The World: Latest Stories

When US Democratic Senator Chris Van Hollen from Maryland visited the United Arab Emirates, he asked if they were shipping weapons to the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces in Sudan. Representatives from the UAE insisted they were not, but an assessment by the Biden Administration found that the UAE was indeed sending weapons to the RSF. Senator Van Hollen explains the consequences he plans for the UAE if it doesn't stop, and how the Trump Administration's unclear policy on Sudan has been going so far.

In Russia, the Kremlin has been steadily cracking down on the internet. Surveillance and censorship have increased, especially since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The Kremlin has cut off access to many of the most popular websites and apps. The latest target is YouTube. The World's Daniel Ofman reports.

Scientists are concerned about the mutations happening in the H5N1 virus - more commonly known as bird flu. This week, the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control warned that new mutations in the virus could allow it to spread more easily to humans. About 70 people are known to have been infected in North America alone. The World's Host Carolyn Beeler spoke to Seema Lakdawala, co-director of the Center for Transmission of Airborne Pathogens at Emory University. She joined the show from Atlanta, Georgia.

In Belarus, strongman leader Alexander Lukashenko, has been in power for more than 30 years. Over the weekend, Lukashenko participated in his seventh election claiming to have won decisively. The Belarusian opposition in exile, and European leaders, have called the election a sham. The World's Daniel Ofman has this report on the state of Belarusian politics.

The majority of young people in the UK would prefer a dictatorship, according to a new report by British broadcaster Channel 4. It says that 52% of Gen Z surveyed says the UK would be a better place if a strong leader was in charge, who didn't have to bother with parliament and elections. And one-third says Britain would be better off if the army was in charge". The World's Europe correspondent Orla Barry reports.

Hosts Carolyn Beeler and Marco Werman catch you up on headlines in the news you may have missed.

Studies of material harvested from asteroid Bennu by a NASA spacecraft that returned to Earth in 2023 has now shown that it contains minerals and thousands of organic molecules, including the chemical components that make up DNA. Host Marco Werman speaks with Professor Sara Russell, a research scientist at the Natural History Museum in London, about how the new discovery affects theories about the origins of life on Earth.

In the 1990s, many Nepali-speaking citizens of Bhutan fled their country to escape oppression under the country's "One Nation, One People" law. After landing in temporary refugee camps in Nepal, many of them resettled in third countries. But some remain in the camps more than 30 years later, holding out hope that they can reclaim the land they once owned. Priyanka Shankar brings us the story, which she reported with Rojita Adhikari.

Flamenco music is in good hands with Spanish guitarist Antonio Rey. He's been playing this style of music since he was 10 years old. Now at 43, Rey has become one of the most passionate and successful ambassadors of this genre. His latest album, Historias de un Flamenco," is up for a Grammy Award in the Best Global Music Album category.

Across Africa, some 600 million people live without consistent power. At a big conference this week in Tanzania, heads of state and officials from the World Bank and the African Development Bank pledged to tackle the problem across the continent. The banks provided nearly $50 billion for a wide variety of projects. Elna Schutz reports from Johannesburg, South Africa.

In the 1970s and 1980s, a steady stream of Western backpackers traveled the overland route from Europe to South Asia, including stops in India, Nepal and Thailand. Author Rick Steves tells host Marco Werman about his trek on the backpacker path when he was just 23 years old. It's all chronicled in his new book "On the Hippie Trail: Istanbul to Kathmandu and the Making of a Travel Writer."

Femicide is "a crime of murder perpetrated by a man against a woman in the context of gender violence". That's the current legal definition in Argentina, where it's been part of the country's penal code since 2012. Now, President Javier Milei says he is going to get rid of it because, "Equality before the law already exists in the West. Everything else is just seeking privileges." The World's Carolyn Beeler speaks with Karen Naundorf, a journalist based in Buenos Aires who has covered gender violence in Argentina for many years.

The manga industry is seeing a new wave of creators experimenting with AI to speed up the traditionally labor-intensive process of comic creation in Japan. Traditional artists argue that AI lacks the soul" and cultural nuance that has defined manga, raising questions about artistic integrity, copyright and the future of human-created art. Rebecca Rosman talks to people in Tokyo's manga industry on both sides of the AI debate.

Across East Asia, it's a day of celebration, with China, Singapore, Taiwan and both Koreas celebrating the Lunar New Year. It's a day to gather with family and chase away bad luck. In Vietnam, the holiday is called Tt, and as The World's Patrick Winn explains, Tt has become synonymous with a song that's not even Vietnamese: "Happy New Year" by the Swedish pop group ABBA.

Alkebulan is the ancient, Indigenous name for Africa. It means "Mother of Mankind." To musician Matt B, this place helps him reconnect with his African heritage and culture, a background he knew little about as a kid in the south side of Chicago. Alkebulan II is Matt B's second album in this journey. It's up for a Grammy Award in the Best Global Music Album category this year.

