This story originated in Last week, a Ukrainian court released Vyshinsky on his own recognizance as he awaits trial on charges of high treason that were brought against him in 2018. Tsemakh’s release also comes a day after a group of 40 members of the European Parliament wrote a letter urging Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy not to include Tsemakh in any deal, calling him a “key suspect” in the missile launch that killed all 298 Flight MH17 passengers and crew, most of whom were Malaysia-bound Dutch nationals. Officials from an international Dutch-led investigation have voiced concerns that transferring Tsemakh to Russian soil will make it impossible to question him about the case. Peace vs. prosecution International observers such as Activists of Ukrainian nationalist groups protest a court decision to release on bail Volodymyr Tsemakh, suspected of involvement in the downing of the Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 in 2014, in Kyiv, Ukraine, Sept. 5, 2019. Security analyst Christo Grozev, with research group Bellingcat, first reported that Tsemakh might be released as part of the prisoner exchange. Grozev says Kremlin demands for Tsemakh’s release are part of a broader effort to delegitimize the MH17 investigation. “It’s not going to change the amount …

VOA State Department correspondent Nike Ching contributed to this report. A top U.S. diplomat says the United States is holding talks with Iranian-backed Houthi rebels to try end the fighting in Yemen, which has killed thousands of civilians. “We are narrowly focused on trying to end the war in Yemen,” assistant secretary for Near Eastern affairs Davis Schenker said during a visit to Saudi Arabia on Thursday. The French News Agency quotes him as saying, “We are also having talks to the extent possible with the Houthis to try and find a mutually accepted negotiated solution to the conflict.” A U.S. State Department official did not confirm the U.S. is talking to the rebels, telling VOA on Thursday it is engaged in talks with “all Yemenis to further U.S. objectives in the country … working with our international partners to bring peace, prosperity and security to a unified Yemen.” The former Obama administration briefly held talks with Houthi leaders to try to convince them to negotiate a peaceful settlement. Those talks and subsequent U.N.-sponsored peace talks failed. The Houthis seized the Yemeni capital in 2014, followed by Saudi-led coalition airstrikes against the rebels. The missiles have obliterated entire civilian neighborhoods, …

Sudan’s prime minister announced on Thursday the formation of the first government since the overthrow of long-term ruler Omar Hassan al-Bashir in April.  The government was formed as part of a three-year power-sharing deal signed last month between the military and civilian parties and protest groups.  Abdalla Hamdok announced the names of 18 ministers in the new cabinet and said he would name two more later.  “[The new government] will start its work immediately in a harmonious and collective way,” Hamdok told a press conference in Khartoum on Thursday evening. “Today, we start a new phase in our history.”  The new government is an important step in transition away from nearly 30 years under Bashir, when Sudan was afflicted by internal conflicts, international isolation and deep economic problems.  Military-civilian friction However, the months since Bashir’s fall have been marked by tension between the powerful security forces and civilian groups that are pushing for democracy, reform and justice for those killed during crackdowns on protests.  The announcement of the cabinet had been held up by haggling over positions. Most of the 18 ministers announced on Thursday were approved  earlier in the week. They include Asmaa Abdallah, who becomes the country’s first female foreign minister, and Ibrahim Elbadawi, a former World Bank economist who will serve as finance minister.  Madani Abbas Madani, a leader of the civilian coalition that negotiated the transition deal with …

Eleven more women have come forward with allegations of sexual assault against opera star Placido Domingo, according to the Associated Press. The news organization last month reported that nine women had made similar charges against the famed singer. The women allege Domingo’s actions included unwanted touching, persistent requests for private get-togethers, late-night phone calls and sudden attempts to kiss them on the lips. One of the women — Angela Turner Wilson, a retired music teacher in Texas — told the AP that when she was a 28-year-old aspiring opera singer, Domingo allegedly groped her breast backstage during the Washington Opera’s 1999-2000 season. “It hurt,” she told the AP. “It was not gentle. He groped me hard.” At the time, Domingo was the artistic director of the Washington Opera. Domingo’s spokeswoman disputed the AP article. “The ongoing campaign by the AP to denigrate Placido Domingo is not only inaccurate. but unethical. These new claims are riddled with inconsistencies and, as with the first story, in many ways, simply incorrect,” Nancy Seltzer said.   FILE – Placido Domingo poses for selfies at the Festspielhaus opera house after he performed Luisa Miller by Giuseppe Verdi in Salzburg, Austria, Aug. 25, 2019. After AP …

