Category: Technology

North Korea says it successfully performed another “crucial test” at its long-range rocket launch site that would further strengthen its “reliable strategic nuclear deterrent.” The announcement on Saturday comes as North Korea continues to pressure the Trump administration over an end-of-year deadline set by leader Kim Jong Un to salvage faltering nuclear negotiations. North Korea’s Academy of Defense Science did not specify what was tested on Friday. Just days earlier, the North said it conducted a “very important test” at the site, prompting speculation that it involved a new engine for either a space launch vehicle or an intercontinental ballistic missile. <!--[if IE 9]><![endif]--><!--[if IE 9]><![endif]-->Pentagon Tests Long-Banned Ballistic Missile Over PacificThe Pentagon says it's conducted a flight test of a missile that had been banned under a treaty that…

The Xinjiang regional government in China’s far west is deleting data, destroying documents, tightening controls on information and has held high-level meetings in response to leaks of classified papers on its mass detention camps for Uighurs and other predominantly Muslim minorities, according to four people in contact with government employees there. Top officials deliberated how to respond to the leaks in meetings at the Chinese Communist Party’s regional headquarters in Urumqi, Xinjiang’s capital, some of the people said. They spoke on condition of anonymity because of fears of retribution against themselves, family members and the government workers. The meetings began days after The New York Times published last month a cache of internal speeches on Xinjiang by top leaders including Chinese President Xi Jinping. They continued after the International Consortium…

U.S. House Democrats are one big step away from impeaching President Donald Trump. After 14 hours of contentious partisan debate, the House Judiciary Committee on Friday approved formal charges alleging Trump abused the power of his office and obstructed congressional efforts to investigate him. VOA’s Congressional Correspondent Katherine Gypson looks ahead to the final vote on impeachment on the House floor   ...

The Trump administration and China are close to finalizing a modest trade agreement that would suspend tariffs that are set to kick in Sunday, de-escalating their 17-month trade war. "We're close to a deal," said Myron Brilliant, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce's head of international affairs, who has been briefed by both sides. Brilliant said the administration has agreed to suspend Trump's plans to impose tariffs on $160 billion in Chinese imports Sunday and to reduce existing tariffs, though it wasn't clear by how much. In return, Beijing would buy more U.S. farm products, increase Americans companies' access to the Chinese market and tighten protection for intellectual property rights. The deal awaits final approval from President Donald Trump. Trump took to Twitter early Thursday to declare: "Getting VERY close to…

The U.S. House Judiciary Committee reconvenes Friday morning to vote on articles of impeachment against U.S. President Donald Trump. The committee recessed late Thursday after 14 hours of debate. The Democratic-controlled committee rebuffed Republican attempts Thursday to weaken or throw out the allegations and instead will vote on sending them to the full House of Representatives for a vote, likely to be held next week.   Democratic lawmakers, after hours of at-times rancorous partisan claims and counterclaims with Republicans, rejected the Republican effort to eliminate the impeachment allegation that Trump abused the presidency by pushing Ukraine to investigate one of his chief 2020 Democratic election rivals, former Vice President Joe Biden.   The committee is also expected to approve a second article of impeachment, that Trump obstructed Congress by refusing…

As early as next week, President Donald Trump could become only the third U.S. president to be impeached by the House of Representatives.  If the Democratically-controlled House votes to impeach Trump for allegedly abusing his power related to his dealings with Ukraine, the case would move to the Republican-controlled Senate for an impeachment trial early next year where the political landscape is much more favorable to the president.  From Washington, VOA National correspondent Jim Malone has more on what a Senate trial would look like.   ...

As Kenya marks the anniversary of the end of British colonial rule more than five decades ago (Dec 12, 1963), two communities in the Great Rift Valley want the United Nations to investigate a colonial-era land grab.  The Kipsigis and Talai communities accuse the British of collective punishment by forcefully evicting them off their land, which was turned into profitable tea farms. Mohammed Yusuf reports from Kericho, Kenya.   ...

Nearly a year and a half after India scrapped controversial legislation criminalizing homosexuality, the Indian capital has hosted its first ever queer literature festival. Turning the focus on stories and experiences of the community, the two day meet explored common ground between different identities of society. Anjana Pasricha reports from New Delhi. ...

Debris believed to be from a military transport plane carrying 38 people that vanished two days ago en route to the Antarctic has been discovered in the frigid, treacherous waters between the icy continent and South America, Chile’s Air Force said Wednesday. Air Force Gen. Eduardo Mosqueira said “sponge” material, possibly from the plane’s fuel tank, was found floating roughly 30 kilometers (19 miles) from the place the C-130 Hercules last had radio contact. The debris will be analyzed to see if it corresponds to the missing plane, he said, adding that the process could take up to two days. The C-130 Hercules took off Monday afternoon from a base in far-southern Chile on a regular maintenance flight for an Antarctic base. Radio contact was lost 70 minutes later. The…

