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☆ WFP suspends food aid to Ethiopia's Tigray over reported thefts
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-04 | by ( Dawit Endeshaw | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Summary WFP, USAID suspend aid distributionTigray government urges rethink, says to investigateNAIROBI, May 4 (Reuters) - The U.N. World Food Programme has paused food distribution in Ethiopia's war-ravaged Tigray region in response to reports that significant amounts of aid were being diverted, the agency said. Neither organisation gave details of the source of the reports and the WFP did not say who was responsible for the diversions or when they had taken place. He said he had set up a task force to investigate, calling the reported theft a crime against children, the elderly and the disabled. A spokesperson for Ethiopia's federal government did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The government and Tigray forces agreed to end hostilities in November, which has allowed additional aid to reach the region and for some services to be restored.

☆ USAID pauses food assistance to Tigray region of Ethiopia
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Jasper Ward | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, May 3 (Reuters) - The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) announced on Wednesday the temporary suspension of its food assistance to the Tigray region of Ethiopia. While describing the move as a "difficult decision", USAID Administrator Samantha Power said the agency recently discovered that food aid intended for people of the region, who are suffering under famine-like condition, was being diverted and sold on the local market. The agency referred the matter to its Office of the Inspector General, which launched an investigation, and sent leaders from its Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance to Ethiopia before deciding to on a temporary pause in food aid, she said. The government and Tigray forces agreed to end the hostilities in November, which has allowed additional aid to reach the region and for some services to be restored. "While food aid to the Tigray Region is paused, other vital assistance not implicated in the diversion scheme will continue, including life-saving nutritional supplements, safe drinking water, and support for agricultural activities and development," she said.

☆ Mexico president asks Biden to stop USAID funding opposition groups
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Sarah Morland | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MEXICO CITY, May 3 (Reuters) - Mexico's president asked his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden to stop the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) from funding groups hostile to his government, according to a letter presented to journalists on Wednesday, echoing previous Mexican criticism of U.S. interventionism. The letter calls for Biden's intervention, saying the U.S. State Department in recent days announced that USAID would increase its funding toward such organizations. Mexico had in 2021 sent a similar letter asking USAID to withdraw funding allocated to non-governmental organizations critical of the government. The State Department, USAID, MCCI and Article 19 did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The State Department has said there are credible reports on restrictions on free expression and media in Mexico - the deadliest country for journalists last year.

☆ US to help journalists globally defend against legal threats
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

UNITED NATIONS, May 2 (Reuters) - The United States on Tuesday launched a program to defend journalists around the world from legal threats aimed at silencing critical voices, a growing tactic that top U.S. aid official Samantha Power described as "lawfare." Power, administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), announced the Reporters Shield program at an event to mark World Press Freedom Day at the United Nations. USAID said it plans to work with Congress to provide up to $9 million for the Reporters Shield program that will be jointly managed by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project and the Cyrus R. Vance Center for International Justice. "To withstand lawfare journalists and media outlets need robust protection, they need training in how to avoid lawsuits altogether, they need resources to hire lawyers and cover legal fees," Power said. USAID said Reporters Shield will be a membership program and organizations will pay an annual fee based on factors like the outlet's location and how many stories they produce a year.

☆ US deploying disaster-response team for Sudan
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( Daphne Psaledakis | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, April 23 (Reuters) - The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has deployed a team of disaster response experts for Sudan in the region to coordinate the humanitarian response as fighting rocks the country, USAID head Samantha Power said on Sunday. In a statement, Power said the Disaster Assistance Response Team will operate out of Kenya for the initial phase, adding that the experts are working with the international community and partners to identify priority needs and safely deliver humanitarian assistance. "The United States is mobilizing to ramp up assistance to the people of Sudan ensnared between the warring factions," Power said. "Fighting between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces in Sudan has claimed hundreds of lives, injured thousands, and yet again dashed the democratic aspirations of the Sudanese people. "All of this suffering compounds an already dire situation – one-third of Sudan’s population, nearly 16 million people, already needed humanitarian assistance to meet basic human needs before this outbreak of violence."

☆ Josh Hawley splits Senate GOP over 'duplicative' idea to create a new office tracking US aid to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Bryan Metzger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

The Senate rejected a bill from Josh Hawley to establish a new office to oversee Ukraine aid. Many Republicans said they were confident in the Biden administration's aid tracking efforts. "We already have a very extensive operation to oversee spending in Ukraine," said Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah. Hawley's bill did win over at least one Republican who's a vocal supporter of aiding Ukraine: Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina. The underlying AUMF repeal bill, which is backed by a large bipartisan majority of senators and has been endorsed by the White House, is expected to pass the Senate on Wednesday.

