Input: “China as a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council will strictly, without taking shortcuts, implement all of the resolutions passed by the U.N. Security Council

China

U.N. Security Council

U.N. Security Council


Input: “Of course for things outside of the U.N. Security Council sanctions framework, China, along with other countries, will maintain normal relations with North Korea, this is also not for dispute.

China

countries

North Korea

U.N. Security Council


Input: A clerk of ICBC bank counts Chinese one hundred Yuan at its branch in Beijing, China, April 13, 2016

branch

Beijing

China

ICBC

clerk


Input: In addition, imports declined by 1.9 percent in March, and 8.2 percent in the January-March period, suggesting the Chinese economy is still unable to buy more from world markets

Chinese


Input: “The weakness of exports in February and their strength in March is almost entirely the result of firms closing for the Chinese New Year holiday,” Mark Williams, chief Asia Economist at Capital Economics, said, adding, “The underlying picture is that China's exports continue to fall in dollar terms.

Asia

firms

Capital Economics

Mark Williams


Input: Trump, Clinton Expect Big Wins in New York -WASHINGTON — -The two front-runners in the race for the White House, Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump, expect to win big in next Tuesday’s New York primary

New York

WASHINGTON

New York

White House

Democrat

Republican

Trump

Clinton

Hillary Clinton

Donald Trump


Input: Both contenders have deep roots in New York and victories would give their campaigns a boost after recent setbacks

New York


Input: Cruz fired back at Trump at a rally in Irvine, California, saying the New York billionaire is whining and is trying to bully the party and intimidate delegates

Irvine

California

New York

party

Cruz

Trump

billionaire

delegates

rally

Cruz

Irvine


Input: Republican presidential candidate, Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, speaks at a rally in Irvine, California, April 11, 2016

Irvine

California

Republican

candidate

Ted Cruz

rally

Irvine


Input: “Nominating Donald Trump would be a train wreck and that if Donald Trump is the nominee, Hillary Clinton wins and she wins by double digits,” Cruz said to cheers

Donald Trump

Donald Trump

Hillary Clinton

Cruz


Input: “Some who feed off of the fears and the anger that is felt by some of us and exploit it feed their own insatiable desires for fame or attention,” Kasich told a Republican women’s group in Manhattan

Manhattan

Republican

group


Input: “That could drive America down into a ditch and not make us great again.

America


Input: Republican presidential candidate John Kasich speaks at the Women's National Republican Club in New York, April 12, 2016

New York

Republican

Women's National Republican Club

candidate

John Kasich


Input: Public opinion polls give Trump a huge lead in New York, topping 50 percent of the vote in some surveys

New York

Trump


Input: Kasich apparently hopes to hang in the race until the national convention in Cleveland in July and be available as an alternative candidate should Trump stumble and not win the nomination outright on the first ballot

Cleveland

Kasich

candidate

Trump


Input: Anti-Trump forces within the Republican Party are bracing for a big Trump victory in New York on Tuesday and the possibility of more Trump triumphs April 26 when primaries are held in Connecticut, Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania and Rhode Island

New York

Connecticut

Delaware

Maryland

Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

Republican Party

Trump

Trump


Input: One key Republican who apparently will not be part of blocking Trump is House Speaker Paul Ryan

House

Trump

Paul Ryan


Input: Ryan sought to quell speculation this week that he might be available as a compromise candidate if the Republican convention in July becomes deadlocked

Republican

Ryan

candidate


Input: House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wis., addresses reporters at the Republican National Committee on Capitol Hill in Washington, ruling himself out of the Republican presidential race once and for all, April 12, 2016

Washington

Capitol Hill

House

Republican National Committee

Republican

Paul Ryan

reporters


Input: “If no candidate has a majority on the first ballot, I believe that you should only choose from a person who has actually participated in the primary

candidate

person


Input: Front-runner Hillary Clinton represented the Empire State in the Senate, while rival Bernie Sanders was born and brought up in Brooklyn

Brooklyn

Senate

Hillary Clinton

Bernie Sanders


Input: Public opinion polls show Clinton holding a steady lead in New York and in several surveys, it is a double-digit edge

New York

Clinton


Input: That would give him the lion’s share of the 95 delegates at stake in New York on the Republican side on Tuesday

New York

Republican


Input: Clinton hopes to reverse Sanders’ recent momentum and build her lead in the delegate count

Clinton

Sanders’


Input: The New York campaign has intensified the competition between the two Democrats and both contenders have been more aggressive in calling out the other

New York

Democrats


Input: “I have noticed that under the bright spotlight and scrutiny here in New York that Senator Sanders has had trouble answering questions, questions about his core issue, namely dealing with the banks,” Clinton told reporters during a campaign swing through the New York City borough of Queens

New York

New York City

Queens

Senator

Sanders

Clinton

reporters


Input: Sanders was vague on how he would rein in the big banks in an interview with the New York Daily News

New York

Sanders


Input: He also had to walk back comments that Clinton was “not qualified” to be president because of some of the corporate campaign contributions she has received

Clinton

president


Input: Bernie Sanders speaks at a rally in Washington Square Park in New York City, April 13, 2016-“We have won seven out of the last eight caucuses and primaries,” he told enthusiastic supporters

New York City

Washington Square Park

Bernie Sanders

rally

Bernie Sanders

Washington Square Park


Input: “And when I look at an unbelievable crowd like this, I believe we are going to win here in New York next Tuesday!

New York


Input: Coming into the New York campaign, a lot of the focus was on the rough-and-tumble Republican nomination battle

New York

Republican


Input: At this point, Trump needs to collect all the delegates he can, given the success that rival Ted Cruz has had in picking up the support of so-called “unbound” Republican delegates around the country and in local and state conventions where delegates are chosen

country

state

Republican

Trump

delegates

Ted Cruz

delegates

delegates


Input: Analysts, however, note that the Democratic campaign has also reached a new level of acrimony

Democratic


Input: “It’s getting nastier and nastier, not just on the Republican side but on the Democratic side where you’ve got the two contenders, Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, accusing each other of being unqualified to be president, which is just ludicrous on its face,” Tom DeFrank told VOA’s “Issues in the News.

Republican

Democratic

Hillary Clinton

Bernie Sanders

president

Tom DeFrank


Input: DeFrank is a veteran journalist with the National Journal and has covered every presidential campaign since 1968

National Journal

journalist


Input: If Clinton can pull off a convincing win in New York on Tuesday and follow up with victories in the five northeastern primaries set for April 26, she will no doubt increase the pressure on the Sanders campaign to move toward the prospect of uniting behind Clinton as the nominee and begin to focus more seriously on the Republicans for the general election campaign

New York

Clinton

Sanders

Clinton


Input: Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks during a rally at the Times Union Center in Albany, New York, April 11, 2016

the Times Union Center

Albany

New York

Republican

candidate

Donald Trump

rally

Donald Trump

the Times Union Center


Input: “I’m millions of votes ahead, which they don’t even talk about,” Trump told a rally in the New York state capital of Albany

New York

state

capital

Albany

Trump

rally

Trump

Albany


Input: Analysts: Russia Plays Double Game in Afghanistan-Russia is increasing diplomatic contacts with the Taliban insurgent group in Afghanistan as Moscow looks to counter Islamic State (IS) gains in Central Asia and increase its influence in the nation it once occupied

Russia

Afghanistan

Russia

Afghanistan

Moscow

nation

Central Asia

Taliban

group

Islamic State

IS


Input: “We and the Taliban have channels for exchanging information,” Russian President Vladimir Putin's special envoy to Afghanistan, Zamir Kabulov, told the Interfax news agency recently

Russian

Afghanistan

Taliban

Interfax

agency

Vladimir Putin's

envoy

Zamir Kabulov


Input: Its contacts with the Taliban do not mean that it is against the Afghanistan government.

Afghanistan

Taliban

government


Input: Pakistan’s English-language newspaper The Nation reported in December that Taliban leader Mullah Akhtar Mansour held a secret meeting with President Vladimir Putin to discuss possible Russian support in the Taliban's fight against IS

Russian

Taliban

IS

Mullah Akhtar Mansour

Vladimir Putin


Input: VOA could not confirm the authenticity of the report

VOA


Input: The Taliban said in a statement that it does “not see a need for receiving aid from anyone concerning so-called Daesh” - the Arabic acronym for IS

Taliban

Daesh


Input: But, according to analysts, Russia sees Taliban help as essential in fighting the spillover effects of the IS insurgency in Afghanistan

Russia

Afghanistan

Taliban

IS


Input: Central Asians have also been fighting alongside the Taliban

Taliban


Input: Some of the militants recently joined IS and may return to their native countries for terror activities, Russian media say

countries

Russian

IS

media

militants


Input: “Russia is genuinely concerned by the deteriorating security situation in Central Asia and afraid that it might be forced to help its Central Asian allies in their fight against terrorism,” said Stephen Blank, a Russian analyst at the American Foreign Policy Council

Russia

allies

Russian

Central Asia

Central Asian

American Foreign Policy Council

Stephen Blank

analyst


Input: But the Afghan government, while publicly welcoming Russian aid, is casting a wary eye on Moscow’s Taliban overtures

Afghan

Russian

government

Moscow’s Taliban


Input: The Taliban interest objectively coincides with ours,” he said, referring to IS, which emerged in Afghanistan last year as a rival to the Taliban in eastern parts of the country

Afghanistan

country

parts

Taliban

IS

Taliban


Input: “A number of [Afghanistan’s] neighboring countries, including Russia, have reached out to various Taliban splinter groups to establish information channels,” said an adviser at the presidential palace in Kabul, who spoke on the condition of anonymity

Russia

Kabul

Taliban

groups

adviser


Input: “Uzbekistan is probably the only neighboring country that has not approached the Taliban,” the adviser told VOA

Uzbekistan

country

Taliban

VOA

adviser


Input: Tajikistan, he said, "played a crucial role in facilitating contacts between Russia and the Taliban.

Tajikistan

Russia

Taliban


Input: It is not clear whether or not the Taliban has received any military or financial assistance from Russia, but the group has been trying to gain international recognition, according to the Kabul presidential palace adviser

Russia

Kabul

Taliban

military

group

adviser


Input: A member of the Afghan security forces walks as smoke billows from a building after a Taliban attack in Gereshk district of Helmand province, Afghanistan, March 9, 2016

building

Afghan

Gereshk

Helmand province

Afghanistan

Taliban

forces

attack

Taliban

Gereshk


Input: Taliban insurgents have increased militant activities in various parts of Afghanistan

Afghanistan

Taliban

insurgents


Input: The Taliban warned last week that new attacks coming in the new fighting season

Taliban


Input: The Afghan government, for its part, called the Taliban spring offensive warning “mere propaganda.

