The World: Latest Stories

Since the start of the pandemic, housing costs in many areas have climbed at a pace well ahead of income growth, with the average price up more than 50% in two years. Canada’s local and federal governments are now pursuing measures to try and rein in prices.

The letter Z has been used to glorify Russia's war in Ukraine. Now, countries like Lithuania and Latvia are moving to ban the letter as one step toward stemming Russia’s pro-war propaganda.

Latin America may become the next region to expose childhood clerical sexual abuse. Some victims have spent decades without coming forward because of the importance given to clergy in the community. But a growing number of people are creating support networks for survivors.

Through glittering costumes, provocative floats and bold song lyrics, several samba schools at this year’s Carnival — the first since the pandemic hit — are paying tribute to the country’s Black history while also lambasting the racism and violence that Black Brazilians continue to face.

India's first female comic superhero has previously tackled issues like masking up during COVID-19, surviving assault, trafficking and acid attacks. On Earth Day, Priya has returned — astride her faithful flying tiger — to show young children the power of collective action in tackling air pollution.

To an American audience, toddlers crossing the road to go to the supermarket unsupervised or helping with household chores would be considered alarming or negligent. But in Japan, children as young as 6 can be seen taking the train or walking to school. And it’s not viewed as something unusual.

To an American audience, toddlers crossing the road to go to the supermarket unsupervised or helping with household chores would be considered alarming or negligent. But in Japan, children as young as 6 can be seen taking the train or walking to school. And it’s not viewed as something unusual.

Bill Browder, CEO and co-founder of Hermitage Capital Management and author of "Freezing Order: A True Story of Money Laundering, Murder, and Surviving Vladimir Putin's Wrath," was once a big investor in Russia. He spoke to The World's host Marco Werman about whether sanctions against Russia are working as intended.

Saudi Arabia could deport a group of Uyghurs, including a mom and her 13-year-old daughter, to China. The news has alarmed human rights advocates who say they could face inhumane treatment upon return.

Surging oil prices are hurting everyday consumers in Africa, but some oil-producing countries have seen a windfall with higher revenues — boosting investment spending in other areas.

For some Georgians, Stalin represents a rags-to-riches tale — they see him as the country’s most-famous native son who put Georgia on the map. Others are pushing for a more comprehensive view of the man responsible for millions of deaths.

Shchedryk Children’s Choir from Kyiv was poised to celebrate its 50th anniversary this year with a world tour. Then, Russia invaded Ukraine, canceling all plans. Conductor Saul Zaks is now on a mission to make sure the world hears the choir’s "magical" sounds.

Thousands of people are pursuing protection from gender-based violence in a US asylum system that was gutted during the presidency of Donald Trump and has been only partially restored by President Joe Biden. Deisy Ramírez was one of them, trying to escape an abusive, forced marriage in Guatemala.

El Shafee Elsheikh, a former British citizen accused of taking part in a brutal ISIS hostage-taking scheme, has been convicted in a federal court in Virginia of assisting in the kidnapping and deaths of four Americans between 2012 and 2015.

Whether the state should be involved in telling individuals what they should and shouldn’t do on their days off has been hotly disputed in parts of the country.

At least 10 Berlin organizations are working together to provide new arrivals with information on where to access LGBTQ-friendly accommodation, legal advice and health care.

Russian opposition politician Vladimir Kara Murza was arrested earlier this week in Moscow. He was sentenced to 15 days in jail in Moscow Tuesday for "disobeying a police order." Kara-Murza is a Kremlin critic and has publicly spoken out against Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Host Marco Werman with Vladimir Kara-Murza's wife, Evgenia Kara-Murza.

When Shanghai residents test positive for COVID-19 and are required to stay at quarantine facilities, there's no government plan for who will take care of their pets while they're away. Now, communities are banding together to deal with the problem.

When activist and politician Sunny Cheung fled from Hong Kong to the US two years ago, he thought he would be free. But his troubles followed him there, where he says he's received threats on social media through what appear to be "fake accounts."

Pressure is heating up inside Germany, with vocal politicians and the public calling for a complete embargo on Russian fossil fuels.

Many of the tens of thousands of Ukrainian seafarers who boarded ships before the war started are now struggling to get off: either in the hopes of staying in the countries they land in — or flying back to Europe. In the US, the shipping industry is asking Customs and Border Protection to revisit decisions in these cases.

The World’s Patrick Winn spoke with Nigel Ng, "Uncle Roger," about foodies, cultural appropriation and the universality of the grumpy uncle.

In late 2021, UNICEF projected a shortfall of up to 2 billion auto-disable syringes needed for COVID-19 vaccines this year. Companies like Revital Health Care, in Kenya, are working around the clock to fill the gaps.

In late 2021, UNICEF projected a shortfall of up to 2 billion auto-disable syringes needed for COVID-19 vaccines this year. Companies like Revital Health Care, in Kenya, are working around the clock to fill the gaps.