WASHINGTON, March 22 (Reuters) - China is "very carefully" watching how Washington and the world respond to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, but has not yet crossed the line of providing lethal aid to Moscow, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday. "The stakes in Ukraine go well beyond Ukraine. However, he said he did not believe that China has been providing lethal aid to Moscow. "As we speak today, we have not seen them cross that line," Blinken told a Senate Appropriations subcommittee hearing, the first of four times he will testify to congressional committees this week. "The post-Cold War world is over, and there is an intense competition under way to determine what comes next," Blinken said.

☆ Exclusive: U.S. plans $550 million aid for Ukraine, Moldova energy security
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Arshad Mohammed | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/3] Firefighters work to put out a fire at energy infrastructure facilities damaged by Russian missile strike, as Russia's attack on Ukraine continues, in Kyiv region, Ukraine November 15, 2022. State Emergency Service of Ukraine/Handout via REUTERSSAINT PAUL, Minn., Feb 24 (Reuters) - The United States plans to announce $250 million in aid on Friday to shore up Ukraine's energy infrastructure in the face of Russian attacks and $300 million for Moldova, partly to help Chisinau wean itself from energy dependence on Russia. The $300 million for Moldova includes $80 million in budget support to offset high electricity prices, $135 million for electric power generation projects and $85 million to improve its ability to obtain energy supplies from alternative sources, according to a second draft document. Moldova, a former Soviet republic of 2.5 million people neighboring Ukraine to the west, is one of the poorest nations in Europe and has traditionally been heavily reliant on Russian gas. The money is from a pool of $45 billion for Ukraine included in a broader spending bill passed by Congress last year.

☆ World Bank board aims to pick next president by early May, U.S. nominee expected soon
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Andrea Shalal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/2] A participant stands near a logo of World Bank at the International Monetary Fund - World Bank Annual Meeting 2018 in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia, October 12, 2018. The bank's executive directors affirmed their commitment to an "open, merit-based and transparent selection process" for the new leader, and said countries could nominate candidates beginning Thursday through March 29. The World Bank board gave a list of criteria and relevant experience for would-be applicants, including "effective communication and diplomatic skills" and also said it "would strongly encourage women candidates to be nominated." The bank has never had a permanent woman president in its 77-year history, although current International Monetary Fund chief Kristalina Georgieva served as acting president for about two months in early 2019. The United States has historically selected the president of the bank, but some developing countries and civil society groups are challenging that tradition.

☆ U.S. House panel to hold hearing on policy toward China
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Karen Freifeld | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 21 (Reuters) - The House Foreign Affairs Committee will hold a hearing next Tuesday with top officials on China policy to identify gaps in pursuing what it called a "more holistic approach" to countering aggression by the Chinese Communist Party. The hearing, announced by the panel's chair, Representative Michael McCaul, a Republican, is called, "Combating the Generational Challenge of CCP Aggression." Alan Estevez, the U.S. Commerce Department's under secretary for industry and security, who oversees restrictions on tech exports to China, is among the witnesses. McCaul has been pressing Estevez on the need to ensure China is not transferring U.S.-origin technology to state sponsors of terrorism, and has called for tighter restrictions on exports to blacklisted companies like China's Huawei, which are viewed as a threat to U.S. national security. Reporting by Karen Freifeld; Editing by David GregorioOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Russian envoy: U.S. seeks to inflame Ukraine crisis with claims of crimes against humanity
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-19 | by ( Lidia Kelly | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Feb 19 (Reuters) - Washington is trying to demonize Moscow and foment the crisis in Ukraine with allegations of Russian crimes against humanity, Russia's ambassador to the United States said on Sunday. The Biden administration formally concluded that Russia has committed "crimes against humanity" during its nearly year-long invasion of Ukraine, Vice President Kamala Harris said on Saturday. Organisations supported by the U.S. Agency for International Development have documented more than 30,000 war crimes incidents since the invasion, according to the U.S. government. The U.N.-backed Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine says it has identified war crimes but has not concluded whether they amount to crimes against humanity. The war has killed tens of thousands, uprooted millions, pummelled the global economy and made Russian President Vladimir Putin a pariah in the West.

☆ U.S. declares Russia committed 'crimes against humanity' in Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-18 | by ( Trevor Hunnicutt | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

MUNICH, Feb 18 (Reuters) - The Biden administration formally concluded that Russia has committed "crimes against humanity" during its nearly year-long invasion of Ukraine, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris said on Saturday. The U.N.-backed Commission of Inquiry on Ukraine has not yet concluded that the war crimes it says it has identified amount to crimes against humanity. Russia, which says it is conducting a "special military operation" in Ukraine to eliminate threats to its security and protect Russian-speakers, has denied intentionally targeting civilians or committing war crimes. The Biden administration has sought to bring alleged war criminals to justice, including training Ukrainian investigators, imposing sanctions, blocking visas and hiking penalties under U.S. war crimes laws. Kyiv has been pushing for a new international war crimes organization to focus on the Russian invasion, which Moscow has opposed.

