Thanks to http://gandalf.ddo.jp/ for audio and text Friday, September 19th, 2014 From Washington, this is VOA news. Scotland awaits the results of a referendum on its future within the United Kingdom, and the U.N. Security Council calls for greater action to fight the Ebola virus. I'm Michael Lipin reporting from Washington. Scottish voters are awaiting the 1st results from a referendum on whether to secede from Britain and break up a 307-year union with England. Initial results from Thursday's vote are expected in the coming hours. British media say the turnout for the vote was very high, with some constituencies reporting that 90% of their voters took part. A survey based mostly on responses from people who went to polling stations was released after the voting ended, showing the anti-independence "No" campaign with an advantage. The survey by market research company, YouGov, gives the "No"s a lead of 54 –to-46% for the pro-independence "Yes" campaign. Most major British media companies decided not to conduct exit polls during the referendum. Guinean authorities say villagers have killed an Ebola education team in the country's southeast. Officials said Thursday the attack on the 7 local health care workers and journalists happened in the town of Wome, where the team had disappeared 2 days ago. World leaders and organizations have expressed concern about security in West Africa as the Ebola virus spreads. An estimated 2,600 people have died in the outbreak. The U.N. Security Council held an emergency meeting on the virus on Thursday, declaring it to be a threat to international peace and security. The council unanimously adopted a resolution calling on member nations to devote more resources to the crisis. This is VOA news. The U.S. Senate has approved a key part of President Barack Obama's plan to defeat Islamic State militants who have seized large areas of Iraq and Syria. Senators voted 78-22 on Thursday to authorize the equipping and training of pro-Western Syrian rebels to battle the militants, also known as ISIS. The House of Representatives already passed the measure a day earlier, meaning it now goes to the President for signature. VOA's Michael Bowman has more on why senators overwhelmingly backed the President's appeal to support his military strategy. Democratic Senator Bill Nelson said Congress should vote on a broad authorization, but for now, approving action in Syria is a step forward. "When it comes to Syria, and that's where the head of the ISIS snake is, and if you are going to kill the snake, you've got to go to where the head is and chop it off.” The measure was attached to a spending bill that will keep the U.S. government funded into December. But even among senators who voted yes, many have reservations about President Obama's plan, Congress' reaction to it, or both. Among them is Republican Senator John McCain. "The administration says that U.S. forces will not have a combat role. Why does the President insist on continuing to tell the enemy what he won't do? Why is it that the President of the United States keeps telling the people that are slaughtering 1000s, 'Don't worry, we won't commit ground troops'?” Michael Bowman, VOA news, the Capitol. Nigerian authorities say gunmen have attacked a college in northern Nigeria, killing at least 15 people and wounding dozens of others. Officials say the attackers shot at fleeing students and set off an explosion during Wednesday's raid. A Nigerian police spokesman said officers arrived on the scene and killed 2 of the assailants. No one has claimed responsibility for the attack in the city of Kano. But the Islamist militant group Boko Haram has repeatedly targeted civilians in the country's north. President Obama is offering additional security assistance to Ukraine to help it deal with a pro-Russian separatist rebellion. Mr. Obama made the offer on Thursday as he held talks at the White House with visiting Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko. The U.S. President promised another $53,000,000 in aid to Ukraine. The figure includes $46,000,000 to strengthen Ukraine's security capabilities and $7,000,000 in humanitarian aid. Mr. Obama praised his Ukrainian counterpart for brokering a recent cease-fire in the separatist conflict in eastern Ukraine. Ukrainian President Poroshenko later told reporters he hopes the 2-week-old cease-fire will hold. That's the latest world news from VOA.

• published: 19 Sep 2014
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