https://www.voanews.com Voice of America is an international news and broadcast organization serving Central and Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, Central Asia, Russia, the Middle East and Balkan countries https://www.voanews.com/Content/responsive/VOA/en-US/img/logo.png https://www.voanews.com en 2026 - VOA 60 Sat, 07 Nov 2026 08:13:22 -0500 Pangea CMS – VOA Cybersecurity experts tell VOA that the recent North Korean hack of Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange is particularly concerning because of the speed of both the attack, and how quickly the hackers moved the assets through financial networks. https://www.voanews.com/a/north-koreas-binance-hack-raises-global-financial-security-concerns/8219819.html https://www.voanews.com/a/north-koreas-binance-hack-raises-global-financial-security-concerns/8219819.html Fri, 06 Nov 2026 17:39:30 -0500 VOA Koreanwebdesk@voanews.com (Jinwoo Cho) With Democrats set to take control of both houses of the U.S. Congress in January from President Donald Trump’s Republican Party, he will start his final two years in office with weakened power at home. But history has shown that presidents whose parties suffered midterm defeats went on to make... https://www.voanews.com/a/midterm-election-defeats-have-not-derailed-us-presidents-consequential-foreign-policies-historians-tell-voa/8219832.html https://www.voanews.com/a/midterm-election-defeats-have-not-derailed-us-presidents-consequential-foreign-policies-historians-tell-voa/8219832.html Fri, 06 Nov 2026 17:37:15 -0500 VOA Pashtowebdesk@voanews.com (Michael Lipin) The Taliban in Afghanistan's eastern Khost province have destroyed 650 musical instruments and music-related items confiscated during a months-long crackdown on musical instruments, highlighting the continued enforcement of the group's nationwide ban on music. https://www.voanews.com/a/taliban-destroys-650-musical-instruments-citing-music-ban/8219823.html https://www.voanews.com/a/taliban-destroys-650-musical-instruments-citing-music-ban/8219823.html Fri, 06 Nov 2026 16:52:25 -0500 VOA Dariwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA Afghan) The United States is condemning a Hong Kong's court decision to sentence activist Joshua Wong to 10 more years in prison on Thursday on charges of "conspiring to collude with foreign forces." https://www.voanews.com/a/us-condemns-hong-kong-courts-sentencing-of-pro-democracy-activist-joshua-wong-20261106/8219799.html https://www.voanews.com/a/us-condemns-hong-kong-courts-sentencing-of-pro-democracy-activist-joshua-wong-20261106/8219799.html Fri, 06 Nov 2026 16:04:01 -0500 VOA Mandarinwebdesk@voanews.com (Victor Chin) Since last August, thousands of displaced people in northeast Syria have been returning home as part of an integration process between the interim Syrian government and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF). https://www.voanews.com/a/displaced-kurds-return-to-destroyed-homes-in-northeast-syria/8219775.html https://www.voanews.com/a/displaced-kurds-return-to-destroyed-homes-in-northeast-syria/8219775.html Fri, 06 Nov 2026 15:50:14 -0500 VOA Kurdiwebdesk@voanews.com (Ivan Hassib) In his interview with VOA Russian, Kara-Murza explained that international attention helps prisoners resist the isolation that authoritarian regimes seek to impose on them. https://www.voanews.com/a/russian-voanews-interview-kara-murza/8219639.html https://www.voanews.com/a/russian-voanews-interview-kara-murza/8219639.html Fri, 06 Nov 2026 09:06:47 -0500 VOA Russianwebdesk@voanews.com (Andrey Nazarbekian) After returning to power in August 2021, the Taliban banned girls’ secondary and tertiary education in Afghanistan, with primary education the only level of formal schooling accessible to girls. Despite this, girls' enrollment in primary schools remains lower than boys. https://www.voanews.com/a/un-says-about-half-of-afghan-children-out-of-school/8219408.html https://www.voanews.com/a/un-says-about-half-of-afghan-children-out-of-school/8219408.html Thu, 05 Nov 2026 16:59:06 -0500 VOA Pashtowebdesk@voanews.com (VOA Afghan) On Wednesday, the White House told the Voice of America (VOA) that President Donald Trump’s foreign policy decisions “have never been motivated by politics.” https://www.voanews.com/a/ahead-of-china-trip-white-house-says-america-s-best-interest-will-drive-foreign-policy-20261105/8219368.html https://www.voanews.com/a/ahead-of-china-trip-white-house-says-america-s-best-interest-will-drive-foreign-policy-20261105/8219368.html Thu, 05 Nov 2026 14:36:25 -0500 VOA Mandarinwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA Mandarin) A leading financial crime watchdog, The Financial Action Task Force (FATF), has kept North Korea on its list of high-risk countries for the 16th consecutive year. https://www.voanews.com/a/financial-crime-watchdog-keeps-north-korea-on-blacklist-urges-countermeasures/8219299.html https://www.voanews.com/a/financial-crime-watchdog-keeps-north-korea-on-blacklist-urges-countermeasures/8219299.html Thu, 05 Nov 2026 11:43:56 -0500 VOA Koreanwebdesk@voanews.com (Jiha Ham) The U.N. report said the humanitarian situation in Afghanistan remains critical, driven by worsening food insecurity and malnutrition, outbreaks of diseases, the return of millions of Afghans from neighboring countries and recurring climate disasters. https://www.voanews.com/a/un-warns-of-worsening-humanitarian-situation-in-afghanistan/8219014.html https://www.voanews.com/a/un-warns-of-worsening-humanitarian-situation-in-afghanistan/8219014.html Wed, 04 Nov 2026 16:45:22 -0500 VOA Dariwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA Afghan) Marefati was convicted in March 2026 by an Islamic revolutionary court in Tehran on charges alleging participation in activities against national security, entering religious sites with the intent to destroy them, and participating in the burning of a mosque and a religious seminary. https://www.voanews.com/a/irans-supreme-court-upholds-death-sentence-for-a-fruit-seller-arrested-in-connection-with-nationwide-protests/8217982.html https://www.voanews.com/a/irans-supreme-court-upholds-death-sentence-for-a-fruit-seller-arrested-in-connection-with-nationwide-protests/8217982.html Mon, 02 Nov 2026 17:17:01 -0500 VOA Persianwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA Persian) South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff told members of the National Assembly’s intelligence and defense committee last month that North Korea has laid an estimated 960,000 land mines in the Demilitarized Zone since 2024.  https://www.voanews.com/a/icbl-north-koreas-reported-mine-laying-could-be-worlds-largest-since-2001/8217987.html https://www.voanews.com/a/icbl-north-koreas-reported-mine-laying-could-be-worlds-largest-since-2001/8217987.html Mon, 02 Nov 2026 17:10:22 -0500 VOA Koreanwebdesk@voanews.com (Sangjin Cho) The Taliban’s Ministry of Public Health announced that the campaign, in coordination with international partners, would run from November 2 through November 5. The campaign will extend to the Southern Zone from November 3 through 6, and in the Logar Province from November 9 through 13. https://www.voanews.com/a/polio-vaccination-campaign-begins-in-afghanistan-as-cases-surge/8217898.html https://www.voanews.com/a/polio-vaccination-campaign-begins-in-afghanistan-as-cases-surge/8217898.html Mon, 02 Nov 2026 16:50:59 -0500 VOA Pashtowebdesk@voanews.com (VOA Afghan) Representative John Moolenaar, the chairman of the U.S. House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party is calling on Beijing to release all political prisoners in China. https://www.voanews.com/a/us-lawmaker-calls-on-beijing-to-release-all-political-prisoners-20261102/8217878.html https://www.voanews.com/a/us-lawmaker-calls-on-beijing-to-release-all-political-prisoners-20261102/8217878.html Mon, 02 Nov 2026 16:31:31 -0500 VOA Mandarinwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA Mandarin) Afghanistan ranked 142nd out of 143 countries in the WJP’s 2026 Rule of Law Index, published in October, just ahead of Venezuela, while Denmark, Norway and Finland occupied the top three positions. https://www.voanews.com/a/report-afghanistan-ranks-second-worst-globally-in-rule-of-law/8217876.html https://www.voanews.com/a/report-afghanistan-ranks-second-worst-globally-in-rule-of-law/8217876.html Mon, 02 Nov 2026 16:15:49 -0500 VOA Dariwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA Afghan) A Russian human rights group says at least 69 people subjected to political persecution have died in Russia or Russian-occupied territory since the start of the war in Ukraine in 2022. https://www.voanews.com/a/human-rights-group-at-least-69-political-prisoners-in-russian-custody-have-died-since-february-2022/8217070.html https://www.voanews.com/a/human-rights-group-at-least-69-political-prisoners-in-russian-custody-have-died-since-february-2022/8217070.html Mon, 02 Nov 2026 13:13:06 -0500 VOA Russianwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA Russian) The U.S. military has released a clear image showing China's secretive reusable spaceplane docked with a satellite in orbit. https://www.voanews.com/a/us-military-reveals-a-clear-image-of-china-s-secretive-spaceplane-20261030/8217021.html https://www.voanews.com/a/us-military-reveals-a-clear-image-of-china-s-secretive-spaceplane-20261030/8217021.html Mon, 02 Nov 2026 12:04:48 -0500 VOA Mandarinwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA Mandarin) The commander of the U.S. Central Command known as CENTCOM operating in the Middle East says Iran's Revolutionary Guard naval forces which once had a near constant presence in the strategic Strait of Hormuz have disappeared. https://www.voanews.com/a/centcom-top-commander-says-no-sign-of-irgc-in-the-strait-of-hormuz/8217048.html https://www.voanews.com/a/centcom-top-commander-says-no-sign-of-irgc-in-the-strait-of-hormuz/8217048.html Fri, 30 Oct 2026 16:53:57 -0400 VOA Persianwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA Persian) A large evacuation and humanitarian mission is under way in the Russian-occupied Ukrainian city of Oleshky on the Dnipro River. The temporary ceasefire that made the truce evacuation possible, brokered by U.S. First Lady Melania Trump, is a rare example of successful Russia-Ukraine negotiations. https://www.voanews.com/a/oleshky-evacuation-begins-as-former-us-ambassador-to-ukraine-calls-vladimir-putin-an-obstacle-to-talks/8217018.html https://www.voanews.com/a/oleshky-evacuation-begins-as-former-us-ambassador-to-ukraine-calls-vladimir-putin-an-obstacle-to-talks/8217018.html Fri, 30 Oct 2026 16:46:17 -0400 VOA Russianwebdesk@voanews.com (VOA Russian) Opium poppy cultivation in Afghanistan increased by 330 percent and opium production rose by 400 percent in 2026 compared to last year, according to a new survey by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. https://www.voanews.com/a/un-reports-sharp-increase-in-opium-poppy-cultivation-and-production-in-afghanistan/8216897.html https://www.voanews.com/a/un-reports-sharp-increase-in-opium-poppy-cultivation-and-production-in-afghanistan/8216897.html Fri, 30 Oct 2026 12:10:57 -0400 VOA Pashtowebdesk@voanews.com (VOA Afghan)