Afghan

government

Taliban


Input: Afghanistan’s northeastern province of Kunduz briefly fell to the Taliban last year

Kunduz

Taliban


Input: According to Afghanistan's Foreign Ministry, around 1,300 foreign militants, most of them members of the Pakistani Taliban, participated in the assault on Kunduz

Kunduz

Afghanistan's Foreign Ministry

Pakistani Taliban

militants

assault

militants


Input: In pursuing the Taliban, Moscow is playing a two-sided diplomatic game, analysts say

Moscow

Taliban

analysts


Input: IS militants in Afghanistan have established a presence in the eastern provinces of Nangarhar and Kunar and launched multiple attacks on government and Taliban security checkpoints

checkpoints

Afghanistan

Nangarhar

Kunar

provinces

IS

government

Taliban

militants

attacks

militants

checkpoints


Input: Recent Afghan and NATO military operations have helped clear many areas in Nangarhar of IS presence

Afghan

NATO

military

IS


Input: But reports of fighting between government and IS forces – and the Taliban and IS – continue

government

IS

Taliban

IS


Input: Russian officials say IS fighters in Afghanistan plan to use the country a jumping-off point

Russian

Afghanistan

country

IS

officials

fighters


Input: “They have other aims,” said Kabulov, the Russian president's special envoy to Afghanistan

Russian

Afghanistan

Kabulov

envoy


Input: “They need Afghanistan as a springboard for a wider expansion.

Afghanistan


Input: But the Taliban have reportedly told Moscow that IS is using Afghanistan mostly as a training ground and, according to analyst Muzhda, the Taliban would not support the spread of terrorist activities into neighboring Central Asian countries

Moscow

Afghanistan

countries

Central Asian

Taliban

IS

Taliban


Input: Still, Russia is conducting its second major military drill in as many months in Tajikistan near the Afghanistan border as part of what it calls “anti-terrorism training.

Russia

Tajikistan

Afghanistan

border

military


Input: FILE - Soviet combat vehicles are seen crossing Soviet-Afghan border as Soviet troops return home from Afghanistan

home

Soviet

Soviet

Afghanistan

border

troops

vehicles

crossing

vehicles

border

return

troops

Afghanistan


Input: (AP Photo)-Which way does the aid flow

AP Photo


Input: More than two decades after the Soviet withdrawal from Afghanistan, Russia has upped its military and economic aid to the Afghan government, which is battling the Taliban in several areas of the country

Soviet

Afghanistan

Russia

Afghan

country

areas

military

government

Taliban


Input: That aid includes 10,000 Kalashnikov rifles and millions of rounds of ammunition that the government will use to fight both IS and the Taliban insurgency, analysts say

government

IS

Taliban

rifles

rounds

ammunition


Input: “Moscow does not want to seem as a supporter of the Taliban,” said Kabul-based security analyst Wahid Muzhda

Moscow

Taliban

supporter

analyst

Wahid Muzhda


Input: “It has good ties with Kabul, too

Kabul


Input: New Boycotts, Court Ruling Over Controversial LGBT Issues-WASHINGTON — -The battle over lesbian, gay and transgender rights continued Tuesday when a U.S. Appeals Court ruled a Virginia school's banning of a transgender student from the boy's bathroom is discriminatory

bathroom

WASHINGTON

Virginia

U.S. Appeals Court

New Boycotts

student


Input: The 4th Circuit Appeals Court referenced the U.S. Department of Education's bathroom policy that says use of sex-segregated facilities should be "determined by reference to the student's gender identity.

bathroom

4th Circuit Appeals Court

U.S. Department of Education's


Input: The move comes as the debate in the United States over differences between religious beliefs and individual rights shows no signs of flagging

United States


Input: Laws seen as undermining LGBT rights in several Southern states have sparked protests and boycott threats from businesses and entertainers, as well as counterdemonstrations by conservatives

Southern states

protests

Southern states


Input: FILE - Supporters of House Bill 2 gather outside the North Carolina State Capitol in Raleigh, N.C., April 11, 2016

Raleigh

N.C.

North Carolina State Capitol

House


Input: Hundreds of people gathered last week in Raleigh, North Carolina, near the governor's offices, to support the bill

offices

Raleigh

North Carolina


Input: Signs declaring "No men in women's bathrooms" emphasize a point in the new law that has drawn wide support among state residents who hold conservative political views

state

men


Input: The ruling will allow high school student Gavin Grimm to move forward with a lawsuit he filed last year

school

student

Gavin Grimm


Input: and "They don’t represent our state!

state


Input: — were drowned out by the larger group opposed to extending equal rights protections to people who are transgender, according to The Associated Press

group


Input: Rock music legend Bruce Springsteen, who canceled a planned North Carolina concert, posted a message on his website: "Some things are more important than a rock show, and this fight against prejudice and bigotry — which is happening as I write — is one of them.

North Carolina

Bruce Springsteen


Input: FILE - A police officer confronts a woman holding a sign at the North Carolina State Capitol in Raleigh, N.C., April 11, 2016

Raleigh

N.C.

North Carolina State Capitol

police

officer

woman


Input: Many businesses have criticized the law, but few have taken specific action to underscore their disagreement with the state over the issue

state


Input: The National Basketball Association and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), which had been considering moving sporting events out of the state as a protest, have since decided they will not change venues

state

National Basketball Association

National Collegiate Athletic Association

NCAA


Input: The North Carolina NAACP has threatened civil disobedience if the state legislature does not act to repeal the law when it comes back into session April 25

North Carolina

state

NAACP

legislature


Input: Mark Creech of the Christian Action League told the crowd in Raleigh that his organization plans to rally in support of the law when the legislature reconvenes

Raleigh

the Christian Action League

organization

legislature

Mark Creech


Input: Creech denounced "a smear campaign [that] has resulted in unfounded criticism of the law.

Creech


Input: In North Carolina, boycotts of the state's "bathroom bill" law continued this week with the cancellation of concerts by two popular rock bands scheduled to play in the state

bathroom

North Carolina

state

bands


Input: The first gender-neutral restroom in the Los Angeles school district is seen at Santee Education Complex high school in Los Angeles, California, April 18, 2016

restroom

Los Angeles

Los Angeles

California

Santee Education Complex

school


Input: In Mississippi, protests greeted a law signed by Governor Phil Bryant allowing business owners in Mississippi to refuse service to same-sex couples

Mississippi

Mississippi

Governor

Phil Bryant

couples

protests

Mississippi


Input: People around the country may be overreacting to it,” the Republican governor said

country

Republican

governor


Input: “They need to read the bill and understand that people of faith have some rights as well in this country.

country


Input: A Mississippi state lawmaker, Jay Hughes, said last week that he intends to try to get the law repealed through another proposed bill he is sponsoring, "the Mississippi Economic and Tourism Recovery Act.

Mississippi

state

lawmaker

Jay Hughes


Input: “Mississippi has been here before,” Hughes wrote in a post on his Facebook page

Mississippi

Hughes


Input: Pearl Jam canceled an April 20 concert with a statement on its website Monday, saying the law was "a despicable piece of legislation that encourages discrimination against an entire group of American citizens.

American

group

Pearl Jam


Input: Canadian musician Bryan Adams, who canceled a planned show in Mississippi last week as a protest, wrote on his Facebook page, “I cannot in good conscience perform in a state where certain people are being denied their civil rights due to their sexual orientation.

Canadian

Mississippi

state

Bryan Adams


Input: A statement on singer Bryan Adams' Facebook page, canceling a concert in Mississippi after the state passed a law allowing business owners in the state to refuse service to same-sex couples

Mississippi

state

state

singer

Bryan Adams'

couples


Input: Ninety-five prominent writers, including winners of the National Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize and a former national poet laureate, wrote in an open letter of protest that the law known as House Bill 1523 does not reflect Mississippi's compassionate nature

House

winners


Input: “This core kindness, this embracing of wildness and weirdness, is what has nurtured the great literature that has come from our state,” they wrote

state


Input: The Tennessee Legislature passed a bill last week that would allow mental health professionals to deny services based on their religious beliefs or “sincerely held principles.

The Tennessee Legislature

professionals


Input: On the other side of the issue, Republican State Senator Richard Briggs, a physician from the city of Knoxville, defended the bill

city

Knoxville

Republican

Senator

Richard Briggs

physician


Input: “If someone comes to me and says, ‘I want an abortion,’" Briggs asked, "should I have to do that if it’s against my principles and I don’t believe [in abortion rights]?

Briggs


Input: The rock group Boston also canceled three planned concerts in North Carolina with an announcement on their Facebook page Monday

Boston

North Carolina

group


Input: Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam said he will review the final text of the bill before deciding whether to sign it into law

Tennessee

Governor

Bill Haslam


Input: Earlier this month, the Tennessee Legislature also moved for a second time to designate the Bible the official state book

state

the Tennessee Legislature


Input: The bill is widely perceived as a violation of the separation between church and state as enshrined in the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution

state

church


Input: Last week, North Carolina Governor Pat McCrory responded to intense criticism over the state's legislation, signing an executive order that alters key provisions in the measure but leaves in place its most controversial elements

North Carolina

Governor

Pat McCrory


Input: FILE - North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory at the governor's mansion in Raleigh, N.C., April 12, 2016

mansion

North Carolina

Raleigh

N.C.

Pat McCrory


Input: After intense criticism over state's "bathroom bill," signing an executive order that alters key provisions in the measure but leaves in place its most controversial elements

bathroom


Input: The executive order allows private businesses in the state to establish their own policies regarding the use of bathrooms and locker rooms by transgender people and restores some of the equal opportunity employment policies and rights to sue for discrimination

rooms

state

businesses


Input: Malaysian Scandal Still Casts Shadow Over Local Financial Markets-BANGKOK — -A financial scandal involving Malaysia’s prime minister continues to cast a shadow over the country’s financial markets and politics a year after allegations of misuse of funds were raised

Malaysian

minister


Input: The spotlight fell dramatically on Malaysia’s state investment company, 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), after media reports last year raised allegations that millions of dollars were deposited into the private bank account of Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak

state

Malaysian

company

1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB)

Najib Razak

millions of dollars

deposited

Najib Razak


Input: Weak international oil and commodity prices – with Malaysia a key exporter – led to a 20 percent fall in the Ringgit last year

Malaysia


Input: “For an economy the size of Malaysia that’s just a real body blow,” Case added

Malaysia


Input: Former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad earlier this year joined with political foes urging the Prime Minister to step aside

Malaysian

Mahathir Mohamad


Input: Mahathir, who led Malaysia for 22 years, has also launched a lawsuit alleging misuse of power

Malaysia

Mahathir


Input: But the political opposition remains divided, with leading political figure, Anwar Ibrahim, serving a five year jail term for sodomy

Anwar Ibrahim


Input: In denying the allegations, Najib also moved against any investigations by Malaysia’s former attorney general, replacing him with a loyalist

Najib


Input: In February, incumbent Mohamed Apandi Ali ordered Malaysia’s anti-corruption agency to close its investigation of the prime minister

agency

Mohamed Apandi Ali

minister


Input: Najib has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and the Malaysian attorney general saying the funds were a personal donation from Saudi Arabia’s Royal Family

