Newsletter Archive

Somalia’s new president, a dual U.S.-Somali citizen, rides into office on a wave of optimism. Celebrations erupted across the country after parliament voted to elect Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed to the presidency. The former New York resident, who worked for state government, has a reputation for being competent, patriotic and not corrupt — qualities many Somalis see as rare in their political sphere.

The Trump administration has expressed a ‘strong’ commitment to fight hate crimes against religious minorities, according to a member of a new U.S. coalition of prominent American Jews and Muslims. The Muslim-Jewish Advisory Council recently met with a Trump administration official seeking federal action to combat a spike in U.S. hate crimes against Jews and Muslims. The pledge to fight hate crimes earned the president praise from leaders of the two minority groups.

VIDEO EXPLAINER: Last night, a U.S. federal appeals court upheld a ruling that blocks President Donald Trump’s travel ban. What is the federal appeals court and how does a case end up there? We break it down for you.

The rules were different for Islamic State brides. In Mosul, VOA speaks with an Iraqi woman who ran a secret beauty salon that was supposedly banned by the terror group. Yet militants’ brides came to have their hair and makeup done. She says one of the brides told her, ‘I am with Islamic State. We can go out however we want.’

QUICK TAKE VIDEO: With Islamic State gone from the neighborhood, a market in Mosul is coming back to life as vendors hawk colorful produce and other wares. VOA visits the market in the recaptured eastern side of the Iraqi city to learn what newly liberated residents want now.

China intends to create 50 million new urban jobs by 2020. Developing well-paying jobs in a slowing economy isn’t the only challenge Beijing faces. Keeping unemployment down won’t be easy either, especially considering that millions in the coal and steel industries are expected to lose their jobs in the coming years.

Baseball is known as the American pastime, but it’s equally popular in parts of Latin America and Asia. Now the sport is gaining ground on another continent — Africa. In Kikuyu, VOA meets Kenya’s ‘boys of summer,’ who aim to be the first Kenyan team ever to play in the Little League World Series.

Your smartphone or your wife? Your attachment to your digital device can be bad for your love life. Constant attention to your smartphone or tablet — and inattention to your spouse or other loved ones — causes wear and tear on your relationships.