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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is stepping up his efforts to play a more prominent role in the Gaza conflict. The Turkish leader recently hosted Hamas’ political leader, Ismail Haniyeh. Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

China’s share of the European electric vehicle market has doubled in less than two years, with Chinese automakers accounting for 20 percent of EVs sold in Europe last year. The trend is raising alarm among European carmakers, and they are considering pushing for new tariffs. Elizabeth Cherneff narrates this report from Alfonso Beato in Barcelona. VOA’s Ricardo Marquina contributed.

Geneva — The head of UNRWA, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinians, reports many countries have resumed the funding that they suspended following allegations by Israel in late January that several staff members were linked to terrorism. “In January, once the allegations had been made public, up to 16 countries suspended their contributions to the agency,” UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini said Tuesday. “The good news is that as of today, most of the donor countries have resumed their contributions to the agency. We just have a handful of countries who still have to take a decision,” he said. Three months ago, Israel accused 12 UNRWA staff members of involvement in Hamas’s terrorist attack on Israel October 7, in which some 1,200 people were killed in Israel and around 250 taken hostage by the Palestinian militants. The U.N.’s Office of Internal Oversight Services is conducting an investigation to determine the veracity of those allegations. A separate independent panel was tasked with determining whether UNRWA was doing everything within its power to ensure neutrality. Its report issued last week, the “Colonna report,” found no evidence that UNRWA staff were members of “terrorist” groups but acknowledged that “neutrality-related issues persist.” Former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna, who chaired the inquiry committee, called UNRWA “indispensable and irreplaceable” in providing humanitarian relief to many of the more than 2 million Palestinians in Gaza who lack food, water, and other essential lifesaving commodities. Lazzarini told journalists in Geneva that $267 million in aid remains frozen because the United States, UNRWA’s main contributor “will not be able to support the agency before March 2025.” “But, meanwhile, they are recommending that other countries support UNRWA,” he said, noting that the United Kingdom, Austria, and Switzerland have not taken decisions “while all others have resumed funding for UNRWA.” “The good news also on the funding is that we have new donors who before never contributed to the agency. And I want to flag the success of private funding,” he said noting that UNRWA has received more than $115 million in private funding in the last six months. “This is an indication of the extraordinary grassroots solidarity expressed toward Palestinians and also to the agency,” he said. Lazzarini briefed member states Tuesday morning on the latest developments in the Gaza Strip. He told them that colleagues on the ground speak of an “extraordinary deep anxiety” prevailing in Gaza and warn that the likelihood of a military offensive depends on “whether a cease-fire deal is reached this week.” “People have not been asked to evacuate from Rafah but there is a sense that if there is no deal this week that this can happen at any time,” he said. In the meantime, he said the U.N. in northern Gaza was “engaged in a race against the clock to reverse the spreading hunger and the looming famine.” He observed that U.N. aid agencies and the Israeli authorities do not see eye to eye on a great number of issues and are engaged in what he calls “the blame game.” He said the Israelis maintain that they are “providing all necessary food” and that the problem is on the side of the United Nations. “This is not true. Our convoys are systematically denied, so we still have no access,” he said. “This morning, I also highlighted the fact that the agency is under a lot of strain. There are calls for the agency to be dismantled. But the agency also has been targeted in the last six to seven months in Gaza where both our staff and our premises as well as our operations” have been under attack. Since the start of the war, October 7, UNRWA reports 182 staff members have been killed and more than 160 premises have been damaged or destroyed.“Most of these premises were sheltering displaced people and more than 400 people have been killed in these premises,” he said. Adi Farjon, deputy permanent representative of Israel to the United Nations in Geneva, attended the executive briefing and said, “From the beginning, Israel has been clear it views UNRWA Gaza as part of the problem, not part of the solution.” Since Israel shared details of an investigation of UNRWA members “who took part in the October 7 massacre” with the commissioner general, she said Israel has only dealt with the facts. “For example, it is a fact, that 19 members of the organization took an active part in the October 7 terrorist attack. It is also a fact that more than 2,135 UNRWA workers in Gaza are members of either Hamas or Palestinian Islamic Jihad,” she said. Lazzarini countered by saying, “Out of the 19, one person has been completely cleared and is now reinstated, and four people out of the 19, the investigation is now on hold because there is no information available for the time being.”

