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World News Articles and Ezines
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151. US General: IS Captures Heavy Weapons in Palmyra
December 14, 2016
Islamic State militants captured heavy military weapons, possibly including air defense equipment, when they retook the Syrian town of Palmyra from Syrian and Russian forces, according to the U.S. general leading the fight against the terror group.
“I think they (Russia and Syria)… probably took their eye off the ball in Palmyra because they were so focused on Aleppo, and they didn't properly secure their gains,” Lt. Gen. Stephen Townsend told Pentagon reporters via teleconference...(read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (Carla Babb)
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152. Egypt Freezes Media Company's Assets
December 14, 2016
The chairman of two independent Egyptian newspapers, including one of the country's only English-language papers, said Wednesday that the company's assets had been frozen for alleged ties to the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood, a charge he denied.
The Muslim Brotherhood's activities were banned in 2013 after the army ousted Egypt's first freely elected President Mohamed Morsi of the Brotherhood following mass protests against his one-year rule.
The government formed a...... (read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (Reuters)
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153. Trump Hotels Pulls Out of Rio Hotel Named in Criminal Probe
December 14, 2016
The Trump Organization said Wednesday it has pulled out of a hotel venture in Rio de Janeiro that is part of a criminal investigation in Brazil, with a Trump Hotels spokeswoman citing construction delays and differences in vision.
The Trump Hotel Rio de Janeiro, a beachfront property with 170 rooms near where the Olympic Park was located, was managed by the real estate company of President-elect Donald Trump, although no money from the Trump Organization was invested in the...... (read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (Reuters)
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154. Putin Named ‘Most Powerful’ for Fourth Straight Year
December 14, 2016
Russian President Vladimir Putin has been named the world’s most powerful man for 2016 by Forbes magazine, the fourth straight year he has won.
U.S. President-elect Donald Trump came in second, according to the magazine, which issued its annual list Wednesday.
"Russia's president has exerted his country's influence in nearly every corner of the globe," according to the business magazine.
Forbes said the 64-year-old president “continues to get what he wants,” as he...... (read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (VOA News)
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155. Uzbekistan's New Leader Promises Major Government Reshuffle
December 14, 2016
Uzbekistan's new president, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, took the oath of office Wednesday, pledging to protect the legacy of his veteran predecessor Islam Karimov, but also signaling plans for a big shake-up of the government.
Karimov, who died of a stroke in September, ruled the Central Asian nation of 32 million people for 27 years with a firm hand, brooking no dissent, keeping tight state control of the economy and steering an isolationist foreign policy.
Mirziyoyev, who served as...... (read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (Reuters)
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156. Teen Jackie Evancho Is First Singer Confirmed for Trump Inauguration
December 14, 2016
Classical crossover singer Jackie Evancho, who charmed TV audiences as a child on "America's Got Talent" six years ago, will sing the U.S. national anthem at the inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump — the first performer to be announced for the ceremony.
Trump's inaugural committee made the announcement Wednesday, saying Evancho, 16, "represents the best and the brightest of America."
"I'm so excited. It's going to be awesome,"...... (read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (Reuters)
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157. Ukraine Security Chief Calls for Better Cyber Defense Against Russia
December 14, 2016
A Ukrainian security chief said on Wednesday Ukraine needed to beef up its cyber defenses, citing a recent spate of attacks on government websites that he said originated in Russia.
Over the past week, Ukraine's Finance and Defense ministries and State Treasury said their websites had been temporarily downed by attacks aimed at disrupting their operations.
"These attacks were planned in advance and coordinated from a center based in the Russian Federation," the secretary...... (read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (Reuters)
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158. Suspended Venezuela Tries to Crash S. American Trade Bloc Talks
December 14, 2016
Venezuela's Foreign Minister Delcy Rodriguez failed to get into a meeting of the Mercosur trade bloc on Wednesday after threatening to enter through the window if necessary, despite her country being thrown out of the group this month.
