|
This is VOA News. I'm Joe Ramsey.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Tuesday said the Gaza cease-fire deal needs to be done in coming days, adding the United States, Egypt and Qatar will do everything possible to get Hamas on board. "We need to get the cease-fire and hostage agreement over the finish line, and we need to do it now." Blinken, speaking to reporters in Doha, said once Hamas agrees to the proposal presented by Washington to [tas...] tackle disagreements blocking a cease-fire deal, they would also have to get agreement on the implementation details. Turkey's embargo on trade with Israel is facing growing scrutiny amid opposition claims it's being increasingly avoided. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul. Protests against trade with Israel are continuing across Turkey. Opposition parties are bombarding social media with videos condemning the trade and blaming Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. The demonstrations come despite official figures showing that $7 billion bilateral trade has fallen to all but zero since Erdoğan imposed a trade embargo on Israel in May. But analysts say trade is continuing by third parties. Doreen Jones, VOA News, Istanbul. President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday likened Ukraine's incursion into Russia to a 2004 school massacre in which some 330 people died in a hostage siege. Putin visited the school for the first time in almost 20 years, paying tribute to the victims at memorials, including a cemetery, and the sight of the destroyed school where Chechen militants took more than 1,000 people hostage. Meeting mothers who lost children in the siege, Putin said Russia's enemies are again trying to destabilize the country, referring to Ukraine. This is VOA News. India's Supreme Court on Tuesday established a healthcare safety task force made up of doctors who will make recommendations regarding the safety of doctors at their workplaces. AP correspondent Karen Chammas report. The decision comes after the rape and killing of a trainee doctor in Kolkata that sparked nationwide outrage. India's chief justice said the step was in the national interest to ensure doctors' safety. The court also asked the federal agency investigating the killing to submit a report on the status of its investigation. A police volunteer has been arrested and charged with the crime. But the family of the victim alleges it was a gang rape and more people were involved. Since the killing, doctors and medics across India have been holding protests, candlelight marches and even temporarily refused care for non-emergency patients. The doctors say the assault highlights the vulnerability of healthcare workers in hospitals and medical campuses across India. I'm Karen Chammas. Police officials in Kenya say a suspect who confessed to killing 42 women and was being detained over the discovery of dismembered bodies has escaped from police custody. The suspect was being detained at a police station after a court allowed detectives seven more days to investigate his alleged crimes before charging him. The head of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations says he escaped along with 12 other inmates after they cut through wire mesh in the cells and scaled the perimeter wall early on Tuesday. The official says police are investigating and will take action. Millions of people in Nigeria misused drugs, according to statistics from the country's drug enforcement agency, who says some of them are children or teens. Alhassan Bala reports from Kano, Nigeria. According to Nigeria's National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, over 40 million Nigerians engaged in the misuse of drugs, mostly cannabis. Nigeria's National Drug Law Enforcement Agency says that over the past three years it has seized 7.6 million kilograms of illicit drugs such as cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and cannabis. And it has had success in court against those who sell them. According to a 2021 United Nations report, Nigeria will have 20 million drug users by the year 2030. Alhassan Bala, VOA News, Kano, Nigeria. Former U.S. President Barack Obama, first lady Michelle Obama and current second gentleman Doug Emhoff will speak on the second day of the Democratic Party's National Convention. They'll turn their party's attention on Tuesday toward Emhoff's wife, Vice President Kamala Harris, in a face-off against Republican Donald Trump. Download the VOA News mobile app. I'm Joe Ramsey, V... |