The World: Latest Stories

Today is International Jazz Day, declared by the United Nations in 2011 "to highlight jazz and its diplomatic role of uniting people in all corners of the globe." On this annual celebration of the smooth form of music, Puerto Rican folk musician Fabiola Mendez came into The World's studio to talk with Host Carolyn Beeler about her music and the traditional stringed instrument she plays, the cuatro.

After a long political impasse, Ali al-Zaidi has been tapped to become Iraq's new prime minister. A wealthy oligarch, al-Zaidi is seen as both a compromise candidate, but also a political outsider. The World's Host Marco Werman learned more from Hamzeh Hadad, an Iraqi political analyst with the Center for a New American Security, a Washington-based think tank.

Hungary's incoming prime minister is moving quickly to make his mark. Peter Magyar, who takes office next month, met top European officials in Brussels this week to set out his plans to restore the rule of law in Hungary. Billions of euros in EU funding have been withheld amid concerns about corruption and democratic backsliding under outgoing Prime Minister Viktor Orban. Magyar has promised voters he will unlock that money. But first, he must convince Brussels he can deliver reform. The World's Europe Correspondent Orla Barry reports.

Iran's late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei was killed on the first day of the US-Israeli attacks on Iran in February. His son, Mojtaba Khamenei, was quickly picked as the successor. But since his ascent to power, there has been no audio or video of him - only statements attributed to him. The World's Shirin Jaafari reports that evidence suggests the new supreme leader of Iran has been seriously injured and has nowhere near the power his late father had.

The keeping of livestock requires both maintaining a bond with the animals and effective communication. National Geographic Explorer Paul Salopek knows that from his own past as a cattle rancher in Mexico. And, as he tells Host Carolyn Beeler, so do the shepherds and nomads he has met along his global walking project, the Out of Eden Walk. He explains and demonstrates some of the language of animal husbandry.

For 19 days, the route up to the summit of Mount Everest was obstructed by a huge block of ice which held back climbers from fulfilling their dreams of getting to the top of the world's tallest mountain. Sherpas were brought in to clear the ice and, earlier this week, it slowly disintegrated, opening the way. Hosts Marco Werman and Carolyn Beeler have the details.

If you drive south, from the US, into Mexico, you'll notice some very different car brands on the roads. Increasingly, they are Chinese-made, and many of them are electric. From the Fronteras Desk at KJZZ, Nina Kravinsky reports from Hermosillo, Mexico, on how the US is responding, and what it means for the future of EVs in Mexico.

The sewage of some 300,000 people is being sent directly into Mexico's Lake Chapala. It's the source of water for 60% of residents of Guadalajara. Further downstream, international companies send industrial waste into the Santiago River. Studies have found that people in the area suffer kidney disease at higher-than-normal rates. What used to be known as a vacation destination has recently been dubbed a "slow moving Chernobyl." Glynis Board reports from Jalisco, Mexico.

The far-right has made great gains in Europe over the past couple of decades. In France, the RN, or National Rally, has gone from fringe movement to the largest party of the nation. The party is now hoping that its leader, 30-year-old Jordan Bardella, will win the French presidency next year. Host Marco Werman gets the details from Victor Mallet, senior editor with the Financial Times and author of "Far-Right France: Le Pen, Bardella and the Future of Europe."

Technical difficulties nearly scuttled the performance of the Canadian national anthem before last night's NHL match between the Buffalo Sabres and the Boston Bruins. But, when the singer's microphone cut out, the fans came together to finish the tune.

The United Arab Emirates says it will leave OPEC, a consortium of oil producing countries, effective May 1. That would strip the cartel of its third-largest producer and further weaken its leverage over global oil supplies and prices. Hosts Carolyn Beeler and Marco Werman explain.

Spain has been struggling for years to find people willing to live and work as shepherds. It can be tough, lonely work at times. But a new training program has found a way to fill those rural jobs: by tapping into Spain's immigrant and newly-arrived refugee communities, many of whom have shepherding experience back home and who love the idea of working with animals. The World's Gerry Hadden reports from Ciudad Real, in central Spain.

