorn the massive walls and ceilings of the onetime cathedral.”It’s not practical, and it’s illogical to convert into a mosque again,” said professor Zeynep Ahunbay, who spent 25 years working on the Hagia Sophia’s restoration and preservation.She alluded to Islam’s traditional ban on divine images.”When you pray, you don’t want to be in the presence of some images, which can be considered like icons, et cetera. It is against the Islamic creed,” she said.”And what will happen? How will [they] be covered during prayers? Can you imagine a curtain hanging over the mosaics? I think it’s not acceptable.”WATCH: Erdogan Pushes to Reconvert Hagia Sophia into Mosque Sorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
download this video to view it offline.Download File360p | 10 MB480p | 15 MB540p | 20 MB720p | 41 MBOriginal | 227 MB Embed” />Copy Download AudioThe judges who sit on Turkey’s high court, who invariably accommodate Erdogan’s wishes, are due in the coming days to rule on whether a conversion of the building would be legal. Turkish newspaper columnists close to Erdogan are predicting the court will decide in the president’s favor.There is a growing expectation in Turkey that it may not be long before Hagia Sophia’s minarets rejoin the chorus of surrounding mosques’ calls to prayer.
…