YouTube Will Ban All Content Containing What it Calls Vaccine Misinformation

WASHINGTON, LELEMUKU.COM - Internet video services, YouTube will ban any video that claims vaccines are ineffective or dangerous, including those that question vaccines for measles and chickenpox, the company announced Wednesday.

“Specifically, content that falsely alleges that approved vaccines are dangerous and cause chronic health effects, claims that vaccines do not reduce transmission or contraction of disease, or contains misinformation on the substances contained in vaccines will be removed,” the Google-owned company said in a blog post announcing the new enforcement measures.

The company said “vaccines in particular have been a source of fierce debate over the years, despite consistent guidance from health authorities about their effectiveness.”

“Today, we're expanding our medical misinformation policies on YouTube with new guidelines on currently administered vaccines that are approved and confirmed to be safe and effective by local health authorities and the WHO.”

The company said it "will continue to allow content about vaccine policies, new vaccine trials and historical vaccine successes or failures."

YouTube’s COVID-19 vaccine policy has met with some backlash for being overly aggressive.

On Tuesday, the company removed Russian state-backed broadcaster RT's German-language channels, saying they violated the company’s COVID-19 policy.

On Wednesday, Russia threatened to block YouTube, calling the channel removals “unprecedented information aggression."

YouTube said it has removed over 130,000 videos over the past year for violating its COVID-19 policies. (VOA)

British Government to Use Army to Help Ease Fuel Trucker Shortage

LONDON, LELEMUKU.COM - Britain’s business minister said Wednesday the army would begin driving fuel tankers in response to shortages at gas stations around the nation brought on by a dearth of truck drivers.

For about a week now, a shortage of around 100,000 truck drivers in Britain has made it difficult for oil companies to get gasoline from refineries to fueling stations. The British Petrol Retailers Association (PRA) reported Wednesday that more than a third of the nation’s 8,500 gas stations remain without fuel.

The situation has left long lines of motorists trying to buy fuel at stations that did have gasoline.

Business Minister Kwasi Kwarteng told reporters they could expect to see soldiers driving tanker trucks to help get gasoline to the stations in a few days. He added that he felt the situation was stabilizing, noting that the inflow of gasoline matched sales on Tuesday.

The situation had been exacerbated by panic buying among some motorists, but Kwarteng said people were “behaving quite responsibly” over the last day or so, and he encouraged them to continue buying fuel as they normally would.

The British business minister said Britain was not alone in facing a truck driver shortage. He said Poland is facing a shortage of about 123,000 drivers, and the United States is facing a similar situation.

In a release on their website, the PRA reported “early signs that the crisis at pumps is ending,” with more of the association's members reporting they are now receiving deliveries of fuel.

They expect the percentage of stations without fuel is likely to improve further over the next 24 hours.

The driver shortage, however, is raising fears in Britain’s retail sector that if it continues much longer, it could create problems for the holiday season. (VOA)

2.1 Million Kenyans Face Hunger Due to Drought, Uhuru Kenyatta Declared a National Disaster

NAIROBI, LELEMUKU.COM - The International Rescue Committee says more than two million Kenyans are facing hunger due to poor rainfall. Kenya's president, Uhuru Kenyatta, declared a national disaster this month because of drought.

Thirty-six-year-old Suleiman Ahmed Osman lost 50%of his livestock to drought in the past six months. He says more are dying now due to worsening drought.

“When we lost this number of animals there is no other source of income," he said. "To source our daily meal because we used to get milk and meat, sometimes selling the animals to get other food, sugar and other things. Now that the animals are very emaciated, nobody can buy them, no milk because the drought has affected them to the extent that no milk can come from the animal.”

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) says Kenya received insufficient rainfall during the October to December 2020 and March to May 2021 rainy seasons, leading to the current drought situation.

The IFRC report said that arid and semi-arid areas received less than 50% of the average rainfall in June. The three counties in northeastern Kenya received less than 25%of average rainfall.

Abdullahi Musa has been buying animal feed and water for four months now for his more than 100 cattle in Garissa, along the Kenya and Somalia border.

“There are two sets of livestock herders," he said. "There are those who the drought in Kenya has affected them there are those who crossed to Somalia to get pasture but came back due to lack of water. I am among the people who are not so affected. I have lost some animals but most of them are alive. But 90% of animal herders have lost their livestock. They got nothing.”

The International Rescue Committee says 2.1 million people in Kenya are now food insecure.

The head of the organization in Kenya, Mohamed El Montassir Hussein, says he is concerned about the growing humanitarian situation in some 20 out of 47 counties.