Malaysian

Saudi

Najib


Input: But the scandal has led to probes in 10 countries – from Malaysia to the United Kingdom, the United States and Switzerland – over allegations of political donations, inaccurate disclosures, possible money laundering and embezzlement

Malaysia

United Kingdom

United States

Switzerland


Input: FILE - A 1MDB (1 Malaysia Development Berhad) logo is set against the Petronas Twin Towers at the flagship development site, Tun Razak Exchange in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Malaysia

Kuala Lumpur

Malaysia

Petronas Twin Towers

Tun Razak Exchange


Input: Test of strength-Najib’s governing Barisan Nasional coalition is preparing to face a crucial political test in Sarawak state elections, on May 7, for the 82 member state legislative assembly

Sarawak

state

state

Barisan Nasional coalition


Input: The prime minister is counting on the popularity of the state’s chief minister, Adenan Satem, to retain support for the governing coalition

coalition

minister

minister

Adenan Satem


Input: Case says despite the funding scandal risking an erosion of support, the governing party should win the election

party


Input: “Najib will survive in office

Najib


Input: And he will win the election in Sarawak handily

Sarawak


Input: And after that Najib will be able to say, 'You all see I am popular in Malaysia and this is how they show their favor to me,’” he said

Malaysia

Najib


Input: “That’s why I say [Najib] will last in office but the economy will continue to slide,” Case said

Najib


Input: Krystan Tan, a Singapore-based economist with the independent research company Capital Economics, said the IMDB scandal has cast a pall over the political outlook

company

Capital Economics

IMDB

Krystan Tan


Input: But in the past week, an Abu Dhabi sovereign fund announced 1MDB was in default of its obligations on $1.1 billion in debt and interest

Abu Dhabi


Input: But Tan says despite these uncertainties political stability – at least in the short term – is assured

Tan


Input: “The big picture for us is still that we don’t – we still think that the risk of actual, genuine political instability is still pretty low in the short term,” Tan told VOA

VOA

Tan


Input: “We still think that the prime minister has a pretty good grasp of his ruling party and we’re not going to see a change in leadership to the election in 2018

party

minister


Input: The World Bank has projected an easing in Malaysia’s economic growth over 2016 to around 4.4 percent from 4.7 percent, with weaker private consumption

The World Bank


Input: Despite the reported default and failure to meet the interest payment of $1.1 billion on the loans taken up by 1MDB, the fund’s president, Aral Kanda, told Bloomberg newswires an “amicable resolution” to the matter is underway

Bloomberg

president

Aral Kanda


Input: But the World Bank, in a commentary on the economy, said tightening the budget and resolving political issues would help “reassure foreign investors and cope with the heightened external vulnerability.

World Bank

investors


Input: Malaysian plainclothes police carry a computer from the 1MDB (1 Malaysia Development Berhad) office after a raid in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, July 8, 2015

computer

Malaysian

Malaysia

Kuala Lumpur

Malaysia

police

raid

police

Kuala Lumpur


Input: Risk for markets-Malaysia’s Ministry of Finance quickly responded it would honor all commitments in financial markets linked to the fund and would “have ample liquidity to do so.

Malaysia’s Ministry of Finance


Input: But Bill Case, a political science professor at Hong Kong’s City University, said the scandal may hit Malaysia’s financial sector and economy in the months ahead

Hong Kong’s City University

Bill Case

professor


Input: “This IMDB scandal is so serious and the amounts of money so large that if the fund defaults – which it appears it may do in the next few days – and if the government then has to come in and guarantee, it will deal such a blow to that country’s entire financial system,” Case told VOA

government

VOA


Input: Anti-Government Protesters Threaten to Defy Egyptian President-Protesters who mounted rare anti-government demonstrations on April 15 to express their anger with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi’s decision to gift two uninhabited Red Sea islands once considered Egyptian to Saudi Arabia have vowed to stage mass sit-ins Monday to mark a patriotic public holiday, Sinai Liberation Day

Egyptian

Egyptian

Saudi Arabia

Red Sea

Protesters

Abdel Fattah el-Sissi’s


Input: Egypt authorities have arrested dozens of activists ahead of Monday’s planned anti-government protests, according to a group of lawyers, which published a list of 59 detainees

Egypt

group

activists

lawyers

arrested

Egypt


Input: The protests also suggest that el-Sissi opponents — liberal and Islamist — are starting to shake off their fear of the military-backed regime

regime

el-Sissi

opponents


Input: That is the view of Egyptian actor and television host Khaled Abol Naga

Egyptian

actor

Khaled Abol Naga


Input: Large-scale street demonstrations virtually vanished from Egyptian streets after security forces in August 2013 killed nearly 1,000 mainly Islamist protesters

streets

Egyptian

security forces

protesters

killed

streets


Input: They were protesting the military’s ouster of the Muslim Brotherhood’s Mohamed Morsi, the country’s first-freely elected civilian President a month earlier

Brotherhood’s Mohamed Morsi


Input: Most were small affairs but in Cairo and Alexandria thousands took to the streets chanting “Leave” — the same word was shouted at anti-Mubarak rallies

streets

Cairo

Alexandria


Input: Other 2011-era chants were heard, including “bread, freedom and social justice” and "the people want the regime to fall.

regime


Input: Protesting without a police permit has been illegal since 2013

police


Input: The arrests since Thursday have involved raids on cafes and homes in the Egyptian capital

Egyptian

capital


Input: The sovereignty transfer of the islands of Tiran and Sanafir to Saudi Arabia, a staunch el-Sissi ally, has given the protest movement new life, allowing liberals and Islamists to unite around a flashpoint issue

Saudi Arabia

ally

Tiran

el-Sissi

liberals


Input: The government appears to have been caught by surprise by the intensity of public anger

government


Input: The islands reportedly were given to Egypt by Saudi Arabia in 1950 — the Saudis feared Israel might seize them

Egypt

Saudi Arabia

Israel


Input: The revival in street protest coincides also with the regime’s renewed pursuit of human rights groups in the country, especially those who have received any foreign funding

country

groups


Input: Several rights and civil society organizations are being investigated for alleged crimes against the state, including seeking to destabilize it

state

organizations


Input: The American diplomat downplayed media commentary of a widening rift between Washington and Cairo over human rights, saying Egypt is "critical to the peace and security" of the region

American

Washington

Cairo

Egypt

region

diplomat


Input: But he did make an oblique reference to the deteriorating human rights situation, one that the White House has increasingly become more public in condemning in recent weeks

White House


Input: “We talked about ways in which we can hopefully resolve some of the differences and questions that have arisen about the internal politics and choices for the people of Egypt,” Kerry said in the Egyptian capital

Egypt

Egyptian

capital

Kerry


Input: In a televised address Sunday el -Sissi urged Egyptians to protect the state and its institutions from the “forces of evil.

state

institutions

el -Sissi


Input: On Thursday, Britain’s foreign ministry highlighted its concern about Egypt for the first time in a key rights report

Egypt

ministry


Input: Britain's Foreign and Commonwealth Office noted that the rights situation in Egypt “remained poor and continued to deteriorate.

Egypt

Commonwealth Office


Input: And it cited several instances of abuse including the sentencing at a mass trial in February of 230 activists to life imprisonment, the death sentence passed on former president Morsi in May, and dozens of cases of torture, police brutality and forced disappearances

police

president

Morsi


Input: The torture and death of an Italian doctoral student, Giulio Regini, who disappeared in Cairo in January has added to Western alarm

Italian

Cairo

Western

student

Giulio Regini

death

Giulio Regini

Cairo


Input: Italian officials and his mother say they suspect Egypt's security forces were behind the killing

Italian

officials

mother

forces


Input: Even so, the Egyptian security services appeared more restrained than usual on April 15 in dealing with the protesters, who complained also about economic mismanagement and security abuses

Egyptian


Input: An Egyptian protester holds a sign saying in Arabic “Tiran and Sanafir are Egyptian,” referring to Red Sea islands Egypt plans to cede control of to Saudi Arabia in downtown Cairo, April 15, 2016

Egyptian

Egypt

Saudi Arabia

Cairo

Red Sea

protester


Input: (VOA/ H. Elrasam)-More than 250 protesters were arrested nationwide during the April 15 protests, according to Democracy Index, a local NGO

VOA

NGO

protesters

arrested


Input: “We must protect these institutions because these mean the state

state

institutions


Input: The rights network IFEX, said it had documented 370 arrests

network

IFEX


Input: But at one of the biggest protests outside the Journalists’ Syndicate in the city center demonstrators were granted a safe passage by security forces when they decided to exit the area There were some skirmishes between the police, who fired tear-gas, and the protesters who remained

center

city

area

the Journalists’ Syndicate

police

forces

tear-gas

skirmishes

police


Input: All protests across the country were dispersed but activists reported only minor injuries

country


Input: Likewise, el-Sissi and most top officials remained relatively silent about the April 15 protests, opting to ignore them publicly

el-Sissi

officials


Input: The newspaper Al-Shorouk reported last week that the President criticized his security chiefs for “allowing the protests to get out of hand.

newspaper

Al-Shorouk

chiefs


Input: Al-Shorouk claimed el-Sissi warned his security officials that he would not accept any repetition on Sinai Liberation Day

Al-Shorouk

el-Sissi

officials


Input: I am reiterating to the Egyptian people this is the responsibility of all of us, for us to protect this security and stability,” he said

Egyptian


Input: His remarks raise the prospect of large-scale counter-protests being mounted — it also raises the stakes on a much sharper confrontation taking place between the government and its opponents

government


Input: FILE - Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, speaks during a live broadcast, in Cairo, Egypt, April 13, 2016

Egyptian

Cairo

Egypt

Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi


Input: El-Sissi sought to defuse opposition started by his declaration to hand over control of two Red Sea islands to Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia

Red Sea

El-Sissi


Input: South African Road Accidents on Rise-JOHANNESBURG — -Vehicles flash past a homeless man begging at a busy intersection in Johannesburg

intersection

South African

JOHANNESBURG

Johannesburg

man


Input: The dispatcher told him: “Please proceed to the November One South [N1 highway] before Malibongwe [Road], for a motor vehicle accident… Two vehicles involved, one patient trapped.

highway

South

Malibongwe [Road

dispatcher

vehicle

vehicles


Input: Voorendyk said two words summarize what he’s seen in eight years on South African roads

South African

Voorendyk


Input: His colleague, Ian Watson, has been working the roads for the past 16 years

roads

colleague

Ian Watson


Input: “Everything from the pedestrian that walks across the road and gets hit by the car, to the minibus taxis that roll and patients scattered everywhere

road

patients

car


Input: Chairman Howard Dembovsky, a former police officer, said the injuries and deaths because of road smashes are a “national tragedy” that the country’s citizens and authorities aren’t taking seriously

police

Howard Dembovsky

officer


Input: Donovan Hermans lives here, under trees at the side of Empire Road, warmed by filthy blankets reeking of exhaust fumes, cloaked in chemical smog

Empire Road

Donovan Hermans


Input: Justice Project South Africa chairman Howard Dembovsky, a former police officer, says the country’s not doing enough to improve its poor road safety record

