Month: February 2025

Pentagon chief calls on NATO partners to increase role in Europe’s defense

Posted on by SeeEA

PENTAGON — U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has called for NATO’s European members to increase their role in the defense of Europe as the United States focuses on defending the alliance’s Pacific flank.

It is a move that he says will likely require European allies to significantly increase defense spending from 2% of GDP to about 5% of GDP.

“We can talk all we want about values. Values are important, but you can’t shoot values, you can’t shoot flags, and you can’t shoot strong speeches. There is no replacement for hard power,” Hegseth told reporters on Thursday at NATO headquarters in Brussels.

Last year, NATO’s European allies collectively spent 2% of their GDP, amounting to about $380 billion, for the first time after setting a 2% defense spending goal in 2014. The U.S. currently spends about 3.5% of its GDP on defense. Canada, the other non-European NATO ally, currently spends about 1.4% of its GDP on defense.

“NATO is a great alliance, the most successful defense alliance in history, but to endure for the future, our partners must do far more for Europe’s defense,” Hegseth said. He emphasized that deterrence of Chinese aggression “in the Pacific is one that really can only be led by the United States.”

He said the U.S. does not seek conflict with China, nor does it feel that conflict with China is inevitable, but he contended the administration must work with allies to ensure deterrence in the Indo-Pacific is “hard power deterrence, not just reputational.”

Russia-Ukraine war

On Wednesday, Hegseth said keeping Ukraine’s pre-invasion boundaries is an “unrealistic objective” in its war against Russian aggression, as was the expectation that Ukraine would join NATO. He advocated for a negotiated end to the war with security guarantees backed by European and non-European troops that would not include U.S. forces.

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said Ukraine’s potential membership in NATO and whether it should concede any territory should not be decided before peace talks start, referring to Hegseth’s comments as “concessions” made by the United States.

“Vladimir Putin responds to strength,” Hegseth said on Thursday when asked whether the U.S. was decreasing Ukraine’s leverage.

“No one’s going to get everything that they want, understanding who committed the aggression in the first place,” he added, referring to Putin.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte reiterated his support for higher defense spending and appeared to defend Hegseth’s comments on Ukraine not joining the alliance. Rutte said on Thursday that while NATO must “make sure that Vladimir Putin never ever tries again to attack Ukraine,” he said, “it has never been a promise to Ukraine that as part of a peace deal, they would be part of NATO.”

The European Union’s top diplomat warned that any peace deal struck between the United States and Russia — without Ukraine or the EU — will fail.

“Trump says that the killing should stop. Putin can stop the killing by stopping bombing Ukraine. This is doable if there is a will,” said Kaja Kallas, the EU high representative for foreign affairs and security policy. She added that any agreement without Ukraine at the table amounts to appeasement.

Kallas’ comments reflected those of many NATO allies at Thursday’s meeting following U.S. President Donald Trump’s call with Putin and Trump’s signaling that talks on Ukraine between the two were imminent.

After Thursday’s NATO ministerial gathering, Hegseth travels to Poland for what the Pentagon said will be talks with leaders about “bilateral defense cooperation, continued deterrence efforts along NATO’s eastern flank and Poland’s leadership as a model ally in defense investment and burden-sharing in NATO.”

Some information for this report was provided by The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters.
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Turkey awaits possible breakthrough in long war with Kurdish separatists

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Kurds in Turkey are expecting their imprisoned leader to announce a ceasefire soon, ending decades of war between Kurdish rebels and the Turkish government. But Turkey’s president has not made clear what terms he’s willing to accept. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul.
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AI-driven biometric fraud surges in Africa, fueling financial crimes

Posted on by SeeAF

Nairobi, Kenya — A new report says the emergence of cheap artificial intelligence tools is leading to a wave of biometric fraud in Africa. The report says fraudsters are using AI to create fake documents, voices, and images that facilitate identity theft and financial crimes. 

In July 2024, Japhet Ndubi, a Kenyan journalist, lost his phone and could not trace it. He replaced the SIM card, bought a new phone, and went on with his life.

Four days later, while on a lunch break, he received a text alerting him that he had sent money to a certain number.

“Now I am using a new phone. When I saw money was sent to a certain number, I was surprised because I have my phone here. I called Safaricom to inquire, ‘How come some money is sent to a certain number without my authorization?’ It’s when they told me, ‘Are you sure you are not the one who has withdrawn? Because we see a transaction has been carried out and sent to this number, and we can see you have used your fingerprints to withdraw the money,’” he said.

The fraudsters even took out a loan that took him months to pay off. Authorities never made an arrest even though his phone was recovered.

Nudbi was a victim of biometric fraud — a type of criminal activity where someone copies another person’s unique characteristics, like their voice or fingerprints, to impersonate them and gain access to their devices or financial accounts.

Smile ID is a U.S.-based company with offices in Kenya that develops software to protect people’s privacy. A report it released late last month says cases of document forgery and deepfakes are on the rise across Africa, as are simpler phishing attempts — all in an effort to steal money from innocent victims.

The Smile ID researchers found that fraudsters especially targeted vulnerable people in low-literacy regions through phishing, data breaches, and making purchases through illicit sources.

Stolen data is then exploited to create fraudulent bank accounts to be used for money laundering operations.

Joshua Kumah, a Ghanaian, received a fake text claiming that money had been transferred to his mobile banking account. The text led to him losing control of his account and SIM card.

“The person told me to follow a short code that the money would be transferred back to him, so I did that without paying attention to the details. So, by the time I realized it was already too late, I had already given him access to my sim card, so I had to report to cancel that sim card. So, I lost the money I had on that sim. I had to start all over again,” he said.

Ndubi is still in shock at how his fingerprints were used to access money through his mobile phone. He says that has changed how he uses the device.

“I was very surprised that they were able to use fingerprints, and I kept asking the telecom provider how they were able to access it but they were not able to tell me. So, I even lost faith in the Mpesa mobile banking application; actually, I have never used it,” he said.

