World News

People sit in a terrace bar at the beach in Spain earlier this month, when many internal travel restrictions were lifted. The EU has decided on its first list of approved travel partners, as part of its reopening of external borders.

EU Sets New List Of Approved Travel Partners. The U.S. Isn't On It

6:57pm June 30, 2020

by Bill Chappell

The European Union won't allow U.S. travelers when it begins opening its external borders this week. It will admit foreigners from only 15 countries — including South Korea and, with a caveat, China.

Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz (right) and his son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, at a session of the 40th Gulf Cooperation Council summit in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, in December.

World News

Opinion: Israel's Annexation Plan Dims Hope For Better Ties With Gulf Arab States

6:17pm June 30, 2020

No Gulf Arab country will seriously contemplate normalizing ties with Israel unless Saudi Arabia does it first. The Saudis, who officially condemned the annexation plan, are nowhere close to doing so.

A Spike In Coronavirus Cases Causes Outrage In Iraq

6:06pm June 30, 2020

by Jane Arraf

A spike in coronavirus cases and a shortage of medical resources has led to panic and unrest in Iraq. Some hospitals are filling, and family members have seized oxygen tanks for loved ones.

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Workers wearing protective suits fumigate an art hall with antiseptic solution as a precaution against the spread of the Middle East respiratory syndrome in Seoul, South Korea, in June 2015.

South Korea Holds Onto Patient Data From Prior Coronavirus, Worrying Privacy Groups

5:00pm June 30, 2020

by Anthony Kuhn

Privacy advocates warn the government has kept the information from 2015 MERS patients beyond a justified emergency period.

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A statue of King Leopold II stands defaced after protests this month in Brussels. Belgian King Philippe acknowledged "acts of violence and cruelty" in his country's colonial past in Africa.

World News

Belgian King Conveys 'Deepest Regrets' For Brutal Colonial Past In Congo

4:04pm June 30, 2020

by Colin Dwyer

King Philippe's ancestor, Leopold II, ruled the region as his personal property and started a notorious system that left millions dead. Now, the reigning king is expressing remorse for the first time.

World News

Turkey's Claims For Drilling Rights In Mediterranean Sea Lead To Threats From Greece

3:51pm June 30, 2020

by Peter Kenyon

A long-running dispute over the exploration of natural gas in the eastern Mediterranean Sea is heating up again. Turkey's new claims for drilling rights have led to hostile talk with Greece.

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu shake hands at this month's Victory Day military parade marking the 75th anniversary of Nazi Germany's defeat in World War II.

World News

Russians Are Voting On 206 Reforms. The Most Important One Will Extend Putin's Rule

3:40pm June 30, 2020

by Lucian Kim

"It is very important to him to have this popular endorsement, even if it is a farce, even if it is a travesty of popular will," analyst Masha Lipman says of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Pro-mainland supporters in Hong Kong hold Chinese and Hong Kong flags during a rally to celebrate the approval of a national security law on Tuesday.

World News

China Enacts Security Law, Asserting Control Over Hong Kong

1:36pm June 30, 2020

by Emily Feng

Despite fierce international criticism and opposition in Hong Kong, Beijing's rubber-stamp legislature passed a law allowing the mainland to impose security measures in the former British colony.

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News Brief: Coronavirus Testing, Russian Bounties, China Enacts Security Law

5:53am June 30, 2020

NPR analyzes COVID-19 testing with Harvard researchers. Did the president know Russia was offering to pay Afghan militants to kill U.S. troops? And, China enacts law asserting control over Hong Kong.

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U.S. Army Special Forces soldiers trained in Afghanistan in 2009. Members of Congress want answers about reported Russian bounties paid to target American troops.

Congress Unites To Demand Answers From Trump On Russian Bounties In Afghanistan

10:07pm June 29, 2020

by Philip Ewing

Lawmakers in both parties demand to learn more from the Trump administration after press reports suggested that Russian operatives have paid Afghan insurgents to target U.S. forces.