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From Washington, this is VOA news. I'm David Byrd reporting. President Barack Obama has repeated his regret Friday for the deaths of two hostages in a U.S. counter-terrorism operation, saying that "we all bleed when we lose an American life."
Speaking in Washington to members of the U.S. intelligence community, Mr. Obama said the news that American aid worker Warren Weinstein and Italian Giovanni Lo Porto had been killed was "hard" for him to absorb. "We're going to review what happened. We're going to identify the lessons that can be learned and any improvements and changes that can be made. And I know those of you who are here share our determination to continue doing everything we can to prevent the loss of innocent lives." Mr. Obama's comments came just one day after he announced the deaths of the two hostages who were being held by al-Qaeda on the Afghan-Pakistan border. A U.S. official told VOA Thursday the two men were killed January 14 during airstrikes by drone aircraft. A U.S. Defense Department official says tensions in the Arabian Sea have lessened over the prospect of Iranian ships delivering weapons to Houthi rebels in Yemen. Pentagon spokesman Colonel Steve Warren told reporters Friday that an Iranian naval convoy headed for Yemen has changed course and now appears to be on course to return to Iran. The Pentagon has deployed U.S. warships to Yemeni waters to ensure that key Gulf shipping channel stay open. Meanwhile, the United Nations says the civilian death toll since a Saudi-led bombing campaign started late last month is estimated at 551, including 115 children. After a brief calm in the Yemeni capital, Sana'a, the airstrikes continued on Friday. This is VOA news. The United Nations refugee agency has praised plans by the European Union to triple its funding for maritime search-and-rescue operations in the Mediterranean. The U.N. High Commission for Refugees said Friday that broadening search-and-rescue operations is an "important step." However, UNHCR spokesman Adrian Edwards added that refugees must have some other avenue to get to safety if the problem of refugee deaths at sea is to be solved. "Efforts still need to be made to address the root causes pushing people to flee, and to support governments in truly protecting refugees and others more effectively, ensuring full respect for their human rights." Europe's border protection agency, Frontex, also welcomed the decisions to increase funding, which resulted from an emergency meeting on migrant safety Thursday in Brussels. Thousands of people and several world leaders gathered in Armenia Friday to mark the 100th anniversary of the World War I killing of Armenians by Ottoman Turks. Guests visited a memorial - a hilltop monument leaning in toward a flame set in a sunken bowl. Each guest put a yellow carnation on a forget-me-not wreath, the anniversary symbol. Speaking at the site in the capital, Yerevan, Armenian President Serge Sarkisian thanked world leaders for their presence and their commitment to human values by saying nothing is forgotten. Armenia refers to the killing of up to one and one half million Armenians during World War I as genocide. Turkey accepts that many Christian Armenians were killed in fighting during the war but denies it amounted to genocide. U.N. special envoy Angelina Jolie has pleaded with world leaders to help millions of Syrian refugees. Speaking in New York Friday, Jolie also sharply criticized the U.N. Security Council for its lack of action to help Syrian refugees and war victims. "International humanitarian law prohibits torture, starvation, the targeting of schools and hospitals. But these crimes are happening every day in Syria." The actor who has made 11 visits to [visit] Syrian refugees in the region said the Council's power has not been used because it cannot agree on how to handle the conflict. And U.S. authorities asked visitors to leave the Statue of Liberty in New York Friday after a report of a suspicious package. The National Park Service said in a statement later Friday that all visitors and personnel were safe. Local media reported the evacuation was ordered after someone telephoned a bomb threat Friday morning and police dogs detected a suspicious scent on a package. For more on these stories, visit our website voanews.com. I'm David Byrd in Washington. That's the latest world news from VOA. |