Justice Project South Africa

police

chairman

Howard Dembovsky

officer


Input: “More people are dying on our roads than die in the Middle East in war-torn countries, per day!

roads

Middle East


Input: “Drivers in South Africa are lawless

South Africa


Input: They and their passengers don’t wear seatbelts... Many don’t have valid licenses, their vehicles aren’t roadworthy… And hey, if you get caught by a cop for any of this, you just bribe your way out of trouble.

passengers

vehicles


Input: The government said about 14,000 people lose their lives in car crashes in South Africa every year

South Africa

government

car


Input: But independent analysts, like Dembovsky and Carol Smit of the South Africans against Drunk Driving group, dispute this number

group

Carol Smit


Input: He’s often the first person on the scene of the many crashes that happen here

person


Input: This woman carries the scars of a near-fatal car smash, like many thousands of South Africans

woman

car


Input: The Justice Project said the yearly death toll is “at least” 21,000, based on s analysis

Justice Project


Input: Dembovsky said South Africa’s official annual road death toll is too low for a good reason: Its Department of Transport (DOT) only records “immediate” fatalities, and is failing to register the deaths of people who perish from injuries up to 30 days after a traffic accident — even after it pledged to do so in 2010

South Africa’s

Department of Transport

DOT

Dembovsky


Input: Dembovsky said “weak” statistics mean South Africa cannot successfully confront the crisis on its roads

roads

South Africa


Input: “If you’re going to have a scientifically-based road safety strategy, you need reliable statistics

road


Input: DOT spokespeople did not respond to repeated requests for comment about the statistics and road safety in general in South Africa

South Africa

DOT


Input: “I’ve seen bikes come down; bikers [killed]; I’ve seen cars trying to make turns wiped out by buses or [minibus] taxis; hell of a lot taxi accidents here,” said Hermans

bikers

cars

buses

taxi


Input: The continent is home to 40 of the 50 countries with the highest road death tolls

continent


Input: The WHO put South Africa's road fatalities per 100,000 people at just over 25, a little below the African average of 27

South Africa's

African

WHO


Input: Dembovsky questions that number but said WHO is right in its assertion that South Africa’s “very good” traffic laws aren’t being properly enforced

WHO


Input: “Law wise, South Africa is right up there with the rest of the world

South Africa

world


Input: Enforcement wise, South Africa is right down there with Kenya, with Nigeria, not least because many of our law enforcers are corrupt,” he said

South Africa

Kenya

Nigeria


Input: Veteran traffic officer Superintendent Edna Mamonyane says her department needs more manpower to confront the chaos on the roads

roads

department

officer

Edna Mamonyane


Input: Senior Johannesburg Metro Police officer, Edna Mamonyane, said police don't have enough personnel to properly enforce the laws

Johannesburg Metro Police

Police

police

officer

Edna Mamonyane


Input: "We need more officers on the roads.

roads

officers


Input: According to Justice Project research, there are now 11 million licensed drivers in South Africa

South Africa

Justice Project


Input: He recently saw a woman killed trying to cross the road

road

woman

killed

woman

cross

woman

road


Input: "Crowding so many millions of vehicles into that, without strong law enforcement and good planning, is looking for even bigger trouble than we’re already in.

vehicles


Input: Homeless man Donovan Hermans at an intersection in Johannesburg that’s notorious for road crashes

intersection

Johannesburg

man

Donovan Hermans


Input: “She’s walking on the island and her phone rings; she takes it out her pocket, answers her phone, takes one step into the street; bus hits her in the face, smashes her face completely

street

island

She

bus


Input: That bus was going too fast, it couldn’t stop,” Hermans explained

bus


Input: Raucous Protests as Trump Woos California Republicans -BURLINGAME, CALIFORNIA — -Donald Trump took his presidential campaign to the U.S. Pacific Coast state of California Friday, bypassing hundreds of protesters outside the California Republican Party’s annual convention south of San Francisco, as he addressed party officials in a state that could decide the Republican nominee for the November election

California

CALIFORNIA

state

California

San Francisco

state

U.S. Pacific Coast

California Republican

Republican

Trump

Donald Trump

officials


Input: Undecided-Undecided Republicans, including conservative Tea Party activist Mary Jordan, are “trying to do our homework and compare notes and make the best decision.

Tea Party

activist

Mary Jordan


Input: The Tea Party California Caucus was distributing pamphlets, and displayed a life-size cut-out of Donald Trump

Tea Party California Caucus

Donald Trump


Input: “A lot of Tea Party people are behind Ted Cruz too,” said Jordan, “so we’re just watching.

Tea Party

Ted Cruz

Jordan


Input: Mary Jordan, a "Tea Party" activist

Mary Jordan

activist


Input: Aguila is Mexican American and rejects the criticism that Trump is a racist

Mexican

American

Aguila

Trump


Input: Her brother, Victor Aguila, also a Trump supporter, said “he never spoke anything against Mexicans

Mexicans

brother

Victor Aguila

Trump

supporter


Input: Outside the hotel, Mexican American Rosa Penate was one of many who disagreed

hotel

Mexican

American

Rosa Penate


Input: She held a sign that accused Trump of racist bigotry

Trump


Input: Ohio Governor John Kasich, a distant third in the contest, spoke to delegates Friday night

Ohio

Governor

John Kasich

delegates


Input: “We’re human,” she said, adding that she has no use for any Republicans in the race

Republicans


Input: Police officers take a man into custody who was protesting against Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump outside the Hyatt Regency hotel during the California Republican Party 2016 Convention in Burlingame, Calif., April 29, 2016

Burlingame

Calif.

Hyatt Regency hotel

Police

Republican

California Republican Party

officers

man

candidate

Donald Trump

custody

officers

man


Input: Several protesters tried to force their way through the police line to enter the hotel, and they advanced a few meters before police pushed them back

hotel

police

police


Input: Inside, the delegates were focused on choices and strategy

delegates


Input: Michael Schroeder, co-chairman of the Cruz campaign in California, wrote the rules that govern the Republican nominating process when he was California Republican chairman from 1997-'99

California

California

Republican

Republican

Michael Schroeder

Cruz

chairman


Input: It makes no difference, said Schroeder, who wins the popular vote in the state

state

Schroeder


Input: All three campaigns are coping with party rules that make the California race a series of local battles

California


Input: If Trump secures the needed 1,237 delegates from all Republican state primaries and caucuses, he will be the nominee

state

Republican

Trump


Input: If not, delegates to the nominating convention will hold second or third votes, when they are free to switch support to a different candidate

delegates

candidate


Input: That could open the door to a Cruz nomination

Cruz


Input: Republican presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, joined by former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina, waves during a rally in Indianapolis, April 27, 2016, when Cruz announced he has tapped Fiorina to serve as his running mate

Indianapolis

Republican

Hewlett-Packard

Ted Cruz

Carly Fiorina

Cruz

Fiorina


Input: Schroeder said the Cruz campaign has mobilized 41,000 volunteers in a process that started last June

Schroeder

Cruz


Input: Trump complained in his speech that the process is “rigged,” but he was late to understand how the rules work, said analyst Sherry Bebitch Jeffe of the University of Southern California

University of Southern California

Trump

analyst

Sherry Bebitch Jeffe


Input: Police and protesters outside the site of the Republican Party California convention

California

Republican Party


Input: “Donald Trump played it by ear for far too long,” she said

Donald Trump


Input: Political scientist Josh Putnam of the University of Georgia said for Cruz, the strategy is simple

the University of Georgia

scientist

Josh Putnam

Cruz


Input: “Step one, keep Trump under 1,237 (pledged delegates)

Trump


Input: “He has character,” said supporter Sue Caro

Sue Caro


Input: FILE - Republican presidential candidates, from left, Texas Senator Ted Cruz and Ohio Governor John Kasich participate in a Republican presidential debate at the University of Miami, in Coral Gables, Fla., March 10, 2016

Texas

Ohio

Coral Gables

Fla.

Republican

Republican

University of Miami

candidates

Senator

Ted Cruz

Governor

John Kasich


Input: He has balanced the budget federally but he’s balanced the budget statewide in Ohio as well

Ohio


Input: Everywhere you look, John Kasich can show that he knows how to govern,” she said

John Kasich


Input: However, barring a prolonged fight at the national convention, a Kasich nomination is unlikely

Kasich


Input: Trump told California Republicans Friday he would like to see “solidarity, unity relationship, friendship” in his party

California

Trump


Input: Cruz supporters say their efforts in California could shift the tide

California

Cruz


Input: His announced running mate, Californian Carly Fiorina, will address the San Francisco meeting Saturday night

San Francisco

Californian Carly Fiorina


Input: Some waved Mexican flags to protest Trump’s pledge to stop illegal immigration by building a fence along the U.S.-Mexico border

Mexican

border


Input: It felt like I was crossing the border.

border


Input: Winning $429 Million Powerball Ticket Sold in New Jersey-A sole Powerball ticket, sold in New Jersey, matched all six numbers in Saturday's drawing, which was worth $429.6 million

New Jersey

New Jersey


Input: Powerball is played in 44 states, as well as the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands

District of Columbia

Puerto Rico

U.S. Virgin Islands


Input: Alabama, Alaska, Hawaii, Mississippi, Nevada and Utah are the only states that don't participate

Alabama

Alaska

Hawaii

Mississippi

Nevada

Utah

states


Input: Some material for this report came from AP and Reuters

AP

Reuters


Input: AP Interview: Trump Narrows VP List as He Moves Into General-NEW YORK — -Shifting swiftly to the general election, Donald Trump says he's narrowed his list of potential running mates to “five or six” people and doesn't want to accept public money to finance a fall campaign against likely Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton

NEW YORK

Democratic

Trump Narrows

Donald Trump

Hillary Clinton


Input: But in a break from recent major party nominees, Trump does not plan to invest heavily in a data-driven effort to target voters in the fall campaign

Trump

voters


Input: Trump's campaign manager, Corey Lewandowski, is running the vice presidential vetting effort “with a group,” Trump said, that includes former competitor Ben Carson and himself

group

manager

Corey Lewandowski

Trump

Ben Carson


Input: It's very much a group effort,” said Trump

group

Trump


Input: A first-time political candidate, the celebrity businessman said there's no need for another business person on the Republican ticket and he wants a running mate who can help him pass legislation as president

Republican

candidate

businessman

person

president


Input: By joining forces with a political veteran, Trump would also signal a willingness to work with the Republican establishment that he's thoroughly bashed during his campaign

Republican

Trump


Input: Trump said he doesn't plan to announce his running mate until the Republican National Convention in July, a four-day event that he's planning to remake with a showman's touch

Trump


Input: “The concept of some entertainment from a great singer, a great group I think would be something maybe to break things up,” Trump said

group

singer

Trump


Input: In the interview, Trump outlined a general election campaign that banks heavily on his personal appeal and trademark rallies while spurning the kind of sophisticated data operation that was a centerpiece of Barack Obama's winning White House runs