To prevent fraud, authorities and businesses now sometimes insist that people present themselves physically and produce valid identification cards to prove their identities.

As for average Kenyans, many are trying to avoid using mobile apps on their phones, and are checking with banks and telecom operators about any transactions made in and out of their accounts. 
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US aircraft carrier collides with merchant ship near Egypt

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WASHINGTON — The aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman was involved in a collision at sea with a merchant vessel near Port Said, Egypt, the Navy said Thursday.

The collision occurred late Wednesday while both ships were moving. It did not result in flooding or injuries aboard the carrier, and there was no damage to the ship’s propulsion systems, the Navy said in a statement.

None of the crew on the merchant ship, the Besiktas-M, were injured either, according to a defense official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to provide details that had not yet been made public.

The Truman, which is based in Norfolk, Virginia, deployed in September to the Mediterranean and the Middle East. It had just completed a port call in Souda Bay, Greece.
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Thai lawyers’ council to investigate alleged killing by soldiers

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Bangkok — An influential lawyers’ association in Thailand said Thursday it is launching an investigation into the alleged killing of a Myanmar man by Thai soldiers last year, a move it says could lead to lawsuits against any officers involved.

The Lawyers Council of Thailand, which accredits the country’s attorneys, announced the probe after accepting a formal complaint about the case from Fortify Rights, an international advocacy group that previously carried out an investigation into the case.

In a report published last year, Fortify Rights alleged that three unidentified soldiers brutally beat Aung Ko Ko to death with bamboo rods in Baan Tai village, near the Myanmar border, on January 12, 2024, after disputing his membership in a security patrol team made up of local civilians.

The courts never charged any soldiers in the case, but convicted another civilian and Myanmar national, Sirachuch, who goes by one name, with manslaughter in September. Fortify Rights claims Sirachuch is being used as a scapegoat. Sirachuch has said he saw the soldiers attack Aung Ko Ko.

“After the Lawyers Council has taken the complaint, we will then investigate the nature and circumstances of the death of Aung Ko Ko. After that, we will take appropriate legal action,” Council President Wichien Chubthaisong told a press conference in Bangkok announcing the move.

“We will set up a subcommittee to conduct a fact-finding operation, hoping this will lead to the consideration of legal aid services and ensure that justice prevails for the family of Aung Ko Ko,” he added.

“Everyone has the right to have their human rights protected and respected under the law. Citizens in general should not be punished arbitrarily,” the chairman said.

Afterward, Wichien told VOA the evidence that Fortify Rights has gathered implicating the army appeared credible and that the council could pursue civil or criminal charges against any soldiers it identifies as suspects.

“With credible evidence and a strong case, I think what we can continue to do is to prosecute other people involved in this case,” he said.

Neither the Royal Thai Armed Forces nor the Royal Thai Police, which investigated Aung Ko Ko’s death last year and filed the charges that led to Sirachuch’s conviction, replied to VOA’s requests for comment.

Fortify Rights says the army has denied any responsibility for Aung Ko Ko’s death, both to local media and a House of Representatives committee hearing, claiming he was tortured on the Myanmar side of the border before his body was dumped on Thai soil.

The rights group denies the army’s claim and says it undermines the authorities’ case against Sirachuch, which rests on Thailand having jurisdiction over an attack by Sirachuch on Aung Ko Ko in Thailand.

Sirachuch, who is now serving a prison sentence of three years and four months, confessed to striking Aung Ko Ko once on the back and twice on the shins.

Fortify Rights, though, says that falls well short of manslaughter. It says the post-mortem report by the hospital that examined Aung Ko Ko’s body states he died of “head injuries caused by physical assault,” and that three eyewitnesses to the attack, Sirachuch included, claim it was the soldiers who beat Aung Ko Ko on the head.

“This is a grave miscarriage of justice at multiple levels and we are very heartened to see Thai leaders like Dr. Wichien willing to take a closer look at this case,” Fortify Rights CEO Matthew Smith said at Thursday’s press conference.

Afterward, Smith said his group pursued the council’s help because of its influence and connections with Thai authorities, especially its links to the Department of Special Investigation, or DSI. The department is a special Ministry of Justice unit that investigates some of the country’s highest profile and sensitive cases, including those that may involve public corruption and abuse of power. Wichien is on the department’s board of special cases, which guides its work and is chaired by Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra.

“So, the fact that the Lawyers Council is willing to take a closer look at this case, we hope, is one important step closer to DSI also doing a formal investigation,” Smith told VOA.

“This is the type of situation where DSI can get involved and actually uncover the truth and ensure actual justice takes place,” he added. “In some ways, DSI can unravel coverups, and DSI has the skills and ability and the influence and power to ensure justice in these really difficult cases.”

In its report on Aung Ko Ko’s death, Fortify Rights says it interviewed 23 people during its investigation, including witnesses, acquaintances and relatives, and spoke with local police. It says he had been living in Thailand for many years and was a well-known member of the community’s civilian security team, known locally as Chor Ror Bor, which is trained and organized by Thai authorities.

The report says the soldiers who detained Aung Ko Ko the day he died, and who later beat him, disputed his membership in the team, even after other members arrived to vouch for him. After the attack, it adds, Aung Ko Ko, badly bruised and bloodied, was being helped to the Myanmar border by other locals, on orders from the soldiers, when he collapsed and died of his wounds.
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Archaeologists unearth remains of Roman basilica on site of new London skyscraper

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LONDON — Work to give 21st-century London yet another skyscraper has uncovered traces — in fact chunks — of the city’s origins almost 2,000 years ago. 

Archaeologists exploring the site of a planned 32-story office tower announced Thursday that they have unearthed the remains of a Roman basilica that once stood at the heart of the city known as Londinium. 

Excavations in the basement of a building slated to be demolished for the tower at 85 Gracechurch St. uncovered flint, brick and ragstone walls and foundations, up to 1 meter (over 3 feet) wide, 4 meters (13 feet) deep and two millennia old. 

