The Walt Disney Co.’s “Wish” had been expected to rule the Thanksgiving weekend box office, but moviegoers instead feasted on leftovers, as “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” led ticket sales for the second weekend, according to studio estimates Sunday. Neither of the weekend’s top new releases …
your ad hereChina Says Surge in Respiratory Illnesses Caused by Flu, Other Known Pathogens
A surge in respiratory illnesses across China that has drawn the attention of the World Health Organization is caused by the flu and other known pathogens and not by a novel virus, the country’s health ministry said Sunday. Recent clusters of respiratory infections are caused by an overlap of common …
your ad hereCambodia’s Dragon Boat Races Make a Welcome Return
Cambodians are celebrating the return of dragon boat races at this year’s Water Festival after a three-year absence amid hopes it will bolster the tourism industry and an economy struggling to recover in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Luke Hunt reports. Camera: Luke Hunt, David Brown, Vicheka Kol …
your ad hereHeat, Disease, Air Pollution: How Climate Change Impacts Health
Growing calls for the world to come to grips with the many ways that global warming affects human health have prompted the first day dedicated to the issue at crunch UN climate talks starting next week. Extreme heat, air pollution and the increasing spread of deadly infectious diseases are just …
your ad hereGreek PM to ‘Persist’ With UK Over Parthenon Marbles
Greece’s prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said Sunday he would push for the return of the Parthenon Marbles when he meets UK leader Rishi Sunak in Britain this week. The sculptures, also known as the Elgin Marbles, were taken from the Parthenon temple at the Acropolis in Athens in the early …
your ad hereOregon Experiments with Decriminalizing Small Amounts of Hard Drugs
In the Pacific Northwest, one U.S. state is trying a novel approach to combatting opioid abuse — decriminalizing small amounts of hard drugs. From Oregon, Deborah Bloom has our story. …
your ad hereUN Chief Visits Rapidly Melting Antarctica Ahead of COP28 Climate Talks
On the cusp of the COP28 climate talks, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres visited frozen but rapidly melting Antarctica and said that intense action must be taken at the conference where countries will address their commitments to lowering emissions of planet-warming gases. “We are witnessing an acceleration that is absolutely devastating,” …
your ad hereMeals To Woof Down at Italy’s First Dog Restaurant
Pepe’s meal is so good he licks the plate clean. In any other Rome establishment, slobbering on one’s chicken and mashed potato would be frowned upon — but this is “Fiuto”, Italy’s first dogs’ restaurant. The lighting is soft, lounge music plays in the background, attentive staff show people and …
your ad hereIn US, Hmong ‘New Year’ Means Recalling Old Spirits, Teaching New Generations
For the annual fall renewal of her shaman spirit, Mee Vang Yang will soon ritually redecorate the tall altar in her living room where she keeps her father’s ring-shaped shaman bells. She carried them across the Mekong River as the family fled the communist takeover of her native Laos four …
your ad hereJapan Detects Season’s First Bird Flu Case, Will Cull 40,000 Birds, Report Says
Japan detected the first case of highly pathogenic H5-type bird flu this season at a poultry farm in the south of the country, public broadcaster NHK reported Saturday. The local government in Saga prefecture will cull about 40,000 birds on the farm, NHK said, citing agriculture ministry officials it did …
your ad hereUN Chief Speaks From Antarctica Ahead of Global Climate Summit
On the eve of international climate talks, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres visited globally important Antarctica, where ice that’s been frozen for millions of years is melting because of human-caused climate change, to send the message that “we absolutely need to act immediately.” “What happens in Antarctica doesn’t stay in Antarctica,” …
your ad hereWHO Confirms First Sexual Spread of Mpox in Congo Amid Record Outbreak
The World Health Organization said it has confirmed sexual transmission of mpox in the Democratic Republic of Congo for the first time as the country experiences its biggest outbreak, a worrying development that African scientists warn could make it more difficult to stop the disease. In a statement issued late …
your ad hereSouth Africa, Colombia Fighting Drugmakers Over Access to TB, HIV Drugs
South Africa, Colombia and other countries that lost out in the global race for coronavirus vaccines are taking a more combative approach toward drugmakers and pushing back on policies that deny cheap treatment to millions of people with tuberculosis and HIV. Experts see it as a shift in how such …
