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From Washington, this is VOA news. Coming up, border violence in eastern Ukraine. Afghan response to the U.S. prisoner exchange. Hello everyone, I'm Steve Norman.
Ukraine says hundreds of heavily armed pro-Russian separatists attacked a government facility on Monday. It happened near the Russian border triggering a day-long battle that left as many as seven people dead. VOA's Gabe Joselow reporting now from Kyiv. A spokesman for Ukraine's so-called anti-terror operations, Vladislav Seleznyov, says about 200 men attacked a border patrol post overnight in the Luhansk region, using small arms and machine-guns. Seleznyov says at the same time snipers fired at the border patrol from positions in a nearby tower block. He says Ukrainian forces suffered some injuries. The battles lasted into the day Monday. The spokesman said the military called in air support, but the aircraft were unable to fire on rebels, who had taken positions near civilians. Gabe Joselow, VOA news, Kyiv. President Obama headed to Europe with stops in Poland, Belgium and France planned. Mr. Obama will be meeting with Ukrainian President-elect Petro Poroshenko while he is in Poland. In France, Mr. Obama will speak Friday at Omaha Beach in Normandy for a ceremony marking the 70th anniversary of the Allied D-Day invasion against Nazi forces in World War II. Russian President Vladimir Putin will also attend. No meetings are scheduled between the Russian and American presidents, but British Prime Minister David Cameron is to meet with President Putin in Normandy. U.S. officials are defending the Taliban prisoner swap that freed an American prisoner of war in Afghanistan, but those who served with Army Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl say he willingly walked away from his post after becoming disillusioned with the U.S. war effort. Military personnel who knew Bergdahl, then 23, when he disappeared nearly five years ago say that while on guard duty, he left his weapons behind and walked off his post. Some say Bergdahl should have to answer for his actions. Bergdahl was captured by Taliban insurgents in June of 2009 and held until the United States won his freedom Saturday by agreeing to release five Taliban terrorism suspects held at Guantanamo Bay. Taliban members were turned over to the government of Qatar, which negotiated the prisoner release. And Afghan's government is angry over the decision on the exchange by U.S. President Barack Obama. VOA's Sharon Behn has details. Afghanistan's Foreign Ministry said the U.S. decision to free five Taliban commanders, then to turn over the detainees to Qatar was a potential breach of international law. Reuters quoted a source close to Afghan President Hamid Karzai who said Mr. Karzai is "even more distrustful" of U.S. intentions in the country. Foreign Ministry spokesman Ahmad Shakeb Mustaghni said Monday the government had handed over an official note to the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, questioning the conditions of the prisoners' release. The prisoner swap secured the release of the only U.S. prisoner of war in Afghanistan, Army Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl. Sharon Behn, Islamabad. Heavy fighting between Islamist and a renegade general have killed 20 people in the eastern Libyan city of Benghazi. More than 80 people were wounded in the clashes. Officials say the fighting began when the Ansar al-Sharia militant group attacked a base of troops loyal to renegade General Khalifa Haftar, killing and wounding several soldiers. General Haftar and so-called National Libyan Army have been fighting militants for months in Benghazi. The United States says it is giving its support to the Palestinians' new unity government despite concerns from Israel that it will [have] give influence to Hamas. State Department spokesperson Jennifer Psaki: "Moving forward we will be judging this government by its actions. Based on what we know now, we intend to work with this government, but will be watching closely to ensure that it upholds the principles that President Abbas reiterated today." Palestinian President [Abbas] Mahmoud Abbas swore in the new unity government Monday following a landmark reconciliation deal with Islamist movement Hamas. Fatah and Hamas have separately governed the West Bank and Gaza Strip for the past seven years. Spain's King Juan Carlos is stepping down from the throne clearing the way for his 46-year-old son, Prince Felipe, to take over. Seventy-six-year Juan Carlos oversaw the country's transition since coming to power in 1975. That's the latest world news from VOA. |