The World: Latest Stories

Autocratic governments often suppress the independence of universities to eliminate opposition. Steven Cook, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, has written about how that crackdown happened in Egypt, Syria and Turkey. He talks with The World's Carolyn Beeler about his latest article in Foreign Policy, "America's Universities Could End up Zombies."

Wednesday marked the start of the annual Great Moose Migration, a beloved televised event in Sweden that offers audiences a nonstop livestream of the four-legged creatures on their three-week journey. There's no narrator, no background music, just moose and the sounds of nature. This "slow TV" programming is the kind of mediative experience that's taken off in Scandinavia, as Johan Erhag explained to The World's Marco Werman.

President Donald Trump's latest wave of tariffs is reverberating across the San Diego and Tijuana industrial landscape, leaving manufacturers facing heightened uncertainty but also creating potential opportunities for Mexican industry. The World's Tibisay Zea reports from Tijuana.

A bright object, initially appearing to be a meteorite, lit up the skies over Mexico's capital early Wednesday. Host Carolyn Beeler explains that scientists determined it was a bolide, a chunk of meteor that disintegrates in the Earth's atmosphere.

The Beth El synagogue in the Borough Park section of Brooklyn is known for serving as the home of the operatic cantors who gained fame during the golden age of cantorial music. The building itself is an architectural landmark, often called "the Jewish Carnegie Hall." Reporter Jon Kalish takes us there.

Tijuana is a Mexican city less than 20 miles south of San Diego. Because of that close proximity, some musicians in Tijuana are much closer to music trends coming out of the US than the vibes coming out of Mexico City, which is some 1,700 miles away. Still, some artists proudly want to represent Tijuana with their own sounds. One a recent Saturday, Marco Werman went crate digging in Tijuana with music journalist Betto Arcos. They set out to look for vinyl, taking in Tijuana music both past and present.Editor's note: In this segment, the Avandaro festival, known as Festival Rock y Ruedas de Avandaro, is mentioned as having taken place in 1973. The correct year is 1971.

The latest move in tit-for-tat tensions between France and Algeria may signal the end of a budding reset of relations between the two countries. As The World's Sarah Birnbaum reports, France and its former colony just can't seem to get along.

A federal court in Denver has found a former member of The Gambia's military guilty of torturing five people accused of involvement in a failed coup against the West African country in 2006. This constitutes a rare prosecution in the United States for torture committed abroad. Carolyn Beeler speaks with Mariam Sankanu, a Gambian journalist who covered the trial in Denver, about what this case means for The Gambia.

The largest commercial whaling company in Iceland has canceled its seasonal hunt due to an uncertain economic outlook. Only three countries are allowed to hunt whales - Iceland, Norway and most recently, Japan - and Iceland's primary export market in Japan has been declining. The World's Carolyn Beeler spoke with Sigurur Johannesson, director of the Institute of Economic Studies at the University of Iceland, about the economic outlook of whaling in the country.

The first casualties of Joint Task Force Southern Border were reported Tuesday night. Two Marines from Camp Pendleton, just north of San Diego, were killed in a vehicle crash in New Mexico during a reconnaissance mission of the region. The World's hosts explain.

The Israeli military is conducting a new phase of the war in Gaza. This includes the Israel Defense Forces expanding its operations around the southern city of Rafah. Meanwhile, more than 1,000 current and former spies and soldiers have joined a letter campaign calling on the Israeli government to reconsider its military plans for Gaza. The World's Matthew Bell has the latest.

The UK's highest court has ruled the legal definition of "woman" under the 2010 equality law only applies to biological sex. The case was a challenge to a Scottish government position that the legal definition also applied to transgender women who held a gender recognition certificate. The World's Carolyn Beeler spoke with jane fae, director of TransActual UK, about the ruling, what it means for transgender women and the state of transgender protections in the UK.