Secretary of State Antony Blinken is in Jordan as pro-Palestinian protests rock universities in the U.S.. North Korean missile parts are found in debris in Ukraine. Heat in south Asia and American troops prepare to leave Niger, but what do they leave behind. Plus, a warning to British football fans

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

South Africa's treatment of its big cats has long tarnished its reputation for conservation, from allowing captive-bred lion hunting to selling lion bones to East Asia for their purported "medicinal" qualities. But now, the country is ending all that. Kate Bartlett reports from Lionsrock Sanctuary in Free State province. Camera and video editing by Zaheer Cassim.

WASHINGTON — House Democrats will vote to save Republican Speaker Mike Johnson's job should some of his fellow GOP lawmakers seek to remove him from the position, Democratic leaders said Tuesday, avoiding a repeat of when eight Republicans joined with Democrats to oust his predecessor, former Rep. Kevin McCarthy. Johnson, R-La., has come under heavy criticism from some Republicans for moving forward with aid for Ukraine as part of a $95 billion emergency spending package that passed this month. It would take only a handful of Republicans to remove Johnson from the speakership if the Democratic caucus went along with the effort. But Democratic leaders took that possibility off the table. "At this moment, upon completion of our national security work, the time has come to turn the page on this chapter of Pro-Putin Republican obstruction," said a statement from the top three House Democrats, Reps. Hakeem Jeffries, Katherine Clark and Pete Aguilar. "We will vote to table Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene's Motion to Vacate the Chair. If she invokes the motion, it will not succeed." Greene, R-Ga., earlier this month filed a resolution with the House clerk — called a motion to vacate — that would remove Johnson from office if approved by the House. And while Greene did not force the resolution to be taken up immediately, she told reporters she was laying the groundwork for future consideration. She had two co-sponsors, Reps. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., and Paul Gosar, R-Ariz. Johnson was quick to distance himself from Democrats on the issue, saying he had no conversations with Jeffries or anyone else about saving his job. "I was laser-focused on getting the supplemental done," Johnson said, referring to the aid package. "I've had colleagues from both parties come up to me on the floor, of course, and say we won't stand for this. ... I've not requested assistance from anyone. I'm not focused on that at all." Many House Republicans are eager to move past the divisions that have tormented their ranks ever since taking the majority last January. At a closed-door session Tuesday morning, much of the discussion focused on how to create unity in the party heading into the November elections. Rep. Andy Barr, R-Ky., said Republicans heard from Michael Whatley, the new chairman of the Republican National Committee, who emphasized that Donald Trump, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee, wants to unify the majority in the House. He said that's a message that certainly helps Johnson. "What he wants is a unified Republican majority, so my message is singing from the same song sheet as President Trump," Barr said. Still, Greene indicated she may still move forward with the effort to remove Johnson, tweeting on X that she believes in recorded votes to put "Congress on record." She also called Johnson "officially the Democratic Speaker of the House" and questioned "what slimy deal" he made for Democratic support. "Americans deserve to see the Uniparty on full display. I'm about to give them their coming out party!" Greene tweeted. "Uniparty" is a derisive term some Republicans use to describe cooperation between some fellow Republicans and Democrats.