“Our concern overall is the protracted drought situation and protracted aspect of drought in Kenya that’s been over the years coming again and again and also concern is extended to the growing humanitarian needs as people move out of their homes searching for places closer to water sources,” he said.

The IRC says climate change is the main driver of the region's recurring drought and locust outbreaks.

Kenya’s National Drought Management Authority predicts the food insecurity situation will persist until the end of the year.

The drought management authority says people's fortunes may change if the affected areas get rain in the next three months. (VOA/Mohammed Yusuf)

US and Qatar Sanction 7 People for Supporting Hezbollah in the Arabian Peninsula

WASHINGTON, LELEMUKU.COM - The United States (US) and Qatar together sanctioned seven individuals for supporting a financial network of the Islamist political party and militant group Hezbollah in the Arabian Peninsula.

The U.S. Treasury Department said in a statement Wednesday that Qatari nationals Ali Reda Hassan al-Banai, Ali Reda al-Qassabi Lari and Abd al-Muayyid al-Banaiare were among the seven it identified as Specially Designated Global Terrorists for supporting Hezbollah financially or materially.

Treasury Department official Andrea Gacki accused Hezbollah of trying to “abuse the international financial system by developing global networks of financiers to fill its coffers and support its terrorist activity.”

“The cross-border nature of this Hezbollah financial network underscores the importance of our continued cooperation with international partners, such as the Government of Qatar, to protect the U.S. and international financial systems from terrorist abuse,” Gacki added in the statement.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the Treasury Department’s action was “one of the most significant joint actions” the U.S. has taken with a member of the Gulf Cooperation Council, and he called on other countries to also target Hezbollah.

The Treasury Department statement said the sanctions froze any U.S. assets the targets hold and generally prohibits Americans from conducting business with them.

There was no immediate comment from Hezbollah, which the U.S. and several other Western countries consider a terrorist group. (VOAnews)

North Korea Fires 'Projectile' Ahead of United Nations General Assembly Speech

NEW YORK, LELEMUKU.COM - Minutes before North Korea's representative addressed the United Nations General Assembly Monday, South Korea's military chiefs said Pyongyang had fired an "unidentified projectile" into the Sea of Japan.

North Korea's U.N. ambassador did not mention the incident during his address on the final day of the annual debate, which draws world leaders to New York.

Instead, Kim Song spoke about the bad relations between Pyongyang and Washington, attributing them to the United States' "anachronistic hostile policy" toward North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, for the past 70 years and the fact that the Korean War has never officially ended.

"The possible outbreak of a new war on the Korean Peninsula is contained not because of the U.S.'s mercy on the DPRK," Ambassador Kim added, using the abbreviation for his country’s official name the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. "It is because our state is growing reliable deterrent that can control the hostile forces in their attempts for military invasion."

He suggested that if the U.S. permanently ends its joint military exercises with South Korea and withdraws its "hostile policy" in a "bold and complete manner," Pyongyang is prepared to respond "willingly."

"But it is our judgment that there is no prospect at the present stage for the U.S. to really withdraw its hostile policy towards the DPRK," he added.

He also referred to the division of the Korean Peninsula and the fact that the two Koreas separately joined the United Nations 30 years ago as a "tragedy."

No-shows

Afghanistan did not address the General Assembly on Monday, in the wake of the Taliban takeover and potential competing claims of representation at the world body.

A U.N. spokesperson said they were informed Saturday by email that Afghan Ambassador Ghulam Isaczai was withdrawing from Monday's debate. Isaczai was appointed by the previous government of Ashraf Ghani but still holds the country's U.N. accreditation.

Last week, the Taliban sent a letter to the U.N. saying they wanted to participate in the annual gathering. They also said Isaczai was "ousted" as Afghanistan's ambassador, and they were nominating Mohammad Suhail Shaheen to replace him.

The letter has been forwarded to the General Assembly committee that handles the accreditation of ambassadors, but the panel is unlikely to meet until October or November.

Myanmar also informed the U.N. several days ago that it would not address the annual gathering.

In February, the military seized power in a coup and detained most of the national unity government. The junta has sought to replace Ambassador Kyaw Moe Tun with one of its own officials, but it will also have to go to the credentials committee with its request.

New tone

Israel's new prime minister, Naftali Bennett, made his U.N. debut Monday. While he argued the hard-line position on why Iran is a threat to Israel's security, his calm but urgent tone drew a sharp contrast to his predecessor, Benjamin Netanyahu.

Bennett did not touch on Iran until 13 minutes into his speech. And he never mentioned the Palestinians. He spoke first of Israel's pioneering efforts vaccinating its population against COVID-19. Israeli data have helped other governments develop their own vaccination strategies.