The Lost Boys of Sudan - that's the phrase commonly used to describe the refugees whose parents had been killed in Sudan's civil war more than 30 years ago. But not all of those young people were boys - including Rebecca Deng. She was one of the girls less often included in the telling of that history. So, she wrote a memoir about her experience and shares one story from the book with GBH'S Stories from the Stage.

The war in Iran has caused a massive crunch in the global supply chain. But nothing has been hit harder than jet fuel. Prices have more than doubled, tickets are getting costlier, and some airlines might not survive the crisis. The World's Transportation Correspondent Jeremy Siegel reports.

When Spain went dark for a day, on April 28, 2025, the tiny village of San Vicente del Monte went about business as usual. The town maintained power because of an experimental lithium battery that many other municipalities had declined to try out. The World's Gerry Hadden explains.This story originally aired on May 23, 2025.

The issue of plastic waste is not going anywhere. In fact, globally, we continue to generate more of it. In the EU, plastic packaging waste alone makes up about 16 million tons a year - and less than half of that is recycled. But across Europe, new recycling plants have been popping up, promising to recycle hundreds of thousands of tons of the particularly-hard-to-recycle stuff using a technology called chemical - or "advanced" - recycling. Deutsche Welle, DW's, investigative environmental journalists Dan Ashby and Lucy Taylor look into the idea.

The annual marmalade festival and competition is a contest that draws around 3,000 entries per year, and the whole town "goes orange," gathering at Dalemain Mansion in the UK for the event. Reporter Leo Hornak profiles some creators of very traditional recipes, as well as some from the "experimental" category. Judges say it can be hard not to get sick tasting about 60 marmalades in a row.

Hosts Marco Werman and Carolyn Beeler catch us up on a few stories flying just below the radar.

The World's Hosts Carolyn Beeler and Marco Werman take us in the way back machine, to 1993, and the first release by the Senegalese super group Africando. The name of this track is Gouye Gui. In the Wolof language, it refers to the massive baobab trees found across Senegal. The song is an homage to the baobab's symbolism of longevity and wisdom.

Robot news has been coming fast and furious this month. One robot won a half-marathon in Beijing, others captured a Russian position in Ukraine. And last week, we learned of a robotic arm that beat table-tennis champions at their own game. To learn about this moment in robotics, The World's Host Carolyn Beeler spoke with Kenechukwu Mbanisi. He's an assistant professor of robotics engineering at Olin College in Massachusetts.

Mali's military junta is fighting off coordinated attacks across the country that began this weekend. Led by Tuareg separatists and al-Qaeda-linked fighters, the country's defense minister was among those killed in one of the attacks. The joint militant forces have also claimed control of the northeastern city of Kidal. The Russian government-linked Africa Corps confirmed that it pulled out of the city. To help make sense of this complicated picture, The World's Host Marco Werman spoke to Ulf Laessing, a security analyst with the Konrad Adenauer Foundation.

Britain's King Charles and Queen Camilla are in the United States today for a four-day state visit marking the year of the 250th anniversary of US independence. The trip comes amid strained relations between London and Washington, after Britain resisted pressure to support US and Israeli strikes on Iran. The visit is being closely watched in London, where officials may be hoping it will help ease tensions between US President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. The World's Europe Correspondent Orla Barry joins Host Marco Werman.

They're just like normal, night-time raves, except totally different: They happen when other humans are having breakfast, and there are no alcohol or drugs in sight. The World's Gerry Hadden reports from a "coffee rave" in Barcelona.This story originally aired on Oct. 22, 2025.

In Syria on Sunday, landmark trials began that are expected to bring members of the Assad regime to justice. While the former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and others are being tried in absentia, Atef Najib, a former security chief - and the cousin of Bashar al-Assad - sat behind bars in the courtroom. The World's Host Marco Werman spoke to Amr Al-Azm, a Syrian historian at Shawnee State University, who joined from Doha.

The London Marathon yesterday saw a major record-breaking moment. It was the first time two competitors ran the race in under two hours. Sabastian Sawe of Kenya and Yomif Kejelcha of Ethiopia ran the marathon in 1:59:30 and 1:59:41, respectively. The World's Host Carolyn Beeler talks to David Monti, editor and publisher of Race Results Weekly, about this stunning record.

