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Hi, I'm VOA's Alexis Strope with your worldwide news update.
Syrian opposition fighters have reached the suburbs of the capital Damascus and government forces abandoned the central city of Homs as the rebels' surprising offensive picks up speed. President Bashar Assad's whereabouts are unknown. Homs is an important intersection between Damascus and Syria's coastal provinces that are the Syrian leader's base of support. In Damascus, residents described a city on edge, with security forces on the streets and many shops running out of staple foods. The rapidly developing events have shaken the region. Lebanon said it was closing all its land crossings with Syria, except for one that links Beirut with Damascus. Jordan also closed a border crossing with Syria. South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol survived an impeachment motion in the opposition-led parliament on Saturday that was prompted by his short-lived attempt to impose martial law this week after members of his party walked out on the vote. Reuters correspondent ??? reports. Opposition protesters shouted at the lawmakers who walked out on the vote, calling them collaborators. The motion failed to gain the minimum 200 votes to make it count, forcing National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik to declare it scrapped. "The entire nation is watching the decision being made here at the National Assembly today," Wu said. "It's very regrettable that there wasn't even a vote on such a major national issue." Outside parliament, protesters flooded the streets demanding Yoon be gone. While he did not offer to step down, his party's leader Han Dong-hoon later said the party had decided that Yoon would resign in an "orderly" manner. Han told reporters that until Yoon leaves, he would be, quote, "effectively excluded from his duties and the prime minister will consult with the party to manage state affairs." That was Reuters correspondent ???. This is VOA News. An explosion destroyed an apartment block in The Hague on Saturday. VOA's Christina Menenti reports. An explosion and fire has rocked a neighborhood in the Dutch city of The Hague, killing three people and injuring other people and destroying several apartments. Residents of the northeastern neighborhood heard a huge bang and screams before dawn. The cause of the disaster is unclear. Emergency authorities said four people were rescued from the rubble and taken to the hospital. The mayor said rescuers were no longer looking for survivors but for eventual bodies, but could not specify how many people might still be unaccounted for. "We expect this operation to take a long time. We'll continue to search through the night." Dutch authorities have deployed a specialized urban search and rescue team to find victims. Christina Menenti, VOA News. U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has announced that the U.S. will provide nearly $1 billion more in longer-term weapons support to Ukraine. "Now that package will provide Ukraine with more drones, more rockets for its HIMARS systems and more support for crucial maintenance and sustainment. And that brings a total of U.S. security assistance committed to Ukraine since February 2022 to more than $62 billion." The Biden administration is rushing to spend all the congressionally approved money it has left to bolster Kyiv before President-elect Donald Trump takes office next month. It was a somber observance on the anniversary of the 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. AP correspondent Jackie Quinn reports. There were survivors of the Pearl Harbor attack on hand for the annual remembrance ceremony of the deadly bombing that killed more than 2,000 U.S. service members. "Navy Region Hawaii arriving." The Navy hosting a remembrance every year at the site where Japan bombed the USS Arizona, killing some 2,300 service members, December 7, 1941. Admiral Stephen Koehler, commander of the Pacific Fleet: "We gather here today to remember the date which lives in infamy. Eighty-three years ago today, on a beautiful morning, just like this one, Pearl Harbor was assaulted and the world changed." There are estimated to be just 16 survivors who are at least 100 years old. Their valor highlighted to guide future generations. I'm Jackie Quinn. A pair of ruby slippers that were worn by Judy Garland in "The Wizard of Oz" and stolen nearly two decades ago have fetched $28 million at auction. The iconic slippers were auctioned off to the highest bidder Saturday. The slippers were on display at the Judy Garland Museum in her hometown of Grand Rapids, Minnesota, in 2005 when a thief used a hammer to smash the glass of the door and display case. Their whereabouts remained a mystery until the FBI recovered them in 2018. That wraps up this update, but the world and news never stop. For additional updates, visit our website. I'm Alexis Strope, VOA News. |