President Joe Biden met Wednesday with Cabinet and emergency officials and, remotely, with Western governors to discuss the heat wave, wildfires and drought in the West. Each poses a threat in different communities, and as VOA’s Mike O’Sullivan reports, an Idaho rancher is trying to keep his farm alive despite a lack of water.
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Month: June 2021
Hong Kong Pro-Democracy Activist Arrested Again
A Hong Kong pro-democracy activist and human rights lawyer was arrested for the second time in less than a month Wednesday, marking the city’s first year under the national security law. Chow Hang Tung, a vice chair for the nonprofit Hong Kong Alliance, was arrested for inciting illegal assembly, which was scheduled to take place July 1. She was also arrested June 4 for the same charge, according to Richard Tsoi, the group’s secretary-general. Anniversaries in Hong Kong are common this time of year. June 4 marks Beijing’s crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in Tiananmen Square in 1989, while July 1 marks the anniversary of Hong Kong’s handover from Britain to China, 24 years ago. July 1 also marks the 100th anniversary of the Chinese Communist Party. Chow was initially arrested in early June for allegedly inciting unauthorized assembly to commemorate the Tiananmen Square crackdown. She was released on bail two days later, but according to news reports, police have now revoked her bail. A FILE – Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai, center, who founded local newspaper Apple Daily, is arrested under the new national security law by police officers at his home, Aug. 10, 2020.The law prohibits secession, subversion and foreign collusion. Since its enactment, it has been the catalyst for a political crackdown in the city. Dozens of activists have been charged under the law, including Jimmy Lai, the billionaire tycoon and founder of pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily. The newspaper was forced to close last week after authorities arrested several executives and froze the company’s financial assets. Next Digital, Apple Daily’s parent company, is set to close July 1. In an interview Wednesday with VOA, Chow, who anticipates more arrests and crackdowns, spoke candidly about her constant push for change in Hong Kong. “I believe that we should not dissolve or disarm ourselves just because of the political pressure,” she said.
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Pew: US Seen More Favorably Than China Among Advanced Economies
A recent Pew Research survey among 17 advanced economies shows the global opinion of the United States has improved, while the view of China continues to be mostly negative. Both countries experienced historically low ratings in a similar poll last year. South Korea has the highest positive view of the U.S., with 77% having a positive view. In Italy, Japan, France and the United Kingdom, about two-thirds of those polled viewed the U.S. positively. “These broadly positive views reflect a significant shift since last summer, when ratings of the U.S. were at or near historic lows in most countries,” Pew said in a press release. With China, the numbers are almost the reverse, with Japan having an 88% negative view of China, Sweden having an 80% negative view, Australia having a 78% negative view and South Korea having a 77% negative view. NEW: #China failing to win over publics in many advanced economiesA median of 69% in 17 countries have unfavorable views of #Beijing, per @pewresearchpic.twitter.com/kqAd9m4Gax— Jeff Seldin (@jseldin) June 30, 2021In each of the 17 countries, “in many cases a large majority” say #China fails to respect personal freedoms”The sense that China does not respect the personal freedoms of its people is also at or near historic highs in most publics surveyed” per @pewresearchpic.twitter.com/pczMKJl6Nm— Jeff Seldin (@jseldin) June 30, 2021Pew said China’s numbers are nearly unchanged from last year’s historic lows. Singapore was the only country surveyed where a majority, 64%, had a favorable view of China. The Pew survey also found that half or more in each country said strong economic ties with the U.S. were more important than with China. Singapore and New Zealand were exceptions. The surveys were conducted between February 1, 2021, to May 26, 2021, and included 18,850 respondents.
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Kenya’s Successful Life-Business Partners Navigate Roles, Boundaries
The COVID pandemic has strained families forced to work and study at home together with an added stress for couples who are also business partners. In Kenya, such life-work partnerships experience a struggle not only to earn a living but also to keep their families together. Brenda Mulinya reports from Nairobi.
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Britain Faces Travel Bans Amid Soaring Delta Variant Infections
Several countries have imposed restrictions on travelers from Britain amid rising cases of the delta variant of the coronavirus. Scientists say the delta mutation is more infectious and now makes up around 95 percent of new cases in Britain. Henry Ridgwell reports from London.
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Zimbabwe Imposes Curfew to Contain Rising COVID-19 Cases
Zimbabwe’s new COVID-19 lockdown includes a curfew, a ban on intercity travel, and a vaccination blitz aimed at border towns and vendors. But vendors and rights activists say the government should make more vaccine available instead of tightening regulations.President Emmerson Mnangagwa announced the new measures, including a 6:30 p.m.-to-6 a.m. curfew, on national television Tuesday. He said the restrictions were the result of a recent spike in COVID-19 cases.“Commerce and industry are to open from 0800 hours to 1530 hours. Travelers from countries with alpha and delta COVID-19 variants will be quarantined and tested on the 1st, 3rd, 5th and 10th day, at their own expense. Those deported back to Zimbabwe will be subject to self-quarantine or will be quarantined in identified places. Travelers with fake COVID-19 documents will attract custodial sentences,” said the president.The new measures to contain COVID-19 include what the government is calling a “vaccination blitz” targeting borders and vendors.The head of the Zimbabwe Vendors Initiative for Social and Economic Transformation, Samuel Wadzai, has welcomed the new regulations allowing vendors to operate for limited hours.But Wadzai said the vaccination program should be voluntary, not compulsory.“What we can urge the government is for the vaccine to be accessed without queueing for long hours. Let’s decentralize. This is the only way we can do away with these lockdowns. In their nature lockdowns are restrictive and they don’t give us space to operate as informal traders. So, we urge the government to quickly ensure that the vaccines are available,” he said. About 771,000 Zimbabweans out of a population of 14 million have received their first shots, and 545,000 have received their second inoculations since the program started in February. The country had a monthlong shortage of vaccine until it received 500,000 Sinopharm doses from China on Saturday.People queue for COVID-19 vaccine shots at Zimbabwe’s largest health institution, Parirenyatwa Hospital, in Harare, June 08, 2021. (Columbus Mavhunga/VOA)Zimbabwe has about 48,533 confirmed coronavirus infections and 1,761 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University in the United States, which tracks the global outbreak.Dewa Mavhinga, head of Human Rights Watch in southern Africa, told VOA the infection figures do not justify a dusk-to-dawn curfew.“It seems excessive. The government is focusing more on restrictions than on other efforts that are needed to contain the coronavirus — efforts such as ramping up vaccinations, ensuring that all essential workers are vaccinated and ensuring that the adult population in Zimbabwe is vaccinated. There is no movement in that regard,” said Mavhinga.Zimbabwe’s seven-day average infection rate has increased five times in the last two weeks, according to official figures released this week.The government says it is importing more vaccine in July and in August to achieve herd immunity for about 10 million people by the end of the year.
