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From Washington, this is VOA news. Officials see an end to Ebola in 2015. The U.S. announces new sanctions against North Korea. I'm Vincent Bruce reporting from Washington.
The outgoing head of the United Nations mission to combat Ebola says the worst outbreak of the disease could be ended this year. Friday in Accra, Ghana, Anthony Banbury made his final address as head of the U.N. Mission for Ebola Emergency Response: "I believe we will do it in 2015 and at the end of 2015, and we are going to do it by working very closely not just with governments of the countries but the communities." Banbury discussed significant progress in fighting Ebola since he was appointed in September, but added the crisis is far from over. New sanctions have been announced against North Korea by the United States. President Barack Obama, (in) his executive order, says the new sanctions are a response to the government of North Korea's ongoing "provocative, destabilizing and repressive actions and policies, particularly its destructive and coercive cyber-related actions." That (is) in the wake of the cyber-attack on Sony Pictures Entertainment last year. The sanctions take aim at 3 entities and 10 individuals in the North Korean government. The European Commission said on Friday night that the fight against smuggling will be a top priority in its "comprehensive approach to migration" for 2015. As the commission issued its statement for the second time this week, Italian authorities report taking control of another cargo ship carrying hundreds of migrants that was abandoned at sea by its crew off southern Italy. Italian Coast Guard officials were lowered Friday by helicopter onto the deck of the Ezadeen under the flag of Sierra Leone. This is VOA news. Of the 30 bodies recovered in the search for victims of AirAsia Flight 8501, 21 were found on Friday. That's according to rescue officials. The airliner was carrying 162 passengers and crew. It went down Sunday half way into a flight from Surabaya, Indonesia's second largest city, to Singapore. Minutes before losing contact, the pilot told air traffic control, he was approaching threatening clouds but was denied permission to climb to a higher altitude because of heavy air traffic. It remains unclear what caused the plane to plunge into the sea. The Palestinians have submitted documents to the United Nations to join the International Criminal Court, an appeal ready to seek war crimes charges against Israel during last year's Gaza war. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has threatened unspecified retaliation for the Palestinians' request to join the ICC. The United States has said it is deeply troubled by the Palestinian action. Palestinian ambassador to the U.N. Riyad Mansour: "The Palestinian people and the Palestinian leadership should be commended for joining the ICC and seeking this peaceful, legal, civilized option to seek justice and should not be punished for doing so." Kenya's High Court has suspended key parts of a new national security law signed by President Uhuru Kenyatta in recent weeks. The suspension is pending a full examination of the legislation. Critics say the measures threaten civil liberties and free speech. Gabe Joselow has a report. Opposition lawmakers and the Kenya National Commission on Human Rights brought the challenge against the law to the High Court. KNCHR Commissioner Suzanne Shatikha Chivusia told VOA some of the provisions were oppressive and in violation of the constitution. Chivusia says the law was approved without enough public input or time for lawmakers to debate. Gabe Joselow, Nairobi. Indian officials say a Pakistani fishing boat suspected of carrying explosives blew up in the Arabian Sea after being chased by an Indian Coast Guard vessel. India's Defense Ministry said all four people on board the Pakistani boat were killed in the explosion. The ministry said Indian intelligence indicated the boat was planning an "illicit transaction" when it was intercepted off India's western coast. Stocks. The Dow and S&P 500 in the U.S. were down. NASDAQ saw an increase for the day. The chairman of the Economics Association of Zambia says his group is working with political parties to plan a presidential debate before January 20. The January 20 election that was previously scheduled one had been canceled. I'm Vincent Bruce reporting from Washington. That's the latest world news from VOA. |