The government on Thursday ordered Michigan State University to make sweeping changes and pay a $4.5 million fine after determining that it failed to adequately respond to sexual assault complaints against Larry Nassar, a former campus sports doctor who molested elite gymnasts and other female athletes. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos announced the penalty after the conclusion of two federal investigations. She said Nassar’s actions were “disgusting and unimaginable” and that the university’s response fit the same description. “Too many people in power knew about the behaviors and the complaints and yet the predators continued on the payroll and abused even more students,” DeVos said in a call with reporters. “This must not happen again, there or anywhere else.” The fine is the largest levied under the Clery Act , a federal law that requires colleges to collect data on campus crime and notify students of threats. The previous largest fine, $2.4 million, was imposed in 2016 against Pennsylvania State University over its handling of sexual misconduct involving former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky. The department’s investigation concluded that Michigan State violated several key parts of the Clery Act along with Title IX, a federal law forbidding discrimination based on gender …

Zimbabwe’s government doctors are on strike, demanding a salary increase to cover the soaring cost of living. The strike began on Tuesday. The doctors, like many government workers, say inflation has made it impossible to meet basic needs.  Columbus Mavhunga has the story for VOA from Harare. …

A peculiar form of body art is gaining popularity in New York city – It’s protest body art where people paint their bodies, not with pictures and innocent images,  but slogans aimed at fighting divisiveness.  Nina Vishneva has the story narrated by Anna Rice. …

Hope, peace, and reconciliation were the three main pillars of Pope Francis’s message to lawmakers and youth Thursday during his first papal visit to Mozambique. Thousands of young Catholics packed a Maputo stadium to hear that message in a nation that, for decades, has struggled with conflict. The pontiff was greeted Wednesday night by President Filipe Nyusi, who is running for re-election in October in a contentious poll in which rival parties have already begun to sling mud at each other. Pope Francis waves to wellwishers as he leaves after a meeting at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in the capital Maputo, Mozambique Thursday, Sept. 5, 2019. But on Thursday, the Pope did not pander to Mozambique’s leadership when pointing out their higher responsibility to honor a recent peace deal. Both sides in the peace talks have recently accused the other of violating the fragile deal, signed in August. “As we know, peace is not merely absence of war but a tireless commitment — especially on the part of those of us charged with greater responsibility — to recognize, protect and concretely restore the dignity, so often overlooked or ignored, of our brothers and sisters, so that they can …

U.S. President Donald Trump has put himself in the eye of a storm over his comments about the path of a hurricane.   Most of Trump’s recent tweets about Hurricane Dorian, now lashing the eastern U.S. seaboard, have focused on the southern state of Alabama – which weather forecasters say was never in the storm’s direct path.   The president, however, has been arguing otherwise and hurling his “fake news” invective at media pointing out the discrepancy.   Even network television forecasters and government meteorologists – who typically eschew being drawn into political controversies – have firmly rebutted the president.   Trump remains obdurate.   “Alabama was going to be hit or grazed, and then Hurricane Dorian took a different path (up along the East Coast). The Fake News knows this very well. That’s why they’re the Fake News!” said the president in his latest tweet about the matter, adding more fuel to the storm of controversy. Alabama was going to be hit or grazed, and then Hurricane Dorian took a different path (up along the East Coast). The Fake News knows this very well. That’s why they’re the Fake News! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 5, 2019 Trump …

Spain’s Academy of Cinematographic Arts and Sciences says that Pedro Almodovar’s latest drama “Pain and Glory,” which was inspired by his own life story, will represent the country in the competition for this year’s Oscars. The film starring Antonio Banderas and Penelope Cruz will compete with other global entries for a nomination as Best International Feature Film at the 92nd Academy Awards. The Spanish Academy’s selection was announced Thursday. “Pain and Glory” received broad acclaim at this year’s Cannes Film Festival in France, where Banderas won the Best Actor award for his portrayal of a film director in his decline who flirts with drugs and has to confront his own past. In June, Almodovar won a Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement at the Venice Film Festival.   …

A privately run prison in Mississippi says it has a new five-year contract with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The Natchez Democrat reported that the Adams County Correctional Center, operated by CoreCivic, says the contract will add 50 jobs, and provide the county with about 50 cents per inmate per day, which could boost county revenue by $400,000 a year. Some of the people arrested in immigration raids at Mississippi chicken processing plants last month are being held in the prison outside Natchez. The Federal Bureau of Prisons had said in May that it would not renew its contract for the 2,232-bed prison. Without a contract, more than 390 jobs were at risk of being lost. “Ultimately, we were able to retain one of our largest employers as well as one of our largest taxpayers,” said Chandler Russ, who runs the Natchez Inc. economic development agency. “It is a huge win for us.” Russ said the new contract calls for about 425 CoreCivic employees — 35 more jobs than were called for in the previous contract with the Bureau of Prisons. ICE also will create 25 to 30 new positions locally. Previously, the Bureau of Prisons had two to four …

