Month: August 2024

Nigeria deploys armed rangers to protect farmers 

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abuja, nigeria — As attacks on farmers intensified across Nigeria, Fatima Bello from Sokoto abandoned dry season farming.

The smallholder farmer of rice, millet and beans shared her experience of farming under constant threat.

“During the dry season last year, I did not even plant anything because of this issue of insecurity,” she said. “What I would have produced that I would have used for my family and also take to the market, other people are going to benefit from what I will sell. They will buy, but now it means if I don’t produce anything, then it means I will not have been able to have something to use.” 

Violent attacks, land levies and kidnappings have forced many farmers to abandon their lands, driving up food inflation. In response, the government declared a state of emergency on food security in 2023 and recently deployed 10,000 agro rangers across 19 states and the Federal Capital Territory. Their mission is to safeguard farmland and mediate conflicts, especially in areas hit by farmer-herder clashes. 

Bello sees this as a positive step.

“I think it is welcomed development,” she said. “It has just been started, so we need to see, maybe take some time. Then we will be able to know the impact.” 

Affirming the rangers’ readiness to restore safety across the food belt, Babawale Afolabi, a spokesperson for the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps, says all hands are on deck. 

“Our operatives have been on top of the game since the commissioning of the agro rangers squad nationwide. … The agro ranger is a well-seasoned, trained and formidable special force, and we thank the federal government for providing necessary logistics so far,” he said.

“We have increased and upskilled our intelligent base so we can tackle head-on rising challenges,” he said. “We are all for engaging the communities to create awareness on how to give credible information.”

Plateau, Zamfara, Niger and other states considered hot zones for farmer insecurity are supporting the squad with logistics. 

While praising the government’s intervention, farmer and agricultural economist Retson Tedheke stresses the need for more personnel.

“It’s a very good thing,” he said, “but 10,000 is a very small number. If you ask me, there are over 150,000 polling units. Multiply that by five, that should be the agro rangers we have. And not just in the agro ranger level – if you are sending five agro rangers in a particular location, send five extension workers.” 

Tedheke warns that addressing the root causes of insecurity in farming communities requires sustained effort.

“Nigerian farmers should be getting loans at between 5% and 7%,” he said, “because we are producing food. … Food security is a major component of political development, governmental development and leadership development.” 

The U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization says that 22 million Nigerians could face food insecurity in 2024, with projections rising to 82 million by 2030.
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RFE/RL journalist marks 1,000 days jailed in Belarus on charges viewed as bogus

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washington — A journalist with VOA’s sister outlet Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty on Wednesday marked 1,000 days in jail in Belarus on charges that he and his employer reject as politically motivated.

Andrey Kuznechyk, with RFE/RL’s Belarusian Service — known locally as Radio Svaboda — has been jailed in Belarus since his arrest on November 25, 2021.

He was initially sentenced to 10 days in jail on hooliganism charges, which he rejected. When Kuznechyk was due to be released, authorities kept him in prison and added an additional charge of creating an extremist group.

In a trial that lasted only one day, a regional court found Kuznechyk guilty in June 2022 and sentenced him to six years in prison.

“Belarus’ treatment of Andrey Kuznechyk is reprehensible,” RFE/RL President Stephen Capus said in a post on the social media platform X.

The U.S. Agency for Global Media, the parent organization of RFE/RL and VOA, also called for Belarus to release Kuznechyk.

“Journalism is not a crime, yet journalists around the world continue to be persecuted just for reporting the truth,” USAGM CEO Amanda Bennett told VOA in a statement. “Today sickeningly marks the 1,000th day Andrey Kuznechyk has been wrongly detained in Belarus. Every moment he spends in this hard-labor camp is one too many.”

Kuznechyk is one of several journalists and activists who have been jailed in Belarus since 2020, when President Aleksander Lukashenko, in power since 1994, claimed yet another victory in a contested presidential election. Massive protests against the disputed election were met with a severe government crackdown.