YAOUNDE, CAMEROON — Gabon's opposition is divided over a measure proposed at the country’s national dialogue to suspend close to 200 political parties until further notice and bar members of ousted President Ali Bongo's Gabonese Democratic Party (PDG) from taking part in elections for three years. Backers of the measure say it eliminates parties created for reasons of corruption and personal ego, and prevents alleged vote-buying by PDG officials. Opponents say it will snuff out democracy. Leaders of the talks, billed as Gabon's Inclusive National Dialogue, say they have given a wide range of recommendations to the transitional president, General Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema.   The resolutions and recommendations were handed to Oligui on Tuesday in the presence of Central African Republic President Faustin-Archange Touadera. Touadera is the regional mediator for Gabon's planned return to civilian rule following an August 30 bloodless coup that ousted Bongo.  The Bongo family had ruled the oil-producing nation for 57 years before the military takeover.  In addition to the idea of indefinitely suspending political parties and temporarily banning PDG leaders from elections, officials say the dialogue recommends that legislation be enacted to avoid what it calls the proliferation of political parties for egoistic reasons.  However, some dialogue participants say suspending political parties would allow Oligui to cruise to victory in the August 2025 elections.  Joel Ngouenini, president of the political party Seven Wonders of Gabon's People, or 7MP, said Tuesday on Gabon state TV that the country should not attempt to behave as if it were inventing a strange form of democracy. Democracy, he said, means people should be given the right to express themselves through the ballot and it is not the duty of a government to decide if civilians love a political party or not. Ngouenini warned that Gabon will sink to a dictatorship should Oligui accept a recommendation that silences political freedom.  Noel Bertrand Boundzanga, who heads the commission that recommended suspending all political parties, said he has received many petitions from opposition and civil society groups describing the proposal as highly undemocratic.  He maintains that the move will benefit the country in the long run. He said the recommendation was made unanimously by members of the political commission for the sake of democracy and the general well-being of all citizens. Boundzanga added that such a suspension would show politicians who created political parties in order to illegally obtain favors that Gabon has entered a new era.  On other matters, dialogue officials recommended that the two-year period for transitioning to democratic rule should be maintained but could be extended for a maximum of 12 months in case of a crisis or unforeseen circumstance.  Under the recommendations, Gabon would move from a semi-presidential to a presidential system, with a directly elected president presiding over the executive branch, which has separate powers from the legislative and judicial arms of government.    Officials also proposed a seven-year presidential mandate renewable once from August 2025, when presidential polls are expected. No recommendations would prevent Oligui from running for president.  The month-long dialogue wrapped up Tuesday with Oligui saying a new constitution will be prepared, taking the dialogue’s recommendations into account. He said a referendum on the new charter will be held in June. 

Give us 5 minutes, and we'll give you the world. Around the clock, Voice of America keeps you in touch with the latest news. We bring you reports from our correspondents and interviews with newsmakers from across the world.

LONDON — A man wielding a sword attacked members of the public and police officers in a east London suburb Tuesday, killing a 14-year-old boy and injuring four others, British authorities said. A 36-year-old man was arrested in a residential area near Hainault subway station, police said. The incident is not being treated as terror-related or a "targeted attack." Police said the 14-year-old died in the hospital from his injuries. Two police officers were in hospital being treated for stab wounds. Two other people were also injured. Chief Supt. Stuart Bell described the incident as "truly horrific." "I cannot even begin to imagine how those affected must be feeling," he said outside the homes in east London where the crime happened. The Metropolitan Police said they were called early Tuesday to reports of a vehicle being driven into a house in a residential street and people being stabbed. Video on British media showed a man in a yellow hoodie holding a long sword or knife walking near houses in the area. Witnesses say they heard police shouting to the suspect urging him to put down the weapon as they chased after him. Deputy Assistant Commissioner Ade Adelekan said police do not believe there is a threat to the wider community. "We are not looking for more suspects," he said. "This incident does not appear to be terror-related." Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the incident was "shocking," adding: "Such violence has no place on our streets." King Charles III said his thoughts and prayers were with the family of the young victim, and he saluted the courage of emergency workers, Buckingham Palace said. Transport for London said Hainault station was closed due to a police investigation in the area.