your ad hereWHO Asks China for More Information About Illnesses, Pneumonia Clusters
Chinese officials say they did not detect any “unusual or novel diseases” in the country, the World Health Organization said Thursday, following an official request by the U.N. health agency for information about a potentially worrying spike in respiratory illnesses and clusters of pneumonia in children. WHO cited unspecified media …
your ad hereNew York City Hosts Its 97th Thanksgiving Parade
New York City on Thursday hosted its 97th Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, featuring 48 character and novelty balloons, 26 floats, 12 marching bands and more than 700 clowns. Aron Ranen reports. …
your ad hereWest Africa Responds to Huge Diphtheria Outbreaks by Targeting Unvaccinated Populations
Authorities in several West African countries are trying to manage their huge diphtheria outbreaks, including in Nigeria where a top health official said Thursday that millions are being vaccinated to cover wide gaps in immunity against the disease. At least 573 people out of the 11,640 diagnosed with the disease …
your ad hereA Chicken Inside a Duck Inside a Turkey
In most of the United States, November and December are prime time for turkey lovers. The U.S. Poultry and Egg Association says 46 million turkeys are eaten on Thanksgiving, with another 22 million consumed on Christmas. But in the Southern state of Louisiana, known for its decadence and creative cuisine, …
your ad hereBalloons, Bands and Santa: Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade Ushers in Holiday Season in New York
Beloved characters like Snoopy and SpongeBob SquarePants soared through the skies above New York City Thursday while bands marched along the streets below as the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade ushered in the holiday season. The parade started on Manhattan’s Upper West Side making its way alongside Central Park in …
your ad hereEthiopian American Top Young Scientist Challenge Winner Hopes to Change Lives
A 14-year-old Ethiopian-born American in the U.S. state of Virginia has won the 3M Young Scientist Challenge, an annual science competition for U.S. students in grades five through eight. VOA’s Eden Geremew recently spoke with the winner in Fairfax County, Virginia, in this report narrated by Salem Solomon. Camera: Karina …
your ad hereKashmir Artisans Turn Paper Into Christmas Treasures
The Indian side of Kashmir is home to very few Christians, but people from the region put their blood and sweat into preparing gifts for Christmas celebrations. For VOA, Muheet Ul Islam has more from Srinagar in Indian-administered Kashmir. Camera: Wasim Nabi …
your ad hereNew Obesity Medications Change How Users View Holiday Meals
For most of her life, Claudia Stearns dreaded Thanksgiving. As a person who struggled with obesity since childhood, Stearns hated the annual turmoil of obsessing about what she ate — and the guilt of overindulging on a holiday built around food. Now, after losing nearly 100 pounds using medications including …
your ad hereUS Envoy Focuses on Cyberscams During Cambodia Visit
Cindy Dyer, the U.S. ambassador-at-large for monitoring and combating trafficking, is planning to push Cambodia’s new government to ramp up its efforts to crack down on cyberscam operations that trap many trafficking victims in slavelike conditions. A recently completed visit to Phnom Penh by Dyer “will serve as an opportunity …
your ad hereClimate Change Brings Fear and Uncertainty to South Africa’s Coastlines
Rising sea levels, extreme weather and rising temperatures are threatening coastal communities in South Africa. For VOA, Derick Mazarura has the story from Eastern Cape, South Africa. Camera — Buhle Ndamase and Norah Chisa. …
your ad hereAltman Back as OpenAI CEO Days After Being Fired
The ousted leader of ChatGPT-maker OpenAI is returning to the company that fired him late last week, culminating a days-long power struggle that shocked the tech industry and brought attention to the conflicts around how to safely build artificial intelligence. San Francisco-based OpenAI said in a statement late Tuesday, “We …
your ad hereLargest Crypto Exchange Fined $4 Billion; CEO Pleads Guilty to Allowing Money Laundering
The U.S. government dealt a massive blow to Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, which agreed to pay a roughly $4 billion settlement Tuesday as its founder and CEO Changpeng Zhao pleaded guilty to a felony related to his failure to prevent money laundering on the platform. Zhao stepped down …
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