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Biden Pledges More Federal Help for Western States to Battle Wildfires
Western U.S. states vulnerable to wildfires and suffering from drought amid extreme heat are to receive more help from the federal government, President Joe Biden announced Wednesday during a virtual meeting with governors.”Climate change is driving the dangerous confluence of extreme heat and prolonged drought. We’re seeing wildfires of greater intensity that move with more speed,” Biden said in the White House South Auditorium, with other top officials of his administration, including Vice President Kamala Harris and five members of the Cabinet, in attendance.Biden said federal firefighters would get a boost in their minimum wage and be kept on the job as long as needed beyond the traditional wildfire season.’Year-round mission’Because of climate change, battling wildfires is “no longer a seasonal job. This is a year-round mission,” the president said.Biden and other administration officials spoke from the White House, with the governors joining by video.Those attending included Democratic Governors Gavin Newsom of California, Jared Polis of Colorado, Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico, Steve Sisolak of Nevada, Kate Brown of Oregon and Jay Inslee of Washington, along with Republican Governors Spencer Cox of Utah and Mark Gordon of Wyoming.Not among the group were three other Republican governors from the region: Doug Ducey of Arizona, Brad Little of Idaho and Greg Gianforte of Montana.Gianforte was “disappointed to learn in news stories” that the president “didn’t offer a seat at the table to Montana and other states facing a severe wildfire season,” he said in an earlier tweet.FILE – This photo provided by her office shows Oregon Gov. Kate Brown during a visit to the front line of the Beachie Creek Fire, in Beach Creek, Ore., Sept. 16, 2020.Only part of Wednesday’s meeting was open to the media, including opening remarks from Biden and Harris, as well as two of the governors.”Just this weekend, my state of Oregon experienced three consecutive days of record-breaking high temperatures across the Willamette Valley, reaching upwards of 117 degrees [47 C],” Brown told the president. “It is unprecedented. And unfortunately, it follows one of the most devastating wildfire seasons in our state’s history.”Newsom said the White House attitude toward the problem had shifted significantly since Biden took office six months ago.”I’ve been waiting almost 4½ years to hear a president say what you just said,” Newsom said.”We have an opportunity here to turn the page on the finger-pointing,” added Newsom, noting that the country was “literally debating raking policies in this country in the last few years.” That was a reference to former President Donald Trump’s repeated assertion that not raking floors of woodlands was a bigger cause of devastating wildfires than climate change.Grim outlookThe National Interagency Fire Center, which coordinates the mobilization of resources to battle wildfires in the United States, has warned that many Western states are facing a greater than usual likelihood that significant wildfires will occur in the next few months.The U.S. Drought Monitor reports that wide areas of Arizona, California, New Mexico, Nevada and Utah are experiencing extreme or exceptional drought.FILE – Firefighter Raymond Vasquez battles the Silverado Fire, in Irvine, Calif., Oct. 26, 2020.”This year of drought in the western U.S. is unusually extensive with unusually high temperatures, likely worsened by climate warming. The high temperatures worsen the drought by evaporating more precipitation before it can reach rivers and aquifers,” said Jay Lund, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at the University of California-Davis.The climate of the western United States has more variable precipitation than most of the country, and that has helped cities and farmers prepare for drier years. But in this unusually dry year, “farms in much of the state are having more difficulty and are fallowing some less profitable crops. Hydropower production is reduced,” said Lund, who is co-director of the university’s Center for Watershed Sciences.In his conversation with the governors, Biden also highlighted the need to invest in wildfire prevention and risk mitigation efforts, including the nearly $50 billion in the bipartisan infrastructure framework legislation Congress is soon to debate.The White House also announced Wednesday that two military units, each with 200 personnel, were to receive training and specialized equipment to support firefighting operations. The Defense Department will also be ready to supply National Guard and Air Force Reserve cargo plane and helicopter transport crews and equipment to support medical evacuation or water drops for fire responses.Government satellites and other sensors will be used to improve prediction and detection of wildfires, according to White House officials.
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Spain Honors Chef Andrés for Humanitarian Kitchens
Chef José Andrés and his World Central Kitchen were awarded a prestigious Spanish prize Wednesday for their international relief work promoting healthy food.The jury that decides the Princess of Asturias Awards gave Andrés, 51, and the nonprofit group he founded the Award of Concord for “offering extraordinarily fast and efficient on-the-ground response to social and nutritional emergencies.”Born in northern Spain in 1969, Andrés moved to the U.S. in 1991 and was later naturalized as an American citizen. He helped popularize Spanish cuisine, especially the tapa, in the U.S. before he also became heavily involved in humanitarian work.Andrés founded the World Central Kitchen in 2010 following a trip to Haiti to do aid work. Since then, it has been active in deploying field kitchens to respond to food crises both in the United States and abroad. The organization served over 3.6 million meals in Puerto Rico in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria in 2017. Last year, Andrés dedicated some of his own restaurants in the U.S. to help feed people in need during the coronavirus pandemic.A recipient of many honors, Andrés was awarded a National Humanities Medal by President Barack Obama in 2015.The 50,000-euro ($56,700) Princess of Asturias Award of Concord is one of eight prizes, including for the arts, social sciences and sports, handed out annually by a foundation named for Spanish Crown Princess Leonor.