White House

Trump

Barack Obama's


Input: “I've always felt it was overrated,” Trump said

Trump


Input: Despite pressure, the billionaire businessman also does not expect to release his tax returns before the November election

businessman


Input: “Obama got the votes much more so than his data processing machine

Obama


Input: Trump stunned the political world at every turn during the Republican primary season, prioritizing large rallies over intimate voter interactions in early voting states and operating with a slim campaign operation

world

Republican

Trump


Input: Even as he brings in new staff for the general election campaign, he says his emphasis will continue to be on raucous rallies to put him in front of thousands of voters and generate free media coverage

voters


Input: “My best investment is my rallies,” Trump said

Trump


Input: “The people go home, they tell their friends they loved it

friends


Input: “There's nothing to learn from them,” Trump told The Associated Press in an interview Tuesday

Associated Press

Trump


Input: The businessman said he'll spend ``limited'' money on data operations to identify and track potential voters and to model various turnout scenarios that could give him the 270 Electoral College votes needed to win the presidency

Electoral College

businessman

voters


Input: He's moving away from the model Obama used successfully in his 2008 and 2012 wins, and which Clinton is trying to replicate, including hiring many of the staff that worked for Obama

Obama

Clinton

Obama


Input: Still, the Republican National Committee has invested heavily in data operations, eager to avoid another defeat to a more technologically savvy Democrat

the Republican National Committee

Democrat


Input: Trump could make use of that RNC data if he wished

RNC

Trump


Input: Trump and his aides have been meeting with RNC officials this week to discuss the mechanics of his campaign

RNC

Trump

aides

officials

meeting

aides


Input: He is also planning a trip to Washington Thursday to meet with party leaders, including House Speaker Paul Ryan, who have had a mixed reaction to his primary success

Washington

House

He

party leaders

Paul Ryan

meet

Washington

Paul Ryan

trip

He

Washington


Input: Though Trump has vowed to be tough in taking on Clinton, he also suggested he might avoid running negative ads against her, saying, “I just don't find them to be very effective.

Trump

Clinton


Input: “I've had over $100 million in negative ads spent on me and every time it's boosted my numbers,” he said

$100 million


Input: As Trump was speaking, however, his campaign posted a new ad on Instagram assailing Clinton for her response to the attacks on a diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya

compound

Benghazi

Libya

Trump

Clinton


Input: He's cited an ongoing audit of his finances as the main reason for withholding the information, and also has said he doesn't believe voters are interested

voters


Input: His two remaining Republican rivals suddenly dropped out of the race last week, anointing him the party's presumptive presidential nominee faster than even the confident candidate expected

Republican

candidate


Input: As part of his general election planning, Trump told the AP at his office in New York that he's moving aggressively to identify a running mate with deep political experience

New York

AP

Trump


Input: While he would not provide a full list of names, he did not rule out New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, the former rival whom he's already tapped to head his transition planning

New Jersey

rival

Chris Christie


Input: FILE - Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, accompanied by New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, center, and his son Eric Trump, right, Jan. 3, 2016

New Jersey

Republican

candidate

Donald Trump

Chris Christie

son

Eric Trump


Input: Why Pakistan Won't Go After Afghan Taliban-ISLAMABAD — -Pakistan is hesitant to take action against the Afghan Taliban on its soil because of concerns the group will redirect its violence against Pakistan and Afghan intelligence will support it, a senior Pakistani official said

Pakistan

Afghan

ISLAMABAD

Pakistan

Afghan

Pakistan

Afghan

Pakistani

Taliban

Taliban

group


Input: In addition, he said, Pakistan scuttled opportunities presented by Afghanistan for mutual cooperation in order to change this situation

Pakistan

Afghanistan


Input: “Didn’t the Afghan intelligence help with the capture of the Army Public School in Peshawar attackers?

Afghan

Peshawar

Army Public School


Input: he asked, mentioning a devastating attack in December of 2014 in which more than 130 school children were killed

children

killed

children


Input: In return, he said, Pakistan did not take any steps against the Haqqani Network, an Afghan Taliban group that officials at NATO’s Resolute Support mission in Afghanistan have described as one of the “most lethal” groups in Afghanistan

Pakistan

Afghan

Afghanistan

Afghanistan

Haqqani Network

Taliban

group

NATO’s Resolute Support

groups

officials


Input: FILE - Afghanistan’s ambassador to Pakistan, Omar Zakhilwal, speaks to VOA in Islamabad

Pakistan

Islamabad

VOA

ambassador

Omar Zakhilwal


Input: Afghanistan and the United States allege the network has ties to Pakistan’s intelligence agencies and its leadership operates out of Pakistan

Afghanistan

United States

Pakistan

network


Input: Afghan officials recently said the group has effectively taken battlefield control of the Afghan Taliban

Afghan

Afghan

group

Taliban

officials


Input: They also blame the group for a deadly attack in Kabul in April that killed nearly 70 people

Kabul

group

70 people

attack

Kabul

killed

Kabul


Input: Anybody we take action against is immediately supported from the other side,” the official told VOA on the condition of anonymity

VOA


Input: Zakhilwal said the network remains a “core irritant” between the two countries and the lack of action against them contributes to the trust deficit

countries

network


Input: Relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan have deteriorated over the last year, after a burst of warmth in early 2015

Afghanistan

Pakistan


Input: He expected Pakistan to help bring the Afghan Taliban to the negotiating table

Pakistan

Afghan

Taliban


Input: A second round, scheduled for the end of July, was cancelled when news broke that the Afghan Taliban leader Mullah Omar, who was supposed to have blessed the talks, had been dead for a few year

Afghan

Taliban

Mullah Omar

dead

Mullah Omar


Input: Efforts to rejuvenate the talks resulted in a four nation Quadrilateral Coordination Group, with representatives from the United States and China joining Afghanistan and Pakistan

nation

United States

China

Afghanistan

Pakistan

Quadrilateral Coordination Group


Input: Afghan President Ashraf Ghani recently demanded that Pakistan either take military action against Taliban commanders on its soil or arrest them and hand them over to Kabul

Afghan

Pakistan

Kabul

military

Taliban

Ashraf Ghani

commanders


Input: The group adopted a roadmap with steps leading to a reconciliation process for peace in Afghanistan

Afghanistan

group


Input: That effort, Zakhilwal said, will also fail if Pakistan continues with its inaction

Pakistan


Input: “The QCG will die down if the road map is not followed,” he said

QCG


Input: The road map, he added, included pressure tactics to be used if Taliban refused to negotiate with the Afghan government -- measures like “closing down their facilities, arresting them if they are wandering around freely, disrupting them.

facilities

Afghan

Taliban

government


Input: Pakistan, he indicated, was not doing any of that

Pakistan


Input: Pakistan foreign policy adviser Sartaj Aziz on the other hand, has said that according to the road map, if peace talks do not materialize, action against the Taliban would require consensus among all QCG members

Pakistan

Taliban

QCG

adviser

Sartaj Aziz

members


Input: He has also said that Kabul is frustrated because of the delay in the start of the process but acknowledges such things take time

Kabul


Input: Pakistan insists it is continuing its efforts to facilitate talks

Pakistan


Input: A delegation of the Afghan Taliban visited Islamabad from Qatar late last month as part of those efforts

Afghan

Islamabad

Qatar

Taliban


Input: Pakistan has often complained that when it launched military operations in Swat and South Waziristan in 2009, militants belonging to Pakistani Taliban took shelter in Afghanistan and started using it as a base, with the help of Afghan intelligence, to carry out operations against Pakistan

base

Pakistan

South Waziristan

Pakistani

Afghanistan

Afghan

Pakistan

Swat

military

Taliban

militants


Input: Zakhilwal complained that Afghans found out about the delegation from their own intelligence sources

Zakhilwal


Input: he asked, adding that Pakistan has still not told Afghanistan why the delegation was in Islamabad

Pakistan

Afghanistan

Islamabad


Input: FILE - Masked Pakistani pro-Taliban militants who are supporters of Maulana Fazlullah, a hardline cleric, stand at a check post in Charbagh, a Taliban stronghold, near Mingora, the main town of Pakistan's Swat valley, Nov. 2, 2007

Pakistani

Charbagh

Mingora

town

Pakistan's Swat

valley

Taliban

militants

Maulana Fazlullah

cleric


Input: As recently as the start of the current operation in North Waziristan in 2014, the Pakistani official said, the Afghan government issued refugee cards to militants who escaped to the other side

Pakistani

Afghan

North Waziristan

government

refugee

militants


Input: Senior journalist and regional expert Rahimullah Yousufzai said the leadership of several Pakistani Taliban groups, including Mullah Fazlullah, the head of Tehreek e Taliban Pakistan, was hiding in Afghanistan

Afghanistan

Pakistani Taliban

groups

Tehreek e Taliban Pakistan

journalist

Rahimullah Yousufzai

Mullah Fazlullah


Input: He added that one of the militant leaders, Omar Khalid Khorasani, whose group Jamaat-ul-Ahrar claimed responsibility for an Easter bombing in Lahore in March that killed more than 70 people, was supposed to be getting support from the Afghan intelligence agencies

Lahore

Afghan

agencies

Omar Khalid Khorasani

Jamaat-ul-Ahrar

70 people

bombing

Jamaat-ul-Ahrar

Lahore

killed

Lahore


Input: Afghanistan’s ambassador to Pakistan, Hazrat Omar Zakhilwal, however, rejected the assessment of the Pakistani official

Afghanistan’s

Pakistan

Pakistani

ambassador

Hazrat Omar Zakhilwal


Input: Top Hezbollah Commander Badreddine Killed in Syria -The Lebanese militant group Hezbollah buried a top military commander Friday after he was killed in an attack in Syria, where the group has deployed thousands of fighters

Syria

Lebanese

Syria

Hezbollah

group

Hezbollah

military

group

Badreddine

commander

fighters

attack

Syria

Killed

Syria

killed

commander

Syria


Input: Hezbollah fighters carried the coffin of Mustafa Badreddine through the streets of southern Beirut in a funeral procession

coffin

streets

Beirut

Hezbollah

fighters

Mustafa Badreddine

carried

fighters


Input: Hezbollah's deployment of fighters to Syria has increased the group's enemies beyond its traditional rival, Israel, to include Sunni extremists

Syria

Israel

fighters


Input: No coalition aircraft nearby-White House spokesman Josh Earnest said there were no U.S. or coalition aircraft in the area where Badreddine was reported to have been killed

coalition

U.S.

coalition

area

White House

spokesman

Josh Earnest

Badreddine

aircraft

aircraft

killed

Badreddine


Input: Kirby noted that Badreddine was convicted in Kuwait for his role in bomb attacks on the U.S. and French embassies in 1983

Kuwait

U.S.

