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The World: Latest Stories

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Updated 2025-10-28 12:33
Israel's hurried school reopenings serve as a cautionary tale
As schools around the world plan for the fall semester, many are looking to Israel — where COVID-19 outbreaks swept through the educational system after a hurried reopening — as an example of what could go wrong.
Major environmental groups join Facebook ad boycott to protest climate misinformation
The Natural Resources Defense Council, Earthjustice and 350.org are joining more than 1,000 companies in pausing their advertising on Facebook in July as part of the “Stop Hate for Profit” campaign. Other environmental groups have hesitated to get on board.
Turkey passes ‘draconian’ social media legislation
Turkey’s parliament approved a law early Wednesday that gives authorities greater power to regulate social media despite concerns of growing censorship.
Isolation may be a greater risk than COVID-19 for residents of Canada's nursing homes
Canada's nursing homes were hit especially hard by the coronavirus. To protect residents, provincial governments issued lockdown measures and shut out families. But some experts argue that confinement and isolation can do more harm than good.
As Cuba battles coronavirus, activists see an opening to protest police brutality
Cuba stands out as a success story as it battles COVID-19. At the same time, it has seen renewed public attention around police brutality. Despite top-down efforts to silence dissent, activists say they are making some headway.
The pandemic has disrupted how we grieve. The effects could be long-lasting.
The nature of the coronavirus has interrupted many rituals of mourning, from visiting the bedsides of the dying to holding funerals. That could lead to mental health impacts down the line, says psychiatry professor Dr. Harvey Chochinov.
Africa must invest 'in human capital' to fight the coronavirus, says Africa CDC director
South Africa had one of the strictest coronavirus lockdown measures. But as COVID-19 cases continue to rise, the nation returns to a strict lockdown. Host Marco Werman speaks to Dr. John Nkengasong, director of the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, about his outlook for the pandemic in Africa.
Bringing down barriers for travelers with disabilities in Korea
A South Korean globe-trotter and wheelchair user advocates for more accessible tourism.
Canada judge rules sending asylum-seekers back to the US violates their rights
A Canadian judge ruled the bilateral agreement between the US and Canada violates asylum-seekers’ rights because of what happens after people are turned back to the US.
Netflix's ‘Indian Matchmaking’ stirs conversation about tradition, colorism and caste
The show is meant to be lighthearted and fun, but for some, it’s controversial.
How does a country’s culture predict its pandemic response?
Professor Michele Gelfand uses “tight” and “loose” to categorize various societies around the globe based on the strength of social norms and applies this to what we can learn about the range of pandemic responses around the world.
'Special Friends' dolls reflect the lives of children with special needs
When Victoria Band's son was diagnosed with hearing loss, she wished she could give him a doll with hearing aids to reflect his disability. Last year, she started her own line of dolls with scars, cleft lips, hearing aids and oxygen tanks.
Federal agents could drive 'even further divisions in our city and our country,' says Kansas City mayor
President Donald Trump announced the expansion of a program to send federal agents to several US cities to crack down on violent crime. The World spoke to Quinton Lucas, the mayor of Kansas City, Missouri, about the arrival of some 200 agents in his city this month.
‘The mother of all injustices is climate change,’ says former diplomat and climate change leader
Christiana Figueres, the founder of Global Optimism, believes that a determined, optimistic mindset is crucial in the struggle for climate justice.
Expulsions, pushbacks and extraditions: Turkey’s war on dissent extends to Europe
The Gülenists, dubbed by Turkey as FETO, the Fethullahist Terror Organization, are being purged on a massive scale. Those who have been accused include scientists, schoolteachers, policemen and journalists.
This Mexico City architect transformed an empty public square into a storytelling stage
As the coronavirus lockdown forced people indoors, Percibald García, an architect, grabbed a microphone and portable speaker and began doing readings of children’s stories in an empty public square in Mexico City.
The future of our pandemic
In recent weeks, many states have seen significant increases in COVID-19 cases. What will it take to change the trajectory?
Battle of the bums: Museums compete over best artistic behinds
Since April, the Yorkshire Museum has hosted 18 different #CuratorBattles under themes such as #CreepiestObject and #BestEgg. One of its latest is #BestMuseumBum.
Why is Brazil's Bolsonaro peddling hydroxychloroquine despite the science?
The Brazilian president has used his illness as a platform to sell both his cynicism about the coronavirus and social restrictions, and his praise for chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine.
Schiff warns Congress must be prepared for foreign interference in 2020 election
House Intelligence Committee chair Rep. Adam Schiff, along with other Democratic lawmakers, wrote a letter this week demanding a prompt FBI briefing on a "foreign interference campaign" targeting the 2020 election.
Finland's national word 'sisu' conjures new meanings for tough times
In a country of 5.5 million, Finland has had just over 320 deaths from the coronavirus. So far, they’ve succeeded in containing the disease. And they’re not making a big deal about it. By some measures, this might be quintessential sisu.
Shipwrecked scent: A perfumer re-creates a 150-year-old fragrance
A ship called the Mary Celestia sank in 1864 off the coast of Bermuda. About 150 years later, divers visiting the shipwreck uncovered a perfectly preserved bottle of perfume. Perfumer Isabelle Ramsay-Brackstone worked to re-create the 150-year-old scent.
The pandemic upended this Latino teen's senior year. Now it's upended his politics.
The coronavirus pandemic turned Jacob Cuenca’s life upside down just before he graduated high school. It's also changed his politics. The Latino teen, who registered as a Republican in March, has switched from a reluctant supporter of President Donald Trump to hesitant supporter of presumptive Democratic nominee Joe Biden.
Mass arrests in Zimbabwe over coronavirus regulation violations
Officials say the arrests stem from so-called violations of coronavirus-related sanitation and safety measures. But critics say these arrests specifically target opposition voices. Dr. Norman Matara, with the Zimbabwe Association of Doctors for Human Rights in Chinhoyi, Zimbabwe, spoke with The World's Carol Hills.
In Mexico, the unending drug war takes its toll with thousands of disappearances
A report issued on July 14 by Mexico’s National Search Commission said 73,218 people have been confirmed missing since 1964, and almost all of them — 71,678 — since 2006 when organized crime and drug-trafficking violence in the country began to increase.
Jane Goodall: 60 years of research, activism and inspiration
Sixty years ago, in July 1960, Goodall arrived in what is now Gombe National Park, Tanzania, to begin her groundbreaking research on chimpanzees, and ever since, Goodall has been advocating for conservation of the natural world. Goodall believes COVID-19 emerged "entirely because of our disrespect for animals and the natural world.”
Need to release stress? Scream into Iceland’s abyss.
A new stress-relieving campaign, rooted in primal therapy, asks people across the globe to record their screams and submit them online to be played in wide-open spaces in Iceland.
Why US immigration judges are leaving the bench in record numbers
The US immigration system is situated within the Department of Justice, a law enforcement agency. That's always been a problem, explains Judge Ashley Tabaddor. But under the Trump administration, immigration judges have faced "unprecedented micromanagement" — and it's causing many of them to resign or retire early.
Documenting ISIS' crimes is daunting. Coronavirus makes it even harder.
ISIS no longer holds territory but the crimes it committed are fresh in the minds of survivors and families of victims. Collecting, preserving and documenting the terror group’s crimes has been slow but ongoing. Now, progress is even harder given the pandemic.
In Karachi, planting dense urban forests could save the city from extreme heat
Extreme heat often hovers over Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city. But each time Shahzad Qureshi transforms a barren patch of land into a dense, urban forest, he helps his city adapt to extreme urban heat.
BLM brings new hope for Wales family seeking justice for Black teen’s death
Last year, 13-year-old Christopher Kapessa, who was Black, drowned when a schoolmate allegedly pushed him into a river. Now, the global Black Lives Matter movement has given the family new hope the suspect will be prosecuted.
Israel considers a second lockdown as coronavirus cases surge
Israeli officials took quick action against the coronavirus this spring and reduced the rate of infections to one of the lowest in the world. The situation is quite different today. Experts say Israel went from being a model for other nations to a cautionary tale on what happens when a nation opens too much and too quickly.
For this Latina artist in New York, goodbye to all that Goya
Artist Ysabel Turner says she realized years ago that she needed to divorce her Puerto Rican identity from the Goya brand. She used her photographic series to do just that.
Chinese students who once set their sights on US schools now weigh other options
Many Chinese families have staked their futures on education in the US but more and more are wondering if it’s worth the risk.
Abortion is a protected right in Spain. But the govt blocked a website that provides abortion info and pills.
Since becoming legal in 1985, right-wing politicians have periodically made feeble attempts to limit or ban access to abortions. Each time it happens though, the action is met with strong pushback from the public.
Bees led this author to reconnect to a childlike joy in nature
When author Brigit Strawbridge Howard realized she wanted to recapture her childhood connection to nature, she chose the humble bee as ambassador to the world she wanted to explore. She documents her experience in her new book "Dancing with Bees: A Journey Back to Nature."
Bogotá tries ‘staggered quarantine’ to slow coronavirus spread
Officials in Bogotá, Colombia are ordering residents in some boroughs to stay in their homes for two-week intervals in hopes that staggering a shutdown across swaths of the city will allow most economic activity to continue while slowing the rate of coronavirus infections.
The problem with offers of citizenship to those fleeing Hong Kong
Physicist Yangyang Cheng was born in mainland China and took advantage of a visa program a decade ago to come to the United States to study. She says she's troubled by the language politicians and governments are using to promote resettlement policies for Hong Kong residents.
Trump, Biden boost efforts to reach Texas Latino voters
With four months left until Election Day in November, US presidential candidates are ramping up their efforts to court Latino voters.
US toughens its stance against Chinese aggression in South China Sea
In a statement this week, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said the world will not allow Beijing to treat the South China Sea as its "maritime empire." Bonnie S. Glaser, senior director for Asia at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, joins The World's Carol Hills to discuss the significance of this policy shift and what it means for China-US relations.
'Love is essential': Some EU countries relax rules for separated cross-border couples
Closed borders during the coronavirus pandemic have taken long-distance relationships to a whole new level. Now, some countries are providing sweet relief for cross-border couples. Norway's new rules took effect July 15.
A heat wave in Siberia signals dangerous Arctic warming
Siberia hit a record-high temperature of 100.4 degrees Fahrenheit on June 20 in the town of Verkhoyansk, north of the Arctic Circle. Scientists say it is an ominous sign of things to come. “I was shocked at the magnitude of it ..." says Susan Natali, Arctic program director at Woods Hole Research Center.
Could llama antibodies be the key to a coronavirus treatment?
Researchers discovered that a special type of antibody found in llamas could be vital in fighting the coronavirus infection in humans. The World speaks to professor James Naismith, the director of the Rosalind Franklin Institute in the UK, and lead researcher in a new study on llama antibodies.
Washington NFL team retires racial slur from its name and logo
It’s a demand that Indigenous activists have been demanding for years. But it may be too early to call it a victory. “...Until we actually see what that replacement is, I think it’s probably too early to celebrate," said Tristan Ahtone, president of the Native American Journalists Association. "The team still could come back with native-themed imagery."
Banksy unveils new pandemic-inspired art featuring rats in face masks
His latest work, titled “If you don't mask - you don't get,” is set in London's Underground and features spray-painted rats sneezing, wearing masks and using hand sanitizer.
Scientists grapple with questions around coronavirus immunity
If one thing is clear about this teeny tiny new coronavirus, it’s that it has changed the world. Its mark is massive. But SARS-CoV-2 is still clouded in mystery, and front and center in this puzzle is understanding immunity.
He's out of prison and has COVID-19. But he's still sheltering from ICE.
After spending almost his entire adult life in a cell, Chanthon Bun was released from prison July 1 and expected to be put in ICE custody for potential deportation. But ICE agents never showed up — and it may be due to a public campaign to keep immigrants out of ICE detention during the coronavirus pandemic.
Protesters in Mali call for president to step down
In recent years, Mali has experienced a combination of security challenges, including growing violence from armed militias and terrorist groups that has displaced more than a million people in the Sahel region, and killed thousands, including Malian and foreign troops.
Former US diplomat attests to racial discrimination in diplomatic corps
Tianna Spears says she faced racial discrimination as a US consular officer abroad. "America loses, first of all, when we're not an inclusive society and when we're not welcoming to others," she told The World. "But secondly, when we're overseas at our embassies and consulates abroad, we have a great opportunity to advance diplomacy and show what America truly represents."
Online learning is a big struggle in formerly ISIS-controlled Mosul
Students in the city of Mosul in northern Iraq saw their education come to a stop when ISIS took over their city. In 2017, Iraqi and American forces liberated the city but reconstruction has been painfully slow and online learning during the COVID-19 pandemic has proven difficult.
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