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US House Voting to Investigate January 6 Attack on Capitol
The House of Representatives is poised Wednesday to create a select committee to investigate the January 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol by hundreds of supporters of former President Donald Trump as lawmakers were certifying that Democrat Joe Biden had defeated him in last November’s election. The vote, formalizing creation of the committee that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced last week, is likely to occur almost entirely along party lines, with the slim Democratic House majority voting in favor and most Republicans against. Under the House resolution creating the committee, it would include 13 members, eight of them appointed by Pelosi and five named by Kevin McCarthy, the House Republican minority leader, “in consultation” with Pelosi, meaning she could veto his selections. A Pelosi aide said she is considering naming a Republican among her eight selections. FILE – House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy at the Capitol, May 13, 2021.But it remains unclear whether McCarthy plans to appoint any Republicans. He declined to answer questions about it on Tuesday, telling reporters, “The speaker has never talked to me about it.” A key House Republican leader, Representative Steve Scalise of Louisiana, on Tuesday recommended that Republican lawmakers oppose creation of the select committee, and some of the Republicans who favored creation of a bipartisan commission say they will vote against the select committee. The vote on the select House committee comes after the House, but not the Senate, approved creation of a bipartisan commission to investigate the attack on the Capitol, when about 800 people stormed past law enforcement officials, some of them smashing windows and doors, ransacking congressional offices and scuffling with police. FILE – Supporters of President Donald Trump gather outside the US Capitol in Washington, Jan. 6, 2021.Five people were left dead from the chaos, with one protester shot dead by police. More than 500 people have been charged with an array of criminal offenses, some as minor as trespassing and others more serious, such as assaulting police or vandalizing the Capitol, which sustained $1.5 million overall in property damage. Many of the suspects were identified by friends and relatives in scenes captured on security cameras or in videos shot by the rioters themselves and posted on social media. Most of the criminal cases have yet to be adjudicated, although defense lawyers have been negotiating dozens of deals with federal prosecutors for their clients to plead guilty. Trump’s role in inciting the riot is expected to be a key consideration for the select committee, as well as security failures at the Capitol. At a rally near the White House an hour before the mayhem unfolded 16 blocks away at the Capitol, Trump urged supporters to “fight like hell” to block Biden’s certification as winner of the Electoral College vote that determines the outcome of U.S. presidential elections. McCarthy’s phone call with Trump as the riot unfolded could be explored as well. To this day, Trump has made baseless claims that vote fraud cost him a second four-year term in the White House. He never called Biden to formally concede the election outcome and did not attend Biden’s January 20 inauguration. Now Trump is mulling whether to make another run for the presidency in 2024 and retains a wide base of support among Republican voters. Trump has started to endorse some congressional candidates who are opposing lawmakers who either voted to impeach or convict him in connection with the January 6 attack. The House impeached him for his role in the insurrection that day, but the Senate acquitted him in February after Biden had already assumed the presidency. FILE – Rioters storm the Capitol, in Washington, Jan. 6, 2021.”It is imperative that we seek the truth of what happened,” she said. “To do that, we had hoped that Congress would establish an independent, bipartisan 9/11-type commission. We were successful with a strong bipartisan vote in the House, but [Senate minority leader] Mitch McConnell asked [Republican] senators to ‘do him a personal favor’ and vote against the commission. Despite the support of seven Republican senators, there is no prospect for a commission at this time.” She said the select committee “will investigate and report upon the facts and causes of the attack. It will report on conclusions and recommendations for preventing any future assault. And it will find the truth.”
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Chinese Students in Australia Call Out Intimidation from Officials at Home
Human Rights Watch says Chinese students enrolled in Australian universities have been so intimidated by authorities back home they are self-censoring their actions and behaviors.The organization issued a report Wednesday highlighting incidents of harassment directed at Chinese students, based on interviews with 24 students from mainland China and Hong Kong, who expressed pro-democracy views. They said their pro-Beijing classmates threatened to expose their addresses and other personal information online, a process known as doxxing, or report their activities to the Chinese Embassy.The report also mentioned three cases where police in China warned family members about a student’s activities in Australia. It also revealed the students were threatened by their pro-Beijing classmates.Sophie McNeill, the author of the report, said the students curbed their activities out of fear for the well-being of their families back in China. McNeill says the students did not report the incidents to their universities because they believed officials cared more about maintaining their relationships with Beijing.McNeill also says more than half of 22 academics interviewed for the report say they have become more cautious about what they discuss about China during their lectures.Human Rights Watch is calling on the Australian government to issue an annual report on incidents of harassment and censorship faced by international students, and for universities to take action against any students who engage in such intimidation.The Chinese Embassy denounced the report as “rubbish” in a statement issued Wednesday. It said Human Rights Watch “has decayed into a political tool for the West to attack and smear developing countries,” and “is always biased on China.”Australian Education Minister Alan Tudge says the Human Rights Watch report raised “deeply concerning issues,” and that he was seeking advice from parliament’s powerful intelligence and security committee, which was already investigating national security risks in the higher education sector.Information from the Associated Press and Reuters was used in this report.
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Older Women Are the Fresh Faces of South Korean Influencers
The freshest faces among South Korean influencers are no longer the usual, 20-something celebrities. Instead, entertainment and social media are focusing on a new generation: the elder generation.
Older women were once invisible in South Korean entertainment as the industry stuck to rigidly conservative traditional female roles and cast them only as devoted mothers.
But older women are front and center in recent advertising and entertainment series.
A pioneer in the trend is Oscar winner Youn Yuh-jung, the 74-year-old “Minari” actor who promotes Oriental Brewery beer and the Zig Zag shopping app in two recent ad campaigns.
The beer video highlights the novelty of its spokesperson, who says: “For someone like me to be on a beer ad, the world has gotten so much better.” With a Cass beer in her hand, Youn says she makes friends by being her authentic self and alludes to the beer helping people to dissipate their social awkwardness.
South Korean producer Kim Sehee said Youn’s Oscar win earlier this year inspired his entertainment series, “Wassup K-Grandma.” He said South Korean young people have a new interest in their elders, birthing a new word “harmaenial” — a portmanteau of the South Korean word “harmoni,” or grandmother, and the English word “millennial.”
The series broadcast in May was one of the first Korean shows to feature grandmothers as main characters, according to Kim. It brought international guests to live as temporary sons-in-law with Korean grandmothers. The color of the series came from the grandmothers’ attempts to communicate with their foreign in-laws and share homemade meals and decades-old ginseng alcohol.
Park Makrye, a popular South Korean YouTuber, said the country’s attitude towards gender and age has been rapidly changing.
“Back in the days, people thought women were supposed to be only housewives cooking at home but that’s once upon a time. People must adapt to the current era,” she said.
Park, 74, is one of the leading lights in the South Korean frenzy. Her YouTube channel “Korea Grandma” has over 1.32 million subscribers. In her videos, Park throws expletives while reviewing a Korean drama and screams her lungs out while paragliding for the first time.
Park’s success has paved the way for others. Jang Myung-sook gives out fashion and lifestyles tips on her channel ” Milanonna,” a nonagenarian known as Grandma “Gganzi” raps and shares personal stories about living through the Japanese colonization, and a 76-year-old YouTuber flaunts her “single life” on ” G-gourmet. ”
“I would like to tell grandmothers to try everything they want to do and not be concerned with their age,” Park told The Associated Press.
“For young people…You’ll be OK as long as you are healthy,” she said. “Please fight on and best of luck.”
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Biden Administration Names First African American Forest Service Head
U.S. President Joe Biden’s administration announced this week career forester Randy Moore will lead the country’s forest service, the first African American to hold the position in its 116-year history.U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced the appointment. The department includes the forest service. Vilsack said Moore will take over for current Forest Service Chief Vicki Christiansen, when she steps down July 26. Christiansen has held the position since 2018.Moore has overseen 18 national forests in California since 2007. He is also responsible for management of state and private forestry programs in Hawaii and the U.S.-affiliated Pacific Islands. Moore began his government career in 1978 at the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service in North Dakota. His forest service career began at the Pike and San Isabel National Forests in Colorado and the Comanche and Cimarron National Grasslands in Kansas.