French

Kirby

Badreddine

bomb

attacks

bomb

French


Input: Badreddine escaped from prison in Kuwait after the country was invaded by Iraq under the leadership of Saddam Hussein in 1990

prison

Kuwait

country

Iraq

Badreddine

Saddam Hussein

invaded

country

Iraq

escaped

Badreddine

prison


Input: Badreddine was also one of four men accused in absentia of plotting the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri and 21 others

Lebanese

Badreddine

men

Rafik Hariri


Input: The trial began in 2014 at The Hague, Netherlands, and is ongoing

The Hague

Netherlands


Input: Hezbollah denied any involvement in the attack

Hezbollah


Input: The U.S. Treasury Department imposed sanctions on Badreddine in 2011 and 2015 for his involvement in the Syrian war

Syrian

U.S. Treasury Department


Input: According to U.S. officials, Assad and Nasrallah coordinated Hezbollah's actions in Syria on a weekly basis, with Badreddine present at top Damascus meetings

U.S.

Syria

Damascus

officials

Assad

Nasrallah


Input: Badreddine, 55, led the Shi'ite group’s involvement in the Syrian civil war and was the highest official from the group to die since Hezbollah entered the conflict several years ago

Syrian

group

Hezbollah


Input: Hezbollah members carry the coffin of top Hezbollah commander Mustafa Badreddine, who was killed in an attack in Syria, during his funeral in Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon, May 13, 2016

coffin

Syria

Lebanon

suburbs

Hezbollah

Hezbollah

members

commander

Mustafa Badreddine

attack

Syria

carry

members


Input: Announcing his death, Hezbollah said Badreddine had told his friends and family several months ago that he would return from Syria victorious or "a martyr.

Syria

Hezbollah

Badreddine

friends

family


Input: The group released a picture, showing a smiling Badreddine wearing a camouflage baseball cap

group


Input: Nadim Shehadi, who heads the Fares Center at Tufts University’s Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, tells VOA that Badreddine and other suspects in the Hariri case have been dying off quickly

Fares Center

Tufts University’s Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy

VOA

Nadim Shehadi

Hariri


Input: “Everyone we know connected to the Hariri assassination is dying, so very soon you will have a [special] tribunal in the Hague that is not able to have a trial or that would have to innovate to have a trial, because Badreddine was the highest profile [in the case] and now he’s gone,” he said

Hague

Hariri


Input: Other deaths-Other suspects who have been killed or died under mysterious circumstances in recent years include top Syrian intelligence officials Rustom Ghazaleh and Jamaa Jamaa, and Badreddine’s brother-in-law, Imad Mughniyah, who was Hezbollah’s former top military commander until he was assassinated in 2008

Syrian

military

suspects

Rustom Ghazaleh

Jamaa Jamaa

brother-in-law

Imad Mughniyah

Hezbollah’s

commander

died

Imad Mughniyah

assassinated

Imad Mughniyah


Input: There was no official reaction from Israel, which customarily declines to comment on such matters

Israel


Input: Yaakov Amidror, a former national security adviser to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, told Israeli Army Radio that Badreddine’s passing was “good for Israel,” but added that “those [fighting] in Syria ... have a lot of [enemies other than] Israel.

Israel

Syria

Israel

Israeli Army Radio

Yaakov Amidror

adviser

Benjamin Netanyahu


Input: Without giving any specific time, Hezbollah said Badreddine was killed in a big explosion targeting one of its bases near Damascus' airport

bases

airport

Damascus'

Hezbollah

Badreddine

explosion

bases


Input: VOA's Edward Yeranian contributed to this report from Cairo

Cairo

Edward Yeranian


Input: Women mourn during the funeral of top Hezbollah commander Mustafa Badreddine, who was killed in an attack in Syria, in Beirut's southern suburbs, Lebanon, May 13, 2016

Syria

Beirut's

Lebanon

suburbs

Hezbollah

commander

Mustafa Badreddine

attack

Mustafa Badreddine

Syria

killed

Mustafa Badreddine

Syria


Input: Took part in most Hezbollah operations since 1982-Accused of participating in 1983 attacks on U.S. Marine command center and embassy in Beirut-Suspected of attack on Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia in 1996-Condemned to death in Kuwait in 1983 for assassination attempt on Kuwait’s late Emir Sa’ad Jabbar al Sabah

embassy

Beirut

Saudi Arabia

Kuwait

Khobar Towers

Hezbollah

U.S. Marine

Sa’ad Jabbar al Sabah

attacks

U.S. Marine

death

Kuwait

Sa’ad Jabbar al Sabah


Input: Shi’ite gunmen who hijacked a TWA plane in 1985 demanded his freedom-Escaped Kuwait after Iraqi troops invaded in 1990-A top suspect in the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri in 200

Kuwait

Iraqi

Lebanese

TWA

gunmen

troops

Rafiq Hariri

plane

hijacked

plane

invaded

troops

Escaped

Kuwait


Input: Investigation-Hezbollah said it was investigating the cause of the explosion, saying the probe would determine whether an airstrike, missile attack or artillery bombardment had caused the blast

Hezbollah

missile

artillery


Input: Top Hezbollah commander Mustafa Badreddine is seen in this handout picture released by Hezbollah Media office on May 13, 2016

Hezbollah

Hezbollah Media

commander

Mustafa Badreddine


Input: Badreddine was a top adviser of Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah

Hezbollah

Badreddine

adviser

Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah


Input: The group has been fighting alongside troops loyal to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad

Syrian

group

troops

Bashar al-Assad


Input: Hezbollah says the war is necessary to protect Shi'ites from Sunni extremists who have been at the forefront of the Syrian opposition

Syrian

Hezbollah


Input: Ugandan Ex-Supreme Court Justice Questions Besigye Treason Charge-A former Uganda Supreme Court justice says the government and police need to explain a treason charge against jailed opposition leader Kizza Besigye, who was arrested last week

Ugandan

Uganda Supreme Court

government

police

Besigye

Kizza Besigye

arrested

Kizza Besigye


Input: Besigye, runner-up in the February 18 presidential election to longtime incumbent Yoweri Museveni, was arrested Wednesday in Kampala after eluding the round-the-clock blockade and surveillance of his home on the city's outskirts

home

Kampala

outskirts

Besigye

Yoweri Museveni

arrested

Besigye

Kampala


Input: "You would have expected if they genuinely committed treason the government of Uganda or the people of Uganda, that they will also be arrested,” he added

Uganda

Uganda

government


Input: Kanyeihamba said Ugandan authorities singled Besigye out from that purported Twitter picture and charged him with treason

Ugandan

Twitter

Kanyeihamba


Input: “We have not been given any details of particulars of what the charge is made of because the police have not come up with any particulars or detail of why, if it is true, he has been charged with treason,” he said

police


Input: Kanyeihamba said the government and the police need to explain the case

government

police

Kanyeihamba


Input: A team of lawyers and officials from the Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) party was to travel to Moroto to meet with Besigye

Moroto

team

Forum for Democratic Change (FDC) party

lawyers

officials

Besigye

meet

officials


Input: FILE - Opposition leader and presidential candidate Kizza Besigye speaks to the media while under continued house arrest, at his home in Kasangati, outside the capital Kampala, in Uganda, Feb. 21, 2016

home

Kasangati

capital

Kampala

Uganda

media

leader

candidate

Kizza Besigye


Input: Feared for life-Meanwhile, in an interview with Uganda Daily Monitor from his jail cell, Besigye questioned why authorities did not charge him in Kampala where he was arrested

jail

cell

Kampala

Uganda Daily Monitor

authorities

Besigye

arrested

Besigye

Kampala


Input: He told the newspaper he feared for his life at one point because the cell where they first kept him had three doors, one of which was not closed

newspaper


Input: “I called one of the guards and asked him why they don’t close that door, but the guard said it was a directive from the district police commander," Besigye said

police

I

guards

commander

Besigye


Input: He was then flown to Moroto town in the northeastern subregion of Karamoja

town

Karamoja

Moroto

subregion

He

flown

Karamoja


Input: Besigye described the case against him as “abnormal” and said he refused to give a statement to the police officers who came to get a statement from him Thursday

police

Besigye

officers


Input: “He told me that [there were] two charges [against me]: terrorism, because they got 20 pangas [machetes] from our party headquarters, and the second charge was treason because I had declared myself president of Uganda," he told the paper

headquarters

Uganda

president


Input: "So, I told him [the police detective] that since these are capital offenses, I will make my statement in the presence of my lawyers,” Besigye reportedly said

police


Input: Museveni, whom the country's Electoral Commission declared the winner in the February election, was sworn in for a fifth presidential term Thursday

Electoral Commission

Museveni


Input: However, on Wednesday, a video purportedly showing Besigye being sworn in as the new president of Uganda was placed on YouTube and being shared on Facebook and other social media platforms

Uganda

president


Input: FILE - A Ugandan riot policeman blocks the gate of the party headquarters of opposition leader Kizza Besigye, shortly after raiding the premises for the second time in a week, in the capital Kampala, Uganda, Feb. 22, 2016

gate

headquarters

premises

Ugandan

capital

Kampala

Uganda

policeman

Kizza Besigye


Input: Charge questioned-George Kanyeihamba, a former Uganda Supreme Court justice, said given the information, he knows of no treasonable offense that Besigye has committed

Uganda Supreme Court

George Kanyeihamba


Input: “Just before President Museveni was sworn in, something came on Twitter

Museveni


Input: We don’t know how true it was or what, saying that Kizza Besigye had gone through a form of swearing in

Kizza Besigye


Input: Will Arming Libya’s ‘Unity’ Government Escalate Conflict

Will Arming

Libya’s ‘Unity’


Input: ROME — -The focus was how to combat Islamic State militants and halt their unnerving advance in Libya, just a short boat ride from southern Europe

ROME

Libya

Europe

Islamic State

militants

boat


Input: The GNA is in Tripoli; the rival government is in Tobruk

Tripoli

GNA

government


Input: A member of the force assigned to protect Libya's unity government stands at the entrance to where the government has their offices, in Tripoli, Libya, April 14, 2016

Tripoli

Libya

government

government


Input: In a series of angry tweets, Haftar supporters condemned the West's readiness to lift the arms embargo and aid the GNA

GNA

Haftar


Input: The Al Hurra TV channel, on its Twitter account, called the move "foreign meddling in [Libya’s] sovereign affairs.

