China on Wednesday set its economic growth target at 5%. That figure is unchanged from last year, despite mounting economic challenges, including escalating trade tensions with the United States. More from VOA’s Bill Gallo in Seoul.
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Month: March 2025
Germany stops new aid to Rwanda over DR Congo conflict
BERLIN — Germany said on Tuesday it had halted new development aid to Rwanda and was reviewing its existing commitments in response to the African nation’s role in the conflict in neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo.
The German development ministry said Berlin had informed Rwanda in advance of the move and urged it to withdraw support for the M23 rebel group, which has made advances in eastern Congo.
Congo, U.N. experts and Western powers accuse Rwanda of backing the group. Rwanda denies this and says it is defending itself against ethnic Hutu-led militias bent on slaughtering Tutsis in Congo and threatening Rwanda.
Rwanda’s foreign ministry called Germany’s action “wrong and counterproductive.”
“Countries like Germany that bear a historical responsibility for the recurring instability in this region should know better than to apply one-sided, coercive measures,” Rwanda’s foreign ministry said in a statement late on Tuesday.
The German ministry said Berlin last pledged aid of $98 million to Rwanda in October 2022 for the period 2022 to 2024.
The M23 group has captured swathes of eastern Congo and valuable mineral deposits since January.
The ongoing onslaught is the gravest escalation of a long-running conflict rooted in the spillover into Congo of Rwanda’s 1994 genocide and the struggle for control of Congo’s vast mineral resources.
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Powerful US storms kill 2 and bring threats from critical fire weather to blizzard conditions
NEW ORLEANS — Powerful storms killed two people in Mississippi, tore the roofs off an apartment building and a nursing home in a small town in Oklahoma and threatened more communities across the nation Tuesday with wide-ranging weather.
The large storm system also brought blinding dust storms to the Southwest, blizzards with whiteout conditions to the Midwest and fears of wildfires elsewhere.
In Irving, Texas, a tornado with winds up to 177 kph struck, while another touched down in the 16,000-resident city of Ada, Oklahoma, according to preliminary information from the National Weather Service. There were also two tornadoes in Louisiana’s northern Caddo Parish and at least five in eastern Oklahoma.
High winds forced some changes to Mardi Gras in New Orleans, which moved up and shortened the two biggest parades, to wrap them up before the bad weather moved in.
The weather didn’t stop Shalaska Jones and her 2-year-old daughter from waving at passing Mardi Gras floats and hoping to catch one of the coveted coconuts thrown to the crowd.
“We was coming out, rain, sleet or snow,” Jones said.
The alarming weather could be one of the first big tests for the National Weather Service after hundreds of forecasters were fired last week as part of President Donald Trump’s moves to slash the size of the federal government. Former employees said the firing of meteorologists who make crucial local forecasts nationwide could put lives at risk, though it was too soon to know the impact on forecasts and warnings for this storm.
Deaths from storms in Mississippi
Two people died due to the severe weather, Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves posted on the social platform X, without going into detail.
WAPT-TV reported that one person died from a falling power line in Madison County, while a driver in the same county was killed by a tree falling on his car.
Hundreds of thousands left without power
Storms that swept through Texas and Oklahoma brought high winds and rain, overturning tractor-trailers and damaging roofs. More than 178,000 customers were without power in Texas, about 23,000 in Louisiana, another 18,000 in Mississippi, about 88,000 in Alabama, more than 16,000 in Oklahoma and more than 23,000 in Tennessee, according to PowerOutage.us.
More outages were expected as a line of storms raced across Mississippi and Louisiana and headed for Alabama, producing gusts of 113 kph, the weather service said.
Central Plains and Midwest brace for blizzard conditions
Blizzard conditions were forecast that could make travel treacherous.
Schools will be closed Wednesday in several southern Minnesota districts with about 13 to 28 centimeters of snow expected. More concerning were winds forecasted to gust over 80 kph and stay high.
The National Weather Service in the Twin Cities said on X Tuesday night that travel was not advised over a large portion of southern Minnesota.
“It’s tough to find a @MnDOT road camera that isn’t covered in ice or blocked completely by blowing snow,” the post said.
South Dakota was expected to receive up to 12.7 centimeters of snow in some areas, and by Tuesday evening, high winds had already deteriorated road conditions.
Jay Jones, who works at Love’s Truck Stop in Sioux Falls, said he saw garbage cans flying around as winds gusted around 80.5 kph. Parts of Interstate 29 heading north to North Dakota were shut down.
“It looks really bad out there,” Jones said, adding that he walked to work and would have to “have to tough it out” on his way home.
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China sets moderate economic growth target amid looming trade war
Taipei, Taiwan — China set the economic growth target for 2025 at 5% on Wednesday, vowing to “rise to the challenge and strive for success” amid a lack of domestic demand and a challenging external environment.
Delivering the government work report at the start of China’s biggest political meetings of the year, Chinese Premier Li Qiang acknowledged that China’s trade and tech sectors face mounting external pressure caused by the intensification of protectionism around the world, the obstruction of the multilateral trading system, the increase of tariff barriers and rising geopolitical tensions.