On Tuesday, Ghana announced that foreigners will be kicked out of the country's gold trade as of next month. Gold is Ghana's top export and the country is No. 6 in the world for the prized metal's output. But as researcher Gavin Hilson tells The World's Marco Werman, illicit mining and smuggling operations are pervasive in the country. Hilson studies the environmental and social impacts of the small-scale mining sector in West Africa. He's a professor at the University of Surrey in the UK.

A sandstorm in central and southern Iraq has sent more than 1,800 people to hospitals with respiratory problems. In a typical spring, Iraq would see up to three storms per month, but this year at least nine major storms have descended on the country in April alone. Carolyn Beeler speaks with Nick Middleton, a physical geographer and fellow at St. Anne's College at Oxford, about the natural and human-caused reasons for sandstorms and why they're on the rise.

Antoni Gaudi was a Spanish architect most famous for the Basilica of the Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. A church so beautiful, it is said to inspire many visitors to convert to Catholicism. There has long been a movement to canonize him as a saint. Gaudi's devotees may see their wish granted someday, as Pope Francis has just declared Gaudi to be venerable, a step toward canonization.

Times are tough in Argentina, while the new president attempts to tame inflation, poverty is on the rise. But there's one sport, and one very special place, that brings people together. As part of our "Sacred Spaces" series, reporter Lautaro Grinspan takes us to the the 80-year-old soccer stadium La Bonbonera in Buenos Aires, Argentina. La Bonbonera was home to the late soccer great Diego Maradona, and has become a kind of holy site for Argentina's soccer fanatics.

Bhutan's plans to develop Gelephu as a financial hub are a pivotal step in the country's efforts to diversify its economy and reduce its dependence on external aid. Located near the Indian border, Gelephu is strategically positioned to serve as a gateway for trade and investment, fostering stronger economic ties with neighboring countries. Sushmita Pathak has the story.

Nearly half of the first round draft picks at Monday night's 2025 WNBA Draft are international players. The World's Bianca Hillier reports on the new names joining the league, and how the league itself is going global.

Unknown assailants launched seven attacks overnight in France, burning cars in prison parking lots, defacing facades and in one case opening fire with an assault rifle. Authorities have promised a swift investigation and to boost protection for prison workers. But they still don't know who was behind the attacks. The World's Gerry Hadden reports.

Since the Trump administration shut down the asylum system, many fewer migrants have been crossing the US-Mexico border. A few have resorted to more dangerous routes, swimming or taking boats around the border wall, which extends into the ocean between San Diego and Tijuana. KPBS border reporter Gustavo Solis talks to The World's host Carolyn Beeler about what's changed in San Diego since the Trump administration took office.

Hosts Carolyn Beeler and Marco Werman list a few headlines in the news you may have missed.

Wera Hothouse arrived at the Hong Kong airport on Thursday, only to be turned away from the Chinese territory - without explanation. Hothouse, a member of British parliament, interprets the move as an attempt to intimidate her from speaking out about human rights in China. Hosts Carolyn Beeler and Marco Werman have more.

Every year, the Boston Marathon attracts some of the biggest names in distance running. One of the professionals in next week's race is Mary Ngugi from Kenya. Not only is she a professional runner, but she's the founder of Nala Track Club. Ngugi founded the Club in 2022 to provide a safe place for young girls to train amid Kenya's history of gender-based violence. The World's Bianca Hillier reports.

As the San Diego-Tijuana region continues to grow, so does its decades-old sewage problem. Industry in the region has long outpaced Tijuana's construction of wastewater infrastructure. Now, residents of an east Tijuana neighborhood tucked between multinational factories are saying they think it's more than sewage and rain that's running down their streets and into the river. inewsource investigative reporter Philip Salata has more.

El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele was in the White House on Monday to meet with President Donald Trump. The focus of the meeting was the deportation of hundreds of migrants that the Trump administration accuses of being criminals. Bukele said he cannot return a Maryland man who was wrongly deported because he is a Salvadoran citizen.

