POPGAZETA

Hong Kong has long been seen as a good place to do business, thanks to its proximity to China and the one-country, two systems policy that provides a wide degree of economic freedom. But as Beijing expands its control, that reputation is at risk, as VOA’s Bill Gallo reports. …

Afghan officials say the Taliban has detonated a vehicle bomb near the Afghan spy agency’s office in the central eastern Ghazni city. A provincial government spokesman, Arif Noori told VOA that the attack killed 12 people, including civilians and injured more than 50 others, including students. A Taliban spokesman, while claiming responsibility for the bombing, said the powerful blast destroyed an important facility of the National Directorate of Security (NDS), inflicting heavy casualties. The insurgent group has reportedly killed around 300 pro government forces in redent days. The attack occurred as delegates from Afghanistan are set to open a two-day conference Sunday in Qatar to engage in peace discussions with Taliban envoys.  …

Wealthy financier and registered sex offender Jeffrey Epstein was arrested Saturday in New York on sex-trafficking charges involving allegations that date to the 2000s, according to law enforcement officials.  Epstein, a wealthy hedge fund manager who once counted as friends former President Bill Clinton, Great Britain’s Prince Andrew, and President Donald Trump, was taken into federal custody, according to two officials. The officials spoke to The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the pending case.  Epstein is expected to appear Monday in Manhattan federal court. A message was sent to his attorney seeking comment.  Epstein’s arrest was first reported by The Daily Beast.  Plea deal scrutiny The arrest comes amid renewed scrutiny of a once-secret plea deal that Epstein entered into.  In 2008, Epstein pleaded guilty in Florida to state charges of soliciting and procuring a person younger than 18 for prostitution. The deal ended a federal investigation that could have landed Epstein in prison for life. Instead, he was sentenced to 13 months in jail and was required to reach financial settlements with dozens of his once-teenage victims. Epstein also was required to register as a sex offender.    …

Haitian opposition lawmaker Printemps Belizaire said gunmen apparently targeted his vehicle Saturday. The incident happened Saturday afternoon shortly after the deputy had attended the funeral of journalist Rospide Petion, who was shot and killed by unknown gunmen last month on his way home from reporting on anti-corruption protests. His killer has not been found, and colleagues believe he was slain for being too outspoken about the PetroCaribe corruption probe, which has implicated multiple government officials, including the president. Belizaire represents the Lavalas party in the Chamber of Deputies and is vocal in his demands for President Jovenel Moise to resign amid corruption allegations. He said he had been invited to a wedding in the Fontamara neighborhood of Port-au-Prince but decided not to attend and loaned his car and driver to Pedrica Saint Jean, who handles protocol matters for the parliament. He said the car, a dark gray Toyota SUV, was “ambushed” after leaving the wedding. Deputy Printemps Belizaire at the scene of the attack in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, July 6, 2019. “The shooters had high-powered long range weapons and were shooting from the front and behind the car,” the deputy told VOA Creole as he showed the reporter bullet holes the car …

Joao Gilberto, a Brazilian singer, guitarist and songwriter considered one of the fathers of the bossa nova genre that gained global popularity in the 1960s and became an iconic sound of the South American nation, died Saturday, his son said. He was 88. Joao Marcelo said his father had been battling health issues though no official cause of his death in Rio de Janeiro was given. “His struggle was noble. He tried to maintain his dignity in the light of losing his independence,” Marcelo posted on Facebook. A fusion of samba and jazz, bossa nova emerged in the late 1950s and gained a worldwide following in the 1960s, pioneered by Gilberto and Antonio Carlos Jobim, who composed the iconic The Girl From Ipanema that was performed by Gilberto and others. His wife, Astrud Gilberto, made her vocal debut in the song.   Began guitar at 14 Self-taught, Gilberto said he discovered music at age 14 when he held a guitar in his hands for the first time. With his unique playing style and modern jazz influences, he created the beat that defined bossa nova, helping launch the genre with his song Bim-Bom. By 1961, Gilberto had finished the albums that …

