VOA NEWS

December 7, 2014

From Washington, this is VOA news. Zimbabwe's first lady is appointed to political office. An American journalist killed in a failed exercise in Yemen. I'm Vincent Bruce reporting from Washington.



Zimbabwe's ruling party has confirmed first lady Grace Mugabe as the new head of its women's wing, a sign of her increasing political influence in the southern African country.

The ZANU-PF party appointed Mrs. Mugabe to her new post on Saturday during the party's annual conference, attended by thousands of supporters in Harare. The new position also gives her a seat on the ruling party's top decision-making committee, the Politburo.



An American photojournalist and a South African teacher were killed during a U.S.-led rescue attempt Saturday in Yemen.

In Afghanistan, U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel told reporters American photographer Luke Somers and teacher Pierre Korkie were murdered [by their al-Qaeda in] by the al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula captors during the attempted rescue. Gillian Parker reports for VOA from Johannesburg.

U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said the 33-year-old American had been under an execution threat since Thursday.

"He was murdered during an attempt by American forces to rescue him from terrorist groups in Yemen."

Hagel said further details of the attempt to rescue Korkie and Somers would be released later.

Gillian Parker, for VOA news, Johannesburg.



Authorities in the central Philippines are starting to assess the damage from Typhoon Hagupit, which struck the east coast Saturday with winds as high as 210 kilometers per hour.

Residents of remote Samar Island spent a terrifying night listening to the wind and rain pound against windows and buildings. Power is out throughout the region.



More at voanews.com. This is VOA news.



Pakistani officials are reporting Adnan Shukrijumah, a top al-Qaeda leader wanted in the United States for a 2009 plot to attack the New York subway system, was killed in an early Saturday morning raid in South Waziristan. Reports say two of his accomplices also were killed.



The U.S. plan to cut U.S. troop levels to 9,800 in Afghanistan by the end of this year has changed.

At a news conference in Kabul Saturday, outgoing U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel announced as many as 1,000 more U.S. troops will stay in Afghanistan during the first few months of 2015.

Hagel said President Barack Obama decided to adjust the withdrawal timeline because of delays in other Western nations' contributions of forces for a NATO support mission beginning in January.



U.S. Vice President Joe Biden says the chances of a nuclear deal with Iran are less than half, but says it is still a chance.

He spoke at a Mideast forum in Washington's Brookings Institute Saturday. Biden repeated the White House vow that it will not let Iran acquire a nuclear weapon, adding that there can be no discussion on that point.



The African Union's Special Envoy for Women, Peace and Security, Bineta Diop, says she will lead a delegation to meet with mothers of the abducted Chibok schoolgirls in Nigeria.

Bineta Diop, [the African Union's Special] again, the Special Envoy for Women, Peace and Security will that delegation on Sunday.

Militants from the radical Islamist group Boko Haram kidnapped over 200 girls from Chibok nearly eight months ago.

Diop tells VOA "I think this is time really for us as African to make sure that we show the solidarity."

Diop says one of the objectives of her trip is to echo the voices of the women and support their efforts to bring an end to the ordeal of the Chibok girls and other forms of gender-based violence.



Members of parliament in Somalia have voted to oust Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed, making him the second prime minister removed by lawmakers in less than a year.

Today's no-confidence vote was the result of tensions between the prime minister and President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud over a cabinet shuffle.



A Syria monitoring group says the Islamic State militant group has captured part of a key government air base in eastern Syria.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said Saturday the militants seized portions of Deir al-Zor base after launching a major offensive. The base is a key prize for the Islamic State fighters who have seized territory in eastern Syria as part of self-declared "caliphate" that stretches into neighboring Iraq.



I'm Vincent Bruce reporting from Washington.

That's the latest world news from VOA.