Last week, the US data and spy tech company Palantir posted a 22-point manifesto on the social media platform X. Based on a book by the firm's CEO, Alex Karp, the manifesto - variously described as the ramblings of a super-villain" and a parody of a RoboCop film" - has renewed concern about the aspirations and motivations of a company that is increasingly embedded in state infrastructure on both sides of the Atlantic. It's the contract with Britain's National Health Service that has proven the most controversial, as Lars Bevanger reports from Manchester.

In Mexico, the constitution guarantees universal health care. But for many, access remains out of reach. Long wait times, overcrowded clinics and persistent gaps in the system are pushing millions to seek care elsewhere - including low-cost pharmacy clinics. Now, the government says it plans to expand access and unify the system. But questions remain about whether those reforms can succeed without more funding and resources. The World's Tibisay Zea reports from Mexico City on the gap between coverage on paper and care in practice.

A ceasefire is holding in Iran and life is slowly returning to a sort-of normal, as people grapple with the impacts of the war on their country. Some business owners have had to close up shop, and have no income. Others have seen their operations disrupted because of the ongoing internet blackout in the country. The World's Shirin Jaafari explains where things stand now.

Increasingly, European military readiness is bound up with its ability to respond to rapidly developing technology, such as drones. And the Ukrainian experience is showing that in this field, smaller, more agile security tech start-ups are playing an increasingly significant role. Ben Bathke was in Estonia's capital Tallinn to meet up with Ragnar Sass, an Estonian tech entrepreneur who has pivoted towards defense.

Representatives from over 50 countries are meeting in Colombia to discuss how to transition away from fossil fuels. Laura Ballesteros is among the attendees. She's a member of the Mexican Chamber of Deputies and represents the center-left party Movimiento Ciudadano - or Citizens' Movement." She spoke to The World's Host Carolyn Beeler from the conference in Santa Marta, Colombia.

A meeting of the G7 nations on the environment kicked off in Paris yesterday, but two words were barred from the agenda: "climate" and "change." France's ecology minister said all the ministers wanted to avoid a dispute with US President Donald Trump, who dismisses climate change as "fake news." The World's Gerry Hadden reports.

For years now, the north of Cameroon has been dealing with both separatist and militant insurgencies. The violence has displaced hundreds of thousands of people and the UN reports it has impacted the education of some 250,000 children. The International Rescue Committee has warned that girls are especially impacted as "hidden victims" of the conflict. The World's Host Carolyn Beeler learns more from Antoinette Chibi, IRC's country director for Cameroon and the Central African Republic.

Temperature readings jump dramatically, right after someone bets a lot of money that it will be a hot day. What could explain it? A police investigation into apparent tampering with weather sensors at Paris's Charles de Gaulle airport suggests that someone tried to change reality, to match their wager. Host Carolyn Beeler has more.

The Brazilian state of Bahia is home to some of the biggest names in Brazilian music, particularly Gilberto Gil and Caetano Veloso. A new voice from the state, singer-songwriter Melly, scored a Latin Grammy nomination with her debut album, "Amarissima." Melly has been performing in bars since she was 16. Born in a poor family with a dad who played in samba-reggae bands, Melly had to overcome a lot to pursue a career in pop music in Brazil, particularly as a Black, LGBTQ woman. Reporting from Bahia, Gisele Regatao has her story.

A rain bomb is an enormous amount of rain, dumped practically all at once, by hurricane-force winds blowing directly into the ground. Rain bombs can be deadly and they're really hard to predict. "Rain Bombs" is the title of a new documentary from The World's partners at NOVA. Sue van den Heever is an atmospheric scientist at Colorado State University and is featured in the documentary. She recently spoke to Host Carolyn Beeler.

Viragezero is a Swiss super group in Geneva. All five musicians got together after having success with other bands in the city's vibrant music scene. As they get ready to hit the road and play summer music festivals in Europe, perhaps more songs like "Larmes De Feu" will be written in the back of their tour van. Host Carolyn Beeler has the details.

