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A Buddhist monk takes part in the traditional "hi-watari", or fire-walking ritual, at Shiofune-kannonji temple in Ome City, Tokyo.
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Visitors stroll through a garden with colorful azalea bushes in full bloom at Shiofune-kannonji temple in Ome City, Tokyo.
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A sculptor makes a sand sculpture devoted to the WW II victory in Minsk. Belarus will celebrate the end of WW II on May 9.
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Russia's Aleksandra Soldatova performs in the individual final program at the 31st European Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships in Minsk, Belarus.
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People pose with a dog covered in color powder during the first color run called "Alwan LB" in Beirut.
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Russia's Margarita Mamun performs in the individual final program at the 31st European Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships in Minsk, Belarus.
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The baby daughter of Britain's Prince William and Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, sleeps as she is carried in a car seat from the Lindo Wing of St. Mary's Hospital, in London, Britain, May 2, 2015.
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Flowers are placed at the memorial dedicated to Associated Press Television News producer Kerem Lawton, on World Press Freedom Day, in Vitina, Kosovo.
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Floyd Mayweather, Jr. of the U.S. stands up on the ropes in his corner after defeating Manny Pacquiao of the Philippines in their welterweight WBO, WBC and WBA (Super) title fight in Las Vegas, Nevada, May 2, 2015.
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An Emirati girl wears a traditional outfit, worn in her village by elderly women, during the al-Gharbia Watersports festival poses near al-Mirfa beach, outside Abu Dhabi, May 2, 2015.
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Journalists with tape on their mouths gather on the occasion of World Press Freedom Day, Bujumbura, Burundi.
13 A North Korean boy plays with a toy pistol as elderly people gather around a gazebo at the Moranbong, or Moran Hill in Pyongyang, North Korea.
Floyd Mayweather, Jr. of the U.S. stands up on the
ropes in his corner after defeating Manny Pacquiao of the Philippines in their welterweight WBO, WBC and WBA (Super) title fight in Las Vegas, Nevada, May 2, 2015.
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A man shakes hands with a National Guard soldier outside City Hall in Baltimore, Maryland. State's Attorney Marilyn J. Mosby announced criminal charges Friday, against all six officers suspended after Freddie Gray suffered a fatal spinal injury in police custody.
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A child sits on steps at the Pashupathinath temple as funeral pyres burn six days after a massive earthquake struck Kathmandu, Nepal.
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People wave a second Spanish Republic flag (C) and Communist flags during a May Day rally in Malaga, Spain. International Workers' Day, also known as Labor Day or May Day, commemorates the struggle of workers in industrialized countries in the 19th century for better working conditions.
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Cars are set on fire by protesters during a rally against Expo 2015 in Milan, Italy. Italy opened the Expo on Friday, torn between hopes that the showcase of global culture and technology will cheer up a gloomy national mood and fears that it will be overshadowed by scandal, delays and street protests.
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People throw smoke grenades during the annual Labor Day protest in front of the Presidential Office in Taipei, Taiwan. Thousands of people marched to demand higher wages and labor rights. The head banner reads: "shorten working hours; no overfatigue."
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A man lies on the ground as Turkish police use a water cannon to disperse protestors during a May Day rally near Taksim Square in Istanbul.
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Workers display a banner calling to "Save Mary Jane Veloso," a Filipina migrant convicted of drug smuggling, who is due to be executed in Indonesia and other anti-government banners while marching towards the presidential palace in Manila. Veloso, 30, was spared from the firing squad after officials in Manila asked Indonesian President Jokowi Widodo to allow her to give evidence to an investigation into the network that allegedly recruited her.
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Fans watch a race before the 141th running of the Kentucky Oaks horse race at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. The famed Kentucky Derby race runs on Saturday.
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The pavilion of United Arab Emirates is seen at Expo 2015 in Milan, Italy. Italy opened the Milan Expo on Friday among street protests.
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Members of the New Orleans Mardi Gras Indian Rhythm Section, with the Algiers Warriors and Golden Comanche Mardi Gras Indians, march in a second line parade at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival in New Orleans, Louisiana.
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Belarussian children perform during the opening ceremony of the 31st European Rhythmic Gymnastics Championships in Minsk, Belarus.
14 Palestinians dressed as clowns pose for a picture during an event for children organized by the Pink Panther group to mark the day of the Palestinian clown, at the seaport in Gaza City.
The Nigerian army says it has freed another 150 people who were held captive by the militant group Boko Haram.