Al Hurra TV


Input: Supporters, though, see nothing wrong with Egypt's or the United Arab Emirates' arming Haftar and his so-called Libyan National Army, made up of former militiamen and veterans from Gadhafi’s security forces

Gadhafi’s

Libyan National Army

Haftar

militiamen

veterans


Input: Just days before the Vienna meeting, militiamen from the town of Misrata, which back the GNA, and Haftar’s fighters skirmished south of Sirte

Vienna

town

Misrata

GNA

militiamen

fighters


Input: Now there’s an added incentive for Haftar’s forces to get to Sirte before arms start flowing to the GNA militia allies, some analysts warn

allies

GNA

forces


Input: Smoke billows from a factory after an airstrike by forces loyal to former general Khalifa Haftar, in Benghazi, Libya, Oct. 22, 2014

factory

Benghazi

Libya

forces

Khalifa Haftar

airstrike

factory

forces

Benghazi


Input: Jason Pack of the consultancy Libya-Analysis said he feared loosening the arms embargo “could fuel tensions rather than deter them,” adding that “an injection of weapons to the GNA is likely to amplify factional rivalries” rather than help tamp them down

Libya-Analysis

GNA

Jason Pack

weapons


Input: But Western powers’ announcement Monday of their readiness to arm the struggling unity government in Tripoli has gone down badly with a rival government and its militia in the east of the fractious, chaotic country

Tripoli

country

government

government


Input: “The international community’s undeterred championing of the GNA seems increasingly out of step with Libyans’ sentiments,” Pack said, noting growing public support for Haftar

GNA


Input: The Gadhafi-era general and his forces have made gains in recent weeks against IS and other militants in Benghazi, Derna and Ajdabiya

Benghazi

Derna

Ajdabiya

IS

forces

militants


Input: Stability elusive-Stabilizing Libya is an urgent goal for the West as it tries to combat IS more effectively and counter the smuggling of migrants to Europe

Libya

West

Europe

IS


Input: The unity government, installed in March, was meant to be a first step in bringing order to a country that has known little since Gadhafi’s ouster

country

government


Input: Western officials have placed hope in war fatigue, the allure of foreign aid and development money, and the growing threat of IS to build popular momentum for the unity government

Western

IS

government

officials


Input: But in large parts of Libya, questions remain about the GNA’s legitimacy

Libya


Input: But the GNA has struggled to consolidate its position in the Libyan capital, let alone expand its authority to the rest of the country

Libyan

capital

country

GNA


Input: It remains dependent on the support of powerful western militias, whose loyalty remains suspect and who may be biding their time to see how the unity government fares

militias

government


Input: The HoR has failed to endorse the GNA, a move required under the U.N. deal

HoR

GNA

U.N.


Input: Supporters of General Khalifa Haftar – the muscle behind the opposition National Salvation Government – are scorning the Western powers’ decision to support a partial arms ban exemption for the United Nations-negotiated Government of National Accord (GNA)

GNA

Khalifa Haftar

arms


Input: HoR President Ageela Saleh warned Monday his legislature won’t approve the unity government unless ministers selected by al-Serraj attend a session in Tobruk, which they refuse to do, citing security concerns

Tobruk

HoR

legislature

government

Ageela Saleh

al-Serraj


Input: Hafed Al-Ghwell, a senior adviser with Oxford Analytica, a global risk advisory group, said big questions remain about the GNA’s credibility

group

Hafed Al-Ghwell

adviser

Oxford Analytica


Input: “Many people have been excluded, especially tribal and former Gadhafi officers as well as over a million Libyan exiles in Egypt and Tunisia,” he said

Libyan

Egypt

Tunisia

Gadhafi

officers


Input: He warned that by giving arms to the Tripoli-based GNA government, the West would essentially be taking sides in what in effect is a civil war

GNA

government


Input: Migrants who'd attempted to flee to Europe wait in Libyan coast guard detention in the coastal city of Tripoli, Libya, May 16, 2016

Libyan

city

Tripoli

Libya

Europe


Input: U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry had encouraged aiding the GNA, led by Prime Minister Fayez al-Serraj, following a meeting Monday in Vienna with diplomats from 20 other Western countries

U.S.

Vienna

countries

Western

State

GNA

Secretary

John Kerry

Fayez al-Serraj

diplomats


Input: "The international community should support the Serraj government, which is the only legitimate one in Libya, and which must now start to work," said Kerry, who presided over the meeting with his Italian counterpart, Paolo Gentiloni

Libya

Italian

Serraj government

government

Kerry

Paolo Gentiloni


Input: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, left, speaks to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry prior to their news conference in Vienna, Austria, May 17, 2016

Russian

U.S.

Vienna

Austria

State

Sergei Lavrov

Secretary

John Kerry


Input: The United Nations had imposed an arms embargo in 2011 to stop strongman Moammar Gadhafi from securing weapons to quell the uprising against him

The United Nations

Moammar Gadhafi

weapons


Input: He was killed in October of that year

He

killed


Input: Kerry argued that acceding to a GNA request for arms and training is imperative to help restore order to the country

country

GNA

Kerry

arms


Input: Tech Nomads Descend on Ho Chi Minh City-As an online generation comes of working age, Vietnam’s Ho Chi Minh City is quickly becoming a destination for “tech nomads” – online entrepreneurs looking to take their businesses, and their laptops, anywhere

Ho Chi Minh City

Vietnam’s

Ho Chi Minh City


Input: An increasing number of startups are taking root online, and to help counter the extreme costs and financial risks of starting one’s own business, more and more entrepreneurs are moving out of the United States, Canada and western Europe to save on living and operation costs

United States

Canada

Europe


Input: “I wanted to be somewhere where I could focus 100 percent on my online business,” Fortin said

Fortin


Input: One such place, Start Saigon, caters to foreigners in the heart of popular District 1 in Ho Chi Minh City

Ho Chi Minh City


Input: The space attracts members from all around the world, staying open 24/7 for those working on American or European time, or long hours in general

American

world

European


Input: It also boasts optical fiber Internet in every room, and an onsite pool for a quick (or not so quick) break during the workday

room

pool


Input: Fortin, like many others, quickly found the benefits of living in Vietnam stretched beyond practical ease

Vietnam

Fortin


Input: “You don’t need to wait 30 years to start your life and drink coconut water by the pool," he said

pool


Input: Community centers and specific coffee shops in Ho Chi Minh City attract a specific clientele, and because most expats are conducting business abroad, they are often slow to learn the language and assimilate, if they do at all

Ho Chi Minh City


Input: Among blogs, podcasts, and books that have surfaced advising young nomads where to relocate, Vietnam is becoming a popular destination

Vietnam


Input: FILE - Three young Vietnamese girls go online at a cafe in Hanoi, Vietnam, May 14, 2013

cafe

Vietnamese

Hanoi

Vietnam

girls


Input: We have a different perception of the world and also the language barrier is big,” Fortin said

world

Fortin


Input: He cited competition between the Vietnamese as a reason they were friendlier toward him than each other, saying that he thinks the lack of job opportunities in Vietnam leads to a more driven and aggressive youth

Vietnamese

Vietnam


Input: Returned to US-After a successful two years in Ho Chi Minh City, Fortin has recently left the tech nomad paradise for greyer skies

US

Ho Chi Minh City

Fortin


Input: Ironically, having “met the woman of my dreams, who is my wife now” in Vietnam, he followed her to Seattle, where she has immigrated to accept a job

Seattle

wife

he

followed

Seattle


Input: Fortin has not yet subscribed to an American phone because he is sure that, soon enough, he will be taking his laptop abroad again

American

Fortin


Input: “It’s quite safe there and Internet is pretty good, but the main reason is it’s cheap to live there … you can really bootstrap a business very cheaply,” Alex Fortin, coach and creator of “Your first $1,000 online” course, told VOA

VOA

Alex Fortin


Input: Fortin also cited the ease of getting a working visa in Vietnam

Vietnam

Fortin


Input: He was living and working in Calgary, Canada, when he realized he needed a change

Calgary

Canada


Input: Thousands of Syrians Trapped as Islamic State Pushes to Border-ISTANBUL — -Concern mounted Monday for the fate of tens of thousands of displaced Syrian civilians caught in the middle of a desperate fight in the countryside north of Aleppo

Syrians

ISTANBUL

Syrian

Aleppo

Islamic State

civilians

fight

Aleppo

caught

civilians

Aleppo


Input: Days of clashes between moderate and Islamist rebel factions and the Islamic State group, which has mounted a fierce offensive on two key border towns, imperils rebel resupplies from Turkey

towns

Turkey

border

factions

Islamic State

group


Input: Earlier this month under pressure from Moscow, the International Syria Support Group, the 20-power group that includes the U.S. and Russia, warned armed groups that they could be excluded from the cessation of hostilities agreement, which is only partially functioning, if they work with al Nusra or other factions deemed terrorists

Moscow

U.S.

Russia

International Syria Support Group

group

groups

al Nusra

factions


Input: With IS on the offensive in the northern Aleppo countryside that challenge will become greater

Aleppo

IS


Input: Rebel commanders say they have no choice but to work with al-Nusra on occasion when they are being hard-pressed by IS or the Assad regime, which they argue is doing all it can to push factions opposed to President Bashar al-Assad into the arms of al-Nusra in order to paint them as terrorist in nature

IS

regime

al-Nusra

commanders

Assad

Bashar al-Assad

arms


Input: Over the weekend the al-Qaida affiliate said it was mobilizing to support rebel factions battling to retain control of the strategically-vital border towns of Azaz and Marea, the onetime HQ of the FSA in Aleppo province

HQ

towns

Azaz

Marea

Aleppo

border

al-Qaida

factions

FSA

battling

factions

towns


Input: Internally displaced Syrians line up to receive blankets near the Bab al-Salam crossing, across from Turkey's Kilis province, on the outskirts of the northern border town of Azaz, Syria, Feb. 6, 2016

Syrians

Turkey's Kilis province

town

Azaz

Syria

Bab al-Salam

outskirts

border


Input: Kurdish propagandists claim Nusra fighters are already engaged in the battle but this is denied by FSA commanders

Kurdish

FSA

fighters

commanders


Input: Marea and Azaz fell to opposition forces in 2012 and are vital stops along a rebel supply route from Turkey to districts the rebels hold in Aleppo, which the government has been trying to encircle for months

Turkey

Aleppo

government

forces


Input: The battles have drawn in Turkish and U.S.-coalition warplanes and Kurdish militiamen from the People’s Protection Units (YPG) in a multisided fight in an area measuring only 25 by 55 kilometers

Turkish

Kurdish

area

People’s Protection Units (YPG)

militiamen

warplanes

battles

Turkish


Input: The pro-opposition monitoring group, the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which relies on a network of activists on the ground for its information, said the fighting in the area is the heaviest in months and that the offensive amounts to the most significant advance near the Turkish border for IS in two years

Turkish

area

border

group

Syrian Observatory for Human Rights

network

IS


Input: FILE - Syrian children wait to return to their country at the Turkish border crossing with Syria in the outskirts of Kilis, southeastern Turkey, Feb. 11, 2016

Syrian

country

Turkish

Syria

Kilis

Turkey

border

outskirts

children


Input: “We are terribly concerned about the fate of our hospital and our patients, and about the estimated 100,000 people trapped between the Turkish border and active front lines," Pablo Marco, MSF operations manager for the Middle East, said in a statement

hospital

Turkish

border

Middle East

MSF

patients

Pablo Marco

manager


Input: Marco added: “There is nowhere for people to flee to as the fighting gets closer.