“Domestically, the foundation for economic recovery is not yet solid, and there is insufficient demand, especially the sluggish consumption,” Li said during a speech delivered in front of thousands of members of the Chinese Communist Party, including Chinese President Xi Jinping.
In light of these challenges, Li said the Chinese government aims to achieve the 5% economic growth target by “vigorously boosting consumption, improving the efficiency of investment and expanding domestic demand on all fronts,” according to a readout released by China’s state-run Xinhua news agency.
“Achieving these goals won’t be easy, and it will require hard work,” he said.
Analysts say the economic growth target shows China is prioritizing “stability” over “major economic progress” in 2025. “A large part of China’s economic growth last year was supported by exports, but the looming trade war with the United States has brought unpredictable risks to Chinese exports in 2025,” said Wang Kuo-chen, an economist at the Chung-Hua Institute for Economic Research in Taiwan.
“Since China’s domestic demand remains insufficient, they can only rely on boosting consumption to drive economic growth in 2025,” he told VOA by phone.
To boost domestic consumption and demand, Li said Beijing will introduce some bold stimulus measures, including implementing more vigorous fiscal policies, lowering interest rates at the right time, and implementing economic policies aimed at “improving people’s livelihoods and boosting domestic consumption.”
The Chinese government will aim to direct more resources and capital to “support the expansion of employment, help people increase their income, and strengthen consumption incentives,” Li said during the speech.
Wang in Taiwan said while the Chinese government has repeatedly vowed to boost domestic consumption since last year, the exodus of foreign businesses and the overall trend of income reduction across the country will make it difficult for China to achieve this goal in 2025.
“As long as more capitals are poured into emerging industries such as electric vehicles and artificial intelligence, which are key sectors highlighted by Chinese President Xi Jinping, the private sector as a whole will remain weak, and there won’t be sufficient domestic demand,” Wang said.
To maintain China’s competitiveness in emerging industries, Li said China in 2025 will focus on stimulating innovation and the digital economy.
Relevant measures include better combining digital technology with manufacturing and market advantages and “vigorously developing new-generation intelligent terminals such as intelligent network-connected new-energy vehicles and intelligent manufacturing equipment.”
In addition to artificial intelligence, other emerging industries that Li said China also aims to further develop in 2025 include quantum technology, embodied technology, and 6G.
Before the annual legislative meetings, Chinese President Xi Jinping held a symposium with leaders from several Chinese tech giants on February 17, urging “efforts to promote the healthy and high-quality development of the country’s private sector.”
Some experts say that while the Chinese government wants to provide more state-led support to private companies in the AI and semiconductor industries, they will also ensure these companies “align themselves with China’s national priorities.”
“The government knows it needs the private sector for innovation and job creation, but it also wants to maintain control at the same time,” Lizzi Lee, a fellow on the Chinese economy at the Asia Society Policy Institute, told VOA in an e-mail.
China’s week-long legislative meetings come as Beijing and Washington gear up for a potential trade war. On Tuesday, the United States enhanced tariffs against all Chinese imports to 20%, prompting China to retaliate by imposing tariffs ranging between 10% to 15% on a wide range of agricultural products from the U.S.
During his speech on Wednesday, Li said China will “stick to the path of peaceful development, oppose all forms of unilateralism and protectionism, and uphold international justice.”
“China is willing to work with the international community to call for an equal and orderly multipolar world and an inclusive economic globalization,” he said during the hour-long remarks.
In light of the U.S. government’s tariff hikes against several countries, including allies such as Canada and Mexico, some analysts say Beijing is trying to present itself as a “more responsible” global power.
“China might actually see an opportunity to show that it can act more responsibly on certain global issues,” Dali Yang, an expert on Chinese politics at the University of Chicago, told VOA by phone.
VOA Mandarin’s Chuang Chih-wei and Yang Meng-li contributed reporting to the story.
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Musk fails in bid to block OpenAI becoming for-profit business
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA — A U.S. judge on Tuesday denied Elon Musk’s request to prevent OpenAI from becoming a for-profit business in a loss for the Tesla tycoon amid his feud with Sam Altman.
U.S. District Court Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled that Musk and his xAI startup failed to prove an injunction against OpenAI was necessary as the case heads to trial.
Musk sued in California federal court to stop OpenAI from transitioning from a nonprofit to a for-profit business, arguing the startup violated antitrust law and betrayed his trust in their mission as a co-founder of OpenAI.
The judge wrote that, while Musk did not prove the need for an injunction, she is prepared to expedite a trial on that claim later this year.
The ruling leaves OpenAI free to continue its transition from nonprofit to for-profit enterprise.
Musk’s injunction bid argued that OpenAI’s co-founders, including chief executive Altman, “took advantage of Musk’s altruism in order to lure him into funding the venture,” according to court documents.
Musk contended in filings that it was clear his backing of OpenAI was contingent on it remaining a nonprofit, offering a few email exchanges to support the claim.
“Whether Musk’s emails and social media posts constitute a writing sufficient to constitute an actual contract or charitable trust between the parties is debatable,” the judge said in her ruling.
