Vietnam Attempts to Greatly Reduce Dependence on Cash

  The Vietnamese government has set aggressive targets for reducing the amount of cash used by people across the country. The goal is to reduce the amount of ready money changing hands. The government says it wants to cut the total number of cash transactions nationwide to just 10 percent by the year 2020. The effort is part of a campaign aimed at making it easier for Vietnamese citizens to use banking services. The campaign calls for greatly increasing the number of electronic transactions for many goods and services. It includes a goal of having up to 70 percent of utility payments made electronically. Vietnam has already made progress in this area. Many people now make water and power payments electronically at small stores, especially around cities. In the past, people had to either pay in cash at the local post office or wait for a collector to come. In an effort to cut down on cash payments, banks are using creative methods to reach people who live far from bank offices. For example, VietinBank sends employees on motorbikes to areas outside the city to help its customers do banking. Another company, DongA Bank, sets up vehicles with cash machines near factories for laborers to use. Many businesses also have mobile phone tools linked to banks for people to pay for products and services. While such tools, sometimes called “e-wallets,” are now widely available, many people have been unwilling to use them. Experts say the main reason for this is a fear that personal banking information and money can be stolen. Le Anh Dung is payment director for the State Bank of Vietnam. He recently spoke at a conference dealing with digital payment technologies. Dung praised companies like Alibaba, Amazon and Uber for offering people “one-click” pay tools. Google also lets people buy things in its Google Play store with phone credits. Dung said that such payment methods are good because they make it effortless for people to hand over their money. But he added that because digital payment technologies are still new to many people, cash “will not disappear” anytime soon. DongA Bank’s deputy chief executive officer Nguyen An agrees. He says it will take time for people to trust the new technology. He said many bank employees also did not want to accept electronic pay methods instead of cash when the system was launched about 10 years ago.  The government also hopes digital payments will become more common because online retail sales are growing at a fast rate. Vietnam’s e-commerce market was $400,000 in 2015, but it is predicted to grow to $7.5 billion by 2025. The government is pleased to see that more people are moving to the internet to buy products. But leaders are concerned that 89 percent of Vietnam’s online shoppers still choose to use cash on delivery. Vietnam also has plans to digitize many public services. This means people could make electronic payments someday soon to services such as hospitals and schools. But for now, the mobile banks will keep traveling the streets in search of new customers. I’m Bryan Lynn.   Ha Nguyen and Lien Hoang reported this story for VOA News. Bryan Lynn adapted the report for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   cash – n. ready money; paper money and coins transaction – n. a deal involving the buying or selling of something utility – n. organization that supplies people with water, electricity, gas, etc. e-commerce – n. activities that relate to the buying and selling of goods and services over the Internet delivery – n. the act of taking something to a person or place mobile – adj. able to be moved by vehicles  

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Myanmar Struggles with Rohingya Crisis