Greeks vote on Sunday in a snap election that polls say will bring opposition conservatives to power, ending four years of leftist rule blamed for saddling the country with more debt and mismanaging crises. The election is largely a showdown of two contenders. Incumbent Alexis Tsipras of the Syriza party is on one side — a 44-year-old radical leftist who stormed to power in 2015 vowing to tear up the austerity rule book, only to relent weeks later. On the other side of the fence is Kyriakos Mitsotakis, 51, of New Democracy. He is from a famous political dynasty; he hopes to follow the footsteps of his father as prime minister, while a sister of his was foreign minister. Opinion polls put New Democracy’s lead at up to 10 percentage points, potentially giving it an absolute majority in the country’s 300-seat parliament. Voting starts at 7 a.m. (0400 GMT) and ends at 7 p.m., with first official projections expected about two hours after voting ends. Financial crisis Greece endured a debilitating financial crisis from 2010 that saw the country needing a cash lifeline from its European Union partners three times. The economy is the public’s main concern, said Thomas Gerakis of pollsters MARC. “Voters want …

British Interior Minister Sajid Javid will soon formally endorse Boris Johnson to be the next leader of the Conservative Party and the country’s next prime minister, the Sunday Times reported.  Johnson is the front-runner in a contest with Foreign Minister Jeremy Hunt to be the next leader. Voting is due to close on July 22, with the winner set to be announced the following day.  Johnson has pledged to leave the European Union with or without a deal on Oct. 31 if he becomes prime minister, while Hunt has said that he would, if absolutely necessary, go for a no-deal Brexit.  The Sunday Times said Javid has positioned himself to be Johnson’s finance minister, taking over from current Finance Minister Philip Hammond.  It reported that in a speech on Tuesday, Javid will say: “Trust in our democracy will be at stake if we don’t make Oct. 31 a ‘deal or no deal’ deadline. To prepare that, we are agreed on the need for ramped-up no-deal preparations, including a budget.”  The newspaper also said that Johnson would visit the United States before the end of September to meet President Donald Trump.  …

A vacant pizza restaurant exploded Saturday in a thundering roar at a South Florida shopping plaza, injuring more than 20 people as large chunks of concrete flew through the air. The blast flung debris widely along a busy road in Plantation, west of Fort Lauderdale. The restaurant was destroyed, and nearby businesses and cars were damaged. Though firefighters found ruptured gas lines afterward, authorities said it was too early to determine a cause. “We thought it was thunder at first, and then we felt the building shake and things started falling. I looked outside and it was almost like the world was ending,” said Alex Carver, a worker at a deli across the street from the explosion. “It was nuts, man. It was crazy.” Debris thrown 50-100 yards The explosion hurled large pieces of concrete up to 50 yards (45 meters) away and sent pieces of metal scattering as far as 100 yards (90 meters) across the street.  Carver said two of his co-workers’ cars were destroyed. At least 21 people were injured though none of the injuries was life-threatening, Police Sgt. Jesica Ryan said. The explosion demolished the building, leaving behind only part of its metal frame. The restaurant, …

Tunisia’s Coast Guard recovered on Saturday the bodies of 14 African migrants who drowned when their boat carrying more than 80 people sank after setting off for Europe from neighboring Libya, the Tunisian Red Crescent said. Tunisian fishermen rescued four people but one later died at a hospital, the U.N. refugee agency UNHCR said Thursday. The others on the overcrowded boat were feared drowned. At least 65 migrants heading for Europe from Libya drowned last May when their boat capsized off Tunisia. Libya’s west coast is a main departure point for African migrants hoping to reach Europe, though numbers have dropped because of an Italian-led effort to disrupt smuggling networks and support the Libyan Coast Guard. Although the fighting in Libya has made the situation more difficult for human smugglers, international aid officials have warned it could also prompt more Libyans to flee their country. Libyans who are picked up by the Libyan Coast Guard are routinely taken back to Libya and detained. The United Nations has pleaded with Libya’s government to free the detainees, some of whom have been locked up for years. In May, 108 migrants and refugees were sent to the Tajoura detention center near Tripoli, which was hit by airstrikes on Tuesday night that killed at least 53 people. …