"We pioneered the booster shot," Bennett said of the third jab of certain vaccines that scientists say can offer better protection from the virus's variants.

"Two months in, I can report that it works: With a third dose, you're seven times more protected than with two doses, and 40 times more protected than without any
vaccine," he said. "As a result, Israel is on course to escape the fourth wave
without a lockdown, without further harm to our economy."

Iranian threat

On regional foe Iran, Bennett warned Tehran has made "swarms" of killer drones operational.

"They plan to blanket the skies of the Middle East with this lethal force," Bennett said. He said Tehran has already used the drones — called the Shahed-136 — to attack Saudi Arabia, U.S. targets in Iraq and civilian ships at sea.

On the nuclear issue, he said Iran is violating International Atomic Energy Agency safeguard agreements, including enriching uranium to one step below nuclear weapons grade.

"Iran's nuclear program has hit a watershed moment — and so has our tolerance," the Israeli prime minister warned. "Words do not stop centrifuges from spinning."

He repeated Israel's long-standing pledge not to let Iran acquire a nuclear weapon.

Iran maintains that its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes.

Pandemic precautions

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, more than 150 presidents and prime ministers traveled to New York for the annual gathering. The U.N. and New York City had numerous health protocols in place to help keep the event safe, including positioning a testing and vaccination van outside the complex. The U.N. said that 93 visitors got vaccinated and more than 800 took advantage of the free coronavirus tests.

At least one delegation reported an outbreak, however.

Brazilian media reported that at last count, at least four members of President Jair Bolsonaro's delegation, including his son, Eduardo, who is a legislator, and the health minister, had tested positive for COVID-19 while in New York.

U.S. State Department spokesperson Ned Price, who also attended several meetings last week on the sidelines of the General Assembly, announced Monday that despite being vaccinated, he had tested positive for COVID-19 and would quarantine. (VOA|Margaret Besheer)

North Korea Conducted Third Missile Test, Accuses South Korea of Hostility

SEOUL, LELEMUKU.COM - North Korea conducted another missile test Tuesday, its third in a month. The test occurred minutes before a North Korean ambassador spoke at the United Nations, where he accused South Korea of hostility.

The North launched the missile toward the sea off its east coast at about 6:40 a.m. local time on Tuesday, according to South Korea’s military, which monitors such launches.

Japanese defense officials said the test appeared to involve a single ballistic missile.

South Korea’s military said the missile is “presumed to be short-range” and was launched from Mupyong-ri in the North's province of Jagang. That is the same area from which North Korea launched an intercontinental ballistic missile in July of 2017.

Since it resumed ballistic missile launches in 2019, North Korea has typically launched two missiles at a time. Most of those launches have involved short-range missiles, many from systems that can launch multiple weapons at once.

A single launch could indicate a longer-range missile, some defense analysts speculated, though there is no evidence that is the case. The North typically does not announce the details of its weapons tests until the following morning in state media.

News of the launch came as North Korea's United Nations ambassador delivered a speech at the U.N. General Assembly in New York. In his speech, North Korea's U.N. ambassador, Kim Song, defended his country's nuclear missile advancement, calling it a response to the "hostile policy" of the United States and South Korea.

"Nobody can deny the righteous right to self-defense for (North Korea) to develop, test, manufacture and possess the weapons systems equivalent to the ones which are possessed or being developed by" the United States and South Korea, Kim said.

The North Korean ambassador also condemned the presence of U.S. troops in South Korea, recent U.S.-South Korea military exercises and South Korea's recent military buildup.

It is not clear whether the missile test was intentionally timed to coincide with the U.N. speech. But analysts said it was notable the launch came days after North Korea had hinted it was open to dialogue with South Korea.

"North Korea employs emotional blackmail as a form of leverage, alternating between provocation and charm — especially with the South Koreans," said Jean Lee, a senior fellow at the Washington-based Wilson Center.

Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, said Sunday the North is open to an inter-Korean summit and declaring a formal end to the Korean War if South Korea first ends its "hostile policy" and "double standards" to the North.

Her comments came in response to a speech last week by South Korean President Moon Jae-in, who reiterated his call for an end to the war, a symbolic step he hopes will spur progress in wider peace talks.

"It's been a few weeks of whiplash for the South Koreans, from missile tests designed to create a sense of tension followed by glimmers of hope, and then dashing those hopes again with silence and more provocation. It's gaslighting, and the North Koreans are expert at using this emotional manipulation to create a sense of uncertainty and anxiety in Seoul," Lee said.

"It will be a test of Seoul's resolve to remain steadfast and to employ principled diplomacy, as well as patience," she added.