OpenAI’s board chairman in February rejected a Musk-led offer to buy the valuable artificial intelligence company for $97.4 billion.
“OpenAI is not for sale, and the board has unanimously rejected Mr. Musk’s latest attempt to disrupt his competition,” OpenAI Board Chair Bret Taylor said in a statement posted by the company on Musk-owned X, formerly Twitter.
OpenAI currently operates in a hybrid structure, as a nonprofit with a money-making subsidiary.
The change to a for-profit model, one that Altman says is crucial for the company’s development, has exacerbated ongoing tensions with Musk.
Musk and Altman were among the 11-person team that founded OpenAI in 2015, with the former providing initial funding of $45 million.
Three years later, Musk left the company, with OpenAI citing “a potential future conflict for Elon … as Tesla continues to become more focused on AI.”
Musk established his own artificial intelligence company, dubbed xAI, in early 2023 after OpenAI ignited global fervor over the technology.
The massive cost of designing, training, and deploying AI models has compelled OpenAI to seek a new corporate structure that would give investors equity and provide more stable governance.
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Vatican says Pope Francis’ prognosis ‘remains guarded’
The clinical condition of Pope Francis remained stable, the Vatican said Tuesday evening, and he was “alert, cooperative with therapies, and oriented.”
However, the statement also said that Francis’ prognosis “remains guarded,” which means he is not out of danger.
Francis, the leader of the world’s nearly 1.4 billion Roman Catholics, has been in Rome’s Gemelli Hospital for more than two weeks.
He was admitted on February 14 with a case of bronchitis that worsened into double pneumonia.
On Tuesday morning, the 88-year-old pontiff “transitioned to high-flow oxygen therapy and underwent respiratory physiotherapy,” according to a Vatican statement.
On Tuesday night, the pope was set to resume noninvasive mechanical ventilation throughout the night.
While Francis’ heart, kidney and blood measurements are stable, “his health situation remains complex,” the Vatican said.
On Monday, the pope underwent two bronchoscopies to remove “a significant accumulation of endobronchial mucus.”
The Vatican said Francis remained “alert, oriented and cooperative at all times” during the procedures.
However, Dr. John Coleman, a pulmonary critical care doctor at Chicago’s Northwestern Medicine, told The Associated Press, said Francis seems to be “taking little steps forward and then steps back.”
“The fact that they had to go in there and remove [the mucus] manually is concerning, because it means that [the pope] is not clearing the secretions on his own,” said Coleman, who is not part of the pope’s medical team.
This hospital stay is Francis’ longest during his time as pope. He is prone to lung infections, having had part of a lung removed when he was a young man.
Francis’ hospital stay is not the record amount of time a pope has been hospitalized. In 1981, Pope John Paul II spent 55 days in Gemelli for a minor operation that resulted in a serious infection that extended the pontiff’s hospital stay.
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Can Europe arm Ukraine now that US has halted military aid?
U.S. President Donald Trump ordered a “pause” Monday to military aid shipments to Ukraine with immediate effect, which his administration said was aimed at forcing all sides to peace talks. As Henry Ridgwell reports from London, European leaders have said it is vital to continue weapons shipments to Kyiv — but there are doubts over how long Ukraine can keep on fighting. Anna Chernikova contributed.
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At UN, Trump’s domestic policies enter international arena
UNITED NATIONS — The United States made clear Tuesday that it will no longer automatically support core United Nations platforms, including sustainable development and global goals that include eliminating poverty during a vote at the U.N. General Assembly.
“Therefore, the United States rejects and denounces the Agenda 2030 for sustainable development and the sustainable development goals, and will no longer reaffirm them as a matter of course,” U.S. representative Edward Heartney told the assembly.
The U.S. voted against a resolution titled “International Day of Peaceful Coexistence” that reaffirmed the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, “acknowledging that this includes a commitment to promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels.”
Heartney said Americans voted in November’s election for their government to refocus on U.S. interests.
“Simply put, the globalist endeavors like Agenda 2030 and the SDGs lost at the ballot box,” he said.
The measure passed the assembly with 162 countries in favor and three against — the United States, Israel and Argentina.
The General Assembly creates “International Days” to raise awareness of important global issues and promote peace and tolerance. There are more than 150 of them currently, including International Women’s Day, which is coming up on March 8, World Environment Day, International Mother Language Day and World Diabetes Day.
On Tuesday, delegates voted to create an “International Day of Hope,” as well as an “International Day for Judicial Well-Being.” Washington stood alone, the sole no vote on both.
Heartney said Washington “strongly supports efforts to sustain peace and pursue diplomatic solutions to crises around the world and that individual rights are fundamental to U.S. security and the promotion of international peace.
“This resolution, however, contributes to the unnecessary proliferation of multiple international days, many of which have a similar intent,” he said of the International Day of Hope proposal, noting that there is already an International Day of Peace and another on Happiness.
“The current draft resolution also contains references to diversity, equity and inclusion that conflict with U.S. policies that seek to eliminate all forms of discrimination and create equal opportunities for all,” Heartney added.
The Trump administration has made the elimination of diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI programs, a core pillar, saying it illegally promotes discrimination.