  Hundreds of thousands of ethnic Rohingya people have been forced out of western Myanmar in what the United Nations is comparing to “ethnic cleansing.” Officials of Myanmar including State Councilor Aung San Suu Kyi say the problem is complex and will require time to work out. Officials say Muslim terrorists are responsible for destruction of villages and displacement of people. Who are the Rohingya? The Muslim Rohingya people are one of the many ethnic minorities in Myanmar, also known as Burma, which is a Buddhist majority country. Most have lived in Myanmar’s western Rakhine state. The government considers the Rohingya migrants from Bangladesh who are seeking better economic conditions. They are not recognized as citizens although many can show that their families have been in the country for generations. This is not the first time the Rohingya have fled the area. Hundreds of thousands left in 1978 and again in the early 1990s, fleeing military and government oppression. In 2012, another 100,000 fled by boat as Myanmar was transitioning from a half-century of military dictatorship to democracy. The violence in Rakhine state has continued since late August when Rohingya militants attacked several police and army positions there. However, military operations to answer the attacks have killed hundreds of Rohingya and many of their villages have been burned. It is estimated that more than 300,000 Rohingya have fled to neighboring Bangladesh. Thousands more remain in Myanmar where they are in need of food and aid. Not clear what is happening in Rakhine state The United Nations has described the treatment of the Rohingya as a “textbook example of ethnic cleansing.” Recent efforts to bring aid to the area have faced setbacks. In one incident, nine aid workers transporting humanitarian assistance died when their truck crashed into a ditch. In another incident, a mob of about 300 protesters blocked a shipment of humanitarian aid in the port of Sittwe, the capital of Rakhine state. The protestors attacked a boat that was being prepared to take 50 tons of supplies including food, water and mosquito nets from the International Red Cross. The aid was to be sent to Rohingya in the northern part of Rakhine. Some Buddhist religious leaders urged calm. But, the mob began throwing stones and gasoline bombs at police who fired warning shots in the air. Eight people were detained during the unrest. Reporters and rights activists say they cannot find out what is happening in Myanmar’s western Rakhine state. Recently, the government permitted a group of reporters to visit Hindu villagers who said they were attacked by Muslim terrorists. However, when the reporters investigated, they found that two of those identified as victims had also been shown as “Bengali terrorists” on social media sites. Phil Robertson is the Asia Division deputy director for the activist group Human Rights Watch. He said the government “brings out these fake photos or these fake narratives and then they attack the human rights groups like us saying why don’t you guys investigate.” Robertson added, “Let us in. Let us go where we want to go and do what we want to find the truth.” International reactions The crisis in western Myanmar has gained international criticism This week, United States Vice President Mike Pence called on the U.N. Security Council to take action to end the violence. Myanmar’s leader Aung San Suu Kyi has also faced international criticism for not speaking out strongly about the actions of Myanmar’s military. She has called on the military to avoid harming innocent civilians. However, she said there is no simple answer to the problem. “Building up trust and harmony between two communities that have in many parts of that region been hostile to one another is not done easily,” she said. I’m Mario Ritter.   Richard Green and Steve Sanford reported this story for VOA News. Mario Ritter adapted it for VOA Learning English with additional material from Victor Beattie. Hai Do was the editor. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   Fake –adj. false, not true Narratives –n. a story that is told or written Ditch –n. a hole Harmony –n. working together effectively We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments section, and visit our Facebook page.

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Meet the Creator of Emoji

  This is What’s Trending Today. Emoji have become a worldwide language for mobile phone messages. Emoji are everywhere -- displayed in New York’s Museum of Modern Art, and part of a new Hollywood film. They all started with one man, a 25-year-old named Shigetaka Kurita. He worked for the Japanese mobile phone carrier NTT DoCoMo. In 1998, he created the first set of 176 emoji pictures. “I happened to arrive at the idea. If I hadn’t done it, someone else would have,” Kurita said. He is now a board member at Dwango Company, a Tokyo technology company. NTT DoCoMo’s “i-mode” mobile Internet service limited messages to 250 characters. Users, therefore, would look for shorter ways to express their thoughts. “Digital messaging was just getting started, and so I was thinking about what was needed,” said Kurita. After i-mode’s launch in 1999, emoji immediately became popular in Japan. In fact, Japan is where the name comes from. Emoji combines the Japanese words for “picture” and “letters.” Kurita collected common images, including public signs, weather signs and even comic-book style images such as a light bulb or a bomb that is about to explode. He also made five faces — happy, angry, sad, surprised and confused. Some images easily translated across cultures. A drop of sweat rolling down a cheek clearly meant nervousness or anxiety. Others confused some users: they mistook a video camera for a fish. Western companies such as Apple and Google made emoji known worldwide. Jason Snell is a technology writer. He says that many people now are most familiar with Apple’s version of emoji. But Kurita knows that Japan is where it all began -- nearly 20 years ago. “Japanese always are too ahead of our time,” he said. Kurita’s creation is a big part of “The Emoji Movie,” a 2017 film by Sony Pictures about emoji that live inside the world of a smartphone. It has yet to be shown in Japan but was fairly popular in the United States. Today, Kurita works on a popular live video streaming service called Niconico. He believes such services will become more interactive in the future, possibly with artificial intelligence. He says he doesn’t feel very involved with emoji today. Things have changed a lot since his original designs. He receives no money from the success of emoji. He is not well known in Japan outside of the technology community. Last year, he went to New York to see the Museum of Modern Art show. The exhibit cited him by name. That made Kurita emotional. “There they were, something I’d been involved with, although I’m neither an artist nor a designer,” he said. “The museum saw value in the design that had the power to change people’s lifestyles.” And that's what's trending today. I’m Dan Friedell.   The Associated Press reported this story. Ashley Thompson adapted it for Learning English. Kelly Jean Kelly was the editor. __________________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   sweat - n. the clear liquid that forms on your skin when you are hot or nervous  nervousness - n. ​the state of being worried or afraid interactive - adj. ​designed to respond to the actions, commands, etc., of a user​ artificial intelligence - n. ​an area of computer science that deals with giving machines the ability to seem like they have human intelligence​ original - adj. happening or existing first or at the beginning exhibit - n. ​an object or a collection of objects that have been put out in a public space for people to look at : something shown in an exhibition​

