The World: Latest Stories

A rain bomb is an enormous amount of rain, dumped practically all at once, by hurricane-force winds blowing directly into the ground. Rain bombs can be deadly and they're really hard to predict. "Rain Bombs" is the title of a new documentary from The World's partners at NOVA. Sue van den Heever is an atmospheric scientist at Colorado State University and is featured in the documentary. She recently spoke to Host Carolyn Beeler.

Viragezero is a Swiss super group in Geneva. All five musicians got together after having success with other bands in the city's vibrant music scene. As they get ready to hit the road and play summer music festivals in Europe, perhaps more songs like "Larmes De Feu" will be written in the back of their tour van. Host Carolyn Beeler has the details.

The late Kim Il Sung - the founding leader of North Korea's communist regime - is forever enshrined as the country's "Eternal President." It's a powerful cult of personality from which the regime still draws much of its authority. Kim himself was deeply religious - he was raised as a devout Christian. The modern North Korean state tries to keep the religious upbringing of its founder hidden, but it's really what enabled the regime's rise in the first place. That's the subject of Jonathan Cheng's new book, "Korean Messiah: Kim Il Sung and the Christian Roots of North Korea's Personality Cult." He joins Host Marco Werman to talk about it.

A 1995 law in the Philippines dictated that all salt sold in the country had to be iodized because of iodine deficiency among Filipinos. That led to the closing of many artisanal salt making businesses, mostly small family operations. But the Slow Food movement is trying to change that. From Negros Island, reporter Dany Mitzman has the story.

Israeli forces have killed Lebanese journalist Amal Khalil and injured her photographer colleague Zeinab Faraj in what officials in Lebanon are calling a war crime. The journalists were heading to southern parts of the country when they came under attack. They took shelter at an abandoned building, but according to The Committee to Protect Journalists and the Red Cross, the Israeli military stopped rescuers from reaching them. The World's Shirin Jaafari reports.

Thousands of Afghans who served as interpreters, security contractors and drivers alongside US troops were promised safe passage to the United States. Now, many are in limbo. About 1,100 former partners and their families are currently stranded at a former US military base in Qatar. Shawn VanDiver, president of the aid group AfghanEvac tells The World's Host Marco Werman that the Trump administration is considering sending the Afghans to Democratic Republic of Congo.

Lupita Infante is the granddaughter of Mexican cultural icon Pedro Infante, but she is also an artist in her own right, carrying legacies from both sides of her family. Lupita is charting a new path for herself, while honoring and questioning the mariachi culture she's inherited. In this conversation, she discusses her artistic path with Meklit Hadero of the "Movement" podcast.

What, exactly, do we think of as "home." Is it a place? A feeling? Is it people? Sharing her experience on GBH's Stories from the Stage, Christine Boutros tells us how she learned to redefine "home" when her son moved halfway across the globe.

Spain shocked lots of people last year when it announced it would grant working papers to hundreds of thousands of immigrants who'd come to Spain without permission. The government calls it just and necessary. But it wasn't prepared for a deluge of applications pouring in during the first few days. The World's Gerry Hadden reports from Barcelona.

Four years ago, the Restoration Ecology team at Flinders University in Adelaide, Australia, published new research that uses super-sensitive microphones to listen to and analyze the health of soil. The researchers say this new method could replace traditional ones, which are expensive, disruptive and laborious. Reporter Bianca Hillier reports.This story originally aired on Sept. 18, 2024.

European Union envoys seem set to unblock a $106 billion loan for Kyiv, now that Ukraine is once again sending Russian oil to Europe. Officials in Kyiv have called the funding "a matter of life and death." Phillips Payson O'Brien tells The World's Host Marco Werman that Ukrainians are increasingly viewing the US as a foe.

In a 10-minute speech over the weekend, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney laid out a strategy for the country to move forward without economic or military support from the United States. He told Canadians that "the world is more dangerous and divided," and the US has changed its approach to former allies. Hosts Carolyn Beeler and Marco Werman explain.

