VOA NEWS - 210807

VOA News

August 7, 2021

This is VOA News. Reporting by remote, I'm David Byrd.

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Two Myanmar citizens were arrested Friday on charges alleging that they conspired to oust Myanmar's ambassador to the United Nations, who opposes the military junta [(武力夺取政权的)军政府] that seized power earlier this year by injuring or even killing him.

U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said in a release Friday that the two men plotted to seriously injure or kill Myanmar's ambassador in an attack that was to take place on American soil.

According to court documents in White Plains, New York, federal court, a Thailand arms dealer who sells weapons to the Myanmar military hired the pair to hurt the ambassador to try to force him to step down. If that didn't work, the ambassador was to be killed, according to authorities.

Myanmar's military overthrew the country's civilian government in early February.

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The first Afghan city fell to the Taliban Friday when the militants overran [(尤指坏事)泛滥,蔓延于;占领(领土)] Zaranj, the provincial capital of Nimruz in southwestern Afghanistan. The U.N. Security Council took up the matter on Friday.

U.N. special Envoy for Afghanistan Deborah Lyons told the council that the war has "entered a new and deadlier and more destructive phase."

"The Taliban campaign during June and July to capture rural areas has achieved significant territorial gains. From this strengthened position, they have begun to attack the larger cities."

At the White House, spokesperson Jen Psaki said the path of violence will not bring the Taliban "the legitimacy" it is seeking.

"They do not have to stay on this trajectory. ([物] 轨道，轨线；[航][军] 弹道) They could choose to devote the same energy to the peace process as they are to their military campaign. We strongly urge them to do so."

The council's meeting came hours after the Taliban ambushed and killed the director of Afghanistan's government media center in Kabul, the latest killing of a government official just days after an assassination attempt on the country's acting defense minister.

This is VOA News.

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A New Jersey gym owner and a Washington state man have become the first people charged in the January 6 riot at the U.S. Capitol to plead guilty to assaulting a law enforcement officer during the deadly siege. AP's Ben Thomas has more.

Federal prosecutors identified former mixed martial arts [综合格斗（运动名）] fighter Scott Fairlamb as one of the first people to breach the Capitol after other rioters smashed in windows and kicked out a door. They say he also harassed [骚扰，（使）困扰（或烦恼）；反复袭击] police officers after he left the building.

Fairlamb's attorney says prosecutors are seeking a sentence in a range of three and a half to a little more than four years in prison.

The second man, Devlin Thompson of Washington state, pleaded guilty to assaulting a police officer with a baton. [指挥棒；接力棒；警棍；司令棒] He's been ordered jailed in Seattle.

More than 30 other defendants (被告) have pleaded guilty though mostly to misdemeanor (轻罪；品行不端) charges.

I'm Ben Thomas.

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An Arkansas judge has temporarily blocked the state from enforcing a law that prevents schools and other governmental agency from requiring masks. AP's Jennifer King reports.

Pulaski County Circuit Judge Tim Fox issued a preliminary injunction (初步禁令) against the law that Arkansas Governor Asa Hutchinson signed in April. The ban was being challenged by two lawsuits, including one from the Marion School District, where more than 950 staff and students have had to quarantine since classes began last week. The district says 54 students and 11 staff have tested positive for COVID-19.

Hutchinson had called a special session for lawmakers to consider rolling back the ban for some schools but faced heavy opposition from fellow Republicans.

I'm Jennifer King.

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Hiring surged in July as American employers added 943,000 jobs and the unemployment rate dropped to 5.4 percent. Even as the U.S. economy shows signs of a surprisingly strong pandemic recovery, there are fears a resurgent virus could set it back. AP's Sagar Meghani reports.

The delta variant is the wild card (通配符;无法预言的人或事物) but the White House says nation shouldn't worry much about its effects on the economy.

"This is not March 2020 or even January 20-21."

Spokeswoman Jen Psaki says the country is in a much better place with vaccines. There will not be lockdowns.

"We are not turning back the clock."

Wells Fargo (美国富国银行集团) senior economist Sarah House says she doesn't expect any widespread restrictions that would badly hurt the economy but the delta spread may have some impact.

"It might lead some people to curb some of their outings (远足；短途旅游；体育比赛) and spending and therefore potentially some hiring (雇用;租用;招聘)."

Sagar Meghani, Washington.

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On Wall Street, the Dow Jones Industrials rose by four tenths of one percent while the S&P 500 added .2 percent. The NASDAQ dropped, however, by .4 percent.

Reporting by remote, I'm David Byrd, VOA News.