Earlier this month, North Korea launched two short-range ballistic missiles from a train. Those missiles landed in Japan's exclusive economic zone. Two days before that, the North conducted a long-range cruise missile launch. Both tests used technology meant to make it more difficult for the United States and others to monitor, detect and defend against North Korea's missile arsenal.

South Korea has also been developing and testing its own new ballistic missile technology. Earlier this month, the South became just the seventh country to have successfully tested a homegrown submarine-launched ballistic missile. (VOA|William Gallo)

Mali with US and France Seeking 'Better Ways' to Contain Terrorism

NEW YORK, LELEMUKU.COM - Mali's interim government appears ready to cast aside long-standing counterterrorism partnerships with the United States and France, saying that both countries have failed to make Mali any safer.

But at the same time, Mali's prime minister says reports of a deal to bring in mercenaries from Russia's Wagner Group are just "rumors and allegations."

"The security situation keeps deteriorating by the day," Choguel Maiga told VOA in an interview on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly late Sunday.

"Despite the fact that Mali has a lot of partners on the ground, we have to find new partners who can help improve the security situation," Maiga added. "We can seek partnership either with Russia or with any other country."

Reports of a deal between Mali's interim government and Russia's Wagner Group first emerged earlier this month, with Reuters reporting that Mali would pay $10.8 million a month to bring in about 1,000 mercenaries to train Mali's military and provide security for senior officials.

'A real concern'

U.S. and French officials have expressed their growing concern that the introduction of Russian mercenaries will do more damage than good.

"We don't think looking to outside forces to provide security is the way forward," a senior administration official said Friday in response to a question from VOA about the potential deal with Moscow. "That is not how to best start down the road to true stability."

French officials have also expressed growing alarm, both in public and private, about the possible deal with the Russian firm.

"We want the return of the Malian state, not the arrival of Russian mercenaries," French Defense Minister Florence Parly tweeted last week. "We are for the sovereignty of Mali, not for its weakening."

Another official with knowledge of the matter called the potential deployment of Wagner mercenaries "a real concern."

"Such a perspective is not a viable and reasonable solution for Mali and the Sahel," the official told VOA on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the situation, adding that Malian officials need only to look at developments in the Central African Republic to see the dangers.

"The situation we are currently observing in Central Africa, a country in which more than 2,000 Wagner mercenaries are present, reinforces our view that such a force is pursuing a predatory agenda," the official said. "Wagner is exploiting mining areas and controlling Central Africa customs and, above all, is guilty of serious abuses against the civilian population abuses highlighted by the U.N. in several reports."

Russia has denied any abuses by contractors there.

Mali's prime minister, while denying that a deal with Wagner had been finalized, dismissed the idea that the U.S., France and other countries had any right to criticize the interim government.

"All those countries of the international community which are opposing any partnership between Mali and the Wagner Group, all those countries are present there for the past eight years," Maiga told VOA.

"I can only say that the government of Mali is assessing the situation, is seeking better ways," he said. "The day we reach any agreement we will say it, and everybody will know. Whether it is with the Russian state, whether it is with another entity, people will find out."

Moscow open to deal

In contrast to denials from Malian officials, however, Russian officials have welcomed talk of the potential deal with Wagner.

"They are combating terrorism," Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said during a news conference at the U.N. on Saturday. "And they have turned to a private military company from Russia in connection with the fact that, as I understand, France wants to significantly draw down its military component."

"We don't have anything to do with that," Lavrov said, adding, "at the government level, we are also contributing to providing for military and defense capacities of Mali."

Many Western governments, though, insist that there is little practical difference between the Kremlin and the exploits of the Wagner Group, run by Russian oligarch Yevgeny Prigozhin.

Prigozhin, sometimes called "Putin's cook" because of his catering company's work for Russian President Vladimir Putin, is thought to have extensive ties to Russia's political and military establishments, according to U.S. intelligence officials.

The U.S. State Department sanctioned Prigozhin and Wagner back in July 2020, as well as several front companies for the group's operations in Sudan. (VOA/Jeff Seldin)

Some 100 Americans Still Waiting to Leave Afghanistan

WASHINGTON, LELEMUKU.COM - As some 100 American citizens are still waiting to leave Afghanistan, the State Department said Monday that the biggest hurdle to their evacuation remains the "unpredictability" of the Taliban.

"The biggest constraint to the departure of our citizens and others from Afghanistan, of course, remains the Taliban's unpredictability, regarding who is permitted to depart," a senior State Department official told reporters during a background briefing Monday.

"The second big constraint is the absence of regular commercial air service to enable folks who wish to depart to do so in a predictable manner," they added.