The meeting, at Argentina's foreign ministry in Buenos Aires, also grouped fellow South American nations Brazil, Uruguay, Bolivia and Paraguay.
"If they close the door to us we will, as our president [Nicolas] Maduro has said, go through the...... (read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (Reuters)
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159. Trump's Transition Performance Rating Trails Predecessors: Poll
December 14, 2016
A new Gallup poll shows Donald Trump's efforts to transition into the U.S. presidency are rated lower than his past three predecessors during similar points in time.
Americans are evenly split on the president-elect's handling of his transition to the White House, with 48 percent approving and 48 percent disapproving. President Barack Obama enjoyed a 75 percent approval rating during the same period in 2008. Sixty-five percent of Americans approved of George W. Bush's...... (read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (VOA News)
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160. 2 Out of 3 Health Facilities in Nigeria's Borno Destroyed or Idle
December 14, 2016
Two-thirds of health facilities in Nigeria's Borno state - the center of the Boko Haram insurgency - have either been destroyed or ceased to function, according to a new report.
The World Health Organization (WHO) said in its report Wednesday that at least 35 percent of the 743 medical facilities in the state are completely destroyed.
It says of the surviving facilities, 31 percent are not functioning, mostly due to a lack of access because of insecurity. Other health...... (read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (VOA News)
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161. Straight Talk Africa
December 14, 2016
Shaka Ssali hosts this call-in program that examines topics of special interest to Africans.... (read more)
Author: VOA News
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162. December 14, 2016
December 14, 2016
A look at the best news photos from around the world.... (read more)
Author: VOA News
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163. Nigerian Women's Soccer Team Protest at Unpaid Victory Bonuses
December 14, 2016
Nigeria's national women's soccer team, the Super Falcons, demonstrated outside parliament Wednesday to demand they receive unpaid bonuses for winning Africa's international championship an eighth time.
More than a dozen members of the football team, decked out in the national colors of green and white and bearing placards, protested outside the National Assembly in the capital Abuja together with their supporters.
The demonstrations came on the day President Muhammadu...... (read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (Reuters)
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164. UN Official: S. Sudan on 'Brink of an All-out Ethnic Civil War'
December 14, 2016
South Sudan is “on the brink of an all-out ethnic civil war which could destabilize the entire region,” the head of a team of U.N. investigators told the U.N. Human Rights Council on Wednesday, describing a shattered country where children as young as 2 have been raped.
Yasmin Sooka addressed the council at a meeting in Geneva requested by the United States as alarm grows about the rise of hate speech by South Sudanese officials and others as civil war grinds on.
Tens of...... (read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (Associated Press)
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165. New Law Would Reorganize VOA, Other US Government Broadcasters
December 14, 2016
Control over U.S. government international broadcasting will be consolidated under a powerful chief executive, under legislation expected to soon be signed by President Barack Obama.
The changes were included as part of an annual defense funding bill, the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act, which was passed last week by both houses of Congress.
The bill restructures the leadership of the Broadcasting Board of Governors, the U.S. government agency that supervises the Voice of...(read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (William Gallo)
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166. Twitter Rolls Out Live Streaming
December 14, 2016
Not to be left behind by Facebook Live, Twitter Wednesday unveiled a new live streaming service.
According to a post on the site’s blog, “You can create and Tweet live video from the Twitter app, powered by Periscope.”
To broadcast, Twitter says you simply have to tap “Live” when composing a tweet. That will bring you to a “pre-broadcast” screen, where you can make sure the shot is right.
When you’re ready, you hit “Go Live” so people can start watching you.
Those...... (read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (VOA News)
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167. Monitoring Group: Jihadists Manufactured Weapons Ahead of Mosul Offensive
December 14, 2016
In the months leading up to the assault on the Iraqi city of Mosul, Islamic State militants manufactured tens of thousands of mortar rounds, rockets, bombs and ammunition — part of an industrial-scale enterprise across the self-styled caliphate that’s been producing weaponry to a standard matching that of national armies, according to an arms monitoring group.
