VOA NEWS

December 13, 2016

From Washington, this is VOA news. I'm David DeForest reporting.



A monitoring group says the battle for the Syrian city of Aleppo has reached its end. The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says rebel forces are withdrawing from their last holdouts in the face of advancing government troops.

Celebrations broke out in the streets of government-controlled west Aleppo when the news spread.

Meanwhile, about 200 kilometers to the southeast, the Islamic State group is reported in full control of Palmyra after four days of fighting outside the city.



The Israeli air force is getting a boost with the arrival of America's top warplane. Robert Berger takes a look.

Two F-35 stealth fighter jets roared into an air force base in southern Israel where they were welcomed by Israeli leaders and U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter.

"There is no better symbol of the U.S. commitment to Israel's security than the F-35."

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has threatened in the past to attack Iran's nuclear program, said Israel's "long arm has just become longer."

Robert Berger, Jerusalem.



Portugal's António Guterres has been sworn as the ninth U.N. secretary-general.

"To tell the truth is the only way to re-establish confidence in human relations. It's only way to re-establish confidence in international relations. And I believe it is with truth that I need to engage with all governments in the world and, of course, also with the next government of the United States, showing a clear will to cooperate in relation to the enormous challenges that we'll be facing together."

Guterres told member states that "the United Nations needs to be nimble, efficient and effective."



This is VOA news.



U.S. President-elect Donald Trump fired a new broadside Monday at the Central Intelligence Agency's reported finding that Russia interfered in the presidential election to help Trump win.

Trump said if Democrat Hillary Clinton had won and Republicans had complained of Russian interference, they would have been accused of promoting a conspiracy theory.

He says it's hard to identify hackers and he asked why the subject wasn't raised before the election.

Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell Monday endorsed a bipartisan probe of alleged Russian interference in the election, pointedly declaring that "Russians are not our friends."



The European Union and Cuba have signed an agreement to normalize ties that had been blocked for decades by human rights concerns under the late dictator, Fidel Castro.

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla and European Union foreign affairs chief Federica Mogherini signed the document.

"Today we signed an historic agreement. For the first time ever, the European Union and Cuba have a formal framework for bilateral relations. This is indeed the result of a long process."

The agreement was signed Monday in Brussels.



Turkish state media say police Monday detained 118 Peoples' Democratic Party officials over alleged links to Kurdish militants.

Country-wide operations were launched after an offshoot of the Kurdistan Workers Party, or PKK, claimed responsibility for two bombings outside an Istanbul football stadium Sunday.

At least 38 people were killed, more than 150 wounded in that attack.

The Turkish army says Turkish warplanes quickly carried out airstrikes against PKK targets in northern Iraq, destroying a headquarters of the militants and surrounding gun positions and shelters.



The United States and the European Union have imposed sanctions on officials in the Democratic Republic of Congo who allegedly used violence as well as other means to delay the country's elections.

President Joseph Kabila's second and, according to the constitution, final term is due to end in one week on December 19. But Mr. Kabila plans to remain in office beyond that date. He reached an agreement with an opposition faction to delay elections until 2018.

The majority of the opposition now is rejecting that arrangement and is demanding that Mr. Kabila step down next Monday.



West African leaders will travel to Gambia on Tuesday. They will try to convince President Yahya Jammeh to step down after his loss in the December 1 election.

Mr. Jammeh initially conceded defeat to Adama Barrow but withdrew his concession late Friday, saying "unacceptable errors" were found by election officials.



On Wall Street, U.S. stock indexes were mixed at the close of trade today.



In Washington, I'm David DeForest.

That's the latest world news from VOA.