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Hurricane Maria Knocks Out Power across Puerto Rico

Hurricane Maria dropped more heavy rain on Puerto Rico Thursday, after knocking out power across the entire island, flooding many areas and killing at least one person, as it inflicted a less severe but still significant punch to the Dominican Republic.

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The Murders in the Rue Morgue by Edgar Allan Poe, Part Two

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America's Presidents - Herbert Hoover

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Apple’s New iPhones, Watches and More

  Last week, Apple told the world about its latest products at an event in California. The company presented three new iPhones, new Apple Watches, and a new Apple TV. The company is also making big changes to its stores. We will start with those. Apple Town Centers If a friend says he or she is going to the Apple Town Square, you may wonder where it is. It is in the same place as your local Apple store. Apple stores will now be known as "Apple Town Squares." Apple says that much more happens at its stores than sales. People come there to do other things and Apple wants to make its stores more inviting. Spaces will be created for learning, meeting, researching and more. The so-called Board Room will help app designers create new apps. The Forum will help people create, using photography, music and more. Customers also will be able to attend classes at such Town Squares to learn how to use Apple products. The Avenue will feature Apple products for sale so the centers will remain a place to go to shop. Apple Watch Series 3 At the Apple event, the company also announced its third version of the Apple Watch, the Series 3. This watch can have a cellular connection separate from the iPhone to which it is connected. ​The cellular connection is available only in some countries and with some carriers. Be sure to check whether your carrier offers a connection to the new Apple Watch if this is an important feature to you. Note that you will have to pay your cell phone carrier a fee for the cellular connection. Check with your carrier to find out how much that fee will be. Users can make and answer phone calls and text messages from the Watch, even if their phone is not nearby.The Watch uses the same phone number as the iPhone to which it is connected. The Watch has an altimeter so it can better track your workout. It will know whether you are working hard to climb stairs, ladders or mountains. Apple is also getting serious about people using Apple Watch as a heart monitor. The watch can give a warning signal if your heart rate is fast when you are not exercising. Apple and Stanford University are studying whether Apple Watch can detect irregular heartbeats, a condition known as atrial fibrillation or AFib. Apple and Stanford plan to ask Apple Watch owners to volunteer for the study. Siri, Apple’s digital assistant, can speak to you from the watch. Ask it a question and Siri will answer. The price of the new Apple Watch in the US starts at about $330 without a cellular connection. A cellular connection will add about $60 to that price. Pay about $30 more for a larger version of the watch. Apple TV Apple also presented an updated model of its Apple TV streaming box. The company says Apple TV 4K provides new features and a sharper image with more vibrant colors. The insides of the streaming box have been upgraded as well for faster and smoother video. This should improve the Apple TV gaming experience. At the event, Apple showed a new game called Sky being played through Apple TV 4K using a remote control that is included. See, Apple TV, Fire TV or Roku? The new Apple TV will also notify you about sporting events and breaking news. You can get notifications when your favorite teams are playing and see all sporting events currently being played. You can choose to see all the scores or hide them. 4K videos will now be available in iTunes. And if you purchased a movie in HD from iTunes and now it comes in 4K, Apple will upgrade your movie for free. Apple TV 4K with 32 GB of storage will cost $175. The model with 64GB of storage will cost $195. iPhones Apple introduced three new iPhones: iPhone 8 iPhone 8 Plus iPhone X iPhone 8 and 8 Plus The iPhone 8 and 8 Plus are more advanced versions of the iPhone 7 and 7 Plus. Their screen sizes are the same as the earlier models, with the 8 having a screen of 11.9 centimeters and the 8 Plus being 14 centimeters. One major change in the new phones is their glass back which permits wireless charging. That means you can rest your phone on a charging pad, instead of having to insert a cable into the phone. Of course, you can still use a cable if you want. Apple says the battery life of 8 and 8 Plus is about the same as that of the Apple 7. ​The 8 and 8 Plus come with an A11 Bionic chip that is supposed to be speedy. These phones are designed for 3D games