Europe

Gendarmes patrol by the plane grounded by police based that it could be carrying trafficking victims, at the Vary airport , Monday, Dec. 25, 2023 in Vatry, eastern France.

World News

A plane stuck for days in France for a human trafficking investigation is leaving

5:32am December 25, 2023

by The Associated Press

A charter plane grounded in France for a human trafficking investigation is scheduled to leave Monday for India, after an exceptional holiday ordeal at a rural French airport for four days.

A subdued Christmas Eve in Bethlehem

5:24pm December 24, 2023

by Jason DeRose

Churches in the Holy Land have canceled big Christmas celebrations in favor of quieter, somber worship services. The move is meant to draw attention to the violence in Gaza and the West Bank.

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Ukraine is celebrating Christmas on the Western calendar this year

5:24pm December 24, 2023

by Joanna Kakissis

Ukraine has shifted Christmas from the Julian to the Gregorian calendar, further distancing itself from Russian tradition.

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Despite Putin's grasp on re-election, an unlikely presidential hopeful takes a chance

5:38pm December 23, 2023

by Charles Maynes

Russian President Vladimir Putin's victory in the presidential election next year is not in doubt. But there are other candidates, among them a woman, who's a journalist from outside Moscow.

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Understanding the push behind more U.S. aid to Ukraine

8:19am December 23, 2023

by Scott Simon

NPR's Scott Simon asks Atlantic staff writer Anne Applebaum about giving seized Russian assets to Ukraine.

Martin Luther King Jr. waves to supporters on August 28, 1963, during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom on the Mall in Washington, D.C. Activists marked 60 years since the march in 2023.

2023 was a year of big anniversaries

6:00am December 23, 2023

by James Doubek

In 2023, we marked 20 years since the Iraq War, 50 years since the birth of hip-hop, and 60 years since the JFK assassination. Here's a roundup of historical events we wrote about over the past year.

Children from Madrid's San Ildefonso school sing out the numbers from one of the main prizes from awarded lottery balls in Madrid, Spain, Friday, Dec. 22, 2023.

World News

The top prize in Spain's 'El Gordo' Christmas lottery goes to the number 88008

11:23pm December 22, 2023

by The Associated Press

Lucky holders of 20-euro tickets with the number 88008 are celebrating. They have each won 400,000 euros ($440,000), in the top prize of Spain's huge Christmas lottery.

This 40-foot goat has been burned, battered and bruised... will it survive the birds?

4:47pm December 22, 2023

Every year, people in the town of Gavle in Sweden erect a towering goat made of mostly hay to celebrate the Christmas season and to attract tourists.

People wait for the start of the draw at Madrid's Teatro Real opera house during Spain's bumper Christmas lottery draw known as El Gordo, or The Fat One, in Madrid, Spain, Friday, Dec. 22, 2023.

World News

Spain's Christmas lottery 'El Gordo' starts dishing out millions of dollars in prizes

5:42am December 22, 2023

by The Associated Press

The immensely popular lottery will distribute a total of $2.8 million in prizes this year, much of it in small prizes. Street and bar celebrations normally break out with winners singing and dancing.

World News

Germany's government is warning companies to scale back dependence on China

5:02am December 22, 2023

by Rob Schmitz

The dependence German companies have built up on China helps prop up Europe's largest economy. Germany's government warns against over-dependence. What's the way forward for German companies?