The late Kim Il Sung - the founding leader of North Korea's communist regime - is forever enshrined as the country's "Eternal President." It's a powerful cult of personality from which the regime still draws much of its authority. Kim himself was deeply religious - he was raised as a devout Christian. The modern North Korean state tries to keep the religious upbringing of its founder hidden, but it's really what enabled the regime's rise in the first place. That's the subject of Jonathan Cheng's new book, "Korean Messiah: Kim Il Sung and the Christian Roots of North Korea's Personality Cult." He joins Host Marco Werman to talk about it.

A 1995 law in the Philippines dictated that all salt sold in the country had to be iodized because of iodine deficiency among Filipinos. That led to the closing of many artisanal salt making businesses, mostly small family operations. But the Slow Food movement is trying to change that. From Negros Island, reporter Dany Mitzman has the story.

Israeli forces have killed Lebanese journalist Amal Khalil and injured her photographer colleague Zeinab Faraj in what officials in Lebanon are calling a war crime. The journalists were heading to southern parts of the country when they came under attack. They took shelter at an abandoned building, but according to The Committee to Protect Journalists and the Red Cross, the Israeli military stopped rescuers from reaching them. The World's Shirin Jaafari reports.

Thousands of Afghans who served as interpreters, security contractors and drivers alongside US troops were promised safe passage to the United States. Now, many are in limbo. About 1,100 former partners and their families are currently stranded at a former US military base in Qatar. Shawn VanDiver, president of the aid group AfghanEvac tells The World's Host Marco Werman that the Trump administration is considering sending the Afghans to Democratic Republic of Congo.

Lupita Infante is the granddaughter of Mexican cultural icon Pedro Infante, but she is also an artist in her own right, carrying legacies from both sides of her family. Lupita is charting a new path for herself, while honoring and questioning the mariachi culture she's inherited. In this conversation, she discusses her artistic path with Meklit Hadero of the "Movement" podcast.

What, exactly, do we think of as "home." Is it a place? A feeling? Is it people? Sharing her experience on GBH's Stories from the Stage, Christine Boutros tells us how she learned to redefine "home" when her son moved halfway across the globe.

Spain shocked lots of people last year when it announced it would grant working papers to hundreds of thousands of immigrants who'd come to Spain without permission. The government calls it just and necessary. But it wasn't prepared for a deluge of applications pouring in during the first few days. The World's Gerry Hadden reports from Barcelona.

Four years ago, the Restoration Ecology team at Flinders University in Adelaide, Australia, published new research that uses super-sensitive microphones to listen to and analyze the health of soil. The researchers say this new method could replace traditional ones, which are expensive, disruptive and laborious. Reporter Bianca Hillier reports.This story originally aired on Sept. 18, 2024.

European Union envoys seem set to unblock a $106 billion loan for Kyiv, now that Ukraine is once again sending Russian oil to Europe. Officials in Kyiv have called the funding "a matter of life and death." Phillips Payson O'Brien tells The World's Host Marco Werman that Ukrainians are increasingly viewing the US as a foe.

In a 10-minute speech over the weekend, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney laid out a strategy for the country to move forward without economic or military support from the United States. He told Canadians that "the world is more dangerous and divided," and the US has changed its approach to former allies. Hosts Carolyn Beeler and Marco Werman explain.

Another ripple effect of the Iran war is reshaping the Caucasus. Armenia, Azerbaijan and Turkey, nations long divided by closed borders and bitter disputes, are showing signs of cooperation - with plans to reopen key trade routes. From Deutsche Welle, DW's, Inside Europe program, Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul on the real promise these proposals hold.

Over the last decade, China has become a leader in manufacturing solar panels, batteries and electric vehicles. As oil and gas prices rise, countries are increasingly importing this infrastructure. Host Marco Werman speaks with Kate Mackenzie of "The Polycrisis" podcast about how this translates to soft power for China.

Nothing like a little light-hearted pop music to shift the mood. Co-hosts Marco Werman and Carolyn Beeler give a listen to an indie-pop quartet from Stuttgart, Germany, called Rikas.

Elections are supposed to give people a say in who governs their country, but nature can have an impact on elections. A report out today from the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance found nearly 100 cases of disaster-disrupted" elections between 2006 and 2025. The World's Host Carolyn Beeler spoke to Erik Asplund, a co-author of the study.