The World: Latest Stories

It started with an accidental fire, and it's led to a new way of holding foreign governments accountable. A wildfire in central Kenya, four years ago, destroyed 12,000 acres of land. The blaze was started by a British soldier's kerosene stove. Now, the British government has agreed to settle a civil lawsuit over the fire.

Tens of thousands of people worldwide are being pushed to the edge of starvation due to drought. In some places, drought conditions are harming wildlife, livestock and straining ecosystems. But not all of these droughts are the same. The World's Host Marco Werman spoke with professor Melinda Smith of Colorado State University about the many different types of droughts, how they affect the environment and why understanding the differences is key to building resilience.

Making coffins is a grim job, but one could argue that someone has to do it. And in Ghana, coffin makers have turned it into an art form - building fantasy coffins despite the occasional raised eyebrows. Ridwan Karim Dini-Osman's story is a favorite from The World's archives.This story originally aired on Feb. 18, 2022.

India's parliament has banned online gambling platforms. Of particular concern to the Indian tech industry is the hit to fantasy sports platforms, including popular, homegrown cricket apps. Manoj Sharma, a professor of social and behavioral health at the University of Nevada, tells The World's Host Marco Werman how the ban gained momentum in the first place: Online gaming losses, he says, have devastated lives for many middle-class Indian families.

There's been an uptick in pirate attacks on shipping through the Strait of Malacca. That's according to the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia. Host Marco Werman dug into that news with Peter Lehr, an expert in modern piracy and maritime terrorism at the University of St. Andrew's in Scotland.

The case of an elderly man found criminally guilty - then aquitted - of killing an intruder on his property must still pay civil damages to the victim's family. Lacking the money, he and his lawyers decided to channel outrage on the political right into a GoFundMe campaign. And it's working. The World's Gerry Hadden reports from Barcelona.

I hope that one day, even for just one day, I could sleep peacefully, without fear." That's a statement from a 19-year-old who has been living through Israel's war in Gaza for the past 22 months. For those living in war zones, a comfortable night's sleep can be nearly impossible. From Ukraine to Gaza, fighting continues at night and it robs people of one of the most basic human needs. The World's Shirin Jaafari has the story.

Protests have erupted across the UK in the past few days over hotels housing asylum seekers. In Perth, Scotland, crowds waved signs reading Perth is full, empty the hotels" and chanted send them home." The unrest follows a High Court ruling in London last week ordering one hotel to stop housing asylum seekers. The UK government says it will appeal the ruling but several local councils now say they plan to launch their own legal challenges. The World's Europe Correspondent Orla Barry reports.

As the Trump administration ramps up immigration arrests, flooding the streets of Los Angeles with masked agents, it's stripping half a million people of protections that allowed them to enter the country legally. One of those people is a Nicaraguan journalist who escaped a crackdown on the free press in her homeland, and recently landed in the Bay Area. From KQED in San Francisco Tyche Hendricks reports.

The Lithuanian capital Vilnius hosted a corgi competition over the weekend. There were featured costume contests, time trials and races. More than a hundred of the cute, "vertically-challenged" Welsh dogs turned out for the event, coming from more than a half dozen countries. Host Carolyn Beeler has more.

Tensions are escalating between the US and Venezuela. In recent weeks, the US sent warships to waters off Venezuela's coast. In response, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro called on Venezuelans to join the civilian militia, with thousands of people signing up over the weekend. The World's Host Carolyn Beeler speaks with professor and Venezuela expert David Smilde about what is driving this conflict.

It's the last days of summer and many of us might be looking for a final road trip or holiday. Indian journalist Akshobh Giridhadas loves to travel and, on a trip to the Indian Himalayas many years ago, encountered some unexpected hospitality. He shared his adventure with GBH's Stories From The Stage.

Former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro is under house arrest and facing trial for allegedly plotting a coup to overturn the 2022 election. The case has split the country and drawn sharp criticism from US President Donald Trump - who has imposed tariffs and called the prosecution a witch hunt." In Brazil, people are debating what justice, accountability and democracy really mean. Reporter Tibisay Zea takes us to the streets of Sao Paulo, where voices on both sides speak out.

