World News

How One Young Iraqi Refugee Is Helping Others Share Their Stories

4:36pm December 26, 2017

NPR's Ari Shapiro checks back in with Ahmed Badr, an Iraqi refugee who started a website to help other young people tell their own stories. Badr just finished his sophomore year at Wesleyan University and has even more projects underway since he last talked to NPR.

In U.N. Art Exhibition, Syrian Artist Unpacks Refugees' Baggage

4:19pm December 26, 2017

by Deborah Amos

An art exhibition at the United Nations uses tiny models of refugees' former homes and the suitcases of refugees to tell their stories.

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Jadav Payeng, "The Forest Man of India," has planted tens of thousands of trees over the course of nearly 40 years. He has made bloom a once desiccated island that lies in the Brahamputra river, which runs through his home state of Assam.

World News

A Lifetime Of Planting Trees On A Remote River Island: Meet India's Forest Man

4:05pm December 26, 2017

by Julie McCarthy

A humble farmer from a marginalized tribal community takes on a solo mission to reforest an island in Assam, India.

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A photo released by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on May 15 shows North Korean leader Kim Jong Un reacting during a test launch of a ballistic rocket. Reuters has identified the man at Kim's right, with one hand on the table, as

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U.S. Announces Sanctions On 2 Individuals Over North Korean Weapons Program

3:55pm December 26, 2017

by Camila Domonoske

The Department of the Treasury has identified two individuals, allegedly key figures in North Korea's ballistic missile development program, as targets for new sanctions.

The U.N. headquarters in New York City is seen here in 2003.

Trump Administration Touts A Smaller U.N. Budget (And Takes Credit For It)

1:11pm December 26, 2017

by Laurel Wamsley

The language in the U.S. mission's announcement led some to misinterpret it as meaning that Washington would reduce its own contribution by $285 million next year.

A woman casts her ballot at a polling station in Monrovia, Liberia, as Liberians go to the polls for the second round of presidential elections on Tuesday.

World News

Liberians Vote For Next President, As Ellen Johnson Sirleaf Steps Down

11:05am December 26, 2017

by Camila Domonoske

Voters are choosing between soccer star George Weah and Vice President Joseph Boakai. This will be the first time in 70 years that power is transferred between democratically elected Liberian leaders.

Nuku'alofa, Tonga. A new island called Hunga Tonga-Hunga Ha'apai appeared in Tonga via volcanic activity.

What Does A Newly Born Pacific Island Say About Life On Mars?

9:21am December 26, 2017

by Adam Frank

Take five minutes of your day, watch this amazing video of the birth of a new island in Tonga, and let its story and science knock you to the floor, says astrophysicist Adam Frank.

World News

One Of The Many Unresolved Storylines Of 2017 Is Iran

8:25am December 26, 2017

by Peter Kenyon

Ask the Trump administration, and Iran is a country not to be trusted. But another U.S. president made a nuclear deal with Iran, and some U.S. allies are eager to do business with the country.

Morning News Brief: Political Headlines, Afghan Suicide Attack

7:30am December 26, 2017

The new year is less than a week away, and it's good time to look back over the past political headlines from 2017. And, a suicide bomber blew himself up near the Afghan Intelligence Agency in Kabul.

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World News

Trump's Jerusalem Decision Cast A Cloud Over Bethlehem's Holiday Season

4:36pm December 25, 2017

by Daniel Estrin

Christian Palestinians in the West Bank city of Bethlehem face a time of uncertainty and bitterness over President Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.