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1. Media Rights Groups Call for Probe Into Shooting of VOA Reporter in Puntland
November 19, 2009
International media rights groups are expressing shock and concern over reports a journalist working for VOA's Somali Service in the semi-autonomous region of Puntland may have been deliberately shot by the police. Tuesday's shooting of reporter Mohamed Yasin Ishaq in the Puntland-administered part of Galkayo in central Somalia has sparked alarm among international media groups already distressed by deteriorating working conditions for journalists in Somalia. The head of the Africa Desk for the Paris-based Reporters Without Borders, Ambroise Pierre, tells VOA reports a Puntland police of... (read more)
Author: Alisha Ryu | Article Views:
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2. US Begins Talks on Iran Nuclear Proposal with International Partners
November 19, 2009
U.S. President Barack Obama says the United States has begun talks with its international partners on the consequences of Iran's failure to respond to a proposed nuclear deal.Speaking in South Korea Thursday, President Obama said a package of potential steps will be developed during the next several weeks with the aim of sending a "clear message" to Iran. He said he continues to hold out the hope that Iran will decide to accept the United Nations-brokered plan, which involves sending its uranium abroad for further enrichment.But Iran's ISNA news agency quoted the foreign minister Wednesday as ... (read more)
Author: VOA News | Article Views:
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3. Climate Change, Political Experts Say Obama Made Progress on China Trip
November 19, 2009
Although President Barack Obama's visit to China did not draw huge crowds and has been criticized in the United States, experts on China say Washington and Beijing made progress in several areas, especially climate change.Critics of President Obama's trip to China focused on what they called Beijing's effort to stage-manage his appearances and limit his ability to talk directly to the Chinese people. China refused a U.S. request to allow a nationwide live television broadcast of President Obama's town hall meeting with university students in Shanghai. Also, Mr. Obama and Chinese Presiden... (read more)
Author: Stephanie Ho | Article Views:
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4. At Least 19 Reported Dead in Pakistan Blast
November 19, 2009
Pakistani officials say a suicide bomber killed at least 19 people outside a court building in Peshawar Thursday, in the latest attack to strike the northwestern city. Volunteers gather outside a courthouse after a suicide bombing in Peshawar, Pakistan, 19 Nov 2009The bombing was the sixth in less than two weeks in and around Peshawar. Officials say the attacker blew himself up when guards were trying to search him at the court's gate. They say three policemen were among... (read more)
Author: VOA News | Article Views:
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5. Karzai Sworn in for Second Term as Afghan President
November 19, 2009
Afghan President Hamid Karzai has been sworn in for a second five-year term following his disputed victory in fraud-marred presidential elections. Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai (L) takes the presidential oath besides Afghanistan's Chief Justice Abdul Salam Azimi during his inauguration at the Presi... (read more)
Author: VOA News | Article Views:
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6. Obama Calls on N. Korea to Return to Talks
November 19, 2009
U.S President Barack Obama is calling on North Korea to return to nuclear talks and he is warning of possible new sanctions on Iran. Mr. Obama spoke in Seoul after talks with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak.The president's day in Seoul began with ceremony - and quickly moved to substance.Topping the agenda: North Korea's nuclear program.The American and South Korean presidents called on the North Koreans to return to multilateral negotiations. And, Mr. Obama announced he is sending a senior envoy to Pyongyang for the first time since taking office."We will be sending Ambassa... (read more)
Author: Paula Wolfson | Article Views:
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7. Ondimba's Visit to Paris Raises Question on France's Policy Toward Gabon
November 18, 2009
 Ali Bongo Ondimba (file photo)Gabonese President Ali Bongo Ondimba is paying a working visit to France this week. Mr. Bongo is expected to lunch with French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Friday, amid criticism that France's old and controversial relationship with Africa has not really changed. President Ali Bongo's visit to France comes less than three months after he succeeded his father as leader of Gabon. It also comes amid criticism from human rights groups after Gabon's government-controlled media council suspended six newspapers on grounds they violated journalism ethics. In June, when President Sarkozy was booed in Gabon... (read more)
Author: Lisa Bryant | Article Views:
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8. Autry Center Exhibit Showcases Native American Basketry
November 18, 2009
 Lidded basket with knob handle, stacked wood design; plain twined; 3-strand twine; beargrass; and maidenhair fernMade by Elizabeth Hickox (Karuk/ Wiyot) Circa 1913The ancient Native American art of basket weaving is undergoing a revival. A new exhibit at the Autry National Center of the American West brings together some of the finest tr... (read more)
Author: Mike O'Sullivan | Article Views:
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9. African Leaders Left Disappointed at End of UN Food Summit
November 18, 2009