and augmented reality apps. See Augmented Reality vs. Virtual Reality – What’s the Difference? Apple showed an example of someone being at a Major League Baseball game and using the MLB app to see the stats of the players on the field using augmented reality. The screens on these phones are more advanced with truer and brighter colors and more pixels on the display. The phones are water and dust-resistant. The phone’s cameras have faster processors and image stabilization for better focus. Apple showed a Portrait Lighting feature that darkens the background of the photo so all that shows is the subject's face. This feature will be available on the iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X. These phones are available with 64 or 256 GB of storage space and in the colors gray, silver or gold. Pricing begins at almost $700 for the iPhone 8 and just under $800 for the iPhone 8 Plus. iPhone X To celebrate the tenth anniversary of the first iPhone, Apple is releasing the iPhone X. The first thing you will notice when you see the iPhone X is the screen. Instead of having a border (known as a bezel in tech terms), this phone's screen is edge to edge. Although the iPhone X is smaller than the iPhone 8 Plus, it has a slightly larger screen. Its “Super Retina” display provides a richer image as well. Like the 8 and 8 Plus, the X has a glass back for wireless charging. The X is also water and dust-resistant. The camera on the X is like the 8 Plus, the iPhone X has the Portrait Lighting effect. But unlike the 8 Plus you can employ Portrait Lighting from both front and back cameras on the X. No home button Unlike any other Apple phone, the X has no home button. Apple says “Instead of pressing a button, a single swipe now takes you home from anywhere.” Now, for Siri or Apple Pay, users press the power button along the edge of the X. Face ID Fingerprint ID is a thing of the past with the iPhone X. Instead, Apple introduced Face ID. Now, all you have to do is look at the phone to unlock it. But you really have to look into the screen. The phone has what Apple calls "Attention Awareness." If you are not looking directly at the phone, it will not unlock. Apple says Face ID works in the dark. It says it even works as your looks change, like when you wear a hat or glasses. It even is supposed to work if you are growing a beard. Apple tested iPhone X with photos and masks. It says neither fooled the phone into unlocking. The company did note, however, that identical twins can fool Face ID. So if you have an identical twin whom you do not trust, you might want to do the more traditional lock by password. Like Touch ID, Face ID can be used with Apple Pay and third party apps for identification. Animojis The same tech that maps your face for Face ID on the iPhone X is also used on a new feature called Animojis. These are 12 different emojis that can move with your face so you can make them smile, frown, or do anything else you can do with your face.           You can put these animojis in text messages you send in Apple's iMessage app. You can also record a video message as an animoji. Availability If you want the iPhone X, you will have to wait. Apple begins taking orders for the phone on October 27. It will be available in silver or gray with either 64 or 256 gigabytes of storage. Prices for the iPhone X begin at just under $1000. I’m ­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Caty Weaver. And I’m Pete Musto.   Carolyn Nicander Mohr wrote this report for VOA Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor. For more on the event, see Apple Reveals New iPhones Which of Apple's announcements are most interesting to you? Are the upgrades worth it to you? Will you be getting a new iPhone? If so, which one? Share your thoughts in the Comments Section below or on our Facebook page. ______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   forum - n. a place or opportunity for discussing a subject customer - n. someone who buys goods or services from a business avenue - n. a wide street cellular - n. relating to a system that uses radio waves instead of wires to send telephone signals altimeter - n. an instrument used for measuring the altitude of something monitor - n. a device that shows and records information about a condition or function of the body streaming - adj. playing continuously as data is sent to a computer over the Internet vibrant - adj. very bright and strong​ remote - adj. capable of being controlled from a distance​ advanced - adj. having or using new and modern methods​ augmented reality - n. an enhanced version of reality created by the use of technology to add digital information on an image of something stats - n. a number that represents a piece of information stabilize - v.  to make (something) steady​ focus - v. to adjust (something, such as a lens or a camera) to make an image clear emoji - n. a small digital image or icon used to express an idea, emotion, etc., in electronic communication

