Worldcrunch
STRANDE — Just north of Strande, along northern Germany’s Kiel Fjord, stands the Bülk lighthouse, built in 1865 and still functioning. Around it are rocky beaches, a favorite spot for surfers because of the strong winds that kick up waves coming in from the Baltic Sea. Just to the west, a less scenic view: a […]
-Analysis- BOGOTÁ — Lynching, as it is practiced in Colombia and elsewhere in Latin America, represents a kind of fast-track “people’s justice” fueled by anger over persistent crime and contempt for the pace and integrity of the police and judiciary. It’s not a new phenomenon, and a wave of lynchings was registered in Argentina a […]
If you want to catch a glimpse of the Emerald Buddha inside Bangkok“s Wat Phra Kaew, the most sacred Buddhist temple in Thailand, you first have to make it past the two imposing demon statues.
BUENOS AIRES — Who says what is right and wrong in a language? In the case of Spanish, a new international certification system is raising red flags among some Latin American writers, particularly those in Argentina, who say it leans in favor of Castilian Spanish, which will ultimately favor Spain’s cultural and commercial interests. Buenos […]
PARIS — French workers are allowed up to four leave days to celebrate their entrance into a civil union pact. But if a partner or, heaven forbid, child should die, they get just two. Losing a parent or sibling warrants just one single day off work. And there’s no legal leave for the death of […]
ISIS has launched a radio program on the border of Afghanistan and Pakistan, airing programs that target jobless youths and encourage them to adopt extremist views and join the fight in Syria.
CLINTON AND TRUMP WIN CRUCIAL NEW YORK VOTE Frontrunners Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump have moved significantly closer to winning their parties’ nomination after the two candidates clinched resounding victories in the New York primary. With final ballots tallied early Wednesday, Clinton got close to 58% of the vote in the Democratic race, while Trump […]
Many are focused on the race to Mars, but Russia sees a unique opportunity to make an inhabitable base on the Moon. The possibility of lunar life and patented technologies could change the calculus.
A saiga antelope’s head, dried seahorses, horn powder and God knows what else was in those jars … Much like La Paz, Singapore was a great place to buy exotic souvenirs.
Though her victory in New York nearly assures a path to the Democratic nominee, the stature of the former Secretary of State has been weakened in her battle with Bernie Sanders. How does she adjust for November?
KABUL SUICIDE ATTACK KILLS DOZENS A powerful explosion in Kabul, Afghanistan, killed at least 28 people this morning, AP quotes a government official as saying. According to the BBC, the suicide blast from a vehicle injured at least 329 people, some critically. Gunmen then stormed the area, and some news outlets are reporting that a […]
Participating in the world-famous Fêtes de Cornouaille with my choir of traditional folk singing in Britanny, I got to take some candid snapshots of a life that was still very much turned toward the sea.
A recently inaugurated mega-mosque near Washington D.C. is one of many the Turkish government has built in an effort to extend its influence and tout a moderate model of Islam.
MOSCOW — Alexey Navalny is one of most prominent opponents of the Russian government of Vladimir Putin. The 39-year old lawyer and head of the Moscow-based NGO Anti-Corruption Foundation first came to prominence through a blog that takes direct aim at alleged malfeasance by Putin and his associates. We spoke with him in his Moscow […]
GRASSE — They call it “the Provençal permit,” a local custom of sorts that involves building first and asking questions later. The logic is that once a construction is in place, authorities will feel more or less obliged to approve it retroactively. It is surprising how often that actually happens. Recently, though, one land owner […]
Ahmad Derwish, an ISIS soldier imprisoned in Syria, offers a rare glimpse into the realities on the ground for the jihadist organization.
Like military counterparts around the world, the German armed forces must urgently compete with the private sector to attract the Internet’s best and brightest.
Emma Tobin decided to take a gap year in Africa to work on women’s empowerment issues. Little did she know she was about to join all those women across the world who are little more than objects in the face of a male-dominated culture.
