Newsletter Archive

The rise of the Iranian smartphone user could affect how the current protests unfold in the coming days. With a population of 80 million, Iran has 48 million smartphone users. And while Facebook and Twitter have been blocked since the 2009 protests, Iranians have turned to other services, such as Telegram, to communicate. The events of the past week highlight how Iranian smartphone use can be used for both political organizing and political suppression.

Ongoing coverage: Members of Congress are taking to social media to show support for the protesters. For all of the latest developments and up-to-date content on the on-going protests in Iran be sure to follow VOA’s live blog.

EXPLAINER: Iran has a democratically elected president but it is the appointed supreme leader who is really in charge. Iran’s government is an Islam-driven theocracy and republic led by a president elected by popular vote — a hybrid known as an Islamic republic.

What happens in Iran…The impact could be far-reaching if the unrest in Iran continues. Protesters are demanding an end to ‘mismanagement, nepotism and corruption.’ They’re also angry about the vast sums of money sent abroad while people at home are hungry. Iran is embroiled in proxy wars with Saudi Arabia in Syria and Yemen, provides funds to Hezbollah, and is a key player in Iraq. That’s why its internal politics have the potential to affect almost every corner of the region.

VOA interviews Vice President Mike Pence who compares President Trump’s immediate public support of Iranian protesters to the slower public response from the Obama administration during the 2009 demonstrations known as the Green Revolution. But is there more that the US intends to actually do to support protesters in the streets?

Who’s got the bigger button? With President Donald Trump and North Korea’s Kim Jong Un exchanging words about which leader is in possession of the bigger nuclear button, we decided to explore the issue a little bit further. The truth is that while each nuclear-armed country has a system for initiating a strike, nuclear buttons are largely figments of people’s imaginations.

After Francis Okello Loya lost his eyesight in a bomb blast during Uganda’s civil war, dogs at his boarding school for the blind helped guide the 12-year-old to the bathroom at night. VOA met up with Okello in Gulu Town where, now 29 and a community psychologist, he’s using that experience from his past to help the tens of thousands of Ugandans still struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder. That’s where ‘man’s best friend’ comes in.

The sale of ivory just became illegal in mainland China. The ban was announced at the end of 2016 and put it into effect at the end of 2017, surprising conservationists who thought it could take up to five years to go into effect. In Nairobi, VOA learns that while conservationists are optimistic, it’s too early to predict how the ban will be enforced.