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Trapped in Ethiopia’s Tigray, People ‘Falling Like Leaves’
The plea arrived from a remote area that had so far produced only rumors and residents fleeing for their lives. Help us, the letter said, stamped and signed by a local official. At least 125 people already have starved to death. Trapped in one of the most inaccessible areas of Ethiopia’s conflict-torn Tigray region, beyond the reach of aid, people “are falling like leaves,” the official said. The letter dated June 16, obtained by The Associated Press and confirmed by a Tigray regional health official, is a rare insight into the most urgent unknown of the war between Ethiopian forces backed by Eritrea and Tigray’s former leaders: What’s the fate of hundreds of thousands of people cut off from the world for months? This image shows an official stamp on a letter dated June 16, 2021, from district leader Berhe Desta Gebremariam in the cut-off district of Mai Kinetal, Tigray, Ethiopia, to the regional capital, Mekelle.As the United States warns that up to 900,000 people in Tigray face famine conditions in the world’s worst hunger crisis in a decade, little is known about vast areas of Tigray that have been under the control of combatants from all sides since November. With blocked roads and ongoing fighting, humanitarian groups have been left without access. A possible opening emerged this week when Ethiopia’s government announced an immediate, unilateral cease-fire after Tigray fighters re-entered the regional capital and government soldiers fled. An official for the United States Agency for International Development told U.S. lawmakers on Tuesday that some aid groups were expected to test the cease-fire immediately in an effort to reach remote areas. However, it isn’t clear whether other parties in the conflict, including troops from neighboring Eritrea accused of some of the war’s worst atrocities, will respect the cease-fire. A Tigray spokesman rejected it as a “sick joke” and vowed to fully liberate the region. The letter that reached the regional capital, Mekelle, this month from the cut-off central district of Mai Kinetal was just the second plea of its kind, the health official who confirmed it said. The first had been a message from Ofla district reporting 150 deaths from starvation, which the United Nations humanitarian chief shared in a closed-door session of the U.N. Security Council in April, bringing an angry response from Ethiopia’s government. FILE – An Ethiopian woman scoops up grains of wheat after it was distributed by the Relief Society of Tigray in the town of Agula, in the Tigray region of northern Ethiopia, May 8, 2021.But the letter from Mai Kinetal is different, the health official said, offering badly needed, well-compiled data that lay out the devastation line by line: At least 440 people have died, and at least 558 have been victims of sexual violence. More than 5,000 homes have been looted. Thousands of livestock have been taken. Tons of crops have been burned. “There is no access to clean water; electricity, phone communication, banking, health care, and access to humanitarian aid are blocked,” district leader Berhe Desta Gebremariam wrote. “People are unable to move around to save their lives because Eritrean troops completely put us under siege with no transportation, and people are condemned to suffer and die.” Looted farmers in the largely agricultural district have been left without the seeds to grow food, Berhe wrote, warning that without aid 2021 and 2022 will be catastrophic. The one aid delivery to Mai Kinetal that wasn’t blocked was based on a badly outdated 1995 census, meaning half the district’s residents were left out. The aid was later looted by Eritrean troops. Residents had been coming by foot from Mai Kinetal with word that people were starving, the Tigray regional health official said, speaking on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation. But the letter confirms the details and extent of the crisis. “It’s so terrible. It’s so terrible,” he said. “We know that people are dying everywhere.” Other unreachable districts remain silent, he said, as phone services are cut in much of Tigray. Asked about Mai Kinetal, a senior U.N. humanitarian official called it “an especially critical area for us to reach” and confirmed to the AP that aid had not made it into the district, and a number of others, since the conflict began. FILE – A young boy looks up as displaced Tigrayans line up to receive food at a reception center for the internally displaced in Mekele, in the Tigray region of northern Ethiopia, May 9, 2021.Overall, the U.N. estimates that 1.6 million people remain in Tigray’s hard-to-reach areas, and the U.N. children’s agency last week warned that at least 33,000 severely malnourished children in hard-to-reach areas face the “imminent risk of death” without more aid. But humanitarian workers warn that the situation is especially fluid now amid some of the fiercest fighting yet. Even the unilateral cease-fire announced this week is designed not to last. Ethiopia’s government says it will end once the farming season in Tigray is over, which means September. How needed seeds and other supplies will reach farmers across the region in time is not clear. For Tigrayans with loved ones trapped inside inaccessible areas, the lack of information has meant months of fear and despair. “Every time I get to talk to someone who managed to flee from the area, it’s like a round of pain and shock again and again,” said Teklehaymanot G. Weldemichel, a diaspora Tigrayan from Mai Kinetal. He said his family home there had been shelled at the beginning of the war, and his parents later returned to find every item in the house taken by Eritrean soldiers, even photo albums and frames. One resident who fled to Sudan, Kibreab Fisseha, told the AP that a cousin with diabetes who stayed in Mai Kinetal had died because of lack of food. “Both my parents are still there,” Kibreab said. “They are hiding in the house and I hope they are fine until help comes.” Another Mai Kinetal resident told the AP he has been able to speak with his mother just once since the war began, in a short conversation about a month ago before phone service disappeared again. “I have been calling ever since the war started,” he said, giving only his first name, Tsige, to protect his family. He said his mother described fierce fighting as Eritreans took control of their village and many people fled. This selfie provided by Tsige, who gives only his first name, shows himself at Dogo Park, Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture, Japan, April 7, 2019.Tsige’s father, in his 70s, was among those too old to leave. Eritrean soldiers one day came to the house and asked him to bring them water. He did, and the soldiers later spared him. But other residents who were found during house-to-house searches and suspected of links to the Tigray fighters were killed, Tsige said. Homes abandoned by fleeing families were burned. When another relative refused to hand over his cattle to Eritrean soldiers, they slaughtered him in front of his grandson, Tsige said. In all, he knows at least 11 people in Mai Kinetal who have been killed, including a deaf man in his 70s. “Every day could change the lives of my family,” said Tsige, who is studying in Japan and feels helplessly far away. “I have to prepare for the worst. Every few minutes you think about your family, are they alive?” Tsige is too young to know the famine that ravaged Ethiopia, especially the Tigray region, amid conflict in the 1980s and shocked the world, but he grew up hearing about it from his family. He pleaded for the international community to act and for Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to “be a human person” and end the war. “It’s happening now again, and we’re just watching it happen,” Tsige said. “I don’t want to see a documentary filmed after my family has died. I want action now.”
