Scientists who have monitored numerous outbreaks of monkeypox in Africa say they are baffled by the disease’s recent spread in Europe and North America. Cases of the smallpox-related disease have previously been seen only among people with links to central and West Africa. But in the past week, Britain, Spain, Portugal, Italy, U.S., Sweden and…
read moreThe Ukrainian government is using facial recognition software to identify Russian soldiers captured and dead. VOA’s Julie Taboh spoke with one software company CEO and an official with the Ukrainian national police about how the technology is contributing to the war effort …
read morePeople suffering from eco-anxiety — the fear of environmental catastrophe — may get a boost from a green forum in Paris this week. Gathering hundreds of eco-entrepreneurs, companies and activists, ChangeNOW aims to trace a sustainable blueprint for the future. From food to fashion, technology to transport, a raft of green solutions for our resource-sucking…
read moreNorth Korea said Friday it was achieving “good results” in its fight against its first confirmed COVID-19 outbreak, as the number of people with fever symptoms rose past 2 million. A wave of COVID infections, which North Korea first confirmed last week, has fanned worry about a lack of medical resources and vaccines in the…
read moreBoeing’s crew capsule rocketed into orbit Thursday on a repeat test flight without astronauts, after years of being grounded by flaws that could have doomed the spacecraft. Only a test dummy was aboard. If the capsule reaches the International Space Station on Friday and everything else goes well, two or three NASA test pilots could…
read moreCanada will ban Chinese telecommunications giants Huawei and ZTE from its 5G wireless networks because of national security concerns, officials said Thursday. The long-awaited move follows those of the United States and other key allies and comes on the heels of a diplomatic row between Ottawa and Beijing over the detention of a senior Huawei…
read moreTwitter is stepping up its fight against misinformation with a new policy cracking down on posts that spread potentially dangerous false stories. The change is part of a broader effort to promote accurate information during times of conflict or crisis. Starting Thursday, the platform will no longer automatically recommend or emphasize posts that make misleading…
read moreThe U.S. Defense Department declassifies evidence of unidentified flying objects, or UFOs. One Mars rover ramps up while another winds down, and a look behind the phenomenon of a “blood moon.” VOA’s Arash Arabasadi brings us The Week in Space. …
read moreThe right of American women to have an abortion will be severely restricted if the Supreme Court reverses its 1973 decision to legalize the procedure. VOA’s Veronica Balderas Iglesias spoke to activists on three continents and found grave concern about what impact a U.S. ruling overturning Roe v. Wade could have around the world. Videographer/Video…
read moreEuropean and American health authorities have identified a number of monkeypox cases in recent days, mostly in young men. It’s a surprising outbreak of disease that rarely appears outside Africa. Health officials around the world are keeping watch for more cases because, for the first time, the disease appears to be spreading among people who…
read moreThe Massachusetts Department of Public Health on Wednesday said it had confirmed a single case of monkeypox virus infection in a man who had recently traveled to Canada. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said its labs confirmed the infection to be monkeypox on Wednesday afternoon. The state agency said it was…
read moreUS President Joe Biden is traveling to South Korea and Japan on Thursday, after hosting Southeast Asian leaders at the White House last week. The administration’s spotlight on Asia is a clear signal that the Indo-Pacific region remains its priority, even as it focuses on Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara…
read moreMillions of U.S. voters are casting ballots in state primary races to determine which candidates face off in November’s midterm elections. The stakes are high for Democrats and Republicans, as the outcome will determine which political party controls both houses of Congress next year. The contest will be a test of new voting laws in…
read moreThe World Health Organization says authorities in Mozambique have declared an outbreak of wild poliovirus type 1 after confirming that a child in the country’s northeastern Tete province has contracted the disease. It becomes the second case of wild poliovirus confirmed in southern Africa this year, following a case in Malawi in mid-February. In a…
read moreThe political sway of former U.S. President Donald Trump over Republican Party politics 16 months after he left office was tested again Tuesday and he ended up with mixed results, with his endorsed candidates winning some party primaries while losing others. One key race in the eastern state of Pennsylvania – for the Senate…
read moreThe United Nations chief on Wednesday launched a five-point plan to jump-start broader use of renewable energies, hoping to revive world attention on climate change as the U.N.’s weather agency reported that greenhouse gas concentrations, ocean heat, sea-level rise, and ocean acidification reached record highs last year. “We must end fossil fuel pollution and accelerate…
read moreDemocrats and Republicans are less likely to live near each other than they were a generation ago. This political segregation is a phenomenon journalist Bill Bishop wrote about in his book “The Big Sort,” which suggested that Americans are increasingly moving to places where neighbors share their political views. But are they doing that on…
read moreA U.S. military investigation found that American troops did not violate the law of war or deliberately cause civilian casualties in a 2019 airstrike in Syria that killed dozens of people, including women and children. It did find that the military committed procedural mistakes in the aftermath of the attack. The Pentagon said Tuesday that…
read moreThe U.S. government has often ignored the possibility of unidentified flying objects, even after decades of unexplained sightings, including by U.S. military pilots who sometimes filmed the UFOs, some of which moved with lightning speed and incredible agility. On Tuesday, a congressional hearing focused on UFOs for the first time in 50 years, this time…
read moreIn February, the Nigerian technology startup CrowdForce announced a big break: It had received $3.6 million from investors to expand its financial services operations to many more underserved communities. Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Tomi Ayorinde said new funding will boost its mobile agent network from 7,000 to 21,000 this year. “We were looking to scale…
read moreThe political sway of former U.S. President Donald Trump over Republican Party politics 16 months after he left office is being tested again Tuesday as his preferred candidates face off with Republican opponents in party primaries in key states. Five states are holding Republican and Democratic primaries, but political analysts will be paying particularly close…
read moreWorking to achieve sustainability in textile production is one of the projects of the U.N. Environment Programme for this year as it celebrates its 50th anniversary. In Ghana, an entrepreneur is supporting this agenda by recycling waste textiles and rubber into shoes. Senanu Tord has details from Takoradi, Ghana. Videographer: Senanu Tord Produced by: Rob…
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