A new law banning Hungary's Pride parade comes into effect on April 15. The government of Viktor Orban said its aim is to protect children from being exposed to messages that "conflict with traditional family values." The move has already led to several protests in the country's capital in recent weeks. Orban's critics say the ban is about much more than just cancelling the Budapest parade. The World's Europe correspondent Orla Barry reports.

On Monday, Ukraine's security service held a press conference with two Chinese prisoners of war who answered questions from the media through an interpreter. President Zelenskyy says that a few hundred more Chinese nationals are likely fighting on Russia's behalf against Ukraine. The World's Carolyn Beeler spoke to Ukrainian journalist Volodymyr Solohub who was at the press conference in Kyiv.

Mario Vargas Llosa, a giant of Latin American literature, died on Sunday at the age of 89. The Peruvian writer's work explored the power and politics of Latin America, often critiquing authoritarians from a leftist point of view. But his own politics veered to the right over time, becoming a supporter of neoliberal policies. The World's Marco Werman spoke with Ignacio Lopez Calvo, Professor of Latin American Literature and Culture at University of California-Merced, about Vargas Llosa's literary and political legacy.

The United States and Iran have agreed to meet again next Saturday to discuss Iran's nuclear program. The meeting is reportedly taking place in Rome. This follows the much-anticipated meeting that took place over the weekend in the Gulf country of Oman. That was seen as a positive first step in reaching a deal which curbs Iran's nuclear program.

For well over a century, most of the world's brie and camembert producers have been sourcing a key ingredient, the fungus Penecillium Camemberti, from the same strain, leaving the cheeses vulnerable to disease and other threats. This, according to French researchers who are sounding the alarm: either we "re-wild" the cheese or risk losing it, at least in its creamy white current form. The World's Gerry Hadden reports from Paris.

Diplomats at the United Nations have agreed on a new plan to charge shipping companies a carbon tax. The global economy relies on shipping, but the industry is powered almost entirely by fossil fuels. The new carbon tax would correspond to the tons of CO2 a ship produces. Alice Larkin, who researches shipping decarbonization at University of Manchester in the UK, joined host Carol Hills to explain how it would work.

Security is the main issue on the minds of Ecuadorians as they go to the polls in the presidential runoff election on Sunday. Leftist Luisa Gonzalez is facing off against conservative president Daniel Noboa. Michael Fox reports from Quito that it's a tight race with major implications for Ecuador's future.

Anoush Froundjian grew up attending Armenian school on weekends, in the 1990s. But at her American school, on weekdays, she worried that her cultural heritage was a social liability. That all changed when she learned the words to a song.

As Jews around the world prepare for feasts known as seders commemorating the biblical exodus from slavery, there's a whole list of provisions people are busy gathering to bring the traditions to life. For Persian Jews, green onions - and lots of them - top the list. The ropelike spring greens come out during a particular song, and they're not used for cooking, but for mayhem. The World's Sarah Birnbaum explains.

The arrival of white storks in Europe has long heralded the beginning of spring. But ornithologists believe human driven climate change is making the birds arrive earlier. And some storks have stopped migrating altogether. The World's Durrie Bouscaren reports.

It's the largest and most-intricate map to date of the neural activity and connections in a mammal's brain. Scientists used AI to track the equivalent of 4,000 kilometers of neural cables packed into a brain segment the size of a grain of sand. To carry out this task by hand would have taken decades, if not longer. The World's Carol Hills spoke with project lead Nuno da Costa of the Allen Institute about the significance of this achievement, and what it might tell us about our own brains.

Pedro Sanchez had planned his state visit to Beijing before the Trump administration's tariffs upended the global economy. But now, there's more on the line than a bilateral trade agreement. The World's Gerry Hadden reports from Barcelona.