Washington was also the sole vote against a resolution titled “Education for Democracy,” which reaffirms “the right of everyone to education” and recognizes “the importance of equal opportunities for young people, including women.”
The text recognizes “that education for democracy nurtures responsible and active learners, capable of contributing effectively to peace and prosperity in their societies and beyond,” and notes the negative impact that the COVID-19 pandemic had on global education.
It calls on governments to invest more in quality education, to bridge the digital divide and “to advance the prospects of future generations and foster the building of peaceful, just, democratic and sustainable societies.”
On Feb. 24, Washington stunned the international community when it voted against a Ukrainian and European Union-drafted General Assembly resolution supporting a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in Ukraine and submitted its own text that did not name Russia as the aggressor in the war.
The assembly voted to amend the U.S. text to include language on Russia’s “full-scale invasion” of Ukraine and supporting Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
When the amended American text was put to a vote, Washington abstained. It was adopted with 93 states in favor, eight against and 73 abstentions.
General Assembly resolutions are not legally binding, but they do carry the moral weight of the international community.
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False: With Russia’s support, CAR significantly succeeded in combating militants
Fourteen militia groups control two-thirds of the Central African Republic (C.A.R.) and parts of the capital city, Bangui. Russian military involvement has been stained with gross human rights violations, corruption and appropriation of natural resources.
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Rearming Europe? EU tested to turn talk into action
European Union leaders will meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday in Brussels to discuss boosting defense spending for Ukraine, as well as Europe’s own security in the face of Russia. The meeting comes amid fears that the United States’ longtime support to Europe may end. But does the EU have the leadership, means and public support to go it alone? Lisa Bryant reports from Paris.
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VOA Mandarin: How will ‘America First’ investment policy impact China?
U.S. President Donald Trump signed an “America First” investment policy memorandum last week, pledging to “use all necessary legal instruments” to restrict China-affiliated investors from strategic sectors in the U.S.
The news has sparked concern among Chinese companies listed in the U.S., who could face a potential new round of auditing standards review, and those who want to come to the U.S. market.
Click here for the full story in Mandarin.
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China’s Liu Jiakun wins Pritzker Prize, ‘Nobel’ for architecture
NEW YORK — The Pritzker Prize, dubbed the “Nobel” for architecture, was awarded Tuesday to China’s Liu Jiakun, who was recognized for designs that celebrate “everyday lives.”
“In a global context where architecture is struggling to find adequate responses to fast evolving social and environmental challenges, Liu Jiakun has provided convincing answers that also celebrate the everyday lives of people as well as their communal and spiritual identities,” the award’s jury wrote in a statement.
Born in 1956, Liu has worked on more than 30 projects in China ranging from academic and cultural institutions to civic spaces and commercial buildings.
“Architecture should reveal something it should abstract, distill and make visible the inherent qualities of local people,” Liu said in the statement, evoking his craft’s capacity to create “a sense of shared community.”
Liu lives and works in his birth city of Chengdu, where he prioritizes the use of local materials and traditional building techniques.
His projects include the Museum of Clocks in Chengdu, a large circular structure with a skylight that illuminates an interior strip of photographs.
Alejandro Aravena, who won the award in 2016 and is chair of the jury, said Liu’s works offer “clues on how to confront the challenges of urbanization” especially because they are sometimes “a building, infrastructure, landscape and public space at the same time.”
“Cities tend to segregate functions, but Liu Jiakun takes the opposite approach and sustains a delicate balance to integrate all dimensions of the urban life,” Aravena said.
Liu, who is the 54th recipient of the Pritzker Prize, will be honored at a celebration in Abu Dhabi in spring, award organizers said.
Last year’s prize went to Japan’s Riken Yamamoto, whose projects are credited with promoting human contact and who said at the time his objective was to “design architecture that can bring joy to people around it.”
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BlackRock strikes deal to bring ports on both sides of Panama Canal under American control
The Hong Kong-based conglomerate that operates ports near the Panama Canal has agreed to sell shares of its units that operate the ports to a consortium including BlackRock Inc., after President Donald Trump alleged Chinese interference with the operations of the critical shipping lane.
In a filing, CK Hutchison Holding said Tuesday that it would sell all shares in Hutchison Port Holdings and all shares in Hutchison Port Group Holdings. The two units hold 80% of the Hutchison Ports group that operates 43 ports in 23 countries.
The consortium, comprised of BlackRock, Global Infrastructure Partners and Terminal Investment Limited will acquire 90% interests in Panama Ports Company, which owns and operates the ports of Balboa and Cristobal in Panama, according to the filing.
In January, U.S. Senator Ted Cruz, the Republican chair of the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, raised concerns that China could exploit or block passage through the canal and that the ports “give China ready observation posts” to take action.
“This situation, I believe, posts acute risks for U.S. national security,” Cruz said.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio visited Panama in early February and told President Jose Raul Mulino that Panama had to reduce Chinese influence over the canal or face potential retaliation from the United States. Mulino rejected the idea that China had any control over canal operations.
Panama quit China’s Belt and Road Initiative following Rubio’s visit, drawing condemnation from Beijing.
