Month: August 2023

In a Papal First, Pope Frances to Meet Mongolia’s ‘Noble’ People

Pope Francis described his visit later this week to Mongolia, the first-ever pilgrimage by a pontiff to the east Asian country, as a much-desired occasion to encounter a “noble, wise” people.  Speaking to the public in St. Peter’s Square, Francis said Sunday the trip would also be an opportunity to embrace the Catholic community there, describing the church in Mongolia as “small in numbers but lively in faith and great in charity.” The pilgrimage is also an opportunity “to meet up close with a noble, wise people,” he said.  Francis departs Thursday, returning to Rome four days later. There are …

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Ukrainian High Jumper Takes Gold in Emotional Close to World Championships

Yaroslava Mahuchikh, the best high jumper in the war-torn country of Ukraine, won a gold medal Sunday night to bring an emotional close to the track and field world championships.  The very last person competing in the final event of the nine-day meet, Mahuchikh cleared 2.01 meters (6 feet, 7 inches) to win her first major outdoor title and set herself up as a favorite at the Olympics next year.  Her evening came to a close moments after Femke Bol of the Netherlands, whose fall on opening night cost her team a medal in the mixed 4×400 relay, made up …

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Russia Says Genetic Testing Confirms Prigozhin’s Death

Russia says the remains of Yevgeny Prigozhin, leader of the Wagner mercenary group, were confirmed among the dead from a fatal plane crash last week in Russia. The country’s Investigative Committee said genetic testing verified his identity. The crash of the private jet came two months after Prigozhin led a failed uprising against the Kremlin. VOA’s Arash Arabasadi has more. …

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Russia: Mercenary Leader Prigozhin Confirmed Dead in Plane Crash

Russian investigators said Sunday that genetic and forensic testing showed that Yevgeny Prigozhin, the chief of the Wagner mercenary fighters in Ukraine, was among the 10 people killed in a plane crash last week in Russia. Russia’s aviation agency said the testing confirmed that a previously published list of names of the people on board the flight was accurate, and that Prigozhin, his top two lieutenants, Dmitry Utkin and Wagner logistics mastermind Valery Chekalov, were among the ten victims. There had been some questions, especially on pro-Wagner Telegram channels, about whether Prigozhin — who was known to take various security …

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Spain’s Soccer Federation to Hold Urgent Meeting Over Rubiales Kiss Scandal 

Spain’s soccer federation will meet urgently on Monday as its president, Luis Rubiales, faces a FIFA suspension and a storm of criticism over allegations he gave a player an unwanted kiss on the lips following Spain’s victory in the Women’s World Cup. Rubiales has steadfastly refused to resign over the incident with player Jenni Hermoso last Sunday in Sydney, saying the kiss was consensual. Players and a string of coaches on the women’s squad are demanding he go, and the government also wants him out. The Royal Football Federation (RFEF) has called regional federations to an “extraordinary and urgent” meeting …

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More Than 600 Firefighters, Water-Dropping Aircraft Struggle to Control Wildfires in Greece 

More than 600 firefighters, including reinforcements from several European countries, backed by a fleet of water-dropping planes and helicopters were battling three persistent major wildfires in Greece Sunday, two of which have been raging for days. A massive blaze in the country’s northeastern regions of Evros and Alexandroupolis, believed to have caused the deaths of 20 people, was burning for a ninth day. The blaze, one of the largest single wildfires ever to have struck a European Union country, has decimated vast tracts of forest and burnt homes in the outlying areas of the city of Alexandroupolis. On Sunday, 295 …

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Україна та РФ ведуть бої за стратегічно важливі газові та нафтові платформи у Чорному морі – британська розвідка

Повідомлення про удари військ ЗСУ по бурових установках незаконно привласненого Росією «Чорноморнафтогазу», які ще називають «вишками Бойка», надходять з червня минулого року …

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Italian Leader Tones Down Divisive Rhetoric But Carries on With Far-Right Agenda

When Giorgia Meloni was running to become Italy’s first far-right head of government of the post-war era, she steeped her winning campaign in the sharply ideological rhetoric of national sovereignty, “traditional families” and fear of migrants. Since taking office in September, Premier Meloni has toned down the bombast reflected in the slogans she shouted last year at a rally in Spain for a far-right ally — ” Yes to natural families! No to LGBT lobbies!” But her government and her party’s lawmakers are still pursuing multiple far-right policies, including refusing to allow the names of some same-sex parents’ to be …

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Russian Ships Return From Joint Pacific Patrol With Chinese Ships

A detachment of Russia’s navy warships returned from more than three weeks of joint patrolling of the Pacific Ocean with Chinese navy ships, the Russian Interfax news agency reported Sunday. Warships of Russia’s Pacific Fleet, together with a detachment of Chinese navy ships traveled more than 7,000 nautical miles through the Sea of Japan, the Sea of Okhotsk, the Bering Sea and the Pacific Ocean, Interfax reported, citing the Fleet’s press service. During the patrol, the Russian-Chinese detachment passed along the Kuril ridge, the agency reported. The islands, off the northern Japanese island of Hokkaido, are known in Russia as …

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Exiled Russian Journalist Describes ‘Poisoning’ Ordeal on German Train

Despite the killings of four of her colleagues for their reporting, Russian journalist Elena Kostyuchenko never considered that she had been poisoned when she fell ill on a train to Berlin. “When you work as an investigative reporter in Russia you are always careful,” she told Reuters. “You have lots of protocols you’re following all the time. But when I found myself in Europe, I totally forgot all these security measures.” German prosecutors are investigating whether Kostyuchenko, who is now living in hiding, was the victim of an attempted murder when she became ill last October. Her symptoms started with …

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American Journalist Appeals Extension of Pretrial Detention in Russia

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich has appealed a Moscow court’s decision to extend his pretrial detention in Russia until the end of November, according to documents on the court’s website.  The American journalist was arrested in March during a work trip to the city of Yekaterinburg, almost 2,000 kilometers (1,200 miles) east of Moscow. He is the first U.S. journalist since the Soviet era to be held on espionage charges in Russia.  An order that authorized keeping Gershkovich in jail before trial was set to expire on August 30. The Moscow City Court extended the custody order on Thursday …

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