Newsletter Archive

President Donald Trump signed an executive order to begin building a border wall with Mexico, following up on a prominent campaign promise of erecting a barrier that will prevent crime and drugs from crossing north, and stop migrants from taking U.S. jobs. VOA explores the history of the border fence where it already exists, where it doesn’t, and the feasibility of deterring migrants from coming to America.

On Friday, British Prime Minister Theresa May will be the first world leader to visit new U.S. President Donald Trump, in a symbolic reaffirmation of the historic alliance between the two nations. Trump has promised an ‘even closer’ relationship with Britain, particularly in the wake of Brexit. VOA reports from London where, despite the two leaders’ common goals, observers predict there could be an awkward moment or two when May and Trump meet.

Thanks, but no thanks. An influential Paris mosque is pulling out of a new, state-sponsored Muslim foundation. Citing ‘interference’ in how Islam is exercised, the Paris Grand Mosque called on other Muslim groups to follow its lead and ‘reject all attempts of stewardship.’ VOA is in Paris, where the split comes at a time when simmering tensions and divisions surround France’s second-largest faith.

Iraqis have learned to be resilient after living under Islamic State rule for more than two years. VOA checks out a bridge in Mosul that was bombed by the terror group as its fighters lost ground to advancing Iraqi troops. But that hasn’t stopped a bustling marketplace from springing up at the damaged crossing.

QUICK TAKE VIDEO: Once the owners fled, Islamic State turned a family home into a prison, putting bars on the doors and windows. VOA visited the home in the northern Iraqi town of Tal Kayf, which was recently recaptured by Iraqi forces, and spoke to neighbors who recall hearing the chilling screams of torture victims.

Tracking the Africa-China connection. The first train has rumbled down the tracks of a $3.4 billion electric railway connecting landlocked Ethiopia with Djibouti and its access to the Red Sea. The project was mostly funded by China’s state-run EXIM Bank and built by Chinese engineers. It’s the latest example of China’s massive infrastructure investment in Africa, furthering its aims to develop a modern-day ‘silk road.‘

Hunting is at the root of Cambodian culture, but a 35-year-old photographer is trying to change that. At the turn of this century, the acceleration of forest loss in Cambodia was the highest in the world. VOA met Suy Senglim in Phnom Penh, and learned he hopes his stunning photographs will draw people’s attention to Cambodia’s diminishing natural wonders.