Headlines
“Rose” is a refugee from Burundi. She’s lived in Hong Kong for nearly five years. Rose, a single mother who faced significant struggles raising her son in a new country, has started to turn her life around through two unanticipated pastimes: long-distance runs and hiking along the scenic trails of Hong Kong. With the help from a charity organization, Rose has found a new peace and rediscovered her confidence. She’s now ready to face a better future
It’s been eight years since Aung San Suu Kyi’s by-election win. Her victory raised hopes that refugees – who had been displaced by seven decades of fighting in southeast Myanmar’s Karen state – would be able to return home. But a majority remain without a permanent residence, as sporadic fighting continues into 2020. Steve Sandford talks to refugees and IDPs from Karen state about the ongoing conflict
The COVID-19 pandemic continues to make life even more difficult for thousands of refugees in Indonesia who have no access to formal work or school. Many are awaiting resettlement to another country, while relying on relatives in other countries who are also dealing with business shutdowns. VOA’s Rendy Wicaksana spoke to several Afghan refugees in an independent refugee community in the province of West Java, Indonesia
Tribal vigilantes in southeast Afghanistan have burned down the houses of four families whose male members they accused of killing seven members of a rival family. The incident on June 16 came two days after the killings, which local police said involved a land dispute
Little has changed over the past century for timber raftsmen in Russia’s Krasnoyarsk region, who still rely on the same working methods that their grandfathers used
Engineers at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, are developing new technology for health care workers on the front lines of fighting the spread of COVID-19. As VOA’s Kane Farabaugh reports from Chicago, an unexpected benefit of the current pandemic is technological innovation that could have a lasting impact
Thousands of Jews around the world are considering making what’s called Aliyah. It’s Hebrew for immigrating to Israel, partly to find shelter in a place that, as of Wednesday, has suffered few coronavirus deaths compared to other countries. While Israel has banned tourists from entering, it is allowing new immigrants
In Istanbul, a 36-year-old woman is a one-person traveling medical unit treating some of Turkey’s most vulnerable refugees at a time when, for many people, hospitals are not an option. Some refugees do not have their papers in order. Others cannot afford care or fear getting the coronavirus at a hospital
22-year-old political-science student from Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province has resorted to climbing nearby peaks each day to get an Internet connection and attend online classes. Saifullah Abbas Afridi usually studies in Peshawar, but universities and colleges were closed to stem the spread of the coronavirus
An one-time competitive skateboarder is rediscovering his passion by sharing it with his young daughter. Monique Pederson was just two years old when dad Steve stood her on a skateboard for the first time. Today, it’s how the two spend quality father-daughter time together