Former Vice President Joe Biden on Saturday apologized for recent comments about working with segregationist senators in his early days in the U.S. Senate, saying he understands now his remarks could have been offensive to some. “Was I wrong a few weeks ago?” Biden asked a mostly black audience of several hundred during the first day of a weekend visit to South Carolina. “Yes, I was. I regret it, and I’m sorry for any of the pain of misconception that caused anybody.” Biden’s comments came as he and rival presidential candidate Kamala Harris were set to circle each other while campaigning Sunday in South Carolina, the first Southern state to vote in next year’s primary and a crucial proving ground for candidates seeking support of black Democrats. Biden defended his record on racial issues and reminded voters of his ties to former President Barack Obama, whose popularity in South Carolina remains high. The former vice president and the California senator probably will be pressed on their tense debate exchange over race and federally mandated school busing. Though the issue is not at the forefront of the 2020 primary, it could resonate in a state with a complicated history with race …

The chief American peace negotiator Saturday hailed the ongoing round of talks with the Taliban in Qatar as “the most productive session” so far toward finding a political settlement to the war in Afghanistan. The U.S.-Taliban negotiations began on June 29, the seventh round in the nearly yearlong direct dialogue between the two adversaries in the nearly 18-year-old war that has turned deadlier in recent months. Zalmay Khalilzad tweeted that both sides decided Saturday to take a break from the dialogue to allow for a two-day intra-Afghan conference to be held in the Qatari capital of Doha on Sunday. “The last six days of talks have been the most productive session to date. We made substantive progress on all four parts of a peace agreement,” noted Khalilzad. Areas of concentration The Afghan-born U.S. diplomat went on to emphasize that discussions have focused exclusively on counterterrorism assurances from the Taliban, a timetable for the withdrawal of U.S.-led foreign troops from the country, participation of the insurgent group in an intra-Afghan dialogue, and a comprehensive permanent cease-fire. “There is still important work left to be done before we have an agreement. We will resume on the 9th [of July] after the [intra-Afghan] …

A Kazakhstan court has ordered a reporter for Current Time to leave the country and has banned her from re-entering for five years, citing violations of the country’s immigration regulations. The court in Nur-Sultan on Friday ordered Zhazgul Egemberdieva, a Kyrgyztan national, to leave within 10 days. Kazakh officials alleged Egemberdieva failed to notify immigration authorities that she was staying in Kazakhstan longer than 30 days. Management officials with Current Time, a Russian-language network led by RFE/RL in cooperation with VOA, said they were investigating the circumstances of the order. Egemberdieva had been in Kazakhstan since May 3 as part of Current Time’s coverage of the June 9 presidential election. The vote, which was won by Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev, the handpicked successor of longtime ruler Nursultan Nazarbaev, was criticized by international observers who cited “detentions of peaceful protesters, and widespread voting irregularities on election day [that] showed scant respect for democratic standards.” Egemberdieva had been scheduled to help in coverage of more anti-government protests that were taking place in Nur-Sultan on Saturday. Journalists harassed Reporters for Current Time and RFE/RL in general have faced increased scrutiny and harassment in Kazakhstan and Central Asia more broadly in recent years. Ahead of the Kazakh …

German Chancellor Angela Merkel sought to reassure Western Balkan nations that support for their membership in the European Union remains strong, stressing that it is in the bloc’s “strategic interest” to bring in the new members. Merkel told a Western Balkan summit in Poznan, Poland, on Friday that concerns expressed by French President Emmanuel Macron that the countries’ governance mechanisms become more efficient should not delay accession talks. “I share President Macron’s view that the EU’s working mechanisms must be improved,” she said. “I don’t see that as an abandonment of the accession talks.” She added that the accession process for Balkan nations aspiring for membership — Albania, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo and North Macedonia — was sufficiently lengthy to allow time for improvements to be made. North Macedonia hailed Speaking at a news conference as the summit concluded, Merkel singled out North Macedonia’s “courage” in trying to overcome divisive issues with its neighbors, especially a dispute over its name with Greece. Athens opposed the country’s use of the name Macedonia, saying it implied territorial designs on the Greek province of the same name. A compromise was reached, leading Skopje to change the country’s name to North Macedonia. “That was a huge step. …