Another ripple effect of the Iran war is reshaping the Caucasus. Armenia, Azerbaijan and Turkey, nations long divided by closed borders and bitter disputes, are showing signs of cooperation - with plans to reopen key trade routes. From Deutsche Welle, DW's, Inside Europe program, Dorian Jones reports from Istanbul on the real promise these proposals hold.

Over the last decade, China has become a leader in manufacturing solar panels, batteries and electric vehicles. As oil and gas prices rise, countries are increasingly importing this infrastructure. Host Marco Werman speaks with Kate Mackenzie of "The Polycrisis" podcast about how this translates to soft power for China.

Nothing like a little light-hearted pop music to shift the mood. Co-hosts Marco Werman and Carolyn Beeler give a listen to an indie-pop quartet from Stuttgart, Germany, called Rikas.

Elections are supposed to give people a say in who governs their country, but nature can have an impact on elections. A report out today from the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance found nearly 100 cases of disaster-disrupted" elections between 2006 and 2025. The World's Host Carolyn Beeler spoke to Erik Asplund, a co-author of the study.

A gunman opened fire on tourists at Mexico's Teotihuacan pyramids, killing one Canadian and injuring more than a dozen others. The attack at a UNESCO World Heritage site shows ongoing security challenges in one of the country's most visited destinations, just as Mexico prepares to host matches for the World Cup. The World's Tibisay Zea reports.

For almost two months, the survival of "Timmy," a whale stranded in shallows off Germany's Baltic coast, has captured the country's attention and gone viral globally. With official efforts to rescue Timmy called off, privately funded campaigns to save him have polarized Germany and raised ethical concerns about prolonging the whale's suffering. The World's Host Marco Werman learned more from Fabian Ritter, a marine biologist and member of MEER, a Berlin-based marine mammal conservation group.

A new wave of investors is eyeing Venezuela, drawn by the promise of massive natural resources, cheap assets and a potential economic rebound after years of crisis. The government is opening key sectors and restoring ties with the US - but major risks remain. While some early movers are taking a chance, many companies are still holding back, waiting to see how new rules play out in a country where politics, instability and uncertainty still remain. The World's Tibisay Zea reports.

Japan rolled back restrictions today on its sale of weapons abroad, reinterpreting its pacifist post-World War II constitution. Yuki Tatsumi, senior director at the Institute for Indo-Pacific Security tells The World's Host Carolyn Beeler that the timing of the announcement reaches back to Russia's invasion of Ukraine and is motivated in part by the security threats Japan faces from China.

Host Marco Werman spins sounds from the innovator of the Hindustani slide guitar, Debashish Bhattacharya, a track titled, "The Sound of the Soul."This story originally aired on March 21, 2023.

"Fika" is the very Swedish ritual of meeting people for coffee, sweets and some reflection on life. The World's Joshua Coe learned the fine line between a regular brunch date and "pure fika" at a coffee shop in Gothenburg, Sweden.

Brazilian cinema has received strong global attention recently, with films like "I'm Still Here" and "The Secret Agent" earning a slew of Oscar nods. But many filmmakers say these films reflect a limited group of voices. Reporter Julia Franca explores issues of funding, gender and access in the Brazilian film industry.

Every five years, the United Nations looks for a new secretary-general. Job interviews began today in the assembly chamber to start the search for the next one. There are four candidates, less than half the number when there was an opening 10 years ago. As The World's Hosts Marco Werman and Carolyn Beeler explain, the UN's first secretary-general called it "the most impossible job on earth."

The European Union's top court has ruled that Hungary's anti-LGBTQ+ law breaks the bloc's core values. The decision targets a 2021 law that bans content about LGBTQ+ people from schools and primetime TV. Supporters in Hungary said the law was about protecting children. But judges at the European Court of Justice say it goes much further than that.