The cuisine of Nigeria packs in all kinds of global influences and ingredients: curries from India, sauces from China, spices from Lebanon. They all commingle with with a particular repertoire of staple ingredients from Nigeria. Food anthropologist and Nigerian native Ozoz Sokoh is out with a cookbook that's being hailed as the first comprehensive guide to home cooking in all six regions of the country. She joins host Carol Hills for a conversation about the flavors, ingredients, and recipes in her book - as well as the culture around eating in Nigeria.

According to a watchdog nonprofit called Statewatch, the UK Ministry of Justice's "Homicide Prevention Project" has used AI and government databases to determine whether convicted criminals are likely to commit murder in the future. Chris Jones, the director of Statewatch, told The World's Carolyn Beeler that the project sounds serious alarm bells from a human rights and civil liberties standpoint - in addition to sounding a lot like a famous science fiction plot.

Journalist Sarah Allely was knocked off her bike by a wrong-way driver in 2015. The experience left her with a traumatic brain injury - but also gave her insight into nature's role in recovery. Neil King looks into the relationship between nature and neurology in this excerpt from the Deutsche Welle podcast, "Living Planet."

In February, the US deported nearly 300 asylum seekers to Panama. Most of the deportees had come to the US not from Panama, but from Africa, Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Asia, in many cases fleeing civil wars and religious persecution. Manuel Rueda spoke with those who ended up in Panama rather than their home countries, now living in limbo - as well as the religious institutions that have taken them in.

Today, a Turkish court ruled in favor of the release of more than 100 young people who were arrested for participating in pro-democracy protests. About 150 of their fellow protesters remain behind bars. Every morning, parents gather outside a high security prison to wait for their kids to come out. The World has the story.

Pokemon trading cards have been popular worldwide since the mid-'90s. Now, in an effort to help young people connect with older generations, a town in Japan's Fukuoka Prefecture has created trading cards depicting real, local heroes instead of fictional ones. Hosts Marco Werman and Carolyn Beeler have the details.

Pearl divers in Kuwait used to make music with a complex rhythmic pattern, but when Kuwait banned pearl diving in 1955, the music stopped with it. That captured the imagination of Ghazi Faisal Al-Mulaifi, an ethnomusicologist who teamed up with Grammy Award-winning bandleader Arturo O'Farrill to bring those rhythms back to life. The World's Host Marco Werman has the story.

The US and Russia carried out a prisoner swap earlier today, resulting in the release of US citizen Ksenia Karelina. This is the second prisoner swap between Moscow and Washington in less than two months. The World's Daniel Ofman shares insights into the geopolitical backdrop for this development with Host Marco Werman.

An earthquake devastated Myanmar, leaving thousands dead. Nearly two weeks later, rescue operations have concluded, but the need for aid remains overwhelming. As The World's Patrick Winn reports, not enough is getting through as the military government blocks relief.

National Geographic Explorer Paul Salopek has traveled - on foot - through 21 countries, in a walk that's taken eleven years so far. Traveling at a human speed has given him glimpses of things people easily miss when traveling by plane, rail, or car. Salopek tells Host Marco Werman about some astonishing places that only a walker would discover.

Uganda is known for bananas. The tropical fruit grows there, and it's also a major culinary staple in the country. But banana growers in Uganda struggle to make a living, because of a bumper crop - there can be so many bananas that their monetary value plunges. That has Ugandan entrepreneurs seeking out uses for bananas beyond the culinary. Anita Elash visited some of the factories and farms trying to make a go of new banana products.

The podcast "Things That Go Boom" tells the tale of one man in Europe who helped gun-rights advocates get around firearms restrictions on their continent by circulating instructions for printing 3D guns. Host Laicie Heely brings us this story, with reporting from British journalist Lizzie Dearen.

Representatives from 60 American businesses are in Iraq this week, courtesy of the US Chamber of Commerce. The war-torn country is hoping this large delegation is a sign that American companies have gotten serious about investing in Iraq. Host Carolyn Beeler speaks with Abbas Kadhim, who directs the Iraq Initiative at the Atlantic Council, about the likelihood that foreign investors will address Iraqis' greatest needs.