The House on Wednesday passed its annual defense policy measure, which combined a $738 billion Pentagon price tag with legislation to provide federal employees with 12 weeks of paid parental leave. The sweeping 377-48 vote followed weeks of arduous House-Senate negotiations that finally yielded a traditionally bipartisan measure, stripped of many add-ons sought by Democrats controlling the House. The result came over outnumbered protests by some of the chamber's most liberal members, who said Democratic negotiators should have fought harder for House-passed liberal policies. They are also unhappy about the spiraling defense budget. The compromise between the Democratic-controlled House and the GOP-held Senate broke free after Republicans agreed to accept a Democratic demand — endorsed by Trump in end-stage negotiations — for the landmark parental leave provision. Negotiators also endorsed…

Fears mounted Wednesday that a deadly shooting at a Jewish market in Jersey City was an anti-Semitic attack as authorities recounted how a man and woman deliberately pulled up to the place in a rental van with at least one rifle and got out firing. A day after the gun battle and standoff that left six people dead — the two killers, a police officer and three people who had been inside the store — state and federal law enforcement officials warned they have not established the motive for the attack. "The why and the ideology and the motivation — that's what we're investigating," New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal said, adding that authorities are also trying to determine if anyone else was involved. But Mayor Steve Fulop said surveillance…

The U.S. military says a suicide bomber attacked a medical facility near the Afghan capital of Kabul Wednesday. In a written statement issued by the U.S.-led NATO mission in Afghanistan, there were no U.S. or coalition casualties as a result of the attack outside the gate of Bagram Air Base, but five Afghans were wounded. The medical facility, which was under construction to serve local Afghans, was badly damaged.   No one has taken responsibility for the attack.  ...

Leading House Democrats unveiled two articles of impeachment against U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday, accusing him of abusing his office for personal political gain and obstructing the congressional impeachment inquiry. It was only the fourth time in the 243-year history of the United States that impeachment charges have been brought against an American leader, although Trump's removal from office remains unlikely. House Judiciary Committee chairman Jerrold Nadler, head of the panel that will first consider the impeachment articles, contended that Trump "sees himself as above the law." Nadler alleged that Trump threatened U.S. national security by withholding key military aid to Ukraine. He said the president threatened the integrity of the 2020 election, in which he is seeking a second term in office, and sought to block congressional review…

The number of journalists imprisoned globally remains near a record high, according to an annual survey released Wednesday by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), which identifies China, Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Egypt as the world's largest jailers of reporters. "For the fourth consecutive year, hundreds of journalists are imprisoned globally as authoritarians like Xi Jinping, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Mohammad bin Salman, and Abdel Fattah el-Sisi show no signs of letting up on the critical media," says CPJ's 2019 Prison Census. Although the number of journalists imprisoned worldwide slipped from 253 to 245 in 2019, the New York-based press freedom watchdog also says that journalists charged with reporting "false" or "fake news" continues to climb. "The number charged with 'false news' rose to 30, compared with 28 last year," says…

American billionaire and Democratic presidential contender Michael Bloomberg says that the next U.S. president should halt fossil fuel subsidies altogether. Bloomberg, who launched his campaign less than three weeks ago, is attending a United Nations global climate conference in Madrid that is kicking into high gear. Ministers from nearly 200 countries are arriving on Tuesday to tackle some of the tough issues that negotiations couldn't resolve over the past week, including finalizing the rules for international carbon markets that economists say could help drive down emissions and help poor countries to cope with the effects of rising temperatures.      Opening an event on sustainable finances organized by the summit host, Spain, Bloomberg said that "the next president of the United States should end all subsidies for fossil fuel companies and…

Finland's parliament chose Sanna Marin as the country's new prime minister Tuesday, making the 34-year-old the world's youngest sitting head of government. Marin is heading a five-party, center-left coalition. The four other parties in the coalition are headed by women _ three of whom are in their early 30s. The Nordic country's Parliament, the 200-seat Eduskunta approved Marin in a 99-70 vote. The government has a comfortable majority of 117 seats. President Sauli Niinisto will formally hand Marin her mandate later Tuesday, after which she will officially become prime minister. The appointment of Marin and her new government on Tuesday allows Marin to represent Finland at the European Union summit in Brussels later this week . Finland currently holds the bloc's rotating presidency until the end of the year.   …

Thick reindeer fur boots and a fur hat covering most of his face shielded Niila Inga from freezing winds as he raced his snowmobile up to a mountain top overlooking his reindeer in the Swedish arctic.                     His community herds about 8,000 reindeer year-round, moving them between traditional grazing grounds in the high mountains bordering Norway in the summer and the forests farther east in the winter, just as his forebears in the Sami indigenous community have for generations.                     But Inga is troubled: His reindeer are hungry, and he can do little about it.  Climate change is altering weather patterns here and affecting the herd's food supply.                     “If we don't find better areas for them where they can graze and find food, then the reindeers…