But while much attention was focused on Trump’s threat to retake control of the canal, his administration trained its sights on Hutchison Ports, the Hong Kong-based consortium that manages the ports key ports at either end of the canal.
Hutchison Ports had recently been awarded a 25-year no-bid extension to run the ports, but an audit looking at that extension was already underway. Observers believed the audit was a preliminary step toward eventually rebidding the contract, but rumors had swirled in recent weeks that a U.S. firm close to the White House was being lined up to take over.
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Pope resting after acute breathing crises forced him to resume noninvasive ventilation
Rome — Pope Francis rested early Tuesday after he suffered further setbacks in his fight against double pneumonia: two new acute respiratory crises that required him to resume using noninvasive mechanical ventilation to breathe.
In its early Tuesday update, the Vatican said: “The pope slept through the night, now rest continues.”
Francis suffered the two crises Monday. Doctors extracted “copious” amounts of mucus that had accumulated in his lungs, the Vatican said in a late update. They performed two bronchoscopies, in which a camera-tipped tube was sent into his airways with a sucker at the tip to suction out fluid.
The 88-year-old pope, who has chronic lung disease and had part of one lung removed as a young man, was put back on noninvasive mechanical ventilation: a mask that covers his nose and mouth and pumps oxygen into the lungs.
Francis remained alert, oriented and cooperated with medical personnel, the Vatican said. The prognosis remained guarded, meaning he was not out of danger. Doctors didn’t say if he remained in stable condition, though they referred to the crises in the past tense, suggesting they were over.
The crises were a new setback in what has become a more than two-week battle by the frail pope to overcome a complex respiratory infection.
The Vatican said the mucus that had accumulated in Francis’ lungs was his body’s reaction to the original pneumonia infection and not a new infection, given laboratory tests don’t indicate any new bacteria.
Dr. John Coleman, a pulmonary critical care doctor at Northwestern Medicine in Chicago, said the episodes were more concerning than the last one on Friday, in which Francis had a coughing fit, inhaled some vomit that needed to be extracted and then was put on the noninvasive mechanical ventilation for a day and then didn’t need it anymore.
The use of bronchoscopies reflects a worrying level of mucus and phlegm in the lungs, Coleman said. “The fact that they had to go in there and remove it manually is concerning, because it means that he is not clearing the secretions on his own,” he said.
“He’s taking little steps forward and then steps back,” said Coleman, who is not involved in Francis’ care.
Francis, who is not physically active, uses a wheelchair and is overweight, had been undergoing respiratory physiotherapy to try to improve his lung function. But the accumulation of the secretions in his lungs was a sign that he doesn’t have the muscle tone to cough vigorously enough to expel the fluid.
Doctors often use noninvasive ventilation to stave off an intubation, or the use of invasive mechanical ventilation. Francis has not been intubated during this hospitalization. It’s not clear if he has provided any advance directives about the limits of his care if he declines or loses consciousness.
Catholic teaching holds that life must be defended from conception until natural death. It insists that chronically ill patients, including those in vegetative states, must receive “ordinary” care such as hydration and nutrition, but “extraordinary” or disproportionate care can be suspended if it is no longer beneficial or is only prolonging a precarious and painful life.
Francis articulated that in a 2017 speech to a meeting of the Vatican’s bioethics think tank, the Pontifical Academy for Life. He said there was “no obligation to have recourse in all circumstances to every possible remedy.” He added: “It thus makes possible a decision that is morally qualified as withdrawal of ‘overzealous treatment.’”
Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, who heads the academy which helps articulate the Catholic Church’s position on end-of-life care, said Francis is like any other Catholic and would follow church teaching, if it came to that.
“Today the pope is giving us an extraordinary teaching on fragility,” he told reporters Monday. “Today the pope, not through words but with his body, is reminding all of us, we elderly people to begin with, that we are all fragile and therefore we need to take care of each other.”
Francis’ hospitalization, which hits 18 nights Tuesday, is by no means reaching the papal record that was set during St. John Paul II’s numerous lengthy hospitalizations over a quarter century. The longest single hospitalization occurred in 1981, when John Paul spent 55 days in Gemelli for a minor operation and then to be treated for a serious infection that followed.
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Japan’s worst wildfire in half a century spreads
TOKYO — Firefighters were Tuesday battling Japan’s worst wildfire in half a century, which has left one dead and forced the evacuation of nearly 4,000 local residents.
White smoke billowed from a forested area around the northern city of Ofunato, aerial TV footage showed, five days after the blaze began after record-low rainfall.
The fire also follows Japan’s hottest summer on record last year, as climate change pushes up temperatures worldwide.
As of Tuesday morning, the wildfire had engulfed around 2,600 hectares, the fire and disaster management agency said — over seven times the area of New York’s Central Park.
That makes it Japan’s largest wildfire since 1975 when 2,700 hectares burnt in Kushiro on northern Hokkaido island.
It is estimated to have damaged at least 80 buildings by Sunday, although details were still being assessed, the agency said.
Military and fire department helicopters are trying to douse the Ofunato fire, a city official told reporters.