Washington — Scammers stole more than $3.4 billion from older Americans last year, according to an FBI report released Tuesday that shows a rise in losses through increasingly sophisticated criminal tactics to trick the vulnerable into giving up their life savings. Losses from scams reported by Americans over the age of 60 last year were up 11% over the year before, according to the FBI's report. Investigators are warning of a rise in brazen schemes to drain bank accounts that involve sending couriers in person to collect cash or gold from victims. "It can be a devastating impact to older Americans who lack the ability to go out and make money," said Deputy Assistant Director James Barnacle of the FBI's Criminal Investigative Division. "People lose all their money. Some people become destitute." The FBI received more than 100,000 complaints by victims of scams over the age of 60 last year, with nearly 6,000 people losing more than $100,000. It follows a sharp rise in reported losses by older Americans in the two years after the 2020 coronavirus pandemic, when people were stuck at home and easier for scammers to reach over the phone. Barnacle said investigators are seeing organized, transnational criminal enterprises targeting older Americans through a variety of schemes, like romance scams and investment frauds. The most commonly reported fraud among older adults last year was tech support scams, in which criminals pose over the phone as technical or customer service representatives. In one such scam authorities say is rising in popularity, criminals impersonate technology, banking and government officials to convince victims that foreign hackers have infiltrated their bank accounts and instruct them that to protect their money they should move it to a new account — one secretly controlled by the scammers. Federal investigators saw an uptick between May and December of scammers using live couriers to take money from victims duped into believing their accounts had been compromised, according to the FBI. In those cases, scammers tell victims that their bank accounts have been hacked and that they need to liquidate their assets into cash or buy gold or other precious metals to protect their funds. Then the fraudsters arrange for a courier to pick it up in person. "A lot of the the fraud schemes are asking victims to send money via a wire transfer, or a cryptocurrency transfer. When the victim is reluctant to do that, they're given an alternative," Barnacle said. "And so the bad guy will use courier services." Earlier this month, an 81-year-old Ohio man fatally shot an Uber driver he thought was trying to rob him after receiving scam phone calls, according to authorities. The man had been receiving calls from someone pretending to be an officer from the local court who demanded money. The Uber driver had been told to retrieve a package from the man's home, a request authorities say was possibly made by the same scam caller or an accomplice. The staggering losses to older Americans are likely an undercount. Only about half of the more than 880,000 complaints reported to the FBI's Internet Crime Compliance Center last year included information on the age of the victim.

