Worldcrunch
BOGOTA — As negotiations continue to try to bring a definitive end to Colombia’s decades-long civil war, another thorny issue related to the country’s violent past won’t go away: the fate of soldiers accused of crimes. The government’s proposal for a specific military justice code to handle such cases was recently rejected by the Colombian […]
A Parisian breast cancer patient kept this journal in the week leading up to her surgery, and sent it to Le Monde.
BEIJING – It’s rare that one sees the Communist leaders of China transformed into caricatures. However, a few days ago a video appeared called “How leaders are made” in which Xi Jinping’s avatar appears, from 2 minutes and 35 seconds onward, as a comic figure along with American President Barack Obama and British Prime Minister […]
PARIS — The loud complaints of European leaders castigating Americans as vile spies who are betraying their allies are quite surprising. Oh, of course, perhaps they felt obligated to say something while they debated together in Geneva about what the common EU reaction to U.S. spying should be. What is surprising is the seeming astonishment […]
ISTANBUL — The battle over gay rights in Turkey is now centered around a smartphone app. A Turkish court has banned the application Grindr, which gives gay men a way to meet and share information, on grounds of obscenity and misuse of personal information. The ban went into effect last month after the 14th Anatolia […]
In 2003, when Singapore, New Zealand and Chile launched the Pacific Three (P3) Closer Economic Partnership, few could have predicted that this agreement would grow into the greatest force driving the economic and political landscape of the region. The changes began in 2008 when the United States joined the negotiations and proposed launching the Trans-Pacific […]
PARIS — Desperately wanting to find their soul mates, people who use dating sites often fall victim to pointless conversations, hurt feelings, and even addictive or irrational behaviors. We spoke with four disappointed users, who share their stories. Julia, 30, stewardess “After being single for a year and a half, I got tired of not […]
Here are some of the songs topping the charts from music hot spots around the world. Worldcrunch Pick: On Thursday, the British punk band Buzzcocks played a gig in Paris, as part of the “Europunk” exhibition in the French capital. Although putting the punk movement in a museum may seem paradoxical at the least, it […]
Let’s call her Juliet. This young woman is one of the few who accepted to tell her story, under certain conditions of course: no mention of her name, not even her first name, of her studies or her former university. “During my Masters, the relationship between my thesis supervisor and I gradually worsened. At first, […]
The explosion of digital technologies and other techonological advances will continue to draw casualties from a surprisingly wide array of employment sectors.
BEIJING — When recently visiting four Central Asian countries, Chinese President Xi Jinping said that the starting point of the ancient Silk Road by which China exported its silk, china and jade to Europe was his own hometown of Xi’an. He suggested that China and the Central Asia countries, with a total population of 3 […]
In Russia, bribes taste good; In Itay, undertakers are on the take; French panty thief and endangered turtle smuggling … and other global crimes that made headlines this week.
How many slaves are there around the world? What’s the (government-set) price of marijuana in Uruguay? Can an online video game star be a millionaire? Take a tour of the news by the numbers…
Since the discovery, Csanad Szegedi, one of the founders of Hungary’s far-right party, has lost his old friends and found a new way to spend his Saturdays.
After being arrested by French police during a school field trip, then deported with her family to Kosovo, 15-year-old Leonarda has become a symbol of Roma everywhere.
TUNIS – At a recent Ghana vs. Egypt World Cup qualifying match, Ghanaian soccer fans wore yellow t-shirts and held signs featuring a dark black hand holding up four fingers. The clear attempt to taunt the Egyptian fans is the latest appearance of what has become an increasingly important symbol of the sharp divisions in […]
The news of the week reviewed by the words that stuck: from Iran to Russia, French party leader Marine Le Pen to U.S. Senator Lindsay Graham, see what was said around the world and why it matters.
Here are some of the songs topping the charts from music hot spots around the world. Worldcrunch Pick: This October, the New York-based record label Luaka Bop re-released some of William Onyeabor’s best works. The album is conveniently called “Who is William Onyeabor?” The Nigerian funk musician, who came to prominence in the late 1970s, […]
Bad-mouthing your colleagues can actually have unexpected benefits, both for the gossiper and the company itself, says the French author of a controversial new book.
IWAKI — Our meeting with one of the “liquidators” of Fukushima’s power plant takes place in a discreet location, out of sight. Talking to journalists is risky, and the man’s nervous employers could use it as a pretext to fire him. “It’s the same thing for workplace accidents — there’s a collective solidarity,” he says. […]
Kiev doesn’t want to risk its ties with Moscow, but can’t afford to pass up economic opportunities in Europe. And where does that leave jailed opposition chief Yulia Tymoshenko?