There are more than 1,400 political prisoners still held in Belarus, according to the rights group Viasna, and independent news outlets have been forced to shutter or retreat into exile. At the end of 2023, Belarus ranked third worst in the world in terms of journalist jailings, with 28 behind bars, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

Kuznechyk is one of two RFE/RL journalists currently jailed in Belarus.

The second is Ihar Losik, who has been detained since June 2020, before the contested election took place. He was eventually tried behind closed doors on charges including “organization of mass riots” and “incitement of hatred” and sentenced to 15 years in prison. The charges against him are also widely viewed as bogus.

“Andrey Kuznechyk and Ihar Losik have been locked away for years, with callous disregard by Belarus,” Capus said on X.

Kuznechyk and Losik — as well as opposition leader Viktar Babaryka — are being held at Correctional Colony No. 1, which is considered one of the harshest prisons in Belarus.

The third RFE/RL journalist who is imprisoned is Vladyslav Yesypenko, who has been jailed in Russian-occupied Crimea since March 2021. He was charged with “possession and transport of explosives,” which he denies, and sentenced in a closed-door trial to six years in prison.

“Their so-called crimes?” Capus said, referring to the three jailed journalists. “Sharing journalistic words of truth.” RFE/RL calls for their immediate release, he added.

American RFE/RL journalist Alsu Kurmasheva was among the outlet’s wrongly jailed journalists until early August, when she was released from Russia as part of a historic prisoner swap between Moscow and Washington.

The Washington embassy of Belarus told VOA it had no comment for this story. The Belarusian Foreign Ministry did not immediately reply to VOA’s email requesting comment. Russia’s Washington embassy also did not immediately reply to VOA’s email requesting comment.

 
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US official holds talks in Africa on responsible use of military AI

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Abuja, Nigeria — A U.S. State Department official was in Nigeria this week to meet with local and regional authorities about the responsible use of artificial intelligence in military applications.

Mallory Stewart, assistant secretary of state for the Bureau of Arms Control, Deterrence and Stability, said her two-day visit with Nigerian officials from the regional bloc ECOWAS was part of the United States’ commitment to deepen security cooperation in Africa.

The U.S. government has been working with 55 nations, including African nations, “to agree upon responsible uses of AI in the military context, using AI in a manner consistent with international laws [and] recognizing inherent human bias,” Stewart told journalists Wednesday.

“We’ve learned the hard way [that there is] inherent human bias built into the AI system … leading to maybe misinformation being provided to the decisionmaker,” she said.

The goal, she continued, “is to hear from as many countries as possible that are at the stage of working in artificial intelligence to their military to see how we can minimize the risks.”

Last year, the Global Terrorism Index report named sub-Saharan Africa an epicenter of terrorism, accounting for nearly 60% of terror-related deaths. It is unclear whether the terror groups are using AI.

Nigerian authorities have been pushing for the integration of artificial intelligence in military operations, while acknowledging that adopting AI will require Africa-specific policies.

Security analyst Kabiru Adamu of Beacon Consulting said the use of AI in military operations has advantages.

“Given the position of the U.S. in terms of its military capacity and technological advancement, it will definitely be in the position to support Nigeria’s desires, especially if it’s able to contextualize some of the peculiarities within the Nigerian security space,” Adamu said. “We can’t isolate ourselves from the international committee of nations. AI is embedded in security, so we have to do it. But we need to be cognizant of the supporting infrastructure for good technology. Power is one of them, culture.”

The founder of Global Sentinel online magazine, Senator Iroegbu, said that while AI has benefits, the technology still needs to be treated with caution.

“It limits casualties in terms of the number of soldiers that will be deployed, so you conserve your boots,” Iroegbu said. “It helps penetrate rough terrains, gather more intelligence. It’s good that there’s growing awareness of the issue of artificial intelligence, but Nigeria needs to first of all try to define its own policy and strategy with regards to artificial intelligence. More sensitization needs to be done, and more policy aspect of it needs to be developed.”