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Summer Solstice Yoga Returns to NYC’s Times Square
Solstice Yoga returned to New York City’s Times Square in 2021, after being suspended last year because of the pandemic. The all-day event brought together over two thousand enthusiasts with their yoga mats to the very heart of Times Square. Evgeny Maslov filed this story narrated by Anna Rice.Camera: Michael Eckels
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Princes William, Harry to Unveil Diana Statue as Royal Rift Simmers
They were once so close.Princes William and Harry grew up together, supported each other after their mother’s untimely death and worked side by side as they began their royal duties — two brothers seemingly bonded for life by blood, tradition and tragedy.But those links are now painfully strained as William sits in London defending the royal family from allegations of racism and insensitivity made by Harry and his wife, Meghan, from their new home in Southern California.Royal watchers will be looking closely for any signs of a truce — or deepening rift — on Thursday when William and Harry unveil a statue of their mother, Princess Diana, on what would have been her 60th birthday. The event in the Sunken Garden at London’s Kensington Palace will be their second public meeting since Harry and Meghan stepped away from royal duties over a year ago.A display to mark the 20th anniversary of the death of Britain’s Diana, Princess of Wales, a recreation of the desk where Princess Diana worked in her Sitting room at Kensington Palace, on display at Buckingham Palace in London, July 20, 2017.People shouldn’t expect a quick resolution of the conflict because the two men are fighting over core beliefs, says Robert Lacey, a historian and author of “Battle of Brothers: William, Harry and the Inside Story of a Family in Tumult.” William is defending the monarchy, and Harry is defending his wife. “It’s a matter of love versus duty, with William standing for duty and the concept of the monarchy as he sees it,” Lacey said. “And then from Harry’s point of view, love, loyalty to his wife. He is standing by her. These are very deeply rooted differences, so it would be facile to think that there can just be a click of the fingers.”But finding some sort of rapprochement between the princes is crucial to the monarchy as Britain’s royal family seeks to appeal to a younger generation and a more diverse population.BBC Under Mounting Pressure Over Princess Diana InterviewThe public broadcaster has been plunged into a major crisis of trust after an inquiry found her participation was secured through deception, fraud and forgeryWhen Harry married Meghan just over three years ago, it seemed as if they would be central figures in that next chapter of the royal story. The Fab Four — William and his wife, Kate, together with Harry and Meghan — were seen as a cadre of youth and vigor that would take the monarchy forward after the tumultuous 1990s and early 2000s, when divorce, Princess Diana’s death, and Prince Charles’ controversial second marriage to Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, cast doubt on the future of the institution.Meghan, a biracial former TV star from Los Angeles, was expected to be an important part of that effort, with Black and Asian commentators saying that for the first time there was a member of the royal family who looked like them.But the words “Fab Four” were quickly replaced in tabloid headlines by “Royal Rift.” First, their joint royal office was dissolved. Then, Harry stepped away from royal duties and moved his family to North America in search of a more peaceful life. William pressed on with royal tasks, including goodwill events like accompanying his grandmother to Scotland this week to tour a soft drink factory.The relationship was further strained in March when Harry and Meghan gave an interview to U.S. talk show host Oprah Winfrey. Harry confirmed rumors that he and his brother had been growing apart, saying “the relationship is ‘space’ at the moment” — though he added that “time heals all things, hopefully.” Harry also told Winfrey that his father, Prince Charles, didn’t accept his calls for a time.And then came the real shocker. The couple revealed that before the birth of their first child, an unidentified member of the royal family had expressed concern about how dark his skin might be. Days after the broadcast, William responded, telling reporters that his was “very much not a racist family.”But whatever their disagreements, out of respect for their mother, William and Harry won’t put their differences on display during the statue ceremony, said historian Ed Owens, author of “The Family Firm: Monarchy, Mass Media and the British Public 1932-1953,” which examines the royal family’s public relations strategy.”We’re not going to see any acrimony or animosity between the brothers on Thursday,” Owens said. “I think reconciliation is a long way off, but nevertheless these are expert performers. Harry and William have been doing this job for long enough now that they know that they’ve got to put, if you like, occasional private grievances … aside for the sake of getting on with the job.”Lacey believes William and Harry will ultimately reconcile because it is in both of their interests to do so.Harry and Meghan need to repair relations to protect the aura of royalty that has allowed them to sign the lucrative contracts with Netflix and Spotify that are funding their life in California, Lacey said. If they don’t, they risk becoming irrelevant like the Duke and Duchess of Windsor, who were shunned by the royal family after the duke gave up the throne in the 1930s to marry an American divorcee. His brother, Queen Elizabeth II’s father, then became king.”It’s very appealing, particularly in America, the idea that they rebelled against this stuffy old British institution,” Lacey said. “But there’s a point they can’t go too far, and they’re approaching that point.””On William’s side, it is impossible to go on ostracizing, boycotting the only members of the royal family who are of mixed race in a multiracial world of diversity,” he added.The critical moment may be next year, when the queen celebrates her platinum jubilee, marking 70 years on the throne.Under normal circumstances for these big occasions, the queen would want the whole family together on the balcony of Buckingham Palace, where the royals have traditionally gathered to wave to the public.”Who’s going to be on the balcony at Buckingham Palace?” Lacey asked. “That family grouping has surely got to include Meghan and Harry and their two children, Archie and Lili, alongside their cousins, the children of William and Kate.”
