Millions celebrate Hindu Holi festival, approach of spring

Hindus across India and other South Asian countries, dressed mostly in white, smeared or sprayed friends and relatives with brightly colored powder Friday as millions celebrated the return of spring during Holi, the festival of colors.

Friday is a nationwide holiday in India, so people can participate in the raucous, joyfully messy celebration, which usually lands on the last full moon of the lunar month he...

Military says death toll in Pakistan's train hijacking rises to 31

ISLAMABAD — Pakistan officials confirmed Friday that 31 people, including 23 security personnel, lost their lives in Tuesdays train hijacking by armed militants in the countrys restive Balochistan province.

In a news briefing, Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said 18 off-duty military and paramilitary Frontier Corps personnel, three railway staff and five civilian passengers were among those kill...

Author says ban on her book reflects Taliban's repression of women

WASHINGTON — When Naveeda Khoshbo published her book of political analysis in 2019, she received widespread praise and recognition.

For many, it was the first time that they were reading a book written by a young woman, she said.

So, when she received a text message from a friend and fellow journalist in November 2024, telling her the Taliban had banned her book, she was shocked.

Khoshbo, 3...

VOA Uzbek: Human rights group urges Uzbekistan to uphold reforms

Uzbekistan has made significant progress in eliminating widespread state-imposed forced labor, according to the Uzbek Forum for Human Rights. The group is urging the Uzbek government to implement its promised reforms and create an enabling environment for freedom of association and civil society, which play a key role in monitoring and reporting violations and abuses.

Click here for the full story in Uzbe...

Afghanistan denies link to train attack in Pakistan

The Afghan Taliban have rejected Pakistans allegation that Tuesdays deadly hostage-taking of a train was planned and directed from Afghan soil.

Afghanistans Ministry of Foreign Affairs called Pakistans assertions baseless, in a statement Thursday.

We categorically reject baseless allegations by Pakistani army spokesperson linking attack on a passenger train in Balochistan province with Afghanistan, f...

UN chief in Bangladesh to visit Rohingya camps as he pushes for aid

DHAKA, BANGLADESH — U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is getting a first-hand look at the situation of more than 1 million Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh as fears mount of serious aid cuts across the world following Washingtons decision to shut down USAID operations.

Bangladeshs foreign affairs adviser, Touhid Hossain, welcomed Guterres at Dhakas main airport on Thursday. Guterress four-day visit...

Eyewitnesses give harrowing account of Pakistan train attack

ISLAMABAD — Passengers of a Pakistani train held hostage in the restive Balochistan province shared with VOA disturbing details of their ordeal on Wednesday as the military completed an hourslong rescue operation and killed 33 terrorists.

Speaking to a private news channel, Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, director general of militarys media wing, Inter Services Public Relations, said that all hostages we...

VOA Uzbek: EU boosts its Central Asia strategy

As the U.S. seeks to strengthen ties with resource-rich Central Asia, the European Union is also reaching out to the region. Having adopted a new strategy for Central Asia in 2019, the bloc appears to be making renewed efforts to implement it. EU Commissioner for External Relations Jozef Sikela has begun a tour of the region ahead of an EU-Central Asia summit in Uzbekistan in April.

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Pakistani military rescues nearly 200 passengers after train attack

ISLAMABAD — Security sources said Wednesday a Pakistani military operation rescued 190 passengers and killed 30 terrorists, a day after an attack on a train in Pakistans restive southwestern Balochistan province.

The Jaffar Express, with roughly 450 people on board, was traveling north from Quetta, Balochistan, to Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, when it came under a bomb and gun attack Tuesday.

As t...

Militants attack train, take hostages in Pakistan's Balochistan province

ISLAMABAD — Militants attacked a cross-country passenger train Tuesday in Pakistans restive southwestern Balochistan province, taking many hostages.

Authorities say the Jaffar Express was traveling north from Quetta, the provincial capital of Balochistan, to Peshawar, the provincial capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, when it came under intense fire, hours after departure.

The train was carrying roughl...

VOA Uzbek: Empowering Central Asian craft makers and artists

The Central Asia Program at George Washington University recently had a special exhibition for Central Asian women and art during the International Womens Day celebrations.

Carpets and other items woven by Afghan women at home sell well in U.S. markets, businesspeople who spoke to VOA said. One vendor said online sales arent bad.

Click here for the full story in Uzbek.

British plan to cede Chagos Islands sovereignty prompts concerns over China threat

LONDON — Britain is seeking to finalize a deal on handing sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius after U.S. President Donald Trump said last month that he was inclined to support the deal. However, critics say the agreement could threaten the security of a joint U.S.-U.K. military base on the islands amid fears of Chinas close ties with Mauritius.

Many of the original inhabitants of the islands w...

British plan to cede Chagos Islands to Mauritius, raising security concerns

The Chagos Islands are one of the last vestiges of the British Empire. They are currently home to a key U.S. military base. But under pressure from the United Nations, Britain looks set to hand sovereignty of the islands to Mauritius. Critics say the deal would compromise the security of the region in the face of a growing threat from China, as Henry Ridgwell reports from London.

Tibetans scuffle with police outside the Chinese Embassy in India as they mark uprising anniversary

NEW DELHI — Dozens of Tibetan protesters clashed with police outside the Chinese Embassy in New Delhi on Monday as Tibetans living in exile marked the 66th anniversary of their uprising against China that was crushed by Chinese forces.

As in past years, police blocked the protesters from entering the embassy and briefly detained some of them after wrestling them to the ground. Hundreds also marched in th...

Indian slums get 'cool roofs' to combat extreme heat

AHMEDABAD, India — Hundreds of roofs in the informal settlements of Indias western Gujarat state have been painted in a reflective, white coating over the last two months to try to keep their occupants cooler as the hottest time of year approaches.

The effort, which involves 400 households in Ahmedabad, is part of a global scientific trial to study how indoor heat impacts peoples health and economic out...