In June, African ministers unanimously endorsed landmark continental AI strategy to advance Africa’s digital future and development aspirations. And last week, the African Union approved the adoption of AI in public and private sectors in member states, including Nigeria.
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Cameroon opposition, civil society blame low voter registration on president Biya

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Yaounde — Cameroon is trying to register voters before the nearing deadline. But the political opposition and civil society say most qualified voters are reluctant to register because they think President Paul Biya plans to rig elections. Barely 50% of qualified civilians have registered for the election expected in October 2025.

Cameroon’s elections management body, ELECAM, says 7.9 million civilians have registered as voters ahead of the August 31 deadline set by the central African states electoral law.

Cameroon is preparing for presidential elections next year to end an ongoing seven-year mandate. The date for the presidential polls will be decided by longtime leader Paul Biya.

Biya was declared the winner of the country’s 2018 presidential polls, even though some opposition and civil society groups reject the results and accuse Biya of massive fraud to maintain his grip on power.  

Cameroon rights groups say citizens are afraid to register because voters who protested what they claim was the stolen victory of the opposition Cameroon Renaissance Movement, or MRC, leader Maurice Kamto in 2018 were jailed for rebellion and attempted insurrection.

The MRC and a coalition of political parties that support Kamto say they will not tolerate fraud and electoral malpractice during the expected 2025 polls. They are urging civilians to register because voter registration is fundamental to credible elections.

The opposition and civil society say they have sent caravans to towns and villages all over Cameroon to encourage citizens to register and qualify to vote before registration ends in 10 days.

A member of the opposition moves in neighborhoods in Buea, capital of Cameroon’s English-speaking Southwest region, is asking people who expect to register to also be ready to protest, should the polls be rigged.

Tamfu Richard is a human rights lawyer and a member of the Cameroon Party for National Reconciliation, or CPNR. Richard said the CPNR is particularly encouraging disgruntled youths who constitute a majority of Cameroon’s population to register, vote and come out massively to protest, should their victory be stolen again. 

He said the opposition will not allow Biya and his government to continue ruling Cameroon with an iron fist.

“Cameroon is at a crossroads where the current leader is of age and has been there for 42 years, so it is in the interest of Cameroonians to have a different face, somebody who is young at the helm. It is in the interest of Cameroonians to make sure that they massively register, supervise their votes and defend it when the time comes,” he said. 

Cameroon’s opposition and civil society estimate there are close to 16 million potential voters in the country of about 30 million civilians. 

Forty-seven-year-old merchant Emmanuel Neba said a majority of Cameroonians are reluctant to register because they believe Biya, who has been in power for over four decades, wants to rule until he dies. 

“We know that Paul Biya will still win the elections. In America Joe Biden is 82 and he abandoned his candidacy to a younger person, but in Cameroon, Paul Biya who is 91 wants to continue to be president forever, and that is why the youths are not eager to go and register to{qualify} to vote,” he said.

Cameroon opposition and civil society say citizens should emulate the example of Chad, which has more than 8.2 million registered voters among a population of about 18 million. They say Cameroonians should also get inspired by Senegal where over 7 million people in a population of about 17.5 million registered for the West African state’s March 19 presidential elections.

Opposition and civil society proponents say that the massive involvement of youth in Senegal made victory possible for 40-year-old Bassirou Diomaye Faye over 62-year-old Macky Sall, who was running for a third term as president in the West African country.

Cameroon government officials assert Biya has won all presidential elections he contested since the return of multiparty politics in 1990. The government refutes opposition claims that Biya is planning to rig elections next year and warns civilians against what officials say is increasing hate speech ahead of the polls.

Opposition and civil society say the Cameroon government considers criticizing Biya hate language and threatens arrests.