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‘Words With Friends’ Adds 50,000 New Words

About six years ago, actor Alec Baldwin made some news, but not for a role in a new movie or a television appearance. He was removed from an American Airlines flight for playing ‘Words with Friends’ on his mobile phone. Stories from 2011 say Baldwin may have continued playing the game even though he was told to put his phone away. But now, if Baldwin is still a fan of the game, he has a lot more words to choose from. The game developer recently announced it is adding 50,000 words from popular culture. Some of the words include BFF, delish, hangry, bae and bestie. BFF stands for “best friends forever.” Something that is “delish” tastes very good. Someone who is hungry and angry is “hangry.” A man might call his girlfriend his “bae” and a person’s BFF might also be her “bestie.” Gurpreet Singh supervises the game for Zynga, the company that created the game. He said Zynga gets 5,000 suggestions per day for new words. The words may not be familiar to English learners, but they are “slang,” or non-traditional words that are not found in dictionaries. Zynga says the game has been installed on 200 million phones since 2009. According to the company, at any given time, about 57 million Words with Friends games are going on. The new words will give players over 200,000 words to choose from. “Twerk” and “selfie” were added to the game in 2014. Earlier this year, “covfefe” was added. If you recall, that was a strange word that appeared in one of President Donald Trump’s tweets in late May. A selfie is a photo someone takes of oneself using the camera built into a mobile phone. A twerk is a kind of dance move. Singh says he knows a lot of these words are not correct English words. But he and his team pay attention to popular terms that might help people have more fun when they are playing. Right now, one of his favorite words is “queso.” It is worth a lot of points when he is playing Words with Friends. Queso is the Spanish word for cheese. But in the United States, people understand this as melted cheese one might order at a Mexican restaurant or pour on top of tortilla chips. I’m Dan Friedell.   Dan Friedell adapted this story for Learning English based on reporting by the Associated Press. Hai Do was the editor. Will you enjoy playing Words with Friends now that there are more words to choose from? We want to know. Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   twerk – n. a dance move that requires shaking the part of the body that you sit on tortilla chip – n. a thin, hard piece of food (called a chip) that is made from corn and usually salted

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Fast-moving Asian Phone Makers Gain on Apple