Army spokesman Colonel Sani Usman tells VOA that troops rescued about 100 children and 50 women on Wednesday as they fought their way through the Sambisa Forest in northeastern Nigeria. The vast forest holds many Boko Haram camps, and is believed to be the place where the group took many of the thousands of Nigerians it kidnapped over the past few years.
The army said it freed 200 girls and 93 women from the forest on Tuesday. Reporters have yet to see the former captives, and the military has released no photos of them.
The rescues have raised hopes that some of the 219 missing girls kidnapped from the town of Chibok last year will be found. However, initial statements from the army indicated that none of the Chibok girls were among those freed.
An army statement said the rescued captives were taken to a "safety zone" for processing, while a local security source, Muhammed Gava told journalists the girls were taken to Gumsuri village in the Damboa local government area.
Army spokesman Usman tells VOA that "some have started saying where they were from," or providing other information.
Usman says one soldier was killed and four others were injured in Wednesday's fighting. The army statement said troops killed several Boko Haram field commanders and foot soldiers and destroyed a number of large vehicles, including two armored personnel carriers. The army also said troops captured two tanks from the militants.
Nigeria, along with Chad, Cameroon and Niger, has pursued an offensive over the last three months that has cleared out most of the Nigerian towns and cities where Boko Haram was in control.
The Islamic extremist group continues to fight back. On Saturday, it attacked Karamga island in Lake Chad. The government of Niger says 46 soldiers and 28 civilians were killed in the ensuing gunbattle, along with 156 militants.
More than 10,000 people have been killed across northern Nigeria since Boko Haram launched its insurgency in 2009.
Male Circumcision has been proven to slow the spread of HIV/AIDS in Africa. But a new study shows that in the short-term the surgical technique could actually increase the risk of infection for female partners unless precautions are taken.
The World Health Organization says male circumcision can greatly reduce the risk of HIV infection. Major campaigns are underway to get nearly 29 million men circumcised.
Dr. Arron Tobian and his colleagues are studying the effects of circumcision. He’s an associate professor at the Bloomberg School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University.
“Three randomized trials, which are the gold standard of medical evidence, have shown that male circumcision decreases HIV acquisition by 50 to 60 percent in men. And follow-up studies have shown that the procedure may be even more efficacious than that 50 to 60 percent efficacy,” he said.
Male circumcision has other health benefits, as well.
“Male circumcision of HIV infected men has also been shown to decrease genital ulcers and human papilloma virus. Among HIV negative men male circumcision has also been shown to decrease genital herpes and human papilloma virus, which is a cause of penile cancer.”
Dr. Tobian said women benefit, too, when their male partner is circumcised.
“Among female partners married to circumcised men, it’s been shown that they have lower levels of bacterial vaginosis, trichomoniasis and human papilloma virus that causes cervical cancer,” he said.
The procedure also provides some protection for women by reducing their exposure to HIV from their male partners.
However, Tobian said, scientists studying HIV infected men in Uganda have discovered something unexpected and worrying about the procedure. There’s a greater risk of infection for women in the short term.
“Among circumcision of HIV infected men there were numerous observational studies that suggested male circumcision prior to puberty – during childhood – may decrease HIV transmission. However, one randomized trial of circumcision of adult men showed that there’s an increased HIV transmission to female partners if couples resumed intercourse prior to certified wound healing.”
Dr. Tobian said it takes four to six weeks to fully heal from male circumcision.
“HIV shedding significantly increased compared to prior to circumcision at week one, week two and week three. So, in the first few weeks after circumcision, HIV shedding significantly increased. However, by week six and by week 12 HIV shedding was actually significantly lower than compared to prior to circumcision,” he said.
Shedding is a term used, for example, when the virus is present in bodily fluids, such as semen or vaginal secretions.
Tobian said that while men are counseled not to have sexual intercourse during healing, many are, nevertheless. So, they are given condoms along with counseling.
Now, the study shows that the “likelihood of HIV transmission from a newly circumcised man to his female partner is less than one-tenth of one percent.” That’s sounds rather small. However, the study warns that since the World Health Organization aims to circumcise nearly 29-million men in the coming years, “that small increase could add up to 17,000 new infections among female partners.”
The Johns Hopkins associate professor added that antiretroviral drugs can be a major mitigating factor.
“Among those men who reported chronic antiretroviral therapy, they had significantly lower rates of HIV shedding during this entire wound healing period. It’s about 90 percent lower than among those men who are not reporting antiretroviral therapy,” he said.