☆ U.S. Watchdogs Want to Deploy Staff to Ukraine War Zone to Track Arms, Aid Up Close
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Warren P. Strobel | Gordon Lubold | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

WASHINGTON—Top oversight officials responsible for tracking over $110 billion in U.S. military and economic aid to Ukraine said they would press to deploy auditors and investigators directly into the war zone to beef up monitoring as the scale and scope of American assistance expands. Inspectors general from the Pentagon, State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development said in a joint interview with The Wall Street Journal that, thus far, they have been able to conduct critical oversight tasks remotely using personnel based in Washington, Poland and Germany.

☆ House Republicans request documents on the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Amanda Macias | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON — House Republicans on Friday called on the Biden administration to release information about the chaotic U.S. departure from Afghanistan. The departure effectively ended a two-decade conflict that began shortly after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Biden ordered the full withdrawal of approximately 3,000 U.S. troops from Afghanistan in April 2021. At the time, he asked all American servicemembers to leave the war-weary country by Sept. 11 of that year. The U.S. launched its war in Afghanistan in October 2001, weeks after the Sept. 11 attacks.

[1/5] David Malpass, president of the World Bank Group, arrives for a meeting with Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (not in picture) at Kishida's official residence in Tokyo, Japan September 13, 2022. REUTERS/Issei Kato/PoolWASHINGTON, Feb 15 (Reuters) - David Malpass, president of the World Bank, unexpectedly said he would resign in June on Wednesday, leaving open a job that oversees billions of dollars of funding and has a direct impact on poverty, climate change preparation, emergency aid and other issues in developing countries around the globe. RAJIV SHAShah is the former USAID administrator under Obama and currently president of the Rockefeller Foundation, a philanthropic group that says it aims to "promote the well-being of humanity throughout the world." The foundation recently partnered with the U.S. State Department on a carbon offset program at COP27, the international climate conference. MINOUCHE SHAFIKShafik is an Egypt-born, British American economist who is currently president of the London School of Economics and has served as deputy governor of the Bank of England and deputy managing director of the IMF.

[1/4] Survivors rest while a woman reacts at a hospital in the aftermath of an earthquake, in Kahramanmaras, Turkey February 10, 2023. REUTERS/Suhaib Salem 1 2 3 4Authorities say some 6,500 buildings in Turkey collapsed and countless more were damaged. The U.S. Agency for International Development will provide $85 million in urgent humanitarian assistance to Turkey and Syria. SYRIA OVERWHELMEDIn Syria, relief efforts are complicated by a conflict that has partitioned the country and wrecked its infrastructure. The Syrian government views the delivery of aid to rebel-held areas from Turkey as a violation of its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

☆ Fears grow for untold numbers buried by Turkey earthquake
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

But there was also widespread despair and growing anger at the slow pace of rescue efforts in some areas. People sitting on the rubble react in the aftermath of an earthquake, in rebel-held town of Jandaris, Syria February 7, 2023. Muhammet Ruzgar, 5, is carried out by rescuers from the site of a damaged building, following an earthquake in Hatay, Turkey, February 7, 2023. Vice President Fuat Oktoy said at least 5,894 people have died from the earthquake in Turkey, with another 34,810 injured. An aerial view shows damaged and collapsed buildings following an earthquake, in Hatay, Turkey February 7, 2023.

☆ Blinken tells Turkey to 'let us know' what U.S. can do after earthquake
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( Humeyra Pamuk | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, Feb 6 (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken told his Turkish counterpart to "pick up the phone and let us know" what the United States can do to help after a huge earthquake hit the country on Monday, State Department spokesperson Ned Price told reporters. The Biden administration's top diplomat spoke to Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu by phone following the earthquake that killed more than 2,700 people across a swathe of Turkey and northwest Syria. “It was so important for the secretary to speak to his foreign minister counterpart, Foreign Minister Cavusoglu, in the first instance to offer condolences and to make clear...that anything Turkey needed that we could provide, they should pick up the phone and let us know,” Price said. Blinken asked his senior staff on Monday morning to identify what funding might be available to help Turkey and NGOs working on the ground in Syria, Price said. The U.S. consulate in the southern Turkish city of Adana would also host others working on rescue efforts, Price added.

