Through clouds of billowing dust, two men circle each other warily before one plunges forward, grabbing his rival’s clothing and, after a brief struggle, deftly tackling him to the ground. The crowd, arrayed in a circle around them, some sitting on the ground, others standing or clambering onto the backs of rickshaws for a better…

Art censorship in Hong Kong is “very much real,” an expert said after the city’s much-anticipated art gallery opened recently without showcasing some expected artworks by a Chinese dissident. The former British colony’s largest art museum, M+, opened Nov. 12 to great fanfare, but also heated debate because of its failure to exhibit two of…

After decades of excavation efforts, Egypt has opened the ‘Avenue of Sphinxes,’ a 3,400-year-old walkway that connects Luxor’s main ancient temples. For VOA, Hamada Elrasam has this photo gallery with words by Elle Kurancid. …

Alec Baldwin Thursday denied responsibility for the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on the set of his Western movie “Rust,” saying he would have killed himself if he believed the shooting was his fault. In an emotional television interview, the actor said he did not pull the trigger on the gun he was holding during…

A 29-year-old man has been arrested in the death of philanthropist Jacqueline Avant, who was fatally shot this week at the Beverly Hills home she shared with her husband, legendary music executive Clarence Avant, police said Thursday. Aariel Maynor, who was on parole, was taken into custody early Wednesday by Los Angeles police at a separate residence…

The Duchess of Sussex on Thursday won the latest stage in her long-running privacy lawsuit against a British newspaper publisher over its publication of parts of a letter she wrote to her estranged father. The Court of Appeal in London upheld a High Court ruling that the publisher of The Mail on Sunday and MailOnline…

Alec Baldwin said he did not pull the trigger of the gun that killed a cinematographer on the movie set of “Rust,” while investigators in New Mexico zeroed in on how live ammunition may have found its way to the set.  Baldwin, who was holding a gun he was told was safe when it went…

Jacqueline Avant, a Los Angeles philanthropist and the wife of music legend Clarence Avant, was fatally shot in Beverly Hills, California, early Wednesday, according to authorities and a Netflix spokeswoman.  Netflix spokeswoman Emily Feingold confirmed that Jacqueline Avant was killed in the shooting. Avant’s daughter, Nicole, is married to Ted Sarandos, Netflix co-CEO and chief…

The late American entertainer and civil rights activist Josephine Baker has become the first Black woman to be inducted into the Pantheon in Paris, the highest honor that France bestows. Legendary entertainer Josephine Baker famously sang that she had two loves — “J’ai Deux Amours” — my country and Paris.     She was born in Saint Louis,…

A jury was seated Monday to hear the case against Jussie Smollett, who says he was the victim of a racist and homophobic assault in downtown Chicago that authorities say was a hoax concocted and staged by the former “Empire” actor. Two brothers, who worked with Smollett on the TV show, say he paid them…

With an expanded definition to reflect the times, Merriam-Webster has declared an omnipresent truth as its 2021 word of the year: vaccine. “This was a word that was extremely high in our data every single day in 2021,” Peter Sokolowski, Merriam-Webster’s editor-at-large, told The Associated Press ahead of Monday’s announcement.  “It really represents two different…

Virgil Abloh, fashion’s highest profile Black designer and the creative mind behind Louis Vuitton’s menswear collections, died on Sunday of cancer, Vuitton’s owner LVMH said. The French luxury goods giant said Abloh, 41, had been battling cancer privately for years. “Virgil was not only a genius designer, a visionary, he was also a man with…

A documentary about pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong won a high-profile award Saturday in Taiwan at the Golden Horse Awards, the Chinese-speaking world’s version of the Oscars. Kiwi Chow’s “Revolution of Our Times” was named best documentary, prompting a long round of applause and shouts of support for Hong Kong from audience members at the…

Most Americans don’t have oysters on their Thanksgiving table, but, for a time, the mollusks were a key ingredient on the White House holiday menu.  “Oyster stuffing and various oyster elements were always included, especially in the later 19th century. Oysters were very popular,” says Lina Mann, a historian with the White House Historical Association. “I think that the location of…

For the Smithsonian’s 175th anniversary, the 140-year-old Arts and Industries Building that has been closed for renovation since 2004 is reopening temporarily with an exhibition called Futures. The exhibition explores what our future may look like. Karina Bafradzhian visited the museum in Washington and has this story. Camera: Sergey Sokolov …

“NFT” is 2021’s “Word of the Year,” Collins Dictionary announced Wednesday.  NFT is an abbreviation for non-fungible token, which according to the dictionary is “a unique digital certificate, registered in a blockchain, that is used to record ownership of an asset such as an artwork or a collectible.” Perhaps the most well-known example of an…

Jon Batiste might be the Grammys biggest surprise: The multi-genre performer and recent Oscar winner made such an impression on voters that he scored the most nominations with 11 on Tuesday. Batiste earned an album of the year nod for “We Are” along with record of the year with “Freedom,” a feel-good ode to the…

Amid growing speculation on the whereabouts of Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai, China’s Foreign Ministry warned against politicizing and speculating about the star’s wellbeing. “This is not a diplomatic matter,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian told a regular press briefing on Tuesday. “I believe everyone will have seen she has recently attended some public…

The Port-au-Prince international jazz festival, traditionally held in late January, has been postponed indefinitely because of gang violence that has plagued the Haitian capital for months, event organizers said Monday.  “We can’t take the risk, either for the 150 musicians or for our teams or for the public,” Milena Sandler, director of the Haiti Jazz Foundation, which organizes the festival,…

A U.S. diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Olympics would deal a blow to Seoul’s attempts to resume diplomacy with North Korea, experts said. Last week, U.S. President Joe Biden said that his administration was “considering” a diplomatic boycott of the 2022 Winter Olympics in February.  Such a boycott would mean the U.S. would not send…

For many musicians, like storytelling superstar Adele, the order of songs on an album is a matter of the keenest concern, affecting how a narrative is presented, how listeners react and ultimately how many albums are sold. That is a big reason why customers of Spotify saw “play” as the album default option Sunday on…

Members of Afghanistan’s women’s youth development soccer team arrived in Britain early Thursday after being flown from Pakistan with the help of a New York rabbi, a U.K. soccer club and Kim Kardashian West. A plane chartered by the reality star and carrying more than 30 teenage players and their families, about 130 people in…

The head of the Women’s Tennis Association on Wednesday voiced concern over an email it received in which Chinese professional tennis player Peng Shuai was said to deny her previous allegations of sexual assault.  Peng, one of China’s biggest sport stars, said on social media earlier this month that former Chinese vice premier Zhang Gaoli coerced her…

China has been making patriotic movies for its domestic audiences while tightening control of its film industry, developments that have left Hollywood wondering whether its movies will still be welcome in China’s lucrative market. VOA’s Elizabeth Lee has the details. …

Greece and U.S. tech giant Microsoft have teamed up to digitally revive one of the ancient world’s most sacrosanct sites: the birthplace of the Olympic Games. The ambitious project uses technology to immerse viewers in the world of ancient Olympia.  The collaboration between Microsoft and the Greek Culture Ministry will allow millions of visitors to immerse themselves in an experience that organizers say brings history to life.  At a recent news conference in Olympia, the birthplace of the…