Japan recently opened its first power plant to run on osmotic power, which uses the natural process of osmosis to produce electricity. The first operational osmotic power plant opened in Denmark a couple of years ago, and some see this so-called "blue energy" as another sustainable source of power. The World's Host Carolyn Beeler learned more from Bruce Logan, a professor of Environmental Engineering at Penn State.

South Korea's President Lee Jae-myung met US President Donald Trump today at the White House. There was a lot riding on the summit, which was the first time Lee sat down with Trump face-to-face. The meeting did not break major news, but it appeared to go well after Lee showered praise on Trump for his global leadership. The World's Matthew Bell talks with Host Carolyn Beeler about the meeting.

In Barcelona, outside of the surrealist Sagrada Familia church, a lone engraver of glass leans into a grindstone, six long days a week. His name is Toni Moya, and he's among the last of his kind in Spain. A craftsman etching the finest of designs, by hand, into high-end crystal cups, glasses and vases. Earlier this year, The World's Gerry Hadden took us into his workshop.This story originally aired on Feb. 28, 2025.

The skeletal remains of more than 140 people have been unearthed at the site of a mass grave in northern Sri Lanka. They are thought to belong to the island's minority ethnic Tamil community killed during Sri Lanka's civil war, which stretched from 1983 until 2009, and killed more than 70,000 people. Brito Fernando is the president of the activist organization Families of the Disappeared and spoke to The World's Host Carolyn Beeler from Negombo in Sri Lanka.

In Mahone Bay, Nova Scotia, in Canada, a nonprofit is expanding a living shoreline designed to protect the community, and it's historic buildings, from climate-fueled storms. The project uses rocks, newly-planted wetlands and berms to disperse wave energy before it reaches the shore. The World's Host Carolyn Beeler spoke with Brooke Nodding of the group Coastal Action to learn more about this climate solution for the series The Big Fix.

The taste of water is often glazed over, but a growing group of professional water sommeliers are hoping to bring the world's attention to the different kinds of H2O. The World's Bianca Hillier has the story.This story originally aired on Oct. 27, 2021.

US President Donald Trump has imposed steep tariffs on Brazilian goods - in what many see as a political favor to his ally, former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, now on trial for attempting to overturn Brazil's 2022 election. But instead of pressuring Brazil's government, the move has backfired. The World's Tibisay Zea reports from Sao Paulo state, where the tariffs are hurting local industries - and rallying Brazilians around the idea of sovereignty.

The Edinburgh Fringe is one of the largest and most chaotic arts festivals in the world. With 3,800 shows expected this year, it's a launchpad for breakout careers like "Fleabag" and "Baby Reindeer." It's also a grueling, emotionally raw test of endurance for emerging performers from around the world. Rebecca Rosman reports from Edinburgh, Scotland.

More than half a million people are facing famine in Gaza, according to the international global hunger monitor, IPC (Integrated Food Security Phase Classification). The UN-backed group said today that people in Gaza City and its surrounding areas are impacted the most, but that if no action is taken, famine will reach other areas of the territory. The World's Shirin Jaafari reports.

National Geographic Explorer Paul Salopek is walking from Ethiopia to Chile on the Out of Eden Walk. But as he tells The World, "people are my destination." The story of the walk unfolds through conversations he has with the people he meets along the way. He speaks to Host Carolyn Beeler about the everyday chitchats that have become essential to his travels.

Human rights organizations report that militant groups committed a number of atrocities in occupied areas of Democratic Republic of Congo, including gang rape and summary executions of civilians. Host Marco Werman speaks to Tigere Chagutah, regional director for East and Southern Africa for Amnesty International, about the organization's report published yesterday.

Denmark is getting rid of its 25% tax on books. According to government officials, the move is meant to address a reading crisis. Host Marco Werman speaks with book historian Tina Lupton about the state of reading in Denmark and whether this change is an effective way to tackle the challenge.