CLINTON-SANDERS DEBATE GETS FEISTY The gloves came off Thursday night in Brooklyn as Democratic presidential rivals Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders faced off in the last debate before New York’s crucial primary on Tuesday. Dan Balz of The Washington Post notes that the nature of the Democratic campaign now poses risks to whomever wins the […]
Regardless of when or how she exits the political stage, the Brazilian president will leave chaos in her wake.
We have a tendency to extol our late loved ones for having “fought” against the illnesses that struck them. But those who peacefully succumb to terminal disease are no less brave.
Keiko Fujimori has overcome, at least paritally, her imprisoned father’s past to become the frontrunner to be Peru’s next president. But the runoff will measure fears of a return to the authoritarian right?
As Russia looks ahead to next autumn’s key parliamentary elections, a national economic body has been resurrected in an attempt to kickstart sluggish growth, Moscow daily Vedomosti reports Thursday. After two years of stasis, Russia’s Economic Council Presidium has been revived in order to promote the countrys’ economic growth, as well as to look for […]
VIDEO SHOWS KIDNAPPED NIGERIAN GIRLS Terrorist group Boko Haram released a video that allegedly shows some of the schoolgirls abducted two years ago today in the northeast Nigerian town of Chibok. The footage, which was apparently filmed in December, shows 15 of the 276 girls alive. Their kidnappings sparked an international online campaign, #BringBackOurGirls. But […]
BEIJING — In his book on Confucianism, Taiwanese academic Kung Peng-Cheng explored how Chinese people have historically had among the fewest cultural restraints related to the food and drink they consume. “They eat almost anything,” Kung remarked. Even alcohol, strictly prohibited in many societies for religious reasons, has only occasionally been banned in Chinese history, […]
-Analysis- YANGON — Good luck Aung San Suu Kyi! The hardest part still lies ahead. Such a message might sound exaggerated, even inappropriate, when you think that this woman spent 15 years under house arrest, having always shown tremendous determination against the junta’s generals. Her fight has indeed paid off at last, as she has […]
Who is behind the smuggling of refugees from Turkey to the Greek islands? How are these potentially deadly trips planned and organized? Syria Deeply speaks with a human smuggler in Izmir, himself a Syrian refugee.
SYRIAN TALKS, ELECTIONS, CEASEFIRE BREACHES Voting is underway in 12 of Syria’s 14 provinces where government institutions are still functioning, with voters required to choose 250 members of parliament among 3,500 candidates, AP reports. Supporters of President Bashar al-Assad are expected to win the vote, which has been dismissed by Western leaders as a sham. […]
When my grandson went on his honeymoon in Brazil two years ago, I advised him to go to Paraty, a highly picturesque colonial village south of Rio, with its very colorful harbor and cobblestone streets. He had better weather than I did.
The former capital of letterbox companies has reinvented itself, minus the tax evasion. Liechtensteiners are discretely delighted by Panama’s troubles.
Researchers say they would like to learn more about the full contribution these women make, and what the rise of women farmers means for the future of farming and ranching in the United States.
If you’re eating paella in a restaurant in Valencia, there’s a good chance you’re eating the real deal: The authentic paella valenciana was born there.
Mountains, bison herds, petrified forests, geysers, waterfalls … Yellowstone is one the world’s great national parks. Founded in 1872, it is also widely considered to be the first.
Those people in your life who are always late have a predisposition that puts off decision-making. Question of freedom or lack of respect? A question even in Switzerland.
A French economist specialized in tax havens says only tough new international standards can eliminate the many gray areas that allow the wealthy to pay by their own rules.
More than 70 years after the end of World War II, Uwe Steinz wants to bring the Nazis’ “lower clergy” to justice.
BEIJING — China has some 10 million children suffering from dyslexia, with most left to fend for themselves without help from the country’s educational or social aid structures. Chinese magazine Caixin reports this week on a new survey based on 2014 national data that found 11% of Chinese suffer from the disorder, which is caused […]