Sophie Jackson of Museum of London Archaeology called it “one of the most significant discoveries” in years in London’s oldest quarter, the City – the square-mile financial district where modern glass high-rises stand atop the remnants of Victorian, medieval and even earlier structures. 

What’s been uncovered are the foundations of a two-story building, almost as big as an Olympic swimming pool. It was constructed between 78 and 84 A.D., about three decades after Roman troops invaded Britain and some 20 years after forces of the Celtic warrior queen Boudicca sacked the fledgling settlement. 

The basilica was part of the forum — the social, political and commercial heart of Roman London — where people went to shop, mingle, seek justice and hear the latest edicts from political leaders. The newly discovered remains are believed to form part of the tribunal, a raised area of the forum where politicians and officials made decisions about the city’s governance. 

It’s the “beating heart of the city,” said Andrew Henderson-Schwartz, head of public impact at Museum of London Archaeology. “It kind of towers above the city. And so it’s a real symbol of Roman power and authority. 

“We’re talking about the early stages of London here, but it’s a real sign of investment in the city, even in its early infancy,” he said. 

Developer Hertshten Properties, which owns the site and has planning permission for a new office tower, has agreed to incorporate the remains into its plans and put them on display in a visitor center. 

Henderson-Schwartz said the extent of the “absolutely massive” foundations discovered in several test pits suggests an “extraordinary” level of preservation. 

Further digging could answer intriguing questions, including why the original forum was only used for 20 years before being replaced by a much larger one, which remained in use until the collapse of Roman rule in Britain three centuries later. Items such as writing tablets, styluses, and even ancient trash could give glimpses into the daily lives of Roman Londoners. 

Property developers in Britain routinely have to consult archaeologists as part of their planning process, a practice that has uncovered finds from Saxon jewelry to medieval ice skates to the skeletons of 14th-century plague victims. 

The latest discovery adds to the scant traces of Roman London that can be seen around the city, including a section of ancient wall, a portion of amphitheater beneath the Guildhall and a temple to the god Mithras which lies incongruously under the modern headquarters of information company Bloomberg. 

“We do have these little windows into Roman London that are all over the city,” Henderson-Schwartz said. “But this is really in some ways the site that connects them all together. This is the heart of Rome in London, where all the decisions were made.” 
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UNICEF says armed men in eastern DR Congo raped hundreds of children

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Dakar, Senegal — Armed men in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo raped hundreds of children and recruited child soldiers at unprecedented levels, the U.N. children’s fund said Thursday, as the conflict in the mineral-rich region intensified in recent weeks.

“In the North and South Kivu provinces, we are receiving horrific reports of grave violations against children by parties to the conflict, including rape and other forms of sexual violence at levels surpassing anything we have seen in recent years,” UNICEF’s Executive Director Catherine Russell said in a statement.

“One mother recounted to our staff how her six daughters, the youngest just 12 years old, were systematically raped by armed men while searching for food,” Russell added.

More than 100 armed groups are vying for control of Congo’s mineral-rich east in a decades-long conflict that has created one of the world’s largest humanitarian crises. The M23 rebels — the most prominent armed group in the region— captured Goma, the region’s largest city, in late January in a major escalation of the yearslong fighting with government forces.

During the week of Jan. 27 to Feb. 2, health facilities in the restive region reported 572 rape cases, a more than fivefold increase compared to the previous week, Lianne Gutcher, Chief of Communications at UNICEF in the Democratic Republic of Congo, told The Associated Press. 170 of those treated were children, she added.

Armed men perpetrated the rapes but it was unclear what specific armed group or army they belonged to, Gutcher said. “It is suspected that all parties to the conflict committed sexual violence,” she added.

Last week, the United Nations Human Rights Council launched a commission that will investigate the atrocities, including rapes and summary executions, committed by both Congo’s army and M23 in eastern Congo since the beginning of the year.

On Monday, 84 Congolese soldiers accused of murder, rape and other crimes against civilians in the country’s conflict-battered east were put on trial.
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China’s fuel demand may have passed its peak, IEA says

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London — China’s demand for road and air transport fuels may have passed its peak, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said Thursday, citing data showing that the country’s consumption of gasoline, gasoil and jet fuel declined marginally in 2024. 

Combined consumption of the three fuels in China last year was at 8.1 million barrels per day (bpd), which was 200,000 bpd lower than in 2021 and only narrowly above 2019 levels, the IEA said in a monthly report. 

“This strongly suggests that fuel use in the country has already reached a plateau and may even have passed its peak,” it said. 

After decades of leading global oil demand growth, China’s contribution is sputtering as it faces economic challenges as well as making a shift to electric vehicles (EVs). 

The decline in China’s fuel demand is likely to accelerate over the medium term, which would be enough to generate a plateau in total China oil demand this decade, according to the Paris-based IEA. 

“This remarkable slowdown in consumption growth has been achieved by a combination of structural changes in China’s economy and the rapid deployment of alternative transportation technologies,” the IEA said. 

A slump in China’s construction sector and weaker consumer spending reduced fuel demand in the country, it said, adding that uptake of EVs also weighed.  

New EVs currently account for half of car sales and undercut around 250,000-300,000 bpd of oil demand growth in 2024, while use of compressed and liquified natural gas in road freight displaced around 150,000 bpd, it said. 
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Chinese apps face scrutiny in US but users keep scrolling 

Posted on by SeeUS

Seoul — As a high school junior in the Maryland suburbs of Washington, Daneel Kutsenko never gave much thought to China.

Last month, though, as the U.S. government prepared to ban TikTok – citing national security concerns about its Chinese ownership – Kutsenko downloaded RedNote, another Chinese video-sharing app, which he felt gave him a new perspective on China.

“It just seems like people who live their life and have fun,” Kutsenko told VOA of RedNote, which reportedly attracted hundreds of thousands of U.S. users in the leadup to the now-paused TikTok ban.