Biya has not publicly announced that he will run again in the October 2025 presidential elections, but his supporters and government ministers have been organizing political rallies calling on him to run again.
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British military: Greek oil tanker drifting and ablaze after repeated attacks in Red Sea

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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — A Greek-flagged oil tanker traveling through the Red Sea came under repeated attack Wednesday, leaving the vessel “not under command” and drifting ablaze after an assault suspected to have been carried out by Yemen’s Houthi rebels, the British military said.

The attack, the most serious in the Red Sea in weeks, comes during a monthslong campaign by Houthis targeting ships over the ongoing Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip that has disrupted a trade route through which $1 trillion in cargo typically passes each year.

In the attack, men on small boats first opened fire with small arms about 140 kilometers (90 miles) west of the rebel-held Yemeni port city of Hodeida, the British military’s United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said.

Four projectiles also hit the ship, it added. It wasn’t immediately clear if that meant drones or missiles.

“The vessel reports being not under command,” the UKMTO said, likely meaning it lost all power. “No casualties reported.”

Later, the UKMTO warned the ship was drifting while on fire in the Red Sea.

The Greek shipping ministry later identified the vessel as the tanker Sounion, which had 25 crew members on board at the time of the attack as it traveled from Iraq to Cyprus.

The Houthis did not immediately claim responsibility for the attack, though it can take them hours or even days before they acknowledge their assaults.

The Houthis have targeted more than 80 vessels with missiles and drones since the war in Gaza started in October. They seized one vessel and sank two in the campaign that also killed four sailors.

Other missiles and drones have either been intercepted by a U.S.-led coalition in the Red Sea or failed to reach their targets.

The rebels maintain that they target ships linked to Israel, the United States or the U.K. to force an end to Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza. However, many of the ships attacked have little or no connection to the conflict, including some bound for Iran.

The Houthis have also launched drones and missiles toward Israel, including an attack on July 19 that killed one person and wounded 10 others in Tel Aviv. Israel responded the next day with airstrikes on Hodeida that hit fuel depots and electrical stations, killing and wounding a number of people, the rebels say.

After the strikes, the Houthis paused their attacks until Aug. 3, when they hit a Liberian-flagged container ship traveling through the Gulf of Aden. A Liberian-flagged oil tanker came under a particularly intense series of attacks beginning Aug. 8, likely carried out by the rebels. A similar attack happened Aug. 13 as well.

The last three recent attacks, including Wednesday’s, targeted vessels associated with Delta Tankers, a Greek company.

As Iran threatens to retaliate against Israel over the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, the U.S. military told the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group to sail more quickly to the area. America also has ordered the USS Georgia guided missile submarine into the Mideast, while the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier strike group was in the Gulf of Oman.

Additional F-22 fighter jets have flown into the region and the USS Wasp, a large amphibious assault ship carrying F-35 fighter jets, is in the Mediterranean Sea.
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Taliban block UN human rights investigator from visiting Afghanistan  

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ISLAMABAD — Afghanistan’s de facto Taliban leaders have barred the United Nations-appointed special rapporteur on human rights, Richard Bennett, from entering the country for allegedly “spreading propaganda.”

Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid disclosed the decision to Afghan broadcaster TOLO News late Tuesday. He accused the U.N. envoy of misrepresenting “the ground realities” in the country and providing “misleading” information to the global community.

Bennett reports to the U.N. Human Rights Council based in Geneva and has conducted several trips to Kabul to investigate the Afghan human rights situation since assuming duties in 2022 — a year after the radical Taliban returned to power.

“Mr. Bennett’s travel to Afghanistan has been prohibited because he was assigned to spread propaganda in Afghanistan. He is not someone we trust … He used to exaggerate minor issues and propagate them,” Mujahid stated.

Neither the U.N. Human Rights Council nor Bennett has immediately commented on the reported travel ban facing him.

The U.N. human rights rapporteur, in one of his recently published assessments, highlighted the Taliban’s sweeping curbs on Afghan women’s access to education, employment, and public life at large, demanding they be immediately reversed.

