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

Wednesday

Bush Reaffirms Iraq Strategy

President Bush delivers what the White House calls an "important" address on Iraq from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis Wednesday morning. The president laid out a strategy for victory, and focused in particular on progress he has seen in training Iraqi forces.

Bush Reaffirms Iraq Strategy

  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/5032260/5032684" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Health Care

Study Details Deaths of Women who Took RU-486

More information was released Wednesday on the four women who died after taking the abortion pill commonly known as RU-486. A study in The New England Journal of Medicine details the infections each woman got after taking the pill. Proponents of the pill say it has the same rate of problems as surgical abortions. Opponents of abortion rights say the pill should be removed from the market.

Study Details Deaths of Women who Took RU-486

Listen
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/5033326/5033327" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Global Warming

Atlantic Ocean's 'Heat Engine' Chills Down

New research suggests something's happening to the so-called "conveyer belt" in the Atlantic Ocean -- the huge circulation system that takes warm waters from the south Atlantic and dumps them off the coast of Europe, keeping northern Europe relatively warm. Some believe global warming may be affecting this heat engine, but others are skeptical, given how complex the ocean can be. The debate is part of a larger effort by scientists to detect climate changes with sketchy data.

Atlantic Ocean's 'Heat Engine' Chills Down

Listen
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/5033329/5033330" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Global Health

South African Bishop Opposes Vatican's Ban on Condoms

A Catholic bishop in South Africa has become a leading opponent of the church's ban on the use of condoms. Bishop Kevin Dowling presides over Rustenburg, an impoverished mining town that has been ravaged by HIV/ AIDS. With so much suffering caused by the virus, Dowling considers the Vatican's ban morally unacceptable.

South African Bishop Opposes Vatican's Ban on Condoms

Listen
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/5032190/5032191" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

U.S. Placing Stories in Iraq Media

As part of an information offensive in Iraq, the U.S. military reportedly paid Iraqi newspapers to plant favorable stories about its efforts to rebuild the country. The reporter who broke the story discusses the controversial policy.

U.S. Placing Stories in Iraq Media

Listen
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/5032876/5032877" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Bush Details 'Strategy for Victory'

In a speech Wednesday, President Bush says there has been "real progress" in Iraq and that U.S. troops won't leave until the Iraqi forces are ready to take over. Democrats say the president didn't outline any new details on what's ahead and didn't offer a strategy for success. Political experts discuss the president's speech and U.S. plans for exiting Iraq.

Bush Details 'Strategy for Victory'

Listen
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/5032873/5032874" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Bush Vows to Press on to 'Victory' in Iraq

In a speech at the U.S. Naval Academy, President Bush reaffirms a stay-the-course strategy for Iraq, defying critics who have called for immediate withdrawal of troops. The president emphasized progress in training an independent Iraqi military and re-emphasized his belief that Iraq is central to a larger war on terrorism.

Bush Vows to Press on to 'Victory' in Iraq

Listen
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/5032752/5032753" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Global Health

World Aids Day and HIV in the Black Community

Thursday is World AIDS Day. According to a recent government report, the rate of newly reported HIV cases among African Americans is dropping -- but blacks are still eight times more likely than whites to be diagnosed with the AIDS virus. Ed Gordon discusses the findings with Brenda Wilson.

World Aids Day and HIV in the Black Community

Listen
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/5032477/5032478" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

As France Curbs Unrest, Questions Linger

Public Housing's Role in France's Tensions

Some analysts blame recent rioting in France on the discontent and alienation fostered by bleak housing projects on the poor outskirts of French cities. The location and architecture of public housing can contribute to a sense of isolation and hopelessness among young French people of Arabic and African origin.

Public Housing's Role in France's Tensions

Listen
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/5032196/5032197" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Iraq Security and Strategy Series

Sectarian Divisions Complicate Iraqi Security Training

Steve Inskeep talks with New York Times reporter John Burns about the training of Iraqi security forces. Burns says reports of sectarian attacks by Iraqi security forces can be difficult to verify for a number of reasons.

Sectarian Divisions Complicate Iraqi Security Training

Listen
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/5032184/5032185" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Bush to Address Iraq War Concerns

President Bush steps before a military audience Wednesday morning to outline his plans for winning the war in Iraq. Democrats and members of his own party are among those demanding a clear strategy.

Bush to Address Iraq War Concerns

Listen
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/5032178/5032179" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Tuesday

A Businessman's Life in Gaza

Barriers to Business in Gaza

Computer entrepreneur Abdelhadi "Hadi" Abushahla faces plenty of challenges to doing business in the Gaza Strip. The roads are cluttered with slow-moving donkey carts, the phones often don't work and permission to enter Israel can be nearly impossible to get.

Barriers to Business in Gaza

Listen
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/5031479/5031554" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Middle East

Examining Political Struggles in Iran

Iran faces new challenges as a younger generation of religious conservatives takes power in Iran. Meanwhile, the country's new president calls for the destruction of Israel and defies diplomatic efforts to control Iran's nuclear ambitions, yet meets surprising internal opposition.

Examining Political Struggles in Iran

Listen
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/5031228/5031229" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript

Day to Day

Cuban Dissident Couple Survive Strains of Surveillance

Imagine all the strains of a long marriage while being under surveillance 24 hours a day, every day of every month of every year... Lourdes Garcia-Navarro profiles Oscar Chepe and Miriam Leiva, prominent Cuban dissidents who have been married for three decades despite their defiant stance against Fidel Castro's government.

Cuban Dissident Couple Survive Strains of Surveillance

Listen
  • Download
  • <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/5031136/5031137" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player">
  • Transcript