Kutsenko’s move is part of a larger trend. Even as U.S. policymakers grow louder in their warnings about Chinese-owned apps, they have become a central part of American life.

TikTok, owned by China’s ByteDance, boasts 170 million U.S. users. China’s AI chatbot DeepSeek surged to the top of Apple’s App Store rankings, including those in the United States, for several days after its release last month.

Another major shift has come in online shopping, where Americans are flocking to digital Chinese marketplaces such as Temu and Shein in search of ultra-low prices on clothes, home goods, and other items.

According to a 2024 survey by Omnisend, an e-commerce marketing company, 70% of Americans shopped on Chinese platforms during the past year, with 20% doing so at least once a week.

Multifaceted threat

U.S. officials warn that Chinese apps pose a broad range of threats – whether to national security, privacy, human rights, or the economy.

TikTok has been the biggest target. Members of Congress attempting to ban the app cited concerns that China’s government could use TikTok as an intelligence-gathering tool or manipulate its algorithms to push narratives favorable to Beijing.

Meanwhile, Chinese commerce apps face scrutiny for their rock-bottom prices, which raise concerns about ethical sourcing and potential links to forced labor, Sari Arho Havrén, an associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, a London-based research organization, said in an email conversation with VOA.

“It raises questions of how sustainably these products are made,” Havrén, who focuses on China’s foreign policy and great power competition, said. Moreover, he said, “the pricing simply kills local manufacturers and businesses.”

Many U.S. policymakers also warn Chinese apps pose greater privacy risks, since Chinese law requires companies to share data with the government on request.

‘Curiosity and defiance’

Still, a growing number of Americans appear unfazed. Many young people in particular seem to shrug off the privacy concerns, arguing that their personal data is already widely exposed.

“They could get all the data they want. And anyway, I’m 16 – what are they going to find? Oh my gosh, he goes to school? There’s not much,” Kutsenko said.

Ivy Yang, an expert on U.S.-China digital interaction, told VOA many young Americans also find it unlikely that they would ever be caught up in a Chinese national security investigation.

“What they’re chasing is a dopamine peak. They’re not thinking about whether or not the dance videos or the cat tax pictures they swipe on RedNote are going to be a national security threat,” Yang, who founded the New York-based consulting company Wavelet Strategy, said.

Yang said the TikTok ban backlash and surge in RedNote downloads may reflect a shift in how young Americans see China – not just as a geopolitical rival, but as a source of apps they use in daily life.

She also attributes their skepticism to a broader cultural mindset – one shaped by a mix of curiosity, defiance, and a growing distrust of institutions, including conventional media.

Jeremy Goldkorn, a longtime analyst of U.S.-China digital trends and an editorial fellow at the online magazine ChinaFile, said growing disillusionment with America’s political turmoil and economic uncertainty has intensified these shifts.

“It makes it much more difficult for, particularly, young people to get worked up about what China’s doing when they feel so horrified about their own country,” Goldkorn said during a recent episode of the Sinica podcast, which focuses on current affairs in China.

Polling reflects this divide. A 2024 Pew survey found 81% of Americans view China unfavorably, but younger adults are less critical – only 27% of those under 30 have strongly negative views, compared to 61% of those 65 and older.

Digital barrier

While Chinese apps are expanding in the United States, in many ways the digital divide remains as impenetrable as ever.

China blocks nearly all major Western platforms and tightly controls its own apps, while the U.S. weighs new restrictions on Chinese tech.

Though President Donald Trump paused the TikTok ban, his administration has signaled broader efforts to curb China’s tech influence.

Trump officials have hinted they could take steps to regulate DeepSeek, the Chinese digital chatbot.

The Trump administration also recently signaled it intends to close a trade loophole that lets Chinese retailers bypass import duties and customs checks.

Broader challenges

Even as Washington debates how to handle the rise of Chinese apps, some analysts say the conversation risks obscuring the deeper issue of the broader role of social media itself.

Rogier Creemers, a specialist in digital governance at Leiden University, told VOA that while Chinese apps may raise valid concerns for Western countries, they are just one part of a larger, unaddressed problem.

“There’s a whole range of social ills that emerge from these social media that I think are far more important than anything the Chinese Communist Party could do,” he said, pointing to issues like digital addiction, declining attention spans, and the way social media amplifies misinformation and political unseriousness.

“And that would apply whether these apps are Chinese-owned or American-owned or Tajikistani-owned, as far as I’m concerned,” he added.

The United States, Creemer said, has taken a more hands-off approach to regulating online platforms, in part due to strong free speech protections and pushback by the tech industry.

Apps or influence?

For millions of Americans, the bigger debates about China and digital influence barely register when they open TikTok.

Kutsenko said neither he nor his friends have strong opinions about U.S.-China tensions. They just wanted an alternative to TikTok – one that felt fun, familiar, and easy to use.

It’s a sign that while policymakers see Chinese apps as part of a growing tech rivalry, for many Americans they’re just another way to scroll, shop, and stay entertained, no matter where they come from.
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Several injured after motorist hits crowd of people in Munich

Posted on by SeeEU

BERLIN — A motorist has driven a car into a group of people in the German city of Munich, leaving several people injured, police said on Thursday.

The Bild newspaper reported that 15 people had been injured.

The Munich Security Conference is to start on Friday and U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy are scheduled to arrive later Thursday.

A large-scale police operation was underway near the southern city’s central train station.

Police said on X they were able to detain the driver and did not consider him to pose further threat.

The incident appears to have affected people participating in a demonstration linked to a strike organized by the Verdi union, according to the local BR broadcaster.