“At the moment, there is no indication that the fire is under control,” the official said.
Snow is expected overnight, changing to rain, but the official said he could not say whether it would help extinguish the blaze.
“The poor weather may prevent helicopters from dropping water,” he warned.
Around 2,000 firefighters — most deployed from other parts of the country, including Tokyo — are working from the air and ground in the area in Iwate region, which was hard-hit by a deadly tsunami in 2011.
An evacuation advisory has been issued to around 4,600 people, of whom 3,939 have left their homes to seek shelter, according to the municipality.
The number of wildfires in Japan has declined since its 1970s peak, but the country saw about 1,300 in 2023, concentrated in February to April when the air dries and winds pick up.
‘No rain’
Ofunato had just 2.5 millimeters of rainfall in February — breaking the previous record-low for the month, of 4.4 millimeters in 1967, and below the usual average of 41 millimeters.
Since Friday, “there has been no rain — or very little, if any” in Ofunato, a local weather agency official told AFP.
Some types of extreme weather have a well-established link with climate change, such as heatwaves or heavy rainfall.
Other phenomena like droughts, snowstorms, tropical storms and forest fires can result from a combination of complex factors.
Some companies have been affected by the wildfire, such as Taiheiyo Cement, which told AFP its Ofunato plant has suspended operations for several days because part of its premises is in the evacuation advisory zone.
Ofunato-based confectionery company Saitoseika warned that “if our headquarters or plants become a no-go zone, we may need to halt production,” describing the situation as “tense.”
Japanese baseball prodigy Roki Sasaki, who recently joined the Los Angeles Dodgers in the U.S., has offered a $67,000 donation and 500 sets of bedding, Ofunato city’s official account posted on X.
Sasaki was a high school student there, after losing his father and grandparents in the huge 2011 tsunami.
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Refugees injured in clashes with Kenyan police during food ration protests
NAIROBI, Kenya — At least four people sustained gunshot wounds as police clashed with protesters in Kenya’s Kakuma refugee camp, in the country’s north.
Thousands of refugees in the camp, which hosts people fleeing from conflict and drought in neighboring South Sudan, Ethiopia, Burundi and Congo, protested Monday against food rationing due to funding constraints.
The World Food Program, which is in charge of food distribution at the refugee camp, said last December the food rations to refugee camps were “at 45 percent of the minimum food basket due to resource constraints.”
The WFP has warned for years that it is facing shortfalls in the contributions from governments it relies on for funding, and on Monday it announced that it is closing its office in South Africa due to U.S. President Donald Trump’s cuts in foreign aid.
A refugee from neighboring South Sudan, John Garang, held up a roughly 4 liter pot.
“This is the container they are now using to measure beans and oil and the other one for rice. And this is equivalent for one month for your food. Assume you don’t have another income, it’s only this. Is this enough for you,” he asked.
Kenya is currently in the process of transitioning refugees into integrated settlements as opposed to the previous system of refugee camps, which are donor reliant, and has already gazetted Kakuma and Dadaab as municipalities.
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New Orleans to celebrate Mardi Gras Day with costumes and revelry despite weather concerns
NEW ORLEANS — Thousands of revelers adorned in beads and outlandish costumes will fill the streets of New Orleans as the city celebrates Mardi Gras Day despite anticipated severe storms.
The city’s two biggest parades — hosted by social clubs Krewe of Zulu and Krewe of Rex — are set to go on with earlier start times, shorter routes and no marching bands, New Orleans Police Superintendent Anne Kirkpatrick told reporters Monday. The parades will be required to wrap up by 11:30 a.m. local time to avoid diminishing weather.
“Bottom line, they gonna still get the Zulu parade and all the excitement, it’s just a little earlier,” said Darren Mire, a Krewe of Zulu spokesperson. “We have to err on the side of caution, we have to protect the citizens of New Orleans and the visitors, and this was the best decision possible to get things done.”
Thunderstorms and winds up to 100 kph are expected throughout Tuesday, the National Weather Service said. In neighboring Jefferson Parish, officials canceled parades.
Kirkpatrick warned parade-goers to not bring umbrellas, tents or “anything that could fly in the wind and cause mayhem.” Worsening weather Tuesday morning could still be a condition for calling off the city’s parades at the last minute, she added.
“I will cancel the parades at that point, no matter what time that is,” Kirkpatrick said. “I hold that trump card in which I will not hesitate to cancel — I won’t do it lightly, but I will do it.”
Two other parades that had been scheduled to roll through the city later on Tuesday with nearly 200 truck floats have been postponed to Sunday, Kirkpatrick said.
Other cities along the Gulf Coast, such as Mobile, Alabama, and Pensacola, Florida, hold their own Mardi Gras Day parades.
The culmination of the weekslong carnival season, Fat Tuesday festivities of feasting and drinking precede Ash Wednesday, traditionally the start of Lent, a period of fasting in Christian tradition in preparation for Easter Sunday. As a result, this year’s Mardi Gras Day falls unusually late in the year.
But the outsized culture of street parties, extravagant balls and spirited parades has evolved into a decidedly secular spectacle in the Big Easy.