Bennett alleged that women and girls under Taliban rule “are being persecuted based on gender, calling it a crime against humanity. He went on to assert that the institutionalized, systematic, and widespread nature justifies it being framed as “gender apartheid.”

Mujahid dismissed the U.N. findings and subsequent statements by Bennett as propaganda, saying the Taliban respect women’s rights in line with their interpretation of Islamic law and Afghan customs.

The Agence France-Presse news agency quoted a diplomatic source as confirming the ban on the U.N. rapporteur and saying that Bennett “was informed of the decision that he would not be welcome to return to Afghanistan several months ago.”

“Even after repeatedly requesting Mr. Bennett to adhere to professionalism during work … it was decided that … his reports are based on prejudices and anecdotes detrimental to interests of Afghanistan and the Afghan people,” Taliban foreign ministry spokesman Abdul Qahar Balkhi told the Reuters news agency.

Taliban officials do not respond to VOA queries because they have imposed a ban on the media outlet.

De facto fundamentalist Afghan authorities have barred girls ages 12 and older from attending school and women from many public and private sector workplaces, including the U.N.

In addition, women are not allowed to undertake road trips beyond 78 kilometers without a male guardian, and they are barred from visiting parks, gyms, and public baths.

“The Taliban barring Bennett from entering the country is one of many signs that their crackdown on human rights, especially the rights of women and girls, is ongoing and continuing to deepen,” Heather Barr, the associate women’s rights director at Human Rights Watch, told VOA.

“The international community — and the U.N.—should respond to this provocation by the Taliban by committing to never discussing the future of Afghanistan without women on the agenda and at the table,” she said in her comments shared via email.

The Taliban attended a U.N.-organized meeting in Doha last month for the first time, where they interacted with envoys from more than two dozen countries on matters related to Afghanistan’s economic and humanitarian challenges.

The U.N. did not invite Afghan women or human rights representatives, however, citing the Taliban’s opposition, a move that drew strong criticism of the world body.

No country has officially recognized the Taliban as the legitimate government since they seized control of Afghanistan in 2021, mainly citing the harsh treatment of women and girls.

Many top Taliban leaders remain under international terrorism sanctions, and the Afghan banking sector is largely isolated from the rest of the world, with about $9 billion in central bank assets being frozen in the U.S. and European banks.
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Modi calls for peace and stability as he heads to Ukraine 

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New Delhi — Ahead of a visit to Ukraine, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi called for an early return to peace and stability and said he will “share perspectives” on a peaceful resolution of the conflict between Russia and Ukraine.

Modi will travel to Kyiv on Friday after visiting Poland. He will hold talks with Ukraine’s President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy weeks after a visit by the Indian prime minister to its longstanding partner Moscow drew sharp criticism from the Ukrainian leader.

Modi met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in July on a day when Russian missiles struck multiple targets including a children’s hospital in Kyiv killing many civilians.

The Indian leader had called the death of children heart-wrenching, but images of Modi hugging Putin were embarrassing, according to analysts.

“The optics of the Russia visit were not good. So, the effort by going to Ukraine is to show that India is not just taking a passive position on the conflict but wants to actively help in a settlement,” said Manoj Joshi, distinguished fellow at the Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi.

Zelenskyy had said that it was a “huge disappointment and a devastating blow to peace efforts” to see Modi hug “the world’s most bloody criminal in Moscow on such a day.”

Modi will be the first Indian prime minister to visit Ukraine since the two countries established diplomatic ties.

“As a friend and partner, we hope for an early return of peace and stability in the region,” Modi said in a statement on Wednesday before leaving New Delhi. He said his trip will be a “natural continuation of extensive contacts” between India and Ukraine.

Modi met Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit held in Italy in June. In March this year, Ukraine’s foreign minister visited the Indian capital in a bid to give momentum to their political and economic ties.