A three-day United Nations food summit ended in Rome Wednesday without securing substantial new funds to combat world hunger. Speaking to VOA, African ministers said world leaders are not doing enough to reduce soaring hunger levels on the continent.  Jacques Diouf, Director-General of the FAO the UN, delivers his speech at the headquarters, in Rome, Italy, 16 Nov 2009Participants renewed a pledge made at an FAO summit over a decade ago, to cut the number of hungry... (read more)
Author: Selah Hennessy | Article Views:
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10. US Welcomes Armed Repulsion of Pirate Attack
November 18, 2009
 US-flagged Maersk Alabama arrives to Port of Mombasa, Kenya (File)The United States Wednesday welcomed the repulsion of a band of pirates by gunfire from a private security team on a ship off the northeastern coast of Somalia. Pentagon Spokesman Bryan Whitman said the department is pleased with the success of the team on board the Maersk Alabama, the same ship that was hijacked in April, when it did not have a security team onboard. In that incident, pirates held the ship's captain hostage until an elite unit of U.S. military snipers freed him.Als... (read more)
Author: Al Pessin | Article Views:
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11. Denial of Medical Care Common Blackmail Practice in Russian Prisons
November 18, 2009
Human-rights activists and colleagues of a 37-year-old attorney who died Tuesday in a Moscow prison say it is common practice in Russia to deny medical attention to people in custody as a way to force them to cooperate with prosecutors or corrupt officials. Russian Interior Ministry spokeswoman Irina Dudukina says attorney Sergei Magnitsky died of heart failure in pretrial detention. Magnitsky was a tax lawyer for the London-based Hermitage Capital Management Fund. It was once the largest foreign investor on the Russian stock market. ![]( "British investor William Browder of He... <A HREF=") (read more)
Author: Peter Fedynsky | Article Views:
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12. Sears Tower Plotter Gets Six-Year Sentence
November 18, 2009
One of the five Miami men convicted of plotting to join forces with al-Qaida to attack Chicago's Sears Tower has been sentenced to six years in prison. Burson Augustin (2006 photo)A U.S. District Court Judge, Joan Leonard imposed the sentence on Burson Augustin in a Miami court Wednesday. Prosecutors had sought the maximum sentence of at least 30 years, but the judge said he believed Augustin played a minor role in the conspiracy.Augustin and the four other men were convicted in May on charges of terrorism-related conspiracy. They had allegedly plotted to attack what is now the Willis Tower in Chicago and bomb FBI offices in several other cities.... (read more)
Author: VOA News | Article Views:
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13. Obama Meets Half-Brother in Beijing
November 18, 2009
 Mark Ndesandjo, US President Barack Obama's half-brother, during interview at hotel in Beijing, China, 18 Nov 2009U.S. President Barack Obama says he took five minutes out of his busy
overseas diplomatic schedule to meet a half-brother who lives in China.Mr.
Obama told a U.S. television network that he met Mark Ndesandjo
and his wife briefly Monday in Beijing, where the U.S. president held
meetings with Chinese leaders this week. The president has the
same Kenyan father a... (read more)
Author: VOA News | Article Views:
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14. Obama: Afghanistan Decision Due in Next Several Weeks
November 18, 2009
 US President Barack Obama speaks during joint statement to media with Chinese President Hu Jintao at Great Hall of the People in Beijing, 17 Nov 2009President Barack Obama says he will announce his highly anticipated decision on U.S. strategy in Afghanistan over the next several weeks. The president says the decision will put the United States and its NATO allies on a path toward winning the war.During his... (read more)
Author: Kent Klein | Article Views:
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15. Pakistan Says 6 Militants Killed in South Waziristan
November 18, 2009
Military officials in Pakistan say six alleged militants have been killed after they shot at Pakistani forces in South Waziristan. The military released a statement Wednesday saying the incident near the country's border with Afghanistan took place within the "last 24 hours." The report - which can not be independently verified - also says five soldiers were wounded during the clash. Separately, another three soldiers were injured in a bomb attack. Military officials also say Pakistani troops recovered a "huge quantity" of weapons and ammunition during raids in two villages. Pakistan launche... (read more)
Author: VOA News | Article Views:
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16. Attorney General Defends Decision to Try 9/11 Suspects in Civilian Court
November 18, 2009
 Attorney General Eric Holder testifying on Capitol Hill in Washington, 18 Nov 2009U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder has strongly defended his decision to try Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four other alleged plotters of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in a New York federal court. Facing tough questions from Republican members of the Senate Judiciary Committee Wednesday, Holder rejected concerns that a public, civilian trial will give the suspected terrorists a platform to voice their anti-American views. Attorney General Eric Holder... (read more)
Author: Cindy Saine | Article Views:
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17. African Activism Against Female Circumcision Is Focus of New Film
November 18, 2009
A new film focuses
on the fight by African activists against an ancient practice that is still
performed each year on millions of girls: female circumcision, often known as
FGM, or female genital mutilation. Opponents call it a human rights abuse that
destroys a woman's ability to enjoy sex, is sometimes fatal, and frequently
leads to lifelong pain and disability.
