VOA NEWS

August 21, 2015

I'm David Forrest reporting. Resignation in Greece.



With a new bailout in his hand, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has resigned. He is calling for an election on September 20.

The resignation of the leftist Mr. Tsipras came in the face of a revolt by lawmakers from his ruling Syriza party. They are angry that the government has failed to live up to its promises to end austerity.



Burundi's President Pierre Nkurunziza was sworn in for a third term Thursday six days ahead of schedule. Mohammed Yusuf takes a look.

President Pierre Nkurunziza, who won re-election in July, took the oath of office Thursday nearly a week earlier than expected. The government has not explained why the swearing-in was moved up with virtually no advance notice.

Local media report that no foreign heads of state were present at the ceremony, although some African countries, as well as China and Russia, sent their ambassadors.

Mohammed Yusuf, Nairobi.



Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter says medical tests reveal he has melanoma, a form of cancer usually associated with the skin.

Mr. Carter says the disease has spread from his liver to his brain.

"We had an MRI of my head and neck, and it showed up it was already in four places in my brain. So I would say that night and the next day, until I came back up to Emory, I just thought I had a few weeks left."

Mr. Carter described himself as surprisingly at ease upon receiving the bad news.



U.S. weather experts say this past July was the hottest month ever recorded and that 2015 will almost certainly break a record for the warmest year.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration says the average global temperature for July was 16.6 degrees Celsius.



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The head of the U.N. nuclear agency is downplaying a media report that the recent Iran nuclear agreement will allow Iran to carry out its own nuclear inspections.

The Associated Press reports that the draft version of a side agreement indicates Iran could use its inspectors to investigate the Parchin military base south of Tehran.

International Atomic Energy Agency Director-General Yukiya Amano says the claim misrepresents the way in which his agency will do its verification work.



A Pakistani newspaper is reporting that the United States is blocking some military aid to Pakistan due to that country's lack of progress in fighting the Haqqani terrorist network.

The Dawn newspaper says U.S. officials determined a counterterrorism offensive that began last June in North Waziristan has not damaged the militant group.

Both the U.S. embassy in Islamabad and the Pakistani Foreign Ministry have refused a comment on the report.



An Islamic State-affiliated group is claiming responsibility for a large car bomb attack outside a state security building in Cairo on Thursday. Dozens of people were wounded.



Four people were killed and 10 injured when a bomb exploded near the governor's office in the Yemeni city of Aden. Heather Murdock reports.

The Aden governor was reportedly in the building but unharmed by the blast, as violence continues, even in a city declared liberated from militants early this month as exiled government officials returned to Yemen.

The United Nations says Yemen's humanitarian crisis has become so severe that millions of people are at risk of famine. But some analysts say there is hope that peace talks will resume as coalition forces retake cities of the south.

Heather Murdock, Cairo.



Chinese officials say cyanide levels more than 350 times the acceptable limit have been found in waters close to the site of the recent Tianjin explosions.

But the city's environmental monitoring director told a news briefing the city's drinking water is safe.

The public, however, remains concerned as pictures of dead fish are circulating on social media.



Thai officials say this week's Bangkok bombing is likely to have been planned by at least 10 people, including some foreigners. They say they do not believed it was carried out by an international terrorist group.



Macedonia is declaring a state of emergency and will send troops to its border with Greece to stop illegal migrants from pouring into the country.

Around 2,000 migrants a day have been crossing into Macedonia from Greece. Nearly all of them are from Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria.

About 1,500 people are stranded in a no-man's land between the two countries.



On Wall Street, U.S. stock indexes were down at the close of trade today. European markets also down.



From the VOA news center in Washington, I'm David Forrest.

That's the latest world news from VOA.