  Apple announced its new iPhones last week, but competitors’ mobile phones can do many of the same things for less money. The new iPhone 8 and X have wireless charging, edge-to-edge glass screen and dual cameras. But all of these features are already available in smart phones from China’s Huawei and Oppo, and Korea’s Samsung. While Apple asks buyers to pay $1,000 for its high-end model, some Asian phone makers can offer similar features for less. At one time, Chinese manufacturers copied features and designs from others to produce low-cost phones. But they have now added high-end features to their phones and they control nearly half the global mobile phone market. MediaMarktSaturn is Europe’s biggest electronics seller. A spokesperson for the store told Reuters that, “Huawei is seen as a relevant competitor to Apple and Samsung (by) covering all major price points and placing big investments in marketing and sales.” She also said that the Chinese companies Huawei, ZTE, Lenovo and TCL were among the top-10 best-selling smartphones in its stores. Chinese manufacturers’ fast growth has been fueled by strong sales in China. But they now export 40 percent of their smartphones. That is almost double the number from just three years ago, according to the Hong Kong investment company CLSA. Huawei is currently the world’s third largest phone maker behind Samsung and Apple. According to research company Canalys, the Chinese company is getting closer to second-place Apple and might overtake it later this year. The Chinese firm even made fun of Apple’s new facial recognition feature with a Facebook video “RealAIphone.” Huawei plans to show its top-of-the-line Mate 10 phone on Oct. 16. The phone will have artificial intelligence features such as instant translation and image recognition and will cost less than $1,000. Other Chinese companies are looking to enter the high-end smartphone market. Xiaomi, for example, showed a full-screen phone this month with all-ceramic ‘unibody’ design and 12-megapixel front camera. The special edition Mi MIX 2 sells for $720. Also, Xiaomi, Oppo and Vivo are working to add ultrasound sensors under smartphone screens to improve the touch function. Neil Shah is research director at the company Counterpoint. He said Chinese companies with a lot of sales are able to access many of the same parts for phones and offer many features. He said that has hurt Apple’s growth. Still a gap However, Apple still has a big lead over its Chinese competitors in the high-end market. And few experts think Apple fans will switch from the iPhone X to Huawei’s Mate 10. The average selling price of smartphones from the top Chinese makers - Huawei, Oppo and Vivo - is just $248, or two-thirds less than the cheapest iPhone 8. Apple has 63 percent of the market for phones priced higher than $600 compared to just 3 percent for Huawei, according to research from the Swiss bank UBS. “The biggest challenge they (Chinese firms) face would be proving to consumers their products and brand are worth paying that much for,” said Xiaohan Tay, an expert at the research firm IDC. I’m Mario Ritter.   Hai Do adapted this story for Learning English based on Reuters news report. Mario Ritter was the editor. Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page. _______________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   edge-to-edge –adj. completely covering the front of the device features –n. a quality or ability high-end –adj. a costly line of products relevant –adj. relating to something in a useful way top-of-the-line –adj. the highest or most advanced product among those sold by a company artificial intelligence –n. related to machines like computers that can copy intelligent human behavior ceramic –n. made from clay function –n. a special purpose or ability challenge –n. something that is difficult to do consumers –n. a person who buys good or services   brand –n. a set of products that have a name

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UN: Islamic State Expands Activities to Seven Afghan Provinces