MAE SOT, THAILAND — The battle between Myanmar’s military and rebel groups for control of the southeastern border town of Myawaddy has seen thousands of refugees cross into neighboring Thailand in April. But while many return to Myanmar when there is a lull in the fighting, others are seeking a more permanent escape from the conflict. Myanmar is experiencing a critical time during its over three-year-long post-coup conflict with rebel groups gaining significant territory and launching unprecedented attacks on the Myanmar regime.  Armed ethnic groups have captured bases in northern Shan state and Rakhine state since October. The most significant success came via the Karen National Union, or KNU, who earlier in April announced it had forced the surrender of hundreds of Myanmar's military soldiers who had been in control of Myawaddy. The junta have since regained a foothold by occupying a base in Myawaddy, but are still fighting to retain full control from the KNU and its allies. Local media report that junta reinforcements were advancing on Myawaddy as of Monday evening. The border town connects billions of dollars’ worth of trade passing between Myanmar and Thailand each year. Saw Thoo Kwei is a small business owner in Myawaddy. He said the situation in the town has deteriorated since the recent conflict.  “During a particularly intense period of conflict, I found myself having to seek refuge near the border in Myanmar for one night,” he told VOA. “As the situation gradually cooled down, I returned home. [But] I can't stay here long because of the conflict,” he added.   The 30-year-old owns a grocery store in Myawaddy, but the weeks of fighting between government troops and rebels have affected everyday life in the town. “Currently, there is no policing in Myawaddy, not even traffic police. Most government offices are closed. There is no fighting in the city, but people are living in fear. Many civilians are worried about heavy artillery like mortar shells,” he said. His business is also suffering from the uncertainty, which has prompted Saw Thoo Kwei to make plans to leave Myanmar. “Small businesses don't have many stocks to sell due to road blockages. The fighting in Myawaddy has really hit our business hard. We're seeing fewer customers, which means sales are down, and sometimes we have to shut the shop. “With the power cuts and prices shooting up, it's getting tough. We have to worry about thieves targeting our shop when things get tense, showing how unsafe Myawaddy can be. My only viable option is to relocate to Thailand,” he said. Since April, the fighting has continued despite the KNU announcing its forces had retreated from one base in the town. The tussle for control of Myawaddy led to at least 1,300 refugees crossing from Myanmar into Thailand, The Associated Press reported on April 20, citing Thai officials.  But that number may be higher as volunteers aiding the refugees told Myanmar Now that 3,000 were returned to Myanmar when fighting in the border town had temporarily quietened. Thailand shares a 2,400-km (1491-mi) -long land border with Myanmar.  Thailand’s border town Mae Sot, which sits across the Moei river from Myawaddy, has long been accustomed to receiving thousands of people from Myanmar, with many fleeing the war. In one undisclosed safehouse in Mae Sot, nearly a dozen Myanmar refugees have fled the conflict in recent weeks. Kyaw Zin Oo, a physics teacher from the Ayeyarwady region, told VOA he needed to leave Myanmar to avoid being conscripted by the junta. “I arrived here 17 days ago. I had two choices, to go with the [Myanmar military] or here. I chose to come to Thailand because I see more of a future here. I have friends who have joined the revolution. I thought about joining but I thought I can still support them from here by donations and sending food to them.” Other refugees, who didn’t want to be identified, said they left Myanmar because the junta had targeted them and their family because of their participation in anti-military protests. Myanmar’s military enacted a conscription law in February that makes 14 million men and women eligible to be drafted into the military and says it will conscript up to 60,000 new recruits a year. The Irrawaddy reports that the military has begun recruiting Rohingya people despite the ethnic minority group suffering appalling atrocities by Myanmar’s military in 2017. The junta is looking to bolster its ranks so it can resist the momentum gained by rebel groups in recent months. Chi Lin Ko, a farm worker from Yangon, sits in a bamboo-crafted hut in a highway lay-by in Mae Sot, pondering his next move. The 19-year-old farm worker left Myanmar over a month ago. But the prospect of fighting for the military spooked him. “I received a [military conscription] pamphlet at my home. My neighbors joined, but I came here because I didn’t want to join the military. I’ve heard there is a paid salary, but by enlisting in the military there’s no way I can leave after I’ve joined,” he said. If Chit Lin Ko were to ever pick up arms, it wouldn’t be for the Tatmadaw. “If I didn’t have any family, I would go and fight with the revolutionary groups,” he said. One of the reasons the teenager left Myanmar was to financially support his family.  Myanmar’s conflict has devastated the country’s economy, which is 10% lower than it was in 2019, according to a December report by the World Bank. “I have a family and need to look after to them, so I need to make money," Chit Lin Ko said. The U.N. says at least 45,000 Myanmar refugees have entered Thailand since the military coup over three years ago. Although Thailand’s government has recently pledged to welcome “100,000” Myanmar refugees, Thailand is not party to the 1951 Refugee Convention and has no specific domestic legal framework for the protection of urban refugees and asylum-seekers. Since the military seized power in Myanmar, nearly 5,000 people have been killed and over 26,000 people arrested, according to rights groups. 

