Accessibility links
World News and International Headlines NPR world news, international art and culture, world business and financial markets, world economy, and global trends in health, science and technology. Subscribe to the World Story of the Day podcast and RSS feed.

NPRWorld

Many Stories, One World

Monday

Examining Obama's Afghan Speech

President Obama outlines his strategy for Afghanistan at a speech at West Point on Tuesday. Obama will likely face a skeptical audience; support for the war is in decline. Ambassador Wendy Sherman, special adviser to President Clinton, and Michael Gerson, chief speechwriter to President George W. Bush, offer their insight.

Examining Obama's Afghan Speech

Listen · 8:34
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/120963663/120963346" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Middle East

Iran Defies West With Plans For New Nuclear Sites

Iran says its decision to build 10 more uranium-enrichment plants is a direct response to an IAEA resolution criticizing Iran for secret nuclear activities. Iran may not have the capacity to carry out the plan, but its announcement has prompted talk of new sanctions.

Iran Defies West With Plans For New Nuclear Sites

Listen · 4:24
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/120963098/120963830" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

The Americas

Brazilian Middle Class Expands As Economy Surges

Under President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Brazil's economy has surged. His adherence to globalization helped create jobs, and his far-reaching social programs have lowered poverty. Brazilians are more optimistic than ever of breaking the cycle of poverty and inequality that long marked Latin America's biggest country.

Brazilian Middle Class Expands As Economy Surges

Listen · 7:47
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/120940918/120940903" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Sunday

118 Days In An Iranian Prison

Maziar Bahari, shown in a photo released in August by the semiofficial Iranian Fars News Agency. Hossein Salehi Ara/Fars News Agency/AP hide caption

toggle caption
Hossein Salehi Ara/Fars News Agency/AP

118 Days In An Iranian Prison

Newsweek reporter and documentary filmmaker Maziar Bahari was accused of being a foreign spy after the disputed presidential elections in Iran.

118 Days In An Iranian Prison

Listen · 7:39
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/120855744/120925875" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Friday

In Poor Honduras, Election Brings Hope For Stability

Children as young as 7 are among the scavengers at the dump on the outskirts of Honduras' second-largest city, San Pedro Sula. Living conditions in Honduras, already one of the poorest countries in the hemisphere, have worsened since a coup in June removed Honduran President Manuel Zelaya. Jason Beaubien/NPR hide caption

toggle caption
Jason Beaubien/NPR

The Americas

In Poor Honduras, Election Brings Hope For Stability

This weekend, Honduras is holding a presidential election, which many hope will end months of political turmoil. A coup in June removed the country's president, Manuel Zelaya. Honduras is one of the poorest in the hemisphere; the political infighting has only made life more difficult.

In Poor Honduras, Election Brings Hope For Stability

Listen · 5:05
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/120828308/120896240" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
Move Over Manischewitz, Israeli Wines Gain Acclaim

An Arab worker pours Merlot grapes into a crate during the harvest for the Dalton winery on Oct. 7, 2009, in Kerem Ben Zimra, in the northern Galilee region of Israel. Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
Getty Images

Food

Move Over Manischewitz, Israeli Wines Gain Acclaim

The wineries of Israel are gaining global acclaim for their quality product, giving kosher wines a vintage reputation. But many of the finest wines come from vineyards in territories occupied by Israel since the 1967 war.

Move Over Manischewitz, Israeli Wines Gain Acclaim

Listen · 4:09
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/120845694/120883805" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">

Thursday

Cuba Was A Canvas For Artist Belkis Ayon
Belkis Ayon

Fine Art

Cuba Was A Canvas For Artist Belkis Ayon

When Ayon committed suicide in 1999, she was just 32 years old — and already a star in the Cuban art world. A major exhibit of her work now under way in Havana has revived an enduring mystery in Cuba — about art, African myths and the shadowy, all-male secret society known as Abakua.

Cuba Was A Canvas For Artist Belkis Ayon

Listen · 4:27
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/113846410/120863202" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Business

Nuclear Radiation Worries? There's A Pill For That

WFAE

Fear turns out be a very good thing for certain businesses. When North Korea or Iran mentions the word "nuclear," orders pour in to NukePills.com — a Web site that sells potassium iodide. The government also stockpiles this FDA-approved drug.

Nuclear Radiation Worries? There's A Pill For That

Listen · 3:47
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/120751935/120863146" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Wednesday

Pakistan Hemmed In By U.S. And Afghanistan

U.S. soldiers file off the ridge of a mountain where they spent the night in a Taliban stronghold area in Afghanistan's Paktika province, near the border with Pakistan, on Oct. 15. Pakistan is eagerly awaiting President Obama's decision on Afghanistan strategy. David Furst/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

toggle caption
David Furst/AFP/Getty Images

Pakistan Hemmed In By U.S. And Afghanistan

Pakistan is anxiously awaiting President Obama's decision on U.S. strategy in Afghanistan. It's a widely held view in Pakistan that only a political settlement will resolve the Afghan morass.

Pakistan Hemmed In By U.S. And Afghanistan

Listen · 5:00
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/120845897/120846003" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Politics

Obama To Outline U.S. Goals At Climate Summit

President Obama will commit the U.S. to a goal of cuts in greenhouse gas emissions over the next decade at a climate conference in Copenhagen next month. His goal is to cut carbon dioxide emissions by about 17 percent from 2005 levels by 2020.

Obama To Outline U.S. Goals At Climate Summit

Listen · 1:44
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/120825417/120845998" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Obama Reassures Singh On U.S.-India Ties

As a sign of India's rising stature, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was treated to the first state visit of Obama's presidency. The two leaders pledged to strengthen their economic ties, and Obama reiterated the importance of the U.S. relationship with India. During a news conference with Singh, Obama also addressed the topic of Afghanistan.

Obama Reassures Singh On U.S.-India Ties

Listen · 3:56
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/120809111/120809026" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript
In Japan, 'Herbivore' Boys Subvert Ideas Of Manhood

Yasuhito Sekine tastes puddings, which is his day job as well as his hobby. He says today's young Japanese are becoming more individualistic and are "not limited by expectations." Louisa Lim/NPR hide caption

toggle caption
Louisa Lim/NPR

Asia

In Japan, 'Herbivore' Boys Subvert Ideas Of Manhood

The sensitive New Age man has finally arrived in the land of the salaryman. Known as "herbivores," these Japanese men are drawn to a quieter, less competitive life. But their lack of interest in sex is a worry in Japan, where the declining birthrate is causing alarm.

In Japan, 'Herbivore' Boys Subvert Ideas Of Manhood

Listen · 5:00
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/120696816/120809030" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Tuesday

At Gaza Zoo, The Wild Things Return

Lioness Sabrina (foreground) walks in her pen at the Gaza Zoo with her brother, Sakher, in 2007. The two lions are among the few animals at the zoo that survived the Israeli offensive against Hamas militants nearly a year ago. Hatem Moussa/AP hide caption

toggle caption
Hatem Moussa/AP

Middle East

At Gaza Zoo, The Wild Things Return

Almost a year after Israel's offensive against Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip, the coastal enclave is still struggling to recover. Most animals at the Gaza Zoo died during the fighting. Now, with the help of animal smugglers, the zoo is trying to rebuild.

At Gaza Zoo, The Wild Things Return

Listen · 3:39
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/120498709/120775655" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript