The World: Latest Stories

Two medical doctors — a brother and sister — are fighting the pandemic. She's in the US. He's in India.

In her latest record, “Vulture Prince,” Pakistani composer Arooj Aftab uses words from Urdu poet Mirza Ghalib and 11th-century Persian poet Jalāl ad-Dīn Mohammad Rūmī, alongside electronic samples and touches of jazz trumpet.

​​​​​​​Syria is set to hold presidential elections this month. Syrians in Turkey view the exercise with cynicism and bitterness.

Two months after being designated a terrorist organization in Canada, the group has disbanded, saying that it never posed a threat, as claimed by Ottawa officials.

​​​​​​​South Africa's resumption of COVID-19 vaccinations has coincided with an extra 1.1 million vaccine doses that were produced locally by South African company Aspen Pharmacare.

Leonid Volkov joins The World from Vilnius, the Lithuanian capital, to give an update on Alexei Navalny's health status and the future of their political opposition movement in Russia, after being designated as "extremists."

Three-quarters of Brazil’s poor are Black or multiracial. And they have felt the brunt of the pandemic more than any other population in the country.

A 188-page report on police brutality finds that the US has two systems of justice — one for white people and another for Black people.

As governments the world over prioritize medical workers for vaccines, thousands in Mexico’s private health care sector say they’re being passed over.

Just a few months into its rollout, COVAX is now short tens of millions of doses. It has shipped some 50 million vaccines to low- and middle-income countries. It’s a fraction of what it had hoped to get out by now, and an even tinier fraction of what’s actually needed.

“The entire Jewish community is traumatized," said Abraham Nahoum, one of 20,000 protesters demanding justice for Sarah Halimi, 65, a retired doctor who was killed in 2017.

In Turkey, a center that helped get children and youth off the streets has been closed for more than a year amid the pandemic.

Turkish Cypriot and Greek Cypriot leaders, along with other stakeholders, are discussing potential solutions to what’s widely known as the “Cyprus issue.”

Under a new policy that deems certain parts of Syria safe to return, some Syrian refugees now face deportation and, in some cases, family separations. The European Union, the United States and numerous human rights groups have condemned the decision.

Single adults make up about 80% of border apprehensions — and men are in the majority — when trying to cross into the United States.

Armenia and human rights advocates around the globe applauded Biden’s move, while Turkey responded with furor.

The Defense Production Act has historically allowed the US to prioritize American needs in times of crisis. In an abrupt shift, the Biden administration will allow shipments of raw materials for the manufacture of COVID-19 vaccines to India, explains Matt Kavanagh, an assistant professor of global health at Georgetown University.

The fracking boom has transformed large swaths of rural America, turning towns from idyllic to industrial and threatening the physical and mental health of many inhabitants.

When it comes to democracy, less may be more.

Canada's Supreme Court has ruled 7-2 in favor of Rick Desautel, a man from Washington state who was charged with illegally hunting an elk in British Columbia in 2010.

This Oscar contender mixes fantastical folktales and Irish history to tell a story that feels fresh.

Shifting attitudes about narcotics in Thailand have reached restaurants. From stir-fries and rich curries to tempura-fried leaves, chefs are experimenting with cannabis flavors.

Social and environmental concerns are now being embraced by corporate America. Here’s why.

Law enforcement agencies across the US and in Minneapolis ramped up their forces in anticipation of the Derek Chauvin verdict. Advocates say that decision, in and of itself, shows that the US can’t solve its police brutality problems on its own, and needs international oversight.

“What will our future sound like?” That's the question hundreds of artists like Dilo have answered in a new musical project that celebrates nature.

Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, the first African and female director-general of the World Trade Organization, talks to The World about her work priorities and her recent book, "Women and Leadership: Real Lives, Real Lessons."

Unlike smartphones, our mental hardware is tremendously changeable. Here’s how our remarkably nimble brains rewire themselves.

Alfreda Daniels Juasemai, a community organizer and co-founder of Black Immigrant Collective in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, says the Chauvin verdict doesn't offer much hope.

Idriss Déby's death has spurred a dizzying, 360-degree change of course for Chad, which was nearing the end of an election that was projected to give the president a sixth term in office.

For Earth Day this year, President Biden is convening leaders from around the world for a virtual conference on the climate emergency.

In France, an antique collector has buried two halves of a key that will unlock a golden casket worth nearly $1 million. Find out how the “The Golden Treasure of the Entente Cordiale" treasure hunt hails back to the days of King Edward VII.

The World's Marco Werman spoke with former US Ambassador to Russia Michael McFaul about recent events between the United States and Russia.

High-stakes peace talks are planned in Turkey — though the timing is unclear — and many Afghans in the country are filled with a mix of emotions about their homeland's future.

A German court has ruled that a rent freeze introduced by the Berlin state government in 2019 was unconstitutional. Tenants’ organizations in Berlin say they are taking their campaign for a rent cap nationwide.

Millions of farmworkers across the US work under inhumane climate conditions, and are now pushing for more protections.

Vladimir Milov tells The World that after the third week of Navalny's hunger strike in prison, "there is a grave danger to his health."

Mayor Mike Elliott talks to Marco Werman about how his childhood in Liberia prepared him for this leadership moment — as his city grapples with the killing of Daunte Wright, and braces for the verdict in the case of George Floyd's death.

The discovery of a fossilized tree in New Zealand is providing scientists with insight on how magnetic pole reversals could affect life on Earth.

The 1971 Table Tennis World Championship featuring US and Chinese teams has never been forgotten. Now, original players are calling for renewed diplomacy as tensions continue to mount between the two countries.

​​​​I.A. Rehman opposed dictators and supported minorities, despite threats and constant danger.

The two will go head-to-head in a second round of voting on June 6, with a majority of voters disappointed in their options.

A popular program for reuniting Cuban families in the US has been on pause since 2017. Now, many families are asking the Biden administration to restart it.

The pandemic hit retirement homes hard. “Fridays with Edison,” a newsletter written in the voice of a 2-year-old, has kept residents at one Toronto retirement home inspired and connected.

A year ago, the pandemic hit suddenly — stopping transportation, closing borders and stranding many people outside their own countries. A year later, many Australians remain stranded. They’re struggling to get people back home and to bring attention to their plight.

Most Syrian children have missed years — if not decades — of schooling due to war and displacement. The conditions in Lebanon mean they could miss even more.

Some African American soldiers of the segregated 92nd Infantry Division remain unknown. But new technology could now help to identify them.

Greek authorities have strongly denied those claims. Evidence and pressure, though, are mounting.

With online news outlets and streaming platforms now under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, content creators may face new layers of bureaucracy, regulation and censorship.

Many refugees have already been vetted and approved for entry, but President Joe Biden has yet to make an official commitment to rebuilding the US refugee program.

A growing number of researchers are working to develop a variant-proof vaccine that would provide lasting immunity against different strains of the coronavirus, as well as other types of coronaviruses.