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This is VOA News. I'm Joe Ramsey.
Saturday's rocket attack that killed a dozen teens and children on a soccer field has sparked new warnings of a wider war between Israel and Hezbollah militants in Lebanon. Reuters correspondent Zachary Goelman reports. Thousands of mourners joined a funeral procession on Sunday for 12 children who were killed in a rocket attack on the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. "There is no justification for terrorism, period, and every indication is that indeed the rockets were from or the rocket was from Hezbollah." U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Tokyo said Israel had the right to defend itself, but he said Washington also did not want to see further escalation in violence. Reuters correspondent Zachary Goelman. Polls began to close on Sunday in Venezuela's most consequential election in a quarter century of Socialist Party rule, with President Nicholás Maduro confident of victory even as the opposition has attracted impassioned support and warned of possible abnormalities. Opposition leader María Corina Machado has been the star of the coalition campaign despite a ban on her [bo...] holding public office and forced her to pass the torch to candidate Edmundo González, a 74-year-old ex-diplomat known for his calm demeanor. The Syrian port of Tartus hosted a parade of warships and other vessels that are included in the Russian Navy's permanent operational unit in the Mediterranean Sea as part of Russia's National Navy Day on Sunday. Syrian representatives greeted the Russian crews and toward the warship. The main naval parade was held in St. Petersburg with Russia's President Vladimir Putin in attendance. This is VOA News. U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Sunday emphasized the importance of a "just and enduring peace" for Ukraine in a meeting with India's foreign minister, the State Department said. The discussion came amid a visit being reportedly planned to Ukraine by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Modi is likely to visit Ukraine in August, various Indian media outlets have reported in recent days, which would be his first visit to the country since Russia invaded in February, 2022, and would come just weeks after he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. Energy is surging around U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris's Democratic Party presidential campaign while Republicans predict it will fade. AP correspondent Jackie Quinn reports. The Democratic presidential campaign says Kamala Harris is closing the polling gap with Donald Trump and raising big money from donors. Just one week in and Kamala Harris's presidential election campaign says she raised $200 million. Key supporter, Maryland governor Wes Moore, on ABC's "This Week" with George Stephanopoulos. "The more people get to know the vice president, the more people are excited about her vision for the future." Campaigning in Minnesota, Trump said of Harris, "She has no clue, she's evil." Republicans predict the buzz over Kamala Harris will soon dissipate. I'm Jackie Quinn. A Dutch beach volleyball player who was convicted of rape was booed before losing his first Olympic match on Sunday. AP correspondent Karen Chammas reports. Steven Van de Velde was convicted in 2016 of having sex with a 12-year-old girl in England. He served a combined 13 months in prison in Britain and the Netherlands. The 29-year-old Olympic rookie was greeted with only a handful of booze when he first took to the sand for warm ups, but the hooting was louder for the more formal pre-match introduction. IOC spokesman Mark Adams told reporters that the decision to let Van de Velde play was one for the Dutch National Olympic Committee to make. "... and they've made that decision. They've made it very clear the safeguarding measures, very extensive safeguarding measures that have been taken for this to carry on." Van de Velde is not staying at the athletes village and has not been available to the media. I'm Karen Chammas. The swimming portion of a practice run for the Olympic triathlon has been canceled because of concerns about water quality in the Seine River. But officials said on Sunday they're confident triathletes will be able to swim in the famed waterway during the actual events this coming week. Men's triathlon scheduled for Tuesday. The women are set to compete on Wednesday. I'm Joe Ramsey. |