The union said it did not have any information on the incident. 
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US allies seek clarity on Ukraine support at Munich Security Conference

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Hundreds of world leaders and delegates are set to attend the Munich Security Conference this weekend — with conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, and simmering tensions in the Indo-Pacific, on the agenda. As Henry Ridgwell reports, all eyes will be on the approach of the U.S. delegation under the new administration of President Donald Trump.
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Trump launches diplomatic blitz to end Ukraine war

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Following a successful prisoner swap with Russia, U.S. President Donald Trump launched a multifront diplomatic blitz Wednesday to end the Ukraine conflict, saying he would meet with Russia’s leader soon and dispatching a vice president-led team to meet with Ukraine’s leader on Friday. VOA White House correspondent Anita Powell catches up on the latest, from Washington.
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Democratic lawmakers concerned USAID freeze may cause irrevocable harm

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U.S. Democratic lawmakers said Wednesday the Trump administration’s freeze of U.S. foreign assistance might permanently damage America’s security and standing abroad. Republicans counter that the review of U.S. Agency for International Development programs is necessary to combat waste and fraud. VOA’s Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson has more.
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Lawsuit by US rights group seeks access to migrants sent to Guantanamo Bay

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washington — The American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit on Wednesday seeking access to dozens of migrants flown to a U.S. naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, saying they were being denied the right to an attorney. 

ACLU filed the complaint on behalf of families of detainees, who say the detainees themselves cannot sue because they are being held without the ability to communicate with the outside world. The suit seeks immediate phone and video access to detainees, as well as in-person visitation. 

President Donald Trump, a Republican, kicked off a wide-ranging immigration crackdown after taking office on Jan. 20, including the transfer of dozens of migrants to a detention site on Guantanamo Bay, which is best known for the separate high-security U.S. prison used for suspected foreign terrorists. 

The lawsuit follows a letter sent by ACLU and other civil and immigrant rights groups to top Trump officials last week, demanding a way to speak to detainees. 

“Shipping immigrants off to Guantanamo without access to lawyers or the outside world cannot be reconciled with our country’s laws or principles,” said Lee Gelernt, ACLU lawyer and lead counsel on the case. “It will now be up to the courts to reaffirm that the rule of law governs our nation.” 

The lawsuit cites the cases of three Venezuelan men believed to be detained at Guantanamo. 

Angela Carolina Sequera, one of the plaintiffs, said she was in almost daily contact with her son while he was in a Texas immigration detention center and last spoke to him on Saturday, the complaint stated. On Sunday, she received a call from the detention center saying her son would be sent to Guantanamo. 

“Ms. Sequera has made numerous calls to try to locate her son and speak to him, to no avail,” the complaint said. “She is distraught over the lack of information, and she desires that her son be provided with the ability to communicate with legal counsel regarding his detention at Guantanamo.” 

The plaintiffs also include four nonprofit legal service providers who said they were unable to represent migrants shuttled to the naval base. The providers have clients in Texas and Florida.

The Trump administration has provided few specifics about the detainees sent to Guantanamo Bay but said the first flight carried alleged members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua.  

Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said there is a system at the Guantanamo detention site for migrants to phone lawyers. She questioned the ACLU raising concerns about “highly dangerous criminal aliens including murderers and vicious gang members” rather than U.S. citizens.  

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, who visited the base on Friday, said in a social media post that some of the detainees had allegedly been charged or convicted of homicide, robbery and other crimes.  

The ACLU lawsuit said the U.S. had never before moved migrants held on civil immigration charges from the U.S. to the Guantanamo Bay base and now held them “incommunicado, without access to attorneys, family or the outside world.” 

The complaint said that despite significant public concern, the Trump administration had offered no explanation of its legal authority to move the detainees.
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Russia, Ukraine trade blame for IAEA disruptions at Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant

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KYIV, UKRAINE — Russia and Ukraine on Wednesday accused each other of blocking the rotation of staff from the International Atomic Energy Agency at the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant in southern Ukraine. 

Moscow’s troops seized the facility, Europe’s largest nuclear power station, in the first days of its invasion of Ukraine. Both sides have repeatedly accused the other of risking a potentially devastating nuclear disaster by attacking the site. 

Staff from the U.N. nuclear watchdog have been based there since September 2022 to monitor nuclear safety. 

Fighting meant the IAEA staff could not be swapped out as part of a planned rotation on Wednesday, the second such delay in a week, both Kyiv and Moscow said, trading blame for the incident. 

Inspectors spend around five weeks at the plant in stints before being swapped out in a complex procedure that involves traveling across the front line under supervision from the Russian and Ukrainian militaries. 

Ukrainian foreign ministry spokesman Georgiy Tykhy accused Russia’s army of opening fire near where the planned rotation was taking place, saying Moscow’s goal was to force the IAEA team to travel through Russian-controlled territory and “violate Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.” 

Russia’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the Ukrainian army blocked the IAEA team from traveling to an agreed meeting point and were attacking the area with drones, at which point the Russian military withdrew its support team and returned to the station. 

“On their return, the convoy carrying Russian military personnel and IAEA experts … came under attack by drone and mortar strikes,” Zakharova said in a statement. 

The IAEA staff members were supposed to leave the station on Feb. 5 in a rotation that was also delayed. 

IAEA head Rafael Grossi was in both Ukraine and Russia last week, where he discussed the issue of rotations with officials from both countries.
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261 trafficking victims rescued from Myanmar scam center

Posted on by SeeEA

WASHINGTON — More than 260 foreign nationals have been rescued from online scam operations in Myanmar and handed over to authorities in Thailand. The rescue is part of an escalating crackdown on human trafficking and cyber fraud along the two countries’ border.

A Myanmar insurgent group, the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army, which recently raided scam centers in the region, handed the victims over to Thai authorities on Feb. 12.

DKBA Chief of Staff Major Saw San Aung told VOA’s Burmese Service in a telephone interview that the group’s forces raided casinos in Myawaddy District, Karen State, in search of trafficked foreign workers.

“On February 11, we identified 261 victims and transferred them to Thai authorities on February 12,” he said.

“We are handing over everyone we find today, but the process is difficult. The [Myanmar] junta’s immigration department is making demands, and the terrain is challenging. We have to retrieve the victims ourselves before transferring them to the nearest Thai authorities,” Major Saw San Aung said.

