News of the Day From Across the Globe

South Sudan’s army has burned people alive, raped and shot girls, and forced tens of thousands from their homes, according to interviews with survivors corroborated by human rights groups.

The scorched-earth campaign is apparently aimed at driving civilians out of the rebel-controlled parts of an oil-rich state, according to Human Rights Watch.

The tactics, which include the alleged burning of grain stocks and the looting of life-sustaining property like cattle, are believed to be part of efforts to drain the rebels of their support base.

According to an official statement, another 65,000 people were treated for heat-related illnesses.

Reports two years ago that Merkel’s phone had been targeted by the NSA prompted diplomatic friction between Berlin and Washington, but German prosecutors recently dropped their probe into the case citing lack of concrete evidence.

The Russian energy giant Gazprom announced Wednesday that it had halted deliveries of natural gas to Ukraine because of a pricing dispute amid heightened political tensions.

Ukraine claims that it can supplement its gas supplies by purchasing Russian gas exports from other countries, like Slovakia.

Programs will include promoting health, eradicating disease, bringing electricity to remote villages, building orphanages and schools and “empowering women.”