India has not joined its Western allies in directly holding the Kremlin responsible for the war, but it has been urging the two nations to resolve their conflict through dialogue and diplomacy.

The Indian foreign ministry said on Monday that India has “substantive and independent ties” with both Russia and Ukraine and was ready to support the negotiation of a peace settlement.

“India has high credibility with Russia,’’ analyst Joshi told VOA. ‘’So the hope is that it can play some kind of a mediatory role and can raise issues with Moscow directly.’’

The visit is also seen as an effort by India to balance its growing ties with Western countries with its refusal to join them in isolating its decades-long partner Russia.

Following the Modi-Putin summit, the United States State Department said it had raised concerns with India about its relationship with Russia and hoped it would use its ties with Moscow to firmly encourage the Kremlin to adhere to the United Nations charter.

Since the conflict began more than two years ago, India has abstained from all U.N. votes against Russia and become one of the biggest buyers of Russian oil as it continues to trade with Moscow.

Analysts say New Delhi’s big challenge is to convince the West and Kyiv that its friendship with Russia is not an endorsement of Putin’s Ukraine policy.

“India is walking the tightrope,’’ Joshi said. ‘’As the war continues and even becomes more intense, it brings more pressure on New Delhi and the Indian position stands out starkly, especially as the Western position on Russia hardens.”

Modi’s visit to Poland, the first by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in 40 years, is expected to focus on strengthening economic and political cooperation. He will meet both Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk and President Andrzej Duda, according to the foreign ministry.

Analysts say Modi’s visit to the two countries – Poland and Ukraine – is also part of India’s efforts to increase its engagement with countries in central and eastern Europe as it tries to raise its global profile.
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Andrew Tate’s Romania home searched as part of new probe

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Bucharest, Romania — Romanian authorities on Wednesday searched the home of controversial influencer Andrew Tate, who is awaiting trial over human trafficking and rape charges, as part of a new investigation, officials said.

One of the world’s best-known influencers known for misogynist and sometimes violent maxims, Andrew Tate has been accused of having formed an organized criminal network in early 2021 in Romania and Britain, along with his brother Tristan. They have denied the charges.

Prosecutors allege that 37-year-old Tate, his 36-year-old brother and two women set up a criminal organization and sexually exploited several victims. A trial date has not yet been set.

On Wednesday prosecutors “conducted a raid this morning, on August 21, 2024, at the residence of the Tate brothers as part of a search related to a new investigation,” prosecutors said in a statement.

The office for organized crime said that four search warrants were executed, in connection with “the crimes of forming an organized criminal group, trafficking in minors,” “sexual relations with a minor” and “money laundering.”

Neither of the statements indicated whether the new charges targeted the brothers.

They were detained in 2022 in Bucharest and spent three months in detention before being released under judicial supervision to await trial.

The brothers also face rape and assault allegations in separate cases in Britain, where they have also been accused of tax evasion.

In 2016, Tate appeared on the “Big Brother” reality television show in Britain but was removed after a video emerged showing him attacking a woman.

He then turned to social media platforms to promote his divisive views.

Giving tips on how to be successful, along with misogynistic and sometimes violent maxims, his videos have made him one of the world’s best-known influencers.
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Bus carrying Shiite pilgrims from Pakistan to Iraq crashes in Iran, killing at least 28 people

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TEHRAN, Iran — A bus carrying Shiite pilgrims from Pakistan to Iraq crashed in central Iran, killing at least 28 people, an official said Wednesday.

The crash happened Tuesday night in the central Iranian province of Yazd, said Mohammad Ali Malekzadeh, a local emergency official, according to the state-run IRNA news agency.

Another 23 people suffered injuries in the crash, 14 of them serious, he added. He said all the bus passengers hailed from Pakistan.

There were 51 people on board at the time of the crash outside of the city of Taft, some 500 kilometers (310 miles) southeast of the Iranian capital, Tehran.