GENEVA — The resumption of talks this week on Iran’s nuclear program will provide a clear opportunity to verify Hassan Rouhani’s true intentions. During his charm offensive at the United Nations General Assembly at the end of September, the new Iranian President, a moderate religious figure, surprised many by meeting with French President François Hollande, […]
TEL AVIV — The Nobel Prize ceremony is usually an occasion for celebration in Israel, as there is often at least one Israeli citizen among the honorees. This year, two Israelis were awarded the Nobel Prize for Chemistry, but the country’s pride was bittersweet since both scientists live in the United States. The rise in […]
A young climber discovered a treasure believed to be from a 1966 Indian plane crash and turned it in to authorities. Now nearby alpine towns fear wreckage seekers may come in droves.
SAINT-GIRONS — Jean Benazet is still in shock. In the early morning of Sept. 9, he discovered 30 of his sheep lying motionless at the bottom of a cliff. It was clear right away that they had all fallen to their death. He and his herd had been spending the season in the summer pastures […]
LIMETE — Three times a week here, in this municipality within the Kinshasa province of Congo, street children gather in the square to practice Brazilian capoeira, a martial art that incorporates dance, music and acrobatics. For the past seven years, these unlikely enthusiasts of the disclipline have occupied a portion of an abandoned basketball court. […]
Panhandlers, window-cleaners and street peddlers would be targeted in plan put forth by the mayor of the heavily indebted Spanish capital. Good luck collecting…
Here are some of the songs topping the charts from music hot spots around the world. Worldcrunch Pick: On Thursday, Paul McCartney played a surprise concert in New York’s Times Square, after announcing it only minutes before on Twitter. Come on down to Times Square… It’s all going to be happening there! — Paul McCartney […]
Animal-related crime was making news around the world this week, including 30 lizards in a Japanese suitcase and two tons of elephant tusks in Vietnam. Take a tour of Crime Int’l… (photo: iisg)
Since returning from Camp Grounded, Anastasia Savvina sees the world differently. “On the bus, everyone stares at their cell phones,” she says. “People don’t look each other in the eye anymore. And I, who only have an old phone without any connection, I look at them.” Camp Grounded is a retreat for those who want […]
PARIS — Are Nobel Prizes a wicked luxury? This year, like every year for more than a century, Scandinavian juries will honor researchers in physics, chemistry and medicine, an author, and a man or a woman who contributed to peace. The season will end with the presentation of the latest prize, created a little more […]
CRISSIER — Not far from a highway turnoff near the Swiss city of Lausanne, there is a wooded enclave surrounded by a national forest. On a slice of these lands — around 70 acres of woods, agricultural fields and parks — the pupils of the Bois Genoud private school are enjoying themselves in complete freedom. […]
Wednesday, October 8, 2014 AIR STRIKES PUSH ISIS BACK ISIS fighters have withdrawn from areas they had earlier seized in the Syrian Kurdish town of Kobani after a series of strikes from the U.S.-led coalition, Kurdish officials in the town have said, echoing previous a previous report from the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. But […]
HOMS – This city in western Syria is nearing 500 days under siege, with no supply route in or out. Medical equipment and supplies are nearly impossible to find. There are no alternatives for the medicine, be it for chronic illness or for wounds sustained during daily shellings of the city. There are few medical personnel on the scene. In Old Homs, a critical wound becomes more terrifying than death itself. A doctor might need to amputate a limb to save a patient’s life. In more critical cases, the lack of medical facilities means the only option for patients is […]
HAVANA — Though propaganda from the Cuban regime claims otherwise, the everyday reality for Cuban women does not involve fighting economic aggression from the United States. Instead, they struggle to provide basic necessities such as food and clothes for their families — and occasional luxuries such as cosmetics — sometimes having to pay with their […]
Here are some of the songs topping the charts from music hot spots around the world. (photo: Khaled – David Bascunana) Worldcrunch Pick: “Knock, knock. – Who’s there? – The. – The who? – Yes.” Our pick of the week is The Who’s “Quadrophenia.” Oct 19 will mark the 40th anniversary of the British band’s […]
TEL AVIV — “One of my mentors and a very dear Jewish friend once shared with me the meaning of the Hebrew words Tzdakah (“alms’) and Tikun Olam (“healing the world”)…” So began Chinese billionaire Li Ka-shing, speaking in Tel Aviv recently, just before his Hong-Kong foundation signed a $130 million grant to the Technion, […]
MUMBAI — At the height of the Mumbai rush hour, boarding a train is about as easy as finding a comfortable position in a rugby scrum. On the overcrowded platform, those wearing glasses carefully tuck them away in their cases before taking a deep breath and pushing into the compact crowd of passengers until they […]