The World: Latest Stories

Search and rescue operations continue in eastern Afghanistan following a deadly earthquake that hit the area on Sunday. The World's Shirin Jaafari has been speaking with aid workers on the ground to get the latest.

Max Richter's acclaimed 8-hour music composition known as "Sleep" - which brought overnight performances to Sydney, Berlin, Paris and beyond in 2015 - is turning 10. To celebrate, not only has the composer released a shortened version of the album (it's 90 minutes long, the length of one REM cycle), but he is touring once again with the live all-night affair, which plays to audiences snuggled up in bed, wearing comfy clothes, for dozing. The World's Host Carolyn Beeler has more.

Thousands of people have marched across Mexico in recent days to demand action on the crisis of disappearances. With nearly 130,000 people officially considered missing, families say the government effort has been inadequate. The World's Tibisay Zea joins a group of mothers in the northern state of Sinaloa as they search for their missing children.

National leaders have at times used government funding to force changes at universities. Hungary is one example. The World's Josh Coe reports on how Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban cracked down on higher ed in his country.

With fewer science students and researchers considering the US as a destination, there is concern of a brain drain from the American STEM community. Host Carolyn Beeler speaks with Marc Zimmer, chemistry professor at Connecticut College, about these concerns.

After the 2021 American withdrawal from Afghanistan, tens of thousands of Afghans who had helped the US military there were granted special visas to come and live in the United States. Among them was the Kabir family. Two sisters in that family have ambitious goals for their education, which they could not have received in their homeland. Reporter Adeline Sire met them and has their story, from Massachusetts.

In the wake of federal funding cuts that threaten scientists' jobs in the US, programs have emerged across Europe to attract those worried American scientists. The World's Gerry Hadden reports from a university in southern France where incoming Americans are referred to as scientific refugees."

The largest contingent of international students to the US comes from India. But with the new restrictions by the Trump administration, many Indian students are considering alternative destinations for college.

When international students return home from the US with a college degree in hand, they can have a lasting, beneficial impact on their communities. Reporter Briana Duggan profiles a Kenyan woman who studied computer science at Augustana College in Illinois and then returned to her small hometown to become an educator.

The US economy could lose $7 billion in spending and 60,000 jobs as a result of the bans and restrictions imposed by the White House on international students. That is according to NAFSA, the Association of International Educators. Host Marco Werman speaks with NAFSA's CEO, Fanta Aw, about the potential impact of visa restrictions.

Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said she was disgusted" after altered photos of her and other women were found on an Italian pornographic website. It follows public outcry earlier this week over revelations about a an Italian Facebook group titled La Moglie, meaning My Wife," where men allegedly shared photos of their wives. To learn more, Host Carolyn Beeler spoke to Cecilia Sottilotta, an assistant professor of politics at the University for Foreigners of Perugia. She joined the show from Rome.

Running a marathon is a big deal no matter where you do it. But running the Abbott World Marathon Majors - Berlin, London, Tokyo, Boston, New York and now Sydney - comes with additional benefits. There is more crowd support, more professionals in the field - and more money all around. The World's Bianca Hillier reports on how Sydney made the list ahead of the race this Sunday.

The Lebanese government is set to put forward a plan to disarm one the Middle East's most powerful militant groups - Hezbollah. The Shia group was created with funding and support by Iran in the 1980s, and has been part of the Lebanese security apparatus since. The group was dealt a heavy blow last year when Israeli forces targeted and killed its top leaders. The World's Shirin Jaafari reports.

Oud player Sheikh Imam and poet Ahmed Negm were the most famous musical duo in Egypt in the 1960s and '70s. Then in 2011, their music became a rallying cry for protesters trying to topple Egypt's autocratic leaders. The story comes to us from Dana Ballout at the Kerning Cultures Network.This story originally aired on Jan. 12, 2024, and July 5, 2024.

Forty-seven-year-old Natalia Nagovistyna's husband, Sergey, died on a peak in Kyrgyzstan in 2021, with Natalia refusing to descend without him. This week, after being trapped herself for more than 15 days on an even more dangerous summit nearby, it appears Nagovistyna has met the same fate. The World's Gerry Hadden reports.

Twenty years ago today, disaster struck New Orleans. Hurricane Katrina arrived. But it wasn't so much the wind that caused destruction, it was when the levees breached, pouring water into the city. Other cities around the globe have suffered from similar circumstances, most notably the Netherlands in 1953 when a high-tide storm breached the dikes, flooding many parts of the country. Dutch engineers have been learning from this disaster ever since. So, in the aftermath of Katrina, experts and engineers in New Orleans looked to the Dutch. One of those experts is David Waggonner, co-founder of the architecture firm Waggonner and Ball. We first spoke to him in 2013, he's back again to speak to Host Marco Werman about the progress made.

The Chilean band Calle Mambo likes to shake things up, both musically and lyrically. Whether its combining Latin rhythms with electronic beats or touching on topics like migration and the environment. It's all there in the title track of the group's latest album "Retumba la Tierra" - the Earth trembles. Hosts Marco Werman and Carolyn Beeler have more.

There are few worse feelings than being stuck behind a long line of cars at a traffic light. Now, Google has developed an artificial intelligence program aimed at fixing the problem. It's called Project Green Light, and it analyzes Google Maps data to come up with recommendations for traffic engineers to reduce gridlock and cut emissions. As The World's Transportation Correspondent Jeremy Siegel reports, it's already being used - with success - in cities around the globe.