US-funded assistance programs across the globe are reeling at the moment, following the order by President Donald Trump to freeze foreign aid, with a few exceptions. Yesterday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio signed a waiver allowing for temporary spending on programs that provide life-saving medicine, medical services, food, shelter and subsistence assistance. But to understand the impact on USAID - the agency at the center of this crisis - Host Carolyn Beeler speaks with Marcia Wong, who worked at the agency for 35 years.

A deadly stampede interrupted the celebrations at a Hindu festival in northern India and left dozens of people dead. The Kumbh Mela, which is celebrated every 12 years, is the world's largest religious gathering and draws upwards of 400 million pilgrims to the confluence of two rivers. According to Hindu belief, taking a dip in the river during this auspicious time can help wash away sins and free people from the cycle of rebirth. Reporter Sushmita Pathak has been following the developments.

Now that Rwandan-backed M-23 troops have seized Goma, one of the largest cities in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, they are moving on to try to capture the southern city of Bukavu. The rebels made similar advances in 2012, but after intense international pressure, Rwanda stopped supplying the M-23 rebels. Analyst Michela Wrong tells The World's Marco Werman that this time around, the global community has been silent.

Before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Serhii Zenin was the host of one of the nation's most popular hard rock radio shows on Radio ROKS 103.6. Some three years later, Serhii is a soldier and Radio ROKS has taken on a whole new role, too. Radio Roks is trying to make millions of Ukrainians feel a little less alone - as they brace for whatever the Trump administration might bring. From the CLICK HERE podcast, Dina Temple-Raston reports.

Scientists used special equipment to survey and image a volcano beneath the ocean in the Arctic and discovered that it spews mud and gas. As they looked closer, they discovered an unexpected wealth of deep sea animal life surrounding it. Giuliana Panieri, a professor of geology at the Arctic University of Norway, who was part of the team of scientists, explains what makes it so special.

Hosts Marco Werman and Carolyn Beeler highlight important global news stories flying just under the radar.

While some politicians are less than welcoming to those who want to enter the US, guitarist and composer Ciro Hurtado is sending the opposite message. His tune "Bienvenida a America" or "Welcome to America," is the first track on his Grammy-nominated album "Paisajes."

On Tuesday, Serbian Prime Minister Milos Vucevic resigned. While his intention to step aside was intended to quell protests, Sinisa Vukovic tells host Carolyn Beeler that the prime minister's resignation does little to address the issues of corruption and autocracy in the current government. Vukovic is a senior lecturer of conflict management and global policy at Johns Hopkins University, with a focus on the Balkans.

The reconstruction of Gaza is a major part of the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. The task of rebuilding is a massive one following 15 months of Israeli bombardment of Gaza. More than 170,000 buildings have been damaged or flattened in the conflict. Host Marco Werman speaks with Mark Jarzombek, professor of the history and theory of architecture at MIT, about what it will require to actually rebuild Gaza.

President Donald Trump has promised the largest deportation effort in American history, and Mexico is already preparing for it. The World's Tibisay Zea reports on Mexico's ambitious program to receive and integrate thousands of potential citizens repatriated from the US.

The White House recently used the threat of a 25% tariff to convince Colombia's government to accept deported migrants flown from the US on military planes. Host Carolyn Beeler speaks with Ernie Tedeschi, director of economics at The Budget Lab at Yale University, about how tariffs are collected, what impact they have on trade, on the economies of exporters and importers, and, as an example, how a tariff on imports from Colombia might have affected the price of Valentine's Day flowers.

The families of a historic apartheid murder case are taking the government and president to court for not investigating and prosecuting the crimes properly. They want nearly $10 million in damages and a public commission to look into how political interference suppressed hundreds of crimes from that era. From Johannesburg, Elna Schutz reports.

As Wednesday dawned across Asia, people were ready to celebrate the beginning of Lunar New Year. The holiday ushers in the Year of the Snake, animals that are treated with both fear and reverence in Chinese culture. Hosts Marco Werman and Carolyn Beeler have more.

The long-running rebel group, M23, says it has taken the city of Goma, in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Goma is on the border with Rwanda, and Rwandan troops have been spotted in the city, working in tandem with the rebels. Sonia Rolley is a Reuters reporter covering the conflict closely. She tells Host Marco Werman what's happening on the ground and explains the significance of this moment.

Hosts Carolyn Beeler and Marco Werman share headlines from across the Middle East.

Director Mohammad Rasoulof is one of Iran's most well-known filmmakers. But his most recent film, "The Seed of the Sacred Fig," isn't being shown in a single theater across the country. And Rasoulof, himself, has had to flee. That's because the film calls out Iran's authoritarian regime. The World's Bianca Hillier reports.

Belarus's election commission says authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko won re-election with 87% of the vote over the weekend. The country's political opposition is mostly in jail or exiled abroad. As Host Carolyn Beeler explains, today they and European leaders called the election a sham.

This weekend a precious, solid gold helmet on loan from Romania was stolen in a dramatic museum heist in the Netherlands. Surveillance footage shows the thieves blowing up a door into the Drents Museum and, within minutes, making a run for it with the artIfact. Private art theft investigator Arthur Brand talks with Host Carolyn Beeler about the challenges of ever getting it back.