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Germany Completes Troop Exit from Afghanistan
Germany has removed its last remaining soldiers from Afghanistan, ending almost two decades of deployment to the war-torn country alongside U.S. and other coalition troops.The United States and NATO plan to fully withdraw their militaries from the South Asian nation by September 11 in line with orders by U.S. President Joe Biden. The drawdown process formally started on May 1.Germany announced its military withdrawal without much fanfare shortly after the last 250 German soldiers were airlifted Tuesday night out of their base in northern Afghanistan.“After nearly 20 years of deployment, the last soldiers of our Bundeswehr have left Afghanistan this evening,” German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer said in a statement she tweeted.“They are on their way home. A historic chapter comes to an end, an intensive deployment that challenged and shaped the Bundeswehr, in which the Bundeswehr proved itself in combat,” she wrote.The minister thanked the 150,000 German men and women who had been part of the mission in Afghanistan since 2001, saying they could be proud of their achievements.Germany has lost 59 troops, 39 of them in battles or insurgent attacks, during the course of their service, according to the German army. “You will not be forgotten,” said the German defense minister while paying tribute to those killed and wounded in service in Afghanistan.Germany still had about 1,100 soldiers in the country when Biden announced his withdrawal plans in mid-April. They were part of a non-combatant NATO-led military mission tasked to train, advise and assist Afghan soldiers battling the Taliban insurgency.A spokesman for Afghanistan’s National Security Council said while NATO countries are winding down their military missions, that does not mean bilateral state-to-state ties are also ending.“Afghanistan maintains close ties and cooperation with Germany. They have conducted extensive training of our police forces and that collaboration will continue,” said Rahmatullah Andar in a video statement.NATO’s senior civilian representative in Afghanistan, Stefano Pontecorvo, reassured Afghans of the alliance’s continued engagement as it completes the withdrawal of the military forces. “This is not the end of our partnership. Together, we are entering a new phase in our relationship,” Pontecorvo said in a vide message his official released. “The military may be leaving but my civilian office and myself will be staying and we are committed to supporting the Afghan security forces through financial assistance and through training.” Fighting has surged across Afghanistan since U.S.-led international forces began leaving. Taliban insurgents claim to have captured more than 100 of the country’s 419 districts within the past two months.Afghan commando forces are seen at the site of a battlefield where they clashed with Taliban insurgents in Kunduz province, Afghanistan, June 22, 2021.A spokesman for NATO’s Resolute Support mission told AFP the withdrawal of their forces is proceeding in an “orderly and coordinated manner.”The Taliban advances have raised fears they aim to regain control of Afghanistan by force once all international forces exit the country.The U.S.-led international coalition invaded Afghanistan in October 2001, just days after the terror strikes on American cities that killed nearly 3,000 people.The military invasion ousted the Islamist Taliban from power for sheltering al-Qaida chief Osama bin Laden and his aides, whom the United States says plotted the carnage. The Taliban later launched a deadly insurgency against Afghan and foreign troops. Now, they currently control or hotly contest nearly half of Afghan territory.Armed men who are against Taliban uprising guard their check post, at the Ghorband District, Parwan Province, Afghanistan, June 29, 2021.The foreign military drawdown stems from a February 2020 deal Washington negotiated with the Taliban to end what has been the longest war in U.S. history. In return, the insurgents stopped attacks on international forces and pledged to prevent terrorists from using Afghan soil for foreign attacks. The Taliban also opened peace talks in Qatar last September with representatives of the U.S.-backed Afghan government. But the dialogue has since stalled without making any significant progress, nor has the process eased hostilities between the two Afghan rivals.The U.S. commander of foreign troops in Afghanistan said Tuesday he was deeply concerned about the deteriorating security situation.Gen. Austin Scott Miller, who is overseeing the troop exit, told reporters in the Afghan capital, Kabul, that the overall security situation “is not good,” saying recent insurgent territorial gains were concerning.Brown University’s Costs of War Project estimated in April this year that the two-decade-long war in Afghanistan had killed 241,000 people, including more than 2,400 American soldiers, and cost the United States $2.26 trillion to date. Some Information from Agence France-Presse was used in this report.
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Australia Locks Down Fourth City Amid Clash Over COVID Vaccine Eligibility
Another major Australian city is under a coronavirus lockdown as local officials clash with the federal government over which age group should be eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine. The city of Alice Springs entered a three-day lockdown effective Tuesday after an infected gold mine worker spent several hours in the city’s airport before flying from the Northern Territory state to his home in Adelaide, the capital of South Australia state, where he tested positive after his arrival. A transit worker is seen wearing a face mask inside a mostly empty city center train station during a lockdown in Sydney, Australia, June 29, 2021.Alice Springs joins Sydney, Darwin, Brisbane and Perth on the list of cities who have imposed lockdowns to blunt the spread of the highly infectious delta variant of COVID-19. The latest outbreak has been traced to a Sydney airport limousine driver who had been transporting international air crews. Australia has been largely successful in containing the spread of COVID-19 due to aggressive lockdown efforts, posting just 30,602 total confirmed cases and 910 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center. But it has proved vulnerable to fresh outbreaks due to a slow rollout of its vaccination campaign and confusing requirements involving the two-shot AstraZeneca vaccine, which is the dominant vaccine in its stockpile. FILE – People wait in line outside a coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccination center at Sydney Olympic Park in Sydney, Australia, June 23, 2021.Health officials had limited AstraZeneca to all adults under 60 years old due to concerns of a rare blood clotting condition that has been blamed for the deaths of two people. But Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced Monday that AstraZeneca will be available for adults under 40 years of age who request it. Queensland state Chief Health Officer Jeannette Young pushed back against the prime minister’s announcement Tuesday, saying it was not worth the risk for healthy young Australians, even though the chances of developing the blood clotting condition are rare. “I don’t want an 18-year-old in Queensland dying from a clotting illness who, if they got COVID, probably wouldn’t die,” Young said.Western Australian state Premier Mark McGowan also openly opposed Morrison’s announcement, citing advice from the Australian Technical Advisory Group on Immunization, the government’s vaccine advisor, to recommend only the two-shot Pfizer vaccine for adults younger than 60 years old. Pfizer is in far less supply in Australia than the AstraZeneca shot. Delta variantThe Indonesian Red Cross is warning the delta variant has caused a surge of new infections that is pushing the nation towards “the edge of a COVID-19 catastrophe.” A health worker gives a jab of the Sinovac COVID-19 vaccine to a woman during a vaccination campaign at the Adam Malik Hospital in Medan, North Sumatra, Indonesia, June 30, 2021.Indonesia has reported more than 20,000 new COVID-19 infections in recent days, including a record 21,342 new cases on Sunday, including more than 400 new deaths. The Red Cross says hospitals in the capital, Jakarta, are more than 90 percent occupied, while less than 5% of its 270 million citizens have been vaccinated. Russia reported a single-day record 669 COVID-19 deaths on Wednesday, breaking the previous record set just the day before of 643 deaths. The fast-moving spread of the delta variant of COVID-19, which was first detected in India and has now been identified in more than 80 countries, has prompted the World Health Organization to urge people to continue wearing masks and taking other precautions, even if they are fully vaccinated. Officials in Los Angeles County, California said Monday they are strongly recommending residents wear a mask indoors because of the delta variant. The COVID-19 pandemic has sickened nearly 182 million people around the globe since it was first detected in late 2019 in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, including nearly 4 million deaths. A report issued Wednesday by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development and the U.N. World Tourism Organization said the pandemic caused as much as $2.4 trillion in losses to international tourism and other related sectors in 2020, a decline of 73% from pre-pandemic levels the year before. The report predicts roughly the same amount of losses for 2021, with global tourism to fall anywhere between 63% and 75%, resulting in losses between $1.7-2.4 trillion dollars.