During his recent visit to Washington, Sudan’s Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok said one goal looms above all others as he leads the country’s transitional government: bringing peace to the war-ravaged nation.   “Our number one top priority is to stop the war and build the foundation of sustainable peace,” he said. “Essentially to stop the sufferings of our people in the IDP camps and the refugee camps. We think the opportune time of stopping this war is now.”   Hamdok did not specify which war he meant; Sudan’s government has been fighting rebels in the Darfur, South Kordofan and Blue Nile regions for years. The capital, Khartoum, saw deadly conflicts between protesters and the military earlier this year.   He did say he was heartened by the resiliency on display…

House Democrats have reached a tentative agreement with labor leaders and the White House over a rewrite of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada trade deal that has been a top priority for President Donald Trump. That's according to a Democratic aide not authorized to discuss the talks and granted anonymity. Details still need to be finalized and the U.S. Trade Representative will need to submit the implementing legislation to Congress. No vote has been scheduled. The new, long-sought trade agreement with Mexico and Canada would give both Trump and his top adversary, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a major accomplishment despite the turmoil of his likely impeachment. An announcement could come as early as Monday. Pelosi, D-Calif., still has to officially sign off on the accord, aides said. The aides requested anonymity because the…

Pierce Bush, the grandson of former President George H.W. Bush, announced his candidacy Monday for a congressional seat in Texas, becoming the latest member of his famous Republican family to enter politics. But his first run for office won't be easy. Bush joins one of the nation's most crowded congressional races of 2020 in his bid to replace Republican Rep. Pete Olson, who is retiring from his suburban Houston district that Democrats nearly flipped last year and are aggressively targeting again.Pierce Bush's announcement video, rolled out on the deadline in Texas for candidates to get on the 2020 ballot, includes an image of him speaking next to a picture of his late grandfather, who died last year. Today, I’m proud to announce my candidacy for Texas's 22nd district. I look…

Minutes before a recent show, “VOD Roundtable” host Lim Thida readied notes and warmed up the day’s guests. Control room staffers prepped to go live with all the trappings of the kind of on-air radio broadcast that, until a few years ago, was typical for the longtime Voice of Democracy program. But this was 2019, and instead of radio, “VOD Roundtable” was being reborn online. Producer Srey Sopheak ran a final check with the engineers, then gave Lim a go-ahead via walkie-talkie. “Hi, this is me, Thida, welcoming all TV viewers who are watching this live ‘VOD Roundtable’ show, which is broadcast via the Facebook page of vodkhmer.news. Today, we will look at measures to eliminate corruption in Cambodia’s judicial system.” Lim Thida, VOD production chief and a co-host of…

The Justice Department's internal watchdog will release a highly anticipated report Monday that is expected to reject President Donald Trump's claims that the Russia investigation was illegitimate and tainted by political bias from FBI leaders. But it is also expected to document errors during the investigation that may animate Trump supporters. The report, as described by people familiar with its findings, is expected to conclude there was an adequate basis for opening one of the most politically sensitive investigations in FBI history and one that Trump has denounced as a witch hunt. It began in secret during Trump's 2016 presidential run and was ultimately taken over by special counsel Robert Mueller. The report comes as Trump faces an impeachment inquiry in Congress centered on his efforts to press Ukraine to…

Women in Saudi Arabia will no longer need to use separate entrances from men or sit behind partitions at restaurants in the latest measure announced by the government that upends a major hallmark of conservative restrictions that had been in place for decades. The decision, which essentially erodes one of the most visible gender segregation restrictions in place, was quietly announced Sunday in a lengthy and technically worded statement by the Municipal and Rural Affairs Ministry. While some restaurants and cafes in the coastal city of Jiddah and Riyadh's upscale hotels had already been allowing unrelated men and women to sit freely, the move codifies what has been a sensitive issue in the past among traditional Saudis who view gender segregation as a religious requirement. Despite that, neighboring Muslim countries…

President Donald Trump said Saturday that Israel has never had a better friend in the White House than him because, unlike his predecessors, "I kept my promises." Trump energized an audience that numbered in the hundreds at the Israeli American Council National Summit in Florida by recounting his record on issues of importance to Jews, including an extensive riff on his promise to recognize Jerusalem as the Israeli capital and relocate the U.S. Embassy there from Tel Aviv. Trump said his predecessors only paid lip service to the issue. "They never had any intention of doing it, in my opinion," Trump said. "But unlike other presidents, I kept my promises." Trump also highlighted his decision to reverse more than a half-century of U.S. policy in the Middle East by recognizing…

Hong Kong police have conducted raids ahead of Sunday afternoon's protest rally, uncovering several weapons, including a pistol with more than 100 bullets. Eleven people were arrested during the raids. Daggers, swords, batons and pepper spray were also recovered in the raids at several locations. The city's organized crime bureau said it believed protesters planned to use the weapons during the demonstration "to  incite chaos" and "impugn the police." The territory is bracing for a large turnout for Sunday's protest.  Hong Kong has given its approval for the rally called by the Civil Human Rights Front, a group that has organized some of the city's biggest demonstrations. Monday marks the sixth month anniversary of the rallies that were initially mounted to rally against a now-withdrawn government proposal that would have…