 Agnes Pareyio helped found the Kenyan movement to end FGM“I was forcefully cut when I was 14 years,” says Kenyan
anti-FGM activist Agnes Pareyio. “I
tried to resist; everybody was calling me a coward. There was a lot of peer
pressure on me... (read more)
Author: Carolyn Weaver | Article Views:
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18. UN says Women Especially Vulnerable to Effects of Climate Change
November 18, 2009
The United Nations says women, especially in less developed countries, are more vulnerable to the effects of climate change. The U.N. Population Fund delivered the warning in its annual report issued Wednesday in South Africa. Women fill buckets with water at a water point in a northern neighborhood of Korhogo, Ivory Coast (File)The Africa director of the U.N. Population Fund, Bunmi Makinwa, told reporters Wednesday in Port Elizabeth women are especially susceptible to the consequences of climat... (read more)
Author: Scott Bobb | Article Views:
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19. Space Shuttle Atlantis Docks at ISS
November 18, 2009
The U.S. space shuttle Atlantis has docked at the International Space Station. The space shuttle Atlantis lifts off from Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, 16 Nov 2009Mission commander Charlie Hobaugh successfully guided the shuttle through a flip maneuver Wednesday as it approached the station. The maneuver aimed the belly of the shuttle at the station so that cameras could check for any damage from liftoff.The U.S. space agency, NASA, says all indications are that... (read more)
Author: VOA News | Article Views:
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20. Reports: Afghan Minister Accepted $20 Million Bribe
November 18, 2009
 Afghan Minister for Mines, Mohammad Ibrahim Adel (2008 File photo)News reports say Afghanistan's minister of mines has been accused of accepting a bribe of at least $20 million to steer a lucrative copper mining contract to a Chinese firm. The reports published Wednesday by The Washington Post and the Associated Press say Mohammad Ibrahim Adel accepted the money, shortly after the Afghan government awarded the multi-billion dollar project to the state-run China Metallurgical Group in 2007.The articles quote unnamed U.S. officials who are s... (read more)
Author: VOA News | Article Views:
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21. Chinese Author Described Horrors of Cultural Revolution
November 18, 2009
Chinese-American author Nien Cheng, whose best-selling book "Life and Death in Shanghai" described her imprisonment and torture during China's Cultural Revolution, has died in Washington, D.C. at the age of 94. Her book, published in 1987, chronicled life in China when Communist Party chairman Mao Zedong tried to purge his rivals and reassert power. "It is a powerful story about the dignity of the individual and the power of the individual even in the face of totalitarianism, even in the face of terrible persecution, which included in her case being jailed for six and a half years and havin... (read more)
Author: Sarah Williams | Article Views:
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22. UN Appeals for $144 Million to Help Storm-Ravaged Philippines
November 18, 2009
The United Nations is appealing for $144 million to help victims of three back-to-back storms in the Philippines.This updated appeal nearly doubles the $74 million originally requested in October.According to a statement by the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, just $26 million has been raised so far, limiting the ability of aid agencies to effectively help those in need.Tropical storm Ketsana swept across the Philippines on September 26 and was followed by Typhoon Parma a week later. On October 31, a third storm, Typhoon Mirinae, dumped even more rain onto the island n... (read more)
Author: VOA News | Article Views:
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23. Some Niger Delta Residents Call for Troops Withdrawal
November 18, 2009
 A growing number of residents of Nigeria's oil-rich Niger Delta are demanding the immediate withdrawal of government troops from the region following a successful amnesty and cessation of hostilities. Troops have maintained a high-profile presence in the Niger Delta despite a halt in militant attacks on oil facilities and personnel in the past four months. Soldiers can still be seen at security checkpoints. Many residents, wary of the way the military treat civilians, would like to see the soldiers withdrawn from what they describe as regular police duties.Amnesty International, in a report last year, slammed "the entrenched culture of impunity for hu... (read more)
Author: Gilbert da Costa | Article Views:
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24. Palestinians Say Israeli Move Could Kill Peace Process
November 18, 2009
Palestinian leaders are warning Israel that its approval of 900 new housing units in a disputed area of Jerusalem may kill the peace process. The warning came after the United States condemned the Israeli decision. The Palestinians want Washington to toughen its approach on Israel.  Palestinians attend a rally against the building of Israeli settlements in the West Bank village of Burin, near... (read more)
Author: Luis Ramirez | Article Views:
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25. Report: Afghan Conflict Driven by Poverty
November 18, 2009
 Young Afghan girls help their father cleaning outside of their house in impoverished locality in Kabul (Oct 2009 file photo)A Britain-based charity has found a majority of Afghans see poverty and unemployment as the major cause of conflict in their country. According to the report, interference by neighboring countries was fourth in the tally of factors. Oxfam and a group of Afghan organizations interviewed more than 700 Afghans.After poverty, the Afgh... (read more)
Author: Selah Hennessy | Article Views:
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