At least two people have been killed and about 20 others wounded in a bomb blast inside a Shiite mosque in the Afghan city of Ghazni, officials said Saturday. The explosion occurred late Friday when the Mohammadiya mosque in the Khak-e-Ghariban area of Ghazni was packed with worshippers attending evening prayers, provincial governor spokesman Arif Noor said. As many as 70 people were present at the time of the explosion, Nasir Ahmad Faqiri, the head of the Ghazni provincial council, and Councilor Amanullah Kamran said. The Islamic State (IS) terrorist group claimed responsibility for the attack. Earlier, the Taliban denied involvement in the mosque attack and condemned the bombing. IS, which has a limited presence in Ghazni, is also suspected by locals of destroying a shrine known as Shams Sahib in the western part of Ghazni in May. In recent months, Ghazni police have arrested several people on suspicion of having links to IS. This article contains material from dpa, tolonews.com. …

An apparent gas explosion at a shopping plaza in Plantation, Florida, injured several people on Saturday, authorities and local media reported. Video posted to Twitter showed the force of the blast scattered debris across a parking lot and blew out several windows at a nearby L.A. Fitness gym, sending patrons running for the exits. The Plantation fire department said on Twitter that there were multiple patients being treated at the scene. The Sun-Sentinel newspaper reported that witnesses said a vacant restaurant appeared to be the source of the explosion. The city of Plantation is about 6 miles west of Fort Lauderdale.   …

A war monitor and first responders group say an airstrike has killed at least 13 people in a village in northwestern Syria. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says the dead, most of them internally displaced persons, include seven children and three women. They died on Saturday in a Syrian government airstrike on the village of Mhambel in the province of Idlib.   Opposition-allied first responders known as the White Helmets also reported the attack and the casualties.   Idlib is the last major rebel stronghold in Syria’s eight-year civil war. Government troops backed by Russia have been using heavy airstrikes in their campaign to take the area in the past months.   …

UK-flagged supertanker Pacific Voyager which halted in the Gulf on Saturday is “safe and well,” a British official told Reuters, after Iran dismissed reports its Revolutionary Guards had seized the vessel. A Revolutionary Guards commander on Friday had threatened to seize a British ship in retaliation for the capture by Royal Marines of Iranian supertanker Grace 1 in Gibraltar. The Pacific Voyager stopped in the Gulf en route to Saudi Arabia from Singapore before resuming its course, Refinitiv Eikon mapping showed. It stopped as part of a routine procedure to adjust its arrival time at its next port, an official at UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) told Reuters. The UKMTO, which coordinates shipping in the Gulf, had been in contact with the tanker, the official said. On Saturday an Iranian cleric said Britain should be “scared” about Tehran’s possible retaliation for the seizure of the Grace 1, the Fars semi-official news agency reported. “I am openly saying that Britain should be scared of Iran’s retaliatory measures over the illegal seizure of the Iranian oil tanker,” said Mohammad Ali Mousavi Jazayeri, a member of the Assembly of Experts clerical body. Tensions are high in the Gulf following last month’s attacks on …

The United States on Saturday welcomed a provisional agreement forged by Sudan’s ruling military council and a coalition of opposition and protest groups to share power for three years as an “important step forward.” The U.S. State Department said in statement that special envoy for Sudan Donald Booth will return to the region soon. The agreement brokered by the African Union and Ethiopia Union, announced on Friday, is due to be finalized on Monday. “The agreement between the Forces for Freedom and Change and the Transitional Military Council to establish a sovereign council is an important step forward,” the State Department said. “We look forward to immediate resumption of access to the internet, establishment of the new legislature, accountability for the violent suppression of peaceful protests, and progress toward free and fair elections.” The deal revived hopes for a peaceful transition of power in a country plagued by internal conflicts and years of economic crisis that helped to trigger the overthrow of Omar al-Bashir in April. Relations between the military council that took over from Bashir and the Forces for Freedom and Change alliance broke down when security forces killed dozens of people as they cleared a sit-in on June …

