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From Washington, this is VOA news. The White House speaks out on the killing of a Palestinian teenager in Israel. Continued violence in eastern Ukraine. I'm Ira Mellman reporting from the VOA news center in Washington.
The White House condemns the killing of a Palestinian teenager whose body was found on the outskirts of Jerusalem. White House spokesman Josh Earnest called the murder of Mohammed Abu Khudair "heinous" and urged both Israeli and Palestinian authorities to take steps to prevent tensions from escalating. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry says the crime was "sickening," adding there were "no words to convey adequately our condolences." Police found burned body shortly after authorities received calls that a Palestinian youth was forced into a car in an Arab section of Jerusalem. They are now awaiting confirmation from a forensics lab that the body is his. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called for a swift investigation into what he called the "reprehensible murder." Palestinian residents suspect Abu Khudair was kidnapped in an act of revenge for the deaths of three Israeli teenagers. Israeli leaders have accused Hamas of abducting and killing the three and vowed to punish the militant group. Authorities arrested hundreds of Hamas members while searching for those teenagers. Israeli police clashed with Palestinians in an East Jerusalem neighborhood Wednesday, following the discovery of the body. Authorities say hundreds Palestinians hurled stones at forces, who responded with tear gas and rubber bullets. Tens of thousands of people gathered in central Israel Tuesday for the burial of the three Israeli teenagers who were kidnapped and missing for nearly three weeks before the bodies were found. Foreign ministers from Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France agreed Wednesday on a series of steps for a resumption of the cease-fire in eastern Ukraine, where fighting between government troops and pro-Russia separatists has taken more than 400 lives since April. Their declaration said the steps include reopening talks no later than this coming Saturday with a goal of reaching an unconditional and mutually agreed, sustainable cease-fire to be monitored by the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. Fighting in eastern Ukraine has increased since a much violated ten-day cease-fire expired late Monday. A military official said four Ukrainian troops were killed as government forces carried out more than a hundred attacks on rebel positions. As delegates from Iran and six world powers arrive in Vienna for a marathon final round of talks, Iran says it is ready to take concrete steps to ensure its nuclear program remains peaceful, but will not "kneel in submission." Speaking in a video message posted on YouTube, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif urged negotiators to use mutual respect in negotiations. The parties face a July 20th deadline for a final agreement or risk the possibility that the talks could be extended and get tougher. "We still have time to exit this spiral of escalation. Try mutual respect. It works. We are trying to reach a deal. Not a good deal or a bad deal, but a doable and lasting deal. And any deal by definition is the outcome of mutual understanding, not imposition by one side or the other." Last month's attempts at a deal aimed at curbing Iran's nuclear program in exchange for lifting U.N. and Western sanctions ended in a stalemate. The increasingly deadly Ebola outbreak in West Africa has regional health ministers meeting to discuss what their countries' response should be. The World Health Organization, sponsor of the two-day event in Ghana's capital, says 467 people have died from the disease in Liberia, Guinea and Sierra Leone. The latest death toll released Tuesday represents a 38 percent jump since the agency's previous update a week ago. The U.S. Homeland Security chief Jeh Johnson says the United States is increasing security at "certain overseas airports with direct flights to the United States." Johnson said Wednesday his department continually assesses the global threat environment and reevaluates measures to promote airport security. He gave no information on what prompted this latest move or which airports are involved. Obama administration officials have told Western news agencies that the U.S. plans to boost security at some foreign airports over concerns that al-Qaeda may be developing new bombs that could be smuggled onto an airplane. I'm Ira Mellman. That's the latest world news from VOA. |