"We call on the Sudanese government to exercise all available legal means to reverse this decision and to re-arrest Abuzeid," State Department spokesperson Ned Price told reporters. Officials met with the Sudanese ambassador to the United States on Thursday and the U.S. ambassador to Sudan, John Godfrey, is engaging Sudanese officials at the highest levels on the issue, Price said. Peter Lord, the Deputy Assistant Secretary for East Africa, Sudan and South Sudan will also take up the issue and demand action when he travels to Khartoum next week, Price said. Abuzeid's brother said on Monday that his sibling was released by Sudan's high court based on a multimillion dollar 2020 settlement between Sudan and victims of attacks including the one that killed Granville. "In no way did (the settlement) say that that money was going to release any of these men that killed John," Jane Granville said.

☆ Israel refills the Sea of Galilee, supplying Jordan on the way
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Ari Rabinovitch | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/5] A bay at the Sea of Galilee can be seen in northern Israel, January 23, 2023. The Sea of Galilee, whose waters Christians believe Jesus walked upon, is Israel's main reservoir and a big tourist draw. It feeds the Jordan River that flows south to the Dead Sea. The national water carrier is empty at the moment, undergoing seasonal repairs and upgrades. At one junction in northern Israel, engineers work on a pipe more than large enough for them to stand inside.

☆ Ukraine's Naftogaz asks USAID for help with gas for heating
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Companies NAK Naftohaz Ukrainy PAT FollowNov 29 (Reuters) - Ukrainian energy company Naftogaz has asked the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to help with additional natural gas volumes for the heating season, Oleksiy Chernyshov, the company's chief executive said on Monday. read more"The key is the additional volume of gas needed to get through this heating season," Chernyshov wrote on his Facebook page after a meeting with Elizabeth McKee, the assistant administrator of the USAID for Europe and Eurasia. "We are talking, in particular, about methanol, gas compressors, diesel generators and equipment for gas production," Chernyshov said. In October, USAID said it would invest $55 million in Ukraine's heating infrastructure to aid the country's preparations for winter, according to a statement on the Agency's website. Reporting in Melbourne by Lidia Kelly; Editing by Michael PerryOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Trump's White House blocked government websites aimed at helping Americans vote, fighting human trafficking, easing homelessness, and stopping fraud, federal records show
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-20 | by ( Dave Levinthal | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

Federal agencies asked the Trump White House to approve dozens of new ".gov" websites. Such custom ".gov" website domains enhance government agencies' ability to effectively provide and market services to an American public that's all but universally connected to the internet. On December 23, 2019, the CIA asked Trump's White House to approve the website domain DataTransport.gov. Chiu/APBlock and delayIn at least one case, Trump's White House denied a website request — the United States Agency for International Development-sponsored ProsperAfrica.gov — that Biden's White House later approved. In March 2021, Office Management and Budget officials denied Insider's FOIA request, stating that "no responsive records were located."

☆ Democratic Rep. Andy Kim faces off against Republican Bob Healey in New Jersey's 3rd Congressional District election
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-05 | by ( Hanna Kang | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Rep. Andy Kim is running against Republican Bob Healey in New Jersey's 3rd Congressional District. The 3rd District includes Hamilton, a swing town and one of the state's most populous municipalities. New Jersey's 3rd Congressional District candidatesKim, first elected in 2018, is bidding for a third term. Voting history for New Jersey's 3rd Congressional DistrictNew Jersey's 3rd Congressional District covers parts of Monmouth and Mercer counties, including Hamilton, a swing town and one of the state's most populous municipalities. His challenger, Healey, has raised $4 million, spent $3.8 million, and has $228,000 in cash still left to spend, as of October 19.

“If I won the lottery, I’d do this for free because I have a passion for public health,” Bernstein said. I had to put other projects on hold to do pro bono work for the CDC. “If we want CDC to get better at fighting diseases, we need to stop tying their hands behind their back,” he said. A senior CDC official called it an “antiquated” system that “has not evolved over time.” The official spoke on the on the condition of anonymity so she could speak freely on the matter. ‘A real challenge to solve’The CDC is preparing a presentation to urge Congress it to fix this, Walensky said.

☆ Climate Change Is Real. Markets, Not Governments, Offer the Cure. - The New York Times
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Bret Stephens | Mr. Stephens Is An Opinion Columnist. Mr. Winter Is A Staff Photographer On Assignment In Opinion. | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +32 min

worse-case, highest-carbon-emission scenario.” (The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change is the U.N. body that assesses climate change.) How do we weigh the risks of underreacting to climate change against the risks of overreacting to it? While he’s not an expert on climate change, he has spent decades thinking deeply about every manner of risk. That’s particularly true if climate change is akin to cancer — manageable or curable in its earlier stages, disastrous in its later ones. Maybe, I realized, in assessing my newfound concerns about climate change, my long-held beliefs might provide a solution — look to the market.

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