A rescue worker and eyewitness who requested anonymity for security reasons told VOA in a phone interview on Wednesday that online scam gangs force victims of trafficking “to meet monthly earnings targets of up to $50,000. If they failed, they were tortured. They were only allowed to sleep for two to three hours a day and worked nonstop. They were kept in dark cells and subjected to continuous abuse.”

Thai officials confirmed that the rescued individuals were taken by boat to Phop Phra, Thailand, before being moved to a secure facility.

China pressured to crack down on scammers

Tensions between China and Myanmar escalated after Chinese actor Wang Xing was abducted and held captive in Myanmar in January, before eventually being rescued from scam centers in Myawaddy.

In response to this incident, China pressured Thailand to crack down on scam networks operating in the region.

This pressure is widely believed to be a key factor behind Thailand’s decision to cut off electricity and fuel supplies to Myanmar, significantly impacting areas controlled by ethnic Karen armed groups.

The Wednesday handover follows another transfer on Feb. 6 when Myanmar’s ruling junta and another armed group, the Karen Border Guard Force handed over 61 trafficked individuals, including 39 Chinese nationals, to Thai custody.

Among those rescued and returned on Thursday, many were from Africa, including 46 Ethiopians and 33 Kenyans, according to the DKBA.

In recent days, Myanmar’s military leadership has also highlighted its efforts to crackdown on illegal online gambling and scam operations in cooperation with the international community.

In audio message shared with the news media last Friday, military junta spokesperson General Zaw Min Tun said many victims of trafficking were lured with promises of high-paying jobs in computer-related and translation fields.

“They were deceived by the prospect of high salaries and good working conditions. Most of them arrived in Mae Sot from Bangkok before being taken across the border illegally by online money-laundering gangs,” General Zaw Min Tun said.

Myawaddy: haven for scam syndicates

Myawaddy, located in Karen State along the Thai border, is controlled by Karen armed groups, including the DKBA and the Karen BGF, the latter was previously aligned with the Myanmar military.

The BGF-controlled town of Shwe Kokko in particular has turned into a notorious hub for online fraud.

As of May 2022, reports indicated that 1,225 Chinese nationals, along with individuals from Hong Kong, Taiwan, India, and the Philippines, were trafficked into Shwe Kokko to work in online scam operations. These victims were lured by fake job offers and later forced into online fraud schemes.

Since the Karen BGF severed ties with the Myanmar military and rebranded itself as the Karen National Army last year, the scam operations have faced increased scrutiny.

The U.S. Institute of Peace has warned that online scams originating from Southeast Asia, particularly Myanmar, are a major security threat and cause significant financial losses in the U.S.

In 2023, USIP estimated that Americans lost $3.5 billion to scams from the region. These scams, including forced labor, scams using romantic relationships and other financial crimes, target U.S. residents through fraudulent job applications and false high-tech job ads.

Aye Aye Mar from VOA’s Burmese Service contributed to this report.
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Audit shows Senegal’s previous government misreported debt, other key data

Posted on by SeeAF

DAKAR, SENEGAL — Senegal’s Court of Auditors released a long-awaited review of the country’s finances on Wednesday that confirmed the previous government misreported key economic data including debt and deficit figures.

Senegal’s sovereign Eurobonds tumbled following release of the report.

“The work carried out by the Court shows that outstanding debt is higher than that shown in the reporting documents,” the court’s report said.

The court’s report confirmed an audit that had been ordered by President Bassirou Diomaye Faye, who took office in April 2024.

At the end of 2023, the total outstanding debt represented 99.67% of gross domestic product, the court’s report said. That compared with a previously recorded figure of 74.41%.

The audit ordered by Faye had revealed that Senegal’s debt and budget deficit were much wider than former President Macky Sall’s administration had reported.

As a consequence of the audit, Faye’s government decided in June not to present a request for further disbursement under its three-year $1.8 billion credit facility with the International Monetary Fund.

The IMF had suspended the program pending the Court of Auditors’ review.

The IMF said on Wednesday that it would analyze the report and initiate consultations with authorities to address issues raised.

“The IMF remains committed to supporting the authorities moving forward,” an IMF spokesperson said via email.

The court’s report, which covers public finances from 2019 to March 2024, said it detected other anomalies and data discrepancies between the reported and the actual numbers.

“The deficit calculated and reported to the IMF for the period under review is very far from its real value, if the exact volume of project loan disbursements is taken into account,” the court said in the report.

The reviewed budget deficit for 2023 stood at 12.3% of GDP compared with 4.9% reported by the previous administration, the court said.

Leo Morawiecki, associate investment specialist for emerging market debt at Abrdn, an investment company, said the debt-to-GDP ratio for 2024 was likely to be in excess of 110% given the large deficit being run.

“In response, the IMF will almost certainly move Senegal from moderate to high risk of debt distress,” he said in a note, adding that the government seemed committed to fiscal consolidation and an IMF program.

In a note to investors after the report’s release, Senegal’s finance ministry said it would centralize management of its public debt and implement strict controls over projects financed from external resources.

The ministry will shortly organize a call with global investors, the note said.
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Malawi university students feel impact of US aid freeze

Posted on by SeeAF

BLANTYRE, MALAWI — Public universities in Malawi have ordered all students sponsored by USAID to drop out or seek other sources of funding if they want to remain in school. This follows the 90-day freeze on U.S. foreign assistance recently announced by President Donald Trump.

However, Malawi’s government says it is working to ensure that students can continue their education. 

USAID has provided financial support to thousands of students in several Malawi universities, including the Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Mzuzu University, Kamuzu University of Health Sciences, and the Malawi University of Science and Technology or MUST. 

James Mphande, the communications manager at MUST, said the U.S. foreign aid freeze is a big blow to several USAID-funded projects the school was implementing. 

“And what it means now is that everything has been suspended,” he said. “So, if we were developing a curriculum, we can’t proceed. If we had some outreach activities, we can’t proceed. If we were in the process of making some procurements, we can’t proceed.” 

