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This is VOA News. I'm Joe Ramsey.
The U.S. Justice Department has announced criminal charges against Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and other militants in connection with last year's October 7 rampage in Israel. The criminal complaint filed in federal court in New York City includes charges of conspiring to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization resulting in death. The impact of the case may be mostly symbolic, given that Sinwar is believed to be hiding out in tunnels. Israel on Wednesday is continuing an almost week-long assault on the northern West Bank to root out what it says is Hamas and Islamic Jihad infrastructure. Palestinians say at least 20 people have been killed. Linda Gradstein reports for VOA from Jerusalem. Palestinians say it is the largest IDF military operation they have seen in the West Bank in more than two decades. The assault is focused on the northern West Bank, including the cities of Jenin and Tulkarem. Israeli officials say the operation targets West Bank terrorist leaders and their forces have killed at least 29 of them. Hamas and Islamic Jihad have said most were members of their organizations. Israeli analysts say Hamas has started focusing on the West Bank after being weakened in Gaza. Linda Gradstein, VOA News, Jerusalem. At least fifty people were killed and 271 wounded when Russia hit a military institute in a Ukrainian central town with two ballistic missiles on Tuesday, the war's deadliest single attack this year. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on the Telegram messaging app, "The Russian scum will definitely be held accountable for this strike." The use of ballistic missiles meant the victims had little time to find cover after the air raid siren sounded, the Foreign Ministry said. This is VOA News. The head of the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog held talks on Tuesday with senior officials in Ukraine after attacks were reported near the Zaporizhia Power Plant. AP correspondent Charles De Ledesma reports. Rafael Grossi, who has highlighted the vulnerability of Ukraine's energy infrastructure due to Russian attacks, is making his sixth visit to the war-torn country since the conflict began in February, 2022. The Zaporizhia plant, Europe's largest, came under Russian control in the wake of its invasion. The IAEA says ongoing attacks in the area and damage to Ukraine's national grid threaten the power supply that's vital to nuclear power stations. I'm Charles De Ledesma. Suspected Boko Haram Islamist militants killed at least three dozen people in northeastern Nigerian (Nigeria) last weekend, according to a military official. Reuters correspondent Emma Jehle reports. People gathered on Tuesday in northeastern Nigeria to bury the victims of a suspected Boko Haram attack in Yobe state. Suspected Islamist militants belonging to the group roared into Mafa village on motorcycles on Sunday afternoon, opening fire on a market and setting shops and homes ablaze. An early estimate from a military official said at least 37 people were killed in the attack. But residents and officials said the death toll could be even higher, with villagers still missing and feared dead after fighters chased them into the bush. Reuters correspondent Emma Jehle. Brazil's top foreign policy adviser on Tuesday slammed Venezuela's arrest warrant for opposition leader Edmundo González as, quote, "very concerning" and said there was a clear authoritarian escalation in the country. Other countries around the Americas, including the United States, Argentina and Peru, also condemned the move. The Venezuelan attorney general's office said on Monday a court had issued an arrest warrant for González, the opposition's erstwhile presidential candidate, accusing him of conspiracy and other crimes amid a dispute over whether he or President Nicolás Maduro won the July 28 election. Thousands of Colombians on Tuesday were forced to walk to work as truckers in major cities blocked highways to protest a recent increase in the price of diesel fuel. Truckers unions in the country have said plans by the government to eliminate diesel fuel subsidies would put their businesses on the edge of bankruptcy. The administration of left-wing President Gustavo Petro argues it must phase out subsidies to cut a growing budget deficit and direct more funds toward education and health. Download the VOA News mobile app. I'm Joe Ramsey, VO... |