Washington — U.S. consumers appear less optimistic about the jobs market and more worried about future financial conditions, bringing a closely watched confidence metric to its lowest level since July 2022, a survey showed Tuesday. The consumer confidence index fell to 97.0 in April, said The Conference Board, significantly below the 104.0 reading that analysts anticipated. This marks the third straight month consumer confidence has worsened, the report said, and comes as President Joe Biden struggles to boost perceptions about the economy as his reelection campaign ramps up. "Consumers became less positive about the current labor market situation, and more concerned about future business conditions, job availability, and income," said Dana Peterson, chief economist at The Conference Board. But she added that despite the slip, "optimism about the present situation continues to more than offset concerns about the future." The biggest worries surrounded "elevated price levels, especially for food and gas," said Peterson. Meanwhile, politics and global conflicts were "distant runners-up," she added. While consumers rated current business conditions "positively," their views of the labor market weakened with more reporting that jobs are hard to get, said The Conference Board. Consumers also became less upbeat about their families' financial situations, both currently and in the future. "Perceptions about the labor market deteriorated even as job growth remains robust, and the unemployment rate is historically low," noted Rubeela Farooqi, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics. "A deteriorating trend in sentiment could persist," she cautioned. This risks bogging down spending and growth, given that inflation remains persistent and interest rate cuts are "not imminent," she said.

Nairobi, Kenya — Mali’s military government says its forces have killed a senior Islamic State commander, Abu Huzeifa, during a joint operation with Burkina Faso and Niger. Huzeifa, who had a $5 million bounty on his head, has been linked to high-profile attacks in Africa’s Sahel region, including the killing of four U.S. soldiers. Some experts say the junta will use this success to justify its stay in power. Malian authorities said Monday their forces killed Islamic State commander Abu Huzeifa in a security operation in the northern region of Menaka. Huzeifa, a Moroccan, was wanted for acts of terrorism and the deaths of civilians and security officers, including four U.S. soldiers killed in Niger in 2017. Oluwole Ojewale is a regional coordinator at the Senegal-based Institute of Security Studies. He said the killing of a terror commander does not equate to the end of terrorism. "It is always celebrated within the security community and the communities that they have also terrorized. But there's no sufficient evidence to show that maybe those groups begin to decline after the killing of their strategic leaders. But I think it's a symbolic victory, particularly for the military government in Mali in the context of the security rearrangement that has been going on in that region for a while, now they came into power, the taking of Kidal and this particular one," said Ojewale. The killing comes several weeks after Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger formed a joint force to fight the insurgent groups. The three West African nations are battling terror threats and attacks by groups affiliated with the Islamic State and al-Qaida. Experts say the killing of a terror group leader rarely changes the attacks against civilians and security forces. David Otto, head of security and defense analysis with the Geneva Center for Africa Security and Strategic Studies, said the ability of Islamic State to launch more attacks and remain a threat will depend on how Abu Huzeifa ran the group's affairs. "It depends on the structure or how centralized the leadership was of the Sahel province. So if he had all the power, then of course, it would disrupt at a strategic level and may have some operational impact negative to what the group wants to achieve. But if he were to have commanders that were already in line of succession, then of course it's just going to be a new replacement. Now the problem is that the new man could be more dangerous than himself, but he could also be a much weaker leader," he said. Attacks by terror groups have killed thousands and displaced more than 500,000 from their homes in the Sahel in recent years.  They are also accused of committing human rights violations against the population living in areas under their control. Just like in Burkina Faso and Niger, Mali’s military overthrew the civilian-led government, accusing it of failing to effectively fight the jihadists. Political and media freedoms have been shrinking in Mali for years, but Ojewale fears the military junta will use the killing of a commander to further suppress critical voices. "They can use that to justify their stay in power. There is a constant erosion of civil liberty. Just a few days ago, they are locking the media out, which resulted in a complete blackout. That has happened in Mali, that is happening in Burkina Faso, that is also happening in Niger. The opposition, dissenting voices, cannot express themselves. To the extent to which that is taking place, then we can't give them a thumbs up for whatever they are doing," he said. Mali’s government ordered French troops to leave the country 2022 and for the U.N. mission to close its mission in the country last year.  Meantime, it formed closer relations with the Russian government and the Wagner mercenary group. Now, with the killing of the IS commander, regional experts say the prospect of the military returning power to a civilian government seems distant.