He said some sponsored students may face the impact next semester. 

“Fortunately, we are in the middle of a semester. So, probably fees or support for this semester was already sorted out. But for the upcoming semesters or years, it means the students will have to look elsewhere for support or they risk withdrawing,” Mphande said.  

However, Patience Yamikani Chakwana, a beneficiary of USAID at MUST, told VOA that she is already feeling the impact.  

Chakwana, a first-year student in business information technology, said the foreign aid suspension was imposed before students received money for their daily upkeep. 

“It was really unexpected. It was, like, we have just started school after a week, then we are getting the news,” she said. “At the time, we didn’t have the money, and the pocket money had not been given. … I heard the news while I was in class. I didn’t know what to do. That was the only hope I had.” 

Chakwana said USAID was paying for her tuition and accommodation, as well as giving her money for groceries and the internet connection for her mobile phone. 

She said she now survives on money she borrows from friends. 

Jessie Kabwila, Malawi’s minister of higher education, said the aid suspension is discouraging, but the Malawi government is working to find other sources to help students. 

“We have engaged local partnerships that are in the private sector to see how they can help us. We have also engaged international partners. For example, we have got a standing agreement with the Republic of Morocco. We have also engaged the Czech Republic, and we will be engaging others, too,” Kabwila said. 

Alexander Kude, deputy director for the Commonwealth Students Association, told VOA that the U.S. foreign aid suspension should be a wake-up call for developing countries to start investing more in education and reduce overdependence on foreign aid. 

“Look, the budget that the United States of America uses to fund us through USAID, it’s just a percent of their money and budget. If you look how much that is and where they get it from, why not stand alone and do it ourselves?” Kude said.

The Trump administration says it imposed the 90-day freeze to review USAID spending and make sure it aligns with U.S. policy and interests. The freeze will extend through April 20.
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RFE/RL journalist released from Belarus jail

Posted on by SeeEU

WASHINGTON — A journalist with VOA’s sister outlet, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, was released from Belarus on Wednesday, after spending more than three years imprisoned in a case that was widely viewed as politically motivated.  

Andrey Kuznechyk, a journalist with RFE/RL’s Belarus service, was released from Belarus on Wednesday, the U.S. special envoy for hostage affairs, Adam Boehler, said. Two other individuals were also released, including a U.S. citizen, but Boehler did not specify their identities.  

RFE/RL President Stephen Capus welcomed Kuznechyk’s release and thanked President Donald Trump, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the Lithuanian government for their help in securing the reporter’s release. 

“This is a joyous day for Andrey, his wife, and their two young children. After more than three years apart, this family is together again thanks to President Trump. We are also grateful to Secretary Rubio and his team, and to the Lithuanian government for their support,” Capus said in a statement.  

Boehler said that the release was unilateral, meaning no one was swapped with Belarus in exchange for the prisoners. Boehler attributed the release to Trump’s commitment to securing the freedom of wrongfully detailed Americans abroad.  

“He has made bringing Americans home a top priority,” Boehler said. “The smartest thing you can do to curry favor with the president of the United States is bring Americans home.”  

Kuznechyk had been jailed since November 2021. He was initially sentenced to 10 days in jail on hooliganism charges, which he rejected. When Kuznechyk was due to be released, authorities kept him in prison and added an additional charge of creating an extremist group.

In a trial that lasted only one day, a regional court found Kuznechyk guilty in June 2022 and sentenced him to six years in prison.  

RFE/RL and the U.S. Agency for Global Media, which oversees RFE/RL and VOA, consistently rejected the charges against Kuznechyk and called for his release. 

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt called the prisoners’ release from Belarus “a remarkable victory.” 

Belarus ranks among the worst jailers of journalists in the world. As of early December, at least 31 journalists were jailed there over their work, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.  

Another RFE/RL journalist — Ihar Losik — has been jailed in Belarus since 2020 on charges he and his employer reject.  

“We remain hopeful that our journalist Ihar Losik will also be released and look to the Trump administration for its continued leadership and guidance,” Capus said in a statement. 

Three other RFE/RL journalists are currently jailed in Russian-occupied Crimea, Russia and Azerbaijan, all on charges that are viewed as politically motivated. 

The Belarusian government has embarked on a severe crackdown on independent journalists and other critics ever since longtime President Alexander Lukashenko claimed victory in a 2020 presidential election that was widely viewed as rigged.  

More than 1,200 political prisoners are currently detained in Belarus, according to the rights group Viasna.
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Trump vows to ‘immediately’ negotiate for end to Ukraine war

Posted on by SeeUS

President Donald Trump announced Wednesday he and Russia’s leader agreed in a phone call to “immediately” begin negotiations with Ukraine’s leader to bring an end to the nearly three-year-conflict.  

“We will begin by calling President Zelenskyy, of Ukraine, to inform him of the conversation, something which I will be doing right now,” Trump said on his social media platform Truth Social. “I have asked Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Director of the CIA John Ratcliffe, National Security Advisor Michael Waltz, and Ambassador and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff, to lead the negotiations which, I feel strongly, will be successful.”

Trump did not specify what the terms might be to end the Russia-Ukraine conflict. But Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth, in Germany Wednesday for a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, ruled out a key demand by Ukraine’s: eventual membership in NATO.

“The United States does not believe that NATO membership for Ukraine is a realistic outcome of a negotiated settlement,” Hegseth said.  

Trump’s top hostage negotiator on Wednesday credited Trump’s “great friendship” with Russia’s leader and with Saudi Arabia’s prince as key in releasing American teacher Marc Fogel from Russian custody late Tuesday.  

“I think that getting Mark Fogel out was critical and the Russians were very, very helpful in that effort and very accommodating,” Witkoff said, speaking to reporters at the White House. “And I think that’s maybe a sign about how that working relationship between President Trump and President Putin will be in the future and what that may portend for the world at large for conflict and so forth. I think they had a great friendship. And I think now it’s going to continue and it’s a really good thing for the world.”

