French adventurer Jean-Jacques Savin is 36 days into his attempt to cross the Atlantic in a specially built orange barrel. With no engine, sails or paddles, the unusual craft relies on trade winds and currents to push him 4,800 kilometers from the Canary Islands to Caribbean in about three months. On Wednesday, he reported awakingRead more
Iranian crude oil imports by Asia’s top four buyers dropped to the lowest volume in three years in 2018 amid U.S. sanctions on Tehran, but China and India stepped up imports in December after getting waivers from Washington. Asia’s top four buyers of Iranian crude — China, India, Japan and South Korea — imported aRead more
Facebook said Thursday it took down hundreds of “inauthentic” accounts from Iran that were part of a vast manipulation campaign operating in more than 20 countries. The world’s biggest social network said it removed 783 pages, groups and accounts “for engaging in coordinated inauthentic behavior tied to Iran.” The pages were part of a campaignRead more
An emigre who once fled a right-wing strongman in Peru has made his U.S.-based television program a forum for hardline opponents of Venezuela’s leftist President Nicolas Maduro — including some who are quite ready for the shedding of blood. “I am a conspirator in favor of freedom,” Jaime Bayly says. Bayly’s news and opinion programRead more
Lebanon formed a new national unity government on Thursday, ending nine months of wrangling, and Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri said bold moves were needed without delay to address chronic problems facing the heavily indebted state. The government of Hariri, who has Western backing, includes most parties including the heavily armed, Iran-backed Hezbollah, which emerged strongerRead more
Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido says security forces showed up at his wife’s Caracas apartment Thursday in an effort to intimidate him. Guaido said the agents from a feared police unit arrived at the unit Thursday, asking for his wife, Fabiana. In a tweet, Guaido said the incident happened while his 20-month-old daughter and herRead more
Lawyers for alleged Mexican drug kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman are calling the government’s case “a fantasy.” Guzman is on trial in New York for 10 charges ranging from drug trafficking, money laundering, and murder when he allegedly led the Sinaloa drug cartel. In summing up, the defense’s case for the jury, attorney Jeffrey LichtmanRead more
The tomb of Egypt’s famed boy pharaoh, King Tutankhamun, has undergone restoration to help minimize damage by tourists. The work, done by the Getty Conservation Institute after years of research and officially presented Thursday, aims to minimize scratches, dust damage and microbiological growth from breath and humidity brought in by tourists. The nearly intact tombRead more
Three European nations appeared poised Thursday to announce they have created a way for Iran to continue trade with them and avoid re-imposed U.S. sanctions, two Iranian officials said, setting up a potential collision with President Donald Trump’s maximalist approach against Tehran. France, Germany and the United Kingdom created a state company, known as aRead more
Greece will bring Macedonia’s NATO accession agreement to parliament for ratification “in the coming days,” the government spokesman said Thursday, which will bring into effect the change of the country’s name to North Macedonia. Once parliament ratifies the NATO protocol, Greece’s Foreign Ministry will inform Macedonia’s Foreign Ministry of the result, a move which willRead more
At St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Dubai, an effort to transcribe the Bible in the native tongue of its flock saw the holy book presented in 52 languages — a sign of the cosmopolitan welcome awaiting Pope Francis’ upcoming visit to the United Arab Emirates. The diversity among its parishioners can be seen in itsRead more
British banking giant Barclays has drawn up plans to shift more than $200 billion worth of assets from London to Dublin amid mounting business alarm that Britain is more likely now to leave the European Union without an exit deal. With Prime Minister Theresa May’s ruling Conservative government now backing away from a contentious withdrawalRead more
Activists from an anti-globalization group have staged a protest at Google’s Paris headquarters to criticize the company for paying little tax. Attac members gathered at Google’s offices Thursday and set up a pulley to pass bags of fake money between the firm’s premises and a public finance center across the street. According toRead more
U.S.-imposed oil sanctions on Venezuela, announced this week, are part of a larger strategy to both pressure and entice the country’s military to help oust socialist President Nicolas Maduro, according to analysts. “That is the theory. That it is the gamble. That’s the hope. Whether that happens or not, it’s very hard to tell,” saidRead more
Brazilian rescue teams have recovered the bodies of 99 people buried after the rupture last week of a Vale tailings dam, and with over 250 people still missing, relatives at the disaster site are fast losing hope. No survivors have been found in the area of the dam burst since Saturday, indicating the death tollRead more
The U.S. imposed oil sanctions on Venezuela announced this week are part of a larger strategy to both pressure and entice the country’s military to help oust socialist President Nicolas Maduro. VOA’s Brian Padden reports that discontent among some midlevel officers may be growing, but it is unclear if the generals can be persuaded toRead more
Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido is calling on the international community to back his efforts to force embattled President Nicolas Maduro from power and restore democracy to the South American nation. Guaido, the president of the opposition-controlled National Assembly, declared himself interim president last week after the Assembly declared that Maduro’s re-election last May wasRead more
Venezuelan authorities detained three foreign journalists and a driver working for the Spanish news agency EFE on Wednesday, the company said, in the latest arrests of reporters covering U.S.-backed efforts to oust President Nicolas Maduro. Colombian photographer Leonardo Muñoz was arrested with his Venezuelan driver Jose Salas while reporting on protests against the government. HoursRead more