The official estimated that roughly 100 American citizens and permanent residents are "ready to go" currently.

The State Department said its officials are in "regular communication" with private groups chartering their own evacuation flights from the country, and also in communication with the Taliban consistently working to negotiate the safe departure of Americans.

Roughly 124,000 people were flown out of Afghanistan after the U.S. announced its military departure and the Taliban took control of the capital, Kabul in late August.

Since all U.S. forces officially departed on August 31, the State Department says 85 Americans have been able to leave the country.

State Department Correspondent Nike Ching contributed to this report. (VOA)

Facebook Puts Instagram Kids Project on Hold

WASHINGTON, LELEMUKU.COM - Facebook is putting its Instagram Kids project on hold amid growing concerns about potential harmful effects on young people, including anxiety and depression.

The idea is to provide youngsters with the Instagram social media experience but with no ads, more parental control and age-appropriate content.

U.S. lawmakers and advocacy groups have urged Facebook to scrap the plan entirely for safety concerns.

"Today is a watershed moment for the growing tech accountability movement and a great day for anyone who believes that children's wellbeing should come before Big Tech's profits," said Josh Golin, executive director of Fairplay, an advocacy group focused on children.

"We commend Facebook for listening to the many voices who have loudly and consistently told them that Instagram Youth will result in significant harms to children."

Golin vowed to continue fighting against Instagram Kids “until they permanently pull the plug.”

While Instagram Kids would require parental permission to join, the company said it was putting the idea on pause to “continue to build opt-in parental supervision tools for teens,” the company said in a blog post.

“We’ll continue our work to allow parents to oversee their children’s accounts by expanding these tools to teen accounts (aged 13 and over) on Instagram.”

The company said the reality is that kids are online and that a product like Instagram Kids would be “better for parents.”

Earlier this month, the Wall Street Journal reported internal Facebook documents showed the company knows Instagram can have harmful effects on teens, particularly girls.

According to the Journal, Facebook has done little to address the issue.

Facebook called the report inaccurate. (VOA)

South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa Welcomes Jacob Zuma's Medical Parole

PRETORIA, LELEMUKU.COM - South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa has welcomed the decision to place former President Jacob Zuma on medical parole due to his ill health.

Last month, prison authorities saidZuma, serving a 15-month sentence in Estcourt prison for contempt of court, underwent unspecified surgery at an outside hospital where he had been sent for observation. He remained in hospital with more operations planned.

The 79-year-old's eligibility for medical parole follows a medical report received by the Department of Correctional Services, it said in a statement.

Addressing the media, Ramaphosa said on Monday the African National Congress (ANC) wishedZumaa quick recovery.

Zumawas jailed for defying a Constitutional Court order to give evidence at an inquiry investigating high-level corruption during his nine years in office until 2018.

WhenZumahanded himself in on July 7, protests by his supporters escalated into riots involving looting and arson that Ramaphosa described as an "insurrection." (VOA)

Papuan Separatist Group Claims Responsible for Attacking the Army Post in Maybrat

MANOKWARI, LELEMUKU.COM - The separatist group of the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) of the Free Papua Organization (OPM) claimed responsibility for the murder of four Indonesian soldiers at the Army Post (Posramil) in Kiss Village, South Aifat District, Maybrat Regency, West Papua Province on Thursday (2/9), at 3:00 a.m.

TPNPB spokesman Sebby Sambom said this attack was carried out by Sorong Raya TNPB led by Denny Mos.

This action, he said, was an instruction from the TPNPB Leader, Goliath Tabuni who said he was ready to face a counter-attack from the Indonesian Army and Police forces.

Meanwhile the Commander of the Military Region Command (Pangdam) XVIII / Kasuari, Major General TNI I Nyoman Cantiasa, said that around 30 separatist groups were perpetrators of attacks, but they did not succeed in carrying out firearms from the post.

"The attack was intentionally done at night, in order to take advantage of the conditions around the location which was in a dark condition. At present the four soldiers who have fallen have been evacuated to the hospital in Maybrat, including those who survived the attack," he said on Thursday afternoon (2/9).

The former Kopassus commander continued to order the soldiers to pursue the separatist group.

As many as two platooners from Battalion Raider 762 / VYS and Kodim 1809 / Maybrat and the police are currently pursuing the separatist group.

Previously the attack on Koramil Post Kampung Kisor resulted in 4 fallen soldiers and 1 seriously injured.

The victims were Serda Amrius, Praka Dirham, Pratu Zul Ansari and the Lieutenant Chb Lieutenant Chb Dirman. Juliano's sertu was reportedly injured. While Ikbal Pratu that fled to the forest was found safe. (Noci)