The study recommended that men be placed on antiretroviral therapy at the time of circumcision. However, it’s not known yet how long the therapy should last or which drugs are most effective in such cases.
A senior U.S. diplomat told Burundian President Pierre Nkurunziza on Thursday that the east African country risks boiling over if it smothers political opposition, as protests against the president entered a fifth day.
Burundi unexpectedly closed its national university in the wake of political protests against the nomination of incumbent Nkurunziza to run for a third term.
Reports say the university in Bujumbura shut its doors on Thursday and sent home the students living in residence halls on campus.
At least five people have died in the protests that erupted after Saturday's controversial nomination, as police clashed with the hundreds of protesters that have marched in the streets in the days since then.
Critics of the nomination say allowing the incumbent president to run for a third term is unconstitutional.
U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Tom Malinowski speaks during press conference, Bujumbura, April 30, 2015.After meeting Nkurunziza, Malinowski told reporters he had urged him to allow peaceful criticism and room for political opposition before the June 26 vote.
"I left the president with the thought that this country with its very complicated and difficult history is like a boiling pot, and that if you try to put a lid on that pot it doesn't stop boiling. It risks boiling over," Malinowski said.
On Tuesday U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced he is his sending a special envoy for the Great Lakes Region, Said Djinnit, to Burundi to hold talks with the president, other government officials, and political party leaders.
The U.N. chief has called on security services to exercise restraint, and for all parties to reject violence and avoid inflammatory speech.
The United Nations refugee agency says more than 5,000 Burundian civilians have crossed into Rwanda since the weekend. It says most are women and children, who say they experienced intimidation and threats of violence related to the upcoming presidential election.
The protests began a day after the ruling CNDD-FDD party nominated Nkurunziza to run for the third term. The president's eligibility comes down to the wording of a peace agreement and the constitution.
Burundi's existing political structures were founded on the 2000 Arusha agreement, which brought to an end the civil war between Hutu and Tutsi factions that killed up to 300,000 people. That agreement says the president can serve no more than two terms in office.
But the 2005 constitution states the president must be elected through “universal direct suffrage,” interpreted to mean a popular vote. Nkurunziza was elected by parliament to his first term, so his supporters argue he is eligible to run again.
President Nkurunziza has faced revolt from within his own party over his presumed candidacy. Seventy-nine members of the ruling party wrote the president last month asking him not to seek office.
His government has been under fire from rights groups and the international community for excluding the opposition and silencing voices of dissent.
Rights groups have accused the ruling party of arming its youth wing, known as the Imbonerakure, and using them to attack opponents in the past. Human Rights Watch last month said members of the group assisted the police and military in executing 47 people following a confrontation with an unnamed armed group in northwestern Cibitoke province.
The international community, including the United Nations, the United States and the African Union, has urged Burundian political actors to respect the rule of law and hold fair elections.
The death toll from the earthquake in Nepal continues to rise, surpassing 6,200 people Friday. That number is expected to increase as rescue teams from around the world uncover bodies in rubble of the April 25 quake.
Nepal's government is giving $1,000 to the families of the dead plus $400 for burial costs.
In Kathmandu, the capital, the overwhelming smell of dead bodies has become a main reason many residents, who have been sleeping in the open since Saturday, cannot return to their homes.
The United Nations says more than eight million people were affected by the earthquake and at least two million have been displaced.
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Former comfort woman Kil Un-ock who was forced to serve the Japanese troops as a sexual slave during World War II, attends a rally against the visit by Japanese Prime Minster Shinzo Abe to the United States, in front of the Japanese Embassy in Seoul, South Korea.
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A small temple structure is seen undamaged amidst rubble of damaged buildings at the heritage town of Bhaktapur, following a 7.8 magnitude earthquake which struck the Himalayan nation of Nepal on April 25.
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A combination image by NASA from the Mercury Atmosphere and Surface Composition Spectrometer (MASCS) instrument aboard NASA's MESSENGER spacecraft shows the surface of the planet Mercury in this image released on April 28, 2015.
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Wearing traditional Korean dress, Buddhist believers holding lanterns walk by a lantern tower in the shape of a Buddhist temple pagoda to celebrate the upcoming Buddha's birthday on May 25 at the Gwanghwamun Plaza in Seoul, South Korea.
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An Israeli Arab wearing make-up takes part in a protest against housing shortage and house demolitions in Arab communities in Tel Aviv's Rabin Square, April 28, 2015.
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Chinese honor guards prepare for the arrival of Chinese Premier Li Keqiang and Algerian Prime Minister Abdelmalek Sellal during a welcome ceremony outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.