The militants’ production system is characterized by firm quality control and high levels of technical precision. Managed...(read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (Jamie Dettmer)
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168. Africa 54
December 14, 2016
Vincent Makori heads up the reporting team to inform you about Africa, the U.S. and the world.... (read more)
Author: VOA News
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169. Democrats Want Trump to Dump his Stake in DC Hotel
December 14, 2016
Four Democrat congressmen are calling for President-elect Donald Trump to divest any stake he holds in the Trump International Hotel in Washington, D.C., before he takes office in January, citing a clause in the lease that forbids any elected official from profiting off the hotel.
In a letter sent to the General Services Administration, the government agency that owns the hotel and leases it to Trump, the four Democrats say Trump would violate the lease the minute he is sworn in on...(read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (VOA News)
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170. Economists Predict Small US Interest Rate Climb
December 14, 2016
Top U.S. central bank officials are widely expected to raise the key interest rate slightly Wednesday, and investors are watching closely for clues about how much higher rates will go and how fast they will climb over the next year or so.
Officials are likely to raise the key rate a quarter of a percent to a range between half- and three-quarters-of-one-percent. That is still very low by historic standards and is the first rate increase in a year. During the recession, the U.S. Federal...... (read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (VOA News)
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171. Amazon Drone Makes First UK Delivery
December 14, 2016
Online retailer Amazon has completed its first delivery by drone.
The drone delivered an Amazon Fire TV streaming device and a bag of popcorn Wednesday to a user in the Cambridge area of the United Kingdom.
According to a tweet from Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, the delivery was made within 13 minutes of the order being placed.
While successful, it may still be some time before delivery drones are widespread, as there are only two customers as part of its “Prime Air” trial.
That...... (read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (VOA News)
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172. Greenpeace Protesters Detained for Blocking EDF's Paris HQ
December 14, 2016
French police detained dozens of Greenpeace protesters Wednesday who were blocking the Paris headquarters of EDF, the public electricity company that operates the nuclear power plants in France.
Officers were seen rappelling down the front of the EDF building to take down a big protest banner and lower down activists perched on the rooftop.
Activists protesting the pro-nuclear policy of EDF had handcuffed themselves to heavy yellow barrels and lined up along the main...... (read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (Associated Press)
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173. Police: Notorious 86-Year-Old Jewel Thief Strikes Again
December 14, 2016
Police just outside Atlanta say a notorious 86-year-old jewel thief has struck again.
Dunwoody police say Doris Payne was arrested Tuesday at a Von Maur department store. A police report says Payne put a $2,000 necklace in her back pocket and tried to leave the store.
Authorities have said Payne has lifted pricey baubles from countless jewelry stores around the world in an illicit career that has spanned six decades. She was the subject of a 2013 documentary, "The Life and...... (read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (Associated Press)
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174. China Building Military Defense Structures on Artificial Islands
December 14, 2016
The Chinese government appears to have constructed several large military defense structures on artificial islands it built in contested areas of the South China Sea.
Aerial photos published Wednesday in a report by the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative show the build-up of large anti-aircraft guns and what appear to be smaller missile-defense systems on each of China’s outposts in the Spratly Islands.
The group, which has been monitoring the military construction via satellite...... (read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (VOA News)
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175. Afghanistan Continues to Fume over Russia’s Outreach to Taliban
December 14, 2016
Officials and lawmakers in Afghanistan continue to question and denounce Russia’s recent disclosure that it maintains “limited political” contacts with the Taliban.
The ongoing session of the Afghan parliament has witnessed a heated debate on the issue, with some lawmakers condemning Russia’s outreach to the Islamist insurgency as “shameful” while others accusing Moscow of providing modern warfare to Taliban fighters.
Lawmakers also criticized neighboring Iran for backing the...(read more)
Author: webdesk@voanews.com (Ayaz Gul)
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