Emily Scarratt has been a fixture on England's national women's rugby team since 2008. As she enters her fifth World Cup, Scarratt speaks with The World's Bianca Hillier about just how much the game has grown during her career.

With recent releases by massive artists like Bad Bunny and Rauw Alejandro, younger Latino generations are starting to rediscover salsa music and, with it, its history and foundations. Miguel Santiago Colon reports.

Last week, the African Union voiced support for the adoption of a map that more accurately displays Africa's true size. Host Marco Werman speaks to one of the creators of that map - the 2018 Equal Earth projection - Bojan avri. He joined the show from the International Cartographic Conference in Vancouver, Canada.

A mysterious object, believed to be billions of years old, is hurtling through our solar system. Thought to be only the third known interstellar visitor ever observed, it has astronomers racing to study it while it's still visible. Michele Bannister, a lecturer at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand, tells Host Marco Werman why this rare traveler from the depths of interstellar space is capturing scientists' attention.

A group of Hong Kong filmmakers released an anthology of five short films in 2015. That was right after large scale pro-democracy protests, called the Umbrella Movement, took place in 2014. At the time, pictures of protestors holding up umbrellas to deflect tear gas canisters made headlines around the world. Each director was to envision what the city would be like in the year 2025. As Alan Yu reports from WHYY, the film - called "Ten Years" - painted a dystopian picture of Hong Kong's future.

DW's Paris Correspondent John Laurenson has been testing out one of three new bathing sites that have been opened in the French capital - a key part of the city's Olympic legacy. It's a major milestone for the Seine river, which was closed to swimmers for over a hundred years due to pollution.

Hundreds of people are confirmed dead following flash floods that left devastation in dozens of villages in northern Pakistan. Some government authorities have blamed a cloudburst, which is almost impossible to predict; but other agencies say that may not be the case, because there is a lack of data in the region. Host Marco Werman speaks with climate and disaster resiliency expert Fatima Yamin about why the distinction matters and what worries her about the rest of the monsoon season.

During the harshest days of Soviet censorship, it was nearly impossible and highly risky to get your hands on Western music. But Soviet people became experts at finding creative, sometimes extraordinary, ways to reprint and share forbidden sounds - using material like old X-ray tapes. Stephen Coates is a London-based audiophile and author of the book, "Bone Music: The History of the X-Ray Underground." He tells Host Marco Werman about the long lost art of making "ribs."

The FDA is advising Walmart customers to throw out certain Great Value brand shrimp products due to possible radioactive contamination. Ken Buesseler, a senior scientist in marine radiochemistry at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and a leading voice on radiation levels in seafood, talks with Host Marco Werman about his concerns.

Three physicians from the Dallas, Texas, area are in Gaza, providing medical care to the wounded and ill. Speaking from the Al-Aqsa Hospital compound in Deir al-Balah, Dr. Mohammed Adeel Khaleel, director of orthopedic spine surgery at Medical City Frisco, and Dr. Umar Burney, an orthopedic surgeon practicing in Dallas, tell Host Marco Werman many of the patients they're treating were injured at food distribution sites.

Israeli troops have reached the outskirts of Gaza City, preparing for its takeover. Israel's offensive comes at a time when a potential 60-day ceasefire is on the table, which families of the remaining hostages are pressuring Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to accept. Also today, there was an uncharacteristic rebuke from the German government of Israel. The World's Shirin Jaafari reports.

Go to any poetry reading, and you'll probably encounter "poet voice" - that monotone way of reading with pauses where pauses should not be. A version of poet voice exists in all aesthetic traditions, all schools and all cultures. Sarah Birnbaum reports.

US President Donald Trump said he arranged a meeting between the two bitter enemies, Russia and Ukraine. But it's not clear if a meeting between Presidents Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy is a realistic possibility anytime soon. The Kremlin is downplaying the idea that a bilateral meeting could take place. Putin has long described Zelenskyy as an illegitimate leader and a puppet of the Western world. In fact, Putin rarely even refers to Zelenskyy by name. Host Marco Werman has more.