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Sinovac Vaccine Falls Short of Expectations, But Options Limited
“Better than nothing.” That’s one infectious disease expert’s assessment of Sinovac Biotech’s COVID-19 vaccine, following reports that hundreds of Indonesian health care workers who had received the vaccine caught the disease anyway. At least 10 doctors have died after getting both doses of Sinovac’s CoronaVac vaccine, according to the Indonesian Medical Association. It’s unclear how widespread these “breakthrough” infections are. It’s also not clear how severe most of the infections are. Little peer-reviewed data on the vaccine are available. What information is available suggests that the vaccine is less potent than others, especially against the highly contagious delta variant that was first detected in India. However, access to more effective vaccines is limited in much of the world, experts note. Indonesia is one of dozens of countries where the Chinese company’s vaccine makes up a substantial part of the available doses. While the shortage of published peer-reviewed data makes it hard to evaluate the vaccine, a few available studies provide a glimpse. The government of Uruguay FILE – Empty vials to be filled with the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine are seen at a production facility in Reinbek, near Hamburg, Germany, April 30, 2021.Pfizer-BioNTech
The Pfizer-BioNTech shot performed better against infections in general in the study, lowering rates by 78%. But hospitalizations and deaths were about the same. It’s not clear what the dominant variant was during the study, however. A key measure of vaccine potency is the level of neutralizing antibodies — the proteins the immune system produces that prevent the virus from infecting cells. The Pfizer and Moderna vaccines produce very high levels of these antibodies, which help maintain protection against variants, said Peter Hotez, dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine and a professor at the Baylor College of Medicine. “Yes, you’re getting some breakthrough infections with the delta variant, but they tend not to be serious infections,” he said. “People aren’t being hospitalized or losing their lives because of COVID-19.” “When you look at some of the data on the Sinovac vaccine,” he added, “the levels of virus-neutralizing antibody, even after two doses, can still be quite low.” The Sinovac vaccine produced lower levels of these antibodies than seven other vaccines, including those from Pfizer, Moderna, University of Oxford-AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson, according to a study in the journal Nature Medicine.The antibody response is even less effective against the delta variant, which has exploded in Indonesia and many parts of the world. It’s not clear, however, exactly what that decline means for patients. The vaccine still offers protection against the most serious forms of the disease, a Chinese official told state media. Sorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
download this video to view it offline.Download File360p | 4 MB480p | 5 MB540p | 7 MB720p | 13 MB1080p | 22 MBOriginal | 263 MB Embed” />Copy Download AudioIn China’s first delta outbreak, in Guangdong province earlier this month, “none of those vaccinated infections became severe cases, and none of the severe cases were vaccinated,” said Feng Zijian, former deputy director at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention. Meanwhile, supplies of other vaccines are arriving slowly in much of the world. “Sometimes, that’s all people have access to,” Hotez said. “It’s better than nothing.”
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Biden, Western Governors to Discuss Wildfire Response
U.S. President Joe Biden is holding talks Wednesday with a group of governors from eight Western states about wildfire preparedness as much of the region deals with drought. Biden and other administration officials will be speaking from the White House with the governors joining by video. White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters last week the meeting will “focus on how the federal government can improve wildfire preparedness and response efforts, protect public safety, and deliver assistance to our people in times of urgent need.” Those attending include Democratic governors Gavin Newsom of California, Jared Polis of Colorado, Michelle Lujan Grisham of New Mexico, Steve Sisolak of Nevada, Kate Brown of Oregon and Jay Inslee of Washington, along with Republican governors Spencer Cox of Utah and Mark Gordon of Wyoming. Not among the group are three other Republican governors from the region: Doug Ducey of Arizona, Brad Little of Idaho and Greg Gianforte of Montana. Gianforte tweeted Friday that he was “disappointed to learn in news stories” that the president “didn’t offer a seat at the table to Montana and other states facing a severe wildfire season.” The National Interagency Fire Center, which coordinates the mobilization of resources to battle wildfires in the United States, has warned that many Western states are facing a greater than usual likelihood that significant wildfires will occur in the next few months. The U.S. Drought Monitor reports wide areas of Arizona, California, New Mexico, Nevada and Utah are experiencing extreme or exceptional drought.
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Death Toll in Florida Building Collapse Rises to 12
Search-and-rescue crews have confirmed a 12th death in the partial collapse of an apartment building in Surfside, Florida. Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava told reporters late Tuesday the crews are “continuing to make headway,” while 149 people remained unaccounted for. About half of the 12-floor, 136-unit Champlain Towers South collapsed last Thursday, and since then rescue workers have slowly picked their way through the rubble using cranes, infrared scanners and dogs. Levine Cava said the rescue crews were continuing “the brave and very, very difficult task, putting themselves in danger.” “They have been working non-stop for nearly six days,” she said. U.S. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden are scheduled to visit Surfside on Thursday. White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters the Bidens want to thank those who have been “working tirelessly around the clock,” and meet with the families who have had to endure the difficult process of waiting for news about their loved ones. Psaki said the president will also talk with state and local officials to ensure they have the resources they need. Levine Cava, in a statement Tuesday, welcomed the president’s upcoming visit and the efforts of federal and state agencies in response to what she called the “largest non-hurricane emergency operation” in Florida’s history. Miami-Dade Office of Emergency Management Division Director Charles Cyrille told reporters late Tuesday more than 50 agencies were operating at the collapse site, including more than 900 personnel.
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Ethiopia’s Government Declares Unilateral Cease-fire in Tigray
Rebels in Ethiopia’s embattled Tigray region warned Tuesday their troops would seek to destroy the capabilities of Ethiopian and Eritrean forces, despite the Ethiopian government’s declaration of a unilateral cease-fire in the region. The Ethiopian government announced the cease-fire on state media late Monday, saying it would take effect immediately. The announcement came after nearly eight months of conflict in the region and as troops of Tigray’s former governing party entered the regional capital, Mekelle, prompting cheers from residents. A spokesman for the Tigrayan forces battling Ethiopia’s government warned Tuesday in an interview with Reuters the rebel Tigray Defense Forces would enter neighboring Eritrea and Ethiopia’s Amhara region to pursue “enemy” forces if necessary. Later Tuesday, a senior member of Tigray’s regional government told The New York Times that Tigray’s leadership committed to “weaken or destroy” the capabilities of the Ethiopian and Eritrean armies “wherever they are.” U.S. State Department spokesman Ned Price issued a written statement late Tuesday saying the cease-fire “could be a positive step if it results in changes on the ground to end the conflict, stop the atrocities, and allow unhindered humanitarian assistance.”In this Friday, May 7, 2021 file photo, a woman walks past Ethiopian government soldiers by the side of a road north of Mekele, in the Tigray region of northern Ethiopia.Price said the United States is calling for “the immediate, verifiable withdrawal of all Eritrean forces from Ethiopian territory,” which he said is a necessary step for “an effective, sustainable cease-fire and in accordance with the Ethiopian government’s March commitment to do so.” VOA journalists in Mekelle said they have not seen government soldiers in the city since Sunday. Rebel troops from the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), which previously governed the region, announced on the party radio that their forces had entered Mekelle. “We are 100% in control of Mekelle,” Getachew Reda, a TPLF spokesperson, told Reuters on Tuesday. Clashes that occurred on the outskirts of Mekelle have since ended, Reda said. “Our forces are still in hot pursuit to south, east, to continue until every square inch of territory is cleared from the enemy,” he said. Reuters reported that it could not independently confirm that the TPLF was in full control of the capital. Agence France-Presse reports the TPLF launched a major offensive last week and cited an interim government official Monday who said the fighters were closing in on the city when government troops left. Monday’s developments come after the Tigray interim administration, appointed by the federal government, called for a cease-fire to allow aid to be delivered to thousands of people facing famine in the region. At a U.S. congressional hearing Tuesday on the conflict, U.S. Agency for International Development Administrators Sarah Charles told lawmakers the “U.S. believes famine is likely already occurring” in the region. She said the U.S. estimates between 3.5 to 4.5 million people need “urgent humanitarian food assistance” and that up to 900,000 of them are “already experiencing catastrophic conditions.” WATCH: US response to cease-fireSorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can