China urged Canada to “reflect on its mistakes” and immediately release a detained Huawei executive in comments Thursday on the appointment of a new Canadian ambassador to the country. Relations between China and Canada were severely damaged when Meng Wanzhou, the chief financial officer of Chinese tech giant Huawei and the daughter of its founder, was arrested at Vancouver’s airport last Dec. 1 at the request of the U.S. “At present, China-Canada relations are facing serious difficulties,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said at a daily briefing. “We urge the Canadian side to reflect on its mistakes, take seriously China’s stern position and concerns, and immediately release Meng Wanzhou and let her return safely.” Geng said China hopes the new envoy, Dominic Barton, can play an active role in returning ties to a “normal track” and take China’s concerns seriously. He said Canada is responsible for the current tensions. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau fired previous Ambassador John McCallum after he said it would be “great” if the U.S. dropped its extradition request for Meng. She is wanted by the U.S. on fraud charges and is currently under house arrest in her multi-million dollar Vancouver home. In apparent retaliation …

Cameroon is dispatching more than a thousand troops to help bring peace to its troubled neighbor, the Central African Republic. The troops are leaving as analysts say they are already stretched handling such internal crises as piracy in the Gulf of Guinea, the Boko Haram insurgency and the separatist crisis that has left at least 3,000  killed in three years. The Cameroon military band plays as the first contingent of over 300 peacekeeping troops leaves for the neighboring Central African Republic on September 4. Cameroon’s defense minister, Joseph Beti Assomo, said they have been well trained to join the U.N. peacekeeping mission of more than 13,000 troops, police and civilians to restore peace to the Central African Republic while respecting the rights and dignity of the people they are protecting. “Always determined to fulfill his regional and international commitment as concerns collective security, the head of state, commander in chief of the armed forces has provided the Central African Republic with multifaceted support in order to enable the country to get its institutions which have already been damaged back on the feet,” he said. FILE – Women prepare food, April 28, 2014, in the camp for Central African refugees in …

Physicians say the youngest son of the late former Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi has died of a heart attack. They say 25-year-old Abdullah Morsi was driving his car with a friend in Cairo when he suddenly felt weak. He died shortly after arriving in hospital on Wednesday evening.   The doctors spoke on condition of anonymity to talk to reporters.   Abdullah was sentenced to a year in prison in 2014 for drug possession. In 2018, he was detained briefly for spreading false news and belonging to the outlawed Muslim Brotherhood.   His father, U.S.-educated engineer Mohamed Morsi, was Egypt’s first democratically elected civilian head of state in Egypt’s modern history. Morsi, who collapsed and died in a Cairo court in June, was toppled by the military, led by then defense minister Abdel Fattah el-Sissi in July 2013. Sissi is currently ruling Egypt.     …

North Korea has told the United Nations to cut the number of international staff it deploys in the country because the world body’s programs have failed “due to the politicization of U.N. assistance by hostile forces,” according to a letter seen by Reuters Wednesday. The United Nations estimates 10.3 million people, almost half the country’s population, are in need and some 41 percent of North Koreans are undernourished, while Pyongyang said in February it was facing a food shortfall this year and had to halve rations, blaming drought, floods and sanctions. “U.N. supported programs failed to bring the results as desired due to the politicization of U.N. assistance by hostile forces,” Kim Chang Min, secretary general for North Korea’s National Coordinating Committee for the United Nations, wrote to the top U.N. official posted in the country. In the Aug. 21 letter, Kim said the number of international staff should be cut by the end of the year. Staff cuts North Korea wants the number of international staff with the U.N. Development Program to be cut to one or two from six, the World Health Organization to four from six and the U.N. Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to cut its 13 staff …

Splitting time between two cities for work and home is daunting. Add to that working 24/7 for thousands of bosses. That’s the life of a U.S. congressman as he works to balance his constituents’ needs with his party’s platform. Voice of America is following two first year U.S. lawmakers in our project “Climbing the Hill.” VOA’s Carolyn Presutti shows us how Republican Representative Pete Stauber, representing Minnesota’s 8th District deals with local priorities that tie in to national issues.   …

Voice of America has been following two U.S. representatives to document their challenges and successes during their first year in Congress, in our project called “Climbing the Hill.” Join us to see how Republican Pete Stauber of Minnesota’s 8th District, divides his time between Washington and his district where his wife and four children live while he works in Washington. VOA’s Carolyn Presutti shows us how this former police officer and professional hockey player transitions to politician.   …