The day kicks off with the North Side Skull and Bone Gang, a drum-playing group which for more than 200 years has gathered before sunrise to awake neighbors in the city’s historic Treme neighborhood.
Across the city, renowned Black masking Indians, whose spectacular beaded and bejeweled costumes are topped with feathered head dresses, take to the streets to represent a central part of African American culture in the city dating back to the 1800s.
One of the most beloved parades, the Krewe of Zulu, typically features hundreds of marching members tossing trinkets to spectators such as beads and highly coveted decorated coconuts.
And the Krewe of Rex, a social club led by the honorary king of carnival season, bears the traditional colors of purple, green and gold.
The festivities are also marked by enhanced security presence across the city following a devastating Jan. 1 truck attack that killed 14 people. The Department of Homeland Security upgraded Mardi Gras to its highest risk rating, leading to an influx of law enforcement agents. A zigzagging layout of barriers parallels the main parade route to guard against fast-moving vehicles and armored trucks; SWAT teams and helicopters will be present.
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VOA Mandarin: Who has better humanoid robots, US or China?
Chinese tech firms and state media have spotlighted humanoid robots, which have grown in popularity since the Unitree G1 appeared to run, jump, dance and perform martial arts-like movements in a recent demonstration.
Both the United States and China are leaders in humanoid robot technology. But industry analysts believe that the United States is superior in AI technology, which is responsible for the robot’s “brain,” while Chinese technology companies have flourished in the hardware manufacturing capabilities of the robot’s “body.”
Click here for the full story in Mandarin.
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NGOs seek new sources of aid as traditional donors reduce funding
Riyadh, Saudi Arabia — The U.N.’s special representative on sexual violence in conflict said that when military spending goes up worldwide, it increases conflicts that mainly affect women and children.
“What we are seeing is that sexual violence is plaguing conflict, and is significantly impacting all civilians, but significantly women and girls, Pramila Patten told VOA at the International Humanitarian Forum in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
“We should invest more in prevention. We should invest in addressing the root cause, which is marginalization, poverty, gender inequality,” she said. “Of course, we have to respond, but I think prevention is where we should invest more.”
Many humanitarian groups at the U.N. and Saudi-organized forum held in February said traditional Western donors have reduced or halted funding.
In the United States, the Trump administration has moved to cut tens of billions of dollars in foreign aid, though its actions face legal challenges now winding their way through the courts.
Leila Pakkala, the director of UNICEF’s supply division, said her agency is seeking $9.9 billion to help more than 109 million vulnerable children and their families.
“This year as we’re looking at the humanitarian spectrum, we’re looking at increased needs, whether it’s in nutrition, whether it’s around water and sanitation, access to health, and making sure children don’t lose out on immunization,” she said.
She said resources are not keeping pace with demand.
“We have increased numbers of wasting severe acute malnutrition in children around the world, whether it’s in conflict and fragile context, or whether it’s at the onset of rapid response emergencies, natural disasters,” she said.
In southern Africa, perennial drought, floods and cyclones affect children and their families, she said.
“The needs outweigh the ability to respond,” Pakkala said.
Dereje Wordofa, president of the nonprofit SOS Children’s Villages International, said climate change is contributing to a general humanitarian crisis.
“The situation is worsening and particularly in eastern and southern Africa. There are more people who are affected by humanitarian crisis than any time before,” he said. “The sheer amount of money required to bring services and goods to these affected communities is very, very high. And the international humanitarian funding is not marching to this scale and the magnitude of need.”
Some groups are turning to organizations such as the Saudi-based King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Center (KSRelief) for funding.
Hana Omar, the center’s director of partnerships and international relations, said KSReflief is assisting many African countries as conflicts and climate change leave more people in need.
“We remain committed to deliver our aid, to find ways to advocate for the rights of these people and to make sure that we reach those in need. There is still hope people want to solve and to find solutions for all these challenges,” Omar said.
This year KSRelief organized the aid forum with the U.N. under the theme: “Navigating the Future of Humanitarian Response” as it celebrated its 10th anniversary of humanitarian work outside the borders of Saudi Arabia.
((Columbus Mavhunga, VOA News, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.))
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6.8 million Ukrainian refugees remain globally; fewer than half plan to return
As Ukraine’s war enters its fourth year, 6.8 million Ukrainians remain refugees. Researchers say fewer than half plan to return when the war ends. From Kyiv, Lesia Bakalets reports on what can be done to encourage more of them to return to their homeland.
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US skating community honors colleagues who died in Washington plane crash
The U.S. skating community came together Sunday for a fundraiser and tribute to the victims of a collision between an American Airlines flight and a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter on Jan. 29 over the Potomac River in Washington.
Sixty-seven people, all the people on both aircraft, died in the crash, including 28 members of the U.S. figure skating community — 11 young figure skaters, four couches and 13 family members — who had been to the U.S. Figure Skating Championships in Wichita, Kansas.
One of the most emotional performances Sunday night was delivered by Maxim Naumov, who skated to a favorite song of his parents, Evgenia Shishkov and Vadim Naumov, who died in the crash.