download this video to view it offline.Download File360p | 11 MB480p | 16 MB540p | 20 MB720p | 42 MB1080p | 81 MBOriginal | 257 MB Embed” />Copy Download AudioState Department official Robert Godec said at the hearing that Eritrea “should anticipate further actions” if the announced ceasefire does not improve the situation in the region. “We will not stand by in the face of horrors in Tigray,” Godec said. An Ethiopian government statement carried by state media said the cease-fire would allow farmers to till their land and aid groups to operate without the presence of military troops. It said the cease-fire would last until the end of the farming season but did not give a specific date. The country’s main planting season lasts through September. The United Nations says the nearly 8-month-old conflict in Tigray has pushed 350,000 people to the brink of famine, calling it the world’s worst famine crisis in a decade. Several U.N. Security Council members, including the United States, Britain and Ireland, have called for an urgent public meeting to discuss the developments. Diplomats said no date has yet been fixed for the meeting, and it had not been decided whether it would be a public or private session. On Monday, the United Nations children’s agency said Ethiopian soldiers entered its office in Mekelle and dismantled satellite communications equipment. UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore said in a statement “This act violates U.N. privileges and immunities … We are not, and should never be, a target.” Violence in the Tigray region had intensified last week after a military airstrike on a town north of Mekelle killed more than 60 people. WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus accused Ethiopian authorities of blocking ambulances from reaching victims of the strike. An Ethiopian military spokesman said only combatants, not civilians, were hit in the strike. Fighting between the Ethiopian government and the TPLF broke out in November, leaving thousands of civilians dead and forcing more than 2 million people from their homes. Troops from Eritrea, Ethiopia’s neighbor to the north, and Amhara, a neighboring region to the south of Tigray, also entered the conflict in support of the Ethiopian government. VOA’s Horn of Africa Service contributed to this report. This report contains information from the Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse.
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Rolling Blackouts, Multiple Deaths in Pacific Northwest Heat Wave
Cities in the Pacific Northwest of North America reported power outages Tuesday, both from failures of utility companies and rolling blackouts due to heavy power demand. Seattle and Portland temperatures were expected to fall Tuesday, below Monday’s record highs, but inland, the city of Spokane, Washington, continued to record high temperatures and experience rolling blackouts in the city. Lytton, British Columbia, set Canada’s all-time high temperature Sunday with 46.6 degrees Celsius, only to see it broken less than 24 hours later, hitting 47.9 C Monday. Officials said Tuesday that several deaths in Portland and Seattle were tied to the extreme heat. In Vancouver, British Columbia, first responders have said that as many as two dozen deaths may be attributed to the high temperatures. On Tuesday, the U.N. World Meteorological Organization called the heat wave hitting the Pacific Northwest corner of the United States “exceptional and dangerous” and says it could last at least another five days.Guests at Sunriver resort near Bend, Oregon line up to get into the pool on June 29, 2021 as temperatures were predicted to hit 106 degrees Fahrenheit.Speaking to reporters from Geneva, a WMO spokeswoman said while records have fallen in the U.S. states of Oregon and Washington, western Canada has seen extreme heat as well. The official said the temperatures for this time of year and location are shocking. “It’s in the province of British Columbia, it’s to the Rocky Mountains, the Glacier National Park, and yet we’re seeing temperatures which are more typical of the Middle East or North Africa.” In an area used to temperatures 20 to 30 degrees cooler, the WMO said, the extreme heat poses major health threats to residents as well as agriculture and the environment. The WMO said the extreme heat is caused by “an atmospheric blocking pattern,” which has led to a “heat dome” — a large area of high pressure trapped by low pressure on either side. The organization said the temperatures would likely peak early this week on the coast and by the middle of the week in the interior of British Columbia. Afterward, the baking heat is expected to move east toward Alberta. On its Twitter account late Monday, the U.S. National Weather Service in Portland, Oregon, reported cooler air was already in the region along the coastline. In a tweet Sunday, the Oregon Climate Service said that the climate system is no longer in a balanced state, and that such heat events “are becoming more frequent and intense, a trend projected to continue.” This report includes information from The Associated Press.
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US Supreme Court Maintains CDC’s Pandemic-related Residential Eviction Ban
The United States Supreme Court on Tuesday left in place the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s ban on residential evictions imposed last year to combat the spread of COVID-19 and prevent homelessness during the pandemic, dealing a setback to landlords who had challenged the policy. The justices declined a request made by a group of landlords to allow a federal judge’s decision to block the eviction moratorium to go into effect nationwide while litigation in the dispute continues. The moratorium is due to expire on July 31. The decision was 5-4, with Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Brett Kavanaugh joining the court’s three liberal justices to deny the landlords’ request. The CDC, based in Atlanta, Georgia, has said 30 million to 40 million people could be at risk of eviction without the moratorium. Advocacy groups have said low-income renters were particularly vulnerable. The landlord groups, led by the Alabama Association of Realtors, sued to challenge the moratorium, arguing that the CDC exceeded its authority under a federal law called the Public Health Service Act. They wrote in court papers: “Congress never gave the CDC the staggering amount of power it now claims.” The groups said an eviction ban is no longer needed for public health reasons in light of declining COVID-19 cases and deaths. They also cited the CDC’s May 13 announcement that vaccinated people no longer need to wear masks or practice social distancing indoors.Landlords nationwide have been losing more than $13 billion in unpaid rent every month because of the CDC’s ban, the groups said. The CDC issued a national eviction ban on all residential rental properties last September to facilitate self-isolation, contain the spread of COVID-19 and prevent homelessness. It acted after the expiration of a narrower previous ban enacted by the U.S. Congress. The CDC’s moratorium has been extended three times: once by Congress and twice by the agency itself. Congress also approved $46.5 billion in rental assistance designed to reach landlords, but aid has been slow to trickle out.Washington-based U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich ruled in favor of the landlords in May but put her ruling on hold pending the government’s appeal in the case. The landlords appealed to the Supreme Court after a lower appellate court rejected their request to unfreeze Friedrich’s ruling.
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US Lawmakers: Ethiopian Cease-fire Likely Only Temporary
Tigrayan troops retook the capital of Mekelle this week prompting the Ethiopian government to declare an immediate cease-fire in the eight-month-long conflict. But U.S. lawmakers warned Tuesday the cease-fire may be only temporary and will likely not prevent a looming famine impacting millions in the region. VOA’s congressional correspondent Katherine Gypson has more.
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