Allies, Enemies and Other Horrors
NEED TO KNOW Allies, Enemies and Other Horrors KOSOVO The former president of Kosovo, Hashim Thaci, and other prominent politicians who were […]
New Kids on the Block
NEED TO KNOW New Kids on the Block WEST BANK/ GAZA For years, Fatah and Hamas have vied for control of Palestine. […]
The Spiral
NEED TO KNOW The Spiral BURKINA FASO Security forces in Burkina Faso recently murdered a 16-year-old boy and others in Ouahigouya, a […]
The Cheerleaders
NEED TO KNOW The Cheerleaders RUSSIA Russian blogger Vladlen Tatarsky, 40, had been a cheerleader for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of […]
Taking Out the Trash
NEED TO KNOW Taking Out the Trash NICARAGUA Nicaraguan officials recently aired a prison interview with Catholic Bishop Rolando Álvarez, who in […]
The Hero and the Strongman
NEED TO KNOW The Hero and the Strongman RWANDA When ethnic Hutu militants committed genocide against members of the minority ethnic Tutsi […]
The Revolution Playbook
NEED TO KNOW The Revolution Playbook FRANCE French authorities last week closed the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre and other popular tourist sites […]
Israeli Spring
NEED TO KNOW Israeli Spring ISRAEL Civil unrest in Israel has prompted many observers to wonder if the same pro-democracy impulses that […]
Waterfront Property
NEED TO KNOW Waterfront Property MONTENEGRO The presidential race in tiny Montenegro, a NATO member with close ties to Russian-ally Serbia, became […]
Joyful Warriors
NEED TO KNOW Joyful Warriors FINLAND For the fifth time in a row, Finns are the happiest people in the world. According […]
Banking On It
NEED TO KNOW Banking On It WORLD Christine Lagarde, the president of the European Central Bank (ECB) recently told European Union leaders […]
Books, Traffic and Trauma
NEED TO KNOW Books, Traffic and Trauma IRAQ Twenty years after the American invasion of Iraq, the booksellers of Mutanabbi Street are […]
The Forever Search
NEED TO KNOW The Forever Search MEXICO In what the BBC called a “twisted moral code,” Mexican mobsters affiliated with the Scorpions […]
Legion of Doom
NEED TO KNOW Legion of Doom RUSSIA The prime minister of Poland, Mateusz Morawiecki, is worried. He didn’t like the implications of […]
When Hate Comes To Town
NEED TO KNOW When Hate Comes To Town TUNISIA Tunisian President Kais Saied has recently been claiming that migrants originating from sub-Saharan […]
Voting With Feet
NEED TO KNOW Voting With Feet CUBA Almost 23 years ago, heavily armed federal agents wearing body armor seized five-year-old Elián González from […]
Rubber Duck Politics
NEED TO KNOW Rubber Duck Politics THAILAND Thai authorities sentenced a man to jail for two years for peddling calendars featuring rubber […]
A Hatchet in the Ground
NEED TO KNOW A Hatchet in the Ground SAUDI ARABIA/ IRAN/ CHINA It’s hard to say which is more remarkable about the […]
Lessons, Please
NEED TO KNOW Lessons, Please WORLD Three years ago, people around the world began lockdowns that shuttered businesses, schools, government offices, and […]
The Democracy Two-Step
NEED TO KNOW The Democracy Two-Step KAZAKHSTAN Campaign signs festooned the streets of Almaty, the largest city in Kazakhstan, in anticipation of […]
The Proxy Peace
NEED TO KNOW The Proxy Peace YEMEN The civil war in Yemen kept a rusting supertanker off the coast of the Middle […]
Coming Due
NEED TO KNOW Coming Due GHANA Officials in Ghana’s finance ministry recently said talks to restructure its debt to China were “highly […]
Blazing Furnace
NEED TO KNOW Blazing Furnace VIETNAM Vietnamese lawmakers elected Vo Van Thuong as the Southeast Asian country’s new president in early March, […]