Iranian state television later broadcast images of the bus, turned upside down on the highway with its roof smashed in and all its doors open. Rescuers stepped gingerly through the broken glass and debris littering the road.

In the state TV report, Malekzadeh blamed the crash on the bus brakes failing and a lack of attention by its driver.

In Pakistan, media reports quoted a local Shiite leader, Qamar Abbas, saying as many as 35 people had died in the crash. He described those on the bus as coming from the city of Larkana in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province.

Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi expressed his condolences over the deaths.

“We are deeply saddened by the loss of precious human lives in the bus accident in Iran,” he said.

Iran has one of the world’s worst traffic safety records with some 17,000 deaths annually. The grave toll is blamed on wide disregard for traffic laws, unsafe vehicles and inadequate emergency services in its vast rural areas.

The pilgrims had been on their way to Iraq to commemorate Arbaeen.

Arbaeen — Arabic for the number 40 — marks the death of the Prophet Muhammad’s grandson, Hussein, at the hands of the Muslim Umayyad forces in the Battle of Karbala, during the tumultuous first century of Islam’s history. Hussein was seen by his followers as the rightful heir of the prophet’s legacy. When he refused to pledge allegiance to the Umayyad caliphate, he was killed in the battle, cementing the schism between Sunni and Shiite Islam.

Pilgrims gather in Karbala, Iraq, in what’s regarded as the largest annual public gathering in the world. The event draws tens of millions of people each year.

A separate bus crash early Wednesday in Iran’s southeastern Sistan and Baluchestan province killed six people and injured 18, authorities said.
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Ukrainian forces take more Russian terrain

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says the country’s forces now control 92 settlements and more than 1,250 square kilometers in Russia’s Kursk region, after Ukrainian responses to Russia’s cross-border attacks evolved into a surprising offensive. VOA Pentagon correspondent Carla Babb has the latest.
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A ‘huge number of people’ did not burn alive in the Donetsk shopping mall

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The Kremlin-appointed governor of Russian-controlled Donetsk in Ukraine said 11 people suffered moderate or minor injuries during the Galaktika mall fire.
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Botswana begins mpox screening at entry points

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Gaborone, Botswana — Health officials in Botswana have started screening travelers for mpox at the country’s entry points. 

Neighboring South Africa has recorded three deaths as a result of the dangerous strain of mpox, and Botswana is anxious to keep out the rapidly spreading disease.

“Although we have not recorded any case of mpox in Botswana, I want to take this opportunity to assure Botswana that we have significantly enhanced our broader surveillance systems,” the country’s minister of health, Dr Edwin Dikoloti, told the media Tuesday. “We are currently intensifying our surveillance at key entry points, which is borders and airports, focusing on high-risk areas.”

South Africa shares a 1,900-kilometer border with Botswana and as of Aug. 5 had recorded three mpox deaths. In Africa, the disease has claimed the lives of more than 500 people since the beginning of the year.

Botswana Public Health Institute Acting Director Dr. Thebeyame Matsheka says travelers will be required to fill out self-assessment forms at border checkpoints.

“There are sometimes where, through just random checks, we might identify someone who appears not to be well, they will take those travelers aside and investigate further,” Matsheka said.

Meanwhile, Dikoloti said Botswana is engaging with international partners for the supply of vaccines.

According to Africa’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the continent has about 200,000 vaccine doses against a requirement of at least 10 million doses.

Medication to be used for the management of mpox is available at health facilities throughout the country.

“Vaccines exist for mpox but they are not widely available,” Dikoloti added. 

The World Health Organization country representative, Juliet Bataringaya, says the scale of the mpox vaccination will not be broad because the disease affects countries differently.

“We need to have a good understanding of the epidemiology in each and every country, because it is different and to understand the transmission patterns,” Bataringaya said. “These will then guide on the use of vaccines in a more targeted way to have maximum public health impact.”

She said there won’t be the kind of mass vaccination effort implemented during the COVID pandemic because the modes of transmission are different.
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