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From Washington, this is VOA news. Deadly suicide bombing hits Nigerian school. President Obama promises U.S. commitment to Asia. I'm Ray Kouguell reporting from Washington.
At least 48 people have been killed in a suicide bombing at a school in northeastern Nigeria. Many of them were students. The blast happened Monday in the town of Potiskum in the state of Yobe as students were gathering for a morning assembly at a government-run secondary facility focused on science. Medical workers say at least 79 people were injured, many seriously. Eyewitnesses say the bomber was dressed like a student. There has been no claim of responsibility, but suspicion is falling on militant group Boko Haram. President Obama says his government "welcomes the rise of a prosperous and peaceful China." He commented during a speech to business leaders at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Beijing Monday. "This is my sixth trip to Asia as president, and my second this year alone. And that's because, as I've said on each of my visits, America is a thoroughly Pacific nation. We've always had a history with Asia. And our future -- our security and our prosperity -- is inextricably intertwined with Asia." President Obama also announced a new visa policy with China that will increase the validity of short-term tourist and business visas issued to one another citizens from one to ten years. Iran, the United States and the European Union have wrapped up two days of talks in Oman without any breakthrough on a comprehensive nuclear agreement. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and European Union envoy Catherine Ashton were trying to reach a deal Monday ahead of the looming November 24th deadline for a pact. This is VOA news. A team of 50 American troops deployed in Iraq's volatile western Anbar province for the first time in the fight against Islamic State jihadists. U.S. officials say the team is visiting the al-Asad Air Base to survey the facility for potential use of a larger advise-and-assist operation. The U.S. Defense Department says it cannot [collaborate] confirm reports that Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was killed or wounded in the U.S. airstrike in northern Iraq last Friday. A Pentagon spokesman says that U.S. forces are not specifically targeting Baghdadi in the strike but are trying rather to degrade the group's ability to command its forces. The jihadi group known as Ansar Beit al Maqdis put out a message declaring its loyalty to the Islamic State. We get details from Edward Yeranian. In an audio message purportedly from Ansar Beit al Maqdis, the militant group claims to have pledged its loyalty to the Islamic State and its self-proclaimed caliph, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. The voice cites a number of verses from the Koran to support Ansar Beit al Maqdis' decision to support the Islamic State. It also says Islamic State and its supporters are waging a battle against what it called "Jews and crusaders." Edward Yeranian, Cairo. Knife-wielding Palestinians carried out two attacks Monday in Israel, killing a young woman and critically wounding a soldier. It was the latest violence over tensions at a Jerusalem holy site revered by both Muslims and Jews. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad says a U.N. plan for a cease-fire in rebel-contested Aleppo was "worth studying." Mr. Assad says the plan, however, will need to be worked on to achieve its goals of "returning security" to Aleppo. The plan envisions a freeze in fighting to allow for humanitarian aid through a series of small-scale, locally-negotiated truces. The three-year civil war in Syria has claimed at least 200,000 lives. New reports of violence and convoys of heavy weaponry on the move in eastern Ukraine Monday -- they are increasing doubts about the viability of a shaky cease-fire reached between Kyiv and Russia-backed separatists in September. The Donetsk regional administration reports three civilians and a Ukrainian serviceman were killed and seven others wounded Monday. The United States opened the first of up to 17 Ebola treatment units it is building in Liberia. The new clinic opened Monday in Tubmanburg, about 60 kilometers north of the Liberian capital, Monrovia. According to the World Health Organization, the number of people infected with Ebola appears to be decreasing in Monrovia, but more cases are being detected in other areas of Liberia. More than 2,700 people in Liberia have died from Ebola. That's the latest world news from VOA. |