  A United Nations report says Afghanistan’s version of the Islamic State group has expanded its activities to all seven provinces in the country. It said the group operated in just one province last year. The UN Office of Humanitarian Affairs reported an increase in fighting between Afghan forces and Taliban militants this year. But it said attacks by the Islamic State of Khorasan Province (ISK-P) weakened security in the country. The UN report said the growing insecurity “is not only characterized by increased attacks on district centers, but also by a doubling of attacks attributable to...(the) Islamic State of Khorasan to more than 230 in the first half of the year.” The report noted that until the first half of 2016, the Islamic State forces operated only in the eastern province of Nangarhar. United States and Afghan officials have repeatedly said that the group is operating in southern Nangarhar and parts of nearby Kunar province. They claim that ground and air attacks in recent months have killed hundreds of fighters linked to the group and reduced the territory it controls. The UN group said an increase in fighting in Afghanistan displaced more than 50,000 civilians in August. That is the largest monthly displacement of Afghan civilians this year. It also said that Taliban-led militants attacked or fought for control of at least eight district centers in seven Afghan provinces during the month. From January to the end of July, anti-state armed groups attacked and took control of more than 12 district centers across the country. Afghan security forces have since retaken control of just two of them. There has usually been heavy fighting involved in retaking the centers. The U.S. military dropped more than 550 bombs in August, the most in one month. Last week, a U.S. official told VOA that most of the bombs were dropped on Helmand and Nangarhar provinces. The United Nations says the number of Afghan civilians killed or injured this year has reached record levels. It has called on all sides to protect civilians. The UN agency says insecurity in Afghanistan is likely to increase during the rest of 2017. It said no seasonal end to the fighting is expected because winter is expected to arrive later than normal Afghan winters. Fighting is expected to increase after U.S. President Donald Trump announced a “new strategy” on Afghanistan last month. The new policy is designed to end the conflict with the Taliban in what has become the longest foreign military operation in U.S. history. On Monday, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis announced that the U.S. is sending another 3,000 troops to the country. That is an increase of more than 25 percent in the number of American troops there. The latest deployment will increase the number of U.S. forces in Afghanistan to more than 14,000. The Afghan war began almost 16 years ago when U.S. forces were ordered to overthrow a government led by the Taliban and members of the al-Qaida terror group. The invasion followed the al-Qaida-led attacks against New York and Washington on September 11th, 2001.  I’m Kelly Jean Kelly. Correspondent Ayaz Gul reported this story from Islamabad. Christopher Jones-Cruise adapted the report for Learning English. George Grow was the editor.   We want to hear from you. Write to us in the Comments Section, or visit our Facebook page. _____________________________________________________________ Words in This Story   characterize – v. to describe the qualities of someone or something attributable - adj. of or related to qualities belonging to a person or thing district – n. a territorial division; an area strategy – n. a careful method or plan    

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Iraqi Supreme Court Suspends Kurdish Vote

  The highest court in Iraq has approved a request by Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi to suspend an independence referendum in Iraqi Kurdistan. The area planned to hold the referendum later this month. The Iraqi supreme court announced on Monday that the election will be suspended until it studies cases related to the constitutionality of the vote. Abadi has repeatedly spoken out against the referendum. He told an Iraqi news agency that the Kurds would be "playing with fire" by pushing for the vote in the Kurdish autonomous region. The Kurdish area has repeatedly ignored efforts to cancel the referendum. And the court has little power to execute its order. Iraqi Kurdistan regional President Masoud Barzani supports the referendum. Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim warned last week that the Iraqi Kurdish plan to hold a vote on independence was a "grave mistake." "We don’t want to impose sanctions,” he continued, “but, if we arrive at that point, there are steps that have been already planned that Turkey can take." Turkey shares a border with Iraqi Kurdistan. Some Turkish officials fear an independent Kurdish state could cause similar demands for independence in Turkey. The United States has voiced strong opposition to the independence vote. The Trump administration released a statement on the vote last Friday. It said the United States "does not support" the Kurdish plan to hold a referendum. It added that the plan "is distracting from efforts to defeat ISIS (the self-declared Islamic State group) and stabilize the liberated areas." The Trump administration wants the Iraqi Kurds to cancel the vote. Instead, administration officials want them to take part in "serious and sustained dialogue with Baghdad." The U.S. government has offered to assist in possible talks. I’m Jonathan Evans.   Chris Hannas reported this story for VOANews.com. Jonathan Evans adapted his report for Learning English. George Grow was the editor. ____________________________________________________________ Words in this Story   autonomous – adj. existing or acting separately from other things or people; independent stabilize – v. to make something unlikely to change distract – v. to cause someone to stop thinking about something sanction – n. an action taken to make a country obey a rule or law

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