The war in Lebanon displaced roughly 1 million people from their homes in the south of the country. The Israeli military ordered them to leave, and it has since occupied some parts of the country. But last Thursday, US President Donald Trump announced a 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. Five days into that ceasefire, some have moved back to the south - to what is left of their homes. Others say they have no choice but to stay in Beirut. The World's Shirin Jaafari reports.

How long is the English coast? Or, for that matter, the coast of Portugal, Brazil or Kenya? Turns out, experts are not in agreement, thanks to a phenomenon of measurement called the coastal paradox. The World's Host Marco Werman speaks with independent geographer Katherine Sammler about what these disagreements mean for geopolitical relationships.

On Sunday, a robot called Lightning, made by Honor, a Chinese smartphone maker, won a half marathon in Beijing in just 50 min, 26 sec. That's several minutes faster than the human world record-holder, Uganda's Jacob Kiplimo, who finished the same distance in 57 min, 20 sec, earlier this year in Lisbon. Several other robots in the race outran humans for the first time. Host Marco Werman has the details.

Hidden for centuries, music by women composers of the Renaissance has largely remained outside the public canon. Musica Secreta is a British ensemble dedicated to researching and performing this repertoire, combining historical scholarship with an all-female sound world. Deutsche Welle, DW, arts journalist Breandain O'Shea guides us through the pure loveliness.

Hatshepsut is likely a name many people have never heard. Even though she was pharaoh of Egypt for 22 years and one of the most powerful women in antiquity. That's because two decades after her reign she was purposely, and methodically, erased from history. Reporter Sarah Birnbaum has the story.

Six months after a ceasefire was announced in Gaza, conditions remain dire. And serious reconstruction has yet to begin. The cost of rebuilding the enclave's infrastructure alone is estimated at more than $71 billion. That's according to a new report released today by the United Nations and the European Union. The World's Host Marco Werman discusses the implications with Sean Carroll, president of American Near East Refugee Aid (ANERA), a relief organization with deep roots in Gaza.

When a music festival becomes a history lesson: New York City stalwart rockers The Strokes made headlines with their second set of the final weekend at Coachella. They ended with a song they rarely play, "Oblivius," and its chorus "What side you standing on?" as a video montage of US and CIA involvement in overseas assassinations and regime change efforts played on screens behind them with captions. Reaction has been mixed, says Host Marco Werman.

Over the weekend, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez hosted a first-ever summit of progressive leaders. He used the event to condemn the US-Israeli war on Iran and called on the European Union to sever diplomatic and trade ties with Israel. Though it's unlikely to happen, there are signs that Europe is developing a more unified stance against Israeli military action in Gaza, Lebanon and beyond. The World's Gerry Hadden reports from Barcelona.

Copenhagen once had a Human Library, where you could go on a weekend and borrow a person - for a conversation. The nonprofit's mission to "unjudge" people has caught on globally in over 85 countries. The library in Copenhagen is now only online, but The World's Joshua Coe went in October last year, just before the physical library shut down.This story originally aired on Oct. 24, 2025.

Mid-April marks 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 has taken off in Scandinavia, as Johan Erhag explained last year to The World's Host Marco Werman. Erhag is the program's project manager and joined the show from the city of Umea in northern Sweden.This story originally aired on April 17, 2025.

Nearly 900 Rohingya refugees were reported missing or dead in the Andaman Sea and Bay of Bengal in 2025, making it the deadliest year on record in South and Southeast Asia, according to the UN refugee agency UNHCR on Friday. The World's Host Carolyn Beeler learned more from Tun Khin, president of the Burmese Rohingya Organization UK, and Matthew Smith, the CEO and founder of Fortify Rights, a human rights group monitoring conditions for the Rohingya.

India's historic trains are perhaps the most famous in the world among travelers. Huge, clunking night trains crossing massive distances, while in the carriages, cross-sections of Indian society come together over chai. But the train narrative in the country is changing. India has rolled out gleaming new "semi-high speed" express trains across the country. Reporter Jamie Fullerton takes a journey on this new generation of night trains.