Hong Kong’s embattled chief executive Carrie Lam may hope the withdrawal of a hated extradition bill will help the semi-autonomous Chinese city move forward from three months of major protests. But if the initial reaction from activists, scholars and other Hong Kong residents is any indication, the protests may not go away any time soon, with protester demands having long ago expanded to include broader democratic reforms. Lam on Wednesday announced the formal withdrawal of the extradition bill, a move she said was intended to “fully allay public concerns” after having earlier only suspended the proposal. But while the withdrawal essentially amounts to an admission that the extradition bill was a mistake, it seems few in Hong Kong see the move as a major concession. “I haven’t heard anyone say they will stop protesting because of the withdrawal,” said Wilson Leung, who helped found the Hong Kong-based Progressive Lawyers Group. “Because a lot of the anger is now over police brutality and overreach.” Women pay their respects to the protesters who were injured during clashes with the police by placing flowers outside Prince Edward station, in Hong Kong, Sept. 4, 2019. Months of protests, strikes Since early June, Hong Kong …

U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren has risen to second place in public opinion polls and is attracting large crowds as she campaigns for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination in the 2020 election. VOA’s Brian Padden reports, even if Warren does not win the nomination, her detailed economic proposals could long-resonate in the presidential contest as a progressive blueprint for change likely to excite some voters while possibly alienating others.   …

A large car bomb rocked the Afghan capital Thursday, and smoke rose from a part of eastern Kabul near a neighborhood housing the U.S. Embassy, the NATO Resolute Support mission and other diplomatic missions. Firdaus Faramarz, a spokesman for Kabul’s police chief, told The Associated Press that the explosion took place in the city’s Ninth Police District. It appeared to target a checkpoint in the heavily guarded Shashdarak area where the Afghan national security authorities have offices. There was no immediate word on casualties. An Associated Press reporter on the phone with the U.S. Embassy when the blast occurred heard sirens begin there. Interior Ministry spokesman Nasrat Rahimi said a car bomb had exploded on a main road and police were sealing off the area. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. The blast occurred as U.S. envoy Zalmay Khalilzad has been in Kabul this week, briefing the Afghan government and others on a deal he says has been reached “in principle” with the Taliban on ending America’s longest war. A Taliban suicide bombing in eastern Kabul on Monday night, which the insurgents said targeted a foreign compound, killed at least 16 people and wounded more than 100, almost …

Bahamas Prime Minister Hubert Minnis is pledging to do whatever is necessary to carry out rescue and recovery efforts after Hurricane Dorian devastated the Caribbean archipelago. Thursday will likely bring more grim news as people get a better look at what the storm left behind after spinning over Grand Bahama and Abaco islands for nearly two days with flooding rains and storm surge, as well as winds of up to 195 kilometers per hour. Minnis said at a Wednesday news conference the confirmed death toll was at 20 on Abaco Island, and that officials expected the number to rise. “As prime minister, I assure you that no efforts will be spared in rescuing those still in danger, feeding those who are hungry and providing shelter to those who are without homes,” he said at a Wednesday news conference. “Our response will be day and night, day after day, week after week, month after month until the lives of our people return to some degree of normalcy.” A hotel room in the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian on the Great Abaco island town of Marsh Harbour, Bahamas, Sept. 4, 2019. Speaking to the magnitude of the challenge the Bahamas faces, Minnis called …

Kenyan farmers hope to benefit from insured loans that will help them purchase farm inputs and seeds. Unlike other commercial bank loans, the Risk Contingent Credit Scheme, which is a brainchild of Washington-based IFPRI, aims to cushion farmers from huge losses accrued from crop failures because of climate change. Sarah Kimani has more from Machakos, Kenya.   …

Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson suffered a series of damaging defeats over the government’s Brexit policy Wednesday, as lawmakers attempted to pass legislation to prevent Britain from crashing out of the European Union with no deal on Oct. 31. In response, Johnson tried to force a general election, but that was also rejected by MPs. Henry Ridgwell reports from London on the latest twists in Britain’s extraordinary Brexit saga.   …

Kenyan farmers hope to benefit from insured loans that will help them purchase farm inputs and seeds. Unlike other commercial bank loans, the Risk Contingent Credit Scheme, which is a brainchild of Washington-based IFPRI, aims to cushion farmers from huge losses accrued from crop failures due to climate change.  For the past four seasons, there has been little rain in Machakos county, and farmers have watched in despair as crops withered away. Climate change has pushed them closer to poverty as they stream to markets to buy food instead of living off their own harvests. Beatrice Ndavi is one of those farmers. “The farmers of Machakos county have a challenge of drought because when there is a drought, we don’t get enough food for our families,” Ndavi said.  Help came in 2017, just before another drought, in the form of a loan facility dubbed the Risk Contingent scheme. It is the brainchild of the International Food Policy and Research Institute (IFPRI). Senior scientist Linzhou You is leading the project. “When the rains doesn’t come, there is no harvest, the farmers don’t need to pay back the loans. Of course, if the rains come you have a good harvest you have …