Worldcrunch
A lot of history happened in this room, the United Nations Security Council Chamber in New York. When I went there, the Big Five and the 10 other members had just voted on resolutions about arms embargo in Rwanda, sanctions against Serbia and Montenegro and humanitarian aid in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
-Analysis- HONG KONG — “Super Coordinator” has quickly become the term-of-choice for the Hong Kong government to define its relationship with mainland China. Pronounced for the first time last June by Leung Chun-ying, the Chief Executive of the former British colony, the expression is used to emphasize Hong Kong’s crucial role in linking the mainland […]
Our connected lives don’t happen as if by magic. Nearly 99% of intercontinental traffic, such as Internet and telephone, is made possible by giant underwater cables buried deep on the ocean floor.
-Essay- CAIRO — I did not know Giulio Regeni, but I could have. The earnest, affable face staring out of his photographs is reminiscent of any number of the trickle of European researchers and activists who pass through Cairo and want to meet in downtown dive bars to talk about the condition of the workers […]
RUSSIA PROPOSES SYRIA CEASEFIRE Russia has proposed a ceasefire in Syria starting March 1, but U.S. officials responded that it should start immediately, AP reports. Washington officials belief that Moscow, which has been aiding Syrian government troops with airstrikes, is buying itself time to “crush moderate rebel groups,” AP reports. The proposal is expected to […]
By the start of the 1970s, some new technology had made it to the bottling line of this cognac distillery in southwestern France. Nevertheless, production was still very much a traditional affair: The famous brandy must be distilled twice in copper pot stills and aged at least two years in oak barrels.
SÃO PAULO — As dengue and the fear of the Zika virus continue to spread, local authorities across Brazil are desperately looking for doctors as they set up field hospitals to treat patients infected by the Aedes aegypti mosquito, which transmits both diseases. In cities of the states of São Paulo, Minas Gerais, Mato Grosso […]
PARIS — For the first time since the end of the Third Reich, Mein Kampf has been republished in Germany. With copyrights having expired on Jan. 1, the Institute of Contemporary History of Munich has released a critical, annotated edition of the only book written by Adolf Hitler, first published in 1925. And it’s a […]
Turkey is supposed to guard our borders against more refugees and receive financial aid for its services. But refugees fleeing to Europe across the Mediterranean keep coming.
TOKYO — A growing number of Japanese are climbing the emergency staircases of high-rise buildings and towers recreationally, both for the views they can enjoy from the lofty structures and for the heart-pumping exercise. Climbing events held at such structures offer access to stairways that are normally closed to the public. On Nov. 14, at […]
TRUMP, SANDERS ROLL IN NEW HAMPSHIRE Republican billionaire businessman Donald Trump and Democratic Senator and self-described socialist Bernie Sanders notched impressive wins in yesterday’s New Hampshire presidential primary. GERMANY TRAIN CRASH BLACK BOXES RECOVERED Two of three black boxes from the two trains that collided head-on in yesterday’s deadly crash in southern Germany have been […]
In October, India issued a ban on foreign couples seeking surrogacy there. Now, a proposed law wants to make the entire industry illegal, even for Indian couples. Surrogates and their advocates say it would be a dangerous mistake.
Republican billionaire businessman and television celebrity Donald Trump and Democratic Senator and self-described socialist Bernie Sanders notched impressive wins in the New Hampshire presidential primaries on Tuesday. The Union Leader daily in the small northeastern state featured the two winning candidates on the top of its front page Wednesday, with further coverage on Hillary Clinton’s […]
Oia church, on the Greek island of Santorini, is a one-picture summary of the surrounding Cyclades islands, with its whitewashed walls and its blue dome.
Yes, technology can be biased, racist and sexist. That’s because the creators of algorithms are overwhelmingly white men, and the online results are becoming a huge problem in an increasingly digitized world.
Madagascar supplies 40% of the world sapphires. Pink, yellow, blue or purple, these stones are dug up and sold illegally, with those doing the hardest job earning the least and taking the most risk.
Complaining out loud (and on social media) about the high prices at exclusive restaurants is the epitome of upper class lack of self-awareness. A VIP case study in Bogota.
