the Pentagon — The first Ukrainian pilots have completed F-16 fighter jet training at a military base in Arizona, with others soon to follow this summer. “The first batch has graduated, and other Ukrainian pilots are finishing their training here by the end of August,” Arizona National Guard spokesperson Capt. Erin Hannigan told VOA. The graduates include a handful of Ukrainian pilots who had trained at Morris Air National Guard Base in Tucson, according to a U.S. official who spoke to VOA on condition of anonymity because of security sensitivities. Out of an abundance of caution for the pilots’ safety, officials …
Amid the ongoing Gaza war, Norway, Ireland and Spain have formally recognized the state of Palestine this week. As expected, Palestinians welcomed the move, while Israel sharply condemned it. Linda Gradstein reports for VOA from Jerusalem. VOA footage by Ricki Rosen. …
Turkey’s longest-running peaceful protest entered its thousandth week in May. A group known as the Saturday Mothers holds a silent vigil each week, demanding justice for relatives who disappeared after being detained by security forces. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul. …
Reykjavik — A new volcanic eruption has begun on the Reykjanes peninsula in southwestern Iceland, the country’s meteorological office said Wednesday, shortly after authorities evacuated the nearby town of Grindavik. “An eruption has started near Sundhnuksgigar, north of Grindavik,” the Icelandic Meteorological Office (IMO) said in a statement, almost three weeks after the end of a previous eruption that had been ongoing since March 16. “The eruption plumes reach a height of at least 50 metres,” it added. The nearby Blue Lagoon geothermal spa, Iceland’s biggest tourist attraction, said it had also evacuated its facilities on Wednesday. The eruption was the …
Tbilisi, Georgia — Georgia’s parliament on Tuesday overrode the president’s veto of a controversial foreign agent law, despite protests at home and criticism in Western capitals, including a U.S. threat to impose sanctions. The new measure is officially called the “Law on Transparency of Foreign Influence.” However, opponents have dubbed it the “Russian law,” a reference to Russia’s foreign agent law, which requires anyone who receives support from outside Russia, or is seen as acting under “foreign influence,” to register as a foreign agent. “I was watching the live broadcast of the vote with my mother. Till the last moment, we …
WARSAW, Poland — Polish President Andrzej Duda has spoken on the phone with Congolese President Felix Tshisekedi to try to obtain the release of a Polish traveler who was sentenced to life in prison in the Central African country on espionage charges, an aide said Monday. Congolese forces detained Mariusz Majewski, 52, in February and he later faced a military court in the restive nation, accused of spying. The allegations against him said that he had “approached the front line with Mobondo militiamen,” moved along the front line without authorization and “took photos of sensitive and strategic places and secretly observed …
PARIS — Rafael Nadal lost in the first round of the French Open to Alexander Zverev 6-3, 7-6 (5), 6-3 on Monday in what might turn out to be the 14-time Roland Garros champion’s last match at his favorite tournament. Nadal has indicated 2024 likely would be his last season before retirement, but he said Saturday that he is not 100% sure he won’t play again at the French Open. And he reiterated that after Monday’s defeat, only his fourth in 116 career matches at the place. When it ended, in anticlimactic fashion, with 22-time Grand Slam champion Nadal simply unable …
Nairobi, Kenya — Kenya has agreed to help the European Union in dealing with maritime crime suspects in the region, amid a rising threat from pirate activity and attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels. The EU, which has a force operating in the Indian Ocean, is concerned that the insecurity which is also affecting ship traffic in the Gulf of Aden and the Red Sea, is disrupting international trade. With threats to shipping on the rise in the Indian Ocean, Gulf of Aden, and the Red Sea, the European Union is asking Kenya for assistance in prosecuting suspected criminals caught in …
Warsaw, Poland — Poland fleshed out details on Monday of “East Shield,” a 10 billion zloty ($2.55 billion) program to beef up defenses along its eastern border with Belarus and Russia, saying it hoped to complete the plans by 2028. The border has been a flashpoint since migrants started flocking there in 2021, after Belarus, a close Russian ally, opened travel agencies in the Middle East offering a new unofficial route into Europe — a move the European Union said was designed to create a crisis. The Polish defense ministry presented details of the program, including plans to build fortifications, hubs …
Life expectancy in Europe has returned to the level it reached before the 2020 coronavirus pandemic, while the U.S. is still trying to regain lost ground. Overall, new numbers show life expectancy has increased in most parts of the world, with eastern sub-Saharan Africa showing the biggest gains over the past three decades. Henry Ridgwell reports. …