World Tour: Children lost in Amazon survived

MARY REICHARD, HOST: Coming up next on The World and Everything in It: World Tour with Onize Ohikere.

ONIZE OHIKERE, REPORTER: Tunisia migration — We begin today’s roundup in Tunisia.

SOUND: [Arrival]

European leaders visiting the North African country over the weekend pledged more than $1 billion in financial aid as they seek to curb illegal migration into Europe.

Leaders from Italy, the Netherlands, and the European Commission attended the Sunday talks. The leaders also pledged investment in undersea data cables and renewable energy and support for Tunisia’s border operations as part of a five-point support program.

Here’s European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen:

URSULA VON DER LEYEN: We will support Tunisia to strengthen its economy.

Tunisia’s economic struggles have pushed more people to risk dangerous journeys across the Mediterranean Sea into Europe. The country also serves as a major transit point for other Africans.

SOUND: [Speaking Arabic]

Tunisian’s President Kais Saied is saying the migrants are victims of a global system that treats them as numbers.

He made the comment during a surprise stop at a migrant camp in the coastal city of Sfax ahead of the meeting.

Last week, European Union member countries also agreed to share responsibility for migrants who enter the continent illegally.

China-Honduras relations — Next to China, where Honduran President Xiomara Castro is on day three of a six-day visit.

SOUND: [Ceremony]

Honduras opened an embassy in Beijing in a further attempt to cement relations with the Communist country.

China’s state media said Honduras will still need to choose a permanent location and increase its staff.

SOUND: [Speaking Spanish]

Honduran Foreign Minister Enrique Reina says he hopes the relations with China will create new opportunities.

On Monday, Castro and China’s President Xi Jinping signed 17 bilateral agreements, including in economy, trade, and education.

In March, Honduras established formal relations with China after breaking ties with Taiwan. China considers Taiwan a breakaway region and has increased its military threats against the island.

Germany NATO drills — Next, to Germany.

SOUND: [Airplane]

NATO launched its biggest air deployment exercise yet on Monday.

The Germany-hosted “Air Defender 23” exercises include practicing how to respond to a simulated attack on a NATO member.

The drill includes about 250 aircraft from 25 NATO and other partner countries.

Sweden, which is hoping to join the alliance, and also Japan joined the exercise.

SOUND: [Speaking German]

Germany’s air force chief saying the exercise shows that NATO members and its allies are able to defend themselves.

Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine has prompted NATO nations to prepare for a possible attack on its territory.

Colombia children — We end today in Colombia’s capital, Bogota.

SOUND: [Thanksgiving ceremony]

Indigenous community members held a thanksgiving ceremony on Sunday after rescuers found four Indigenous children alive 40 days after their plane crashed.

The siblings aged 13, 9, 4, and 1 are still receiving treatment at a hospital in Bogota after their Friday rescue.

They were on board a single-engine propeller plane with their mother, a guide, and the pilot when it crashed in the Amazon jungle on May 1.

Authorities found the bodies of the adults on the crash site two weeks later.

Colombia’s army deployed 150 soldiers with dogs into the area. Volunteers from Indigenous tribes joined the search.

The soldiers found the children three miles away from the crash site in a small forest clearing. They used helicopters to pull the children up since the dense rainforest prevented them from landing.

SOUND: [Speaking Spanish]

This volunteer rescuer says the children asked for rice pudding and bread after their rescue. Authorities said the children were familiar with the forest and survived by eating cassava flour and seeds.

That’s it for this week’s World Tour.

Reporting for WORLD, I’m Onize Ohikere in Abuja, Nigeria.

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