When people think of asylum seekers, they often picture desperate journeys to the United States. But this year, dozens of Americans, many of them transgender, have been seeking refuge in Europe, particularly in the Netherlands. They say they fear persecution at home. Earlier this year, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order recognizing only two genders: male and female. Yet, for US citizens, winning asylum in the Netherlands is anything but straightforward. The World's Europe Correspondent Orla Barry reports.

This is the first summer tourism season that international flights have been able to fly into and out of Greenland's capital of Nuuk, using the new international airport that opened in November. It's part of a larger effort to increase tourism, with the government aiming to double tourist visits and boost tourism revenue and employment by the end of the next decade. But with more tourists, there comes more headaches. The World's Carolyn Beeler is just back from Nuuk and brings us her report.

The Wildlife Photographer of the Year contest has been an annual event since 1965. Run by the UK's Natural History Museum in London, this year's contest drew a record-breaking 60,636 entries. The World spoke with the French photographer behind one of top 100 images, depicting a sloth clinging to a fence post in Costa Rica. Hosts Marco Werman and Carolyn Beeler have more.

Russia's massive overnight strike on Kyiv killed at least 19 people and injured many dozens more. Journalist and Kyiv resident Jared Goyette describes the nightly question that people face: whether to wait out incoming fire or whether the attack is severe enough to go to a shelter. Goyette describes what last night was like to Host Marco Werman.

As many as 19 people were killed in overnight Russian missile strikes on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, making it the deadliest attack on the city since July. The missiles also hit the European Union's headquarters in the city, bringing heavy condemnation from European leaders, who feel increasingly responsible for the success of peace talks. To learn more about the latest on the diplomatic front, Host Marco Werman spoke to Nicu Popescu, the head of the European Security Program at the European Council on Foreign Relations.

A top United Nations official in Jerusalem says that the situation in Gaza is sinking deeper into disaster, marked by rapidly mounting civilian casualties, mass displacement and, now, famine." Meanwhile, in the West Bank, things continue to "spiral dangerously downward," according to Ramiz Alakbarov, UN Deputy Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process. But in Israel, there are signs people are growing weary of the war, even as Israel's government plans a new offensive centered on Gaza City. The World's Matthew Bell has the latest.

France, Germany and the United Kingdom today triggered the snapback mechanism to end sanctions relief against Iran. Holly Dagres, a senior fellow at The Washington Institute for Near East Policy and curator of "The Iranist" newsletter, speaks with The World's Host Carolyn Beeler about the implications.

From the first green plums of spring to late summer pomegranates, a seven-acre public fruit garden in Istanbul, Turkey, allows visitors to pick their own produce. The project is part of a growing global trend to plant fruit trees in public spaces for everyone to enjoy. But it's not an entirely new practice. Centuries ago, most humans probably had a "food forest" right next door. The World's Durrie Bouscaren reports.

Two years have passed since the leader of the Wagner Group, a Russian mercenary force, was killed in a suspicious plane crash. Since then, Wagner forces deployed in the West African country of Mali have "melted down" says a new investigative report from The Sentry. Host Marco Werman gets the latest from The Sentry's executive director, Justyna Gudzowska.

The Circling Sun is a jazz collective that hails from Auckland, New Zealand, or as the ensemble refers to its country in the Maori language: Aotearoa. There are nods in the music to Maori culture, but the group's main influence is Brazilian jazz from the 1970s. Co-hosts Carolyn Beeler and Marco Werman give the group a listen.

If you flew anywhere this summer, you were probably offered the option of buying a carbon offset when you bought your tickets. It's an option that's marketed as a way to support forestry or renewable energy projects, to offset the carbon emissions of the trip you're taking. Deutsche Welle, DW's Kathleen Schuster examined whether offset credits actually do what they promise, in this excerpt from the DW's environment podcast "Living Planet."

Oscar-winning director Christopher Nolan has taken flak for filming scenes for an epic reimagining of Homer's "The Odyssey" in Western Sahara, a territory occupied by Morocco. Activists warn that Morocco doesn't give human rights observers and journalists the same warm welcome Nolan received. The World's Host Marco Werman got insight into the issue with Maria Carrion, the executive director of FiSahara, an annual film festival that spotlights the work of the Sahrawi people of Western Sahara. She's based in Madrid.

Some foreign shippers are suspending US package deliveries as a customs tax exemption for low-value goods comes to an end this Friday. Andy Wu, an associate professor of business administration at Harvard Business School, talks with The World's Host Carolyn Beeler about the implications of the global delivery pause.

Like many contact sports, rugby has a high risk of injury. One of the most serious ones players face is a concussion. Now, at the Women's Rugby World Cup in England, a new tool could help reduce the risk of concussions on the field. The World's Bianca Hillier reports.

Host Marco Werman introduces us to Leonid & Friends, an ensemble of Russian, Ukrainian and Moldovan musicians who cover American pop music.

A bloody civil war is ripping through one of the world's most powerful drug cartels, just 600 miles from the US border. In the city of Culiacan, in western Mexico, thousands have been killed or disappeared since violence erupted a year ago. Reporter Tibisay Zea visits the city to hear how daily life has been reshaped by fear, grief and economic collapse.

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.