Since 1972, a brotherhood of monks who have left the Greek Orthodox Church have retained control of the Esphigmenou Monastery on Mt. Athos. "Rebel monks" have effectively been squatting in a monastery in the self-governed territory of the church, defying the orders of the Patriarch in Istanbul. Police efforts to evict them have been met with stones and Molotov cocktails. Durrie Bouscaren reports from Istanbul.

Fima Chupakhin is a jazz pianist from Ukraine. For the past 10 years, though, he's been living in New York City. Chupakhin hasn't been back in Ukraine since Russia's full-scale invasion, however, he's been a staunch advocate for his home country. In fact, if you're a Ukrainian musician visiting New York for a fundraising concert or any other advocacy event, you've probably met or even performed with Fima Chupakhin. The World's Daniel Ofman reports.

Apiwe Nxasani-Mawela launched her craft brewery Tolokazi Beer in 2021 - making her South Africa's first Black female brewery owner. Now, she's teaching the next generation of female brewers how to make their own craft beers, as she tells Host Marco Werman.

China and India are beginning to view each other as possible allies - instead of historic adversaries. It's one of the side-effects of new US trade policy, which includes imposing significant tariffs on both countries. Host Marco Werman speaks with political scientist Sumit Ganguly about the significance of this change.

Founded in 2004, the Amawtay Wasi University is the only Indigenous university in Ecuador, and one of only a handful of Indigenous universities across South America. Roughly 2,000 students study there today. It's goal is not only to help educate Indigenous peoples in Ecuador, but also promote their ancestral knowledge and languages. Michael Fox reports from the capital Quito.

The Kiruna Church and its famed belfry are being moved this week along a three-mile route to a new city center. The move is part of Kiruna's relocation, because the world's largest underground iron-ore mine is threatening to swallow the town. Kiruna is Sweden's northernmost town, at 124 miles above the Arctic Circle. Host Marco Werman has the details.

Chicago has so many ethnic enclaves - it has Greektown, it has Chinatown. But what happened to the Lake View Japanese American community, and where did it go? The answer is directly tied to a Chicago immigrant experience like no other. Japanese Americans didn't end up in Chicago of their own accord: The US government forcibly resettled 20,000 of them to the city from World War II incarceration camps. And, as part of that effort, the government pressured them to shed their Japanese identities and assimilate into white society. Katherine Nagasawa reports from WBEZ in Chicago.

Host Marco Werman remembers composer and musician Jamshied Sharifi. He created a sound that echoed his family's roots in Iran, making it a part of his own work, whether it was for his own ensemble, for Broadway or film.

Thousands of ancient texts returned to Timbuktu, a historical center of learning in West Africa. The manuscripts were smuggled out of the city over a decade ago as al-Qaeda affiliates took over and destroyed much of the city's UNESCO World Heritage site. Host Marco Werman speaks with analyst Ulf Laessing of the Konrad Adenauer Foundation's Sahel program, which is based in the Malian capital Bamako.

Globally, plastic producers make more than 400 million tons of plastic each year. But less than 10% is ever recycled. So what happens to the rest? In Indonesia, some of it is burned during the tofu production process. Host Marco Werman speaks with anthropologist Gauri Pathak about why plastic is burned, what it does to human health and how Indonesia and other countries are dealing with plastic imports from countries in the Global North.

Journalist Fatih Atayli is a household name in Turkey - known for his straight-down-the-aisle commentary on his popular YouTube channel. On June 21, he was taken into custody on charges of insulting the Turkish president, and remains one of 17 Turkish journalists currently behind bars. But as Durrie Bouscaren reports from Istanbul, Atayli refuses to be silenced.

Canada's labor relations board said today that the Air Canada strike is illegal and ordered the 10,000 flight attendants back to work. Host Marco Werman has more.