They are trapped in squalid detention centers on Libya’s front lines. They wash up on the banks of the Rio Grande. They sink without a trace — in the Mediterranean, in the Pacific or in waterways they can’t even name. A handful fall out of airplanes’ landing gear. As their choices narrow on land and at sea, migrants are often seen as a political headache in the countries they hope to reach and ignored in the countries they flee. Most live in limbo, but recent tragedies have focused attention on the risks they face and the political constraints at the root of them. A record 71 million people were forcibly displaced around the world in 2018, according to a report last month by the U.N. refugee agency, in places as diverse as Turkey, Uganda, Bangladesh and Peru. Many are still on the move in 2019, or trapped like thousands in detention in Libya, where an airstrike on Tuesday killed at least 44 migrants and refugees locked away in the Tripoli suburb of Tajoura. Most of those in Tajoura and other Libyan detention centers have been intercepted by the Libyan coast guard, which has become the go-to border force for the …

President Donald Trump roused a political tempest when he decided to plant himself squarely in Independence Day observances with a speech from the Lincoln Memorial. His words from that platform, though, were strikingly measured, except for some befuddlement over American military history. The unscripted Trump — the one the world sees day to day — was to be found on Twitter and in other venues. It was in such places that the president misrepresented his record on care for veterans, the health of the economy, the state of the auto industry and more. Some rhetoric in review: MARS TRUMP: “Someday soon, we will plant the American flag on Mars.” — July 4 speech. THE FACTS: This is not happening soon; almost certainly not while he is president even if he wins a second term. The Trump administration has a placed a priority on the moon over Mars for human exploration (President Barack Obama favored Mars) and hopes to accelerate NASA’s plan for returning people to the lunar surface. It has asked Congress to approve enough money to make a moon mission possible by 2024, instead of 2028. But even if that happens, Mars would come years after that. International space …

Federal agents descended on the suburban Maryland house with the flash and bang of a stun grenade, blocked off the street and spent hours questioning the homeowner about a theft of government documents that prosecutors would later describe as “breathtaking” in its scale. The suspect, Harold Martin, was a contractor for the National Security Agency. His arrest followed news of a devastating disclosure of government hacking tools by a mysterious internet group calling itself the Shadow Brokers . It seemed to some that the United States might have found another Edward Snowden, who also had been a contractor for the agency. “You’re a bad man. There’s no way around that,” one law enforcement official conducting the raid told Martin, court papers say. “You’re a bad man.” Later this month, about three years after that raid, the case against Martin is scheduled to be resolved in Baltimore’s federal court. But the identity of the Shadow Brokers, and whoever was responsible for a leak with extraordinary national security implications, will remain a public mystery even as the case concludes. Authorities have established that Martin walked off with thousands of pages of secret documents over a two-decade career in national security, most recently …

The International Organization for Migration warns massive displacement from renewed inter-ethnic fighting in DR Congo’s Ebola-affected Ituri province poses a serious health hazard.   At least 160 people were killed during renewed clashes early last month between Lendu farmers and Hema herders in Ituri province.  U.N. agencies report the violence has displaced hundreds of thousands of people and sent more than 7,500 refugees fleeing for their lives into neighboring Uganda. The International Organization for Migration reports people who have fled the frontline of the conflict are living in abysmal conditions that create a fertile ground for the spread of disease, most worryingly Ebola.   The latest World Health Organization figures put the number of Ebola cases at 2,382, including 1,606 deaths.  The bulk of these cases and deaths are in conflict-ridden North Kivu province   About 10 percent are in Ituri. The inter-communal fighting has displaced an estimated 400,000 people.  IOM spokesman, Joel Millman, says his agency manages 12 displacement sites in Ituri’s Djugu Territory.  Thousands of people unable to cram into these overcrowded camps, he says, are sheltering in spontaneous sites. “Poor hygiene conditions in displacement sites severely increase the risk that Ebola, as well as cholera, measles and acute respiratory …