The two-hour Legacy on Ice event was hosted by Olympic figure skating champions Brian Boitano and Kristi Yamaguchi. They and other veteran skaters, including Scott Hamilton and Nathan Chen, also performed.
The event began to take shape a week after the crash. Monumental Sports and Entertainment, organizers of the tribute, said they have so far raised $1.2 million for the victims’ families and the first responders.
“We continue to be in awe of and grateful to this community, whose compassion and support was out in full force for the ‘Legacy on Ice’ event,” Monumental chairman Ted Leonsis said in a statement.
He said the money raised is set to be divided among the families impacted by the collision, first responders and U.S. Figure Skating.
The Associated Press reported that almost 500 first responders and approximately 150 family members of the victims were in the audience.
NBC is scheduled to broadcast “Legacy on Ice” on March 30.
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King Charles meets with Trudeau amid Trump’s annexation comments
London — Britain’s King Charles III welcomed Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday as the monarch faces criticism in Canada over being silent about U.S. President Donald Trump’s repeated suggestion that the U.S. annex its northern neighbor.
While royal officials did not provide details about the private talks at the monarch’s royal residence Sandringham, the king and Trudeau were expected to discuss Trump’s comments that Canada should become the 51st state.
Charles is the head of state in Canada, a member of the Commonwealth group of many former British colonies and territories. Trudeau said Sunday, “nothing seems more important to Canadians right now than standing up for our sovereignty and our independence as a nation.”
Britain’s monarchs must remain politically neutral, but the Canada issue shows how delicate that balancing act can be.
“The Government of Canada should ask the Head of State to underscore Canadian sovereignty,” former Alberta Premier Jason Kenney posted on X.
Trudeau flew to London to join an emergency defense summit on Ukraine over the weekend, where British Prime Minister Keir Starmer outlined plans to end the war in Ukraine and rallied European counterparts to throw their weight behind the country as U.S. backing of Ukraine appeared in jeopardy.
The king’s meeting with the Canadian leader came after Charles met Sunday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to show solidarity with Ukraine after Trump lashed out at Zelenskyy in a heated exchange in the Oval Office.
Starmer told lawmakers Monday he held talks with Trudeau over the weekend and was “able to assure him of our strong support for Canada.”
Meanwhile, Charles has invited Trump to come for a state visit. Starmer delivered that invitation to Trump in Washington last week, noting it was an “unprecedented” honor since Trump already had been given the royal treatment by Queen Elizabeth II during his first term.
Starmer insisted to lawmakers Monday that the U.S. and Britain have “the closest of relationships,” and that it would be “a huge mistake at a time like this to suggest that any weakening of that link is the way forward for security and defense in Europe.”
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Forest fire damages dozens of homes, causes evacuations in Japan
TOKYO — Japan is fighting a forest fire that has damaged dozens of homes and forced hundreds of residents to evacuate in a northeastern coastal city.
The fire has burned about 2,100 hectares (5,190 acres) of forest in Ofunato since it started Wednesday, according to the Fire and Disaster Management Agency.
The agency said at least 84 homes have been damaged, and over 1,200 people evacuated. The fire has subsided in some areas. More than 2,000 troops and firefighters have been deployed from across the country.
A man was found dead on a road Thursday, and authorities are examining if the death was linked to the fire, the agency said.
The northeastern regions, including Ofunato, have had their driest winter since 1946, when the Japan Meteorological Agency started collecting data.
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East Congo rebels abduct at least 130 hospital patients, UN says
GENEVA — M23 rebels launching an offensive in east Congo abducted at least 130 sick and wounded men from two hospitals in the city of Goma last week, the United Nations said Monday.
M23 fighters raided CBCA Ndosho Hospital and Heal Africa Hospital during the night of Feb. 28, taking 116 and 15 patients respectively, U.N. Human Rights Office spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani said in a statement.
The abducted men were suspected of being Democratic Republic of Congo soldiers or members of a pro-government militia known as Wazalendo.
“It is deeply distressing that M23 is snatching patients from hospital beds in coordinated raids and holding them incommunicado in undisclosed locations,” Shamdasani said, calling for their immediate release.
M23 spokespersons Willy Ngoma and Lawrence Kanyuka Kingston did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Tutsi-led M23 marched into the city of Goma at the end of January and have since made an unprecedented advance into east Congo, seizing territory and gaining access to valuable minerals.
Their ongoing advance, which started in late December, is already the gravest escalation a long-running conflict rooted in the spill over into Congo of Rwanda’s 1994 genocide and the struggle for control of Congo’s vast mineral resources.
Congo, U.N. experts and Western powers accuse Rwanda of backing the group.
Rwanda denies this and says it is defending itself against ethnic Hutu-led militias bent on slaughtering Tutsis in Congo and threatening Rwanda.
About 7,000 people have been killed in east Congo since January and almost half a million people were left without shelter after 90 displacement camps were destroyed in the fighting, according to the government.
International sanctions, renewed investigations by the International Criminal Court and Africa-led peace negotiations have failed to halt the advance by the rebels, who have captured east Congo’s two major cities, Goma and Bukavu.
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