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Wednesday

A Jazz Pianist Considers Fidel Castro's Music Education Legacy

Harold Lopez-Nussa hopes increased exchange between Cuban and American musicians can continue. "I have a lot of hope about this approach," he says. "It will be better for all of us." Eduardo Rawdriguez/Courtesy of the artist hide caption

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Eduardo Rawdriguez/Courtesy of the artist

Music News

A Jazz Pianist Considers Fidel Castro's Music Education Legacy

Harold Lopez-Nussa was trained in the formidable classical music education system set up in Cuba after the revolution. He's among the first of his class to get a deal with a U.S. record label.

A Jazz Pianist Considers Fidel Castro's Music Education Legacy

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For Autocrats In Need Of Statues, North Korea Is No Longer An Option

A statue of Mozambique's first president, Samora Machel, at a city square in the capital Maputo. The monument is one of many similar statues built throughout Africa by North Korean workers. The United Nations on Wednesday banned the export of North Korean monuments, saying the government was earning hard currency that could be used to advance its nuclear program. Thomas Trutschel/Photothek via Getty Images hide caption

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Thomas Trutschel/Photothek via Getty Images

Parallels

For Autocrats In Need Of Statues, North Korea Is No Longer An Option

New United Nations sanctions against North Korea ban the export of monuments. The impoverished Asian nation has made millions by building statues for African nations.

The Americas

Audio Recording Reveals Brazilian Soccer Team's Plane Ran Out Of Fuel

The chartered plane that crashed in Colombia, killing a Brazilian soccer team, ran out of fuel, according to audio of the doomed aircraft.

Audio Recording Reveals Brazilian Soccer Team's Plane Ran Out Of Fuel

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The Americas

After Fidel Castro's Death, Cuban Dissidents Continue Fight For Human Rights

The U.S. deal to reopen relations with Cuba did not address human rights issues, and dissidents on the communist island say that repression, detentions and harassment continue. We hear from some of those still working for what they hope will be a better future.

After Fidel Castro's Death, Cuban Dissidents Continue Fight For Human Rights

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The Americas

Fidel Castro's Ashes Begin 4-Day Journey Across Cuba

Fidel Castro's ashes have begun their journey east, retracing the route he and his rebels took in 1959 to seize control of Cuba. They will be interred Sunday in Santiago de Cuba.

Fidel Castro's Ashes Begin 4-Day Journey Across Cuba

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Politics

Trump's Ties To Deutsche Bank Present Possible Conflict Of Interest

NPR's Audie Cornish talks to Jesse Eisinger, a senior reporter for ProPublica covering Wall Street, about Trump's connections to Deutsche Bank.

Trump's Ties To Deutsche Bank Present Possible Conflict Of Interest

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Swedish Revelers Get Their Goat — Again — As Holiday Tradition Meets Annual Arson

(Left) The traditional Christmas goat made of straw is inaugurated in Gavle, Sweden on Sunday. (Right) The goat was burned down just hours after the inauguration to celebrate its 50th anniversary. The goat has been torched many times over the years. Pernilla Wahlman/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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Pernilla Wahlman/AFP/Getty Images

The Two-Way

Swedish Revelers Get Their Goat — Again — As Holiday Tradition Meets Annual Arson

Every year, the town of Gavle, Sweden, builds a giant Christmas goat. And every year, people try to bring it down. This time around, despite a guard, the Gavlebocken didn't even last for 24 hours.

2 New Works Confront The Refugee Crisis With Empathy And Humanity

Gianfranco Rosi's documentary, Fire at Sea, is set on the tiny Sicilian island of Lampedusa, where tens of thousands of migrants come ashore each year. 01 Distribution hide caption

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01 Distribution

Review

Culture

2 New Works Confront The Refugee Crisis With Empathy And Humanity

Fresh Air

Critic John Powers discusses the Italian documentary, Fire at Sea, and the novel, These Are the Names. The works take very different — but nonetheless poignant — approaches to the refugee situation.

2 New Works Confront The Refugee Crisis With Empathy And Humanity

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PHOTOS: Mass Exodus From Aleppo's Rebel Stronghold As Regime Forces Close In

A Syrian woman carries her belongings past Kurdish fighters as she flees on Sunday. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights says shelling has killed 26 people who were trying to flee eastern Aleppo. AP hide caption

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AP

The Two-Way

PHOTOS: Mass Exodus From Aleppo's Rebel Stronghold As Regime Forces Close In

More than 50,000 people have fled eastern Aleppo in the past four days, according to a monitoring group. This battle for the city could mark a turning point in Syria's war, now in its sixth year.

OPEC Agrees To First Cut In Oil Production Since 2008

Mohamed Hamel (from left), the chairman of the OPEC Board of Governors; Mohammed Bin Saleh al-Sada, president of the OPEC conference; and OPEC Secretary General Mohammed Barkindo at a meeting of OPEC in Vienna on Wednesday. Herbert Neubauer/AFP/Getty Images hide caption

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Herbert Neubauer/AFP/Getty Images

The Two-Way

OPEC Agrees To First Cut In Oil Production Since 2008

With the cut, OPEC's production will drop by 1.2 million barrels daily to 32.5 million barrels. The deal takes effect at the start of 2017.

ISIS Drove Them From School. Now The Kids Of Mosul Want To Go Back

Iraqi children follow instructions given by a teacher (center) during an outdoor class at the Hassan Sham camp on Nov. 10. Felipe Dana/AP hide caption

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Felipe Dana/AP

Parallels

ISIS Drove Them From School. Now The Kids Of Mosul Want To Go Back

A boy from Mosul, now in an Iraqi camp, quit school after ISIS took it over. "The children were terrified," says his mother. "They should be playing, and instead it was blood, blood everywhere."

ISIS Drove Them From School. Now The Kids Of Mosul Want To Go Back

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Free Elton John Concert Tickets Get Border Guard Suspended

A Canadian border guard helped Elton John through customs in Alberta. He was offered the tickets, and two supervisors told him that he couldn't accept them. He took the tickets.

Free Elton John Concert Tickets Get Border Guard Suspended

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The Americas

Havana Hosts Massive Commemoration Event For Fidel Castro

Mostly leftist world leaders joined Raul Castro in a ceremony commemorating the late Fidel Castro. Now, an urn containing his ashes reverses the journey Castro took in 1959 in his march on Havana.

Havana Hosts Massive Commemoration Event For Fidel Castro

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The Americas

Complicated Feelings: 'The Little Fidel In All Of Us'

David Greene talks to writer Achy Obejas about her New York Times opinion piece: "The Little Fidel in All of Us." It examines her complicated feelings about Fidel Castro, who died last week.

Complicated Feelings: 'The Little Fidel In All Of Us'

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