There is an unexpected Muslim community in Cape Town, South Africa. It is the oldest neighborhood of Muslims in the country. They are known as the Cape Malay. And while they are staunch followers of Islam, their traditions are not what most Muslims would recognize. Aina Khan from the "More Muslim" podcast explains.

It's rare in Turkey to have US-style school shootings, but just this week, there have been two of them. At least nine people have been killed. While the attacks happened in two cities in southeastern Turkey, parents around the country are afraid to send their children to school. Host Carolyn Beeler speaks with reporter Fariba Nawa in Istanbul.

New England, and much of the country, is experiencing a sharp drop in the number of traditional college-age students. But one population is still growing: Latino students, especially kids who would be the first in their families to attend college. As GBH's Kirk Carapezza reports, the question for colleges across the nation is whether they're truly ready to recruit, retain and graduate those students.

Turkish American musician Mehmet Ali Sanlikol is a virtuoso on the oud. But up until now, most his albums have featured the acoustic oud. For his latest release, "The Electric Oud Man Speaks ... And You Listen," Sanlikol had an electric oud custom built. He recently came to The World's studios to talk about it.

Europe's far-right movement has lost one of its most important figures with the defeat of Viktor Orban in Hungary's elections this week. Orban has been a transnational symbol for the populist right. During his 16 years in office, the Hungarian leader and his allies took control of state media, redrew electoral boundaries and installed loyalists across key institutions. His loss now raises questions about whether a broader shift is underway for Europe's populist right. The World's Europe Correspondent Orla Barry reports.

Today the Trump administration announced a 10-day ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel. The temporary truce will offer welcome relief after six weeks of war between Israel and the Iran-backed militant group, Hezbollah. But as The World's Shirin Jaafari tells Host Carolyn Beeler, many questions remain, including whether Israel will continue to occupy southern Lebanon, and what it would take to disarm Hezbollah.

Long-time foes in Libya took part in joint US-led military exercises this week. The bitter adversaries who head Libya's eastern and western-based factions have taken other small steps toward reconciliation, like agreeing on a single national spending plan. But Jalel Harchaoui, an associate fellow at the Royal United Services Institute, tells The World's Host Carolyn Beeler that graft, corruption and other deeply-rooted problems still present major obstacles to reunification.

With prices soaring at the pump around the globe, drivers are increasingly considering getting rid of gas-powered vehicles entirely. New data shared with The World reveals that electric car sales - especially cheaper, used EVs - are surging in several countries. Transportation Correspondent Jeremy Siegel has the story.

National Geographic Explorer Paul Salopek has been walking across continents for his project, the Out of Eden Walk. In that time, his perception of the flow of time has changed drastically from his former sedentary life. He joins Host Marco Werman to explain what he means by that, and shares his discovery of what he calls "walking time."

On Christmas Day last year, the US launched a missile strike in northern Nigeria to counter what some have called a Christian genocide." That military action, and a newly proposed bill in the United States House of Representatives calling for possible sanctions against some leaders, including a prominent governor, have raised questions in Nigeria about what US involvement would mean. Ricci Shryock reports from Kano about how some in Nigeria are pushing back against this narrative.

A law in Japan requires that couples officially have the same last name. But dating companies and even whole towns are helping make it easier to "hack" the law. Hosts Marco Werman and Carolyn Beeler explain.

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said today that he received assurances from China that it is not supplying Iran with weapons. This follows a CNN report last week that US intelligence found evidence of China planning to send Iran defense system transfers. To understand the strategic ties between Iran and China, Host Marco Werman speaks to Ahmed Aboudouh, an associate fellow at Chatham House in London.

Ukraine is showcasing its rapid advances in high-tech warfare. This week, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy introduced his country's robot soldiers to the world, in a video that's now gone viral. He described how his troops captured a Russian position relying only on ground robotic systems and unmanned aerial vehicles. Arthur Holland Michel, a writer and researcher covering AI and other emerging technologies, discusses the implications with The World's Host Marco Werman.