Royalty, heads of state and dignitaries from more than 50 countries gathered in southern Poland today to mark the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz, where roughly a million Jews were killed. Speakers are exhorting the world to remember against a backdrop of rising antisemitism and far-right extremism.

Comiket is the world's largest comic festival. Twice a year, more than 200,000 comic enthusiasts from around the world travel to Tokyo to support their favorite artists. While the vast majority of artists are Japanese, there are some foreigners who manage to grab a table to show their wares. From Tokyo, Kai Dambach has the story.

According to one study, 1 out of 10 Spaniards between the ages 18 to 35 have ditched their smartphones for the antithesis: push-button models without internet connectivity. From Barcelona, The World's Gerry Hadden sets out to find some of these converts, but it turns out going from smart to dumb is harder than it sounds.

A Chinese artificial intelligence assistant called DeepSeek has become the most downloaded free app in the US. Its arrival has sent shares in firms like chipmaker Nvidia, as well as Microsoft and Meta, tumbling. Stanford professor Erik Brynjolfsson, co-founder of the firm Workhelix, tells host Marco Werman that DeepSeek represents a dramatic decline in the price of intelligence."

It was once a thriving coal mining town with a population of over 100,000 people. But today, Yubari, located in Japan's northern island of Hokkaido, is a ghost of its former self - with fewer than 8,000 residents, most of whom are over the age of 65. Rebecca Rosman takes us to Yubari to explore how the city has become a microcosm for the challenges facing Japan.

Passengers on city buses in Tbilisi, Georgia, got a surprise Friday morning when fare collection boxes began blasting pro-Western political messages. Hosts Carolyn Beeler and Carol Hills have the story of a suspected cyberattack and the montage of speeches and music that riders heard.

Osama Najim, also known as Almasri, is a Libyan prison boss wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes. He was apprehended in Italy by police, then released shortly after. The episode underscores the challenges for the ICC when countries who signed the statute that gave birth to the court don't fulfill their treaty obligations. Beth Van Schaack, the former United States ambassador at large for Global Criminal Justice, talks with The World's Carol Hills about the the ICC's latest setback and mission.

The Nobel Academy guards its deliberations over prize winners for 50 years, and events in 1974 help explain why. That year, the two winners of the Nobel for literature were members of the Literature Committee itself. The committee was accused of nepotism, its reputation tarnished. The controversy also led to tragedy. The World's Gerry Hadden reports.

The ceasefire between Israel and Hamas has offered displaced people in Gaza an opportunity to return to their neighborhoods. This week, The World's Shirin Jaafari followed three families as they made the journey back. What they found was a scene of total devastation.

This year's Australian Open has had highs and lows, from Wii-like animations to veteran players forfeiting matches. The World's Bianca Hillier has the details before this weekend's finals.

Canada is getting ready to be hit with new tariffs by the US following the start of President Donald Trump's administration this week. It comes as Trump has repeatedly made calls for Canada to join the US. Host Carol Hills speaks with Mark Rendell, an economics reporter with the Canadian Globe and Mail newspaper, about the potential impacts of tariffs on Canada and what it could mean for global trade.

There are now more than 40,000 foreign nationals serving in the US military. Those who don't become American citizens are just one mistake away from being deported. It happens more often than most people realize. Gustavo Solis reports from KPBS in San Diego.

Syria's economy under the previous government was tightly managed by former President Bashar al-Assad, his family, and close associates. But now, Syria's new government is looking to introduce economic reform to further liberalize Syria's economy, which remains heavily sanctioned by the US and Europe. Host Marco Werman speaks with Karam Shaar, a Syrian economist, to understand how that can be achieved successfully.

This week, bereaved families in Turkey buried the victims of a fire at a ski resort in the mountainous Bolu province. Survivors spoke out about a lack of basic fire safety at the Grand Kartal Hotel as anger spilled over on social media. The World's Durrie Bouscaren reports from Istanbul.

When thinking about World War I, Americans tend to think of the Western Front where the allies fought Germans between 1914 and 1918. But this neglects other stories, like the stories of the Black, South African battalions who were barred by a racist government from using weapons - and instead served in the British army behind the lines. A new memorial in Cape Town, South Africa, is dedicated to their memory. The World's Sarah Birnbaum reports.

There are some media commentators who are concerned that US democracy, and the media that monitors it, are going the way of Hungary. There, democracy was not overthrown by tanks in the streets, mass arrests or paramilitary violence. The country's leader, Viktor Orban, stacked the courts with loyalists, aggressively opposed migrants and LGBTQ+ rights and redrew electoral boundaries. Media outlets were censored, and wealthy people close to Orban bought up media organizations. The World's Europe correspondent Orla Barry takes a look at the comparisons.

Transit in most global cities is government-run. But in Japan, that's not the case. There, private companies run a sprawling network of trains, subways and buses, often considered the best in the world. The World's transportation correspondent Jeremy Siegel reports on what other countries can learn from Japan's unique system.