Marco


Input: Most of displaced Syrians in or near the current fighting fled into the area from a blistering Russian-backed Assad regime offensive in February

area

Syrians

Assad

fled

area


Input: Turkish officials refused to allow displaced civilians to cross into Turkey

Turkish

Turkey

officials


Input: European appeals for the border to be re-opened fell on deaf ears

European

border


Input: “Officially we are still pressing the Turks to allow them in,” says a European diplomat, who asked not to be identified

European

diplomat


Input: Kurdish spokesmen say they have opened closed roads to allow about 6,000 fleeing civilians into their border canton of Afrin

Kurdish

border

civilians

fleeing

civilians

border


Input: Kurdish People's Protection Units (YPG) fighters carry their weapons while riding on the back of a pick-up truck in Qamishli, Syria, March 11, 2016

Qamishli

Syria

Kurdish

People's Protection Units

YPG

fighters

truck

weapons


Input: Turkish officials aslo said their warplanes and artillery have struck multiple IS targets in the past three days, including four Katyusha rocket firing positions and two ammunition depots after the jihadists on May 27-28 lobbed rockets over the border hitting a district in southern Gaziantep province and the town of Kilis

positions

depots

Turkish

Gaziantep province

town

border

district

IS

jihadists

warplanes

artillery

targets

rocket

ammunition

rockets

struck

Turkish

artillery

hitting

rockets

town


Input: U.S.-led anti-IS coalition warplanes carried out at least three airstrikes this weekend on IS positions, U.S. officials said, more in support of the Turks than of embattled Free Syrian Army and Islamist rebels, who have complained they’re not receiving the close air support from the coalition that YPG fighters get in neighboring Raqqa province

coalition

U.S.

coalition

Raqqa

IS

Free Syrian Army

YPG

officials

fighters

warplanes

airstrikes

warplanes


Input: “If we had the support the YPG gets, we would not be in such a desperate position,” said Zakaria Malahefji of the 3,000-strong Fastaqim Kama Umirt, a brigade aligned to the rebel alliance Jaish al-Mujahideen (Army of Holy Warriors)

YPG

Jaish al-Mujahideen

Army of Holy Warriors

Zakaria Malahefji

Fastaqim Kama Umirt


Input: The upsurge in fighting risks complicating U.S. efforts to try to persuade FSA militias to stop mingling with fighters from al-Qaida’s affiliate, Jabhat al-Nusra, and allied Islamist factions

U.S.

FSA

militias

al-Qaida’s affiliate

factions

fighters


Input: US: Syria Aid Efforts Hampered by Ongoing Impasse in Negotiations -LONDON — -U.S. efforts to get badly needed aid from Turkey to Syria are being hampered by the ongoing impasse in negotiations and the Syrian government’s continuing siege on areas held by opposition groups, including those supported by Washington

US

Syria

LONDON

U.S.

Turkey

Syria

Syrian

Washington

groups


Input: Food scarce-As a result, U.S. officials say, nearly 20 towns have been deprived of food and humanitarian shipments, in some cases, for years, and food shortages are intensifying

U.S.

officials


Input: The International Syria Support Group, including Russia and the U.S., agreed last month that it would call for airdrops if aid shipments were still being blocked by June 1

Russia

U.S.

International Syria Support Group


Input: “On the day of that deadline, the Assad regime has cynically allowed limited amounts of aid into Daraya and Muadhamiya, but it has failed to deliver the widespread humanitarian access called for by the international community,” Britain’s foreign secretary, Philip Hammond, said in a statement

regime

Assad

secretary

Philip Hammond


Input: Hammond said that while airdrops are complex, costly, and risky, “they are now the last resort” to relieve suffering in the besieged areas where U.N. officials say more than a half-million people are vulnerable

complex

areas

U.N.

officials


Input: Humanitarian aid-U.S. officials say getting American aid from Turkey to Syria has become very difficult as hostilities have continued and they are calling for third country actors in the Syrian conflict to use their leverage to make the aid deliveries possible

U.S.

American

Turkey

Syria

country

Syrian

officials


Input: “Without pressure from Russia and Iran, and some other countries to push the regime in Damascus to provide humanitarian access to almost 20 besieged towns where people have not received food or humanitarian aid in some cases for years, I don’t succeed,” said Mark Ward, director of the Syria Transition Assistance Response Team at the U.S. embassy in Ankara

embassy

Russia

Iran

countries

Damascus

Syria

Ankara

regime

Transition Assistance Response Team

U.S. embassy

Mark Ward

director


Input: Ward’s team is responsible for coordinating all U.S. assistance that is channeled to Syria via Turkey

U.S.

Syria

Turkey

team


Input: “If the humanitarian situation doesn’t get better and if the cease-fires don’t work and if the hostilities continue, there will not be a political process because the environment has to be conducive to support the opposition and the Syrian people are not going to support the opposition in a political dialogue with the regime when they see no humanitarian access and increasing hostilities,” Ward told VOA

Syrian

regime

VOA

Ward


Input: U.S. officials say getting both humanitarian aid to meet people’s basic needs and stabilization aid to get infrastructure running again have been impeded, not only by the Islamic State group’s continued hold on territory, but by Turkey’s moves to seal its border with Syria, as conditions have deteriorated in southeastern Turkey

U.S.

Syria

Turkey

border

Islamic State

officials


Input: It is against this backdrop that the U.S., Britain, and France have issued an urgent call for the United Nations to begin humanitarian airdrops

U.S.

Britain

France

United Nations


Input: U.N. officials, however, were quoted as saying airdrops were not imminent

U.N.

officials


Input: The call came ahead of a Security Council meeting to talk about the humanitarian crisis

Security Council


Input: “France is asking the United Nations, and in particular the WFP, to begin humanitarian airdrops for all the areas in need, beginning with Daraya, Muadhamiya and Madaya, where the civilian population, including children, risks dying of hunger,” France’s U.N. ambassador, Francois Delattre, said at a news conference

France

areas

United Nations

WFP

U.N.

children

ambassador

Francois Delattre


Input: Syrian men carry aid parcels provided by the UN World Food Programm (WFP) and the Syrian Arab Red Crescent in the rebel-held town of Al-Houla, on the northern outskirts of Homs in central Syria, on May 25, 2016

Syrian

Syrian

town

Al-Houla

Homs

Syria

outskirts

UN World Food Programm

WFP

Arab Red Crescent

men


Input: Officials said convoys reached the towns of Daraya for the first time in four years and a second one arrived in Muadhamiya Wednesday

towns

Daraya

Muadhamiya

reached


Input: The U.S. Department of State called the deliveries “far from sufficient.

U.S. Department of State


Input: Study: Terrorists Usually Don't Claim Responsibility for Attacks-CAIRO — -Three weeks after EgyptAir Flight 804 crashed into the sea killing all 66 people on board, several theories abound about what happened

CAIRO

sea

people

EgyptAir Flight 804

killing

sea


Input: To be clear, he’s not saying the EgyptAir crash was terrorism, just that silence from the militants proves nothing either way

militants


Input: Egyptian officials say they have not ruled out any possible causes of the crash as they hone in on the vessel’s ‘black boxes,’ which are believed to be about 3,000 meters under the sea

Egyptian

sea

officials


Input: The investigation into what happened to Flight 804 is still “very far” from discovering why the plane crashed, according to state media

state

media

plane


Input: After the March bombings in Brussels, Islamic State militants claimed responsibility for the attack, as they had last year prior after the Paris incidents

Brussels

Paris

Islamic State

militants


Input: For the militants, these attacks, that altogether killed 162 people, were meant to be spectacles, according to Dalia Ghanem Yazbeck of the Carnegie Middle East Center

Carnegie Middle East Center

militants

people

Dalia Ghanem Yazbeck

killed

militants


Input: “Claiming an attack publicly in our era is also a way to attract attention, to be taken seriously, to terrorize a whole range of people and different countries at the same time,” she explains

countries


Input: “Look how Paris and Brussels attacks shocked not only France and Belgium, but Europe, America and the whole world.

Paris

Brussels

France

Belgium

America

Europe

world


Input: She says groups also sometimes have reasons not to claim credit for attacks, such as to avoid retaliation

groups


Input: In other cases, militant groups simply do not need the publicity in areas where they are already powerful

groups


Input: “Lone wolf” attacks are by nature conducted without the knowledge of a known terrorist organization, Yazbeck adds

organization


Input: A destroyed van is pictured near a Turkish police bus which was targeted in a bomb attack in a central Istanbul district, Turkey, June 7, 2016

Turkish

Istanbul

Turkey

district

police

van

bus

bomb

attack

police

Istanbul


Input: The theory that religious zealots are less likely to claim responsibility for attacks because they are a show for God rather than for man is “unfounded or at least underspecified,” according to Abrahms and Conrad’s study

man


Input: “Terrorist groups have to worry about their survival as an organization,” says Abrahms

groups

organization


Input: The international coalition against Islamic State is weakening the organization, while other groups, like al-Nusra in Syria, an al-Qaida offshoot, are growing partially by presenting themselves as fighters in a war, rather than killers of civilians

coalition

Syria

Islamic State

organization

groups

al-Nusra

al-Qaida

fighters

civilians


Input: In an interview with Al Jazeera last year, Nusra leader Abu Mohammed al-Golani pledged his group would not target Alawites, a sect Nusra calls "heretics," if it wins the war in Syria

Syria

Al Jazeera

Nusra

group

Alawites

Nusra

Abu Mohammed al-Golani


Input: Later on in the interview, al-Golani said he expects Alawites to convert to Nusra’s version of Islam and drop their arms and political alliances in order to enjoy safety under Nusra control

al-Golani

arms


Input: “By this, they will become our brothers,” he said

brothers


Input: In the days after the crash, many people waited for a militant group to boast it was responsible

group


Input: Journalists often label some groups “terrorists” arbitrarily, despite the fact the word has many different definitions

groups


Input: In the news, Islamic State is usually referred to as “terrorist” while Nusra often enjoys the title “rebel.

Islamic State


Input: Islamic State is like a university with “no admissions requirements” for low-level fighters, he says, but leaders of it and other groups often have considerable experience

Islamic State

university

groups

fighters


Input: For example, an attack on a civilian aircraft could be part of a larger string of attacks that would be threatened if the perpetrators were known

civilian

aircraft


Input: FILE - A U.S. Marine wounded in an IED attack, having been evacuated from the battlefield by the 101st Airborne, in an IED attack, is helped into the trauma bay at an advanced U.S. military field hospital at Forward Operating Base Dwyer, in southern Afghanistan

hospital

U.S.

Afghanistan

Forward Operating Base Dwyer

U.S. Marine

101st Airborne

military


Input: Additionally, attacks on military targets are often claimed by more experienced fighters, according to Abrahms, while newbies may be more impressed with gore

fighters


Input: After a week, many analysts said continued silence indicated that it may not have been terrorism

analysts


Input: The Islamic State leadership, he adds, may ultimately meet its demise as a result of its bloody and ruthless image, which attracts equally ruthless followers

Islamic State


Input: “The vast majority of the people in the world are appalled by the Islamic State because of their extreme violence.

world

Islamic State


Input: The answer is: because they usually don’t, according to a new study by Max Abrahms of Northeastern University and Justin Conrad from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Charlotte

Northeastern University

the University of North Carolina

Max Abrahms

Justin Conrad