STOCKHOLM — If you’re not careful, the so-called “sharing economy” can turn your home into a temporary brothel. Swedish police report a growing number of pimps and prostitutes in Stockholm using long-term rentals on the home-sharing website Airbnb without the owner’s knowledge.”We estimate that there are currently about 200 apartments in Stockholm that are used […]
The surface of Emerald Lake, in Canada’s Yoho National Park, was so still that it took me a couple of seconds to figure out whether this slide was upside-down when I came across it last week.
SEVERAL KILLED IN GERMAN TRAIN CRASH At least eight people were killed and more than 150 injured this morning when two passenger trains collided near the southern German town of Bad Aibling, Süddeutsche Zeitung reports. According to the train operator Meridian, both trains had partially derailed. Emergency teams reportedly freed all casualties by midday. “The […]
Fed up of waiting for Brussels to act, countries in Eastern Europe and the Balkans are building an anti-migrant fortress bloc with Hungary’s Viktor Orbán as the architect.
Look no further than fried chicken for signs that American influence is returning to Iran in the wake of the deal to end sanctions in exchange for limits on the Iranian nuclear program. That was the message from influential Republican Guards General Mohammad Hossein Sepehr, who cited the opening of a Kentucky Fried Chicken in […]
A feeling has spread through the popular consciousness: The collapse is near, we’re living on the edge of implosion. But there is another way to look at our complicated world.
GENEVA — Unbeknownst to the general public, an international group of children and teengers, together with a swarm of Swiss-made robots, pulled off a stunning mission to save the future of Mars exploration. Their heroics took place on the “Campus des Nations,” part of the International School of Geneva in the Le Grand-Saconnex area, where […]
Thinkers, writers, popular wisdom: your Quote of the Day from around the world.
TWO SURVIVORS FOUND AMID TAIWAN RUBBLE Photo: Zhang Guojun/Xinhua Taiwan rescuers have found two survivors in the rubble after Saturday’s magnitude 6.7 quake in which at least 37 people were killed, Xinhua reports. The two rescued victims were both found today, the beginning of the Chinese New Year. One of them, a woman, was found […]
CONCORD — On the eve of the New Hampshire primary, Hillary Clinton’s quest to become the country’s first female president has encountered an unexpected problem: She is having trouble persuading women, young and old, to rally behind her cause. The latest sign came Sunday, when a new CNN-WMUR survey here showed Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders beating Clinton among women by eight percentage points — which represents a big shift from the results last week in the Iowa caucuses, where Clinton won women by 11 points. The survey followed unintentionally problematic comments over the weekend by Madeleine Albright and Gloria Steinem, […]
This kite looked a bit lonely, flying on its own in the gray skies above Tiananmen Square.
The Denver Post, Feb. 8, 2016 “What a rush!” the punny front page of Monday’s Denver Post reads featuring a picture of outside linebacker Von Miller whose rushing of the Carolina Panthers quarterback helped the Denver Broncos to a defensive-minded 24-10 win to claim the team’s third Super Bowl title. “Denver’s dominant defense” was key […]
In the past year, the greater Los Angeles area has seen a surge in the number of Chinese buyers interested in the area’s real estate — in particular, those mega-properties valued above the $15 million mark. The trend has been confirmed by both L.A.”s high-end real estate brokerage firm, John Aaroe Group, which has recently […]
There was a time not long ago when imperfect produce was discarded for its aesthetic shortcomings. But now concerns about food waste are giving some not-so-pretty products a new lease on life.
German behavioral scientist Johannes Siebert is on a Pentagon team researching the motives of ISIS followers. Not all are driven by religion, and some even see themselves as humanitarians.
Making charcoal requires cutting down trees and burning them in the ground, destroying in the process not only trees but also the fertility of the land. Farming output is on the decline, and environmentalists are signaling the need for change.
FLORENCE — “My first child died inside me while I was trying to give birth …” Hamdi Abdurahman Ahmed is 30 years old and has a marked Florentine accent as she begins to speak. In 2007, she left Somaliland and arrived in this Tuscan city where she currently works as a cultural mediator. In Italy […]