By Catherine Makino Tokyo 17 January 2007 Image from the 1984 Japanese anime film Nausicaa of the Valley of the Winds Fanatical followers of Japanese comic books and cartoon animations have become an economic force in Japan. These so-called otaku ar...
By Nico Colombant Dakar 17 January 2007 Authorities in Guinea have detained several leaders of an escalating general strike that has paralyzed the African nation. A government plea issued Tuesday night for workers to return to their jobs was rejected...
By Steve Herman Washington 17 January 2007 Hopes for a political solution to Sri Lanka's ethnic conflict appear to have suffered a new setback. Media in the region report that Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapakse has rejected an appeal by former p...
By Anjana Pasricha New Delhi 17 January 2007 In Nepal, Maoist fighters have begun handing over weapons to be put under United Nations supervision. As Anjana Pasricha reports from New Delhi, the move comes two days after the former rebels joined the...
By Benjamin Sand Islamabad 17 January 2007 U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates says U.S. commanders in Afghanistan are recommending increased troop levels to help combat the growing Taleban insurgency. The recommendation comes on top of President...
By Phil Mercer Sydney 17 January 2007 Councilors in Australia's most famous musical city have reversed a controversial decision to reject refugees from Sudan. Authorities in Tamworth, 600 kilometers northwest of Sydney, had earlier said African migra...
By Matt Steinglass Hanoi 17 January 2007 Lee Kuan Yew (file photo) Lee Kuan Yew, the former prime minister of Singapore, is visiting Vietnam. Many people in Vietnam admire Mr. Lee for building Singapore into a modern, developed nation, and they see t...
By Jim Randle Baghdad 17 January 2007 More than 20 people are dead in Iraq in the second day of surging violence that killed more than 100 people Tuesday. VOA's Jim Randle reports from Baghdad, it is the worst bloodshed in weeks. Firefighters work o...
By Deborah Tate Capitol Hill 17 January 2007 watch Deborah Block's report Millions of Iraqis have been displaced by the sectarian violence wracking their country, and many have sought refuge in neighboring countries - severely straining those govern...
By Mike O'Sullivan Los Angeles 16 January 2007 Los Angeles has the largest homeless population in the United States, with tens of thousands of people living on the streets or in temporary shelters. VOA's Mike O'Sullivan reports, charitable groups an...
By David McAlary Washington 16 January 2007 South Asians make up 1/4 of the world's population. Researchers have known that they tend to have heart attacks at earlier ages than people from other parts of the world. Now they have identified the reason...
By Joe DeCapua Washington 16 January 2007 Three women have been nominated as the finalists for the annual Worlds Childrens Prize for the Rights of the Child. Nominations are accepted by the Swedish-based organization, after which a committee of chil...
By Jim Malone Washington 16 January 2007 Democratic Senator Barack Obama, a rapidly rising star on America's political scene, has taken a first step toward a possible run for president in 2008. VOA National Correspondent Jim Malone reports from Wash...
By Al Pessin Washington 16 January 2007 Robert Gates listens to a question during a joint press conference at the presidential palace in Kabul, 16 Jan 2007 U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates says the United States would like to see Pakistan do more...
By Anya Ardayeva Moscow 16 January 2007 watch Pipeline report Belarus/Russia pipeline Russia has resumed pumping crude oil to Western Europe through Belarus, after shutting down a pipeline for three days amid charges that authorities in Minsk were il...