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A Yemeni airport official looks at a destroyed Felix Airways plane, after it was hit in an air strike, at the international airport of Yemen's capital, Sana'a.
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Models in costumes use their smartphones as they take a break at the Global Mobile Internet Conference in Beijing.
11 Nepalese woman searches for belongings amidst rubble at the heritage town of Bhaktapur.
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Nepalese police personnel carry earthquake survivor Pemba Tamang (C) on a stretcher after his rescue from a destroyed hotel building in Kathmandu. Rescuers pulled the 15-year-old boy alive from the rubble, bringing a rare moment of joy to the ruined capital city, five days after the disaster which killed nearly 6,000 people.
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Vietnamese veterans gather for a parade celebrating the 40th anniversary of the end of the Vietnam War which is also remembered as the fall of Saigon, in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
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Members of the National Guard patrol along Baltimore's Inner Harbor area in the aftermath of rioting following Monday's funeral for Freddie Gray, who died in police custody in the Maryland city.
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Books about Pakistan's Nobel Prize winner Malala Yousafzai, who survived a Taliban attack, are displayed at a bookstore in Islamabad. A Pakistani court on Thursday sentenced 10 militants to life in prison for their involvement in the 2012 attack on the teenage activist, a public prosecutor said.
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Two men carry a suitcase past a burning barricade in Bujumbura, Burundi, after the government issued and ordered all university campuses to close down. Bujumbura has been hit by street protests since Sunday as security forces confront demonstrators who say a third term for President Pierre Nkurunziza would violate the country's constitution.
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A woman walks through the Munich Documentation Center for the History of National Socialism, in Munich, Germany. The official inauguration of the visitor center marks the 70th anniversary of the liberation of Munich by U.S. troops.
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Russian soldiers march during a rehearsal for the Victory Day military parade which will take place at Dvortsovaya (Palace) Square on May 9 to celebrate 70 years after the victory in WWII, in St. Petersburg.
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Demonstrators wearing dark hoods, light flares during a demonstration in downtown Milan, to protest against the World Exposition Milano 2015 (Universal Exposition) saying that the massively indebted Italian state should not be ploughing money into an ephemeral event at a time of economic hardship for many Italians. The Expo will run from May 1-Oct. 31, with the theme Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life.
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A 2km-long rosary, which is said to be the longest rosary in the world, hangs around the Marian shrine at Our Lady of Lebanon religious site in Harissa, northeast of Beirut, Lebanon. By tradition, May is the month of devotion to the Virgin Mary for the Catholic Church.
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View of the Calbuco volcano from Puerto Montt, southern Chile. The volcano erupted again Thursday, releasing a large column of ash into the air just over a week after it spectacularly roared to life following half a century of inactivity.
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A woman takes an early morning walk past painted blue, yellow and red front doors - the colors of the current three main political parties in the U.K., Conservative, Liberal Democrat and Labour respectively - in Isleworth, west London, Britain. Britain goes to the polls in a national election on May 7.
12 Visitors walk through the Swarowski Crystal World museum on its reopening day following renovation, in the western Austrian village of Wattens.
LOOK BELOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
A spokesman for Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan said the rescue Tuesday of 200 girls and 93 women is a major breakthrough in the fight against terrorism.
Reuben Abati said it also reaffirms Jonathan’s promise to rescue the girls alive. He said the news is so big that it will gladden the hearts of all peace lovers around the globe.
Abati would not say whether the rescue had come too late following Jonathan’s loss during the March 28 election to challenger Muhamadu Buhari.
He said the rescue is more important to Jonathan than political ambition.
“Whatever is the real identity of the girls in terms of whether they are the girls from Chibok or girls from anywhere, I think that this is a major breakthrough in the fight against terror. It is a reaffirmation of President Jonathan’s commitment which he has stated again and again that his administration will ensure that the girls are rescued and will do everything possible to ensure that they are rescued alive,” he said.
“President Jonathan is leaving office on May 29th, and I think that personally he, too, must be happy that the operation in the northeast has recorded this huge success. The identity of the girls, whether they are from Chibok or from wherever, the fact that these are human beings who have been rescued from the captivity of terrorists is more important to him than political ambition,” he said.
President-elect Buhari has promised to "spare no effort" to defeat Islamist militant group Boko Haram.
"Boko Haram will soon know the strength of our collective will. We should spare no effort," Buhari said in his first formal speech since winning the election. "In tackling the insurgency, we have a tough and urgent job to do.
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