Trump welcomed Fogel to the White House late Tuesday. He had been detained since August 2021 for bringing medically prescribed marijuana into the country.  

“I feel like the luckiest man on Earth right now,” Fogel said as he stood next to Trump at the White House late Tuesday.

Trump said he appreciated what Russia did in letting Fogel go home but declined to specify the details of any agreement with Russia beyond calling it “very fair” and very reasonable.”  

Trump also said another hostage release would be announced Wednesday.  

Waltz, Trump’s national security adviser, said earlier Tuesday the United States and Russia “negotiated an exchange” to free Fogel but gave no details about what the U.S. side of the bargain entailed. In such deals in recent years, the U.S has often released Russian prisoners that Moscow wanted in exchange.  

Instead, Waltz cast the deal for Fogel’s release in broader geopolitical terms, saying it was “a show of good faith from the Russians and a sign we are moving in the right direction to end the brutal and terrible war in Ukraine,” an invasion Russia launched against its neighbor in February 2022, with hundreds of thousands killed or wounded on both sides.  

Trump had vowed to broker an end to Russia’s war on Ukraine before taking office January 20, but his aides more recently have said he hopes to do it within the first 100 days of his new administration, roughly by the end of April.  

“Since President Trump’s swearing-in, he has successfully secured the release of Americans detained around the world, and President Trump will continue until all Americans being held are returned to the United States,” Waltz said. The recent release of six Americans held in Venezuela and Fogel’s freeing are the only publicly known instances.  

Fogel had been traveling with a small amount of medically prescribed marijuana to treat back pain. Once convicted by a Russian court, he began serving his 14-year sentence in June 2022, with the outgoing administration of former President Joe Biden late last year classifying him as wrongfully detained. 
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Evacuations in eastern Ukraine’s Pokrovsk as Russian forces inch closer                    

Posted on by SeeEU

Ukrainian forces are trying to slow down an ongoing Russian advance toward the city of Pokrovsk in Eastern Ukraine’s Dontesk region. The Ukrainian government has been evacuating civilians from the region, but constant shelling is making it dangerous. Kateryna Besedina has the story, narrated by Anna Rice. (Camera: Artyom Kokhan, Anna Rice)  
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Russian fashion designer’s skirts portray life struggles of immigrant women 

Posted on by SeeUS

Russian-born fashion designer Dasha Pomeranz tells stories with the clothing she creates. Her latest collection is a tribute to women who were forced to leave their native countries and start new lives in the United States. Karina Bafradzhian has the story. (Videographer: Sergii Dogotar ; Produced by: Sergii Dogotar, Anna Rice   ) 
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Investigators file criminal complaints against Philippine vice president

Posted on by SeeEA

MANILA, Philippines — Philippine government investigators filed criminal complaints, including sedition, against Vice President Sara Duterte on Wednesday over her public threat to have the president assassinated if she herself was killed in an escalating political storm.

National Bureau of Investigation Director Jaime Santiago said at a news conference that the complaints of inciting to sedition and grave threats against Duterte were filed at the Department of Justice, which would decide whether to dismiss the complaints outright or elevate them to court.

The vice president, a lawyer and daughter of former President Rodrigo Duterte, reacted briefly by saying that she had expected the move by the NBI. She has accused her political rivals of taking steps to prevent her from seeking the presidency when President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s term ends in 2028.

The vice president’s father himself, whose presidential term ended in 2022, is facing legal troubles. The International Criminal Court has been investigating the widespread killings under a brutal anti-drug crackdown he oversaw while in office as a possible crime against humanity.

Sara Duterte ran as Marcos’ vice presidential running mate in 2022. Their whirlwind political alliance, however, quickly frayed and deteriorated into a bitter feud in an Asian democracy that has long been hamstrung by clashing political clans.

Last week, the vice president was impeached by the House of Representatives on a range of accusations that included her threat to have Marcos, his wife and House Speaker Martin Romualdez killed if she herself were fatally attacked in an unspecified plot that she brought up in an online news conference in November.

The impeachment complaint, which was signed by majority of the more than 300 members of the House, which is dominated by Marcos’ allies, also included allegations of largescale corruption and misuse of her office’s confidential funds. The 24-member Senate plans to tackle the impeachment complaint after Congress reopens in June.

The vice president has vaguely denied that what she said amounted to a threat against Marcos, his wife and Romualdez, the president’s cousin, but her remarks still sparked a national security alarm at the time and investigations, including by the NBI.

The vice president said at a news conference last week that her lawyers were preparing for a legal battle in her upcoming impeachment trial, but she refused to say if resignation was an option so that she could preempt a possible conviction that would bar her from running for president in the future.
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Allies to discuss Ukraine military aid

Posted on by SeeEU

Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said allies gathering Wednesday in Brussels would discuss the supply of military aid for Ukraine, including accelerating deliveries of key weapons such as air defense systems.

Umerov’s comments came ahead of the latest meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, a collection of 50 nations that has coordinated supplies for Ukraine’s military since Russia’s 2022 invasion.

Umerov said Wednesday’s talks would also include investments in Ukraine’s defense industry and partnerships on projects with European partners.

British Defense Secretary John Healey is leading the meeting for the first time, after previous sessions headed by the U.S. defense chief.

“We will step up support for Ukraine, boost deterrence through NATO, and secure peace through strength,” Healey said on X.

New U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is set to address the meeting at NATO’s headquarters, a day before a gathering of NATO defense ministers where Hegseth has said he will push for allies to boost their defense spending.

“Our commitment is clear: NATO must be a stronger, more lethal force — not a diplomatic club. Time for allies to meet the moment,” Hegseth said Wednesday on X.

Ukraine will remain a focus on Friday, with U.S. Vice President JD Vance expected to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the Munich Security Conference.

Some information for this report was provided by Agence France-Presse and Reuters

 
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