Gone are the powerful days of ISIS in Iraq. Now, motley gangs of ISIS militants continue to launch hit-and-run attacks — sporadically targeting infrastructure and killing and intimidating security forces and vulnerable citizens.

Today, there’s only one glacier left on Mexico’s tallest mountain. It’s called Jamapa. And scientists say that as much as 60% of it has melted. Until recently, experts estimated that it had maybe just 40 years left. But now, they say it will disappear within the decade.

Flooding caused by climate change is threatening to destroy historic resources along the Florida coast, leaving archeologists scrambling to learn as much as possible before they’re lost.

When it comes to speaking out against Russian aggression in Ukraine, India has largely remained silent. Defense and energy needs are key factors, but a "heavy dose of nostalgia" is also playing a role.

As Russia's military shifts focus on the ground to Ukraine's east, an information war is being fought on social media and on the airwaves — including in American heartland cities like Liberty, Missouri.

Dozens of young refugees from Afghanistan gather on Saturday afternoons in St. Louis for something that’s crucial to their successful resettlement in a new land: getting to just be kids.

The horrors of Russia’s war in Ukraine are funded in large part by the fossil fuels it sells to the world. Climate activist and writer Bill McKibben says the US should rapidly manufacture electric heat pumps and send them to European homes as a way to permanently weaken Vladimir Putin’s oil-and gas-fueled war machine — and fight climate change, too.

The government is the sole owner of the Life Insurance Corporation of India, but that might change soon. The company is about to be listed on India’s stock exchange.

Hundreds of Russian dissidents and members of civil society who have challenged Vladimir Putin’s government have settled in nearby Tbilisi, the capital of Georgia. The country’s relaxed visa rules and low cost of living have attracted artists, activists and journalists. Some who’ve settled there are now working to support their fellow Russians and protest the war from afar.

Alex Zaytsev has been driving dozens of his parishioners out of Avdiivka, a city that's been on the front line with Russian-backed separatists in Ukraine.

Over the past three decades, MC Armor has made various types of protective equipment, including bulletproof shirts and pants, for dozens of heads of state in the Americas. It has also supplied body armor to the military forces of many countries, including Peru, Guatemala, Chile, Qatar and Nigeria. Now, it's sending gear to protect people in Ukraine.

Locals call Guissona “Little Ukraine,” because 1 out of 7 residents in the Catalan farm town hails from there. And that was before Vladimir Putin launched his most recent invasion. The Ukrainians came to Guissona years ago to work in the local meat plant. Now hundreds more are arriving, drawn by family and the town’s fame.

In recent months, top federal courts in Mexico have canceled controversial mining concessions near Indigenous communities in two regions of Puebla state. About 100 Indigenous activists are now on a monthlong caravan to defend land and water rights across southern Mexico.

Oleksii Vostretsov was trapped in his hometown of Bucha for 22 days at the start of the war. Vostretsov tells his story to The World’s Marco Werman, through an interpreter.

Somalia is facing a devastating drought after two years without rain. It's the worst drought to hit the Horn of Africa in 40 years. And it's pushing many people to leave their hometowns in search of better sustenance.

A growing number of people from Venezuela have been making the risky crossing through the Darién Gap in recent weeks. Jose Loya decided to make the difficult trek, citing xenophobia and discrimination as some of the main reasons why he chose to leave Peru, where he was living with his wife and child.

An abortion-rights activist charged with breaking Poland’s strict abortion laws goes on trial in Warsaw next week. The case is the first of its kind in Europe.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has given various reasons to justify his decision to order an attack on Ukraine. But one thing he talked about early on was religion.

As part of our regular series of conversations with Harvard University’s T.H. Chan’s School of Public Health, The World’s reporter Elana Gordon moderated a discussion with Michael VanRooyen, director of the Harvard Humanitarian Initiative, about the dire situation and the multiple health risks that refugees from Ukraine, and from around the world, face. VanRooyen is also the chairman of Emergency Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (@HHI).

E-cigarettes have been prohibited in Brazil since 2009, when ANVISA, the federal health sanitary agency, issued a ruling against them. But that could soon change.

Interest in the Colombian indie-pop band Monsieur Periné skyrocketed after one of its songs from 2015 went viral on TikTok. A video on the platform inspired thousands of TikTok users to record themselves at home dancing to the chorus of “Nuestra Canción.”

Romania's local deaf community in Botoșani has welcomed at least 200 deaf people from Ukraine since the war began. They are focused on getting people to safety and ensuring that up-to-date information is available for sign language speakers.

The ambassador of Nicaragua to the OAS, Arturo McFields, said that he's afraid for his family's safety, but that he had to stand up to corruption and the inhumane treatment of dissidents. McFields spoke with The World's host Marco Werman from Washington.

Caste was outlawed decades ago across South Asia. But it still exists and has found its way to American campuses.